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Clear Computer Cases
DeeezNutz writes "Here is the startings of a company that wants to see clear pc cases! They have pictures. " It's pretty impressive looking - the cases that is. The hot-rodding of computers continues, I guess.
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Looks like a regular old cardboard box to me.
Anyway, the point of all this is that it's better for smooth running of your computer that the shielding be in place. It's also better for the smooth running of other peoples equipment that the shielding be in place. Please be considerate of the guy next door who may have spent the last few years wondering why some piece of equipment he has won't work between 5 PM and 5 AM.
Not that I particularly care (heh, I'd order one anyway), but I'm curious about how these cases passed FCC Certification. IIRC, ordinary cases don't have much problem in this area, but that's just because they're a big metal box ;).
Alex Bischoff
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Alex Bischoff
HTML/CSS coder for hire
There was no such thing as a Stratus/88. there was a System/88 that IBM sold that was a re-labeled Stratus system that they hung 3270-style CRTs off of.
Actually pretty cool systems but the cost... Whew!. I was admin on a couple of them back in the very early '90s. Unfortunately, they ran VOS and not the Stratus UNIX implementation (whose name escapes me at the moment). It was very impressive to be able to pull a memory board on a heavily loaded system and not have anyone so much as notice. At the time, disk drives were sold as redundant pairs (this was before hot-swappable disks and RAID subsystems became popular and readily available) and cost something like US$20K for 600MB (not GB!) of storage.
The system required a dial-up line to Stratus's field service group and the systems actually reported failed components to FS. It was always disconcerting to have FS show up to replace a board you hadn't noticed had failed.
Geez. Wonder if they're still in business. They were changing the processor chips on almost an annual basis: 680x0 to Intel to MIPS (IIRC). Does anyone know if they finally made up their mind?
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CUR ALLOC 20195.....5804M
I was actually thinking about getting a couple big Honda "[H]" stickers, some vinyl kanji characters,
a huge fan (closest thing to an exhast tip I can think of...), and,
of course, several "Type R" stickers, so I could then "rice up" my tired old P120...
I figure those "performance mods" should kick the performance up to the level of, say, a PIII 300...
C-X C-S
RFI is likely to be the bigger problem. Conventional metal cases keep most RFI bottled up inside, but it seems that acrylic would just let it all out to trash your radio and TV reception. The usual solution would be to paint the inside with some kind of conductive paint (like the inside of an Apple II, where the upper part of the case was plastic), but then that would defeat the purpose of building the case out of acrylic in the first place.
I would think that static, OTOH, wouldn't be that big a problem as long as grounding straps are run between devices. Your neighbors wouldn't like it when your GHz Athlon in the clear case kills the mind-rot they're watching that passes for TV.
20 January 2017: the End of an Error.
I wonder if I can make another Macquarium out of these...
We're here to give you an OS, not a religion.
Now they'll ask you why you didn't see that critical hardware failure coming :)
just my blog and pix
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Nicotine free Amish .sig.
Of course you could always build your own: like this previous slashdot story linked to
HardOCP had a link to a guy that was doing at-home jobs like this, but I can't find the URL.
Ignoranus: A person who is both stupid and an asshole.
Well, ok, these haven't shipped, but it looks exactly like it!
;-)
Well, ok, not exactly; but it's close.
And access is MUCH easier...
Well, close, except when I can be bothered to put back the covers. Then it looks kinda boring. But the REST of the time...
-WolfWithoutAClause
"Gravity is only a theory, not a fact!"I like the fact that I can hide my mess inside of a box. There are just some things I'd rather not see.
Obviously, these transparent boxes are going to suck if you have your computer and TV on at the same time (or if anyone else in the general area has their TV on).
AFAIK, the transparent qualities could be retained, but shielding added via a grounded crosshatch of wire or metal mesh, making a faraday cage. Question is - how big can the holes be? Are we talking chicken-wire or reinforced-glass kind of mesh, or more like microwave-oven window mesh?
Does anyone have any links to DIY shielding info that would cover this sort of thing?
I've also heard that a transparent metal layer (such as on anti-static bags, one-way mirrors, etc) can be used, but some info on DIY mesh would be good...
