Diary of a Network Geek

I’m a cheap bastard.

I love the idea of using spare parts to make something cool and new.  I especially love it if the spare parts make something that I wouldn’t normally be willing to spend money on having, even if it is cool.
Digital picture frames fall into that category for me.

Sure, I’m a photographer and I shoot digital, so a digital picture frame is an obvious bit of techno-lust for me, but, like I mentioned, I’m a cheap bastard.  Too cheap to get a digital picture frame just to show off my own work.  But, when I saw this article on Ikea Hackers about making a DIY digital picture frame from an old laptop and an Ikea frame, well, I had to share it with you all.
I’ve seen similar articles, but this one really looked better than the other ones.  And, I certainly like the finished product better.  Now, all I need to do is find an old, working, laptop!

Yes, a do-it-yourself computer notebook.

A company called OCZ Technology is now offering a “DIY” plain-case computer notebook. Well, “do it yourself” may be pushing it a bit. After all, all you need to do is add a processor, memory and hard-drive to complete the hardware. Oh, and of course, then you’ll have to install the operating system, too. For a Linux geek, though, that’d be a no-brainer, though, there’s nothing stopping you from installing a totally legitimate copy of Windows, too. I have to admit that I’ve never heard of any of their third-party distributors, though, so I have no idea how reliable these guys are at all. Still, the hardcore geek in me likes the idea of a “whitebox” laptop

I think I may not ever buy a new PC again.

Notice, I didn’t write that I’d never buy another computer, but, rather not another PC. Hear me out. With prices the way they are, laptops are so cheap that I could easily find one in whatever price range that I might set for myself, within reason. I mean, MicroCenter always has laptops in their sale fliers. Not to mention every one else who sells them. And, what’s more, in recent years, laptops have come configured to replace similarly priced PCs from the year previous. Now, I know you’d think that a super-powered IT geek like me would be working on the latest, greatest hardware at work and at home, but, I’m sorry to tell you that it’s just not so. Everyone else gets new equipment before I do. I end up working on last year’s model, at best! And, upgrades? Forget about it! The last time I did an upgrade of any value, I might as well have just gotten a new PC anyway. Besides, now I have a LinkStation Live 500Mb Network Attached Storage device to use as a backup before upgrading, so I shouldn’t have to worry about losing data. In fact, I should be able to use this little toy to backup my servers, my workstations, my router configurations and even my one Linux laptop.

So, to recap, the only things I really upgrade on a machine are memory and diskspace. Laptops, which are adequately configured most of the time anyway, are priced well enough to be affordable and can easily take my normal, preferred upgrades. Laptops take up less space and are, obviously, more portable in case of emergency, but still can handle all my peripherals, thanks to USB. And, furthermore, I can still get laptops that have docking stations, if I want to have them hooked up to a monitor, keyboard and mouse most of the time.

Pretty much, I can’t see a reason to buy a regular PC ever again. If I need something special, like a server or a firewall, I can get a specially configured machine, or build one myself specifically for that purpose.
So, what do you all think, is the desktop dead?

Advice from your Uncle Jim:
"Happiness is a direction, not a place."
   --Sydney J. Harris

This is unbelievable.

A 1.5 Gigabyte drive that’s less than an inch in size! It’s actually a kind of older story, but, still, when I read it I was shocked. Imagine a Palm, say, that had 1.5 Gig of storage. Or, if you’d prefer, imagine a Pocket PC with 1.5 Gig of storage. And forget about things like laptops. They’ll be replaced. Think “wearables”. Think about a belt that has 1.5 Gig of storage and a monocular video display. This is just science-fiction coming true.

Wow.