It seems like a reasonably common thing – putting a SIM into a GSM mobile and making a call. The phone is unlocked and all, it’ll just work, right…?

I had clearly forgotten the enjoyment of the “developing world” factor. It of course does not “just work”. I suspect in the next few years of this adventure very little will “just work”.

So – I give my phone to the dealer our company uses and he says he’ll get it sorted and back to me. All this done through an intermediary, as everyone only speaks Russian and I’m still working toward “chut chut Ruski”. (A little bit of Russian).

It comes back working a treat (yes, it is mine), but there is the funny new app installed and it’s running an IOS older than the hills. Err, that won’t do at all, me being a “must update” nutcase. A quick Google and I find the app is used to Jailbreak the phones so the vendors can modify them.

iTunes presumably freaks, and offers to nuke it. I gladly accept, and after a few attempts hold again a blank phone that won’t accept a local SIM or activate.

Hmm

So, I’m in a country where the only way to make a phone call using modern technology is on a hacked phone, whilst the company security policy I signed only two days ago had a nice section about not breaking any copyrights.

Yep – this is going to be an interesting journey.

And again Larry Lessig has a great take on copyright and social responsibility.

http://www.ted.com/talks/lessig_nyed.html

I own a large heavy car trailer, so this was to be light and simple instead. Up to the legal un-braked limit of 750kg. As I am legally limited to this weight, it made sense for the trailer to be as light as possible. This would leave more room for payload. Making it extra heavy duty wouldn’t let me carry any more load. I wasn’t planning on using it off-road.

The flat bed with sides would let me use it in more ways. I also wanted to store it winched up to the roof of my carport, over my cars. This would get it out of the way when not needed and keep it out of the weather.

Shopping around at various trailer manufacturers offered almost nothing in the way of flat trailers with removable sides. Several quotes where well over $2000. I considered making my own using an alloy ute drop-side tray, but the cost was still up there. Several manufacturers actively laughed at me when I said I didn’t want a  “heavy duty” trailer. I laughed at them when they said their trailers weighed 200+kg, leaving less for payload.

Then I came across Easy Trailer. A company that gave me lots of options, made a lightweight trailers, and encouraged their customers to customise their trailers. They order over the web and deliver to you.

They specialise in folding trailers, but for me that wasn’t a critical feature. Mine would be stored on the roof, not folded against a wall.

What I wanted would cost me about $1000 from them, and about $400 in extra bits. With rego that’s under $1500, not bad.

Options

I selected a 8ft x 4ft trailer that could tip as well. I added a spare tyre and tie down loops. I recommend 8 tie down loops.

The floors have an option of steel or ply. Aluminium is not an option. Plywood is very good as it gives a “softer” surface that won’t damage what you are carrying. I had 5mm alloy checkerplate at home, so didn’t need a floor supplied.

The sides are the optional heavy duty sides. The front and rear gates double as loading ramps for anything you want to roll onto the trailer. They can come open or with a steel skin. No aluminium option.
Again, for weight and corrosion reasons, I went with 2mm aluminium from a local supplier.

The jockey wheel they have as an option didn’t do what I wanted, so I grabbed a lightweight folding one locally from Repco.

Electrical

The lights supplied are conventional bulb types – that means unreliable. I threw them in the bin and bought better sealed LED lights from eBay. Lights on trailers are a constant source of problems and I hate chasing dodgy light peroblems on my trailers.

To mount them properly, the LED lights I used do need a small backing plate made up to cover the rear. 1.6mm alloy is fine for this. You’ll also probably have to move the number plate and get a light for it. Whilst most conventional lights have a number plate light built in, this is uncommon for LED lights.

As far as I could find, on this size trailer, clearance lights are not required. Despite this, I fitted a set of low profile LED clearance lights to replace the clearance lights supplied with the trailer.

The wiring supplied uses the trailer as an earth – a likely problem spot. As such I used some of my own wire to run a full earth, ensuring all connections where sealed. I don’t solder vehicle connections anymore, finding a soldered connection less reliable than a well sealed crimped connection. The heat causes more fatigue on the wire and corrosion seems to get into the wire further.

Assembly

The trailer comes in lots of bits, with a lot of bolts. Plan on 4-6 hours to assemble it for a first time user. It’s easy enough, just a little tedious.

My assembly tips would be

a) Watch the direction of the C channels, it matters

b) Don’t fit the brackets for the timber stakes, you’ll just have to remove them later.

c) The tie downs replace bolts, figure out which ones as you assemble to save re-doing it.

d) Consider fitting nutserts / captive nuts to hold the sides on. Much less tedious than nuts and bolts.

Sides, Ramps, Tie Downs

Flatbed stored under carport roof (with safety tethers)

Nicely loaded

Sits nicely

Replaced loose nuts with captive Nutserts
They can be installed with no special tools
if you are careful.

LED lights are a great improvement

Brackets and backing plate for LED lights

LED Clearance lights

Swing up Jockey Wheel from Repco

Lightweight frame

Spacer for sides

Review

The trailers are imported from Taiwan, and in some ways it shows in the quality. They are obviously sold worldwide, as I saw one used on the tyre throwing rig on episode 80 of  mythbusters.

The powdercoat finish is ok, but the corners are sharp and will rust there where the coat is thin. I personally wouldn’t leave it out in the weather for too many years, but I say that about any trailer that isn’t hot gal dipped.

The frame is folded U channel steel, bolted together. This gives some flex that should relieve some point strain issues. Unlike a welded trailer, it is unlikely to crack from fatigue. The nuts are all nylocks, so it shouldn’t rattle apart too easily, although it would pay to check the bolts every so often.

The axle is folded steel, not solid bar. It would not stand overloading well. The drawbar is also C channel, so I wouldn’t overload it.

The compliance plate on mine was for 500KG. I spoke to Easy Trailer and they sent me another one for 707kg, the advertised max weight. The design is clearly for a distributed load, so if you are planning on carting large rocks or engines, be careful where you load them.

The wheels are 12” cross ply tubeless tyres on cheap steel rims. This is good for me as they keep the trailer low to the ground and keep the overall weight down. Cross ply tyres have a much heavier load rating, – these are a small narrow tyre.  The studs on the hubs weren’t drilled particularly square, my only complaint. Some people worry about small tyres at highway speeds. Mini’s work just fin on 10″ wheels at much higher speeds than this trailer will ever see. A wheel bearing’s RPM has nothing on a tailshaft.

I added an extra brace for the spare wheel to stop it twisting when stood on. I also added a swing up jockey wheel and extra tie down points. I tend to modify my stuff though.

The assembled trailer with sides on weighs in at just over 100kg, leaving 600kg of payload.

I have used it to transport my 200kg motorcycle, mates bikes, mulch, cane mulch bales, timber and other random items so far. I would not overload it badly. I would not take it over 1000km of corrugations and expect it to survive.

I like it, I love the lightweight design, I like the suppliers attitude to customising it, and I like the price. It tows well and is very flexible.  It’s unfortunately invisible behind the Landcruiser, I’ll need a reversing camera to see the thing.

I love my Maglites. I know technically there may be better out there, but they have such a nice solid feel to them as you thump them over someone’s ….. err, well, anyway.

Whilst they are good quality, they very old tech, so a swap to LED’s was in order. LED’s offer greater output, 5 – 10x battery life, and are much more shock proof.

The debate as to “which bulb is best” goes on endlessly, so I settled for those that I could source from eBay and post to Australia.

The direct bulb shaped replacements are very rare in high output versions. Most inserts offer an unusual shaped fitting and often a different reflector.Standard shaped bulbs often can’t dissipate enough heat to keep an LED cool. LED’s hate heat for effective output. Some LED’s will start out quite bright when turned on, then dim somewhat as they heat up.

The Maglite brand LED replacement bulbs are nothing special according to most reviews, and I wanted something with some more power.

Manufacturers appear to have come and gone, so don’t be surprised if the bulb you want is no longer around.

One downside with many inserts is you lose the focussing ability. In some cases they are do much brighter it doesn’t matter.

Terralux has a good range of inserts, with a balance of cost, features, output and availability. They are readily available on eBay US.

Candlepower Forums has in depth discussion and reviews, detailed comparisons etc. As the space changes so quickly, many of these are out of date.

Regardless of which bulb you choose, it should by preference be regulated. This keeps a constant brightness and gets best possible use out of the batteries. You don’t need to throw them away until they are fully used up, and lose very little brightness as they discharge.

Alkaline batteries have limits on how much power you can pull out of them. Essentially, if the bulb you choose will flatten the batteries in under 10 hours, the battery won’t give it’s full rated output.

When I started this I was going to do lumen comparisons and shots of beam patters, but honestly, it changes so fast, and others have done this already. I figured I would just put down my experience and you can pick bulbs on your own.

5 lights, all Terralux’d

Bulbs disassembled

Bulbs disassembled

Maglite 4D Cell – TLE-300M-EX
The brightest insert I could buy, with 3 x 2w elements. It’s not focusable, but so bright, it doesn’t matter. 3 brightness levels. The three elements produce a consistent beam pattern. 700 Lumens. About $70

All the other bulbs have been discontinued already.

An eBay search shows most bulbs are around 100 – 300 lumens and about US$20ish.

They are all an upgrade. Every brand and model seems to differ in it’s focussing.

Factors I would consider are

1. Price
2. Lumens Output
3. Focus – ability
4. Regulator

Not pictured is my Maglite solitaire, it was upgraded with one of these.

Yes, that is an active device, there is a regulator in the round disk.

For about $150 all up, it was well worth doing the six lights.

The new i3 is perfect for this. Enough CPU grunt to ditch the 3rd party video card power hog, everything on board. I’m an energy saving nut, so this is the lowest power system I could put together.

A low power media centre PC.

Specification

1. CPU – i3 530 2.93GHz
2. MB – Gigabyte Motherboard GA-H55-USB3
3. RAM – 2 x 2GB
4. HDD – 1.5 TB WD Green
5. DVD – ASUS DVD Multi
6. Case – Zalman HD160 Case
7. PS – Antec Neo Eco 450W 80+
8. Remote – Microsoft IR Remote
9. Logitech DiNovo Mini Bluetooth Keyboard
10. Windows 7

Config

1. Video – HDMI
2. Audio – SPDIF Optical
3. Windows 7

Power = 70W avg

Has some minor Audio / Video glitches, seems to be driver related

CPU Fan noisy – too high an RPM. Coolermaster helped, but speed still too high. Now running CPU fan from Case Fan socket on MB.

Media PC Power Consumption History

1. ASUS MB w/ Moblin 1.6GHz Mobile on desktop CPU, Video Card – 95w
2. ASUS MB w/ AMD 5050e 2.6 GHz CPU, Video Card – 120w
3. Gigabyte + i3 530 and Antec Truepower 2.0 – 85W
4. Gigabyte + i3 530 and Antec Neo Eco – 70W

Dropping from 120w to 70w will save me about $100 / year in electricity costs.

The problems ranged from

1. Failure to ring
2. Low Volume
3. Dropped calls mid call
4. One way voice
5. Poor call quality

After 12 mths of drama’s I found only Panasonic DECT handsets where reliable with the VOIP solutions.
I also found that running a “single box” solution is less hassles than “multiple box” solutions.
DECT has a much greater cordless range than most other handsets.

Here are the combinations I tried and the issues associated.

Routers

Netgear WNDR5500 + Netgear DM111p + Open Networks 812L VOIP

1. Rubbish combination, awful reliability, even after warranty replacement.
2. VERY unreliable, mostly due to router
3. Telstra DECT and Uniden WDECT = heaps of problems as well
4. My WNDR3300 review here

Netgear DG834G v3 + Open Networks 812L VOIP

1. Very reliable, very stable, but limited features
2. Reliable with fixed handset
3. Unreliable VOIP with Telstra DECT and Uniden WDECT Handsets

Billion 7404VNPX

1. Single box resolves interop issues on volume and ringing
2. Took a few firmware versions to improve reliability
3. Still needs rebooting for DHCP reliability
4. Fast
5. First unit was buggy, replaced under warranty
6. Reliable calls only with Panasonic handsets
7. Billion recommends only using fixed handsets, not cordless (from their support line and whirlpool)

Cordless Phone Handsets

I prefer to use 1.8GHz DECT handsets where possible, they have MUCH (2x-10x)greater range than 802.11, and don’t use the same 2.4GHz wireless spectrum. 5.8GHz has worse range than 2.4Ghz or 1.8Ghz. Higher frequency = less range.

There seems to be some issues with call stability and cordless handsets. I can only guess from all my testing that it relates to off-hook detection. I played with every setting under the sun, and nothing helped. 12mths of stuffing round to find that Panasonic handsets work well.

1. Telstra Touchfone T200
   Fixed handset – works well in all circumstances, if the router allows the call in.

   

2. Telstra DECT Cordless – Poor quality and hang up problems, poor call quality and cheap handsets.
3. Uniden WDECT – LOTS of problems with VOIP, don’t bother. AWFUL.
   The problems are twofold. Radio interference is a nightmare, even when seperated by 10+M
   The on/off hook sensing of the router and the base station appear incompatible, hanging up on calls all the time.
   
   
4. Panasonic DECT – Worked well
   
   
5. Panasonic DECT – Works VERY well
   

Cheapest LED Bulb

Here’s a great hack. KMart is selling these torches for about $3.50 with batteries. The LED in this is fitted to a normal sized bulb fitting, meaning it can be taken out and put directly into any 2 Cell torch, AA, C or D.

http://www.dorcy.com/products.aspx?p=412503

It’s a very bright 10mm LED in a normal bulb fitting. No regulator circuitry.

This has to be the cheapest source of LED drop in bulbs for torches I have found. Or you could just use the torch.

The beam is much brighter than a normal 2 cell torch. Runtime would be significant, although I haven’t done a full runtime test. You’ll use far less batteries, better for the environment.

Beam pattern is an average spread.

My cruiser needed some customisation done to clear the large aftermarket fuel tank and join to the AXT Turbo on the motor.

The installation didn’t go exactly to plan however.

1. 4hr estimated (took 8hrs)
2. Charged $1100 then came back for anther $100 (accounting error)
3. Wrong Muffler installed (louvered instead of perforated) – I only asked 3 times
4. Resonator fitted to vehicle – not wanted (asked not to) – then removed.
5. Wrong tailpipe exit – too low and chrome, not high and no tip – only asked twice
6. Touched in 3 places – chassis / transfer / fuel tank
7. Too close (10mm) to floor for no reason, just past the point where the OEM body heatshield stopped.
8. Muffler now lowest point on car (heaps of room above it)
9. Squashed pipe to clear transfer case, unnecessary if pipe 20mm lower.

After approaching them with the issues, and wasting another full day, they have resolved the clearance problems. The clearance issues are all to do with the template they used, not the customisations for turbo & fuel tank. I was not happy with the routing and clearances of the template system as per the pics below.

Comments:

1. Cost $1200
2. 3″ system all the way
3. Sounds good (quieter than the 1/2 worn MTZ’s)
4. Sounds good on the road (louder than factory, can hear turbo)
   I probably should have put the resonator in – Idle’s like a truck – too loud.
5. Faster turbo response (previous system was 2.5″ mandrel)
6. Lower EGT’s by 30-40C
7. Good quality bending / welding / prep / attention to most detail
8. Fully flanged, 5 sections – easy to take pieces in / out
9. Flanges mean lots of welds / joins despite the in house mandrel bending.
10. Of the 5 sections, 4 had to be customised for several reasons.

For std cars – they may do well. For custom systems – I wouldn’t buy one again.

Customised High Clearance Outlet (made to my spec)

Muffler Height when installed	Muffler height when customised

10mm clearance to floor	Much better after customised
5mm clearance to transfer case	Much better after customised

Update (05/10)
The system is quieter now than when installed. Looks like the muffler has sooted up a bit making the idle a lot more acceptable. I remember this with my last glass packed straight through muffler. Might still be too loud for some, but I think it’s fine now.

I frequently see wiring diagrams for Driving Lights that just don’t work in many cars.

Toyota nearly always and Nissan often use a what is known as “switched earth” wiring for their headlights. They do this so that each headlight can have it’s own 12v supply and fuse, meaning in the event of a problem, you only lose one light.

In a switched earth headlight, assuming you are using a H4 bulb with 3 pins (very common) the power is switched twice. +12V is fed through a relay or switch to the common pin, and then either one of the other pins (one for High, one for Low) is alternately connected to ground through another relay or switch. If you go looking for +12V to power your driving lights or their relay in this system, you wont find it easily.

A far easier method is to always wire the trigger for your relay ACROSS the high beam bulb circuit, instead of from +12v to ground. This means that regardless of the vehicle wiring, positive or negative switched, the driving light wiring is the same.

There are several other benefits to wiring in this manner.

a) It works with either positive of negative switched headlights

b) It avoids problems with the relay not dropping out. The high beam indicator inside the car can trickle enough power through to not let the driving lights drop out. It takes about 8-9V to trigger a 12V relay, but only about 4V to hold it in.

c) It avoids problems with the relay not dropping out due to a poor contact on the headlight connection. This common fault can setup a circuit through the other filaments and cause enough voltage to be present on the high beam filament to hold the relay open. This voltage is far less across the filament than in relation to ground.

So how do you wire it?

It’s easy really. I have gone with text, as many people have trouble with electrical diagrams.

Power CCT (Heavy wire)
Battery – Fuse – Relay (Pin 87) – Relay (Pin 30) – Driving Lights – Chassis (Ground)

Switch CCT (Light wire)
Headlight Common Pin – Switch – Relay (Pin 85) – Relay (Pin 86) – Headlight High Beam Pin

Simply tap into the headlight wires / pins with vampire taps.

Presto – I guarantee it will work.

If you don’t have H4 bulbs, even easier, simply go straight across your high beam bulb wires for the trigger.

Codes

• 11=ABS Solenoid Relay Open or Short Circuit
• 31=Right Front Wheel Speed Sensor Signal Malfunction
• 32=Left Front Wheel Speed Sensor Signal Malfunction
• 41=Low Battery Voltage or Open IG1 Circuit
• 49=Brake-light Switch Open Circuit
• 56=Accumulator Low Pressure Malfunction

QoS is somewhat of a confusing area. The most common method of marking packets at Layer 3 (IP) is with a DSCP tag. This method replaces the earlier Type Of Service (TOS) tag, and uses the same space in the IP header.

Whilst DSCP has a far greater range of values than TOS, there are some that are commonly used in most implementations. DSCP values also overlap with TOS values.  There is a table showing the relationship between DSCP and TOS here. This is all likely to lead to confusion in implementation.  

Whenever talking about this stuff, there is one very common area of confusion. Numbers. That is, whenever a number is given, is it in Decimal, Hex, or a “type” number. It can also be given as a full byte (non-offset) value – -effecting it further. The DSCP table linked above helps show the different ways a single value can be represented.

eg. 34 = 0×22 = AF41

Be VERY sure you know what they are using in any document you read. The vendors switch between the values in their own documents with remarable dexterity and no explanation.

So – back to Microsoft’s weirdness.

VOIP traffic is generally tagged as “EF” (Express Forward), one of the highest priority values. Microsoft chooses however to use DSCP marking of “CS5”. That would make sense if they where tagging using TOS, as that matches the common practice for TOS values. BUT, their own documents state they are using DiffServ which is based on DSCP markings. DSCP recommends EF for voice, not CS5.

In short, it looks like they have mixed up the older TOS standard with the newer Diffserv standard, and gotten confused along the way. This causes problems with the mappings not classifying correctly if you are using vendor managed L2 prioritisation such as Telstra’s IPWAN DCOS services on their MPLS networks.

This behaviour is consistent across:

LCS 2005
OCS 2008 R2
Server 2003
XP
Vista
W7

The only take away I can get is that Microsoft does not recommend the use of QoS in general, and offers that OCS using RTAudio codecs does not require or recommend the use of QoS due to the protocols in use. I have found however that on services that suffer from congestion, it helps improve the quality of the service.

LCS / XP – Defaults
Video – DSCP 0×18 – 011000 (24) – CS3
Voice – DSCP 0×28 – 101000 (40) – CS5

XP – “Conforming Packets”

Reference

DSCP and Live Mtg
http://nwsmith.blogspot.com/2009/08/dscp-qos-microsoft-office-live-meeting.html

MS QOE Doc
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?familyid=05625af1-3444-4e67-9557-3fd5af9ae8d1&displaylang=en

Summary

Despite very similar specs, these are two very different bikes.

Versys is more “fun” to ride round town, but not so comfortable on longer rides in stock form.

VStrom is better to customise and tour on. it has ABS.

The Versys had Michelin Pilot Road 2 tyres – wonderfully sticky. Despite having very similar dyno charts, the Versys definitely feels more torquey and pulls much more when over 160km/hr. The Versys suspension is far to harsh on less than perfect roads, even after tuning it as far as I could. I find this a major failing on a bike sold for it’s long travel suspension.

The VStrom tyre choice on road is not as sticky, but has a better range of off-road tyres.
The VStrom with Racetech fork valves and springs is a much better beast than stock, with steering sharpening up, and brake dive disappearing. Before it was a bit soft and somewhat harsh.

Drag racing them side by side shows the acceleration from 1st to 6th is basically exactly the same. Seat of the pants though feels like the Versys is MUCH snappier. Ass Dyno wrong again.

Braking is interesting. The ABS gives the VStrom an unfair advantage. I have tested the ABS in both wet and dry conditions finding it reliable in both. It tested at 1.05g using Dynolicious on the iPhone, vs only 0.82g for the Versys.

I am replacing my Versys with a VStrom, as I prefer the range of parts available, ABS and the different feel especially on the highway. The Versys is more fun to ride round town, if you can ignore the issues.

I was never happy with the kitchen bench though – it wasn’t bright enough. I recently bought a light meter from eBay and confirmed my suspicions. 60 Lumens at the bench top whereas kitchens are recommended to be around 150 lumens.

Surprisingly under my range-hood with it’s pair of (yuck) 20w G4 halogens scored 140 lumens.

I tried replacement bulbs in the downlights to get additional brightness with no success. The 18W Philips reflector is larger and does just fit. It’s only available in Warm White which made it seem no brighter and not match the rest of the house. I tried a larger 23W Par 38 spotlight, but it doesn’t fit into the housing, and is too large and heavy.

I thought I might need more spotlights on the wall until I made a new discovery.

     +   

http://www.pierlite.com.au/au/3091/dot-110 is a silvered reflective downlight housing that takes a normal ES bulb. By putting the silvered reflector in the housing, rather than the bulb, means you can use a normal bulb without losing all the light.

It comes with a Philips 20W ES Warm White bulb. I tried both a Philips 23W Daylight and 23W Warm White, much preferring the Warm White.

I’m impressed – this thing is BRIGHT. You do not want to look at it running. The benchtop now measures 160 lumens, up from 60. Great for a kitchen

23W is 3W above the rating of the fitting, but being CFL – I’m confident it won’t bother it. The 20W is also available in Dimmable, for those that want to replace 50W halogen downlights, although an electrician will be required, and the fitting is somewhat larger.

Another excuse not to go CFL’s down.

Their wear rate has been a little high so far, and they are vague on the bitumen, tracking and wandering a bit. It is improving as they wear down, but s straight line tyre they are not.

Here is a pic of them working over nasty stuff, mostly at 17PSI with a 100 Series Landcruiser and gear on top.

http://www.skepticalscience.com/

http://ecogeek.org/

Videos

Good Science

Help making choices

TED – Al Gore

Good Reading

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/dec/22/copenhagen-climate-change-mark-lynas

Tools

iPhone App – http://itunes.com/apps/skepticalscience

http://www.skepticalscience.com/argument.php

Groups

www.ata.org.au

Tearing down the walls that limit business

A series of articles on designing Open Networks – Jericho Forum

http://www.blackhat.com/presentations/bh-usa-04/bh-us-04-simmonds.pdf

http://www.opengroup.org/jericho/

TechEd Australia ‘08 Locknote

This is the future of IT over the next 10 years as predicted by Microsoft’s chief navel gazer. I gotta say, I think he’s right.

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-gb/dd819085.aspx
You want the session by Miha Kralj
How IT will change over the next 10 years and why you should care

http://www.craigbailey.net/live/post/2008/09/07/TECHED-Lock-note-ndash3b-Predicting-the-next-10-years-in-IT.aspx

http://www.crn.com.au/News/84240,opinion-navel-gazing.aspx

Cheaper Servers

Why Commodity Data Centres are cheaper than your server room, directly from the people building them.

http://loosebolts.wordpress.com

http://loosebolts.wordpress.com/2008/12/02/our-vision-for-generation-4-modular-data-centers-one-way-of-getting-it-just-right/

Article
http://unthrottled.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!3B07BABB3D3318AA!638.entry?wa=wsignin1.0&sa=860819746

Rebuttal
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9080738&pageNumber=1

Response to Rebuttal
http://loosebolts.wordpress.com/2008/10/20/out-of-the-box-paradox-manifested-aka-chicago-area-data-center-begins-its-journey/

StorageMojo’s Take

http://storagemojo.com/2009/02/18/clouds-over-berkeley-the-radlab-reviews-cloud-computing-pt-1/ (read the overview and original article)

http://storagemojo.com/2009/02/21/clouds-over-berkeley-the-radlab-reviews-cloud-computing-pt-2/ (read the overview and original article)

http://storagemojo.com/2009/03/04/the-amazon-keynote-at-fast-09/

http://storagemojo.com/2009/03/04/belts-suspenders-and-scale/

These new thingies work on a very cool principal of thermodynamics. Normally when you pump heat into a material it’s temperature increases. If however that material is at a point where it’s phase changes (solid – liquid or liquid – gas), then until the phase change is complete, all the energy you put in will not increase the temperature of the material. This is known as the “Enthalpy of Fusion” and the “Enthalpy of Vaporization”.

The really nifty thing is that with the right material, it can take huge amounts of energy to change it’s state compared to simply changing it’s temperature.

Quoting from Wikipedia

The high heat storage capacity in the phase change from solid to liquid, and the advantageous phase change temperature of 32 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit) makes this material especially appropriate for storing low grade solar heat for later release in space heating applications. In some applications the material is incorporated into thermal tiles that are placed in an attic space while in other applications the salt is incorporated into cells surrounded by solar–heated water. The phase change allows a substantial reduction in the mass of the material required for effective heat storage (83 calories per gram stored across the phase change, versus one calorie per gram per degree Celsius using only water), with the further advantage of a consistency of temperature as long as sufficient material in the appropriate phase is available.

As such – it literally soaks up the heat without getting significantly warmer itself. There is a caveat though – once it’s adsorbed all the heat it can – it will start getting hotter along with the laptop. For this reason you can only use it for a certain number of hours before letting it cool down and “reset”. The manufacturer quotes 8 hours, however this would vary significantly depending on the power of your laptop, and the ambient temperature. Mine works fine for 3-4 hours. As my laptop only gets hot on one side, I can just turn it around to get twice as much use out of it.

They also have a dimpled surface to allow some air to the laptop, and mesh underneath to help keep some distance. They roll up, but aren’t super light. I wouldn’t bother travelling with mine as I don’t tend to sit with my laptop on my lap very often when away. I could see it being useful watching movies in bed where the sheets stop the ventilation.

The only issue I see is they do limit airflow somewhat, possibly making the laptop run hotter.

You can buy them online at the link below.

http://www.crazysales.com.au/revolutionary-laptop-notebook-fan-less-thermal-cooling-mat-black_p7279.html

Recommended – 4/5 as I love thermodynamics and this is cool!

I buy my Greenpower from Origin Energy as 100% Wind in Queensland Australia. I do this so that the electricity I use comes from a renewable carbon neutral source. The thought that occurs to me is to ask where this “green” power is sourced from and  how that relates to the photovoltaic (PV) panels on my roof.

The answer it turns out is a little confusing, but consistent.

Power producers generate power and sell that power to the grid retailers at electricity market prices. It doesn’t matter about the source, the market price is the same. If you have a home PV system, you are just a power producer, and get to sell into the grid at some agreed rate.

Registered GreenPower producers also get to sell REC’s into the REC market. These REC’s represent every MW-Hr of power they sell. When you pay extra for Greenpower, you are buying these RECS. This link means that for every KW-Hr you buy, a KW-Hr of GreenPower is generated by a registered generator. The requirements for registered generators are fairly strict to ensure they are carbon neutral sources.

Under the Greenpower Program Rules REC’s can be obtained from a number of sources. These are large registered generators, and also from pooled REC’s from home PV systems that are grid connected. If you sell (wreck) your REC’s, then they may be included in the Greenpower scheme.

Home PV systems are treated a little differently to large scale generators, where the REC’s are issued for the "deemed" life of the system (15 year deeming period), rather than created yearly. This means that the Greenpower you are buying now may not be generated yet – obviously not ideal, but these systems make up less than 5% of the total REC’s sourced, so it’s not a critical issue.

Solar Hot Water system REC’s are not eligible to be used in the Greenpower scheme, so you are actually paying for real power produced, not power saved.

The electricity your home PV system exports out to the grid is just electricity. It’s not classed as Greenpower, despite the premium you are paid for it. (The premium is paid by Energex, with Origin only paying $0.07 of the $0.50 paid). The Greenpower relates to any REC’s you sell for the deemed life of the system, not to the actual amount of power going out the meter in that period.

If you sell your REC’s, this means that you have sold all the carbon savings from your system to someone else. Any power you use from the system on your roof is no longer “green” (yes – that’s a little confusing). When you pay for Greenpower, you are buying some of the REC’s back. If anything, this is where the “hole” in the scheme lies. When you buy Greenpower (REC’s) from most generators, every one of the units is exported to the grid. If the REC’s you are buying are sourced from home PV systems, then that power may never actually be exported onto the grid. I think it’s a flaw, but it’s a small enough percentage to not bother me too much.

How all this fits into the MRET (Mandatory Renewable Energy Target) and the Australian Governments new Solar Credits Scheme is yet to be legislated.

Simple hey, clear as mud. No wonder people get confused with this stuff. It is a consistent system though, and does ensure that when I leave the lights on, it’s coming from a carbon neutral source and audited to prove it.

What I pay for Electricity with Origin

What Origin pays me for Electricity

I was given some more info by the guys at www.localpower.net.au about why Energex who runs the grid benefits from the distributed power solution.

Power Costs
43% energy (generation) cost
47% network (grid) cost
10% retail cost

http://www.qca.org.au/files/ER-NEP910-QCA-DraftDecBRCI-Report-1208.PDF

It’s fairly common knowledge that the OEM Toyota temperature gauge has a large “dead spot” in the centre of it’s range. This spot is deliberately engineered to reduce the apparent fluctuations and make the car appear to run at a constant temperature unless there is a significant problem. This works fine for most, but those of us that like to know what’s going on sooner rather than later, demand a little more detail. Many people fit an aftermarket gauge somewhere in the car, I figure, if the factory gauge is already there and can be made accurate, use it.

One of the clever guys over at ih8mud figured out the circuit and how to modify it in his 80 series. He deserves full credit for the original article and all the work behind it. There is also a version for the Toyota Surf and Hilux. 

The gauge circuit in my ‘98 HZJ105R was a little different to the earlier 80 Series, so I had to re-do the calibration to suit.
I also had the opportunity to see the inside of a post ‘04 update dash, and unfortunately, it’s quite different. Someone will need to do their own testing and research on that one.

I bench tested various setups and found the following as a simple description.

     
Bench testing w/ Digital Thermometer

Heating the sender unit in vegetable oil

Mmm, wiring.

Resistors and Diode

We do not change the 15 Ohm resistor.

There are 2 components we replace, a resistor and a diode. The diode is what makes the gauge “non-linear”. Rather than explaining what they do in a wheatstone bridge, I’ll explain their effect on the gauge.

The gauge with no input actually sits in the middle of the scale. The 75 Ohm resistor we change “sets” what temperature the middle of the scale is to be. A lower value resistor sets it higher, a higher value resistor sets the scale lower. I found the following:

• 100 Ohms = 90c
• 120Ohms = 85c
• 82 Ohms = 95c

Gauge w/ no input – centres on scale.

The small glass diode gives a non-linear (dead spot) in the needle’s range. We replace this diode with a resistor to make the gauge react “normally”. The value of this resistor determines the “range” of the gauge. A lower value resistor gives large movement for small temp changes, a high value resistor gives less movement. Using no resistor with a 90C centre means the gauge hits the red at 94.5C – a little too low.

No Damping Resistor – large deflection

I found a value of 82 Ohms gives a good range with 115C touching the Red, 125C middle of the red and 65C touching the Cold. Properly mixed coolant boils at approximately 125C – 128C at 14PSI, and I’m not interested in below 65C, as the engine is not yet at operating temp.

