Discussion:
Why one needs a dVD drive in his laptop after all, haha.
(too old to reply)
micky
2024-01-24 16:19:25 UTC
Permalink
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.

Well, I was visiting my brother and sil, and good friends of theirs had
given them a telescope. They live on the 17th floor of an 18 story
building, on a corner apt with a balcony.

And they are complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in
the box was a DVD. Their computers would not play it but mine could. So
there.

It turns out, the telescope is still for sale new, a couple hundred
dollars iirc, but the file dates on all the DVD files was from 2008.

It included weblinks to the manufacturer, for warranty registration etc.
and none of the links still worked, It also included the user manual in
PDF, which is good because one of their new dogs** ate up part of the
paper manual. I sent the pdf to each of their email accounts, though
afaict neither reads his or her email. But if they complain later, I'll
send another copy. LOL

**The dogs are maltepoos. Combination of a poodle with a malted milk.
Andy Burns
2024-01-24 17:23:27 UTC
Permalink
good friends of theirs had given them a telescope. And they are
complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in the box
was a DVD.
Is the software not available to download from the telescope
manufacturer's website?
knuttle
2024-01-24 19:09:17 UTC
Permalink
Post by Andy Burns
good friends of theirs had given them a telescope. And they are
complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in the box
was a DVD.
Is the software not available to download from the telescope
manufacturer's website?
You have to have access to the internet to do that. If you are in a
dark place to use the telescope there may be no internet available.
Jim Joyce
2024-01-24 23:00:45 UTC
Permalink
Post by knuttle
Post by Andy Burns
good friends of theirs had given them a telescope. And they are
complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in the box
was a DVD.
Is the software not available to download from the telescope
manufacturer's website?
You have to have access to the internet to do that. If you are in a
dark place to use the telescope there may be no internet available.
Do your software and documentation downloads when it's convenient for you. Don't
wait until the middle of the night when you're in a place without Internet
access.
micky
2024-01-25 01:48:31 UTC
Permalink
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 17:00:45 -0600, Jim Joyce
Post by Jim Joyce
Post by knuttle
Post by Andy Burns
good friends of theirs had given them a telescope. And they are
complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in the box
was a DVD.
Is the software not available to download from the telescope
manufacturer's website?
You have to have access to the internet to do that. If you are in a
dark place to use the telescope there may be no internet available.
Do your software and documentation downloads when it's convenient for you. Don't
wait until the middle of the night when you're in a place without Internet
access.
There is no software for this telescope, only a PDF owner's manual and
some links that no longer work. Even the one with the motor drive to
follow the subject while the earth rotates I'm 95% sure uses no
software. Just admit that it's good to have a DVD drive when the
company provides you with a DVD.
Carlos E.R.
2024-01-27 19:04:44 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 17:00:45 -0600, Jim Joyce
Post by Jim Joyce
Post by knuttle
Post by Andy Burns
good friends of theirs had given them a telescope. And they are
complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in the box
was a DVD.
Is the software not available to download from the telescope
manufacturer's website?
You have to have access to the internet to do that. If you are in a
dark place to use the telescope there may be no internet available.
Do your software and documentation downloads when it's convenient for you. Don't
wait until the middle of the night when you're in a place without Internet
access.
There is no software for this telescope, only a PDF owner's manual and
some links that no longer work. Even the one with the motor drive to
follow the subject while the earth rotates I'm 95% sure uses no
software. Just admit that it's good to have a DVD drive when the
company provides you with a DVD.
With reasonably good telescopes, software can be added. Like for
instance adjusting the speed of the motor to compensate irregularities
and actually track an object while it moves on the sky (by sampling a
photo with a camera on the scope). Or having the scope automatically
locate an object (needs changing the speed of the motor significantly).

Other software can look at the telescope camera and sync the computer
generated sky map to it, so that you can identify objects.
--
Cheers, Carlos.
micky
2024-01-28 05:18:53 UTC
Permalink
In alt.comp.os.windows-10, on Sat, 27 Jan 2024 20:04:44 +0100, "Carlos
Post by Carlos E.R.
Post by micky
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 17:00:45 -0600, Jim Joyce
Post by Jim Joyce
Post by knuttle
Post by Andy Burns
good friends of theirs had given them a telescope. And they are
complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in the box
was a DVD.
Is the software not available to download from the telescope
manufacturer's website?
You have to have access to the internet to do that. If you are in a
dark place to use the telescope there may be no internet available.
This telescope was intended to be used on the 17th floor balcony of my
brother's apartment. There's plenty of internet.
Post by Carlos E.R.
Post by micky
Post by Jim Joyce
Do your software and documentation downloads when it's convenient for you. Don't
wait until the middle of the night when you're in a place without Internet
access.
There is no software for this telescope, only a PDF owner's manual and
some links that no longer work. Even the one with the motor drive to
follow the subject while the earth rotates I'm 95% sure uses no
software. Just admit that it's good to have a DVD drive when the
company provides you with a DVD.
With reasonably good telescopes, software can be added. Like for
instance adjusting the speed of the motor to compensate irregularities
This one doesn't have a motor.

Here it is:
https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-31045-AstroMaster-Reflector-Telescope/dp/B000MLL6RS/ref=sr_1_1_sspa

It has slow motion controls, but they are manual.

But it's $351, more than enough for a present you're not even sure your
friends will use.

Although here is almost the same model number, and it's less ($279,
still a big present),and it seems to have a motor, (though still no
software)
https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-31051-AstroMaster-130EQ-Telescope/dp/B0013Z42AK/ref=asc_df_B0013Z42AK/
The pictures look just like the one my brother has, with no motor. I
dont' know how that little box is supposed to move things when it still
has the same hand-adjusting knobs. Maybe they used the wrong pictures.
Post by Carlos E.R.
and actually track an object while it moves on the sky (by sampling a
photo with a camera on the scope). Or having the scope automatically
locate an object (needs changing the speed of the motor significantly).
That's going to be a lot more than $350.
Post by Carlos E.R.
Other software can look at the telescope camera and sync the computer
generated sky map to it, so that you can identify objects.
Paul
2024-01-28 07:15:49 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
In alt.comp.os.windows-10, on Sat, 27 Jan 2024 20:04:44 +0100, "Carlos
Post by Carlos E.R.
Post by micky
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 17:00:45 -0600, Jim Joyce
Post by Jim Joyce
Post by knuttle
Post by Andy Burns
good friends of theirs had given them a telescope. And they are
complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in the box
was a DVD.
Is the software not available to download from the telescope
manufacturer's website?
You have to have access to the internet to do that. If you are in a
dark place to use the telescope there may be no internet available.
This telescope was intended to be used on the 17th floor balcony of my
brother's apartment. There's plenty of internet.
Post by Carlos E.R.
Post by micky
Post by Jim Joyce
Do your software and documentation downloads when it's convenient for you. Don't
wait until the middle of the night when you're in a place without Internet
access.
There is no software for this telescope, only a PDF owner's manual and
some links that no longer work. Even the one with the motor drive to
follow the subject while the earth rotates I'm 95% sure uses no
software. Just admit that it's good to have a DVD drive when the
company provides you with a DVD.
With reasonably good telescopes, software can be added. Like for
instance adjusting the speed of the motor to compensate irregularities
This one doesn't have a motor.
https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-31045-AstroMaster-Reflector-Telescope/dp/B000MLL6RS/ref=sr_1_1_sspa
It has slow motion controls, but they are manual.
But it's $351, more than enough for a present you're not even sure your
friends will use.
Although here is almost the same model number, and it's less ($279,
still a big present),and it seems to have a motor, (though still no
software)
https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-31051-AstroMaster-130EQ-Telescope/dp/B0013Z42AK/ref=asc_df_B0013Z42AK/
The pictures look just like the one my brother has, with no motor. I
dont' know how that little box is supposed to move things when it still
has the same hand-adjusting knobs. Maybe they used the wrong pictures.
Post by Carlos E.R.
and actually track an object while it moves on the sky (by sampling a
photo with a camera on the scope). Or having the scope automatically
locate an object (needs changing the speed of the motor significantly).
That's going to be a lot more than $350.
Post by Carlos E.R.
Other software can look at the telescope camera and sync the computer
generated sky map to it, so that you can identify objects.
They mention using a stepper motor here, as it has a wider speed range
than a VFD could achieve with a synchronous motor.

