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You are here: Home / John Cole Presents "This Fucking Old House" / Open Thread

Open Thread

by John Cole|  January 27, 201710:32 pm| 42 Comments

This post is in: John Cole Presents "This Fucking Old House"

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I feel like hammered shit, but the office is almost done. Everything is functional, now just time to hang some stuff and get the wiring neat and tidy:

Need to put up some shelves in the closet, get a bookshelf, get some lighting, and put up some cat shelves for Steve.

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42Comments

  1. 1.

    Lyrebird

    January 27, 2017 at 10:37 pm

    Nice office!
    And I’m sure it ain’t much, but since I have to buy some new job-hunting clothes, I’m trying to make sure to click through BJ when I’m ready to purchase… the ads follow along quite successfully once I start browsing…

    Happy new nest!

  2. 2.

    Major Major Major Major

    January 27, 2017 at 10:39 pm

    Sweet office. How’s the chair? Looks expensive.

  3. 3.

    wasabi gasp

    January 27, 2017 at 10:40 pm

    Love the Fuzzy Bread Green.

  4. 4.

    TaMara (HFG)

    January 27, 2017 at 10:41 pm

    So excited for you. Before you know it, you’ll feel like you lived there forever.

  5. 5.

    Frank Wilhoit

    January 27, 2017 at 10:42 pm

    All shelves are cat shelves for Steve, regardless of what is on them (or was, until a second ago).

  6. 6.

    Feebog

    January 27, 2017 at 10:43 pm

    The red cups should be in closer proximity to the 7up, otherwise a sticky keyboard incident waiting to happen.

  7. 7.

    Mary G

    January 27, 2017 at 10:47 pm

    View from your recliner, I assume, based on the sneaker peeking up at the bottom?

    Congratulations, looks great. Do you have a little fridge, so you don’t have to go downstairs for beverages and snacks?

  8. 8.

    Aleta

    January 27, 2017 at 10:47 pm

    @Frank Wilhoit:

    All shelves are cat shelves

    cat shelf : any shelf with a breakable object I was fond of

  9. 9.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    January 27, 2017 at 10:50 pm

    @wasabi gasp:

    Fuzzy Bread Green

    It’s Wasabi Green.

  10. 10.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    January 27, 2017 at 10:51 pm

    @Feebog: I have an insulated cup with a lid, it’s prevented a number of mishaps.

  11. 11.

    Aleta

    January 27, 2017 at 10:56 pm

    @BillinGlendaleCA:

    It’s Wasabi Green.

    Wasabi peas to be exact.

  12. 12.

    Garbo

    January 27, 2017 at 10:57 pm

    I second the mini-fridge suggestion. These may be helpful for cord wrangling and prettifying:

    Joto Cable Management Sleeves

  13. 13.

    Jim

    January 27, 2017 at 10:57 pm

    Ooooooo. Man cave deluxe! I’m jealous. Seriously.

  14. 14.

    wasabi gasp

    January 27, 2017 at 10:59 pm

    @BillinGlendaleCA: Outtaline, Bill, outtaline!! You know Wasabi gives John nightmares.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYUEjtCV1Gc

  15. 15.

    aangus

    January 27, 2017 at 11:00 pm

    Looking good.
    Not quite as good as this .
    But, still good. ;)

  16. 16.

    debit

    January 27, 2017 at 11:02 pm

    Looking good, John! For some reason when I first moved in my new place I was obsessed with getting my guest room done first. I don’t know why, but I’m glad I did. It was an oasis of calm in the midst of the rest of the unpacking madness. Your office looks awesome and I hope you have many happy hours there.

  17. 17.

    JaneE

    January 27, 2017 at 11:07 pm

    Please don’t let Steve know that he was last on your list of things to do.

  18. 18.

    Cogitari Safari

    January 27, 2017 at 11:10 pm

    Your monitor may be too high. I had a similar placement as what you show and was happy as it only took a slight glance up to see it. After 3 months, I noticed pain in my neck and shoulders. After a few days of eliminating other possible causes (pillows, etc.), I moved the monitor down to normal eye level. The pain went away.
    The placement _may_ be ok for you, but I doubt you’ll like it for very long. Those ergonomic diagrams for monitor and keyboard placement are pretty accurate and important.
    Nice chair. How much?

  19. 19.

    JanieM

    January 27, 2017 at 11:11 pm

    I’ve got screen envy. Nice workstation, John. It reminds me of a question…..