This combination gives me the best combination of “”operating near the middle” and “enough movement to see what’s happening”. With the above detail you can adjust your own numbers if you wish.

The 100 Ohm resistor gets hotter as engine temps increase and will possibly exceed 1 watt. I recommend a 2 watt resistor. 5 Watt is very large and may not fit or be too heavy. The temp sender resistance decreases with heat, increasing current through the resistor.
The 82 Ohm resistor dissipates less than 1/4 watt, but I used a 1/2 watt to be safe.

	Original	Modified
130
120
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90
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70
60
50

You will need the following

• OEM ‘98-‘04 Landcruiser Dash
• 2 watt, 100 Ohm resistor
• 1/2 watt, 82 Ohm resistor. 

Remove the gauge pod from car and disassemble. Be careful removing it from the car – there are 4 screws and 2 bolts. The bolts are captive and hold the plug connections, but need to be unwound a lot to release the plugs.
Remove the temperature / oil pressure gauge assembly.
Remove the 75 Ohm resistor and Diode.
Replace the 75 Ohm resistor with a 100Ohm and the Diode with a 82 Ohm.

Detailed pics below (5C steps)

	Original	Modified
130
125
120
115
110
105
100
95
90
85
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55
50

(4 Runner or Tacoma in the USA)

The stock Toyota cooling system can sometimes be somewhat marginal. The suspicion for this falls on every component and modification in the system.

• Radiator (Size / Efficiency)
• Thermostat (Brand / Effectiveness)
• Water Pump (Flow, Cavitation)
• Radiator Cap (Quality, Pressure, Leaks, Recovery)
• Coolant (Freezing / Boiling points, Specific heat, Anti-corrosion)
• Hoses (Restriction)
• Engine Type (Diesel / Turbo / Petrol)
• Engine Load / Modifications (Diving style, load on vehicle, Mods)
• Gearbox (Auto Cooling, Slipping)
• Airflow (Obstructions / Restrictions In / Out, Forced / Natural)
• Ambient Operating Environment (Temp, Altitude, Terrain)
• Shrouds (Closeness to Fan, Leaks, gaps between radiators)
• Fan (Size / Pitch / Airflow)
• Fan Clutch (Lockup Temp / Stages / % Slip)
• Temperature Gauge (Damping / Accuracy)
• Bullbars / Winches / Lights / Antenna’s / Plates / Screens

Ask anyone and they’ll start listing random items from the list above that they have seen before or are suspicious of. It would appear that the issue is simply that the system is marginal in certain areas, and several small changes may be enough to tip it over the limit.

The end goal of a cooling system is to transfer heat to the surrounding air. All the other components are only there to allow this transfer to occur in some improved fashion. There are plenty of air cooled motors in existence that do not have these complexities, and they too may be subject to overheating.

It would appear that Mr Toyota VERY closely engineers his vehicles, with many parts sharing multiple purposes, and many many tradeoffs being made. This is good engineering, but it means that small changes may have many unintended impacts. Despite this, it appears the Landcruiser and Hilux are intended to be frequently modified. There are many attachment points, and the OEM design has many dealer supported aftermarket options that are not from the Toyota factory.

If all the basic checks have been performed on the cooling system – no leaks, nothing obviously blocked, quick warm up, infrequent overheating except under specific circumstances, then it is a fair bet that the overall system is simply marginal. In this case, a dramatic increase in specific areas may yield a significant benefit.

In my case the overheating was limited to situations with a pre-turbo EGT in excess of 550C. This equated to High Load or High Speed driving. Despite expectations, off-road steep terrain (sand excluded) does not yield high EGT’s. Mountain Ranges, Large Trailers, Roof Racks, High Speed or Deep Sand all would yield high EGT’s and therefore problems.

I have measured many temperature points around the engine bay, and spent some time listening to the engagement and disengagement of the fan. All this yielded much confusion rather than understanding.

I replaced most components, some twice. It was during this that I had time to closely examine and understand the Toyota Viscous Fan Clutch. Possibly more than any other component, this is the key item in the cooling system. It is this that creates the airflow, not vehicle forward speed. Without airflow, the radiator is not effective. My experience was very similar  in a Toyota Surf I had owned previously. It is common knowledge that additional Silicon Fluid will often improve these units. What is not common knowledge is:

• Brand new OEM clutches appear to be under-filled
• They can be adjusted where they engage
• There are 4 separate engagement stages
• Testing cannot be done one the bench. The device requires centrifugal force to operate.

Credit goes to Frank for his guide on how to split and refill the fan clutch. I am just explaining the operation in further detail.

It must be remembered that these types of fluid couplings always have some slip. They may slip by 98% (free spin) or 5% (coupled), but there is always slip. It is difficult to test the slip in any simple manner, and impossible to bench test. Therefore a fan that appears to be engaging and disengaging successfully, may in fact be slipping at 50%, significantly reducing maximum airflow. Worse, the slip will be only happen at high RPM and maximum load.

The key points are that there are 4 operating stages, and that there is not enough fluid to couple the system adequately.

This is why so many people report success with simply adding more fluid. Adding fluid means that when the system is operating with the valve fully open, the rings are full of silicon fluid, and not partly full. The only drive is through the fluid, so insufficient fluid will reduce maximum coupling ability. There was clearly not enough fluid in the unit to fill all the rings to the depth of the final valve.

The factory engagement points are also quite high. This reduces noise and fuel consumption, but also means maximum engagement doesn’t occur until the air temp is around 95C. Engine coolant temperature will always be higher than air temperature.

This was all tested with a Digital Thermometer.

Temperature Set Points (all at 1/2 open)

Pictures of operation:

Fan Clutch
The 2 halves opened
The “drive disc” spins freely in the housing except for the silicon fluid.
The “drive disc” and the “front half” share these closely spaced rings. It is these rings, and the silicon fluid in the gaps between them that couple the system together. The inner ring is taller than the others. The oil is slowly thrown to the outside of the system by centrifugal force.
The fluid is rated at 10000 Cst – Centistokes – a measure of viscosity
The valve that controls where the fluid flows. It operates over 4 stages: 0) Closed A) Some oil to some rings B) Some oil to all rings C) Maximum oil to all of rings This is why it seems to be more than engaged / disengaged.
The temperature sensing Bi-Metal spring on the front face that controls the valve.
The reservoir behind the valve disc in the front half where the fluid is stored. When operating it is held here by centrifugal force, and pumped here by the slipping “drive disc”
The “vanes” on the edge of the drive disc in the rear half that pump the fluid forward to the outer channel for return to the reservoir. Some slip is required to allow the pumping to occur. The slots in the back of the disc pump the fluid from behind the disc to the edges, and then to the channel at the front. The rear of the disc is not used for coupling.
The wedge shaped guides and small holes in the front half that collect the fluid from the outer channel and push it back into the reservoir.
Adding Fluid
Adjust the valve set point by loosening the 2 screws and rotating the disc. The outer valve should be 1/2 open at about 45C for Australia. (US quotes 35C). Air temp will always be less than engine water temp.
Getting the fluid level right is a little difficult and involves some guesswork. The minimum amount required is enough to fill the entire outer rim past the depth of the fins in both halves, this fully couples the unit. The maximum amount is when the reservoir in the front is full and overflows through the central hole. Not so simple though, as full is controlled by centrifugal force, so when operating it fills the “outside” of the reservoir, not the bottom. Luckily there is a fair tolerance between the two. Overfull will couple the fan all the time. Mine took 1.5 tubes of fluid in addition to the factory fill to stay a few mm below the level of the valve disc.

http://www.msf-usa.org/imsc/proceedings/a-Green-ComparisonofStoppingDistance.pdf

Most interesting. My next bike will have ABS methinks. I have no delusions about how good my riding is. If I can concentrate 5% more on traffic cause I don’t have to worry about braking, that’s a good thing.

My last significant off happened emergency braking into a roundabout. I thought it was clear, then a car with right of way came out from behind a blind fence. It was far too late to wash off that much speed, I swore I was going to have him hit me. As I braked and turned, the front wheel crossed the usual oily patch where cars drop oil on the centre of the wheel track. Presto – down she went, and I know how to cadence brake. I’m not good enough however to brake 100%, unlock for 0.5m and get fully back on again when trying 100% to avoid a car. ABS would have been fast enough. It wouldn’t have avoided the situation, but it may have been enough to keep the bike upright.

BUT – interestingly enough, every single helmet you could buy had passed the crash test standard, so the better / worse was opinion, nothing more. In Australia this is an Australian Standard (similar to the US DOT standard, and many others). Really, it’s a “minimum”, everything on the market is better than the standard, it’s just a question of how much.

There was a defacto “better” standard – Snell. This was only issued to the “best” helmets, so if you cared, you bought a helmet that also had Snell certification.

Well now there is something better. The UK govt has setup a research and testing laboratory to test and rate motorcycle helmets like they crash test cars – with a star rating. You’ll find it at http://sharp.direct.gov.uk/ 

The testing is based on the new EU standard ECE 22.05 and discussed on webbikeworld.

I just bought a new Shark RSR2 to replace my aging Arai Qantum(1996). The new Shark is comfortable, quieter than the Arai on my head, and has a 5 star rating.

I prefer the new EU standard over Snell etc after reading this debate on MotorCyclistOnline and the testing they did. The base concept is that the Snell standard is very tough, and a tough helmet is not as soft and squishy. Soft and squishy is more likely to be useful to you in the accidents you are most likely to die from. The more serious accident that the Snell rated helmet is designed to protect your head for, will leave you dead from other injuries and with brain damage anyway.

Of course nothing will protect you from those big ones that just leave you dead.

One of the sites I work on had installed an Intergen Fire Suppression system. The basic idea is that in the event of a fire, enough oxygen is displaced from the room, that a fire cannot be sustained, but humans will remain conscious.

When I looked at the system I was mighty confused. Four high pressure cylinders indicate a high pressure non-liquefied gas. Makes sense when you look at the mix – Nitrogen, Argon, CO2 – not likely to liquefy under pressure at room temperature. A large diameter medium pressure line led to the room with no valves on it. This line was open at the room end with a simple nozzle, no valves along the way.

There was a valve on each cylinder, but no controls to any but the first one.

The first cylinder below has a both an electrical and manual release attached – but what about the other three bottles?

The control valve on each slave cylinder is the interesting bit. When pressure is sensed in the line, it opens the bottle, and remains open until the bottle is empty. Basically it’s a pneumatically operated slave. The pressure in the line is created by the first bottle’s discharge, triggered electrically, and the restriction of the line and nozzles.

And yes, they installed vents in the room to let out the extra air. When you add another 50% of gas to a room, the displaced gas has to go somewhere, or develop an unlikely amount of pressure. They would not be the first to forget the vent.

I have toyed with various options, but the most obvious was using the other machine that was on 24/7 – the Vista Media Centre.

I found some info on running Windows Home Server as a virtual guest, but nothing on the impacts to the Vista Media Centre host. My host was not particularly new, a 3yo PC with the following specs:

• MB – Asus N4L-VM-DH
• CPU – Core 2 Duo T2400 1.8Ghz
• RAM – 2GB Kingston
• HDD 7200RPM 500GB WD
• Silent Heat Pipe Video Card
• Antec Truepower2 Power Supply (pre 80+ standards)
• 100MBit Ethernet to router

I figured it would be a stretch for this machine to run a VM as well, but it was worth the try. It is a fairly power efficient machine, the Core 2 Duo being a laptop CPU and noted for it’s efficiency. The current video card pumps out heat 24/7 and could do with improvement, I’m waiting for the new Intel Nehalem CPU range to arrive and come down in price, by which stage on board video should be suitable – more power savings.

I grabbed a couple of 1TB WD Green drive, as my experience with them inside WD MyBooks showed them to be very quiet and efficient.

I used VMWare Workstation 6.5 as I had it, but you could use VMWare Server – it’s free. You could also use Windows Virtual Server, but I felt (possibly incorrectly)  VMWare may have slightly lower overhead and better direct hardware and USB support. Virtual PC / Server have no USB support last I checked.

The Asus MB has 3 x SATA ports, and a PATA port. Two of the SATA ports were already in use with the DVDROM and host HDD, so I ran the first HDD on the spare SATA socket expecting great results. It was awful, woefully slow, rendering the machine unable to even record TV shows. Turns out he extra SATA slot is for RAID, and due to firmware / drivers, IRQ’s went through the roof consuming 60% CPU time. A two channel PCI SATA card fixed this problem.

With that nailed down, I installed Windows Home Server w/ PP1 onto an 80GB Virtual Disk on the 1TB HDD. The host OS and TV recording was all onto the original 500GB HDD.

Virtual machine config was easy. , Setup a Virtual Machine as Server 2003 w/ 512MB RAM, an 80 GB IDE Virtual HDD and mount the Home Server CD ISO. Sound and other unnecessary things were removed.  I elected not to fully allocate the 80GB HDD, although this may impact my performance later.

Home server will install on the above with no major configuration steps. All drivers are fine. Once the install is finished, install the VMWare tools, run Windows Update, and activate your Home Server. There are instructions here – but they use a virtual SCSI HDD, greatly complicating the install for no benefit I can discern. I would use a virtual IDE.

Once mine was installed I added the extra disks. Initially I tried the disks as Direct Physical access. They were setup with a partition, but no drive letter, as per the vmware help. The VM would not even boot and there was a disk access conflict. Nothing I did could resolve this problem, so I had to settle for a couple of 900GB virtual disks (not pre-allocated) on the 2 x 1TB HDD’s (930GB formatted capacity NTFS). I tried VMWare Server 2.0, but it doesn’t support direct physical disks anymore, and also broke my Remote Desktop to the host. VMWare Server 1.08 wasn’t compatible with my VM, so I gave up.

The benefit to using Physical Disks is threefold:

• The entire disk is allocated to Home Server, maximising space
• The disks can be unplugged and read anywhere
• There is no possible conflict with access to the disk.

Unfortunately it was not to be – so virtual disks it is.

The initial problem I had was WOEFUL disk performance and 100% CPU usage. Task Manager showed the “System Idle Process” to be hogging the CPU. Process Monitor showed it to be 60% used by IRQ’s. Google tracked that to the HDD not being in DMA mode, but rather PIO Mode 4 due to firmware / drivers / phase of the moon. As I couldn’t fix it easily, I bought and installed a 2 port PCI – SATA card. The CPU load is normal using this card as opposed to the on board port.I have since tried storing the VM 80GB “OS” drive on both the 1TB WD 5400RPM VM dedicated disk, and the faster 7200RPM disk shared with the media centre, and couldn’t detect a difference in performance either way. I have left it on the VM disk to optimise space for TV recordings.

Next issue was awful network performance between the Host and Guest. Guest to other network computers was fine – about 4-8MB/s, but Guest – Host was shocking – about 20Kb/s. Like all good technicians today I didn’t use my brain, but hit Google again. TCP Offload seemed to be a recurring theme here. The registry keys for XP didn’t fix it, but the advanced settings for the network adapter did. TCP Offload disabled on the host and now I get the same network performance anywhere. This is not a fault with VMWare, but does seem to be a common compatibility issue with many network adapters, my onboard nic being one of them.

The final hurdle was again performance related. The guest Home Server would be running, but very sluggish to respond to inputs if you had left it alone for a while. It’s like VMWare let it go to sleep, and took between 1-4 minutes to assign it resources again. I made two changes here. I disabled Memory Page Trimming in the VM admin interface and disabled Page File Sharing with the line sched.mem.pshare.enable=”FALSE” in the .vmx config file.
Both of these seemed to keep the Home Server in a much more responsive state when I wanted it. It still often needs two clicks to “connect” to the console – the first fails, but network shares and backup work perfectly. As the console is not something I regularly access, I’ll ignore this issue.

There are some other tricks that can help. I did the following on the host to reduce any possible performance hits:

• I don’t run Anti-Virus on my Media Centre, so exclusions for that weren’t necessary. If you run AV it’s recommended to exclude the VM files to reduce overhead.
• Snapshots on the HDD used by VMWare were disabled – won’t be needing them for backup.
• Recycle Bin disabled – don’t need that either.
• Added a shortcut to the VM to the startup folder so it auto-starts. (VMware took away this nice feature from VMWare workstation)

With the Home Server running and all updates installed (particularly PP1) it was time to install the connector to all the PC’s in the house, and configure backups. This is mostly straightforward. There is one trick – you MUST exclude the Virtual Machine folders from the backup when you install the connector on the Vista Media Centre Host. Otherwise it will try backing up itself to itself, decide it won’t fit, and have a heart attack.

Once everything was installed I copied over all the data using Robocopy. I found that the Windows Copy with that much data to the VM wasn’t particularly reliable, although that may have been due to not having all the above tuning done first. My sequence was a learning exercise.

Vista Media Centre has an option to add remote data to it’s library. I have added music, pictures, MPG4/DivX and DVD’s stored on the Home Server. You’ll need to use the DVD library reg hack to get the latter to work.

I haven’t tried using the Home Server to store recordings of live TV, but watching movies stored on it with either DivX or a ripped DVD works just fine. Network performance is as above.

I have also setup a 1TB Mybook using USB to be the backup drive. The USB seems to work fine and is setup to automatically connect. Backups to the external drive are the usual manual deal.

Now I have access to all my data, a large file store, regular backups, a quiet media centre and a single box that only chew’s 85w. Performance is acceptable, but not amazingly snappy. I think it’s an acceptable compromise. It doesn’t really take any longer than when the old server had to spin up it’s six HDD’s. I’m not sure if the HDD’s are spinning down under VMWare, there is a few more watts to save.

I’m looking into power saving inside VMWare next, but think I’m off to a pretty good start.

There are a few things I would like to do to improve the solution:

• Get it going on VMWare Server (and not break RDP / Remote Desktop)
• Resolve the physical disk access issue, I assume it’s to do with running under Vista, but have no evidence to back this up. I tried disabling everything that might conflict.
• The performance is still not snappy on the console. The host CPU, RAM and Disk are not busy, so what’s making it sluggish. Network transfers and backup are fine, it’s just the console that’s sluggish.
• How does WMWare interact with host power saving features?

Update Oct ’09
Now running VMWare Server.
No real difference. Still can’t use native disks.
I’ll go back to pyhsical once the new Pinetrail atom is out. Although it works, I’m sick of the ultra-long boot times.
I’l make the new WHS an Atom and the VM Host media centre an i3 w/ integrated Video.

"Please make immediate payment of $0.00"

Ahh yeah – great effort with the computers there guys….

Here I am, 31 years old, and I only just got around to really understanding the optimum way to manage my credit card. (At least I hope I understand it now).

Now for those of you that don’t like reading, I’ll give you the short version. Very simply – you MUST pay off the “Closing Balance” as close to, but before the “Due Date” ON THAT STATEMENT – and you pay no interest. Make no other payments. Do NOT pay the “Outstanding Balance”. That’s it, nothing else you need to know. Do that religiously, and you can’t do any better.

I mean, I don’t think I’m that dumb. I know about Mortgage Offset accounts, and leveraging the interest free period on the c/c to maximise the amount of cash in the offset.

I never really sat down and thought about maximising the interest free period. With interest calculated daily on most accounts, the more days you are using the bank’s money interest free, the more you save. BUT, and here is the gotcha, on most credit cards, if you are even one day late over the interest free period, you lose. They backdate the interest for the entire period. Just to make things worse, many (but not all), don’t give interest free on any further purchases until the closing balance has been paid. Note, this is NOT the “Minimum Payment”, OR the current “Outstanding Balance”. Ignore the minimum balance unless you are stretched that month – and it will cost you if you only pay the minimum, with all the interest free benefit wiped out.

Here is the first thing you need to know. A Credit Card is not a continuously rolling credit account. If you think of it this way (as I used to) you’ll never get straight in your head. 
Instead it’s a One Month window noted as “Statement Period” written on the statement. Everything you spend on the account in this Statement Period gets totalled up at the end of the period and put on the statement as the “Closing Balance”. You have “x” days  to pay that Closing Balance. This date is calculated for you and put on the statement as the “Due Date”. In my case it’s 55 days from the START of the Statement Period. This is why the interest free period is described as “Up To 55 Days Interest Free”. If you make a purchase on the first day of the statement period, you’ll get 55 days (until the Due Date) to pay it off without being charged interest. If you make it on the last day of the statement period (generally 30 days later), you’ll only only get 25 days until the Due Date, before you cop interest.

The Due Date is always before the close of the next statement period, this ensures that if it’s not paid off in full, whatever remains gets tacked onto the next Closing Balance.

The next Statement Period is INDEPENDENT and has nothing to do with the previous period. It accrues on it’s own, and has it’s own closing balance and due date. The only relationship is if you don’t pay off the previous closing balance, then things roll over and impact the interest free deal.

I find that the statement information is not available on my bank’s Internet banking site. I have to look at the paper statement to find the Statement Period, Closing Balance and Due Date.

For me, the confusion came around the current “Outstanding Balance”. Most people (and I) are concerned about keeping this under the Credit Limit to ensure we don’t get charged fees for exceeding the limit. For the purposes of maximising interest free periods, the Outstanding Balance is nothing more than a distraction. It is a combination of last months Closing Balance, and whatever you have spent this month. It is NOT what has to be paid off. If you instead concentrate on the Closing Balance, you’ll be FAR better off. The only thing the “Outstanding Balance” matters for, is ensuring you don’t exceed the credit limit and incur fees. Indeed I have found that by only paying off the Closing Balance, my card now has a much higher average amount outstanding than before, whilst still not incurring interest. This means the cash that would have been sitting on the card, is now sitting in my offset account for longer. It also means I am considering upgrading my limit to support this higher Outstanding Balance. The monthly spend is still the same, in and out. It’s just that I’m only paying off what I have to, when I have to, not the entire balance.

A complication comes around when the Closing Balance is only partially paid off before the Due Date. When this happens, interest is charged on the outstanding amount. The calculation is done on a First In, First Out basis, and I’m glad it’s computer doing the numbers. You lose in a number of ways in this case. Any charges that were not paid off (earliest charges paid off first), accrue the full interest from their “Date Processed” – this is often after the “Transaction Date”. Many cards also don’t give the future charges interest free status until the previous outstanding  balance has been paid off. (There is some debate on this point).
A further complication to the above is cash advances. The simplest answer on those is DON’T. They are not interest free. I only use Cash Advance overseas as I generally find the cash exchange rate with fees and Interest to still be better than “Money Exchange” facilities.
This is why they use computers to calculate this stuff out. 

The worst case of not paying off the Closing Balance in full is the “Low Interest” transfer type deals some card issuers offer. Say you transfer a variety of other cards onto a 0% interest deal. If you then proceed to use this card for other charges, under a First In, First Out basis, you won’t be paying off any of the new charges until the entire transferred balance is paid off. This makes any interest free period other than the transfer one, essentially ineffective. Low Interest transfer deals are valuable, only if you use them for just that, transfer. As soon as you use them as a normal credit card whilst there is a transfer amount outstanding, the bank starts winning back that interest from you.

Finally, Credit Card interest rates tend to approximately average double that of Home Loan interest rates in Australia. If you are using the card to assist your home loan repayments by increasing the average balance of your offset account, and you don’t pay the Closing Balance by the Due Date, you get charged interest at a much higher rate on the card. This means that the “effective savings” of the interest are wiped out for around twice as long as if the charges were straight on your offset account without the Credit Card. Result – one missed payment takes 2-3 months to re-coup the savings, just to get back to where you were.

All of which brings us right back to the simple statement – You MUST pay off the “Closing Balance” as close to, but before the “Due Date” ON THAT STATEMENT – and you pay no interest. Make no other payments. That’s it, nothing else you need to know. Do that religiously, and you can’t do any better.

The only circumstance where you should make a payment other than the Closing Balance, is when you need to put more charges on the card that month than the Credit Limit can cover. Exceeding your Credit Limit will result in fees being charged. In this case an additional early payment may be necessary to keep the card under the limit, but you are losing some of the interest free benefits. This may be offset by some of the insurance benefits and loyalty points programs some card issuers have. eg. Free Travel Insurance, Extended Warranties, Frequent Flyer Points etc.
Keep in mind, this early payment simply goes onto the statement as well, and will be accrued and calculated in. The rule of “Pay off the Closing Balance by the Due Date” still applies.

So what from here – go and grab a statement. Find the following key information from all the junk they print on there – it’s how you save money:

1. Statement Period (Open – Close)
2. Closing Balance
3. Due Date
4. Credit Limit

Ignore the distractions from all the other numbers.

You may want to consider moving your Statement Period so the Due Date falls somewhere just after you get your salary paid into your account. This makes it easier to manage payments – you get paid, and you pay off the card.

A note on Auto Payments. I have never done these – so can’t thoroughly comment. It would be worth checking what Auto Payment system your bank uses, and when it Auto Pays. If it pays the “Outstanding Balance” rather than the “Closing Balance”, or if it pays off the the amount much before the “Due Date” – you are losing out, and the bank makes more money.

Please keep in mind I am not a financial advisor, or financial professional. All the above is gleaned from what information I can get from my bank in Australia, your’s may be different. I have not been able to find many explanations on the Internet elsewhere for what should be common knowledge, otherwise I wouldn’t have bothered to write it.

The Australian banks are definitely not in the business of explaining how their credit products work in simple terms, or how to optimise them for the customers benefit. If I have got any of the above wrong, or it could be done better, please comment and I’ll do my best to review and incorporate it.

NAB has a reasonable explanation of Credit Card interest.  
Compared to the unintelligible NAB banker speak version.

ANZ also has a unintelligible version.

Here are some additional tips I received when a professional banking friend reviewed the above:

1. If you pay via bpay – this payment takes 2 -3 days to reach the payee – so always process 3 business days before the payment is due – this goes with all bills you are paying this way – especially important if you are paying bills like rates and rego where you get a discount for being early.
2. Most banks offer a free service where they will set up a direct debit to the credit cards for either, entire balance (to avoid paying interest), minimum amount (to avoid late fees), set amount (to fit your budget). This payment will always be made on the due date – you just need to make sure there is always enough money in the offset / credit account to cover. This way you never have to worry about missing a payment – NB, it may take a month for the payment to be established so watch the first payment.
3. If paying via cheque the payment is not deemed as being made until the cheque has been cleared – normally 3 business days, so again pay 3 days prior to being due.
4. Low interest rate balance transfers – don’t use the card until the transferred balance is cleared – I recommend doing the balance transfer, then once cleared cancel the card. The less cards you have to manage the better for your budget.
5. If you are going to clear the credit card in full every month – look for maximum interest free days / lower annual fees, not the lowest interest rate (cause you wont be paying it) – which normally has the higher annual fee.
6. If you have a home loan – ask for the annual fee on the card to be waived, this can be done about 75% of the time.
7. NEVER set up direct debits from your credit card, eg pay TV, internet etc. A “stop” can not be put on a credit card to stop these payments, if you need them stopped. Even if credit card is closed, the payment will reopen the credit card (for 6 months after the closure). If you use a normal account, the payments can be stopped.

I’ve been trying to reduce the power of my Home Server and Media Centre. Since my Power Meter debacle, I am now re-testing all the equipment and getting some rude shocks.

One of the positives out of this is that my 1TB Western Digital  My Book Essential and 300GB Western Digital My Passport Essential both spin down and save power. On USB, this is a nice feature, as many of the generic external cages don’t spin the drive down.

The WD’s spin down on XP, Vista and Windows Home Server which is based on Server 2003. The timeout appears to be independent of the OS settings.

They support several power modes, and my current meter is not accurate enough to report which one they are in.

The WD 3/5″ Black is the 7200RPM desktop drive.
The WD 3.5″ Green is the 5400RPM drive generally in the MyBook
The WD 2.5″ Blue is the 5400RPM drive generally in the MyPassport

The other thing I noted was that my new power meter (which is not rated as accurate below 10w) indicated that whilst sleeping, the 3.5″ and it’s power adapter were drawing less than 1w. The power adapter was only just warm, much better than the usual little heat wasters. Well done WD for killing the parasitic standby power.

Overall, they get my vote as low power green storage.

The Green 3.5″ and Blue 2.5″ drives are also very quiet – both operating and seek. The 2.5″ is quieter, but with half the capacity, may not stack up overall.

And you can always decode the Morse Code on the outside!

ATA reported some accuracy concerns early on, and stopped selling them. The indication was this was only minor, and at low power settings.

I recently purchased the newer Solarinverters (SI) replacement from ATA and found some VERY large discrepancies between what I had seen before. Unsure as to which one to trust, I fired up the clamp meter to validate the results. The results shocked me.

I then confirmed the results against two other Electus meters of the same model.

The Electus meters are TOTAL AND UTTER JUNK. The numbers that come out have NOTHING to do with reality. The behaviour does not even appear to be linearly consistent.

Disappointingly Jaycar is still selling them.

The below pictured numbers are all with the SAME LOAD – a computer, UPS, Router, Printer etc. All numbers were repeated three times and fluctuations were minimal at this time.

Fluke meter validation Rig

1.1 Amps on Clamp Meter

0.37A on Electus Meter – kinda disagrees with the 1.1 on the clamp meter. This is where the majority of the error seems to lie.

1.16A on SI Meter

The voltages read the same

85W – 0.92 PF from Electus – again, the electus can’t seem to cope with PF giving readings that are often clearly incorrect. This will significantly affect the wattage calculation.

0.71 PF from SI – this is about what I would expect.

199W from SI

 
278VA from SI – matches the Fluke

Units from rear

Units from front

Now my clamp meter hasn’t been calibrated, but it is a Fluke. It’s only got one decimal place of precision. Using my other Fluke as an inline ammeter with mains voltages was too risky (exposed terminals) for me, so I didn’t do it, depsite the extra decimal place of precision.
I don’t have an independent Power Factor meter. I could be telling lies, this is the internet. The above numbers aren’t a small % error. They are out by over 100%. This is not a minor calibration issue, this is a device that clearly misleads Australian consumers.

I’ll stick with the new one and redo the testing round my house.

Here are ALL the steps I went through to getting the software install right. A Vista Media Center Build Document.

The changing of hardware, testing codecs, utilites, guides and apps had led to some long running config and stability issues that I couldn’t resolve. Application errors, crashes, codecs, screen sizes, resolutions and audio were all problematic.

After round one a while ago, I had managed to stabilise and expand the system somewhat. The stable hardware config now is

• Case – Zalman HD160 Case (IR, Display & Card Reader disabled)
• Cooling – Quiet Fans
• P/S – Antec Truepower 2 (120mm single fan)
• MB – Asus N4L-VM-DH (replaced 3 times under warranty)
• CPU – Core 2 Duo T2400 1.8
• RAM – 2GB Kingston
• HDD – WD WD5000AAKS
• DVD-ROM – Pioneer DVR-215
• Video Card – Gigabyte NVidea GeForce 8600 GT Silent
• TV Tuner Card – Hauppauge Nova Dual Digital T-500
• Bluetooth Keyboard – Logitech DiNovo Mini
• Remote – MS IR Remote Control
• Readyboost – Kingston Datatraveler 4GB USB Stick
• TV – Panasonic 50″ 720p Plasma – TH-50PX80A
• Amp – NAD T762 5.1 Channel Amp

I use the VGA cable to drive the plasma – other outputs have proven problematic in the past and I can’t be bothered trying again.

The Amp is driven off the Digital Out on the M/B – a coax copper digital connection.

This current hardware setup is MUCH more stable than the previous top of the line junk I tried.

