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Hardware

Hardware Bits 142

Posted by michael from the bit-o-honey dept.
Zygo writes "Again a little bit of hardware news for today: At MonkeyReview a very cool case... At DV Hardware a little article about an aluminium mousepad, called the Steelpad... OCCanada takes a look at the Gigabyte GA8PE667-Pro... ExtremeMHz brings you a guide to power... Some Christmas stuff... And Modthebox checks out a cool tachometer for PC's!" richie2000 submits a holiday-themed case mod: "A gingerbread case mod. Don't tell me you didn't see this one coming. And here's a mirror of one of the images."
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  • steel mouse pad looks nice (Score:3, Interesting)

    by stonebeat.org ( 562495 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @09:54PM (#4884935) Homepage
    would make a nice holiday present. it reminds of those old grid lined steel mouse pads that were shipped with Sun Sparc and Ultras. I think Sparc were shipped with a digital mouse, and so were SGI machines. I had a Sparc 20 and 10.
    • Those were manufactured by Mouse Systems (who OEM'ed the "cigarette pack" three button optical mouse.

      I still have one of those pads lying around somewhere... (They later switched from metal to mylar on foam).

    • Re:steel mouse pad looks nice (Score:5, Interesting)

      by JaredOfEuropa ( 526365 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @10:01PM (#4884980) Journal
      Oh yes, those.... they are actually very very bad for you. I used the Sun metal mousepad for quite a while.

      When you use a mouse, your wrist will actually rest on the mousepad quite often. A metal one will drain the warmth from your wrist nicely, which does nothing to help prevent Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. After a few months of using this thing my wrist started to hurt, and my physician recommended "keeping my hands warm", even wearing gloves, since cold hands and wrists are more susceptible to CTS than warm ones. I switched to a regular mouse and my problems went away.

      No bloody way I am ever using a metal mosuepad again. I'm using an optical mouse now that requires no mousepad at all.
    • My friend has one of these. Unfortunately, it doesn't work well with a mechanical mouse after several years of service, as the writing eventually begins to seperate from the aluminum.

      Either way, it's an awesome pad.

  • Maybe I just don't get it... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Soulfader ( 527299 ) <sigspace.gmail@com> on Friday December 13, 2002 @09:54PM (#4884936) Journal
    Our total cost for this project was approximately $25.00. Considering that we can now power up to 7 external components, we believe it is well worth it. Now when we turn on our computer, anything that is connected to the surge protector will power on automatically....water pump, fan, auxiliary PSU, printer etc...etc.
    I know some mods are worth doing just because, but this strikes me as a little... odd. The last thing I want to do is run more stuff off my power supply. Why not save a couple bucks (and your PS) and just buy a power strip?

    Enlightenment, anyone?

    • Re:Maybe I just don't get it... (Score:5, Informative)

      by cybergibbons ( 554352 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @10:04PM (#4884996) Homepage

      You don't get it.

      It turns on a multiway mains adaptor (powerstrip, four way etc.)using the 12V as a signal from your PC, so everything will go on and off at once. The power does not come from the power supply in the PC.

      It was pretty clear from the article.

      • You don't get it.
        But now I do. Many thanks. Too bad that someone wasted a +1 insightful on my previous comment, though. =) This would be worthwhile, I suppose, if you actually had fans and water pumps hooked up to your PC.
      • So.... why not just use a PSU with an A/C passthrough, and plug a powerstrip into that.

        Requires a $2 adapter plus a powerstrip with no modifications necessary.

        Or even better, tell your bios to automatically power on the pc after a power failure (in other words, plug the PC into an outlet with a lightswitch.) Turn the lightswitch on, the pc goes on, as well as anything else plugged into the outlet.
        • psu's ac passthroughs are usually only rated around 100w-200w. (hey, i dunno why so low, i suppose that's enough for monitor.)

          the second option is better though, but if you wish to use the computer's power management for shutdown & etc..

          these are just tweaky tweaks anyways, besides geeks keep their stuff running 24/7, i got no need for relay for my pump because it's on all the time.. (better be)
      • so, should we run a line conditioner in front of and behind the pc when running with this relay tool?

        yes, this was a joke...
    • Relays don't pull all that much power, and thats all that is being powered, as the relay, which is just a switch, allows power to flow to the power strip. So flip on the computer, it flips on a relay which lets power flow to a secondary power strip.
      They could have done something similar with a triac and optoisolator and been able to pull off the 5v from the PSU.(or used a 5v relay)
      My dad did something like this off the userport of a C64 and Vic20 to trip some lights, 5v from some source, optoisolator(keep that 120v AC away), and then a triac to allow the AC to flow. When the power was removed, the triac would stay switched until the power it was passing hit 0v, which on normal 60Hz AC happens about 120 times a second.
  • I need to get that pad...

