Damn that damned PC.

I ran a performance test on it against my dual P3 box. It creamed it in everything (by massive amounts) except the disk test. The P3 got a rating of 240 something whereas the new machine got a rating of 20.5!
I played around with the BIOS (but Intel dont give you a lot to play with), even swapped IDE cables around in case they were causing an issue.
I even installed XP from scratch last night to see if that would sort it out. But no luck!

Then this morning, I checked the details on the drives and IDE controllers and found everything was set to PIO mode. Not PIO2, 3 or 4, nor UDMA Mode 1,2,3,4 or 5 (5 is what it should be), but PIO, meaning PIO mode 1. The slowest possible. It manages a fantastic 2Mb/s!

Started looking around the net this morning and found that Intel bundle their ATA drivers into an program called "Intel Application Accelerator". I hadnt installed this. This evening I will be, and then I will report back on the results. Damn Intel and their drivers... would have saved all the s/w I had installed on the C: drive :(

3.30am Tuesday morning I was awoken by Shell who sounded like she had croupe(!), so I took her to the emergency GP. She has had a throat infection for a week and its got really bad. Today however, things are starting to look better.

Thinking about going away for the bank holiday weekend. Nowhere special, just somewhere else to try and get away from it all. Gonna try ringing Bimbo again though to see if I am going to see the kids. Although I suspect my calls will just be diverted like they have been the last few weeks.

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[link]   Posted @ 13:28

Friday
It was our leaving do from BoI. A whole load of staff turned up at the Naval Volunteer in Kings Street. Really good to see such a large turnout - quite surprising. We then went off to meet up with our IBM buddies and then ended up in Walkabout. Danced a lot, drank a lot and then caught a taxi home with Duncan and Nick back to Weston.

Saturday
It was the Big Day Out (BDO). Attended by myself, Kev, Alex, Andy M, Andy G, Neil and Pedro. Kev brought me all his Amiga gear - PPC powered A4000, in a tower, etc and we swapped this all over just before the BDO started. It was good to see everyone again - and finally meet Alex. Pictures were taken by several people:

Alex - some good ones of me there. Including me being rude with a sausage and a great photo of my arse!
Kev
Neil
Mine

I managed to be awesome at fuzzball and mediocre at pool. Had a great day though, even if we didn't do very much apart from move between 2 pubs and the train station. I wont be making the next BDO nr. London, but will certainly make the next one - wherever it is.

Sunday
I finally finished my PC. Put the motherboard in and the rest of the fans, etc, etc. Pictures of it can be found here. I'm amazed with how neat and tidy it looks and the colour is excellent. I might get some window kits and mod my other cases now...

Shell and I also bought 2 mice. She bought a complete house and everything on Saturday and we are now the proud parents of Spike and Oz. I will take some photos tonight and post them later.

Still havent heard from the kids. I'm ringing Bimbos mobile almost every other day and getting nothing. Still, its being dealt with.

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[link]   Posted @ 10:53

Yesterday was my first day working for Hewlett Packard. I was outsourced to them. Seems OK. Got a free mug, pen, baseball cap and laptop rucksack, which was nice :)

I was on holiday in the afternoon, as I was hoping to visit the children and give Rhiannon her 5th birthday presents. As it stands, I went round their house at 3.30, 5.30, 6.40 and 7.15 but they werent home :(
I'll keep all of the stuff for when I see her next - just like I did last year.

Anyway, things have got legal now as I'm fed up with with being pissed around with. I love my kids and want to spend my time with them, regardless of what their air headed, psychpathic mother thinks.

Anyway...

Did loads of PC stuff yesterday. My old dual P3 server has been decommisioned. Its DVD has gone into my new PC case, its 2x PIII-750s have gone into the new dual motherboard, as has its 10gb drive and 512mb memory, along with its CDRW. Its sound card has also moved into the Celeron machine. So the new dual P3-750 box has:

2x Intel Pentium III 750MHz @ 100FSB
768Mb PC133 SDRAM
10Gb Fujitsu HDD
40Gb Seagate and 80Gb HDDs Maxtor (RAID-0)
50x CDROM
24x12x24x Liteon CDRW

I also had to fit an 80mm fan to draw in some cool air - as the whole thing was getting quite warm. Might install a exhuast fan at the weekend as well.

The Celeron had the nice addition of a SB Live! with a Live Drive II. Its actually a quite nicely specced machine for a basic workstation.

My cable ties and spiral wrap arrived this morning and over the weekend, I should collect my new DVDRW, along with the new fans, etc for the new case. Once I have everything together, the new system build will be completed on Sunday. All I need now are cable tie anchors, which I will have to buy at lunchtime today.

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[link]   Posted @ 10:50

Yesterday evening when I got home, I started on the wiring of my new case. Fitted the new PSU and looked at all its connectors.