1. Connect USB KB & Mouse (needed)
   BIOS – Change boot order – CD/HDD
   Boot to Vista DVD
   Long Delay – options page
   Select – English Australia
   Enter Serial Key
   Select – Do Not Upgrade
   Format HDD
   Create Account – Paul w/ pwd
   Set Timezone
   Approve auto-updates
   Network Location – Home
   Login
2. Windows Update – all updates
   Disable Sidebar Autostart & Exit
   Enable Readyboost on USB stick
   IE – set Google to default search provider
   IE – set startup to blank page
   IE – Install Flash Player
   Enable Auto logon
   Start | Run | Netplwiz
   Tick the box, and enter credentials
   Set Screen Saver – Blank screen – 3 mins (to protect plasma)
   Advanced Power Settings
   10 min display off
   HDD 10 min spin down
   Never Sleep (this MB won’t resume, your’s may)
   Bluetooth KB works – no drivers req’d
   Updates finished – reboot
   Disable Welcome screen
   Set resolution to TV screen native – 1360 x 768 (1366×768 native)
   Experience Index – 4.6 (CPU 4.7)
   Activate Windows
   Check Device Manager – all devices OK from Windows Update
   Start | Network | Click “Turn on Network Discovery” on top bar | Make Network Private
3. Install WHS Connector (if running Windows Home Server)
   Set Home Server to ignore AV errors
4. Vista Media Centre Setup
   Custom
   Setup Signal
   Accept 2 tuners
   Use Guide
   “your postcode”
   Guide Not Available
   Scan for Services
   Vista Media Centre – Audio
   Single RCA
   5.1
   Test OK
   Vista Media Centre – Display
   Flat Panel
   VGA
   Widescreen
   Keep display resolution
   Adjust
   Check Sizing and Centering OK
   Settings – “Start Windows Media Center when windows starts”
   Enable optimization at 4am
   Set storage to leave 60gb free (400GB)
   Stop recording 4 minutes after
5. Create restore point
6. Ice TV
   Login
   Setup Interactive Device
   Install ICE TV Software
   Follow install instructions
   Then do a manual setup and update guide
   Leave all settings default atm
7. Vista Media Centre – Setup Guide for VMC
   Download Guide
   Setup Channels
   Remove SD channels and doubles
   Keep HD7,HD9,HD10,HD ABC, HD SBS, ABC2
   Reset “Add Listings to channel” to get guide to update
8. Windows Update – Reboot
   Windows Update – Reboot (Req’d)
   Windows Update – Reboot (not stated)
   Windows Update – Reboot (SP1)
9. Install Lifextender
   Enable Automated Scanning – Midnight
   Untick “Display TV Show Info when uncommercializing”
   Set – Upon completion DELETE the original
10. Uninstall KB950126 (it’s a known bug)
    Reboot
    Windows Update – Check for Updates
    View Available Updates
    Right Click KB950126 – Select “Hide Update”
    Install other pending updates
11. Fix Lifeextender Auto-start
    Search – Task Scheduler
    Create Task – Lifextender
    “Run with highest privileges”
    Triggers – Begin Task – “At Logon”
    Actions – New – “C:\program files\yellow cup\lifextender\lifextender.exe”
    OK
    Delete Lifextender from Startup Folder on Start Menu
12. Enable Terminal Services Access (if running Vista Ultimate)
    Computer – Properties – Remote Access – Remote Desktop – allow connections
13. Enable Ripped DVD Gallery

    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Settings\DvdSettings
    ShowGallery -Play

    Change the Registry value data from Play to Gallery.

14. Install KLite Standard 4.1.7 – all settings default
15. Clean up Vista SP1 removal files – Start | Search | CMD | type “vsp1cln.exe”
    This will free up between 1 and 1.5GB of disk space

Presto – you should now have a system that can play most things, be reasonably stable and do all the things it should out of the box.

It’s only 98 real steps to set it up, not including all the “next, next, finish” buttons.

Wouldn’t it be great if this was how it came from Microsoft in Australia.

Depending on your hardware – your mileage may vary. This was FAR more stable than installing all the drivers from the vendor sites.

You may optionally want to

a)  Have Terminal Services Access without interrupting your TV (haven’t done this yet)

b) Improve your HDD performance, but also have increased risk of data corruption.

Update Sept 09 - due to hardware failure I’m not running W7 and new hardware.
W7 is much better. Full review coming.
Still needs help though.

The impossible dream I am thinking of consists of seamless integration between:

• So lets look at the current state of play for these things.

Home Server

I reviewed home server here. It’s a great product that acts as a network store for your folders, and backs up all the PC’s in your house. It has a brilliant Disaster Recovery solution and one of the most innovative backup and storage solutions I have seen in a long time.

Unfortunately that’s all it is, and that means 40watts at idle 24/7 – 88KwHrs / qtr, and more if I make it work hard.

Media Centre

This thing‘s purpose in life is to record TV, and play content. In Australia it does an average job of both. It’s another 50watts 24/7.

Trying to get a PC to work well in a lounge room is an exercise in frustration. Noise, power, keyboards, mice and windows hiccups are just not fun. Add in the TV compatibility problems many experience trying to get TV interfaces and resolutions correctly out of a PC.

It’s great when it works, but it’s definitely high maintenance.

As many people have said before me, what about storing the videos on Home Server, and getting it to do the recording too. That way they noisy PC can stay in the back room, and one PC can have an excuse for staying up chewing power 2/47, not two.

I don’t really stream my video, I watch it off a remote file share. A performance comparison of Streaming vs File Serving is here.

Extenders

I can’t claim to have one of these yet. The reviews are average, and every XBox 360 I hear about dies an early death.

These seem to be the obvious choice for the lounge room. They are quieter, more aesthetically pleasing, have native TV interfaces (PAL, Component etc), and an interface that never needs a mouse to drive it. They also play games, so many people end up wit one anyway.

The well known issues with power consumption on some of these come up, but at least it’s only when being watched, and it’s probably not more than the plasma TV anyway.

A chipped XBox with XBox Media Centre was my weapon of choice for years. It’s an aging solution now, and doesn’t have HiDef, but as a media player for over the network content, it beat Vista Media Centre hands down.

I can see this being the future of the lounge room.

The current problem being the limited support for what can / cannot be streamed to the current extenders, and how to connect the things.

Game Consoles

The Wii seems to excel here, as  a pure games console. The best comparison i reckon is here.

If you want all the video streaming, it’s XBox 360 or possibly, Playstation 3.

Digital Picture Frames

Nice toy, chews power all the time, unlike an old fashioned photos. Be good if they only displayed when they sensed movement.

The wireless versions I have seen seen only work off Flikr and other web services. None seem to be connecting to a local PC to show photo’s from. Great for using bandwidth.

Media Players

Everyone has an iPod, even me. I dont’ use iTunes at all, so it’s solid MP3′s. Unfortunately Apple in their wisdom designed the thing on ID3 tags, not on files / folders. If your tags aren’t perfect, you’ll have all sorts of fun navigating the thing.

I’m still looking for the cheap simple, web managed, wireless MP3 player I can plugin to my amp.

An old laptop or Asus eePC is topping the list at the moment.

Wireless

I ran wireless G for ages – just plain G, none of the tricky variants as my laptops built in is only basic G. It’s fine for web browsing and acceptable for file copying, but coverage and streaming movies never really worked.

I recently threw a bucket of cash a a Wireless N solution, sticking to a single vendor to keep the process smoother. Netgear is more common that Linksys in Australia.

Well the coverage is mildly better, and it is a bit faster, and that’s all. The problem is that the speed is still very variable, so even though the average is OK, for playing movies over the LAN – it all falls down.

Luckily my house lets me run a cable underneath to the lounge easily, so I have a solution, but it’s a disappointment.

I will have no such luck with running a cable for the spare room with the kids TV and their (might get for XMAS) 360. The consoles also don’t support Wireless N, so that’s more kit to buy.

So much for the wireless dream.

Looks like some others agree with me here and here

Broadband

I’m got lucky here, with my house being able to get Naked (Unbundled Local Loop) ADSL2+. I get about 7 Mbit download speeds. Being ULL means I don’t have to pay Telstra any money, and that makes me happy.

I don’t quite understand why a GB is cheaper on ADSL2+ than the same GB on ADSL, but I won’t complain seeing as I get the service.

This is one part of the equation that works well for me.

I do however have to run THREE devices pulling another 40Watts 24/7. A Wireless/Firewall/Router, an ADSL Modem and a VOIP adapter, all pulling their own power, each with their own old fashioned power brick radiating heat.
Where oh were is the all in one Modem/Router/Wireless N/VOIP adapter that only pulls 5 watts.

VOIP vs VOIP vs VOIP

“Skype” vs “VOIP from my ISP” vs “Messenger”

And never shall any of the above meet. Good luck all ye who enter here.

Then we move onto Bluetooth headsets, Wireless Handsets, GSM Picocells, and Cordless phones just for laughs.

Desktop PC’s

These integrate acceptably into the home network. My biggest hurdles here are

• What version of Vista
• Remote Desktop
• Local User logons
• Authentication and Passwords for file / printer sharing

I’m used to domain authentication, and sharing stuff around a home network isn’t quite as simple as I would have thought. More work to be done in this space.

It is still common to email a file via their internet email address, that is in the same house as you! That tells me point to point file transfer is still way too hard.

Hmm – maybe device authentication is a better idea in this space than traditional user authentication.

Wireless Printers

I have a HP wireless (802.11g) All In One unit. It works well enough except for one critical problem. It gets it’s IP Address via DHCP from the Router. If I don’t set a reservation, this changes sometimes due to the alignment of Venus and Mars. The software fails badly at finding it when it’s IP address changes.

Tip for Wireless device designers, home IP addresses are very dynamic, plan on your drivers having to work with that.

A reservation fixes the problem – until the next firmware upgrade.

Cloud Services

And finally we have the latest set of toys, the one’s the world’s been saying will happen for years. Well it’s not there yet, even with ADSL2+, but I agree, it’s coming.

I do like some of the services and I’m using more and more over time.

• Google Docs is interesting for sharing stuff with my wife.
• Windows Live Mesh is a new toy – no comment yet
• Newsgator / FeedDemon
• GMail w/ Outlook IMAP (testing – it’s a hassle)
• Domain hosted with Bluehost
• WordPress for this

I tried online backup of 20Gb of data, and it does work, but it’s nowhere near as practical as Home Server for me. For small quantities of data it would be very good.

The whole area is changing, and local sync options are making it more interesting. Google gears enables some of this functionality and is worth looking for.

Security and privacy are significant concerns. Google can inform you about google here.

A single authentication solution like OpenID starts to make all of this much easier.

Summary

Well the seamless integration of all this stuff is still a long way off. The problems are solvable, but the maintenance is high.

All I want is devices that chew no power, work together seamlessly, is available anywhere in the world and takes no effort from me. It’s not too much to ask for is it?

Watch this space.

Jesper had a similar problem last week.

Creating an empty DNS zone with the same name as your internal zone can lead too all sorts of frustration – especially with the multiple locations in AD that it can end up in. You’ll find yourself knee-deep in ADSI Edit faster than you would ever want to be.

I love DNS, but it’s gotta be right, and it’s easy to get wrong.

This is of course on top of what would have to the  slowest proximity readers on the planet, displays that are impossible to read, an arcane array of “beep” codes, and an “Auto Top Up” function – that doesn’t.

Great system guys, matches your train network perfectly.

The tests were all done on the first layer of the drum to give maximum tension. This also places additional load on the mount due to the increased height adding leverage.

Test 1 – Drag Car on Dirt (Wheels Locked)- Passed

Test 2 – Drag Car on Dirt Up Hill (Wheels Locked) – Passed

Test 3 – Drag Car on Bitumen (Wheels Locked) – Passed

Test 4 – Drag 2 Cars Uphill on Dirt (Wheels Locked) – Rope Failed

I believe the rope failed due to 3 factors

1. The Technora fibre is wearing noticeably more than the Amsteel Blue. I have read that the high temp materials are less abrasion resistant.
2. The fairlead internal radius is too sharp compared to the external radius. The radius should be 4x the diameter of the rope.
3. The fairlead sits approx 3/4 up the height of the winch, giving a fair bend to the rope as it goes over the fairlead and down the bottom of the drum. Rope rated at 13,700lb loses strength when bent. The tighter the radius, the greater the strength loss. The numbers are hard, as it depends on the diameter or the rope, and it’s construction. 12 Strand is a good construction for bending.

I am surprised a 9500lb winch can break a 13,700lb rope.

At no point did the mount appear to bend excessively, or sustain any visible damage. There was NO permanent twist.

The fairlead mount also suffered no damage, and the rope was spliced back together easily.

I was surprised at the amount of spring in the rope, you can see it coiled up under the tree where it ended up.

I wanted to keep the weight down, so decided a 9500lb was smaller and lighter than a 12,000lb. If I needed more pulling power, I would use a pulley block.

After reading the SA 4WD Winch Review, and getting a good deal, I bought a 9500lb Ironman Winch for $625 w/ 3yrs warranty. They are claimed to be waterproof and come with what I needed. I would have preferred a Premier winch due to the brake not being in the drum making it more suited to synthetic rope, but it was out of my price range. I would really have preferred a hydraulic Milemarker, but that was really really out of my price range, especially when I factored in questions around power steering pump flow rates.

After using steel cable and hating it, synthetic winch rope was a requirement. I figured 100ft (28M) of 5/16″ (8mm) rated at 13,700LB breaking strain would do. Less rope on the drum keeps the winch closer to it’s rated pulling force. I specifically bought their “Hybrid” line, where the first 25ft is a Technora based rope, and the rest is Amsteel Blue. The Technora is more temperature stable for use on winches with a brake inside the drum. I bought mine from www.cseoffroad.com, along with the alloy fairlead, rope protector and safety thimble. The alloy fairlead was a free bonus at the time. I also grabbed 100ft (28M) of 3/8″ (10mm) Amsteel Blue winch extension rated at 19,600lb breaking strain. The separate extension allows the flexibility of simply extending the pull, connecting two different points, putting a winch block in between the two etc. You need the thicker rope size if you are going to use a winch block, as it will double the pulling force – 9500×2 = 19,000lb.

The next item was a mount. Other mounts I have seen use 6mm steel plate in various arrangements. I settled for the thickest and strongest alloy channel I could get – 8.4mm x 6.8mm tempered alloy. It doesn’t have a rated “strength” in this configuration, especially after I chopped it up to get the winch to fit. I can say that in a pull to stall test, the rope snapped before the winch stalled, and the mount, while having a slight twist, suffered no permanent deformation. The winch is in an ideal position, directly between the chassis rails, very low, and as far back as possible. The mount acts to protect the radiator from sticks etc.

The fairlead I mounted into the bullbar with 20x heavy gauge rivets. Whilst I am not that confident as to their strength, in shear the steel pins combined with the tight fit should be very strong. At a 45deg pull they will be in both tension and shear, a less desirable situation. The alloy bar mounts are particularly weak in a sideways direction, so I think I’ll be avoiding heavy angled pulls. The fairlead needed to have it’s inside edge rounded a lot, as the winch sits quite low in relation to the bar.

Finally it was just a matter of the control box hidden inside the bar, the wiring and lockout switches. I recommend the lockout switches be waterproofed underneath with silicon, and rubber caps fitted (I used rubber “feet”). Water pulls inside them and the copper contacts stop working.The winch is wired with a switch to each AGM battery, letting me use either one, or both.

By dropping the steel cable and roller fairlead, using an alloy mount, not using a 12,000lb winch and keeping the alloy bar I have kept nearly 75KG off the front of the car. Just as importantly the weight is as low and far back as possible, something most winch bars don’t do. Whilst I accept it’s not as strong as a steel winch bar, it has passed every test I can throw at it so far.

Finally – it’s a whole lot cheaper than driving into ARB, and with Mickey T MTZ’s, twin Air Lockers and some lift, hopefully I won’t need to winch too often (yeah right).

The heaviest aluminium alloy channel I could find. It is also tempered (or so the guy said). 8.4mm base, 6.8mm walls.
Trimmed to fit winch and chassis rails with lower bull-bar mounts. I should have rounded the corners more to stop fatigue.
Winch fits nice and snug.
Alloy hawse fairlead mounted in the factory bar. Yeah I know, I know. If it snaps the rivets then I’ll do something sttronger. The alloy is 6mm checker-plate. The bar is not that strong, nor are the bar mounts.
Terminating the high temp Technora fibre.
Had to grind the allen key to fit the link on the rope.
All spooled up. Rope protector is the black bit. I have a strong plastic / rubber  flap that covers this gap keeping grass and mud out.
Pic when fitted. Yes, I suspect it may snag something one day.
The lockout switches with waterproof covers. They don’t like water in them, and then don’t work.
Internals of the waterproof control box. It’s zip-tied inside the bullbar.

With the release of Power Pack 1 (PP1), and support for external USB backups, I decided to take another look. I have not looked back.

OK – at it’s simplest WHS does three things

1. It backs up all your home PC’s using what has to be one of the most innovative and useful backup solutions I have ever seen.
2. It’s a file server
3. It’s a Terminal Services & Web Gateway – you can get access to your desktop PC’s and Files from the Web

WHS is managed by a really easy to use interface – it’s not a web interface, it’s actually a Terminal Services Published App. Anyone with a modicum of IT knowledge can drive this thing.

The hardware can be any old PC with more than 512MB of RAM. I run 4GB so I can use VMWare are well for testing. It will need a few HDD’s, either internal or external, USB, PATA, SATA, eSata, it doesn’t matter. They can be any size and speed, it will sort out the storage. Ideally there are four HDD’s, one for Boot / Temp, two for storage with duplication between them, and an external USB/eSATA for backup. I’m using a WD 1TB Mybook Essential for backup as unlike many enclosures, it will spin down saving power, and has no fans making noise. I’m running 1 x 80Gb, 4 x 500Gb, 1 x 1TB USB.

Install

Installing and setting up the WHS is pretty simple. I had one weird error that caused it to fail due to it not liking the PATA setup on my M/B. Changing the DVD to it’s own controller solved that.

There is one strange requirement, that is the server must be plugged into an Ethernet interface, not wireless. It’s something to do with the compression algorithm and streaming of the backups. It’s documented, but I haven’t found the solid reason yet. The clients can be wireless, but not the server.

Next step is to configure any storage. Plenty of guides on that around. The very interesting technical brief / whitepaper on WHS Storage is here. It must be noted that WHS does NOT support RAID. You can run hardware RAID, but it’s not recommended. Please read the whitepaper to gain a better understanding. Basically any of the file shares can have “duplication” enabled. Initially to me this sounded like a mirror (RAID1), and as I was running RAID5, I wasn’t particularly interested. After reading the whitepaper, it is fundamentally different. Not better or worse, just different. I would kinda still prefer RAID5 – it’s more efficient, and protects the whole system, not just the file stores, but this is much easier to expand and configure. I’m neutral on this feature vs RAID5, but would be very happy to give it to a non IT person to run. I think that’s the main point, anyone could drive this and have their data protected. It does NOT protect the WHS OS in any way. It does not duplicate the PC Backups unless you hack it.

Once the server is setup and configured with storage you install the WHS connector on each PC in your house. There is a tray icon that will run on each PC in your house – it alerts you to any problems, provides shortcuts to the file shares, manages backups and allows you to manage the WHS. It makes it much easier to trust the status of the server than having to remember and check Event Logs every so often.

Backups

The backup function is split into two components. PC backup and File Server backup. The technical brief for the PC Backup is here

PC Backups

The PC backup runs once a day, waking the computers from sleep, and putting them back to sleep when complete. The backups are particularly clever, tracking each NTFS sector backed up. If any sectors are the same, either across backups of the same machine, or between machines, the sector is only stored once. This is all transparent to the user. The space saving is dramatic. My three computers at home are using 168GB backup space, and that is with plenty of data on each, and nightly backups for a month. The backups are cleaned up to manage space on a schedule you can define.

Restoring of PC Backup’s can be done in one of two ways. You can browse the backups to restore individual files, or you restore the whole machine like an image. The restore is particularly clever. You boot the PC from a generic “Restore CD” that comes with WHS. All the drivers for that PC are sitting in a folder on the WHS ready to go – it has automatically found them on the PC when it was backed up and prepared them for this purpose. They go onto a USB thumb drive. With the drivers available, the PC can get onto the local network, connect to the server and retrieve the backup. It will put all the files back, OS and all – presto – rebuilt client PC from backup. That is much easier than the usual “restore the OS first”. Unlike most Bare Metal or Image restores, there is no need to keep regular updated images, meaning less maintenance and less space consumed. It’s very elegant really.

Server Backups

The server backup can backup any of the file shares (not the Server OS or the PC backups) to any HDD in the “Backup Storage” list. The server backup must be triggered manually, it cannot be scheduled or automated (A glaring oversight). It uses NTFS Hard Links to make sure that any file is only stored once, even though it may appear to be copied up each time. This saves huge amounts of space, and can be read on any machine. Again – this is transparent to the user. The external backups must be cleaned up manually when you run out of space. It would be ideal in future versions if these external backups could be duplicated somehow, to allow for an offsite copy. The current solution would be to perform the backup twice. This is not a significant overhead, as the backup only copies any changed data using a very efficient algorithm.

Storage / Shares

The other function for a WHS box by default is as a local file server. It is very easy for anyone to configure this, and can be controlled with easy to manage user accounts and permissions.
The interesting feature in this area is “Duplication”. Each share can optionally have “Duplication” enabled. This will then have the server transparently copy each file to a separate drive. The process is described in the storage whitepaper. This is all hidden from the user by using NTFS links and other NTFS trickery. The advantage is that in the event of a disaster of some kind, the drives are fully readable on any machine. It also is dynamic enough that the drives can be any type  and size, it will share the data round and balance the storage as required.

Web Gateway

I haven’t played much in this area yet – I’ll update when I do. It uses UPNP to publish a site to the internet through your router. The domain homeserver.com lets you register a free subdomain to get to your data. You can access your files from anywhere. There is a Terminal Services Gateway function to allow remote access to your home PC’s – I haven’t investigated this yet. It probably depends on your desktop OS version, user account configuration and if the computer is asleep.

Add In’s

There are a reasonable and expanding number of AddIns that can be installed. These offer increased functionality through the WHS interface.

Notes

It is worth checking the Power Settings on the WHS, as mine was set not to spin the drives down. This wastes a lot of power and will reduce their life. I tend to set mine to 5 minute spin down, as this is longer than any streaming period. The machine isn’t user interactive – so spin up time is not a concern.

Non-WHS Apps

WHS is actually Windows Server 2003 (possibly with some SBS stuff – I have noted). It will run nearly anything W2K3 Svr will. BUT, you need to be particularly careful with your drive management. Use of Disk Manager can kill the special WHS stores. Whatever apps you install needs some careful thought as to where the data will be stored.

Conclusion

I’m very impressed with the data storage and backup solution used in WHS. It can be driven by anyone with a modicum of computer experience and meets it’s goals very well. It is more limited than a full W2K3 server, but offers some brilliant functions that are difficult to find elsewhere. It’s simplicity is wonderful, and with some care, offers a wonderful solution.

The Future

What should have been included that wasn’t? Hmm, well. I have a list, as do many others on the Connect forum. If I had to narrow it down it would be.

1. WHS + Media Centre in one – so you can just run extenders around your house.
2. Scheduled External Server Backups
3. OS Backups
4. A 2W Atom CPU / MB & 95% efficient CPU – drop the consumption from the 30w idle of my Home Server
5. Better power options. It would be good to have the box sleep for much of the day, waking only to do what was needed when we were home.

Good Resources

http://www.wegotserved.co.uk/
http://blogs.technet.com/homeserver/

I had a few ideas I wanted to stick to, as well as keeping it within reason from council approval. You’ll have to read up on your own council approvals for greywater. I’m basing mine on the “I won’t tell them and they won’t care” legal principle.

The main principles I wanted were

1. No storage – stored greywater will build up bacteria and needs space. Althogh up to 24hrs is acceptable, no storage for me.
2. Shower / Bath / Sink / Laundry only. My kitchen water goes down the normal wastewater system, meaning no grease traps to worry about.
3. Minimal Maintanance – small holes clog up, it had to be robust. Greywater contains hairs, soaps, grease, dirt and who knows what else that falls off my kids.
4. Subsurface – I wanted the water delivered under the mulch and into the soil
5. Cheap, very cheap. That means no pumps or commercial kits.

These are the trees I wanted to water. Greywater would be perfect irrigation for my 16 tree orchard. My sloping block made this much easier, although it would work on a flat block. Uphill – forget it.
This nasty looking contraption guarantees things work smoothly. It’s an overflow pipe and diverter valve. Details below.
The diversion valve. When I have too much rain, I turn the valve, and greywater goes back to the council. I used 25mm corrugated greywater pipe to get to the trees.
Overflow pipe – if the greywater can’t escape fast enough  – say when the kids let the water out of the bath whilst I am having a shower – it will fill1.5m of  vertical pipe on the right, then overflow into the kitchen drain pipe on the left. The air-valve is to stop airlock / siphon issues.
The first tree also gets a 1.3m overflow pipe. If there is a blockage lower, or too much flow, it simply comes out here. This is below the level of the house. Make sure yours is too.
1″ (25mm) poly and 1″ poly pipe Y piece.I use the cheapest low density irrigation poly I could get. Hose clamps were not needed.
1″ poly, 1″poly T, and an end stop using a cable tie.
The magic ingredient. The 1″ poly fits perfectly into these water spikes. They are $0.99 from Bunnings and designed for use with softdrink bottles. They deliver a perfect amount of water.
A better shot of the holes. I tried enlarging the holes initally – bad move. The factory size is perfect. Larger holes stop downstream spikes getting water.

The only thing that has to be done is the spike washed out / replaced every 6 months approx. No filters, no smell, no pumps, no cleaning, no worries. The ends of the pipe don’t appear to collect rubbish, and the system is pretty foolproof and self regulating. It’s all easy parts that should last long term, and be dirt cheap to replace.

I had the luxury of a high set house and a sloping block, giving me plenty of fall and water flow. Your mileage may vary. It gives me cheap year round irrigation. Long showers are not wasteful – they are a benefit.

Longer term I would like to find / make a sock filter to go inline with a disposable sock – but I haven’t found one yet.

And this is why we have to wean business off Excel.

Just like programming – it’s all mistakes mistakes mistakes.

I like to be able to resize stuff easily and quickly for a number of uses. It’s one of the main reasons I use Live Writer for this site – it’s quick and easy to to the image management.

Luckily a free replacement with all the simple “Right Click – Resize” features turned up – VSO Image Resizer. And it’s free for personal use.

No spyware, no crap running in the taskbar, no background services. It runs the way an app should – right click – “just do it”

Highly recommended.

They are a scam, it’s so well documented I can’t even be bothered linking the hundreds of articles.

http://www.google.com/search?q=firepower+dans+data&rls=com.microsoft:*&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&startIndex=&startPage=1

Scammers, Charlatans, Scumbags, Liars, Theives, Con Artists, Rip Off Merchants, Fools and Money.

What next – Hyclone ads? I’ve got some magic fairy dust I would like to sell you…..

Brilliant Video Session
http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/187

Great tips from a  great presenter
http://blogs.technet.com/jesper_johansson/archive/2005/08/24/Death-by-PowerPoint.aspx

Advice from a specialist
http://www.presentationzen.com/presentationzen/2005/09/whats_good_powe.html

I thought it was brilliant, and this inspires me to make better choices.

It also needed to be small an un-intrusive, and fit on some small bookshelves. This ruled out most amplifiers, as they just don’t come in small sizes.

For the speakers I settled on a set of Paradigm Atom bookshelf speakers as reviewed here. Steve at Eastwood HiFi was most helpful and I recommend them and his entertaining site.

I initially considered a Fatman Valve Amp to power it, but with my green bent, the inherent inefficiency of vacuum tubes, and the cost, I looked at other solutions.

The T-Amp got amazing reviews and some impressive comparisons in it’s various incantations based on the Tripath Chip Class T Amp.

I picked up a Gen2 T-Amp from eBay.com for US$60 plus postage. The power adapter was full multi-voltage / multi-frequency and worked on Australian power. The unit is TINY, you can see from the pics below how small it is.

Once powered up, I connected the iPod and started to test. I was initially concerned that the 90db efficiency of the Paradigm speakers wouldn’t be sensitive enough to get reasonable volume from the meager clean 10w/channel and 15w maximum.

Amazed is an understatement. The volume is more than acceptable, although not ear shatteringly loud, it’s more than loud enough you can’t talk over it. Beautifully clear,  and very simple and clean. The efficiency must be well over 90%, as several hours in, there was no heat from the amp whatsoever.

This thing gets my vote, beautiful clean power, dirt cheap price, tiny size, and as eco friendly efficient as you can get.

I’m very impressed.

Now for 802.11g, MIMO will improve your coverage, but seeing as N is just around the corner, and uses MIMO as part of the draft standard, it made sense to just jump to 802.11n. My house is two storey, and getting good reliable coverage over both floors has proved difficult. I always get a signal, but not a good one, and for streaming my Vista Media Centre from my Home Server, I needed a good signal. I could have run Cat5, it’s what I had done in the past, but I figure, in 2008, I should be able to make all this new fangled stuff kinda come together smoothly.

Just released by Netgear and Linksys amongst others are new Dual Band draft N equipment, this runs in both the 5.8Ghz and 2.4GHz ranges. The argument being that the 5.8GHz range is far larger in frequency space, and far less utilised by other things that can interfere. Made sense to me, and at a small price premium, was worth jumping onto. Teamed with a new naked ADSL2+ service, I figured I would “embrace the future”.

The new Netgear model is WNDR3300 and the Linksys a WRT600N. I was more familiar with Netgear, it’s cheaper, and more easily available in Australia. I teamed it up with a set of Netgear USB WNDA3100 adapters. The unit supports QoS for my new Naked ADSL w/ VOIP service and has the widest range of features of the current netgear lineup.

8 Weeks after ordering, the kit finally turned up, with delays from Netgear getting it into the country. Looks like this stuff really is new – oh bugger, that’ll mean bugs.

It looks the piece, big, black, no antennas thanks to the secret metamaterial. The power pack is switch mode and small, and it comes with a few cables. Inital setup is manageable. The flashy lights on top are very very irritating, allow an extra $2 for a roll of black tape.

The first problem was the Router doesn’t have an integrated ADSL modem. Guess I should have read the specs a little better there. It’s almost impossible to purchase an ADSL modem only unit in Australia today, everything wants to route. Two routers in series = problems. You can convert the DG834G into a modem, but I had another home for mine, so I bought a DM111P to run as an Ethernet to ADSL2+ bridge. Getting the DM111P to be a modem means putting it into “RFC2684″ mode, something not covered in any of the docs.  This way the DM111P handles the ADSL settings, but the WNDR3300 does the ADSL PPOE login with credentials etc. The downside is that you can’t see your ADSL line connection performance figures, and whilst the DM111P is in bridge mode, it doesn’t have an IP address, so you can’t get information off of it either. You have to configure your WNDR3300 to login with “Other” and not “PPTP” or “Telstra Bigpond”. Either way, I’m getting about 7Mbit.

Once running and configured I fired up the WNDA3100 units in my partners desktop and the Media Centre. Install went OK, although I hate the “app” type driver installs. I much prefer just having the driver and managing it through windows. I figured being new, that doing it the “right” way with the vendor, and having additional signal information would be useful. Longer term, once smoothed out, I’ll be uninstalling the netgear apps and just running the driver. That said, I have to figure out how to extract it, as it’s all packaged up, and not easy to get into. Finally, there is some sort of script it runs on every login, looks dodgy to me.

The coverage is good, and speed ok. Plenty of other reviews there, no need to re-cover that. Interestingly most of the clients could only see the 2.4Ghz signal. The 5.8 signal gets wiped out by my walls too quickly. As this review covers, you can only have DraftN on either 5.8 OR 2.4 at once, so I dropped the 5.8 signal and got the speed where I could. That pretty well negates the point of having Dual Band.

The comments I have had so far are below

1. Integrated WNDA3100 drivers mean more junk running
2. The pretty blue flashing ultrabright LEDS on the router are really really irritating, and there is no “off” option. (Update – press the dome over the lights – they turn off)
3. The router firmware is very flaky. It drops wireless signal every so often. (Seems better now)
4. The WNDA3100 drivers are less than ideal – more work needed here to improve performance.
5. My 802.11a/b/g laptop only wanted to see the 5.8 signal, not the 2.4, until I turned off the 5.8 on the router totally.
6. My HP printer wouldn’t work with WPA2, I had to turn on WPA/WPA2 compatibility mode.
7. If running in 2.4/5.8 Dual band mode, you get the option to run two different SSID’s. If you run the same one, your client can be confused as to which one to use. There is no guidance I have found on this function anywhere, and I’m still confused. Caused me some grief, until I made them different, at which stage the WPS auto config function stops working properly.
8. My Outlook w/ RPC over HTTP refused to work until I upgraded to the Beta firmware. (Fixed now)
9. Netgear has a Beta program going for firmware and some decent forums
10. There is discussion of other USB NIC vendors with the same Atheros chipset having performance issues.
11. The modem and power adapters all produce a bit of heat, meaning they are not particularly efficient. I am trying to cut my power use.
12. The DM111P comes with an old style power brick, whereas the WNDR3300 has a much smaller and more efficient switch mode power adapter. C’mon Netgear, catch up.
13. Coverage is much better
14. Speed is much better
15. No driver support for the WNDA3100 and Server 2003. I haven’t done video tests yet until I get a NIC for the server.

Next time I think I would consider the DG834N with the integrated modem, unless I had spectrum issues, possibly in densely populated areas.