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/879952-possible-to-use-an-industrial-vfd-to-control-an-ac-synchronous-drive-motor/

Paul
Carlos E.R.
2024-01-28 11:56:21 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
In alt.comp.os.windows-10, on Sat, 27 Jan 2024 20:04:44 +0100, "Carlos
Post by Carlos E.R.
Post by micky
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 17:00:45 -0600, Jim Joyce
Post by Jim Joyce
Post by knuttle
Post by Andy Burns
good friends of theirs had given them a telescope. And they are
complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in the box
was a DVD.
Is the software not available to download from the telescope
manufacturer's website?
You have to have access to the internet to do that. If you are in a
dark place to use the telescope there may be no internet available.
This telescope was intended to be used on the 17th floor balcony of my
brother's apartment. There's plenty of internet.
Post by Carlos E.R.
Post by micky
Post by Jim Joyce
Do your software and documentation downloads when it's convenient for you. Don't
wait until the middle of the night when you're in a place without Internet
access.
There is no software for this telescope, only a PDF owner's manual and
some links that no longer work. Even the one with the motor drive to
follow the subject while the earth rotates I'm 95% sure uses no
software. Just admit that it's good to have a DVD drive when the
company provides you with a DVD.
With reasonably good telescopes, software can be added. Like for
instance adjusting the speed of the motor to compensate irregularities
This one doesn't have a motor.
https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-31045-AstroMaster-Reflector-Telescope/dp/B000MLL6RS/ref=sr_1_1_sspa
It has slow motion controls, but they are manual.
You can see at the Amazon site that they have a variant with motors. It
is quite possible they can be bought separately as addons.
Post by micky
But it's $351, more than enough for a present you're not even sure your
friends will use.
Oh, absolutely.
Post by micky
Although here is almost the same model number, and it's less ($279,
still a big present),and it seems to have a motor, (though still no
software)
https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-31051-AstroMaster-130EQ-Telescope/dp/B0013Z42AK/ref=asc_df_B0013Z42AK/
The pictures look just like the one my brother has, with no motor. I
dont' know how that little box is supposed to move things when it still
has the same hand-adjusting knobs. Maybe they used the wrong pictures.
Post by Carlos E.R.
and actually track an object while it moves on the sky (by sampling a
photo with a camera on the scope). Or having the scope automatically
locate an object (needs changing the speed of the motor significantly).
That's going to be a lot more than $350.
:-)

If one gets attracted to this hobby, you start adding things to it. My
late cousin was, his setup was amazing (to me).
Post by micky
Post by Carlos E.R.
Other software can look at the telescope camera and sync the computer
generated sky map to it, so that you can identify objects.
--
Cheers, Carlos.
Big Al
2024-01-24 17:28:52 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Well, I was visiting my brother and sil, and good friends of theirs had
given them a telescope. They live on the 17th floor of an 18 story
building, on a corner apt with a balcony.
And they are complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in
the box was a DVD. Their computers would not play it but mine could. So
there.
It turns out, the telescope is still for sale new, a couple hundred
dollars iirc, but the file dates on all the DVD files was from 2008.
It included weblinks to the manufacturer, for warranty registration etc.
and none of the links still worked, It also included the user manual in
PDF, which is good because one of their new dogs** ate up part of the
paper manual. I sent the pdf to each of their email accounts, though
afaict neither reads his or her email. But if they complain later, I'll
send another copy. LOL
**The dogs are maltepoos. Combination of a poodle with a malted milk.
And a usb plug in drive would also work on all systems including the
above people you visited.
You could even make an ISO from it and give them the ISO they could
mount and run without a DVD.
--
Linux Mint 21.2 Cinnamon
Al
knuttle
2024-01-24 19:07:00 UTC
Permalink
Post by Big Al
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive.  No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Well, I was visiting my brother and sil, and good friends of theirs had
given them a telescope.  They live on the 17th floor of an 18 story
building, on a corner apt with a balcony.
And they are complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in
the box was a DVD.  Their computers would not play it but mine could. So
there.
It turns out, the telescope is still for sale new, a couple hundred
dollars iirc, but the file dates on all the DVD files was from 2008.
It included weblinks to the manufacturer, for warranty registration etc.
and none of the links still worked, It also included the user manual in
PDF, which is good because one of their new dogs** ate up part of the
paper manual.   I sent the pdf to each of their email accounts, though
afaict neither reads his or her email. But if they complain later, I'll
send another copy.  LOL
**The dogs are maltepoos.  Combination of a poodle with a malted milk.
And a usb plug in drive would also work on all systems including the
above people you visited.
You could even make an ISO from it and give them the ISO they could
mount and run without a DVD.
That is what my daughters keep telling me when I complain about the lack
of storage in the current computers. On my 1TB drive I have right at
4GB of data. During the installation updates, the disk uses over a half
a terabyte to install the update.

Yes with a current computer I could buy a large external drive, but
would I have the extern
Paul
2024-01-24 19:44:02 UTC
Permalink
That is what my daughters keep telling me when I complain about the lack of storage in the current computers.   On my 1TB drive I have right at 4GB of data.  During the installation updates, the disk uses over a half a terabyte to install the update.
Yes with a current computer I could buy a large external drive, but would I have the external drive when I need access to it?
The drive would be sitting on the table in its enclosure,
unplugged and waiting for you to plug it in. what
could be easier ?

No, it doesn't have to sit on edge like this. Flat is safer.
This one is missing rubber non-skid feet. This one has a fan.

https://www.newegg.com/vantec-nst-387s3-bk-enclosure/p/N82E16817392118

You said you needed storage. You can put one of these in it :-)
Apparently the industry thinks they're going to get rich off
impulse-buy of these. That's a Helium drive. Don't forget, you
can't connect 3.3V to one of those. Use a four wire power cable,
not a five wire power cable. No damage will result either way,
but with a five wire power cable, it won't spin. One of the 3.3V
pins is double-purpose, as Spin Control.

https://www.newegg.com/gold-wd221kryz-22tb/p/N82E16822234525

*******

The Windows LCU (Last Cumulative Update) folder typically has 100,000 files in it,
and that's a side effect of Patch Tuesday. The OS might only
have 300,000 files in it, by comparison. It does make the mind boggle.

