Time for some mod love, geeks and geekettes!
Last week, I had talked about a friend’s boyfriend’s tricked-out desktop. See what other modding aficionados have come up with:
Time for some mod love, geeks and geekettes!
Last week, I had talked about a friend’s boyfriend’s tricked-out desktop. See what other modding aficionados have come up with:
Speaking of geeks and salivation, I had come across a picture of my friend’s boyfriend’s computer setup months ago, but the writing of the article itself was put off after mounds of work, mounds of lifestyle stresses, and moving houses, rooms, and what-not galore. So here it is, for all the world to see, my friend’s boyfriend’s PC setup.
I actually thought that this looked so much like an alienoid thing, but I was more fascinated than weirded-out in a girly way. Though I could not relate to his and my friend’s glee at his boyfriend’s having “Reached the CPU and vid card temp that he’s been targetting. So it rocks!” I sure could relate to the fact that this thing does look cool, and I do appreciate a great-looking tricked-out, pimped-out thing any time.
There are days when I just wish I were Bill Gates’ (rather, Steve Jobs’) daughter. With a tricked-out setup like his, I would so be beside myself, that if I were married, I won’t be paying hubby any attention because of being absorbed in my system.
When I first saw Bill Gates’s setup on CNN Money, I chuckled to myself because I was so amused how he could need three displays just to check mail. It was only until I had experienced and realized the need to work on two computers at once that I finally reconciled myself to the fact that multiple displays have more than salivation factors. They actually bring a productivity boost that is unparalleled. [Read more…]
In the spirit of Halloween, here is a horror story, for all geeks and used-computer buyers out there.
On the 25th of October, I bought a Dell ultraportable (US company-owned and used) laptop from a certain tipidpc.com member, for only Php 5500 or $139 (cost of item+remittance fees). I gave the seller an option to go for PayPal or Xoom, outlining the advantages and disadvantages of either option. He chose Xoom, despite my fears that the transaction may fall through because as I’ve experienced, Xoom.com just cancels transactions without your clearance, simply because your case falls under their “customer protection policy” no-no.
To my chagrin, at 3AM the next day, as I was tracking the progress of the money transfer, I saw that the transaction was being canceled. So when that happened, of course I panicked, a little bit. Just a little bit, because the laptop wasn’t all that good when I tried it at home. When I had stuck an external drive in there that had been ravaged by Internet Cafe viruses BUT deleted those that I was able to spot before sticking it in the Dell lappie, the Dell won’t boot Windows XP SP1 in normal mode anymore. It can still be used in safe mode, even safe mode with networking, but just not in normal mode.
So later that morning, guy tells me to return his laptop coz the bank says *I* canceled it. Though my first instinct was to get the money someway, somehow, I decided not to put up a fight because it wasn’t worth it. Not only did the FRESH system break at the first sign of a virus invasion, the former owner was such a pain in the butt-tocks to deal with. [Read more…]
by Jaren
Oh yeah the wonders of Dual Display can be wonderful and it definitely increases productivity. The very nice thing about the technology today is that video cards have the ability to run multiple monitors using one computer, or a laptop. Now it’s either you choose to “mirror” your display or use another setting to “extend” your monitor to allow the cursor freely move from the primary display to the second if it was all one surface. You can move Applications , icons, and all other neat things onto the secondary monitor and start taking advantage of the increased desktop real estate. With this setup, you computer becomes more convenient and fun to use. Making you more productive and happy, if you know what I mean.
Personally, I love all the space I see it gives me freedom because I’m not cramped looking at my laptop with a 15 inch display, now for my Dual Display setup on my Laptop and 21 inch flat screen monitor I put my Browser and some of my word processing software on the bigger screen, then put my IM, Email Client, Media Player on the Laptop screen so I get double the fun and double the workload done. And the most important part of Dual Displays is Playing Games on one screen and doing work on the other, that actually boosts my morale on blogging. I can work and play all day and not be hassled by blaming myself that I played all day and didn’t get any work done. Because I have Windows Vista on my laptop, I never had any problem with graphic cards and stuff, since Windows Vista would need an awesome criteria of specs for it to be able to run properly. So 3d gaming is a go!, Dual Displays… Better! Imagine 8 hours of work, while you’re working on the other screen you look on your other screen and you’re running Civilization and you’re currently controlling and amassing your empire. So Dual Displays is the way to go and the only thing left is to add more screens. How about Quadruple Displays? anyone?
You would know an Apple Fangurl when she you see a girl watching this video and she cringes, and covers her eyes (but with matching peek-a-boo fingers) every time she sees the iPhone being dropped to the carpet, kitchen floor, and even the pavement.
That aside, we now go on to the scheduled programming.
The buzz today on the tech “airwaves” is the OLPC project. The OLPC project has got to be the most ambitious humanitarian/tech effort on the planet in recent times. And yet, it’s really coming to fruition. The OLPC has come a long way: from the first concrete steps of laying down the design and vision at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland made in January 2005 by Nicholas Negroponte, down to the t-minus for November 12, 2007, when the OLPC will be officially released to the world. [Read more…]
by Jaren
Meet F.R.E.D., the Forensic Recovery of Evidence Device brought to us by Design Intelligence Forensic Solutions
This is the tool or rig PC enthusiast and PC Modders would love to get their hands on and see if they can squeeze out up to the last drop of performance with this baby.
With Specifications like these may it be a dream come true or just another cool, over-priced toy
FRED TAPE Option (add $950.00)
The hot-swap IDE removable drive bay will be eliminated from the FRED configuration to accommodate this option.
