1999 ARTICLE SUMMARIES
12/28/99 If you are looking for a starter
kit for a home or small office network, the D-Link
DFE-910 Network in a Box has speed, expandability, and basic Internet
sharing at a reasonable price.
12/20/99 Just about the time
my wife's radio broke we received this novel device from D-Link... Physically,
it is an FM tuner with an antenna and a cable. Read on to learn more
about the D-Link DSB-R100
USB Radio.
12/1/99 The fastest computer
we have built to date features an AMD Athlon processor, MSI MS-6167 motherboard,
and a Diamond Viper V770 Ultra graphics board. Read more about it in How
to Build Your Own Athlon Computer
11/23/99 The MSI
MS-6167 Athlon motherboard has it where it counts: stability
and performance. Combine it with an AMD 650 Mhz Athlon processor,
128 MBytes of PC-100 memory, a 7,200 RPM ATA/66 hard disk, a high-end
graphics board, and a large screen monitor and you will have the ultimate
gamer's machine...
11/19/99 The AMD Athlon processor features
a superpipelined, nine-issue superscalar microarchitecture... and multiple
integer and floating point schedulers for independent superscalar, out-of-order,
speculative execution of instructions.' What in the world does all
of this mumble jumbo mean? Let's put this silicon genie back into
its bottle and try to describe
it in brief and more understandable language.
11/17/99 The Toshiba
SD-M1212 6X/32X DVD drive not only brings first-rate DVD movie
quality to you computer screen, it has enough CD-ROM oomph to make a
Windows 98 install on a 650 Mhz Athlon computer quite fast. No
longer do you have to feel that you are giving up substantial CD-ROM
performance to get DVD features in the same drive.
11/16/99 If you are looking for a high-capacity,
high-performance hard disk drive, Western
Digital's WD273BA 27.3 GByte drive is big, fast, quiet, and cool.
11/11/99 The Antec KS282 is a very
attractive and well-designed ATX mid-tower computer case. The model
with the 300 Watt Power Supply is one of the case/power supply combinations
approved by AMD for the Athlon processor. Excellent air circulation
and a hefty power supply make this case an excellent choice for those who
want to build a high-end, fully-loaded computer--a gamer's delight. Click
here to read the review...
11/4/99 The Sony
Mavica MVC-FD88 Digital Camera is a notch up from the MVC-FD83 reviewed
a couple of months ago...
10/30/99 The ChipCoolers
HTS421B-SB is a large heat-sink fan which cools the outside of
a 650 Mhz Athlon processor to almost body temperature.
10/27/99 Sybergen Networks' SyGate
Internet Connection Management Software is the best means of
sharing an Internet connection I've seen to date...
10/14/99 Do you want to watch
TV on your computer? Then just add an ATI-TV
Wonder, install the software which comes with the board, and plug-in
your cable TV, VCR, or camcorder. The ATI-TV Wonder is also a very good video-capture
board.
10/11/99 Success! I just installed
Windows 98 Second Edition Internet Sharing Software (ICS) on our Mom 'n Pop
Local Area Network and it works well with our ISP supplied external cable
MODEM, on a one-way cable system. At last, Claudia can share the Internet
connection and (ah!) read my mail. Read on to find-out How
to Share a Cable MODEM with Windows 98 Second Edition.
10/7/99 The D-link
DFE-530TX+ a very different Ethernet adapter than the D-Link
DFE-530TX recently reviewed in the Digest.
10/5/99 Overall, the General
Instrument's external Surfboard
SB2100D Cable MODEM works quite well and has some advantages and
disadvantages when compared to an internal cable MODEM.
10/4/99 Like other Ethernet adapters
I have seen recently, the LINKSYS
LNE100TX is physically smaller, measuring 2 3/16 by 5 7/8 inches,
and has fewer capacitors...
10/1/99 The Epox
MVP3G2 ATX Super7 motherboard is one rock-solid motherboard,
but its performance with ATA/66 hard disks and that of the disk drives
themselves is rather disappointing.
9/29/99 Editorial: World-wide
Memory Boycott?
9/17/99 "Floppy" drives
just got bigger, again... Iomega's
new 250 MByte internal IDE Zip drive packs still more storage capacity
and speed into a package which is physically the same size as it's 100 Mbyte
predecessor.
