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castiel
Last reply · posted in DISH Network Support Forum
I had a Dish DVR broke on me, and the company didn't take it so I am moving now and I found this old box. I opened it up and found that it had a Western Digital 500GB Hard Drive. Well since the box is broke I thought I take it out and use it. But it seems that it may be locked? I plugged it in to my computer and it doesn't show up in the BIOS nor in Hardware Manager in Windows.

Is there a way to unlock it? Because the box was completely working before it broke and in the accident the hard drive wasn't even touched.

So am I screwed to use it? Did Dish put a lock on the hard drive so I cant use it?

Thanks for the help.
28 Replies · 36491 views
Claude Greiner
I wouldn't trust that drive in my computer.

#1 Dish probably uses the cheapest drives they can get ahold of. More then likely you got are refurbished drive.

#2 As that DVR that the drive was taken from was under non stop use. Any DVR will just beat the crap out of the drive.

The point I'm making is that I wouldn't trust the drive, as its more likely to fail
KAB
KAB
The 722 replacements, 500GB, were just at or over $100.00, before Malaysia floods.
TG2
TG2
I wouldn't trust that drive in my computer.

#1 Dish probably uses the cheapest drives they can get ahold of. More then likely you got are refurbished drive.

#2 As that DVR that the drive was taken from was under non stop use. Any DVR will just beat the crap out of the drive.

The point I'm making is that I wouldn't trust the drive, as its more likely to fail
While I might agree the use of the drive to be less trustworthy .. I wouldn't agree with number 1.

You're making a unit.. that has to perform, as reliably as possible. Needs to withstand shocks & jolts from shipping (like UPS and FedEx would ever handle electronics with kid gloves) and that's nearly nothing compared with the thrashing of recording 2, 3 or 5 streams at once plus playback at the same time.. etc..

So I don't believe they are the cheapest .. inexpensive because of the bulk purchasing power Echostar has? maybe..


To our O.P.

As an experiment for playing with the drive and data.. sure.. go for it .. but as a thing of value? like any data that you'd put onto it and you wanted to keep safe.. make sure you have a backup (on DVD's or some such) as a safety.

... doesn't do anything ...
  • Can you hear it power up?
  • do you feel the vibrations as you apply power?
  • in the bios - you see the drive .. do the specs there match the label? (cylinders sectors heads, LBA)
  • what os?
  • fdisk?
  • format?
  • already into an external enclosure? have you tried directly connected (sata or ide, with hardwire, not via emulation through USB "anythings")

To the "U" of it all...

  • Built a pc before?
  • comfortable in your own computer case?
  • installed an OS from scratch?
  • any dabbling with Linux/*Nix?

Please keep in mind.. most of us don't have a clue about you, so we dont' know if those are childish assumptions (like ..."no duh I tried fdisk already from windows 7 but it doesn't see..." etc) or if you have never opened the case before and got the bug to play with this thing.. so .. seriously.. more detail than the usual "it don't work" would help us help you. <:mmph:/end very slight snarkishness flung OP's way>
TG2
TG2
The 722 replacements, 500GB, were just at or over $100.00, before Malaysia floods.
aside from that .. and the bulk purchasing power of a maker the size of Echostar and its subs .. that's why I can't get a grasp on why a company would so tie itself to drives of a certain size for so long..

I mean surely someone there at echostar would have said.. "Hey ... maybe we could switch to *these* newer drives, with larger sizes.. since the public is also buying them this big.. and get away from the proprietary-ness of code that only see's X gigs .." thus turning it from a hardware limitation of X gig's of storage.. into the more profitable "user wants more storage? user pays additional fee" ... meanwhile dish need only send command 'YY Sized Storage Enabled' to collect another dollar or two per month...

and of course the same could be said of Directv .. stupid were the thoughts "external drive? disable internal drive" lol.
Claude Greiner
You got to ask yourself what the average lifetime of a satellite subscriber is.