What activity like that does, is it bloats out the $MFT (Master File Table).
Some of the files fit inside the $MFT and don't need clusters for storage.

The OS is nothing more than a very large scratch pad, filled with junk.
How many copies of MSEdge or MSEdgeUpdater does one poor bastard need ??? :-)
I would like to hear the Twink who designed that, to explain to us
what each and every copy of that is for.

Paul
knuttle
2024-01-24 20:35:30 UTC
Permalink
Post by Paul
That is what my daughters keep telling me when I complain about the lack of storage in the current computers.   On my 1TB drive I have right at 4GB of data.  During the installation updates, the disk uses over a half a terabyte to install the update.
Yes with a current computer I could buy a large external drive, but would I have the external drive when I need access to it?
The drive would be sitting on the table in its enclosure,
unplugged and waiting for you to plug it in. what
could be easier ?
That assumes that you are sitting in your recliner in front of the TV or
equivalent. I have a Portable Laptop that goes places with me, many
times on the spur of the moment. ie I have to go over to the next
building, or to the church and need t
Paul
2024-01-24 21:42:48 UTC
Permalink
Post by Paul
That is what my daughters keep telling me when I complain about the lack of storage in the current computers.   On my 1TB drive I have right at 4GB of data.  During the installation updates, the disk uses over a half a terabyte to install the update.
Yes with a current computer I could buy a large external drive, but would I have the external drive when I need access to it?
The drive would be sitting on the table in its enclosure,
unplugged and waiting for you to plug it in. what
could be easier ?
That assumes that you are sitting in your recliner in front of the TV or equivalent.   I have a Portable Laptop that goes places with me, many times on the spur of the moment.  ie I have to go over to the next building, or to the church and need the hard drive that is sitting beside my recliner.
The largest mainstream SSD drives tend to be 8TB.
That is for laptop storage solutions, whether NVMe
or SATA.

On laptops with a DVD drive, sometimes there is
a kit available, to take out the DVD drive and
replace it with an SSD. And this gives two drives
of storage.

There are workstation laptops, with four or more
storage devices inside. I have a local computer
store that sells "battleship" laptops the size of
airline luggage, with lots of bays for SATA and NVMe
SSD. And of course those machines have battleship pricing.

The market is defined by what can people afford,
versus what can technology build for us. Flash is
too expensive to really go nuts with the stuff.
The new Mushkin entry here, at 16TB, looks very
tasty -- but the price is not tasty. The 3.5" HDD
below the flash items, was thrown in for fun.

https://www.newegg.com/p/pl?N=100011693%20601414343 30TB $4100
https://www.newegg.com/mushkin-enhanced-16tb-source-hc/p/N82E16820226965 16TB TLC $2500
https://www.newegg.com/samsung-8tb-870-qvo-series/p/N82E16820147784 8TB QLC $ 580

https://www.newegg.com/gold-wd221kryz-22tb/p/N82E16822234525 22TB HDD $ 580

The machines in the room, have 4TB SSDs. They were a bit
cheaper when I got them last year.

Paul
Jim Joyce
2024-01-24 22:58:32 UTC
Permalink
Post by knuttle
Post by Paul
That is what my daughters keep telling me when I complain about the lack of storage in the current computers.   On my 1TB drive I have right at 4GB of data.  During the installation updates, the disk uses over a half a terabyte to install the update.
Yes with a current computer I could buy a large external drive, but would I have the external drive when I need access to it?
The drive would be sitting on the table in its enclosure,
unplugged and waiting for you to plug it in. what
could be easier ?
That assumes that you are sitting in your recliner in front of the TV or
equivalent. I have a Portable Laptop that goes places with me, many
times on the spur of the moment. ie I have to go over to the next
building, or to the church and need the hard drive that is sitting
beside my recliner.
Is it your laptop or does it belong to the church? Most laptops within the past
decade or more can accept a second (or even third) internal drive, sometimes at
the expense of giving up the (mostly obsolete) optical drive.
knuttle
2024-01-25 00:22:56 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jim Joyce
Post by knuttle
Post by Paul
That is what my daughters keep telling me when I complain about the lack of storage in the current computers.   On my 1TB drive I have right at 4GB of data.  During the installation updates, the disk uses over a half a terabyte to install the update.
Yes with a current computer I could buy a large external drive, but would I have the external drive when I need access to it?
The drive would be sitting on the table in its enclosure,
unplugged and waiting for you to plug it in. what
could be easier ?
That assumes that you are sitting in your recliner in front of the TV or
equivalent. I have a Portable Laptop that goes places with me, many
times on the spur of the moment. ie I have to go over to the next
building, or to the church and need the hard drive that is sitting
beside my recliner.
Is it your laptop or does it belong to the church? Most laptops within the past
decade or more can accept a second (or even third) internal drive, sometimes at
the expense of giving up the (mostly obsolete) optical drive.
I have two one belongs to the church, the other to me. Both have a 1TB
drive. The church one does not need 1TB, and the laptops with limited
memory could do the job if they can handle the update overhead. On my
personal computer with a 1TB drive has GB's of pictures, which gets
cataloged while waiting at the doctors, and similar places where you
ha
micky
2024-01-26 03:34:35 UTC
Permalink
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 16:58:32 -0600, Jim Joyce
Post by Jim Joyce
Post by knuttle
Post by Paul
That is what my daughters keep telling me when I complain about the lack of storage in the current computers.   On my 1TB drive I have right at 4GB of data.  During the installation updates, the disk uses over a half a terabyte to install the update.
Yes with a current computer I could buy a large external drive, but would I have the external drive when I need access to it?
The drive would be sitting on the table in its enclosure,
unplugged and waiting for you to plug it in. what
could be easier ?
That assumes that you are sitting in your recliner in front of the TV or
equivalent. I have a Portable Laptop that goes places with me, many
times on the spur of the moment. ie I have to go over to the next
building, or to the church and need the hard drive that is sitting
beside my recliner.
Is it your laptop or does it belong to the church? Most laptops within the past
decade or more can accept a second (or even third) internal drive, sometimes at
the expense of giving up the (mostly obsolete) optical drive.
No, no, never. You will have to take my optical drive from my cold dead
hand. (But I appreciate your saying "mostly". Good man.)

BTW, this fairly old laptop has a slot for an SD card, so I thought I
should put one in, for just in case. And it's always unloading and
loading it. I'm glad I don't need it.
AK
2024-01-26 23:46:49 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jim Joyce
Post by knuttle
Post by Paul
That is what my daughters keep telling me when I complain about the lack of storage in the current computers. On my 1TB drive I have right at 4GB of data. During the installation updates, the disk uses over a half a terabyte to install the update.
Yes with a current computer I could buy a large external drive, but would I have the external drive when I need access to it?
The drive would be sitting on the table in its enclosure,
unplugged and waiting for you to plug it in. what
could be easier ?
That assumes that you are sitting in your recliner in front of the TV or
equivalent. I have a Portable Laptop that goes places with me, many
times on the spur of the moment. ie I have to go over to the next
building, or to the church and need the hard drive that is sitting
beside my recliner.
Is it your laptop or does it belong to the church? Most laptops within the past
decade or more can accept a second (or even third) internal drive, sometimes at
the expense of giving up the (mostly obsolete) optical drive.
Optical drives are hardly obselete.

