I am *not* soliciting for votes for me...

[Tech-Daddy]

I am soliciting for participants in the voting....

If any of you are Dell Forum members, go here... I stumbled into a modding contest of sorts...
http://forums.us.dell.com/supportforums/board?board.id=creativecontest&page_of_message_id=27&l=en&s=dhs

There is some good competition, and I'd like to see as high a total vote count as is possible.

You vote here:
http://forums.us.dell.com/supportforums/

In the "General Poll" portion

REGARDLESS of whether you vote for me or not, I just like to direct people to these so that companies realize the draw that modding has.

So... head on over, voting continues until the 15th of September, so head over and vote. Let Dell know that the modding community is strong and full of participating and enthusiastic people!!!

[TAZTG]

Those aren't even in the same league as your Boss Mod.. OK the RCPC is cute but the end tables are kinda lame.. Looks like a easy win for ya buddy but I am kinda bias towards your MODS so who really knows..

[Tech-Daddy]

thanks for the support TAZTG, appreciated.

[PCJ]

I really like the End Table and the Crunch mods, but the BossFX obviously steals the show.
Still, Dell seems like a strange place to hold a modding competition. Whatever, have fun with that 3007 if you get it... it's an amazing monitor.

[Tech-Daddy]

yeah... I rellay like CRUNCH too... love how he planned that all out. Would like to see it in person. I have seen the RC Mod this last year @ QC. Was pretty cool.

We'll see how it all pans out!

[Adisharr]

You would think a company like Dell would be able to pull some real competition for TD.. I think you have it wrapped up man :)

[Colossus]

I agree... ALL of the entries besides Tech's suck!

Props for Tech and the Boss, even if I like the purple wolf one better :) But the Boss is one A+++ mod :)

[Tech-Daddy]

hehehe.... then "why?" am I still behind??!! ;)

RCPC must have a pretty rabid following!

This is honestly a fight between two different approaches to modding....

[Glooba]

Looking at the other "mods", I've got to say, the only thing that comes close in competition with you Tech is RCpc and maybe Endtable. You've got this in the bag =p

[bugspop1]

I went and registered at the Dell site so I could vote. Of course I voted for Tech! I don't get a couple of the so called MODS like the XPS 400 (it has 25% of the votes), anyone can put in a light! If I would have known the lack of competition I would have entered mine. I know I wouldn't have beat Tech-Daddy but I could have wasted quite a few of the others. RCpc looks a lot better than most of the others but I still preferred Tech-Daddy's.

[Adisharr]

I just modded my front porch to light up when I flick a switch!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm sooooooooo going to post this on Dell.

[TAZTG]

I just modded my front porch to light up when I flick a switch!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm sooooooooo going to post this on Dell.

I topped that one.. I modded a bell to ring by pushing a button on the outside of the house.. WooT.. Pretty Funny there Adisharr..

Seriously, where the hell have you been hiding?? Your Table MOD (MediaPC) was definately much better then the one's there..

[TAZTG]

Sorry I am a bit confused here..
I checked the votes and your tied for second with the XPS400. ***!!

One Bad PIC of Blue Lights.. How can this be considered a MOD??

http://img.dell.com/images/global/support/dcf/creative/XPS%20400-%20Creativity%20thumb.jpg

I can tell this person has alot of friends or College Buddies.. Time for TD to start bribing/buying some friends to cast votes..

[Adisharr]

Sorry I am a bit confused here..
I checked the votes and your tied for second with the XPS400. ***!!

One Bad PIC of Blue Lights.. How can this be considered a MOD??

http://img.dell.com/images/global/support/dcf/creative/XPS%20400-%20Creativity%20thumb.jpg

I can tell this person has alot of friends or College Buddies.. Time for TD to start bribing/buying some friends to cast votes..

If that wins then Dell should go down as having the most rigged contest ever in the history of contests.

