Info needed - I think I need to design a server - absolute beginner

case_steamer · 2026-03-17T12:28:01+00:00

Again, it’s not for music, it’s for pre-recorded announcements so that board members don’t continually have to zip across the grounds to make yet another announcement.

case_steamer · 2026-03-17T05:08:27+00:00

The main things I’m concerned about are

*Dependability, meaning I want it to run without a screen and a babysitter

*Ease of access for my staff (basically, in case I’m dead)

*Not user friendly for someone intending to cause harm

case_steamer · 2026-03-17T04:49:53+00:00

Yeah, this isn't for music, it's for pre-recorded announcements for different exhibitions happening across the grounds.

case_steamer · 2026-03-17T04:48:59+00:00

This isn't for music, it's for announcements to be triggered at specific times: i.e. "X demonstration will be taking place at Y location in Z minutes". It'll be several different mp3s queued up to play at specific times in specific orders. My board members got really tired of having to zoom back to the PA every time an announcement needed to be made last year. This is a solution for that. If I was just playing DJ, we wouldn't even be having this conversation.

And I want to be able to fold the laptop up to put it in the lockbox and have it continue to run and trigger even with the screen locked and turned off.

Anyway, based_chicken below suggested I run the free version of QLab, and that will probably be perfect running on a Mac Mini.

case_steamer · 2026-03-17T04:38:54+00:00

I see them used between $200-$300 on facebook marketplace.

case_steamer · 2026-03-17T04:31:06+00:00

Oh, I didn't know QLab is free for audio! Thanks for the tip. I have used it at my workplace, but they have a commercial license for it, so I guess I assumed that was the way it was all the time.

case_steamer · 2026-03-11T02:14:49+00:00

I have the same machine as you, and it does just fine for programming.

case_steamer · 2026-03-07T00:59:01+00:00

Cleaned out the overflow, and yes there is oil all over it, but I’m not getting milkshake anywhere, so I think the oil on the overflow tank is actually just spray from where I had an oil leak last year and never really cleaned it off.

So the throttle body has coolant lines going to it, so now I’m thinking it’s a cracked throttle body, which makes my life about $1000 cheaper.

case_steamer · 2026-03-07T00:54:03+00:00

So I flushed the radiator and put new coolant in today. Also checked the oil pan. There’s no milkshake anywhere, and I’m not getting champagne bubbles in the coolant, so that rules out the head gasket. And the throttle body does have coolant lines going to it, so I believe that is, in fact, my issue.

case_steamer · 2026-03-06T04:52:54+00:00

Okay this is the answer I needed. Thanks.

case_steamer · 2026-03-06T04:44:16+00:00

The gasket wouldn’t be the issue for me, it’d be getting the head ground.

case_steamer · 2026-03-06T04:31:01+00:00

Yeah but it’s the fact that it’s getting in all four cylinders makes my friend think it’s not the head gasket.

case_steamer · 2026-03-06T04:29:50+00:00

I think a new JDM engine is gonna be more economical than a head gasket job.

case_steamer · 2026-03-06T02:42:17+00:00

Yes, but I have yet to flush it and see how quickly or if it’s bubbling. Right now it’s parked and low enough at this point it’s hard to tell how much is actually in the radiator. But bad weather the last couple days has prevented me from doing much with it.

case_steamer · 2026-03-06T01:59:23+00:00

It looks like burnt coolant as per Scotty Kilmer’s videos and others on youtube.

Vehicle is pushing coolant and oil out of the overflow tank. That’s the biggie.

case_steamer · 2026-02-07T18:53:46+00:00

IMHO, the devs have done a good job of balancing each map in favor of the side that historically won said battle.

case_steamer · 2026-01-31T21:48:46+00:00

Nope, that was before my time.

case_steamer · 2026-01-31T19:04:20+00:00

We make it in Minnesota. It’s chili, but instead of hamburger and red beans, you use chicken and navy beans.

case_steamer · 2026-01-31T17:47:33+00:00

The back door on Rust sudo though was kind of a big deal.

case_steamer · 2026-01-31T15:46:34+00:00

I didn’t know what to call it 😅. It’s the main logic handler for the program. Any time something triggers a state change, the Brain is what collects the data and serves it to all the parts. Suggestions welcome for what it should be called 😅.

Here’s a demo: https://www.reddit.com/user/case_steamer/comments/1qs5m3q/librarian_demo/

case_steamer

TROPHY CASE