[Andrea P]

Alright, how much should I mix together, and like a 50/50 solution? Or more water than vinegar?

Well, I found http://www.wikihow.com/Clean-a-Laptop-Screen-with-Household-Products from Google. It says to use circular motion and a 50/50 mix.

[Sunny Under]

More monitors I'm thinking about getting.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236052&Tpk=N82E16824236052(If I get a monitor this is my first choice because it's on sale.)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16889611002
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236053

Just so you guys know I'll just be using a monitor for playing in HD on 360.

I have an ASUS monitor of the same series (non-HD, so I don't know for sure) but it's served me pretty well so far. A warning though, the built in speakers are not good. They're positioned facing the back of the monitor, and obviously don't offer very good sound quality.

[GEo LIme]

Good choices on the components. However, you only need a dual-channel RAM kit for LGA 1156 motherboards What you have is a tri-channel kit and only LGA 1366 motherboards will recognize those. Swap in a 2x2GB kit and save some bucks. Everything else is good.

DVD burners/readers do not come with any chassis unless it's an already-built machine. This will have to be bought separately.

Installing an OS is for the most part rather simple. When you initially get your PC to post, you just have to enter the motherboard's BIOS and set your motherboard to boot off the DVD first. After the save of the BIOS setting and restart of the system, it's just following directions and setting options (partitions, languages, etc) from then on.

Thank you very much!
Now to pop in a network card for my wireless connection and I'm all set. Finally!

[Bloomer]

Guys, I'm really desperate for some mouse and keyboard recommendations from some people in the know, and I've come to acknowledge you as being partially immersed in this "know". So I'm after something mid-range, not obscenely expensive or laden with excessive buttons. I like a bit of the rooty tooty point and shooty and not so much the RTS or MMOs. Also, nothing with unnecessary LEDs or fluff. I've also seen a lot of Razer vs. Logitech battles being waged with horror stories on both sides – doesn't help decision making!

[Steve Bates]

Guys, I'm really desperate for some mouse and keyboard recommendations from some people in the know, and I've come to acknowledge you as being partially immersed in this "know". So I'm after something mid-range, not obscenely expensive or laden with excessive buttons. I like a bit of the rooty tooty point and shooty and not so much the RTS or MMOs. Also, nothing with unnecessary LEDs or fluff. I've also seen a lot of Razer vs. Logitech battles being waged with horror stories on both sides – doesn't help decision making!

Looking for Wired or Wireless?

[Harry Leon]

You can't really go wrong with the http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104178 and, if you can find it anywhere, the http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823224001 is really nice. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles, but it's sturdy and has a nice tactile feedback. It feels great to type and game on. Unfortunately it was discontinued not too long ago, so it may be hard to come by.

[sara OMAR]

Looking for Wired or Wireless?

I'm still not quite sure. My setup is an utter mess of cables but I appreciate the benefits of wired connections.

Also wingus, I hear the MX518 mentioned a lot. Seems to be the affordable alternative to the G9x or whatever whizbang top-tier gadget Logitech is rocking.

[Rachel Briere]

You can't really go wrong with the http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104178 and, if you can find it anywhere, the http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823224001 is really nice. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles, but it's sturdy and has a nice tactile feedback. It feels great to type and game on. Unfortunately it was discontinued not too long ago, so it may be hard to come by.

I'm on my second MX518 and absolutely love it. Been using em for quite a few years now and I really like the way it feels and the extra buttons.

I got a http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823126052 about a month or so ago, and it's a pretty good keyboard. Took some getting used to from my old "keytronic" keyboard, but it feels pretty nice and has some extras that I find useful. It even has a calculator button!

[ILy- Forver]

For a keyboard it would be better to go to a place to test them out.... I was going to buy a $30 Logitech Wave thing but they all sold out. So I will probably go to Fry's just to check out which keyboard feel right....
Current keyboard is the wireless one from an MX Duo.


I use a Logitech G5... I would stay away from their wireless mice.

[Harry-James Payne]

After royally [censored] up my laptop over the last year it's basically regressed into being a piece of unusable junk, absolute trainwreck of a machine.

So, I'm looking for a new laptop that can manage a bit of light gaming (Some RTS's, WoW, Football Manager) with a budget of around ￡500. It would be nice if it was a little bit future proof as well, with the impending release of a few MMO's I'd like to try in TOR and GW2. I don't really want any bells or whistles and it doesn't have to be particularly portable or have a long battery life considering I mostly use it like a "Mobile Desktop" anyway.

Cheers guys, I'm in the UK by the way.

[Wayne W]

After royally [censored] up my laptop over the last year it's basically regressed into being a piece of unusable junk, absolute trainwreck of a machine.

So, I'm looking for a new laptop that can manage a bit of light gaming (Some RTS's, WoW, Football Manager) with a budget of around ￡500. It would be nice if it was a little bit future proof as well, with the impending release of a few MMO's I'd like to try in TOR and GW2. I don't really want any bells or whistles and it doesn't have to be particularly portable or have a long battery life considering I mostly use it like a "Mobile Desktop" anyway.

