So I’d probably just grab a cheaper printer, maybe something like a $667, just to churn out some tool prototypes and stuff—basically just enough to see if the design actually works. Any serious commercial stuff would be handled through partnerships using high-end industrial printers anyway.
I mean, I'm pretty sure it's a massive headache, because once the audio starts glitching and the speed drops, everything just goes completely south.
Maybe I'll give those 3ds Max plugins a shot; hopefully they actually do something for me.
Also, how much faster are SSDs compared to an old Seagate HDD 320? I'm wondering if it makes sense for my 3D rendering and digital art setup to grab a smaller SSD for macOS and my apps, then just dump everything else onto the HDD?
Windows 7, C drive has 40 GB free out of 200, D drive has 59 GB free out of 97
So, I was working on a scene in 3ds Max earlier today—just using that one app—and man, everything just totally tanked.
It seems like as soon as I try to run anything else demanding alongside 3ds Max, the whole system starts lagging hard, and even if I close the programs, nothing speeds back up unless I restart.
I think I'm gonna go ahead and download that program.
Jeffrey Allen92 said:It’s likely just some macOS updates running in the background. My advice? Just let it ride. Leave the computer powered on overnight to let everything finish up. Then, give it a quick restart first thing in the morning just to be safe, and see if things are back to normal...
Nah, it's not an update, I'd know because it always tells me when it's updating, and I see the status during the reboot.
Now, whenever my computer starts lagging, hitting restart takes like 10 minutes, even though a regular shutdown happens instantly.
darkowl72 said:You’re running all this software on a pathetic Seagate HDD 320. You don't really have much storage to work with for those programs.
Check how much free space you actually have left. And for heaven's sake, defrag the drive—it looks like you haven't touched it in ages. It’s incredibly fragmented; your models are scattered across a billion different sectors, so it’s no wonder everything is crawling.
Get a new, larger drive immediately and reinstall everything from scratch. I know it's a pain, but honestly, after what you've put this old thing through, I wouldn't trust its longevity for a second...
And don't bother partitioning the new drive. Just leave it as one single volume. Use folders to stay organized instead.
EDIT:
Just a heads-up: defragging is probably going to take a loooong time. Your best bet is to let it run overnight. If it looks like nothing is happening, don't assume it froze; just leave it alone so it can finish. Force-stopping a defrag can absolutely wreck your data.
It says it was defragged a week ago, it's supposed to happen automatically.
I'm also thinking it might be the hard drive, because games always ran fine, but things start acting up only when I open 3ds Max or Unity.
I guess I'm just pushing it too hard with 3ds Max since that program is such a beast.
Everything used to run perfectly fine. I was running Unity, 3ds Max, and Photoshop all at once, and it worked great for months.
But then, just a few days ago, my PC slowed down by like half, and I honestly have no clue why. I tried deleting all the apps I don't use, ran some cleaners for viruses, Trojans, and registry junk, you know the drill. I'm using 360 Total Security as my antivirus, and I even turned off the Bitdefender part so it wouldn't slow things down further.
Now, when I open 3ds Max, it takes like 5 to 10 minutes just to load. Once it's open, it's okay, but if I switch over to Unity to get some work done, my RAM just hits the limit, the hard drive goes absolutely nuts, and everything just freezes up.
I tested the RAM using the Windows memory diagnostic, and it passed. I checked the HDD using those built-in Windows tools too, and that passed as well. All my component temperatures seem totally normal, and the fans aren't making any weird noises.
The weirdest thing is, I tried playing Fallout 4—which is pretty much the only game I have—and it runs on High settings without any issues, like nothing is wrong at all.
I'm starting to feel like 3ds Max is just being buggy, because if I don't launch it, everything seems fine, but once I do, it’s like total chaos.
So, question—is there a specific tool I could use to stress test my components? I really want to make sure everything is actually working right and maybe check if there's some weird voltage issue going on. Or maybe I just caught some nasty virus.
I think I might need to hit pause for a bit. It feels a little too rushed to try and flip this over to a legitimate business right away.
Now I’m kind of kicking myself for listing sand and gravel sales as my primary occupation with the Census Bureau. See, I was talking to my cousin yesterday, and he actually offered me a gig selling some of the stuff he makes online. He already rents his own warehouse space, so all I’d really need at home is my phone and my laptop. My only actual job would be swinging by his place every day to pack things up and get them out via UPS.
Basically, I wouldn't even need to deal with storage; I'd just need a registered business address.
Has anything changed recently regarding the laws for running an online shop or whatever?
Honestly, this sounds pretty sweet to me. There isn't a ton of heavy lifting involved in the sales side, and since he sells wholesale, there's probably decent money to be made—especially since I used to be a salesman for him back when we covered the Midwest. I could just handle the sales on the side from home, you know, under the radar, while I focus on getting this workspace organized.
it doesn't even matter... I mean, certain businesses need specific ceiling heights and stuff, like if you're running a warehouse or something.
Mine? Nah, I just care that the exterior looks decent (at least up to the curb) and that all the utilities are legit—you know, certified electricity, water, all the permits and everything.
So I talked to the project manager today, and she’s charging $10 per square foot for everything—from fire safety plans to basically the whole works.
And get this—she tells me that once we have the blueprints plus the electrical and plumbing certifications, she has to head down to City Hall to get our commercial occupancy permit.
Then, apparently, we take that permit and apply for an actual operating license. But she claims we can't even touch the operating license until the building looks finished on the outside, like the siding or stucco is all done.
While I'm waiting on some paperwork from the Census Bureau, I've got three questions:
1.) I’m meeting with my architect tomorrow to work on rezoning a space from industrial to commercial, so I can hopefully snag a building permit for business use. Does anyone know how much it costs just to get the permit issued? I already know what the architect is charging, so that part's fine.
