WFH rejig

[Kim]

I did try sticky labels wrapped round divers other cables but they tend to fall off, usually immediately after you’ve spent ten floor-grovelling minutes persuading Tab A into Slot B.  In Braille.

On a hunch that this was likely to be a problem I have some Brother Flexible ID tape and the tenth-of-the-price equivalent from AliExpress on long term test on the power lead on the back of the server.  They've been there a few months, and seem to have reached a steady state with the proper one still attached and the Chinesium semi-unpeeled.

Similar story using the same stuff in flag formation around the internal wiring in a power supply unit (so exposed to somewhat higher temperature) - the lamination layer unpeeled and fell off, while the labelly bit stayed mostly attached.  Over a couple of weeks of testing.

In general my preference is to label plugs and wall-warts where possible, rather than the cable.  Easier to read, and less challenging for adhesives.  The gold standard for cable labelling is transparent heatshrink, but that generally requires you to be wiring one of the connectors yourself.  But the posh cable-labelling tape does appear to make a half-decent go at it.  Certainly none of the stuff I used on the rats-nest of Ethernet shortly after buying the label printer (*checks notes* last February) seems to have come unstuck yet.

Speaking of Braille, I wish people would label sockets on the backs of computers and similar using such.  It's not that hard to recognise the type 1 characters needed to differentiate, say, 'in' and 'out' or 'USB' and 'HDMI'.

[Afasoas]

That's a nicely proportioned desk. And I do like the sound of the keyboard.




Added an el-cheapo cardioid condensor microphone and some speakers to the setup. It is really nice not to be wearing a headset 7+ hours of the day and speak to people almost as if they are sat at the next desk.

It cost me an entire evening to get the speakers to work reliably. For some reason PulseAudio saw them as a sink but attempts to emit sound resulted in some limited crackling and popping. Resolved now - I'm not exactly sure how, but in the end I deleted all configuration and re-installed a good number of packages.

Echo cancelling works well enough that my colleagues can't tell when I'm listening to background music source from the computer, which is nice.

[Morat]

I don't really see cables anymore. For me, they're the visual background to modern life like a farmer sees clouds or a sailor sees the sea. They're inevitable and sometimes very important but most of the time they're just... cables.  Other people get very angsty when they see my desk, but they tend to be management types who don't know what I do or how I do it  - and they don't really care until something stops working.
So I just leave my cables out there, hanging free in nice untidy bundles. It's a kindness really because it gives the management types something to comment on and that lets them feel they have achieved some management before they bugger off again.

[Lightning Phil]

I separate the plugs into core and extra. Core is PC, Screen, Router. Extra are the external RAID, printer etc.   Core and extra are on separate gangways. All plugs are labelled. Speakers are usb powered which saves an extra cable coming down wall. As above I don’t really notice the cables but they are all nicely in place and not tangled up.

Mouse and keyboard wireless as I’m left handed so have them set differently to wife and don’t want wires getting in the way there.

[marcusjb]

My partially complete addition to the thread:



One of the first things we knew we were going to do when we bought this house was to build a garden office for me (the cottage has 2.5 bedrooms and two people wanting permanent offices).

That was going to happen in March, but then, well, we know what happened - I made the call to press pause whilst I figured out where business was going only moments before the office company were going to ring me to say they were going to pause whilst they figured out how and whether they could do business in lockdown.

By June, I pressed go again and was near the top of the list. Sadly, the amazing spring led to a very wet summer and the team had less fun than they might have done so.

All finished in late July.

Joinery was due in October, but COVID and a new CNC machine has slowed them down; I had hoped it was done by Christmas - but we're now at mid-January which is a pain, but I'll live with it.



Office is superb so far though - not huge (but big enough for me!), has a storage shed at the end accessible from another door.

Seems to retain heat well (there's a lot of insulation in there), underfloor heating seems to perform well too.

Armoured cat6 down to the house, so getting the full benefits of our FTTP connection.

As befitting the office of someone who writes building management software, it has some cool tech; full Lutron lighting system, Crestron touchscreen in the wall with access to cameras, music (in the office and the speakers mounted on the office for the garden terrace).

So looking forward to getting it done - COVID slowed it down dramatically obviously, but it really then enables us to do a load of work on the house as my old office becomes my wife's new office and we get a proper guest bedroom.

Very glad I agreed on the garden office before COVID though - the company who built it now have a very, very long leadtime as their business has gone through the roof.

[Jaded]

You won't need a green screen either!

[Oscar's dad]

@marcusjb - that's very cool!  I'm sure we're all looking forward to seeing the finished project.

