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How to Determine Which Old Drives Are Still Good — SMART Data, badblocks, and Homelab Hardware Longevity
hardware linux proxmox tutorial

How to Determine Which Old Drives Are Still Good — SMART Data, badblocks, and Homelab Hardware Longevity

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
SSH Honeypot Live — What Watching Bots Attack a Server Teaches CS Students About Network Security
security linux tutorial Computer science

SSH Honeypot Live — What Watching Bots Attack a Server Teaches CS Students About Network Security

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
The $20 Server — What Extreme Budget Computing Teaches CS Students
Computer science hardware linux tutorial

The $20 Server — What Extreme Budget Computing Teaches CS Students

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
The CISA GitHub Leak: Homelab Security Lessons for Self-Hosters
security linux devops tutorial

The CISA GitHub Leak: Homelab Security Lessons for Self-Hosters

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Homelab Burnout: Sustainable Self-Hosting When the Hobby Starts Feeling Like Work
linux devops developer tools hardware

Homelab Burnout: Sustainable Self-Hosting When the Hobby Starts Feeling Like Work

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
TLS Certificates for Internal Services: HTTPS Inside Your Homelab
security linux tutorial devops Homelab

TLS Certificates for Internal Services: HTTPS Inside Your Homelab

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Six arguing AI agents: what multi-agent debate teaches CS students about AI architecture
Computer science developer Code developer tools

Six arguing AI agents: what multi-agent debate teaches CS students about AI architecture

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Beyond Ollama: 3 Homelab AI Tools Worth Trying Next
developer tools linux tutorial hardware developer Homelab

Beyond Ollama: 3 Homelab AI Tools Worth Trying Next

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
How to Ask for Help: Technical Communication Skills Every CS Student Needs
Computer science Code tutorial developer tools Python

How to Ask for Help: Technical Communication Skills Every CS Student Needs

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Linux Pipes and Redirection: The Missing CS Lesson That Powers Real-World Automation
linux tutorial Code developer tools

Linux Pipes and Redirection: The Missing CS Lesson That Powers Real-World Automation

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Homelab Network Design: Building Your Own Miniature Data Centre at Home
hardware linux tutorial security developer tools Homelab

Homelab Network Design: Building Your Own Miniature Data Centre at Home

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Self-Hosted AI Security: What Every Ollama User Should Know
security linux developer tools

Self-Hosted AI Security: What Every Ollama User Should Know

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Right to Local Intelligence: Why Running AI on Your Own Hardware Matters
AI coding assistant developer tools hardware linux

Right to Local Intelligence: Why Running AI on Your Own Hardware Matters

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Cloudflare Self-Managed OAuth — What It Means for Your Homelab Security
security developer cloudflare linux tutorial Homelab

Cloudflare Self-Managed OAuth — What It Means for Your Homelab Security

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Learning Docker by Building a Container Engine from Scratch
linux tutorial developer tools devops

Learning Docker by Building a Container Engine from Scratch

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
The Minimal Homelab That Actually Works
hardware linux tutorial developer tools Homelab

The Minimal Homelab That Actually Works

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
OpenCV 5 Computer Vision in Python for CS Students
Python tutorial Computer science Code

OpenCV 5 Computer Vision in Python for CS Students

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Switch from pip to uv — Python's New Package Manager Guide
Python tutorial Code developer tools linux

Switch from pip to uv — Python's New Package Manager Guide

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
9618 Paper 1 Theory Fundamentals — AS CS Topic Guide
Computer science tutorial Code

9618 Paper 1 Theory Fundamentals — AS CS Topic Guide

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Debugging Python for A-Level CS — Tracebacks & Fixes
Python Computer science tutorial

Debugging Python for A-Level CS — Tracebacks & Fixes

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Self-Host Redis 8.8 with Docker Compose — Homelab Guide
developer tools linux tutorial Code Homelab

Self-Host Redis 8.8 with Docker Compose — Homelab Guide

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Binary, Hex & Number Systems — Visual Guide for IGCSE CS
Computer science Cambridge Exams

Binary, Hex & Number Systems — Visual Guide for IGCSE CS

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Python File Handling for IGCSE & A-Level CS — Examples
Python IGCSE Computer Science Computer science

Python File Handling for IGCSE & A-Level CS — Examples

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
How to Set Up a Test Pipeline That Actually Catches Bugs
Python

