Step 10: The Rest.
The rest of the stuff you run is solely up to you. As an example I run nothing but trackballs for my mousing needs. I still have two of the original Trackballs that Microsoft first came out with and they work just fine. On my main computer I run a finger mouse Trackball. I ran them a few years ago but the quality was poor and they died after only a couple of weeks. However, a company named Fellows is putting out this latest batch and since they have a three year guarentee I thought I would try them again. If you play fast action games they may be useless for you but as for myself I play RPG’s and stratagy games and it works just fine. I die just as fast in Dungeon Siege with one as without. My keyboard is a Logitech and my case is an Inwin. I have used the same Inwin case to build my last three computers. I really like that case. I feel for the thief who tries to steal it since my computer weighs a ton and takes two men and a boy just to unplug it. Luckily I don’t plan on moving anytime soon.
One last point. I never overclock my equipment. Some games don’t like it and I only like buying my parts once if I can help it. I’m sure Mikie likes it but I don’t. By the way, speed isn’t everything. I like reliabality and longevity. You may not. If you are like Mikie then there are companies out there to assist you in your overclocking needs. Don’t ask me, last time I overclocked was in a 67 Cougar XR-7 with a 7.5 liter 390…you should have been there…it was glorious!
If you decide to build your own rig you’ll need a bit of knowledge to go with your new found bravado. Smart Computing is a good mag and I recommend it to all my friends. Invest in a resource such as the PCMechanic CD or E-book, available from http://www.pcmech.com/products.htm. Also, realize that you shouldn’t believe everything you read on the net. For all you know the reviewer could be either in the employ of the company or he could be the lead designer. The same goes for “Hit Pieces”. Subscribe to a decent gamers magazine. I like PC Gamer. Good way to learn what to stay away from and save a little more money. Last but not least for heaven sake build your rig to fit your needs and not the Jones’. So Bubba’s rig will scorch cyber-dirt in one nanosecond or less, big deal! If you try building your rig to keep up with your friends you will never be happy. Not only will you always be running their stuff but it may turn out to be exactly what you don’t want. I have a friend who runs Windows 95 on a Pentium 200. He uses his rig as a home office and a gaming machine. Sure, he hasn’t been able to buy a new game since Noah walked the earth, but he is still happy. He also has more games than you can play in a lifetime. So do I for that matter. But I am grateful. When I was a kid, Risk came in a box and had many small pieces that you could lose real easy. I was always very good at the game and won far more than I ever lost. Its easy to be ruthless when real people don’t die! On the upside you could play it with your friends until the wee hours of the morning. On the downside as your friends get older they no longer want to play Risk. Risk I is published and crashes the whole world, including my rig! Risk I was badly written. Infogrames publishes Risk II. It runs on Win XP. Thanks Mr. Gates. If it weren’t for men like him I would still be looking for those little pieces that I dropped somewhere on the carpet so that I could play with friends who are no longer interested.
If I pass my pop quiz I may be back to harass the innocent later. Maybe we could talk about the pros and cons of the Creative Labs Audugy 2. Or maybe we could talk about gaming, one of my favorite subjects. Or maybe we could… Either way I hope you enjoy Computing as much as I do.
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