On Wed, Jan 30, 2008 at 02:02:09PM -0500, STeve Andre' wrote:

quoted text
> On Wednesday 30 January 2008 13:35:59 Douglas A. Tutty wrote:

> > Hello,

> >

> > I have an unusual situation and problem at which I've been chipping

> > away.  The resultant system will need to run OpenBSD so I'm asking here

> > for the accumulated wisdom.  The base technology predates my IT

> > experience.

> >

> > My wife is sensitive to what she describes as electromagnetic fields.

> > She gets headaches and other pains when exposed to equipment: the higher

> > the frequency, the worse her symptoms.  For example, a VT is better than

> [snip]

>

> Doug, I think you need to look at things another way.  I'm only a little

> skeptical of your wife's problems with emf, as I know someone who is

> very reasonable who has made the same complaints.

>

> Make faraday shields for the systems.  The systems themselves can be

> shielded very well, and you can use copper foil for cables.  CRTs can have

> copper shielding as well.

>

> I'll bet you can diminish the RF fields by 50dB for the box(s) and at20dB+

> for the CRTs / LCDs.    LCDs are likely better in this regard.   Googling for

> TEMPEST might reveal some of the methods it uses.

The problem is that this may work if the computers were the only source

of EMF.  However, given the local EMF environment (neighbour's EMF,

wireless everything, etc), she has been unable to tolerate Faraday

shielding of herself.  Don't ask me the physics of that one.
There are lots of components of the problem that I can't understand and

therefore can't do anything about.  The one concrete thing I do know is

that she's OK with a VT-520 hooked to a 486 (even if she is close to it)

but not when the Athlon is on at the other end of the house in the

basement.  So this is what I'm working on now.
Doug.