Our guest for this chat of Dec. 9, 2001, was Dr. Webster of Dr. Webster's Guide to the MacQuarium.
| Owad: | Ok folks, we're going to get started. Here's Dr. Webster of MacQuarium fame! :) |
| drwebster: | Hello all. First, some background. |
| drwebster: | I came up with the Guide to the MacQuarium about two years ago. |
| drwebster: | Of course, MacQuariums have been around since the late eighties. |
| drwebster: | Some say that Andy Ihnatko of Macworld Magazine came up with the idea, but that's not true. |
| drwebster: | Regardless, the MacQuarium has come a long way, and I'm glad to be helping people figure it out, 'cause frankly, they're hard to build. |
| drwebster: | Keep in mind that after I see a question I want to answer, the room will go back to moderator-only, just to keep random chat down. |
| drwebster: | So on with the questions! |
| SMYKES24: | When did you make your first MacQuarium? How old were you? |
| Monic: | Do you plan on coming up with the plans for the iMacquarium? |
| drwebster: | Good question. My first MacQuarium was made two years ago, right before I developed the original Guide site. I used Ihnatko's plans; I hadn't developed my own by then. And let's just say that I was old enough. |
| JohnnyBoy: | i have found a good way to light mine...any suggestions? |
| drwebster: | Many people over the years have come up with creative ideas for lighting their tanks. |
| drwebster: | Originally, people would just stick a tank light on top of the access hole in the case. |
| drwebster: | When I developed my version, I realized that rope lighting would work better. |
| drwebster: | If you check the MacQuarium site on AF there's a guide as to how to do this. |
| blue7500: | What kind of sealant did you use for the glass of the tank? |
| Monic: | Do you plan on making on plans for the iMacquarium?? |
| drwebster: | A couple of good questions. |
| drwebster: | I use aquarium sealant on the glass; it's the only kind that won't kill fish. |
| drwebster: | You won't find it in hardware stores--look for it in a pet store. |
| drwebster: | It may be labeled "aquarium repair sealant." |
| drwebster: | Usually, a tube big eough to do two tanks would cost US$5. |
| drwebster: | It needs to specifically say on the package that it's for aquarium use--any other type of silicone-based sealant can and will kill fish. |
| drwebster: | Regarding the iMacQuarium, I don't have any forseeable plans to make or document how to make one. I have only one iMac and currently it's working fine; in fact, it's my primary machine (I'm using it now). Further, I have found iMac shells to be rather spendy, so I've decided to stick to the "classic" MacQuarium style. |
| JohnnyBoy: | i haven't been able to find the rope lighting tho... |
| LairdKnox: | Have you had any trouble keeping the tank clean? I have an underground filter ready for mine, will this be enough? |
| drwebster: | The rope lighting can be found in the lighting section of a store like The Home Depot or Lowe's. If you live in MN or WI check Menard's too. |
| drwebster: | During back-to-school, I also found rope lighting at Target stores too. |
| drwebster: | Usually you can cut the rope light to length; no more than two feet of it is necessary. |
| drwebster: | But keep in mind that there are certain "cut-points" on the rope where you can only cut it. Cutting it anywhere else will ruin it and blow the circuit breaker (I found out the hard way). |
| drwebster: | Re: keeping the tank clean, |
| drwebster: | I just clean it twice a month. |
| drwebster: | Take the fish out, and put them in a Ziploc bag. |
| drwebster: | There should be enough oxygen in the water to keep them breathing for at least an hour, so don't worry. |
| drwebster: | Then take all your toys out of the tank, and put the gravel in a 5-gallon bucket. |
| drwebster: | Alternately, you can get a gravel siphon, which allows you to clean the gravel while it's in the tank. |
| drwebster: | Use a sponge or scrubby pad (but one without soap in it) to clean the glass, then fill the tank with fresh water. |
