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Ask HN: What lesser-known accessories do you use with your computer?

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Re: Ask HN: What lesser-known accessories do you use with your computer?

#791

Post by throwaway290 »

red-iron-pine wrote: post #684
swader999 wrote: post #564

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's equally on them for running a boring meeting.

Sometimes you gotta do boring meetings, and sometimes everyone has to be there. Most of them could be better, have fewer people, be more focused, etc. -- sure, no doubt. But you can't make every meeting into an action-packed saturday morning cartoon. Like, these compliance forms ain't gotta fill themselves out, and each team has to be there. These JIRA and code-review meets are gonna be lame, but we gotta do em...

true but additionally the meeting was boring to me, and I was more or less a nobody. I am sure it was not boring to others.

Re: Ask HN: What lesser-known accessories do you use with your computer?

#793

Post by pimlottc »

gannonburgett wrote: post #603
romanhn wrote: post #38

After working for almost 3 years with a barebones work-from-home setup (standup desk + laptop), I finally invested recently in some equipment to improve upon my crappy laptop camera and a room with little natural light. The difference in my video call quality is night and day. This is what I got: - A key light (Godox ES45) to throw a bunch of bright, natural white light at my face. Attached to the desk and positioned…

Unfortunately the RX100MIII isn’t supported, but the Mark IV and over 30 other Sony cameras work with its [Imaging Edge Webcam utility]( https://support.d-imaging.sony.co.jp/app/webcam/en/ ) so you can use the camera directly as a webcam without the need for a capture card or HDMI cable.

I tried using this for a while on my Mac and while it generally works, it just wasn’t reliable enough. Sometimes the camera wouldn’t turn on automatically or it would claim to be in use by another process. It’s also not supported in all programs, and even when it is, it can be a pain to switch cameras due to UI annoyances.

In short, your webcam is one of those things that really needs to work 100% or it’ll end up causing problems at exactly the wrong time. No one wants to have to fiddle with the camera during an important meeting.

Re: Ask HN: What lesser-known accessories do you use with your computer?

#795

Post by Nevermark »

(I have worked at home my whole career, so if this seems extravagant consider it is nearly my only business expense. :)

I have a 98” TV on the wall, with two 55 inch TVs in portrait orientation on each side, tilted 45 degrees toward me.

It turns out, the long dimension of the 55” screens equals the short dimension of a 98” screen. So all three screens have the same height.

Having huge screens on the wall means I don’t need my reading glasses, can demo easily, can look at my screen while walking around the room and thinking.

It keeps my desk clear of clutter, cables etc. Wireless keyboard, track pad, mouse & headphones.

Furniture is minimized with a small desk and no screen stands.

Clutter and crowding silently sap my productivity.

I use the two side screens to constantly show my todo’s & reminders, and messages that need responses, respectively. Otherwise for me, out of sight is out of mind.

The TVs are mounted low, only 18 inches from the floor, for a comfortable seated viewing angle. also this leaves room for motivational, decorative art over the screens.

Re: Ask HN: What lesser-known accessories do you use with your computer?

#796

Post by torabravo »

Nevermark wrote: post #795

(I have worked at home my whole career, so if this seems extravagant consider it is nearly my only business expense. :) I have a 98” TV on the wall, with two 55 inch TVs in portrait orientation on each side, tilted 45 degrees toward me. It turns out, the long dimension of the 55” screens equals the short dimension of a 98” screen. So all three screens have the same height. Having huge screens on the wall means I don’…

Can you show us a photo of your setup please? Very intrigued

Re: Ask HN: What lesser-known accessories do you use with your computer?

#797

Post by llampx »

Nevermark wrote: post #795

(I have worked at home my whole career, so if this seems extravagant consider it is nearly my only business expense. :) I have a 98” TV on the wall, with two 55 inch TVs in portrait orientation on each side, tilted 45 degrees toward me. It turns out, the long dimension of the 55” screens equals the short dimension of a 98” screen. So all three screens have the same height. Having huge screens on the wall means I don’…

Sounds fascinating. Do you have a picture of the setup?

Re: Ask HN: What lesser-known accessories do you use with your computer?

#798

Post by noobyme »

noobyme wrote: post #789
m-p-3 wrote: post #764

I have the (now discontinued) Logitech G13 gameboard. I mainly use it for gaming, but it's also useful for creating hardware-macros and have these be linked to the application in focus.

Hey mp36 can I ask you about offline Wikipedia kobo? How do you split the zim files to fit?

Eh I try 7zip if anybody is looking same as me. Also when extending partition size, may have to delete contents, then resize, then put contents back otherwise didn't work for me. Something to do with the extending partition past a certain size.

Re: Ask HN: What lesser-known accessories do you use with your computer?

#799

Post by noobyme »

noobyme wrote: post #798
noobyme wrote: post #789

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hey mp36 can I ask you about offline Wikipedia kobo? How do you split the zim files to fit?

Eh I try 7zip if anybody is looking same as me. Also when extending partition size, may have to delete contents, then resize, then put contents back otherwise didn't work for me. Something to do with the extending partition past a certain size.

Actually no u have to delete partition then make new one

Re: Ask HN: What lesser-known accessories do you use with your computer?

#800

Post by hurflmurfl »

ja27 wrote: post #15

I wouldn't have thought they were lesser-known, but I've been surprised how many people don't know about today's cheap portable external monitors. They're essentially laptop panels with a USB-C+HDMI board. $100-$150-ish and easily found in 15.6" and 13-14", 1080p or 2K. All the ones I've tried have 2 USB-C ports, mini-HDMI, and speakers. This all depends on what USB-C ports your machine actually has and the right USB…

For people complaining about ASUS offering - it did look bad on paper with it's crappy latency and even crappier brightness, so I never pulled trigger on one. I did find some decent options on Ali Express, though.

Got 2 monitors from there - one 15 inch and one 17 inch. Both run in 2k 120Hz. Brightness is OK, never had a problem in a brightly lit room, but I have not tried them out in the sun, like for "working on the beach" type of situation.

When not traveling, I use the smaller one on a VESA arm (the smaller one has screw holes) in vertical orientation for extra screen space next to my 4k larger monitor. And I use the larger portable monitor for sheet music on my piano (connected to Raspberry Pi).

Ordered both from "HDHIFI Store", pretty happy so far.

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