Nick Melnick
@nmelnick.com
Generating tech debt at speed yet innovating forward. Tech Leadership @ Jack Henry, Retro @ Home. He/him.
My Neptune 3 has served me well as my first 3D printer, but I use it (and get frustrated) enough that I broke down and bought something nice - a Bambulab P1S with AMS. I'm pretty sure I'm in love (and broke). It's fast, no nonsense, built in camera, built in filament changes, and networked. Wild.
November 17, 2025 at 2:49 PM
My Neptune 3 has served me well as my first 3D printer, but I use it (and get frustrated) enough that I broke down and bought something nice - a Bambulab P1S with AMS. I'm pretty sure I'm in love (and broke). It's fast, no nonsense, built in camera, built in filament changes, and networked. Wild.
This is still my least favourite part of retro computing, but it sure is nice to type on a clan keyboard that doesn’t smell of cigarettes.
November 16, 2025 at 1:40 AM
This is still my least favourite part of retro computing, but it sure is nice to type on a clan keyboard that doesn’t smell of cigarettes.
Sorry to vaguepost, but I think my life needs a rebrand.
October 16, 2025 at 12:18 AM
Sorry to vaguepost, but I think my life needs a rebrand.
Reposted by Nick Melnick
Setup is beginning for VCF Midwest… even bigger than before! #VCFMW #VCFMidwest
September 12, 2025 at 1:41 AM
Setup is beginning for VCF Midwest… even bigger than before! #VCFMW #VCFMidwest
Packing for VCFMW is only making my to do list longer.
September 10, 2025 at 1:10 AM
Packing for VCFMW is only making my to do list longer.
Hey, my friend and I are going to be at #VCFMW next weekend, September 13th and 14th in Schaumburg, IL! I won't have anything to exhibit, but we are selling some retro odds and ends from 8 to 32 bit. Come say hi, even if you aren't buying, at Z24, 25, and 26.
September 6, 2025 at 8:29 PM
Hey, my friend and I are going to be at #VCFMW next weekend, September 13th and 14th in Schaumburg, IL! I won't have anything to exhibit, but we are selling some retro odds and ends from 8 to 32 bit. Come say hi, even if you aren't buying, at Z24, 25, and 26.
Picked up a RAM tester on AmiBay, and this is so much better than the random assortment of Arduino hacks I used before this.
August 15, 2025 at 11:55 PM
Picked up a RAM tester on AmiBay, and this is so much better than the random assortment of Arduino hacks I used before this.
Work and home have been so busy lately that I haven’t had time to play. I went to boot my SGI Indigo2 and nothing. Turns out I forgot to secure one ribbon cable, and it was just loose enough to be a problem.
I should make more time.
I should make more time.
July 19, 2025 at 2:45 AM
Work and home have been so busy lately that I haven’t had time to play. I went to boot my SGI Indigo2 and nothing. Turns out I forgot to secure one ribbon cable, and it was just loose enough to be a problem.
I should make more time.
I should make more time.
Man, computers used to be so much more cool.
July 11, 2025 at 11:16 PM
Man, computers used to be so much more cool.
I've been away from #Perl for years, but this hit me in the gut. mst was loud, passionate, potentially troubled, incredibly intelligent. So much was possible because of him (Catalyst, DBIx::Class). You touched lives, and made things live. Rest in peace, Matt.
www.shadowcat.co.uk/2025/07/09/r...
www.shadowcat.co.uk/2025/07/09/r...
“Ripples They Cause in the World” – Shadowcat Systems Limited
www.shadowcat.co.uk
July 11, 2025 at 12:20 AM
I've been away from #Perl for years, but this hit me in the gut. mst was loud, passionate, potentially troubled, incredibly intelligent. So much was possible because of him (Catalyst, DBIx::Class). You touched lives, and made things live. Rest in peace, Matt.
www.shadowcat.co.uk/2025/07/09/r...
www.shadowcat.co.uk/2025/07/09/r...
