cl1x#@andrew.cmu.edu.UUCP (04/13/87)
Sorry I took so long, but I was kinda expecting a larger turnout. Nevertheless, all my thanks to the people who replied. The Kensington System Saver Mac "won" hands down. People who have them have no complaints. Another that were recommended was Mac'N Fronst ("...the quietest one I could find...seems to have a better surge supressor than most"). One not recommended was MaxChill because it cools only the right side of the Mac. The writer reverted to his original routine: "Plug in an external fan and point it at the top of the Mac (I usually keep it on low :) " Appearently, I missed the discussion on other types of fans. Piezos were said to be less efficient at moving air, which, I guess, is kinda important. Right? Anyway, I settled down on a System Saver from MacConnection who proceeded to ship it rather quickly. Now, if only my 512 ==> 1mb Dove upgrade (ordered from Programs Plus) can get here before I die.... Personally, though, I would like to see a Mac magazine doing a more quantitative comparison of Macintosh fans (hint. hint.). ---Ken Arpa, Bitnet: cl1x@andrew.cmu.edu
zrm@eddie.MIT.EDU (Zigurd R. Mednieks) (04/18/87)
There are some fundamental questions I would like to raise about the desirablity of putting an aftermarket fan on one's Macintosh: 1) Can a fan do harm to a Macintosh? All the fans I have seen suck unfiltered air through the machine. They draw the air not only through the bottom side vents, but the floppy dirve as well. Do the greased parts of the floppy or the read/write head like this treatment? 2) Are fans effective in all parts of the Macintosh? Try the following experiment: Light a cigarette and puff some smoke toward the top vents of a Macintosh with an add-on fan. The smoke will probably be drawn down into the Macintosh. So, do fans really work, or do they just muck up the convection cooling (or is it a little of both)? 3) Is a Macintosh wothout a hard disk inside it really in need of a fan? My home machine was upgraded to 2Mb from 512k and I passed on the fan because of my doubts on items 1) and 2). It still computes as happily as ever. Do I really need a fan? 4) Catching fire is not always a symptom of overheating. What really causes analog boards to burn down? -Zigurd