[PCJ]

Looking at the other "mods", I've got to say, the only thing that comes close in competition with you Tech is RCpc and maybe Endtable. You've got this in the bag =p
Really the only cool thing about the end table mod is that he used a drawer as the bezel for the DVD drive. However, that's pretty damn awesome for some reason :D

[Transfurzz]

Really the only cool thing about the end table mod is that he used a drawer as the bezel for the DVD drive. However, that's pretty damn awesome for some reason :D

Hmm, I guess its because people keep 'untouchables' in end table drawers.

I am in agreement, those first two mods seem more to be made for novelty purposes rather than for beauty. They shouldn't be up there in my personal opinion. I have no idea how that thing with porch lights even got up there.

Apparently, they 'think' they are going for creativity rather than style. Perhaps thats why. They group both aspects in a different category.

Though to be honest, a remote controlled tank computer, end table and vanilla LAN gaming rig are lacking in creativity. They don't fulfill a particular theme and act more like lego sets made by a child. Nice to look at, but not very aspiring. They seem to feel creativity in a custom building rig contest consists of the rig fulfiling a number of miscellanous functions. Its like asking a Van Gogh to be a painting with a somewhat practical purpose other than being heavenly for the visual sense.

I bet if I taped a toaster and coffee machine to a windowed Lian Li, filled it up with nice components, added a few red lights and called it 'The Toaster'. I would probably win. All I need to do is craft double housings that are attached on both sidesof the casing and give it some lateral lines to give a clean look. Then paint it some metallic colour. Or even better yet, buy a transparent casing. Then just put in lots and lots of water cooling and red/green/blue lights and blind the hell out of everybody. Thus giving it a practical function as a flashbang. Turn it on when the counter terrorists break into your living room.

To be honest dude, its like their insulting your idea of creativity. The others are made to fulfill some sort of miscellanous purpose and they consider your rig to be lacking creativity just because it doesn't do anything on the side. Many of them aren't full body mods or are just pre-purchased housings with woodwork or some cutting to make them fit together, all this just for the purposes of shoving a computer in something. No visual style, no creativity, just plain engineering brawn and some brute force.

Their saying its beautiful but lacks creativity because it doesn't do anything. Damn, Im repeating myself.

In other words, Im quite pissed. Some of them even rationalise by saying your work looks rushed. I mean GEEZ, of course it looks rushed in comparison to the others. The others weren't even built by hand ! Or are covered with something already pre-built.

One of the mods is even more incredibly stupid. Guess what, it uses a beer bottle as a water cooling resirvoir. Right, playing the blues indeed.

[Tech-Daddy]

You guys rock.... honestly. You do.
I have no issue going down to RC if it comes to that... but the XPS400??? That is almost a slap in the face! I'll loos to a better machine any day of the week. I have lost many times, and had no problem with it.

But this just reeks....
;)

[md1198p]

I just voted for you...as i also am a computer fan and a big mustang fan. Mines not a classic, just a plain old run of the mill supercharged 99 GT with about 400HP ;) ...but us car guys have to stick together.

[Endersothergame]

Damn! Tech I have been drooling over that case for months. (Since you posted it here) If you loose to that other case I will be rightly upset I think. Hell my case is very similar, w/cold cathod around the fan and a bar light in the bottom. Had I know that constitued serious mod work I would have mentioned it before.

[bugspop1]

Just went back to Dell to see what was going on with the contest. RCpc is still in the lead but now Playing the Blues is beating BossFX-57. I really Guess that all you need to do to win this contest is to put in a couple of cold cathodes. No Talent Needed for the Dell Modding Contest!!!!!!!!

[Adisharr]

That contest is a joke. What do you expect when you let the internet community vote.

[Tech-Daddy]

hopefully, Dell will take away something from this and learn. If they do it again... they may make changes.

[Endersothergame]

I sincerely hope so. I am not speaking from a biased(sharkies) position here but in all honesty maybe the R/C, the End table and yours were the only ones that should have been in contention.

[Transfurzz]

Just went back to Dell to see what was going on with the contest. RCpc is still in the lead but now Playing the Blues is beating BossFX-57. I really Guess that all you need to do to win this contest is to put in a couple of cold cathodes. No Talent Needed for the Dell Modding Contest!!!!!!!!

What the hell ?