They can be used for example in playing DVD movies.

And they can also be used to boot into or install an operating system.

Andy
Char Jackson
2024-01-24 22:56:01 UTC
Permalink
Post by Paul
That is what my daughters keep telling me when I complain about the lack of storage in the current computers.   On my 1TB drive I have right at 4GB of data.  During the installation updates, the disk uses over a half a terabyte to install the update.
Yes with a current computer I could buy a large external drive, but would I have the external drive when I need access to it?
The drive would be sitting on the table in its enclosure,
unplugged and waiting for you to plug it in. what
could be easier ?
No, it doesn't have to sit on edge like this. Flat is safer.
This one is missing rubber non-skid feet. This one has a fan.
https://www.newegg.com/vantec-nst-387s3-bk-enclosure/p/N82E16817392118
You said you needed storage. You can put one of these in it :-)
Apparently the industry thinks they're going to get rich off
impulse-buy of these. That's a Helium drive. Don't forget, you
can't connect 3.3V to one of those. Use a four wire power cable,
not a five wire power cable. No damage will result either way,
but with a five wire power cable, it won't spin. One of the 3.3V
pins is double-purpose, as Spin Control.
https://www.newegg.com/gold-wd221kryz-22tb/p/N82E16822234525
That one is a bit expensive. Over the Christmas break, I picked up a pair of WD
Elements external drives, 18TB, for $225 apiece with free shipping. I haven't
shucked them yet, but I will. I avoid using external drives. Too much risk
involved.
micky
2024-01-25 01:51:02 UTC
Permalink
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 12:28:52 -0500, Big Al
Post by Big Al
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Well, I was visiting my brother and sil, and good friends of theirs had
given them a telescope. They live on the 17th floor of an 18 story
building, on a corner apt with a balcony.
And they are complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in
the box was a DVD. Their computers would not play it but mine could. So
there.
It turns out, the telescope is still for sale new, a couple hundred
dollars iirc, but the file dates on all the DVD files was from 2008.
It included weblinks to the manufacturer, for warranty registration etc.
and none of the links still worked, It also included the user manual in
PDF, which is good because one of their new dogs** ate up part of the
paper manual. I sent the pdf to each of their email accounts, though
afaict neither reads his or her email. But if they complain later, I'll
send another copy. LOL
**The dogs are maltepoos. Combination of a poodle with a malted milk.
And a usb plug in drive would also work on all systems including the
above people you visited.
You could even make an ISO from it and give them the ISO they could
mount and run without a DVD.
And with either method, how would you read the DVD to make the USB drive
or the ISO? Just blow on it and wish it?
Paul
2024-01-25 03:26:32 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 12:28:52 -0500, Big Al
Post by Big Al
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Well, I was visiting my brother and sil, and good friends of theirs had
given them a telescope. They live on the 17th floor of an 18 story
building, on a corner apt with a balcony.
And they are complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in
the box was a DVD. Their computers would not play it but mine could. So
there.
It turns out, the telescope is still for sale new, a couple hundred
dollars iirc, but the file dates on all the DVD files was from 2008.
It included weblinks to the manufacturer, for warranty registration etc.
and none of the links still worked, It also included the user manual in
PDF, which is good because one of their new dogs** ate up part of the
paper manual. I sent the pdf to each of their email accounts, though
afaict neither reads his or her email. But if they complain later, I'll
send another copy. LOL
**The dogs are maltepoos. Combination of a poodle with a malted milk.
And a usb plug in drive would also work on all systems including the
above people you visited.
You could even make an ISO from it and give them the ISO they could
mount and run without a DVD.
And with either method, how would you read the DVD to make the USB drive
or the ISO? Just blow on it and wish it?
Imgburn.

How can you have a DVD drive and not have Imgburn :-)

[Picture]

Loading Image...

https://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/imgburn.html

On Linux, K3B would be similar to Imgburn.

The Windows native IMAP2 support for burning discs,
is lacking, because there is no "erase" for re-writeable
media. In Imgburn, you can use the upper left icon,
then go to the menu bar, and somewhere down in the menu
there is a quick erase or full erase for re-writeable
media. Since the menus may be context-sensitive (they
depend on which of the six icons you are using), then
you have to select the correct one of the six icons,
before certain functions populate in the menu.

When you are reading a disc to make an ISO (second down on
the left), then you would not be expecting to find an
erase item in the Menu at that time. That would be a
clash of features -- a user "planning" to read a disc,
then attempting to erase the disc. So some of the
context-sensitive behavior is for safety reasons.

Paul
micky
2024-01-25 03:45:38 UTC
Permalink
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 22:26:32 -0500, Paul
Post by Paul
Post by micky
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 12:28:52 -0500, Big Al
Post by Big Al
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Well, I was visiting my brother and sil, and good friends of theirs had
given them a telescope. They live on the 17th floor of an 18 story
building, on a corner apt with a balcony.
And they are complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in
the box was a DVD. Their computers would not play it but mine could. So
there.
It turns out, the telescope is still for sale new, a couple hundred
dollars iirc, but the file dates on all the DVD files was from 2008.
It included weblinks to the manufacturer, for warranty registration etc.
and none of the links still worked, It also included the user manual in
PDF, which is good because one of their new dogs** ate up part of the
paper manual. I sent the pdf to each of their email accounts, though
afaict neither reads his or her email. But if they complain later, I'll
send another copy. LOL
**The dogs are maltepoos. Combination of a poodle with a malted milk.
And a usb plug in drive would also work on all systems including the
=========================================================
Post by Paul
Post by micky
Post by Big Al
above people you visited.
You could even make an ISO from it and give them the ISO they could
mount and run without a DVD.
And with either method, how would you read the DVD to make the USB drive
or the ISO? Just blow on it and wish it?
Imgburn.
How can you have a DVD drive and not have Imgburn :-)
Big All is trying to provide an alternative to having a DVD drive. What
good is Imgburn without a dvd drive?
Post by Paul
[Picture]
https://i.postimg.cc/FRQWxQ5S/imgburn.gif
https://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/imgburn.html
On Linux, K3B would be similar to Imgburn.
The Windows native IMAP2 support for burning discs,
is lacking, because there is no "erase" for re-writeable
media. In Imgburn, you can use the upper left icon,
then go to the menu bar, and somewhere down in the menu
there is a quick erase or full erase for re-writeable
media. Since the menus may be context-sensitive (they
depend on which of the six icons you are using), then
you have to select the correct one of the six icons,
before certain functions populate in the menu.
When you are reading a disc to make an ISO (second down on
the left), then you would not be expecting to find an
erase item in the Menu at that time. That would be a
clash of features -- a user "planning" to read a disc,
then attempting to erase the disc. So some of the
context-sensitive behavior is for safety reasons.
Paul
Paul
2024-01-25 23:23:09 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 22:26:32 -0500, Paul
Post by Paul
How can you have a DVD drive and not have Imgburn :-)
Big All is trying to provide an alternative to having a DVD drive. What
good is Imgburn without a dvd drive?
For content which does not exist as an Internet ISO9660 file,
you can convert physical media to ISO format, for distribution
to others.

