Tech Corner

[GreatEmerald]

Yeah, my "120 gig" SSD was actually 111 and my "2 TB" drive was actually 1.8.

So is there nothing that can be done about all of these shenanigans?

No, your 120 GB SSD is a 120 GB SSD, and your 2 TB drive is a 2 TB drive. It's just Windows being absolutely stupid and to this day misnaming the data sizes. They show sizes in GiB and TiB, but label them as GB and TB, which is completely wrong. Since 120 GB is 111 GiB and 2 TB is 1.8 TiB, you get such confusion.

In reality, there is no reason whatsoever to count data on disk in powers of two any more (it still makes sense for RAM, though). That's why on Mac OS X everything is counted in the actual SI sizes (TB, GB, kB), and on Linux you can choose between the two systems (with the binary prefixes shown correctly as *iB).

So don't blame the disk manufacturers for the shortcomings of your OS. For instance, my 640 GB drive is actually a bit larger than that:

Disk /dev/sda: 640.1 GB, 640130801152 bytes

If you're asking about whether it's possible to make the occupied space smaller, you can always disable volume shadow copies. That should save a whole lot of space. I have never needed the shadow copies, and last time I used the feature was on Windows XP, and back then it was pretty broken anyway. Alternatively you can set a limit as to how much space should the copies take.[/quote]

[mr.hackcrag]

When I turn on my PC, the fans roar and then wind down to "regular" speed. The noise it makes is kind of shocking. Is this normal? People at the store told me the PC would be silent, but I can hear the fans easily when it is running. What's going on?

[GreatEmerald]

Yea, the initial high noise is due to the system firmware not yet handling fan control in the boot process (and the fans running noisily by default). That's normal. As for hearing the fans, it depends. You won't be able to have a completely silent PC unless it's cooled passively. But it shouldn't be startlingly loud once it loads. You can also adjust the fan levels manually by using SpeedFan (or on Linux using lm_sensors).

[Pol]

When I turn on my PC, the fans roar and then wind down to "regular" speed. The noise it makes is kind of shocking. Is this normal? People at the store told me the PC would be silent, but I can hear the fans easily when it is running. What's going on?

You have better ears than them.

What you're hearing is likely the graphic card, that's most noisy component in your system. And one, which you cannot (likely) volume down more than to 22dB.

My first computer was having 14dB, this second one is more noisy, about 18dB - so you hear it - but it doesn't disturb.

And now, there are people, who are sitting next to their 28dB noise generator and tell you, eye to eye, that they have completely silent PC. It's not that they don't hear it but they deliberately ignore it.

You have three coolers - PSU, CPU, VGA. VGA and CPU can be usually regulated within OS. Your board is Gigabyte and VGA from MSI? If so, both vendors have utility to regulate fan speed.

[GreatEmerald]

You have three coolers - PSU, CPU, VGA.

Don't forget case fans. In my case (oh hey, pun!), I have 4 case fans: front, back and two side fans (one for GPU and one for CPU). Finding a motherboard that could control all 5 was a challenge.

[mr.hackcrag]

And now, there are people, who are sitting next to their 28dB noise generator and tell you, eye to eye, that they have completely silent PC. It's not that they don't hear it but they deliberately ignore it.

Thank you for this. Now I realize why my expectations were not met.

[mr.hackcrag]

Does anyone here have experience with using Reaper and help me troubleshoot my piano recording problem?

[Banedon]

Buying a new laptop (merged into tech topic)

- Must be a laptop since I will be moving around a fair bit
- Primary purpose is for gaming. I want to be able to use it for top-end games for ~3 years
- It needs to have international and preferably on-site warranty. If no on-site warranty, it needs to come from a multinational company with service stations in all major cities
- No upper limit on budget but I don't want to pay a few thousand dollars extra for a computer only marginally more powerful than a cheaper version. Looking at around ~1500 USD / 1000 GBP
- Battery life doesn't really matter much, although of course the longer the better

I'm thinking of getting an Alienware laptop. The one with the lowest specs comes right around the budget. Good idea?

[GreatEmerald]

Link, please?

Generally look at what you have available. We can advise you if a laptop has some major flaw or not.

[Banedon]

This is the link from the Malaysian Dell store (which is the cheapest of the Dell stores that I can easily reach): http://configure.ap.dell.com/dellstore/ ... &cs=mydhs1

This basic model comes to ~RM 4400. This is at the lower-end of the budget range. I can afford to spend ~RM 600 more, if needed.