Lead 1 - ATX connector
Lead 2 - P4 mobo connector
Lead 3 - 2x molex, 1x fdd, 1x SATA
Lead 4 - 2x molex, 1x fdd, 1x SATA
Lead 5 - 4x molex
Lead 6 - 1x 3pin

The manual doesnt say what lead 6 is for, but I am thinking it might be the thermal sensor. How I find out/test that I have no idea!

Anyway, I need to get some tie-wrap and some more cable ties. There is plenty of space behind the motherboard tray for me to hide/secure all the unused cables, etc, so it should look pretty neat. Just need to order some more cable ties, cable anchors and some spiral wrap...

EDIT: I've found out what the 3pin lead is for. Apparently it is the fan speed sensor. Reports back the fan speed of the PSU fans (they all run at the same speed apparently). Found that from the review here. The pictures of PSU at that review are different than mine though, but all the other details are almost identical.

I also placed an order for some cable ties and spiral wrap. Just need to buy some cable anchors tomorrow and I'm done.

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[link]   Posted @ 11:12

Erm. Where do I start?

Kids
I havent seen the kids for some time now. I spoke to Chandler on the phone a couple of weeks ago and saw Rhiannon a fortnight before then. Apart from that, nothing at all. Dumbo and Bimbo are refusing to answer my calls to their mobiles (they just divert/cancel them) and they haven't given me a home number to call them on. It's now got legal, as I just cant stand this crap from them anymore. Its Rhiannons 5th birthday on Thursday, and I very much doubt if I will get to see her. I'm going to go round and try to see them both and give Rhiannon her presents in the afternoon.

Shell
She is ace. She's fitted in well at her new job and was started as a "Senior" on her first day, as she is the only one with qualifications! The hours seem pretty good as well.
We had some grief last week, as we are both worried about the stress that the court case with Bimbo bring. She doesnt need it - its not her problem. I really hope she can put up with me, cos we work so well together in everything.
Her mouse (Angel) was put down on Saturday, as she had become really ill :(
So we are going to get 2 mice for my house - YAY! Never had mice before - fish, a snake and cats but never mice.

Dave (her step-dad) had his 47th operation yesterday. He is 47. He is 48 this year and will be having another operation later this year to give him a metal knee. Saw him last night and you could see he was in pain but he lives in pain, so he was putting up with it. I like Dave (and Shells mum, Su) and have great respect for him and what he has been through. I know I would have given up ny now. Su is great, as she has been at his bedside the whole time.

Computers
My 3pin adapters turned up yesterday and today Andy G gave me the motherboard, P4 and memory. Tonight, I'll be finishing up the wiring and maybe putting the mobo into place and might even test the rig. But I think that might wait until the weekend. I want to get a good cabling job done first and make sure it is as tidy as possible. The rest of my fans and stuff should be turning up this week as well, so I shall get it all done at the weekend while Shell is working.
Some of what I am doing involves killing my old W2K server. Its DVD will be going into the new machine, its soundcard and Live Drive II will be going into Shells Celeron machine. Its processors will be going into the new Dual P3 motherboard machine and its hard disk will be donated to medical science. This means of course that I will have a Dual P3 capable machine with a P3-733 on it going spare... Anyone?

And on Saturday I will be getting a PPC powered, towered A4000. It will rock.

When I've worked out what to do with it and got it all setup that is :)

Drinking
Friday night was the leaving do for John (at work). So we went out and celebrated in style at Lloyds Bar (without everyone else). There was Paul, Andy G, Andy F and myself and we also met up with Dunc later in the night (who was attending his own leaving do thrown by Finance, although he isnt leaving...)
Lloyds Bar sell a cocktail jug which contains 6 shots of Rum mixed with ice and 2 bottle of Coca-Cola Vanilla. It costs a mere �6.99. So we had one each for starters.

Andy F was in fine form that evening. When drunk he becomes slightly deaf, arsey and slightly comical (almost always unintentionally). For instance:

A conversation between myself and Andy G and a conversation between Paul and Andy F. This is how the lines of the conversation occurred:

Andy G: I'm just saying that I wouldnt want another mans penis in my mouth.
Andy F: Well that wouldnt bother me

We fell about laughing at that.

He then followed that several minutes later (while we were still discussing various homesexual situations) with the following, while trying to describe to Paul when something had occurred that Paul was apparently party to:

Paul: I dont remember that. Try and narrow it down a bit.
Andy F: [pause] Well, it was dark

Unintentional but in our slightly pissed state, hilarious.

I am out on the piss again this Friday evening, as it is our "Leaving the Bank and Joining HP" night. Then I am back in Bristol on Saturday to meet up with the lads from the mailing list for the Big Day Out (BDO). I will not be drinking, as I have to drive and will still be recovering from the night before.

Today link: "Holy ---, Batman!" phrases by Robin From the Batman and Robin TV-series.

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[link]   Posted @ 11:32

Yesterday evening (before being beaten at snooker), I put together my new PC case and fitted all the lights, etc to test it was all OK.

