On: The home computer as a cultural object is physical...

[ofrzeta]

There's nothing better than a huge display with high resolution, keyboard and mouse. The computer might be in a separate chassis or a laptop or whatever but a huge display and a mouse are indispensable.

[duxup → ofrzeta]

Heck in addition to my keyboard I've been thinking of building a board with a bunch of buttons just for firing off random things.

API requests when testing and so forth ... for whatever reason a separate set of physical keys makes more sense in my head.

[mishu2 → duxup]

Something like this? https://xkeys.com/xk24black.html

I saw it recommended here a while ago, haven't tried it myself.

[MarcScott → mishu2]

Or the cheaper, cooler and probably more hackable Keybow 2040

https://shop.pimoroni.com/products/keybow-2040?variant=32399...

[OJFord → mishu2]

Ouch, why on earth did that cost so much? That's an order of magnitude above what I'd expect.

I get the appeal, but I still have unused function keys. (I'm using.. off the top of my head, F1-5.)

[fian → duxup]

Could you use a USB or wireless numberpad, or do you have particular ergonomics in mind leading you down the "built it" path?

You'll get 15-18 buttons you could remap to trigger whatever events you want.

On the ergonomics front, I have long wanted to try out foot pedals/buttons for Shift or a few triple key combo shortcuts I regularly use in my IDE.

[munk-a → ofrzeta]

Honestly, I personally love the aesthetic of big whirring fans and blinking lights. If you offered me an M1 MacBook Pro but it would be buried in a 7 foot tall cupboard plastered in lights and fans that occasionally, randomly, sounded like a jet engine taking off... I would be in heaven.

[zozbot234 → munk-a]

> buried in a 7 foot tall cupboard plastered in lights and fans that occasionally, randomly, sounded like a jet engine taking off...

There might be a market for rackmountable hardware with the much-needed addition of proper RGB lighting (for improved performance).

[yurishimo → zozbot234]

Linus Tech Tips has his personal rig in a 3u (?) rack mounted case in his attic. It can and has been done!

[munk-a → zozbot234]

Could you bundle in some decals - you know, to make it go faster?

[my_usernam3 → zozbot234]

.... I'd pay for that if its a good docking station as well!

[Scramblejams → munk-a]

Some day I hope all of my home compute will be housed in something that looks like WOPR.

[asdff → munk-a]

Stick the macbook in a mini fridge and reap the cooling benefits

[astrange → asdff]

Not recommended in a humid environment. Maybe you could use those dry-aging bags.