Toddler proof case?

B

bigddybn

Supreme [H]ardness
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Nov 21, 2006
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My daughter has decided that the buttons on my Centurion 5 are just TOO FUN to play with. I keep the machine on my desk and she is more then tall enough to reach up and hit the bottom mounted buttons now. I need a suggestion for a case with either a door or some other mechanism to keep grubby fingers off of power buttons. Needs to fit a standard ATX board and be small enough to fit on a desk so no full towers please. I don't need fancy aluminum or gadgets for water cooling. I run a single 8800gts 640 video card and already have a PSU I'm happy with. I previously had an Antec Sonata that I was happy with and I like the new one but don't need the PSU. I really like the side mounted HD tray on that case. 120mm cooling please. I like the "clean" look. Don't need side windows or flashing lights or any other nonsense. I really like the look of the Coolermaster 690 but the top mounted ports and side mounted power button wouldn't work out well for me at all.

Anyone have a suggestion? I'm not hooked on brand names and I'd like to stay under the 100 mark if possible. Thanks.
 
Simple and cheap solution.

Get some of these key lock switches.

I've used them in previous builds, they work great.
 
Looks like I would need two of them (reset, power) and 2 different keys. Not to mention having to drill the case and such. It's a great idea and thanks for the suggestion but I think I'll stick to finding a prebuilt case that will do the trick.
 
Lancool PC-K7B. It's a Lian Li and the power and reset switches are located on top of the case. $89.99 with $20 shipping which puts it slightly over $100 shipped, but shop other sites and you can probably find it for cheaper shipped.

Edit: Never mind, just saw the top mounted ports comment :(
 
Electric fence? Squirt gun? P180 short ftw. Yes if be a bad father. What I did to and old computer to keep parents from messing with it was I disconnected the reset switch. Who really uses it anyways? Then I pulled the power switch out the back side of the case and removed the button. When I wanted to start it I just tapped the wires together. Told everybody it was connected to 650 watts and 110 vac. It worked for about 2 months.
 
Disconnect the reset button and set Windows to "Do Nothing" when the power button is pushed. Then change the BIOS settings to power after holding the button for 4 seconds. That way while she's pushing the buttons she's not hurting the system or your nerves. The likelyhood of patiently holding the power button down for 4 seconds is slim since it makes that neat little clicking noise when she pushes it.
 
Also won't windows not whit down if programs like word are currently open? I may be wrong but I vaguely remember having to close all applications fully to power down. It was some Microsoft program.
 
Cloud15x said:
Also won't windows not whit down if programs like word are currently open? I may be wrong but I vaguely remember having to close all applications fully to power down. It was some Microsoft program.
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In my experience, Windows sends out a kill command to all running programs when it's told to shut down. When the program doesn't respond to that command, for whatever reason, you get a message asking what to do. Most of the time, there's no problems.
 
Okay those are all good solutions. Maybe the inner geek in me just really wants a new case and I need something to justify to the wife? :D
 
bigddybn said:
Okay those are all good solutions. Maybe the inner geek in me just really wants a new case and I need something to justify to the wife? :D
Click to expand...

There you go! Hehe.. You could try the Antec Sonata or P180, IIRC they have doors hiding the buttons.
 
Load a spray bottle with tabasco sauce and use liberally, when required?

Oh, you said daughter, not cat...


(I stand by my advice)
 
And thats why they put locks in cases.

You can search cases at newegg. Here is what I did, Cases> Desktop ATX>> No PSU>> Black

I cant tell if this looks cheap, but its $50 after MIR

Wow you're right, its pretty hard to find a sub $100 case thats actually, nice. I mean the lian lis and silverstones are nice, but nothing with a door. I love my rocket fish and it would work out perfect for you, except its a huge case.

Maybe thats good, youll need a new desk and youll start watercooling!
 
My daughter also likes the power button on my Cooler Master 830.

More than once it suddenly powered down and I hear a small voice say "OFF OFF!"
 
Obedience. Solves all your problems.

Kids should not play with expensive electronics, you can't keep moving and disabling things simply so that the kid can continue playing with it. You should stop it. What's next, the kid keys your car and now you are looking for a garage to put it in so the kid doesn't continue to do that?

Okay, I'm a little harsh here, but I knew a lot better than not to play with my dads pride and joy when I was little.


My two cents.
 
Ockie said:
Obedience. Solves all your problems.

Kids should not play with expensive electronics, you can't keep moving and disabling things simply so that the kid can continue playing with it. You should stop it. What's next, the kid keys your car and now you are looking for a garage to put it in so the kid doesn't continue to do that?

Okay, I'm a little harsh here, but I knew a lot better than not to play with my dads pride and joy when I was little.


My two cents.
Click to expand...

Either you have no kids or you don't interact with them.
 
Apallohadas said:
Either you have no kids or you don't interact with them.
Click to expand...

I knew not to mess with my dad's important video recording equipment from the age of 2 onwards. It came from him explaining everything to me, and how important the things were to him. Hell, at age 3 I got pissed and beat the crap out of a neighbor kid for trying to go into his pseudo-editing room. :p.

But, I agree on the key switches.
 
the Antec P180 has a lock on it, and it sturdy as hell.
 
Arcygenical said:
I knew not to mess with my dad's important video recording equipment from the age of 2 onwards. It came from him explaining everything to me, and how important the things were to him. Hell, at age 3 I got pissed and beat the crap out of a neighbor kid for trying to go into his pseudo-editing room. :p.

But, I agree on the key switches.
Click to expand...

You my friend, were a genius.

My daughter is 2, can speak a few words of mandarin and much more of english, but I've tried to explain to her the concepts of quantum computing and the importance of my magic black box, but she doesn't get it.

She can however use her portable DVD player without assistance, so there's hope yet.
 
Ockie said:
Obedience. Solves all your problems.

Kids should not play with expensive electronics, you can't keep moving and disabling things simply so that the kid can continue playing with it. You should stop it. What's next, the kid keys your car and now you are looking for a garage to put it in so the kid doesn't continue to do that?

Okay, I'm a little harsh here, but I knew a lot better than not to play with my dads pride and joy when I was little.


My two cents.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the lecture. :rolleyes:

Come back when you actually have children. You'll find this thread helpful.
 
I think I am going to order that P182. The more I look at it the more I like the design.

Thanks for the suggestions! :cool:
 
They're probably out of Rocketfish cases.
Besides, Antec's customer service is top-notch. I'd say it's probably one of the best (even above EVGA, BFG, XFX, MSI, Cooler Master, etc)
 
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