    Oh wait, I use a trackball, nevermind.

    On a more serious note, I've used an optical Logitech mouse on an old Sun optical pad (from the mice that required such a pad) and it works all right. In fact, it's a little better than a random surface.

  • Oh Dear God! (Score:3, Funny)

    by Cyclopedian ( 163375 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @09:56PM (#4884949) Journal
    My eyes screamed in pain on the overclocking christmas lights article. The neon green page background was just too much.

    Excuse me while I go and color correct my eyes.

    -Cyc

  • New mod box ideas... add them here. (Score:4, Funny)

    by dagg ( 153577 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @10:00PM (#4884976) Journal
    Idea #1: A litter box

    Anything else?

    • TV/VCR unit, remove the VCR parts and place PC in there. It even has its own display and speaker.

  • indestructible mouse pad? (Score:5, Funny)

    by sczimme ( 603413 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @10:04PM (#4884999)
    [From the DV Hardware link]

    The black colored Steelpad comes from Denmark and is made out of a 3.5mm aluminium plate.

    So the Steelpad is made of aluminum; that makes sense.

    It's also hardended [sic] to ensure the durability under all conditions

    That's good, too: I know my mousepads always ended up twisted and mangled from daily use...

  • A few of my favorite things (Score:4, Interesting)

    by SteweyGriffin ( 634046 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @10:13PM (#4885025)
    I just put a really sweet computer together for my son's big Christmas present this year.

    I made sure to get him all the best computer case stuff, since that what all his friend will see. Looks are really important to little kids! I can't wait until he opens this up and sees how non-beige his very own PC is!

    Case: Kingwin KT-436B-WM Aluminum Case - Blue (image [case-mod.com])

    Power supply: Enermax EG365P-VE(FCA) 350 Watt (image [case-mod.com])

    Light kit: Dual Cold Cathode Light Kit (image [pccasemods.com])

    Screws: Anodized Thumbscrew - Blue (image [case-mod.com])
    • A nice computer for Christmas...? Nice.

      Are you interested in adopting a 21 year old Comp. Eng. student who could really use presents like this for Christmas?

  • The secret... (Score:3, Funny)

    by ziggy_travesty ( 611150 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @10:16PM (#4885033)
    From the Antec case review:

    "Details & Specs

    As I had said earlier, this unit packs a punch in terms of performance. Due to its large size there is much more room for fans as well as allow much better air circulation. This particular tower came to us equipped with 2 80MM Antec fans serving as rear exhausts. I added 2 additional fans, 1 on the side, acting as a blower, and 1 in the front acting as an intake. In total there is room to place 5 80MM fans. Again, due to its size, and the fact that components aren?t tightly packed together, you can expect much better airflow right off the bat. With the combined fans, things simply run much cooler.
    "

    Damn...I wish I had known all this time that the reason my computer is so damn slow is because of the case! Instead of upgrading my PII/300 motherboard and processor, I'm gonna get my self a hi-performance case!!!

    Thanks Slashdot!
    • No no no! You've got it all wrong, it's the fans that make it fast!

    • Rails (Score:2, Insightful)

      by itwerx ( 165526 )
      I liked this quote from later in the article:

      I noticed that the tower used drive rails for installing your 5 ¼" drives, this was my first time using them and I now see their very obvious advantage, quick removal.

      This guy's never heard of drive rails and he's a reviewer?!? Egads...
      • It doesn't say that he has never heard of them, only that he, personally, has never used them before.

        The guy quotes the article and still doesn't know what it says?!? Egads...

  • Overclocking is just not worth it! (Score:1, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Seriously, just pick up the better processor and you will save time and money. Overclocking is NOT reccomended by the big two. There are multiplier locks for a reason! Lets look at the costs.

    AMD 2000 : £60
    AMD 2700 : £250

    Your not gonna get much gain from buying the more expensive one, but overcloking the 2000 to the 2700 speed is more expensive than buying the 2700! Ive seen processors burn out, and its NOT a pretty picture. Unless your mad, buy a nice cheap processor and save yourself some trouble.

    • Huh? (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Soulfader ( 527299 )
      By your own figures, you could burn out your 2GHz processor 4 times and still have spent 10 pounds less.
      • I think he meant that to overclock a CPU by a lot you generally have to buy some sort of fancy cooler, instead of just using the heatsink+fan that comes with it.

  • Geeks with no electrical knowledge? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by cybergibbons ( 554352 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @10:18PM (#4885040) Homepage

    The article at ExtremeMhz with the relay controlling the four way is pretty bad. Messing with mains voltage if you do not know what you are doing is stupid - and things like this encourage people.

