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During my shopping frenzy, I got the Shuttle KPC K45 from Canada Computers where they built it as a ready-to-go system. Overall I was pretty happy with it, but it had 2 problems: the CPU and hard drive was slightly overheated at 46°C and 45°C, and it was loud; sounding like a hand held vacuum cleaner.

Intel Stock Fan

I opened the case and found out that Canada Computers only installed cheap Intel CPU fan that wasn’t PWM controllable. This meant the fan would always run at it’s top speed (approx. 2300 rpm) and was the reason for the loud noise. They also didn’t bother to install case fan. It was pretty obvious I needed to install a new cooling system for my Shuttle, otherwise it might die of overheat.

AF9225 PWM

I went with Arctic Cooling, (good reviews, and low cost). More specifically, I used the AF9225 PWM for the case fan, and Alpine 7 GT for the CPU.  The fan for Alpine 7 GT was actually smaller than the Intel stock fan, but it was also the only CPU fan which could fit inside the Shuttle.

Alpine 7 GT

With 2 fans installed the system was only making a humming sound compared to the preivous vaccum cleaner as the the CPU and case fan running at 1350 rpm and 800 rpm respectively.   Even with the slower rpm the temperatures for the CPU and hard drive still dropped to 42°C, and 36°C.  Considering that the cost was only $7.99, and $10.99 for the case and CPU fan, it was a well made investment.

During a week of vacation without traveling, I went on a shopping frenzy, and got myself a lot of new toys.  The vacation is almost over, my addiction has settled, but I don’t even want to think about my credit card bill next month.  Here’s all the toys I got:

Samsung 21.6" LCD Monitor

My first item was a Samsung 21.6″ Widescreen LCD Monitor from Futureshop.  It was glossy black and on sale for $200, and would replace the old Samsung 15″ LCD in my evening room.

Specifications:

• Model: SyncMaster 2253LW
• Resolution: 1680 x 1050
• Brightness: 300 cd/m²
• Contrast Ratio: 8000:1 DC
• Response time: 2ms

Dell Vostra 200 Mini Tower

To go with the monitor I got a new Vostro 200 Mini Tower desktop computer from Dell which I spotted on sale at RedFlagDeals.com.  I plan to use the computer as a media center and hook it up to my TV and home theatre system.  After doing a few customizations to the system the final price tag came to $359.

Specifications:

• Intel Core 2 Duo E4600
• Windows Vista Home Basic
• 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz
• 230GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM)
• Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
• Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 3100
• Dual Drives: 16x DVD-ROM Drive + 16x DVD+/-RW

Logitech 2.0 Stereo Speaker System

The Dell computer didn’t come with any speakers.  I wasn’t looking for something fancy since I already hook up the computer to my home theatre system, so I got the Logitech 2.0 Stereo Speaker System LS11 which was sale for $20 at Futureshop.  As expected the sound quality wasn’t that great but at least the glossy black face matched with my Samsung monitor.

Lacie 1TB External Hard Drive

I’m one of those people that collect a lot of stuff on my computer, and previously I owned 320GB external hard drive.  However, I constantly find myself burning DVDs because my hard drives are always running out of space.  Even though, my new computer had a 230GB hard drive, I knew it would not be enough, so I got myself another external hard drive:  Lacie 1TB USB 2.0 External Hard Drive.  There was no sale, but was $170 at Futureshop, which was a reasonable price compare other external hard drives, and it was glossy black as well.

Specifications:

• Interface: Hi-Speed USB 2.0
• Cache: 8MB or greater
• Transfer rate: Up to 480Mbits/s (60MB/s)

Shuttle KPC K45

Getting one new computer wasn’t satisfying to me.  I always wanted to replace the old IBM NetVista which I use as a server at home.   There is a saying that a server is suppose to be a “black box”, and that is exactly what I got from Canada Computers for $219; the small form factor Shuttle KPC K45.