Update (31/07/08)
I have updated to the latest release firmware – this has helped the stability significantly. Coverage is still ok, but not excellent. Primarily, I still can’t reliably watch DivX/XVid movies on my Vista Media Centre PC from my Windows Home Server. They play, but often judders and stall. The signal strength an quality are about 70% – but it still doesn’t cope. I think I’ll have to run Cat5 to the Media Centre after all. The Home Server is already running Cat 5 to the WNDR3300 – that is a requirement of WHS.  My house is two storey timber and no too huge. Due to placement, some transmission paths are less than ideal – high angle to the walls / floors increasing apparent depth.

 
Router

Router w/ VOIP adapter from Internode

 
Router, VOIP & ADSL Modem

WNDA3100

UPDATE:
I have decided to ditch the WNDR3300 and replace is with *something* else. I ahve gone through 5 versions of the firmware since I bought it. The 5.8Ghz is a waste of time, it has very poor penetration. www.smallnetbuilder.com shows average-poor wireless performacne in comparison from other devices. THe unit was replaced under warranty a couple of weeks ago when the QoS rules would not remain set to custom.

 The final deal breaker was my VOIP phone dropouts. I have an OPEN networks VOIP ATA behind the router, and frequently get “one way voice” on a call. I put this down to VOIP issues. Whilst the router was away under warranty I used my old DG834G – and had NO call dropouts. It doesn’t even have QoS and the call quality was better. As soon as the WNDR3300 went back in – dropouts came back. It’s going to be replaced, this time with somethign with an integrated ADSL modem.

I would not recommend this device.

My approach was to get something 5 star rated, with curtain airbags. Head injuries from side impacts with 4wd’s being a known problem with small cars.

Here are some vids I found that were very enlightening.

Super Scary VB Commodore Test

Amazing Smart Car Test – note the speed!!!!

Smart vs Merc

Old vs New

Curtain Airbags

More Curtain Airbags

Chinese Car Failure

Old small cars – nothing left – scary

I’ll stick with my new 5 Star ANCAP or EuroCAP thanks, you can bring your 70′s whatever.

Basically, do you want a tough helmet, or a soft and squishy one. I’m thinking soft and squishy is probably best.

Here is the testing and analysis http://motorcyclistonline.com/gearbox/hatz/

And here is a more general discussion relating to same, and links to heaps and heaps of resources. http://www.webbikeworld.com/motorcycle-helmets/motorcycle-helmet-faq.htm

A graduated scale for efficiency is here but this is heavily effected by cycle period and the fixture. You generally need more downlights than open bulbs. Some colours are more or less efficient. Frosted covers impact brightness.

I have avoided conventional dimmers as although they are very efficient in themselves, they make a halogen or conventional light bulb even more inefficient than normal. 50% brightness still uses 80% power due to the way filament bulbs work. They also don’t work with most fluorescent lighting.

I mostly stuck with Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFL’s) and conventional Round Flouros.

These are the lights I reviewed here. I think they are great, a reflecting CFL downlight in a normal package. Warmup time is fine. As they are downlights I have to run a few, but it is a large area. They are broken into 4 banks, letting me light where I need. The colour is very white, working very well with my yellow walls to make the house feel bright. 18 in total use 270W compared to the 900W halogen bulbs would use.
The kids room light is used when we put them to bed. It’s a 5w Megaman CFL. Warmup time is very noticeable.
The TV room and lounge have a few up-lights for when soft reading lighting is needed. They are much more pleasant than the fluorescent Oysters on the ceiling. The bulb is a 7W CFL from Ikea. Warmup time is very noticeable.
In the toilet, pantry and my study I have gone for the newer high efficiency T5 circular electronic flourescent tubes in an oyster fitting. They start instantly flicker free, but are more expensive to buy.
The mirror light in the bathroom is a flouro in a suitable fitting.
Although not high efficiency, these angled IXL 275W heat lamps (4 of) are far more efficient in winter than a bar or fan heater. They provide instant radiant heat rather than having to heat the entire room.
These T9 Oysters are used in the parts of the house with lower ceilings. I would like to put electronic ballasts in them, but have hard a hard time finding some. Dimming on some would be nice. Megaman does one, but I can’t find a supplier in Australia.
My front door sensor uses a conventional 13w CFL. Nothing fancy here. It’s several years old and the cycling hasn’t hurt it a bit.
The one spot I haven’t managed to replace yet. They are 12V 20W AC bulbs with a driver circuit that wont energize with LED’s. I have to re-wire the rangehood, and that will void the warranty.
The sensor lights in the carport are just cheap linear fluorescent tubes. The short start cycles don’t seem to be hurting them. I tried an electronic starter, but they still flicker on startup. Another place for electronic ballasts.

That only leaves the Microwave, Oven and Fridge with incandescent bulbs. It’s defiantly do-able and pays for itself very quickly.

It is worth mentioning light Colour. I did a friends house with them and made the mistake of using the same colour bulbs as my house (Daylight – 5000K). It looked awful and very blue. Small cosy houses should use “Warm White”. Large open spaces, especially with yellow paint, benefit from “Daylight”.

Reading and bedside lamps are much more pleasant as “Warm White”.

Wikipedia References

1. Incandescent Bulbs
2. Fluorescent Bulbs
3. Compact Fluorescent Bulbs

Activesync is different to the Mobile Device Thingy on Vista and although the fix was the same, it took me a bit to find.

Think of this as a Vista Version of KB915151

As below

 
Go to “Windows Mobile Device Centre”

Mobile Device Settings – More

Connection Settings

This computer is connected to: Work Network (from Automatic)

Here is the testing to blow some theories away, you’ll find out which ones.

Handheld Digital Manometer
http://autospeed.com/cms/A_2905/article.html

Undertrays, Spoilers & Bonnet Vents, Part 1
http://autospeed.com/cms/article.html?&A=2159

Eliminating Negative Boost – Part 1
http://www.autospeed.co.nz/A_0629/page1.html

Eliminating Negative Boost – Part 2
http://www.autospeed.co.nz/A_0637/page1.html

Eliminating Negative Boost – Part 3
http://www.autospeed.co.nz/cms/article.html?&A=0646

Eliminating Negative Boost – Part 4
http://www.autospeed.co.nz/A_0652/page1.html

Eliminating Negative Boost – Part 5
http://www.autospeed.co.nz/A_0663/page1.html

Siting Cold Air Intakes
http://f2.autospeed.com/cms/A_1023/article.html?popularArticle

We Have a Record!
http://www.autospeed.com.au/cms/article.html?&A=109217

Negative Boost Revisited, Part 1
http://www.autospeed.com/A_107824/cms/article.html

Negative Boost Revisited, Part 2
http://autospeed.com/cms/A_107825/article.html

Negative Boost Revisited, Part 3
http://203.57.155.8/cms/A_107826/article.html

Ballistic Bellmouths
http://autospeed.com/cms/A_1266/article.html

A range of tech tips
http://blog.autospeed.com/2003/11/02/a-range-of-tech-tips/

Box Breaths – airbox testing
http://www.autospeed.com.au/A_0073/cms/article.html

http://www.neuralfibre.com/paulfiles/Cruiser_Oils.xls

Oil Filter Pics Here

Technical info can be gleaned from links below or Google.

This analysis is not perfect or definitive. My motor is not factory and fuel system hasn’t been touched possibly ever (250,000km). I have changed multiple variables each time (oil, filter, driving style etc)

What I read into this analysis is

1. I need to try 10,000KM filter changes, 5000 seems to be nowhere near capacity of the filter
2. Mineral oil is fine at 15,000km, could go longer. 5000 is a total waste of time and money.
3. Soot is the problem and it’s below 1micron. Very small. Hard to filter out.
4. An additional filter *may* help, but would need analysis to prove if it’s effective.
5. Although the factory Toyota filter appears to be far better constructed, it doesn’t perform any differently when changed at 5000KM, possibly worse from some of these numbers. I suspect if has far great capacity.
6. Anyone that talks oil without analysis prob has no idea

I’ll do some more testing, but it’ll take a while. I have a small diesel car for short trips now.

I am using sample kits from Castrol Labcheck at about $40 ea from Qld Diesel Spares. At $100 an oil change if I go from 5000 to 10,000 changes it pays for itself. Plus it’s interesting.

http://www.wearcheck.com/literature/techdoc/WZA026.pdf

The user somewhere\someone dialed a connection named WorkVPN which has failed. The error code returned on failure is 800.

Some searching showed others with similar results. The common cause is Windows OneCare. It’s interaction with the Windows Firewall blocks VPN protocols by default. I’m not sure why it doesn’t prompt to allow the traffic, a problem with the application.

The fix is to enable VPN protocols under “Live OneCare Settings” – “Advanced Settings” Button – “Ports and Protocols” Tab – Tick “Virtual Private Network”.

So with today’s perspective on updates vs uptime, is that impressive, or scary?

I have been doing a program of Laboratory Oil Analysis with Castrol in conjunction with this to obtain some definitive information. None of these filters have run longer than 5000KM.

All the filters are Dual Element types. They contain two filter elements. The first is a full flow element where all the oil from the pump to the engine MUST pass through it. This will catch anything that would cause immediate damage to the engine. There is also a secondary filter stage. The secondary filter is much finer that the primary filter and only scrubs a percentage of the oil each time. Over time this effectively scrubs all the oil to a very fine level. The secondary filter is often called a bypass filter, as in many systems the oil that goes through the secondary stage bypasses the engine and goes straight back to the sump. This is not the case with any of these where the oil from both filters continues on to the engine.

These filters also contain a drainback valve and a bypass valve. The drainback valve is designed to keep the filter full and reduce the time it takes for the engine to acheive oil pressure. The bypass valve is designed so that if the filter blocks to the point where it cannot flow enough oil for the engine, it will open and allow dirty oil to circulate, something that is far better than insufficient oil flow and pressure.

It is difficult to determine when a filter is "full", and I haven’t attempted to here. This fitler design makes it more difficult, as one element may be blocked, and the other still working correctly. There are tests you could devise, or through oil analysis. I have done neither at this point in time. I would however assume Toyota put a reasonable amount of time into determining the capacity of the filter vs the service intervals.

I have heard discussion of using a Z9 type single element filter on these engines. This would be a very bad idea. The Z9 single element has no secondary stage and would not scrub the oil, so over time the oil would become more and more contaminated, significantly reducing it’s lifespan, and the wear on the engine.

I have considered using an external bypass filter element to supplement these, however am reluctant to do so until:
a) I have more oil analysis data to show the benefit
b) I have information that shows they filter to a finer level, at the moment they simply appear to have a larger capacity
c) I have some method for determining if they are blocked or approaching capacity.

None of the filters below showed any obvious signs of clogging, material build up etc. Based on no other evidence than visual, I would say these filters are nowhere near capacity at 5000KM.

The genuine Toyota filter appeared to have better quality parts throughout.

Ryco

Ryco

Ryco

Nippon Max

Nippon Max

 
Nippon Max

 
Toyota Genuine

Toyota Genuine
Much much more material in the secondary stage.

 
Toyota Genuine
Appears to have much more complex pleats and larger surface area.

http://www.tomsguide.com/us/video-streaming-need-to-know-part-1,review-760.html

I’m a bit of an eco-geek, and trying to green up my lifestyle. I figured solar hot water was one of the best places to start, and this is the story of the journey so far. I now have a running system that generally works very well and I am happy with. I wasn’t an easy road however and hopefully others can learn from my mistakes.

There are several rebates available from both the Federal and some State governments (not Queensland). You can also sell the REC’s from certified systems. The Federal Gov rebate is currently for $1000.
A DIY system will get none of the above.

My house was fitted with an old instantaneous gas hot water system that had poor flow, awful temperature regulation and chewed too much gas, especially with the pilot light. I initially started considering all the cheapskate systems I could think of, whilst trying to achieve my ideal of solar booted with instantaneous gas when required. I like having lots of hot water and harvest my water from my roof. My council usage is almost nil, so I can waste as much as I like. The grey water from my shower irrigates my fruit trees, so long showers are just fine by me. 

First idea was black poly pipe, or a DIY panel. The problem with poly is that it can’t handle both pressure and temperature. High temps are fine, high pressure is fine, but not both. Some very thick walled poly would probably cope, but with the weight, fittings and expense this wasn’t particularly practical. Poly also has a large surface area versus it’s collection surface. This means that it loses a lot of heat to the environment, limiting peak temperatures. The advantage of course is that as it’s cheap you can cover a huge are of roof. I know it can be made to work as many swimming pools are heated this way, plenty of farm cottages use the poly as both a heater and a tank, and I know how hot a simple garden hose can get water.

With poly you can get Low or High pressure rated pipe. Low pressure (low density pipe) is very cheap, and would collect and transfer heat very well due to the thin walls. It would only be able to run on an un-pressurised circuit (more on that later). The problem for me was I wanted my tank to be on the ground, not on the roof. With a two storey house this would result in a vacuum in the pipe from the weight of the water, and the pipe would likely collapse when hot due to it’s very thin walls. 7M (22ft) of head would be about 11PSI vacuum (yeah I know, wrong units, but it’s indicative).

High pressure poly is more expensive, doesn’t conduct heat as well due to the thick walls, and needs expensive fittings. I worked out the area I would need and it wasn’t particularly cheap.

The final killer was the lost radiated heat. Reading a number of efficiency articles, mostly relating to cookers, on the Internet, the heat lost without a glass cover was very significant. Vacuum insulation made a huge difference again. Toughened glass is expensive, and whilst I had some toughened glass doors, Brisbane is subject to hail, and I couldn’t see these lasting out that type of impact intact. I’m sure you could make it work, but it was too likely to be problematic for me.

The other types of DIY panel are simple box batch heaters, and home made copper collectors. The batch heaters are labour intensive to use, and the price of copper precludes making your own panel that way pretty quickly. 

Then I saw that Australia had invented a more efficient solar hot water panel. Of course being Australia we had done nothing about capitalising on the invention, and now they were made in China. Beautiful, nice and cheap, just what I needed.

Vacuum tube panels range in price from $500 to $5000 depending on the source. The Australian brands were all  at the “too expensive” end of the market for me, even though they are probably made in China too. I settled on a 15 x 1.8M tube panel from an importer in Sydney though eBay and had it shipped to Brisbane for $550. This was not entirely successful, and only 5 of the 15 glass tubes made the journey intact. Luckily most Chinese stuff are copies of something else, so they tend to be somewhat interchangeable. I dug around a lot until I found a local supplier with some spare tubes at the right price ($150 for 10)

I started with one 15 tube panel and a 250L tank. This was based on it being cheap, and I being cheap. I have since found that I use about 150L of hot water / day with my family of four five. A larger tank would be good for being able to last out several rainy days. The single 15 tube panel was adequate, but only just. Plenty of sun and it was fine, but after a few cloudy days the tank would only get just over lukewarm and cool off a bit more by the following morning. I have since found a table that says:

On the basis of this I installed an additional 15 tube panel (30 total) and have been very happy with the quantity and temperature of the water. I have not had the 250L tank approach boiling yet with 30 tubes, but regularly see 70C.

I considered putting the tank on the roof, but my house was built a little agriculturally and I didn’t trust the roof to handle 300kg+ sitting up there. I later regretted this decision and should have braced the roof and sourced a close coupled roof mounted system.

As the tank was going to be on the ground, I had to fight the natural circulation of the water. Normally the hot water moves up and the cold water down due to the difference in density. I wanted the hot water to come down from the panel and into my tank, and the cold water from the tank to go up. A pump was needed. I looked at the 12v options, and may still go that way yet, many of which use automotive derived parts. I had concerns about automotive pumps coping with residential duty cycles and pressures. Car cooling systems run at 14PSI, not 40-50psi. eBay again to the rescue got me a Hot Water Circulating pump that seemed fair quality and definitely heavy duty – $125. The fittings of course were some weird size, meaning more money later.

If you run a 12V pump then you can run it from a Solar Panel combined with a pump maximiser to get it started. This makes a lot of sense, as when the sun is shining, you want to be pumping. When the sun is not shining, there is no heat, and you don’t need to be pumping. I planned on putting in a Grid Feed solar system anyway, so figured that the solar power issue was near zero for me personally, and I wanted the heavier duty pump. To run the 240v pump however you need a controller. You can build one yourself, but I cheated and bought a Chinese solar pump controller for $150. It had the advantage of also controlling the heater based on a combination of time and temperature. The power rating of the controller was sufficient to run the pump,but to avoid overload the 3.6KW booster element needed a secondary relay which I paid $23 for.

The tank came from the local newspaper – $125 for a 250L Rheem that was 4 years old. The guy I think had been smarter than me, collected the Government rebates and had a system professionally installed. It cost him a few more dollars than I was planning on spending, but he had I believe far less headaches. The tank was labelled “Solar Convertible”, but I think Rheem may be deluding themselves here. I have since seen other tanks that would be far easier to convert. Look for additional ports near the top and bottom of the tank, it will make life much easier. The tank was an enamelled steel pressure cylinder.

Now roughly speaking, in Australia tanks come in two varieties. Pressurised and Heat Exchange. In most tanks, the water in the tank is the water that comes out of your shower. They are very simple with a pipe leading into the bottom of the tank, and a pipe leading. out. There is a heater in the bottom with a thermostat attached, and a safety relief valve somewhere that will open if the pressure or temperature gets too high. These tanks stratify well, keeping cold water near the bottom and hot near the top. You’ll know very suddenly when all the host water is used up. The heating element and / or the solar pumping also breaks up the stratification, meaning your tank may indicate cooler whilst it heats, as it mixes.  Expect big differences in temperature between top and bottom.

The other variety is commonly a Sachs – the Saxon Copperflow. In this system the tank is better thought of as a bucket of hot water that is not under pressure. There is a coil of copper pipe that leads in and out that is connected to your cold and hot water system. There are several differences with this type of system. The water in the tank must be topped up occasionally from the valve on the side. They are supposed to work automatically but don’t seem to particularly well. As the tank is not pressurised, you can circulate the water through low pressure solar heatiing pipes without them bursting, an interesting idea. The circulating pump is also not running with a pressurised circuit, making it a much simpler device. The un-pressurised copper tank is supposed to have a much longer life than a pressurised enamelled steel tank. These systems don’t statify, so tend to cool down gradually as you use them up. Temperature measurements are easier on these tanks.

Finally, hot water systems are supposed to heat up to above 60C every 24hrs to stop nasty things growing in them. A tank that keeps the heat reservoir seperate from the water that goes through your taps would be less subject to bacterial issues, especially in the event of it not heating to full temperature.

Last but not least was the plumbing. This is the bit that hurt the most. I managed to get it all at trade price through mate from Reece plumbing, but there was still $500 worth of pipe, insulation and fittings. Keep in mind that the more fittings you need, the more expensive it will be. In many houses today they are running PEX (Cross Linked Polyethylene) pipe, a grey plastic pipe that is rated for mains pressure hot water up to 90c. It’s cheaper than copper, and far easier to fit, all the connections are push on or crimp on. On a split solar system you need to connect the tank to the panels, and you MUST use copper pipe for this. The water in this circuit will exceed well over 100C and will cause plastic pipe failures. I believe my panels have hit over 160c when the circulating pump stops. More on that later.

The fitup is pictured below.

Solar controller and relay in a weatherproof box. I had to put a sunshield on the box as it was getting to hot with direct sun.
The display / control panel for the controller is supposed to go inside the house. My block walls make routing the plug too difficult, so it lives in a $10 waterproof letterbox.
One of the sensors for the solar controller. They work very poorly. Although accurate when tested, they don’t get a good pickup from the tank so give a false lower reading. I have tried thermal paste etc. Newer models screw into the tank water fittings, a much better idea. I’m going to try and convert mine. The sensors are thermistors, not thermocouples.
The collector panels have a port where you can insert the panel sensor. It’s in a copper tube and gets a good reading. The long run of wire to the roof, despite being heavy gauge upsets the calibration somewhat. I silver taped all the insulation to protect it from the sun, but the tape isn’t lasting. I’ll find some better tape one day. You can see the distortion from soldering the copper. It’s a long story explained below.
My first panel 1/2 installed. I hooked up all the plumbing first as I didn’t want it overheating. They are supposed to be ok run dry but I was cautious. Water pipes were not taped at this stage.My roof faces north at about 27 degrees.
The ten replacement tubes were slightly longer. I had to improvise their mounts somewhat.Thank you to Rod at SolarOz for helping me here.
First panel fully installed – 15 tubes at 1.8m long.
I decided I wasn’t getting enough hot water and bought another panel from another guy. $550 for a 15 tube model.
The new panel didn’t have “feet” making screwing it down a bugger. I should have made some up but was in a hurry. Make sure yours come with feet.
Not sure if I trust this plastic clip to last 10-15 years.
250L Tank + plumbing. Controller not fitted in this pic. I ran the circulating pipes in insulation then in PVC pipe to conceal and protect the insulation from the sun. Use talcum power to make it easier to thread it through.
The roof penetration. This is Sikaflex, not silicon, so it will last. Ideally I should use a Decktite but the roof is only shallow pitch and I wanted minimal interference for drainage. The penetration is through the eave so a leak is not significant. You can see the sensor wires coming up as well. 50mm PCV is Internal Diameter. Drill the hole to 58mm external.
The eBay pump. It has 3 settings with different power and flow rates. Low is fine for both running and priming the loop. The first one had a fault that gave me some stress. It was replaced under warranty. It has no mounts so I had to fabricate some. These pumps are designed for this and similar jobs, so should last a long time. They are very heavy and heat tolerant.
This is my home made 5 way adapter. Simple in theory, not so simple in practice. The valve and other thingy came with the HWS. I have no idea what the bulgy thing in the pipe is.
Picture of home made 5 way adapter that screws into the base of the HWS. Hot water from panel on LHS. Water to panel and cold water in on the T pieces. I had to bend my tube to make it fit. These are a bugger for leaks due to the number of fittings. Use PLENTY of tape.

Now for the install.

I of course had a plumber do all this as doing your own plumbing is illegal. All stories below are his, not mine. That would be naughty.

For the tank base he put it on large pavers and some sand and concrete mix. The cold inlet and hot outlet I just tapped into the existing pipes and soldered them in. A valve was fitted on both the inlet and outlet to allow me to keep using the existing gas hot water if I needed to and to work on the system.

The solar loop pipes were put in insulation  then threaded with some twin wire into a length of 50mm PVC pipe. Talcum powder makes this much easier, but it’s still awkward and needs 2 people. This got screwed to the wall and inserted through a 58mm hole in the roof.

Next he made up the 5 way adapter as per the pics above. I have since found tanks with spare ports at the top and bottom, this may be a better solution. My tank has a curved bottom inside, so he had to bend the pipe to allow it to insert more than 50mm. This does restrict it somewhat. I have no idea how Rheem claims these tanks to be solar convertible, it’s far too difficult. You could do it with T pieces on the inlet and outlet ports, but this risks not mixing the water from the panel with the water in the tank and possibly drawing very varied temperatures into your hot water lines. A bad idea.
The downside with top and bottom ports is siphoning. At night the warm water will tend to flow upstream to the panels and lose heat. If you have top and bottom ports, you’ll need to install a low pressure non return valve inline. A brass flapper check valve might do the job, but may not close if installed vertically. YMMV. Anecdotally (internet forums) many people report problems with these non return valves.

I recommend you assemble the frame for the solar panel on the ground to sort out any problems. Mine could be mounted several ways and it’s far easier to make changes before you are on the roof. Also test fit a tube for practice. Once up there the frame from was screwed to the roof battens with roofing screws and some silicon underneath to stop weeping into the holes. The panel didn’t come with plumbing fittings and used a weird size pipe. I couldn’t match it so had to silver solder on some standard 3/4 pipe. This is a very difficult job as there is no length available and it’s very easy to melt the plastic and insulation. Lesson: Make sure your panel pipe is a known size, or comes with fittings.
Make sure that any compression fittings you use near your panel use Copper olives. I found out several weeks later that Nylon olives melt when they get too hot and won’t cope with a panel. Instant leak and water loss. They are rated for hot water to 85C, not for solar loops with boiling water. They will be fine until the panel is not getting water circulating, at which point the water will boil and the temperature continue to climb. I would hazard a guess that mine got to over 160c when the pump was switched off. Water at 65PSIA (Atmosphere + mains pressure) boils at 147C, a pretty high temperature for plastic to cope with. Your circulating loop may get that hot.
My second panel came with the correct size copper fittings, but it had no feet, as pictured above, making mountind a bugger.

Your fittings and pump can now be connected. Plenty of tape = 10+ turns on all the threads will stop most of the leaks. Mine was a bugger for leaks, he hates BSP fittings. The threads are supposed to taper making them seal as they close up, but manufacturing tolerances between vendors insures there are gaps and sometimes teflon tape just isn’t up to the task. Compression fitting with olives should only be done up gently. Once pressure is applied then start to tighten them till they stop leaking. He found this to be far more reliable then tightening them first. If you over-tighten they deform the pipe and won’t seal whatever you do. Fun fun fun.

You can now fill, bleed and pressurise your system and check for leaks. As the loop to the roof will be full of air, if there is a leak, it may take some time to show up. You can run the pump to push the water up and air out. 

Once all the water is connected you can insert the vacuum tubes into the panel. The ends need to be coated in thermal paste, so don’t leave them in the sun or you won’t be able to touch them. They are very tight into the rubber seals. A spray bottle of soapy water makes this very easy. The plastic end caps can be a bugger and aren’t particularly well designed on any of the panels I have seen. Luckily the retention is done mostly by the top, the plastic doesn’t do much.

I ran my pump initially off a simple timer switch until I had time to fit the controller. This works well enough, but does waste some power and isn’t most efficient. On a day with no sun you end up circulating hot water into a cold panel. Luckily the vacuum tube type panel used here wastes almost no heat and may still be warm in this situation.

The first pump I had was faulty. It would run just fine until the circuit was pressurised, at which stage it would stall. They are designed such that the bearings are supposed to have water on both sides to balance the pressure, this one would push onto it’s bearings and stall. A replacement pump rectified the problem. I would recommend not unscrewing the silver cover cap on the pump unless you have to. The area underneath is pressurised by the circuit and can be problematic to re-seal. The pump will stall with this cap off.

When I installed the controller I put it into a weatherproof box with the control panel. This became tedious as whenever I wanted to check or change anything I had to unscrew the cover. It’s too difficult for me to core drill my wall to put the display inside, so I put it into a cheap letterbox that is waterproof. The controller is not waterproof. My controller can switch up to 2KW, but the element in the hot water system is 3.6KW. A heavy duty relay resolved the heater issue.

When you program the controller read the manual, it’s a little complex. What I have found is that the controller will stop the circulating pump once the tank reaches it’s “set” temperature. As this is the same “set” temperature used for the heater, I wanted it quite low. This stopped the pump one day, boiling the panels and melting the nylon fittings. Now it’s set to the max of 75C. I think it’s a bit silly that they don’t let the tank get over 75C from solar, but I have checked different brands and they all seem the same. The pump runs when the temperature difference between the panel and the tank is a set amount. This works fine as well as the sensors get a reliable pickup. The short sensors I have a dodgy at best and don?t read the tank temperature well to all. This can cause the pump to run into the evening and some heat to be wasted. Make sure your pickups actually go into the water of the tank, not just the surface of the steel inside. 

I have set my tank thermostat (the one built into the Rheem) to minimum. This means that if I do need to boost, I use the minimum power required. The controller may keep trying to keep heating, but the tank will turn itself off at the temperature i have set. Technically this should be over 60c for health reasons.

The controller can also set when you want to boost. I set it for the end of the day. My logic is that if by 4PM the tank is not up to temperature, then it should boost for 2 hours to get it warm enough, or until the thermostat on the tank cuts out. The controller thermostat is set to 75c for the reasons discussed above with the pump. That’s why I use the tank thermostat for cutout.

I normally keep the boosting disabled as there is a function on the controller to lock it out. I have only needed to boost three times so far when the panel was too small, or when the controller has played up.

Key lessons

1. Get a big enough tank and enough tubes the first time
2. Pumps / Sensors / Controllers / Electrics are problematic
3. Plumbing is expensive. Copper plumbing is very expensive
4. Don’t trust couriers
5. Leaks happen
6. Have an understanding family if you DIY
7. Understand the gov’t rebates well
8. Nylon olives will melt and leak
9. Chinese build quality is not ideal, but is good for the price
10. Chinese fitting sizes may be non standard

If I was doing this again I would NOT do a ground mounted tank. If you had a roof mounted tank it would circulate naturally. You could run PEX piping, much cheaper and simpler than copper. The loop wouldn’t be needed, saving $500 of fittings, a pump, a pump controller, sensors and wiring. Natural circulation is a far better idea. The downside is that you need a horizontal tank and these are much harder to come by. There are some Chinese ones coming in now I believe. The other option if you don’t care about aesthetics is to mount a normal tank somewhere on your roof with the panels lower than it.

I think I could have saved $500 or more and a heap of problems with a roof mounted tank.

A new gas system would have cost me about $1000 and gas was about $150/qtr. This would have probably dropped to $100/qtr. That means that it will still pay itself off, especially if I don’t have to boost.

I am currently still using the tempering valve that was fitted to the house. Technically a solar system needs a solar compatible tempering valve fitted to cope with the temperature. A tempering valve normally is onyl designed for water up to 85C. Water at 65PSIA (Absolute – atmosphere + 50PSI mains pressure) boils at 147C, not 100C, meaning that water leaving the system could boil at the taps or cause instant burns. The tank is designed to release water if the temperature exceeds 99C or the pressure gets too high, this is through the safety valve. A solar compatible tempering valve is about $350 vs $125 for a normal one.
You also have to decide what part of your house you want tempered. I like water up to 70C for my washing up tap, shaving and washing machine. The shower and bath should only be 48C. The maximum you can set on a tempering valve is 50C, meaning if you want the hot water to be hotter, it has to be untempered and may reach boiling. There is no simple answer I have found for this problem.  Here are some details on Hot Water Safety

My system was installed about Sept ’07, but I’m still debugging a few things.

Update (31/08/08)
The solar controller (pump / heater controller) has given me heps of problems so far. I have now removed it and am using a home built one. This has it’s own issues, we’ll see how it goes. Contact me if you need more info.

Update (30/06/10)
The homemade controller is going strong. I dont control the booster with the solar controller or a timeclock anymore, but have put it on off-peak power instead. That way it’s only on at night. This combination seems to work well. It means the realy is no longer needed.
The alternate would be instantaneous gas boosting.

Useful Links

http://www.voltscommissar.net/K4/kernkraft.htm

Actually the catch tray in the surf was better, as it had a hole and hose leading to near the sump plug, so whatever leaked, ended up in the bucket too. This one you have to clean out manually – I use a rag. Oh well, can’t have everything I guess.

• Toyota Part Numbers are:
  Receiver, Oil 15674-17010
  Bolt, FR Oil Pump Cvr – 91511-J0820

A mate bought a brand new set of “TBC Corproation” Korean 235/85/16 muds the other day for $500 for 5. Sundown was their first trip out. The roads were bad, the Discovery fully locked.

In comparison another Defender without lockers did the same roads with some assistance. The Defender had a brand new set of Maxxis on it. My Cruiser had Mickey T MTZ’ s not pictured, here. Same roads, also minimal to no significant damage.

Tyre pressures on the Korean tyres were 22PSI initally, then dropped to 17PSI. All work was low range, generally 1st or second. There was wheelspin, but in the cheap tyres it was minimised as far as possible. The Maxxis copped more of a flogging due to not having lockers fitted to the car. Yes the rocks were hard and sharp, but the other tyres coped.

Here are the pics for comparison.

Sidewall Staked
Sidewall Torn
Shredded
More Shredded
Yes, that is steel belt you can see
Well branded
Size
Model
Load rating – Treadwear – yeah right.
Maxxis in comparison, these actually had a harder time as Defender was unlocked.
Maxxis
Bighorns – not bad at all.

The AGM construction has approximately 50% more lead in it than a normal flooded cell, and the electrolyte is not free to move around as easily as it charges. The cells are tightly packed with an adsorbent wadding leaving no room for movement.

If you overcharge an AGM or overheat it, it will bulge the top and sides. If the bulging becomes bad enough, the battery will fail. Optima tries to stop this problem by winding their plates in a spiral, a stronger construction. Odyssey tries to stop it by placing a metal jacket around the battery.

Finally, a batteries life is defined not only by how heavily it’s used, but also by what temperature it’s used at.

So when I fitted AGM’s to my cruiser, I knew heat may be an issue.

The 80 Series cruisers came with a battery heat shield, as do Falcon’s and many other vehicles. Heat reduces a battery lifespan significantly, from 10 years to 2 or less.

I found the majority of the heat was from the radiator fan blowing onto the batteries. Due to the placement of the engine, much of the hot air goes straight to the batteries. I measured battery temps of over 65c.