As for "why don't you use USB flash like the cool kids", I
can give you an example. My most-healthy USB stick blew a tire
on the Internet and ended up in the ditch. So I couldn't even
finish a transfer I was doing with it today. I consider it a poor
investment, when I pay many times the blank media price for
flash, and the damn things keep croaking. And this is only
happening because the controllers on those things are
such shite. SSDs don't fail like that! Different controller.

Paul
Scott Lurndal
2024-01-24 17:32:18 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
You can get a brand new USB external CD/DVD drive for less
than $20 on amazon. And you don't need to discard it
when upgrading to a new computer.

Clearly someone is still using them.
j***@ieee.org
2024-01-24 19:22:29 UTC
Permalink
In article <CQbsN.253592$***@fx17.iad>, ***@slp53.sl.home
says...
Post by Scott Lurndal
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
You can get a brand new USB external CD/DVD drive for less
than $20 on amazon. And you don't need to discard it
when upgrading to a new computer.
Clearly someone is still using them.
The inexpensive drives work well. I have one.
Still use them?!? I have *hundreds* of disks
accumulated over dacades and not all of them
are obsolete - photos, music files, etc etc.
rbowman
2024-01-25 02:43:31 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
You can get a brand new USB external CD/DVD drive for less than $20 on
amazon. And you don't need to discard it when upgrading to a new
computer.
Clearly someone is still using them.
I have one. The last time I used it was to copy files from the CD
accompanying Earl Scrugg's banjo book. I've got other music books that
included CDs. They're still old school although some have went to
downloadable files.
Peeler
2024-01-25 09:29:23 UTC
Permalink
On 25 Jan 2024 02:43:31 GMT, lowbrowwoman, the endlessly driveling,
Post by j***@ieee.org
I have one.
What DO you really have other than a big mouth?
--
Another one of the resident senile bigmouth's idiotic "cool" lines:
"If you're an ax murderer don't leave souvenir photos on your phone."
"MID: <***@mid.individual.net>"
micky
2024-01-25 01:53:05 UTC
Permalink
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 17:32:18 GMT,
Post by Scott Lurndal
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
You can get a brand new USB external CD/DVD drive for less
than $20 on amazon. And you don't need to discard it
when upgrading to a new computer.
Clearly someone is still using them.
Exactly.

Actually one of those was included when I bought a laptop a few years
ago second hand. It was buried by stuff in the kitchen, and I hired a
maid who buried it further, but I'm still happy that I have one,
somewhere.
Paul
2024-01-25 03:31:32 UTC
Permalink
Post by Scott Lurndal
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
You can get a brand new USB external CD/DVD drive for less
than $20 on amazon. And you don't need to discard it
when upgrading to a new computer.
Clearly someone is still using them.
I do boot media on them, when I don't want to erase
a USB flash drive instead. I still have rewriteable
discs, and can erase old install media and reuse
the disc.

I don't generally put personal files on optical media.
I don't do drag and drop burns either.

Paul
Ed Cryer
2024-01-24 19:01:58 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Well, I was visiting my brother and sil, and good friends of theirs had
given them a telescope. They live on the 17th floor of an 18 story
building, on a corner apt with a balcony.
And they are complicated. Setup especially. And guess what, included in
the box was a DVD. Their computers would not play it but mine could. So
there.
It turns out, the telescope is still for sale new, a couple hundred
dollars iirc, but the file dates on all the DVD files was from 2008.
It included weblinks to the manufacturer, for warranty registration etc.
and none of the links still worked, It also included the user manual in
PDF, which is good because one of their new dogs** ate up part of the
paper manual. I sent the pdf to each of their email accounts, though
afaict neither reads his or her email. But if they complain later, I'll
send another copy. LOL
**The dogs are maltepoos. Combination of a poodle with a malted milk.
https://tinyurl.com/2gysx9tj
"You don't technically need a bootable optical disc to install operating
systems, access live CDs, or use bootable rescue tools. You can use a
bootable flash drive, or any USB storage device to format it as a
bootable volume. However, it's more complicated than creating a bootable
disc".

Ed
rbowman
2024-01-25 02:49:22 UTC
Permalink
Post by Ed Cryer
"You don't technically need a bootable optical disc to install operating
systems, access live CDs, or use bootable rescue tools. You can use a
bootable flash drive, or any USB storage device to format it as a
bootable volume. However, it's more complicated than creating a bootable
disc".
https://rufus.ie/en/

Not very complicated, even on Windows.

I haven't used it but UNetbootin may be even easier and it's cross
platform


https://unetbootin.github.io/
Paul
2024-01-24 19:27:20 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Since it's a different time line, I bought up all the media,
and I have the last two remaining blanks. They're going for
$1000 each. I either sell them to you, or the Smithsonian.

[Picture]

Loading Image...

The computer store I got those at, used to have three cubic meters
of media on display at one time. Today, they have three cake
boxes under the counter, and if you buy a box, that's
"a third of the store stock". Your choices are "Verbatim"
or "Verbatim". Or perhaps "Verbatim".

And the Dynex jewel boxes, are now "Verbatim" brand. Small world.
I was lucky to get jewel boxes.

The staff even had trouble finding those in the store. Normally,
their computer has a grid ref inside the store, for where the
items are located. But not for that stuff. It was actually underneath
the cash register location. I guess they didn't have a place to
put it. One clerk seemed to think it was hidden in the back somewhere
("in the cage"), but eventually one of the other store staff figured
it out.

Loading Image...

Paul
Big Al
2024-01-24 19:45:26 UTC
Permalink
Post by Paul
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Since it's a different time line, I bought up all the media,
and I have the last two remaining blanks. They're going for
$1000 each. I either sell them to you, or the Smithsonian.
[Picture]
https://i.postimg.cc/MK3vTJBz/last-two-pieces-media.jpg
The computer store I got those at, used to have three cubic meters
of media on display at one time. Today, they have three cake
boxes under the counter, and if you buy a box, that's
"a third of the store stock". Your choices are "Verbatim"
or "Verbatim". Or perhaps "Verbatim".
And the Dynex jewel boxes, are now "Verbatim" brand. Small world.
I was lucky to get jewel boxes.
The staff even had trouble finding those in the store. Normally,
their computer has a grid ref inside the store, for where the
items are located. But not for that stuff. It was actually underneath
the cash register location. I guess they didn't have a place to
put it. One clerk seemed to think it was hidden in the back somewhere
("in the cage"), but eventually one of the other store staff figured
it out.
https://www.moriareviews.com/rongulator/wp-content/uploads/Time-Machine-1960-11.jpg
Paul
Hey, I gotcha! I have about 5 cake pans. Some DVD+, some DVD-, some
printable DVDs, some printable CSs, and some plain CDs.
And don't get me on jewel cases. I have 10 of the small mini cases.
And about 100 paper sleeves.

Yes, they grow dust, but I just hate to toss them. They're under the
bed. I use one about once a year.
--
Linux Mint 21.2 Cinnamon
Al
Char Jackson
2024-01-24 22:41:52 UTC
Permalink
Post by Paul
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Since it's a different time line, I bought up all the media,
and I have the last two remaining blanks. They're going for
$1000 each. I either sell them to you, or the Smithsonian.
[Picture]
https://i.postimg.cc/MK3vTJBz/last-two-pieces-media.jpg
The computer store I got those at, used to have three cubic meters
of media on display at one time. Today, they have three cake
boxes under the counter, and if you buy a box, that's
"a third of the store stock". Your choices are "Verbatim"
or "Verbatim". Or perhaps "Verbatim".
I kind of like these stories of going to a computer store because they're
reminiscent of a bygone era when there were computer stores that you could
actually go to. When did they generally disappear, in the mid to late 1990s?

