Upgraded my LC475 again

[68kAlex]

Thanks to some discussion on this forum, I now have a metric tonne of storage capacity in my LC475! I contacted Uniserver, who is selling SCA server drives at very reasonable prices, and he sent two over, already partitioned and installed with Mac OS 7.5.5. He also included an SCA-SCSI adapter which I used to connect the hard drive to the Mac. I attached a passive SCSI terminator to the external SCSI port just to be sure, as the discussion on the other thread indicated this was a good idea (not sure if it's absolutely essential or not).



My Mac runs faster with 7.1 so I did a fresh install and put back all my usual bits (drivers, applications, utilities etc.) Eight partitions appear on the desktop when the Mac boots, but at the moment I'm only using two of them, both 1.7GB in size. Here's a screen grab:



You'll notice I've also upgraded the RAM to 70MB. Suddenly my LC475 is a far more useful computer and I can happily run Netscape, Transmit, BBEdit, and GraphicConverter at the same time without worrying about running out of memory. I also have enough capacity to keep *all* my Mac software on the machine, reducing the number of times I have to connect to my FTP server.

 

[uniserver]

nice , hey cool background

 

[NickNick]

Thats awesome! I love seeing suped-up Macs. I even more love seeing these Macintoshes being used still! Still such an awesome machine and great little runners.

 

[68kAlex]

This is my main writing machine - so much more focused and free of distractions than my PC. I also find the smaller screen helps.

Next step will be to find an extended keyboard for a better typing experience.

 

[NickNick]

Yes! I can definatly see what you mean about the screen. Its a good change to look back at the old style monitors...

If your using the keyboard I think you are using, I also dis-like it. Its layout is horrible...I get the whole space thing but still, what was apple thinking lol.

Do you use Writing Center?

 

[onlyonemac]

This is my main writing machine - so much more focused and free of distractions than my PC.

I agree! I've yet to find someone else who agrees with me on that point :approve: !!!

If your using the keyboard I think you are using, I also dis-like it.

Looks like I'm the only one around here who actually likes that keyboard... :I

 

[NickNick]

Lol...its not all that bad, what I dont like is the arrows and that is because alot of Macintosh games make use of the arrows......Them being in a row I constantly press wrong keys.

Other than that, keyboard is awesome. I barley used the function keys on the extended ones so don't really miss them much.

 

[68kAlex]

I actually like the layout and the compact size of the standard keyboard that came with the LC475, but I prefer the tactile feedback of the Extended (which I'm now using). It is a bit of a beast though!

 

[onlyonemac]

I too like the small, discreet size of the standard keyboard.

I don't have a problem with the arrows. Most of the time I reconfigure games to use the z, x, @ and / keys like they used to before we had arrows, and even when I do use the arrows there's no problem.

But I was actually reffering to the feel of the keyboard, however.

 

[68kAlex]

Keyboards are such a personal thing that, once you start paying attention to what kind of keyboard you actually like, everyone will inevitably find their favourite style.

For me it's all about mechanical keyboard due to the crisper tactile feedback. My main PC keyboard is the Filco Majestouch 2 with Cherry Blue switches (super crunchy!) and I'm now really appreciating the feel of the Extended Keyboard II, which requires less effort to type on than the original LC keyboard. Plus I've cleaned it and it now looks like new

 

[uniserver]

hey could you do me a favor?

could you take the lid off, after an hour or so of using it, and take some temperature readings of the hard drive.

its a modern hard drive i am sure it would shut its self down if it was to get too hot. But i am just curious how hot it gets.

another thing you might want to look into that HD Spin down extension,

( if you are not already using it )

running from a RAM disk with the HD spun down via Sleeper,

viewtopic.php?f=9&t=21843

 

[bse5150]

hey could you do me a favor?could you take the lid off, after an hour or so of using it, and take some temperature readings of the hard drive.

I'd be interested in this as well.

 

[68kAlex]

Will do when I get home (I'm away this weekend). Do you know if there's a utility that can measure hard drive temperature?

 

[uniserver]

you will have to use an IR thermometer

if you don't have one.. you should get one… they are 10 bucks or less at most discount type places.

http://www.banggood.com/Wholesale-Mini-Pen-Type-LCD-Non-Contact-IR-Infrared-Thermometer-Gauge-Meter-50-To-220-p-65333.html?currency=USD&utm_source=google&utm_medium=shopping&utm_content=miko_ruby&utm_campaign=Electronic-xie-us&gclid=CIr0oYbwtroCFepFMgodlAoAmw

 

[68kAlex]

Fair enough - don't have access to one at the moment, but if I get one I'll let you know!

Totally unscientific, but I've just popped the lid and had a look at the hard disk after ~2 hours of operation. It feels warm but I wouldn't describe it as hot - certainly no warmer than the CPU. I think the fact that I have inverted the fan (blowing air up into the case from the bottom) has helped cooling a little; airflow seems to be better now.

I have Sleeper installed on my system but only use it for spinning down the hard disk when the machine is idle. I switch my equipment off at night so I don't think running System 7 from a RAM disk would be practical, but I've certainly got enough RAM to spare if I wanted to do it...