The Official PC building thread - 4th Edition

I was gonna use my tax return to build my self-sustained generator. Today, before ordering the parts, I gave it a once over in my head. As well as some research online. One of the components requires my going back to the drawing board Let's just say I underestimated one of the components. So I'm gonna have to rethink it, before dropping several bones on the materials. If I were actually being paid my worth, or at least had a full time job, I'd gamble, and probably make it work. But I also suspect my car may need attention soon.

So, I guess I'm gonna have to use my return to upgrade my PC I think the 790XTA-UD4 has served me long enough And it's certainly an agreeable board. I can probably get 30 - $50 for it? I can't believe somebody on ebay is asking $125 for a used one :S

Perhaps I can even upgrade the CPU. I'll have to think about that one though...

 

So is that the same difference as Perpetual Motion? lol ;D

Probably because someone might need a replacement for a bad board in an existing system that they don't want to start all over on, as it still is cheaper buying an over priced board then a whole new system. Truly not that surprising considering equipment that you can't still buy new anymore, or they may think. I've seen products that are hard to still find new that are going for 3x or even 4x the current cost.

I'm seriously thinking about replacing my newest 8 core 4.0 GHz AMD processor with the new 4.7 GHz 220w egg cooker. It would be great I could stoke up the old PC and cook breakfast on the PC while surfing the web.

My ADSL ActionTec modem went out yesterday at around 10:57am so I've been without internet and trouble shooting the wiring in the house before determining that the modem maybe at fault. The funny thing is that I could still sign on to it and reconfigure it but it wouldn't negotiate PPPOe LLC/CHAP Ethernet anymore, I just got the new Netgear DM111PSPV2. The new modem is pretty sweet for a cheap ($50USD) modem. You can select two basic modes of operation, Mode Only or Router/Modem and the router has several good features. I'm very impressed how well it works and feature it is for a bottom basement product.

 

It compares to perpetual motion. And in fact, it would be the closest thing I've ever heard of. But, it would not last indefinitely. Maintenance, would likely be necessary around the 2 - 4yr mark. Depending on the grade of the components, and just how taxed the device is. I still believe the device is achievable. Not so sure about small form factor just yet, but the general physics of the device is sound

Ultimately, I think I just felt cheap shelling out all the money LOL! :S

 

Funny.... ;P

 

I, for one, am HIGHLY curious to see what you build Omega. Being from an engineering and tinkering background myself, it sounds like you've had a revelation in thought and really come up with something special. The relative secrecy about its design adds to the mystique! Haha. Be sure to post updates when or if you feel it is okay to do

 

It would give me great pleasure to share the information When the time is right, you can count on it!

Looks like the mobo upgrade is gonna have to wait. I decided to go all out on a camera. I bought the Canon 70D. I wanted the 60D for so long, I finally lost my patience. And the 70D is the successor Apparently the 3DTV/Monitor is gonna have to wait too. Perhaps I can take on a second job, and make all my dreams come true?

 

That is a great choice and the big advantage of the 70 over the 60 is the dual pixel sensor plus it is a faster body too. That will be my next camera too as like you I was going to buy the 60D.

 

Can't wait til it gets here! I'm gonna be jumping up and down when I see the package car in the driveway LOL!

 

I bet that is a very good camera!!!

 

Well, it should smoke the Rebel xti I've been using. And the Xti is no slouch I'm gonna run it through every test I can think of. Motion, lighting, etc. I'm gonna make that camera an extension of myself LOL!

 

No offense but the XTi is not in the same class as the 60D or 70D. Both of these camera bodies are in the 5D/3D class even though they cost much more. You are crossing the line into top of the line camera's even though it is the bottom of the best it is a fantastic camera, truly....

Great move Kev!,
Steve

 

Oh I realize that! LOL! But for my needs, the Rebel is certainly no slouch. But in most respects, the rebel can't even touch the 60/70D. Especially with the right lenses, which is also important

 

Got me a Samsung Galaxy S2 4G Touch as payment for doing some work. Nice payment

It has a 1.2GHz ARM Cortex-A9 dual core CPU with 1GB of RAM running Samsung's excellent, efficient, and fast TouchWhiz interface. The OS version is 2.3.6 GingerBread. They could easily update it as the newer versions are even less resource intensive, and perfectly suited for it. I might have to root it, and see if I can install the newest version. No reason it shouldn't work. Power and speed wise it surpasses all Apple hardware I have used by a wide margin. Research is showing that it's comparable to an iPhone 4S, so still quite powerful despite being a couple year old design now. The iPhone 5 and newer Samsung Galaxies are much faster and have better capabilities. It is snappy though, and not laggy or unresponsive like some older Android phones were. Very crisp and smooth to use.

Mine is the US cellular version which includes the later model AMOLED Plus 4.52" 480 x 800 display. Larger than the regular S2's 4.3". Not quite as crisp as my iPod Touch 4, but FAR superior to my ipod touch 3 which was 3.5" 480 x 320. Being a rather good quality LED display, its colors and contrast blow both iPods out of the water. Also, it features a 4 touch buttons instead of the 2 touch/1 hardware combo on regular S2, thus making it the 4G Touch. The home button is now a touch button and the new one is instant websearch, opening up the web browser with the search bar already highlighted. Mobile Firefox seems to be the best featured mobile web browser, much like its desktop counterpart, and near the top for speed and optimisation, unlike its desktop counterpart. Very nice piece of software. Much better to use than on the iDevices, which lacked memory severely and couldn't handle many tabs on any browser.

After updating from iOS 4 to 5, the battery life on all of my Apple devices plummeted and never recovered. They all went from ~12 hours of internet browsing to 2-3. The S2 so far lasts a good ~10 hours of browsing and youtube ie constant use. Standby is much longer.

