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http://www.xyzcomputing.com/index.php?option=conte nt&task=view&id=589&Itemid=0&limit=1&limitstart=6

There you have a short story about someone that built a box... and about the prices..

VIA EPIA board - $100 (these are a bit expensive, so it might even be cheaper to go with some low-end motherboard with built-in gfx card and a AMD-Sempron..)
128Mb RAM - $30 (128Mb is quite enough for a pure mythtv box)
HD 160Gb - $40
TV-Card (DVB-T) - $80 (With a CI-Slot)
Case - $50

hmm... so that's $300, and with this you have full control...... Want to have a HDTV capable box, then just go with a bit more expensive EPIA board with DVI output... Want to have more than one PCI card, maybe 2 hybrid tuners, then go with a case that supports a raiser card.

So there you go... with $300 you can have a simple tv-box, add a few more $ and get dual-tuners, add a few more and have a HDTV capable box... add a few more and control you X10 home-automation system..
Don't like the remote? Well, get a bluetooth dongle for the system and use your cellphone, or just buy some other remote...

This is the charm with mythtv.. You can do just about anything if you want to.

And a tip if you are going to build a system like this. Do keep in mind that you might want upgrade the system in the future so try to think of what you might want to add in the future.. And if you are going to have it as the main entertainment system try to keep everything on the system at stable-versions and no SVN checkouts :)

"Memory: 1 DDR2 533 SODIMM socket, up to 1GB".

Perhaps mounted underside?

And this one on the next page doesn't?

http://xyzcomputing.com/images/stories/articlepics /seagate_momentus543/m54003_01.jpg.

I'd say that's pretty telling.

next to an ordinary drive

In the other pictures the drive is by itself, so it could be as big as a lawnmower for all I can tell.

On Page 3 he tells you he used a 60W mini-tix PSU.

Since you can see (Pg. 4) that he's using a powerbrick, he coulda gone with the PicoPSU

Wouldn't have been as cramped in that bottle.

This unit is larger than *any* computer I have ever owned! We were complaining about the size of the media labeled "clunky" HD-DVD players that were "showcased" this year and somehow these are popular?

IMHO, my Mac Mini is still a little too large for my media center. I want something TINY, super tiny, and super slim.

Sorry, these behemoths just won't cut it.

Another review: http://www.xyzcomputing.com/index.php?option=conte nt&task=view&id=486&Itemid=2

http://www.xyzcomputing.com/index.php?option=conte nt&task=view&id=486&Itemid=2

First the "article" is very short and each paragraph is divided on a separate page where ads take as much space as the actual content. Second, the real transfer rate of a hard drive is 35-62MB/s instead of 300MB/s.

Mod parent down! This book is offered on Amazon for only $16.47 (not $199). The article advertises a Palm Tungsten E2 Handheld, which is obviously not his book, but an ad for something else.

Already done to death. Szulik is a little late.

He's got a pube sitting on top of it in this picture. Guy needs to lay off the porn.

http://www.xyzcomputing.com/index.php?option=conte nt&task=print&id=389&Itemid=2

Anyone else find it weird that the drivers come on a floppy disk?.

Is there *anyone* out there with the money to spend on this that does't have a CD/DVD drive? I'm willing to guess that the proportion of (potential) buyers without a floppy drive will far outweigh those without a CD drive.

Besides which, if a floppy is that important, they could put a "create floppy" option on the CD.

The practical applications that Puredepth advertises for its MLD displays are vast and far-reaching. In any application that would benefit from greater information density (such as backgrounds with changing overlays, work areas with tool palettes, etc.), the MLD adds true depth to what would usually be a simulated effect. The effect is truly amazing, especially when compared with a standard 2D display.

As you can see, this device is a GREAT benefit to the vast and far-reaching applications that would benefit from it. We could name them, but we'll settle for describing them abstractly. Suppose you have an application where you need to stack crap on top of other crap so that you can't read any of it. Well, this device is exactly what you need!

Seriously, take a look at the screenshot of this thing running:

Stacking crap so you can't read it

In that pic, you can read everything, but it is clear that if you use your computer for things like text, this would be a nearly unusable monitor.

I love the article's conclusion:

Also, the technology, once refined, could be applied to displays with many layers, allowing for even more complex three-dimensional diagrams, such as skyscraper floor-plans, or "data clouds" with more than merely two levels within the depth hierarchy.[Poster's note: HOLY CRAP A 3D DISPLAY? THAT WOULD CHANGE THE WORLD IF it wasn't 25 years old.] Yet another possibility would be to juxtapose two or more different display formats in the same manner. Using a combination of standard LCD displays with super-bright OLED displays might lead to some interesting effects, making the distinguishing factors between layers consist of more factors than merely depth.

As innovators, I tip my hat to Puredepth, and I truly hope to see more products from them in the future.

The article on xyzcomputing.com was slashdotted yesterday. The author of the article is Sal Cangeloso which would appear to be the same as the person who submitted the article to slashdot. Shame on you Sal!

I've been using two monitors for about for years now, and I don't thik I could ever go back! The swing arm thing in the article seems cool, but I must say that I love my Ikea Desk! Was around $200 and the moitors can swing--I'm a student and my bed is beside my desk, so I can swing my monitor to face my bed to watch tv and movies!

The two monitors come in very handy when programing, writing reports, or surfing the web while IM'ing. Just did a networking assignment last night, and I could have several consoles open on the 2nd monitor to test clients/server while coding on the other monitor.

If you haven't tried 2 monitors, do it now! No excuses, 's cheap--if you don't have a vid card that can do 2 monitors, get a 2nd cheap pci card for like $20 and throw another monitor on.. do it!

SpaceCanary writes "I recently wrote this open letter to Windows and I think it's pretty funny. I wrote a letter to my OS as if I was breaking up with it. It's a bit strange, but finally more people are starting to see the light and moving away from Windows - in fact 100% of the people living in my mom's basement have switched. I chronicled my relationship with the versions of Windows and finally I am able to move on in the end."

Registered through: GoDaddy.com
Domain Name: XYZCOMPUTING.COM
Created on: 21-Oct-03
Expires on: 21-Oct-05
Last Updated on: 06-Aug-04

Administrative Contact:
Cangeloso, Salvatore admin@xyzcomputing.com

salcan@gmail.com? Letter is signed S.C.? Hmmm....