Welcome to Tech for Non Profits. As the banner says, Non-profit organizations need technology as much as for-profit businesses. As a consultant for mostly non-profit organizations, I am interested in finding hardware and software for office networks that provides outstanding value.

Comments and suggestions are appreciated. Drop by the Microdesign Consulting web site.

Somewhere, wandering around I found a setting in my Windows XP monitor setup. Right click on the desktop and go to ‘Properties’. Choose the ‘Appearence’ tab. Click on the ‘Effects’ button. You’ll see the following screen:

Be sure that “Use the following method to smooth edges of screen fonts” is checked, and that the drop down list shows “ClearType”. It is like getting a new pair of bifocals.

Network Magic is a new management program for home networks. It diagrams the network, helps you share files between machines, shows the status of all the components, etc. You load and run this on each workstation on a peer-to-peer network.

There is no support for servers, or Linux, other than identifying the machines on the network.

If you have a peer-to-peer network at home or in a small office, this is a neat program that makes Windows networking tools look clunky by comparison. You can get a free beta version.

Here’s a screen shot

So, it still is a good idea to stay out of the hardware business. My new homebuilt Pundit-R won’t load Windows. It won’t load Novell Suse Desktop 9.0 , or rather it will load the Suse, but Suse doesn’t recognize the embedded network controller.

Turns out Windows XP doesn’t include drivers for the SATA hard disk. These need to be loaded separately on bootup, from a floppy drive. While I don’t have a floppy drive, one needs to be temprarily installed for the purpose.

What does work is Fedora Core 3, and that is what this machine will be for the time being; a Linux Desktop machine.

So, for now, the rule still applies: Stay out of the hardware business.

This book describes the building of several computers:

• Mainstream Desktop
• Small Server
• Game Machine
• Small Form Factor Machine
• Home Theater Machine

The first couple of chapters provide a basic overview of component choices, required tools, and assembly techniques. Then there is a chapter for each of the specific project computers. There are lots of photographs, and thorough discussions about which components and memory to choose. They name names and sources for motherboards, cases, memory, and processors.

Fortunately, I had bought my case before reading their book because the Pundit-R line was not on their recommended list of cases. But there is a lot of very good information in here.

Building the Perfect PC
Robert Bruce Thompson
Barbara Fritchman Thompson
August 2004 O’Reilly and Associates

Well, yesterday I bit the bullet and began assembling the Pundit-R computer. My misgivings about the noise were entirely unfounded, and the little guy is quiet and unobtrusive even before the case is put back on. The machine comes with a massive heat sink and fan for the processor. I installed an Intel Pentium-4 2.4 processor that has a 533Mhz front-side bus, which is less than the capacity of the motherboard, and will perhaps run cooler than the fastest possible chip.

The disk drive, a Maxtor 60gig drive comes with an S-ATA connector. This has a very short, stiff cable which caused some difficulty installing. I also installed a CD-RW drive which serves as the boot drive for loading an operating system. I attempted to install Novell Desktop 9.0 (Suse) which failed to load, and to boot and install Windows XP Professional which started a hardware check and then blanked out the screen. Finally Linux Fedora Core 3 installed without incident. Performance is snappy. It is working fine for the moment, and I’ll pursue the Windows problem later, (or not…)

Costs:
Case = US$170.50
Processor, Hard Drive, and CD-Drive = US$257.91
Memory=157.97

Total: $586.38

Note this is without software… if you add Windows, it would be another $133 or so.

Basic building time was about an hour…but I did spend some time troubleshooting a problem with the drive connections, (master and slave…channels, etc.) If I was building a machine for the first time, I think a small tower case would have been a better choice…it makes it easier to change things around.

But, place this in context. Checking on the Dell site, I see a Dell “workstation” machine with a 2.8Ghz processor, no operating system, 512Megs of RAM, 40 Gigabyte SATA hard drive and 48x CD ROM and a 3 year on-site basic warranty plan for $709 after a rebate, but before shipping, (which is usually $50.00 at least). Add $150.00 to bring up the memory amount, $49.00 for a CDRW and $40.00 to boost the hard drive to 80 megs. This gives a total of $938 before shipping.

Now, I’m not about to reward myself for a savings of $352 and say that I earned $300+ per hour for the assembly… but… if you have more time than money…well…

I think if I had teenagers who needed a new machine, this would be an ideal route. Make ’em build it themselves.

I’m not sure why it went this way this week, but I spent almost half the week trying to clean up a windows mess on several computers. While many of the techniques have been described in earlier posts, there is an excellent book co-authored by a favorite tech writer, Jeff Dunteman. The book: Degunking Windows is written for the novice or non-geek, and describes a systematic approach for practicing personal computer hygiene.

The first page includes “The Quick Degunking 12-Step Program”:

1. Get rid of the files you don’t really need (Chapter 3).
2. Uninstall programs you don’t need (Chapter 4).
3. Organize your files and folders (Chapter 5).
4. Clean up your Desktop and Start menu (Chapter 6).
5. Reduce your e-mail spam, and sort thorugh and organize your Outlook mail (Chapters 7 and 8).
6. Clean and fine-tune the Registry (Chapter 9).
7. Optimize your hard drive (Chapter 10).
8. Install the latest upgrades (Chapter 11).
9. Incorporate Power Toys and good shareware to help keep your machine clean and running efficiently (Chapter 13).
10. Improve security and set up a good firewall (Chapter 14).
11. Back up your system on a regular basis (Chapter 15).
12. Use a smart approach if you think your machine is ready to be retired (Chapter 16).

Degunking is an ongoing process, an attitude…dare I say, a lifestyle. The book includes task lists for those times when you have 10 minutes to degunk, or 30 minutes, or an hour, or three hours, or a half-day.

Degunk. It feels good.

Degunking Windows
Joli Ballew and Jeff Duntemann
ISBN: 1-932111-84-0
Paraglyph Press

Welcome to Tech for Non Profits. As the banner says, Non-profit organizations need technology as much as for-profit businesses. As a consultant for mostly non-profit organizations, I am interested in finding hardware and software for office networks that provides outstanding value.

Comments and suggestions are appreciated. Drop by the Microdesign Consulting web site.

I know. This violates the rule of “stay of out the hardware business”. But I am search of a smaller computer, I have decided to try building one using components purchased from NewEgg and Crucial.

Designing and Planning Programs for Nonprofit and Government Organizations: “Seen in Harvard Business School’s Working Knowledge blog”