Computer Perch

Inspired by ongoing issues with dog hair wrangling and a general desire to make things look neater by not piling them on the floor, I added a computer perch to my desk.

I learned a few more things about structural integrity and fabrication. First, designed that attempt to hide structural fasteners are hard to fabricate, because (secondly) hidden structural supports can be quite weak. I used to L-brackets under the perch to attach it to the table, but it was unacceptably flexible... I ended up putting additional wood screws straight through the table legs into the perch to get a stiff attachment. Without some kind of rib or webbing, it's very hard to get a stiff, hidden joint across two narrow contact surfaces, like a 1.5" table leg and a 0.75" plywood board.

I was not particularly interested in spending money on the project, so I used what I had around, raiding the spare screw jar and cutting some scrap plywood leftover in the barn. We I to do it again, I would probably use several very long screws in a future design.

My big bar clamps continue to make construction tasks easier. A brilliant invention.

I am generally pleased with the outcome. The goal of minimizing the cords and computers on the floor is within reach. Also, although it looks a little precarious, it's almost impossible for the laptop to fall out of the partition: the gap between the partition and the legs is too narrow. The mouse cord now has some slack in it.