Computer Mod: In The Desk Not On The Desk
UPDATE: Full story here:
I got really fed up with having a great big white computer box on my desk and wires all over the place. You know the situation: cables and computers are not pretty. There was only one solution: My desk and my computer needed to be merged.
This was not your typical computer maintenance project. I did use a phillips screwdriver - quite normal - but the widespread use of a hacksaw, jigsaw and hammer to get everything in the right place and operational differentiated this project from most rebuilds I have done (lots).
Having managed to get the case cut down to provide a backplate and mounting for the motherboard and PCI devices I then cut out the back of the desk drawer for the cable access. The hammer was widely used throughout this project.
Amazingly I managed to get everything nicely located. Both the DVD drive and CD writer will appear from the front of the drawer. Have yet to cut the slots to locate them. And can’t decide if I want to go to the trouble of getting some matching veneer and giving them a wooden fascia to match the rest.
The old lock on the drawer was removed and the barrel emptied and cut down to become the power button. Locating the power switch behind the lock was easy enough. The main thing was trying to organise all the bits so they would a) fit b) connect with standard cables and c) not cook each other. Currently she is running in the drawer, in the cabinet at 43 degrees C CPU temp - thats low enough for me and only 4 degrees higher than when the beast was in a case.
Time to power up and see if this thing will actually fly. Holy cow she does !!!
Finally I have to do some cabinetwork on the desk she is going in. It’s an old base unit from a large office desk
few more bits to finish: cutting the CD drawer openings, securing the lock barrel to the power switch (don’t try no more nails - I discovered it dissolves the power switch plastic 
) and then I have to cut down the cabinet and rebuild the desk. Nearly done. Will post a pic when the final details are completed.
Just her smoked glass top to come.
Full story of the build here
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[…] Some of us still use those large CPU’s that take up all our desk space for working and yes, ahem, it gets awfully frustrating and crowded! Well, one fellow flower smeller, The Irreverent Buddhist, decided to include the CPU in his desk, making room for more paperwork on top of his desk. Er, more paperwork may not be more fun but its definitely more room anyway. Warning, the handiwork he performs on this computer may not be for the faint of heart or those who don’t know a screwdriver from a hammer. Bookmark to: […]
Pingback by Gosmelltheflowers » Go Smell Merges with a CPU — Thursday, July 12, 2007 @ 4:43 pm
[…] Check out the sweet computer that the Irreverent Buddhist made / modified. You’ve heard of desktop computers, of course. Well, this is a deskdrawer computer. Of course, the age of computers being ten-pound boxes full of wires are probably coming to an end very soon. Why have 200 GB sitting on your desk when you can store it remotely with Google? It’s so much easier for the government to read that way, and that will save time and money for your lawsuit when they finally come for you. Still, nice work. Maybe someone could make money fitting computers into household items. The cabinet guy comes over, builds a custom cabinet, then right afterward the computer guy comes over and fits a computer into it. […]
Pingback by Happier = Smarter « The Tricycle Blog — Friday, July 20, 2007 @ 11:28 am