 June 30, 2021
 Last year, after a not-so-great experience with the Netgear RAX200 router, I switched back to the Comcast "rental" model. Fortunately, Comcast had just released the new XB7 modem/router, a significant improvement over previous models.
The XB7-T supports the DOCSIS 3.1 communications standard, enabling Internet speeds over one gigabit per second (1 Gbps). The first time I connected the router to the 10 Gbps Ethernet port on my iMac Pro, I immediately saw 1,200 Mbps download speeds.
Recently, Comcast upgraded my Xfinity Gigabit Internet service to even faster speeds of "up to 1400 Mbps." But when I tested it out, the data transfer rate didn't even exceed 1 Gbps. Instead, it maxed out around 930 Mbps.
May 14, 2021
 Today is the 22nd birthday of PC.net. 🎂
It is a bit surreal to think I've been running this site for 22 years, considering I wasn't even 20 years old when I launched the site. I guess that means I have been publishing updates on PC.net for over half my life. 😳
As long-time visitors know, I launched the site as Sharpened.net, which became PC.net after I purchased the domain name. If you don't believe me, you can type "sharpened.net" in the address bar of your browser, press Enter, and see what happens. The website's sword favicon is homage to the old "Sharpened" name.
April 1, 2021
 In a school year already filled with unexpected twists and turns, get ready for one more: a return to Early Modern English. Amidst growing concerns that online slang has watered down the English lexicon, the U.S. Department of Education took drastic action. They decided to replace standard English courses with Early Modern English, also known as Elizabethian or Shakespearean English, starting this spring.
"The linguistic pendulum has swung into cyberspace," stated board member Mike Hamlet. "It is henceforth time to swingeth it back in the other direction." Board member Viola Rosalind echoed Hamlet's comments. "The modern student's vernacular has become overloaded with acronyms and abbreviations. Thanks to computers and the Internet, they have lost the art of eloquent communication. A return to Shakespeare tis the only way."
Some teachers are in favor of the updated curriculum, while others have reservations. "I'm excited to teach — and learn — Elizabethian English!" announced Miss Macbeth. "I'll finally be able to read the King James Version of the Bible, which I think is the original version." Mr. Banquo was less excited. "I'm just a math teacher."
February 20, 2021
 My workstation includes three monitors — an iMac Pro with a 27" display on each side. Until recently, the secondary and tertiary displays were Apple Thunderbolt monitors. In late 2020, one of them started causing my Mac to kernel panic nearly every time it entered sleep mode, so I started looking for a replacement.
I decided to upgrade the failing Thunderbolt display to an HDPI monitor that would match the 5K resolution of my iMac Pro's "retina display." After a thorough search, I came up with the following list of options:
- LG UltraFine 27" 5K display
January 1, 2021
 In March 2020, the pandemic sent global stock markets into a downward spiral. After a few weeks of record volatility, it seemed there was no end in sight. A few months later, the US stock market finished the year at all-time highs.
Amidst all the volatility, there were clear winners in 2020. Most of the top performers were tech stocks related to the "work from home" lifestyle forced upon millions of employees worldwide. One of these companies was Fastly (FSLY).
FSLY started the year at 20.07 and had an uneventful first two months. Then covid cause the Great Panic and FSLY hit its 52-week low of 10.63 on March 16. Seven months later, FSLY hit its 52-week high of 136.50, an increase of over 1,000%.
Previous PC Updates →
- PC (Per Christensson)
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June 30, 2021
Last year, after a not-so-great experience with the Netgear RAX200 router, I switched back to the Comcast "rental" model. Fortunately, Comcast had just released the new XB7 modem/router, a significant improvement over previous models.
