Well, here's my first post about an upcoming Intel-based motherboard, but I couldn't help it. The DFI LANParty 925X-T2 enthusiast board has all the goodies, including PCI-Express, DDR2, and even 2 Gigabit ethernet ports...take a look.

It's going to be a couple of months before we see PCI-Express solutions with AMD systems, since the new chipsets are still under development. If only I could wait till the end of the summer to build my new PC, but each day I'm realizing more and more that a new computer is necessary for my survival :)

I must say that I may have to upgrade my PC next year to include these new technologies. We'll see how it all unfolds the second-half of 2004.

Oh man, check out this Quad Opteron motherboard with PCI-X:

That's just beautiful, ain't it?!

Well, it's been a long time since I've updated this post. I was out of town and touch with my computer for the week after exams, and then I got caught up into work and setting up my FreeBSD machine (more on that in another post).

In the meantime, I wasn't able to exchange my DI-514 router at Best Buy (I don't want to RMA!!) and AMD finally released the new Socket 939 chips (A64 3500+, 3800+, FX-53, etc.)! I spent a some time reading about them yesterday, but nothing much has changed; after all, the only differences between the 939 and the 754 chips are a double instead of a single channel memory controller and the 200 MHz HyperTransport upgrade, which brings the bus speeds to 1 GHz. In the Intel or Athlon XP world, this would be a big change, but with the integrated memory controller in A64 it accounts for a slight change, depending on the type of benchmark (see the FX-51 939 and 754 in action). Since the FX chips were previously limited to the 940 workstation and server socket architecture, the FX-53's move from buffered to unbuffered memory produced a larger difference.

In addition, the same chipsets are being used; the Nvidia nForce3-250 and the Via K8T800Pro. Both of these are second-generation chips, but the Nvidia chipset has a working PCI/AGP lock, which accounts for a much better overclocking experience.

Anyways, considering how soon I would like to be able to purchase and put together my computer, I won't be waiting around and paying premium prices for the 939 Athlon64s; besides, it doesn't seem like PCI Express will be supported until August or later.

Now, to unveal the candidate for Chief's Next Generation Computing Initiative (NGCI):

MSI K8N Neo Platinum Motherboard (read review)
- This mb features the latest and greatest Nvidia nForce3-250Gb chipset, supporting gigabit ethernet and an on-chip firewall.
- The motherboard's features include 8-channel audio, 4 usb 2.0 ports (with support for up to 8) and 1 firewire port, Serial-ATA and RAID support, and 3 DDR-400 slots for up to 2 GB of RAM.
- There are a plethora of overclocking options with this motherboard, as seen on the second page of the review.
- The only real limitation I've noticed is the support for only 2 GB of RAM (yes, only). There exist other Socket 754 Athlon64 motherboards that can support up to 3 GB, but usually with sacrifice to DDR speed. The only way I can jump into the realm of 4 GB of RAM would be to buy into the latest 939 socket motherboards (see above for why that won't be an option).
- Finally, this review of the latest nForce250 chipset motherboard demonstrates the power of the MSI motherboard. In the benchmarks, the MSI mb can be seen about average to near the top, and at the top for many near the end of the review.

Athlon 64 3200+
- 1 MB L2 Cache, 2.0 GHz with 800 MHz HyperTransport (i.e. bus)
- Isn't it amazing that a 2 GHz Athlon with the AMD64 architecture is rated a 3200+ while an Athlon XP with the same clock speed is rated a 2400+ :p

2 - 512 MB PC3200 DDR RAM
- I won't be getting HyperX or OCZ memory for my computer. In fact, I've already purchased some ValueRAM for a really good deal (around $80 per stick) from Kingston.com. The timings for these sticks are CL3 or 3-4-4, which is slow compared to the 2-2-3 I can get with a premium stick. However, looking at benchmark results found here for a similar 3200+ system with CL2, 2.5, and 3 timings, I decided that there would be no reason for me to spend the extra $140* total for the premium sticks, as the performance difference on an Athlon64 system is close to none.
- "We were duly impressed by the Athlon 64 FX-51's scores, which maintained its ranking no matter what kind of memory it was given. This steadfastness is largely due to the integrated memory controller." Tom's Hardware Guide

* This price was calculated using current Kingston prices for HyperX and ValueRAM.

This is where my computer plans get a little hazy.

