A closer look at my new PSU

I have never had a modular PSU with these kind of connectors, it was for me kind of surprising to see how these cables are all put together.

First, I wanted to make sure that my PSU supports 230V. In the manual it states: “Make sure the correct input voltage is selected and change the switch if necessary.” I’m looking for a switch but I can’t find it anywhere. On the side sticker it says: “115V-230V 60/50Hz”, so it seems that this PSU does figure it out by itself. I wanted to be absolutely sure though, so I looked it up online. There the specs of my specific model said: “Full range active PFC”… which kind of gives me a hint that this should be the case. Looking a bit further, yep. An “Full range active PFC” means actually: “Full range active power factor correction”, which does figure out what the input voltage is and corrects it when needed. When I would have 160V here, it still would work. (I’ve got 220V)

So it’s safe to plug it into my outlet here. Now the next step, the cabling. This PSU comes with 8 cables to connect to peripherals, which each include 2 or more connectors to connect to your devices and one connector for the PSU. The PSU has 4 connectors that are reserved for video cards, and 4 for other appliances. The motherboard cables are hard-wired.

One cable contains for example 4 SATA connectors and another one contains  a PCI-E Graphics connector. In total you’ll have enough to connect 2 full-blown heavy-duty graphics adapters without a problem.

  The nice part of a modular PSU is that you only have to connect the cables you actually need. Other cables you can leave in the box and those do not clutter up your system (and prevent proper cooling.) There’s a huge ventilator on that thing. I’ve never seen a ventilator of that size before, it is simply as wide as possible. That will do the job of cooling. It’s quite big… did I mention it’s big? It’s also quite heavy, a 4.1 Kg of metal.

I’ve been reading some reviews (before I bought it) and I’m curious to see it in action. In less than 2 hours my friend arrives here and we’ll build this machine.

About cooling, I’ve got a big case, a side-fan and a big front fan. I hope it is enough.

Can I recommend this PSU? I’ll know once it is installed. Time for some open-heart surgery :)

Thursday, May 28, 2009 7:44:45 PM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

Jippie, just got my things :)

I' just received my 2 video cards and the power supply I ordered. I have never seen anything remotely like it, what a huge devices.

My video cards looks like this:

These Radeon HD4870 cards are fast and also consume a lot of power. So I bought the right power supply to go with it:

This beast does a 1000W, has an amount of cables I’ve never seen come out of a PSU and – most importantly – does 220V/50 Hz :)

Tonight I’m going to build my machine, and I’ll report back on how it went. Can’t wait!

Thursday, May 28, 2009 5:55:20 PM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

This is weird…

I’m getting a YSOD (Yellow Screen of Death) on this line of code: (Line 19)

Line 17:       <td valign="top">Geslacht:</td>
Line 18:       <td>
Line 19:         <% = Html.RadioButton("Gender", "M", Model.Gender == 'M') %> Man<br />
Line 20:         <% = Html.RadioButton("Gender", "F", Model.Gender == 'F') %> Vrouw<br />
Line 21:       </td>

Model is not null.

[NullReferenceException: Object reference not set to an instance of an object.]
   System.Web.Mvc.HtmlHelper.GetModelStateValue(String key, Type destinationType) +63
   System.Web.Mvc.Html.InputExtensions.InputHelper(HtmlHelper htmlHelper, InputType inputType, String name, Object value, Boolean useViewData, Boolean isChecked, Boolean setId, Boolean isExplicitValue, IDictionary`2 htmlAttributes) +328
   System.Web.Mvc.Html.InputExtensions.RadioButton(HtmlHelper htmlHelper, String name, Object value, Boolean isChecked, IDictionary`2 htmlAttributes) +193
   System.Web.Mvc.Html.InputExtensions.RadioButton(HtmlHelper htmlHelper, String name, Object value, Boolean isChecked, Object htmlAttributes) +67
   System.Web.Mvc.Html.InputExtensions.RadioButton(HtmlHelper htmlHelper, String name, Object value, Boolean isChecked) +16
   ASP.areas_agencies_views_contact_contactedit_aspx.__RenderContent1(HtmlTextWriter __w, Control parameterContainer) in c:\VSP\Boulder\The Wheel Ict CV\TheWheel.IctCv.Web\Areas\Agencies\Views\Contact\ContactEdit.aspx:19
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderChildrenInternal(HtmlTextWriter writer, ICollection children) +256
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderChildren(HtmlTextWriter writer) +19
   System.Web.UI.Control.Render(HtmlTextWriter writer) +10
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderControlInternal(HtmlTextWriter writer, ControlAdapter adapter) +27
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderControl(HtmlTextWriter writer, ControlAdapter adapter) +99
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderControl(HtmlTextWriter writer) +25
   ASP.views_shared_site_master.__Render__control1(HtmlTextWriter __w, Control parameterContainer) in c:\VSP\Boulder\The Wheel Ict CV\TheWheel.IctCv.Web\Views\Shared\Site.Master:25
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderChildrenInternal(HtmlTextWriter writer, ICollection children) +256
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderChildren(HtmlTextWriter writer) +19
   System.Web.UI.Control.Render(HtmlTextWriter writer) +10
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderControlInternal(HtmlTextWriter writer, ControlAdapter adapter) +27
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderControl(HtmlTextWriter writer, ControlAdapter adapter) +99
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderControl(HtmlTextWriter writer) +25
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderChildrenInternal(HtmlTextWriter writer, ICollection children) +134
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderChildren(HtmlTextWriter writer) +19
   System.Web.UI.Page.Render(HtmlTextWriter writer) +29
   System.Web.Mvc.ViewPage.Render(HtmlTextWriter writer) +59
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderControlInternal(HtmlTextWriter writer, ControlAdapter adapter) +27
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderControl(HtmlTextWriter writer, ControlAdapter adapter) +99
   System.Web.UI.Control.RenderControl(HtmlTextWriter writer) +25
   System.Web.UI.Page.ProcessRequestMain(Boolean includeStagesBeforeAsyncPoint, Boolean includeStagesAfterAsyncPoint) +1266

