AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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I've built a little application to automate my betting activities and am looking for something very cheap to run it from rather than leaving my laptop on 24/7.
All it needs to do is:
1. Be silent
2. Capable of running a .NET app 24/7
3. Has one USB port and ideally a wireless adapter, but not necessary.
Is there anything out there as simple as that at a bargain price (thinking sub £100), or am I going to have to either build something myself or buy a NAS maybe?
Anyone got any ideas?
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Sam
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Registered: 24th Dec 99
Location: West Midlands
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Just buy a cheap secondhand laptop/PC box, can be picked up even for under £50.
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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Yeah, I had thought that but its going to sit in my room at home (with parents) so not really got the space, and probably too noisy as well.
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Sam
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Registered: 24th Dec 99
Location: West Midlands
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Laptop?
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Andrew
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Registered: 5th May 04
Location: Skoda Octavia Estate, Ford Puma
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I have a PowerEdge 840 running 24/7, a 335MT and a MacBook most nights and still manage to sleep with them in my bedroom.
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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Old laptop might be the way to go actually yes. De-activate the screen and jobs a good-un possibly......
Ebay here I come 
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Sam
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Registered: 24th Dec 99
Location: West Midlands
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Yeah if all it's doing is running one app then any old shitty laptop that can run XP will do - even something like a P3 700 with 128Mb RAM.
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Dom
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Registered: 13th Sep 03
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What about ebaying for a VIA EPIA ITX board, can pick an old 800-1000MHz system for about £10-30. Grap a compact flash card (doesn't need to be big, 1/2GB most), few quid, and IDE->Compact flash pcb, again a fiver or so. Psu will cost you 20 quid.
Borrow an IDE CD drive out of another PC, install TinyXP (installs to about 200-500mb), jobs a gooden'. If you've purchased a fanless epia board and using a powerbrick psu then you also have a silent system too 
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noshua
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Registered: 19th Nov 08
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porn or warez
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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What about this then?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/VIA-EPIA-V-ITX-Motherboard-800Mhz-CPU-Drivers-256Mb_W0QQitemZ200360612696QQcategoryZ131536QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp4340.m212QQ_trkparmsZalgo%3DSIC%26its%3DI%252BC%252BS%252BIA%26itu%3DSI%252BUS-WHR%252BUCI%252BIA%252BUCC%252BPSS%252BCRS%252BIT%252BUA%252BIEW%26otn%3D3%26ps%3D56
Presumably thats actually a northbridge fan, rather than processor cooler so will be silent if I'm not putting any stress through the system.
All I then need is something like a PicoPSU and compactflash card and I'm set, oh and a case. Right?
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willay
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Organiser: South East, National Events
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Registered: 10th Nov 02
Location: Roydon, Essex
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does it need to run Windows?
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Brett
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Registered: 16th Dec 02
Location: Manchester
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Just get a little pc like a Dell Optiplex. They're silent. I've just sold one for £30 actually.
They're 8cm x 24cm x 26cm (W x D x H) and look tidy.
[Edited on 10-07-2009 by loafofbrett]
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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Got any more loaf? 
Will - literally just needs to run my app on the .net framework so i think windows would be easiest. No idea if you can even run it on linux tbh
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willay
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i'd just use another laptop or yours TBH
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Brett
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Registered: 16th Dec 02
Location: Manchester
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quote:
Originally posted by AndyKent
Got any more loaf?
Unfortunately not mate. Had you made this thread a week earlier you would've got a bargain tbh.
There's a few on ebay but they're quite a bit dearer, double or even triple what mine sold for 
I used to be able to get them by the truck load too, but I don't work at that company anymore.
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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typical :-(
Will see whats on ebay, wouldn't mind paying double that anyway
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ENB
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Registered: 24th Apr 06
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quote:
Originally posted by Andrew
I have a PowerEdge 840 running 24/7, a 335MT and a MacBook most nights and still manage to sleep with them in my bedroom.
Why in the world do you have a PoweEdge in your bedroom?
Good thing it's not a 1950 though, those are loud!
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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Brett, just looking up on ebay but theres loads of different model numbers and stuff. What is the one in your photo?
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Sam
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Registered: 24th Dec 99
Location: West Midlands
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Is the PowerEdge the size of a small fridge? Or are they smaller these days?
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Brett
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Registered: 16th Dec 02
Location: Manchester
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SX200 series are the small ones. Mine could've been an SX270 to be precise.
After a quick browse, none are as good a spec as mine was. I got ripped off big time
Mine was P4 2.6GHZ
512MB RAM
60GB HDD
with the CD drive (not all have it)
That'd tick over doing what you want it to do tho i'm sure.
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Brett
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Registered: 16th Dec 02
Location: Manchester
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....sold the damn thing for £26 + £8P&P I think
Cheeky twat paid me with paypal, but put a note 'telling me' to supply a windows xp disc with it "he didn't mind if it was a copy". Fuck off! Not once did I say I would supply a disc. Nobber.
[Edited on 10-07-2009 by loafofbrett]
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Brett
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Registered: 16th Dec 02
Location: Manchester
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...I might add, I haven't actually sent it yet 
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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Fuck it, that is so typical. I would happily have paid £50 posted
All the other stuff on there is the full on desktop sized units which are gonna be too big 
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Sam
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Registered: 24th Dec 99
Location: West Midlands
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Brett
Just send him a photocopy of a Windows CD with it
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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Can you get out of it?
I'll take it for £50 posted if you can send me it today
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