iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 19/09/2026

The power of magnets is awesome!

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 10/09/2026

“The tag must to be hiding after folding. The width of fold should same all after folding and alignment of front of shelf also.”

A plastic placard at MUJI.

The text reads:

The tag must to be hiding after folding.
The width of fold should same all after folding and alignment of front of shelf also.

MUJI
無印良品
MENS

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 05/09/2026

My favorite clock is freaking out this morning. 😕

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 02/09/2026

The AI-generated hero image spells "NVIDIA" as "NVIIDIA".

The uncropped hero image, which has the heading "NVIIDIA DLSS 5".

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 31/08/2026

My analysis of NVIDIA's Vera CPU is now live at @techinsightsinc.bsky.social's Microprocessor Report: library.techinsights.com/hg-content/2... (Subscriber only, but if you're not a subscriber, message me and let's fix that. 😉)

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 27/08/2026

The information assistance robot at the San Jose airport is… on vacation.

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 24/08/2026

I managed to get a selfie with Satoshi Matsuoka, the director of RIKEN (and also the co-programmer of Pinball on the NES) at #HotChips!

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 24/08/2026

I don’t travel with a USB-C to Ethernet adapter anymore, the last time I was given a wired connection at an industry event was HPE Discover in 2019. But this… this is Palo Alto.

A wall plate with an RJ-45 connector and the text “Complimentary T 1 Access”.

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 22/08/2026

This game is a load of fun. (Special thanks to @aeongenesis.net for hacking in an English script.)

A screenshot of Metal Max Returns, in which the three party characters are in a bar.

The text box reads: “What the hell did you just say? You fuckers want your faces rearranged?”

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 19/08/2026

BOOKEND There is no one giant step that does it. It's a lot of little steps. Keep it up :)

A metal bookend, on a shelf at a store. There’s a small cartoon bear on the side, with the text:

BOOKEND
There is no one giant step that does it.
It's a lot of little steps.
Keep it up :)

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 08/08/2026

A friend is touring America in a van… this van, specifically.

A bumper sticker:

THIS IS NOT A VAN OF HONOR
No highly esteemed deed is commemorated here
Nothing of value is here
2
What is here is dangerous and repulsive
THE DANGER IS STILL PRESENT IN YOUR TIME
M
This van is best SHUNNED and left UNINHABITED

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 28/07/2026

Vacation photo: Clouds over Carcross, Yukon, Canada

An interesting mix of Cirrus and Stratus clouds, primarily. A mountain is visible in the background, with forest in the foreground.

031

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 27/07/2026

Vacation photo: Carcross, Yukon, Canada.

A scenic view. Clouds are visible in the sky, with a mountain in the background, and a forest in the foreground. A small lake is visible, with distinctive and varying blue-green shimmer.

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 18/07/2026

Head socks (for feet). 3 for $4.

A basket at a shop filled with packs of black socks. The sign reads:

Ends August 3
HEAD
$4
3-Pack Adult Socks

030

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 18/07/2026

I think this ice machine is a counterfeit, it’s no true Scotsman.

130

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 15/07/2026

Qualcomm's Snapdragon C appears to be a recycled SoC launched in response to the MacBook Neo. While they're targeting a "$300 and up" price point, that's an illusive goal considering the memory supply crisis. My report at @techinsightsinc.bsky.social: library.techinsights.com/hg-content/9...

032

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 29/06/2026

New at Microprocessor Report this morning is my analysis of Intel's Arc G3 / Arc G3 Extreme SoC for premium gaming handheld PCs. It's a competitive chip, but a challenging time to launch anything for consumers. library.techinsights.com/hg-content/0...?

031

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 15/06/2026

something something on the road again

A photograph of a skybridge connecting to an airplane.

130

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 10/06/2026

Tangentially related to your point, I found this sign in Lynwood a few weeks ago, from the last time data centers were a common topic of discussion. NetRiver was acquired in 2014. The number still works, I think.

A billboard:

NETRIVER
INTELLIGENT DATA CENTERS
Business Website Hosting
Data Backup & Colocation
425-741-7014

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 08/06/2026

Just had an unexpected visitor in my backyard.

130

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 06/06/2026

Saw the Cool Fern at Trader Joe’s and started wondering if Cool Crab escaped containment as a meme. @lgr-yt.bsky.social

COOL FERN $8.99 + TAX

THOUGH THEY HAVE SHADES ON, KEEP OUT OF DIRECT SUNLIGHT FOR BEST RESULTS!

020

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 29/05/2026

Ah, a year prior, I ordered a 2GB miniSD from Newegg. Yes, a *mini* SD.

