Spring Cleaning (well sorta)

It has been a while since anyone has posted anything here, but being the traditional hexial-procrastinator-spirited person I am, I can't just abandon any project completely. Anyway, here goes my pathetic blog attempt:

So, this year my usual spring cleaning got delayed a bit, but I did run across some interesting things in doing so:

From the old FIRST days.. this computer is now stripped down and is serving as my phone server.



These guys are only $1 at the dollar store! Well worth it to make your computer look like an alien.



This one is my favorite, and probably the reason I decided to write this blog post. I suppose it is an ethernet cable, technically speaking, but regardless, the fact that radioshack still sells them makes me laugh every time I see this picture.

HICUP 7

Here is another new version. In this sketch I removed the tech room, made the media room bigger. I also made some sleeping quarters in the form of Japanese capsule hotel pods. That makes it a little more realistic than fold down beds while still cramming a lot of people into a small space. Oh the bathroom and kitchen are bigger too.

Version 7:

HICUP7.skp | 758K

HICUP 6

It's coming this week.

The project still going.

Recent HICUP meeting

The happenings at the IHOP HICUP meeting. That drink is going to be the new HICUP drink, even if the others think it'll take too much effort, but hey, ill make it!

Buzzkill

So, Jack did some research last night and confirmed that its really not practical to build an underground command center in such a wet area as Houston. Although it has been done before (There is a 30 foot basement at UT, and an underground manufacturing plant at my Father's office in Houston) we would need pumps on 24/7 that remove water, and that my friends, is not going to fly with our electricity bill.

On a brighter note, I documented everything we have done so far in a wiki, so these news posts will actually contain useful information from here on out.

Further work on Hexial Intelligence Command Underground Post (HICUP) will now be designed to be above ground (I suppose we need a new acronym now)

Lastly, we will probably be talking about the upcoming Hexial Response Team (HRT) project more and more since we will be working on it this summer. Again, read more info on this project at our wiki.

HICUP Version 5

The following idea was with my trying different shaped buildings. Using a triangle-based design allowed more of a movie-theater approach for the media room and more table space for the tech room.
Specs came out at 585sq ft of area. And the perimeter is 102ft of wall.

Version 5:

HICUP5.skp | 673K

HICUP version 4

This concept was based around the idea that if we build smaller, it will be cheaper. Version 4 is 448sq ft which is about 1/2 the size of Version 2 and 3. However we decided that this design is too cramped to live in.

Version 4:

HICUP4.skp | 2.1M

Price breakdown

Currently we are saving money and the following people may have the following ammount of money by Summer 2009.
If possible, construction should begin early Summer 2009 if the budget permits.

Dan: $5,000
Jack: $7,000
Ajay: $?

• 
  Land near the Houston area is desirable... However, cheaper land can be bought about 20 minutes north of Conroe
  We need ~2 acres @ $1,000 each = $2000 (without yearly taxes)
  


• 
  By builder's estimates, underground houses are from $10 - 50 / sq. ft.
  With current design of 12' x 36' x 22' (HxLxW) the price would be within ~$8,000 - 40,000
  


• 
  To excavate the land, contractors will excavate a hole at $5 / cu. yd.
  At 4 x 12 x 7.3 yd (HxLxW), the price would be ~$1,700
  


• 
  Garage kits can be purchased for ~$4,000 and provide sturdy constuction quality

HICUP Version 3

This is my slight modification to Jack's HICUP v2 model below. By putting the kitchen in the middle you wouldn't have to bother the person working in the tech room. This would also allow moving the bathroom closer to the main quarters so that it is more accessible. The wall between the main quarters and the entrance was removed giving the main quarters a more open feel. Also, a prototype ladder was added as an idea for the entrance to the bunker.

Version 3:

HICUP3.skp | 11M

HICUP models version 1 and 2

This is what started the buzz. These models are very crude. The first one does not take into account measurements, and the second does not even have wall thickness. I'm sure there will be plenty more to come.

Respectively, Version 1

HICUP1.skp | 40K

HICUP2.skp | 11MB

Live again.

Hexial is a freaking Phoenix bird with ADD. It keeps dying and coming alive over and over and over again.