Lmst

I have used the #RC2014Towers hashtag a few times on here when tooting about the office I built over the last 3 years. During 2022 I documented this on twitter from the RC2014Towers account, but, for obvious reasons, that all stopped when Twitter changed ownership.
Of course I downloaded a backup of that account, but it has taken until today to do anything with it. But now I have! It is hosted on the RC2014 website as a standalone archive with no links back to Twitter.
So, if you want to see how I went from idea, to groundwork, to woodwork, to getting a weatherproof box over the first 6 months or so, take a look at https://rc2014.co.uk/twitterbackup/rc2014towers/ (You might want to select Browse and then Oldest First. I can't see how to link to that or make it a default)

Now that I am pretty much all moved in to #RC2014Towers I have spent some time this evening doing some of the more aesthetic stuff. Most of the assembled #RC2014 computers are now on display and the #Z80 artwork I picked up last weekend has been hung.

(A detailed description of most of those machines can be found here https://rc2014.co.uk/limited-edition-and-custom-rc2014/)

Tall thin Billy Bookcase from IKEA filled with RC2014 exhibits usually on display at tech events. From the top down there are 4 Mini II Picasso kits. An RC2014 branded HDMI screen, a Pixel Purse screen with the Mini After Dark next to it and a one-off Picasso prototype. Below that is the RCade then the RC2014 Pro Pride, an RC2014 Zed in a Blue Box enclosure, and finally a Mini II with Dual Paddle Analogue Module and NeoPixel Matrix display in the Pot Noodle based Etch-a-Sketchy enclosure.

View of the side wall of the office which is pained white. At the bottom of the shot are component storage drawers and pigeon hole PCB storage with some things piled on top. Above that is a green PCB in a white box frame. In the centre is a black 40 pin chip and the word Zilog on the silkscreen of the PCB with some other information also on it.

To answer some questions, I have been using this Reviung keyboard as my daily driver since September 2023. I honestly wasn't sure if I would get on with it, but here I am, still typing on it (and also have another almost identical one in #RC2014Towers too)

You can see what the old keycaps looked like in this blog post https://sowen.com/1325/custom-keyboard-rabbit-hole/

Photo of a computer desk with a 33 key Reviung keyboard and a number pad and mouse next to it

Now that RetroFest is over, it is time to finally move in to #RC2014Towers. This isn't a 5 minute job as I have been building up 10 years of clutter in my current office. Made good progress today though and managed to get the big bookcase and last desk set up in there. Still got a lot more to do over the rest of the week, but I should be fully moved in in time to start shipping again next Monday.

Inside of RC2014 Towers, now with 3 empty office desks in it. Well, mostly empty, there are some tools and other detritus spread around a bit.

The back wall of RC2014 where a wooden bookshelf sits between a blue notice board and a small set of drawers with a 3D printer on them.

A cacophony of mess caused in the current RC2014 office (well, spare bedroom) as everything has had to be moved to allow access to get a desk out. There are piles of boxes, components, packaging and all kinds of stuff all over the place.

@Lacey There are just a few of each colour left at the moment, so they probably won't be around for too much longer.

Despite a break feeling well deserved right now, I am relocating the entire office and stock to #RC2014Towers this week. Total chaos here at the moment, but will be back up and running by next Monday.

These acoustic hexagons will be stuck to the ceiling in #RC2014Towers in an artistic pattern which should help with the acoustics in there. It isn't too bad at the moment, but could certainly be better.

The grey felt fish shape from the previous post has been cut in to one hexagon and one half-hexagon.

A big hexagon shaped stack of acoustic felt tiles. There are 18 full hexagons, 18 half-hegagons and a few other hexagon parts

With the junction box cleared, the next run was completed. I pulled enough through that there was just a little bit of excess in #RC2014Towers and everything else was near the house

Grey junction box on top of dirt. Black conduit leads in to and out of it, with some grey and orange cables running through the middle.

The floor inside RC2014 Towers with black conduit running on it and some grey ethernet cables and an orange fibre cable coming out.

A short flight of stairs with some flowerbeds totally covered in ivy next to them and fence panels next to that. There is a mess of fish tape, fibre and ethernet cables spilled out on to the ivy and steps.

It has been a day of ups and down with getting fibre to #RC2014Towers. It isn't there yet, although I have managed to get pink string from one end of the conduit to the other end, so that's progress.

a length of black plastic conduit snaking out of an open door down towards the grass. There is pink string coming out of one end.

