Reblog: Owl In Flight

TYWKIWDBI

Now For A Holiday

And Now (Software)...

Now the new project is up and running, it's time to install some software with WAF. This 'puter is to replace the AOpen MP45-BDR in the living room connected to the TV.

Later I will look to add some storage in the living room for back-up and then upgrade the inside of the HTPC.

Software installed under Windows 7 (64 bit):

• AVG Anti-Virus
• Google Chrome
• Adobe Flash
• Adobe Reader
• Media Center Studio
• Gmote
• Sonos Controller for the Play 3
• Shark Windows 7 Codecs

Further Info:

And Now (Hardware)...

And Now (Hardware)...

Streacom FC08 fanless chassis with CIR &150W pico PSU
Intel DH67CFB3 mini ITX motherboard
Intel Core i5-2390T processor
8GB Corsair XMS3 DDR3 RAM
120GB OCZ Agility 3 SATA III SSD
Sony BC-5600S blu-ray drive

Further Info:
Getting Closer to Next Project
Next Project
Windows 7 Starter Kit
2nd Baby Arrived (father doing well)
Baby News
RKHTPC

Windows Media Player Sucks

I finally got around to ripping those old CD's I've had lying around.

WMP12 and WMC7 are our WAF-approved applications for the management and playback of music (although Ezzy does have iTunes for her phone).

Now I have to find all those album covers and WMP12 absolutely sucks at finding them automatically. Then when it does find them it takes FOREVER to load them. Then once it's loaded them, you go back to your directory and WHOA it's moved and/or created copies of files all over the place, picked up wrong album covers for songs you already had fixed and sometimes not even done anything at all.

But when it's done... ahhhh.

Further Info:
"Find and Embed Album Art in Your MP3 Collection" by Kevin Purdy, Lifehacker, 27 June 2008

Solitude is the Air We Breathe

Getting Closer to the Next Project

Just working out costs and benefits for a new fanless desktop. Inside the case we don't need that much so will go for a low power Intel Core i5 processor and as much storage as possible.


The case choices so far are:

Streacom's FC05 OD (untested)

A-Tech Fabrications NAS4x (but can't handle full i5 processor)

HDPlex's H5.S Series (but product currently unavailable)

So still a bit of thinking to do. In the meantime, let's upgrade the Lorne media centre yay!


Further Info:

Windows 7 Starter Kit

I Yawned. Solid.

Sound-Style-Power-Connectivity-Value

Ezzy has been listening to more music at home via the TV, so we thought we would look into something a little more portable and less energy-intensive. Here are some of the options:

Lifetrons Drumbass IIIe

UFi UCube USB-Digital Speakers

Philips Fidelio Prime DS9000

Sonos Play 3

Yamaha TSX80

Yamaha TSX140

Interested in Conflict?

[Solved] Front LED Too Bright

One of the issues we have with the MP45-BDR (which otherwise is an awesome little HTPC for the living room) is that the blue LED on the front is VERY BRIGHT. It also blinks when the little one goes to sleep, almost as if a pulsar is approaching.


I looked into tweaking the voltage to the LED but the risk/reward pay-off wasn't there.


Instead I have opted for a small piece of transparent plastic which I shaded in with a Sharpie.

Further Info:

Windows 7 Starter Kit

Windows XP Starter Kit

2nd Baby Arrived (father doing well)

Baby News

RKHTPC

[Solved] Wi-Fi Extender

I, Dino

[Solved] To NAS or Not to NAS

After the stupid Inspiron 5150 died, we got the Asus Ezy PC. Then we relocated the HTPC to the study and started using Ethernet over Powerline to stream from the HTPC to the MP45-BDR.  This set-up works ok and even has WAF.


BUT
Somehow we filled up the 2x1TB drives on the HTPC, so the question becomes, is the Next Project a NAS or is it a new media PC (Sandy Bridge?) to replace the one at Lorne?  In particular, I am intrigued by the promise of WiDi 2.0, which might solve the problem of the bad connection infrastructure at Lorne.


SOLUTION?
In the end I went with upgrading the HTPC HDDs to 2x2TB HDDs.  I used WD Caviar Greens (combination of low power consumption and "brand name" reliability) so now we have 4TB of storage capacity (plus the old 1TB drives can be used in the Next Project).


Switching over the drives was fairly standard but, partly for fun, I installed a new USB3.0 card, and then used a cheap HDD dock to transfer the files (max speed observed was about 49MB/s - not earth-shattering but much faster than the USB2.0 speeds I was looking at, plus now I can use USB3.0 devices).


Now to copy those archived files onto the new HDDs and fill them up too.

eBay Results

Netcomm NP204 Powerline Adapters $102.50

Cotton Hammock $5.00 (donated to charity)

USB Multi-Display Adapter $20

DVico FusionHDTV DVT-T Nano $11.83

Intel 2.4GHz 4MB Core 2 Duo T7700 $60

Bose 301 Series IV Direct/Reflecting Speakers $208.50

Aiwa HV-MX100u VCR $25

 Alan Pinkus Ladies Gold & Silver open toe heels size 9 $1.25

Bose Lifestyle 5 Series II $415

Next Project

I am not sure what the Next Project will be yet, but I know it will look cool:

Or maybe:

Further Info:

Windows 7 Starter Kit

Windows XP Starter Kit

2nd Baby Arrived (father doing well)

Baby News

RKHTPC

Windows 7 Starter Kit

The stupid Dell Inspiron 5150 finally died (well not really, it hangs on boot, but I can't be bothered to reinstall everything again).


Time to upgrade! Especially since Ezzy needs a new laptop for her Ph.D.


We chose the Asus Ezy PC 1215N (Black) based on size, looks, and ability to run some basic apps.


Here's what I'm installing this afternoon:

• AVG Anti-Virus
• Google Chrome
• Adobe Flash
• Adobe Reader
• MS Office 2007 (have the install DVD)
• 7-Zip
• K-Lite Codec Pack
• Internode Monthly Usage Meter
• PC Coach
• iTunes :(
• Skype

Further Info:
Windows XP Starter Kit
2nd Baby Arrived (father doing well)
Baby News
RKHTPC

Chinese Rule

Further Info:
"Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior" by Amy Chua, WSJ Online, 8 January 2011
"The Tiger Mother Responds to Readers" by Amy Chua, WSJ Online, 11 January 2011
"Why I Love My Strict Chinese Mom" by Sophia Chua-Rubenfeld, NYPost, 18 January 2011

Xmas 2010 Menu

• Chicken drumlets in honey & soy
• Beijing "lobah" duck
• Cha siu
• Potato salad
• Bok choy noodle salad
• Pumpkin, pine nut & pomegranate salad
• Fresh cooked prawns

Check the audio track

Who said...

Genius is born - not paid.


One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries.


This is not a novel to be tossed aside lightly. It should be thrown with great force.


Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve.


Thought: Why does man kill? He kills for food. And not only food: frequently there must be a beverage.


Happiness depends upon ourselves.


An invasion of armies can be resisted, but not an idea whose time has come.


If you're at Thanksgiving dinner, but you don't like the stuffing or the cranberry sauce or anything else, just pretend like you're eating it, but instead, put it all in your lap and form it into a big mushy ball. Then, later, when you're out back having cigars with the boys, let out a big fake cough and throw the ball to the ground. Then say, "Boy, these are good cigars!"

Further Info:
Good Memes Never Die
Jack Handey Quotes