ATI Radeon 9800 Pro 128?
- This is a very good graphics card, and it will largely depend on the cost whether I will opt for this one or go higher/lower. I may also choose a similar All in Wonder counterpart.
- It is not my intention to consider NVidia at the moment; although they are catching up with the latest generation of graphics cards, I do not plan on spending $400+ for one.

Nu-Tech DDW-082 8X DVD +/-RW
- I already have this drive, but I plan on moving it to my new PC so I might as well mention it. It achieved Anandtech's Editor's choice in the following review and I've only run into an incompatibility issue with my cheap DVD-R media, which I hope will be fixed in the next firmware update.

New hard drive?
- I may also choose to buy a 120/160 GB hard drive as I can find Western Digital and Maxtor drives at these sizes for around $100 with manufacturer warranty.

Some Kind of Case and Power Supply...
- I have begun looking, but still have a lot more surfing to do before I can make a decision.

Wow, you actually made it to the end of my post. I'm tired and you must be thorougly tired and bored by now as well, but if you would like to leave a comment in response to the newest AMD chips or my current PC plans please feel free. I'm out.

So much for the notion that one graphics card is enough for your computer...Alienware is developing a motherboard that will use an Intel-based chipset to allow the use of dual graphics cards in a system. In particular, the two graphics cards will work in parallel, a technology being named Video Array, to "offer between 50 to 90 percent more performance than a single graphics card." Almost double the performance of the ATI X800 XT...mmm, 200+ fps without breaking a sweat. That's just crazy talk...

More development on Sony and IBM's Cell chip: Both companies plan on releasing workstations based on the chip to help assist in multimedia and game creation. Considering how well companies are taking IBM's main computer chip (PowerPC will be found on XBOX 2, the chips can be found in some routers, Macs, etc.), the cell chip that has been years in the making is anticipated to be quite amazing. The ExtremeHack article also suggested that it could help movie creators quickly move characters over to games if the system is used for both such tasks. Sounds like it has potential...we'll just have to see what's to come. Maybe my next system will be based on the Cell processor :p

I just have to say that Opera RULES! The latest version (7.50) is out and UW-Madison owns a site-license now, so I can legally obtain the non-ad version. Although I haven't used it much since I've upgraded, I have already noticed a speed increase (even on my slow computer). One thing I didn't like was the Hotlist change, which only closed part of the panel when F4 is pressed, but I was able to customize the keyboard shortcut to my liking. I know many of you are IE fans, but for real websurfers, you must migrate away from the simple built-in standard browser that comes with Windows (which only serves the purpose of displaying the Windows Update site) to adopt a flexible, fast, easy to use browser.

Just noticed my friend ae2k posted a picture about me and a link to this site, so I should probably post my regards for the visitors he's sending over. That picture was taken in September? during a party of mine in Madison. My roommates thought it would be cool, and of course I wasn't going to refuse; the reason they went along with it was because I was going to install Microsoft Office on their computer for them :p (campus license of course...don't get mad at me Microsoft!)

OK, I finally have a little time to post something here. Damn work and finals...just hate them so much. Anyways, I have to catch up on my tech news and stuff, but I might as well mention that I picked up a computer at SWAP (UW-Madison's surplus store) and will be setting up linux on it. I purchased two linux books in the past two weeks; one is a Pocket Guide for command reference, etc, and the second is a 1500 page book from 1995. Hope to play around with it soon; I just have one more final to deal with on Wednesday.

On a side note, I picked up a Maxi-Switch multimedia keyboard along with this computer; it actually has Altec Lansing speakers and a microphone. I couldn't help but purchase it because it was $3 (the same price as their regular keyboards), and it actually sounds pretty good. My roommate and I may purchase the rest of the lot to place along the walls in our room to create a "surround sound experience".

Hello everyone *hears echo*...just thought I'd post somewhat often, especially while this blog thing is new to me. I am currently trying to do some homework, but I needed to listen to some music, so RantRadio Industrial was the answer (hands down). Anyhow, I saw their request for bandwidth aid and started thinking...wouldn't it be cool to be able to do to shoutcast what has been done with BitTorrent? I did some research and found a possible solution: PeerCast. I'll have to try it out sometime, but it seems like many popular formats are supported (mp3, ogg, nsv, etc.). It sounds like a great solution, as long as upload bandwidth use can be limited...using a lot of upload bandwidth really slows down an internet connection, and in my case my other 3 roommates would notice as well. Luckily, NetLimiter does wonders for me with limiting upload bandwidth (don't worry, I still share plenty). If anyone gets a chance to PeerCast, please leave a comment below with your input.