    First off, the bit about the relay mentions that there is an AC side and a DC side. WTF? There is a coil, and there are switch contacts. Next, he says that they are rated in current and voltage. Yes, true, but a voltage for the coil, and voltage and current ratings for the contacts (for AC and DC). A "12V 10A relay" means very little. I have what could be described as a "12V 45A relay" here. It has a 12V coil and will switch 12V at 45A. Not mains (110V or 240V). See how easy it is to get this wrong when people just copy your article.

    In this country (UK), a 10A relay is not enough to power a four way. A maximum of 13A can be drawn through a plug, so you would need a higher current rating on the contacts of the relay. I do not know about the US, but because it is 110V, I would assume currents to be higher. This relay is probably quite inadeqate.

    And if you have to tell someone how to drill a hole into a plastic box, surely they aren't competant to play with mains?

    Moving on. He mounts a mains voltage relay inside a plastic box with absolutely no regards to strain relief on the cables. All it would take is a trip on the four way and the cables would be yanked out the box, possibly leaving live conductors bare. Not good at all.

    Also, those "quick disconnects", which are called spade connectors, should be covered by a plastic shroud when they are used on a relay such as that. There is the possibility of the 12V wire coming into contact with mains, which would have dire consequences. Also, try fixing the relay into the box...

    I'm just not keen on the number of people who write things like this, essentially idiots guides, which people blindly follow. They aren't a good idea when people can get hurt.

    It reminds me of a rudeboy car magazine I read which showed you how to install NOS into a Citreon Saxo. Drill this, thread this, this colour wire goes here, etc. No explanation of how or why... quite ridiculous really.

    • Re:Geeks with no electrical knowledge? (Score:5, Insightful)

      by evilviper ( 135110 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @11:42PM (#4885281) Journal
      As someone (with extensive electrical knowledge) from the US, allow me to say how I am continually surprised how few accidental electrocutions there are anually. Many, many, unqualified "weekend" electricians like to "fix" things in the most half-assed ways. You would find it hard to imagine (as I did) the dangerous situations lurking around most homes due to bad wiring.

      My own relatives were routinely plugging-in and unplugging a toaster who's rubber shielding had been damaged near the plug. I cringe at the thought of such terrible practices, but a surprising number of people are exposed to similar conditions multiple times every day, and yet surprisingly few get killed, although, there are no shortages of stories about kids who cut through lamp cords, or electricians who don't shut off circuit breakers, and get knocked 20 yards (err... meters) across a room.

      Perhaps if the standard US voltage was 220V like much of the world, there might be far more fatalities. In addition to the low voltages, GFI outlets or very common, which protect those people that like to take a bath along with their hair dryer, radio, etc. Although, a huge number of house fires are caused by electricity.

      So, I agree that things like this are very irresponsible, and dangerous, but they are not uncommon, and are probably less dangerous than conditions many people are exposed to on a daily basis. In my opinion, power lines should be converted to around 50v DC before they enter a residential home. Although that wouldn't help those poor bastards that decide to put up their TV antennas near high-voltage power lines.
      • How would you stepup/down the voltage efficiently(in terms of power) with 50VDC? There would also need to be a gigantic AC/DC converter. Tons of home electronics use transformers to step down voltages into a usable range, this can only be achieved with AC. We made the right choice when we chose AC to power the world, it's much more efficient (see three phase generators,line power loss).
        • Tons of home electronics use transformers to step down voltages into a usable range, this can only be achieved with AC.

          Excuse me? Are you saying that you can't step-down DC voltage?

          (see three phase generators,line power loss)

          Sure, but nothing requires AC go all the way to the wall. DC doesn't work as well over the long-haul, but it should be fine for the last few feet.
          • You can't stepdown DC voltages efficiently because transformers work on the basis of magnetic flux. To create magnetic flux you have to have an alternating current. The reason they are more efficient then DC alternatives(voltage deviders) is because they don't consume power(idealy).
            • Simple voltage dividers is probably the absolutely worst method of step-down.

              I think the efficiency of DC step-up or step-down is possible at up to 90%, which, granted, isn't as efficient as an AC transformer, which might be 99%, at least it isn't a simple divider.

              Some of the better DC steppers break up DC into something like a pulsed wave form and use inductive or capacitive networks.

              Better AC-DC supplies also tend to break up AC into a higher frequency so it doesn't require such a large transformer.

      • 220 isn't much more dangerous than 110 (Score:4, Informative)

        by upper ( 373 ) on Saturday December 14, 2002 @02:03AM (#4885682)
        Perhaps if the standard US voltage was 220V like much of the world, there might be far more fatalities.

