https://www.teachweaver.com Homelab, hardware, and learning things by building them. en-us Sun, 30 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/goodwill-gps/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/goodwill-gps/ Sun, 30 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT I bought three GPS units in a box at Goodwill for about three dollars each. One of them is now the only thing in my car that knows where I am. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/khan-crypto/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/khan-crypto/ Sat, 29 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT About a month ago, I decided I wanted to understand cryptography better than 'and then some math magic happens that all my favorite things and the whole internet rely on.' https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/oui-case/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/oui-case/ Fri, 28 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT Designing a case for a wardriving and bluetooth detection device. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/rebuilding-valiant-inquiry/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/rebuilding-valiant-inquiry/ Sun, 23 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT The classroom achievement app I built last year barely got used. The rebuild throws out student logins entirely and moves everything to the projector. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/ditching-homarr-for-homepage/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/ditching-homarr-for-homepage/ Mon, 27 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMT I've used Homarr as my browser homepage for a while, but I finally got around to trialing gethomepage as a replacement. Here's how the migration went. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/r420-cpu-upgrade-that-wont-boot/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/r420-cpu-upgrade-that-wont-boot/ Sun, 26 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMT I tried to upgrade my R420's CPUs to a faster matched pair. It did not go well, but I learned a lot about voltage rails and CPLD firmware along the way. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/passingly-informed/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/passingly-informed/ Fri, 26 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT I don't follow sports at all, but people talk about them. So I built a daily Indianapolis digest that tells me just enough to hold up my end of a conversation. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/building-valiant-inquiry-my-space-themed-classroom-achievement-system/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/building-valiant-inquiry-my-space-themed-classroom-achievement-system/ Mon, 11 Aug 2025 00:00:00 GMT 🚀 Building Valiant Inquiry: My Space-Themed Classroom Achievement System This school year, my classroom went to space. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/building-a-secure-segmented-home-network-with-mikrotik/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/building-a-secure-segmented-home-network-with-mikrotik/ Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT Building a Secure, Segmented Home Network with MikroTik Over the past few weeks, I’ve rebuilt my home network from the ground up using MikroTik hardware, focusing on VLAN segmentation, improved wireless coverage, and simpler management. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/testing-code-with-claude-for-automation/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/testing-code-with-claude-for-automation/ Sun, 02 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT I’ve been putting off writing blog posts since switching over to the new, improved teachweaver site because the process annoys me. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/building-sweet-speech/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/building-sweet-speech/ Sat, 01 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT Over the past week, I’ve had the privilege of developing a website for my wife’s private speech therapy practice, Sweet Speech SLP. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/net-chan/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/net-chan/ Thu, 20 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT Managing a homelab can get messy fast. Between system updates, backups, and service failures, I was getting alerts from multiple sources (Discord, email, text), making it hard to keep track of everything. I needed a central notification system, so I decided to build a Discord bot to handle all my homelab alerts. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/24-review/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/24-review/ Wed, 22 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT The biggest change? I realized I no longer needed to rely on someone else to host my site. I’ve learned how to do it myself. Now, I’m hosting my own blog and portfolio, and this is the first post on the new and improved teachweaver site! https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/bubbles-fur-rework/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/bubbles-fur-rework/ Tue, 15 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT I took a course from Traversy Media on Bootstrap, which I really enjoy using. This inspired me to redo the Bubbles & Fur site to enhance user experience and navigability while condensing the pages... https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/bubbles-fur-website/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/bubbles-fur-website/ Sat, 31 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT This was my first time creating a site for someone else, and I’m proud of the progress I’ve made. I wanted to take a moment to reflect on what went well and where I see room for improvement... https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/comptia-a-plus-1101/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/comptia-a-plus-1101/ Sat, 10 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT As school kicks off and my schedule ramps up, I finally have the chance to share some exciting news: I passed the CompTIA A+ 1101 exam!... https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/upgrading-my-home-network/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/upgrading-my-home-network/ Fri, 14 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT As my interest in networking and cybersecurity has grown, upgrading my basic router from my Internet Service Provider (ISP) has been on my to-do list. I called last week to ask about the replacement process, and they came out yesterday to swap the router for a modem... https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/summer-break-server-project/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/summer-break-server-project/ Wed, 05 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT My server setup has undergone a lot of changes since I started with an old laptop. Recently, my dad upgraded his PC and generously donated his old parts to me... https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/yard-art-website-makeover/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/yard-art-website-makeover/ Sun, 05 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT Yard Art was the top result on Google for local yard sign companies, but during my shopping, I noticed their website was outdated and lacked modern features. Seeing a chance to blend my coding skills with support for local businesses, I decided to give their online platform a facelift... https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/css-journey-three-projects/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/css-journey-three-projects/ Sun, 05 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT I began by creating a basic single-page site, implementing media queries to ensure responsiveness. While the process was straightforward, it underscored the importance of exploring alternative CSS tools. I'm grateful for the existence of these options... https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/server-update-minecraft-adventures/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/server-update-minecraft-adventures/ Tue, 19 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT Some updates on the home server. Recently, I set up a Minecraft server for me, my son, and his cousin to play together, an experience that was a big hit with the boys!... https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/linux-home-server/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/linux-home-server/ Tue, 06 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT I stumbled upon this guide from Kalos Likes Computers on YouTube for turning an old laptop into a home server. I had a laptop lying around, gathering dust for years because it was too slow to use and the idea of giving it a new purpose really appealed to me. https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/python-course-games-learning/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/python-course-games-learning/ Sat, 06 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT For my final project, I dived into game development using pygame. The game involved collecting objects, dodging enemies, and keeping track of scores. Players navigate using arrow keys, collecting coins while leaping over monsters... https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/learning-journey-programming/ https://www.teachweaver.com/posts/learning-journey-programming/ Sat, 06 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT As an elementary school teacher, teaching has always pushed me to find new ways to reach my students and enhance their learning experience. Recently, I have taken a keen interest in programming and development...