11-22-2007, 04:47 PM
I've been experimenting with ways to keep my computer peripherals cool. To explain, I have to start with how my desk is set up. It's not really a desk, just a folding table. Underneath the table is this cubbyhole thing, good for keeping the peripherals organized. The peripherals include things like the cable modem, a router, an external hard drive, some USB hubs, and a power strip laden with "wall wart" transformers (eventually to be replaced with a flat-style UPS). The computer itself is actually in the cubbyholes (Mac Mini, one of the few computers available that would actually fit in such a space.)
All that stuff of course produces heat, so I've been experimenting with the use of small desk and clip-on fans (clipped to the legs of the table and aimed at some of the cubbyholes) to keep the air moving around the peripherals so they stay cool.
One of the fans causes the image on the monitor to get a little flickery. I've tried all kinds of ways to stop that, including plugging the offending fan into a different circuit and making sure its cord is nowhere near the video cable. So far, the only way to stop the flickering is to turn that fan off.
The monitor is an old secondhand CRT monitor connected by way of a DVI-to-VGA converter in the back of the computer. I've been wondering if replacing the monitor with one that is native DVI would stop the interference (digital signal instead of analog). Perhaps LCD would be better also, considering there's then no electron beam inside a tube to get blown off course by stray radio interference.
Anyone here have experience with similar situations?
All that stuff of course produces heat, so I've been experimenting with the use of small desk and clip-on fans (clipped to the legs of the table and aimed at some of the cubbyholes) to keep the air moving around the peripherals so they stay cool.
One of the fans causes the image on the monitor to get a little flickery. I've tried all kinds of ways to stop that, including plugging the offending fan into a different circuit and making sure its cord is nowhere near the video cable. So far, the only way to stop the flickering is to turn that fan off.
The monitor is an old secondhand CRT monitor connected by way of a DVI-to-VGA converter in the back of the computer. I've been wondering if replacing the monitor with one that is native DVI would stop the interference (digital signal instead of analog). Perhaps LCD would be better also, considering there's then no electron beam inside a tube to get blown off course by stray radio interference.
Anyone here have experience with similar situations?