| drwebster: | Then add your chemicals. |
| drwebster: | Wash off your gravel thoroughly, getting all the fish goo and algae off of it. |
| drwebster: | Once the tank is full and ready to go, do this: |
| drwebster: | Float the fish, still in their Ziploc bag, in the top of the tank. |
| drwebster: | This allows the water temperatures to even themselves out slowly. |
| drwebster: | Major temperature shocks to fish can kill them, so by slowly changing the water temp it keeps them much happier. |
| drwebster: | After about half an hour you can let the fish out of the bag, and then you're done! |
| Conradg4: | what do you plan with the new lcd screens for macQuariums? ;) |
| DoctorMem1: | What type of fish do you think best suited for Macquariums? I just have Woz, a plain goldfish. I want to elaborate with fish in my 2nd one. |
| LairdKnox: | You can probably find rope light easier at this time of year. It seems to be picking up as a holiday decoration. |
| Cruller: | I want to build one from an old 14" PC VGA monitor. any advice? |
| LairdKnox: | What type of fish would you recommend for a warm tank? |
| drwebster: | If you check the Construction page, there are a few good suggestions for fish. |
| drwebster: | But by far, I've found that plain old goldfish do rather well. |
| drwebster: | For a more exotic flair, Bettas (also known as siamese fighting fish) do really well too. |
| drwebster: | They're also very hardy; they last a long time. |
| drwebster: | My last MacQuarium had a Betta in it named Sushi. He was cool. |
| Owad: | Will the Siamese Fighting fish fight? |
| LairdKnox: | I'm afraid of the temperature of my tank since it has the PowerBook in it. Do you think goldfish or Beta are good in warmer water? |
| drwebster: | Good point, Tom. You can only have one Betta per tank, otherwise one will literally kill the other. Also, it's a good idea to not have any other fish in the tank with a Betta; Sushi ate three goldfish once. |
| drwebster: | Tropical fish would obviously fare better in warm water. |
| drwebster: | But it really depends on how warm the water will get. |
| LairdKnox: | I'll have to run some tests... |
| B_Stealth: | Do you think the G4 Cube MacQuarium will work? |
| Owad: | If Dr. Webster missed your question, feel free to ask again. |
| Monic: | Ever use a small frog in a macquarium? |
| drwebster: | I think the G4 CubeQuarium is a great idea. |
| drwebster: | If someone could somehow seal off the bottom of the case, it would work great. |
| drwebster: | I've been watching the Forum thread on the G4 CubeQuarium. |
| drwebster: | Lots of good ideas there. |
| B_Stealth: | What influenced your decision to use rope lighting? |
| drwebster: | Basically, I couldn't find a small light to fit on top of the tank that wouldn't fall in. Rope lighting is cheap, waterproof, and flexible, so there are many options for it. |
| drwebster: | Plus, it comes in a bunch of nifty colors. |
| Monic: | Ever used any creatures besides fish? |
| Conradg4: | What do you think about turtles in macquariums? I own a turtle and he is in a 35 gallon tank |
| LairdKnox: | Any hints on making the air pump quieter? |
| g3head: | You said Andy Ihnatko didn't make the first macquariums. Do you know who did? |
| drwebster: | Regarding a MacTerrarium, that idea's been around for a while. I personally have never tried it but it would make a good alterantive for fish. |
| drwebster: | By stashing the air pump under the base of the tank inside the case, it becomes less noticeable and quieter. Also try lining the area it sits in with felt. |
| drwebster: | I honestly don't know who created the first MacQuarium. I'm assuming probably some MUG or other creative soul. |
| Conradg4: | how many fish are in the usual macquarium of yours? |
| drwebster: | At most, you can fit three fish comfortably in a tank. It's only two gallons---you can't put too many fish in there. |
| B_Stealth: | Is there any particular Mac were you just wouldn't be able to bring yourself about to making into a MacQuarium? |
