If you are looking to have a simple home server, or already have one, which shares your files across the network, a device you should take a look at is the SheevaPlug.

Plug it into a wall socket and bam—a fully-functional Linux server that can store digital media accessible remotely via the internet or function as a remote print or web server. Plus, it supports “multiple standard Linux 2.6 kernel distributions” and it operates on only 5-watts of power.

To me, this device is flat out awesome. Just plug in an external hard drive and you have an ultra lean, power efficient server. Compared to having to maintain a full system just to provide these simple services, the SheevaPlug is an ideal alternative for less than $100. The Wikipedia page offers numerous links to help you get started with whatever you want to do with it.

A significant factor which should not be overlooked is the power usage – or lack thereof. Considering a typical computer will easily pull 30-75 watts depending on the load (and that is being conservative), the SheevaPlug will actually pay for itself in power savings.

This is definitely on my wish list.

Does anyone already have a SheevaPlug (or another plug computer) they are using? If so, please share your experience in the comments.

Full disclosure, I would probably be considered by many to be a border line tree hugger. Among other things, I hate throwing items away which can be reused or recycled by either myself or someone else, especially hazardous things such as computers. That said, I always try to “max out” what I have before considering getting something new.

Recently I upgraded an aging Dell machine at work (with some help from the forum) to better a processor. The processor upgrade essentially maxed out the machine as the memory is at capacity and the processor is one step below the max.

The user has definitely noticed the difference and this has prolonged our need for a new machine for probably another 6-12 months. The grand total for this upgrade was $22. Following my other belief that you buy only what you need, we have definitely saved money on this machine by upgrading the memory and processor as we go… not to mention the money saved by extending the life of the machine.

If you ever have the need to compare a couple of old CPU’s to see which one is “faster”, a good resource is PassMark’s CPU Benchmarks chart.

This chart lists almost any older CPU you can think of and is compiled based on actual scores submitted by users. While certainly not definitive, this gives you a quick comparison of the relative processing power between the CPU’s in question.

Note: I put faster in quotes above because these scores are based on a particular program’s benchmark score.

The old saying goes “if it isn’t broken, don’t try to fix it”. This is a good approach to existing, functional device drivers on your system. However, if you are installing a new device going with the most recent stable driver is probably the best bet.

Whenever you purchase a retail device, it almost always comes with a driver CD. Instead of using this CD, download the latest release from the manufacture’s site instead. More times than not, you will find your CD has an older version because it was packaged and shipped X months ago.

Of course, once you have it installed and working, leave it be!

This is a call for all of you out there to post a comment telling us what you’re running right now for a computer. It doesn’t matter if it’s old or new, pre-built or custom, fast or slow, laptop or desktop, etc. Post your specs.

If you have multiple computers in the home, go ahead and name them all.

What I’m looking for here is a simple one-liner for each computer containing its specifications, monitor resolution, the current operating system on it and how long you’ve owned it.

Here’s an example using my two computers:

Custom build, 1.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 2GB RAM, 250GB HDD, 16x DVD Burner, EVGA nVidia 512MB video, dual monitor, 1680×1050, Windows 7 RC, 3 years

Dell Inspiron 6000, 1.5GHz Celeron M, 1GB RAM, 60GB HDD, 8x DVD Burner, integrated video, single monitor, 1680×1050, Windows XP SP3, 4 years

If you don’t know all the above info for your box, just take your best guess or put "unknown" for the ones you don’t know.

If you want to add in additional info like make/model/dimensions of components such as for motherboard, RAM, monitor(s) and so on, feel free to post that as well.

Why am I asking for this info?

A few reasons:

1. There’s going to be a swath of you considering upgrading to Windows 7 in October. If we know your specs, we can give better advice and tips because not everybody runs a super-duper-fast quad core machine.
2. For those running older hardware, this gives us a better idea of what Linux distributions to recommend to keep you modern without the need for hardware upgrades.
3. Using a laptop? Would be nice to get a general idea of how many of you have one.

Go ahead and post your specs!

While not as popular as the PC vs. Mac or Windows vs. Linux debates are today, the argument for either leaving your computer on all the time or turning it off at night has certainly had it’s fair share of discussion. So to revisit this subject, I thought I would pass along a few articles which address this very subject:

• Q/A on HowStuffWorks – This post raises an interesting analogy between your computer and TV which makes a lot of sense.
• Post on Computer Hope
• Post on World Start – An interesting take on what if your computer starts overheating while you are asleep.

From what I have seen, it seems the overwhelming majority of information out there says it is best to shutdown your computer at night. Personally, I used to run it 24/7, but about 3 years ago I went to shuting it down every night. I have not had any hardware problems and I have noticed my home office is typically signficantly cooler when my “space heater” isn’t sitting idle.

What is a keylogger? It’s something that records keystrokes and is normally used without the consent of the user.