[GreatEmerald]

If it's for running modern games, I'd invest in a better graphics card. That one can run the current games on high graphics settings, but anything newer would probably run only on low settings (and it won't be able to run external HD monitors, either). You can deduct something from the processor for that, because that one is grossly overpowered. You won't need anything near that for the current games. Most games don't even use four cores to begin with.

I also see that the laptop includes a whole lot of garbage add-ons, which probably add a bit to the price and are just an annoyance. Alienware specialises in nice looks, and that also costs more than it would normally cost.

[Pol]

Should it be portable?
lightweight, small screen size till 14"

or

Really gaming, huge notebook with 17"?

You should get extended warranty, better to have SSD drive, that's for now.

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[Corribus]

My previous computer was a laptop I intended to be used for gaming. I recommend against it. I spent a small fortune for a computer that performed half as well as a desktop, and it weighed almost 20 pounds, which meant it wasn't exactly easy bring everywhere I wanted to take it. The bottleneck is the GPU - a really good one just won't fit in a laptop chassis. Plus the thing overheated all the time. It was a real pain.

My latest computer I put together myself. I paid about 1/3 the price I paid for my laptop for a computer that runs about 5 times as well.

[Banedon]

Thanks for expert advice Great Emerald. At this point I think I'll scrap the Alienware plan. From your description it looks rather overpriced, and besides I searched on YouTube for what an Alienware laptop looks like and the "nice looks" don't look nice at all to me.

Corribus I had the same feeling after my first gaming laptop, after which I bought a crappy laptop + a powerful desktop. The problem is that this time I foresee a nomadic existence for myself for at least the next year. I don't mind carrying stuff (and I don't care if the screen is 17 or even 18 inches - as long as I can carry it), but I will be moving around a lot. That makes the desktop impractical. On the other hand I *could* buy a laptop good enough to last a year with half the budget, after which things will hopefully settle down and I can buy a desktop. Would this be a good idea? Can half the budget buy a laptop good enough to last a year, and then a top-of-the-line desktop afterwards?

[GreatEmerald]

I don't think so. The difference between a lower end part and a higher end part, while not going to the point of diminishing returns, is still not enough to halve the price. Getting two computers is always more costly than getting one. And in one and a half a year after you can get a PC, there can already be worthwhile changes to both games and hardware. So I'd say it's more efficient to get a more powerful laptop now and last longer without a PC, given that you are stuck with a laptop anyway.

You should just search around for better balanced laptops. Something akin to this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6834227056
It has a super powerful GPU that will definitely last three years, and while its CPU isn't quite as good, games really don't need anything better than that.

[ThunderTitan]

Plus the thing overheated all the time. It was a real pain.

You're lucky it didn't break, i have several friends that had their gaming laptop malfunction because of the heat...

Just use laptops for older games while travelling...

[GreatEmerald]

You're lucky it didn't break, i have several friends that had their gaming laptop malfunction because of the heat...

Just use laptops for older games while travelling...

I never had a gaming laptop, but in general overheating can be solved by cleaning out the vents and replacing the thermal paste every once in a while.

[Pol]

@Banedon

You need to decide. Generally idea of getting gaming notebook is pretty feasible today. Perhaps you don't need an Alienware just a 'mere' gaming DELL.

As for CPU and VGA balance, versus heating and future. Combination of i7 and nvidia GT650 could be just very accurate. But expect at least 16" and much more likely 17" or/and external monitor for gaming pleasure.

There's a review for some Alienware.

For many reasons you should prefer Win7 over Win8, however with getting Win8 Pro you are entitled to downgrade to W7, having the original matrix.

[Kalah]

I still have some RAM chips (2x1Gb) if anybody wants them:

1024 MB DDR2 PC4200 CL4, 533MHz, 128x64, 240-pin Unbuffered, 1.8V,
1024 MB DDR2 PC5300 CL5, 667MHz, 128x64, 240-pin.

[ThunderTitan]

...


Hey, Pol, what's a good 2TB HDD these days?

I still have some RAM chips (2x1Gb) if anybody wants them:

1024 MB DDR2 PC4200 CL4, 533MHz, 128x64, 240-pin Unbuffered, 1.8V,
1024 MB DDR2 PC5300 CL5, 667MHz, 128x64, 240-pin.

Hmm, i do have one slot free....