luna2100's blog

Switching to DTV

2008-05-11T20:45:00.000-07:00

Switching to Digital TV will bring better image quality, but it has its disadvantages, too. One thing I read was that if you have a letterbox TV, you will see black edges around the picture. You will have to zoom the image, but some parts of the image might not be seen. Thats because some channels will broadcast in widescreen mode only. So on widescreen TVs, you might have better luck. If you have a new TV or Widescreen TV, it may already have a built in converter box. Visit www.dtvanswers.com to learn more about the switch to DTV and learn about the converter boxes, and also get a free $40 coupon mailed to you. With this coupon, you may end up paying a lot less, or maybe nothing for a converter box, depending on the price of it.

Build Your Own No-Compromises $1,500 PC

2008-03-25T21:08:00.000-07:00

Get April 2008's Volume 13, Number 4 Maximum PC magazine or look out for the next. All instructions are there. For this issue, you need: Videocard: XFX GeForce 8800 GTS 512 Alpha Dog Edition-$350; Motherboard: MSI P35 Neo2-FR-$120; CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600-$275; Memory: Patriot 4GB DDR2/800-$120; Case: Cooler Master CM Stacker STC-T01-UW-$120; Power Supply: PC Power & CoolingSilencer 610-$120; Operating System(OS): Windows XP Professional-$100; Hard Drive: Seagate 750GB Barracuda AS 7200.10-$184; Optical Drive: Optiarc AD-7190A-$25; Soundcard: Creative Labs Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer-$80.

Rumor Mill: Vista Replacement in 2009?

2008-03-25T21:02:00.000-07:00

"According to online sources, Microsoft is pushing up the release of Vista's follow-up, code-named Windows 7, from 2010 to late 2009. These sources claim to have erlay alpha versions of the nascent OS, leaked by OEMs. The official word from Redmond is "no comment," but we wouldn't be surprised if MS is putting pressure on its dev team to quickly roll out a follow-up to Vista."- Maximum PC

Breaking: iPhone Still Sucks!

2008-03-25T20:54:00.000-07:00

"It's been nearly a year since Apple's blessed iPhone hit store shelves, and we're still scratching our heads. Hacked applications are a poor alternative for official support on Apple's side. Where's that promised SDK? It's hard for us to find answers using the iPhone's atrocious EDGE-based Internet connection. Hey, Apple, let us know when you're ready to make improvements that aren't related to the device's storage limits."- Maximum PC

eSATA Loses Its Power Cord

2008-03-25T20:49:00.001-07:00

"Take that, extra cable. The Serial ATA International Organization recently announced that it's pursuing a new specification of the eSATA standard. In this version, eSATA will be joining its connection peers by offering power over the data cable itself. The new cabling will remain compatible with existing eSATA plugs and not suffer from any speed reductions"- Maximum PC.

Wired vs. Wireless

2008-03-25T20:41:00.000-07:00

"With 802.11n Draft 2.0 routers and wireless network adapters becoming both ubiquitous and relatively inexpensive- and with 802.11n media center extenders finally reaching the market- you might be wondering if building an old-fashioned wired network is worth the trouble and expense"- Maximum PC. The thing is that wireless networks or routers are best for streaming audio and browsing the web, while wired networks or routers are best for streaming video and transferring/downloding/uploading files. So think first and make a wise choice.

Download Managers/Accelerators

2008-03-02T17:18:00.000-08:00

If you are on connections of 56k or slower and wish to improve/increase speed performance, give up. There is nothing that can increase you internet speed. Download managers like DAP or Free Download Manager will not increase downloading speed at all. The good thing about those is that you can resume paused downloads if you pause one or if for some reason you get disconnected. Other ineternet boosting software will not increase speed either. Some websites will offer registry tweaks that will change modem speed a bit. Spme sites are http://www.johntp.com/2006/02/12/tweak-your-56k-dial-up-modem/ and http://www.mdgx.com/modem .

Is Google TiSP Real

2008-02-24T17:42:00.000-08:00

Today, I was told that Google TiSP was an April Fools Day prank. I read the page over again, but didn't find anywhere that said it was a prank. Is it a prank? I'd like to know.

Installing New Hard Drives

2008-02-15T11:23:00.000-08:00

Installing a new hard rive on a computer is as easy as 1-2-3. I've done it myself. I had a computer that did not work, so I took the 40 gig hard drive out and replaced it over a 30 gig hard drive. Visit these websites to learn how: http://www.helpwithpcs.com/upgrading/install-hard-drive.htm and http://www.buildeasypc.com/hw/howto/insthdd.htm

SOCAL Free Internet

2008-02-11T19:12:00.000-08:00

If you want 56k dial-up internet, why not get it for FREE! SOCAL Free Internet provides free 56k dial-up internet without costs (costs on phone bill depend on area code used). Give it a try. If you are not satisfied, just stop using it, no cancelation needed. Even though not fast like broadband, it's affordable. Visit the website: http://www.socalfree.net/ . Why pay for Netzero free internet with 10 hour limits, when you can get the same features without limits. You may need to sign up to free e-mail services like Gmail or Yahoo! Mail.