Dammit...why isn't it time for AMD to release their new chip architecture, the socket 939s? I really want to start putting together the parts for my next computer, but I have this obsession with getting at least some of the new technologies coming out this year; in particular, PCI Express.

Ever since I've owned a PC (8+ years) I've never had a fast computer. In fact, throughout high school I used a 133 Mhz Pentium and a 400 Mhz AMD laptop (this was when AMD chips competed primarily with Celerons). Near the end of high school, I was able to purchase my friend's 450 Mhz P3 from him when he built a new computer, and that's what I continue to use. Since then, processors have been jumping in speeds and I'm still behind the times with my Pentium 3 IBM PC. Considering this will be my first official PC upgrade/purchase, I want to make is worthwhile, and of course I'm going to make it last (considering my current PC lifespan).

Anyways, I've made my decision on an Athlon64, which is an amazing chip. HyperTransport, the interconnection between external components to the CPU along with other CPUs, is a much better way to manage bus speeds than the typical FSB, since AMD can more effectively bring up these speeds when they are needed. The on-die memory controller also brings a large benefit to the table since RAM no longer has to be limited by slow bus speeds. More information about the general Hammer architecture can be found here. I also cannot wait to play around with x86-64 computing; 64-bit Windows should be out by the summer and linux variants are already available, so I'll be dual-booting with at least 32-bit Windows, and I'll have to try out compiling code in linux.

The main upgrade for the 939-pin Athlon64 is the 128-bit memory controller vs. the 64-bit version currently found in the chip. If motherboard manufacturers would release PCI Express for the current Socket 754 models, I would certainly buy a 754. The 939s are going to be expensive when they come out in a month or so, and the motherboards that are going to support them will follow in the same sort of price schedule. I guess in a way I am also obsessed with getting this computer to last a while, but I can't help it; it's not very often that I get to buy a new computer. If I can get an Athlon64 motherboard with PCI Express, PCI, and AGP supported, gigabit ethernet, and 7.1 channel sound (DDR-2 won't be released in a while and will be really expensive anyways), I will be ready to purchase the parts for and build my new computer.

All I have to say right now is that Google is Sweet!

Wanna know what's been in my mind periodically, and basically brought out the urge to create this? Online Music Stores. Sorry, I know it's a boring topic by now, but I just want to say something about them. First of all, peer-to-peer file sharing does not necessarily take away from any potential album sales. Most of the people who downloaded mp3s were not going to purchase the albums anyways because the money wasn't around to do so. I suppose once services like the original Napster became popular it may have cut into a minimal amount of sales, but before the mp3 revolution, most people would either make a cassette, cd, or mp3 copy of the songs they wanted anyways...aka "Fair Use".

Anyways, online music stores will only make a small appeal to people who do not buy albums often; instead of focusing on these limited sales, these music stores should be trying to gain some of the diehard audience. Making consumers pay for compressed inferior audio is wrong! The next generation medium, also known as the Internet, should not be an excuse to sell subpar quality music, even if it is "CD quality". I would understand this being a download option for slow connections, but lossless compression is the way to go. Audio quality should be getting better as technology progresses, and I refuse to sink a lot of money into something that is inferior to CD audio. (I will admit: I have paid for emusic a couple of times, but $10 for 40 songs is a bit different, and it's 224 kbps average LAME VBR.) I will continue to purchase CD albums online and at real music stores until something reasonable is available.

On a side note, it would also be cool if the music stores distributed the CD cover and album art and booklets in PDF.

Considering that Real Networks is going downhill (in one way or another), lossless is something they should embrace to take the market away from Apple and Microsoft allies. The current Real Networks online music store (not Rhapsody) offers 192 kbit AAC, which is nice, but not quite there yet.

Alright, I didn't just create a blog...it's a lie. I mean, if this is real, no one's gonna read it anyways, so it doesn't exist.

And since no one's gonna read this, I'd like to say that corporate America sucks. Not only is money reserved for a select few, but companies like to keep things proprietary using blood-sucking patents and copyrights, slowing the progression of technology (which pisses me off the most). Despite this, I'm gonna ramble about what I want to see in the current and future computing technology world (I can no longer contain my urge to speak!). Maybe I'll get people to agree with me and contribute their own ideas...one could only hope that eventually (and soon) we will see these ideas unfold*.

*Sorry for that lame statement...it had to go somewhere.