How to Set Up a Test Pipeline That Actually Catches Bugs

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
How to Set Up Hermes Agent on a Mini PC Home Server
linux

How to Set Up Hermes Agent on a Mini PC Home Server

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
🔒 0417/12 Paper 1 – Security, File Transfer & ATM Processing | June 2025
Cambridge Exams IGCSE ICT

🔒 0417/12 Paper 1 – Security, File Transfer & ATM Processing | June 2025

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
📝 0417/11 Paper 1 – Testing, Safety & Security | June 2025
Cambridge Exams IGCSE ICT

📝 0417/11 Paper 1 – Testing, Safety & Security | June 2025

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
📝 9618/12 Paper 1 – Databases, Data Structures & Algorithms | June 2025
Cambridge Exams Computer science

📝 9618/12 Paper 1 – Databases, Data Structures & Algorithms | June 2025

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
📝 9618/22 Paper 2 – Records, Files & Programming Techniques | June 2025
Cambridge Exams Computer science

📝 9618/22 Paper 2 – Records, Files & Programming Techniques | June 2025

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
📝 9618/22 Paper 2 – Algorithms, Data Structures & Sorting | June 2025
Cambridge Exams Computer science

📝 9618/22 Paper 2 – Algorithms, Data Structures & Sorting | June 2025

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
📝 9618/22 Paper 2 – Development Life Cycles, Maintenance & Testing | June 2025
Cambridge Exams Computer science

📝 9618/22 Paper 2 – Development Life Cycles, Maintenance & Testing | June 2025

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
📝 9618/12 Paper 1 – Assembly, Logic Circuits & Communication | June 2025
Cambridge Exams Computer science

📝 9618/12 Paper 1 – Assembly, Logic Circuits & Communication | June 2025

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
🖥️ 0417/12 Paper 1 – System Testing, Safety & Cybersecurity | June 2025
Cambridge Exams IGCSE ICT

🖥️ 0417/12 Paper 1 – System Testing, Safety & Cybersecurity | June 2025

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
📝 0417/12 Paper 1 – Input Devices, Applications Software & Biometric Systems | June 2025
Cambridge Exams IGCSE ICT

📝 0417/12 Paper 1 – Input Devices, Applications Software & Biometric Systems | June 2025

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
📝 9618/12 Paper 1 – Von Neumann, Number Systems & AI | June 2025
Cambridge Exams Computer science

📝 9618/12 Paper 1 – Von Neumann, Number Systems & AI | June 2025

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
📝 0417/11 Paper 1 – Output Devices, Applications Software & Smartphones | June 2025
Cambridge Exams IGCSE ICT

📝 0417/11 Paper 1 – Output Devices, Applications Software & Smartphones | June 2025

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Why use indentation in Python
Python

Why use indentation in Python

Techie Mike
Techie Mike
OSI Reference Model-Networking 101
IGCSE ICT

OSI Reference Model-Networking 101

Techie Mike
Techie Mike

Techie Mike — Tech Tutorials for Students & Homelab Enthusiasts

Practical tech tutorials for Cambridge CS/ICT students and homelab enthusiasts. I break down complex topics — VirtualBox, Proxmox, ethical hacking, Python, and exam prep — into clear, hands-on guides you can actually follow. No fluff, just real skills.

The Minimal Homelab That Actually Works
hardware • 7 min read
•

The Minimal Homelab That Actually Works

# Am I Overcomplicating This? — The Minimal Homelab That Actually Works Scroll through r/homelab for ten minutes and you'll see server racks that look like data center colocations. 42U cabinets. Enterprise switches with SFP+ cages blinking amber. Dual Xeon boxes drawing 400 watts.…
Techie Mike
Techie Mike •
OpenCV 5 Computer Vision in Python for CS Students
Python • 9 min read
•

OpenCV 5 Computer Vision in Python for CS Students

You've written Python programs that print to the terminal, read files, and maybe even scraped a website. But have you written code that can _see_? Code that can detect edges in a photograph or find faces in a group picture? That's computer vision.…
Techie Mike
Techie Mike •
1-Click GitHub Token Theft via VSCode Bug — Security Alert
Code • 7 min read
•

