Kyle Rankin @kyle@librem.one

I figured I should change my profile picture on here to match what I used most recently on Twitter, in preparation of people moving over to Mastodon.

@sbeebe Yes I would say that Comptometer and the Curta are great examples of peak mechanical calculators, with a Marchant Silent Speed being another if you include electrically-driven ones.

In 15 minutes (1:30 pm PST) I will be presenting about Snitching on Apps That Snitch on You using OpenSnitch ⁨@lfnw⁩. Drop on by if you are interested in an effective approach to desktop firewalls. https://lfnw.org/conferences/2022/program/proposals/653

@lwriemen I'd consider it praise. I think you can make a strong argument that spreadsheet software in general and Excel specifically is the most consequential and most important single piece of software for business.

@sbeebe The register is in the front of the device lined up with each column of keys. In the picture everything is currently blank but once you depress a key it would add to the corresponding register. I demo a similar (but a few decades older) Comptometer in this thread.

https://social.librem.one/@kyle/107113386138173691

Once I finish cleaning and repairing this one I'll follow up with a thread demoing and explaining it.

This evening I'm cleaning, repairing and refurbishing a Comptometer model 3D11 from the 1950s. This was the last Comptometer the company made and has its final speed and accuracy improvements before the world moved to electronic calculators.

Check out this giant electric accounting machine! It's a combination typewriter and adding machine that is basically the electromechanical Excel of its day.

@Konqi It is a combination of local antique and thrift stores, local sellers, and eBay. It is surprising how much they show up when you start looking for them.

I'm speaking ⁨at LinuxFest Northwest⁩ this weekend on Saturday and Sunday:

https://lfnw.org/conferences/2022/program/proposals/652
https://lfnw.org/conferences/2022/program/proposals/653

It's being done virtually and I don't know if there will be video, but if so and you are wondering what all that stuff is in my background, here's a better picture.

@foolman Looks like a Jacquard loom! It was discovering the history of that loom while researching mechanical calculators that planted the seed for my weaving hobby.

I'm skeptical of backdoor hardware implants en masse not because they're impossible, but because backdoors in proprietary firmware are easier to implement, to hide, and to explain away when discovered.

I'm not saying this was malicious, but "debug version w/ backdoor added to prod by accident" is a great way to explain away a driver literally named SecureBackDoor. https:://www.welivesecurity.com/2022/04/19/when-secure-isnt-secure-uefi-vulnerabilities-lenovo-consumer-laptops/

I finished my handwoven overshot napkins! They are ready just in time to (maybe) use for Easter dinner. I learned a lot about weaving complex patterns and was able to make all of my mistakes in a project where they didn't matter much. We're wiping our mouths with these after all!

I've had a leg in both Twitter and Mastodon for years now and post simultaneously in both. I prefer Mastodon in basically every way. The main thing that keeps me on Twitter are folks who aren't (yet) on Mastodon.

My son needed help with a math problem so he came to my office. He came to the right place. Today I opted for the R.C. Allen 75 so I could tear off the paper tape demonstrating the calculations.

This weekend I finally started work on the mechanical calculator museum in my office! I plan on hanging more memorabilia on the walls and will type out placards for the calculators on display.

Estate sales are the way to go for quality yarn if you know what to look for. I just bought this collection of yarn (mostly wool and cotton) for the price of a single small skein of the yarn you see in front, if it were new. ⁨#weaving⁩ ⁨#yarn