The average churn is 1.6% per month, or about 20% of their entire customer base per year. When you factor that in with customers who want to upgrade their equipment, Dish is potentially getting the receiver and its hard drive back in its possession ever few years.

I don't think there is any incentive for Cable or any satellite company to put a good hard drive inside their DVR Receivers. If the customer would stick around 10 years, I think we would be at the point right now where we would start seeing DVR's come with solid state drives.
navychop
SSDs have too limited R/W cycles to be practical for AV use, and would be an extra expense with no return.
TG2
TG2
... I don't think there is any incentive for Cable or any satellite company to put a good hard drive inside their DVR Receivers. If the customer would stick around 10 years, I think we would be at the point right now where we would start seeing DVR's come with solid state drives.
10 years? on an SSD? don't think so.. with the number of read/write cycles that the drives go through.. and the potential for the ssd to just "die" without warning .. as opposed to standard hard drives which can start logging bit errors, smart prediction errors, and just the sound (I've had one that you could clearly hear the drive was dying) you get to the point of.. which is better for the device maker as a whole...

could SSD be better in terms of multiple recordings, low latency, and simultaneous access over regular? sure.. but in a life time of 2, 3, or 5 years (on warranted SSD's) on a medium that is 8 to 10 times more expensive.. replace that 1TB hard drive every year and in 3 years.. its still not as expensive as 1 ssd of that size..

in Jan someone announced a 1tb drive that comes in at about 600 bucks.. still 1tb standard drives are at 69 bucks (regular you & me price) what's the price for the same to someone like Echostar or Motorola? and given that they could still pay 50 to 70 for a hard drive, that could still bring them in on budget with a better drive than the avg 60 dollars would get you or me.

couldn't see it much of any other way.. too cheap to use current well established technology ... even with a 5 to 1 failure rate.. still cheaper than 1 SSD.
TWiT Tech Podcast Network
· posted in TWiT Tech Podcast Network
0 Replies · 3 views
dishstaller
Pub Member / Supporter Lifetime Supporter
Last reply · posted in TV Shows
Don't know if any of you have watched this series yet, it would be interesting to see if you feel this review was accurate. It was very humorous to listen to however.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tsDO3y8I2c
2 Replies · 99 views
KAB
KAB
What a "pile of slop" review! I liked the show.
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Y
What a "pile of slop" review! I liked the show.
If the review is like the article, oi! Eighteen paragraphs into the review and... all they've done is not really talk at all about the actual thing they are reviewing.

Halfway into the "written" review, I know more about how the writer "thinks" than I do about what they are writing about. I understand their politics, their self-overestimated understanding of film, their inability to be funny.

Takes about 22 paragraphs to get to one that starts "Anyway, the story kicks off...". Talk about Slop! 😂
K
Pub Member / Supporter Lifetime Supporter
Last reply · posted in TV Shows
Season 2 order already in hand:

'Star Trek: Starfleet Academy' Renewed for Season 2, Tatiana Maslany to Guest Star in Season 1

I've not been optimistic about this show based on what I've read so far. Seems to be aimed at a younger audience. Interesting though that Tatiana Maslany will have some sort of role.
91 Replies · 3661 views
K
I'm sure I will watch at least the first episode but I am not optimistic.
Here i am over a year later and just finished season 1. Not great but not as bad as I was expecting. Did not care for the barefoot captain stuff but overall ok. Actually looking forward to see what they did for season 2.
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MikeD-C05
Here i am over a year later and just finished season 1. Not great but not as bad as I was expecting. Did not care for the barefoot captain stuff but overall ok. Actually looking forward to see what they did for season 2.
Yeah, the foot stuff was just nasty. I kept thinking of how dirty her feet would get traipsing around shoe-less. Funny, I love being shoe less at home and never wear shoes indoors in my home for long, but seeing her laying on all her furniture with her bare feet hanging out just kind of grossed me out.
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harshness
I kept thinking of how dirty her feet would get traipsing around shoe-less.
Where would this "dirt" come from? Dead skin and dandruff?
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MikeD-C05
Where would this "dirt" come from? Dead skin and dandruff?
There would still be dirt ,dust in the future I am sure. So walking around the station like she did she would get stuff on her feet. I am sure the robot vacuum is still going to miss stuff, with all those different alien species running around there.
harshness
There would still be dirt ,dust in the future I am sure.
Where is it going to come from -- specifically?