They'd have a couple of mid-tower cases, 3-4 motherboards of unknown origin, a
half dozen CPUs, some RAM, 1-2 power supplies, a couple of hard drives, two
video cards, one for $35 and one for a whopping $65, and so on. I enjoyed those
visits, when you could pick up an item, hold it in your hands, and read the
specs and other fluff that was printed on the box. Now it's all Newegg and
Amazon.
micky
2024-01-25 02:39:16 UTC
Permalink
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 16:41:52 -0600, Char Jackson
Post by Char Jackson
Post by Paul
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Since it's a different time line, I bought up all the media,
and I have the last two remaining blanks. They're going for
$1000 each. I either sell them to you, or the Smithsonian.
[Picture]
https://i.postimg.cc/MK3vTJBz/last-two-pieces-media.jpg
The computer store I got those at, used to have three cubic meters
of media on display at one time. Today, they have three cake
boxes under the counter, and if you buy a box, that's
"a third of the store stock". Your choices are "Verbatim"
or "Verbatim". Or perhaps "Verbatim".
I kind of like these stories of going to a computer store because they're
reminiscent of a bygone era when there were computer stores that you could
actually go to. When did they generally disappear, in the mid to late 1990s?
We lost a couple big such store, maybe when you say, but for 10 or 15
yeears or more in Baltimore we've had MicroCenter, not too far from me.
Gets 4.5 stars on 3000 reviews and if I'd reviewed it I'd give it 5
starts too.

They have a lottttt of stuff, and a couple things I've bought were on
sale and 60 or 80% off, my good fortune.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Micro+Center/@39.3964107,-76.5503719,15.83z/data=!4m15!1m8!3m7!1s0x89c80f44e03ffdf3:0xaaa66414a5a733f0!2sPerring+Pkwy,+Maryland!3b1!8m2!3d39.374293!4d-76.562038!16s%2Fg%2F1hl3hmbcx!3m5!1s0x89c808d454389181:0xebccbcc854b01057!8m2!3d39.3970154!4d-76.5455186!16s%2Fg%2F12604sg84?hl=en&entry=ttu

https://www.microcenter.com/site/stores/parkville.aspx?storeid=125
Post by Char Jackson
They'd have a couple of mid-tower cases, 3-4 motherboards of unknown origin, a
half dozen CPUs, some RAM, 1-2 power supplies, a couple of hard drives, two
video cards, one for $35 and one for a whopping $65, and so on. I enjoyed those
This store has a dozen or more cases and loads of the other stuff you
list, and I'm not the one keeping them in business. I hope they stay,
esp. since hamfests are fading away, due to the web. Sure used was
cheaper, but that was not the deciding factor once online sales came
out. Having to wait until the next hamfest was an issue, but the store
is open 7 days a week.

I hope I didn't make you too jealous.
Post by Char Jackson
visits, when you could pick up an item, hold it in your hands, and read the
specs and other fluff that was printed on the box. Now it's all Newegg and
Amazon.
Woozy Song
2024-02-02 09:21:28 UTC
Permalink
Post by Paul
The computer store I got those at, used to have three cubic meters
of media on display at one time. Today, they have three cake
boxes under the counter, and if you buy a box, that's
"a third of the store stock". Your choices are "Verbatim"
or "Verbatim". Or perhaps "Verbatim".
And the Dynex jewel boxes, are now "Verbatim" brand. Small world.
I was lucky to get jewel boxes.
The staff even had trouble finding those in the store. Normally,
their computer has a grid ref inside the store, for where the
items are located. But not for that stuff. It was actually underneath
the cash register location. I guess they didn't have a place to
put it. One clerk seemed to think it was hidden in the back somewhere
("in the cage"), but eventually one of the other store staff figured
it out.
Yeah shits me that every shop in town sells Verbatim only. The 10-CD
stacker in my 1990s limo won't read them. So have to buy printable
discs on eBay that claim to be Kodak or some known brand, and hope they
work.

VanguardLH
2024-01-25 00:26:16 UTC
Permalink
micky <***@fmguy.com> wrote:

<trimmed to retain the pertinent content>
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with
a DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Well, I was visiting my brother and sil, and good friends of theirs
had given them a telescope. ... And guess what, included in the box
was a DVD.
My up-vote on suggestions by others: get a USB-attached DVD drive, or
even a USB-attached CD/DVD/BD drive. No need for a built-in one. If
the attached one breaks, get another USB one. If you break the one in
the desktop, you'll have to open the case to replace it. Even harder in
a laptop to replace it.

You can even get USB-attached:
- 3.5" diskette drive. I've never bothered to hunt around for a
USB-attached 5.25" floppy drive.
- USB-attached Iomege ZIP drive if you still have Zip disks around (but
you might need to install drivers).
- USB-attached card reader.

There's probably other USB-attached storage that I didn't think of.
rbowman
2024-01-25 02:54:52 UTC
Permalink
Post by VanguardLH
- 3.5" diskette drive. I've never bothered to hunt around for a
USB-attached 5.25" floppy drive.
- USB-attached Iomege ZIP drive if you still have Zip disks around (but
you might need to install drivers).
- USB-attached card reader.
There's probably other USB-attached storage that I didn't think of.
I've got a USB attached tape cassette. It works for moving music off old
tapes but it's a painful process. The copying is in real time. The
software is reasonably good at breaking out songs into separate files but
you have to label them yourself.

There are also USB turntables for the vinyl purists although i think that
defeats the whole analog is better than digital thing.
Peeler
2024-01-25 09:35:26 UTC
Permalink
On 25 Jan 2024 02:54:52 GMT, lowbrowwoman, the endlessly driveling,
Post by rbowman
I've got a USB attached tape cassette. It works for moving music off old
tapes but it's a painful process.
HOW painful is it, drama queen?
--
Yet another thrilling story from the resident senile gossip's thrilling
life:
"Around here you have to be careful to lock your car toward the end of
summer or somebody will leave a grocery sack full of zucchini in it."
Carlos E.R.
2024-01-27 21:55:21 UTC
Permalink
Post by rbowman
Post by VanguardLH
- 3.5" diskette drive. I've never bothered to hunt around for a
USB-attached 5.25" floppy drive.
- USB-attached Iomege ZIP drive if you still have Zip disks around (but
you might need to install drivers).
- USB-attached card reader.
There's probably other USB-attached storage that I didn't think of.
I've got a USB attached tape cassette. It works for moving music off old
tapes but it's a painful process. The copying is in real time. The
software is reasonably good at breaking out songs into separate files but
you have to label them yourself.
Heh! I have not seen that one.
Post by rbowman
There are also USB turntables for the vinyl purists although i think that
defeats the whole analog is better than digital thing.
AFAIK, the intention is to record the existing vinyl collection
conveniently.


Heck. I just had a quick look at Amazon, and several compact players I
see include the speakers in the base, so there is feedback between the
speaker and the capsule.