        The danger doesn't always increase with voltage. It's the current, and the duration of the current, that kills. And the resistance of a human body varies so much with so many variables that a factor of 2 in the voltage isn't likely to be the difference between life and death.

        Voltage does affect how your muscles react to a shock, though. As I understand it, you are likely to close your hand tightly and involuntarily if you come into contact with voltages in the 100-250 range. If you can't break contact, you're in serious trouble, hence the old advice to touch the wire with the back of your hand first. But for voltages more than a few hundred volts, muscles react so strongly that you're likely to throw yourself clear, even if you make contact with your palm. (I'm not sure I completely believe that.) So both US and european line voltages are about as dangerous as any voltage we could have chosen.

        I'm not sure that a lower voltage would reduce fatalities, though. It would increase current, and probably increase the risk of fire from overheated wires. Which kills more, electrocution or home fires?

        Do not trust your life to the info in this comment. IANA electrician or safety expert.

        • Yes, I agree that the resistance is a huge factor. I myself have been shocked by 110V a few times and it wasn't a big deal...just some tingling through my whole arm for a few minutes (although, not nearly as painful as when I twigged some nerve in my elbow and it felt like my hand was on fire...good times).
          I do remember my grandfather showing me a trick where he had a cord plugged into an outlet with bare wires. He then proceeded to dry his fingertips on his pants and then lightly grabbed onto the wires. I wouldn't want to try this with nice wet, salty hands though ;) (Note: he did have thick-skin mechanic hands which probably helped greatly). Here's an experiment you CAN try at home (if you have access to a multimeter with resistance measurement). Grab onto the contacts of the multimeter and try varying your finger pressure. Also try wet/salty hands.

          Disclamer: Don't even think of trying the first trick with 110V!!!
        • I had to decide whether to reply to this or moderate it down.

          In fact, there is NO safe lower limit for electric shock, and I write as someone who at one time designed unusual power supplies (5kV 5000A, for instance) and had to spend a lot of time consulting experts. The effects of shock on the body are actually highly unpredictable, and if you are really unlucky a couple of milliamps can cause cardiac fibrillation and death. Confusingly, voltages from 60 to around 1000V are all called "low voltage" and regarded in roughly the same way from a design safety point of view.

          As for the difference between 110V and 230V supplies, it is true that 220V is very considerably more dangerous. The reason there are so few fatalities is that generally when wires are cut, both current conductors contact the body close to one another and the current flows in a local loop. The amount of current that reaches the sensitive areas (heart, brain, spinal cord) is extremely small. The really dangerous situation is when one part of the body is in contact with ground and another comes into contact with a line conductor. In these circumstances the 220V supply will put more current through critical areas, increasing the chance of fibrillation or cessation of breathing.

          The observation about relative currents is also incorrect. Since the resistance of power conductors is low, a 230V supply will generally put more current into a short circuit than 110. In the worst case, the UK 230V supply can put about 6000A into a domestic circuit for a short time.

          But that is what we have circuit breakers and fuses for. The weakness of the US system is that individual circuits are often not protected to the same extent that they are in Europe, and that is why the risk of cable fires is greater - the use of cables with a rating lower than the upstream protection device.

          A big problem is that our entire electrical systems are now obsolete. They were designed when electrical appliances were bar heaters, washing machines and incandescent lamps. Now we need much lower current systems with multiple outlets to power all our tiny toys. We have lots of thin cables being connected to outlets rated at 10, 13 or 16A. But the cost of developing and installing more modern systems is prohibitive. Hence all those annoying little power supply bricks. Now that even CRT monitors are on the way out, we really need something like a safe, simple domestic 12 or 24V small appliance rail that can be locally backed up with batteries, supported with solar panels, even charged via exercise machines. But don't hold your breath waiting.

          • I just have to say this is a very good comment. I find it amazing that the comments from "upper" get moderated up, while he has shown he does not have even basic knowledge of electrical systems.

            it is true that 220V is very considerably more dangerous.

            Thanks, it's nice when I'm not the only one saying it. I never would have imagined that the words of those with electrical knowledge would be blocked out by a dozen amatures talking as if they were experts. I guess it's true... Slashdot's moderation system doesn't work in ANY situations.

            Now that even CRT monitors are on the way out, we really need something like a safe, simple domestic 12 or 24V small appliance rail that can be locally backed up with batteries, supported with solar panels, even charged via exercise machines. But don't hold your breath waiting.

            The one issue I have with this, is that I like CRTs. Well, it's not that I like CRTs, it's that I don't like the alternative... LCDs that blur, have pixels burn out, do not have as good of a picture, etc. So I wouldn't say they are on the way out, although they are becomming less popular as many people are willing to make the trade of in exchange for more table space.

