Rock Camp!

Posted on May 17, 2016 by Freejack

I signed up for Rock Camp! This is the second time I’m doing this and it’s great fun in general (you’ll see).

Location: Guitars Etc
460 Main Street
Longmont CO
Basement Stage (go in the double doors, head back to the instructor/lesson rooms in the back left, and left down the stairs)

Date: May 21st 2016

Time: 6pm

Playlist:
When I Come Around – Green Day
Living After Midnight – Judas Priest
Simple Man – Lynyrd Skynyrd
It’s My Life – Bon Jovi
There may be a 12 bar blues jam as well; we did that last time

Cost: Free!!

Guitars Etc hosts and three instructors run a Rock Camp for adults (and for kids). We get a list of 4 songs and get together with other adults that we have never met before and Monday through Friday next week, we’ll learn how to play with the others. The songs themselves are moderately easy since the intention is to learn cues and when to start and stop, things like that and not so much complicated songs.

Last night was the first rehearsal. Mike, guitar player and Isaac, Bass player. Three instructors were there; Tim on Bass and Vocals, John the Lead Instructor, and the Drummer (can’t remember his name; update this later).

We spent two hours playing and mostly worked on Living After Midnight. I had the initial riff down pat but continuing on had a few confusing parts in trying to follow along. I was able to eventually get it going correctly although I was skipping a couple of notes. Plus I played the solo so I’ll want to work on that a tad; just a couple of bars.

Second song was Simple Man. I was arpeggiating, finger picking the chords. There are only three chords; C, G, and Am with a fourth Am7 chord just dropping the little finger on the third fret of the e string (that’s the lower, thinnest string; EADGBe where E is the thicker string at the top). I can change chords quickly enough but the coordination of picking the strings in sequence was losing me. I’d get two chords in and lose my place. It’s difficult but it is something I want to do better. I have a lesson tonight and I’ll ask Zack for some help on it.

Posted in Music | Tagged | Leave a comment

My Inspiration to Learn and Play Guitar

Posted on May 17, 2016 by Freejack

Samantha, Rita, and Jeanne 🙂 Here’s why:

I’ve been in to music since I was very young. My Mom had a lot of old albums like The Ink Spots, Marty Robbins Gunfighter Ballads (the pink album), and several crooners. My Dad played the trumpet but he only played for himself in his bedroom. I don’t recall his playing in front of us, ever. It was a brass trumpet but with a silver mouthpiece. When I was in school, I joined the band and played Dad’s trumpet. It was in a tweed case. I actually played pretty well. There were three of us playing first chair and another guy and I would compete and swap First Trumpet. I learned how to read music as well. Unfortunately being a military family, when we moved I didn’t continue.

30 years later my younger daughter, Samantha was going through musical stages. Voice lessons, piano lessons, guitar lessons, etc. My ex and I had split by then but I attended the showcases. They sold the guitar when she moved on to the next big thing but I was interested. I stopped in to Apple Music in Fredericksburg VA and asked what I would need. I bought a Made In Mexico (MiM) Telecaster, hard case, Fender bullet amp, a few picks, and a tab book of songs. I even bought my only ‘For Dummies’ book (Guitar for Dummies) and tried that. Not very inspirational though. A few years later I bought a Fender Acoustic in a box. Came with a gig bag and some other swag. I also bought a Bad Horsey Wah pedal for some reason 🙂

I did try to learn through the book but never really got anywhere. I carried the Tele with me as I moved around and would occasionally break out the books to try again even learning a little bit of Stairway to Heaven.

About 5 years later Rita, my second wife and I were visiting her cousin in California and he had a couple of guitars. I mentioned I’d been trying to learn from a book but he said my fingers were the wrong shape and I wouldn’t be able to play well (too rounded).

In Dec 2010, Rita tried to convince me to sell the guitar and gear (“either sell it or learn to play”). As she is pretty minimalist, I’m reasonably sure she wanted it gone but wouldn’t come right out and say it. And of course that kind of thing doesn’t work too well with me and I figured, the heck with it. I’m taking lessons. Humorously Rita signed me up for a group lesson at the rec center. 10 or so of us with acoustics each playing one bar of a song 🙂

The first one on one lesson with an instructor, Zack watched me fumble and made a couple of shape suggestions which pretty much opened my eyes and I was on my way.

I’m making up for lost time and pushing to get better so I can play with others. The little I’ve done has been excellent!

