-- Radio Shack Indoor/Outdoor Digital Thermometer
Mod
-- 10.01.2002
-- By: X24
-- Page: 1
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PC systems temperature monitoring has been a
necessity, if not an obsession for us case modders. That’s why we
spend a lot on the ability to keep track of our systems’
performance and temperature. This helps keep a stable,
high-performing PC system running smoothly. With all the fans, we slap in our cases,
the pricey CPU heat sinks we get for our processors, or even the
water cooling setups we conjure in our backyards, we want them to be
able to do their job. So, we monitor the temperatures in our cases.
We already have temp monitoring devices specifically made with PC
systems in mind, be it hardware or software. There’s the
Compunurse,
which is a digital thermometer to monitor temps from a single
source. There’s the Digidoc, which is basically a digital
thermometer, yet with other features such as Case fan control and
multiple temp readings. There’s Motherboard Monitor, which is a
software based monitoring system that uses your mobo’s internal
temperature monitoring capabilities. And also, there’s the LCD/VFD
setup, which can display temperatures, but depends on MBM to be able
to do this. Today, we will explore the wonders Radio Shack has to
offer (admit it. You hate the shack, and yet you still go back).
We shall take advantage of Radio Shack’s Indoor/Outdoor dual
display
digital thermometer. First off, why use this? One, it’s on
sale at $9.99, which is much cheaper than a Compunurse. It displays
two temps at the same time, compared to a Compunurse with only one.
What else? It’s readily available, just go in a local Radio Shack
and get one. It’s cheap, so a modding disaster won’t hurt (well, not
that much). And also, hopefully, nobody has done this before, so
that makes this very special :o). And of course, it’s a good excuse
to mod. I guess that’s the only thing all of you are waiting to
here. So with that explained, let’s move on.
This is how it looks like untouched by
the modding hands. It has a MAX temp, MIN temp and RESET button. The
MAX and MIN buttons are used to set the max and min temps. I don’t
see any use for this to be honest. The RESET button just resets
or refreshes the temps. It refreshes every 10 seconds. A bit long,
unless you want to press the RESET button every 5 seconds, it’s up
to you (Hmm. A 555 timer, a transistor, variable resistors… wink
wink). As you can see, the temps are displayed in
Celsius/Centigrade. It can be set to display temps in Fahrenheit
with just a flick of a slide switch over the battery holder. The
long white wire is for the temperature sensor for the OUTSIDE temps. If you
read the manual, it is recommended not to lengthen or shorten the
wire for it will affect the reading. I may be wrong but with my
understanding of temperature sensor, this seems to be fallacious. The
INSIDE temp temperature sensor is located inside (no pun intended).
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