[Adaman]

The Boss wipes the floor with the rest of em :) - I really like your mod. Will be a shame if it doesn't win.

I cannot find where to vote though, i looked all around there. Do i have to be logged in? Not Firefox compatible? I can see the results of the poll but can't seem to vote anywhere.

[Tech-Daddy]

http://forums.us.dell.com/supportforums/

on the main forum page, (yes you must be logged in) it is on the right. Has a button that says "VOTE" then you choose your rig.
HTH, and thanks for the support!

[bugspop1]

11:30 PM Thursday, September 14,2006

End Table 37%
Playing The Blues 29%
RCpc 15%
BossFX-57 10%

Come on I can't believe this!

[Tech-Daddy]

The contest is broken....
http://forums.us.dell.com/supportforums/board/message?board.id=game-gen&message.id=50874

dont worry... I'm not.
If Dell cannot see that their system is broken, their reputation will be what takes the hit.
I have totally lost faith in their ability to effectively run a contest.

[bugspop1]

See what ya mean Tech! Glad some of the modders realize that their systems shouldn't be in the top ten. Talk about fixed! I think I'll just get my new monitor the honest way " with cash".

Oh, by the way I did just purchase my new 19" Samsung SyncMaster 940bw WideScreen but have now worked it out that it's a 20" Samsung SyncMaster 205bw WideScreen and for "no extra cash" only $199.99 + tax. I know it's not a 30" but I can deal with it!

[TAZTG]

TD, can you remove your entry from the contest? (Delete Post etc.) Send the idiot Admins an email saying your Pride in Modding won't allow you to partake in a contest that is so shamefully run. Its a slap to the modding community to even allow some of those entries. Come on just look at the Rack System ***!!

[commanderkeen]

TD, can you remove your entry from the contest? (Delete Post etc.) Send the idiot Admins an email saying your Pride in Modding won't allow you to partake in a contest that is so shamefully run. Its a slap to the modding community to even allow some of those entries. Come on just look at the Rack System ***!!
The voting has been extended. It is now from sept 15 to sept 20 and u have to email ur vote in.

[Jason M]

rgr

[Tech-Daddy]

And the final chapter in the saga of "As the squirrel burns..."
(cue sappy soap opera music)

http://forums.us.dell.com/supportforums/board/message?board.id=creativecontest&message.id=76

"Contest Voting Update

We have reason to believe that the integrity of this contest has been compromised. Accordingly, we have decided to alter the voting as follows. Please email your vote to the Dell_Forum_Contests@dell.com. mailbox and include the number and title of the system you would like to vote for as well as your Forum user ID. Only one vote per forum user id and email address will be allowed. The new voting will begin at 5 pm (Central Time) on September 15 and will close at 5 pm (Central Time) on September 20, 2006. Dell will compile the vote count and will announce the winner on September 25th. If you have questions or comments, please contact the Dell_Forums@dell.com mailbox."

you gotta admit... this is pretty entertaining from a very bizzarre point of view... I mean, it has intrigue, deciet, desire... all the makings for a good C grade "Bollywood" movie...

[PointlesS]

wow...if some of those are "real" mods then my 80mm fan sitting on 3 game boxes pointed at my video card is right up there...

I liked the rc car...the thing that's kinda cool about it to me is that the car itself still works...however I just think the boss mod is a lot more complete...from the color scheme to paint job...plus all the small details such as the kb and mouse...the fact that the entire thing is a theme rather than 1 main mod puts it way above the others...

[Adaman]

Confuzhing. Anyways, another vote for you from me, i registered an emailed it in. Just because it's really my favorite. Good luck.

[TAZTG]

OK, finally a fair chance to win a nice Dell Monitor. I emailed my vote for the XPS400 its such a BadArse MOD!! :p :p

[Tech-Daddy]

Hehehehe... saw your post on the Dell forums too... thank you for your support!

[bugspop1]

I've e-mailed my vote, go 1969 Boss 302!
I'm glad they're trying to clean up the contest!

[Endersothergame]

They have reason to beleive do they? Well another email in the fold.

