Yeah that's me, October of 1991, with an IR-based head-mounted eye-tracker. Today, near-IR is used as a DMS [Driver Monitoring System]. A few weeks ago, Keiran Shelden @Keiran_shelden of the Tech Breakfast Podcast introduced me to Stephen Foskett from Gestalt IT. Stephen has been running Tech…
If you're just here for the photos or video, no worries! It's great to see a variety of new EVs hitting the roads of Connecticut lately, spying my first Kia EV6 just last week. Even better when a whole new category of EVs arrive for the very first time, the all electric pickup truck! The vaguely…
Thank you again Jim, for you being you, and for inviting me again! Always fun to catch up, here's some ideas, just in case you'd like to explore any of these a little further. Jim’s Podcast episode and video announcement post: Paul Braren with an Insteon Departure, the EV Decider and Heat Pumps f…
On April 14 2022, Insteon ceased all sales and service operations and shut off their cloud, as was first covered by Stacey on IoT here. Contrary to some very dire looking headlines, this cloud service suspension didn't actually brick all existing devices, and many simple devices like light switches…
If you are a VMware vSphere administrator preparing for the upcoming vSphere 8.0 / vSphere.Next, then this article is for you! Yes, the information here is critical to ANY virtualization home lab enthusiast, and/or any VMware administrator who is planning out how and where they'll be installing or…
Refer to this VMware KB for all release and patch dates. VMware KB 2143832 Build numbers and versions of VMware ESXi/ESX (2143832) Partial screenshot of VMware KB 2143832 on Mar 31 2022, click/tap to view the full article. For detailed information on this release, please visit: VMware ESXi 7.0…
Tesla is a safe EV choice, but I realize that Tesla may not be the the right choice for everybody, especially if you live far from a Tesla Service Center, or you don't road trip very often and charge overnight where you live, like most EV owners. Photo by Paul Braren. Thankfully a few competitive…
This podcast was recorded on Friday Apr 18 2022, using Telegram for Windows to join the TBP crew an hour in to their special 250th episode! Show notes below. Even though I couldn't join for the first hour, the crew let me in late anyway, enjoying my 9th appearance on this fun and informative…
All photos in this article by Paul Braren on April 13 2022. Middletown CT’s Electric School Bus from DATTCO in New Britain, CT. No gas or diesel, no tailpipe, it's electric. Jazz Cup Bandit from Spark Cycleworks, Branford, CT. "The burden of air pollution is not evenly shared. Poorer…
This podcast was recorded on Friday March 25 2022. Show notes below. I had the chance to enjoy my 8th appearance on this fun and informative podcast, you can play this fresh episode in the embedded player below. Table of Contents Click/tap to listen to "243: EV update with Paul Braren" …
Most modern EVs are great at stop-and-go traffic, with easy modulation and precise control of speed, and largely one-pedal driving thanks to regen. Most EVs have just one gear, so no shifting means smooth driving, with no unexpected power changes. Even better is a Traffic-Aware Cruise Control that…
Article & photo (screen-shotted above) are by Cliff Robinson at STH. This product isn't even announced by Supermicro yet, all we have is his article with photo featuring a specs card, for now. Introduction Having looked at a very promising, non-Supermicro fanless solutions in the past, I was…
Introduction Specs for Xeon D-1700/2700 systems are starting to surface on the internet, partially in response to their company announcements at Mobile World Congress. But before I get into those details in future articles, I've been writing quite a bit about my wishes for a worthy successor to…
Feb 24 2022 - TinkerTry YouTube Channel - Intel Xeon D-1700/2700 finally launched, seemingly well-suited for virtualization home labs! intel.com/icelake-d Image from intel.com/icelake-d Image from intel.com/icelake-d Introduction Like Patrick at STH, I've been eagerly awaiting this product…
I have a new video to add to the growing library of EV videos in this growing collection: EV Club of Connecticut Show & Tell videos feature owners sharing their real-world experiences This new addition is the 2022 Hyundai IONIQ 5, one of many new EVs coming to the US in 2022, coming in at a…
