From Lifehacker: an excellent list of 10 ways to gather, tie and otherwise control computer cables. Some of these tips can be used right away. Other tips require a bit of work. This video from the Lifehacker article is a brief how-to segment. Build your own cable charging station from a plastic box!
A desktop computer may have more cables connected for networks, printers, USB devices, keyboards and mice.
That mass of cables behind the desk becomes a dust magnet over time. Pet owners get the extra bonus of fur or hair clinging to the cables.
There’s always the fun of untangling a pile of cables. The first championship in competitive cable untangling or speedcabling was recently held, and here’s a web site with details and a video.
It’s not always a mess. Data centers and server rooms need to keep their cables labeled and neatly arranged. Royal Pingdom (via BoingBoing Gadgets) ran an article on 24 January 2008 about well-managed cables.
My usual solution for taming long cables is double-sided Velcro tape. There’s no adhesive – the hooks are one one side while the loops are on the other side. I usually keep a few strips in my drawer and my computer bag.
The power adapter dating game
There’s always the challenge of determining what each cable represents. I use labels or colored stickers to identify cables, especially power adapters. It’s a better solution than playing the “power adapter dating game” with a drawer full of adapters, plugging each in until a plug fits the power jack.
Even if the plug fits, it’s always a good idea to double check the voltage and amperage on the device and the adapter. Plugging a power adapter that is too powerful into a device may damage or destroy that device. It’s like plugging a car battery into a flashlight… boom!
Most people don’t understand electrical engineering, so it’s far easier to slap a written or printed label on the adapter in the first frenzied moments after unboxing. Write the same doodle or letters on two matching stickers. Put one sticker on the power adapter, and another on the device. As long as the stickers don’t fall off, it’s easy to match the device with its adapter.
Computers generate a great deal of waste heat. Active cooling is the most popular method of venting heat, by using powered fans that move air through the computer. However, because a powered fan gets electricity from the systemboard and the computer’s power supply, the fan must spin fast enough to transfer any heat that the fan motor generate, as well as the waste heat the fan is supposed to divert from the CPU and other computer parts. Powered fans also increase the electricity requirements of a computer.
Residential users are more likely to be annoyed by fan noise than energy costs. Media center computers often use fast processors, high-end graphics cards and large hard drives to drive large video screens. Audiophiles do not want fan noise to ruin their experience, so these computers are often designed to reduce fan noise.
In a data center or a server room, the noise generated by hundreds of fans can reach 85 dB (decibels) and louder. That’s loud enough to trigger OSHA regulations, so some data centers provide noise canceling headphones or earplugs for their personnel. As data centers become larger, with faster computers that have louder fans, data centers are now using noise insulation, liquid cooling, and other technologies to manage their physical environment. A few data centers are using low power computers that produce less heat and fan noise. See this 31 July 2007 article from ComputerWorld for more details.
In some computers, passive or convection cooling is a key design element. Apple’s laptops and the Mac Mini have small fans that provide active cooling. In fact, small fans are used in many laptops and small form factor (SFF) desktop computers. As I mentioned in my 3 March 2008 post, laptop designers have to with tightly integrated components. There is much less airspace inside a laptop case than in a desktop computer case.
Passive cooling is also used in many laptop and SFF computers to reduce electrical power consumption. Heat is diverted by connecting the systemboard to the computer case, while small vents allow cool air to enter the computer case. The computer components warm and expand the air inside the case, pushing the heated air out of the case while drawing cool air inside. This article at PowerBook Central provides a nice discussion.
Some laptop owners have noticed that underside of their computers becomes very warm during use. Many laptop computers have vents on their underside. Laying the laptop flat against a table will block the vents, and cause hat to build up inside the computer. Some laptop computers can become too warm to be placed on a user’s lap. I use a plastic or metal stand to raise the computer off the table or away from my lap. I haven’t tried a USB-powered stand, which plugs into a laptop computer’s USB port to spin small fans in the stand. The fans provide active cooling, drawing heat away from the computer case and pulling air through the computer’s vents.