Jeanne has been super supportive over the past couple of years even singing with me on one Student Showcase last year. Someone being supportive of your efforts is immeasurable in motivating you to advance and improve. I’m pretty self-motivated but like many people, can lose interest if progress is not seen. Jeanne has pointed out that I’m improving and encouraged me to continue learning. That moves this into Awesome! 🙂

Thanks Samantha, Rita, and Jeanne 🙂

Posted in About Carl, Music | Leave a comment

New Bike Break In

Posted on April 24, 2016 by Freejack

With a new bike, I wanted to take a ride for several hours to check out the ergos and generally get a feel for how it rides so I can take care of any issues before the long distance ride in June (2 weeks, approximately 5,000 miles). I have a new helmet as well which was causing some issues on the way home from picking up the bike so I wanted to see if it was still an issue (break in period) or if I needed to make adjustments.

As a note, Jeanne and I have done quite a few rides on the Hayabusa including a multi-day ride to the Grand Tetons, Bryce Canyon, Moab, and Telluride before returning to Longmont and a ride to Virginia, Indianapolis, Chicago and back. We’ve ridden in rain and a touch of snow and done some camping. I’ve also passed along knowledge of the trips I’ve taken in the past including issues that have occurred. This also includes explanations of why I ride in the rain or snow; mainly when on a trip, we may not have the luxury of waiting a few days for the snow to stop or wait for sunny days to travel. That’s why you practice and why you have different types of gear along. You can’t just roll up the windows on a bike 🙂

So Sunday Jeanne and I took a ride up to Laramie, across to Cheyenne, and back to Longmont. This was intended as noted to be a first multi hour test ride of the bike checking for ergos and whatnot.

The ride up 287 was a little windy and temps were 55F when we got to Ft Collins after the first hour. I had expected some winds having gone to Laramie in the past and a touch cooler weather so I transferred some of my colder weather gear into the trunk including my heated gloves and the wire.

Temps dropped steadily and the wind increased as we headed north on 287. Winds were gusting at greater than 50mph according to the signs. My helmet was being pulled off my head and we spent so much time leaned left against the wind, that most of the wear on the tires were on the left edges. And at one point I couldn’t get the C14 going faster than 65mph and I was losing speed slowly. At about 62mph or so, we came out of the funnel and to the plains approaching Tie Siding and picked up speed again. Temps dropped to 34F as we got to Laramie. My left hand was icy cold and the wind had been blowing up my left sleeve!

We were going to snag lunch but decided to continue on on 80. One guy at the gas station asked if we were going west on 80 because 80 was closed west bound due to snow!

As we got on 80 east, it started to sprinkle a little. We could see fog ahead and the electronic signs were warning of fog and high winds. Going up the pass, the road started getting a touch wetter and a little more sprinkling. We had been seeing more snow on the banks on the side of the road and in the surrounding hills. The mix of rain and snow (sleet) was increasing as we head up the mountain and approached the pass. One of the road side signs had some blown snow stuck on the left side and the temps were again falling. 34, 32, 30, 28, 26. This was more sleet and temps were about where I was looking for a turn around and going slower but then we went over the pass. Still 26 and foggy and still wet. I popped open my visor to clear some of the fog on the inside. But the rain slacked off. No rain and cold I’m good with. As we continued, I could see the road drying out but more snow falling.

The temps slowly rose. It was still pretty cold. Probably 40 or so as we got to 25 south. West bound at Cheyenne was also closed with a long line of stopped trucks and cars. Humorously, the tail wind had me seeing 68mpg on the lcd 🙂

Anyway, we pulled in at a Denny’s for lunch then fought the winds as we headed south which included trying to suck the helmet off of my head! There were a couple of places where the cross winds changed directions quickly which was pretty scary but ultimately we made it back with Jeanne starting to nod off behind me (the *tap* *tap* *tap* of her helmet hitting mine 🙂 ).

The helmet needs to be modified. It’s pressing far too hard on the jaw. Maybe it can be adjusted or shaved.

Still need a heel rest for me. Throttlemeister worked pretty well although it’s a bit tight so I may want to add a washer to it.

One thing to note. Folks talk about replacing the whale of an exhaust. When I replaced the ‘busa exhaust, I found the balance was off requiring me to press a bit harder on the right hand and subsequently pack a bit heavier on the left saddlebag. The C14 is well balanced now. I can take my hands off on a straight and it basically stays straight. On the ‘busa I need to lean left about half a butt cheek 🙂 So thought before replacing the exhaust.

