PC Mod Forum?

[NFG]

Atom suggested a PC category for these here forums.  I question the concept on two grounds:  

1. PC modding is more art than science.  You don't make modifications to the electronic components, hacking the hardware and making it sing.  You cut up cases, put PCs in beachballs, and do other arts and crafts to them.

2. There are lots of dedicated PC sites out there that probably serve this need better than I or we could.

I like PC modding, it's a fun mechanical challenge, but I wonder if we have the userbase to make something like this fly.  Please vote.  Note that I make no promises, I just want to offer the illusion that I listen, and that I care.

[Martin]

The forum seems pretty desolate recently, maybe it could help bring new blood !
Or kill you off completley  

[Lost Monkey]

PC's are for work...    

[NFG]

These forums always go through cycles.  I prefer the quiet over the unmitigated bullshit babble that goes on in other forums.  We have a good crew here, more or less.  

[atom]

PC modding on other sites truly is Arts 'N" Crafts. Thing is, with our guys I know we can do more! And as far as the forums being dead... the topics we discuss are often over the head of the average surfer. I know were getting hits here because half the stuff you google brings you right to these forums.

[kendrick]

I ask this question in the spirit of socratic inquiry only, and not as a judgement of any one man's search for satisfaction... Would it be too far outisde the original intent of the NFG and GamesX sites to discuss PC modification if it's not done for the purpose of advancing the enjoyment of games? If we're talking about adding input interfaces and custom displays, that could arguably be related to games. But a lot of PC mods are simply for looks, or for other cosmetic reasons that have very little to do with games. I'm trying to be as brief as I can on the subject. :)

Don't get me wrong, I don't object to the idea of adding a forum. But I don't think that we as gamers benefit from it any any way.

-KKC, who now has a white Saturn pad to go with his white Saturn console. Yay!

[Hojo_Norem]

I ask this question in the spirit of socratic inquiry only, and not as a judgement of any one man's search for satisfaction... Would it be too far outisde the original intent of the NFG and GamesX sites to discuss PC modification if it's not done for the purpose of advancing the enjoyment of games? If we're talking about adding input interfaces and custom displays, that could arguably be related to games.

Thats the kind of modding I'd love to see, heck I even once bought a volume control pedal and modded into a throttle pedal and glomed it into my PC's flight stick inplace of its crappy lever.  All this so I could improve the experence of playing the work of art that is Psygnosis' version of Lander. ^_^  Once I get broadband I challenge everybody with gut enough go go againts me in multiplayer Lander!

hmm, I wonder it it would be possible to mod a Steel Batalions controller to connect it to a PC (controller bliss!)

[atom]

I ask this question in the spirit of socratic inquiry only, and not as a judgement of any one man's search for satisfaction... Would it be too far outisde the original intent of the NFG and GamesX sites to discuss PC modification if it's not done for the purpose of advancing the enjoyment of games? If we're talking about adding input interfaces and custom displays, that could arguably be related to games. But a lot of PC mods are simply for looks, or for other cosmetic reasons that have very little to do with games. I'm trying to be as brief as I can on the subject.

Don't get me wrong, I don't object to the idea of adding a forum. But I don't think that we as gamers benefit from it any any way.

-KKC, who now has a white Saturn pad to go with his white Saturn console. Yay!

Game systems are just computers. Computers are great gaming machines and have other software too, I dont really see the gaming thing as an issue. This isnt a gaming forum, its a tech forum. And I thought with our forums here we could add some tech to the whole PC modding thing, but it looks like everyone is against it.

[NFG]

The sad truth is modern PCs aren't really tweakable.  Beyond overclocking what else can you do to your system?  SATA, USB, Firewire, ethernet...  North bridge, southbridge, the BIOS...  Closed down systems without room for tweakery.

There may be room for a PC modding category, for things like controller hacks, convertors, adaptors, etc, but again I have to wonder: has it been done already?  Are we just reinventing the wheel?

[kendrick]

Atom's point that PCs can be and are game systems is well taken. I honestly think that my resistance to the idea comes from the notion that there is a measurable culture gap between people who enjoy console games and people who enjoy PC games. Not to generalize unnecessarily, but a guy who's played La Pucelle is not also likely to be a guy who's played City of Heroes. Yes, there's definitely a lot of overlap, but the division is where the majority of the conversation would take us.

