Category Archives: PC

It’s Alive!

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10

New Computer

I got my new computer parts earlier this week, and after an hour or two of assembly, it gracefully sprang to life.  And on the first try, no less.  I’m proud of myself, because it’s been a while since I’ve built a computer entirely from scratch.

Here’s how the final build turned out:

  • Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz Quad-Core CPU
  • Corsair XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
  • Diamond Radeon HD 4890 1GB (PCI-E 2.0 16x) GPU
  • Asus P6T Deluxe V2 Motherboard
  • Western Digital Caviar Green 500Gb SATA HDD
  • HP 24X Multiformat DVD Writer SATA
  • Cooler Master Silent Pro 600W Modular Power Supply
  • Antec Solo Black/Silver Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

The only parts I didn’t buy were two existing HDD’s that I threw in at the end, for good measure (another 500Gb and my old 74Gb Raptor, both SATA).  I was planning on adding the sound card from my old computer, but it won’t fit well without blocking off the fan from the GPU, so I’m just going to roll with the onboard sound for now.  Lastly, I’m currently only using two of the RAM sticks, because I’m running 32-bit XP, and I’m waiting for Windows 7 to release for the move to 64-bit.

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Scatterbrain

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GeForce GPU

I haven’t been able to update the blog as much as I’d like over the last few weeks, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been thinking about things to write about.  Instead of letting all of my random thoughts go to waste, I thought I’d present them here as a collection.  If you’re just looking for a few moments of entertainment, you like reading the musings of the slightly insane, or you’re looking for something to spark your pent-up rage, the following list is probably for you!

Never Too Zune

Each time I plug my iPod (5th generation) into my computer and it freezes up, I secretly hope that it won’t come back on, so I have an excuse to buy a Zune HD.  From everything I’ve seen online, these things look pretty nice, and I’d like to try something different than iPod for a while.  I have absolutely no interest in the iPod Touch or an iPhone; the 32gb Touch is $110 more than the 32gb Zune HD, and being tethered to AT&T again just makes me feel sick.

But I digress; the Zune HD looks slick in its own right.  Wireless streaming capabilities and built-in HD radio are great, and I also like the idea of being able to output HD video and, of course, web browsing.  If Microsoft opens up the Zune to user-created applications, it would become an even great alternative to the iPod.  They seem to be making an effort to get developers to consider their other mobile devices, so I don’t think this is too far-fetched.  So far, however, they’ve been pretty tight-lipped about it. Continue reading →

Back From BlizzCon 2009

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BlizzCon 2009

Time flies when you’re having fun, I suppose – I’m back from BlizzCon 2009, and though I don’t quite feel ready to head back to work, and all the other responsibilities of non-vacation time, it’s good to be home.

My trip started off as the typical Marty-planned trip does: poorly.  I happened to hear about when tickets were being sold for BlizzCon 2009 only a few days before the first sale, but I wasn’t able to grab any of the tickets in the first round, as I wasn’t home that weekend.  My luck turned around somewhat quickly though, and I was able to get in and score a couple of tickets very early in the second (and final) round.  I also got two cheap plane tickets.  As was the case last year, this trip was to be for myself and my brother, to celebrate his birthday.

As the old saying goes, however, the best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry, and Spencer (my brother) found out only a week before the trip that his work couldn’t give him the required time off.  He was upset, and I was faced with a dilemma; I wanted to go on the trip, but I didn’t want to go alone.  Geeking out simply isn’t as much fun by yourself.  I felt bad too, since the trip was originally for Spencer.  So I could skip the whole trip and just spend the time off with him instead.  A friend of mine was attending the show this year, and he could pick up our goody bags if I chose to stay home.

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The July Hiatus

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Treetops

Has it really been an entire month since I’ve posted here?  it honestly doesn’t seem like it.  I’ve visited the blog frequently (every day), and though I’ve had a lot of ideas for things I’ve wanted to post, and have even written a fair amount of half-finished articles, I never got around to posting much of it all.

I guess I’ve been a bit busy.  Not enough to completely excuse me from my absence here, but pretty busy.  Since I feel like I owe an explanation to anyone who’s been visiting the site and wondering what happened to me, I’ll briefly run through everything I’ve been up to.

To kick things off, I got myself a new bike a little over a month ago.  My girlfriend and I have enjoyed going for walks on the roads and trails near our apartment since we moved here, and we both thought it would be fun to have bikes to better take advantage of the bike paths, as well as for a simple form of local transportation.  So far, it’s been a lot of fun to be able to hop on a bike and jet around the area for a bit, and it’s also been a good amount of exercise.  So long as the weather stays reasonable, I’m sure we’ll be doing this for many months to come this year (if not the entire year).

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The Father’s Day Blitz

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Electronic Junk

With less than a week to go until Father’s Day, the ridiculous parade of allegedly dad-focused marketing is already well upon us.  On the way to work this morning, I heard a countless number of commercials trying to convince me to buy my dad a new cell phone.  On TV, I’ve survived a constant barrage of pleas to pick up new flat-screen sets, stereo equipment, and various implementations of carpentry hardware.  Online, it’s been cameras, camcorders, USB memory sticks, hard drives, and all sorts of other computer gadgetry.

Each holiday it gets worse.

I’m not against the idea of getting someone a thoughtful gift, either.  I think that if your dad has been pining for something for a while and you’ve got the means to get it for him, then maybe you should.  But isn’t the whole idea of the holiday lost when you’re stuck in some infinite loop of trying to one-up last year’s gift with something more and more expensive and outrageous?

The idea of buying someone a cell phone as a gift is utterly absurd to me.  A cell phone is a personal thing that you should shop for yourself, since you’re the one who’s going to be using it most of the time.  Not only that, but if the gift receiver doesn’t have a cell phone already, he / she’s going to be stuck with a new monthly bill, thanks to your thoughtfulness.

The notion of gifting a new television is just as bad.  As if people need another $1,000+ added to their burgeoning credit debt.

Since when did the idea of showing your appreciation for someone include buying them a menagerie of electronic gizmos?

While retail world is busy buzzing in peoples’ ears about its newest pile of shiny garbage, I’ll be taking a quiet trip up to the country to my parents’ house.  I’ll probably end up wrestling with some technology anyway; I hear my dad’s been having some computer problems.  But I think that he’ll appreciate the help a lot more than being saddled with an unwanted new cell phone.

Unfortunately, the balance of the entire universe will be thrown off anyway – because for Mother’s Day, I only sent a card this year.  Sorry mom!

Image courtesy of Creative Recycling