    Over the past few months I’ve set myself up with an L-shaped desk, one wing for sitting and one for standing. It’s still a work in progress, but I like it — it helps all my achy parts to be able to change work positions as often as I want. But there’s something my little heart desires that I’m starting to think isn’t possible, at least for someone without a lot of patience with or knowledge of hardware. John’s picture reminded me that someone here might be able to point me in the right direction.

    I’ve just bought a new desktop computer (leaving my old personal laptop as my backup machine). I’ve also got a work-supplied laptop. The new desktop has allowed me to totally separate work and personal stuff for the first time, practically since computers were invented.

    (Yeah, I’m old. The first time I ever touched a computer was in 1967 – Algol programming at an NSF summer class. Punch cards.)

    So I’ve got two machines sitting here, and a plethora of peripherals. What I’d like now is to have a keyboard-mouse-monitor setup on the standing desk, and another on the sitting desk, and a gizmo that lets me switch either set of peripherals back and forth to either computer, without having to move any wires. (I don’t want to get into Bluetooth; I have a bluetooth keyboard that I like okay, but I hate the mouse. Let’s stick with wires for purposes of discussion.)

    I’ve been told about KVM switches, and read up a bit on them online. But as far as I can tell, while they allow control of several computers from one set of peripherals, they don’t allow more than one set of peripherals to be hooked up to more than one computer.

    Is this an impossible dream? I don’t want to shell out a ton of money, though I’d consider shelling out a couple hundred dollars for something that worked. But I’m also pretty clueless about hardware and electronics, so if there isn’t something close to off-the-shelf (or at least with very clear instructions), it’s probably beyond my reach.

    Sorry for the length, but I have a hunch someone here will know the answer to my question, which would be nice. Even if the answer is sorry, no, at least then I can stop wishing.

  20. 20.

    Aleta

    January 27, 2017 at 11:15 pm

    Apologies for doing this, but my brother asked me to look at a dog, which he decided he can’t take, but some people here were talking about cocker spaniels last night, and these two are each 2 years old, and were surrendered by their owner who was moving. In Philly, looks to be quite a character.

  21. 21.

    FlyingToaster

    January 27, 2017 at 11:49 pm

    @JanieM: I don’t think you need a switch; if you want to stay wired, you just need a powered USB hub, and hook all the peripherals (keyboards, mice, trackpads) to it. Or go Bluetooth and have one wired, one Bluetooth setup (my laptop trackpad co-exists happily with my bluetooth mouse). You may need a monitor board, if you only have one monitor-out port on your desktop, but you should be able to set the display to “mirroring”, so the same view comes up on both monitors. Or use a wireless monitor (I do this at WarriorGirl’s school with Apple’s AirPlay).

    Not an expert, but I have to do this shit occasionally. KVM is only for the other way around (rackmounts!).

  22. 22.

    Hillary Rettig

    January 27, 2017 at 11:49 pm

    love the forest green walls

  23. 23.

    JanieM

    January 27, 2017 at 11:54 pm

    @FlyingToaster: Thank you! I’ll see if I can get somewhere with those suggestions.

  24. 24.

    Natick Dog Walker

    January 27, 2017 at 11:57 pm

    Looks nice! When are we going to see pictures of the whole house? I saw the shots when you showed the work crew gathered together, but I’ve been waiting to see what the whole place looks like. So lets see lots of pictures. No one cares if it’s messy and you haven’t unpacked yet.

  25. 25.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    January 28, 2017 at 12:16 am

    @JanieM: I use a Logitech keyboard and mouse, you can attach multiple peripherals to one receiver in one usb port.

  26. 26.

    Greg Ferguson

    January 28, 2017 at 12:17 am

    Wow! That looks awesome, Cole – congratulations. Look out, S.P.E.C.T.R.E. (esp. when Steve gets his perches..)!

  27. 27.

    Another Scott

    January 28, 2017 at 12:25 am

    Nice.

    Do you type with your keyboard in your lap? If not, you might want to consider a keyboard drawer.

    I’m assuming you’ve adjusted the arm resets on your chair to be the correct, comfortable height. Your hands would then be at roughly the same level. As it stands, your keyboard is several inches higher. Either you’re going to be scrunching up your shoulders when you type or doing something else that gets your arms and hands out of their natural relaxed position for typing.

    Or maybe move your chair up a few inches. ;-)

    Enjoy!

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  28. 28.

    Mike E

    January 28, 2017 at 12:30 am

    @Major Major Major Major: dunno the cost, but our office got a few of these… adjustable lumbar support

  29. 29.