Good news, these CPUs were launched on Feb 24 2022, details at TinkerTry here that you should read after this article, where the turned out to be true. Article as it originally appeared below. Disclaimer - This article contains information that may not be complete or entirely accurate, but will be…
TinkerTry | Paul Braren YouTube Channel - Jan 28 2022 - Exactly how I installed VMware vCenter VCSA 7.0U3c, replacing my 7.0U3b rather than upgrading it See also closely related article: VMware vSphere 7 Update 3 is now GA, here's how to download it any which way! (updated Jan 28 2022 for 7U3c)…
This article was originally written for and published by CleanTechnica here. About the author - Paul Braren is an IT professional and tech blogger who covers PCs, EVs, home tech, efficiency, and more. Paul has been blogging for over a decade and has increased his focus on creating EV articles and…
(screenshot above is of VMware's announcement) See also closely related article: VMware vSphere 7 Update 3 is now GA, here's how to download it any which way! (updated Jan 28 2022 for 7U3c) Oct 06 2021 updated Jan 28 2022 VMware had to recall all vSphere 7.0 Update 3 releases back on November 19…
Initially, I saw 251 kw | 1024 miles per hour of V3 Supercharging speed! In the screenshot above, you'll note that Tesla Navigation is suggesting I stop to Supercharge twice on this family road trip. Because of the automatic preconditioning (battery warming) that my 2018 Tesla Model 3 Long Range…
This podcast was recorded on Friday January 7 2022. Show notes below. I had the chance to enjoy my 7th appearance on this fun and informative podcast, you can play this fresh episode in the embedded player below. Table of Contents Click/tap to listen to "EVs with Paul Braren | Aaron,…
Tesla Light Show Mission Impossible programmed by Nick Ray What's nifty here is the whimsy and fun that Tesla has managed to deploy to much of its fleet of recent EVs, at no cost, long after delivery. It really highlights the amazing capabilities that software reprogrammability allows, and the…
Many of my articles have been centered around themes of efficiency lately. This is true for IT infrastructure, and in my home, and on my road to the electrification of everything, my cars and my home included. Given this gradual shift in my focus areas, it seems 2022 is time to update TinkerTry's…
Jan 13 2022 update - See also EV Club of CT's new article, Love Your Gas Car But Hate Emissions? Time for an EV Conversion. Article as it originally appeared below. On Friday December 10th, I had the opportunity to visit the public opening event at Inductive Autoworks, tucked away in the woods of…
TinkerTry - PCs, EVs, home tech, efficiency and more, including virtualization. My opinions here. IT Professional offering part-time consulting.
Paul Braren, MCSE in 1998, VCP #2681 in 2005, vExpert 2014 to 2025, Veeam Vanguard Emeritus, 2015 to 2019.
Easily update VMware ESXi at TinkerTry.com/easy-update-to-latest-esxi
These systems still work great for many even 9+ years later, mine included, even with (unsupported) vSphere 8 and Windows 11 Version 21H2. But unless you added the optional TPM module, it may be the end of the line as far as repurposing them for running the latest Windows 11 Version 24H2 and beyond.
After 6 successful years testing then shipping well over 1,000 Xeon D Bundles, Wiredzone had to stop SuperServer bundles in mid-2021 due to cost, supply, and logistics challenges. Bare bones system sales continued for years longer.
What's next in 2025? I don't yet have my answer for my home lab, especially now that VCF certification is required to keep non-production home lab licenses going, even as a vExpert and VMUG Advantage EVALExperience customer.
As for a SuperServer follow-on, the Xeon D-1700/2700 (Ice Lake D) was a minor refresh for 2023, with Xeon D-1800/2800 (Granite Rapids D) refresh slightly better in 2024, and hopefully Xeon 6 (Granite Rapids-D) much better in 2025 featuring PCIe Gen5, MCRDIMMs, and 100GbE networking, wow! Feb. 27 2025 update update looks promising, but pricey. Infortunately, it's become clear to me that Supermicro is less focuses on the mini-tower form factor these days.
As for the CPU industry, it's unfortunate that Pat Gelsinger was apparently ousted from Intel's helm in these challenging times, but I'm also grateful to have had the honor of working at VMware when he was the CIO there. I'll leave it at that, given the whole Broadcom thing.
