PC Moding
From Mod Mania
Computer Moding
Computer moding has been around since computing first gained wide spread popularity in the 90’s. The first mods where mainly things like increased capacity then came increased memory as the graphics became more detailed and complex. And as computers became more powerful they needed to be cooled so they didn’t overheat, from the almost constant usage. This strain was put on the system by games that had complex maps and even more complex math to deal with the different variables of the game.
The first mods of PCs as said before where mainly to help with the issue of cooling as computers began to be used for longer periods of time at higher capacities. This led to users removing the sides of the case to stop the case becoming a hot box that could cause components to melt down. But having an open case even though it looks a bit cool it still looks like a half built computer so began the trend of replacing the sides with some perforated acrylic. As technology became more available and cheaper these sides would be cut into a design or have a design etched onto it. Another product that has been invented for mainly cooling is the fan even though it has been around since the beginning of the computer the fans that where invented particularly for the clear case moders was a clear fan filled with LEDs. Often moders will use so many of these fans infused with lights that the room the computer is in becomes a scene from a rave nightclub.
The cases of PCs can be moded to look rather normal or they can be the weirdest things you have every seen. Forsfer Gadgets which is as it says a Gadget webpage, have made a list of the top ten weirdest computer mods of all time. Now these mods really don’t have anything to do with performance there mainly done to thrill or even more as a novelty item. These mods range from a PC in a microwave, a nuclear bomb and even a toilet. All over the internet the are hundreds of forums of pc mods just like this one, many of them are rather similar in nature they may have a range of different ideas that have been taken from someone elses mod and adapted to what the user wants or even improved upon.
The moding of PCs is not only done on such an extreme level as turning it into R2D2 or a ginger bread house. Using the existing case and jazzing it up a bit mods can be done with paint, lighting, removing parts, adding parts on or, even chroming certain features of the case. One of the most popular and affordable mods is to make the case even flashier by putting neo or LED light inside the case. Some may even hard wire lights into the normal data light so that they get a strobe affect when the computer is running. Many of these mods have a direct correlation with the world of car moding. Normaly young ‘hoons’ as they say will put neon’s on the bottom so do the moders. Also cars can have some fairly insane paint jobs, like wise there are people who will send their cases to customer painters to be airbrushed with skulls or have pinstriped flames down the sides.
Now some may call the people who spend huge amounts on their computers just to make them look better nerds. But others would call them craftsmen. Among blogs users can gain a cult status among other readers.
Once people had begun to mod there computers the companies that where producing them decided to see if there was a market for the pre moding of the computer. There are a few levels on which companies have done this. There is the normal level, which has seen the re-designing of what use to be just a white box into something that looks good in a room. But there are also companies that take thir re-designing to the extreme one such company is Alienware. Alienware not only boast having one of the most high-powered systems, they have also added the exterior to match. Over the years Alienware has progressed with what users where wanting to do to there own computers. At the moment the computers look more like cars, the current model laptop resembles the front of a Camero. It even has neon’s like most custom cars.
On the other front of the pre moded computers is Apple. Even though you may so no Apples has always been like that then you may be a little wrong. All Apples started off as was just a white box and stayed on that path for a number of years not gaining many new followers. Then the previous CEO of Apple Steve Jobs decided to return to the company and try and bring Apple into a new level, and after much development of there new computer which was influenced by the fun nature of moding Apple came up with the iMac in 1998. From here on Apple have been developing products that are well designed and less like those of counterparts that normally run windows. However the nature of Apples still did not stop users from moding their Macs even turning them into such things as aquariums or even for the ultimate Star Wars fan the Mini Mac Millennium falcon.
Bibliography
http://gadgets.fosfor.se/the-top-10-weirdest-case-mods/ http://www.alienware.com/ http://www.macmod.com/external-mods http://www.neatorama.com/case-mod/