Now with the heatshields they don’t get over 40c, even after several hours of driving. Fast or slow doesn’t seem to matter too much.

I had two of the aluminium ones folded up and I trimmed them to size with a nibbler. I only had time to fit one before my last trip and quickly made up a temporary shield from a windshield sun reflector for the other. Both work equally well and the windshield cover is less likely to damage other parts of the car. Despite having foil in it foil, it doesn’t conduct, I have tried that in several ways, including puncturing it. 

I know people talk about radiant heat from turbo’s and exhausts being a problem. I found the 90-100 deg c air from the radiator to be far more of a problem than the radiant heat from the turbo. How do I know? Radiant would only heat the side that faces the turbo. I found the battery to be evenly hot all over – hot air.

Airflow from front of car to behind headlight to cool batteries. Previously hot air would come back through through this hole from the radiator. Poor design.
1.5mm Aluminium sheet folded and edged with rubber seal.
Blocks airflow from fan onto battery.
Battery sits on some “windscreen sunshield” as a “floor” for the box.
Plastic hose to protect sharp edges.
Cheaper rushed version before trip. Seems to work just as well.
100Mile/Hr tape and $2 sunshield.
Wrapped all around the back, top, sides and underneath.
Airflow gaps at the front to allow cool air in.
Engine close to radiator forces air to go sideways onto batteries. Fan has a large centrifugal component, so a lot of very hot air exits sideways.

Front AC panel with slot for filters

 
Barrier approx 1/3-1/2 way in

 
Another angle

 
Depth view of A/C unit – it goes a LONG way back

Another depth view

How far I can insert the filter

I am pleased to say that it reads DVD’s reliably, which the last one didn’t from new and is quiet, which the last one wasn’t either.

Now I’m not saying it’s silent, but combined with a Media Centre built this way, I can’t hear it.

5/5

Although the Media centre is still a flaky piece of crap.

I’ve been moving all my home PC’s over to wireless as I reshuffle the rooms in my house. As part of this I have had a nightmare of a time with one machine being unable to connect to anything, the media centre dropping connections to the server, and other general weirdness.

I tracked it all to the Browser service and lack of decent name resolution. I have never really liked the browser service, it’s never reliable, but in this scenario, it should perform fine.

Google wasn’t a lot of help, although there were some hints. The MS Browser tools are all designed to work in a domain, not a workgroup.

What I found was that I had to DISABLE the Ethernet NIC on the machines having problems. Disconnected was not adequate. Now I had seen this in servers before, but not in a general home LAN. Retesting showed the same results.

I gave up before trying to track the browser election broadcasts, although a few packet captures showed name resolution wasn’t working correctly before the change. Event logs showed nothing useful.

So, if you have problems with your home wireless network and name resolution, disable the unused wired NIC’s and just run the wireless. All is happy now.

Next to solve the bandwidth issues.

“”

The one I bought is worth the money as scrap steel however – weighing in at 20KG, it weighs more than my entire drawer system. I’ll be “modifying” this to reduce weight significantly when I can afford a plasma cutter.

It’s a fridge slide. The fridge slides in and out. It kind of stays out, depending if the locking mechanism lines up that time or not. The straps it came with were a joke.
Looks like slides from a computer server or filing cabinet. Surprisingly they don’t rattle. The locking mechanism does however rattle a little, as sympathy with the travel stop which squeaks.
Very solid construction. The amount of plate steel used here is amazing. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough to stop the carpet bowing it up in the middle and rubbing on the sliding tray. You can see the rub mark where it has damaged the paint and scored the steel. The clearance here was inadequate to start with.
You can see I have screwed it down. It comes with 4 small screw holes, 2 of which are covered by the tray. Total disassembly is required to screw it down firmly.
The tray rubs underneath as well.
The offending locking mechanism that needs a grinder taken to it.

Well it’s difficult to install, requires modification from new, squeaks, rattles slightly, slides poorly, jams open, doesn’t lock open, and weighs far far too much.

BUT it is pretty solid, and could be modified to be better.

Score: 2/5
I’ll get a lightweight one. Or one of these drop ones for the missus although $449 is a bit more expensive and I haven’t seen a weight.

1. They are difficult to tighten as the lop just goes round and round as you try and tighten it.
2. They make it very difficult to remove the fridge as each strap has to be unthreaded back through it’s buckle. A tedious job for the rear ones.

Loop straps on a fridge are a silly idea.

Just Straps to the rescue. These came from BCF, even though I hate the place. Super Cheap Auto of the camping world. They are 25mm webbing rated at 150KG each. A big accident might break them loose, but I think the fridge or slide mounts will fail first.
They are in two pieces with a strong steel hook and loop connecting them. One part stays with the fridge, the other with the slide or tie-down points. The fridge end has a loop to feed through itself. The base end has a length adjustable steel buckle.
The loop that connects is together is a gripping “tiedown” tensioner, allowing a 2:1 mechanical advantage. Great for getting it down nice and tight.
All tied in, it won’t move no matter what happens.

Highly recommended. 5/5
They are quick, simple, easy and strong.

Christmas ’07 saw me in Tassie for a holiday and gagging to try some of the more famous Tassie tracks. After the first decent circuit done and heading up a dirt road I hear and feel a noise – clunk clunk clunk about once per wheel revolution. I had heard a very faint noise 2 weeks before, but it was consistently only on deceleration and I had put it down to the new tyres.

A few tests quickly showed it was the diff and not a CV. 10KM back to Zeehan at 10km/hr and I disconnected the front tailshaft and knocked off the two front hub drive caps. This isolated the front diff, but did leave the front wheel bearings exposed.

Several thousand KM later back to Brisbane and a heap of tracks missed, and the diff was pulled down.

The pictures below is what was found.

The diff housing was not adequately cleaned out after the last failure. The company that did the work was BOAB 4×4 at Lawnton run by the ownerat the time, Darryl Flenady. $5000 for diff repairs, 2 air lockers, CV’s, bearings and seals was obviously not that well spent. I should have been more suspicious after the rear air locker they fitted failed and had to be repaired by ARB. Despite doing a full strip for the above work, somehow a nice handful of large chunks of hardened gear teeth where missed. Quality work eh. The pics below show the amount of metal left in there and the damage done to the new gears.

The business is now in new hands – Wayne is the new owner. Wayne wouldn’t wear responsibility. The charge was $305 to remove and refit the diff and clean if properly. A very fair price, but not the cost I would expect for faulty workmanship.

The diff itself was sent off to Duncan at Top Cog in Caloundra who does the work for Boab. Duncan only charged for parts and also stripped and setup the locker with less lash at my request. The car drives significantly smoother now, whareas it used to clunk on / off throttle. Parts cost there was $1000. Duncan indicated that the Ring and Pinion could possibly be re-used, but would most likely be noisy. Fine for a part time 4wd, but problematic in an AWD car. I agreed with that assessment and coughed up the $.

I say a big Thank You to Duncan at Top Cog, he has done and excellent job and none of this was his fault.

BOAB clearly was in my view, shockingly negligent in their original work. Although the new owner did try too help, and I understand his position, I don’t believe he has worn the responsibility that comes with buying an existing business. I know I’ll be taking my money elsewhere in the future.

The cost to me was $1305 in repairs, plus a family 4wd holiday that got very mangled due to having a broken car. At $1200 return, Tassie isn’t a cheap place to go back to. Hotel bills in cities wheren’t what I planned for a family camping trip in the bush.

Nice and Chunky

Nope – they didn’t come from that

Or from that either

But they sure did a good job damaging it.

Update: Oct ’11
I did take this to small claims to recover my costs, however my claim was unsuccessful. As I was not a mechanic the judge decided I was not qualified to assess what was a “fair amount” of metal to be left behind compared to a professional in the field. Darryl being a professional with far more experience. I’ll let the reader do your own assessment from the photos above what is a ”small amount” that is “normal”. It’s always nice to know who you are doing business with.
$75 wasted and a few lessons learnt about court processes.

Lets say you have a domain name of company.com.xx and you host it yourself. The primary is stored on your DNS server in your DMZ and the secondary with your ISP.  

Now someone in your country will be hosting the .com.xx records. They will have a DNS server with a listing of delegations, that is who is responsible for sub-domains under .com.xx like your company.com.xx 

This is where it gets interesting. Delegation is done by hostname, not by IP address. In this case it will be delegated to something like NS1.company.com.xx and NS2.YourISP.com.xx

Now for a remote DNS server trying to resolve a host on your domain – eg www.company.com.xx it can query for your ISP’s records just fine. Yours however are a circular reference. You are saying that to find records for your domain you have to ask your DNS server, but to ask your DNS server you have to know it’s IP address which is stored in your domain. To get around this little problem the entity hosting .com.xx will have created a “glue record” when your domain was registered and delegated. This is buried in their server and will be an A record something like ns1.company.com.xx 2.3.4.5. Now you have a record that is supposed to be inside your domain zone, hosted outside your zone. This has the potential for confusion. 

Now, if you ever decide to change the IP address of your DNS server, and you look in your DNS records, you’ll find some NS records and some A records. Changing these WILL NOT change the glue record at with your DNS registrar. Worse, no query you can do with NSLookup will show where the problem is once it’s changed. If you check with your registrar, they will show NS1.company.com.xx and NS2.YourISP.com.xx. NSLookup will show both of these to be correct. You can’t edit your own glue records, and most registrars don’t give you access to that area.

The only two ways I have found of proving the problem are to use NSLookup to directly query the registrars DNS servers for the glue record name and have them come back with an IP that is different to your NS records, or to start digging through your internal DNS servers DNS cache. It will have the incorrect record stored in there as that is where it is directed when it does a query about your domain.

Then ring your registrar and get it fixed.

I have seen this stuffed up generally in countries where the domain management is “less than ideal”, but also in Australia. It can be confusing for a first time exercise as the problem looks setup correctly, the broken record is one there you can’t see.

If you have a delegation problem, this is where I start.

“The Web Proxy filter failed to bind its socket to x.x.x.x port 8080. This may have been caused by another service that is already using the same port or by a network adapter that is not functional. To resolve this issue, restart the Microsoft Firewall service. The error code specified in the data area of the event properties indicates the cause of the failure.”

A while ago due to a combination of circumstances I decided to build a Windows Media Centre PC. A few friends had them and spoke highly and being stuck on an island it seemed like a bright idea to pass the time between dives, fishing and drinking. I started, but never had the time to get it completed.

Then I moved back to Oz and it got put in a box for 12 months.

I recently resurrected the project and decided to fire the thing up with Vista. This is the story of woe that followed.

OS Installation

Well, one would think that for a system designed to live in the lounge room displaying on your huge energy sucking plasma TV using a flash as wireless keyboard then you could install it as such. Fat chance. Installation pretty well requires you to plug in a normal USB keyboard, mouse and often LCD PC screen into something that is not supposed to need a keyboard, mouse and screen. DUMB

My disk had been used for XP. As I alluded to here, you can’t install Vista onto a Dynamic Disk with a partition on it. Pull apart your PC and play the HDD shuffle to fix this moronic decision. I haven’t had to do this since I chipped my first XBox. DUMB

Drivers & Hardware

Next step was to get the drivers to work. Scarily enough all the Hardware was over one whole year old, so I figured my chances were limited, seeing as it was released before Vista. Most manufacturers have a “don’t look back” policy. (If you think large company means better driver support – HP, Sony, Dell, IBN etc – you are kidding yourself, they are worse). I spent a significant number of hours throwing ideas round the XPMediaCentre website with little to no success.

Tuner
Dvico Dual Digital TV Tuner Card – Hours (many hours) wasted, drivers give combinations of “unknown devices”, single tuner only, or dual tuners with non visible to Media Centre. Nightmare stuff.
I replaced it with a Dual Digital Hauppauge to much greater success.

Video Card
I was recommended a HIS X1300 as it had the fanless option I was after. It’s up to the task, but the drivers are rubbish. They don’t have all the options covered on the ATI site. Support for varied resolutions or dual screen doesn’t exist. You can’t drive the VGA and Component outputs at the same time.

It’s impossible to get a colour signal through the component output to the TV. The TV is a native 1366 x 768 wide picture. The best the card will deliver is B&W at 480i. There is no option in the HIS driver to setup the component outputs. The ATI driver doesn’t work with the card. I would like to video switch with my amp, and component will give the best quality to do that. I ended up driving the screen with VGA @ 1360 x 768.

Comments on the boards abound about Video output, quality and alignment issues. The justifications given are basically that TV and PC signals are fundamentally incompatible and can’t work well together. I have an XBox that says that is rubbish. It should be very possible to get good TV support from cards with TV outputs, anything less is a sign of immaturity in the industry. VGA is analogue, TV is analogue. DVI is digital, HDMI is digital. Either way, a good signal at any resolution should be simple.

Case
The Zalman HD 160 looked good and had an excellent layout internally for quiet airflow. Unfortunately the drivers for it were a mess.

The card reader comes up an an Unknown USB device.

The IR receiver reception is poor and only works when the software is running.

The software doesn’t autorun, so you have to do that after install. It may also may stop receiving IR when the machine goes to sleep.

The display on the front does work when the IR software is running, however if you then use the MS IR receiver as it gets a MUCH  better signal, the two conflict. It is supposed to be possible to turn the built in one off, but I can’t figure out the software options. I gave up and ignored the display.

IR Keyboard
The Microsoft IR Keyboard is rubbish. Total and utter rubbish. There is a 70% chance that the key you press will end up on the screen. As it’s impossible to touch type on your lap, you have to look up and down after typing each key to see if it worked. This becomes frustrating after about the first 3 keys, before I gave up and plugged in a USB keyboard to work off. IR works, it doesn’t have to be that bad. JUNK

Lockups
These aren’t resolved yet, but I suspect the Asus MB. I’ll update when it’s solved.

Audio Out
The digital audio out seems to work OK, although my distrust by now extends fairly wide, so I would really like to see some sort of display to tell me if it’s decided to output Stereo vs 5.1.

Software

Codecs
Amazingly enough Microsoft bothered to include the codec to play DVD’s, I suppose MCE 2005 didn’t even get that. Unfortunately not being able to play Quicktime, DivX or XVid rules out a good 50% of the content out there. The codecs for these can be problematic, especially with AC3 audio. Quicktime is still giving me grief.

Lets get this straight, my chipped Xbox with XBox media centre written by a bunch of hackers worried about prosecution played more stuff, more reliably than Microsoft multi million dollar effort. That’s a JOKE.

Codecs and Media Centre
OK, so I have the Codecs installed and can play the video through Media Player. But not through MCE. It still doesn’t recognise stuff. So I still can’t play Quicktime through MCE. Great effort. You write Office for the Mac, but you can’t licence Quicktime. Marketing Morons.

Screensaver
I worry about burn in on my Plasma. It seems pretty simple to me. If a movie or TV is playing, don’t let the screen saver run. If a movie is paused or not playing fulls screen, make sure it’s enabled by default and kicks in after 5 minutes. Simple. Of course it doesn’t work that way. When it will kick in seems to be dependent on it’s mood, what erroneous input the IR receiver has seen or a set of undocumented rules, it may, or may not come on.

Guide
It’s crap in Australia. Enough said. If I pay for ICE TV it may work better than what Microsoft should have sorted out years ago. I mean they have enough experience in court, what’s another court case.

Library
You can only add shares to the Library, not individual sub-folders. What year are we in? They sorted that for Home Drive mapping back in Windows 2000!

Aspect Ratio
I suspect this is more to do with the huge range of aspect ratios and how they are recorded onto DVD, but after owning a wide-screen TV, it really is a dogs breakfast and all over the place. I frequently find myself trying different screen formats to see what fits best. Immature industry this wide-screen HDTV.

Summary

Well the driver support is poor. The hardware is poor. The Microsoft components are not well integrated. The codecs are non-existent. The setup is a nightmare. And they expect this to replace my mothers VCR one day?

Lets get this straight. The ONLY thing Vista MCE does that a chipped XBox running XBox Media Centre can’t is record TV. The old cheap simple reliable modded XBox does more than Media Centre, with less hassle. And you can buy HDD recorders for recording TV.

I would think twice and then think again before I set my heart on this rubbish. I’ll persist and get it working, but this is definitely v0.02.

Turns out the Proxy settings buried under Start – Settings – Connections – Connections – Advanced – Select Networks – Edit – Proxy Settings

Are set to my work proxy, and it learns this every time I plug in to use ActiveSync, it learns them again.

The fix and why is here.

I decided on Autometer as they are know to be very high quality and if bought from the US, well priced. VDO is another well respected brand, but is getting hard to source.

I ended up buying from AtlanticSpeed as the EGT gauge (the most expensive) was US$148 vs $351 in Australia. eGauges also has a good reputation, but couldn’t supply the metric gauges I wanted at the time. Thermoguard is an Australian company that does a very good digital EGT gauge for AU$265, however I didn’t have a suitable place to mount this type and preferred the analogue style of readout.

I settled on a Diesel EGT Gauge – 3344-M as the most appropriate. It is metric, 270 deg sweep for good resolution (90 deg sweep makes it hard to pick small changes) and has a suitable range for a diesel engine, 0 – 900 C. There are many EGT gauges designed for petrol engines that go to 1200 C, however in a diesel this “wasted” and again reduces resolution. I wanted to be able to pick small changes.

There are no Autometer boost gauges that go from 0 – 15 PSI. There are plenty that do vacuum as well, however diesels generally do not generate vacuum. There were plenty that went to 30PSI, however as I am only running low – medium boost, this would again have reduced resolution. I ended up using a Fuel Pressure Gauge – 3311 for US$40.

Postage for these plus another set for a mate was US$44, keeping the cost well below what I could get similar from within Australia.

The 2 gauge pod came from eBay to suit 2 1/16″ (52.4mm) gauges.

Fitting is as below

EGT thermocouple drilled and tapped into the side of the exhaust manifold before the turbo. This is the best position to detect EGT. Hole is imperial drill size 0.332 with a 1/8″ NPT tap run through it. Any fine shavings won’t bother an exhaust turbine wheel at all as it is designed to deal with flakes of carbon. The manifold drills and taps easily. The heat shield bolts were seized so I gave up and drilled a hole in it. When tapping – use some lubricant with the tap. Be firm and keep it very square, it’s not that thick so cross threading is easy and would be bad. Use a proper tap handle and not a shifter, you won’t keep a shifter square.
A trip to a fittings and hose shop made up an adapter for the factory port in the crossover pipe and supplied the hose / adapters needed for the boost gauge. There are no ports in the manifold itself.
The wire and hose was run to allow for movement and flex
Spare length for the thermocouple should not be trimmed to maintain factory calibration. Spare length for the boost gauge helps to damp any vibration and pulsing giving a smoother reading.
I had to silver solder up an adapter for the fuel pressure gauge. It uses a flare fitting and I wanted to connect to nylon hose. Further, the pod had very tight constraints for size, so getting the length and angle just right was just right. This is probably the most difficult part.
Test fitting the two gauges in the pod. The black plastic pod received three coats of Grey Vinyl Paint to match the car interior. This paint won’t damage the plastic.
Mounted on the A pillar there is very little obstruction to vision. The distance is good enough to be clearly visible. I placed the EGT gauge further away as this makes it easier to see. The human eye can change direction quickly but is very slow to change focus. The further away your gauges are the easier it is to glance at them.

So far the 1HZ Cruiser is running 9.5PSI Boost and the following EGT’s

The fuel gauge does seem a little notchy in it’s role as a boost gauge, but works well enough and is quite precise. The EGT gauge is sensitive to electrical noise and low voltage. Make sure it gets a good feed or the needle will jump around.

The pictures below tell the story of how well couriers treat products labeled in 10 places “Glass, Fragile, This Way Up”

Of the 15 tubes, 5 made it intact.

I have a video of breaking these into the rubbish bin and they are pretty tough. Made from borosilicate glass they take some smashing. Looking at the box the courier has either dropped them on their end or crushed the end, as the tubes busted through the polystyrene and the cardboard. Lesson learnt, don’t trust these to a courier. A number of phone calls to other suppliers in Brisbane confirmed a high loss rate with couriers, and most will no longer use them.

Luckily for me I found (too late) a Gold Coast supplier who could supply replacement tubes, and who was $150 for spares vs the commonly quoted $500 for 10 tubes. Thank you very much Rod from SolarOz.

I’ll post pics of the system when it is fully installed and operational.

Vista could not install. Vista could see a single unrecognizable partition. Fair enough I think, it doesn’t like dynamic disks, I’ll just delete it.

Errgh, No. Vista doesn’t let you delete partitions from dynamic disks though the installer. The only solution I could find was to either boot to a 3rd party utility CD (which wasn’t handy) and nuke the partitions, or, the one I chose, to pluck the disk, drop it in an external USB caddy, and delete the partition from there on another XP PC.

Now, MS pushed Dynamic disks and the partitions associated as the “best way” to do things. Then they don’t support it fully with their next OS through the install.

That’s just silly (and slack) Microsoft

So I copied my old man.

A timber shelf with plastic boxes under it, carpeted. Have boxes for day to day, and another set on the shelf in the shed for camping. It’s quick and easy to pack / unpack / change over, practical for camping as you can leave the boxes at the campsite. And cheap.

Plenty of space in the cruiser, not very useable.
A quick twist to the top mounting straps for the Milford cargo barrier moved them up, and the top of the barrier forward 15mm. Every bit helps. The mount points the instructions give you for the cargo barrier put it back 1.5″ from the seat, losing heaps of rear space.
I swapped the short straps for the long ones, re-drilled them and trimmed to length. This pic shows the short strap beside the long one. The hole in the floor is just visible.This gained 1.5″ of space at the bottom of the barrier and pushed it within 5mm of the back seat. The long straps are normally used if you mount the barrier in the “forward” 2 seat position.
A trip to Bunnings found the boxes I needed. The smaller ones on the rear of the sides are due to me needing to maintain access to the child seat mounts. It’s a combination that works well. The steel bar was to give me a level to measure to that would clear everything.
15mm structural ply for the sides. I tried 15mm for the top, but it was not strong enough to bear my weight. The top is “about” 1100 x 1100, but measure your car to be exact.I ended up using 21mm ply for the top. Tip for beginners (and me), make sure the top & bottom grain of the ply runs side to side. It is much stronger this way. I can now stand on it and it doesn’t bend.
The sides were profiled to clear the plastic trim near the wheel arches. I wanted it as wide as possible.
I used 45mm x 3mm aluminium angle in the corners to strengthen them. It’s light, cheap and strong. Angle is screwed and glued.
All joints are drilled, glued and screwed. I used the new Polyurethane wood glue, it’s much stronger than PVA and bonds to more things. All screws are 10 Gauge. They need to be drilled as you are going into the end grain of the ply.
Rear tie downs are 6mm stainless turnbuckles from Bias Boating and the U bolt from a galvanized wire rope clamp. This gives a very low profile loop. Grind the sharp points off the turnbuckle hooks, they really hurt. The floor is the factory tie down point.
Holes drilled for the kids seatbelts.The front is tied down with cam buckle straps to the front factory tie down points. Cam buckle straps are lower profile than ratchet straps. Zip tie the bottom hooks to the barrier to keep them from coming off. This gives a simple and very strong tie down. You can’t tie down to the barrier as it’s not well secured up/down. It is only strong back / forward. If you do these up first, then the turnbuckle tensions them as you do up the rear.
I used 2m x 1.5m of Marine Grey carpet and 1L of contact adhesive again from Bias. Tip: Read the instructions on the can of adhesive, it works much better that way.I deliberately didn’t put side “wings” on mine despite initial plans to do so. After trying it I found a plastic Jerry can of water fits perfectly on each side. I’m very happy with the result and storage from the boxes. Overall weight is under 15KG inc boxes. (haven’t measured it exactly). Much lighter than the cargo barrier.

The next step is a fridge slide from 4WDSystems for my Waeco CF50 and I’ll have something that is more effective than a $2500 set of drawers for $500.

I recently fitted a set of Airlift 1000 Series helper airbags to my ’98 HZJ105 Toyota Landcruiser. They were much cheaper ($200 vs $1000+) than a pure rear airbag solution, and easy to fit. At 5psi they have little effect, but with up to 40psi they can handle 2200kg additional load on the rear as per the spreadsheet I worked out earlier. I doubt my shocks would handle that sort of load effectively.

I bought the kit from www.truckspring.com as they worked out to Au$200 delivered to my door vs Au$350+ to buy them locally. I know, support the local guy, but not at that markup. The locally supplied Polyair bags are just a rebadged Airlift kit from what I have seen and comments on various discussion boards reflect this.

The part number for a 2″ Lifted 100 Series Landcruiser is 61730
The part number for a stock GU Nissan Patrol is 61724

Installation in the cruiser was easy:

Kit is fairly comprehensive. The only problem was the hose is not long enough to run two hoses to the front of the car, and it’s a hard to match hose (but not impossible). I wanted my valves under the bonnet near the compressor, but such was not to be.

I dropped the wheels off and undid the bottom shock mounts: I bit of persuasion the got the springs out, it is easier with a second person to push down on the axle whilst the other pulls the springs. Then insert airbag and spacer.

Back in place. Run the lines with some slack up the top as the bag / spacer may move inside the spring and you wouldn’t want to pull the lines out of the nipple. At full droop a gap is normal

I ran my airlines into the T piece supplied and onto a common valve on the bumper. I figure at these low pressures and volumes, doubling the volume will help in getting a consistent pressure. Most gauges aren’t accurate down to 5PSI and the smaller the volume, the harder it is to adjust. I don’t have huge loads on one side only to need the separate side to side adjustment.  The airlines are too small to work as the Landrover system does offroad, allowing air from side to side. It would happen, but too slowly to be useful in improving articulation.

So far they are working well. Fully laden I used to bottom out my rear springs on contours etc, now it’s not a problem, I just set them to 20psi. Most (90%) of the time they are only at the minimum 5psi giving a pleasant ride.

A friend did blow some recently on dirt roads, but they were old. I know they have a finite life, which I heard once as “about the same as your tyres”. I’ll see how they go, but I imagine dirt roads are hard on them for abrasion against the spring.

I used to love the APC Smart UPS range. Fully line interactive, they’ll work of nearly any input power and give perfect output power. They don’t cut to batteries unless there is basically no input whatsoever, so brownouts or out of frequency gensets don’t bother them in the least, or even flatten the batteries. Just what you need living on a minesite, or somewhere the power is often dodgy. I still like them for server rooms, very flexible solution, but not for home.

I recently bought a power meter and the results were not good…..

 
264W – UPS running 2 PC’s, a laptop and a few other bits.

 
126W – Same equipment, same conditions, no SmartUPS

126W – Same equipment, same conditions, Offline Powerware UPS

The UPS was fully charged, all equipment was at idle and 30+ minutes after a clean boot. The APC was less than 50% efficient.

It’s gone now. I’m trying to be somewhat green and using DOUBLE the power to run my computers is not a good tradeoff. I’m sure APC could have done better if they had tried.

The digital power meters are available from Jaycar

I had a constant damp mist of oil near my fuel filters on my ’98 HZJ105 w/ 1HZ engine. Looked like diesel, spread and picked up dirt like diesel, was all around the diesel filter.

It wasn’t diesel.

A lot more looking showed it to be P/S fluid blow into that spot, and several others. The hose wasn’t leaking, despite the oil on the hose that made it look that way.

More looking finally showed the leak was the flange between the cap and body of the reservoir. There were no “tracks” of oil on the body, and it wasn’t wet with oil, just damp, the fan seemed to blow most of it clear. A replacement was $125 at the wreckers, and he had 2 on the wall out the front – happens all the time he said, he sells heaps.

Being lazy and cheap I didn’t want to cough that much. A set of vice grips run around the cap tightly to re-crimp it and presto, no more leak, and one cheap fix.

Difflocks aren’t much help here.

When you move a mailbox Outlook will (generally) get redirected without issue. It will do this by connecting to the original server, whop will then issue an instruction as to the new mailbox location based on what information is stored in AD. Some (5% or less) will not automatically redirect due to dodgy profiles.

If you have to do a server shuffle due to hardware limitations, that is, move everyone to another server, rebuild the first one, then move them back, you may have problems. As soon as you turn off the original server, any users not yet redirected will not be able to open outlook. Anyone that has already been redirected will be fine. For sites were staff are on rosters this can leave a large number or “orphaned” copies of outlook. Luckily the solution turns out to be simple.

Outlook merely looks at the server name to find the Exchange Server. It’s not based on the computer account or GUID. This means that if you delete the original server and rebuild a temporary one with the same name, it will handle all the redirections for you. It doesn’t matter the mailbox is no longer there, all the data is stored in AD. You could even throw it onto a VM, it doesn’t do any work, and needs very little disk space. 

This makes a migration where you want to keep everything smooth for your users even simpler.  I just finished using it as I had to to totally reconfigure the RAID packs on a server, meaning the mailboxes just had to move.

Active Directory uses the _msdcs.domain.local sub-domain to host SRV records. Depending on your domain structure and upgrade path, you may find this domain delegated rather than held as part of your “domain.local” zone. The conditions are in this KB article.

Now lets get tricky. Let’s say your _msdcs is delegated as in the picture above. Let’s also say over the years you replace and upgrade servers as your network grows. Sooner or later you’ll most likely replace your original domain controllers.

Well – the delegation details don’t get automatically updated with the IP of every server that hosts the zone. Nup, they are static. This means that although you may have 10 replicas scattered across your network, only the original DNS servers will be the ones listed as Authoritative. When they are replaced – presto – broken DNS and all sorts of cool errors. I recommend DCDiag /test:dns to look for things like this.

So if you are adding or removing DC’s, add _msdcs delegation to your checklist.

Now why wouldn’t MS simply have any replica automatically be listed?

One of the errors is below – Event ID 2087

Active Directory could not resolve the following DNS host name of the source domain controller to an IP address. This error prevents additions, deletions and changes in Active Directory from replicating between one or more domain controllers in the forest. Security groups, group policy, users and computers and their passwords will be inconsistent between domain controllers until this error is resolved, potentially affecting logon authentication and access to network resources.

Source domain controller:

 abcdc03

Failing DNS host name:

 568a7f0d-ef3a-4fad-b7bc-5d5d8ce17ba2._msdcs.abc.com.id

NOTE: By default, only up to 10 DNS failures are shown for any given 12 hour period, even if more than 10 failures occur.  To log all individual failure events, set the following diagnostics registry value to 1:

Registry Path:

HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\NTDS\Diagnostics\22 DS RPC Client

User Action:

 1) If the source domain controller is no longer functioning or its operating system has been reinstalled with a different computer name or NTDSDSA object GUID, remove the source domain controller’s metadata with ntdsutil.exe, using the steps outlined in MSKB article 216498.

 2) Confirm that the source domain controller is running Active directory and is accessible on the network by typing “net view \\<source DC name>” or “ping <source DC name>”.

 3) Verify that the source domain controller is using a valid DNS server for DNS services, and that the source domain controller’s host record and CNAME record are correctly registered, using the DNS Enhanced version of DCDIAG.EXE available on http://www.microsoft.com/dns

  dcdiag /test:dns

 4) Verify that that this destination domain controller is using a valid DNS server for DNS services, by running the DNS Enhanced version of DCDIAG.EXE command on the console of the destination domain controller, as follows:

  dcdiag /test:dns

 5) For further analysis of DNS error failures see KB 824449:

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=824449

Additional Data

Error value:

 11004 The requested name is valid, but no data of the requested type was found.

For more information, see Help and Support Center at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.

I once got called out on a job to give MS PSS support a hand onsite. Unusual I thought at the time, normally I ring PSS, not they ring me. Anyway, they had a rough time getting a client up and running and needed someone on the ground that could help sort through it.

When I got there the Windows 2000 Domain Controller and Exchange 2000 Server  were both very unhappy. The Exchange database was offline, corrupted, and the Domain had more errors in the event log than I had seen before.

After a bit of digging I found the problem. The Domain Controller had two network interfaces, a fairly common thing with server hardware. One of these interfaces had given itself a Private IP address, despite not being plugged in. Most of the Domain SRV records had been redirected to this private (and unusable) IP, making the Domain controller intermittently un-contactable. This had gone on for a significant period of time, before the other Domain Controller had lost sync and gone offline corrupted. The Exchange server hadn’t taken long after that to do similar.

Disabling the unused interface resulted in just one DNS registration, and presto, a happy AD DC again.

Recovering the Exchange Server was not so much fun. It turned out the “backups” were file level, not Information Store backups, so useless. The Information Store failed recovery with ESEUtil and ISInteg. I left PSS to sort that mess out.