Old briefcase players had the speaker on the lid, which was detachable.
--
Cheers, Carlos.
The Real Bev
2024-01-28 04:34:56 UTC
Permalink
Post by Carlos E.R.
Post by rbowman
Post by VanguardLH
- 3.5" diskette drive. I've never bothered to hunt around for a
USB-attached 5.25" floppy drive.
- USB-attached Iomege ZIP drive if you still have Zip disks around (but
you might need to install drivers).
- USB-attached card reader.
There's probably other USB-attached storage that I didn't think of.
I've got a USB attached tape cassette. It works for moving music off old
tapes but it's a painful process. The copying is in real time. The
software is reasonably good at breaking out songs into separate files but
you have to label them yourself.
Heh! I have not seen that one.
Post by rbowman
There are also USB turntables for the vinyl purists although i think that
defeats the whole analog is better than digital thing.
FWIW, hubby who can still hear earthquakes a few seconds before they
start and who used to hear REALLY high sounds, says the analog/digital
thing is pure bullshit. I trust him. My ears have always been terrible,
and now they're a lot worse.

Who knew that a sudden feedback scream from your phone (no idea how that
happened) could take out the higher-frequency (such as it was) hearing
in that ear permanently? Be warned.
Post by Carlos E.R.
AFAIK, the intention is to record the existing vinyl collection
conveniently.
He did that with our old Pioneer turntable, as well as transferring our
4-track tape collection to MP3 (can't remember the name of the recorder,
but we still have it), including attaching official names through some
arcane method.
Post by Carlos E.R.
Heck. I just had a quick look at Amazon, and several compact players I
see include the speakers in the base, so there is feedback between the
speaker and the capsule.
Old briefcase players had the speaker on the lid, which was detachable.
--
Cheers, Bev
SAVE GAS, FART IN A JAR
micky
2024-01-25 02:43:51 UTC
Permalink
In alt.home.repair, on Wed, 24 Jan 2024 18:26:16 -0600, VanguardLH
Post by VanguardLH
<trimmed to retain the pertinent content>
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with
a DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Well, I was visiting my brother and sil, and good friends of theirs
had given them a telescope. ... And guess what, included in the box
was a DVD.
My up-vote on suggestions by others: get a USB-attached DVD drive, or
even a USB-attached CD/DVD/BD drive. No need for a built-in one. If
Good for home, but I wouldn't have had it with me at my brother's, in
Florida.

I feel good when I know I'm packin'.
Post by VanguardLH
the attached one breaks, get another USB one. If you break the one in
the desktop, you'll have to open the case to replace it.
I can do that. I already have a spare one. You have to transfer the
outside cover from the old one to the new one.
Post by VanguardLH
Even harder in
a laptop to replace it.
I practially had the DVD drive out when I changed the bad hdd for an SDD
and added some RAM
Post by VanguardLH
- 3.5" diskette drive. I've never bothered to hunt around for a
USB-attached 5.25" floppy drive.
- USB-attached Iomege ZIP drive if you still have Zip disks around (but
you might need to install drivers).
- USB-attached card reader.
There's probably other USB-attached storage that I didn't think of.
VanguardLH
2024-01-25 15:59:31 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
Post by VanguardLH
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with
a DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
My up-vote on suggestions by others: get a USB-attached DVD drive, or
even a USB-attached CD/DVD/BD drive. No need for a built-in one.
Good for home, but I wouldn't have had it with me at my brother's, in
Florida.
I feel good when I know I'm packin'.
That's what carry bags are for: to pack more than the laptop. You
travel without the A/C adapter to charge your laptop? I also pack a BT
mouse and keyboard. And even some pens and paper. And sometimes even a
USB-attached HDD, SSD, or flash stick for more storage of data, and off
the drive with the partition for the OS and apps. And a powered USB hub
since the laptop has a dearth of USB ports. I don't recall seeing
anyone board an airplane with a nude laptop. They're always in a tote.

But, in your case, you already had a built-in optical drive. However,
the arguments were not against that, but that a built-in one is not a
necessity as you claim. All those folks that laughed at you simply
chose a different setup: a non-built-in optical drive via USB.
Post by micky
Post by VanguardLH
If the attached one breaks, get another USB one. If you break the
one in the desktop, you'll have to open the case to replace it.
I can do that. I already have a spare one. You have to transfer the
outside cover from the old one to the new one.
The comparison you split was about the difficulty of replacing an
optical drive if it breaks versus one inside a desktop.

You're transferring a cover from old to new WHAT? Between laptops?
Disassembling a laptop is a hell of lot more work than of a desktop.
And moving a USB-attached optical drive is even far more easy than
opening laptops to swap optical drives. I have an optical drive in my
laptop. Much easier to plug in a USB one should the internal one break.

Or does "cover" mean the faceplate on the desktop tower? Again, the
comparison was showing the greater difficulty of replacing a broken
optical drive in a laptop versus in a desktop. For my next laptop, I
would NOT get an internal optical drive. I'd stow a USB-attached one in
the laptop's tote bag. I wouldn't limit my candidates for purchase to
only those with internal optical drives. If the price were the same
between with and without optical drive, yeah, I'd get internal.
Post by micky
Post by VanguardLH
Even harder in a laptop to replace it.
I practially had the DVD drive out when I changed the bad hdd for an
SDD and added some RAM
That's a different scenario. You had the laptop disassembled for
something ELSE, so you decided to do more. Changing the optical drive
was coincidental, not intentional.

You didn't buy the laptop with an optical drive already installed? Or
are you still focused on what you did with your desktop when the issue
is about optical drives in a laptop?
Carlos E.R.
2024-01-27 15:19:54 UTC
Permalink
Post by VanguardLH
Post by micky
Post by VanguardLH
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with
a DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
My up-vote on suggestions by others: get a USB-attached DVD drive, or
even a USB-attached CD/DVD/BD drive. No need for a built-in one.
Good for home, but I wouldn't have had it with me at my brother's, in
Florida.
I feel good when I know I'm packin'.
That's what carry bags are for: to pack more than the laptop. You
travel without the A/C adapter to charge your laptop? I also pack a BT
mouse and keyboard. And even some pens and paper. And sometimes even a
USB-attached HDD, SSD, or flash stick for more storage of data, and off
the drive with the partition for the OS and apps. And a powered USB hub
since the laptop has a dearth of USB ports. I don't recall seeing
anyone board an airplane with a nude laptop. They're always in a tote.
But, in your case, you already had a built-in optical drive. However,
the arguments were not against that, but that a built-in one is not a
necessity as you claim. All those folks that laughed at you simply
chose a different setup: a non-built-in optical drive via USB.
A built in drive makes the laptop significantly thicker and heavier, and
I'd have that weight on my back when moving around. Arguably, the
external drive would be on another piece of luggage, so not on my back.