Specifications:

• Intel Celeron Dual E1200
• 1GB DDR2 667Mhz
• Integrated Intel GMA 950 Graphics
• 80GB 7200rpm SATA

IOGear 2 port KVM

Finally, since I had two computers but only one monitor I needed to get a KVM.  I got the IOGear 2-Port Compact USB VGA KVM with Built-in Cables GCS42UW6, even though reviews say that people had problems switching from PC to PC.  I decided to take a chance and get it anyways because it was the cheapest KVM I could find: $20 at Dell and it was glossy black too :).  I had no major issues with it, however flickering can be seen in the monitor if the screen is displaying black.

Specifications:

• One USB keyboard, USB mouse, and VGA monitor control two computers
• Max resolution: 2048 x 1536, DDC2B

A week ago my wireless network card died on my IBM Thinkpad T42. I visited the IBM shopping website to look for the Intel Pro/Wireless 2200BG and found it cost approximately $80 not including taxes and shipping. Knowing the price tag was totally unreasonable, I looked somewhere else, and I ended up getting it at Dell for half the price!

After the network card arrived, I immediately replaced the card and booted up my laptop. Next thing I know, I see an error message:

1802: Unauthorized network card is plugged in
Power off and remove the miniPCI network card.


Apparently IBM insists on only accepting “IBM brand” wireless cards through a restriction set in the BIOS. However, there is a fix available for the 1802 error: a DOS program no-1802.com, which will flip a single bit in the CMOS, allowing use of any Mini-PC wireless card.

I disabled the wireless card through the BIOS, to avoid having to physically remove it. Then follow the steps to apply the fix:

1. Download no-1802.com
2. Boot the laptop in DOS mode
3. Run no-1802.com

Nothing happened after running the command, I rebooted the laptop and re-enable the wireless card from the BIOS. The laptop was able to boot without any issues, and I’m able to use my new wireless card successfully!

For better conveniences, I downloaded bootable CD image which allowed me to boot in DOS. A floppy disk image is also available to download as well.

For more information refer to ThinkPad 1802 Error Fix or Problem with unauthorized MiniPCI network card.

In Japan, I brought myself a UMPC (Fujitsu FMV-BIBLO LOOX U50X/V). Unfortunately, the whole system was in Japanese, thus I had to convert things back to English by installing an English version of Windows Vista, and installing the English drivers for the Lifebook U1010.

One software package which I had remaining and wanted to install Microsoft Origami Experience Pack, a software package specifically designed for UMPC. After downloading the software from the Microsoft website.

When I attempted to run the installation I got the error “Origami Experience runs only on Ultra-Mobile PCs running with Windows Vista”. This was puzzling to me as my computers satisfied both conditions. Frustrated, I did some research and finally found a workaround.

1. Download the Microsoft Windows Software Development Kit for Windows Vista. Apparently, the Origami installer checks the device screen sizes and disallow itself to be installed on any device with a screen wider than 7 inches. The SDK will be used to remove this restriction from the installer.
2. Run the SDK setup.exe file and under the Installation Options uncheck everything except the “Win32 Development Tools”.
3. After the installation has been completed go to the directory C:\Program Files\Microsoft SDKs\Windows\v6.0\Bin and run the file called orca.exe which is the MSI Editor that we will use to hack the Origami msi file.
4. After the ORCA has been installed, run it from the start menu, and open OrigamiExperiencePack.msi by going to File -> Open from the menu.
5. On the left panel of the application, scroll down and click on InstallExecuteSequence and then on the right panel click on the LaunchConditions item and delete it.
6. On the left panel again, look for the InstallUISequence item and then delete the LaunchConditions item from the right panel again.
7. Finally save your changes, and run the Origami MSI file again. You should be now able to installation the package!

Back in Japan, I brought myself the Fujitsu LOOX U50X/V an UMPC (Ultra Mobile PC). The only problem was, everything was in Japanese, therefore I had to convert everything back in English. I went and got an English version of Windows Vista Home Premium Edition, and I downloaded the English drivers from the Fujitsu website for the Fujitsu Lifebook U1010. After a couple of hours, my new UMPC is now running perfectly in English.