Jacen's Blog
I Hate AI, But I Used it Anyway - FSMO Troubleshooting Writeup
January 17, 2026
I'm not the biggest fan of AI. It's very obvious to me when people use it, and its outputs almost always have major issues that people refuse to take responsibility for. Overall, it just doesn't feel like it's reached the point where it's useful to me on a regular basis.
On this day, however, I was at my wits end, so I booted up Claude to give me a helping hand. Here's a look at what I did and how it responded, because it's a good showcase of the good and bad of LLMs.
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How To Analyze A Malware Sample
January 15, 2026
It was just before lunch when a ticket came across my board. SentinelOne had flagged and blocked a threat at one of our clients, and our Managed Detection and Response (MDR) service reached out to us to investigate further. While the threat seemed to be mitigated, we all agreed that it wasn't a bad idea to investigate further and figure out what exactly had kicked things off. So, here's another real-world case study on following the thread and figuring out the techniques attackers use to try to outsmart cybersecurity professionals.
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Return of the Chase
January 12, 2026
NASCAR fans were never going to be happy with anything NASCAR announced. There's no chance of ever going back to a full-season points system for reasons I've discussed before, so there was no point in ever even entertaining the possibility. Still, the new format is here, so let's take a look at it and what it means for the future of the sport.
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I Really Wanted To Love This... - Anbernic RG DS Review
December 23, 2025
This review contains affiliate links to some of the products mentioned.
I've said it many times before: my Nintendo 2DS XL is still my favorite gaming device that I've ever owned. So, when I saw the Anbernic RG DS, I knew I needed to try it out. Dual-screen handhelds have always been outrageously expensive, so having one in the budget tier was an exciting prospect. However, the initial reviews weren't very favorable. Still, I held on to the hope that it would be a compelling budget option to compete with AYANEO and AYN. Now that I have it in my hands, is it as bad as people make it sound, or is it a worthwhile purchase?
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Jacen's 2025 In Review
December 14, 2025
2025 has been fairly chaotic for a lot of people, but I've been fortunate enough to have a pretty good year. I've had a chance to work on a lot of things that I've wanted to do for a while. So, with the year coming to a close, let's take a look at some of the highlights of what I've done over the past 12 months.
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Yet Another GBA Handheld - Anbernic RG34XX Review
November 26, 2025
This review contains affiliate links to some of the products mentioned.
Continuing to feed my handheld addiction, I got my hands on the Anbernic RG34XX, a device that looks a lot like the classic GBA. Is it just a generic handheld in a fancy shell, or is it something legitimately worth your time? Only one way to find out, so let's dive straight into it.
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Could This Be My New Daily Carry? - Miyoo Flip Review
November 17, 2025
Of the handhelds I've written about, none of them have really felt worthy of a spot in my pocket. Either the form factor didn't lend itself to being pocketable or the size was just too big. However, when I got my hands on the Miyoo Flip V2, it replaced my normal companion, the 2DS XL. The only question is if it's good enough to maintain its position or if I'll end up crawling back to the 2DS. Only one way to find out.
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Return of the PSP Go? - Anbernic RG Slide Review
November 1, 2025
This review contains affiliate links to some of the products mentioned.
I've mentioned before my love of handheld computers. It's something of a problem for me. So, when I saw the Anbernic RG Slide come across my news feed, I felt like I needed to give it a test drive. Is this PSP Go lookalike worth the money, or is it doomed to share the fate of its doppelganger?
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Blatant Cheating - The TTY-Only Challenge Part 3
October 16, 2025
One problem with my TTY-only setup is that I don't have a way to link it into my blog workflow. That means that chronicling my adventures from within the TTY isn't possible yet. Today, I'm going to fix that by blatantly cheating.
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The Nintendo DS But Better? - MagicX Zero 40 Review
August 18, 2025
I've mentioned before that I'm a fan of the DS family of handhelds. So, when I heard about the MagicX Zero 40, a handheld purpose-built for DS emulation, I was immediately intrigued. Is it something that can replace my daily-driver 2DS XL? Let's dive into it.
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