I tend to change position especially when riding, laying down on the tank bag and putting my elbows on my knees. This works quite well on the Hayabusa. On the Transalp, the bars are pretty wide and high making it difficult to get my elbows down. I was able to try it on the C14. The bars are a little higher than the ‘busa but I could get down and get my elbow on my knees.

Ultimately a good test ride, both for the ride itself and in reminding us why we check out the weather and check our gear before leaving 🙂

Posted in Motorcycle Trips | Leave a comment

New Motorcycle Time

Posted on April 16, 2016 by Freejack

One of the more annoying things I’ve discovered over the years about using the Hayabusa as a Sport-Touring platform is the lack of dealer support when I’m on the road. Nothing like sitting in a shop and they only have Sport tires because “who would tour on a ‘busa??” or “we won’t change your tire because it’s a Suzuki” (both in Fairbanks after getting a flat in the boonies) or “we don’t carry a chain for your bike” when in Maine or “here’s an old cranky (and cracked) front tire since we don’t typically carry sport-touring tires” in Virginia. I love the hell out of the ‘busa but if there’s a problem on the road, you’d better be able to fix it yourself or be prepared to pay a few bucks. On the plus side, it’s only had a mechanical, leave me on the side of the road once (rectifier/regulator burned out in Boulder) so it’s pretty reliable mechanically.

So on the road support is one of the key issues for me in selecting the next bike. The other is a bike somewhat similar to what I have in speed, comfort, and handling. A few years ago, I took a new Concours out for a ride and was pleasantly surprised by the speed; not quite as fast as the ‘busa but pretty close, comfort; not quite as leaned forward but yes a sportier position than a standard or cruiser, and it handled pretty close to how my ‘busa handled. After the test ride, getting back on the ‘busa had me shaking my head 😀 “Nope, not getting rid of the ‘busa; still better” but now I have a passenger who has no interest in riding her own bike and really wants to go places and see things. So I need to think about something a touch friendlier for her. 🙂

I’ve been calling and checking in on the local dealers, both Kawasaki shops. The G-Force folks in Boulder had a blue 2013 Concours with 0 miles. It had been sitting in the warehouse for the past 3 years gathering dust. Jeanne and I stopped in last Thursday to check it out and were able to see it but since it was still in the warehouse, unable to actually ride it. The salesman was willing to get a new battery and give me a call when he got it out, no later than this past Saturday. At the local shop, we checked out the new C14 but it was higher that I really wanted to spend at $15k before all the rest of the bits (closer to $16k). They had a few older C14’s, 2008 and 2011 along with a couple of BMWs, a 2000 at $5k and a much newer bagger at $17k. Still floating around my price point.

At this point I started looking further, into Denver itself. The G-Force place in Lakewood had a 2015 FJR, no price though and the Fay Myers place had a 2013 Concours in Blue for $10k with the saddlebags and trunk already. Still no call by Saturday so we headed out on the ‘busa.

First G-Force for a test ride on the FJR. 2015 FJR, no price on the website. At the dealer, price was $15,000 which was right at my limit, meaning there would be several hundred bucks more if I couldn’t get a break downward. The sales guy put me on the bike but nothing about the controls. I tried to start it by hitting the emergency flashers (which are the same place as the starter on most bikes 🙂 ) and during the ride I asked if they had heated grips as the grips were pretty warm. He said “nope!” but the grips were pretty hot by the time we got back to the dealer 🙂 The ride itself was 5 minutes or 2 miles per the paperwork and escorted with me following the sales guy around the block. It took a minute or two to get used to how responsive it was, how quick. It just leaped ahead. Nice there. The bike felt small to me I guess was about the only complaint. Like I was on Rita’s old 250 again. Not scrunched up small but narrow with my knees sticking up a little feeling. Anyway, the ride around the block was okay. I was able to get a little speed and it was quick, no doubt.