Why do you think cleaning technology won't improve in the next few hundred years? HEPA filtration was invented as part of the Manhattan Project.
MikeD-C05
Where is it going to come from -- specifically?

Why do you think cleaning technology won't improve in the next few hundred years? HEPA filtration was invented as part of the Manhattan Project.
I don't know, but I still don't like her walking through the station or the academy with out her shoes. It looks unprofessional and very "hippy like" for someone of her status and I personally don't get off to feet, so there is that. ;)
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osu1991
I don't know, but I still don't like her walking through the station or the academy with out her shoes. It looks unprofessional and very "hippy like" for someone of her status and I personally don't get off to feet, so there is that. ;)
Stay out of my office. I rarely have shoes or socks on in the office. My office and business is at home though :clapping
MikeD-C05
Stay out of my office. I rarely have shoes or socks on in the office. My office and business is at home though :clapping
Say, I don't wear socks or shoes in my house either. But for a captain in Star Fleet it looks bad to be walking around the academy with no shoes. Gives off 1960 Hippie vibes.
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Jimbo
Gives off 1960 Hippie vibes.
You say that like it's a Bad thing or something ... :biggrin
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long_time_Dish
Well, look at the way she sat in the Captain's Chair. I didn't say the show should have been called "Captain Chair-Whore" for nothing...
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primestar31
Say, I don't wear socks or shoes in my house either. But for a captain in Star Fleet it looks bad to be walking around the academy with no shoes. Gives off 1960 Hippie vibes.
star trek GIF by HULU


Just sayin...
MikeD-C05
You say that like it's a Bad thing or something ... :biggrin
For a whole generation of adults it was in the 1960s and 1970s.

All In The Family Nostalgia GIF by Sony Pictures Television
All In The Family Singing GIF by Sony Pictures Television
harshness
Females wearing any clothing is unthinkable on Ferenginar.
long_time_Dish
Females wearing any clothing is unthinkable on Ferenginar.
Was never a huge of the Ferengi-centric episodes in Trek...
Scott Greczkowski
Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU! Cutting Edge
Last reply · posted in The Chit Chat Club
Sometimes a thread gets so many posts in it that is can cause issues for the server so that why today we introduce The Song Name Game Part 3!

So let the game continue!

The last song was added by Bobby who posted...

One Meat Ball - Andrews Sisters

CONTINUE ON AND HAVE FUN! WELCOME HOME TO SATELLITEGUYS.US!

Here are the original rules for the game as posted by WebbyDude back in 2006. http://www.satelliteguys.us/threads/68645-Song-Name-Game

Just name a song title and the band who performed it. The next person does the same thing, but needs to list a song title or band name which includes a word from the previous entry. Pick songs from any genre.

Example:

Long Live Rock and Roll -- Rainbow

Rainbow in the Dark -- Dio

Another example:

Ride the Lightning -- Metallica

Lightning Strikes -- Ozzy Osbourne


Get it?


An additional note: we all know that song titles, sometimes, use profane words. Because this is a family friendly website it is advised that you clean up that title up a bit. This is accomplished by using something like sh!t instead of the real word. Thanks....
68605 Replies · 2677797 views
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sdfntx
Gondoliers, Shakespeares, Overseers, Playboys and Bums - Norman Greenbaum
Bobby
I Wish I Was Eighteen Again - George Burns
harshness
I Wish - Stevie Wonder
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EatMyVolts
Lonesome Road -- The Wonder Who?
long_time_Dish
Lonesome Loser - Little River Band
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dishstaller
Pub Member / Supporter Lifetime Supporter
Last reply · posted in The Chit Chat Club
Love this guy's channel. Looks like Walmart has thrown in the towel when it comes to conventional car batteries.

