March 19, 2009

ARIA

Filed under: General — spiro @ 11:18 pm

Today I finally got a chance to order the remaining parts to the new machine I am building for myself. I’m calling it Aria. I plan to hook it up to my TV as a media center, as a file server, a torrent server and my occasional gaming needs which don’t really amount to much.

So, here are the specs:

  • Gigabyte MA790GP-UD4H
  • AMD Phenom II X4 940 3.0GHz Black Edition Quad Core
  • Corsair Dual Channel TWINX 2048MB PC6400 DDR2 800MHz (1200MHz is just too insanely expensive right now)
  • DiabloTek PHD650 650-Watt Power Supply
  • 3 Hard Disks, 2x 80Gb in RAID 0 configuration for the OS and 1.5TB for data storage, A Bluray/DVDRW drive,

Throwing that into an Antec P182 I got awhile ago.

It will be named Aria, after the top secret supercomputer in Eagle Eye :)

Update: it should be in by Friday :)

March 11, 2009

My Custom Door Latch

Filed under: Home Improvement — spiro @ 7:02 pm

My condo has these special european style doors and windows, where the window open both tilted and in an outswing fashion. They’re really nice, double-pane, which is a rarity in the northwest.

Problem is, the door doesn’t latch when it’s closed, so you must either have it open or close and lock it. That could be inconvenient for having BBQs on the deck or smoking friends over.

So, I attempted to fix that, with pretty much 2$ of home depot stuff :)

sdc10304

On the frame, I screwed on the “male” part, ofsetted by 2 nuts behind each screw to keep it at the right distance:

sdc10298

Then I mounted the rollers on the door, using one nut as a spacer behind the screw, since the door has a ridge:

sdc10299

The roller thingy you find it next to the kitchen cabinet handles. The nuts you need are #6-32 size.

March 8, 2009

I’m really getting sick of traffic tickets

Filed under: Driving,Rant — spiro @ 6:50 pm

As I was heading to Seattle after work on friday to meet up with some friends, I got a good ticket! The charge is “second degree negligent driving” and the fine is $550.

So this is my 4th in just over a year I’ve been here, and I am really getting fed up. The first two were speeding, one was deferred, and one was thrown out. Then I got another one for failing to provide proof of insurance. “I fucking have insurance you dumbass stupid doughnut-eater, call the fucking insurance company and ask them.” Then this one.

Compare this to my 8-year long Quebec driving history. One ticket for speeding in a school zone and one for running a stop sign. Both which I can understand. None of this “speeding” on a freeway bullshit, or even higher in the bullshit scale, “negligence”.

Seriously, what the fuck happened to this supposed “free country”. I’d like to enjoy the right to move about without getting harrassed about my driving and getting “taxed” like this. I haven’t hit anyone, I don’t drink and drive, so leave me the hell alone and go fight real crime. If you hypocrites need money just increase your taxes. Put an end to this racket with insurance companies.

March 5, 2009

The US Immigration System

Filed under: General — spiro @ 11:19 pm

Saw this in my inbox today…

us-imm-flowchart

So, I am skilled, got a good degree, my employer’s awesome. So that puts me in line for 6-10 years for a green card :(