Next up, Fay Myers for a test ride on the Councours. 2013 C14, price $9,999.00. 3,300 miles when I got done riding it. I’d chatted with some web bot on Friday to arrange a ride but they never called the dealer I guess. The sales guy had to carefully get it out of the back row and take it back to service to get the tires pumped up and checked and make sure it was in test ride shape. It has been sitting in the bay for 2 months (52 days). I asked if Jeanne could ride and he waved his hand, “no problem” and I asked if there was a time limit and the sales guy said, “nope, take it out for 30 minutes if you like”, he walked me through the controls real quick, most things in the normal place. There was a button on the other side of the left grip that I think adjusted the suspension, I didn’t quite get what he said with my helmet and earplugs in. I took the bike for a quick, non-passenger ride around the parking lot a few times to get used to it and then let Jeanne get on. We headed out and cruised up and down the side and main roads for 10 minutes before hitting the freeway up to the next exit to see how she felt at higher speeds. The bike doesn’t have as much get up and go as the FJR or my ‘busa but it does have speed once it winds up. I was able to get up to speed without a problem with Jeanne on the back and the mirrors were perfect for seeing all around me (the FJR mirrors were similar). I brought it back in without a problem.

Overall, my Hayabusa is quick but the FJR is quicker with the C14 feeling a bit pokier.
The passenger pegs on the ‘busa are pegs. Both the FJR and C14 had heel rests for the passenger which Jeanne loved.
The ‘busa is certainly lower to the ground and the ergos are certainly forward. Both the FJR and C14 were tall. The FJR ergos were basically sit up and beg where the C14 was more forward which I preferred.
The ‘busa has my trunk which I could transfer to either the FJR or C14 if necessary. Likely there’s a standard Givi to FJR or C14 luggage rack mount somewhere. The C14 did already have a smaller Kawasaki blue and branded Givi trunk with the apparent tail light option, although not connected (or not there; maybe just reflectors).

Ignoring that the Fay Myers dealer was a lot more amenable about taking the bike out, the C14 was still the more appealing to me bike. After getting the VIN and Dealer information and passing it along to the Credit Union (preapproved loan), I received approval and notified the dealer. I paid the difference between the loan and total cost and the bike was mine. Thursday Jeanne and I drove down to Fay Myers to pick it up and ride it home.

Few observations from the ride and of course bits I picked up from reading the owner’s manual Thursday night.

I bought a new Shoei helmet at Fay Myers as since I had a new bike, I got a discount. I also bought a set of Frogg Toggs for Jeanne for the upcoming trip. The new helmet is much nicer than any other I’ve had but quite a bit more expensive that I’d anticipated. But I really did want a nicer helmet this time around. I will note that a new helmet and riding home in 2 hours of rush hour was extremely painful, especially around the jaw line. Just need to break it (or my jaw) in.

Ready to go, I put the spare helmet (I brought one just in case I didn’t get a new one) in the saddlebag. They tried to put the paperwork and a few other bits in the trunk but I couldn’t figure out how to secure it. I closed it but nothing I could do while at the dealer could secure it. Since I’m in the wind, I’m not too worried about something flying out. Heck, I left my Givi unlocked on the ‘busa riding through a heavy rain storm in Oklahoma with a bunch of gaming books and my laptop and nothing even got a raindrop. Still, I put the paperwork and stuff in the left saddlebag instead just in case. Once I got home, I removed it from the bike and brought it inside where I could examine it in better light and after a few minutes figured out how to secure it. The label does say “push” but it wasn’t real clear to my simple ‘busa mind 🙂 But pushing on the bottom of the catch had it pop over and secure the lid and it’s good now.

When riding her home, I was cycling through the LCD using the top button on the dash to check air pressure, temps, and other bits of information. Turns out there’s a little gray switch on the back of the left bar instrument cluster (see the bit next to the clutch reservoir in the first pic) that cycles through the display without having to take your hands off the bars.

There’s a ‘eco’ mode which leans out the mixture when just riding the slab. Default is off. There’s also a ‘twisty’/’slab’ mode for the brakes, default ‘twisty’ oddly enough.

The windscreen does lower (drops to basic when the key is turned off) and raise. At the top, it blocks the wind which is a bit uncomfortable if you’re used to the wind keeping you from full weight on your wrists. About 50% to 75% is good for me. And you can set the default height for when you turn on the bike.

I do need to chase down something for the pegs. It doesn’t have to be full floorboards though. I have heel rests I created for the ‘busa which work perfectly (just a couple pieces of slab steel bolted to the pegs). Even the next day, my arches were a bit sore. Same with getting a “throttlemeister” as I have it for the ‘busa and a taillight modulator. I think I have the ‘custom dynamics’ modulator (or something like that).

It’s interesting that many of the mods I did on the ‘busa to make it more of a touring bike are already on the C14.