To the point that this is a tech forum and not a gaming forum, my counter argument is this: Would the modification of cars be off-topic? They have computers, and sometimes game consoles in them as well. How about the hacking of DVR units, or telephones or burglar alarms? This is definitely a tech forum, but from the perspective of those who enjoy video games. We may not discuss the actual act of gaming here, but I would argue that the motivation for gathering our technical knowledge is based mostly on improving or sustaining our enjoyment of our games. Although I would be very interested to hear from anybody who enjoys modifying game consoles but has never ever actually played a console game... Like maybe that guy in Sweden who bought all those VMU's but doesn't own a Dreamcast?

I wil say this to wrap up though... Lawrence, this is your field, and you own the ball and the bat. If you want to put up a new forum, do what you like. You don't need our blessing or our written permission to do anything around here, but I'm sure you already feel that way. :)

-KKC, who wonders when the Tomb Raider series became a tactical stealth game...

[Hojo_Norem]

The sad truth is modern PCs aren't really tweakable.  Beyond overclocking what else can you do to your system?  SATA, USB, Firewire, ethernet...  North bridge, southbridge, the BIOS...  Closed down systems without room for tweakery.

There may be room for a PC modding category, for things like controller hacks, convertors, adaptors, etc, but again I have to wonder: has it been done already?  Are we just reinventing the wheel?

Maybe not re-inventing, but creating a warehouse for them.

What I mean is that at the moment GamesX is quite the sizeable repository for console mods, and Im pretty sure that GamesX ranks reasonably high in the search engines.  People (like me) search for a particular mod, find GamesX, finds the mod and then out of curiosity checks out the forums and finds info on other mods that they would like to do.  Adding PC modding may increase intests. e.g, some guy searched for a PC mod and finds GamesX, finds mod he it looking for but also catches a glimpse of the SNES 50/60Hz mod.  "Hmm, I wonder if I could do that to my SNES".  And the rest, they say, is history.  (I came here for the 50/60Hz mod and have been hooked here ever since.  Thanks Lawrence!)

In the end I would love to see GamesX become a GIANT repository of tech-modding info for all machines on which computer and videogames can be played.  Kinda like the HVSC of modding!

[NFG]

I've been thinking of a wiki, so people could update/tweak/post new bits for existing mods.  Parts of gamesx.com are nearly a decade old, and it SHOWS.  I'm embarassed.  It needs an overhaul.

It's being served from the same box as NFG now, so it's easier to tweak....

[phreak97]

To the point that this is a tech forum and not a gaming forum, my counter argument is this: Would the modification of cars be off-topic? They have computers, and sometimes game consoles in them as well.

ahaha, i once asked about doing electronic mods on the interior of my car, i got the answers i needed too xD

i think a pc mod section would be awesome, though im more into the stuff which is not simply plug in a new card, get a shiny new case. for example, a few simple mods i have on my pc, are my external modem converted to an internal one (plugged into the usb pins on my motherboard) and a on/off switch added to the front. also i have added a 12v output to the back for random whatever.. i used to run my speakers off it.

its things like this which seem to have no place on pc modding forums, and things like that which i want.

[Endymion]

There is a forum for what you want.

[Lesmot]

I would enjoy a PC mod area. If it becomes too desolate, then just axe it.  

[farooq]

Thats f9 just like ur pic:P

[Akir]

Well, I already voted no, but I would say yes if the PCs that we were talking about were old ones like Amigas  and maybe apple II's and Commadore-~ series computers.

But mostly Amigas.

[Midori]

Not muck action here but I think it could be nice, if I ever take time to complete my strange cooling project I could post it here...

[Guest_CZroe]

I'm not sure if the point has been made, but there are a lot of multi-console PC mods that wouldn't fit in a single console category. The famous YoshiBoxx has been out-done many times.

If I had an ounce of skill, I'd try something like that instead of just strapping a PSone, LCD, DrV64jr, and N64 together like I plan to do (and probably will never finish).

[Guest_CZroe]

Oh, and I think a drive bay adapter with four N64 Adaptoids would be crazy-cool. Too bad I only have three and they don't sell them anymore.