Reposted by Nick Melnick
#VCFMW 20 Table Requests are open! (closing 7/11 19:00 CDT): forms.gle/UCwSn9S3Gc8Q...
Tables will be granted for a donation, which gets you a table, tablecloth, and power. You can also delete the table, to receive an open space (for those who are bringing racks, rolling displays, mainframes, etc.)
Tables will be granted for a donation, which gets you a table, tablecloth, and power. You can also delete the table, to receive an open space (for those who are bringing racks, rolling displays, mainframes, etc.)
VCF Midwest 20 Table Request Form
Use this form to request a table for VCF Midwest 20 (Sept 13-14, 2025). Completion of the form is not a guarantee of accommodation, although we'll certainly try our best to find you a spot.
For those...
forms.gle
June 28, 2025 at 2:42 AM
#VCFMW 20 Table Requests are open! (closing 7/11 19:00 CDT): forms.gle/UCwSn9S3Gc8Q...
Tables will be granted for a donation, which gets you a table, tablecloth, and power. You can also delete the table, to receive an open space (for those who are bringing racks, rolling displays, mainframes, etc.)
Tables will be granted for a donation, which gets you a table, tablecloth, and power. You can also delete the table, to receive an open space (for those who are bringing racks, rolling displays, mainframes, etc.)
Trying to go back to kdenlive from DaVinci Resolve for editing on Linux. Spent the last 45 minutes working on a video, saving the whole time...
... but it crashed and it's all gone. aaahahahahahahaha.
... but it crashed and it's all gone. aaahahahahahahaha.
June 19, 2025 at 6:10 PM
Trying to go back to kdenlive from DaVinci Resolve for editing on Linux. Spent the last 45 minutes working on a video, saving the whole time...
... but it crashed and it's all gone. aaahahahahahahaha.
... but it crashed and it's all gone. aaahahahahahahaha.
Bill Atkinson died a few days ago. He is another pioneer who passed without the fanfare of someone like Jobs, but without Bill’s work, I probably wouldn’t have had the experiences and the spark of curiosity that drove my hobbies and eventually my career.
www.wired.com/story/bill-a...
www.wired.com/story/bill-a...
Bill Atkinson, Macintosh Pioneer and Inventor of Hypercard, Dies at 74
Atkinson’s gleeful brilliance helped people draw on computer screens and access information via links.
www.wired.com
June 8, 2025 at 11:36 PM
Bill Atkinson died a few days ago. He is another pioneer who passed without the fanfare of someone like Jobs, but without Bill’s work, I probably wouldn’t have had the experiences and the spark of curiosity that drove my hobbies and eventually my career.
www.wired.com/story/bill-a...
www.wired.com/story/bill-a...
I have a 2-in-1 laptop. This morning, I kept fighting because I'd boot to the OS, and the keyboard & trackpad wouldn't function at all, but the touchscreen would.
Turns out, the laptop was resting on top of another laptop with a magnet, causing internal devices to lock.
Technology is for chumps.
Turns out, the laptop was resting on top of another laptop with a magnet, causing internal devices to lock.
Technology is for chumps.
May 26, 2025 at 12:31 PM
I have a 2-in-1 laptop. This morning, I kept fighting because I'd boot to the OS, and the keyboard & trackpad wouldn't function at all, but the touchscreen would.
Turns out, the laptop was resting on top of another laptop with a magnet, causing internal devices to lock.
Technology is for chumps.
Turns out, the laptop was resting on top of another laptop with a magnet, causing internal devices to lock.
Technology is for chumps.
Let me tell you how much I'm not going to "friend" a Marketplace seller, Facebook.
May 7, 2025 at 6:30 PM
Let me tell you how much I'm not going to "friend" a Marketplace seller, Facebook.
I've been feeling particularly elderly lately with a lot of pain in my hip. I noticed it was worse during the day, so I swapped out my desk chair with a regular hard dining chair, and a few hours later, the pain is gone. I guess my desk chair was cheaper than I thought.