I bought a new AGM battery from Walmart about a year ago, it is already needing replacing. I thought about just buying a regular battery but from what I've read, that might not be a smart move. Might check my Forscan program and see if I can change the battery type from AGM.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awe7kY5nvdU
15 Replies · 128 views
harshness
When you need a battery, you need a battery.

If you can wait, new technologies are on the not-too-distant horizon.

You're probably doing something wrong if you're only getting a year out of an AGM battery. Heat and infrequent charging both significantly reduce lifetime.
Jimbo
The guy in the Video, REALLY needs to TAKE a Breath ...
If he'd Slow down, you could figure out What he's testing and on what. :(
harshness
If he'd Slow down, you could figure out What he's testing and on what.
You can't view his videos passively.

I appreciate this approach to videos that take an hour to deliver a fraction of the same data.

Now, if YouTube were required to flag the AI "reviews", that would really be something.
dishstaller
You're probably doing something wrong if you're only getting a year out of an AGM battery. Heat and infrequent charging both significantly reduce lifetime.
Huh? How can I be doing something wrong.....I took out the original battery, that was 6 yrs old and put in a new one.....kinda hard to screw that up. I figure it was just a bad battery....it happens.


The biggest takeaway I got from this video was the Walmart batteries only had something like 85% of battery life left even though they were brand NEW. The ones from O'Reilly all tested 100% of life left.
Jimbo
Huh? How can I be doing something wrong.....I took out the original battery, that was 6 yrs old and put in a new one.....kinda hard to screw that up. I figure it was just a bad battery....it happens.


The biggest takeaway I got from this video was the Walmart batteries only had something like 85% of battery life left even though they were brand NEW. The ones from O'Reilly all tested 100% of life left.
And the Walmart ones mostly had very little warranty.

My last AGM (using now) I got from O Rielly's, its the Super Start ... I got the Platnium, they had several to choose from.
TRG
TRG
Huh? How can I be doing something wrong.....I took out the original battery, that was 6 yrs old and put in a new one.....kinda hard to screw that up. I figure it was just a bad battery....it happens.


The biggest takeaway I got from this video was the Walmart batteries only had something like 85% of battery life left even though they were brand NEW. The ones from O'Reilly all tested 100% of life left.
I've been buying my batteries from AutoZone. I avoid Walmart whenever possible.
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dishstaller
I appreciate this approach to videos that take an hour to deliver a fraction of the same data.
That's the way I feel about it.
I hate those videos where they show themselves slowly opening up the box and unwrapping it.
His videos are probably the fastest pace test videos on Youtube.
T
He sounds like he's trying to sell me a pocket hose.

I just had to replace a car battery this week and thought I'd look into LiFePo4. Amazon has plenty of them, but all have top posts and only one 'also' has side connections (Group 75).Then I read that they're really lousy in the cold. So, an AGM, but again, almost nothing with side terminals instead of top. In researching that, I read that most mfrs in recent years have dropped side terminals and gone back to the old top posts, which is surprising to me since those are more corrosion-prone, cause the battery to need more space and are generally more hazardous. Finally I just threw up my hands and bought a regular lead-acid at Sam's Club. They had a Group 75 "Duracell" with side terminals only. It was virtually the only such battery with side posts on their shelves
arlo
Had a Die Hard in my folks cellar for over 6 years. Pulled it out, slapped it on a charger for a day. Put it in my 'Cuda and drove it around for a week of my vacation. Next year, the same. But my dad kept it topped off for me.It was a mid 80's battery in early 1990.