Check it out

In the pictures, there is a lead coming out of the floppy bay which controls the cathodes. This isnt there anymore, as I connected them up to the Rheobus and can now control it from there.

The Rheobus thingy is amazing. I just need to tidy up some of the cabling for it all to be perfect and I want to do this before the motherboard comes along.

Plus I need to reverse the side fan (it is currently extracting and it needs to be drawing in), plus get 2 more 80mm blue fans *and* get some dual 3pin connectors so I can drive 2 fans from one Rheobus port. Looks good yeah?

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[link]   Posted @ 09:46

Well, all the deliveries turned up eventually yesterday afternoon. Dropped off Duncans UV lights to him last night and Andys kit to him this morning. So I have all my cables, my case, PSU, lights and fans ready to go. Will start it this evening I think, as Shell is working til 8pm.

We went to see Starsky and Hutch last night. Truly excellent and very funny. Gave it 8/10.

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[link]   Posted @ 15:09

The stuff I ordered yesterday still hasnt turned up. I keep checking the website but nothing yet. I can almost guarantee they wont deliver it today, so I will have to go and get it from their depot during the day tomorrow.

Basts.

Shell picked up her new glasses today, so I am expecting her to break up with me over the next few days. :)


The Exorcist in 30 seconds, re-enacted by bunnies - truly, truly excellent.


You are Form 0, Phoenix: The Eternal.

And The Phoenix's cycle had reached zenith, so he consumed himself in fire. He emerged from his own ashes, to be forever immortal

Some examples of the Phoenix Form are Quetzalcoatl (Aztec), Shiva (Indian), and Ra-Atum (Egyptian).
The Phoenix is associated with the concept of life,the number 0, and the element of fire.
His sign is the eclipsed sun.

As a member of Form 0, you are a determined individual. You tend to keep your sense of optomism, even through tough times and have a positive outlook on most situations. You have a way of looking at going through life as a journey that you can constantly learn from. Phoenixes are the best friends to have because they cheer people up easily.
Which Mythological Form Are You?

[ 1 comments : Add | Read ]

[link]   Posted @ 14:36

The parcel to Maxtor was sent on Saturday. Wonder when it'll be returned?

I built my another PC on Sunday - DUALIE-2. Currently has a single P3-733 installed, as I dont have a heatsink for the other processor. As the machine also has a highpoint controller, I've decided that when the Maxtor 40Gb drive comes back - I'll put that it and stripe them for an 80gb drive and then make that machine a proper server. Copy all my MP3s over to it and waahaay!

Got my payment from B&W for leaving today. A nice figure deposited into my account. Today I will be placing an order for the following:

1 x High Quality Round IDECable ATA133 60cm in Yellow
2 x LED 8cm Case Fan Blue LEDs
1 x Sunbeam Rheobus Blue & Red Led with Silver Panel
1 x Super Flower SF-464T2-S Rhythmic Silver Atx Case Top & Side Window
1 x 12" Purple Dual Cold Cathode Kit
1 x Cable/3pin To 3pin Extension Cable
1 x Super Flower Real 520w Quadruple Fan PSU Gold AMD and Intel Compliant

Added to my Radeon 9600XT, my 2x80Gb drives, DVDROM and the DVDRW I am waiting for to come back - a nice awesome and good looking bit of kit. Gonna get everything setup nicely inside before the mobo turns up and make sure all the fans and tubes look good.

It will be documented and photographed along the way.

Off to the fair with Shell tonight and hopefully going to see Starsky and Hutch at the Odeon tomorrow.

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[link]   Posted @ 09:32

Last Saturday I posted off a load of parcels - DVDs to Lars in Denmark, DVD-RW to dabs.com and a dead 40gb drive to Seagate in Holland.
Lars emailed me to let me know his parcel had arrived, plus I tracked the DVD-RW to check it had been delivered on Monday morning.
Most amazingly though was yesterday. When I got home there was a parcel from Seagate waiting for me - with a replacement 40gb drive in it! Now thats service.

I have to send another parcel - this time a dead 40Gb drive to Maxtor in Ireland. If my replacement turns up by next Friday - I might possible faint.

Oh - and another DVD parcel to Lars. He will be pleased :)

Put an order together in the week with eBuyer for a load of stuff for my new PC. Includes a windowed case, LED fans and some cold cathodes. Should look fantastic. Going to do it all neatly too and make it worth looking inside for.

Shell is working today (8am-2pm) and tomorrow (8am-8pm). Getting up this morning was tricky as we didnt get home last night due to seeing a gig in Weston. DR Chocolate - fantastic nonet. Doing soul/funk with a 3 piece brass section as well. If you ever get the chance to see them around the Weston area - do so, they are incredible.

That is all for the time being. Gonna go and play Kick Off til 10ish, then off to my Nans to sort out her TV...

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[link]   Posted @ 08:36