I have the service manual on order and need to have a second FOB configured for piece of mind. I’ve also ordered Canyon Bars with highway pegs and sent an email to a guy in Florida who was recommended as he had a replacement, better tuned, ECU for the bike. $300 though so we’ll have to see on that one.

Riding it to work Friday and it was pretty responsive. It might have been just that I had a passenger during the test ride that the C14 felt a little poky. We’ll see as the weeks progress.

Two week trip in June. That’ll be the real break in 🙂

Posted in Motorcycles | 2 Comments

Givi Trunk

Posted on April 15, 2016 by Freejack

A few years ago I snapped the orange Givi key off in the lock when storing lunch in the Givi 45L topcase. At the time, I broke out the big screwdriver and pried it open. I delayed because a bungee cord holds it in without an issue. Last year I followed up with Givi and they were super helpful. No replacement keys but you can get a replacement barrel and key set.

I bought the set and then tried to remove the assembly. There’s a screw on the inside but no dice. It wouldn’t come off. I screwed it back on thinking there was a safety bit on the inside so it must be unlocked first. I was on the lookout for a locksmith but they pretty much weren’t in the office, out helping folks get in their cars or rekeying houses.

I can remove the topcase by unscrewing the locking block on the base plate. Tonight I thought I’d try some super glue to reattach the broken key with the bit stuck in the barrel that broke off. Nope. Tried a small screwdriver too but no dice.

I realized there were four screws underneath that holds the mechanism that mounts to the base. Unscrew these four and it comes apart, bits everywhere. But the bit with the barrel also came off. Remove the locking washer, the barrel, and the seat, and put in the new bits.

Assembly

This is heavily curse inducing.

There’s a plate that slides into a couple of grooves and is screwed in with the screw inside the case. Took a bit of study and a lot of cursing to get it figured out, in place, and screwed down.

The bottom is worsethough. A metal sliding plate with two heavy springs to keep it locked to the base. Plus a small spring and washer behind the orange push button on a peg. The washer is right on the end of the pin. Plus the positioning requires some fancy tool or something to maintain pressure as it’s assembled.

I’d seemingly get it in place but it was at an angle and I couldn’t close the locking mechanism. The plate on the top piece was a bit bent so I thought I might have to straighten it. Then I tried it without the spring and washer and realized there are two more bits of grooved plastic the bottom piece fits into.

Eventually, with all the cursing (but nothing thrown), I simply left out the spring and washer. I got it reassembled and the two inner springs push the Push button back out without issue and it mounts fine.

It’s back in place, locked, bungee in the case. Key on my key ring with the other Givi key for the C14. I blacked in the ‘busa Givi key so I knew which was which.

Posted in Maintenance, Motorcycles | Leave a comment

Computer Comparison

Posted on March 16, 2016 by Freejack

My old computer, built in 2008 and upgraded a couple of times:

Case: Antec 900 ATX Ultimate Gamer PC Case
Power Supply: Corsair 750W CMPSU-750TX
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3R
CPU: Intel Core 2 Dual Processor E8500, LGA775 Pkg 3.16 GHz, 6MB L2 Cache, 1333 MHz FSB, 45mm
CPU Fan: Zalman Ultra Quiet CPU Cooler CNPS9700 LED
Memory: G.SKILL 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) (16GB)
Video: EVGA 02G-P3-1469-KR GeForce GTX 560 Superclocked Video Card – 2GB, GDDR5, PCI-Express 2.0 (x16), 2x Dual-Link DVI-I, Mini-HDMI, DirectX 11, Dual-Slot, SLI Ready, Overclocked (x2)
Hard Disk: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3750640AS 750GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s (x3)
Hard Disk: Seagate 2TB Internal Desktop Hard Drive- 3.5″ Form Factor, SATA III 6 Gb/s, 64 MB Cache (x2)
Sound Card: Creative Labs X-Fi XtremeGamer SB073A
Speakers: Logitech X-540
DVD: Sony DRU-V200S-BR DVD+/-R 20x
OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium Upgrade
Monitor: Acer G235H (x4)
Keyboard: IBM Model M (1986)
Mouse: Logitech Trackman Wheel

Over the years I replaced the original ATI Radeon video cards with the nVidia due to shitty drivers and replaced the 8G of OCZ RAM with 16 G of RAM. I added a 4th Acer monitor and the 2TB drives.

