Thing I Want To Make {Steampunk}

[tcepsa]

Write a bit of code that will monitor processor usage and output a corresponding signal to, say, a serial or parallel port, where it is interpreted by something connected to a gauge of some sort (either a retrofitted pressure gauge or an old-style voltmeter) that then makes the hand of the gauge point to the corresponding level of processor usage.

Comments

[nminusone]

Oooh cool! Will the gauge have a Red Zone so you know when she's about to blow?

And not to deny you the Joy of Coding, but you can save a couple of steps by tapping one of the CPU fan wires, assuming it's speed-controlled according to the CPU temperature. You'd need a simple circuit to condition the signal, but it'd save you having to hang a D/A off one of the ports. Assuming you *want* to be saved from that, of course! ;)

[tcepsa]

Oh, that's a great idea! [soliloquy] Yes, with a transistor and the right resistor and possibly a capacitor depending on exactly what that signal looks like, I can probably get it to a format appropriate to the application. Excellent... [/soliloquy] Thanks for the tip!

I do love me some good programming, and I might get around to it at some point (especially if I determine that there is currently an insufficient level of coupling between my CPU's load and its temperature) but for now that's a great way to remove the need to deal with low level system inspection and interaction. (Figuring out how to do it would be a fun exercise, but it's not what I really want to get out of this process.)

And I'm not sure about the redline yet, but it's really tempting. That, or some completely different color scheme to confuse people with lines for things like "Surfing" "Emulating" and "Compiling the Universe"

[nminusone]

Another low-effort approach is a thermistor glued to a strategic spot on the heat sink. That'd work better with a constant-speed fan, though.

For my computer here at work you could just use a microphone, a small amplifier and a low-pass filter. When it gets loaded up it sounds like a small leaf blower. ;)

[fallenpegasus]

You can get little tiny USB-to-analog thingees, I think I saw them on MakeZine's website. That seems to be the perfect way to do it. Take the output of that and feed it to a little amp, from that to a voltage gauge. If the voltage gauge is sensitive enough, may not need the amp.