Expensive Hobby or what? - Page 3

will1384 · 03-13-2005, 10:25 PM

Quote:

little your ulgy dash becomes somewhat decent, you **** your
girlfriend off however because

What you got a girlfriend, and can spend $4000 on your truck
-lucky bastard-

Quote:

4000 man that is a lot of money

yes it is - I only paid $2900 for my car and about
say $400 for the computer in it- I know its not as nice
as yours, but does the same thing + most of the computer
parts I had - so cost to put the computer in my car
was about $100 - I am a cheap bastard

and know
how to do things cheap and I am poor, live with my dad,
dont get laid, stuff like that, and I am fat and ugly
ect ect - so dont feel bad - Stuff like this can get
out of hand - thats why I think about how to do it
the cheap-est I can and read the Forums - till I learn
everything I can

It makes me think about when I made a Video projector
---I posted 3 so not to show favoritism--this is not a AD----

diyAudio Forums >The Moving Image

and
Lumenlab

and
DIY Projector Company

I made my own, and am watching TV right now on a 6 FOOT by
6 FOOT screen and it cost me about $300 - and it uses VGA
from the computer - the point is you can do things on the cheap
if you read some - But even in there Forums ,there are guys that
spent a$$ loads of money - I guess they wanted the best, and If
I had the money, I might spend it like that - but to me its just a
waste

Quote:

I've gone 4000 miles in my truck without a radio (the truck has 8000 miles)

!!!!!ouch!!!!
Walkman - cdplayer - tape player - use something
I start to here strange things and evil telling me to
rape cows and pee in someones coffee

fart in elevators, Light road kill on fire, stuff like that

Quote:

Good luck with your installs !
__________________
Via EPIA MII
256MB RAM
OEM GPS (embedded)
nLite WinXP pro on
1GB Extreme III CF card
Carnetix 1260 startup/ DC-DC regulator

Here is mine
__________________________________________________ ___
HP P3 motherboard --I have had for years-got free--cost $30
700mhz Intel CPU --I have had for years------------cost $25
128MB RAM --------I have had for years------------cost $20
MediaCar Front End ---------Free---------------------------
Deluo GPS unit------I have had for years-----------cost $90
20GB Hard Disk------I have had for years-----------cost $40
300 watt power Inverter --------------------------cost $35
DataLux Lmv10r 10in LCD -I repaired, it was to dim--cost $50
ATI TV Wonder usb 1.0 TV tuner ------------------cost $15
Slim Line CD-Rom --------------------------------cost $30
nLite WinXP pro - Was XP pro oem-----------------cost $75
__________________________________________________ ____
I even put the cost of stuff I had - as it would cost now, $410
and you could add another $40-$50 for mouse, MiniKey keyboard,
joystick, and relays

IntellaWorks · 03-14-2005, 06:35 AM

HAHAH thanks for the colorful insight.

Yea its a lot of money but its over about 4-5 years now and again when I started this project this forum wasn't as robust as it is today.

My GF is great, she puts up with a lot. But she knows that this is something "safe" for me to really be into. I'm sure she'd prefer me being a geek than a drug addict or something.

This car stuff has cost alot of money but also has got me a GREAAAAT JOB !!! So the cost to me is looked at as towards my education and not just on a "toy". One of the first thing my employer says when introducing me to poeple, if applicable, is: "You should see his truck"

Some people spend 40-50 grand on a college education and when finished they either don't know what they want to do or something completely different. So did the money they spend go to good use ?

will1384 · 03-14-2005, 09:14 AM

Quote:

I'm sure she'd prefer me being a geek than a drug addict or something.

Computers are a drug

Quote:

Yea its a lot of money but its over about 4-5 years now and again when I started this project this forum wasn't as robust as it is today.

Just like with the projector, I dive in and learn all I
can - make the thing - take a few weeks to perfect it, and then just leave
it be, till ether it screws up - or its to old to use - I hung around
in the Video projector Forums for months - now that its done and
works, I just go back once or twice a month to see whats going
on - I did that when I put my car audio system in - hung around in the
caraudio fourms - till it was done - I tend to spend and use every waking
hour that I can, to do this stuff , like there is a dead line, I even have
to stop my self from going out at 2am in the cold and rain to work on my
car now, but in a few weeks, when when its done - I wont care any more-
I guess that makes me EVIL - like a kid with a toy - and when I get new
toy I forget about the last one

Right now I am trying to get my GPS software sorted out - Put a USB 2.0
PCI card in, and work on setting up a Front End - I am using media car
but its got limits - but my LCD only does 640x480 - so some front ends
dont work, they seam to need 800x600 - and road runner crashes more
for me than media car - but I will keep trying it because I like it - So I
guess 3 to 4 weeks till I am done - You need to set a goal, stick with
it, and be happy with it, when you reach it - or thats what work for me

Quote:

Some people spend 40-50 grand on a college education and when finished they either don't know what they want to do or something completely different. So did the money they spend go to good use ?

