VCR-related

I just published the last entry a few minutes ago even though I wrote it several days ago. But now I'm writing a new entry because I feel like it.

When I was at work more or less selling soil on Sunday I was rather board (no customers) so I was brainstorming how I want to "Super VCR Mod" to work and go. It's going to have the hardware part, the customized Windows 98 OS running it part and a custom software front-end part. Why do I get the feeling I already wrote about this? Hmmmph.

I can work on parts one and two at the same time. Part three I can plan and theorize but can't really test out until I get the thing up and running with TV tuner and video card with TV-out. On another minor level I should figure out what I want to call the thing. Maybe Something like HTPC-VR 98. What am I, a marketing department? If I ever get it up and running it'll be pretty cool though.

I did take one small incremental step a few days ago: I purchased an "ATX power button" complete with wires leading off to a motherboard. It was only $3 at Fry's. Yes, I'm $3 closer to completing it. I have also completely dismantled an old AT PC case. I'm going to use the HDD and power LEDs from it and if I can salvage it the reset functionality. I may have to use another PC case for the reset button. I need more practice with the Dremel apparently.

Then I have to decide the EXACT features I want to add to the thing. I was for some reason contemplating putting in a small LCD monitor that would some how attach and could be used when no other monitor was available. Through one method or another I found a source of LCD screens at Parts Express. If I could some how attach a screen like that I think this would about the coolest mod ever. Of course the screens are limited to only 640x480 resolution but I don't know what I would use the screens for anyway. Watching movies maybe?

The things I have to figure out are how to mount the motherboard, how and which button on the VCR to assign to the power button, how and where to attach the LEDs for the HDD and power, and of course how and where to put in the CD-ROM. That would seem to be the hardest part. There's really no useful gaps any where on the thing to enlarge enough I could allow for a space for the CD-ROM tray to come out. Except maybe the connector panel located on the front.

That's actually a good idea. My original plan was to actually make those work via "couplers" but those connectors would be more useful on the traditional back of the unit. So I can conceal the CD-ROM behind this panel but attaching the panel to the tray of the CD-ROM. When the tray is retracted you can't tell it's there, when ejected the thing comes out with the panel attached. Hopefully there is room in that part of the case I can fit a CD-ROM.

I also need a place to attach a HDD and a power supply. The HDD may not be that hard as I have a HDD "mounting kit" designed for puting HDDs in 5 1/4" drive bays. With that I would need some where to attach that, like to plexi-glass or wood or whatever. As for the power supply I would need something both quite compact and really quiet as I am planning on having this PC in the living room and left on for large amounts of time.

Speaking the noise level I will also be buying some sound absorbing matting since I obviously won't be installing a window and one of those super-silent heat sinks for the processor.

On the note of plexi-glass I think this is what I was going to use for the shelf that will hold the motherboard. I have done more hours of google searching for information on screw-hole distances than I care to admit however today I finally found the information I was looking for (PDF). Maybe I can convince fry's to sell me a peice of plex-glass with the holes already in it that I saw there in a demonstration product a few days ago, but I doubt it.

Upon some further inspections of the gutted VCR I still have in the garage I disovered contrary to the last entry, no I can't fit a normal-sized CD-ROM on the bottom so I can attach the input/out panel to the disk tray and conceal it in a neat way. However I can go crazy with a dremel and try to work it out that way. In fact it has become quite evident I didn't gut the VCR nearly as much as I could have so I did some further gutting. Now I need to get creative with the dremel take out some shelving I don't really need.

Well I suppose to could go on longer but instead I'm going to bed. I hope this was a good entry.

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  ¶ 12:08 PM