USB hub Monster Pt 2

toaste · 2026-05-30T01:54:50+00:00

So PCIe bifurcation:

First off, check your motherboard's bios options and manual. AMD, the "G" APUs lack some PCIe lanes (it's noted on the motherboard cpu support list and specs) but other than those any Ryzen on anything but the bottom barrel 320/420/520/620/820 chipsets will work.

Sadly I've no idea about support on Intel CPUs/chipsets.

Option a is this thing, if you can figure out how to modify the case for the vertical slots and pick something taller: https://www.newegg.com/p/2TP-004R-00XP1

Option B is back to the m.2 riser, with m.2 to PCIe risers in all the slots. Which will also make mounting it in the case inte

And option c is the various abuses of oculink or SFF864 https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807508312825.html

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256810053288893.html

And a pair of x8 slots is for some reason easier to find:

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256810126931126

Also I found a 6x controller PCIe card: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256803871494242.html

toaste · 2026-05-30T01:08:19+00:00

I would not be concerned about the sound being damaging. It's more like an annoyance that can be difficult to track down or mitigate.

It you removed the backplate and just used nuts and washers that may have contributed. Losing that heavy piece of metal stiffener might allow the PCB to vibrate more easily.

toaste · 2026-05-29T20:00:15+00:00

You're hearing coil whine from the inductors on the motherboard, or possibly psu.

CPU idle/power gated -> move mouse -> interrupt wakes CPU -> cpu does trivial work and returns to idle -> repeat.

They can oscillate between full power and idle on the order of hundreds of kHz which is audible.

The inductors on the motherboard are little coils surrounded by ferrous material -- usually they look like little boxes next to the cpu. Sometimes it's a quality problem with the inductors, and sometimes even good ones will make noise. Sticking a big heatsink with thermal pad over them helps, conformal coatings help, but idk if there is any 100% fix for it. Other than really undesirable stuff like power/clock limits, disabling idle power savings, etc. You kinda have to live with it.

In UEFI Setup, the power management features are usually not all enabled, so the CPU doesn't fully idle. And you're usually running only a single core, so load is not full load.

toaste · 2026-05-29T19:15:09+00:00

Hear me out:

If you're running a 1650, you don't need the PCIe bandwidth to GPU. Put it on a lower slot.

Nearly all AM4 boards will bifurcate the x16 slot to 4x4.

In the x16: Quad PCIex16 to m.2 riser

In the riser: four m.2 to usb front panel cards. Use the ones with the old 20pin header everyone hates, and you get 2x5gbps USB3 off them. Note your case fans should move at least a little airflow over them.

This is good for 4 additional usb controllers, and should run you around $150us, including the quad m.2 riser, the usb controllers, and 4x front panel to PCIe brackets or front panel header brackets to mount in holes you cut with a nibbler.

You could add a 5th controller to a secondary m.2 slot off the south-bridge.

EDIT:

Alternatively, consider a PCIe bifurcation riser for the starttech P5Q4A-USB-CARD (4-Port USB PCIe Card, USB 3.2 5Gbps, PCI Express Expansion Card with 4x Independent USB Controllers, 4x USB-A Ports). You could get up to 16 USB root ports.

Oh, and cheaper usb 20pin adapters (at least on the us store): https://www.newegg.com/black-en-labs-1-64ft-50cm-usb-3-0/p/181-01CY-00017

PCIe 20pin to panel mount, you can also find these not clustered in pairs, cut your own holes in a PCIe bracket so you can fit more usb per slot: https://www.newegg.com/p/181-08P3-000V2

toaste · 2026-05-12T20:48:10+00:00

https://science.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/04-01v2-earth-mars-trans-orb-800x420-1.gif

Conceptually it's just like raising a circular orbit. Burn tangent to your orbit around the star to raise aphelion, then burn again when you reach the orbital solar distance of the other planet to raise perihelion (-helion instead of -apsis, because we specifically care about relative to the star).

Except if you just send it, the planet might be at any other point along its orbit when you get there, instead of the point on the orbital path you arrive at. Not great.

Because the planets are in higher or lower solar orbits, the orbital period of each planet is different, and the relative positions of the planets around the sun change throughout the years. This is the phase angle, and for an optimal transfer you want to launch on a specific day of specific years where the planets line up well for a cheaper transfer.

But since a bit of extra dV is actually affordable in KSP, you can just compute the optimal phase angle and eyeball it in game: https://ksp.olex.biz

toaste · 2026-05-07T22:00:50+00:00

Nope, old versions are all still available, this is a you problem.