            I'd still be one of the first to buy a "small appliance rail", as 99% of objects that I plug-in are just that...
        • The danger doesn't always increase with voltage.

          I theory, you are correct. In the real world, that is NEVER the case. Since even 1 amp of current can kill you (eg. a small battery), it really is the voltages that chages the outcome.

          It's the current, and the duration of the current, that kills.

          True, but the higer the voltage, the further the current can travel around impeedances, such as your skin, the air, etc. Just take a look at lightning some time. It jumps so very far because of the incredibly high voltages.

          As I understand it, you are likely to close your hand tightly and involuntarily

          But for voltages more than a few hundred volts, muscles react so strongly that you're likely to throw yourself clear

          Any time electricity gets to your muscles, your body will contract. Some people get lucky, in that their reaction causes them to pull the wiring from the wall.

          When you hit high voltages, the reaction is more of an explosion than an electrocution... An accident in the 440V range caused someone I knew to be thrown about 50 feet across a room... He's no longer an electrician.

          So both US and european line voltages are about as dangerous as any voltage we could have chosen.

          The difference in doubling voltages is very significant. This comment is simply wrong.

          I'm not sure that a lower voltage would reduce fatalities, though. It would increase current, and probably increase the risk of fire from overheated wires. Which kills more, electrocution or home fires?

          Wires don't just combust. It's usually two nearby electrical contacts (not sufficiently insulated) that cause a fire. If you increase the voltage, the further away those two contacts could be while still causing a short, and the more insulation would be needed to prevent shorts. eg. Think of Lightning, Tesla Coil, Static, etc.

          Do not trust your life to the info in this comment. IANA electrician or safety expert.
          I don't think your disclaimer is suffecient. Through your whole post you state these things as fact. Changing your style through the whole article might have told people that you weren't sure of this information... A disclaimer rarely makes an impact on a person's faith in the information.
          • evilviper (135110) wrote:

            Since even 1 amp of current can kill you (eg. a small battery), it
            really is the voltages that chages the outcome.

            Lethal current levels are much less than 1A. Most sources say fibrillation
            will start between 100-200mA for most people. One source said 75mA. And
            much lower currents than that will stop breathing for as long as a current
            flows -- some sources say 20mA. And if you read this as an assertion on my
            part that currents lower than that are safe, you seriously misread it. The
            information in this paragraph was mostly drawn from:

            http://pchem.scs.uiuc.edu/pchemlab/electric.htm
            http://msis.jsc.nasa.gov/sections/section06.htm
            http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/elecovrv.html

            I'm not sure that a lower voltage would reduce fatalities,
            though. It would increase current, and probably increase the risk
            of fire from overheated wires. Which kills more, electrocution or
            home fires?

            Wires don't just combust. It's usually two nearby electrical contacts
            (not sufficiently insulated) that cause a fire. If you increase the
            voltage, the further away those two contacts could be while still
            causing a short, and the more insulation would be needed to prevent
            shorts. eg. Think of Lightning, Tesla Coil, Static, etc.

            Wires are resistors. Connections, especially connections made by sloppy
            amateurs, are likely to have higher resistance than the wire around them.
            Too much current through a resister and it will get hot. When wires get
            hot enough, their insulation melts, and then the real trouble can begin.
            This may not seem like a likely problem, but much of typical US residential
            electrical code is aimed at it.

            Lower voltage at the same power means higher current. Higher current means
            larger wires and bigger, more serious connectors that are more expensive
            and -- in my limited experience -- take more tools, skill and care to get
            right. My opinion, based on the above, is that if we ran our high-power
            appliances on a lower voltages, there would be more electrical fires.

            Do not trust your life to the info in this comment. IANA
            electrician or safety expert.

            I don't think your disclaimer is suffecient. Through your whole post
            you state these things as fact. Changing your style through the whole
            article might have told people that you weren't sure of this
            information... A disclaimer rarely makes an impact on a person's faith
            in the information.

            You wrote this about a short comment containing "As I understand it" and
            "(I'm not sure I completely believe that.)". And you wrote it in a post in
            which you confidently misstated a danger level by a factor of 10.
            • Lethal current levels are much less than 1A.

              I'm well aware of that. I use 1amp for a number of reasons. For one thing, the 'much [lower]' currents aren't very consistent at killing someone... While 200mA may kill one person, another may survive it without any serious problems. That can vary even more when taking in to account moisture, salt, the area of the body where the electricity was induced, etc. I think 1 amp is a good figure, as it will kill anyone under just about any circumstances...

              But, the main reason I use one amp, is simply because just about every power source we deal with has at least that buch power... Including something as small as a 'AA' battery.

