OBSERVATIONS GM1SXX 11 Dec 2009
Choices, Choices, computers in the shack.
Most radio amateur have a PC or two in the shack. I'm no exception, and being an ICT Engineer by day, more PC's than is fair have 'sneaked' into my shack. Amateur radio generally makes light demands of PC's so kit that is considered 'old rubbish' by Joe Public is usually perfectly adequate for amateur service. This is a good thing of course, because one man's junk becomes another one's prize possession... just as well for me :-)
So in the shack, I have a number of PC's that do different jobs. My 'main PC' is an Athlon 2GHz machine with a large hard disk and a couple of gigabytes of memory. I run Windows 2000 on it because it suits my needs, is 'well sorted' and I'm quite happy with that. It also runs DOS programs very well, often a consideration for amateur service. In the shack I also use an ASUS Eee PC, a diminutive notebook type computer that can be taken out in the field if needed. I have a Dell Inspiron laptop too, simply because if I didn't take it, it was destined for the skip. It's a perfectly good PC for amateur radio purposes. I only had to spend a tenner on EBay for a new PSU for it, from a local (Glasgow) seller ... and it *was* brand new. My 'other' computer is a notepad type made by Fujitsu, and I believe used in hospitals and the like. It's a low power battery machine that can run for at least 8 hours on a battery charge. It was an EBay special.
The computers are networked and sit behind an ADSL router/firewall that provides a connection to the outside world. The ADSL service is supplied over plain old telephone service (POTS) copper lines that run within 2M of my vertical aerial in the garden. I don't see too much signal leakage, not enough to cause real grief, but I can see the data peaks picked up by the aerial on my old HP Spectrum Analyser.
The ADSL performance is poorer than I'd like, constrained by the rotten old phone lines between myself and the exchange. My provider is BE Broadband and I'm happy with their service because it uses ADSL2+ to get somewhat better bandwidth than my previous provider Virgin managed. Not a criticism of either company... both are excellent, but Be has the edge for me because of their use of ADSL2+ and for no other reason.
I also have a wireless dongle for 'field' use. Wireless varies hugely in performance, so if you are planning to use wireless connectivity, ask neighbours and friends, and NOT providers for advice. Never believe a salesman! Performance and commission... think about it. In the Clyde basin, 3 seems to offer the best coverage and performance.
Ask around and you'll soon discover which service is 'best' in your locality. I use 3 Broadband (Hutcheson Telecom), and get near to wired performance from it. My local radio club EARS EARS also uses 3 for their PC's , and for the same reason I do.... performance.
So back to the computers. My main shack PC is creaking at the seams. Why? Well it could be something to do with all the digital photos (over 15,000) or the various website mirrors or even the MP3 files I have on it. I dunno. Suffice to say, I'm running out of storage space.
My better half has offered to buy me a new PC for 'XMAS', but being a Scot, and a techie, I can't let her do that. I will however allow her to buy me a new motherboard+CPU in the form of an Intel ATOM based mini PC motherboard+CPU. This is the bare bones of a low power PC which I can hopefully run 24*7*365.2422 and perhaps from my solar power system. With this I can have a 'data server' that can have available all the rubbish I've collected over years, on a single drive. I have a spare 1TB drive, memory and a PSU I can use, so for just over £50, plus whatever OS I choose to use, I can have a storage 'server'. If the power consumption turns out to be acceptable, it'll be solar powered. If not it'll just add a bit to the electricity bill. I quite fancy a 'wooden computer'... placing it in a wooden case lined with foil for EMI screening. Perhaps a mahogany computer wood be nice. I have plenty of mahogany faced plywood.
Intel ATOM MINI-ITX motherboard
My main PC was a homebrew job. It's a good few years old now, ancient in computer terms. I bought the Athlon CPU and motherboard locally and re-used an old 7U 19inch rack cabinet that used to house our Internet Firewall at work. Unfortunately for them and fortunately for me, the Firewall lived up to it's name and went on fire... twice. The first time, I only needed to replace the PSU, but the second time it failed in spectacular fashion, the mains supply got to the motherboard and lots of the components and chips simply exploded while the motherboard went on fire. It was scrapped and replaced with a shiny new Firewall, and I ended up with the old cabinet. After a thorough clean to get rid of the soot and smell, it was turned into the 'home' for my main shack PC. These cabinets are roomy and have good ventilation, so in some ways make an ideal PC enclosure.
Thinking about it, I have yet another 7U high cabinet I could use for this backup machine. This one came from a scrapped telephone exchange and is in better condition than the one I used for my main PC. It looks brand new. I know it's a bit unconventional to house home PC's in 19 inch rack cabinets, but they match my other 'heavy metal' rack-mount radio equipment.
Choices Choices! A a compact 'wooden' PC or a heavy duty rack-mount one? I'll decide soon!
Until the next time, 73 de Al.
GM1SXX
365.2422? That's how many days are in a tropical year.