| drwebster: | Yeah, a Color Classic. It took me long enough to find one, I can't bear to get rid of it. |
| drwebster: | Besides, they're tough to gut for a MacQuarium. |
| Owad: | Anybody turning a Lisa into an aquarium will meet my wrath. :) |
| Conradg4: | do you know anywhere where i could find mac shells to make macquariums? |
| DoctorMem1: | Know of any Color Classics or AIO PowerMacs made into macquariums? Any Pics? |
| LairdKnox: | LOL! An LC would be a bit pointless. |
| g3head: | Any suggesions for spin offs of the macquarium? |
| drwebster: | There's a guy out there that makes MacQuariums out of all kinds of things; I'll post the URL on the site. |
| drwebster: | There was also a guy who made a CC MacQuarium; ditto with the URL. |
| drwebster: | If you're looking for MQ shells, try Shreve Systems or Midwest Mac; both have more classic Macs than they need. |
| Monic: | Do you cut your own glass? If not, how much does it cost? |
| B_Stealth: | Given free choice, which Mac would you really love to turn into a MacQuarium? |
| drwebster: | No, I don't cut my own glass; I just take the PDF diagram of the tank to a hardware store. |
| drwebster: | It usually costs $10 for the glass; |
| drwebster: | they charge you for 8x10 panes. |
| drwebster: | And I think a CC MacQuarium would be fun to do if I weren't so sentimental about them. |
| LairdKnox: | I think my glass cost less than $20 -- a local company cut the glass and sanded the edges. |
| JohnnyBoy: | my glass and cutting cost $4.50...but they cut the glass wrong! |
| Cruller: | Another bad mac to use would be the special edition forest green CC |
| drwebster: | Laird made a good point. As it sez on the site, have the company grind the edges off the glass. |
| drwebster: | It makes assembly and cleaning much easier and safer. |
| Conradg4: | how many macquariums do you think there are out there on a rough estimate? |
| drwebster: | Rough estimate, maybe a couple thousand. They're not common but they're not rare either. |
| Monic: | What about routing the edge? So that the glass pieces fit into each other? |
| JohnnyBoy: | what is CC? |
| drwebster: | CC is the Color Classic. |
| drwebster: | And grinding the edges simply makes the panes safer to handle. |
| drwebster: | It has no effect on the fit of the tank. |
| drwebster: | In fact, the last tank I built had sharp edges and it fit just fine. |
| drwebster: | (But I lost some blood building it.) |
| B_Stealth: | How do you ensure that your MacQuariums don't burst apart due to the water pressure acting on them? |
| g3head: | Could you use plastics insted of glass? |
| drwebster: | The sealant is quite strong, and since it's glass, it's pretty sturdy. |
| drwebster: | I've never seen one burst, only leak a little. |
| drwebster: | Plexiglass is an option, but it flexes too much for me; I'm worried it might not fit correctly. |
| drwebster: | So real glass, 1/8" (single-strength) works best. |
| Conradg4: | how many macquariums have you made? |
| drwebster: | Myself, I've made about half a dozen. |
| Monic: | No, routing meaning making a "groove" which a piece, properly made, could fit into said groove. Im not sure of the plausibility with glass... |
| JohnnyBoy: | i had a nasty leak on mine....*cough*cause i didn't check it first*cough* |
| drwebster: | Routing a groove is a bad idea, and besides, you couldn't do that with glass anyway. |
| drwebster: | The diagram for assembling the tank is pretty straightforward and yields the strongest tank possible. |
| B_Stealth: | Do you think it would be feasible to silicon seal all the apertures on something like an SE/30, put a glass plate in the monitor hole, and just fill it with water? *** LairdKnox has left channel #Applefritter |
| drwebster: | I've heard of people trying this, and it's definitely possible, but to me it's too much work. |
| DoctorMem1: | You said on your site that a good 'quarium can be sold for approx. $150 or so. This includes filter, fish, and all of the "necessities"? |
