TechnologyAugust 16, 2026

homelab

HOME-lab

Definition

A private, non-commercial computing environment built at home for experimentation, learning, or hosting personal services.

Etymology

A portmanteau of the words 'home' and 'laboratory,' reflecting the practice of hobbyists building professional-grade IT infrastructure in residential settings.

In the news

The author refers to his personal setup of Plex and Tautulli as a homelab, which serves as the foundation for the custom AI recommendation engine he built.

My Plex server now recommends movies better than Netflix, and here's exactly how I built it

Read the full article ↗

How-To Geek

Related words

animatronic

Relating to the use of robotic devices designed to mimic the appearance and movements of…

Technology

arbitraged

The act of taking advantage of price differences for the same asset in different markets…

Technology

architected

Designed, structured, or systematically planned to achieve a specific functional purpose.

Technology

cantilever

A long projecting beam or bridge span that is supported only at one end.

Technology

darshan

The act of seeing or being in the presence of a deity, sacred object, or holy person,…

Technology

decolonized

Refers to the process of identifying and removing the influence of colonial power…

Technology

Learn words like this every day

Meet new words every morning.

Newspoken pulls carefully chosen words from the day’s news — with clear definitions, context, and light review that makes them stick. Get it on your phone.