If I do recall, after talking in to a mouse, Mongomery Scott gave away the formula for transparent steel in Star Trek IV... Even so, if these cases were perfect I am sure Apple is readying some kind of a lawsuit as we speak. Scott
[sig]darkfus[/sig]
hmmm... acrylic... does this sound like a static nightmare waiting to happen? I can see it now... I finish assembling my clear computer, marveling at it's aestetic beauty, slide it along the carpeted floor back into its position next to my desk turn it on and.... NOTHING - time to go shopping for more parts, and a nice GROUNDED steel case...
Interesting. Applicable. I donno. Why? I have to ask.
ooooh, those dreamy eyes of hers. Grrr--owwwww.
"You may all go to hell and I will go to Texas"
Sen. Davy Crocket to US Congress, Nov. 1, 1835
ColorCase has some really neat looking cases.... Even a penguin one that my 5 year old brother thinks is cute.... Perfect for your 3 year old's nice new Linux Server!
--Volrath50
I'd like one of those, except with the ammount of dust gathering in my machines anyway, all I'd see is dust an nice blue sparks.... try sleeping with that hummer beside yah! =)
The 'hot-rodding' of computers is probably one of the few ways this hobby could ever stop being seen as geeky. We'd have to turn it into a manly brag-off hobby: "This transparent beast I got can smoke your Compaq, man. It's got dual 22GHz 'Athlon Avatar's', 5 exhaust fans, AI 5x more efficient than the human brain, and a HeMan GX 975 MB Video Card! RAAAARRRR!!!"
Cool! Glad to see a company that is mass producing clear cases. Up until now, you have to shell out big bucks for a custom clear computer box. I bought my clear arcylic case from Clear-View Tech about a year ago, and they are friggin beautiful. I tweaked and customized the crap outta it since that time. When you have a killer box, you gotta have killer accessories.. =^,^=
Here is the page with the best pictures of my clear computer. The pictures are a bit old though, and were taken when I used to have a Celeron processor in it. Since that time, I've upgraded it with a Thunderbird.
But here is the page that is more recent (with the T-Bird and rounded cables) where my computer is integrated into my drumset/entertainment center. Much cooler! =~,^=
No grounding, no shielding, no isolation, bad heat dissipation, huge propensity for static electricity... no thanks i'll just keep my components in a running microwave, at least I know when everything will burn.
I'd really like to see clear hard disk covers inside those clear cases. You could see the mechanics working. THAT would be leet.
http://www.grub.net/crud/cleardisk.jpg
Not a simple clickey link to save my poor cable modem connection :)
Trolling is a art,
Well, I doubt it would cause that much trouble. Although it would violate FCC regs, it's not going to blow up your neighbor's dog :-D. I run my PC with out either side panel on, because I'm too lazy to take them on and off, and I have no problems with monitors, tvs, phones, and other things that sit right next to my case.
Have you ever opened your case and saw the massive tangles of dust that line the nooks and crannies of your PCI cards, hard drives and mobos? Why would I want to see that stuff wipping around in the case all day? Ewwww...
Speak truth to power.
Just saw this custom clear case over at HardOCP. Very nice, clean work. URL is "http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?threadid= 132652" for the goatse.cx weary...
Karma whoring? Gimmie the KY!
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LOADING...
READY.
RUN
do they have the prototype for sale? i'd love to get my hands on a cardboard pc case, if i was talented in the least w/ tools, i'd make one myself. power tools just scare me...
E.
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This Post has been brought to you by the letter "E".
Now they just need to find a way of protecting the electronics so that all that unused space can be filled with water and you can have fish living in your pc..
How long would your case be clear? My experience with Acryllic is that it collects static electricity. They should call this the "Swiffer" case. If you think dust bunnies are gross, imagine your case as one big one. They could call this the "Chia-PC"... say, that's not a bad idea...
Could the static charge collected be used to supplement the power supply, or just shock and amuse friends and family. "Hey, touch my computer... right here."
I agree with the previous post when it says, "Clear cases are cool and all, but clear components would be cooler."
I hated Apple's translucent cases simply because they were faddish. If the computer's performance was as consistant and stylish as the cases, perhaps I would like them better. For people whose concerns are less geeky than my own; however, the cases are not a problem.