New Computer:

Purchased

Computer Case: Thermaltake LEVEL 10 GT, White
Power Supply: EVGA Supernova 850 watt G2 80 Plus Gold
Motherboard: Asus Maximus VIII Hero
CPU: Intel 4 Core i7-6700K
CPU Cooler: Corsair H90 (Hydro 90; Water based cooler)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series DDR4 PC2666 (4x8G: 32GB)
Video: MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G (2x)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO (500GB SSD)
Monitor: Wasabi Mango UHD430 Real 4K HDMI 2.0 SE 43″ LG AH-IPS Panel UHD 3840×2160 Displayport 1.2 43-Inch 10Bit Monitor
Blu-Ray: LG Black Blu-ray Disc Drive SATA Model UH12NS30
SoundBlaster ZX
Mouse: Logitech G900 Chaos Spectrum Professional Grade Wired/Wireless Gaming Mouse, Ambidextrous Mouse
Mousepad: Logitech G440 Hard Gaming Mouse Pad for High DPI Gaming
OS: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro

I Already Have

  • Storage: Seagate Barracuda Specs 2TB – 3.5″ Form Factor
    • 64 MB Cache
    • SATA 6 Gb/s
    • Spindle Speed – 7,200 RPM
    • Average read – 156 MB/s
    • Max read – 210 MB/s
    • 4096 bytes per sector
    • Six heads, three disks
    • Power – Operating 8.0W, Idle 5.4W, Standby .75W
  • Storage: Seagate Barracuda Specs 2TB – 3.5″ Form Factor
    • 64 MB Cache
    • SATA 6 Gb/s
    • Spindle Speed – 7,200 RPM
    • Average read – 156 MB/s
    • Max read – 210 MB/s
    • 4096 bytes per sector
    • Six heads, three disks
    • Power – Operating 8.0W, Idle 5.4W, Standby .75W
  • Storage: Seagate Barracuda Specs 3TB – 3.5″ Form Factor
    • 64 MB Cache
    • SATA 6 Gb/s
    • Spindle Speed – 7,200 RPM
    • Average read – 156 MB/s
    • Max read – 210 MB/s
    • 4096 bytes per sector
    • Six heads, three disks
    • Power – Operating 8.0W, Idle 5.4W, Standby .75W
  • Monitor: Acer G235H
  • Monitor: Acer G235H
  • Keyboard: IBM Model M (1986)
  • WebCam: Logitech WebCam Pro 9000
  • Speakers: Logitech X-540

Replaced

Mouse: Logitech Wireless Trackball M570

Note: I’ve since added a SoundBlaster ZX sound card due to the onboard RealTek sound not working with the Logitech speakers (no 5.1 sound) and the Logitech G900 Chaos Spectrum Mouse for better gaming.

And Starcraft II runs pretty well. Wolfenstein The New Order runs in 4K and it works very well! I did try SLI (connecting the two cards) but it didn’t make any difference.

Posted in Computers | 1 Comment

New Gaming Rig Time Again

Posted on March 7, 2016 by Freejack

My old one is almost 8 years old and is apparently feeling its age. Recent Windows Reliability Tool runs show several unknown hardware errors causing problems with my using the system with some of the apps I use.

I popped out for a look around and found a few options but over on PCGamer there was a pre-configured rig ready to go. The video card was quite a bit overpowered for my purposes but otherwise it would be a nice quick machine. I checked various sites I use, Newegg, Tigerdirect, Amazon, and even Best Buy. Ultimately everything but the CPU had the best price at NewEgg so I bit the bullet and paid the extra couple of bucks, buying it all at NewEgg.

Here’s the basic system with notes for the extra bits I wanted and followed by anything I purchased after I used this system a bit. I will note that I already have an IBM Keyboard, Logitech Trackball, Logitech 5.1 Speakers, and four Acer 23″ monitors. So this is in addition to existing bits.

Component type Recommended component NewEgg Price
Processor Intel Core i7-6700K $379.99
Motherboard Asus Maximum VIII Hero $219.99
Memory G.Skill Ripjaws V Series DDR4 2666 (16GB) $87.50
Graphics card MSI GTX 970 Ti Gaming 4G $334.99
Power supply EVGA Supernova 850 watt G2 80 Plus Gold $123.03
Storage Samsung 850 EVO (500GB) $149.99
CPU cooler Corsair H90 $64.99
Disc drive LG Blu-ray reader $58.99
Case Thermaltake LEVEL 10 GT $199.99
Total $1,619.46

As I’m doing more than gaming (and honestly, my gaming is somewhat mild considering), I added a second card to drive two of my 23″ Acer monitors. Plus as I do write code, I wanted to be able to spin up Virtual Machines for testing purposes so I added 16 Gigs more of RAM.