I had seen similar behavior before with ISA boxes registering the incorrect interface. Now I am very careful to disable any unused interfaces, thus solving much DNS weirdness.

In theory the interface detection solves this, and I haven’t seen the problem in Server 2003, so maybe it was solved. I’ll keep being cautious.

If you are running PolyAirs or similar helper airbags in your vehicle, it’s probably a reasonable idea to know what effect the pressure you are running has compared to the normal spring.

Attached is a spreadsheet that should help you work it out.

For some reason spring loads are commonly still in lb/inch, hence the combination of imperial and metric.

My Landcruiser springs (aftermarket Kings) are approx 250lb/inch. This means for every inch compression, it means another 250lb * 0.45 (112Kg) has been added to each spring.

With full travel of 240mm (10 inches) and a normal lightly loaded ride height of 4 inches compressed = about 1000lb per spring (2000lb total) in the rear of the car. Every extra inch of compression will take an additional 112KG

Polyairs’ rate depends on several factors. The base area of the bag X pressure = the current load. Where it gets interesting is as you compress an airbag it’s rate increases exponentially. The attached spreadsheet shows this effect compared to a normal spring. What is interesting is that the polyairs in the Landcruiser only compress by some 40% of their total length. This reduces the non-linearity significantly. In fact they increase in effective load bearing capacity at a slower rate than the factory spring. This is an unusual outcome for a normally exponential device. If your car has large locators inside the springs, or compresses them near to binding, then the behavior would be significantly different.

Applying the same formula to sleeve type airbags as used on trucks and Discovery III or Range Rovers is a little more difficult, as their internal volume also consists of some spare space down the sides of the bag. This tends to reduce the effect of the rising rate somewhat. Further the piston in the sleeve type bags is often conical instead of cylindrical. This again changes the rate based on height.

It is interesting to note that the factory Range Rover airbags make the piston smaller near the base, presumably to offset the rising rate effect and be more linear. Many aftermarket bags Rover are larger at the base, making the rising rate effect more pronounced.

Flat bag type bags on the other hand would be highly exponential in their behavior.

If you play with the spreadsheet somewhat it quickly becomes evident that airbags are quite a complex suspension mechanism, and one that holds significant potential.

I ran a DCDIAG /test:dns today and received an error

DNS server: 128.9.0.107 (b.root-servers.net.)
1 test failure on this DNS server
This is not a valid DNS server.
PTR record query for the 1.0.0.127.in-addr.arpa. failed on the DNS server 128.9.0.107

Well it would appear that way back in 2004 the B Root Server had a change of IP Address as advised here. The old address was valid for some time but has since been de-commissioned, although I don’t know when exactly.

It’s no biggie, the other servers respond, everything runs as normal. It probably results in a touch more Internet traffic, but with all the Paris Hilton upskirt bandwidth I doubt it matters that much.

My question is, surely, this, of all the Critical Updates MS pushes out with WSUS, would be worthy of a Microsoft Update? Three years, but not as urgent as the “Critical” Windows Genuine Advantage. I guess it’s not critical for their bottom line.

In the meantime I think I’ll update some Root Server lists.

And you rebuild it for some reason. It’s a clean rebuild. As part of this rebuild you delete the Computer Account from AD. When you add the computer to the domain again, a new computer account is created.

BUT – if you have “Only Secure Updates” enabled in DNS, the new computer account doesn’t have permission to modify or overwrite the existing DNS entries. You’ll get an Event ID 11166 on boot up of the new server from DnsApi in it’s System Event Log. It’s only a Warning, not an Error, but the consequences could be significant. In my case Exchange Auth kept failing, despite logging no other errors in the event log. Don’t forget this applies to the PTR or Reverse lookup as well.

The simple solution is to delete the DNS records manually, then run IPCONFIG /refreshdns – and presto, all will be good.

The Event Log will say something like 

The system failed to register host (A) resource records (RRs) for network adapter
with settings:

   Adapter Name : {A7648FC7-7952-4AB5-9670-20E84EE3D8A8}
   Host Name : ***srv012
   Primary Domain Suffix : somewhere.com
   DNS server list :
         10.1.2.2, 10.1.1.2
   Sent update to server : 10.1.2.2
   IP Address(es) :
     10.1.2.10

 The reason the system could not register these RRs was because of a security related problem. The cause of this could be (a) your computer does not have permissions to register and update the specific DNS domain name set for this adapter, or (b) there might have been a problem negotiating valid credentials with the DNS server during the processing of the update request.

 You can manually retry DNS registration of the network adapter and its settings by typing “ipconfig /registerdns” at the command prompt. If problems still persist, contact your DNS server or network systems administrator. For specific error code, see the record data displayed below.

It’s never a fair comparison, as much has to do with trip distance, speed, convenience etc. but it’s a fairly thorough review.

http://www.lafn.org/~dave/trans/bicycle/bicycle-energy.html

Summary below.

Using a bicycle, one can travel about 25 times as far on a Calorie of food than on a Calorie of gasoline (by automobile). Unfortunately, it took perhaps 15 Calories of fuel to create that Calorie of food, so the bicycle is only about 5/3 as energy-efficient per person-mile of travel if one doesn’t count the energy cost of the extra time it takes to travel by bicycle.

It takes about 15 times more mechanical energy to transport one by auto as compared to a bicycle. Even though automobile engines are at best about 50% more efficient than a human bicyclist pedalling, the bicyclist is typically about 2/3 more efficient than the auto engine in converting food/fuel into useful work, due to the failure of autos to fully utilize their higher efficiency. So considering only the mechanical and engine efficiencies (including the human “engine”) the bicycle is about 25 times more energy-efficient. But the high fossil fuel energy cost of making food reduces the 25-times advantage to less than 2-times. Counting the energy cost of the additional time it takes to get somewhere by bicycle may result in the overall energy-efficiency of the bicycle being worse than the auto

A bicycle does save energy in many cases, since it limits the distance people can travel and some (or all) of the energy used for bicycling might be used anyway for the exercise needed for health. To make it many times more more energy efficient (before counting the energy cost of time) requires greatly reducing the energy required to create and transport food. See Better Energy-Efficiency in Food Production

http://www.ebikes.ca/sustainability/Ebike_Energy.pdf

Well I hear a rumor that now it’s moved to books. If you for example were stuck on a remote island with no access to external print media, then it wouldn’t be surprising that you found this floating round.

Reading books on a PC or handheld device just isn’t relaxing. Luckily Adobe has a “print in booklet” function, allowing a novel to be broken into manageable booklets.

It even appeared within a few days of publication, meaning someone put a lot of work into OCR. The formatting and all is correct, although the OCR errors in spelling increase toward the end, I guess they were in a hurry.

Not at I would ever participate or support such an immoral act. It’s just entertaining what you find in a 3rd world country that can’t afford to make a rich person richer.

Of course I did what any good law abiding person would do and immediately burnt the books.

Builder Bill lives in Darwin NT, and has some wonderful insights into what gives your average removator problems.

http://www.builderbill-diy-help.com/

I’m not your normal tree hugging greenie. I think that humans are here to stay and we need to figure smart ways of living within the environment. The means we use things from it, and eat the things around us, even the cute furry things. BUT, we need to do this sustainability, so our kids can eat the cute furry things too.

Coal fired power stations are not what I would call a sustainable proposition. Dumping untold millions of tons of invisible CO2 into the atmosphere is not likely to be a good thing to do. General consensus seems to agree.

Nuclear Power on the other hand seems much smarter to me. Sure the leftovers are pretty nasty, but there is very little material to deal with. Now, think about this for a minute. They dug up the dirt with the Uranium in it, concentrated the Uranium until it would react, and shoved it in a reactor. It got used, when it went in it was highly radioactive. When it is used it is less radioactive – that’s why they are pulling it out and calling it used. So if you now mix this less radioactive mix back in with the original dirt you have – amazingly – a less radioactive pile of dirt then when you started. Now, put it back in the hole that it came from. Presto – disposed. It can’t be used for weapons, isn’t economic to dig up, and is exactly like the place was before you started mining.

“Not in my backyard” – well what if that’s where it came from in the first place?

They call it Remix and Return. I can’t say I was the first to invent it, but it seems pretty obvious to me.

Bring on that clean nuclear power. (oh – and Solar too).

WOW – a real file server? yep, it’s that astounding. Somehow I have trouble getting all excited here. File servers have been round for a while now. NAS boxes come with an OS installed, and the discs on some type of RAID. I’m still not excited. 

I just can’t fathom the value proposition here.  Discs cost you the same amount weather you buy them in a NAS box or a File Server. The base hardware costs about the same, or if you save money it’s cheap junk. The OS costs you the same OEM or in the File Server.

If you get a Linux based one you have no NTFS permissions and it runs SAMBA. You may as well not bother with Domain at all – hey, there’s some less costs if you don’t need domain controllers.

Either way, Linux or Windows, they didn’t intend you to screw with the OS too much, so running AV, Backup agents and Updates can be interesting from a support perspective.

“But you can install your Exchange Databases on it” – well, yes you can. Same as you can install them on any file server. And get crap performance. 1GBit Ethernet is 3.5 times slower than 320MByte SCSI channels. I’ll stick with local SCSI thanks, at least I know the discs are dedicated.

So it’s a box on the network running SMB. That’ll definitely revolutionize the world.  I think I’ll just stick to throwing more discs at my current file servers. 

Twin tube shock absorbers don’t work on their side or upside down. The gas in them mixes with the oil and turns it into a foamy mess. This sends the damping rates all over the place, making it unpredictably worse than useless.

Monotube dampers are fine on their side, but not many people run monotube steering dampers. My steering damper didn’t look like a monotube.

Both of these need gas in them to allow for the space the rod takes up as the compress. Some shocks run the gas under pressure for better high temperature performance. Steering dampers do not, it would make them push the steering to one side.

Motorcycle steering dampers run the shaft out the other end, meaning the internal volume stays constant, and you don’t need a gas space. A gas space in these makes them behave very strangely, doesn’t it Brett….

I turned to a mate – Jamie – at GSA Wholesale Suspension for an answer to this one. I find they know more about shocks than anyone else I have ever found.

 It turns out steering dampers generally are a twin tube design, but the air is kept in a plastic bag or bladder. This separates it from the oil and prevents mixing. Now, even though it’s on its side, it can’t go and interfere with the valve rates.

Nifty eh….

I had a few theories ranging from

• Metalised Paint
• Metalised Gel-coat
• Metal Fibre reinforced glass
• Metal Impregnated resin
• Foil Layers
• Wire Mesh

I had the opportunity to drill a water drain hole in one today and the answer became obvious (at least for the Prodelin brand dishes)

There is a fine wire mesh similar to fly-screen under the gel-coat.  It is very fine aperture to cope with the GHz frequencies involved. Hopefully it’s stainless, it looks fairly silver, so it wont rust from the edges in.

So when you are cleaning your fiberglass dish of the mould they seem to accumulate – you don’t have to overly worry about abrading the gelcoat. The mesh layer is reasonably well protected.

Another question answered. 

http://www.defectiveyeti.com/iacaptchas/

There is no “backup” tool for share configurations when performing DR on a file server. Ideally for my DR I want to be able to restore the files and that’s it, not worry about the server configuration. My File Servers don’t run any app’s, they do SMB and that’s it. All other functions are run on an application server. Print Serving runs on a VM.

The large number of shares generally equates to a large and complex login script that decides what to map to where. This makes file references different across the company, confusing users. It also makes logins slow (and often involve KIX – yech)

Try this for an idea

Run a single Domain DFS Root.
Have links for:

1. Users Home Drives (one link per server/site)
2. Software Deployment (one link - it’s replicated)
3. Company Data (may be per site depending on structure)

Map the Home drives and the Company Data shares. Presto, quick simple login for all. The structure is kept in AD, so it replicated and safe. DFS-R get’s copies of data where it needs to be efficiently. You file server only needs three or four shares to keep everything happy.

If you link the mappings to intermdiate links, as opposed to end targets, then the cleint PC’s never connect to all the remote file servers. Your roaming uses connect to the closest root and mobile users don’t get bogged down.

It gets a little more complex as you manage replicated vs non replicated data between sites, but DFS is perfect for this. The single root approach is far closer to the Internet that people are familiar with, as opposed to knowing which servers and shares things are on. Servers change, data structures should last longer than that.

There is a touch more complexity in planning, but operationally from a user and server management perspective – it’s far simpler. You login speeds are dramitally improved and roaming users are not impacted. All you need to do is organise.

I have huge respect for the man and what he has done. I don’t agree with all his policies, but I do respect that he makes a decision and sticks to his guns. There is nothing worse than civil servants that won’t make a decision. Procrastination never got anyone in government fired.

Unfortunately I think his environmental policies stink. Australia has an opportunity to be a world leader in several fields, and they are likely to just slip by. China is becoming more environmentally conscious than Australia. Their cars are more fuel efficient, they have electric vehicles everywhere, and are rolling out solar hot water like mad.

Our involvement in Iraq is just poor. We need to exit, and we need to do it now. Stick with Afghanistan as long as they need it, at least there is some justification. Invading foreign soil should have gone out with Gallipoli. it’s got me buggered why we got involved with the mess.

I firmly believe making the workplace more flexible makes employers more likely to take on staff. No smart company is going to fire valuable staff. It’s not “your job”, it’s “a job” and you happen to be doing it at the moment. If you do it well, you are valuable. If you do it poorly, you are a liability. If I own the company, the last thing I want is more liabilities. As an employee, if the relationship is not a good one, then sooner or later I’ll move on. Any company with high staff turnover will have trouble being profitable against the competition.

Apart from the first two glaring items, I reckon Howard has done a good job.

Now let’s move to Kevin Rudd. Against the guy personally, no comment. Against Labor – HUGE comment. The Labor party is the political arm of the unions. The thought of being forced to join and pay money to a group of thugs that want me to make less money than I do now makes me less than impressed.

The Union movement in Australia keeps ranting on about “the bosses” and “the workers”. I’ve never felt that way, not when I worked at Woolworth’s pushing trolleys, not when I worked for myself, not working for small companies and not when I work for big business. I have a boss, he has a boss, he has a boss and so on. We are all employed on our merits. Some companies reward effort and achievement, some reward ass kissing, some reward the old boys club. If I don’t l like the rewards, I find another job. This seems to be the major point that is missed. Liberal is all about the mobile workforce, where the skills go to whoever wants to offer them the best package. Labor is about the guy who gets and keeps “his job” and will use violence to stop “scab labor” doing it when he walks out because his useless mate got the sack for not doing his job either.  When it comes to promotion in a union shop it’s the old boys network all over. That’s the only union movement I know, and I don’t want a bar of it in my workplace.

So – how to vote? Voting for a minority results in little impact unless the Parliament is close to hung. Howard needs to deal with the big issues that many people believe he is ignoring. And Rudd works for thugs and scumbags.

I’m still thinking about it.

Err – NO

You see whilst Adaptec and others do genuinely mirror their disks, IBM implements some type of Mirrored Striping. I don’t know and haven’t researched all the details, but the short story is that if you want to read the Mirrored disk – you need an IBM RAID Controller. I did speak to an IBM tech and was told it was for performance reasons.

Now using an IBM ServeRAID controller to read the data isn’t the end of the world – just throw it in another box (assuming you have one). At least IBM RAID is compatible across their controller model ranges.

This is where your world will now get “interesting”. You see IBM has this interesting concept where they store a copy of the RAID controller configuration on the disks. If you install RAID Pack 1 from Server1 into Server2 that already has a RAID pack (Raid Pack 2) operating, the RAID Controller (assuming there is only one for that backplane) will see two different configurations. Pack 1 knows only about itself and Pack 2 is the same.

Fair enough you say – we’ll just teach them about each other. Well – you can’t. IBM does not allow “merging” of RAID pack configurations onto the controller. This means that if you try, it’ll delete one of the packs. Fun Fun Fun. Great design effort boys.

 I haven’t seen this much brains used since Intel decided to make a RAID controller with no recovery console except for the one installed in the OS – THAT YOU CAN’T BOOT to because that’s why you need the recovery console. (I use these for doorstops)

OK, so you can’t merge, so you can’t easily swap packs between machines for quick recovery. Good marketing move, it does give a reason to keep a spare IBM box in the corner.

It also makes one of my safety tricks useless. I have on more than one occasion seen an administrator delete the wrong pack or disk on a machine with several arrays. I haven’t had it happen, but it’s entertaining to watch. It’s not that hard to do. Often the logical labeling is not the same as the physical labeling, or is inconsistent in some other way. My solution to this (assuming things are offline) is to drop the healthy pack out whilst working on the failed one. It’s very hard to make a mistake and delete something that isn’t plugged in.

BUT – if you try this with an IBM ServeRAID controller, the pack you are working on will likely lose knowledge of the offline pack. When you go to plug it back in – presto – pick one, but not both. You then start all over with the healthy pack online, and waste another two hours. Wonderful during a DR situation.

So – if you are used to other RAID manufacturers kit and get dumped with an IBM system, things are a little different.

I actually like the IBM ServeRAID kit, I just get frustrated by companies that insist on being different and make my life harder in the process.

http://www.landyspares.co.za/landyspares/files/snatch_straps.htm

My preference is not to use shackles with snatch straps unless it can’t be avoided. They will nearly always be stronger than the vehicle mount points. This means if the vehicle mount fails (likely from the debates circulating) before the strap at 8000KG, you’ll have 3kg of shackle headed toward you at high speed. You just supplied the projectile needed and you know it’s aimed straight at your vehicle.

A rated vehicle hook (not loop) circumvents this problem in a number of ways. If it fails in the hook itself there is little to become a missile, and it likely won’t stay with the strap. If the mounts or chassis fails there is a fair chance as it tears off, the strap will simply pull free of the hook. 

 In the situations where you have to use a shackle with vehicle loops there is a simple solution would provide a great deal of safety. Use a second strap – preferably a rated tree trunk protector – and connect it with shackles to two separate mount points on the car. Feed the tree trunk protector through the eye of the snatch strap. Now you have the situation where:
a) Each mount is only subject to approx 60% of the load (depending on the angles)
b) The tree protector is only subject to 60% of the load
c) If a mount fails the unraveling of the protector as it passes through the eye will significantly dampen the recoil of the snatch strap
d) If the mount fails the shackle and mount is still attached to the vehicle via the other side of the short strap – no projectile risk.

I don’t mean this as an excuse to fitting rated mounts, or as a reason to use the factory tie down points. BUT. We all know it happens and may be guilty here and there of doing the same. At least this way the result won’t be catastrophic and the only additional hardware is a second strap of some type.

It’s definitely a lot simpler than some of the techniques I have seen suggested with a rope at each end, and more reliable than a damper thrown over the strap.

Hey, Mozilla- Quotes Are Not Legal in a URL

So why oh why do we still have share permissions in W2K3 and Longhorn? All they do is confuse Administrators and allow for weird security configurations and the problems that come with them. I frequently see mismatched configurations, confusion over remote and local access or confusion over other sharing methods such as HTTP.

There is a small supportive argument or them that goes along the lines of “but what if the NTFS permissions are wrong”. Well, lets look at the failure mechanisms.

1. Attacker has User Account and Password – Share permissions do nothing that NTFS wouldn’t – “All your base are belong to us”

2. NTFS vulnerability found – After this many years, I trust the NTFS ACL’s far more than I trust the Share Permission controls.

3. Mis-configuration of NTFS Permissions - This is generally due to an inadequate design for management of the user groups and permissions. If your change control is inadequate, Share Permissions are not going to save you. I’m working on a paper at the moment to smooth this problem out.

Microsoft, please get rid of them, they are a legacy solution that confuses many administrators.

In the meantime – Share Permission – EVERYONE FULL CONTROL

This model (as opposed to the IFS models) didn’t get a bash plate or and form of protection in front of the radiator. If you look under there you’ll see that it is easy for any stick coming up to jam into the Air Conditioning condenser, and possibly into the radiator as well. If you have seen the 4WD Monthly video of Tasmania and the Prado with a smashed bottom radiator tank you’ll know exactly what I mean.

They also have a tendency to suck up every bit of seed and fluff through this gap and block the bottom of the radiator. As there is generally no foam seal between the cores, it gets into places that are a bugger to clean out.

I bought 2 strips of 40mm high density open cell foam from Clark Rubber for about $5 and jammed it in there to fill this gap. This is what the normal factory fitment is and I see the latest year HZJ105 has this foam installed. This will improve airflow through the airconditioner core, reduce recirculating airflow, and prevent seeds and bugs getting between the cores where they can’t be cleaned.

I then bought a sheet of 3mm checkerplate aluminium measuring 610mm x 470mm for $30. 2mm would have been adequate, as it’s only to deflect sticks, not to drop the car onto.

You can use the factory bashplate and steering damper bolts to secure the rear. The holes are all 8mm and are at 100mm, 180mm, 303mm, 474mm.

Once the rear is bolted up it is easy for force a bend in it with a bit of timber and the jack. I didn’t want to have to deal with loose nuts, so used tek screws to secure the front. Captive nuts are difficult with allow unless you have access to rivnuts.

This now keeps all manner of gunk out of the radiator. It should help prevent surges of water coming in on water crossings, and protect it from errant sticks coming up at it.

Cooling may be an issue, but I just towed 3500kg of trailer for 200km and had no worries on the highway. It got hot on the range, but it always has done so. I wouldn’t expect low speed cooling to be affected as that is primarily draw through from the fan. High speed is a more likely problem, and has been fine. The IFS cruisers have a slotted plate instead of a solid one, and it would be possible to slot this plate if it is a problem. It does block some airflow to the power steering loop, but again, I would expect this to get enough air from the surrounding airflow, and the metal is it bolted to.

Cheap easy protection.

You’ll need an old PC. This is a great way to reuse your desktop when you upgrade. Any old piece of junk will do, but ideally it will have the following:

1. Tower Case
2. 300W Power Supply (250W may do at a pinch)
3. 4 x SATA Ports
4. 2 x IDE (PATA) Ports
5. Any CPU – doesn’t matter
6. 512MB RAM
7. On Board Video preferred

The intent is to run 5 x Hard Drives and a CDROM. You can do this with all IDE (PATA) but it gets difficult to find IDE adapter cards, and their performance can be poor. You can run two drives per PATA cable vs 1 per SATA.

You want 4 drives the same size. 500GB is about the most cost effective per GB at the moment (mid 2007), but do the numbers on whatever gives you the best deal at the time. You could use 5 – 10 old smaller drives, however finding a controller to plug them all into is next to impossible. 4 x medium size drives tend to be the most cost effective way of getting bulk space. The fifth HDD can be any old piece of junk. It’s only to run the OS, and can be replaced if it dies. It doesn’t hold any data.

The case doesn’t need to have mounts for all these drives, and it doesn’t have to be anything special. If the drives are all 7200RPM, they tend to get a little warm. They should have some space between them and ventilation. If they are 5400RPM’s you can stack them together on the base of the PC, they won’t care.

As it is a server you can shove it anywhere in the house, making super silent a lower priority. If you want to build it silent see my “building a quiet PC article“. I prefer to shove it under the stairs where noise isn’t a problem. I manage it through Remote Desktop, so it doesn’t even need a monitor, keyboard or mouse.

Install Windows Server if you have it (licensed and legitimate of course) or XP onto the single small HDD. Nothing special here. If you are running XP you’ll have to do some hacks that are covered in this article on Tomshardware. I haven’t found a hack to get Vista to support RAID 5 yet. Windows Home Server should be an interesting one to evaluate when I comes out, as it has some new takes on RAID. In the meantime however, I’ll stick with Server 2K3.

The objective is to protect the data through the use of RAID. I see plenty of people with data on a single machine at home they use as a server, but most don’t run RAID. I always run Software RAID, that way if a HDD dies, I lose nothing. I prefer software RAID in windows to any of the Hardware RAID adapters for home use. The reason is simple. If you Hardware RAID adapter fails, you have to get one the same or compatible to get to your data. Being cheap equipment, this has a fair likelihood of occurring, and then not being available. Using Software RAID on the other hand means any Windows Server can read the disks, and recover the data. We are doing this for data safety, not performance. I have always found software RAID performance to be acceptable, even when I was running an old Pentium MMX 166 box.  In a business environment it’s a very different story and cost.

Once Windows is installed I recommend you configure RAID 5 across the other 4 data disks. There are instructions here.  The disks need to be the same size to participate in the RAID pack. They can actually be different sizes, but you’ll waste space on the larger disks. Now most RAID solutions support two different types of RAID to protect your data - RAID 1 and RAID 5, which I’ll outline.

Raid 1 is a Mirror. It makes a copy of one disk onto another, and shows them as a single disk. If one dies, you have the data on the other disk, and the failure is transparent. The problem is you lose 50% of your space. Your 2 x 500GB disks (1TB total) give you 500GB useable space. Not particularly efficient. To make it practical for a home server you have to buy larger more expensive disks. This is supposed to be a cheapish exercise.

RAID 5 is referred to as a Stripe with Parity. The redundant data is spread equally across all of the disks. You need a minimum of 3 Hard Drives to run RAID 5. The way the algorithm works you lose the effective space of ONE disk to the data protection. If you think about it, the more disks you add, the more efficient it is. The data being spread over multiple disks tends to make the system faster as well, disks being the most common bottleneck. Our 4 x 500GB (2TB) gives us about 1.5TB useable. It’s actually a little less due to HDD manufacturers counting differently to the rest of the IT industry, but hey, that’s marketing for you.

With your RAID 5 setup on your old PC and some cheap Hard Drives, you’ll have one of the cheapest large data stores around. You also get the benefit of knowing if one of those drives dies, your data is safe. The gotcha is you actually have to check the RAID occasionally to be sure it is healthy. You can do this by checking the system event log. There is a risk that as it all just keeps working in the event of a failure, it will continue unnoticed, until a second disk fails, resulting in the loss of everything. I am still looking for a freeware utility to alert in the event of a software raid pack error.

It should be noted that RAID only protects against one type of disaster – loss of a single Hard Disk Drive. If you lose multiple drives, accidentally delete files, get a virus etc etc, your data will be lost. As I tend to store non critical data, and use this space to backup my other PC’s, loss of this type is not a significant problem for me. This risk should be kept in mind and managed where possible. There is no cheap large scale backup for home use that I have found on the market. The ideal would be some type of 100 disk DVD Loader, however all the library’s out there don’t have integrated burners. If anyone finds a large cheap loader with a burner, I would love to know about it (another market opportunity for some Taiwanese company).

Now this machine is going to be on 24/7 and you should think a little green. Most CPU’s aren’t too bad for power when idling, even if they aren’t the latest models. The biggest energy chewer will be the HDD’s. If you go into Power under Control Panel and set the machine to shut down the Hard Drives after 15minutes of inactivity, you’ll save a heap of power, and extend the life of your drives significantly. Consumer drivers aren’t really designed to spin 24/7. Stopping them spinning also reduces noise. Overall it will probably chew about 30-50W at idle and up to 250W under load, depending on the CPU you are running. It’s not practical to enable Standby, as there is no remote wake up command.

Have you ever noticed your Jasjam is incorrectly aligned when you answer the phone or an SMS message, and it takes a few seconds to sort it self out?

Well - it turns out the way the rotation is sensed is via a magnetic pickup. iMate in their wisdom supplies a case that has its lid closed by some very strong magnets. Presto – they just broke their own orientation sensing mechanism, causing the poor thing to heave  heart attack when it’s removed from it pouch, and it’s owner to wonder “why is this thing always trying to sort out it’s screen”.

Time to find a leather non magnetic case I think.

Here’s the catch. To get 240V down to 12V means a battery charger. Most battery chargers only put out 4 – 8 Amps depending on the model. Expensive versions put out 10 – 16A but will cost $150-$400. Assuming the average person uses approx 40A/H per day, that’s going to take 4 – 8 hours to be replaced.

Some generators have a 12V output. It’s rated at 4 – 6 Amps. You are still looking at 4 – 8 hours runtime.

Now lets look at a car alternator. They produce 12V directly at 40A minimum in an old car. My Cruiser is 120A from factory. Most are over 80A. It’ll recharge 24Hr discharge in half an hour (if your battery can accept that much that fast).

All your stuff runs on 12V and what doesn’t can run on an inverter for the time needed. Switch mode power supplies (Laptops, Phones, Camcorders etc) are happy running off a cheap $40 inverter. They do NOT need sine wave inverters to be happy, as they convert straight back to DC anyway. Sine wave inverters are good for things with coils in them – motors and transformers.

What we need is a  high output 12V generator based on a car alternator. Currently the only one avaialable is from Christie Engineering. Nice toy, but expensive, and a little loud, not like the quiet Honda’s. A tiny diesel version would be nice too, run it off the car fuel tank. Any chinese importers want to step up to the plate, I reckon you would have an excellent market.

I have made one in the past, but it was bulkier than the Christie unit, belt driven, and needed more HP due to the RPM requirements. ie. It’s not quite simple, but it’s definately do-able.

It’s probably a geek thing, but the ”why bother” for me is that I run a home server to keep my stuff on and a noisy PC is just plain irritating. Ditto for the media centre PC, or even the desktop. Because my machines are on all the time, keeping them quiet, and power saving matters.

Interestingly enough the Corporate (not the home user crap) Dell’s and IBM’s I see through work are relatively quiet, not super silent, but not bad for an off the shelf machine.

The key is ventilation design. Move the most air you can, where it is needed, as quietly as possible.

The method to do this is quite simple. Unfortunately most PC cases and motherboards out there do nothing to help this, they just make it worse.

Lets try some basic rules

1. Big fans move more air for less noise than small ones (listen to a 1RU rack mount server to see the ultimate of this – like a jet engine, noise is astounding)
2. Moving air round and round inside the case is inefficient and makes noise (most servers don’t run CPU fan’s, they put decent heatsinks in the system airflow).
3. Pumping the air in AND out is unnecessary – more noise (in 99% of cases two fans blowing out will move more air than one blowing in and the other out)

So what we want is a case that uses one big fan to pump air out (or in) and flows it past all internal components such that small fans on heatsinks are not required. It’s called ATX and was designed to solve the deficiencies of the AT design, especially those relating to cooling. Unfortunately the cases we get today aren’t really the original design.

If we look at components.

Case:
Tower cases are easier to do this with due to their natural tendency to flow air up. Hot air rises (heat does not rise, that’s a myth) You want a case that lets as much air in as possible at key points – down low toward the front. Some flowing in past the hard drives is also ideal. It should NOT have vents up high, or at the rear or  near the CPU. If it does, seal them up, as they’ll let air bypass the other components. Cases with 60mm rear fans are particularly noisy. Look for something that will take a 120mm rear fan, or if you are running a Core Duo CPU – no rear fan is needed – seal it up. Holes over the CPU are a waste – seal them up too. If your case is well designed, you don’t want fans in the front of the case.
Desktop cases are more difficult. You’ll have to plan it a little more.
Make sure either case has provision for mounting the HDD’s in rubber.

Power Supply:
This is the most important component, the thing in the original ATX specification designed to cool the system. Look for a power supply with a SINGLE 120mm or 140mm fan. Big = more air for less noise. It will be mounted in the base of the PS over the CPU – ideal. It will also leave the entire rear of the power supply as a large mesh grid – ideal for moving more air. Finally, the fan is inside the box behind the power supply electronics, this will further muffle any noise. You don’t want a second 80mm fan in the rear. This is a restriction, makes noise, and fans in series are un-needed.

CPU:
The coolest running you can buy. A Core Duo is ideal here. Also the smaller the die size, the cooler they tend to run, so if given the choice pick the CPU with the smallest nanometer size. The late P4′s are awful and need huge heatsiks to compensate.

CPU Heatsink / Fan:
This is where it gets tricky. My base assumption is that I want the airflow from the power supply to do most of the cooling. Therefore it has to have fins that face into the power supply and cool from air running ACROSS it, not down into it as most stock and many aftermarket coolers do. This one is good. This one is not. It has to be oriented the right way. The factory heatsinks that force air down onto the CPU rather than across are simply recycling hot air round and round. They rely on the other system fans to keep the system cool. Seems like a waste to me, more noise for no reason. Reviews on the internet are not always useful for this, as they test the heatsink in open air, not in a sealed forced airflow like a well designed case should be. My CPU fans often never even run.

Fans:
Buy quiet one’s, but don’t spend too much money. Centrifugal fans tend to flow more air for less noise, but are rarely available in useful sizes or configurations. Fan grills should be the thin wire style. Grilles in cases that are punched gaps in the press steel, or worse, lots of small perforated holes, should be cut out and replaced with a wire grill. Remember – larger = more air for less noise. The quiet fans simply tend to spin at lower speeds. I tend to run mine at 7V to achieve a reasonable result. 7V comes from between the 5V and the 12V rail.

