What I really like about the modern market concerning PC building is that it’s cheaper than ever to build something that truly is fast. A few notes before continuing:NewEgg will be used to list parts and prices. This is not me telling you to shop there as some of you prefer TigerDirect, eBay or other local-to-your-country vendor. I have tested...

When it comes to the usability of a computer, it’s all about the apps. Without the proper apps, a computer is worthless. When you DBAN the drive and reinstall Windows on a PC, instead of reinstalling a bunch of old crap, you’re much better off using what’s freely available today. The biggest difference between then and now is that what we have...

Any of you reading this have been here before: You’re in the middle of an important project whether it be personal or business, and you encounter an error or an unexpected problem getting something done on your computer. Murphy’s Law seems to dictate that the more important the project is to you, the more complex or trying the problem seems to be. If...

The whole Mac versus PC debate will rage until the end of time. It isn’t one that I get much involved with because it is an unwinnable debate. I happen to use Macs. I like Macs. That said, the Windows side of the fence is one I lived on for many years before I switched. It has definite advantages over the Mac. That’s just the way it is. The best part...

The fit-PC2 is a tiny PC. And I mean really tiny. The dimensions of the entire computer are 4" x 4.5" x 1.05". It roughly has the same processing power as a netbook, but the beauty is its size and the fact it only uses 10 watts of power. While this can be used as a regular desktop computer, this is more or less the ultimate in green and small. And...

It’s the little things that matter in life, and this obviously includes your PC. The Dell Studio XPS is a fantastic PC, no question. The two models offered currently are the XPS 8100 and the XPS 9000. The base 8100 model (no monitor included) is $649. And what you get, said honestly, is a very fast machine. The specs include an Intel Core i5-650 3.20GHz...

Okay, it’s time for some PC-builder stuff (hey, it’s required I do one of these every so often because after all it is PCMech, right?) When people hear "scratch-built", they think, "Oh, okay, I have to buy a case.." Stop right there. A true scratch-built is when you either physically construct the case or retrofit some type of box...

In the context of this article, long haul computing means to build a computer box that will remain untouched per its internal hardware for a period of 5 to 7 years, but be used on a daily basis. If you want a really good example of where a box like this would be needed, look no further than your local church. Traditional churches by nature are all non-profit...

For those of you who send emails as text messages to cell phones, you’re well aware that you have to a) send in plain text only and b) count your characters to make sure you don’t trip the 140-character limit. Setting email to send in plain text in easy. In popular email providers such as Yahoo! Mail there is an option right at the top to change from...

The best box that Apple makes is the Mac Pro. The best box that Dell makes is the Precision Workstation, commonly abbreviated as PW. Both are business machines first and foremost. It is very easy to configure either to run you $20,000 for final cost. How to do it? Simple. Check off every single possible option you can throw in when configuring it. First, the Mac...

Longevity is a factor when buying or building a new computer, no question. You don’t want to put your money down on something that will break in less than two years. Even though computers are dirt cheap these days, it always just plain sucks when something busts on your computer box because it just wrecks your day. Computers that last a long time are not...

Last Friday I went to configure my father’s new PC, a Dell Inspiron 531 mini-tower. This is Dell’s lowest-priced offering and it’s as basic as basic can get. A box with Windows XP, mouse, keyboard, power cable and not much else. This box comes provided with a 1.6GHz single core AMD Athlon 2560e 512K, your option of Vista or XP (the chosen OS...

I bought a refurbished Dell Dimension 4400 back when Windows XP was brand new in 2001. It was $625 shipped. The only thing I ever did to it was upgrade the processor from 1.6GHz to a 2.4GHz and bumped the RAM from 256MB to 512MB. Other than that, everything in it is original. I used it for a few years then gave it to my father who has been using it ever...

Some people believe the iPhone was the game-changer concerning what you could do on a mobile device. I say no, because the Danger Hiptop (a.k.a. the T-Mobile Sidekick) predated the iPhone by four years all the way back in 2003. I state this because the ability to do things ordinarily reserved for PCs and laptops only have been on mobile devices for well over 5...

A few definitions up front: Most people know what a netbook is, which is a small-form laptop/notebook computer. The nettop is the same thing in a desktop form, meaning a small-form desktop PC. Right now those of us using traditional tower PCs are very used to the ATX or MicroATX form factor motherboard. It allows a fair amount of room to get inside and add or...

Ah yes, Internet Explorer 6. It has more holes than Swiss cheese, is exploited easily and is slow as molasses. It doesn’t even do tabs. You might be thinking, "What moron would still use IE 6 when you could use 7 or 8?" Corporations would, that’s who. Windows 2000 is still used widely in the enterprise environment. And as anyone who uses...

The single largest advantage of building is the ability to transfer parts from build to build. What this means is that when I upgrade, I don’t have to build a complete computer each time. And this is where the true savings come in when you build PCs. For example, I don’t have to buy a new case, nor do I have to buy a new optical drive. I also...

These are 9 good PC games available on the Steam platform. I suggest using Steam to purchase games because they are attached to your Steam user account (which is free to create). What this means is that if you switch computers later or have to reinstall Windows, all your previously purchased games via Steam will be available simply by downloading them again. No...

If posed the question as to what you think the worst possible thing could happen to a PC is, your answer would probably be, "when the hard drive dies". Wrong. The worst possible thing that can happen is fire. This is when something in your computer overheats, catches fire and starts melting the "guts" (motherboard, chips, etc.). Fire is the...

Over the weekend I had a discussion with a friend who has recently switched to Mac, and he brought up an unbelievably good – and I mean good – point. I’ll get to it in a moment. The friend I speak of is a Mac convert. He switched over, is very happy about it and has nothing but nice things to say about Apple. Granted, there are a few things he...