Component type Recommended component NewEgg Price
Memory G.Skill Ripjaws V Series DDR4 2666 (16GB) $87.50
Graphics card MSI GTX 970 Ti Gaming 4G $334.99
Total $2,041.95

And again for programming, and because I wanted to get a 4K monitor, I added one. Generally monitors are less expensive at Tigerdirect however the 43″ 4K was on special and reviews showed it was a good monitor and good price. After using it for 6 months now, I 100% agree.

Component type Recommended component NewEgg Price
Monitor Wasabi Mango UHD430 Real 4K HDMI 2.0 SE 43″ LG AH-IPS Panel UHD 3840×2160 Displayport 1.2 43-Inch 10Bit Monitor $769.99
Total $2,811.94

Finally I dropped by Best Buy for a new copy of Windows.

Component type Recommended component Best Buy Price
Operating System Microsoft Windows 10 Professional 129.94
Total $2,941.81

System is done.

My Logitech 5.1 Speakers weren’t working with the RealTek onboard sound chip. Some issue with drivers not being available for Windows 10. Plus I was troubleshooting a video/audio problem. I purchased a replacement sound card 7/25/16. Note that I have a rewards card so the price shown here isn’t the price I paid 🙂

Component type Recommended component Amazon Price
Sound SoundBlaster ZX $129.34
Total $3,071.15

I have a few games I enjoy playing and using a Logitech track ball works well enough for them although Starcraft II wasn’t working as well as I’d like. More recently I picked up the new Doom and then Wolfenstein The New Order. I found that using a Track ball doesn’t work as well for these sorts of games so I checked out and purchased a mouse on 10/2/16. I did check PCGamer for their review on Mice and this one was identified as the best gaming mouse. And note that the price isn’t the price I paid. As I have a rewards card, I was able to get the pair for about half of the listed price.

Component type Recommended component Amazon Price
Mouse Logitech G900 Chaos Spectrum Professional Grade Wired/Wireless Gaming Mouse, Ambidextrous Mouse $139.00
Mouse Pad Logitech G440 Hard Gaming Mouse Pad for High DPI Gaming $29.99
Total $3,240.14

With all the other stuff I’m doing now; ripping my DVD and BluRay collection to computer plus the addition of a few games, I decided to pick up a couple of spare SSD drives. I want to see if I can mirror them first off, and then make them the boot disk if possible. I seem to recall last year that mirroring the SDD drives wasn’t possible in Windows 10 but we’ll see. Push comes to shove, I’ll have a bigger drive for other things where I need speed. Purchase date, 2/26/2017.

Component type Recommended component NewEgg Price
Storage Samsung 850 EVO (500GB) $169.99
Storage Samsung 850 EVO (500GB) $169.99
Total $3,580.12
Posted in Computers | 1 Comment

Red Hat 6 Satellite Training

Posted on March 1, 2016 by Freejack

Just notes from the training I’m attending this week.

First off the Installation and User’s guides will help you if you’ve done it before. There are extra bits that I’m getting in the class that’s really helping me visualize how to initially set up the site.

Installation and Configuration chapters are pretty clear. Couple of notes.

1. Don’t try to sync all the repos you need at one time. It’ll overwhelm the server. I had to rebuild mine after it totally went insane and someone in the class mentioned that as a problem on his side as well.

2. Satellite isn’t initially configured as a kickstart site. You can do it but it’s a configuration you need to do to get to that point.

3. Satellite has a single copy of each RPM. So RHEL 6 Server is the full installation of 6.0. The RHEL 6.1 repo is just the differences between the core installation and 6.1. Same on up to 6.7.

4. I can create a manifest for each Organization. So Ops can have a manifest for the Ops managed systems and Lab can have a manifest (managed by Satellite of course) for their systems.

5. Propose: Each Product is a Host Collection. Host Collections are systems with similar attributes such as OS versions. Since we have to get a BU to approve updates, having a HC for a product lets us update the product.

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Building Dice Towers

Posted on February 8, 2016 by Freejack

A Dice Tower is useful in ensuring the rolling of dice is relatively similar and it keeps dice in a controlled location. I’ve checked out various sites over the years so I’ve had an idea of what I was looking for.

