I made an HD 4870 for dinner!
I was recently granted custody of an ATI HD 4870 1GB video card. A client’s PC was refusing to POST and the culprit was one of her HD 4870s. Because the card was very out of warranty, she let me have it.
Now the last thing on my list of crap to replace in my PC is the video card. At this point I’ve updated everything except the video card. I’ve been saving up for an ATI HD 5870 to replace my ancient ATI HD 3870.
And now this HD 4870 falls into my lap. It’s more than twice as fast as the HD 3870. Fate must be playing tricks on me again.
ICY DOCK MB663UR-1S Review
First, the finished product.
It took 2½ hours to install because, while very pretty and functional enough for my needs (WHS internal/external backup drive), the entire docking frame was very, very poorly assembled and insufficiently documented.
DFI’s LANParty Division Going Away?
Rumor has it that DFI is shutting down its LANParty line of products, mainly since there haven't been any significant updates to their product line in over half a year and they're only focusing on their industrial products at Computex, unlike previous years where the LANParty products were emphasized.
Also, they seemed hesitant to answer any questions on the LANParty Division's status when a reporter from Bit-Tech visited their offices in Taiwan.
DFI's LANParty division brought us a number of products aimed at the PC ethusiast including the bizzare hybrid LGA 775 + ION dual system on one ATX board (complete with integrated gigabit ethernet switch connecting the two systems' independent gigabit NICs into a single port).
Computer Cleaning Day!
Well, the cleaning bug hit me today, but luckily I thwarted it by focusing its energy into my PC rather than the dirty apartment. I took a few pictures after I was finished!
There’s still a small tangle in the bottom left of the first picture, but by the time I finished with the rest of the cords I didn’t have enough cleaning powah remaining to attack it.
Eat a burger for your health
A recent study found that processed meats in particular may be what causes the increased risk of heart disease usually associated with red meat. The key may be that processed meats have almost four times as much salt as steaks, burgers, and other non-processed meat-like substances.
Windows Home Server v2 “Vail”
We Got Served has a bunch of information on next Windows Home Server OS.
“Want to know more about Windows Home Server Vail? The all-new version of WHS v2 has just hit the preview stage and We Got Served is loving it! You can find a huge preview of all of Vail’s new features here in our Vail Preview Deep Dives, as well as walkthroughs, top tips and a couple of hidden secrets revealed along the way! Over at WGS Forums, thousands of experts and enthusiasts are sharing their thoughts on Vail – why not join them?”
Update: Executive Summary of New Features
- Based on Windows Server 2008 R2, 64-bit CPUs required
- Significantly improved console (now “dashboard”) and remote website UI
- Remote website customizable out-of-the-box
- Remote website compatible with mobile devices
- Remote website can stream and transcode music and video on the fly
- Homegroups
- Server can back up its operating system files and client back ups
- Client restore OS can easily be written to CD, DVD, or USB
Source: We Got Served – WHS Vail Preview
iPad Users Confused by Inconsistency
So… there was a study conducted which covered the usability of Apple’s fancy iPad. So it turns out that, according to the study, UI inconsistency between apps is a major source of confusion among users of the device.
Holy crap. You mean Apple users might start appreciating the downside to having so many different app developers? Welcome to having a popular software platform.
Source: Yahoo! News
HP ZR24w: Thoughts, Review, and Proof
I finally decided that I needed to stop focusing on only upgrading the hardware inside my computer and buy a new monitor. After all, it wouldn’t be worth it to potentially spend $400 on a video card if I were only going to use it with an old 1600x1200 display, right?
Well, after about a month of going back and forth between cheap giant TN panels and prohibitively expensive professional IPS panels, I finally decided on HP’s new ZR24w.
Skype to introduce free 5-way Video Conferencing next week
Windows PCs will get the feature first. And while it will be free initially, Skype may start charging for it and “other upcoming features in three or four months,” according to Yahoo! News.
Apple Axes (Semi) Popular Music Service Lala
Well, this is depressing. I actually used Lala, and the iTunes credit reimbursements are definitely going unused. Well executed buy out and shut down, Apple.
“Four months after buying Lala Media's popular online music service for a reported $80 million, Apple is pulling the plug on the 5-year-old site.”