Colas Nahaboo personal site, with discussions about programming code, web and computing topics, surfing and SUPing, and various musings. Zola 2026-08-27T00:00:00+00:00 https://colas.nahaboo.net/tags/lifehacks/atom.xml 2026-08-27T00:00:00+00:00 2026-08-27T00:00:00+00:00 Unknown https://colas.nahaboo.net/blog/magnets-magnets-everywhere/ <p>I have started putting magnets on small things around my desk. A cable that was wandering around now stays where I need it, and a USB hub now sits on the top of my PC case instead of taking space on the desk.</p> <p><img src="https://colas.nahaboo.net/blog/magnets-magnets-everywhere/magnets-meme.jpg" alt="Magnets, magnets everywhere" /></p> <h2 id="cables">Cables<a class="zola-anchor" href="#cables" aria-label="Anchor link for: cables">🔗</a></h2> <p>For cables, I use round magnets with a hole in the middle. A small tie goes through the hole and loops over the cable. The cable rests on top of the magnet, and the magnet holds the whole thing to a magnetic surface.</p> <p><img src="https://colas.nahaboo.net/blog/magnets-magnets-everywhere/3.jpg" alt="A cable held by a ring magnet and a small tie" /></p> <p>I can move the cable, pull it away when I need it, and put it back without fighting a fixed clip. The magnet stays with the cable, so I do not have another small part to lose.</p> <p>The photo below also shows another version. I bolted a double-sided Velcro band through the central hole of a round magnet. It makes a reusable strap for a thicker cable or a small bundle.</p> <p><img src="https://colas.nahaboo.net/blog/magnets-magnets-everywhere/4.jpg" alt="Ring magnets with a cable tie and double-sided Velcro bands" /></p> <h2 id="usb-hubs">USB hubs<a class="zola-anchor" href="#usb-hubs" aria-label="Anchor link for: usb-hubs">🔗</a></h2> <p>I glued square magnets (the leftlmost ones on the photo above) made for cabinet doors to the sides of the USB hub. I used MS polymer glue and waited for it to cure. The magnets now attach the hub to the steel side of my PC case.</p> <p><img src="https://colas.nahaboo.net/blog/magnets-magnets-everywhere/2.jpg" alt="Square cabinet-door magnets glued to the sides of a USB hub" /></p> <p>The hub remains removable, but it stays put. The same trick should work with metallic desk legs, provided that the metal is magnetic.</p> <p><img src="https://colas.nahaboo.net/blog/magnets-magnets-everywhere/1.jpg" alt="USB hub attached to the side of a PC case" /></p> <p>One small detail matters: a metal surface is not necessarily magnetic. I test it with one of the magnets first. I also let the glue cure fully before hanging the hub and keep strong magnets away from cards and magnetic storage.</p> <p>This is the kind of DIY I like: cheap parts, no drilling, and an arrangement I can change later.</p> <p>Buzz was right. Magnets, magnets everywhere. :-)</p>