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MacBook on Willem's Blog

Offline Music

Streaming Music Alternative

July 17, 2022
People sometimes act suprised when I tell them about my music hobby, manually converting CD's to lossless audio files; there is some reason to this madness however!

Music has the universal power to move people. Different rhythms, emotions and vocals enable us to enjoy music very personally. Music is very close to my heart and I don't like anything to get in between. Therefore I don't rely on streaming music services, but manage my own offline music library.

Why Apple Silicon is a big deal

Blown away by a MacBook Air

Dec. 15, 2020
Never have I been so blown away as by the new MacBook Air with M1 processor. It is a big deal.

Apple now designs its own processors and I had a chance to work with the very latest from Cupertino: a brand new MacBook Air with M1 processor. Never ever have I been so blown away by a MacBook Air, pun intended. Let me share some thoughts why I think Apple Silicon is a big deal.

Building a professional 72TB NAS

Configuration and installation of an HPE ProLiant DL380 server

Nov. 22, 2019
This month I installed a professional HPE ProLiant DL380p server in a datacenter in Amsterdam, read this post to see how this was done!

Over the past few years I have been moving my data and work from local computers (mostly laptops) into the cloud. Cloud computing is done by servers in a datacenter, powerful computers that do the hard work. As my company grew, I needed more capacity. It was time to add some power to my cloud!

Saving a MacBook Air with exploded battery

Don’t try this at home - but I did

Sep. 14, 2017
Saving a MacBook Air with a swollen battery pack.

Last night I had a nasty surprise: my original MacBook Air was swollen due to an exploded battery. I immediately had to take action, for reasons of safety and to preserve this piece of modern computer history. Don’t try this at home, but if you do... read along for some practical tips.

Building the blog... in style!

Developing on a 20-year old computer with 16MB RAM and Windows 98

June 23, 2016
Find out if it is possible to turn a computer from the 90s into a modern development machine.

One must be a bit crazy to come up with the idea to build a blog (as in: actual programming) on an old 486 laptop with just 16MB RAM. I happen to be that crazy: I took my very first laptop from the 90s and decided to find out if it was possible to turn it into a development machine.

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Integrating chips inside the processor reduces the need to transfer data hence and forth to other (external) chips
Integrating chips inside the processor reduces the need to transfer data hence and forth to other (external) chips
Original iPod ad: Say hello to iPod. 1000 songs in your pocket
Original iPod ad: Say hello to iPod. 1000 songs in your pocket
VIM running on the 486 through PuTTY
VIM running on the 486 through PuTTY
This battery is dead.
This battery is dead.
MacBook acting as monitor and keyboard of the server
MacBook acting as monitor and keyboard of the server
Make sure to remember what screw went where...
Make sure to remember what screw went where...
Toshiba T2130CT laptop with a 75Mhz Intel 486 processor and a whopping 16MB RAM (that is megabytes!)
Toshiba T2130CT laptop with a 75Mhz Intel 486 processor and a whopping 16MB RAM (that is megabytes!)
Once removed the deformation in the battery pack is clearly visible
Once removed the deformation in the battery pack is clearly visible
I had to remove the original disk because it didn't work... or so I thought!
I had to remove the original disk because it didn't work... or so I thought!
Never thought I would be happy to see this: the Windows 98 boot screen!
Never thought I would be happy to see this: the Windows 98 boot screen!
MacBook connected to the server in the datacenter through VMWare ESXi - installing GRUB boot loader on a virtual Debian GNU/Linux server
MacBook connected to the server in the datacenter through VMWare ESXi - installing GRUB boot loader on a virtual Debian GNU/Linux server
Original iPod ad from 2005 - advertising pure emotion, not any technical specification
Original iPod ad from 2005 - advertising pure emotion, not any technical specification
Driving to the internet: visiting XS4ALL / KPN in Amsterdam
Driving to the internet: visiting XS4ALL / KPN in Amsterdam
Computers on my desk powering the installation from left to right: ThinkPad X1, iPad Pro and MacBook
Computers on my desk powering the installation from left to right: ThinkPad X1, iPad Pro and MacBook
My private concert hall: Shure SE846 earphones on the DreamDuet crystal cable, no need for active noise reduction as these earphones isolate perfectly
My private concert hall: Shure SE846 earphones on the DreamDuet crystal cable, no need for active noise reduction as these earphones isolate perfectly
I disconnected the battery from the logic board using a plastic tool (that does not conduct electricity).
I disconnected the battery from the logic board using a plastic tool (that does not conduct electricity).
Astell&Kern Ultima SP2000 - it connects to headphones, stereo systems and it can even stream wirelessly using Bluetooth APT(X)
Astell&Kern Ultima SP2000 - it connects to headphones, stereo systems and it can even stream wirelessly using Bluetooth APT(X)
Steve Jobs unveiling the MacBook Air in 2008 from a vanilla envelope
Steve Jobs unveiling the MacBook Air in 2008 from a vanilla envelope

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