Cheers guys, I'm in the UK by the way.

These should suit you rather well:

http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Samsung_P560-AS03UK_Laptop_NP-P560-AS03UK/version.asp
http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/GRADE_A1_-_ASUS_K50ID_SX114X_Laptop_77011298-1-K50ID-SX114X/version.asp...refurb though
http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Acer_Aspire_5739G_Laptop_LX.PH602.129/version.asp

[LuBiE LoU]

Hi everybody, I'm having an issue though I'm not sure how familiar you'll be with this problem.

I need to access the service menu on my monitor to get the in-depth settings for image resizing and position. I need it because I have a game console attached to my monitor, but the regular OSD menu doesn't affect the game image.

I'm using an Acer AL2216 (some add a W on the end), and I've tried every Acer service menu code that I've been able to find, to no avail. The main problem I seem to be running into is that most of the codes require you to hold down some of the monitor buttons and then press the power button, but my monitor doesn't allow me to do that. It's as if when holding one button, none of the others will respond if pressed.

Anyway, help would be appreciated!

[casey macmillan]

How do I prevent my computer from connecting to my family's wireless internet connection when I want it to connect through wired?

Sometimes it just decides to switch from wired to wireless (which is less fast and reliable, especially considering how far my computer is from the source).

I'm starting to consider physically removing my wireless card. This is terribly annoying in games when I can't figure out why my ping is high.

Disable your wireless network card. In "Network Connections" (XP: Control Panel->Network Connections, Vista: Control Panel->Network Sharing Center->Manage Network Connections (on the side panel), WIndows 7:Control Panel->Network Sharing Center->Change Adapter Settings (on the side panel)) right-click your wireless LAN and select "disable". If you ever want to enable it, it is just as simple.

Just got a from a vacation, so I have time now to actually address this issue.

Alright, I've done that (Vista, for the record). But now it seems I need to set up a connection to be able to just use a standard ethernet cord running from my router (??!!). I'd need to find the password and whatnot? Shouldn't I just be able to plug it in? And BAM! it recognizes itself as being connected to the internet without having to set up all this junk. That's what I previously have done, and that's all I need to do to connect myself to the internet when I'm at college.

[Cat]

Just got a from a vacation, so I have time now to actually address this issue.

Alright, I've done that (Vista, for the record). But now it seems I need to set up a connection to be able to just use a standard ethernet cord running from my router (??!!). I'd need to find the password and whatnot? Shouldn't I just be able to plug it in? And BAM! it recognizes itself as being connected to the internet without having to set up all this junk. That's what I previously have done, and that's all I need to do to connect myself to the internet when I'm at college.

If you are using a wireless bridge, and connecting to that with ethernet, then yes, you would have to, but if your setup is [Modem]---[ethernetcable]----[Router]----[ethernetcable]---[PC] you shouldn't have to. I've only heard of really high-end routers requiring passwords for wired connections.

[Cool Man Sam]

If you are using a wireless bridge, and connecting to that with ethernet, then yes, you would have to, but if your setup is [Modem]---[ethernetcable]----[Router]----[ethernetcable]---[PC] you shouldn't have to. I've only heard of really high-end routers requiring passwords for wired connections.

OK... wow @ windows. I just did Windows update -- some update was released while I was on vacation -- and now I can see, when I go to manage network connections, "Local Area Connection." Before I could not see that on the manage network connections page; there was only the wireless appearing. LAC was exactly what I was looking for and it befuddles me how it didn't appear before. Forget what I said about having to set up a connection. Whatever crap my computer was spontaneously pulling has now stopped -- hopefully.

Thanks for the help!

[gemma king]

As my laptop's screen is broken, I'm in the market for a new one. Right now I'm lucky enough to be able to connect mine to my TV through HDMI. My current laptop is the Gateway P-7811FX. I'm looking at the ASUS G51JX-X3, would that perform as well as my Gateway? Any other options to consider sub $1,100?

[saxon]

As my laptop's screen is broken, I'm in the market for a new one. Right now I'm lucky enough to be able to connect mine to my TV through HDMI. My current laptop is the Gateway P-7811FX. I'm looking at the ASUS G51JX-X3, would that perform as well as my Gateway? Any other options to consider sub $1,100?

The video cards are kind of a wash although the 360M should perform a bit better than the 260M. The Core i5 CPU in the Asus is considerably better than the one that comes with the Gateway, so overall the Asus should perform better.

[Tania Bunic]

These should suit you rather well:

http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Samsung_P560-AS03UK_Laptop_NP-P560-AS03UK/version.asp
http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/GRADE_A1_-_ASUS_K50ID_SX114X_Laptop_77011298-1-K50ID-SX114X/version.asp...refurb though
http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Acer_Aspire_5739G_Laptop_LX.PH602.129/version.asp

Cheers tig, I can afford all 3 of those, which would you say is the best? Or are they so similar that there's practically no difference in performance?