...
--
Cheers, Carlos.
Paul
2024-01-27 16:52:58 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
Post by VanguardLH
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with
a DVD drive.  No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
My up-vote on suggestions by others: get a USB-attached DVD drive, or
even a USB-attached CD/DVD/BD drive.  No need for a built-in one.
Good for home, but I wouldn't have had it with me at my brother's, in
Florida.
I feel good when I know I'm packin'.
That's what carry bags are for: to pack more than the laptop.  You
travel without the A/C adapter to charge your laptop?  I also pack a BT
mouse and keyboard.  And even some pens and paper.  And sometimes even a
USB-attached HDD, SSD, or flash stick for more storage of data, and off
the drive with the partition for the OS and apps.  And a powered USB hub
since the laptop has a dearth of USB ports.  I don't recall seeing
anyone board an airplane with a nude laptop.  They're always in a tote.
But, in your case, you already had a built-in optical drive.  However,
the arguments were not against that, but that a built-in one is not a
necessity as you claim.  All those folks that laughed at you simply
chose a different setup: a non-built-in optical drive via USB.
A built in drive makes the laptop significantly thicker and heavier, and I'd have that weight on my back when moving around. Arguably, the external drive would be on another piece of luggage, so not on my back.
There is not a lot of wasted mass in the internal optical drive.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=KT2u8wi8bDE

It needs the thin metal covers, because the rest of it is
pretty flimsy. That provides some protection while it is
being handled.

Thicker laptops also change in other design dimensions, such
as 200W turbo CPUs, heatpipes, more than one blower, and so on.
They don't make a laptop thicker just to accommodate an optical
drive.

There have been computing devices which are empty inside,
and they're the subject of derisive laughter. As a designer,
you can't really win by just making a thicker chassis and putting
a nice keyboard in it. Because then the comments would be
"shudda filled it with batteries". The customers will insist
it be chonky, and then they will later complain it is chonky.

A thick laptop is like a bag of penny candy. You expect the
bag to be "full".

Paul
Brian Gregory
2024-01-26 21:11:03 UTC
Permalink
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive. No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Not me.

The last PC I built I deliberately looked for a case with positions for
optical drives. It was fairly difficult to find one.

As to whether I really needed one. It is debatable. I could manage with
an external USB drive but it'd be annoying and an extra expense. (The
drives I used were out of my old PC)

On the other hand a USB DVD drive suitable for installing software is
going to be relatively cheap compared with the blu-ray writer drives I
like to have.
Post by micky
**The dogs are maltepoos. Combination of a poodle with a malted milk.
Ah. A drinkable dog. I hope multi poos isn't what they do when you take
them for a walk. Or if they do clean it up afterwards. ;-)
--
Brian Gregory (in England).
Paul
2024-01-26 22:15:33 UTC
Permalink
Post by Brian Gregory
Post by micky
People laughed at me when I said I wanted a desktop and a laptop with a
DVD drive.  No one uses those anymore, they taunted me.
Not me.
The last PC I built I deliberately looked for a case with positions for optical drives. It was fairly difficult to find one.
As to whether I really needed one. It is debatable. I could manage with an external USB drive but it'd be annoying and an extra expense. (The drives I used were out of my old PC)
On the other hand a USB DVD drive suitable for installing software is going to be relatively cheap compared with the blu-ray writer drives I like to have.
Post by micky
**The dogs are maltepoos.  Combination of a poodle with a malted milk.
Ah. A drinkable dog. I hope multi poos isn't what they do when you take them for a walk. Or if they do clean it up afterwards. ;-)
https://www.newegg.com/black-phanteks-enthoo-pro-atx-full-tower/p/N82E16811854069

3 External 5.25" Drive Bays
6 Internal 3.5" Drive Bays (trays seem to exit the chassis on the wrong side)

Motherboard Compatibility E-ATX / ATX / uATX / mITX / SSI EEB

Max GPU Length 472 mm / 18.5in w/o HDD cages
347 mm / 13.6in with HDD cages

Dimensions (H x W x D) 21.10" x 9.25" x 21.70"

The power supply is in the bottom, which is what I was looking for,
a way to move the power, so I could fit a fan near VCore.

It has a few issues, but size isn't one of them. I don't really like
glass doors for example. Potential for rattling.

That's a lot bigger than the Corsair cases on display at my
computer store. Those barely looked big enough to hold sandwich bread.

*******

And even if someone gave me a BluRay drive, I would not know
what to do with it. I've never seen any descriptions of "easy movie playback"
with stuff like that. There are a number of Intel processors not
rated for 4K playback. It's a "Hollywood security problem", something
only Hollywood could dream up. Even dedicated set top players, are not
guaranteed to play a title you own... forever. Titles could magically
stop playing, any time they want.

The blanks are pretty big at 25GB, and I don't know how that would fit
into any activity here. I would hate to pay extra for a BluRay blank,
and end up using it as a DVD blank. That would suck.

I guess you could say those drives are a "marketing fail".

*******

You know there is serious money about, when you read an article about
AI, and the comment section is filled with "AI is wonderful" posts :-)
I tried a few queries now on CoPilot, and I'm completely unimpressed.
That shit had better write excellent computer code, because as far as
answering question goes, it's pretty bad. And to think Windows 12 will
have a 16GB memory requirement, just to host such garbage locally :-/
Like I need a new key on my keyboard labeled "Garbage".

You only get one chance to make a good impression, and AI has already
had its 15 minutes of fame. I'm sure it will make a great missile
launcher or attack drone, no matter who it shoots.

Paul
Carlos E.R.
2024-01-27 21:56:35 UTC
Permalink
On 2024-01-26 22:11, Brian Gregory wrote:

...
Post by Brian Gregory
The last PC I built I deliberately looked for a case with positions for
optical drives. It was fairly difficult to find one.
I had no problem with that.
--
Cheers, Carlos.
Char Jackson
2024-01-27 23:26:36 UTC
Permalink
Post by Carlos E.R.
...
Post by Brian Gregory
The last PC I built I deliberately looked for a case with positions for
optical drives. It was fairly difficult to find one.
I had no problem with that.
It probably depends partly on the form factor you've decided to use. When I
build a desktop system, I exclusively look at mid-tower cases, and AFAIK 100% of
them have multiple 5.25" bays where optical drives can be installed. Brian may
be looking only at another (smaller) form factor, right Brian?

Also, as others previously discussed, I require the PSU mounting position to be
at the top of the case, for proper and effective heat management, never at the
bottom. It makes no sense to me to place that kind of heat source at the bottom
of the case.
Carlos E.R.
2024-01-28 12:32:25 UTC
Permalink
Post by Char Jackson
Post by Carlos E.R.
...
Post by Brian Gregory
The last PC I built I deliberately looked for a case with positions for
optical drives. It was fairly difficult to find one.
I had no problem with that.
It probably depends partly on the form factor you've decided to use.
True.
Post by Char Jackson
When I
build a desktop system, I exclusively look at mid-tower cases, and AFAIK 100% of
them have multiple 5.25" bays where optical drives can be installed. Brian may
be looking only at another (smaller) form factor, right Brian?
Also, as others previously discussed, I require the PSU mounting position to be
at the top of the case, for proper and effective heat management, never at the
bottom. It makes no sense to me to place that kind of heat source at the bottom
of the case.
Weight and stability of the case, possibly.

The heat should not be a problem, because it has a fan. Any heat
generated inside the PSU is vented out soon enough. Unless the PSU case
becomes hot, and that should not happen.

But then the case needs an independent fan at the top, to exhaust heat
from other sources that concentrates there.

Anyway, at least my last two boxes have the PSU in the top position, but
because it is opposite to the 5.25" bays, I guess.
--
Cheers, Carlos.
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