[rtdunham]

So I've got this design-centric iSight on my desk, pretty little thing...but it's taped to the top of a foot-high cardboard box in order to position it properly (I have the 23" cinema display and hanging it from the top is TOO high, sitting it on the desktop in front of it is TOO low.

I want a simple weight-balanced arm that swings it OUT of the way when not in use, and that can swing it INTO position when i want it properly positioned for video chats.

Has anyone rigged a creative solution that unlike my cardboard box won't a) block the printer, b) block the mem card reader; c) use up valuable desk real estate; d) not make Apple's mounting omissions any more embarassing than they already are? For all the talk of apple's design prowess--and i'm a big fan--i don't find the iSight very well designed in terms of usability.

So brainstorm, show your solutions...until someone markets a real product to solve this problem.

peace
terry

[Severed Hand of Skywalker]

A box? Damn yo that must look really stupid next to the nice Apple hardware

[rtdunham]

see what i mean? the high intensity lamps on either side of the 23" monitor are nice sources of light to supplement the single-tube fluorescent light high overhead (this is a closet-desk). Only $10 ea on sale at Sears, they do the job and they swing neatly out of the way. I tried to figure out a way to mount the iSight to one of those rigs but failed.

Wouldn't it be great to have a nice swing-down arm, like a mic boom, that mounted on or under the shelf, and could position the camera precisely where needed when needed, and stow it out of the way the rest of the time? Or a mod of the apple mount that would go on top of the monitor, but still swing down to a more suitable level when needed?

Even if someone could figure out a mod for the lamps in the pic, i think they'd have a marketable product. And I still think Apple should be ashamed of the limited options they included.

As for the rest of the disarray on the desk, hey, it's a working desk.

terry

[osxisfun]

good god. i now think i have a clean desk.


here's something:

http://www.bigwoofilms.com/isight/

[rtdunham]

thanks for the link, could prove useful.

now, any chance i could convince you i just threw all that clutter on the desk to make everyone feel better about their own work environments? well, that's my story, and...

terry

[::maroma::]

What about this...

Take the existing table mount for the iSight and cut the flat bottom off, leaving the long skinny piece extending out the bottom. Then get a tall (however tall you need it) tube of clear plexiglass or plastic which has a diameter that will allow that skinny piece to comfortably slide into. Now, take the bottom you just sliced off, and attach it to the bottom of the plexi tube, creating a stand. You can cut a hole in the back of the plexi tube (at the bottom) to run the cable through the plexi tube and out the hole. What you are essentially doing is extending the existing table mount.

Sounds simple enough. What do you think?