Flooded acid batteries like a float voltage of around 13.5-13.8 voltage.
AGM needs a float of 14.2 volts. So if you slap an AGM in where a flooded was. It never gets a full charge.
"Why do they die so fast?" Question answered. There are folks who sell voltage regulators for alternators that are designed to boost float voltage for AGM batteries.
The other way around? Flooded will gas-off a little at 14.2 volts. But seems to tolerate it pretty good.

Lithium car/bike/atv batteries. After 3 batteries in my Harley. The OEM flooded and two AGM's (before the 14.2 volt float requirement to let them live was learned). I bought a lithium for it. 4 year, no gripe warranty after having it tested by an approved store.
The thing started like Thor himself sent a bolt from the sky. Except......try to start it around freezing? Nope. Needed a heating pad.
And I usually like to park it around events in the evening with the parking light on. Looks cool like that.
We could traipse around for a few hours no worries. Hop on, fire it up, and go putt around.
Lithium? A Dakota Lithium at least. The BMS shuts it right down if it discharges below <something>.
Come back. Parking lights off. Won't start. And you know the rest. But it lasted 6 years. A lot better than 'new every two'. And the fact that powersports batteries are warranted for six, maybe nine months. Ludicrous.

I called Noco. Asked all of the right questions. Great warranty. Save some bucks ordering directly, faster service that the wally world alternative.
They addressed (or claimed over the phone) that the shut down was addressed. Sure. The BMS keeps it form being damaged. But if it is shut down because it does become low. Shut down any load (key on, parking or headlights left on) for 10-15 minutes and you get a second try to start your rig. Not a bad thing if it really works. Right?!

Exide, Interstate? Be very afraid. They ain't what they used to be. In Florida my '70 Cutlass had an Interstate (early 90') that lasted 6 years until it dropped its plates at an intersection and boiled over. In Florida, mind you. The last Interstate.....done in 2. Guys down there would suck out the acid and put water in shortly before the warranty ran out. Make it to the auto parts, get them tested. And get a new one pro rated. No more pro rating.
You can't beat an Odyssey. Napa, AC Deco (the better ones). Yup.
The mom and pop Car Quest only sells Die Hard. For a reason, the old man says. So they convinced that a Die HArd Platinum was the hot ticket for me. l will see. Stand by!

You can't cut Mr. Project Farm down. He does great tests of all sorts of things. Not sponsored and pressured to slap a little sugar on his comparisons and reviews. Compared to the Brits and Aussies with their constant overzealous and same sounding (Dave from EEVblog) rant. I like P-Farm a lot. Of course I like AvE (Boltr) too.
Reminds me to beware when wearing shorts around the garage vice.


Opinions may vary.
TRG
TRG
Pub Member / Supporter
· posted in The Chit Chat Club
I collect and play vinyl records regularly. A friend of mine told me about a record stash located inside an antique mall. So naturally I had to go go check it out.

records.webp
0 Replies · 23 views
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Van
Van
Last reply · posted in What's Cooking?
Who says dinner or lunch has to be the only good meals of the day?

Honey butter grits with scrambled eggs and grilled boneless pork ribs on flakey biscuits washed down with cranberry juice.
6632 Replies · 379975 views
dfergie
Speaking of waffles, I'm going to put my mini waffle iron on stove so I'll remember to make waffles in the morning... Had some last week, been awhile.
dfergie
Dos cackleberrys over easy on top of 2 corned beef hash patties fried in skillet... Chocolate milk.
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TRG
TRG
Cold morning today, only 32 degrees. Fired up the oven and made cinnamon rolls (from a tube) and a pot of coffee.
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TRG
TRG
2 egg burrito with bacon and a side of hashbrowns. Coffee.

1645.webp
TRG
TRG
Breakfast Quesadillas. Grilled flour tortilla filled with scrambled eggs, hash browns, chopped green chile, cheddar & Jack cheese and bacon. Coffee.

q.webp