9/15/99 If I could sneak $800 past
my wife, I'd be sorely tempted to go out right now and buy a Sony
Mavica MVC-FD83 Digital Camera.
9/13/99 I usually use Acer CD-ROM drives,
but last week the vendor I was placing an order with didn't have any. At
his recommendation, I bought a couple of 44X CD-ROM drives made by a Taiwanese
company I never heard of before. I was pleasantly surprised by the
quality of the Actima A44T 44X CD-ROM
drive.
9/3/99 The AOpen
HX95A ATX desktop computer case is an improved version of
the HX95, a case I have been using for years. It is a good
choice for building the average computer.
8/31/99 The AOpen
HX45A ATX Mid-Tower Computer Case is an excellent choice for
those who are going to build their own computer. It is roomy and
a pleasure to work with. The case looks good, has a solid feel,
is furnished with an ample assortment of hardware.
8/23/99 Are you looking for fast and
easy way to network those PCs you have at home, to share an Internet connection,
printers, and disk drives, and play multi-PC games? How about
one that doesn't require installing network cables or even opening your PC? Read
all about it in a Review of
the IntelŪ AnyPoint™Home Network.
8/13/99 The
A-TOP AT589 Translucent Computer Case
They come in orange, purple, and blue...
Which, to many, is a case quite cool...
8/10/99 AOpen just released a
new version of FM56-ITU FAX/MODEM, my all-time favorite MODEM. Like
its predecessor, this new version, the FM56-ITU/2,
is economical, works well, and is one I can control.
8/5/99 The new EpoX
EP-MVP3C Baby AT Motherboard is a worthy successor to the EP-58MVP3C-M,
which was previously reviewed, and continues Epox's trend of manufacturing
high quality motherboards.
8/3/99 AOpen's
new FM56-PM MODEM employs the Conexant (Rockwell) Mono Pack RH56D/SP-PCI Single
Chip Host to provide a complete set of V.90/K56Flex FAX/MODEM features.
7/27/99 Windows 98 Second Edition,
with Microsoft's Internet Connection Sharing, is one way to connect
your Windows network to the Internet and share an Internet connection with
other users of the network. Here's How
to Network and Share an Internet Connection with Windows 98 Second Edition.
7/15/99 How
to Network Two Windows 95/98 Computers. This article
will show you how to setup the simplest of Local Area Networks: two
Windows 95/98 computers, each with a network interface card (NIC) and
connected together with a twisted-pair crossover
cable.
7/12/99 Hardware Review: The AOpen
FM56-P is currently my choice for a PCI Plug 'n Play K56Flex/V.90
FAX/MODEM. I've had fewer problems with this MODEM than any other
Plug 'n Play MODEM I've used during the last year.
7/10/99 From the Shop. Windows
98 Second Edition, running on a motherboard with the VIA MVP3 chipset, detects
and installs Iomega's IDE/ATAPI Zip drive and the parallel port version of
SanDisk's ImageMate CompactFlash card reader as floppy drives. The
fix.
7/6/99 Hardware Review: The D-Link
DFE-530TX is a high-quality, Fast Ethernet Adapter with
excellent silk-screening, good lay-out, and electrolytic capacitors rated
at 105°C...
7/1/98 How
to install the Windows 98 Upgrade on a new hard disk without
having to first install and then upgrade an older version of Windows.
6/28/99 Ways
to make a Windows 98 Startup Disk which will work when you
need it.
6/24/99 From the Shop. Diary: Weird
Power supply Problem. A customer brought a Packard
Bell, Multimedia R515 Computer (model 890498-03) to my shop with a power
supply problem I haven't seen before.
6/21/99 Hardware
Review. If you are looking for a low-end replacement motherboard
or want to make a modest upgrade to an older computer, without
replacing its 72-pin memory, then the Shuttle
HOT-591P Baby AT Motherboard is in the running...
6/9/99 Hardware Guide. Are
your thinking of building or upgrading your own computer? If so, I
hope some Advice on Buying a Motherboard will
be helpful in that pursuit.
6/8/99 From the shop... Diary. The
Switch-a-roo trick (a slang expression, origin unknown)... Larry
discovers a new trick for fixing Windows 98 upgrade problems.
6/8/99 If you are looking to add a
USB capability to computer which is a no brainer to install, the Ads
Technologies PCI USB Port is just that.