2.) There's a house right next to the commercial space, maybe 15 feet away. I'm thinking about having her rezone that one to mixed-use too, so we have the restroom situation sorted out immediately + my girl wants to start a jewelry business or something, so it would be handy. Is that actually doable?
3.) Do I really need to hire an accountant, or can I handle the books myself? I mean, I won't be doing it totally solo—I'll have someone helping me—but I'm planning on running the show myself.
Man, I’m really stressing over this whole failed grant situation. I'm just waiting on an answer, but if it doesn't go through, I might just shut down the business, head to the unemployment office, and then start up a brand new 😁😁
I guess I'll be eating a $567 loss if I actually land that 25,000
Yeah, so they actually confirmed today that I’m eligible for that $4,000 startup grant since I'm setting up my own LLC.
But here's the thing... I'm technically not supposed to have the business active yet, but I already registered it just so I could get an EIN to order some equipment. 🤦
I actually reached out to the Department of Commerce and pulled a few strings, so maybe they'll still let me grab that subsidy.
Anyway, big question here:
I'm not planning on using a formal POS system or anything; I'd rather just handle everything through invoices. Honestly, I'm probably looking at maybe one or two clients a day max, so if that even happens, I'll be stoked. 😁
So, this might sound a little weird to people—say someone drops off some rims for powder coating, I'd just write up an invoice and tell them to pay via bank transfer.
Is it possible to, I don't know, take cash upfront from customers and then just write my own check later to deposit it into my business account? I'm guessing Chase or similar banks don't really care who the actual sender is, so I'd just list the client's name as the payer on the deposit slip, even if I'm the one physically handing it over.
What kind of dirty job is that? I work indoors, wearing a full suit with its own oxygen supply.
So, zero outdoor pollution. Plus, I’m not even dealing with sand; I use copper slag, which is becoming the standard since it doesn't kick up dust.
Anyway, I'll get all this sorted eventually, since I'm not planning on jumping into it right away. I'm still getting my workspace ready for another two weeks, then I'm heading over to work for a different company.
Once I'm home, I'll probably tinker with this stuff in my free time until it really takes off.
And look—I only started the business to cover myself while doing roles involving equipment and stuff, plus some other side gigs I handle. 😁 😁
Honestly, I think this whole thing is just total nonsense.
I mean, what good is a higher amperage rating anyway? I’m only ever running two lamps in my workshop, so there's really no point.
Plus, since nobody from the local building department will actually give me a straight answer, I’m going to save whatever response I eventually get. That way, when the inspectors show up, they can just read their own people's official word.
Anyway, what’s the actual process for changing a commercial space? Do I have to hire someone to measure everything, draw up blueprints, and create a full project just to change the zoning? And man, how much is that even going to run me?
So get this, I called the county economic development office today—or whatever they call it—and I ended up talking to this super nice lady. I laid out my whole situation, and she actually went ahead and called a bunch of different places herself just to see if there were any specific rules for running a sand quarry.
She reached out to everyone from the state administration offices down to environmental inspectors and stuff.
And honestly? Turns out nobody has a clue what’s going on. 😁
I guess I'll just stick to the basics for now—you know, having the right certifications, an evacuation plan, fire extinguishers, all that. If an inspector shows up and finds something wrong, I'll just fix it then.
The only things I'm still stuck on are whether I actually need to file for a zoning change, and if I really need industrial-grade power just to run two 150W lamps.
I gotta say, I'm feeling pretty stressed out here. I honestly don't know if there’s even a specific office or agency I can just call up to get a straight answer on exactly what I need to have on hand for my business.
I'm not looking for people to just guess or give me their opinions—like, "oh, you probably need this" or "maybe that." I want official confirmation from someone who actually knows.
I don't know, I think I'll just head down to the local building inspector's office myself and have them tell me exactly what I need. Trying to hunt this stuff down online feels pretty unreliable, I guess.
Does anyone know where I can check if I actually need to rezone my space for business use?
My accountant and lawyer both suggested today that it’s probably best to just hit up the local inspectors to see which regulations apply to my sandblasting work, just so I know exactly what I'm getting into from the jump.
Frank Chase6 said:I’m not sure which specific rule it is, but if you think about it—it just doesn't make sense to skip an evacuation plan; it should be flat-out illegal to even start building without one. By the time you actually sit down to study all the requirements, your tiny 200-square-foot studio would probably already be going up in flames. 🤣
Exactly! The first thing everyone asks is, "Wait, where am I on this map?" 🤦
Are you kidding me? What's the point? For me, electricity is just for turning on the lights and running my buffer.
Rachel Ortiz56 said:It doesn't matter much for me. My setup is dead simple—just a 200 sq ft space with a single entrance/exit and a tiny restroom tucked in the corner. It's got walls and everything, but still... what a joke. If there's a fire or something, it's not like someone's going to accidentally bolt straight into the bathroom, right? But apparently, it's mandatory for everyone regardless of how small the space is. Please tell me if anyone's actually had a Fire Marshal show up and told them they didn't need it.
That's really the worst part about it. There isn't a single place where everything is clearly laid out. I only found out about some requirements through news reports about people getting fined for missing things—like, I don't know, a little sticker marking where the fire extinguisher goes... or stuff related to software licensing and whatnot...
Read around, ask around, make calls... but at the end of the day, you can often just negotiate with the inspector. They might come back in a few days after you've grabbed what you were missing, or you can just claim your receipt is sitting at the accountant's office...
Hmm, yeah. And even if an inspector does show up, like you said—they might just come back later or run into issues. I've got some pretty nasty protection from the folks above me, and I try my best not to rely on it.😁