Reader WoWspace of the Week
by Paul Sherrard 
Jan 22nd 2007 at 9:09PM
Welcome to the first Reader WoWspace of the Week. What's a WoWspace, you ask? It's that area of your living space that you dedicate to the playing of World of Warcraft. For some of us it's an entire room, for others a small stack of milk crates with a laptop perched on top. We want to see your WoWspaces, and share them here with the world.
In the whole spirit of "I'll show you mine if you show me yours", we'll start with my own WoWspace, which is actually due for an upgrade in a couple of weeks. When sending yours in to readerwowspace at gmail dot com, just emulate the format I've got here - a rundown of the machine(s) you play on, why you have the chair/desk/lamp/other adornment that you do, what you like about your space, and what you'd improve.
The Fortress of Nerditude: 9 foot by 9 foot office, with a window and 2 closets for storing non-WoW junk in.
Desk: Currently a $99 glass-top desk I picked up at Office Depot a couple of years ago. Fantastic desk, but the rollers on the keyboard tray are flakey.
Chair: The most comfortable office chair ever. I picked it up at Costco for more than I should've spent on a chair, but it was worth it. It's the throne from which I own. (I can hear your boos and hisses, you know)
Computers: On the left is a Core 2 Duo 1.83GHz machine, 2gb Ram, 160 GB SATA2 HD, ATI AIW x1900 256mb with a 20" Metro monitor at 1680x1050. On the right is a iMac G5 2 Ghz, 2gb RAM, 250 GB SATA HD, ATI 9600 Pro. Though the Mac is raid-ready, the PC really is my main WoW machine. All settings are cranked to Max, and I get no slow-down. I've connected the two machines by Synergy KM, so I only need one keyboard and mouse to run the whole show. I run WoW in a maximized window, so I can surf the net and write for WoW Insider on the other machine.
What I like: Giant WoW Mousepad!! Okay, it's a Trading Card Game playing mat, but to me it's a giant mousepad. I love the widescreen setup - I know a 20" isn't any taller than a 17" flat-panel, but the extra width really helps in the UI setup department. I also love my chair. Seriously, I love it.
What could be improved: Need a non-$10 warped keyboard, and the mouse is getting a bit old. The desk is actually a bit small for me to have both machines going and keep notes and snacks on the go. The desk is due to be replaced by a gargantuan L-sectional in a couple of weeks.
So that's it. That's my WoWspace. It's like Cribs for Nerds in here! So, show off your own WoWspace by sending in a photo (or 2 or 3) of your gaming space, a description of your rig and anything else important in the area, and what you like and want to improve. The email you want to submit that to is readerwowspace at gmail dot com.
Filed under: Virtual selves, Odds and ends, Features, Reader WoWspace of the week
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Chris M Jan 22nd 2007 9:55PM
Great idea Paul. I'll be sending mine in as soon as I, err.. tidy up a bit. Or, rather, a lot.
Chris
Brudus Jan 22nd 2007 10:01PM
Hmmm...two WoW accounts, a Zboard. Things arn't looking good for you. You could have almost pulled it out and then I saw the PSP, sorry you loose.
Gazza Jan 22nd 2007 10:42PM
I have one of those chairs, I got it for free when a part of our site was being cleaned out for demolition. Though the chair I use I find to be a lot more comfortable even though its older then me.
Take it from me, you will love the extra space with a larger desk!
paul Jan 22nd 2007 11:05PM
i might have to take a shot of the wow room.
Kludama Jan 22nd 2007 11:20PM
Is that a logitech PS2 keyboard i see? Say it aint so! I had one of those for the longest time. Very durable but i have finally upgraded and got the G15. I must say i love the extra buttons and back lit keys :D Nice set up though
Monigote Jan 23rd 2007 12:03AM
Damn, that looks nice!
And I look around to my laptop where I have to twist the power cord to get it to stay on and I can barely run winamp in the background... Yet? Some owning occurs from this derelict you say?
PS: I hate city lag, my internet is usually 30ms, so yeah, I need a RAM upgrade lol...
Phil King Jan 23rd 2007 12:22AM
My favorite thing about my own room is the two monitors. It's absolutely great. I wish my computer could run two versions of WoW at once though. As for pictures, I have quite a bit of cleaning to do as well.
