Due to my upcoming changes to my main computer I know that the graphics card I will be installing will easily be able to handle two screens. I currently have the Dell 2005WFP from back in 2002 and its a great screen, but if I’m looking to get another screen I would get two of the same screens. I would probably get the 2007WFP, which is a 20.1 inch WideScreen from Dell with a lot of features.

The things I have to think about:

• I have three PCs connected to a KVM so I need a KVM for dual screens
• OR I can connect on screen to two screens and the other two through the KVM which goes into once screen, that is one option
• With multiple PCs I have to share the audio as well, so the KVM is a must

The idea of two screens came up from people’s recommendations, and the screens now cost between $250 – $340 which is pretty reasonable compared to previous years for screens of this size.

When it comes to computer I always have in mind to upgrade it once every 1.5 years, now it seems I have reached that point. My main PC is acting up, its really slow on the start up, I have to wait over a minute for it to get things together.

Issues:

• Slow Startup
• Needs a clean start
• Some programs eat up the amount of Ram
• 2.5 year old Graphics card

Since its my main PC I usually like it being the heavy hitter, so it needs to pack a punch.

Currently:

• 3.6 Ghz Pentium D
• 2 GB Ram
• nVidia 6800 GT 128 MB Ram
• 6 year old sound card

I’m thinking about getting a new motherboard, chip, 4 GB of ram, and nVidia 8800 GTX, and a few other flares to go with it. I just haven’t looked at all the combinations yet and what is the best but cost-effective solution yet. I’m thinking about changing the case, but I have had the same case for the past 7 years for this main PC, so I’m looking at the Thermaltake case. I’m also thinking about two 750 GB HDs and running them in Raid 1 format so that everything will be safe guarded on this PC. Lots of things bouncing in my mind right now!

I had a few things planned to watch but the highlight of the night is 24, that is what I was looking forward to all week long. I downloaded the MKV 720P version of episodes 23 and 24 on Tuesday to watch on Wednesday night. When I started burning the episodes to DVD the programs said it would take 5 hours for both episodes, which is a lot longer then usual, usually its 2 hours to convert and burn to DVD.

So when I started the converting and burning process Wednesday morning after it finished downloading I started the process and left for work. When I came back it said the file fragmented at the end and so the burning process got canceled and I had to start up again. The whole system was acting extra slow, so I found that a bit strange. I restarted the system and tried it again, and it said that the file was fragmented and so I had to find another solution. I know my DVD player plays DIVX files so I tried burning the episodes straight to DVD on another PC while the main computer continues with the converting and burning.

Then my main PC crashed, and I tried sharing my media to the X-Box 360 through the network but it wouldn’t play any of my files since they were MKV files. I was going nuts, then I tried one last thing which was burning each episode as a DVD on its own and cross my fingers. Then the X-Box 360 wasn’t playing my games, it wouldn’t play Ghost Recon, or Gears of War, and then I noticed it scratched my disk. I then tried I game I don’t like it and the damn thing scratched my other disk as well. So my X-Box 360 went out the window since only Microsoft in the US can fix an X-Box 360 which starts scratching disks.

So two things weren’t out that night, but I was keeping my fingers crossed and later in the night I managed to burn 24 Episode 23 on one disc and Episode 24 on another disc. I was very that worked out but now my X-Box 360 is out of commission.

This is the updated version of the USB memory stick with a capacity meter on the outside, it also has the 256 bit Encryption on the drive, there are different capacities going up to 4 GB, and an 8 GB model in development. I like the simple design of their USB drives.

Link: Engadget

Buffalo has now come up with its third iteration of their successful NASs.

TeraStation Live (Consumer Oriented):

• iTunes Server Capability
• DLNA Adherence

TeraStation Pro II (Business Oriented):

• UPS Support
• Active Directory Support
• A few extra admin features

Regular Features:

• Two USB 2.0
• Four Hard Drives
• Raid 0,1,5,10

Both going for $2,499 which isn’t too bad but its still a little steep in my opinion. You have other choices out there like the Drobo and Infrant NV+.

