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case windows bad for you?

O

o0akoni0o

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Aug 31, 2004
Messages
1,301
so this new guy moves into my college apartment and first thing he tells me is that case windows on a computer are bad for you. something along the lines of a window not being a great barrier to prevent radiation from passing through. this may be stupid, but this is false right? i know computers give off emr, but isn't it nonionizing and aren't the amounts small enough that window or no window they have the same effects as using a crt or watching tv?
 
If memory serves correct, I think its actually your monitor that gives off radiation or some sort of "bad" waves. But the amount is so small its hardly worth mentioning.

I bet this new roommate guy also doesn't talk on his cell phone at the gas pump? :p


All in all, I've personally never heard having a window on the side of your case as being bad for your machine. I guess it might be bad if your tower was sitting with direct sunlight shining into the window all day (however that would be possible?) but even then I think you would be more concerned with heat then anything else.

/just my 2 pp
 
Does your new room mate have long greasy hair, a name like stick or twig and say man after every sentence?

Its not you computer equipment you should be afraid of. Its electricity pylons, the emr they give off is believed to cause leukaemia. Not that the housing companies care. Man!
 
They do make cases with EMI sheilding. But i cant see why anyone would worry about that...or even waste the time to mention it.


So does your roommate think its the hardware that is giving off the radiation or just the window? cause my shuttle's side has been cut off... and it is lying next to where my mouse is and there is a huge lump on the side of my hand :eek:


jk
 
Bonksnp said:
I bet this new roommate guy also doesn't talk on his cell phone at the gas pump? :p
Click to expand...
If by at the gas pump you mean "Garden hose and syphoning" then of course not. I have seen CSI Miami.
:D
 
Dude, careful with that 'lectronic stuff, man. My friend's friend's cousin's sister's father got cancer and he used his computer all the time.


:rolleyes:
 
daedal said:
Dude, careful with that 'lectronic stuff, man. My friend's friend's cousin's sister's father got cancer and he used his computer all the time.


:rolleyes:
Click to expand...



Just never mind the five cartons of cigs he smoked every week. :eek:
 
Cancer unfortunately is a fact of life. It's a cold hard fact, and 1 in 3 people will have it. My father has it and my mother is currently going thru chemo.

Thankfully tho treatment has come on a bit, granted it has a long way to go. But not all cancer is the death sentence it once was.
 
o0akoni0o said:
...something along the lines of a window not being a great barrier to prevent radiation from passing through. this may be stupid, but this is false right?
Click to expand...
The EMR given off by a computer is radio-frequency waves. Totally harmless...and unless you live in a sealed Faraday cage, you get thousands as times as much from other sources.

A CRT monitor gives off low amounts of harmless beta radiation, and very low amounts of gamma-- which is harmful, but not in the doses you could get from the screen, even if you sat in front of it 24 hours per day.

Its electricity pylons, the emr they give off is believed to cause leukaemia..
Click to expand...
Wholly untrue as well. Or, more precisely, believed only by those with room-temperature IQs.
 
Dude man, I got a case window and I use my computer a lot. I've noticed I've been gaining fat recently... must be that radiation... that stuff is killer man!

EDIT: I typed "wait" instead of "fat". WTF was I thinking
biggrin.gif
 
You've been gaining the abilty to be patient. WOW!!!! :)

My wife swears I can't gain that... :)
 
That is the most stupid thing I've heard all week. Better tell your roommate to live in a radiation shielded bubble because the ground emits radiation, in fact most things do but they are so minute that they don't harm you. Go buy a Geiger counter and you'd be surprised at what emits radiation.
 
PolygonGTC said:
Go buy a Geiger counter and you'd be surprised at what emits radiation.
Click to expand...
Do you know how often the U.S. Customs Service has its radiation screening alarms go off on incoming cargo...becaues of the radioactive potassium found naturally in bananas?
 
This is a real danger. But using tinfoil, especially around your head and ... private parts... will keep you from being damaged. Actually, we should all be wearing tinfoil all the time. You never know when one of those sun-spot things could happen. Anyway, I have been using tinfoil for years and I'm fine. Now, let me tell you the best remedy to get rid of gout...... :eek:
 
masher said:
The EMR given off by a computer is radio-frequency waves. Totally harmless...and unless you live in a sealed Faraday cage, you get thousands as times as much from other sources.