Status report for our project... last weekend we cleared out the main body of the garage so we could insulate the final wall of the home office section.  Loads of stuff got put in the loft or taken down the tip, there's yet more to go in due course.  The trailer full of camping kit was swung round by 90 degrees having had the draw bar unbolted which has freed up a load of space. 

Today Steve the Sparky is here today doing his thing.  We are making progress!

[marcusjb]

And from the outside, it looks something like this:

[Oscar's dad]

Fabulous, something like that would be my ideal solution if we had the space.

[Canardly]

Wonderfu, l would love something similar.

[Greenbank]

Nice work Marcus.

I'm pretty much there now.

Things to fix:-

* Desk (would like a sit/stand desk) - TICK
* Seat/stool/chair - TICK
* Nicer monitor(s) - AWAITING SUITABLE ITEM TO PURCHASE
* More storage - TICK
* Less clutter - TICK
* Sort out cable mess - TICK

(Thanks to citoyen for the Ikea Tertial lamp tip)

A wireless mouse and keyboard and I could move the laptop under the desk and be almost cable free on top (headphones, Garmin cable, mobile phone charger will still be somewhere across the desk) but what's there doesn't bother me. I may need to rejig when I do get a huge monitor.

Quite a way from the original: https://www.greenbank.org/misc/IMG_1508.JPG

[psyclist]

My partially complete addition to the thread:

Very nice. I'm in the final throws of researching options for our garden office, and expect quite a wait once the order goes in.

As befitting the office of someone who writes building management software, it has some cool tech; full Lutron lighting system, Crestron touchscreen in the wall with access to cameras, music (in the office and the speakers mounted on the office for the garden terrace).

I was thinking that I'd thought through everything, but these look like further 'requirements' to investigate!

[citoyen]

And from the outside, it looks something like this:

Looks amazing. I'm envious.

We have a 'summerhouse' (glorified shed) at the bottom of the garden, and I've considered setting up in there, but it's not insulated so might be a bit chilly over winter. It's also currently full of crap, so there's no room for a desk. Not sure if it's in WiFi range of the house either, but that's not an insurmountable problem.

[ian]

I told my wife she could go and work in the summer house. Nice commute up the garden, some fresh air. She told me to fuck off.

[Oscar's dad]

I told my wife she could go and work in the summer house. Nice commute up the garden, some fresh air. She told me to fuck off.

   There's no helping some people!

[ian]

Apparently, we disagree over the character-building nature of cold.

[citoyen]

Tell her about the study published recently that showed being cold is good for staving off dementia.

[Mrs Pingu]

Nice office, Marcus. Who supplied it?

[marcusjb]

Nice office, Marcus. Who supplied it?

Two Sheffield firms involved - Dore Garden Offices for the office itself and Kerf Works for the joinery.

[TimC]

I've been building myself an office. Not as grand as some of those above, but I don't work so it's more of a man-cave - or will be when it's done. I used an off-the-shelf 10x8 summerhouse as the basis.

[Oscar's dad]

@ road-runner - what sort of thing do you do in your studio?

@TimC - once all the C-19 restrictions have eased and the weather improves we'll have to do some home office / man cave exchange visits.  I'll cycle to yours for beers and a catch up and you ride down here!

[Oscar's dad]

@ road-runner - what sort of thing do you do in your studio?

I like to work, rest and play (no Mars bars). Eg, if you have 57 seconds spare, here is my Jingle Bells Bossa.

Excellent!

[TimC]

@ road-runner - what sort of thing do you do in your studio?

@TimC - once all the C-19 restrictions have eased and the weather improves we'll have to do some home office / man cave exchange visits.  I'll cycle to yours for beers and a catch up and you ride down here!

Indeed mate! If I ever get over the sinusitis that's laying me low right now - into week 4 with no sign of relief

[Oscar's dad]

@ road-runner - what sort of thing do you do in your studio?

@TimC - once all the C-19 restrictions have eased and the weather improves we'll have to do some home office / man cave exchange visits.  I'll cycle to yours for beers and a catch up and you ride down here!

Indeed mate! If I ever get over the sinusitis that's laying me low right now - into week 4 with no sign of relief

You need a project to take your mind of it, oh wait...    GWS 

[TimC]

@ road-runner - what sort of thing do you do in your studio?

@TimC - once all the C-19 restrictions have eased and the weather improves we'll have to do some home office / man cave exchange visits.  I'll cycle to yours for beers and a catch up and you ride down here!

Indeed mate! If I ever get over the sinusitis that's laying me low right now - into week 4 with no sign of relief

You need a project to take your mind of it, oh wait...    GWS 

Cheers! But you're right, keeping busy does help. Trouble is, with no sleep and a brain fried in snot I'm not best placed to do anything technical or requiring intelligence!!