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Building a computer does not have to be expensive!

Aside from fear, one of the excuses that I keep hearing from people as to why they don't want to build a computer is that it is expensive. They do their research online and get inspired by these stunningly beautiful computers, then they find out that they cost about two months paycheck and that's the end of it. I have been building computers for quite a while and it saddens me that people would shy away from building their own rig because of the price, when there are other avenues to secure the parts that they need. So where do you get cheaper parts? I am a cheapskate... read more

Goals outline

Describe 'Rough Outline Of Long Term Pc Related Goals' here I just spent I don't know how long...at least 30 minutes..outling a goal. It had paragraphs, bullet points...some sentences...but when I went to "save" I got a page that said: Quote:There seems to be a problem! This wiki cannot be edited because it is locked! As an option, you can certainly go back and try something else. Still not helpful? Try one of the following article categories, then. I don't know if I have the energy to go back and re-write that whole thing. Maybe eventually. A 2nd draft probably isn't... read more

Realworld Performance and What It Means to You...

For years many enthusiasts have debated hardware, I am one of them, you probably are one too, seeing you are here, on OCN.. But in these times the gaps become shorter and shorter I feel, between competitors, and we get much more 'bang for buck' then we ever could have imagined ten years ago.. it's only when a company with a large user base makes a mistake that the community really takes notice these days.. I am going to do some barrel scraping now, so cover your ears if you have sensitive hearing! AMD vs Intel many many moons in the past AMD trumped Intel, for one... read more

Top Ten Gifts for the Holidays

  • by skehoe

PC enthusiasts are hard to buy for. What, you’re going to buy someone a video card? Expensive and foolish, unless you know exactly what they already have and what they want. Instead, here are some gift ideas for builders, overclockers, and gamers that won’t break the bank or insult their intelligence. You know, stuff you’d actually want and use yourself. Not yet another Portal-referencing T-shirt. We’re better than that.             PC Modder Ruler   Price: $40 Buy it here! Measure twice, cut once, right? With templates and guides for fan... read more

Database of motherboard VRM failure incidents

Further read: About VRMs & MOSFETs / Motherboard Safety with high-TDP processors   See more - Scroll Right ->   Link to the spreadsheet read more

Understanding How Computers Use Electrical Power: A Brief Explanation

        Please Note: This is a copy of the thread I posted in October 2012. It has been copied to the Articles section, as this is a more appropriate section for it.   Understanding How Power is Used in a Computer Hello fellow OCN’ers! Due to a rather large number of threads that I have read recently regarding power supplies, various components and their power draw, and questions on power distribution, I have decided to do a writeup on the ways that power is used in a computer. For the sake of this article, I will be using 120volt United States standard... read more

Windows 8 Install & Optimization Guide for SSDs & HDDs By Sean Webster

Sean's Windows 8 Install & Optimization Guide for SSDs & HDDs Why I created this guide: Well, because of all the positive feedback I got from my Windows 7 Install and Optimization Guide I decided to make one for Windows 8! This guide meant to help anyone with a SSD/HDD install and optimize their Windows 8 installation (Windows 8 consumer preview atm). I am currently using Windows 8 in virtual machines, I am pretty new to the new OS design so I will constantly update this guide for everyone's benefit as I learn more. If you would like me to put up a video on a... read more

AMD Fusion and the HSA Revolution: What is HSA and why it will be revolutionary

For questions, comments, discussion and news updates about HSA, please see the forum thread in AMD General [LINK] Quote:   At a time when cracks are appearing in Moore’s Law and the costs of shrinking fab processes continue to skyrocket, an industry that wants to keep accelerating compute capabilities must turn increasingly to optimizing efficiency. Ultimately, this is what GPGPU and HSA enable. By old methods, how much would a CPU need to evolve in order to facilitate a 5x performance gain? Now, such gains are possible simply... read more

MSI’s “MSI Z77 MPower Overclocking Giveaway” Full T&Cs

MSI’s “MSI Z77 MPower Overclocking Giveaway” OFFICIAL RULES Sponsored by Heir Audio(“Sponsor”). NO ENTRY FEE. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. The Promotion begins at 9:00:00 AM Pacific Time (“PT”) September 17, 2012 and ends at 4:59:59 PM PT October 02, 2012 (the “Promotion Period”). 1. Eligibility: The MSI’s“MSI Z77 MPower Overclocking” GiveawayPromotion (the “Promotion”) is open to legal residents of the fifty (50) United States, aged eighteen (18) or older as of the date of entry, who have an active e-mail account and Internet access. Employees of... read more

Guide to Pico-PSUs

So what is a Pico-PSU? In the simplest terms, it's a way to have the PSU be external thereby saving tons of internal space. They are generally low powered (less than 160W) unless you start doing some custom wiring. There are two parts for Pico-PSUs. The AC-DC converter (aka the brick). The DC-DC converter (what sits inside the case). Things to consider: The AC-DC converter needs to match the specs of the Pico-PSU. If the DC-DC converter can only take 12V makes sure the AC-DC converter outputs to 12V. This needs to be mentioned because many bricks will output to 19V... read more

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