April 22, 2025 at 9:35 PM
I've been feeling particularly elderly lately with a lot of pain in my hip. I noticed it was worse during the day, so I swapped out my desk chair with a regular hard dining chair, and a few hours later, the pain is gone. I guess my desk chair was cheaper than I thought.
I don’t think I want to. #marchintosh
March 30, 2025 at 2:38 PM
I don’t think I want to. #marchintosh
I have this really neat Stearns Desktop Computer that I picked up in December. MN-made 16 bit 8086 machine. It’s very hard to repair without documentation or schematics, and I can only find reviews. Any chance anyone has seen a manual for this thing in their collection? #retrocomputing
March 29, 2025 at 12:56 PM
I have this really neat Stearns Desktop Computer that I picked up in December. MN-made 16 bit 8086 machine. It’s very hard to repair without documentation or schematics, and I can only find reviews. Any chance anyone has seen a manual for this thing in their collection? #retrocomputing
If you're ever in a pinch and don't have a classic Mac mouse, but you do have an Amiga mouse laying around, a little bit of wiring can get you a perfectly functioning cursor. #retrocomputing #marchintosh
www.nmelnick.com/2025/03/conn...
www.nmelnick.com/2025/03/conn...
Connecting an Amiga mouse to a classic Macintosh
I find myself without a classic Apple M0100 mouse for my Macintosh 512K Enhanced. While I work out how to get one in reasonable shape for a reasonable amount of money, I still needed something to t…
www.nmelnick.com
March 25, 2025 at 9:29 PM
If you're ever in a pinch and don't have a classic Mac mouse, but you do have an Amiga mouse laying around, a little bit of wiring can get you a perfectly functioning cursor. #retrocomputing #marchintosh
www.nmelnick.com/2025/03/conn...
www.nmelnick.com/2025/03/conn...
Nothing quite like sitting down to work on editing a video and finding the microphone was jacked the entire time.
March 12, 2025 at 10:11 PM
Nothing quite like sitting down to work on editing a video and finding the microphone was jacked the entire time.
Part of my joy in the retro hobby is not dealing with the negativity and lack of humanity in the wider world. The recent blow up around KansasFest has really outed some of the louder crappy people in the vintage computing space, and it makes me sad and angry.
March 12, 2025 at 3:27 AM
Part of my joy in the retro hobby is not dealing with the negativity and lack of humanity in the wider world. The recent blow up around KansasFest has really outed some of the louder crappy people in the vintage computing space, and it makes me sad and angry.
I think I have a solid little circuit to go between a #Commodore B128 and the GBS8200 VGA converter. It's almost the right signal already, just a 7404 to invert the video signal and a resistor to make it amber. Going to make a board to integrate GBS-Control, and paste it to the back of a monitor.
March 8, 2025 at 6:49 PM
I think I have a solid little circuit to go between a #Commodore B128 and the GBS8200 VGA converter. It's almost the right signal already, just a 7404 to invert the video signal and a resistor to make it amber. Going to make a board to integrate GBS-Control, and paste it to the back of a monitor.
I wonder sometimes what would have been different if we got an Amiga in the late 80s instead of inheriting a Mac 512Ke. Each of these platforms tickle me in a completely different way. #amiga and vaguely #marchintosh.
March 4, 2025 at 2:39 AM
I wonder sometimes what would have been different if we got an Amiga in the late 80s instead of inheriting a Mac 512Ke. Each of these platforms tickle me in a completely different way. #amiga and vaguely #marchintosh.
Still waiting for some RAM to come in from China, but I want my bench back. It’s reassembly day for the #Amiga 3000T! #retrorepair
February 23, 2025 at 3:55 PM
Still waiting for some RAM to come in from China, but I want my bench back. It’s reassembly day for the #Amiga 3000T! #retrorepair