[Tech-Daddy]

;)
Da bomb.... that's what you guys are...

[angomeka]

the other pc's are kinda lame compared to yours.

[Tech-Daddy]

http://forums.us.dell.com/supportforums/board/message?board.id=creativecontest&message.id=116

Thank you to everyone for your support of their contest! And if you voted for me, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
:)

[reset232]

Averatec is doing the same thing, so if you want to win free stuff you can submit art to www.CreateYourCase.com.

You have to draw up a skin for your laptop, upload it and then get your "friends and family" to vote for you. Top 5 vote getters win one of Averatec's new 17" notebooks. They also are giving away a bunch of their new GPS devices.

Beats paying $$$ out of your own pocket for a new rig. And...vote for me if you have a sec. :cool:

[Adaman]

So...Didya Win or is Dell blowing it again? Good luck.

[Tech-Daddy]

I saw a winning post up from the Dell forums that was up for all of 5 minutes. Long enough for me to print it and save the URL. It had stated that I won... but that post was removed, and I Have not seen anything else since then. Not even a moderator chiming in as to what happened.... confusing and disheartening. I'm not putting any stock in what I saw posted (which is actually quite a shame) until I see some sort of "official post" (which that one was... but I guess it was not "official enough")
:(


Really, they just keep shooting themselves in the foot. It is embarassing....

[Tech-Daddy]

Averatec is doing the same thing, so if you want to win free stuff you can submit art to www.CreateYourCase.com.

You have to draw up a skin for your laptop, upload it and then get your "friends and family" to vote for you. Top 5 vote getters win one of Averatec's new 17" notebooks. They also are giving away a bunch of their new GPS devices.

Beats paying $$$ out of your own pocket for a new rig. And...vote for me if you have a sec. :cool:

Which one is yours?

[TAZTG]

Sounds like someone else cried foul on the new vote.. This contest was the worse run one I have ever witnessed.

Congrats either way you have the best MOD there..

[Tech-Daddy]

Well... it's over... even had a last second mistake...
http://forums.us.dell.com/supportforums/board/message?board.id=creativecontest&message.id=129

Thanks to any and everyone who voted in the contest! Double thanks to those that voted for me! ;)

[schultz]

Late in on this, but congrats man. You definitely deserved that. Tie...whatever. Congrats again.

[Tech-Daddy]

Thank you sir!
Stay safe bro!

[Adaman]

End table mod? Psh. So are you not getting a prize now? That would be very lame if that was the case.

[Tech-Daddy]

According to Dell, they are shipping me one as well.

[commanderkeen]

According to Dell, they are shipping me one as well.Congrats on getting that bad boy, too bad you didnt win.

[Adaman]

Dell better ship you one, or else it's Lawsuit time! :p - Congrats.

[bugspop1]

I can see it now! Someone breaks into my house and steals my 30" Dell LCD but forgets to steal my top of the line End Table! Just kidding, who wouldn't want a stylish end table like that? Congrats Tech on a great mod!

[Tech-Daddy]

LOL!!!

OMG! That was funny! Perfect timing!
Hehehehehe....

[hongsc]

How does something that looks like an underwear drawer compare to TD's mod? A tie? It wasn't even close.

[Adisharr]

Are you telling me that end table won a 30" LCD? You have got to be Fing kidding me. That was the worst contest Ive ever seen.

[Tech-Daddy]

heheeh... ok ok, settle down guys! I have had long discussions about this issue elsewhere. The lowdown was that the person that submitted the end table was a professor at a college. He requested that his students go out and register on the forum and vote for his rig.

Nothing wrong with that, per the rules. I've had my discussion with him both on the forum and in PM's @ the Dell forum. He knows where I stand (and so does everyone else for that matter!). While he "won" the contest, the means by which he achieved the win are what bother me. Water under the bridge...

As such, the next contest from Dell will likely have some changes to keep things like this from happening. It's all an evolution, and they (Dell) learned a ton from this contest.

It was drama, intrigue, suspense, disinformation,... everything you pay for from a good movie! ;) Just not what you want in a modding contest!

