+OLD CS1 Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 Been bit by yet another built-in USB power port. The first big bite was powering my CF7+ with a USB charger built into a power strip on my desk, caused an incredible amount of noise in the system. Ran into more, but the most recent violation was against my ioGear wireless HDMI kit. This kit is awesome, but recently it has been suffering dropped signals, sparkles, and then simply no connection at all. Got me thinking. It is plugged into the USB charger on an APC BE600U1. Yup... removed the USB power from the UPS and connected to a power pack. Son of a... Ultimately, the lesson is just do NOT trust the built-in USB ports on power devices. Use a good USB charger for power. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wierd_w Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 (edited) No, but I have a very nice wall wart one that has a molded molex connector. (and came with a sata converter pigtail). It came with a very inexpensive USB bridge. https://www.walmart.com/ip/SATA-PATA-IDE-Drive-to-USB-2-0-Adapter-Converter-Cable-for-2-5-3-5-Inch-Hard-Drive-5-inch-Optical-Drive-with-External-AC-Power-Adapter/706363896?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=4473&&adid=22222222227147481895&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=256531970280&wl4=pla-476561081487&wl5=9024386&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=113537598&wl11=online&wl12=706363896&veh=sem&gclid=Cj0KCQjwpZT5BRCdARIsAGEX0zn9L7XJQudllJpKmE9OU5KLmv4kc0bJ0emTPSoHZxstS1YSK2K0blYaAt10EALw_wcB (not the one I have, but a similar product.) Here's just the power adapter from amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Okgear-100-240v-Power-Supply-Connector/dp/B015HV59FW/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1WCQRH3KPR6JD&dchild=1&keywords=molex+to+wall+outlet&qid=1596342748&sprefix=molex+wall+outlet%2Caps%2C180&sr=8-3 Edited August 2, 2020 by wierd_w Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+OLD CS1 Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 I have plenty of those, too. Specifically-tasked items just take up desk space. I do like that item from Amazon if I could find it somewhere else; it meets my portability requirements. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wierd_w Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 Similar offer from newegg? https://www.neweggbusiness.com/product/product.aspx?item=9siv0bm2w58865&bri=9siv1tf7cd4931 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+OLD CS1 Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 17 minutes ago, wierd_w said: Similar offer from newegg? https://www.neweggbusiness.com/product/product.aspx?item=9siv0bm2w58865&bri=9siv1tf7cd4931 Nah, those are the same ones I already have. The IEC power cord requirement defeats my purposes, but thanks. I will pokey-poke around sometime. I have a list of things to hunt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+InsaneMultitasker Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 A few weeks ago I was on a conference call (over IP) when the entire house dropped power. Wifi was still operating but I lost connection to the call until shortly after the power was restored. (The electric company performed an unannounced replacement of the electric meter - - I went outside to thank him for ringing the doorbell and warning us. /sarcasm) Anyway, I didn't think much about it until today. I was moving a few things around in my "wiring closet" and thought back to that call. So I started tracing the power cables. Router on UPS? Yes. Access Points on UPS? Yes. NAS on UPS? yes. wired switch on UPS? Yes. However... I looked at the UPS outlets more carefully and sure enough, FOUR of them are not battery backup outlets. The markings were obscured due to placement of the battery backed up outlets. My wired 100/1000 switch was plugged into a non-battery backed up outlet. This wouldn't be so bad save for the fact that my AP network cables are plugged into the switch not the router. So when the electric company pulled the meter, my APs were still powered up and the laptop/devices stayed 'connected' although there was no network path to the router or outside world. Hah. Anyway... it was a good "reminder" to look at those UPS outlets carefully!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mizapf Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 As I saw that topic several times, are UPS common in US households? I only know very few people here who have one in their private homes. (I may still know the wrong people, of course.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 2 minutes ago, mizapf said: As I saw that topic several times, are UPS common in US households? I only know very few people here who have one in their private homes. (I may still know the wrong people, of course.) Integrated into the house? No, that's not common, but as battery technology continues to improve and more people are using solar to power their homes, it'll become more prevalent. I probably have ten individual UPS units scattered about my house, and I'd much prefer to have the entire house wired to a battery system (such as Tesla's Powerwalls). ..Al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+arcadeshopper Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 I have solar and and a battery but it only does 2 20a circuits .. not the whole house so I have additional ups units on critical systemsSent from my LM-V600 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GDMike Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 Where and how are you storing the batteries, oh, and how many batteries? Are you at a place where you can guestimate your battery life yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+InsaneMultitasker Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 1 hour ago, mizapf said: As I saw that topic several times, are UPS common in US households? I only know very few people here who have one in their private homes. (I may still know the wrong people, of course.) Here is a model similar to what I have Heatwave BBS's Geneve system plugged into. Current runtime during a power outage is around 45-50 minutes. https://www.bestbuy.com/site/apc-back-ups-pro-1500va-10-outlet-2-usb-battery-back-up-and-surge-protector-black/6165881.p?skuId=6165881 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+OLD CS1 Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 2 hours ago, InsaneMultitasker said: I looked at the UPS outlets more carefully and sure enough, FOUR of them are not battery backup outlets. Yup! That will bite you! I have several colleagues who have put servers on surge-only outlets. Whoops! 