Clear cases are decidedly cool, but what would be cooler and give ultimate upgrade access would be a desk-drawer case.
Talk to you later, - J.D.
Without shielding this thing might radiate like crazy. Your radio, TV, your neighbor's TV, etc. could go beserk. They put computers in metal cases with finger-stock seals for a reason.
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A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
This site looks like they've been doing clear pc's for a while
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The key to doing this hack successfully is to do it in a moderately clean place with little air flow to lift dust particles into the drive while it's open. Humidity doesn't matter; it's allowed to get in anyway so that it can get out when the air expands. Once you re-seal the drive you may have introduced a few particles, may even crash a few tracks. A good IDE drive will reassign these. Eventually the airflow across the platter is designed to flush this dust into the filter -- and you're right back where you started, maybe minus a few dings. Not at all the inevitable Kiss of Death you might expect.
Now if you really want to kill the thing while it's open, light up a cig and blow smoke onto the platter while it's spinning -- death within 10 seconds, guaranteed.
Brackets contain world's first nanosig, highly magnified:[.]
Speaking of Apple...
Why make a clear case if it's still going to look like a standard PC? That would be like making a clear car that looked just like a 1992 Plymouth Acclaim! Take a clue from the G4 cube, and if you have the chance to make the shape of the case whatever you want, make it something special.
If you fall off a building, go real limp, because maybe you'll look like a dummy and people will be like hey, free dummy
Well, duh, then these aren't for you.
Somehow, this kinda stuff reminds me of the rice boy attitude. You know those Hong-Kong kids who soup up their Civic CXs with Mugen stickers, and racing stripes? :)
'Cuz we all know that clear/glowing cases, and mugen stickers make it go faster!
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#include <malloc.h>
free(your.mind);
Got sued by Apple.
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
I could give a flying f*ck how they look. I need cases that are well made. I want no sharp edges, everything easy to get at - toolless is best, durable - like a good magnesium alloy, well built so everything fits properly and lines up without having to force it, and has good air flow.
;)
Something like SGI's O2 would be awesome. Those things are fantastic. You can stip an O2's hard drives, video/sound board, momboard, power supply, etc. in about 15 seconds, and put it back in just as fast.
Nothing I have ever seen in PC's even vaguely compares.
And for those that still care about looks, the O2 had the 'melted tower' thing going for it.
Exactly my thoughts. So much for the occasional openning and giving it a shot of compressed air...Now I'll have to clean my computer as often as I do my bathroom...(don't ask...you won't like the answer)
For a moment i tought they sold fake invisible computer cases ("yes sir, our invisible computer case it's every geeks dream ... now if i could only find a sample to show you ...")
oh well, back to real life ...
These clear cases sure do look nice, but what can look better than a case made solely out of legos? This case is made from legos only, with no glue or adhesives whatsoever!
lego case pic 1
lego case pic 2
lego case pic 3
panic("esp: Mr. Potatoe Head is on the loose!"); --linux/drivers/scsi/esp.c
Hey just use a bit of transparent aluminum. It worked for Scotty.
Several years ago I worked for a local PC shop. One of our customers fried two motherboards before we finally had him bring in his case. He'd build it out of thick plexiglass. We all thought it was great until one of us picked it up... the static electricity made all the hair on your arm stand up. You could stick pieces of paper to the sides of the case. It shocked you half the time you touched it...
And he wondered why nothing worked.
-Tony
Whatever happened to JonKatz?
Taking a PC designed for a shielded metal case and sticking it into an unshielded plastic case seems like a sure way of creating interference for your neighbors: radio, television, amateur radio, portable telephones, medical devices, wireless networking, cell phones, etc. It's kind of like turning up your stereo all the way, and I don't think that's particularly nice. If people track you down, FCC regulations let them demand that you shut down your computer because it creates harmful interference to licensed devices.
So, save yourself some time and money, be nice to your neighbors, and leave that motherboard in the shielded case it was designed for. If you want a clear PC, buy one that was designed that way from the start, like an iMac or a G4 Cube.
Now we can see the gears and pulleys of an NT box.
"Anonymous Coward" is for whistleblowers, not unpopular opinions.