;)

So, "yeah"... he won the contest. Fair and square. But, due to a mistake in posting the winner (me initially, then him) they awarded both of us a monitor.

[Adisharr]

heheeh... ok ok, settle down guys! I have had long discussions about this issue elsewhere. The lowdown was that the person that submitted the end table was a professor at a college. He requested that his students go out and register on the forum and vote for his rig.

Nothing wrong with that, per the rules. I've had my discussion with him both on the forum and in PM's @ the Dell forum. He knows where I stand (and so does everyone else for that matter!). While he "won" the contest, the means by which he achieved the win are what bother me. Water under the bridge...

As such, the next contest from Dell will likely have some changes to keep things like this from happening. It's all an evolution, and they (Dell) learned a ton from this contest.

It was drama, intrigue, suspense, disinformation,... everything you pay for from a good movie! ;) Just not what you want in a modding contest!

;)

So, "yeah"... he won the contest. Fair and square. But, due to a mistake in posting the winner (me initially, then him) they awarded both of us a monitor.


Well hell that's great you got one man :) Congrats :) :) :)

Where should I email my shipping address for your old one? :p

[Mr Cherry]

Awesome Tech-Daddy, I'm pretty sure everyone here felt you should have won anyways. That 30" Dell is going to be sweet. I'm sure you've got plans already in the works on how you're going to mod that sucker.

Congrats! :)

[bugspop1]

Tech, did you get your 30" Dell yet? If so can we see a few pictures of it? I'm jealous! Not really, I'm good with my 20" Samsung for now!

[Tech-Daddy]

http://www.tech-daddy.com/wlog/30inch.jpg

I must say though, the 30" monitor is a beautiful thing... but I have need of other types of equipment (computer and painting) so I sold it to a friend of mine up in Canada that work on huge, hi res photos in RAW. So.... I played with it for one night... gamed for a few hours, drooled on my keyboard. Then I packed it up so that I would not become ADDICTED to it!

I shipped it out today, so there is no going back!

I'll miss that thing, but I really needed some other equipment more than I needed a 30" monitor. Would have felt really bad listening to my daughter complaining about her computer when I would be staring at that work of art. So, it is headed towards a better home.

Enjoy the pic... I certainly enjoyed playing with it for a few hours!

[Adaman]

Nice! :)

[bugspop1]

To bad you couldn't keep it! I know I keep thinking it would be nice to have a monitor that big, but my 20" is plenty big enough for now. In a few more years when my eyes get worse I'll think about something bigger. By then maybe a 30" will be in my price range. Thanks for the picture!

[TAZTG]

OK, here's a few things I noticed about your Dell 30" PIC.

Your on a Low Cal Diet and you drink Sprite.. And most importantly Your Boss PC isn't looking to happy tucked away like that. Need to make a nice Computer Stand like they have cars on at the car shows.

BTW: I like your new Site where you have your PICS. Nice and Organized..
Just 1 question.. Did this monitor eventually fall in your Workarea PIC?

http://www.tech-daddy.com/wlog/workarea/well_used_workbench.jpg

[Tech-Daddy]

Low-CARB! ;) Diabetics need to regulate their carb intake so as to regulate the sugars floating around inside. Carbs turn into sugar after digestion.

And that's not a Sprite... it's a beer! Kronnenberg1664 to be precise! ;) Pretty difficult to get over here @ my house!

And "No..." the monitor has not fallen! It is right where I want it, and I can move it out of the way as needed when not in use.

[bugspop1]

Are you talking about the green bottle behind the left corner of the monitor? I see the monitor in your shop is on an arm. Pretty good idea if your working on computers! You can move it up and out of the way!

[TAZTG]

Didn't notice the arm.. Yea thats a good idea.. Its just amazing how much gear you have in your shop.. No wonder you turn out these works of art.. My Shoebox consist of a Dremel, Jigsaw, Files, and small workbench that is always in the way no matter where I unfold it.. LOL..

[Tech-Daddy]

I really need to clean it up... I have crap everywhere right now!
After the next mod... I will need to clean it up, just to think straight!
;)