Increase Download Speed

2008-02-11T19:05:00.000-08:00

If you download many file from the internet on a slow internet connection, make shure you have a download manager to boost and resume downloads. This way, any problem that occurs while downloading will not make you lose what you had been downloading so far. Some managers consist of DAP, Free Download Manager, FlashGet, etc. These managers split the downloads in pieces to download at a faster rate and optimizes the download speed depending on your connection speed.

Are Newer Computers Worse?

2008-02-08T19:44:00.000-08:00

I have used Windows Vista computers running on HP Pavilion PCs. I have actually had many errors with it. The older computer that I am using works way better, but less and less programs are compatible with it. Some problems were Windows Update, Windows Defender, CD-ROM drive, crashes, freezing, errors, and more things when installing programs.

Intel Centrino Duo Proccessor

2008-02-08T19:31:00.000-08:00

I always thought the Centrino Duo was one proccessor. Until I heard from someone that any computer with a Centrino Duo has two proccessors instead of one. I will try to research on this for some time.

The New AMD

2008-02-08T19:28:00.000-08:00

Have you heard of the new AMD Phenom proccessor? I just saw it on a computer when I was looking at the specials from Fry's Electronics. I don't know much about it yet.

The Nissan Skyline GT-R

2008-02-07T21:16:00.000-08:00

Did you know? The Nissan Skyline GT-R will be shipping in soon to the USA from Japan. I'm not shure when, but I think it'll be in this year. Very cool car with much horsepower. It's one of my favorites.

Computer without a fan

2008-02-06T19:06:00.000-08:00

As you already know, new computers have at least to fans inside to cool up the inside (motherboard, hard drive, etc.). Well, I have a pretty old computer with Windows ME and an Intel Celeron proccessor with 700Mhz. This computer does not have a fan. So what I did was get a small fan that I had in my room. I took the side cover off, and put the fan right on its side. The small space between my desk and my bed was excellent to hold the fan against my computer. Even though the side is open, you can't see it because of the fan. In this way, the computer will have more ventilation and will not heat up.

The Death Clock

2008-02-06T19:00:00.000-08:00

Don't get scared by the name. The Death Clock is an online website where it supposedly tells you what date you are going to die and how many seconds of life you have left by simply telling your date of birth. Okay, that does sound scary. Give it a try. After all, I think it's just for fun!

Rhapsody or Napster

2008-02-02T16:05:00.000-08:00

Choosing between these is hard. Since both charge $15 for To Go service, it might take time to decide if you have some type of portable player. I have been a member of both. In order to make a good decision, 1. Check if your portable player is listed, 2. Check system requirements, and 3. Download the software of both to see which you are comfortable with. I didn't notice if Rhapsody was compitable with this, but Napster also lets you put music into your MP3 enabled cell phone. Can you make your decision?

About modem optimizing software

2008-02-02T16:00:00.000-08:00

If you are a person who downloads file a lot, especialy for modem optimizing, note that most free optimizers will not optimize your speed, but just tweak it a bit. Real optimizers usually charge you a bit, but do work. Not every thing free on the internet is the best. Actually, free modem optimizers will only waste you time. Some can even slow your connection down. I don't really reccommend free optimizers. If you now about an optimizer for dial-up, please tell me about it.

Modem String

2008-02-02T15:52:00.000-08:00

Modem users, if you're wondering what the extra setting line is for in advanced properties of your modem, it's a line where you can enter a "string". A string is just an extra setting. You may search online for these depending on your modem. One that I know may work on any modem- AT&FX. Supposedly, it "speeds up" internet speed by switching form 56k, or 56,000 bytes, to 115k, or 115,000. There wasn't much change for me, but it might help you. Please reply to me with your results.

A website I know that has many strings for different modems is http://www.modemhelp.net/ , http://www.netfaqs.com/windows/DUN/Modems/inits.asp , http://www.otenet.gr/hd/HTML/extra_settings_modemen.htm , http://www.modemhelp.org/inits/
Search through the list of modems and try the strings out.

luna2100

2008-01-25T16:23:00.000-08:00

Hi. My name is Mark. Most of the things I like are hanging out with friends, meeting new friends, playing and watching sports, technology, computers, etc. Think you have enough to be my friend?