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Re: low-MHz server [OT]



On Tue, Feb 05, 2008 at 07:16:06AM -0600, Ron Johnson wrote:
> On 02/04/08 22:44, Douglas A. Tutty wrote:
> [snip]
> > 
> > The problem is real.  There is no placebo effect to worry about.
> > 
> > Currently, Athlon64 box is as far from my wife as possible (70 feet).
> > Based on our experience of other high-MHz or GHz devices, she would have
> > to be at least 250 - 500 feet away.  To avoid this problem, we have to
> 
> If you live in an urban or suburban area, you *probably live less
> than 75m from your neighbors and their high-MHz PC, and *definitely*
> 150m  from them.

Well, we're in farm country,  The houses are 70' from the edge of the
road.  Our nearest neighbour is across the street: 70' + 70' + 40' =
170' to their front door plus however far to their microwave and PC.  It
is a factor over which I have little controll.  I do have control over
my own server.

> 
> Besides, EM radiation drops in intensity with the square of the
> distance.
> 
> How does she walk across the street, under the power-lines?
> 

With a head ache, of course.

> Or stand it when the neighbor turns on the microwave oven?
> 

:)

> Are you stocking up on incandescent bulbs?  They'll be going away
> "soon".
> 

It will be a few years.  

> [big snippage]
> > 
> > -----
> > 
> > Boxes and their limiting specs which I have looked into (in no
> > particular order).
> > 
> > AlphaServer 2100 min 250 Mhz
> 
> God those are ancient...  We had those back in the mid-1990s.
> 

I write this sitting at a Digital VT 520.

Right.  Its ancient, mid-1990's technology for which I am looking.  One
that will take the memory and drives to handle today's software and
data-set size.  Unfortunatly, that was during the shift from propriatary
busses to standardization on PCI.  For example, by the time IBM RS/6000
PPC boxes used PCI, they were just over 200 MHz.  They were nice looking
boxes, able to keep three PCI busses busy: two full scsi busses feeding
two gigabit networks while running around 300 MHz with 4 PPCs.  They
still command a high price.  I've never heard of anyone having one die
on them.

Ron, what other ancient hardware do you remember that may be suitable.
I can browse eBay, search eg: "166 MHz -GHz" for each MHz about which I
am aware, but I can't do that for the wider Google-land.  Are there big
server boxes that I am overlooking?

I'm also going to look into scsi drive holders in case I end up with a
server with few bays.

Thanks Ron,

Doug.


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