If my cables are not actively trying to kill me, they are managed

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If you go one of the subreddits on Reddit.com celebrating pristine computer builds, the site of a single inch of cable raises hackles.

As someone who has been setting up computers since 1979--yes really--I have never worried much about cables.  I'm forever having to add/subtract, move peripherals, so cable management would have been inhibiting and inconvenient.

I've been working from home like many for the last year (it was a year Friday). Over this time  I've tweaked my home system immensely. Since I do spend a lot of time in it, I have thought some of cable management.  Not so much in making them disappear--that's an ideal I'll never hit--but rather somewhat less chaotic.

The most offensive part was my docking station. I'd bought a small docking station that accepted two monitors, two USB inputs and an ethernet cable. That way I could switch from work laptop to personal laptop by switching one cable; not several.

I connected a powered USB hub to one of the USB inputs so I could swap my 2 cameras, Yeti microphone, headset, keyboard and mouse once too.

That hub and dock made far an ugly rats nest. One day I had an inspired idea. I had a small, empty cardboard box. I punched holes in three sides, put the dock hub inside and passed the cables into them, and then the one out to the laptop.

For a brief moment I thought I'd made an major invention. I visualized going on Shark Tank and partnering up with Cuban and deftly putting Mr. Wonderful in his place.

And then I checked Amazon.  Alas, cable management boxes are a whole category.



I bought a set of three.  

On a Sunday, I tore everything down, and had a completely clear desk for the first time in years.  I moved everything back, cabling carefully as I went.  All was wonderful for three days.

Then my mouse and keyboard got twitchy and I had to hook up direct to my work laptop. Everything got torn apart.

It was a short lived glitch. At the end of the day I hooked everything back up and it worked, but the cables were a rat nest again.

Another Sunday, another setting up.

Then I had to go into the office for a quick trip and needed my laptop. I had to tear it all apart to get at my power supply.

So the following Sunday I repeated everything, but this time I've added a small power strip outside of the cable boxes for my work laptop and to hook up other devices temporarily.  Not as attractive, but more useful.

Then I added a third monitor. Remember my dock only supports two, so I had to move two cables to switch from work to home laptops; the dock's USB cable and an HDMI for that third monitor.  That was a first world problem I could not live with. That's an adventure for another post.





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