HDD’s:
Just follow the recommended drive on www.silentpcreview.com. I tried a “similar” drive, and the seek noise was irritating during movies. I learnt to follow their recommendation exactly. Mount them on rubber.

DVD Drive:
I can’t find a quiet one – any one that knows please help me.

Next time you go to buy a “quiet” component, ask yourself, is this simply covering an existing problem, it this just another “quiet” noisemaker. The quietest fan is the one that isn’t there, and with careful design you’ll need far fewer.

There it is – simple. Pick the case with the holes in the right spot, put in a power supply with the big fan in the base, and pick a CPU and Cooler combination that will let you run your heatsink passive most of the time, and damn quiet the rest. Don’t install more fans than you need and make sure each is actually doing something useful. Finally add some quiet drives and presto – a quiet PC without too much hassle.

 
80mm fans – OK
120mm PS Fan – Good
60mm CPU Fan – Bad (luckily the Core Duo makes very little heat, so it spins very slowly)

60mm fans – Bad
80mm PS Fan – Bad
90mm CPU Fan recirculating – OK as nearly turned off.
High Efficiency Heatsink – OK – needs very little airflow.

High efficiency Heatsink – OK, but airflow is wrong – recirculates.

Clear exit from P/S – Good   Entire rear of PS is available for airflow.

120mm Exhaust Fan – Good, but ideal would be not at all.
140mm PS Fan – Excellent – this does most of the work.
Huge CPU heatsink – Excellent – Aligned with P/S airflow and convective currents. The CPU fan is off 99% of the time, it’s not needed.

Grilles removed behind fans improves airflow.

Package – Excellent
Price – Good
Features – Excellent
Auto Install Scripts – Excellent
Upgrades for Hosted Products – Yes – Scripted
Multiple Domains / Shared with mates – Yes
Heaps of space – Yes
eMail Limits – Good
WebMail Interface – Bad – only on weird port (But you can install and run Roundcube, and that is a good webmail client)
Help / FAQ – Excellent
eMail responses for Help – Excellent

Overall, I’m rapt.

Link to Its Time For Airport Security To Ketchup With Reality (from The Herald )

 

 The website is here

These things are excellent. 15W each. AU$40 for a pack of 4 from Lighting Illusions.

They are a reflective compact fluorescent downlight. The glass cover keeps the bugs out from between the tube elements as a bonus.

Startup is electronic and nearly instant. Warm up time is minimal, about the same as your eyes.  

The bulbs are 5000K colour – Daylight. It is a very white light, makes the 50W halogen downlights look dull yellow in comparison. They look far whiter than the 3800K Warm White reflective downlight I tried.

They don’t shed as much light per watt as a straight or round tube, but not much does. For a downlight they are far far more efficient than a Halogen.

If you want to go green, with a modern unobtrusive look, these are a great product.

Highly Recommended – 5/5

This mainly relates to the Lokka and Lock-Rite lockers. Detroit has a similar process, however I have never pulled one apart and I believe there are some differences.

First, Mechanical lockers are NEVER locked. Any document that says they are locked is either over simplifying, or doesn’t have a clue.

They have ONE SIMPLE RULE:
One wheel will be coupled to the crown wheel at all times. The other wheel *may* do MORE of whatever the system is doing at the time, but not less. If it is placed under a load that attempts to make it do less, it will become the coupled wheel.

This is best understood from two different perspectives – internal and external.  

Internal and External Perspectives.

External

1. When you turn a corner the outside wheel has to speed up and the inside wheel slow down. The system is driving, so no wheel is allowed to spin slower than the crown wheel. The inside wheel takes all the drive load. This unloads the outside wheel allowing it to do more (go forwards) freely – it uncouples and free-wheels forward.
2. When you come off the throttle and start to engine brake downhill the situation reverses. The crown wheel is trying to slow the car. The load will transfer to the outside wheel. The inside wheel, going slower (more of that the crownwheel is trying to do) will uncouple and freewheel.
3. In a straight line both wheels take the load, but neither is locked. The load actually is applied varied between the wheels, but the flex in the suspension, axles and tyres evens out the uneven power to deliver what feels to be equal torque to each wheel.

Internal

1. The principle of operation is actually simple. A pair of drive rings are forced outward into the side gears (or outer dog clutch in some models) engaging with them and forcing them to rotate. It is not locked here, it is just that both wheels are being driven. A key point to note is why they are forced outward. The cross shaft in the middle of the diff bisects the two drive rings. They have an elongated hole for the cross shaft to sit in. This results in a portion of the rotating torque being transferred into a strong outward force – pushing the drive rings into the side gears and holding them engaged. Think of it as a wedge splitting a log – pushing the rings apart from each other. There is also a very weak set of springs to assist the process, and some dowels to keep the two rings nearly rotationally static in relation to each other.
2. Now lets turn a corner. The inside wheel tries to slow down, and the outside to speed up. The fixed coupling of the side gear stops the inside wheel from slowing, so it starts to take all the power. The outside wheel is speeding up and becoming unladen, as it wants to go faster then the crown wheel. When unladen the outward force on that side drive ring is reduced to near zero. There is another angle manufactured into the dog clutch teeth. This angle is steeper than the one in the cross shaft. It will exert LESS force inwards than the cross shaft exerts outwards, but the principle is similar. Now that there is no outward force from the cross shaft bevel, the side gears slide over the beveled angles on the drive ring forcing it inwards against the very weak springs. This allows the outside wheel to “cam” freely forward. The outside wheel is freewheeling, the inside is driving. I could do this on my Hilux using my little finger, it takes almost no force.

The “clicking” sound from these diff’s is the dog clutch engaging and disengaging. It’s normally only audible in closed spaces like carparks.

The often commented on dog clutch teeth that are not undercut are designed to be that shape. This shape is what provides the force to uncouple the dog clutch. When driven this is overcome by the shallower cross shaft angle, forcing the clutch to be engaged.

The weakness I can see with the system is that the engagement depth with the side gears is very shallow, and on the tips of the teeth – not their strongest part. On the other hand it is engaged the full length of every single tooth – far more than the 2 or 3 teeth under load normally in a diff. I believe that under the right shock loadings it would be possible to catch the diff in a partly engaged scenario and tear the tips off the teeth, although I haven’t seen it done. The best way to do this would be vicious bouncing of the wheels transferring load side to side. Smoothly driven I never had a problem.  

The issue if the inside wheel driving, but the outside wheel braking does result in some rear axle steer under throttle transition. It is evident partly as bush compliance moves the axle, and partly as a slight understeer effect. I noticed it mostly with the large throttle movements from cruise control on winding roads. In a long wheelbase Hilux it was not noticeable under normal conditions. I never had a problem with it towing trailers on steep roads.

In the wet there is an increased propensity to spin up the inside wheel, BUT and this is a big BUT, only to the point where it was going as fast as the outside wheel, then they both drove out of the corner. There was never any significant loss of traction toward oversteer.

I could never see any reason why tyre wear would increase. The unlocking is so gentle I could do it with my finger. The inside wheel would do more work, but the outside less, and as I go around as many left as right corners, this wasn’t a problem.

Documents like these mislead people (since removed) about how mechanical lockers work. After my experience with ARB airlockers, I know I would prefer the mechanical in the rear.

There is long discussion on mechanical lockers here, but you’ll need to read it a few times to catch all of the details.

My personal preference is an AWD car, with a Torsen LSD in the centre and electric locking. A mechanical locker in the rear and a Torsen in the front, preferably with electric locking over the top. Unfortunately I can’t buy this combination.

NOTE: In the diagrams below clearances and angles are exaggerated for clarity. The actual cross shaft hole is eccentric rather than triangular. The side gear teeth slots are a much closer tolerance to reduce lash.

So why oh why then does this MS product NOT support any of the normal UI’s for authentication.

MS Project 2003 Professional connecting to a MS Project Server 2003.

It gives the option of connecting with your domain account, or using a “Project Server Account”. Here comes the crunch. NEITHER of these options works on a PC that is not a domain member. There is no popup UI to ask for a password.

Now, many many projects I know of are managed by external consultants, working for other companies, with laptops managed by IT teams that are DEFINATELY NOT on our domain.

Glad to see the thinking caps went on for this one boys.

I must admit, I prefer this level of honesty to PR lies attempting to save face.

OK – so it’s not real fast, and I am real lazy. Pumping up tyres, bending, checking pressures, inflating still, checking again etc. It’s all too hard. A faster compressor would help, but I prefer the Shell digital auto inflator thingy – drive up – attach – tyres are set. So simple.

My solution, no matter what the compressor. Go to your local air supplies or hoses and fittings shop and buy the 2nd smallest regulator they sell, with a matching gauge and any adapter fittings you need. You’ll spend $50 – $60.

Attach it to your ARB or whatever compressor you have that has a small tank and cutout switch – it needs those, but if you run air lockers, you already have them.

When you want to inflate your tyres, set the regulator to the desired pressure – clip the hose to tyre one. When the compressor cuts out, you know it’s time to detach and move to tyre 2. No checking and standing round. I do it whilst having a coffee and giving the kids a break after hitting the blacktop again.

I could put in a huge tank, but unless it’s big enough to inflate 4 tyres without the compressor then it’s not going to help, as when it depletes it will slow the remaining inflation time to the same as not having a tank at all.

I had the lockers installed 6 months ago when the front diff was broken as it seemed an opportune time. This was my first chance to really test them out in anger, and I planned to have some fun getting into places that were normally too rough or steep to attempt.

Next day I merrily headed down a track I wanted to explore and knew needed lockers and luck to get back up. Imagine my suprise when half an hour down the track I hear the compressor kick in and not stop – oh oh – air leak.

Investigation showed the rear diff breather venting air madly, making me happy that at least it worked as opposed to blowing out diff seals and oil. Under the bonnet had oil spraying out the solenoid, meaning oil and air were definately in close contact – something not in the ARB design.

A quick re-wire to engage the front locker first, and a bit of luck that meant the rear locker was actually still engaging despite the leak meant I could get home, cursing the complexity of the system all the way. A mechanical locker would never have these types of problems.

Mr ARB came to the party and fixed it under warranty, blaming the ARB dealer / installer who had since sold his business. When pressed for details they muttered about a broken copper line, however the oil flowing back up the line pointed instead to a failed seal. They wouldn’t discuss it any further except to cover their ass.

Who was at fault? I’ll never know. It does go to show however that the Legendary Air Locker is not without it’s bad points, in my case the significant risk of a 10km walk back to help.

My vote is with the Lock-Rite or Lokka for simplicity and therefore reliability.

When reading articles in magazines, I see this statement all the time: “We broke a shock absorber” and then remarkable stories of welding it up with batteries or bubblegum.

Myself on the other hand have never broken a shock absorber. Not in the rally car, not on Cape York corrugations, not playing silly buggers at Ormeo, not whilst breaking diff’s, not whilst launching 4wd’s or race cars airborne, not whilst towing heavy loads, not whilst hot, cold etc etc. I have tried good factory shocks, worn out crap factory shocks, Monroe’s, Koni’s, Bilsteins, Old Man Emu, yet none of them have broken. Get the drift.

Let me introduce you to the poor underappreciated Bump Stop. You see, when a suspension system reaches the limits of it’s travel, up or down, it has to stop. If it stops gently, all are happy, if it slams hard, steel on steel, something may give. If it slams hard time and again, fatigue will make sure something will give. Most importantly, in MOST cases, shock absorbers are NOT bump stops. Even if they are uprated “I have a bigger piston than you” shocks, the mounts still aren’t built like bump stops. Something will break.

Here are the general scenarios:

• The very common – shock is too long when compressed - it will become the bump stop over large bumps – Very Bad (Broken Jeep again Adam?)
• If the shock is too long when fully open, the spring will become free and will rattle / may fall out – Kinda Bad (and really irritating isn’t it Mr AdNic)
• The other not so common scenario is a really long stiff spring and a short shock. In this case the spring keeps trying to extend, but the shock stops it early. It is common for the shock to limit the downward travel and act as a bottom bump stop in Live Axle vehicles, but a really long spring or heavy spring will overload the normal behavior - presto – broken shock. The spring free length should only be 10 – 20mm longer than the shock, just enough to keep it captive.

Aftermarket suspension suppliers are generally very quiet on this particular topic. Trying to get numbers is next to impossible. Even the Internet discussion groups are generally ignorant or won’t discuss the travel numbers for their vehicles.

Well here are the numbers for the rear of a 100 Series Landcruiser. The rear suspension design is apparently not the same for the IFS and Live Axle vehicles. Mine happens to be a HZJ105 (live Axle) fitted with Old Man Emu aftermarket suspension. In these pic’s I am in the process of swapping the Old Man Emu OME863 rear springs which were too high / stiff for my use, with a set of King Springs KTRS-70.

All measurements are shock measurements from centre of pin to base of top mounting plate.

• Full Droop, no springs, no shocks, sway bar  – 640mm
• Full Droop, no springs, no shocks, no sway bar  – 640mm
• Fully Compressed, no springs, no shocks, no sway bar  – 400mm
• Full Droop, King Springs, no shocks, no sway bar  – 655mm
• Full Droop, King Springs, OME Shocks, no sway bar  – 640mm
• One side Fully Compressed, King Springs, No Shocks, no sway bar – 505mm

The following pic’s document and explain the above some more

  
 
Fully Compressed on bump stops. The cruiser is a great candidate for polyairs looking at this pic. I normally don’t like them as cars with the bumpstop inside the spring will have heavily limited up travel trying to compress the bag to zero size. In this case the bag would only be compressed approx 50%, making it highly effective at carrying additional load whilst not stopping travel (other than the increased spring rate).

Exhaust touches when on bump stops. Toyota got things very tucked away up there. The panhard rod is just above the horizontal. Lowering the mount would significantly equalize the Left – Right travel of the diff. The panhard rod ideally should be at horizontal when the suspension is at rest.

Sway Bar still not horizontal at full compression. There is some discussion that sway bar mount extension will improve wheel travel. Disconnecting it definitely improves side to side flex, but the actual design in itself does NOT limit down travel. The numbers above prove that. Note the upward direction of the bottom control arm, but the downward slope of the sway bar.

 
Full droop is limited by control arm bushes. (shock is disconnected at bottom). Diff is hard to RHS from Panhard Rod. Note the top control arm angled to the right and the large angle on the panhard rod. The compliance of the upper / lower control arm bushes are limiting down travel. A longer panhard rod would reduce this effect. The axle would spring back up to this spot even when pushed down further.

Same pic on the RHS. Not the top control arm angled to the right.

One side (LHS) only carrying full rear weight with King Spring. The RHS is at full droop. The vehicle is empty. When I first did this test with the jack the front LH wheel was on the ground taking some of the weight. To test it properly, you need to have the car on just the opposite wheels. These springs are possibly a little soft, but I plan to install polyairs. I would like to see about 10 – 20mm clearance from the bumpstop here.

So it looks like in a 100 Series, suspension droop is limited by the bush compliance. This is loaded by the panhard rod. The rod works in an arc, and in the case of the Landcruiser, this arc is mostly downward  below the horizontal. This effect is to move the diff significantly to the right as the suspension droops. As the rod is working at an angle most of the time the bushes are pushed to one side only, binding them, and limiting travel.

The next mod for me will be a panhard rod drop bracket. You could extend the rod, but this is simply patching the problem. Lowering the body mount point will still leave it up out of the way, but make the arc work above and below the horizontal. This will reduce the effect of the Left / Right movement and keep the dif closer to the centreline for longer. Presto, less bush stress and more travel. There is some discussion on effects on roll centre’s. When I know more I’ll update.

These results mean the factory sway bar setup does not limit droop. Whilst I would disconnect it off-road to get maximum flex at the rear, it is the panhard rod / control arm bushes that limit droop. No need to make crop brackets yet.

It looks like Mr ARB / OME has his shock lengths pretty well perfect. I was quite surprised. I am not normally an OME fan, but have been quite impressed with them in this vehicle. Acceptable on road, great off road. The maximum free droop is normally 640mm in and that is the length of the shock. This keeps the spring captive, but within 15mm of the end of its travel. A slightly longer shock would give slightly more travel, adding lever effect over the axle, possibly another 20mm at the tyre. The compressed length is less then 400mm, so they aren’t acting as a top bump stop and going to be damaged.

Now all I need is for someone to try the same with the front. Cmon guys, give me some numbers. I don’t have an excuse to do the front yet myself.

If you are looking at aftermarket suspension you can use the above to determine if what you are doing is of benefit. There is no point in going for longer shocks that 640mm unless you drop the panhard rod a bit, or force the bushes with longer springs. If the compressed length exceeds 400mm, you need to extend the bump-stops. Now I just have to figure out how to flex up like the rear of this Rangie.

The High Beam bulb in my cruiser is a 9005 HB3, Low beam 9006 HB4. These can be swapped with a HIR 9011 bulb that is very similar in design. A small plastic tab needs to have about 3mm of plastic trimmed to fit in the socket.

I purchased mine from www.finemotoring.com in the US who has plenty of information on HIR bulbs. The bulbs arrived in about 10 days, and I found the service prompt and friendly.

HIR bulbs are brighter than conventional Halogen bulbs, including the high output types, and cheaper than HID. I went for them as they are on instantly (HID needs to warm up),  cost effective, simple drop in, no ballast to mount, and I wanted to see what they were like. There is also less legal concerns running these bulbs than HID’s, but I’ll skirt that issue as it seems to be somewhat murky. Headlight and vehicle modification legality debates are contentious at best.

The HIR’s  draw 65w, meaning there is no need to re-wire the car to get a reasonable voltage to them. Running 100W or 130W halogen’s requires re-wiring in most cars. Failing to do this gives a significant voltage drop through the loom, and low voltage at the bulb. Halogen’s hate low voltages very quickly falling in brightness. A 130w bulb underdriven will produce less effective light then a well driven 55W. I have rewired the headlights in several previous vehicles, but am getting lazy in my old age. I haven’t measured terminal voltage to check the amount of loss, but with the engine running and 13.8v at the battery, they seemed fine.

The bulbs that I removed where Silvania 55w units of unknown age. There was no visible material deposited on the glass and the filaments were in good condition, so I would estimate their output to be well within 90% of new. Bulb’s tend to lose output as they age. High beam doesn’t get as much use as low beam, likely contributing to their good condition.

ARB and IPF are flogging HIR as the next best thing, with prices to match. I don’t know where they are sourcing theirs from, and some of their information seems contradictory with other sources on the web. Well, that’s this new intertechnoweb thingymajig for ya.

Fitting was moderately easy. The sockets for the bulbs are tight and tend to hold dirt, with difficult to remove plugs. They are also require removal of the battery to access the sockets, and lifting 35kg of AGM battery out of the tray is great fun.

The outcome is “acceptable”. The light is whiter and brighter, but not hugely so. These are not HID output colour’s or levels. The photo’s don’t give a good comparison as the camera light metering affects what you see. I would estimate the increase to be in the realm of 30 – 50%. Due to the lens design it doesn’t throw the light that much further, maybe 10 or 20m, but the fringe regions are more clearly lit, and the colour is less yellow, probably about 300K whiter at a guess. The centre area’s have more white light in them, but were acceptable before. There is some colour difference when projected onto the garage door, or when you look at them, however the camera doesn’t capture it. They are NOT blue or purple to look at.

I would score them about 6/10 – acceptable as a quick, simple cost effective upgrade with more, but with the falling price of HID kits, I think I’ll just go HID in everything.

 
Low Beam – Conventional

High Beam – Conventional
(Landcruiser keeps Low Beam lit when High is on)

High Beam – HIR Bulbs

Then along comes 2007, eBay and the advertising below: “UNVEIL THE NOBLE’ SGASEITY, DISPLAY THE KING’ DEMEANOUR” How could I resist? I love dodgy asian translations to advertise stuff. It was the above eye catching statement that made me decide this had to be the best HID offer on eBay. Oh, and it was the cheapest. The guy said he was in Australia, but the excessive postage cost and long delivery time seemed to put some doubt on that fact. The ratings on the account were good, and the product arrived OK, but he did cancel his account 2 weeks later. Dodgy? I’m still not sure. I did order and pay for extra High Tension cables, and had a longer 12v wiring loom supplied instead, but this could be simple mis-communication.  

So I am now the proud owner of some shiny kit to fit the shiny Hella Rallye 4000′s that came with my cruiser. I went with 4300K (the lowest colour temp) bulbs after doing much research across the web. It’s not a pretty purple colour, but far bluer than a normal Halogen. Whilst it might look cool, blue is very hard to actually see anything by, especially in dust or bad weather. That’s why fog lights are yellow, it penetrates more, and reflects less. I know in the rally car, in bad dust, you could see more with the driving lights off. White light reflects badly. Dull yellow headlights work best. 4300K is not yellow at all, but it is very easy to see by in good weather.

These are 35W units, the most common. There are some suppliers out there with 50W units. After testing, I don’t need the 50w units, these are fine. For those that aren’t aware, colour temperature has NOTHING to do with brightness. There is a large range of what people call “white” light. It is measured in degrees Kelvin. It is based on a block of pure carbon being heated in a vacuum. As is gets hotter it starts to glow. The actual temperature of the carbon is used as a reference to the colour it is glowing, from dull red (1500K), to yellow (2000-3000K), white (4300 – 5000K) , blue (6000K) and purple (7000K) as it gets hotter.  I decided to put them into the driving lights for a number of reasons

1. If they play up it’s no big deal
2. They take 30secs to warm up – not ideal in normal headlights
3. I want these for LONG range, and the driving lights are for that purpose
4. I did always want those Hella Predators

All required equipment and safety gear

I was not impressed when I pulled the Rallye 4000′s open and found that they were NOT watertight. They are designed to shed water, but there is no ring seal, and no seal near the bulb. The sealed electrical connection at the rear becomes a bit of a waste. So much for the overpriced driving lights. The Lightforce 170′s I put into my brother’s Jeep were far more waterproof than this.  I have had some comments from a friend with one that the reflectors don’t corrode like many lights, even with cracked glass, but I still prefer mine sealed. I was further unimpressed with Hella pricing a replacement lens within $20 of the cost of a whole new light. At $220ea for a light, no clear lens protectors and no reasonable replacement cost, that’s just rude.  I put $40 Lightskinz on mine, having been happy with them before. They don’t collect dirt like normal clear plastic protectors.

 
 I was rather impressed with the top quality silicon High Tension leads, and the silicon rubber seals on all the electrical connections. Cheap chinese perhaps, but very well presented with a high quality feel.  You can see the standard halogen vs the HID bulb. It looks like they simply change the plastic base for the bulb, and keep the capsule the same. When you buy them you generally have a choice of colour temp and base style to suit you vehicle and preference. The short High Tension leads are a problem. You need to put the igniters/ballast unit close to light, possibly where it will get wet. I would prefer well back in the engine bay. Oh well, have to see how waterproof it really is. Mine is mounted inside the bullbar. You can’t extend these leads easily, as they may carry 6000V+ to fire the bulbs. That needs special connectors and insulation, like your spark plugs.

 
The HID Bulb is slightly wider than the standard glass envelope. This makes it a touch fit in the Rallye 4000′s. I am still concerned about the touch fit becoming a break fit when things get hot, but seems OK so far. Ideally I should file the glass reflector a little with a dremel or something, but can’t be bothered. You can see the silicon sealant Hella uses doesn’t go 360 deg around the socket. The reflector is upside down in this pic. It’s only designed to deflect the water, not handle submersion.

 
Round plug (seal) – Square Hole. Bugger. Oh well, silicon fixes all ills, and it’s out of sight when on the car.

 
There are lots of comments on the web debating how HID’s may not work with normal reflectors due to the light coming from a ball as opposed to a filament, or not being at the focal point. They may be correct, but seems to work OK with these lights, and I suspect with most others. You can see the actual glass ball within the main capsule.

 
HID on the right, standard on the left. You can see the colour comparison. Real colours are hard to capture with a camera as the brightness throws it’s metering out badly. Regard it as comparative as opposed to qualitative.

 
HID on the left. I would estimate at least double the standard brightness, and close to triple. The standard High Beam on the outside looks very poor in comparison.

 
Slightly longer shot. The beam is fuller over a larger area, and far more intense.

 
Now for the acid test. This is standard Landcruiser High Beam. That is a 55w low beam and 60w high beam both operating together.

 
Add HID – presto – we have daylight. Again the camera changes it somewhat, but to get the best idea look at 3 things.

1. Colour – far whiter light
2. Distance – You can see the end of the street
3. Spread – that 1/2 circle is very bright in real life.

I don’t particularly love the spread of the Rallye 4000′s – it’s too narrow. They need another pair of spread beams. That said, I had a single Rallye 4000 spread beam with a 100w Halogen in it, and you couldn’t tell the difference with it on / off to the normal headlights. They need a set of spread beams with them. My plan is to HIR the high beams and HID the low beams. That may give me enough spread light to supplement the spotlights. Once warmed up they stay warm for several minutes, so dipping your lights for passing cars doesn’t mean a significant time without bright lights. It takes about 20 seconds from stone cold to get to full brightness. Even when warming up, they produce light, probably as much as a normal headlight, but you notice the difference compared to the photo above.

Conclusion

Rallye 4000 Spots: I don’t particularly love the spread of the Rallye 4000′s, or their waterproofing. I’m tempted to eBay these and buy Lightforce.  - Not recommended 3/5

Chinese HID’s: I do love the 4300K H1 HID’s. I’ll advise how they go in the long term, but for now – highly recommended. 4/5 until I trust them.

http://www.safari4x4.com.au/80scool/george_couyant/diffs/diffs.html

Summary: If you own an AWD car – AWD should stand for Any Wheel Drive – Any wheel with the least traction will get all the drive. The centre diff button just turns it into a “normal” “traditional” 4wd, that is one front and one rear must lose traction to stop going forward. This happens on many hills and is the reason pressing this button doesn’t do that much more to where you can go.

Plenty of water at Burrows Waterhole – this surprised me. The toilets are getting pretty full, the ranger plans to build new ones.

Red Rock Gorge track in good condition, no problem for soft roaders.

Reedy Creek track in poor condition – similar to Rat’s Castle.

Rat’s Castle road in usual condition. Soft Roaders need not apply. Standard Nissan Pathfinder managed the loop, but be prepared to use plenty of right foot.

“The side road” Mr Robert made so famous with his snapped axles, 10 snatch strap, 4 vehicle recovery is in fair but overgrown condition. I got down and back up OK, but had to drop tyre pressure to 24psi and use full lockers. Lots of flower fluff in the radiator. You really should have a winch to do this road just in case. There are no big steps at the moment, but plenty of very very loose shale. I followed it through to a creek and nice waterfall that was dry. 500M further along there is a steep climb that would be rather nasty and is *supposed* to bring you out to an open gate near the track. I know the gate, but didn’t try the hill as my rear locker chose that moment to blow a seal. There are two side tracks I sw off this one, but didn’t have time to investigate. One is *supposed* to lead to the old mine.

Casualties – sliced a sidewall on my Cooper AT’s. Slice 45mm long repaired by sending away to be vulcanized – $30. Doing the side road without a spare was nerve wracking. Slice was from a rock corner cutting along the sidewall bulge. Normally my sidewalls fail from pinching between rock and rim, so this is a new one for me.

Spoke to the ranger and he said the old road from Rats Castle down to the south end of the park was destroyed in the ’76 floods. Someone tried it this Easter and ended up smashing a diff or similar judging by oil stains found by hikers. Apparently there are 30 – 40 river crossings and it is not passable. Maybe with a few extreme cars w/ 35′s, winches, lockers, shovels and chainsaws it could be opened, but this would be rather frowned upon. Chainsaws being banned and it being a National Park.

Plenty of wildlife. Saw the usual Deer, Grey Kangaroos, Pretty Face Wallabies, Goats and heaps of bird life.

Great place, great food, great people. It was a good trip.

Soft roaders can manage it – but need help. They were happy for me to help with towing the trailer, but not so fussed on letting us sleep in it….

Rats Castle circuit is a little rough

OME articulates better than I thought

 
Burrows still has plenty of (cold) water

 
This is a view most won’t see of “the hill”. Bring Lockers, and a winch, and axles for any Discovery’s in your party.

My goals were as follows:

1. Seperate battery for starting
2. Maximum capacity for Aux items
3. 80Ah Useable Capacity
4. Option to expand to triple battery setup for winching

I’ll go into a debate on battery system choices in a seperate article, but to meet my needs I chose the following:

Odyssey PC925 – Small Start Only battery
These small expensive AGM’s are made to deliver spectacularly high starting currents from a small battery. If you don’t have room for a Dual Battery setup, or want to go to a Triple setup, then one of these should be your start battery. 925A for 5 secs, 620A for 10 secs – it starts my 1HZ with ease. I’ll update after a -5 winter day, but for the moment it works fine. I didn’t want a huge start battery that never used more than 5% of it’s capacity and wanted to be able to go to a triple setup later.

Fullriver HGL-120 – Aux Battery
These chinese AGM’s seem to be getting great reviews. Ultra low internal resistance means fast charging. AGM commentries are all over the web. The main things that are important to me are:

1. Fast Charge
2. Good resistance to deeper discharges
3. Great vibration resistance.
4. Adequate Capacity – 80Ah is easily acheiveable from a 120 rated batt

You’ll find out why the AGM costs so much and has higher capacity when you try to lift it. 35Kg as opposed to a conventional N70ZZ at 21 – 25Kg.

Piranha 150A Isolator – Conventional Voltage Sensing Isolator
It came with the car and after bodgy repairs to the cracked plastic case and corroded PCB tracks, now works fine.

Fitting the batteries

The Fullriver comes with an unusual terminal – basically a recessed nut and supplied bolt. You can either take off your conventional terminal and use theirs, or do as I did. Cut the lead terminals off your deceased battery, drill them to fit the bolt though – presto – conventional terminals in case you need to swap back for some reason.

To fit in the landcrusier cradle you’ll need to remove the plastic tray underneath. It’s not big enough and makes the battery sit up too high. I can’t see any reason for it’s existance, as the paint underneath is rubbed anyway, and it doesn’t have a drain making acid protection pointless.

You’ll also need to modify the rear “hook” bracket. It is too short and wont go over the slightly taller battery. 2 minutes with an turbo torch had it red hot and rebent. There is enough length in the bent peice hook to straighten and rebend it as a longer straight shaft.

 
Odyssey TEMPORARILY mounted in original position. This one battery replaced 2 batteries triple it’s size. Plan is to put it in the rear of the engine bay on a small tray. No need to move fuel filters and less weight.

Clearances are tight, but it fits. Modified terminals can be seen.

Modified rear hook mount needed for additional height. You can see the tight clearances.

Comments:

Conventional Wet cells don’t have enough useable capacity for my demands. Deep cycled they die.

Conventional Deep Cycle cells are slow charging. I doubt I’ll have the engine running for long enough to charge them fully.

I have concerns about AGM’s and heat. All Lead Acid cells have a positive feedback cycle when charging. ie, the hotter they get, the more current they adsorb, making them hotter, making them adsorb more current……
Normal wet cells will outgas if this gets out of hand, and you get to top them up with water. AGM’s recombine the gases, releasing more heat. This can be bad. 50deg is the theoretical max, but that is also said for conventional cells. Most people get away with it, some don’t .Ideally, mount them inside the vehicle. Personally, I’m going to put an aluminium heat shield in to keep the worst of the radiator heat from blowing on them, and rely on their forward position to feed them cool air. Some people do nothing and have no worries. Others have problems.

The isolator – like 90% on the market simply parallels the cells when the input voltage hits 13.6v. Many claim all sorts of wizardry, most are simply relays in a black box. 

http://msu.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1483960

http://msu.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1486339

In an ideal world every cell would be managed independently, and batteries would cover all our needs. The reality is that we have to make do with  differing solutions and varied information.

Some of the best battery information is here, here and here

This guy also has great information.

The general rule is that deep discharges shorten a Lead Acid batteries life. Cells not built for this are damaged very quickly. My experience has been that an average brand name 12mth old battery flattened by headlights overnight is basically stuffed and won’t carry more than 30% of it’s new capacity. It’ll start the car fine with this shallow charge, but that’s it.

The goal of an isolator system should be to
a) Leave you able to start the car
b) Minimise deep discharges of any battery

Now we come to the point of most arguments discussions. In most cases people opt for separate batteries, one for starting and one for auxiliary use. This means that the requirements the batteries face are not the same, and often differing batteries are chosen for these tasks. Further, as they are subjected to differing conditions they age independently and often will be replaced at different times. Yet the manual that your isolator came with, your mate on the Internet, and quite a few battery manufacturers will be telling you “DO NOT PARALLEL BATTERIES OF DIFFERENT CONSTRUCTION / SIZE / AGES”. That’s it. The discussion never moves beyond that point. There are HUGE debates on forums all over the Internet, yet they can’t get beyond this point. Series string construction and management is discussed ad-nauseam, yet the classic 4wd warning remains. Luckily for us, they are WRONG.