| drwebster: | That's from a place like MacAquarium.com. It only costs $30 to $50 to build and outfit one yourself. |
| JohnnyBoy: | made mine for under 15 buck - the cost of fish |
| Conradg4: | what do you suggest for glass? |
| LairdKnox: | Blackstealth: How would you clean it or service the filter? |
| drwebster: | As I said before, 1/8" or single-strength glass works fine. |
| drwebster: | You can use 1/4" (double strength) but the glass dimensions will be off. |
| Conradg4: | where do you put food in, is there a door on top? |
| drwebster: | You, simply enough, cut out the handle well in the case. |
| B_Stealth: | Do you believe that a G3/G4 tower could be turned into a tank? with a lot of hard work of course... |
| g3head: | Has anyone made a macquarium out of a DT or MT case? |
| drwebster: | Quite possible. You'd want to replace some of the panels with transparent ones, of course, but with enough effort anything is possible. |
| drwebster: | Keep in mind, though, that I'd like to see the KegMac first. :-) |
| LairdKnox: | Ah the perrenial KegMac! |
| B_Stealth: | the KegMac's coming... |
| Jonas184: | my next project perhaps... |
| B_Stealth: | or mine... |
| Jonas184: | whoever gets there first |
| Conradg4: | heh |
| Conradg4: | i might make one |
| MacMan2625: | would you think it would be a good idea to put a powerbook screen behind a tank and put a motherboard under the tank? |
| Monic: | Have you used anything larger then the mac classics, se30's etc? |
| drwebster: | I believe that some people here are planning to do just that, use a PB in the tank. |
| drwebster: | The chance of water getting into it is a bit too risky in my taste, though. |
| drwebster: | And no, I've kept strictly to the compact Macs for MQs, but I did turn a dead Apple 17" monitor into a planter once. |
| LairdKnox: | Using the plans on Dr. Webster's page you can _just_ fit the whole PowerBook behind the tank. Check out JeffKnox.com for my attempt at just that. |
| B_Stealth: | I think the KegMac should be built by the first person to drink a whole keg full of beer! :) |
| LairdKnox: | I would have to agree about the water though |
| Owad: | You 'spinoff' ideas are interesting. Have you built all of them? Do you have any other spinoff ideas? |
| LairdKnox: | Just don't move it around! |
| drwebster: | I have not built all the spinoff ideas there, just the planter and lamp. |
| drwebster: | I don't have the Macs or the space for the Mac Table. |
| BDub: | whats the idea behind the Mac Table |
| drwebster: | Simply make a coffee table out of Macs. |
| drwebster: | Use a big thick piece of glass for the top, then have the Macs run After Dark for added effect. |
| LairdKnox: | Any ideas for new mods to the MacQuarium that haven't yet been attempted? |
| drwebster: | I'm thinking that somehow making a double MacQuarium would be cool. Gut two cases, adhere them side to side, and build a tank that will fit in both of them combined. |
| drwebster: | Offers the possibility for more fish. |
| drwebster: | I also once built a Mac Rock Garden out of a Mac IIx. |
| Cruller: | How about buy a bunch of cheap lavalamps and make a Lavamac? |
| LairdKnox: | How about two tanks with a tunnel between them? |
| Jonas184: | I was just thinking that one could remove the screen and put a smaller tank in its place. then mount an LCD behind the tank and hook it up. |
| drwebster: | I think a Lava Lamp might be too hot for a Mac case to handle. |
| drwebster: | But go for it! |
| Owad: | Do you know if any PCQuariums have been built? ;) |
| drwebster: | Oh, I imagine there's been a few. I once heard somewhere that someone built a PS/1aquarium. |
| drwebster: | as in the IBM PS/1, not the PLaystation. |
| BDub: | doesn't have quite the same ring |
| g3head: | I rember seeing a PCquarium a while back, wasn't too good though |
| BDub: | but if it requires destroying a pc, i'm all for it |
| LairdKnox: | I wanted to make my TRS-80 Model III into a tank, but it didn't make the move with me. :( |
| Owad: | When did you write your guide to MacQuariums? Was it before you made your website? |