A Stirling idea
TweakTown (via BoingBoing Gadgets) has an article about a clever cooling system that harnesses waste heat to provide active cooling without drawing electricity. MSI has devised a fan motor that is powered by a small Stirling engine, which uses waste heat to power the fan. The system is very quiet. HowStuffWorks and Wikipedia each have articles about Stirling engines. There are several companies that design and sell Stirling engines. American Stirling Company sells small motors that are used as demonstration models. Swedish company Kockums has designed and launched 8 submarines equipped with large Stirling engines.
TweakTown also provided an MSI animation of this motor. I hope the real component moves faster than the simulation!
Yesterday I discussed how laptop computers are designed. One important point I should mention is that laptops are not designed for user serviceability. The screws are small, the parts are tightly fitted, and one wrong move might ruin or destroy the unit. There’s enough energy in a laptop battery to start a fire, as I discussed in my posts from 15 August 2006 and 1 October 2006.
Most laptops have small doors that users can open to replace and upgrade RAM and hard disk drives. Almost every other kind of repair or upgrade should be performed by a professional who has the tools and experience for the job.
If you really want to look at some computer hardware, check my PowerPoint file in this 17 February 2008 post.
Warning!
Never attempt to open or service a laptop computer while the battery is installed, or while the computer is plugged in to AC power. Disconnect the power sources, but be careful, because the computer’s parts are still charged with a hazardous amount of electricity. To remove this charge, press the computer’s power switch for at least 10 seconds. This will discharge the capacitors inside the computer.
From Business Week comes a longish article about Lenovo’s ultralight X300 ThinkPad laptop. There’s a picture on the top of the web version of the article that shows a disassembled version of the laptop. It’s the first Lenovo model to carry the ThinkPad brand name.
Weighing in at 3 pounds, the X300 fits inside an interoffice mail envelope and uses flash memory for file storage, just like the MacBook Air. Lenovo is a major sponsor of the 2008 Olympic Games, and the company will supply hundreds of X300s to Olympic staff this summer.
Walt Mossberg of the Wall astreet Journal gave the X300 a glowing review. He’s been a big fan of Apple products for the last couple years. In fact, Mossberg’s biggest problem with the X300 is the Windows operating system. He notes that unlike the MacBook Air, the X300 has 3 USB ports, an RJ-45 jack, a DVD drive, and users can change and add their own batteries.
Designing a laptop computer is tricky work
Laptop computers are highly integrated devices that combine a battery, screen, input devices, and ports with the computer’s core hardware. The final product must withstand everyday use, as well as the occasional drop.
Corporate clients have very specific requests. For example, some companies want security features like power-on passwords, asset tags, and encrypted network cards. It’s much easier to engineer security into a product’s hardware than adding software or dongles after delivery.
Other companies are willing to sacrifice speed and features for rugged construction and reliability. Panasonic Toughbooks have become very popular with police departments and construction firms.
Give the people what they want
The average consumer tends to judge laptops on price, looks and entertainment features. Preinstalled software can dictate the purchase decision, especially the operating system. The ability to expand and maintain the computer is not an important consideration.
Anyone who uses a laptop as their home computer needs to use an external hard drive or a second computer to backup their data. At any moment, that laptop computer could be stolen or damaged. Read my 30 September 2006 article for some tips.
One example that I pointed out on 5 December 2006 is the slotless optical drive that Apple includes on its laptops. Acer and other companies have also put these drives in their laptops. They have no tray, so there’s nothing to use as a cupholder. But, if a user inserts a non-standard CD or DVD into a slotless drive, there is no safe or reliable way to remove the disc. The optical drive must be replaced at a service center.
From the Associated Press: electric companies in the southeast USA are growing concerned over possible summer droughts. Nuclear power plants require tremendous amounts of water for cooling. Reservoirs, rivers and lake levels in some areas may fall below the intake pipes. If that happens, nuclear plant operators have no choice but to shut down their facilities and pray for rain.
Electricity produced for the grid cannot be stored on a massive scale. It’s consumed within a second of production.