              So, I wasn't trying to imply that less than 1A would be safe... Just that your assertion (that lover voltage would mean more current, hence wouldn't be any more safe) wasn't correct.

              And if you read this as an assertion on my part that currents lower than that are safe, you seriously misread it.

              That goes double for my message.

              Wires are resistors. Connections, especially connections made by sloppy amateurs, are likely to have higher resistance than the wire around them. Too much current through a resister and it will get hot. When wires get hot enough, their insulation melts, and then the real trouble can begin. This may not seem like a likely problem, but much of typical US residential

              electrical code is aimed at it.

              Again, that works in theory. The reality of it, however, is that I have NEVER yet come across any home wiring that was even warmer than room temperature, let alone hot enough to melt through it's own insulation... even in cases where outlets are being seriously overloaded.

              It takes a great deal of power to get anywhere near even a thin wire's maximum capacity. Unless someone is trying to power a large air conditioner through a $1 extention cord, I doubt most people would ever have an issue with a warm wire.

              Higher current means

              larger wires and bigger, more serious connectors that are more expensive

              You can take your pick. If you want higher currents, you need thicker wires. If you want higher currents, you need to have thicker ruber insulation on each and every wire, while needing to keep any bare connections further apart, to prevent storting.

              You wrote this about a short comment containing "As I understand it" and

              "(I'm not sure I completely believe that.)".


              That sounds nice, but let's take a look shall we.

              The danger doesn't always increase with voltage. It's the current, and the duration of the current, that kills. And the resistance of a human body varies so much with so many variables that a factor of 2 in the voltage isn't likely to be the difference between life and death.

              That comes across as a rather confident statement... I can understand if you didn't mean it to be, but it's just as dangerous to readers. As for the disclaimer, most of the time, they are used simply to prevent legal liability, and otherwise do not indicate possibly incorrect information.

              And you wrote it in a post in

              which you confidently misstated a danger level by a factor of 10.

              As I said, it wasn't a mistake. When I mentioned a "$1 extention cord" above, I didn't mean to state that an extention cord retails for exactly $1, it was just atn approximate figure used to convey my meaning.
              • Allow we ta make a minor correction:

                You can take your pick. If you want higher currents, you need thicker wires. If you want higher VOLTAGES, you need to have thicker ruber insulation on each and every wire, while needing to keep any bare connections further apart, to prevent storting.
      • You complain about ignoramouses electrocuting ourselves, but what about the crappy design of our electric plugs?

        Who the hell designed a plug that makes it possible to put your fingers into contact with a live piece of metal as you insert it into a socket? I'm an adult now, so I don't have any trouble with it. But when I was a kid, my little tiny fingers would slip off the plug and accidentally contact the metal prongs as I was inserting it into the socket. Ouch!

        There are much better plug designs out there - Why don't we use them?
        • Yes, I quite agree, but it wasn't exactly on-topic. If I was to start ranting about every practice involving electricity that surprises me, this would be a book, not a post/thread.

          If you pay attention to plugs, you'd see that there have been MAJOR improvements over the years. Just a few years ago, plugs did not usually have the ergonomic shape they do now, and the plastic rim that prevents your fingers from slipping, and sliding right onto the contacts. Although that does not eliminate problems, it seriously reduces accidents.

          Anyone that wanted to make a safe plug could install a spring-loaded plastic shield over the leads, and nearly eliminate this type of problem. However, that would add a buck to their production costs, so no company has done it.

          OTOH, I doubt there are many fatalities from that kind of accident. If anything, a lot of pain, and possibly destroyed portions of your hand would be the likely result... unless you make a habbit of standing in water while plugging in appliances. On the 220V outlets for large appliances (air conditioners, refridgeratiors, washing/drying machines, etc.) that type of protection might be more useful, but those aren't the type devices that people commonly plug in and unplug. So, I'd have to see some real statistics on electrical fatalities to know if companies are really being negligent by not providing more protection. Although, if I was the owner of a company, I would certainly add such protection (and many others as well).
    • IIRC, most components don't draw nearly 10A. If you do the math and pay attention, it shouldn't be a problem. My wiring is mostly 20A rating but that was a b!tch to install the outlets when the wire is so stiff.

      I do agree, a $20 "Craftsman Auto Switch" from Sears (at least in the US) will probably do better, costs less and you don't get the possible liablility of letting people tingle themselves.

      The article also neglected to point out some other alternatives, such as using the female IEC connector on the back of some power supplies. They used to be used a lot as a switched "outlet" to power CRT displays.

  • You know.. (Score:3, Insightful)

    by The Terrorists ( 619137 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @10:20PM (#4885047)
    I don't want any of this stuff. It's mostly in the cool gadget category. If Slashdot wanted, it could be a force for quality in the basics of hardware construction, design, and performance -- a Consumer Report of computing, as it were.

