Journal #7867

Posted 11 years ago2012-07-02 00:03:26 UTC
Captain Terror Captain Terrorwhen a man loves a woman
A weekend extravaganza of spending cash on upgrades! :o

Behold to all who giveth a single fuck, my ghetto-fabulous setup:
User posted image

Now when i check my email, i feel like i'm piloting the nebencanezer :)

"The best thing about my new
setup isn't piloting the matrix,
it's showing everyone online
that i did!"
=P

Components
p-7811fx gateway laptop
acer s230hl 23' display from walmart($169)
old sony xp machine(p4 2.66, 512mb RAM, 80gb HDD)
3TB WD ibook from walmart($139)
Logitech k800 illuminated/wireless keyboard(beast buy)
Logitech m510 mouse(office max)
Combo chiclet keyboard/mouse ($29 target(for the sony machine))
Aperture coffee cup
Targus folding laptop cooling pad(underneath gateway masheen)
generic slimline foam mouse pad
Random hdmi cable (unused prop)
4-bangar targus usb hub($12 wal*mart)
Belkin Easy Transfer cable($29 OfficeMax(for linking gateway to sony vaio))

Descripticons
Also unseen, for the primary gateway machine, i got rid of my 200gb primary drive and shifted over my 300gb as primary, plus added a 1TB hitachi travelstar($99 Beast Buy) to the second bay.(I CAN HAZ FREE SPACE AGAIN!)

I used a program called EaseUS To-Do Backup to image my drives before performing the hdd replacement surgery, and den EaseUS Partition Master to perform the tasks Windows 7 Disk management couldn't handle.

I'm using UltraMon to manage my dual-screen setup and it works great, but my vote is still out whether this is going to improve my mapping workflow or not. It would probably work better if i was using two monitors of the same size/ratio, but meh idk.

I DO however really like the dual screen setup for most everything else, as i find it very easy to use and highly functional. Everything is working great, and the only thing that seems incompatible to move to the second screen so far are my SevenDeskBar toolbars ='(

I keep the old sony around as a backup machine(if the gateway fails, gets stolen, becomes compromised by mudkips, etc), and it doubles as a dedicated mp3/movie player. The sony laptop is connected to the big screen with the vga connector, so a quick input change(one button press on the monitor) and i can view the sony on the big screen :)

14 Comments

Commented 11 years ago2012-07-02 00:26:46 UTC Comment #55933
o_O cool
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-02 01:08:00 UTC Comment #55930
If I had a job I could get cool upgrades too. DAMN BEING POOR!!!!!!!!!!!
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-02 01:32:49 UTC Comment #55920
You're listening to FantomenK. I respect you.
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-02 08:15:52 UTC Comment #55931
Awesome stuff :D
I use 2 exactly the same CRTs to achieve dual screen. Now i can never go back to using 1 screen xD

i really like your new keyboard and Mouse. I should post a Journal of what i got last month, some pretty cool stuff.
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-02 08:49:49 UTC Comment #55925
I know what you mean stojkens, i'll never go back to a single monitor setup again, not to mention the little-bit bigger screen is so much bigger/brighter/easier on the eyes! And ya, the keyboard is literally amazing... looks/feels/performs great, same goes for the mouse... it's like heaven compared to my old one ;)

I'd love to see what goodies you got too!

Luke: hells ya, it's my favourite rock-out music for a while now =P
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-02 15:32:17 UTC Comment #55921
New kit! Do the new kit dance!
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-02 18:10:10 UTC Comment #55932
O.o That... is.. Cool B)
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-02 20:14:17 UTC Comment #55929
Nice.
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-03 11:35:17 UTC Comment #55928
You should have gotten a bigger desk.
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-03 17:24:02 UTC Comment #55922
Nice setup man! I recently found out that Nvidia only supports 2 monitors per chip and that my 560ti only has one chip. I has a sad.

I guess my rigs not as done as I thought.

Awesome pick on the mouse, Logitech rules. People who suggest non-logitech mice have never owned a logitech mouse :P. I also have an Acer monitor as my primary and I gotta say I was a little disappointed in it. My #2 monitor was less than half the cost and looks so, so much better color-wise and the darks are so much darker. When A Machine for Pigs comes out I'm probably going to play it on that monitor instead of my primary. That's the last time I buy an LED monitor.

Its a little hard to tell from the pic but I think that exact keyboard was my last one before the Blackwidow. It was an awesome, awesome deal and looks very slick. Are you considering an upgrade to a mechanical in the future?

Also +1 for Fantomenk.

Sick setup my only concern would be a small mouse space, but I suppose that's to everyone's tastes.

I'm jelly of that mug.
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-03 18:20:34 UTC Comment #55926
Blitz when you're talking about monitors, what is the best way to go in your opinion for cost/quality? (i only picked up the acer on impulse, so i did no shopping around AT ALL. That said it's definitely the best monitor i've ever owned, since my eyes are used to my dull, old laptop screen ;)

The keyboard is the logitech k800. I like it a lot, but i would love a chiclet-style keyboard with illuminated keys, as i think you would get less light spillage from the borders of the keys(in full darkness you get a kinda trippy vertigo/halo effect).
Are you considering an upgrade to a mechanical in the future?
What you mean when you say dis? i can haz intrigued :P
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-03 18:37:15 UTC Comment #55923
Same as me man. Walked into the store with the intention of getting a full HD monitor, found one that looked great, got it. I don't know if yours is LED, but mine is, and right next to my LCD Asus monitor, the difference is pretty noticable. The Asus handles darks so, so much better. It seems to me that the LEDs are just too bright, and even when displaying black they are lit completely. The result is pretty bad looking darkness in horror titles. It just doesn't get close to black. It displays black as a darkish grey due to the LEDs being lit still, I think.

Looks great in the day time, but at night in the dark, it's just not nearly as dynamic and broad as my #2.

What are mechanical keyboards? Ever seen video or a recording of a pro playing and their keyboard sounds like an AK47 firing? The keys have almost no resistance going, but when they get to the bottom, they make a loud, satisfying, snap. The result is that after prolonged use your fingers are less tired, because less force is needed for each stroke.

Most use what are called Cherry MX switches, just a different way of doing keys. The strokes are crisp and snappy, and the loud clicks are soooooo satisfying. Very popular among gamers and people who use computers all day for work, like a couple of my friends who do remote tech support.

But after you get one, any other keyboard you use feels mushy, soft, slow, and unresponsive.
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-03 19:14:28 UTC Comment #55927
Yeah blitz agrees, my monitor(LED FHD) is bright all the time, even with a black screen and the brightness all the way down. (stark contrast to my lcd laptop screen where black is so dark it's reflecteve like glass)

It's hard for me to choose between the two because i like aspects of both, but if i had to choose one i'd take LED, just because i feel like it's less taxing on the eyes than a darker screen.

Oh, and NOW i understand what you mean by "mechanical" keyboard, just basically like the old-style original keyboards back in the day. YES, now that you mention it i very much miss the clickity-clack and light touch to them, i may just have to check out some comtemporary mechanical keyboards ;)
Commented 11 years ago2012-07-03 19:56:14 UTC Comment #55924
If you wanna be really hardcore, look up Das Keyboards. You can get blank ones. Solid, jet black, no key markings at all. :o

Ah, I just checked in the basement, my last one wasn't that exact one as it didn't say k800 anywhere on the box (just logitech, no model name at all) but it looks damn near identical. mine was probably the cheapo lame version :P

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