Also, while I'm here, anyone got a reccommendation for a good monitor that's under ￡150?

[Ernesto Salinas]

I've read it a lot, but I've never quite understood why you shouldn't install games in Program Files or why you shouldn't run games as an admin. I don't run Morrowind or Oblivion as an admin, but I do run certain third party programs (Mash, MGE, Bash) as an admin, and my games are installed in Program Files x86. Will I experience any issues?

[Nicholas C]

I've read it a lot, but I've never quite understood why you shouldn't install games in Program Files or why you shouldn't run games as an admin. I don't run Morrowind or Oblivion as an admin, but I do run certain third party programs (Mash, MGE, Bash) as an admin, and my games are installed in Program Files x86. Will I experience any issues?

On Vista/Windows 7, there are sometimes problems with editing files in Program Files (most notably ini files and similar configuration files) with UAC on, also games sometimes get a performance boost (however slight) by being installed just on the drive root (at least some people swear this is true). Mainly, though, it is the UAC problem on Vista/Win7 which causes people to say it, and it is a concern that can be quite headache-inducing at times when manually editing files. On XP/UAC disabled, not really an issue.

As to why you shouldn't run games as admin: Never heard that before. What is true is you shouldn't run unknown executables as admin. It is "nicer" to not run stuff as admin if you don't have to, but so long as it is a trusted application, it isn't really an issue.

[Emilie Joseph]

On Vista/Windows 7, there are sometimes problems with editing files in Program Files (most notably ini files and similar configuration files) with UAC on, also games sometimes get a performance boost (however slight) by being installed just on the drive root (at least some people swear this is true). Mainly, though, it is the UAC problem on Vista/Win7 which causes people to say it, and it is a concern that can be quite headache-inducing at times when manually editing files. On XP/UAC disabled, not really an issue.

As to why you shouldn't run games as admin: Never heard that before. What is true is you shouldn't run unknown executables as admin. It is "nicer" to not run stuff as admin if you don't have to, but so long as it is a trusted application, it isn't really an issue.

So since I'm not having any issues I am safe to keep games installed in Program files?

And I've noticed that modded Morrowind has some issues if I don't run it as an administrator so thats basically my reasoning for running it as an admin. I only run certain applications as admin like MGE or the Construction Set. I think I can trust Bethesda :laugh:

Somebody facepalmed me earlier when I said I ran stuff as admin, so I figured I'd ask you nice guys.

[Ebony Lawson]

I'm looking for a keyboard that is wireless + has lighted keys. Does anyone have one or know of any keyboards like this?

[Alkira rose Nankivell]

I need someone to tell me this is a worthwhile deal in spite of power consumption compared to competitors.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125332

After the $20 MIR and $20 e-blast subscriber discount code it would be $189.99. I wouldn't consider a GTX 460 768MB (want 1GB of RAM) and the GTX 460 1GB models are $230 on up. I know the GTX 465 runs a bit hotter (although this one has a good third party cooling solution - supposed to top out in the mid 50C range) and uses more power, but since the two are very close in performance is the GTX 460 1GB worth the $42 (at least) more? I have my PC in a fairly small bedroom/office. Do you think I'd see a noticeable increase in the temperature of the room with the GTX 465? Do you think it would be any worse than the 8800 GTX I currently have?


Phenom II X4 955 @ 3.6Ghz
ASUS X-fire AM3 mobo
8800 GTX OC'd

[sw1ss]

I need someone to tell me this is a worthwhile deal in spite of power consumption compared to competitors.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125332

After the $20 MIR and $20 e-blast subscriber discount code it would be $189.99. I wouldn't consider a GTX 460 768MB (want 1GB of RAM) and the GTX 460 1GB models are $230 on up. I know the GTX 465 runs a bit hotter (although this one has a good third party cooling solution - supposed to top out in the mid 50C range) and uses more power, but since the two are very close in performance is the GTX 460 1GB worth the $42 (at least) more? I have my PC in a fairly small bedroom/office. Do you think I'd see a noticeable increase in the temperature of the room with the GTX 465? Do you think it would be any worse than the 8800 GTX I currently have?


Phenom II X4 955 @ 3.6Ghz
ASUS X-fire AM3 mobo
8800 GTX OC'd

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-460-gf104-fermi,2684.html

[Gaelle Courant]

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-460-gf104-fermi,2684.html

Yeah I know, but this GTX 465 ends up being $40 less (at least) than any GTX 460 1GB I can find. $40 is a material amount to me. I've read numerous reviews and there is almost no performance difference between the two cards stock.

EDIT: You guys are too slow this morning - I just ordered it. You can either now tell me I made a mistake or make me feel good about the purchase, your choice.