FRED INTERNAL 2.0TB RAID0 (1.5TB RAID5) Option (add $1,590.00)
The hot-swap SATA drive bay, hot-swap IDE removable drive bay and the Integrated Multimedia Card Reader bay will be eliminated from the FRED configuration to accommodate this option. You will receive the Read-Only Multimedia Card Reader in your toolbox.
A Toolbox that Contains
Software
So far the specs are awesome aside from these things it needs, and these are a bigger monitor ohhh excuse it needs to be capable of multiple monitor display ( 2 monitors and up), a better video card(dual video cards preferrably)… Now I wish it has a 5′ 1/2 floppy drive, to start reminiscing the true DOS experience since it’s got DOS 6.22 pre-installed.
Long time no post, guys. 🙂
As I was cleaning up my Gmail, I had spotted Google’s link to the official video for Gmail. So I posted it up at my tech blog, which is basically a collection of my rants and tech-related videos that I’ve bumped into along the way.
Eventually I found out that I had to actually update some links to videos that have been taken down or were private. In my scanning of my posts, I came across this adorable video:
Click the pics to get to the original article. 🙂
You know, we actually do the craziest things with our machines. Good thing I neither have a cat or a dog anymore.
But still. We should take better care of our babies machines!
Though the kitty cat is only too cute, right? 😀
Unfortunately, for a while now, I’ve been the ‘IT Guy’. By that I mean I have had an interest in computers for a long time. It began way back when I was just about eight years old I think – when I owned my first computer, the Spectrum 128k. Here in England it was never as popular with as the C64 but it had some great games for it. That’s what drew me in. That and seeing the results of a flashing screen after copying a full page of code from a magazine!
This techno-lust continued in the form of a GameBoy, a SNES and finally my first proper PC – a 486. I loved my 486, not least because I grew to understand DOS, but I also had my first play on DOOM. Magnificent stuff. From here I got Internet access and finally a new PC. Broadband soon followed as well as HTML, digital cameras, modding and hardware experimentation.
This brings me to modern day. I’m on to my second laptop, third printer and I have a few IT qualifications. I also run a couple of websites and contribute to others. All in all, I’d say I’m pretty tech savvy. This has resulted in my reputation. The eponymous ‘IT Guy’.
The fact is this has meant I get bothered with all manner of queries, questions and sometimes faced with bizarre assumptions. Some obvious questions are ‘can you fix my computer?‘ – the answer sometimes being yes, sometimes being no, but when someone can’t even tell you exactly what is wrong – ‘the screen isn’t working’ this can be difficult. People tend to think that you’re somehow hardwired to understand the machine intimately just because you can connect a printer to a computer.
Other queries I’ve had can be more complicated. These include the eponymous ‘which Internet Service Provider should I use?’ – this being a big issue in the UK at the moment with all manner of offerings, some expensive, some free, some even throwing in a free laptop. I’m actually going through the process of assisting my folks choose which ISP to contract with.
I’ve also worked in an IT support role that has provided some challenges, some difficult moments but also some interesting posers of the following:
1) What is the Internet?
2) When I click, some words come up (they were right clicking)?
3) Now that I have my website, where is it?
4) How do I get the disc into the hard drive?
5) My computer has gone off. What can I do about it?
As you can see, some of the questions are a little ‘out there’. I didn’t mind too much, just because not everyone has had the chances to get used to technology as I have. On the other hand, sometimes people make strange leaps of logic. The idea that I know about everything of everything with IT is pretty strange itself.
Being interested in technology has brought some fantastic benefits to my life. I have my websites, the pleasure of writing for Gadzooki and being able to do many things for myself that I otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity to do. I enjoy helping people, but I sometimes think that they would be better off helping themselves as they could learn more. However, if you’re fearful of breaking your computer it’s probably better that you leave it to the experts!
by Rogue
When the first video cards started appearing around the middle of the 90’s, I admit I was quite skeptical about the whole thing. Why the need to get separate hardware to handle graphics when the games I was playing then (Heretic, Doom 2, Command and Conquer, Quake 2, Diablo) didn’t really need it? I thought it was just a gimmick cooked up by hardware manufacturers to increase sales. I was smirking the whole time when Rob, a friend of mine, spent so much money on a Canopus 3D card. “What a lemming”, I thought to myself.
But a few months after I read an article on what video cards can do, and how it can actually help free up the processing power of the CPU by having a dedicated chip handle all of the graphics calculations. I got a little convinced about the need for a graphics card after reading it. But what really convinced me was when I saw my first graphics accelerated game. When I saw it, I knew that I wanted one then and there. Of course, it took me a couple more years before I actually bought a video card (as part of replacement computer).
I’ve been using video cards ever since but even though, I am an avid PC gamer, I have never gone overboard when it comes to my hardware. I also love the bells and whistles that the latest, fastest video cards offer but I am not insane enough to buy a card that is worth a low end desktop computer. I think it’s a waste of good money. Why? Well, because of depreciation. Take for instance the new GeForce 8800 GTX cards from Nvidia. This top of the line card costs about $570 right now. But you’d be lucky to even sell it for $450 a year from now. And the longer you keep it, the more it depreciates.
I’d rather buy a mid end card for my gaming needs. It costs less, gets sold much faster in the second hand market and I don’t have to throw away my hard earned money. The bottomline is, I’ll never be a lemming.
[tags]video card, Nvidia, 8800 GTX[/tags]