| g3head: | i think it used the monitor insted of a case |
| drwebster: | The Guide's first incarnation was the Website, first written in July 1999. |
| B_Stealth: | Have you considered building an inverse MacQuarium? You know, an aquarium with a Mac inside it? |
| g3head: | can old computer parts be used for decoration in a macquarium? |
| drwebster: | I don't think the Mac would like that much. Which brings us to... |
| drwebster: | No, old computer parts *cannot* be used in tanks. |
| drwebster: | They contain metals which would kill the fish. |
| BDub: | what inspired you to write the macquarium guide |
| drwebster: | I once got about twenty old Mac Pluses in at work, and took a couple home. |
| drwebster: | I used Andy Ihnatko's guide to build one, decided I could do better, and wrote my own guide. |
| B_Stealth: | I was thinking along the lines of square doughnut shaped tank with a working mac in the empty middle section... |
| drwebster: | Again, the risk of water getting in would be too great. |
| BDub: | use a non conductable liquid and fake fish |
| B_Stealth: | you just want to spoil my fun :) |
| MacMan2625: | are there any special models that work best for macquariums? |
| drwebster: | Not really, Any of the compact models work fine. |
| drwebster: | I've tried my tank in a 128k, 512k, Plus, SE, Classic and Classic II. |
| drwebster: | That's pretty much all of them. |
| B_Stealth: | I may have missed this earlier, but how many fish can an average MacQuarium support? |
| drwebster: | Three at the max, by my estimate. |
| drwebster: | It's only a two gallon tank. |
| MacMan2625: | but i think a 128k would look best. do you think so too? |
| Owad: | Any ideas for incorporating computer peripherals (eg. mice, CD-ROM drives, etc.) into the design? |
| drwebster: | I've seen some people cut a floppy disk in half and put it in the floppy slot to look like there's a disk in there. |
| drwebster: | I also converted an external floppy drive into a pump case. |
| drwebster: | putting a kb and mouse by the MQ makes it look more authentic, of course. |
| LairdKnox: | My original plans included the keyboard to control the lights, air, etc. It used a decoder to allow for 7 on switches and 1 off using the standard keyboard wires. |
| BDub: | has there ever been a mac atrium. a mac-ant-farm? |
| g3head: | do you plan to write a guide to making aquariums out of monitors? |
| Owad: | Perhaps a mouse could be used to store the fish food. :) |
| drwebster: | I don't have any monitors to do that to, and I'm sure it's pretty simple. |
| drwebster: | Just gut the case and build a tank to fit. |
| B_Stealth: | Thats a 2 gallon tank based upon a Mac of SE size? So something like a G3 AIO might support a greater number of fish? |
| drwebster: | Well, of course a bigger machine could hold a bigger tank, and more fish in turn. |
| drwebster: | But some designs make fitting a tank in there tough, like the 500 series. |
| drwebster: | I haven't tried a G3 AIO; I've only seen one in my lifetime. |
| LairdKnox: | My understanding is that the number of fish is governed by the surface area of the water. |
| g3head: | what would be the hardest AIO to make into a macquarium? I'm guessing the TAM |
| drwebster: | Well, that and the depth. |
| drwebster: | The TAM would be pretty poor as a MQ as it's so thin. |
| drwebster: | Well all, my hour is up, and I have to go. |
| drwebster: | Feel free to post topics on this in the Forums, and send me e-mails. |
| drwebster: | As I said earler, we will have a transcript available. |
| drwebster: | Thanks everyone, and have a good night! |
| Owad: | How about a hand for Dr. Webster? |
| LairdKnox: | Thanks for the time. |
| B_Stealth: | Three cheers for Dr Webster |
| blue7500: | yaay |
| BDub: | bye |
| Ben2000z1: | bye! |
| Cruller: | Bye |
| Monic: | Saaaaweeet |
| B_Stealth: | Later Doc |
| Owad: | That wraps up our scheduled chat for the evening. The chat room is always open, so everybody is welcome to stay and chat for as long as they like. |