[CUBE] iDVD w/ External DVD-RW Drive?

[David Evan Isom]

Yes, it absolutely is a matter of personal taste, and I certainly don't 
begrudge your choice. I was simply pointing out that, while it is an 
effective solution for you, I don't think it's something that will 
appeal to a great number of people.

By "defeat[ing] the whole point of the Cube," I meant that stringing an 
internal mechanism via IDE cable violates the elegance and compactness 
of the Cube, which were two of the Cube's big selling points—although 
admittedly, an external Firewire drive has a similar impact on the 
compactness score. And I don't think many would be comfortable running 
the Cube outside of its enclosure for an extended period of time. But 
it works for you, and that's really all that matters.

On Friday, Jan 31, 2003, at 20:09 US/Pacific, Thubten Kunga wrote:

> I couldn't disagree more, David. What you suggest involves giving up 
> the silence of the Cube. My Cube is on the floor out of sight and 
> silent. It doesn't matter if it's out of its core. And it is dead 
> silent. I am certainly not going to give up my silent Cube for a noisy 
> PowerMac. I have one of those already and the fan sound (even my quiet 
> one) is a nuisance.
>
> Option 1 you list costs $500.
> Option 2 you list costs $300 and won't work.
> Option 3 which I explain below costs $200 and three short two by fours.
>
> If it's all about what your Cube looks like you are right and you will 
> pay more to get that solution soon. If you want to run iDVD 3 
> tomorrow, Option 3 is available immediately and the least expensive 
> and immediate solution. How does Option 3 "defeat the purpose of the 
> Cube"? The Cube remains silent and cool. You have the added benefit of 
> the DVR-105 and iDVD 3. I don't see the downside excepting the 
> appearance which I consider to be irrelevant. It's a matter of 
> personal taste.
>
> k
>
> On Friday, January 31, 2003, at 07:55  PM, David Evan Isom wrote:
>
>> There's obviously lots of interest about how to use a DVD burner with 
>> a Cube. I think that that interest falls mostly into one of two 
>> categories:
>>
>> Option 1. Those who would like to put a slot-loading SuperDrive (such 
>> as the one in the PowerBooks) in a Cube
>>
>> Option 2. Those who are interested in using a Firewire DVD burner but 
>> would like to use iDVD, due to its simplicity and far lower price 
>> than DVD Studio Pro
>>
>> Unfortunately, neither of these options are possible right now.
>>
>> Frankly, I don't think there is much interest in running a Cube out 
>> of its core with an internal DVD burner mechanism attached, as this 
>> sort of defeats the whole point of a Cube. It seems to me that it 
>> would make more sense to replace the Cube and buy a similarly-powered 
>> Power Mac G4 and replace its optical drive with a Pioneer DVR-A05 
>> mechanism than to run it out of its core with an internal mechanism 
>> attached via ribbon cable.
>>
>> On Friday, Jan 31, 2003, at 18:15 US/Pacific, Thubten Kunga wrote:
>>
>>> You are not "we". And everybody doesn't know "it" or some wouldn't 
>>> keep asking "how?"
>>>
>>> It is a proven way to do it. What are you talking about Boris?
>>>
>>> k
>>>
>>>>> Kunga wrote:
>>>
>>>>> ONE MORE TIME, Here's the HOW to make a DVR-105 work with a Cube 
>>>>> and
>>>>> iDVD 3:
>>>
>>> 1. Pull the core.
>>> 2. Build a small 3 sided square of 2x4s just smaller than the core 
>>> so it can sit on top of it with the cable side open.
>>> 3. Disconnect the optical power and IDE connectors from the internal 
>>> optical drive.
>>> 4. You will see they are long enough to reach outside the Core and 
>>> plug into the raw 105.
>>> 5. Reattach everything else and power up.
>>> 6. Forget about how it looks.
>>> 7. Leave it on the floor where it belongs in the first place. IMHO
>>>
>>> Do that and you're iLife iDVD 3 compliant.