FYI I have always carried some sort of smart device alongside a dumb phone as I hate having something expensive tied to a subscription. I need something app-capable to be able to use workforce management software and receive service orders from home and away. I have modified the UI of the S2 so that it functions effectively as an Android-based iPod Touch, instead of as a phone. Turning off the 3G capability and phone service actually saves quite a bit of battery at times

The S2 was barely used since it was bought new as it was quickly replaced with an S3, and is in excellent, almost mint condition. I even got all the retail packaging. It really is a nice unit, and worth using.

Mobile technology is probably the fastest advancing industry currently. This S2 is already quite outdated, being the best smartphone available in 2011, but Android updates have improved its speed and reliability since then. Its, at the time, excellent specs mean that it remains supremely useful for all of my needs. It's about as fast and powerful as any other smartphone in practice. Only the most very graphics intensive games are beyond its reach. Otherwise I'm not missing much. The Galaxy S3 has far more luxury software and hardware features, mostly having to do with the camera and the interface, but remains largely identical in practical usage except for the higher resolution screen. The fact that this phone is a flagship model with the latest features available in an S2 means it has far more than enough grunt to remain as perfectly usable as it was new. It's an awesome mobile computer, and far superior in performance and design to all of my previous Apple products. iPod Touch 3, 4 and iPad 2.

 

I'll have to return my S4 and get a S2. ;D I do love the term smart phone though as there are no smart phones truly, but hey people love marketing jargon. I'm waiting for a smart computer to come out, I'm sure it will blow away these dumb computers we use now. LOL

 

Sorry to do this, but I can't seem to find anything about this.

Anybody every see a magnetic copper wire? I have! LOL! I have an IDE cable in front of me, that is highly attracted to a Neodymium magnet. Now, most of us know, that copper is NOT magnetic. So, I chopped an end of the wire, and viewed the end under the microscope. It has a shiny silvery look, much like iron/nickel. So, I guess the question is, have you ever heard of nickel/iron wire, being electroplated with Copper? Surely that would be more expensive! :S All I know is, I'm fascinated by this. I've never in my life, seen an alloyed wire!

Interesting!
http://goldrefiningforum.com/~goldrefi/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=49&t=14016

 

A lot of cables are Aluminum based unless it is for critical usage. Bellow are some of the details for the different types of clad but there are more variations as they don't mention Cadmium which is used less these days. Hope this helps you out with your project.

Plating for Copper and Copper Alloys:
Silver - Silver is quite soft and malleable (easily shaped).. With the exception of gold, it is the most malleable and ductile (able to be drawn into very thin wire) of all metals. Silver is harder than gold but softer than copper. It is quite resistant to corrosion and does not oxidize easily. Of all the metals, it is the best conductor of electricity. When silver is plated over copper there can be an accelerated corrosion of the copper at pinholes or breaks in the silver plating. It is then susceptible to the formation of cuprous oxide when stored or used in a moist or high humidity environment. The corrosion is known as "red plague" and is identifiable by the presence of a brown-red powder deposit on the exposed copper. Due to this possible corrosion, it may be wise to consider an insulation over the silver-plated copper wire, such as Teflon. Silver plated copper wire has applications in the medical field. Silver plating over oxygen-free copper reduces the resistance of the copper, thus enhancing audio and video cables and wires. Silver plated Copper wire is available with different plating thickness from 5 - 200 g silver / kg of wire. Silver plated Copper wire is available in diameters from 0.020mm to 0.500mm (AWG 52-24) with all insulations and self-bonding enamels. We also make Bare Silver Plated Wire.

Gold - Gold is soft and wears easily, so it is often mixed with harder metals. Gold is un-reactive, which means it is resistant to corrosion and tarnishing, at high or low temperatures. Gold is also malleable and ductile. Gold is a very good conductor of electricity and, since it can be drawn into very thin wires, has many applications in electronics. Gold plating on contacts for switches, relays and connectors accounts for most of the gold required each year by the electronics industry. Gold Plated Copper Wire is used in satellites as part of their electronic circuits and as a heat shield. Copper with gold or silver plating can be used in the ultra flexible and ultra miniature wire needed in instrumentation used in the medical industry.

Tin - The properties of tin make it ideal for use as a coating. Tin has a low melting point and readily alloys with most other metals, so tin coatings can be easily produced by immersing a suitable prepared metal object in a bath of molten tin. Hot-dipped tin coatings present a good appearance and are tightly adherent. When coated sheets are severely drawn and worked, the coating actually acts as a lubricant. Tin coatings may also be produced by electroplating the metal from an aqueous solution of its salts. Copper tin alloys or tin bronzes are known for their corrosion resistance. Tin bronzes are stronger and more ductile than red and semi-red brasses. They have high wear resistance and low friction coefficient against steel. Tin-nickel is highly resistant to corrosion and tarnish, and is therefore used in electrical equipment and scientific instruments.

Copper and nickel may both be used as plating over other metals.

Plating for Aluminum:

Copper clad aluminum has applications in the medical, electronics, and communications industries, as well as being used in RFI (radio frequency interference) shielding.

Plating for Steel:

Tin - plated copper clad - This has applications in the electronics and communications industries, and is also used in RFI (radio frequency interference) shielding.

Silver - plated copper clad - used in the communications industry.

Gold - plated stainless steel

Nickel - plated steel is used in the communications and electronic industries

 

Thanks steve. Very informative!

 

I thought gold was a better conductor than silver???

 

Silver is the best, then copper, then gold, then aluminum.

Though I've heard Tin can be considered a super conductor, at specific temperatures.

Gold simply doesn't corrode. Which is essential for Ram, CPU's, etc. As far as I know, gold can only become soluble, in Aqua Regia. Nothing else can touch it.

 

Good Read Steve