Updates
Latest Tweet
What's New?
Check out for latest innovation, a computer based training video collection
Like this Page
PC Hacks: 100 Industrial-Strength Tips & Tools Review by Robert L. Stinnett
Getting down to the bare bones...
A lot of books on the market take you through the inner-workings of Windows, Linux, [insert favorite OS here]. However, there are very few out there that go deep inside the PC itself and get down to the hardware level. In "PC Hacks", the author takes us inside the PC to look at what can be done at the hardware level to tweak system performance and stability.
First off, this book is not for the novice user. If you are not willing to "risk a little" then you should not attempt the hacks set forth in the book. Many of them, if not performed precisely, can cause serious damage to your system -- some could even cause permanent hardware damage (such as overclocking your CPU). However, for those who are brave -- the rewards and adventure that await are well worth it.
Covering topics such as upgrading your power supply, changing CPU voltage (overclocking), moving and changing disk partitions, even overclocking your video card (that was even a new one for me!) will have most dedicated PC geek up to all hours trying out different settings and tweaks.
Even if you aren't ready to start messing with the voltage, the book provides a good handbook on topics such as "Why should I worry if my paging (virtual memory) file is fragmented?" and "Do I need to upgrade by BIOS?" that even middle-of-the-road users might fight well worth reading up on. There are a number of items that the author talks about that are merely informational, but could really come in handy the next time your system decides to stop functioning the moment you need it to the most.
For those "old timers" out there, this book comes close to the old Norton books of the mid 1980's that explained what went on under the hood of early PC's. For the younger users, it is a terrific way to explore the true "hobbyist" side of computing and tweaking a system much like a car enthusiast tunes his engine.