    It will never be a cultural leader in computing. Others with cash take that mantle. The former, however, is needed.

  • Christmas Stuff? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by AtariDatacenter ( 31657 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @10:26PM (#4885066)
    I guess not many people clicked on the "Christmas Stuff", huh? For one, I'm glad to find a source for the LED christmas lights. That's a really big plus. I haven't shopped at Albertson's for a while because of the prices.

    But come on, someone has to mention something about overclocking the Christmas Lights. Going from a mild 30hz to a blazing 60hz! Imagine a Beowulf chain of those... *

    * - These lights cannot be chained, from what I've read.

  • Too much time... (Score:4, Funny)

    by johnraphone ( 624518 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @10:41PM (#4885112) Homepage
    Another example of too much time.

    "Toilet PC"
    "In my new quest to find odd objects to turn into computers, my fiancee Julie and I were at the grocery store one day when I thought of this idea. At the grocery store there was a child's training toilette sitting in a shopping cart"

    damn at lease i use my free time to get free tshirts

  • Hardware BYTES is more like it! hahahah... I kill me.

  • Cool case? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by SensitiveMale ( 155605 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @10:57PM (#4885143)
    It is a steel 'Alienware' case.

    Oh, oh, be still my beating heart.

    First review sites praise aluminum cases and now they praise a case because it is steel.

    Can PC case makers build some taste into these things?

  • Dear Slashdot: (Score:5, Insightful)

    by onomatomania ( 598947 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @11:20PM (#4885188)
    Please, for the love of god, never link to dvhardware.net again. Fer christ's sake, with a readership in the tens to hundreds of thousands, you'd think Slashdot could accept articles that feature quality sites... which dvhardware.net is NOT. Hmmm, let's have a look at the checklist for crappy hardware reviews:

    1. Article split into unnecessarily high number of pages? Check.
    2. Verdana microsized font (specified in pixels in the stylesheet) which is unresizable? Check.
    3. Terrible spelling and grammar? Check. (Note: I realize that English was probably not the author's primary language. Nevertheless, it doesn't excuse passages such as this:
      One of the good things about it is the material it's made of , aluminium. Another good thing is that the pad looks very cool! One of the downsides of the pad is the noise, the pad makes lot's of noise when you're moving your mouse on it. And then another thing , which is good and bad together :p , the pad always feels cold. This would be very good in summer but now in winter it feels too cold.
      If you want to be taken seriously you must write articles that don't sound like a twelve-year-old puked on the keyboard.
    4. Useless pictures that look like they were taken by some retard with a digital camera, featuring a "click on me to enlarge" link which doesn't help at all? Check.
    5. Overall vapid commentary that ends with a predominantly positive rating, in this case three stars? Check.

      For fuck's sake...

  • The biggest problem with steel pads (as I have had one quite close to me for some time) is that it makes an AWFUL loud noise every time you get so pissed of in a game of quake or cs and you throw your mouse at it. It stays in your ear for quite some time :(

    btw, go for the func 1030 instead. better mousepad :)

  • How much does it cost to get a life? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by LazloToth ( 623604 ) on Friday December 13, 2002 @11:32PM (#4885241)
    "The Xoxide PC Tachometer Kit is a neat and unique product that will definitely stand out at a LAN party." A person with better things to do than hook up an automotive tachometer to a CPU would stand out even more.

  • Do people never learn?... (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Xtraneous ( 594376 ) <XtraneousNO@SPAMcomcast.net> on Friday December 13, 2002 @11:36PM (#4885252)
    I had assumed that people had finally realized that there is many shall we say... "inconsistencies" in the boards that review sites get, and the consumer boards. Recently (about 2-4 months ago) asus realeased their P4S8X motherboard based on the SIS 648 chipset. Almost every hardware review site praised this board, yet when the boards hit the market, all hell broke loose, (some sites, such as Motherboards.org [motherboards.org] still have the P4S8X rated as the top board, when it is clear that this board is not worth the sand it was created with.) Enough hell that many people began reffering to the board as the P4Sux.

    So why:
    A)Post the review of a not-so-new board (based off of the I845PE board) and
    B) Why even post it's review at all, especially now that we have learned not to trust review sites?

    I am not trying to be troll-ish, but this is Slashdot, News for Nerds. Stuff that matters. Clearly this was neither of the two.
  • I hear so much about how compatablity with computer accessories isn't a an issue anymore. I never believed it myself....(page 4 of the aluminum mousepad review):

    "Another problem is that the pad isn't compatible with most of Logitechs optical mouses , only with the MX serie."