A CRT monitor gives off low amounts of harmless beta radiation, and very low amounts of gamma-- which is harmful, but not in the doses you could get from the screen, even if you sat in front of it 24 hours per day.
Click to expand...
thats what i figured. i knew computers gave off emr like many other electronic devices, but i couldn't see how it would produce harmful levels of it. anyways, my new roommate said it was the fact the case had a window (plastic side vs. aluminum/steel side). now if my memory serves me correct, given the thicknesses of the sides, this shouldn't make a difference even if the emr was harmful, right?
 
What would he say if you have an all acrylic case? (I have one) Would he like....be afraid of it?
 
o0akoni0o said:
now if my memory serves me correct, given the thicknesses of the sides, this shouldn't make a difference even if the emr was harmful, right?
Click to expand...
Thickness doesn't really matter; emr doesn't penetrate a conductive shell. It won't even penetrate a metal case with holes in it, unless the hole diameter is a significant fraction of the wavelength size.

You can work out the wavelength of the base harmonic of a 2ghz cpu for yourself. Just divide its frequency into the speed of light. That's why even a wire mesh case (aka window-screen style) would block pretty much all EMR, despite having thousands of tiny holes.

You'd get leakage from a case window, as well as out the front bezel and any other large openings. You'd also get edge leakage if painted metal parts aren't joined in a conductive manner. But again-- this is nonionizing radiation. The same stuff thats passing through your body from thousands of TV and radio transmissions...and a lot less harmful than the far more energetic EMR you get from normal sunlight.
 
masher said:
Do you know how often the U.S. Customs Service has its radiation screening alarms go off on incoming cargo...becaues of the radioactive potassium found naturally in bananas?
Click to expand...

Hehe, now that is funny.

I was just thinking about another stupid aspect of this guy's remarks. What makes him think that a thin panel of sheet metal is any better at stopping radiation than plexi-glass?
 
PolygonGTC said:
What makes him think that a thin panel of sheet metal is any better at stopping radiation than plexi-glass?
Click to expand...
For EM radiation, it is.
 
masher said it pretty well.

What's EMI/RFI do though? Your stereo will malfunction. Unshielded wires will pick up interference. EMI/RFI sensitive equipment will glitch. Why? Because your PC is spitting out massive amounts of very high frequency EMI/RFI. This is the staticky noise you hear on cheap sound cards, on headphone cables run past PCs, on the stereo 3 feet away from the open case, etcetera. That's all EMI/RFI. Inside the case, it's not going to affect anything relatively speaking. It's when you let it out that it becomes a problem.
Any case with a window can't pass FCC A or B requirements, either.

And that's it in a nutshell, sorta.
 
While your roommate is sleeping, place your computer next to his head with the window facing him.
 
Direfox said:
This is a real danger. But using tinfoil, especially around your head and ... private parts... will keep you from being damaged. Actually, we should all be wearing tinfoil all the time. You never know when one of those sun-spot things could happen. Anyway, I have been using tinfoil for years and I'm fine. Now, let me tell you the best remedy to get rid of gout...... :eek:
Click to expand...

Zelbereth has that covered. Check out his workstation: http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1028882821&postcount=298


:p
 
i can tell u one thing that windows are bad for me, the fact i get OCD to the max cuz i stare at my wiring all day and i just HAVE to tinker with it and make it perfect
 
jman1 said:
This thread has California written all over it.
Click to expand...

THIS COMPUTER IS KNOWN BY THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA TO POSSIBLY MAYBE CAUSE CANCER, MALE PATTERN BALDNESS, AND YOUR GIRLFRIEND TO BREAK UP WITH YOU.
 
Asian Dub Foundation said:
i can tell u one thing that windows are bad for me, the fact i get OCD to the max cuz i stare at my wiring all day and i just HAVE to tinker with it and make it perfect
Click to expand...
wat if you were starin at someone else's bad wiring :p
 
dont cases have to be UL listed and FCC approved so that they dont cause interfearence with radio devices. So cases that come standard with windows would have to be FCC approved. If they are approved then they can't be that bad....
 
