Docking in OOLite.

I figure a certain percentage of my readership now plays OOLite. Some of you are probably not yet comfortable with docking so here are some pointers.

1. Get a decent Analog joystick: You really need one in OOlite. Mouse is just not good enough. I use a hacked XBox controller. They cost less than $20 AUD.
2. Once you re in sat range, look for the beacon: It's near the space station. It's a round thingy. It flashes red and yellow on your radar
3. Fly up to the beacon. Get really close. Closer. Yes. That's good.
4. Now turn around and centre on the space station. Fly only a bit towards it
5. Switch to rear viewmake sure the beacon is in the middle of yyour rear crosshairs. If not, adjust your flight until it is.
6. Switch to front view. Make sure the space station is still centred, If not adjust and go to step 5.
7. Now fly at a fair clip until you are just outside the docking bay. Slow to a stop.
8. rotate until your rotation matches the space station.
9. Fang it! Max thrust into the docking bay.

An you are docked. It was even easier on the 8 bit versions.

Thoughts on Home Theatre

Originally this was an e-mail I sent to evilpaul at his request. After spending half a day writing it I thought I'd put it up for general consumption. I'd also be interested in feedback, alternative suggestions or new ideas.

Suprisingly, when building a home theatre PC, things like CPU and Motherboard are secondary concerns, so I'll cover them last.
The core things in HTPC design are:
1) Functionality. Thankfully a hell of a lot of power is available "out of the box" so thi isn't such an issue any more.
2) Appearance. No one really wants a beige mini tower jammed in with their nice silver receiver, DVD and VCR.
3) Noise. They GOTTA be quiet. A loud HTPC is not welcome in the average home theatre setup.

Now you can spend a hell of a lot on HTPCs, so I'll often supply alternatives or optional extras.

With these things in mind, LETS GO SHOPPING!
Case:
Sane Choice:
LC11M -  Buy Here
Slimline, Black, with a built in Vacuum Flourescent Display and IR remote control. It takes MicroATX motherboard. It looks like an expensive German amplifier. Also available in Silver

Lotto Choice:
LC18 -  Buy Here
What can I say? 7" LCD touchscreen included. This leads to some awesome HTPC options. Truly droolworthy

PSU: (only needed if you aren't going with the LC11M)
Sane Choice:
Antec NeoPower 480W
Cable management and plenty of spare capacity. Quiet too.

Alternative Choice:
SilenX 400W Luxurae Fanless
A bit more expensive, with no cable management, but also truly silent.

TV CARD:
Fusion HDTV Dual
2 HDTV capture cards on one board. It does Analog in for getting stuff off your VCR. It does Picture in Picture. I'd buy one if I didn't already have the model one down from this.

Sound Card:
Now if your am has 5.1 discrete in, go with whatever came with your motherboard. It'll be good enough. Home theatre is notoriously LoFi. However if you only have a digital in on your amp, then you'll need an AC3/ Dolby ENcoder.
HDA Digital X-Mystique
Basically a bottom of the line Dolby Digital Live encoder card.

Hard Drive:
You don't need fast drives for home theatre. Capacity is the key.
Sane Choice:
2 x WESTERN DIGITAL 250JS 250GB SERIAL ATA-II DRIVE
Half a terabyte of storage in 2 drives. The onboard controllers on the MoBo will let you set them up as a single drive. RAID 0 is probably overkill, but what the hey.

Lotto Choice:
AMD ATHLON64 X2 4200+
Dual Core is a good idea on HTPC. Many processes running in parellel.
PC-3200 2048MB CORSAIR TWINX
Paired Memory. Two Gig. Nuff said.

Extras
Stuff you may want to think about:
After market CPU Coolers. Quieter is what we are aiming for. I'd probably go with an Arctic Cooling Silencer, as it's fairly low profile, which you'll need

After Market fans. Quieter is what we are aiming for. I used SilenX fans and you just can't hear them.