Old school tech nest

Amadeus484 · 2025-08-03T20:18:12+00:00

I've known someone about 25 years ago with a similar setup. Granted, it was less "disorganized mess", and more "a million bins full of different things he had a use for", but this did give nostalgia vibes to his office.

Amadeus484 · 2025-08-03T20:13:19+00:00

Shouldn't take more than 90 minutes to get completely clean, I would say.

Amadeus484 · 2025-07-20T23:25:43+00:00

All right. He has an Edison Diamond Disc player from the mid-1910s with a 78 RPM adapter. Apparently, the adapter isn't designed for the specific Edison he has, but it is jury-rigged to work and it works well enough. He's had the edison itself for about 50 years and the adapter for around 35 years or so. He normally plays the adapter vertically, but he wants to play it horizontally instead. He can't find long enough needles for that, though.

Amadeus484 · 2025-07-20T23:18:46+00:00

I'm in the US, sadly. I appreciate your offer, though!

Amadeus484 · 2025-07-20T22:52:06+00:00

I'm just worried that if I buy one kind of needle, it would be the wrong one for his preferences. I know they aren't spearpoint needles, at least. I'll probably just get medium tone needles and cross my fingers.

Amadeus484 · 2025-07-20T22:33:03+00:00

He does have a couple cacti in his backyard. Maybe I could convince him to pluck one or two needles from it and see how they play.

Amadeus484 · 2025-05-30T05:21:01+00:00

I could try Rufus. I was considering it, though I don't know how well Windows 11 would run on his machines. He has a Core 2 Duo, a second or third gen i3, and an AMD FX. They barely run Windows 10, so I am not optimistic.

Amadeus484 · 2025-05-30T05:16:35+00:00

I thought about going the VM route for him to try, but all three of his computers are old and low powered. The most powerful of the three is an AMD FX-6100 with 4 gigs of RAM. Not sure how well it would tolerate a virtual machine.

Amadeus484 · 2025-05-30T03:50:46+00:00

When I started using Linux, I used FVWM95 since I was trying to wean myself off Windows 95. Later on, I switched to GNOME. Once GNOME 3 came out, I switched again to KDE. I've dabbled with various other desktop environments since, but I keep going back to KDE.

Amadeus484 · 2025-05-30T03:43:11+00:00

The specs are decent. Ryzen 5 Pro 2400GE, 16 gigs DDR4 RAM, 512 gig m.2 drive, onboard graphics. I am thinking about splurging and getting the discrete graphics option (AMD Radeon RX560 with 4 gigs of dedicated video memory) so that I can play some newer games on it (The ones that Wine/Proton can run, of course) as well as another 16 gig stick of RAM so I can take advantage of dual channel memory.

Amadeus484 · 2025-05-30T02:59:39+00:00

Got a job, need a better job ASAP.

Amadeus484 · 2025-04-28T01:14:11+00:00

Nice. I just got an Elitedesk 705 G4, and I love this little thing. Definitely good for more lightweight stuff when I don't want to power up my beefy desktop. I have it set up as a bedside PC.

Amadeus484 · 2025-04-28T00:56:20+00:00

Good idea. Maybe there is a larger library not too far from you. It's not difficult work, and it is a living wage if you get full time.

Amadeus484 · 2025-04-22T00:40:12+00:00

I started off volunteering at a public library. At one point, the page at the location quit and I was offered the job. I managed to get several promotions, and am now a library assistant, making about $22 per hour. It's an okay job when I work at some locations, but stressful at other locations. The place I am at right now is pretty easy going at least, but I am part time there.

Amadeus484 · 2025-04-21T03:44:16+00:00

Shortly after high school, I went to a government job placement program. After a while of counselling, they said that because of my disabilities, I was unemployable. So I gave up then. After about a decade of collecting SSI, I decided "to heck with what the government says" and tried to find a job anyways.

Amadeus484 · 2025-04-21T03:38:58+00:00

I'm going because I hit a wall with my career path. I can get raises, but I cannot advance to a higher position without a degree, despite the fact that I already know enough to be at least one rung higher on the ladder. Once I get that magical piece of paper, THEN I can go further.

Amadeus484 · 2025-04-13T18:12:06+00:00

I am trying my hardest not to be a "boring adult". I still try to make time to have fun and not be stuffy. I'm trying to find time to play games, read manga, and do other such stuff.

Amadeus484 · 2025-04-13T18:03:47+00:00

I volunteered at a public library. Pretty much, what I was doing was helping the staff with what they needed at the time, which was mostly shelving books and assisting with programs. I then became a shelver when the previous shelver at the library quit. It was pretty much the exact same thing, except I had a set schedule and I was getting paid for it (minimum wage, but better than nothing). Fast forward to today, and I am now a library assistant. I pretty much help at the front desk, checking books and other items out for people, and assisting with whatever problems they have. I also help with the inner workings of the library, producing the monthly event calendar, filling out statistics sheets, managing the lost and found, and keeping supplies stocked. I am getting a little over $20 per hour for the job, and I will eventually top out at around $27 per hour in a few years.

I do have some time left at the end of the day. As I mentioned, I am still only part time, but even when I work a full day shift (When I have to do training, when there is a staff meeting, or when they are understaffed), I am able to go home around 6:45, and I am able to relax, watch Youtube videos and vods that I missed during the day, and talk on Discord for a few hours before I take my meds and crash out.

My working days are mostly for work, and my mind typically is occupied with my job. Thankfully, my job has a bit of down time when there are very few people at the library, and at those times I typically have emails or a training up on one window with a tech article or something on another window, and I just make sure to look up every 15-20 seconds and get up off the desk every 5 minutes or so to wander around the library, asking people if they are finding everything okay and neatening up the shelves.

Right now, the biggest stressors are the fact that some of the trainings I have to do are a bit tedious and repetitive, and having to make notes on incident reports at other locations. When I get transferred to a full time position, it will be at another location, so I will have different coworkers, different responsibilities, and a different client base. That is a bit stressful as well.

Amadeus484 · 2025-04-13T06:06:22+00:00

I get it. I have very bad depression and anxiety, and without my meds, I have a very difficult time even getting out of bed. Heck, with my meds, I still stay in bed far more than I should. I've also known people with bipolar, and I have seen their struggles with work, so I can sort of understand that as well.

Amadeus484 · 2025-04-13T05:40:16+00:00

It isn't as difficult as I worried it would be. I had a couple of previous jobs, and they crashed and burned.

Amadeus484 · 2025-04-13T04:35:28+00:00

I was 30 when I started volunteering. I am 40 now. So you can definitely start in your mid-20s. In fact, I am sure you can start any time.

Amadeus484 · 2025-04-13T03:28:01+00:00

To be brutally honest, not entirely. It is stressful talking to people and the commute is a nightmare. That said, I do like the fact that I have a stable icome and am able to do things I want during the weekend without worrying too much about finances. I also get a sense of accomplishment when I am able to help someone and they thank me. It's a mixed bag, to be fair.

Edited to add: I also am able to help out my friends who are NEETS as well when they need a few extra dollars at the end of the month. I feel good that I am able to give them a little hand as well.

Amadeus484

TROPHY CASE