You’ve probably heard that keyloggers are a bad thing. It is when used for illegal purposes, such as having a keylogger app installed without your knowledge via spyware. But it’s not a bad thing when you are the one who installed it to keep track of what people are doing when using your computer. For example, if you’re a parent who thinks your child is doing not-so-good things on the internet, you’ll be able to find out what’s been going on with a keylogger.

If you decide to use one, you can opt to use hardware or software.

Hardware

Above is a hardware keylogger from ThinkGeek. It connects directly to the keyboard connector, can be hidden easily and holds up to 128k of data. While that may not sound like much, bear in mind it’s all text so it is actually quite a bit. Additional features include password protection and keyword searching.

The only real drawback is that it is, as you can see, a PS/2 connector and not USB. However that can be easily remedied with an adapter should you use USB.

Cost is $59.99

There are other hardware-based keyloggers out there on the internet, just do a search for them and they’ll show up.

Software

You need not look any further than SourceForge to find freely available keylogging applications for Windows and Linux.

Best Free Keylogger, a.k.a. BFK, is one of the better ones.

Bear in mind you do have to set up appropriate permissions for this app, and if you use existing spyware/malware security software it may identify this app as "dangerous". Obviously it isn’t, so if you see the warning(s), give the app the appropriate security "pass".

Which is better, hardware or software?

Hardware is the better of the two because it’s not an app you can simply disable as it requires no software. The only way to disable the hardware is to literally unplug it.

Will either slow down my computer?

No. Either will run in the background seamlessly.

When it comes time to get a new computer, whether you are building your own or purchasing a pre-built, to really get the most bang for your buck you should only pay for the hardware you need. For example, if you are getting a machine for just internet and email, you don’t need a fancy graphics card because you ‘might’ play games on it… the integrated graphics will do just fine.

You can very easily nickel and dime yourself, especially with computers when you consider virtually everything is upgradable. After adding just a bit more memory, a slightly faster processor and a little bit better graphics card (etc., etc.) the price of your computer is now $50-75 (give or take of course) more. Instead, just get what you know you need and upgrade when the time comes. Usually you can get much better parts for a cheaper price than what you would have paid for at the time.

Granted this tip assumes you know how to upgrade components yourself, if you do fall into this category you will most likely find this does save you some money.

Periodically I get asked the question, “So, what are you running?”, in relation to my computer box, its OS, the apps I use, the hardware I use and so on.

Before I list off my stuff, Dave uses a Mac Pro quad-core with I believe 9GB of RAM. His monitors are dual Dell 24-inchers and an older third one that I can’t remember the make/model of at the moment.

The hardware:

• My box is a custom case with a Biostar motherboard.
• My CPU is a 1.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo.
• I run 2GB of RAM.
• My hard drive is 250GB (and yes I know I should really add in another drive given how cheap they are these days).
• I use a plain-jane wired optical Microsoft Comfort Optical Mouse 1000 with the wheel-click set as a double-click (very handy) using the Microsoft Intellimouse software. (INTERESTING TIBIT: On that link for the software, Windows 7 is already mentioned. Interesting, eh? There’s even a support page for it already.)
• My keyboard is a Saitek Eclipse blue LED backlit, bought on sale for $29.99 with free shipping so it was a true $29.99. Works fairly well. Not the best keyboard I’ve ever owned but does the job. I appreciate the fact the Saitek does not require any special drivers at all to use. Just plug in and go.
• I run a dual-monitor setup, one is a BenQ FP202W at 1680×1050 and the other an now-ancient Sony SDM-S73 17-inch which has definitely seen better days but functions fine as  a secondary monitor. I do appreciate that the base on the Sony is heavy. It stays put.
• The video card I have is 512MB EVGA which is an nVidia 8400GS dual-head (one DVI, one VGA).
• I own three USB sticks, all Sandisk cruzer micros. One is an older 512MB, one 2GB and one recently purchased 4GB. My next one will most likely be a 16 or 32GB because it would be very cool to offload most if not all the stuff I have backed up on DVD on to a single USB stick. The dream situation (which may happen in less than 2 years) is to have a 120GB stick or at least 80GB. For all intents and purposes, that’s a backup drive and a darn good one at that.