1-Click GitHub Token Theft via VSCode Bug — Security Alert

Just by clicking a link, it's possible for an attacker to steal a GitHub token that can read **and write** to your repos — including private ones. This isn't a hypothetical vulnerability or a "theoretical risk" scenario. Security researcher [Ammar Askar](https://blog.ammaraskar.com/github-token-ste…
Techie Mike
Techie Mike •
Switch from pip to uv — Python's New Package Manager Guide
Python • 8 min read
•

Switch from pip to uv — Python's New Package Manager Guide

# Switch from pip to uv — Python's New Package Manager Guide If you've ever sat waiting for `pip install` to finish building wheels in a Docker build, you know the pain. Five minutes. Ten minutes. Sometimes longer, depending on how many native extensions your project pulls in. There's a better way…
Techie Mike
Techie Mike •
9618 Paper 1 Theory Fundamentals — AS CS Topic Guide
Computer science • 14 min read
•

9618 Paper 1 Theory Fundamentals — AS CS Topic Guide

The June 2026 Cambridge AS/A-Level Computer Science Paper 1 (9618) has just been sat. If you took it, you're probably wondering how you did. If you're preparing for a future sitting, you want to know what topics come up and how to score full marks. I've been teaching Cambridge A-Level CS for over a…
Techie Mike
Techie Mike •
Debugging Python for A-Level CS — Tracebacks & Fixes
Python • 9 min read
•

Debugging Python for A-Level CS — Tracebacks & Fixes

Debugging Python for A-Level CS — Reading Tracebacks and Finding Bugs When your Python program crashes, it's not the end of the world. It's the start of a clue. I've seen students freeze when that red error text appears in their IDE. They stare at it, panic, and close the terminal.…
Techie Mike
Techie Mike •
Self-Host Redis 8.8 with Docker Compose — Homelab Guide
developer tools • 10 min read
•

Self-Host Redis 8.8 with Docker Compose — Homelab Guide

# Self-Host Redis 8.8 with Docker Compose — And Why It's Useful for Your Homelab Most homelabs start with storage. A NAS here, a media server there. But at some point you realize your services need to talk to each other — and that's when you discover you need something faster than your Postgres ins…
Techie Mike
Techie Mike •
Python Program for IGCSE Paper 2 — Full Walkthrough
Code • 9 min read
•

Python Program for IGCSE Paper 2 — Full Walkthrough

If you're studying for Cambridge IGCSE Computer Science (0478/9618), Paper 2 is where you write actual code. And here's the thing — most students lose marks not because they can't code, but because they don't know what the examiner is looking for. I've been teaching IGCSE CS for over a decade, and…
Techie Mike
Techie Mike •
Chuwi Minibook X vs BMAX Pro 8 — Budget Homelab Pick
Computer components • 10 min read
•

Chuwi Minibook X vs BMAX Pro 8 — Budget Homelab Pick

# Chuwi Minibook X vs BMAX Pro 8 — Which Budget Homelab Machine? You're building your first homelab on a budget. Maybe you want to run Docker, try Proxmox, or host a few self-hosted services. You've heard about the Chuwi Minibook X — it hit over 400 points on Hacker News. And the BMAX Pro 8 is a pr…
Techie Mike
Techie Mike •
Running AI Models on Old Hardware — A 10-Year-Old Xeon
hardware • 8 min read
•

Running AI Models on Old Hardware — A 10-Year-Old Xeon

A post hit the front page of [Hacker News yesterday](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48353348) with a title that made a lot of people stop and stare: *"[A 10 year old Xeon is all you need.](https://point.free/blog/gemma-4-on-a-2016-xeon/)"* It racked up 685 points. The author ran **Gemma 4 (26B…
Techie Mike
Techie Mike •
Python File Handling for IGCSE & A-Level CS — Examples
Python • 6 min read
•

Python File Handling for IGCSE & A-Level CS — Examples

File handling is one of those topics that always shows up on Cambridge CS exams. Whether you're sitting IGCSE 0417 or AS/A-Level 9618, you need to know how to open, read, write, and append data in a file using Python. In this post, I'll walk through everything you need, with the kind of worked examp…
Techie Mike
Techie Mike •
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Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Techie Mike
Computer Science teacher in Thailand. 10+ years Cambridge IGCSE, 4 years AS/A Level. BSc Computer Science & Engineering. Ex-Intel, Virgin Media. Practical exam prep, past paper walkthroughs and tech tutorials.
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