Wang191 said:
dont cases have to be UL listed and FCC approved so that they dont cause interfearence with radio devices. So cases that come standard with windows would have to be FCC approved. If they are approved then they can't be that bad....
Click to expand...
Empty cases don't emit radio frequency. PC components and assembled PCs can be tested for FCC compliance...but not cases themselves.
 
There is more radiation in a Smoke alarm or florescent tube light, then anything your computer can put out.

Now if you lock your self in a room with smoke alarms, florescent lights, microwaves, CRT monitors, a few power transformers, after about 20 years, you might just get cancer.
 
Majin said:
Now if you lock your self in a room with smoke alarms, florescent lights, microwaves, CRT monitors, a few power transformers, after about 20 years, you might just get cancer.
Click to expand...
Don't forget natural radioactivity either. Anyone living in a Rocky Mountain or New England state has several thousand pounds of radioactive thorium and potassium in their own backyard. The rest of us-- not much less.

Natural radioactive waste...left over from when Mother Nature made the earth.
 
What radiation? Probably the guy has no money to buy a proper case with a side window and he is jealous of your case!!!!!!! So, he makes up stories like this to make you..... donate your case to him. Then he will go on saying to the world that he is a big time hero and saved your life.!!!!! LOL!!!!!

WAIT!!! If a computer case with a window emits radiation then what can be said about WINDOWS????? OMG!!!!!! I need a Mac ASAP!!!! MY MONITOR IS MELTING FROM THE RADIATION !!!!!!!! MAAAAAANNNNNN!!!!!!!
 
Direfox said:
This is a real danger. But using tinfoil, especially around your head and ... private parts... will keep you from being damaged. Actually, we should all be wearing tinfoil all the time. You never know when one of those sun-spot things could happen. Anyway, I have been using tinfoil for years and I'm fine. Now, let me tell you the best remedy to get rid of gout...... :eek:
Click to expand...
PS-RagE said:
Zelbereth has that covered. Check out his workstation: http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1028882821&postcount=298


:p
Click to expand...

Actually, I can't remember the link but it was on the [H]ard Main page a while back where the article said tinfoil hats actually AMPLIFIED your brain waves and made it easier for the govt. to read your mind using their evil spy satelites :eek:

D.
 
masher said:
Empty cases don't emit radio frequency. PC components and assembled PCs can be tested for FCC compliance...but not cases themselves.
Click to expand...

But the cases are suposed to supply sheilding to computer components. So if it can't do that it can't be rated a certain way. Not saying this is correct or anything, just a thought.

Also computer component manufacturer's equipment has to be tested so your mobo shouldn't be putting out any unwanted frequencies either.
 
Wang191 said:
But the cases are suposed to supply sheilding to computer components. So if it can't do that it can't be rated a certain way.
Click to expand...
But an empty case is not required to be FCC certified before marketing or sale. It's not even eligible for voluntary testing, as there are emissions to measure.
 
masher said:
But an empty case is not required to be FCC certified before marketing or sale. It's not even eligible for voluntary testing, as there are emissions to measure.
Click to expand...

Being FCC Class A or B compliant is not a requirement. (Yes, this is the dumbest loophole EVER.) They just can't put the FCC Approved marks on a case with a window. They can still sell it. Chenbro tests every case for EMI/RFI leakage, except those with windows. They don't even bother, since they can't pass.

http://www.tomshardware.com/2003/10/06/china_dispatch/page7.html

I'd call typical THG BS, but I seem to recall that article being elsewhere in actuality (same exact pictures,) and I know from experience what an RF test chamber looks like. That, is an RF test chamber. Either way, you cannot sell and install a computer that fails EMI/RFI leakage in an office or home environment. Well, not unless you include the FCC "Harmful Interference" letter. Wonder how many whiteboxers know of them.

And for the record, yes, you can get EMI/RFI shielded lexan. It's custom cut, and I don't do it because of cost. It passes NSA Secure Environment standards, and last quote I got was something like $500 for a 24"x24". Oh, and you can't cut it without rendering the shielding ineffective.

(edit) Crossed wires; I multitask too much.
 
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