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December 08, 2022

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TI - Graphing Calculators

If you went to school in the US during the 1990s, and in to the early 2000s, you probably owned, or at least used, a Texas Instruments 80s Series calculator.

The TI-81 was released in 1990 and immediately gained ground in schools across America. This z80 based hand-held computer was able to do anything a scientific calculator could do. It even included TI Basic, a Basic language which allowed users to write in programs to solve very complex problems. None of this was really new. Programmable calculators had been out for years. But the new trick up this calculator's sleeve, was the ability to draw graphics; specifically graphs.
This was obviously something that was typically reserved for more capable computers at the time.
For less than $150, you could own a hand held computer.
School districts across the country began purchasing class sets. TI made it easy by bundling sets with a teacher's edition of the calculator. The teacher's edition was specially modified so it could connect to an external lcd screen and be projected on the wall. (More on those another day.)

But the TI-81 had one fatal flaw. Something that really kept it from becoming the defacto standard.
Every single person had to manually enter in thier own programs. This meant that if you came up with something amazing, you couldn't share it. Worse, changing the batteries wiped the full memory.

This limitation didn't last long as Texas Imstruments released the TI-85 in 1992.
This new model used the same z80 processor, bit was somehow now many times faster.
This new calculator corrected many issues with the TI-81 including adding a backup/coin-cell battery (they added this to the TI-81 around the same time. But it wasn't there originally.) And the greatest improvement of all...
TI-Link
This new, little cable, meant that programs could be shared between students and teachers. The cable, which was simply a 3-wire cord with a 2.5mm jack on each end, changed the world for students.
Very soon after the release of the calculator, Texas Instruments released the TI-Graph Link cable, a serial cable allowing users to connect the TI-85 to a windows 3.11 or Mac OS computer, copy files and even write programs on the computer.

This new calculator came at a much higher price, preventing it from gaining mass adoption.

To be continued....

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AI + Rust = More Backdoors

Have a goal of inserting undetected backdoors (and other exploits) into popular software? Rust & Al code generation are here to help.

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00:16:05
Open Source Projects Banning AI, From QEMU to NetBSD

While the Linux Kernel is becoming "Vibe Coded", other Open Source projects are outright banning all Al / LLM contributions. Including Haiku, OBS, Zig, & more.

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00:12:29
Omarchy Linux 4 Mostly Written by AI

"Being into open source and recoiling from vibe coding is a contradiction in terms," says the Ruby on Rails & Omarchy Linux creator.

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00:17:55
November 22, 2023
The futility of Ad-Blockers

Ads are filling the entirety of the Web -- websites, podcasts, YouTube videos, etc. -- at an increasing rate. Prices for those ad placements are plummeting. Consumers are desperate to use ad-blockers to make the web palatable. Google (and others) are desperate to break and block ad-blockers. All of which results in... more ads and lower pay for creators.

It's a fascinatingly annoying cycle. And there's only one viable way out of it.

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The futility of Ad-Blockers
November 21, 2023
openSUSE says "No Lunduke allowed!"

Those in power with openSUSE make it clear they will not allow me anywhere near anything related to the openSUSE project. Ever. For any reason.

Well, that settles that, then! Guess I won't be contributing to openSUSE! 🤣

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openSUSE says "No Lunduke allowed!"
September 13, 2023
"Andreas Kling creator of Serenity OS & Ladybird Web Browser" - Lunduke’s Big Tech Show - September 13th, 2023 - Ep 044

This episode is free for all to enjoy and share.

Be sure to subscribe here at Lunduke.Locals.com to get all shows & articles (including interviews with other amazing nerds).

"Andreas Kling creator of Serenity OS & Ladybird Web Browser" - Lunduke’s Big Tech Show - September 13th, 2023 - Ep 044
6 hours ago

Played with a Nothing Phone at BestBuy today. There were two models on display. Both are modular, privacy centric phones with replacable parts.

Well, they keep selling out. The sales guy says no store can keep them in stock.

People know.

https://us.nothing.tech/collections/phones

8 hours ago

Nobody gets my data except for my Grubby Hands!! :)

16 hours ago

Companies using AWS have to carefully manage users to prevent surprise bills. Leaving a single server accidentally running can cost tens of thousands a month.

Claude tokens are the same. Employees who refuse to use any tools but AI, or who can't use any tool but AI, can run up bills of $100k or more - each - if the token budget isn't managed.

Case in point:

An unnamed enterprise client accidentally racked up a $500 million bill on Anthropic's Claude AI in a single month after failing to set usage limits or spending caps for its employees.

https://finance.yahoo.com/sectors/technology/articles/client-accidentally-burns-500-million-105400717.html

The "Windows 1.0" Lunduke Lifetime Wall is here!

Two awesome tidbits:

  1. The 7th Lifetime Subscriber Wall (aka “The Solaris Wall”) is full! No room for any more names! You can see the final version on the bottom of Lunduke.com (and at the end of new shows).

  2. The 8th Lifetime Wall will make its debut on Monday! The retro computing platform chosen for Wall number 8 will be… Windows 1.0!

If you would like to see your name immortalized in a screenshot of the very first version of Windows, from 1985, displayed on both Lunduke.com & at the end of all Lunduke Journal shows (you know you do):

Support the Lunduke Journal… and, at the same time, have your name immortalized in a screenshot of the operating system with (arguably) the worst color scheme in human history.

It’s a win-win.

 

-Lunduke

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Lifetime "Solaris" Wall almost full!

Just a quick heads up that the 7th “Lunduke Journal Lifetime Subscriber Wall”, aka “The Solaris Wall”, is almost full!

The Solaris Wall has enough space for maybe 6 or 7 more names (depending on name length)… before we lock it down and move on to Wall Number 8 (which will be another retro computing platform).

Hard to say how long until the Solaris Wall is full… but no more than a few days. These things fill up fast.

First come, first served.

Huge thank you to every subscriber. The Lunduke Journal wouldn’t be possible without you. You rule.

-Lunduke

 
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Last call for the "Amiga" Lifetime Subscriber Wall. It's almost full!

Holy smokes, that was fast.

The 6th Lunduke Journal Lifetime Subscriber Wall (aka the “Amiga OS 3.1” Wall) was introduced… what… a week ago?

I kid you not, the darn thing is already almost full! I was wildly unprepared for how popular this would be!

There’s enough space left for maybe 5 or 6 more names. Tops. Then I’ve gotta declare “Wall 6 (Amiga) is Full” and start Wall Number 7!

Here’s what all of the Lifetime Subscriber Walls look like (each shown at the end of every Lunduke Journal video):

 

If you want to get onto the Lifetime Subscriber Wall (and have any chance of making it onto the Amiga Wall before it’s full) here’s what you need to do (and do it quickly):

  1. Grab a Lifetime Subscription to The Lunduke Journal (if you don’t already have one).

    1. A Lifetime Sub includes all the standard perks (plus a few) and can be picked up via Locals, Substack, or Bitcoin (whichever you prefer).

  2. Email “bryan at lunduke.com” and let me know how you would like your name displayed (“Joe A.”, “Joseph Arnold”, “JoeyPants”, “SirJJMcManly”, etc.)

It’s first come, first served.

If you’ve already emailed me about being added to the wall, your spot is secured.

For the rest of you: Chop chop. At the current rate, I would be very surprised if the “Amiga Wall” wasn’t full by some time this weekend.

“Lifetime Wall 7” will be unveiled after the final name is added to the Amiga Wall. And, yes, it will be a different (awesome) retro computing platform.

As always, a huge thank you to every subscriber to The Lunduke Journal. Absolutely none of this would be possible without your support.

-Lunduke

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