Speedcabling - Untangling For Fun and Profit

ibnsuleiman writes "A new competitive sport is emerging amongst IT professionals and hobbyists. Speedcabling tests the ability to untangle the rat's nests that grow inside and outside of the beige boxes that pervade todays homes and workplaces. The first public competition was held in an LA gallery for a $50 gift certificate to a local Italian restaurant. The winner, LA web developer Matthew Howell, had to untangle a dozen ethernet cables in record time leaving them in working order to win."

Hmmm...

[hbean]

finally a sport where steroids wont help you!

Well, makes more sense than curling

[elrous0]

Apologies to my Scottish and Canadian friends. But, really??

Next on...

[airedalez]

ESPN 8 the ocho!

I was nearly with you until...

[east coast]

From the blurb: The winner, LA web developer Matthew Howell, had to untangle a dozen ethernet cables in record time leaving them in working order to win.

Working order? Man, there's a catch to everything. I guess I can put my weed whacker with it's steel blades back...

Re:Must be a slow news day

[Overzeetop]

Yes, but as a spectator sport? That takes innovation. And a lot of really easily-entertained spectators.

Cup stacking for nerds?

[binaryspiral]

I'll bet the national championships will end up on ESPN2 during the middle of the night... just like those tweens stacking cups.

Another sport that deserves a WTF? award.

Just part of my job

[smooth wombat]

This is what one of our wiring closets looks like [earthlink.net]. Untangling cables to have some sense of order is just another job duty.

And in case anyone is wondering, yes, those are punchdown boxes you see. It would be horrible to run the cable directly to the switch without having boxes and patch cables on each end.

Bah, make it tougher

[SpaceLifeForm]

Throw in power cables, phone lines, and mice to make it more realistic.

Re:Hmmm...

[explosivejared]

finally a sport where steroids wont help you!

I can see the doping scandals already... Loser: Check his inhaler! I know he's taking stimulants! Look on the inside of glasses I know he's got a hologram of Natalie Portman to keep him relaxed! HE SO CHEATED!!

This week, on the Ocho!

[Ngarrang]

The Japanese still have us beat on wacky game shows.

Re:Limited real-world relevance

[QuietLagoon]

They need a variant of the sport

What they really need is a life.

Oh noes

[Anonymous Coward]

When you unplug the cable to untangle it in the game, you unplug it IN REAL LIFE!

Re:Limited real-world relevance

[MT628496]

You mean that you don't just rip the switch out of the rack and throw it up in the air? I thought everyone untangled like that!

Re:The sport is misnamed

[veganboyjosh]

Round four: Profit!

I can't believe...

[RealErmine]

that there is finally a story where my following formalization of the process of wire entanglement is on-topic.

Kevin's First Law: For any number of wires, strings or similar objects, the probability of complex entanglement between them increases exponentially with the inverse of distance. Time required to entangle is also affected in a similar fashion. This phenomenon can be observed in consequence, but not in action.

Also, for those who are interested, my second law is formalized thusly:

Kevin's Second Law: There exists no robot that cannot be improved in form or function by the addition of a flamethrower.

Re:This isn't going anywhere...

[EtherMonkey]

Thinnet? LOCALTALK??? Are you stuck in the '80's?

Next thing you know, you'll be talking about memory optimization for Win3.11 with QMM, filtering SAP advertisements on the WAN, or configuring TCP/IP packet drivers so you can use this new Internet program called "Mosaic."

Re:Well, makes more sense than curling

[RabidMonkey]

Curling combines the skillful art of hitting things with other things, ice, and beer. What more could you desire out of a sport? Sure, theres a lack of bikinis, see ice for a reason.

Re:Are there rules?

[morgan_greywolf]

I mean, is this legal [polywater.com]?

Provided that everyone involved is of the age of consent, I'd say yes.

Irritating Wire, the Japanese version

[spun]

Some of the cables will be live and have shorts in the insulation.

Re:Limited real-world relevance

[nmg196]

> They need a variant of the sport where there are thirty cables, some plugged into various
> patch panels at both ends, some at one end only, and some free; your task is to extract
> the loose and dangling cables and leave the working ones.

It's called Network Administration.

Re:Well, makes more sense than curling

[Peter Cooper]

Curling makes as much sense as bowling. That's really what curling is.. ice bowling.

Re:Bah, make it tougher

[sjbe]

Not to mention that it should be done under a poorly lit desk with insufficient room for more than one arm at a time while someone tries to do work around you during the contest.

Re:Well, makes more sense than curling

[winkydink]

I have a feeling there'll be a decided lack of bikinis in this "sport" too.

Re:Are there rules?

[chuckymonkey]

Wow, KY for nerds!