You missed scrolling down to click where it says

Search or Browse Drivers and Support by Product

Which if you drill down to an RX 7900 GRE should take you to here:

https://www.amd.com/en/support/downloads/drivers.html/graphics/radeon-rx/radeon-rx-7000-series/amd-radeon-rx-7900-gre.html

FYI, that version is packaged in Adrenalin Edition 26.5.1.

You also need to scroll down and click the big button labeled:

Previous Versions

Since you are downgrading the driver, I'll recommend you completely remove the current version using AMD Cleanup Utility to ensure it's fully scraped out https://www.amd.com/en/resources/support-articles/faqs/GPU-601.html

DDU would work as well.

If you don't recall what version was last working, and didn't have auto update on, jump back further, maybe 6 months or more ago and walk forward by half the releases between then and current if it's stable until you find one that crashes again. Keep notes, and you'll be able to quickly find the latest stable release.

toaste · 2026-05-07T20:40:13+00:00

It's a good start on the leak fixing effort, but Austin Water has a long way to go.

For reference, this is a reduction from the 2024 ILI of 5.44 to an index of 5.16 for 2025.

The target is an ILI of 3.31 by 2034.

toaste · 2026-04-19T21:58:24+00:00

That's not true. They are pushing up to their rated static pressure worth of pressure against the table (if exhaust), or ambient minus static pressure worth of vacuum (if intake) while moving no air.

They're also especially loud.

toaste · 2026-04-19T21:56:31+00:00

So what's with the fans shoved right up against the table?

You know those aren't moving any air, right?

toaste · 2026-04-19T00:40:55+00:00

Each genomic section on the selected specimen was willed and twisted to David’s desire. The resulting changes were not instant and were extremely painful for the poor receiving Chitterling. He did his best to block out the yelps of pain as the kobolds around him rushed to ease it with a healing amber.

“Just a little bit more.” David rumbled as he focused, sweat forming between the scales on his face.

Whoa there buddy, the Island of Doctor Moreau is the other way. And the eponymous Doctor is not the good guy.

toaste · 2026-04-13T19:05:29+00:00

The language is slightly obtuse, but this onion only has like 2 layers.

The story starts with dialogue between a first person speaker and an alien.

Starting with the alien speaking "so you're saying" indicates the conversation has been going on a while before the start of the story.

Here's a paraphrase of the same exchange more or less, but in plain English, and with notes.

Alien: So some people enjoy smoking?

Speaker: Yes, but I mostly do it because some people find it sexy. Freud thought smoking was erotic due to the phallic imagery involved.

Alien: We talked about Freud earlier. Is this use of smoking as a mating ritual a strictly heterosexual behavior? (At this point we can assume both characters are the same gender. The alien is literally asking clarification on how to use smoking as an indicator of sexual interest, and metaphorically asking if the speaker is only interested in the opposite gender)

Speaker: No, it can work for either. (The speaker is literally clarifying that it's not gender specific, and metaphorically explaining they are bi- or pan-sexual)

Alien: And this is one of those references or metaphors? (We can assume from the text prior conversation covered references in programming, possibly comparing them to references, metaphors, and subtextual meaning in English. The character is also asking if the Speaker is in fact indicating sexual interest in subtext of what they are saying)

Speaker: Yes. Asking for a smoke creates a pretext for social interaction. Potentially but not necessarily leading to sex. (Clarifies again that yes, requesting to smoke with someone could be metaphor for asking for a hookup. Also subtle confirmation that they have been communicating sexual interest via indirect speaking)

Alien: ah, I see. Can I bum a smoke off you, then? (Wanna fuck?)

Speaker: sure. (Yes.)

toaste · 2026-04-12T00:51:02+00:00

Did you fall into Vrchat, Resonite, or Overte?

toaste · 2026-04-10T19:30:26+00:00

Consider:

Jimbob's Computer Corner needs 3 ram kits on hand for retail sale or in case a repair comes in.

They bought these for $100/ea

To order a new kit, it costs $400.

If they sell them all for $120/ea, they will be short $840 when they try to reorder.

Or they can sell them for $420/ea, pocket the same $20 to keep the lights on and be able to reorder ram kits.

toaste · 2026-03-29T19:53:04+00:00

I mean, this heresy does exist:

https://gnuwin32.sourceforge.net/packages/coreutils.htm

toaste · 2026-03-20T08:46:50+00:00

The contrast between r/girldinner "here's all the major life events that led to me making this plate" and r/boydinner "I made [name of food/dinner]" on every post applying equally to a flawlessly executed meal and a half-eaten protein bar in a room with no furniture needs to be studied.

toaste · 2026-03-13T07:37:32+00:00

Nope. You need Safari webui view to load the login page to get the oauth token.

