COLUMN: A technically helping hand
It may be time for the boot
We’ve all been there before. You’re up on campus all night typing a paper that’s due tomorrow because your computer at home can’t run Windows 95. It is time for you to give your old computer the boot. Now you’re maybe asking, “How do I get the most out of my money? What should I buy?”
The biggest thing to consider when you fall into this category is how much money you are looking to spend. If you have under $100, then you will probably want to get more RAM. That is the cheapest and quickest way to upgrade, but make sure you get the right kind. They aren’t all compatible.
If you have enough RAM and are still looking to blow $100, you can get a hard drive or video card. You might see a little more performance with these. You can also go with a CD Writer or DVD drive, but these won’t really increase your performance.
You may get your tax returns, or find a couple thousand dollars on the street and decide it is time for a serious overhaul. The big question now is to build your own computer or buy pre-built? Pre-built computers are usually good computers, but you won’t be able to squeeze every ounce of performance out of the processor. They are usually built for reliability, not performance.
One good thing about building your own computer is that you can save some money by reusing parts from your old computer. You can usually get more performance out of a well-planned custom computer than a pre-built machine.
You need to do your homework with every upgrade. Here are a couple sites for researching hardware: www.tomshardware.com and www.sharkeyextreme.com. If you need help on computer terms try www.techweb.com/encyclopedia. When you are ready to buy, I recommend going to these sites for prices: www.pricewatch.com or www.pricegrabber.com.
This article is just the tip of the iceberg. Have fun with the upgrades and don’t forget to keep your stick on the ice.
Matt Lorimer
What You Should Know About File Sharing
My initial disclaimer: I am a huge advocate of file sharing and peer-to-peer networks. With that said, I don’t feel most users understand the implications behind file sharing.
I’m sure most of you have heard of P2P applications such as Kazaa, Morpheus, and Limewire. Generally, we just download the program, install it (while flying past the disclaimers) and start searching feverishly for the latest ludicrous title we just heard on the radio. This is fine in most cases but you do need to be aware of the downsides.
What you are mainly concerned with as a file sharer is the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). The DMCA was an attempt by the U.S. Government to bring copyright laws into the cyber age. The law very loosely prohibits technologies that circumvent copyrights – file sharing being one of these technologies. Now, we’re not here to discuss the merits of the DMCA cough, it sucks, cough), but rather the implications that can derive from it. Under the DMCA, any attempt to circumvent copyright protection systems is punishable by a fine of up to $500,000 and five years in prison.
So, why don’t you hear of more people being thrown in the ‘clink’ if everybody you know is downloading tunes off Morpheus? This is largely due to the nature of the owners of the copyright. Software vendor Adobe just requests that a “seize and desist” be issued. On the other hand, the Motion Picture Association of America gets ugly by requesting the user be put in jail, and the Recording Industry Association of America sues for astronomical amounts of money.
Aside from the DMCA, the thing every user needs to be concerned with are computer viruses. Peer-to-peer networks have become the number two source of spreading viruses. So, if you continue to share, have virus protection running and update your dats frequently.
This is just be a big yellow sign stapled “proceed with caution.” The DMCA again is very loosely defined and even some of the authors define it to be a guess to how much file sharing is too much file sharing. Just realize these are some of the dangers facing you as a file sharer.
Zach Howes