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[Grinder]

Sounds great! Just one thing - there also is a scandisk in
DOS (6.2 I think), so you wouldn't have to install win95c
just to do that. But the Specs look great. In the last week,
I made a list of games I wanted to play on my machine by
memory, just to see what I really wanted. 30 or so games
so far.

[win98]

Okay then I will get craking on it after I finish my holiday. k: that starts today and ends on tuesday.

[The Fifth Horseman]

Do
you think I could hook up a dos pc to the VGA input and use it with the screen when my
mac mini is not running?

I'd think so.

Been experimenting with the LED displays - got the one in the case worked out to display 120 (as in 120 Mhz), figuring out my spare one was a bit harder but rewarding. It was the best logic puzzle I had since a year back - hours of fun. Right now I've managed to get it display 71/98 (guess why), depending on HI/LO setting normally used for Turbo function.

The damn fan just broke. I'll be checking out a bunch we have in the office, one has got to be compatibile.

Today I'll try to redirect the speaker output to the soundcard (been discussed on the forum a couple months back, still got the tutorial on my HDD). Got the parts for it already.

I must be more insane then normally - just came up with an idea to make a front panel for my PC. And yes, I mean THIS one PC.
Functions I could include:
1. Case fan on/off switch. Simple, easy, functional. That is, if I install a case fan (a good possibility, there)
2. HDD control. Instead of it being inside the PC, I can put it there under some removable transparent cover (to prevent accidental switching it on). Can also include a LED signalizer.
3. Soundcard mini-jack connector. My soundcard has got an internal output connector, so it won't be difficult.
4. USB ports. Well, I'm running Windows on it, so they might come in handy. Will have to buy a 3-port hub and butcher it a little, first.
5. CPU temperature monitor. Will have to build it myself, tho.

Got the PS/2 adapter worked out.

That's a graph of how the tutorial described the bridging of the cables in the COM and PS/2.
Result: one neat PS/2 socket that connects into a COM out of your motherboard. (the socket is drawn en face) - I made it from a spare COM port without any problem.


I've worked out the COM plug to the mobo as well... (plug is drawn "transparently" from the back)

So I can try making THIS:

- a direct connection to the motherboard.

Now if I could just find another A4tech 4D++ mouse, it would be perfect. (4D++ was my second mouse on my old 486 - asynchronous operation, three buttons and two wheels speak for themselves).

Got more HDD & floppy cables -next step: cut them into stripes and rearrange into round shape, then tape up.

[win98]

Hey I'm back and I am going to start setting up later.

EDIT Update Powered up Pc everything fine and I will be able to get cracking once I have unpacked.

EDIT2 I have unpacked from my holiday and I am ready to start so I will soon. I only had to unpack 3 things that were right next to me
EDIT3 O forgot to tell you that the hard disk is made by quartinum so i am planning to change it to a diffrent one whenI get get a 4gb one that is not that brand.
Because quartinum are slow and I do not want the pc to be to slow and I want more space for games.
Wow 3 edits.

[The Fifth Horseman]

I'd say you'd better either use that HDD as your secondary, or mount it in a mobile rack (provided you have a compatibile one in your main PC) to use as a mobile data transfer unit.

I've dug up a bunch of CPU fans in the spare parts storage we have in the office - since we'll be getting funds for better equipment soon, the boss felt generous lately and allowed me to take any and all parts I'd need.
I've greased and cleaned all the fans, then connected them to the power supply. I kept the least noisy one and returned all the others back to the office.
Mounted the larger heatsink on the CPU again (since the fan is 100% compatibile with that), removed the old thermal grease and applied new. Works well enough for me.

My speaker-to-soundcard experiment has failed, no effect at all. Duh. I'll have to see what was wrong and possibly re-do it all over.

PS2/COM connector has failed as well - not sure why, maybe I have screwed something up when I was building it. Either way, I've found a proper pre-made adapter here in the parts storage.

The IDE cables have been modded, as were those for floppy and LPT. Now they are sitting pretty well inside the case, without any criss-cross problems like I had before.

Bought the parts I need for the case fan assembly, the fan itself coming from a broken PSU (we have a few of these here in the office).

Bought an electronic thermometer. I'll dismantle it and assemble inside the computer case so that I can use it to monitor the CPU temperature.

Will get that USB hub tomorrow.

My speaker has broken off its wires, but that's fixable - I just need a few minutes with a soldering iron.

This sunday I'm going to a computer market - will be on lookout for extra parts, including an 8 MB PCI video card and a HOT-433 motherboard (a beautiful piece of kit, that - I just _need_ to have a working one).

Tried starting a few games on my machine. Robocop 1 and X-Com Apocalypse work nicely, Battletech:Crescent Hawks Inception doesn't.

[win98]

Update current harddisk is bad sector free just need to get anopther harddrive one day after I have set it up. k:.
EDIT:Added Similey

[The Fifth Horseman]

Speaker fixed, another Speaker-to-SPU cable made.

I've dug up a couple - supposedly broken - mice here in the office, will be testing and fixing them.

Didn't have time to purchase the hub nor additional parts I'll need to install it. Oh, well, not like it's a top priority anyway.

Been thinking about further electronic madness, but decided to postpone the idea... for now.

Checking the fans, I found one working perfectly smooth, and another that altough loud is also insanely powerful. Can't decide.

Got an idea how I can control the fan without a front panel. The former Turbo button and LED will find a use again - as fan switch and fan LED.

[win98]

I was bored so I decided to use my machine to make up some recomendations for running windows 95 at a good speed with apps installed. go to my fourms to read it but to post you need to register it is in my signutures.

[The Fifth Horseman]

The Speaker-to-soundcard plug works 100%. The sound is a bit quiet, but that aside it's working flawlessly.

Mouse fitted, I'm working on repairing a few others too.

Got the USB hub, will work on it today.

[The Fifth Horseman]

I've noticed that the motherboard reports two of my memory chips to be EDO RAM.

Digging a bit in Google, I found out that EDOs are generally more efficient then normal SIMMs.

I'll be hunting for some more of these, then.

BTW... how come one could install 64 MB of SIMM memory in a single mobo slot? Some multiplier device that allowed plugging in several modules or something like that?