Not long ago, I stumbled on a pretty cool looking dice tower that wasn’t too crazy complicated (in my mind) to build. During the build of the Gaming Table, I took some time out to cut and assemble 5 dice towers based on the following site.

Very Cool DIY Dice Tower

I followed the top two links to pictures but the plans pop up with a Permission Denied. I posted a comment but the last one was in 2011. I reverse engineered the plans and recreated it with my 2″x2″ boards I picked up for this purpose (the board is actually 1 1/2″ by 1 1/2″).

The hardest part was the back top corner piece. It has a diagonal down the face at the same angle as the two adjacent pieces. I whipped up a quick and dirty jig and was able to easily make the cut. The bottom part was a three way cut and was the hardest part of the piece. I have a scroll saw but it was complaining the entire way. I’m thinking of snagging a small band saw to make this easier. The rest of the pieces are simple straight or 45* cuts. One of the links above has a 2d plan with measurements in mm. His tower is about 3/4″ bigger all around and probably an inch or two taller but I like this one.

Glued together. You can see the diagonal angled cut here. it’s not perfect but I have 4 or 5 more to make so I’ll get the hang of it before too long 🙂 You can see the lower part of that piece there and the other one in the next picture.

From the back. The top right corner is the harder piece.

I planned on using plexiglass but the local show will only make single cuts, no custom cuts. I need to get some measurements and plan how to get the plexiglass in place. In the mean time I taped some paper over the openings so I could test the dice. I used a box of small dice and dumped them all in, all came out without an issue. I dumped in a set of polyhedrons and no sticking, all came out without an issue. I finally dumped in some d20 and d12 mixes and again, all came out. Without making a statistical run, it seems to work as expected.

I’ll be keeping this one for my Shadowrun game (look at all those 5’s and 6’s 😀 )

Okay, I have five towers done. I stopped in at our local hardware store. “Plexiglass?” I ask the guy at the desk. He pulls out a selection of 3×5 pieces in various thicknesses and says to provide the measurements and they’ll cut them for me. “Really? I was just going to get a few sheets and cut them myself. Let me get the measurements and I’ll come back.”

Later: “Here you go, 10 at 9 1/4″x3″, 5 at 7″x3″ and 5 at 9 1/4″x3″.”

“That’s a lot of labor. And $.73 a piece. Come back in 45 minutes and it’ll be ready, $13.23 total when you pick it up.”

More Later: “Here I am.” I measure the pieces. Not perfect but within error limits, I’m cool.

“If you’re going to do this often, we’ll have to charge you labor.”

😀

I’m looking at getting my own table saw blade though. The cuts were apparently using a knife vs a saw.

Now, assemble the plexiglass. Just using clamps to get a feel for how it lays out plus the sides of the tray. I may rip the sides to shorten them a bit. I have a small sheet of the 1/4″ Poplar which I may also rip to make the sides. We’ll see.

I was going to try and miter saw the edges but the blade is large enough that it really doesn’t work. So I used the scroll saw and did my best keeping it straight.

I tried a couple of different sizes for the fence around the front yard of the dice tower but found the quarter inch was what I liked best. I had a long, about 2″ wide piece so I ripped it to 3/4″ and then used a jig and the miter saw to cut the corners. A little wood glue thinly spread with my fingers and they’re set. I also took the tower itself and ran the bottoms of each completed tower through the miter saw to make the base flat. At least one tower (the one on the right here) the ramp ends a little before the fence.

I used my drill press to gradually increase bit sizes to drill holes. Still I cracked the back of one of the pieces. I tried to sand down the edges of the plexiglass. It sort of worked. I’m still poking at it though.

We used the towers Saturday and Sunday and they worked pretty well even though the plexiglass was just taped in place for now.

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Building a Gaming Table

Posted on December 18, 2015 by Freejack

Once the plans were drawn, I started gathering wood from Home Depot. I checked out the available hard woods and went with Poplar. Partly because of the expense and partly because of the color (a mild green). I picked up an Oak board for the Cup Holders and the plywood sheets for the table tops.

The garage is a bit wet, it is December and there’s snow outside. The garage is a touch cold (as in, I can see my breath at times).

I started getting the gear out of the various places I stashed it. The router table from under the window, the miter saw from on top of the table saw, the stand from next to the router table. Just getting stuff out and ready to use. Then start measuring and cutting until all the Poplar has been cut to the proper size.

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