2 hours ago, mizapf said: are UPS common in US households? I would not say common. Mostly A/V or tech-oriented people will have them, and those who are not technically inclined and do have them will often just go back to a regular power strip when those batteries go dead. 23 minutes ago, InsaneMultitasker said: Here is a model similar to what I have Heatwave BBS's Geneve system plugged into. Current runtime during a power outage is around 45-50 minutes. https://www.bestbuy.com/site/apc-back-ups-pro-1500va-10-outlet-2-usb-battery-back-up-and-surge-protector-black/6165881.p?skuId=6165881 I only recently became aware of this model. It is a consumer UPS but with true sine wave output, putting it well above a consumer model. I deploy these now in environments which do not require monitoring (the PowerChute Personal Edition is not server-friendly) such as networking and data closets. Really great for the price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+arcadeshopper Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 1 hour ago, GDMike said: Where and how are you storing the batteries, oh, and how many batteries? Are you at a place where you can guestimate your battery life yet? me? I have a LG CHEM RESU10H 9.8KWH SECONDARY LITHIUM-ION BATTERY and no haven't had a power outage yet I have the backup hooked to the kitchen circuits so food wont spoil etc. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+OLD CS1 Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 I have UPSes on all my critical devices: fridge, freezer, entertainment stand (projector, amp, and NUC,) humidifiers, lamps, network rack and workstation, garage door opener, and an air conditioner (window shaker) for the bedroom. Between the UPSes and the generator with a week's worth of gas and a day's worth of propane, I am ready to go. I also set up a VLAN with a captive portal on my firewall, which will connect to a mast holding three 2.4GHz and two 5GHz wireless access points, which I will raise during extended outages to provide wireless Internet to the neighborhood (within range) via a 4G LTE device with directional high-gain antenna to pick up a tower not knocked out. (Hermine knocked out 85% of our mobile communications infrastructure, so I did a little extra engineering.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badaboom Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 Beside a one in a hundred year ice storm, I don't have a need for house wide solutions. The last ice storm in '98 was followed by massive investment in infrastructure to minimize those impact. Nonetheless I do have a Ups on my workstation and Bell Canada installed a battery backup on my ftth fiber link when they installed it so that the phone line would still work. Here ice is the killer, not winds or rain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GDMike Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 Did anyone use ,"math plan" bitd? The partner program was called "write" I do believe. It ran on the 80286. I've been looking for a copy. Not to run, but keepsake only. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+FarmerPotato Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 Enormous fun I've had laughing along with a chiptune. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hk3peGy1v60&feature=share 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+InsaneMultitasker Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 hah! The video after the demo was for GUBBDATA 2020. Neat event! https://csdb.dk/event/?id=2899 Here's the SID competition playlist. One can search GUBBDATA 2020 for demos. No early bed time for me tonight lol. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mizapf Posted August 4, 2020 Share Posted August 4, 2020 Keeping that before it's lost ... 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+InsaneMultitasker Posted August 4, 2020 Share Posted August 4, 2020 1 hour ago, mizapf said: Keeping that before it's lost ... That would be a nice Yahtzee! roll, too! https://www.videogamehouse.net/yahtzeegv.html 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wierd_w Posted August 10, 2020 Share Posted August 10, 2020 I should have delicious soup by the end of the week at this rate of growth. (I have an aquarium growing blue oyster mushrooms on shredded cardboard.) Spoiler The fruit bodies in the images are only a few days old. Already there are additional locations that have initiated pinning. Before long, that whole aquarium should be full of mushrooms. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omega-TI Posted August 12, 2020 Author Share Posted August 12, 2020 This is funny! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+InsaneMultitasker Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 Looks like we're in store for TI-99'er weather tomorrow in the Houston area. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickyDean Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 1 hour ago, InsaneMultitasker said: Looks like we're in store for TI-99'er weather tomorrow in the Houston area. That humidity is nice. South Georgia is hot and muggy, at least till it rains. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wierd_w Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 I have been working on a side project that should be adaptable/expandable for other projects. Currently, it is just a 3D printed puzzle box. Specically, a set of 3D puzzle pieces that assemble into boxes and or cubes of various sizes, depending on how many of the pieces you print out. There are 16 unique pieces, which can be used to make boxes or rectangles of up to infinite size. I have some placeholder parts in this image, but I really have finished the geometry of the piece set. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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