Evidence, More Evidence, even More Evidence

Parallel what the hell you like, it won’t matter. Which is lucky, because MOST expensive battery isolators do just that, and have for years. They all claim to be magic in a box, but most are relays, something known about for a little while now and use in all sorts of places.

Battery Calcs & Types

The calculations below are based on what I phrase “effective capacity”. This varies depending on battery type and it’s use. I’m going to assume you have it in a 4wd and drive a 2 – 4 hours a day when on trips. The numbers below are based on not wanting to flatten the battery more than 80% and it’s likely state of recharge from a normal alternator (your mileage may vary). You can roughly work out your effective capacity as follows.

1. Starter Battery
   (0.4 * RC) * 0.8
   =approx 48Ah for N70ZZ batt
2. Deep Cycle
   Ah * 0.5
   =approx 50Ah for 100Ah batt due to common low state of charging.
   This *may* be better if there are very long charge times or high charge voltages.
3. AGM
   Ah * 0.8
   =approx 80Ah for 100Ah batt due to fast charge capability.

Remember – these are for NEW batteries – it only gets worse as they age. Ageing depends on time, temperature, cycles and depth of discharge.

Isolator System Types

1. Parallel / Single Battery
   Works well enough, if you don’t discharge it too far. If you do discharge it you’ll be stuck looking for a jump start. Auto cut out devices and voltage monitors are a good solution. It’s also the cheapest up front solution – no parts needed. You’ll not be game to discharge your batt’s below 70% effective capacity if you want to start the car, so your capacity is:
   0.7
   * “effective Ah rating of battery type”
   * 2
   =Useable AH
2. Diode Isolator
   These are generally regarded as inefficient. Jaycar has one here. They induce a 0.6v drop across them. According to Odyssey this is the difference between fully charged and 50%. What will happen is charge voltages are high enough that losing 0.6v means the battery will charge 30% – 50% more slowly than normal, and possibly not charge fully. Theoretically a solid state MOSFET solution would work well, but I haven’t seen one yet. Relays are cheaper I guess. You only get one battery so the rough calculation is:
   AH = 0.7 * “effective Ah rating of Aux Batt Type Only and a slow charge”
3. Voltage Regulated Isolator
   This is the most common solution. Redarc is the most obvious (no box), but Piranha’s black box of tricks is the same thing. My black box fell to bits and inside it’s just relays connecting the batteries. They work by isolating the batteries when the voltage drops below a set point – around 13v. When the primary battery is back above 13v due to the engine running, it reconnects them. They generally should build in a bit of hysteresis (damping) to stop is short cycling if the voltage is close to the cutoff. The calculation is:
   AH = “Effective Ah rating of Aux Batt Type”
4. VR Isolated with Lower Cutout than Cut-in.
   Traxide does this really cool VR Relay isolator. By setting the cutout to the mid 12v, it lets you use 50% of your primary battery. Normally in an isolated system there is this huge heavy main battery there for just starting. I find this a waste. If I can use 50% of it’s capacity safely, then I would prefer to do so. The calculation for this system is:
   AH = (“Effective Ah rating” (Aux)) + (0.5*”Effective Ah rating” (Main))
5. Independent Management
   Now we get to the tricky (read expensive) stuff. To fully manage all batteries to their maximum potential all batteries (and ideally cells) need independent attention. People that live on solar or independent power often take inordinate care of their batteries, or alternately buy batteries that last 50 years. For 4wd use this means independent charging. There are a number of ways this can be achieved from vendors such as Rotronics, Amplepower and Arrid. Temperature compensation is one of the most important components, but they also regulate charge voltage, pulsation, float test etc etc. Nice stuff, but be prepared to pay for it. It may be cheaper for the casual user just to put new batteries in every 2 – 3 years, but if you live off it, then your use would probably justify the extended service life.

Personally I work out the following.

Battery & Isolator Cost and Capacity Calculator Spreadsheet

My Waeco CF50 uses *about* 3A @ 50% duty cycle * 24Hrs = 36Ah/day.
Add a couple of 8w flouro’s (1.5A * 3Hrs) and maybe the radio = about 45Ah / day.
I often want to stay 2 nights in the one spot, so I want nearly 2 days supply.
80 – 100Ah is enough for what I need.
The cheapest system that can deliver that is a Normal Start Battery + an AGM with a Traxide isolator.

There is a spreadsheet attached here that works out approximate the economics and capacities of each system. If you have unusual requirements or conditions, then the numbers will have to be tweaked a bit.

Interestingly the cheapest setup that also gives the most Ah/$ is simply a pair of normal Start batteries in Parallel. Unfortunately 67Ah useable is not enough capacity for my needs. $4.50/Ah

The most cost effective for my requirements is a normal Start battery + an AGM with a “Tricky Voltage Relay” by Traxide. 104Ah and $5.30/Ah

The very common Isolator + Deep Cycle solution works out to about $11.0/Ah – not very cost effective.

Results surprised me slightly.

http://www.lizardlegs.com.au/blackrat/news.asp

Unfortunately for most 4WD owners, this is exactly what we want to do. Even if they are exactly the same using an isolator makes them do different jobs, so when you go to charge them they are no longer the same.

95% of battery isolator systems charge your dual batteries in parallel. Even the ones that claim to be smart – are just a set of relays (switches) inside to parallel the batteries together. (There are some EXPENSIVE exceptions, you’ll know already if you have one).

Luckily it seems from some expert commentary on the topic it is actually just fine. I figure this guy should know what he is on about, seeing as he is now the current Chairman of the IEC subcommittee on Secondary (rechargeable) Batteries. Primary batteries being the Duracell use once variety.

Acticle 1

Article 2

So isolate or charge in peace, parallel is fine.

A far more interesting discussion is optimising charge management, but that’s another discussion.

Can anyone confirm 3 questions regarding the refresh behavior of Mobile
Internet Explorer. The device is an iMate JASJAM. Windows Mobile 5. 

1) Does a page with content (ads or similar) that expire continue to refresh
and consume downloads when in the foreground?
2) Does this still occur when IE is in the background?
3) Does this still occur when the device is in standby? 

I am concerned about both battery life and MB consumption and can't find any
documentation on refresh behavior. 

Thanx
Paul

 

 >>
1) Does a page with content (ads or similar) that expire continue to
refresh and consume downloads when in the foreground?
2) Does this still occur when IE is in the background?
3) Does this still occur when the device is in standby?
<< 

1 - yes 

2 - yes 

3 - no 

Beverly Howard [MS MVP-Mobile Devices]

 

So the implication is that unless you go into Control Panel – memory – running applications and shut down IE, it will keep chewing download capacity and battery life? Thanx Paul

>> it will keep chewing download capacity and battery life? << More importantly, if you pay for your cellular data by the data amount, things could get very expensive. The cache situation is primarily a user one… it’s good to get into the habit of hitting tools/options/memory and clearing the cache on a regular basis depending on how you use explorer. Since PIE only has a single window, it doesn’t impact any other speed issues and your wireless is not going to be much, if any, different than   with PIE shut down. I have a local html file which I set as my home page when I’m on a cellular $/byte connection which is a single tap away… and, one of the first third party app’s every serious user should install is a task manager to control app’s… I use and recommend vBar. Beverly Howard [MS MVP-Mobile Devices]

The problem is that no one wants to dedicate hardware to just printing. or heaven forbid, coexisting with a domain controller Another issue with print servers is DR. Lets assume that last driver you installed for the MD’s “all in one piece of junk” sends the print server into a spin and wipes out all the other Canon printers at the same time. There is no easy rollback. MS does provide a printer backup tool, but it is rarely used and doesn’t always sort out the DLL mess that comes from a conflicting driver.So you resort to DR – but hey, you can’t “just restore” the config to another server easily.  You have to restore the whole box. this means having the same hardware on hand, and a lengthy restore time. You could try your luck and sort out the RAID and MB driver mess to get it working on something else, but personally I hate the pain and excessive wasted time.If you do rebuild to a different server, there is a fair chance you’ll also be re-configuring all the desktops onsite. Getting all the configuration details and drivers right is not much fun. Until Longhorn gets here there if little in the way of centralized printer management that works well. Personally, I prefer to let users add their own printers. The downside is that a change on the server will generally be noticed with a huge influx of helpdesk calls. I still prefer that to the “install 10,000 printers on each machine” solutionAll of this makes you start thinking that a VM might be to your advantage.The two key points are this

1. VM’s are hardware independent – Move them to whatever and wherever you will.
2. VM systems are easy to snapshot – and that’s your backup solution solved.

Print servers fit in the category of things that don’t hold data and don’t change much. This makes traditional tape backup rather unwieldy and snapshots a perfect solution.Configuration Rollback – Snapshot the VM before making the change, takes no time compared to backup. If you have a problem – presto – instant rollback.Hardware Failure – Take weekly base OS snapshots of the paused image and back them up. If you need to restore, simply grab the latest and drop it on anything handy.Print servers are not really user interactive. It’s not uncommon to have to wait for a print job, so dropping them onto a box that has marginal performance is going to have little to no impact on user perceptions. This means you can use any old box as you printer server, and if it dies, move it straight to the next one with minimal outage.Advantages

• Reduced backup time / space.
• Simplified Backup
• Simplified Restore
• Significantly reduced DR time
• Rollback is trivial
• Slow hardware is fine – it is not user interactive
• Older hardware is fine – DR is so simple
• Shared VM hardware is fine
• Never rebuild your print server again – just move it
• Never DR your print server again – snapshot it
• Never reconfigure all your desktops again
• Stability means you can ditch all the printer install scripts

With the budget was maxed out I have run a VM print server with 140+ printers including large format and high speed lasers on an old DL360 PIII 500 w/ 1GB RAM and Mirrored 18GB 10K SCSI disks. It sat on 80% + utilization most of the time, and often flatlined on 100%, but I had NO user issues. I didn’t reboot the base OS ever for performance or stability reasons. When the new budget cam through it rolled onto a decent DL380 in a matter of minutes. I was also surprised to find the spooler seemed to be much more reliable when not running on a file server, so possibly there is conflict for resources after all.The portability and DR side meant I could pretty well forget about the box, it would just work, and if it didn’t, there was no stress and almost no downtime.In comparison to a few clustered Print servers I had worked with I found the VM solution to be far more reliable and caused less stress.

It is now possible for anyone to board a plane in Australia without showing ID. Known terrorists sign up here, if you are finding it difficult to travel elsewhere, we’ll happily let you on board.

You see the new Qantas electronic check in terminals allow you to type in your name and destination, presto, instant boarding pass. No ID at the desk required. No ID at Security required. No ID at the gate required. No ID on the plane required. Now I can book a ticket as anyone over the phone through a travel agency, and pay via direct deposit, so still no proof me is me.

Now I won’t wade into the pro’s / con’s of the ID debate here, Bruce is covering that just fine. What I do want to say is this.

It’s interesting that the airlines have spotted a chance to save money and jumped on it, despite all the other guff going on. I guess the difference is the other security stuff comes out of the customers pocket in airport fees, as opposed to airline profits.

I remember it used to be common to buy airline tickets from others based on gender, as it was a little obvious if Paul traveled on Paulette’s ticket. The airlines tried to stop this for years by saying a ticket was not for a seat, but “a contracted agreement between two parties”. They finally came up with the “for security reasons” excuse and forced everyone to produce ID and shut down this exercise. Now I guess the money saved on check in staff exceeds the money lost on people re-selling tickets.

Money still rules hey boys……. 

Instead you do the following:

• Create a Serial port (or edit the default one) in the “Bluetooth Configuration” in Control Panel
• Set to AUTO START – this is why it doesn’t “just work”
• Point ActiveSync on the PC to the new COM port
• Setup your Bluetooth partnership
• Fire up Activesync on the KJAM and click “Sync with Bluetooth”
• It may prompt to tick the “Activesync” service of the Bluetooth partnership with the PC

Hey, this is PNG, nothing surprises me anymore.

I challenge you to beat that for an uncontrolled outage.

http://www.aspecto-software.com/

DON’T install Ministumbler, it’s a bugger to remove, the uninstaller doesn’t work.

Pro’s

• It’s Very Small
• It’s Waterproof to 3M
• It’s Drop/Shock Proof to 1.5M
• It looks Normal – not all clunky and rubberised.
• There is NOTHING else on the market like it.

Con’s

• Battery Life is “acceptable” – about 100 – 200 shots, many with flash.
• Video is very average. 15fps max and fills 1GB card in 15mins.
• Video is Quicktime output format – yech.
• Shot to Shot is 3 secs – slow.
• Switching to Video invloves a lot of menu buttons.
• No image stabilistation except digital, which is just ISO really.
• I don’t really like Olympus. Fuji, Sony and Canon are “better” brands.

Summary
If you want to do lots of video – move on. If you want a camera to be with you all the time outdoors – this is your camera.

OK, here it is simply. If you own a Toyota 4WD, whatever the version, and want the rear LSD to get you out of a really nasty spot offroad, do NOT, EVER use the foot brakes to help. I know it works in Hummers, I know it helps to lock up the rear LSD, – Still DON’T, not even gently. The front diff will tear itself apart. You can use the handbrake all you like (Toyota handbrakes are only for decoration, they don’t actually do anything), but don’t use the foot brakes.

The brakes are biased to the front, and the front brakes are larger the rear. When you are on Low range with an auto, the rear brakes will always slip first, this puts 100% of the torque into the front diff. Guess what, it’s smaller than the rear, and defiantly won’t cope, even with moderate braking. If it’s an IFS Cruiser, it only just copes with normal driving.

Yes the brakes lock up the rear LSD and that helps you out, but you’ll smash so much in the process, you’ll be stuck anyway. Use the handbrake all you like, if that doesn’t work, you are stuck, sorry.

FYI: Mine is a HZJ105 with the “stronger” live axle and larger front diff. Still not tough enough.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/08/17/flying_toi…

Thats a reduction of 618Gig for FIRST TIME ONE WAY replication. It can only get better from here with partial change replication.

(Although I do have questions about .pst files – testing required here)

These numbers are from the DFSR utilities, I’ll have to assume it’s telling the truth. You do have to run Enterprise Edition on your file servers to get the full benefit (more details another day).

Reminds me of Schneier’s pizza’s at the NSA

http://www.msexchange.org/tutorials/Intelligent-Message-Filter-version-2-IMF-v2.html

http://blogs.technet.com/steriley/archive/2006/04/20/425824.aspx?CommentPosted=true#commentmessage

MS even let me present on this exact topic and make the same statements.

You can override this wallpaper with some local settings, although this *may* have impacts down the track where other settings are also blocked. This may or may not be a bad thing, depending on your perspective. It will definitely mean that IT won’t be happy as your PC is no longer standard and may not behave as they expect. This isn’t really a big stress, as with the advent of the Internet and web applications, no machine is the same as another anymore, despite opinions to the contrary. Your mileage may vary.

You need to have local administrative rights to make these changes. You may be this already, many laptop users are due to deficiencies in XP. Vista users are less likely to be local admin, as the newer design doesn’t require admin rights as frequently. To test if you are a local admin, try the below steps, if it denies you access, you need to escalate your privileges. Your friendly IT staff member may do this by adding your user account the the local pc administrators group, or alternately you can look at escalation of privilege attacks on the system. It is preferable not to be an administrator all the time, as the computer is MUCH more vulnerable to being attacked if you log on with Administrative access.

There is another way to gain administrative access. Every computer has a default Administrator account. Normally it’s named “Administrator”, but many companies to rename it. If you can get he password for this account, you can logon with it, and do what you want.
If you can’t get the password a nice utility from Peter Nordahl called NT Password Reset Disk will reset the password for the Administrator account, renamed or not. There is some risk with using this tool, but it still worked on NT/2K/XP/Vista including SP1 when I use it. You break your PC, you get to explain to IT  what happened.

Once you have admin access you need to open a Registry Editor

Check the account you are logged on with is a member of the group “Administrators”This is found under My Computer (Right Click) ManageAlso check if the account “Administrator” has been renamed.
Start | Run | Regedt32
Navigate to: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software \Microsoft\Windows \CurrentVersion\Policies\System
Right click “system” in the LHS pane and select “Permissions”
Click the “Advanced” Button
Untick “Include Inheritable Permissions from the Objects Parent”And select “Copy” existing permissions when prompted
Add “Full Control” to your user accountRemove “Full Control” from “System” and “Administrators” – leave “Read”.
You can now set the wallpaper path in the registry to whatever wallpaper you prefer. The key “Wallpaper” contains the path. If you delete the 2 “wallpaper” keys, then you will have access to set your wallpaper in windows as normal.
WallpaperStyle settings are as follows	0 Centered 1 Tiled 2 Stretchedas per MS

Presto – you now own your wallpaper again. You still can’t set it from the usual “Right Click” – select, but changing the path above isn’t too difficult.

The other options you have as workarounds against wallpaper policies depend on where the wallpaper file comes from.

If the file is stored locally on your PC, you can simply replace the file with something else with the same name, and change the permissions to stop it being over-written.

If it’s on the network, if you boot up disconnected, you won’t get the wallpaper.

Happy playing.
And remember, don’t trust anything you read on the Internet, we are all evil hackers out to get you. Now can I have your c/c details please?

Been using the Linux version for ages. Now for win32 – even easier. VOIP + Analogue + digital tie lines = bye bye small business PABX.

I’ll review handsets later. Polycom and Zultsys are both great.

127.0.0.1      config.messenger.msn.com

Blocks the SOAP config download for advertising.

www.postcourier.com.pg/20060215/wehome.htm
www.thenational.com.pg/021606/nation19.htm

Not much to say in the way of “Good Taste”. 120KG mother of 8 is the star…..

Answer is here: http://hellomate.typepad.com/exchange/2004/03/exchange_in_mai.html

No need to stress

They SUCK. 

Look like they should perform. Great blurb, solution looks good – BUT they fall over all the time, whatever firmware you run. If you like your wireless Up and Down – these are great. Hope you like night drives to power cycle equipment. (I have 12 of them – it’s not just 1 faulty unit)

2. We have about 50 – expect a 20% failure rate / year. They do NOT like the sun, very heat sensitive (even in aircon room)

3. They have major issues talking to IBM Gigabit Ethernet. Took me AGES to track this down. They will respond (ping, HTTP), but will NOT pass from the Ethernet to the Wireless interface if you are using an IBM Laptop or PC with Gigabit interface (running on a 100MBit switch). Yeah, I tried cables, switches, different PC. Same results. Talk to it, not through it.

4. When in AP Client mode they are REALLY REALLY crap. They translate the MAC Address of the host to their MAC. 3 hosts behind – all appear to have the same MAC to the server. The AP is supposed to sort out this shamozzzle when the packets return – guess what – they can’t. 50% of data packets it drops is bundle and you can’t talk. Another mongrel to diagnose, I love sniffers. Client side looks like packet drop. Server side looks fine – till you check the ARP table. Symptoms are 3 PC’s behind 2100 configured as AP Client. All 3 will get IP’s thru DHCP no problems with correct MAC addresses in DHCP server (only translates some packets obviously). Try doing stuff – each host will work then drop out in turn depending on who is sending what. Looks like the 2100 has limited buffers and can’t cope.

“Event ID 6402″
The DFS Replication service failed to initialize replicated folder D:\Deployments\Install because the service detected that one of its private folders overlaps with an existing File Replication service (FRS) replica set. This is an unsupported configuration.

or
Event ID 6002
The DFS Replication service detected invalid msDFSR-Subscriber object data while polling for configuration information.

Then you need to make friends with ADSI Edit.
Mine was due to a badly removed FRS structure after I broke the root upgrading to Enterprise Edition (really wanted the extra savings on replication)

Under the Server Container for your server you’ll find the records for the old FRS replication that is conflicting – delete the references for all members (yeah – even DC’s, the DC records are housed elsewhere) and Bob’s your uncle. They are GUID looking thingies here.

www.postcourier.com.pg/20060215/wehome.htm
www.thenational.com.pg/021606/nation19.htm

Not much to say in the way of “Good Taste”.

Network Server Monitor 7 – great product, doesn’t crash like 6.0. Price – you have to be kidding me – $1500 / 50 machines, no unlimted licences. That’s $1500 for 50 ping checks!!!!! Now I’ll pay $1500 for T/S logon checks, disk space, exchange services, HTTP file access, SQL queries etc etc etc. But for pinging my 120 switches – no way. For the $7000 bill total I’ll buy HP Openview. Sheesh.

BTW: 6.0 – Ping checks were FREE, and they had an “unlimited” licence.

Sick of the pathetic fuel range in your Surf? I get around 400km to the standard tank with the 1KZTE 3L Turbo Diesel. 450 on the highway, 250 towing a car trailer. After following mates that get over twice that (I hate Land Rovers), I decided to fix the problem. I think it was Toyota’s decision to give the new Prado (same engine) a massive 180 litres, compared to my 55 litres that finally clenched it.

The mega $$$ for the aftermarket tanks was out of the question, although their capacity is definitely excellent. I had seen a guy with a patrol tank in before, and it seemed to fit well. He had a filler under the wheel arch, a solution I found unacceptable. So a sat down and figured out how to make this all work, without a body lift.

Warning

Note: Fitting an additional fuel tank may:

• void your 2nd hand warranty (it’s not worth crap anyway)
• void your insurance
• leave you legally liable
• make your vehicle unroadworthy
• make your vehicle unsafe
• be illegal
• sag your rear suspension
• affect your vehicles handling
• be a fire hazard
• explode

So, if any of the above happens, or anything else happens due to this information, tough luck. It worked for me, but may not for you. Maybe I got lucky, maybe this is the Internet and I am lying to you, maybe I want to blow up all Surfs, maybe I am smarter than you, maybe it’s all an evil terrorist plot (and another place to hide weapons of mass destruction). So, you do it, your problem. All liability absolved. Lawyer types will disagree I am sure, but it will do for you and me.

Click here to leave this corrupt and decadent western imperialist travesty of a site

I decided to follow the Landcruisers that I had dealt with previously and run dual tanks with a changeover switch between them. The option of a pump though system that filled the primary tank occurred, and the pro’s and cons are listed below.

• Parts Req’d

• GQ Patrol / Maverick Wagon Fuel Tank (complete with pickup) ($90 from wreckers)
• 1.2M x” Filler Hose (Hydraulic Suction Hose was cheapest)
• 1.5M x” Filler Overflow Hose
• 3M x” Fuel Supply Hose
• 3M x” Fuel Return Hose
• 2 x Landcruiser changeover valves (80 Series GXL Diesel) ($50 from wreckers)
• Mounting Hardware – Nuts, Bolts, Washers, Locktite, Rubber
• 45? filler bend (x” Exhaust pipe)
• 120? filler bend (x” Exhaust pipe)
• 300mm Exhaust Pipe
• Hose Clamps (Various)
• Wiring, Switches etc.

The patrol diesel tanks do not have an in tank pump, as they are suction from the injector pump on the engine. The surf is the same. If you want to do a transfer system you will need either an external pump, or a different pickup.

The hose lengths above are for an install the same as mine. If you choose to different valves, mount them elsewhere, do a pump through setup, etc, etc, you will need different quantities. I chose the cheapest fuel hose I could get, and used hydraulic / fuel suction hose for the filler. It was actually cheaper than radiator hose, and much better rated. It has a large spiral wire inside, so be careful when cutting it. This also makes fitting it onto larger / smaller hoses quite difficult. To fit it to larger hose, lubricate well with oil and push hard whilst rotating it. It will expand slowly and go over. Use only good quality hose clamps to compress the hose. Good quality hose clamps are sturdy stainless, and have large indentations for the thread, not holes in the strip.

The changeover valves are quite difficult to remove from the Landcruiser. The wrecker won’t like you very much after this. They are in the rear up above the rear axle. I don’t recommend doing it yourself.

Costs

• Tank – $90
• Hoses & Clamps – $120
• Valves – $50
• Misc – $50
• Exhaust – $50
• Compliance – $75
• Total $435

Step 1: Line it up.

Two people make this MUCH easier.

Note the fuel stain. I thought this was from a leaking drain bung. Big mistake. Turns out the spot welds for the internal baffles have started to crack. It’s very small. but enough to leak. Bugger.

Step 2: Trim Exhaust and Chassis

Not as scary as it looks. This allows the sender and pickup to sit up in the chassis and give about 1″ more clearance under the tank. If it bothers you too much give it a miss. I preferred the clearance, and just rust proofed the cuts well. I actully didn’t have to trim this much, but it doesn’t really matter. Structural strength is no different as the towbar is much stronger than this stiffener.

Most exhausts will be in the same place as the tank. Time to move it.

Exhaust pic with tank in place

Step 3: New Exhaust

I took the Surf and tank to the local exhaust guy (Ian Diffen) and had him make up a new rear section. I requested mandrels due to the tight bends required, although the rest of the system is just press bend. 90? and over flow better if they are mandrel due to much less compression of the pipe. Under 90? will cope. He had to trim the mudflap to get it where I wanted it, but it clears the tank well. It is actually a tad close to the wheel, but doesn’t touch, so it will be fine.

Note: It makes using the LHS tow point difficult. You may want to work it a little different to allow for that.

Step 4: Modify Tank

Using object of choice (I like a rubber mallet) and a friend, fit the tank where it will mount and find out the high spots that will touch, then lower them
A bit of judicious thumping at this point gives another 15 – 20mm clearance under the tank. Also give the filler a good touch up till it is more horizontal, rather than the 45? it normally sits at.

Step 5: Front Mounts

I used heavy threaded rod for these. It doesn’t provide a huge amount of lateral strength, although more than I would credit after lining it all up. I used Locktite on all nuts, although NyLocks would be as good. Definitely use some retaining method, as fixing it later could be difficult. The threaded rod was just drilled through the flange in the rear cross member.

Hints:
1. Line it all up well before drilling
2. The rod is different lengths
3. Stay out on the flange, otherwise nuts won’t fit as they hit the cross-member.
4. Yes I had to bend them once they were in, the flange is not horizontal.

Step 6: Weld in rear mount bar

I welded the rear mount to my towbar. Don’t have one, you’ll just have to figure out something else. I’d recommend fitting a towbar to help protect the tank.

Step 7: Rear Mounts

Three high tensile bolts in the rear with rubber to allow a little flex. (Yes it is the old timing belt)
These also provide most of the lateral support.
If I was doing it again, I wouldn’t trust my welding and would have bolted this support bar in. Butt welds have a habit of cracking as the chassis flexes. I am still considering options for this, but it seems to be ok for the moment.

Will update if it falls out

Pic of both front and rear mounts

Step 8: Mount Tank

Curse and swear till the tank is mounted in place. Definitely another two person job.

Hints:

• Use 2 people
• Use Locktite or Nylock nuts
• Connect supply and return hoses before mounting
• Connect wiring for sender before mounting
• Block off vent hose as tank will be vented through filler to other tank and it’s emissions system.

Pic of installed with hoses attached.

The clear hose for the diff breather you can see is just temporarily tucked out of the way.

Step 9: Filler Hose fitting

I used a 45? piece of exhaust press bend to assist in this spot. I tried without it and it was just about impossible. It’s still not easy. You’ll need to lubricate the fitting on the tank. The pipe has wire inside, so persist, it will go on. As you wriggle it, the wire moves round till it fits. Make sure it is well on, as there will be flex, and this may pull the hose off if it is not well attached. Persistence will pay off.

The filler line runs forward and just fits between chassis and body in the triangular gap at the edge. I moved the wires for the suspension that run through the same gap more to the centre so they didn’t fowl the hose. The hose will get some abuse as the body and chassis flexes, but it is very tough, and should last the life of the car. There is no sharp edges through the gap.

Step 10: Modified Filler

I stole this idea off another Surf member who had similar under his. <insert link here>

Mine is a little different, as I don’t have the body lift, clearance is an issue. I came out at 30? with a piece of exhaust pipe, and them chopped and welded it parallel to the current filler. I also drilled and welded the filler cutout pipe.

I tried using the 80 series tricky changeover valve system, however there was no way to make the cast valve assembly fit. Even with alloy welding and machining it would be quite difficult. This fits, although it is quite tight.

The new filler fills the original tank, with the factory filler going to the new rear tank.

Another filler pic.

Step 11: Connect the Filler Hoses

This is a very difficult job. Be prepared to swear. There is a 120? elbow under the red circle to get around the tight bend. Take your time, it will work. I had to stretch a few things, and it was a bugger to re-bolt, but it will work. There is virtually no clearance so it is very tight work. It would be Much easier with a body lift.

The extra clear hose is my rear diff breather.

Hints: “Tap” the lip on the body away a little to give more clearance. I found a large flat screwdriver and a hammer made a large difference. The sharp edge of the body is a lot less of a problem when folded flat. You won’t get it all, but the bit to the rear near the elbow will definitely move. Means that you can get to the hose clamp on the elbow.

Make sure this hose clamp is on properly, it’s hard to tell. Otherwise when you go to fill the tank, it’ll pour fuel everywhere. Been there, done that.

Step 12: Changeover valves

The valves that come from the cruiser are a nice 3 port type, with 2 inputs and a common output.

They are a slightly larger fitting than any of the other pipework. I ended up using a little oil on the hoses, and heating them up with a hot air gun to get them to fit. This was after much swearing. A diesel doesn’t care about a little oil in the hoses.

Hints:

• Connect wires before mounting
• Lubricate and heat hoses. Careful using too much force as valves are plastic.
• Be careful that hoses, valves and wires will not fowl on suspension, diff or brakes.
• Diff will only go up so far, look at you bump stops to get an idea.
• Check which ports are what on the vales first. There is 2 inputs and a common output. Connect the wires across a 12V battery or charger to actuate the unit. I used unpowered from the original tank, and powered for the new supply.

Another hose & valve pic

I spent ages working out where to mount the valves so they would fit, not be near the exhaust, not fowl the suspension, not go though the floor. I ended up mounting one from the front lip of the rear cross-member. The return valve was mounted to the front lip of the tank with it’s bracket inverted.

And another

Step 13: Connect Hoses

This is where the factory hoses fit on. Send the original tank lines back to the changeover valves. Connect your new lines here.

Hint: Use the factory springy hose clamps on the fuel tank as there is no way to get a screwdriver in to tighten normal ones.

You may have to prime the lines, but mine did it itself. Make sure that you put fuel in the second tank before trying to run on it. If you suck the system dry, you will have to prime it all again, and that’s not fun.

Clearance

Rear View

I think the clearance is quite reasonable, up to your personal opinion.

We took it out to some pretty rough terrain and it was nowhere near to rubbing the ground.

I would like a bash plate under it though. Not too heavy, just something to adsorb any pointy rocks I may come down on or rub over. Similar to the factory fuel tank protector would be fine. I’ll keep looking.

RHS View

LHS View

Results

• Filled it with approx 80 litres of diesel, gives about 75L useable. I’ll confirm when I have a gauge and it stops leaking.
• No gauge, but it was still going at 500KM
• I estimate range will be 1000km now or more with both tanks full
• When it’s empty you don’t know it’s there
• Full, it lowers the back of the car a bit. Mine sits slightly high in the rear unloaded, and slightly low loaded for camping. That is with H/D Kings in the rear. Now when I fill the tank, it sits as if it had a full load on board. I would NOT recommend fitting this with standard springs. Full tank and full load was still quite reasonable rear ride height, just slightly below neutral.
• Handling is virtually no different, full or empty. Little heavy in the rear like a full camping load.

Comments

• These tanks have a bash plate on them in the Patrol. Mine didn’t for some reason. I’ll have to get one.
• I’d normally leave it nearly empty as it is more weight to cart around, this will impact fuel economy, tyre wear, handling etc.
• You obviously can’t mount another spare tyre under there
• The after market tank with 120L would be nice, gives more useable than this one does. Weight and cost a lot more though.
• The after market 110L replacement tank would be better, but is a lot more money, and give less range than this. It is really only an additional 55L on top of factory, where I now have 80L. Ideal placement for additional tanks is between the axles though. Out on the overhangs is a bad place to put weight as it de-stabilises the car. Tanks, bullbars, winches, water, batteries are the heaviest, and always end up out on the overhangs, a really bad combination. Try and minimise this where possible. Store water and jerry cans in the rear footwell for example, it’s central and low.
• I’d use the rear tank up first when going off-road, so as to take weight out of the rear. This will lift the rear a little, and improve weight distribution.