Techy WeekendjawaproTue 10/08/2010 09:13 PM
On Saturday I attempted to do some of the computerish stuff that I’ve been meaning to do for a while now, with mixed results.
First up, I tried installing my new 1TB drive in Karlendorf so it could work as my primary backup location. Unfortunately Karlendorf refuses to boot with a SATA drive in it. So after many attemps and much muttering, I gave up and tried to install one of the smaller IDEs I had lying around. That didn’t work either, and when I tried returning the original 2 80G IDEs, it won’t boot then either. Finally got it booting off one 80G with an external for my backups. One step forward, two steps back.
Next on my to-do list was Phaeton, my main gaming PC. When playing games lately, Phaeton has started beeping. That’s never a good thing, and it only happened after getting my replacement motherboard (after the old one died). I assumed it was a heating issue, but I wasn’t sure what part. Turns out it was the graphics card. When the GPU gets over 70 degrees, it starts to beep.
I tried installing an exhaust fan below the graphics card, but it didn’t really help. Another unsuccessful Saturday attempt. Since then I’ve found a program called nTune which allows you to manually set the fan speed of my graphics card. Setting it to 70% makes it slightly louder, but the GPU doesn’t rise above 55 degrees under load now - which is a better solution to the beeping than simply disconnecting the speaker, which may have been my next trick.
My new 1TB is now in Phaeton as some extra dumping ground. Not going to waste it.
I bought a new PC from work this week, which I’ve named Gromit. Gromit has now been deployed to my parents place, which has allowed me to bring Zoltan back to my place. Zoltan was designed to be my spare gaming PC, and as there’s a LAN at my place this weekend, he’d be very useful.
Thanks to a nifty combination of Robocopy and Crashplan, my server Karlendorf now backups up Phaeton each day (robocopy) and sends another copy of the most important stuff to Gromit (via Crashplan) as an offsite backup. So in theory, if Phaeton dies, I can get stuff from Karlendorf, but if my entire house gets eaten by a T-Rex, I can get my files back from Gromit. Not bad unless Tassie gets nuked, but if that happens, my collection of photos will probably not be my most pressing concern.
So that’s my techy weekend. Now it’s time for some more Starcraft...
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Nerf Line-UpjawaproThu 05/08/2010 10:20 PM
Due to popular request, here is my current Nerf Arsenal.
I think you have too many guns when you start running out of room to store them - and I'm not quite there yet....
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BackjawaproTue 03/08/2010 10:16 PM
Well - I’m back in Tassie. Port Macquarie was fantastic - and I’d happily go back there next winter. It’s a great place - but not so far north it’s hot.
Spent the week relaxing, shopping, chasing down wild shorties...
Riding a Rigid Inflatable into the ocean to watch whales.
Tell you what - Whales might be boring, but the Rigid Inflatable is awesome. Got some nice air on the waves coming out the heads.
Ok - so those photos make it look tame - but I couldn’t hold the camera when we were doing the rollercoaster thing.
Also spent a lot of the week doing a new hobby with the rest of the family - but apparently I’m not allowed to mention it. It’s sort of a secret thing. Heaps of fun though. Now I just need to buy myself the gear so I can do it in Tassie...
I managed to find a Nerf AS-20 which Tom had decided he wanted after all - and smuggled it back into the state for him. I also got myself a copy of Starcraft II - but more on that later, when I’ve actually had a chance to play it.
It’s nice to be home - but Port Macquarie is defiantly on the list of places I want to visit again.
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On Holidays!jawaproMon 26/07/2010 03:41 PM
Well - I’m interstate again! But this time it’s holidays, so it’s far more pleasant.
My parents decided that they prefer travelling with my sister and I (don’t ask me why) so organized that we could all have the same week off and flew us all up to Port Macquarie in northern NSW. Mum wanted to go to Queensland where it would be warmer - but they’d left it too late to book the Timeshare Exchange, and we only got as far a northern New South Wales. If you ask me, that’s not entirely a bad thing - it’s not too hot here.
Mum and Dad have a timeshare in Shearwater in Tas, and can swap their week with a week elsewhere, so here we are. It’s quite a nice place, Port Macquarie. Has an EB and a TJM shop - so it ticks all the right boxes.
I should have taken these photos earlier in the day as the sun was bright and made everything look darn tropical. It’s still very pretty, but not quite so spectacular.
So I’m over here enjoying myself and doing nothing - what’s up back in Tas?
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Launceston Nerf CampaignjawaproThu 22/07/2010 06:11 PM
As a veteran of the Myer and Kmart Assaults, I decided to play this one smarter.
This time I’d be there early. The early bird gets the worm, and the early nerd gets the gun.
Because Devonport doesn’t have a Target worthy of the name, this meant a trip to Launceston, which in turn meant a day in lieu from work, but I have plenty of them owing to me, so that was fine.
So I launched the HMS Subaru and plotted a slipstream jump to Launceston. I emerged the other side in plenty of time, but locked myself into a holding pattern while I tried to contact reinforcements. The Legendary Klutz was supposed to meet me there, but he was having a legendary sleepin and missed his rendezvous.
Eventually giving Klutz up as MIA, I landed the Subaru at the docks and approached Target on foot. But alas, the delay had cost me dearly. The Target was already breeched, and the sale had begun.
Thus began a rapid search pattern, as I attempted to locate the Nerf cache. I found it with only moments to spare.
There were two Nerf Longstrikes on the shelf. I grabbed one, as someone else grabbed the other.
Victory was mine! The sale had only been on for 10 minutes, and the stocks were gone. Even while I stood there I saw numerous people searching for a Longshot or Longstrike, but with no success. They were gone.
These sales are almost an intense as any Nerf war I’ve been in. The guys at the shop couldn’t believe how fast they sold. I then proceeded to spent $300 on lego, but only $6 of it was mine - the rest was on Richie’s behalf.
The second hand bookshops were my next target, but the tale is not so thrilling, so I’ll leave it untold.
So that’s how I spent my day off. Worthy?
^ Yes, I realise the gun is not fully assembled yet, but I couldn’t be bothered doing it properly on the side of the road.
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