6/5/99 From the shop... Diary. EpoX
BIOS updates, VIA all-in-one Service Pack for the MVP3 chipset, VIA FAQs.
6/2/99 Software Review: In
a nut shell, I don't like Note Pad or Word Pad. Why use multiple tools with
multiple interfaces when one good one should be able to do it all? Don
Z'Borey has solved this problem with NotesPad. It
does it all and does it better.
6/1/99 Hardware Review: I frequently
use a scanner to scan images and documents for Web sites. The Hewlett-Packard
ScanJet 5200C USB Color Scanner provides just
about the right combination of cost, quality, features, and speed for this
function.
4/26/99 Hardware Review: The "high-density" Zip
drive has arrived. Read about it in the Iomega
250 MByte Parallel Zip Drive Review.
4/25/99 Hardware Review: The
Acer ALN-315C is a low cost, bus-mastering, full-duplex,
auto-sensing, Fast Ethernet adapter.
4/16/99 Lawrence Dux of Minnesota
asks, "Where did you get your company
name?"
4/14/99 Build the latest a greatest: How
to Build Your Own Pentium III Computer. There were enough
differences between building a Pentium III computer and a Pentium II
computer that I decided to publish a separate check-list.
4/12/99 If you want to try your hand
at building your own Pentium II computer, the following link will take you
to a complete bill-of materials and a build-it-yourself checklist with comments:
How to Build Your Own Pentium II
Computer.
4/9/99 Hardware Review: Not
everyone needs a high-end sound card in their computer. If you
are looking for a simple ISA PnP sound card which is Sound Blaster Pro
compatible, easy to install and has a good audio rack, the AOpen
FX-3D Plus is a good choice and is very affordable.
4/8/99 So, you bought an Epox
MVP3G-M motherboard, an AOpen HX45 case, etc., or something similar, and
you want to build your own. Here's... How
to Build Your Own Super7 Computer.
4/5/99 Motherboard Review: Epox maintains
it's leadership position in Super7 motherboard market with the MVP3G-M
ATX motherboard. Click here
to read the review.
3/31/99 From the shop... Tips
for solving HP ScanJet 4100C installation problems. MORE
3/29/99 Hardware Review: The NewCom
E-Cam color digital camera is an attractive looking camera with
a street price of about $90.00. It is very easy to install and the
picture quality is quite good for a low-cost camera. Its printer
port interface limits performance. MORE
3/24/99. Hardware Review: Do
you want to watch TV on your computer? Then just add an ATI-TV board,
install the software which comes with the board, and plug-in the your cable
TV, VCR, or camcorder. The ATI-TV is also a very good video-capture board. MORE
3/19/99 From the shop. Diary. Larry
leaves the Internet Bronze Age. Microsoft's Internet Explorer 5.0 has
been released, but is playing hard to get. MORE
3/4/99 Printer Review: f
you are looking for a high-performance, color ink jet printer for personal,
small office, or workgroup use, the HP DeskJet 895Cse is a very good
choice. MORE
2/4/99 Hardware Review: If
you are looking for a low-cost camera to videoconference on the Internet,
setup a videophone, or send video E-mail, the Zoom Telephonics ZoomCam-ISA does
the job for a current street price of about $55.00. MORE
1/29/99 From the shop. Diary: The
Y2K problem. MORE
1/27/99 Hardware Review:
The Hewlett-Packard 8100i SureStore CD-Writer Plus drive is my
current choice for an internal CD burner. MORE
1/19/99 From the shop. Diary:
AMD 350 Mhz and higher K6-2 CPUs and older versions of Windows 95 are incompatible. MORE
1/18/99 Motherboard Review: The
Asus P5A-B Baby AT, Super7 motherboard has too many of one thing
and too few of another. MORE
1/13/99 From the shop. Diary:
the shop, comments on the 300 and 333 Mhz AMD K6-2 processors, the K6-2 and
the Epox Super7 motherboards, and the 400 Mhz AMD K6-2 processor. MORE
1/5/99 Hardware Review: Low
cost, bus-mastering, full-duplex, and fast describe the Acer ALN-320
10BASE-T/100BASE-TX Fast Ethernet adapter. MORE
1/5/99 How to determine what
version of Windows is installed on your computer. MORE
1/4/99 How to install the
Acer ALN-320 Fast Ethernet adapter. These instructions are provided
as an example of how to install a PCI network adapter. MORE |