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◊(define-meta title "Home IT Overhaul, Phase Zero: A Screen")
◊(define-meta published "2017-08-13")
◊(define-meta topics "Home IT Overhaul")

My home network has had a pretty basic setup for the last six years. My wife and I each have a laptop, connected to the internet with an Asus wifi router and a cable modem. And we have a wifi B&W laser printer. That’s it.

Since we finished the basement and installed a 55″ TV, however, I’ve had my eye on some drastic improvements and additions to our home’s IT capabilities. I will outline the overall plan in another post, however, to get things rolling I thought I’d just write about the first small step in that plan, which I took today: I bought a monitor.

◊figure["coby-monitor.jpg"]{A Coby TFTV1525 15″ monitor/TV, purchased used, missing remote}

I have almost zero spare computer parts lying around my house, which is surely strange for an IT manager. I’ve made a point of getting rid of stuff I don’t need, which means I get to start from scratch.

This tiny used monitor will sit on my new IT “rack” when I need a direct-attached display for setting up or troubleshooting servers. It’s perfect for my setup for several reasons:

◊ol{
◊item{It’s small}
◊item{It’s cheap ($20 on Craigslist)}
◊item{It has both HDMI and VGA inputs, so it will work with any computer, old or new, without any converters}
◊item{It also has a TV tuner, so I can use it to watch broadcast television on the rare occasions where that might come in handy (weather emergencies, etc)}
}