    OLIVER

  • AC/DC Convertor (Score:3, Interesting)

    by wynlyndd ( 5732 ) <wynlyndd@ g m a i l . c om> on Friday December 13, 2002 @11:49PM (#4885300) Homepage
    Wouldn't that have smoothed out the power and removed the flicker?
    • Maybe, maybe not.

      I don't know a whole lot about this, but I do know that most DC->AC inverters (like one you would use to power a household plug from your car's cigarette lighter) don't perform a true inversion. Instead the AC that is produced (remember that's alternating current) is what's known as a 'modified sine wave' instead of a true sine wave.

      Kind of hard to explain, so here's a picture [absak.com]. To make a long story short, _true_ sine wave inverters cost a whole lot more than the cheaper variety.

      Anyway, I don't think a modified since wave one would fix the flicker, a true sine might though.
    • This is an AC/DC converter, of sorts. Add a high voltage capacitor between Vcc and ground on the DC side, and that's the flicker reduced... Of course, by doing that, you've instantly increased the bulk and cost of the mod.

  • Yeah.

    It's called hitting Crtl + Alt + Del and looking at the CPU usage.

  • I've been doing it all wrong... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Grip3n ( 470031 ) on Saturday December 14, 2002 @02:45AM (#4885789) Homepage
    DV Hardware a little article about an aluminium mousepad, called the Steelpad

    Wow, and to think all this time I've been using nice, soft gel. Time to throw that out and get me a nice block of steel...that'll do wonders for the 'ol carpal tunnel...

  • 2002-11-25 06:43:27 Gingerbread case mod, hohoho! (articles,hardware) (rejected)

    So Slashdot editors go through the garbage heap now and then to find stuff. Interesting. Ah well, I should rejoice, now I just have to get slashdotted to be Übergeek Alpha-One in the hood. :-)

  • What about a speedometer showing fps in Quake, a water temperature gauge for l33t d00ds with water cooling and a handbrake light to warn you that you've locked the workstation? You could also have an "engine check" light for when something goes wrong, but you'd have to replace the bulb frequently if you were running Windows Me ;-)

  • Monster Tach! (Score:3, Funny)

    by DG ( 989 ) on Saturday December 14, 2002 @09:30AM (#4886642) Homepage Journal
    Oh, come on.

    If you're going to add a tach, don't go with one of those puny little Sun tachs. Use one of these bad boys:

    http://www.autometer.com/hp/2001_catalog/data_ac qu isition/76.html

    It'll be about as much use on a computer as it is on the typical riced-up Civic....

    DG
  • Mousepads are sooo '90s. This is a little over the top. What purpose does a mousepad serve for an optical mouse?

    ...

    That's what I thought. March all your superfluous stuff to the round file, us geeks need our deskspace for actual useful stuff (or toys).
  • ...and they're pretty sweet, IMHO. I built them a couple of months ago, so maybe I'd wait for a dual-channel DDR board now.

    Red Hat 8.0 supports them out-of-the-box - Promise RAID controller, ALC650 sound, Intel Ethernet. Debian 3.0 doesn't seem to support the ethernet (it's on the CNR bus, apparently). Promise supply a binary module for the RAID controller, but there doesn't really seem to be any point - the hard bits are done in software anyway, so either use Linux ideraid or md and be done with it. I've gone with md, which also allows me to have mixed RAID0 and RAID1 devices using only 2 discs (not perfect resiliance, but good enough for my needs).

    I threw a Celeron 1.7G in one machine and a P4 2.40B in the other.

    The only thing I've found that doesn't appear to be terribly well supported is the environment sensor. I haven't tried the smartcard/memory card interface yet, nor the USB2.0 ports.

    One thing to note is that the AGP slot is 4x, which limits you to 1.5volt cards - Geforce, Radeon, or Matrox, essentially.

    --

  • And Modthebox checks out a cool tachometer for PC's!

    I have been meaning to get my hands on some old retro voltage meter and hook it up to the parrallel port with a simple R2R DAC to use for display of CPU occupancy.

    I guess I could multiplex it to display more stats onto more meters too for fun.

    Could look cool, having an orange backlit glow and old meter needle flicking into the "red zone". ; )

  • There was a college student trying to earn some pocket money by
    going from house to house offering to do odd jobs. He explained this to
    a man who answered one door.
    "How much will you charge to paint my porch?" asked the man.
    "Forty dollars."
    "Fine" said the man, and gave the student the paint and brushes.
    Three hours later the paint-splattered lad knocked on the door again.
    "All done!", he says, and collects his money. "By the way," the student says,
    "That's not a Porsche, it's a Ferrari."

    - this post brought to you by the Automated Last Post Generator...

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