Link: Engadet

• Centrino (Core 2) Duo T7700 2.4GHz CPU
• 20.1-inch 1680 x 1050 “Ultra Brightview” display
• ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2600 XT 256MB graphics (DirectX 10)
• 4GB RAM
• Dual 200GB SATA drives, eSATA port
• Integrated ATSC / NTSC tuner with IR blaster
• 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth
• HD DVD (read-only), dual layer DVD±RW drive
• ExpressCard slot, HDMI out

This behemoth of a machine has been reviewed, and it has almost everything you could ask from a PC let alone a laptop. It weighs 15 lbs and its 2.3 inches thick with a lot punch under the hood.

Other then the weight, this 20.1 inch maxed out machine tends to make its users smile. It has a 1680 x 1050 movie and game freindly screen. The price ranges from $3000 to $5000 depending on the options you select for this machine. It has a convenient keypad with an adjustable swivel screen to help you orient the screen, people can also see you through the high end camera.

With these specs you can handle all sorts of gaming and movies, and the Intel 802.11n works great. HP has built in analog and HD tuners, and outputs include HDMI and eSATA, and with a new Intel T7700 processor, 4GB of RAM, an ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT 256MB graphics card and a 400GB hard drive powering this machine.

Link: Engaget

I have to say that its difficult finding the right desk and setup for your PC as well as day to day tasks. I have had this desk for over 10 years now, and I really do love it, it does the job for the space I have. I wish I had dedicated office/media area in the house for myself but I only have my room to tweak to my liking. So I was messing around my desk area since I just installed Vista and I changed the screen orientation to enjoy the length of the screen with all the different windows. I have to say that surfing with your screen in a vertical position makes it really easy to read a lot of things without having to scroll, and you can hide the windows gadgets bar to see more of the window. It has a different feel to it, and I’m doing this on a DELL 20.1 WFP screen from 3.5 years ago now, I wish I could get the same model screen and have two of them side by side, but then I don’t think it would fit on the table.

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I keep buying Logitech again and again for all my computer perephiral needs, and everytime they

Pros:

• Great battery life
• Extremely precise
• Can operate up to 6 meters away
• Multiple functions which saves you from using the keyboard such as: Back, Forward, Scroll, Drag Lock, Fast Scroll, and other buttons.
• Very user friendly, but there is a learning curve but once you start using it you will really come to love
• Compact RF Reciever
• Can conncet via Serial or USB
• Very well done Ergonomic design, fits your hand very comfortably, but you have to follow the orientation to fit it in the right spot

Con:

• Don’t install the driver that comes with it, install the updated one from the Logitech website
• A bit pricy but really worth it for such an amazing product from Logitech
• If you are used to using a trackball with your thumb this will take some getting used to.

Price: $60

Link:Amazon

Rating:

Apple has bumped the specs on the Mac Book, and they all start at 2.0 GHz, 1 GB Ram, 80 GB Hard Drives, 802.11n, and go up to 2.16 GHz. They haven’t upgraded their systems to the Santa Rosa platform yet, but that is only a matter of time. I still think that Mac Book is one the best value for money laptops out there, the prices of the laptops haven’t changed and as soon as the Santa Rosa drops in price a bit I think they will include it. When I do get an Apple it will be a Mac Book, its only a matter of time.

Link: Engadget

I am making some progress with the customization and fixes on this machine. The customization is all due to the gadgets the I downloaded to the right toolbar which are very useful for me, there are some which I love and some which are cool. The machine itself is very smooth and I had a bad image of how Vista was going to be but Microsoft did put some decent effort into this program. There are still some compatibility issues that they need to work out so if you don’t need to change then you are better off waiting a little while longer, this isn’t my main machine so I don’t have to depend on it for critical tasks, I am enjoying the interface and finding out the new ways to modify it. It feels like a similar but in a different way.

I solved the sound card issue by downloading the Vista driver for RealTek AC655 and it operated smoothly after the driver update and without restarting.

The only pending issue is the ethernet card, it seems that Vista is having some driver issues with Vista products so it seems I have to wait. For right now I’m satisfied with the use of the Linksys G-Wireless adapter.