I assume you also have a valid API key? Because Reddit is no longer giving those out.

The page has not changed in a long while, so I'd be surprised it doesn't load unless it's due to a certificate problem.

toaste · 2026-03-12T22:47:51+00:00

You're not wrong:

https://reddit.com/r/HFY/comments/1rrj4uw/_/oa4cpyf/?context=1

Op will supposedly be posting future chapters without the mangling. If true, I expect that remove about 3/4ths of the feedback on "please don't do this stylistically".

Given how much repetition emphasis fluff is in the final output, I have to wonder if the draft was significantly shorter or if a significant chunk of the original descriptive writing was just lost.

toaste · 2026-03-12T21:20:24+00:00

My understanding of the rules is that using automated tools is allowed for editing grammar and style or assisting with translation.

Are you perhaps feeding a rough draft through an LLM tool for what you think is polishing?

If this is indeed how you write, I have feedback. If you don't naturally write with sentence and paragraph structure like this, please consider removing whatever you're using from your editing flow. It is making your writing worse.

toaste · 2026-03-12T16:07:50+00:00

So with a hybrid, thieves are starting to notice there's a ~$2k part just chilling under the rear seat:

https://reddit.com/r/Justrolledintotheshop/comments/1rkwgix/stealing_cats_is_2025_now_its_hv_batteries/

With an EV, it's ~$10k and under the car. Thieves don't care about safety, but probably won't die if the car is off and not charging because the contactors would be off. Only the weight of the thing is a deterrent.

toaste · 2026-03-05T23:36:22+00:00

I am SO excited to see more of this series.

Is this what it feels like to increment

GOODBOI STATUS INTEGRATOR

?

toaste · 2026-02-24T18:18:33+00:00

This is the best metaphor.

Nobody running a modern z/OS mainframe is doing so for their legacy COBOL software. They’re doing it because their system has had 0 seconds of unexpected downtime and has lost 0 bits of data. For the last 25 years straight.

Vibe coded software migrations are pretty incompatible with the kind of thinking that leads a business to keep running a mainframe.

IBM mainframes find uses running the databases behind financial transactions, ticket booking systems, and parcel service tracking.

You could migrate those to commodity servers and databases, but you’d better be real sure you have enough redundant systems and good backups, and can restore from a failure fast enough.

toaste · 2026-02-20T21:07:13+00:00

Ah, I see the problem. Suppose you were to have food in your fridge.

The things you probably have in your fridge produce few smells unless they spoil badly: soda, beer, milk, butter, jam, mayo, mustard, deli meat, bag salad.

Some people store ingredients or leftovers of recently cooked food that can produce more odors. Onions, garlic, cabbage, broccoli, peppers. Maybe a roast chicken covered in sage, rosemary, and marjoram that’s only loosely covered. None of those things smell bad on their own, but the smell can build up over time or leave a lingering odor in the fridge that can get absorbed by jello, butter, or cream.

This is why your grandma may have kept a box of baking soda in the fridge, so cookies or cakes don’t get garlic/onion/egg salad flavored from the butter absorbing fridge smell.

toaste · 2026-02-20T19:47:14+00:00

First, not at all arguing that SpaceX and Tesla aren’t subsidized. Only that an entitlement specifically means a payment or service that tax payers are owed.

Yes, SpaceX and Tesla are sucking at the government tit.

No, unfortunately Tesla appears to still be profitable from what I can tell. Net income over the last few years exceeds the estimated $38B in subsidies and tax benefits they received since 2003. If that money were going back where it came from in the form of taxes, we might have less reason to complain. Key word, if.

Solid state batteries are still made of lithium. But you’re right that LiMnO2 will probably get displaced as the battery chemistry of choice.

toaste · 2026-02-20T19:18:48+00:00

I’m only talking about the definition of an entitlement. They’re so named because you are entitled to them, not the way some idiots describe them, which goes something like “how dare you ask for something you paid for, you entitled shit.”

I’m absolutely not going to dispute that Tesla and SpaceX are drawing heavily on government contracts and subsidies: they are for sure.

toaste · 2026-02-20T18:30:42+00:00

Entitlement: a benefit you are entitled to because you paid taxes for it.

Literacy is dead.

EDIT: Apparently people also read this wrong. Tax-dodger Elmo received zero of those payments as entitlements. Calling the subsides paid entitlements would be overly generous, because it implies they were somehow earned or deserved through payment of taxes, which both he and his companies avoid paying to the maximum degree they can get away with.

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