Anybody got any ideas?

UPDATE: It had to do with the fact that the field validation caused problems when multiple fields have the same name. 

Thursday, May 28, 2009 1:06:58 AM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

Getting support faster via Twitter

I just read an excellent post by Scott Hanselman, about getting quicker (and better service) via Twitter than via a 1-800 number…

My company does not hunt Twitter yet, maybe we should? Of course my company provides good service to their clients, it’s our specialty! But then again, we don’t do retail :)

Tuesday, May 26, 2009 7:01:36 PM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

Help in Visual Studio

I press F1 in Visual Studio… and guess what…

This took more than 5 minutes…

After that:

And then…

The help item that I did not need…

Is it me, or is this really a productivity killer?

Tuesday, May 26, 2009 6:28:07 PM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

Trying out Visual Studio 2010… no WiX :(

I’ve been playing with Visual Studio 2010 a bit (the Team Suite edition) but I noticed that WiX was not included…

Looking a bit further… http://robmensching.com/blog/posts/2009/4/1/Visual-Studio-will-not-ship-the-WiX-toolset-contributes-only

The WiX toolset is a great compliment to Visual Studio. WiX provides complete access to the Windows Installer technology and integrates well into the build process. Visual Studio will continue to contribute to the project but will not ship the WiX toolset.

Simply put… this is a sad story. WiX is perfectly ready for simple deployments, and does a great job of generating MSI installers. Notice that the MSI itself is installed with Windows Installer and therefore this is not a process that is effected by the Beta. Problems arise when WiX would generate incorrect MSIs, but this can (and of course is) checked before deployment. Once the MSIs are OK, installation is not affected by WiX.

Shortly it comes down to this: WiX V3.0 will be locked down for Visual Studio 2008, which is the IDE we use here to develop production code. WiX V3.5 will be created for Visual Studio 2010, which will be released about the same time Visual Studio 2010 releases. It will still be an add-on, but a good one at that. I hope that they will have WiX production stable by the time Visual Studio 2010 ships, which looks more and more like the end of 2009. Probably we’ll migrate here to 2010 about 1 month after it ships.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009 12:35:27 AM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

It’s almost here

My package has arrived in Santiago, so tomorrow morning will be the paperwork for custom clearance.

This is good news, because this means that I’ll be able to speed up my system. I bought 2 video cards (2x Saphire ATI HD 4870) and a power supply (1KW) online. These cards are significantly faster than the HD 2600 XT and the HD2600 PRO, which are the ones I’m using today. Can’t wait!

-- Jeroen

Monday, May 25, 2009 4:28:21 PM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

Another blog is live

I just finished setting up a blog for my wife’s little club, the “Clan de los monos” (or in English: “The Monkey Clan.”) This name, by the way, has absolutely nothing to do with Rokugan. She has a tendency to call everyone around here a “Mona” or “Mono”, which is Spanish for “Monkey”, so that’s why.

The blog will be a multi-athor blog in Spanish, which you can see at http://www.a-micos.com This blog is served on the same server as the blog of yours truly.

-- Jeroen

Monday, May 25, 2009 4:09:07 PM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

Microsoft Aims Big Guns at Google, Asks Consumers to Rethink Search

Microsoft’s marketing department is a(t)/(dd)-it again… A $80-$100 mln for attacking their major Internet rival, Google. See http://adage.com/digital/article?article_id=136847

Come’on MS, create a better search engine if you want to attack Google, because your products are great, but Live Search sucks big time! Instead of spending all that money on advertising, you should spend it on hiring the best minds for this job and increase the quality of your product. $80-$100 mln buys a lot of talent, workers and knowledge.

