writhaus

Building a PC is probably the one right of passage that is required of any self-proclaimed techie. For years I considered building my own machine but avoided for one reason or another. But now, I think it is safe to say that ‘yes’ I am one very tech savvy individual.

Recently I was a very happy laptop owner, but for the last two years I was limping along. Purchased back in 2001, it was my second Gateway machine – a Pentium 4, 2Ghz 356MB RAM, 30GB hard drive. It served me pretty darn well. I did some Photoshop, MS Visual Studio, and even some MMORPGs, though the graphics performance was not all that great. It was the third PC I owned and cost me somewhere around $2500. She would have turned six years old this October.

Like I said, the machine served me well, but I had been nursing it along for quite some time. About three years ago, I had issues with the machine randomly shutting down on me. This was most likely because of overheating. I first thought the machine had power issues, so I spent $40 on a new power supply. Three months later I purchased a new battery. About a year ago I gathered the gumption to take the laptop apart and clean the heatsink and apply new thermal paste (I waited to crack the case in order not to void the warranty). It ran solid for another year. After reading about this incredible feat, my friend Will said to me, “Zandi, if you can take apart and put back together a laptop, you damn sure are able to build your own machine!”

Ironically, a few weeks ago, just after ordering an external hard drive and backing up my precious data, a thunderstorm rolled through the neighborhood. The power flickered but nothing seemed wrong. About 10 minutes after my lappy gave the BSOD with a kernel error. For several days I tried to work on my laptop, which seemed fine. As soon as the laptop got warm enough, I heard a springy click and about 5 minutes later the same kernel error came back. With a little research on the web, I discovered that the hard drive was most likely going bad. It was over! I had to get a new machine.

Sure, I was second-guessing myself. Wasn’t building a PC something that only people with A+ certifications did? What about electrostatic discharge? What if components came DOA? How the heck do you read the schematics for pins on the mobo? Luckily, I had several friends who had built their own machines so I had no problem getting guidance. For damn sure I didn’t want to spend another $2000 to $3000 on another machine, and I did not want to even think about saving personal stuff on my work issued laptop. So it was off to Newegg to shop for components.

Honestly I wanted to spend about $1100 on machine components. It actually ended up costing me about $1275 after shipping. That figure may seem high, but it included a new copy of XP Pro, a Samsung 22.1” monitor, a “media” keyboard, and a snazzy ergonomic mouse by Logitech. I decided I didn’t want to go through the ordeal of trying to convert my Gateway’s XP Home edition to this new machine and I avoided XP Pro 64bit. It was advised against since there were so many driver support issues. I may not have ended up with an OS that could take advantage of a dual core, but I still ended up building a pretty robust machine – AMD Athalon 64 X2, ATI Sapphire Radeon X1950GT 512MB graphics card, 2GB of RAM and a 320GB SATA 3.0GB hard drive – all built in a mini-tower.

I did encounter a few problems while building. 1.) the Zalmar heatsink/fan suggested didn’t fit. 2.) Freaking out about the possibility of shorting out the motherboard if I didn’t do the connections for the LEDs right. 3.) the TV tuner I order gave several problems with the driver installation. 4.) Samsung had a cluster of 3 or 4 dead pixels – at least 8 are required for returns. 5.) Working with a mini-tower was a bit of a squeeze, but luckily I have small hands, so that wasn’t much of an issue.

In the end I was able to find a friend who could use the Zalmar fan. I figured out how to read the motherboard schematics and was able to get the LEDs, power buttons, etc. without shorting out the motherboard. I RMAed the TV card I plan to purchase either a Hauppauge or ATI TV card at a later time, and as for the dead pixels…thankfully they are in a portion of the screen where I don’t usually travel. I guess I will have to live with them, but it’s very annoying to know they are there.

Why this configuration? I wanted to option of watching TV in my office (I work from home). I also wanted a decent graphics card if I wanted to play a few older PC games or jump in an MMORPG. The 320GB hard drive is enough for me since I don’t do a ton of recording or a lot with photos, but my mini-tower has a bay for a second hard drive if I ever need it. Also I partitioned the hard drive, giving me ample space to mess around with any flavor of Linux and Beryl.

Overall I am pretty pleased with the end result. On top of that I should be pretty good PC-wise for the next few years. I am not a hardcore PC gamer, but should I ever be in the mood, it will be easier changing the components of this machine than purchasing an entire new one. I am over being a laptop devotee? Hardly, but I am at peace having a desktop machine for the time being. The list of components I gave is not exhaustive one, but for what I spent, I believe I got a lot of bang for my buck!

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My modus operandi for the last month has been getting up just like it was a workday on Saturday and going to the beach. This has yielded many pictures, some audio and now a couple of videos.

Honestly, it’s amazing how calming the beach can be. My Saturday mornings are filled with an endless blue above and below me stretching out into infinity. The sound of the tides is calming to doze to or to read by.

I try hard as a photographer/videographer to help people see what I see, to understand what I think when I see things. The images I capture are not objective. They are me trying to show you something. It’s funny to think about that fact in relation to my past career as a journalist. How objective can I be when I try to make your heart ache when you see the soldier’s casket lowered into the earth while Taps plays?

In the end, I don’t even know if it matters. People need to look at things more closely. They need to keep their ears and eyes open. Only in that state can they properly decide what emotions to feel.

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A few nights ago a friend mine came over to visit the family. We don’t get to see much of each other because of our busy lives, so it’s a pleasant surprise when he stops by. We all were chatting about the usual stuff: work, relationships, and health. While on the subject of health, he decided to share that he had started seeing a psychiatrist and was recently diagnosed with ADD. We were stunned. By most definitions, he’s reached a high degree of success as executive management with a U.S. high-end retailer. Besides having a demanding job, he also has been through some other life-changing events. How could someone like him be diagnosed with ADD in his late 40s? Wouldn’t ADD serve as a severe obstacle? Contrary to what we believed, that’s not always the case. I began to wonder whether some of my behavioral traits are that of someone with ADD. I plan on consulting everyone’s favorite M.D.: the Intarweb!

Lately I’ve noticed that when I am working (I am fortunate to work from home) I tend to busy myself with other things, which is the norm for me. Whether it’s surfing the Web, writing, reading, playing a casual game, or doing other secretarial stuff, it’s as if I insist on having more than one thing to do at a given time. I have caught myself sitting down to do one thing and then beginning another mid-task. While writing this, I started watching The Real Deal on TLC. Other times I’ve felt as if I lack the focus to see projects through to completion. More than two years ago, I started studying for the A+ exam, abandoned that, and started collecting materials for the GMAT. I prefer an actual class rather than trying to complete these types of projects on my own. A deadline or having a grade at stake keeps me accountable.

Does it happen all the time? Nope. Guitar Hero II has my full attention
when playing “Thunderhorse”! When I am driving, I avoid using the cell. But I think we live in a culture that puts a premium on folks who can do several things at once, and it’s bleeding over into our personal lives, making us less focused.

Seeing a psychiatrist has worked well for my friend. So far he’s looking less burdened and more upbeat. A trip to a shrink is probably something we all could benefit from. I remember while in college feeling burnt out and unfocused many times. I considered going to the local counseling services, but I figured I’d just deal with it on my own. During that time in my life, I had a few friends, but they were busy with their own college careers, a sister in the Air Force, and a family so full of problems that I didn’t think they had time for me. Looking back, I do regret deciding not to seek counseling. I probably feared the stigma attached to it. Fortunately, as I’ve gotten older (and wiser) I’ve become more open to seeking out a sounding board. If the time ever comes again, I think I’ll be less shy of the realm mental health.

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