Packers Huddle

Good lord Spectrum is a mess. So I'm paying about double, but internet already so much faster. Going to play around and see what I have to do to bog it down.

So aside from a different Spectrum plan, what improvements did you make to your home system? I saw modem, cat6 cable...anything else? Did you replace all your cat5?

APB wrote: ↑

01 Mar 2021 21:13

So aside from a different Spectrum plan, what improvements did you make to your home system? I saw modem, cat6 cable...anything else? Did you replace all your cat5?

Yep, new modem, new 400mbps plan and swapped all the old cat5 cables (only about 5 things actually wired). Routers were already newer so no need to replace.

Not really a big deal. The plan was the big thing. Download speeds are already so much better. And I can do it at the same time as working and streaming video!

I'm the lamest techy known to man. Always the last to the party. But I'm ready for gigabit should I want to make the jump.

Next improvement is to actually put a ssd in my workstation for a boot drive. It's so slow!

Geez, I read the part calling you slow...then you say you need a ssd. What's wrong with you. :D

Think I've had an ssd for 9 years now.

Trudge wrote: ↑

01 Mar 2021 22:49

Geez, I read the part calling you slow...then you say you need a ssd. What's wrong with you. :D

Think I've had an ssd for 9 years now.

Yeah, I know. I'm using an old cad station from work that is a good 8 years old. Still plenty of power, but I've never upgraded the HD. Just put in some bigger spinning drives I already had. I've added a new video card in the last year too. The hope was always to build a new one and just use this as a media server, but it hasn't happened. But it's also been my main tower since my last one started having issues.

As little as it gets used, it does the job. But would be nice to get some faster boot times and have a few games load faster. I typically use the laptop for browsing around at night, so its not a big deal.

Day 3. Will they or won't they ring the doorbell? Wife waiting on some whiskey to be delivered via FedEx, has to be signed for. First delivery attempt was Sunday. She says the doorbell rang, I didn't hear it. She was working and couldn't get up. Yesterday, I'm home all day. No doorbell, I get a text saying they attempted delivery. I go outside, test the doorbell, it works, I can hear it.

So today is the last day they'll attempt delivery before it sits at a FedEx location and I have to pick it up (probably in Rockford). I put instructions for them to ring the doorbell this time and wait more than 2 seconds because I sit on the 2nd floor of my house all day, where my office is.

Betting I'll be driving to FedEx tomorrow to pick it up. First world problems.

I might consider relocating my office temporarily downstairs. For us, the laziness of our delivery drivers is notorious, especially the USPS.

My neighborhood has lighted mailboxes at the street for all residences. All standard sizes with standardized posts, etc. Part of the HOA ambiance, I suppose. The understanding is large packages that do not fit in the box will be placed upon your porch. The typical walk from street to porch is about 30 feet.

First, our USPS guy will bypass your house completely if a vehicle is parked to where it even remotely blocks drive-up access to the mailbox. Get out of the truck and walk 3 steps around a parked car to deliver mail? Nope. I've had to knock on neighbors doors who had guests who happened to park in front of my house just to ask them to back their car up a few feet. And I'm the one who looks like the jerk in that instance.

Our USPS driver has also been known to balance larger packages on the open door portion of the mailbox rather than walk it up to the porch. I caught him doing it at my house a while back and luckily he was still in the neighborhood when I saw it. Took a picture, ran him down, and voiced my displeasure. His response was he didn't know I preferred larger packages to be placed on the porch. Like yeah, balancing them on the open door was the optimal thing to do. He was just too damn lazy to walk it up to the house.

And this is what drives me crazy every time I read about more money being thrown at the USPS by the fed govt. I suspect their problems are less financially related and more employee related.

If I could have 1 magical power today it would be the ability to turn off any noise I don't want to listen to. People talking. Cats meowing. Trains. Sirens. That &%$@ country they play in every store I walk into. Whatever. I could live in my perfect world, audio-wise anyway.

paco wrote: ↑

10 Mar 2021 16:17

If I could have 1 magical power today it would be the ability to turn off any noise I don't want to listen to. People talking. Cats meowing. Trains. Sirens. That &%$@ country they play in every store I walk into. Whatever. I could live in my perfect world, audio-wise anyway.

I could stab you in the ears... that should help with the first part. Then we will just have to work on how to turn it back on. That might pose more problems. You might just have to deal with the country.

paco wrote: ↑

10 Mar 2021 16:17

If I could have 1 magical power today it would be the ability to turn off any noise I don't want to listen to. People talking. Cats meowing. Trains. Sirens. That &%$@ country they play in every store I walk into. Whatever. I could live in my perfect world, audio-wise anyway.

Have you ever tried noise canceling headphones?

BF004 wrote: ↑

10 Mar 2021 17:30

paco wrote: ↑

10 Mar 2021 16:17

If I could have 1 magical power today it would be the ability to turn off any noise I don't want to listen to. People talking. Cats meowing. Trains. Sirens. That &%$@ country they play in every store I walk into. Whatever. I could live in my perfect world, audio-wise anyway.

Have you ever tried noise canceling headphones?

Then I have to listen to the thoughts in my head. That may be worse. But I do need a new set of good headphones.

NCF wrote: ↑

10 Mar 2021 17:24

paco wrote: ↑

10 Mar 2021 16:17

If I could have 1 magical power today it would be the ability to turn off any noise I don't want to listen to. People talking. Cats meowing. Trains. Sirens. That &%$@ country they play in every store I walk into. Whatever. I could live in my perfect world, audio-wise anyway.

