Performance and how configurable things are, plus ease of use.

For instance, my default router/modem device from my ISP was super clunky and confusing. I needed to set up some custom port forwarding and firewall rules. The aftermarket router I bought was faster, had way better wireless coverage, and the UI was so much easier to set up the configs I needed.

So it’s up to you, from what you said, seems like you probably would be good with the default from your ISP.

Asserting authority over it’s domain.

IT workers desperately need to unionize. There is so much bullshit that happens, folks are expected to do three different roles at once, have multiple technical stacks they are experts in, and work extra hours + be on call after hours or on weekends.

Thanks, and right back at you.

Most every day this week, I’m scared that I’m not going to be able to accomplish all that I want and should.

I’m scared of letting down the people I care about most.

I’m scared that I’m not going to be strong enough when life throws really brutal curve balls at me.

I have a monthly budget that I pay recurring charges out of, a couple hundred USD a year give or take.

I also do a lot of one-off donations to various projects and creators.

I also have some FOSS software/services that I pay monthly for premium features on, like Bitwarden, Proton, and Podverse.

https://media1.tenor.com/m/NazCMjC7DOcAAAAC/pce-peace-out.gif

Here’s my twisted life exposed…I have no issue watching 1080p on my QLED 4K TV. I game at 1080p happily, I honestly don’t give a shit about 4K content.

1080p looks good enough for me, and I actually watch 720p on my phone screen half the time too.

And not because of lack of speed, I have a 1Gbps+ fiber line up and down.

And tbh, if it means I get to own and control my media, I would tolerate even worse quality if that’s what I needed to do.

Grunge computing ftw! Quality at the cost of your soul? Fuck that!

Wouldn’t have mattered either way then lol.

Causality issues aside, yes I would. Makes a big difference if I found out I had 40+ years left vs 5 years left.

I said $2,000+ to encompass even more expensive machines/setups.

I never said bodyweight or a kettlebell set could provide exercises for every possible movement or strength vector.

I said that the vast majority of people don’t need anything more than those to build a healthy level of fitness. And given that the average cost of a gym membership in the US is around $50 per month, after a few months, their used kettle bells or simple dumbell set has already paid for itself.

And weights last basically forever unless they are severely damaged, so zero maintenance cost.

Nothing wrong with going more hardcore if that’s your thing, but that’s not at all necessary to build a solid base of strength and general fitness.

Any “quick fix/all-in-one” fitness or nutrition solutions. While there are minute optimizations for elite athletes, 99.99% of the population can adhere to the general consensus of nutrition and health science.

1. Do something that gets your heart rate up for at least 30 minutes a day. Speed walk, bike, row, shoot hoops, jump rope, doesn’t matter, just get your heart pumping hard for at least half an hour a day.
2. Roughly a third of your food should be fresh leafy greens & veggies. A third should be whole grains and unprocessed starches and sugars like sweet potato and fresh fruit. The final third should be a protein. Lean meat like fish or chicken, or if you’re veg/vegan, beans, tofu, seeds, peas, etc.
3. To build strength, general bodyweight exercises combined with stretching is fine for most people. If you wanna get really strong, get a few kettle bells or adjustable dumbells on the used market for $50-$100. You don’t need an expensive fitness club membership or one of those all-in-one $2,000+ fancy machines that mounts on your wall.
4. Don’t drink often, don’t smoke, don’t pound stimulants like caffeine or nicotine.
5. Brush your teeth well.
6. Get 6-8 hours a night of good quality sleep.
7. Keep your brain engaged, read, play music, play games, learn a language, etc.

I’m speaking from experience, because I have fallen for stuff over the years that promised fast results and optimal methods with minimal effort. Fact is, unless you’re training for the Olympics or you have very specific heath conditions, those basic bullet points will cover the vast majority if general health and fitness.

Eh, depends I guess. Now days I would just use my Steam Deck and be happy with that.

But back when I went to college, high powered gaming handhelds weren’t a thing.

Different strokes for different folks I suppose.

That’s why I said one of the exceptions was gaming notebooks, something like the smaller Razer Blade laptops.

No hate, but I’ve never understood gaming laptops. They are noisy, hot, almost always with severely nerfed performance compared to their equivalent non-mobile components.

They are heavy and bulky with poor battery life. They are often garish, which makes them less suitable for a professional environment if you’re in a workplace where that matters.

It just seems like the vast majority of gaming laptops give you the worst of all worlds. Worse performance than a desktop rig, and none of the good things about a laptop, like portability, long battery life, etc.

To me, there are a few exceptions though:

1. Gaming notebooks. You sacrifice a bunch of performance, but you at least gain back some of the benefits of a normal laptop like slimness, portability, battery life, etc. As long as you don’t play super hardcore games, the thermal issue isn’t a huge problem.
2. Your work has a ton of travel and you are allowed to do it on your personal laptop. You can work and game on the same device. If you are traveling like every month flying everywhere for work, that makes sense to have a single device to do it all on.

Again, no hate, just my $0.02

All the above. Full gaming desktop for editing video, 3D modeling, and hardcore gaming. Laptop for travel needs, home lab administration, and side business use. Steam deck for portable/casual gaming.

First few months in IT? Welcome to hell…

I’m kidding (mostly), I’m in IT also and if you’re in for even a few years, you’ll start to build a collection of horror stories like this one. We’ve all seen things you wouldn’t believe.

So you need to have full buy-in from the owners. If you’re able to talk directly to them, then it sounds like this isn’t a huge company. If you clearly explain in a professional way to the owners the situation with documentation and they don’t fully support you, leave the company asap.

As somebody who has been involved in multiple ransomware recoveries, trust me…you don’t ever want to deal with a rogue unsecured machine on the network. And owners that don’t care or take that risk seriously are absolute fools and this will only be the tip of the iceberg of stupidity.

That computer is a ticking time bomb. Please for the love of God tell me that your boss doesn’t have local admin rights on his system.

If the only thing your boss uses that system for is to connect to a web app to manage inventory, why is he mad about switching from windows 7? Does he just like how windows 7 looks visually?

I guess it doesn’t really matter. Also, windows 10 isn’t a long term solution because it also goes EoL next year in October, so you’ll be in this same position in less than 2 years.

You can either go to Windows 11, or if you wanna be a little wild, install a Linux distro like Mint on there and theme it like Windows 7. You solve the security problem and he gets to pretend he’s still in the early 2010’s.

Honestly though, start looking for another job if the owners don’t support you 100%. IT is already a stressful and intense enough job, you don’t need stubborn idiots like your boss to add flavor.

Tankies get spankies.

I was gunna say, I thought this was already canon.

It’s over if you decide it’s over. I’ve known people in their late 20’s who have given up on all that already. And I’ve known folks well into their 70’s who are happily married/dating, traveling, doing hobbies, healthy, etc.

If you give up on life, then of course you won’t get anything out of it. I hate how people act like getting older just means you become boring, weak, ugly, broken down, slow, etc.

If your life is over when you turn 50, it’s because you chose to let it be over.