Yea I am in that boat - I am going to college now - I have been taking
night clases for years - I still got to take Math and some remedial
clases, I have been putting off - of course its a cheap college - about
$600 a semester and thats with books and 2 or 3 clases - 2 to 4 nights
a week - I am working on a computer networking degree - but after
working in a computer shop for a few years, I almost hate computers
now - I have took some welding classes - incase the computers drive
me crazy

Quote:

This car stuff has cost allot of money but also has got me a GREAAAAT JOB

I wish I could get a job like that - after years of college I might be lucky
enough to work in a Burger King around here

Quote:

cost to me is looked at as towards my education

Yep you learn a lot doing stuff like this

IntellaWorks · 03-31-2005, 01:56 PM

I knew this would happen someday just not today !

I've been procrastinating writing my UDP File Sync system and I havent baught a 2.5" to USB external HDD kit (cause I'm lazy) so basically the only music I can listen to is on my front ends CF card.

For testing I threw 9 songs and went on an hour trip, by time the trip was over I was pretty fed up with the 9 songs. Procrastinating again (can you sense a theme ?) I waited till the next morning, when I was already kinda late for work, to throw more songs on the CF. I manually removed the CF from my case updated the songs and put the songs back in. (It was cold and rainy and I didn't havea jacket on cause I was rushing so I wasn't paying attention to how I put the CF card into the system.

I bent the damn pins into the CF slow on the MOBO and I beleive Rain got into the system while I was fooling with it which in turn blew the DAMN mobo.
Of course I'm demonstrating the system this upcomming weekend to make things more complicated....

180.00 later I've got a new mobo up and running... All this started becasuse I'm lazy CRAP !!!!!!!!!!!!!

jcdillin · 03-31-2005, 02:10 PM

ouch, at least you were able to get a new mobo in and running

IntellaWorks · 03-31-2005, 02:11 PM

Yea, boy was I stressing for a few days though...

BoyNextDoor · 04-01-2005, 12:34 AM

sorry to hear about that. What job are you in? I want in on it. Who are you demonstrating to? Me interested...

-zip- · 04-01-2005, 11:41 PM

I totally agree with the first post. Acutally it makes me feel better that there are others out there that have spend and spent and spend. I really enjoy this hobby and the challange. I have spent so much its almost laughable.

Six months ago I found www.mp3car.com started off with a P3 500Mhz machine wow how cheap, it was just lying around..
To slow, to big, not enough storage, not enough memory.

(Canadian dollars)
Purchased a $500 complete AMD system.
GPS $100.00
USB hub $25.00
lilliput err around $350.00
Audigy NX $130.00
D-Link USB wireless $25.00
Cables $150.00
Donations to software programmers $100.00
Customs fees 200.00

well now my sound stage sucks so I gotta fix that too

Eclipse CD8445 $700.00
MTX 4 Channel Amp $300.00
MTX Mono Block Amp $250.00
Infinity Components $300.00
Infinity for the rears $300.00
Infinity Sub and box $250.00

Call Opus directly ..
Hello do you think the Opus 150 can handle my set up?
Yeah no problem except the 5v rail with that USB hub.

I order Opus $200.00
Wont power up.. I call Asus..
Hey how many amps does your Mobo need?
Asus .. 8 Amps Doh

I purchase
Via Epia MII 10000 $300.00

OK now I got it! err hmm
My DVIX movies are all jerky oh yeah Mpeg 4 , my G-Force visualization package that I bought so I can show album art in Frodo Player has now ground to a halt..

Back to the lilliput, oops it no longer shows the color red. Back to lilliput USA $29.00 in shipping. Screen comes back $11.00 in customs fees.

Screen comes back ohhh new powered 1 din Enclosure for the lilli. 190.00 oh and shipping of course 29.00.

Need to find a nice Video card that will fit the MII 10000 now, we cant have jerky movies and no visualizations with Album Art. Cost ????

That OBD II stuff looks cool hmmmm

and on.. and on..

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