-- Jeroen

(Yeah, I know this is my opinion, it’s also my blog so I’m allowed to express it.)

Monday, May 25, 2009 1:13:43 PM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

Long Zeng: Higher resolution Windows 7 logo, presention style guide and retail concept all leaked in one big burst

This is some cool stuff! Microsoft’s marketing department did a great job again:

See the post here

Monday, May 25, 2009 10:40:08 AM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

Passports – It’s that time again

My passport is due to expire in March 2003, but knowing that they are going to change the proceedings for passports in Europe, I’m going to change mine a bit ahead of schedule.

My brother alerted me on this and he told me that they are about to change the rules soon. I asked the consul here and guess what? I have 2 weeks to arrange it here, after that I have to go to Santiago to arrange my passport.

Santiago is about 850 kilometers from here, which means: a 2-day trip at the least.

To my brother: A BIG THANKS for alerting me! I’ll be arranging this A.S.A.P.

Monday, May 25, 2009 10:34:51 AM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  Chilean Adventures

Disabling the secure desktop for User Account Control

I had lately somewhat problems with UAC… not UAC per se, but more the switch to the secure desktop. I’m sitting here behind 3 wide-screen desktops with a resolution of 1920 * 1200 each. My old video cards have some problems with these mega-screens and therefore simply respond a little slower. Aero works OK, but only with all the extra animations disabled. (I’m getting some new cards soon, so that problem is luckily resolved soon enough.)

Once the secure desktop for UAC kicks in, the 3D Accelerator of the card gets temporary disabled. So the system also switches from 3D video mode back to plain old 2D to show the UAC confirmation. On these old cards this transition took more than 45 seconds, which is enough to become a very big annoyance. Since I develop software for a living, I see those UAC prompts at least 20 times a day.

Disabling UAC is not an option, simply because of company policy. As an alternative I choose to go for disabling the secure desktop instead. This is not as secure as the default settings, but it does allow me to quickly use UAC. (Malware could get a handle of the window and press the continue button for me.) Since I am quite sure that no malware is running on my PC I guess that this thread is negligible for the moment.

How to disable the secure desktop without disabling UAC?

• Start –> Run –> gpedit.msc
• Select in the treeview:
• Computer Configuration
• Windows Settings
• Security Settings
• Local Policies
• Security Options
• Select the policy: “User Account Control: Switch to the secure desktop when prompting for elevation”
• Select “Disabled”

Once you have done these steps, you’ll notice that the secure desktop will no longer show up on UAC prompts. Again, do this only when you know what you are doing, because that secure desktop is there for a reason.

-- Jeroen

Monday, May 25, 2009 10:27:50 AM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

Oh dear, another language makes it into .Net

Microsoft will release a new programming language… er, 2 new programming languages with .Net 4.0. One is called “F#”, the other one “M”.

F# is a functional programming language that made it’s appearance around the end of 2004, but became more popular in the last year. Now, F# is so successful it will make it into .Net 4.0 and Visual Studio 2010. 

The other language is ”M” which allows a developer to model the solution in to basic blocks and verify that the code actually conforms to the model.

Both languages will mean a new steep learning curve for all those who are interested, but that’s what developers do: we learn new things as we go along. A developer who doesn’t learn can go and retire in about 5 years from now.

I’ve got the Visual Studio 2010 beta running, and I’ll be playing a bit with all this :)

Monday, May 25, 2009 10:23:00 AM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  Programming | Visual Studio 2010

The blog is now (on Windows) Live

The blog is uploaded to my server in The Netherlands and the domain “www.jeroenlandheer.com” is functional again!

I’ve updated my Windows Live profile so that everyone can see there that my blog is live, and content has changed. Facebook will also be updated. Twitter integration is still on my wish list.

I’ll be posting some articles soon, things about coding, active directory and more. Hopefully that will fill up the void a bit :) Have fun, and see ya all soon!

--- Jeroen.

Monday, May 25, 2009 12:25:56 AM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [0]  

Theme changed

I’ve changed the theme of this blog a little bit more to my liking. Let me know what you think!

Greets,


Jeroen.

Sunday, May 24, 2009 8:22:43 PM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [1]  

Finaly – A new blog up & running

Hi Everyone

It took me a while, but I’ve got a new blog up and running. This blog is powered by “DasBlog”, an open-source blogging engine. The nice part of this is, it actually does not require SQL Server for a change, so that makes it a bit more easy to manage :)

I’ll be posting some new stories soon, I’m afraid I’ll not be migrating my old posts from my old blog.

Greets,

Jeroen

Sunday, May 24, 2009 5:48:55 PM (Pacific SA Standard Time, UTC-04:00)      Comments [2]