Order Summary
Transcend
migi
Adapter
Transcend mini
Transcend 2GB MiniSD Flash Card
Model TS2GSDM
-Manufacturer Warranty.
$16.15
Qty: 1
WRITE A REVIEW
Subtotal
Tax
Shipping
Total for the Shipments)
$16.15
$0.00
$4.99
$21.14
Seller
Sold and Shipped by Newegg
Order Info
Order Date: 10/18/2007

000

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 29/05/2026

There we go, it’s The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

Your Orders
Order details
The Gospel of the Flying Spagh...
Sold by: Amazon.com
$11.16
View your item
Write a product review
Buy it again
Order summary
Order placed October 12, 2008
Order #

210

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 29/05/2026

I can’t get the Amazon app to give me my first order, and predictably their AI can’t figure it out either. (I’ve had this account for decades…)

v alexafor shopping
:
What do you need help with today?
What was my first Amazon order?
Based on your order history from May 2025 to May 2026, your very first Amazon order was on May 30, 2025:
BLUEAIR Blue Pure 211+ Genuine Replacement Filter
- Ordered May 30, 2025 for $68.00
This was an air purifier replacement filter that was delivered in early June 2025.
No, what was my *very first* Amazon order?
Based on your complete order history from May 2025 to May 2026, your very first Amazon order was on May 30, 2025:
BLUEAIR Blue Pure 211+ Genuine Replacement Filter
- Ordered May 30, 2025 for $68.00
This air purifier replacement filter was your first purchase on Amazon and was delivered in early June
2025. I've checked your entire order history, and this is the earliest order on record.

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 26/05/2026

If semiconductors are your thing, register for the (free!) webinar I'm presenting with my boss and a new coworker / materials industry veteran tomorrow (exactly 23 hours from this post). bit.ly/4uvpZkP

052

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 23/05/2026

I’m extremely curious what this line is in Japanese. What… happened to this dialogue, lol. This is nearly as unhinged as “shorts are comfy and easy to wear!”

A screenshot of Pokémon Legends Z-A. After a battle, a woman is clapping, disappointed, saying “You're a guy who knows how to enjoy his salad!”

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James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 21/05/2026

I've completed my analysis of Apple's M5, M5 Pro, and M5 Max series for @techinsightsinc.bsky.social's Microprocessor Report. This is the most comprehensive analysis of the M5 family available anywhere. bit.ly/ti-mpr-m5

An artist rendering of the M5, M5 Pro, and M5 Max chips.

0113

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 13/05/2026

cursed artifacts #4 probably, I should write a blog post about this video, it's as quaint as it is funny

A woman standing in front of a chroma-keyed CG background. On the left, is the text "HEXADECIMAL NUMBER".

020

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 19/04/2026

This graphic is really absurd.

A graphic saying “Canzone” with the Italian flag and a hand gesture.

110

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 02/04/2026

For Microprocessor Report, I'm looking at NVIDIA's T239 SoC found in the Nintendo Switch 2, and how it stacks up against competing SoCs from AMD, as well as the prospect of Intel producing a Panther Lake SoC for gaming handhelds. bit.ly/mprswitch2

An artistic representation of the internals of the Nintendo Switch 2.

241

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 01/04/2026

Instead of an April Fool's Day joke, here's an old post from the past that I'm dusting off: Fantastic gift idea to make the electrical engineers, IT people, and other nerd or nerd-adjacent people in your life visibly uncomfortable: the seamless power strip!

It's a store shelf, in Japan, of power strips that are just continuous lines, not individual plugs.

000

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 13/03/2026

It is snowing in Seattle. Today is March 13th.

030

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 10/03/2026

Selling my *very slightly* cursed laptops to balance my nerd budget. This is a 2007 Vista-era laptop I bought as new-old-stock in 2021 from a company that does IT for defense contractors. It's got S-Video, VGA, and HDMI out, for some reason! And a 512 GB SSD. $100 + shipping, or local-ish pickup.

A laptop displaying the Windows 7 default wallpaper.

Side view of a laptop. USB 3, eSATA, IEEE 1394, USB 2, HDMI, S-Video, and VGA.

Front view of a laptop. SD Card reader and Headphones / Audio Out / Microphone ports.

102

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 08/03/2026

Bonus RollerCoaster Tycoon shot.

020

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 08/03/2026

Between a recent trip to Japan and buying a new laptop, my nerd budget is in a significant deficit. Anyone want to buy a *very slightly* cursed Sony Vaio? $100 plus shipping, or local-ish pickup.

It's got a 2.8 GHz *Desktop* Pentium 4, 1 GB RAM, ATI Radeon IGP 345M, and the original spinning disk was replaced with a 120 GB SSD. It can easily be reset to factory settings using the recovery partition, which was preserved in the drive change. The CPU was repasted a year ago.
The display is a very crisp XGA (1024x768) LCD panel, which doesn't have ghosting issues. It's great fun for RollerCoaster Tycoon, but it can handle somewhat more demanding games as well.
It's got the original power supply.
Being a 20-year-old laptop, there are some caveats: First of all, it weighs eight pounds, lol.
I've found one stuck pixel, but it's stuck as black, so it's not super noticeable. There is a DVD drive, but it unfortunately doesn't work. It'll also need a new CMOS battery. The actual device battery doesn't hold a charge, but it used a *Desktop* Pentium 4, so it maybe got 90 minutes battery life when it was new.

241

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 05/03/2026

The lights in my house keep blinking like this. Lesson learned: don’t buy cheap bulbs.

100

James Sanders @jamesaltonsanders.com · 28/02/2026

I’m playing video games today.

A Fire Emblem screenshot:
Ike
That's... I can't understand a country where that passes for normal, I just can't.

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