Over 30m away from the previous photo is the same black conduit with the same pink string coming out of it, but this is still tied to some nylon fish tape.

As an ex-network engineer, I really quite enjoyed getting the network cables run around #RC2014Towers today. Hopefully tomorrow I will get all the sockets terminated, and if the weather is better, maybe even get the fibre pulled up too.

Inside of a network patch panel that is sitting on a desk. The first 8 of 24 slots have cables terminated in the punch-down sockets. Also on the desk are network cabling tools.

A small comms cabinet that looks a bit like a microwave when closed is bolted high up on a white wall. Inside is the 24 socket patch panel from previous picture.

Office dado trunking coming down a wall and turning 90 degrees to the right. The corner panel is removed, showing the separate areas for data cables and power cables. There is a plug socket on the trunking as well as an empty network socket with a couple of cables poking through.

The far end of the dado trunking with an empty network socket just visible. Some smaller trunking runs off of the end to carry 2 data cables up to a high level socket on the rear wall.

At the weekend I set up a quick little sensor for #HomeAssistant to report the temperature inside and outside #RC2014Towers.

Everything went well, and all looked good until this morning when it was telling me it was 13.6°C outside. Ah. The sensor was in direct sunlight, and it was actually reporting the temperature of the sun minus the ambient temperature!

I found a badly 3D printed Stevenson screen I made a few years ago. It is only mounted temporarily, but should be more accurate now.

front window of the office with probe sticking out of a window gap

small white 3D printed base with a sensor poking through it, which looks like a candlestick holder. it is screwed to a baton above the office window.

fully assembled Stevenson Screen made of layers of circular 3d printed white plastic so that the sensor inside is protected from the elements whilst still open to ambient temperature. it is sat below the overhanging roof.

a chart showing temperature falling overnight to around -3°C, then slowly rising in the morning to around zero, where it suddenly shoots right up to over 13 degrees

@Dtl There is 40+ meters of conduit buried along the perimeter of the garden that comes out inside #rc2014towers

And that is it so far. I still need to route the conduit at the house end, buy some fibre and pull it through, and sort out a couple of switches each end that take fibre and cat6

That's the ceiling painted. Well, the undercoat at least. I'll give it a couple of days before putting the top coat on.
#RC2014towers

7 sheets of 8 x 4 foot plywood stacked and supported in various ways but generally just above ground level. they are all painted white.

The electrics on #RC2014towers was finally completed and signed off today. Now I have outside lights! Yay!

garden office with lights glowing from the windows and doors and also 3 external up/down lighters giving a nice warm glow to the front.

similar to the other photo, but with only the external up/down lights illuminated.

This evening I have mainly been mining copper in them there #RC2014Towers. There were seams of it that I have hewn from the plastic sheathing discarded back in time when Sparky roamed the land.

I am not sure of the going rate for solid gold speedboats, but I wager that this is enough copper to get me a good one.

plastic tub sitting on scales full of twists of bright copper cables. the scales which have the tub weight cancelled out are showing 660 grams.

Let there be light. And there was. And it was good.

#RC2014Towers or do I mean RC2014Powers? Eh? Eh?

inside of garden office with messy electricians tools and supplies over the floor. on the ceiling 2 panel lights are glowing. one fixed to the ceiling, the other still suspended by metal rope fixings.

No! Cleaning armoured cable and conduit with warm soapy water is not OCD. Certainly when they have been dragged, literally, through the mud and the walls are now painted white!
#RC2014Towers

open door with two black cables (one armoured mains cable, the other conduit) coming through and sitting next to a bowl of hot soapy water and a roll of peeper towels.

The microwave has been installed. This is very important for any company whose business is selling chips.
#RC2014Towers

a white office wall with some open windows and trunking running below and up one side of the window. At the top of the wall is a small networking cabinet that looks like a microwave.

@thelastpsion Things are pretty good here. Made more progress on #RC2014Towers and also finishing up a new PCB design. How are you?

Today is cable laying day at #RC2014Towers. That'll be fun in the pouring rain.

Heave Ho!

Rain stopped play outside today so I have still not got the armoured cable from the house up to #RC2014Towers. However, I have got the dado trunking and consumer unit fitted ready for Sparky tomorrow. Hopefully there's enough to keep him busy while I finish off the outside cable laying.

#RC2014Towers

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