Displays part II:

   
    LCDcenter also reads from MBM, Winamp, and is pretty configurable too. LCDcenter is however limited to 8 different screens, per profile, and LCDSmartie runs 20 different ones. (screens) Personally, I would think eight is enough for most. (Of course no relation to that stupid show.) But hey, to each is own. Below are 3 display screens from LCDcenter...

(23) Network Traffic	(24) Memory	(25) Reading from MBM - Which I don't have installed

Software Part II:

    Not mentioned any where in the SilverStone docs is the best part I think of this VFD display, the Spectrum analyzer with Winamp. That is called lcdplugin_bin_0.6.4a. You can find it among the plugins for Winamp at their homepage too, but the link in the previous sentence brings that plugin right up. I did however personally, have major problems getting it to work. I know it was on my end unfortunately, since all other software worked flawlessly on the VFD. Luckily enough, most of us in this sort of business, are happy to help the community, and fellow reviewers. Silenze from OCIA sent me his .ini file, which goes into your Winamp plugin directory along with the lcdplugin. I'm making it available for you here, since I pulled my hair out, and could not get it to work without that .ini file. It was just some setting that I had messed up, but still to this day, I have no idea what it was...Thanks again silenze! I won't take any pictures of that in action fearing that it'll be a blurred mess, which it will, but I'll definitely put that in the movie below! :)


The moving picture show:

    One of the things I really enjoy doing is compiling a movie to better show a product in action. This of course being no exception, and I've never actually received a complaint about one of my movies sucking. With that being said, I'm sure my inbox will be full of flames on this review launch. Hehe. Anyway, technical specs of the movie are: Compiled with Windows Media Player 9 codecs, zipped, to relieve some strain off the web server trying to stream it. It is 1.5 megs large, and 1:20 long. And since my views on things are slightly skewed, so is the movie. Ok, ok, my tripod was a bit off. Sorry...I also had trouble focusing, but well, you'll get the idea I'm sure.

The flick! (Zipped!)

Summary:

    I know some of you maybe thinking that this VFD is just plain out of date, because of it's legacy use of the printer port. I could agree in some sort of fashion. But as I briefly touched on before, not many people are using their printer port anymore. Printers are USB now. What better way to use that port now than with a VFD. Maybe this could be modded, or SilverStone will update this with a USB cable in the future. I'm not big on wiring schemes, or even researching that sort of thing, but maybe it is possible? I certainly do hope they come out with larger VFD's, and a USB version in the future. How cool is a 4 line VFD? It's cooler than sliced bread really... :)

    Although no software is included in the packaging, it is readily available enough on the net. I'm sure there are/were legality issues to include that sort of thing at the time of manufacturing. But since there is already a large base of older VFD's, and LCD's on the market, and LCD Smartie being Open Source now, the program will continue to get better. Although this unit, and actually all displays of this nature could be considered expensive to the casual enthusiast, a VFD like this can really put the finishing touches on your box if you have a great mod, or you are an enthusiast.

    I do have mixed feelings about software not being included with this VFD. I know R&D, a programmer or two would cost lots of money. I'm sure SilverStone took that into consideration as well, and used freely available software to run thier VFD. Even though companies like CrystalFontz, Matrix Orbital, and LIS do have better, included software, if you will, with their units, you can't blame SilverStone for trying to get into the VFD market. This is still a good buy I feel though overall.



Pros:

   • Uses freely available software or Open Source Software.
   • Pretty easy to setup. Just follow the simple printed instructions.
   • Beveled edges make this unit stand out.
   • Brushed aluminum construction.
   • Silver or Black available.
   • Very bright white display readable from all angles.
   • What to display is only up to your imagination.


Cons:

   • No included software. See above.
   • Uses parallel port. If you don't have one, this won't work of course.
   • No USB support.
   • Somewhat expensive as other units from other companies are a bit more, but include more. (Software)
   • Maybe hard to find to purchase.
 

"SilverStone has made an appealing VFD for the enthusiast here."

Closing:

    I'd like to thank SilverStonetek for sponsoring this unit for review. SilverStonetek does make lots of other products, and maybe something else is up your alley if this isn't. If aluminum is up your alley, SilverStone specializes in that. So to close this out, thanks for coming by! I hope you enjoyed my write-up, and until next time...



 

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