    Percysowner

    January 28, 2017 at 12:40 am

    @BillinGlendaleCA: This is the insulated cup that I love. Before you buy through Amazon, check your local stores. After I bought mine, I found them cheaper at my local Kroger. Also, they go on sale a lot, so it’s worth waiting, They are great, easy to drink from and they seal right up so they never spill.

  30. 30.

    NotMax

    January 28, 2017 at 12:51 am

    Is that a squeeze bottle of mustard on the desk, you rascal you?

    @BillinGlendaleCA

    Anyone who uses Logitech peripherals needs to download, install and configure to your preferences Logitech’s Setpoint.

  31. 31.

    prob50

    January 28, 2017 at 12:59 am

    Nice looking setup, John.

    And that DOES look like a mustard squeezer up there.

  32. 32.

    Ruckus

    January 28, 2017 at 1:06 am

    @NotMax:
    Second this. Used Logitech wireless for some time until I went with the one a day fruit guys and while they work well out of the box, using Setpoint lets you make them work better for you.

  33. 33.

    Westyny

    January 28, 2017 at 1:34 am

    I know the shelves aren’t in, but there should be an animal in there.

  34. 34.

    Arclite

    January 28, 2017 at 2:16 am

    I’m not understanding this office.

    1. 21:9 ratio monitor: SWEET!
    2. What’s up with that second monitor?
    3. Why is that TV so high? You’ll hurt your neck.

  35. 35.

    PIGL

    January 28, 2017 at 4:38 am

    That TV screen. She is very small. Have you considered all the possibilities that hyoogeness has to offer?

  36. 36.

    Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism

    January 28, 2017 at 6:41 am

    @FlyingToaster: She wants to work both computers from any peripheral. What she needs is a powered USB hub that’s then plugged into a KVM switch. I have one of these setups for my husband’s use when he brings his work laptop home.

  37. 37.

    Mandarama

    January 28, 2017 at 8:43 am

    Everyone else is full of helpful suggestions, and I’m all, “oh hey, I drink a lot of Powerade too.”

    My 15-year-old son already told me it was bad for me, too. ?

  38. 38.

    laura

    January 28, 2017 at 10:49 am

    @Aleta: I would have a hard time saying no to these doggies.
    Also, the office is swell. I predict many busy hours will be while away -or picking up after Steve, or Thurston.

  39. 39.

    JanieM

    January 28, 2017 at 10:56 am

    @Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism: Thank you! I was grateful to FlyingToaster for replying so quickly, but it was late at night and I was tired so I didn’t totally take it in. As I thought about it more, I still couldn’t see how it was going to work, but your suggestion makes total sense.

    If you have actually done this….would you recommend a particular KVM switch, or at least the type? Wikipedia suggests that there are several…..and I’ve been guessing that I need the DDM class (costliest, fanciest…) but now I notice that the article also mentions a “USB Hub-Based KVM.” It seems like the least versatile, so I’m assuming that’s *not* what you mean, you mean two entirely separate devices.

    Thanks for all the suggestions — and to BJ for allowing the sidetrack!

  40. 40.

    J R in WV

    January 28, 2017 at 1:21 pm

    @JanieM:

    Balloon-Juice is all about sidetracks, Janie, that’s what we’re here for.

    My doctor says he thinks I have ADSD problems, but I don’t… Hey, look at that squirrel!!!!

    ETA: I too am interested in the make, model, and availability of that desk chair! My current sit-in-it-all-day-long chair was discarded by Mrs J’s former work place, at least 9 or 10 years ago. It’s comfortable, but aging, and makes a terrible long rough-sounding squeak when I get up from it.

  41. 41.

    joel hanes

    January 28, 2017 at 3:41 pm

    It’s pretty easy to hang that router (cable modem?) under the table.

    You’ve got those pipe table legs. A couple band clamps, a couple 3/8″ #8 or #6 round head machine screws with nuts, nut inside the band clamp and machine screw through the hole with round head outside, and voila! the front table leg has a vertically-aligned pair of mounting studs that fit the keyhole mount slots on the router casing. The rear table leg makes a great place to tie-wrap the cables to and from, individually, for strain relief and order.

  42. 42.

    joel hanes

    January 28, 2017 at 3:43 pm

    My employer provides us with Zody chairs. They’re less pricey than Aerons or the Steelcase high-end, and seem like good value for money. I’ve spent nine years in one, with no complaints.

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