Arnis Brings The World To Minecraft: Bedrock Edition

January 17, 2026 by Ian Bos No comments

A couple of years ago, we covered a project called Arnis, created by [Louis Erbkamm], which allowed you to generate any portion of Earth into Minecraft blocks and maps. It was already impressive, but since we last checked in the open source project has made some incredible progress.

When we first covered Arnis, it was stuck on the Java edition of Minecraft. But now the project has been updated to support the more modern Bedrock Edition, meaning you can put your home into any device’s version of Minecraft!

Beyond Bedrock version support, the actual tool has improved with proper elevation generation using data provided from NASA. This allows you to view the Alps or the Himalayas in all their voxel glory, or explore an entire map of the Moon. Perhaps what’s even more impressive is that the generation is accurate enough to be used in an actual research study involving flood mitigation education.

All of this has been made possible with help from a passionate community who have volunteered their time to assist [Louis] with the project — a testament to the power of open source.

The EMac: Using Apple’s Forgotten Educational Mac In 2025

January 17, 2026 by Maya Posch 3 Comments

Beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder. (Credit: MattKC, YouTube)

What’s it like to use a 2002-era Apple eMac all-in-one in 2025? That’s what [MattKC] asked himself after obtaining one of these systems from a seller who ominously mentioned that it had been ‘left outside for years’.

The Apple iMac is a bit of a cult symbol, whether you’re talking about the iconic fruity iMac G3 or the desk lamp-like iMac G4, but few reminisce or actively collect the Apple eMac. Manufactured from 2002 to 2006, it featured the PowerPC 7450 (G4e) CPU with clock speeds ranging from 700 MHz to 1.42 GHz, as well as a 17″ CRT. In terms of design it was basically a bland iMac G3 that was firmly targeting the education markets to try and regain market share after Windows PCs had begun to eat its lunch there.

As for the model that [MattKC] purchased, it was this earliest model, featuring a 700 MHz PowerPC G4 CPU in addition to 640 MB SDRAM. Despite the seller’s description it seems to be in good nick with it firing right up, and even a glance inside after beating the challenge of 2.5 mm hex screws showed it to be in relatively good condition.

Unlike the iMac G3, you can play the Mac port of Halo on it, but the Minecraft port is very much not performant. With generally multimedia and gaming working well, it does show why the eMac was released, as it’s quite capable relative to an iMac G3 which would have struggled with the educational software of the era. We definitely hope that [MattKC] restores it to its full glory instead of ripping out its innards, as the neglected status of the eMac makes it much more likely to go extinct than PowerPC-based iMacs.

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