Most of the last mile fiber network is passive (doesn’t require active electronics to pass the signal like DOCSIS/cable internet or ADSL).

Cable and DSL typically have the equivalent of UPSs in their neighborhood nodes, but they often go unmaintained.

That’s like throwing the baby out with the bathwater, though.

All the stuff I’ve ordered from Ali is still in use (or in my parts bin awaiting use). e.g. All my smart bulbs are from Ali and were pre-flashed with Tasmota. They’re almost 6 years old and going strong.

Very good. I’ve seen too many random Google Forms going around just harvesting emails / info to plug my details into any that I don’t click into from a legit/verified site. Not that I’m accusing OP of that, just that I don’t know where they got that form link.

Is that an official Google form and/or who am I providing my (required) email address to?

Is there an official Google page that links to this? Sorry but anyone can share a Google form.

(Me, turning off my morals and writing that down)

I’d be curious to see how adding a few plants affects that.

I keep my IoT stuff to a minimum and only run ones that can operate locally (mostly Tasmota-based smart bulbs and outlets) , but they still get a dedicated virtual AP/SSID with station isolation enabled. That SSID is tied to a locked down VLAN with no outside access or DNS.

The only thing that they can reach from that VLAN is the MQTT server which links them to HomeAssistant.

YMMV, but I’ve never had a microwave interfere with my 2.4 GHz wireless.

Microwave ovens are literally Faraday cages tuned to contain/block signals in the 2.4 GHz range. If any are escaping while it’s in operation, then there’s probably a problem with the shielding (either damage or poor design).

One way to test is to enable wifi on your phone, put it in the microwave (obviously do not turn the microwave on lol), close the door, and the wifi signal should disappear (assuming it doesn’t fall back to 5 GHz).

Yep. My “TV” upstairs is just a giant LED computer monitor with two HDMI inputs and my “TV” downstairs is a projector – both connected to old laptops.

I’ve read digital signage is the way to go for bigger screens, though I haven’t looked into any recently.

I would have assumed that, but all these smart devices do not seem like they were designed by smart people lol.

Still, I think I’ll stick with my “dumb” programmable thermostat.

The worst is when some devices require network access to function, as the only way to interact with them properly is via smart phone - robot vacuums come to mind.

I try to do research ahead of time, but if that kind of “feature” slips past my due diligence, I just return it.

so it just wouldn’t run if nobody was home,

I hate the “goes brrrr” thing, but “Frozen pipes in the winter go brrrrrr”

Doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, but I think the implication is there

Largely, yeah. Though i’m not sure about big screen TVs. Supposedly they’re sold at a loss and make up for it in ad sales, but not sure if they sell below cost to manufacture or just for less upfront profit (likely the latter)

I love that there’s always a relevant xkcd 😆

Costs about 17 cents per loaf in electricity, and my power rate is pretty high at $0.25/kWh.

1. Blend: 7 minutes @ 100W (0.1 KW x 0.12 hours = 0.012 kWh). I’m being generous here since this is just an intermittent blend and the motor pulses slowly and doesn’t use 100 watts for the whole cycle).
2. Rest: 1 minute @ 0W
3. Mix: 25 minutes @ 100 W (0.1 KW X 0.42 hours = 0.042 kWh)
4. Proof 1: 58 minutes @ 50W (0.05 X 0.97 hours = 0.05 kWh)
5. Proof 2: 50 minutes @ 50W (0.05 x 0.83 hours = 0.04 kWh)
6. Bake: 50 minutes @ 650 W (0.65 x 0.83 hours = 0.54 kWh)
7. Keep Warm: I never use this, but up to an hour at probably 100 watts. (0.1 KW x 1 hour = 0.1 kWh)

Total: 0.684 kWh x $0.25/kWh = $0.17 per loaf ($0.20 per loaf if I use the keep warm feature for the full hour).

For comparison, the regular oven is 4400 watts and takes 10 minutes just to pre-heat. That’s $0.18 cents in electricity cost before I even bake the bread.

Nice. I haven’t had much luck thrifting the last few years.

Totally agree about single use appliances, but the bread machine is the sole exception. Figured it wouldn’t get more than a few uses, so bought a cheap one to start with. Turns out I use it daily.

I used to use the Kitchen-Aid with the dough hook. Mostly just the convenience factor won out. Just pouring everything into one pan and hitting a button was the big sell. Plus, it’s got a timer so I can load it up before bed and have fresh bread in the morning.

Also switched to using a kitchen scale instead of measuring cups, and combined, that has massively reduced the amount of dishes and mess I have to clean.

I"m not sure what the actual bulk price is here, but the little 5lb bags are like $2.60. When I say “buy in bulk” I mostly mean I buy a lot of something when it goes on sale. Back in March, there was a weekend where you got 15% off your entire purchase on top of whatever was normally on sale. Flour was buy-one, get-one at the time, so I basically filled up a cart lol. I’m still baking through it and have about 15 bags left. 😆

Oof. I have not priced replacement parts. The whole thing was only $100 and I fully consider it a “starter” machine. Wasn’t sure if I’d use it more than once or twice, so didn’t start out with a fancy one or anything.