From Dave’s Garage.
Welcome to this special edition of “Shop Talk” with Dave Plummer and Glen Hodges, where we dive into your burning questions from the comments and explore a variety of fascinating tech topics! 🚀🔧
In this episode:
• The Hunt for Vintage Tech: Dave and Glen discuss the dwindling availability of classic tech like pay phones and how the world of vintage tech collecting is evolving.
• PDP-11 Restoration Update: Dave shares the latest on his ongoing PDP-11/73 restoration project, including unexpected challenges, component troubleshooting, and what it takes to keep a vintage machine alive.
• The Evolution of Pay Phones: Did you know pay phones are still around? Discover why some people are still hunting for them!
• Tech Nostalgia and Collecting: From TRS-80s to old SD cards, Dave reveals some hidden gems in his collection, including a brand new-in-box TRS-80 Model 1 Level 1 and why he was desperately hunting for vintage gear as a kid.
• Elon Musk, Tesla, and X (Twitter): We dive into the big questions around Elon Musk’s ventures, Tesla stock, and whether X (formerly Twitter) could be worth 10 times more in the near future.
• Navigating the Digital Age: As technology pushes more services online, what challenges do seniors and less tech-savvy folks face? Dave and Glen talk about their moms’ struggles and offer advice for managing in a rapidly changing world.
• Retirement, Travel, and Autism: Dave opens up about his life post-Microsoft, including his travels, the impact of autism on his routine, and the accommodations that help him navigate a world outside his comfort zone.
• Arcade Games and Coin Machines: Discover the fascinating mechanics behind payphones, arcade machines, and why a simple coin could make different sounds on a bell!
• Email Security and Services: From self-hosted solutions to Google and ProtonMail, Dave shares his insights on choosing the best email services for security and privacy.
• Future of Tech and Computing: What’s the next big thing in tech, and what are Dave and Glen most excited about? Hear their thoughts on where computing and tech will go from here.
Whether you’re a retro computing enthusiast, a tech hobbyist, or just curious about the latest tech trends and stories, this episode has something for everyone!
Sorry for the audio quality – I’m still learning the podcast software, and must have had some kind of noise cancelation on by default! We’ll get better, I promise!
For my book on the spectrum, see: https://amzn.to/3XLJ8kY
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