Some of the software I use (if I listed it all it would be a bit too lengthy on read):

• My primary OS is Windows XP Pro Service Pack 3 with all the latest updates. No, I do not own Vista and don’t plan to considering Win 7 will be here in less than a year.
• My primary office suite is OpenOffice. I have been using this for a long time. And since version 3 was released it looks and feels just about right.
• My secondary office suite is a now-ancient Microsoft Office 2000. This in my opinion was the last version of MS Office that ran fast before it got all bloated up and ran like crap. Some say that the current Office 2007 goes back to how fast the software used to be, but I personally don’t feel like shelling out $500 just to find that out, nor do I feel like installing the 60-day trial (although it is nice Microsoft offers a trial run for that long). OO does the job, and if not, MSO 2000 will.
• I use Launchy a lot. A whole lot. It is faster than using a mouse to launch apps and I like speed.
• I use Sizer to quickly resize windows to specific dimensions. It comes in handy when I record screencasts.
• My primary browser is Firefox. I use only a scant few plugins to keep memory use down. The two I use most are Foxmarks and ScreenGrab.
• My primary text editor is Notepad++. It’s the best text editor for Windows, period.
• My PDF reader is FoxIt Reader. It is lighter and faster than Adobe Reader.
• I create PDFs using OpenOffice (there’s a “PDF” icon right in the software) or PDF Creator as a pseudo print driver.
• My primary instant messenger is AIM Lite, and if I weren’t using that I’d most likely use Miranda. Both these IM apps are not about features but all about being lightweight and speedy.
• My primary blogging tool is Windows Live Writer. If I had to go without this, that would suck.
• My email application is Mozilla Thunderbird. No matter what mail I go with I inevitably always come back to t-bird.
• I backup my mail using KLS Mail Backup.
• I use KeePass Password Safe as my password manager.
• Being the GPS nut that I am, I have a host of mapping utilities including Garmin’s MapSource, WebUpdater, and POI Loader. I also use Google Earth, KMLCSV, GPXTOPOI and a few others.
• I do have Steam installed when I feel like playing a few games every so often.
• For easy dual-monitor wallpaper I use Display Fusion.
• For screencasting I use Camtasia Studio.

Well anyway, that covers about, oh.. 35% of the apps I use.

What’s your hardware?

List the stuff in your computer box. Does it work for you? What do you plan to upgrade later?

What’s your software?

What do you use most often and why? Do you prefer to stay with older versions or go with the latest/greatest?

Let us know.

Cleaning your computer hardware is something you should periodically do. The reason is simple as over time dust accumulates on the components and acts as both a barrier to airflow and an insulator which can bottle up heat on your components.

If you have never physically cleaned your computer, the process is quite simple and doesn’t take long to do. Microsoft actually has a very concise guide for cleaning your hardware. While you don’t need to get everything ’spotless’, it is important to at least get the visible accumulation of dust out as this not only improves longevity but can actually help improve your computer’s performance.

While you should probably do a cleaning every few months or so, if you keep your computer on the floor or you have pets you might want to consider cleaning more often. Having your computer on the floor can cause more debris to be sucked up through your air intake and if you have pets… well you know how it is.

While I’m sure a lot of our readers are not into gaming, I am also sure a large number are. If you are and prefer to build your own system over purchase a ready made, then this tip is for you. This article on Tom’s Hardware titled ‘System Builder Marathon: Performance & Value : Is Spending More Justified?‘ covers building a gaming machine on 3 distinct budget ranges and compares the resulting systems.

The 3 budget values examined are $625, $1,250 and $2,500, which seems like typical amounts people spend on gaming machines judging by posts in the forums here. The really interesting angle of this article is the comparison of what extras you get for the extra money.

Jumping to the conclusion:

As we’d hoped, performance scales directly to dollars spent, but not proportionally. Performance increases are almost linear whereas build-cost increases are exponential. Doubling our $625 PC budget produced a 78% performance gain in the $1,250 PC, but doubling the $1,250 budget gave our $2,500 PC only a measly 13% gain. Overclocking helped the $2,500 PC more than the rest, but  the value of high-end systems is always somewhat questionable.

One thing to keep in mind, is these systems were spec’ed in December, but for the most part the prices should not have fluctuated too much.

Are certain computer parts better than others when it comes to building your own PC? Yes. Are certain computer parts better than others concerning Microsoft Windows? That’s another yes.

If you stock your built PC with parts that are the right choice the first time, your Windows installation will run better and faster.

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In the days of old people would keep computers as long as 5 years or longer. However these days a new computer barely gets past 3 years before needing replacement – or so it seems.

You can easily get 5 years out of a computer if you buy it correctly the first time.

In fact, you most likely already own a computer that you can get a few more years out of.

Please Login or Register to read the rest of this article. Gold/Silver Membership required.

In the days of old people would keep computers as long as 5 years or longer. However these days a new computer barely gets past 3 years before needing replacement – or so it seems.

You can easily get 5 years out of a computer if you buy it correctly the first time.

In fact, you most likely already own a computer that you can get a few more years out of.

Please Login or Register to read the rest of this article. Gold/Silver Membership required.

In the days of old people would keep computers as long as 5 years or longer. However these days a new computer barely gets past 3 years before needing replacement – or so it seems.

You can easily get 5 years out of a computer if you buy it correctly the first time.

In fact, you most likely already own a computer that you can get a few more years out of.

Please Login or Register to read the rest of this article. Gold/Silver Membership required.