LosOjos

Was her nickname Herma?

Surely that's a training issue? If the teacher doesn't fill in the handed-in date, how is the system supposed to know the homework is complete? NOTE: I haven't used the homework module so apologies if there's an obvious reason this isn't down to staff training

Yeah my surname is very "English" (Norman actually...), Johnson. The biggest problem with my surname is finding a forename that doesn't sound like a stage name!

OK, missus threw a pipe in the works last night by announcing she'd rather have the machine inside a different cabinet, one which only has spaces 33cm square They are open backed so can get away with up to about 40cm deep. Anyway, we looked at the options and, much to my surprise, she loves the BitFenix Colossus mATX: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/pimg/CA-161-BX_82648_350.jpg I think it's a lovely case but I'm surprised she went for it as I thought it'd be too in your face for her with the light - she's more of a geek than she likes to let on! Now, it's exactly 33cm tall, but I plan to remove the feet and put on some small rubber pads instead (to give the door clearance) so it should fit fine. The only question I have left is whether or not it's possible to fit both a large GPU and an optical drive at the same time. I've watched various videos and looked at various photos, but none seem to show this setup. It looks like it should fit, but it's going to be infuriating if I get the mobo mounted only to find it won't fit everything. I've emailed BitFenix to ask the question but in the meantime thought I'd see if anyone here has this case and if so, is it possible?

All this talk of Welsh/Scot names - my grandparents on my nan's side are Welsh, on my grandad's side Scottish and my other set of grandparent's have Lancashire, Portugese and German in their blood line - so maybe if I have a son he should be called Alun Boyd John Lars

It is government funded, don't expect too much That said, it's free too!

I haven't heard of this before either and (surprise surprise, it's January) I'm looking to get fit again. Going to have a proper read tonight and download the podcasts - might even start in the morning!

So the elephant was in the middle of a known period of increased aggression, being stalked by a car that stopped dead when faced (could be seen as confrontation from the animal), so was rolled resulting in a minor injury to a passenger - so the elephant was killed?!

No but it is in the top 150 on that list - I won't say what it is because I don't want to encourage it's growth

*Pictures SpongeBob in a trucker hat, chewing a strand of wheat with a huge mug of coffee with a lid sat on his computer desk*

Yeah I have a particular girls name I've loved for years (and the missus now she's got past the geek reference ) - so far, I've never met or even heard of a girl with this name so I'd be gutted if it becomes common in the next couple of years. That's assuming we have a girl of course - if it's a lad I'm scuppered!

When the apocalypse comes, you'll want as much food as possible in your cupboards. Once you run out, it's time to go looting. You won't be the only looter and you probably won't be the strongest or meanest either, so that's going to be dangerous. The biggest threat to your health is other survivors, you'll want to interact with them as little as possible (outside of your own family). Fortunately for me, I live like that already

Have you gotten the mask fragment from the Tree Tops yet? Damn, that was hard!

"What else is a geek dad to do" - sneak in a geek reference without the missus noticing like the rest of us?

Presumably each button runs a shell command, so you could have a CSV that has a list of buttons in a format similar to "Button Label,shell command, icon path" (you could have a default icon if no path is specified). Then the program loads up the CSV, iterates the lines and creates a button/icon for each line. Depending which version of .NET you're using, you could add them in to a flow layout too so they automatically rearrange themselves if the window is resized (saves you worrying about row/line heights when programatically adding controls)

OK so fair enough, it's probably a lie to make the sob story stick but a 4 year old playing computer games isn't unbelievable I don't think. Whether they'd play FIFA 14 however...

I'm going to be basing the machine on Windows 7 as it'll be doubling up as a Steam Box Yeah I have got a BluRay drive in my main PC but I never use it any more. Used to use PowerDVD but I can't imagine how you could integrate it with XBMC without physically having to close the window when you're done. I know that sounds trivial, but the idea is the whole thing will be as simple as possible to use so the whole family can jump on and use it. If I knew I could get BluRay to work seamlessly (i.e. the same as DVD playback in XBMC) then I'd do it, but I don't think it's possible...

OK, I've decided (for now at least!) to keep an optical drive, but only DVD. I have a BluRay player already and from what I've read online, BluRay support is still touchy at best on a PC. To make myself feel better about ditching BluRay support, I've gone for a slimline slot loading DVD drive and got a 5.25" bezel that matches my case... this will make the missus very happy (and hopefully make her miss the fact I've gone £20 over budget because I decided to get some Crucial Ballistix memory instead of the Avexir listed above). Won't be purchasing until pay day, but I'm happy with my base now. Only reason it may change is if there's a significant price drop on any upgraded components that would bring them within my budget - just have to wait and see!

5 years for me - but Will Smith? Really?

Bare in mind that OC capabilities are extremely limited on locked CPUs - the 'K' on the end of the name means that one above is unlocked and therefore has more potential for OC - just something to consider

Was about to post exactly the same (I've been obsessing over PC specs for the past few days) It's always worth checking out Scan's "Today Only" deals as well as Overclockers bundle deals, when everything lines up just right you can get some very good deals on CPU/Mobo bundles. Neither has anything in your budget at the moment however, just checked; Scan update their deals daily at 3pm, Overclockers seems to be a bit hit and miss.

OK so now I'm thinking install this instead of the BluRay drive but could do with some advice: Soundgraph iMon VFD 5.25" Multimedia Controller - Black [iMON VFD-bk] First off, has anyone here used one of these? If so, how simple is it to setup to show what you want? My worry is that it will only really work with the bundled software. Not the end of the world if the screen is a fixed message (though obviously I'd like it to display some info) but it's the remote I'm worried about - if that will only work with the bundled software, this is a waste of £45 IMO. Also, can anyone confirm/deny that BluRay playback is still a PITA in XBMC, or is it relatively simple/seamless now? Bearing in mind this is going to be for the whole family to use like a media center, it needs to be as simple as inserting the disc and choosing Play/BluRay, if you have to faff around manually opening up and configuring other software every time just to play them then I won't bother.

Really got me thinking now on the optical drive... I never buy games on discs and reading up, BluRay playback sounds like a dog in XBMC. I still have my PS3 acting as BluRay/DVD player so perhaps I ditch the ODD all together and instead put in something like this (though I can't actually find one for sale anywhere!): Antec.com - Product: VERIS Elite

BBC News - Computer programmer cracks secrets of films' dodgy code Quite entertaining, haven't looked at his own site yet (will have a look after work) but I'm looking forward to seeing how 80s movies fared - they seem full of crap when it comes to IT!

They do seem to be decent prices and I like their "Buy now pay later" scheme (would rather do that than pay finance), just a shame they don't seem to have a suitable case. This one would be perfect if it wasn't for the half-size expansion slots: https://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Components/Cases/HTPC/ARIAnet+HTPC-006+HTPC+Black+Aluminium+Desktop+Micro-ATX+Case+w%2F+Remote+?productId=53237 That said, the BitFenix Phenom is a possibility for another space in my setup, I'll have to measure it but I think this will just fit (seen a few others this size that would fit but the USB were on top, wouldn't have been able to use them): https://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Components/Cases/Micro+ATX/BitFenix+Phenom+MATX+Cube+Case+-+Midnight+Black+?productId=58069 EDIT: well after rebuilding specced around the BitFenix Phenom ITX, I realised there's no space for an ODD which is something of a deal breaker since I want it to play Bluray - then again I'm not sure how "integrated" I could make BluRay playback in XBMC... still have some thinking to do.