I could stab you in the ears... that should help with the first part. Then we will just have to work on how to turn it back on. That might pose more problems. You might just have to deal with the country.

I've thought about going ice pick on myself, but I don't want to be deaf. And I'll take drowning out my house and few select work people first. Will worry about silencing the country later.

paco wrote: ↑

10 Mar 2021 18:09

Will worry about silencing the country later.

Its a business opportunity. Every damn device has beeps, buzzes and alerts. Even our fridge beeps telling me its time to change the filter. My wife's car beeps every time you change lanes. Argh ! The incessant audio assault puts all of us in a state of perpetual angst - which makes the sirens and other sounds even more agitating. Somebody has to invent the anti-beeping device that shuts down all of these incessant alerts/beeps and buzzes.

"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind"

paco wrote: ↑

10 Mar 2021 16:17

If I could have 1 magical power today it would be the ability to turn off any noise I don't want to listen to. People talking. Cats meowing. Trains. Sirens. That &%$@ country they play in every store I walk into. Whatever. I could live in my perfect world, audio-wise anyway.

You forgot spouse.

TheGreenMan wrote: ↑

12 Mar 2021 18:37

paco wrote: ↑

10 Mar 2021 16:17

If I could have 1 magical power today it would be the ability to turn off any noise I don't want to listen to. People talking. Cats meowing. Trains. Sirens. That &%$@ country they play in every store I walk into. Whatever. I could live in my perfect world, audio-wise anyway.

You forgot spouse.

Dog
Child
Boss

paco wrote: ↑

02 Mar 2021 08:25

Trudge wrote: ↑

01 Mar 2021 22:49

Geez, I read the part calling you slow...then you say you need a ssd. What's wrong with you. :D

Think I've had an ssd for 9 years now.

Yeah, I know. I'm using an old cad station from work that is a good 8 years old. Still plenty of power, but I've never upgraded the HD. Just put in some bigger spinning drives I already had. I've added a new video card in the last year too. The hope was always to build a new one and just use this as a media server, but it hasn't happened. But it's also been my main tower since my last one started having issues.

As little as it gets used, it does the job. But would be nice to get some faster boot times and have a few games load faster. I typically use the laptop for browsing around at night, so its not a big deal.

SSD boot drive is such a great value upgrade - The difference in just everyday Windows use is enormous. I'd get a big enough SSD to house the OS and all programs (and games) to cut loading times to a fraction, and would use the legacy HD as a backup drive and as storage for photos and videos.

TheGreenMan wrote: ↑

12 Mar 2021 18:37

paco wrote: ↑

10 Mar 2021 16:17

If I could have 1 magical power today it would be the ability to turn off any noise I don't want to listen to. People talking. Cats meowing. Trains. Sirens. That &%$@ country they play in every store I walk into. Whatever. I could live in my perfect world, audio-wise anyway.

You forgot spouse.

She was included in the people talking part.

salmar80 wrote: ↑

13 Mar 2021 03:38

paco wrote: ↑

02 Mar 2021 08:25

Trudge wrote: ↑

01 Mar 2021 22:49

Geez, I read the part calling you slow...then you say you need a ssd. What's wrong with you. :D

Think I've had an ssd for 9 years now.

Yeah, I know. I'm using an old cad station from work that is a good 8 years old. Still plenty of power, but I've never upgraded the HD. Just put in some bigger spinning drives I already had. I've added a new video card in the last year too. The hope was always to build a new one and just use this as a media server, but it hasn't happened. But it's also been my main tower since my last one started having issues.

As little as it gets used, it does the job. But would be nice to get some faster boot times and have a few games load faster. I typically use the laptop for browsing around at night, so its not a big deal.

SSD boot drive is such a great value upgrade - The difference in just everyday Windows use is enormous. I'd get a big enough SSD to house the OS and all programs (and games) to cut loading times to a fraction, and would use the legacy HD as a backup drive and as storage for photos and videos.

Yeah, that's the plan. Just been too lazy or cheap to do it. Part of it is I have too many hard drives and am out of slots and ports to plug them into. Need to buy a decent sized SSD and another decent sized storage drive. Right now I've got data across probably 7 or 8 different drives anywhere between 500gb and 2TB. I know, I've got too much stuff. Some of its backups and duplicates. I need to sit down, go through all of it and organize, weed out, etc. I started doing some of it with my music, but it got interrupted when my last machines power supply took a dump. Never got back to it.

Thinking when I get my next stimulus I might break down and finally buy some drives. But the money is really needed some other places as well, as usual. We'll see.

anyone have a battery powered lawn mower? Do you recommend them? Suggestion on brands to go toward or shy away from? Looking into them and wonder if it's worth it. I've got a pretty normal sized lawn. Takes me about 30-40 minutes to mow through it now with a standard push mower (not self drive).

paco wrote: ↑

13 Mar 2021 12:48

anyone have a battery powered lawn mower? Do you recommend them? Suggestion on brands to go toward or shy away from? Looking into them and wonder if it's worth it. I've got a pretty normal sized lawn. Takes me about 30-40 minutes to mow through it now with a standard push mower (not self drive).

For a lawn that size I would not recommend it. They are perfect for really small lots or doing trim work around trees and edges and such, but I wouldn't want one for my whole yard. They also just lack the power to get through tough grass... slightly wet, the one or two times you let it go too long... it will be practically useless for that. I'm sure the batteries are better than the ones I had in the electric mower I had as a kid, but I don't know why you wouldn't go gas with a normal sized yard.