I could also use a much larger desk. One of my monitors is old and the size of a baby elephant, taking up 1/3 of my desk. =/
Kerni Jan 23rd 2007 9:02PM
Get a Razer Copperhead mouse. They're incredible.
Stanislaw Jan 23rd 2007 12:30PM
What exactly is the purpose of 2 screens? (I mean that seriously - I can barely keep up with all the crap on one)
Thanks
Paul Sherrard Jan 23rd 2007 9:18AM
Kludama - Yep, that's a Logitech PS2 keyboard, which is all warped from being left in a warm closet for too long. It just has good tactile response, and it still works, so why change it :)
Brudus - Only 1 WoW account, I merely loaded WoW on my Mac to cover my USS Enterprise desktop image. How do I lose though? Did I "loose the internets?"
Stanislaw - I love having 2 computers, so I can play WoW on 1 (the PC) and surf/chat on the other. With the 1 keyboard and mouse setup, it's pretty darn easy.
Layn Jan 23rd 2007 9:51AM
@8 - Two monitors is so 1999. Triple Head Gaming is where it's at: http://www.matrox.com/graphics/en/gxm/products/th2go/gaming/wow.php
Coanunn Jan 23rd 2007 9:48AM
Paul -
1) Where did you get the TCG mat, that would be a nice addition to my WoW Space but I haven't gotten one with any of the TCG stuff I've found.
2) Do I see a z-board game pad on the left? BOO HISS, upgrade to the Nostromo man, it's SO much more comfortable for the long raids.
3) Nice Dual setup but I have to assume that since we are talking PC and Mac that you can't simply move the mouse from WoW, out the side of the screen into the Mac box. How hard is it to swap back and forth between the two to surf/look up quest/etc? Doesn't that hamper downloading a new mod on the fly a bit since the surf box isn't the main game box?
Prauche Jan 23rd 2007 9:56AM
@10 I'll be picking up little pieces of my mind from all over my desk for the rest of the day.
I could NEVER....EVER....
Sensory overload.
Ado Jan 23rd 2007 10:02AM
@9 http://synergy2.sourceforge.net/
He plays in windowed mode so there's no "swapping" of anything really, just move the mouse to the other machine. Synergy rocks :)
Layn Jan 23rd 2007 10:09AM
@11 - You KNOW you want to ;)
TripleHead is definitely my next upgrade. 3 x VX922 LCD's + the TripleHead is going to set me back a little over $1k. Pennies are being saved as we speak :P
Andy Jan 23rd 2007 10:34AM
Winamp lol.
Strongmark on Arthas Jan 23rd 2007 11:13AM
I see a ds there too! As Borat would say, " A very nice! "
Thijz Jan 23rd 2007 11:29AM
Nice, but in the end nothing more then a dude with too much money...
Paul Sherrard Jan 23rd 2007 12:18PM
Coanunn -
1. Got the TCG mat for $25 from a local gaming shop. Check your nerd haven for one :)
2. I have a Nostromo N50 and an N52 (they're in that closet on the left). The Zboard Fang is for Battlefield 2142. I've tried a Zboard Keyboard, the Fang, the N50, and the N52 with WoW, and cannot overcome just using the normal keyboard and mouse. What can I say, I'm old school.
3. Ado nailed it. Using Synergy, I can move the mouse over to the Mac, and the keyboard works there. It's awesome for checking locations, quests, gear on Thott/Alla/Wowhead, and for MSN'ing while gaming. I can also play iTunes and a DVD on the Mac while WoWing on the other screen, which runs 1680x1050 max-windowed mode.
Other stuff in the picture:
DS Lite with New Super Mario - LOVE IT
PSP - bought this just to hack it, but it has the newest firmware, so I wait.
Logitech USB Headset - love this headset for raiding. Beats my old headset by a mile.
Firefly Remote - I have BeyondTV on the PC. I can record How I Met Your Mother while playing WoW with no slowdowns.
WoW TCG box on the right - got this for free when I got my CE.
Kevin Jan 23rd 2007 2:29PM
I have that exact chair from CostCo and agree that it is incredibly comfortable! Except when the pin controlling the pitch comes loose as I lean back and I get that .5 second free-fall panic. ;)