PC Hacks: 100 Industrial-Strength Tips & Tools
Book Review
PC Hacks:
100 Industrial-Strength Tips & Tools
Book Review
 By
Dale Farris, Vice PresidentGolden Triangle PC Club December 2004 General Overview Intel-and AMD-powered PCs--which account for more than 90% of all personal computers--are powerful and expandable, and operating systems like Windows and Linux do a great job of running well on this hardware. But to maintain maximum stability and predictability, these operating systems don't push the hardware to its limits. That doesn't mean you can't. PC Hacks shows PC users like you how to get the most out of your hardware and software to make your PC experience more satisfying than ever. You don't need another collection of simple tips and command-clicks; you need PC Hacks, where you'll find proven techniques for enhancing performance and preventing problems with your PC hardware. This step-by-step, hack-by-hack guide, with invaluable tips and tricks throughout, will get you hacking the system board, CPU, BIOS, peripherals and operating system--everything but the unhackable power supply! In PC Hacks, Jim Aspinwall, the Windows Helpdesk columnist and feature editor for CNET.COM and author of three books on PC maintenance, delivers basic to advanced hacks for overclocking CPU and video cards, tweaking RAM timing, selecting the best performing components, and much more. He includes suggestions for reusing an old PC to off-load work from newer systems as well as ways to prevent security hacks. He also offers many tips for avoiding common mistakes--and for getting the system back up and running if something does go wrong. PC Hacks combines of the bestselling Hacks series style with the world's most popular computing hardware. Presented in a clear and direct format and covering both Windows and Linux operating systems, PC Hacks ensure that you'll hack and tweak your way to the best performance possible out of your trusty PC. Hacks Discussed in the Book Customize, configure, and upgrade the BIOS, which can control everything from the current date to your CPU's clock speed Get the most out of your CPU, whether you want to crank up the speed or just run your CPU in a cooler climate Take control of your RAM: control how the operating system swaps to disk, make your memory run a bit faster, and optimize your memory usage Configure and partition hard disks: choose the optimal settings for speed and set up multiboot systems Protect yourself: make backups, clone your system, and safeguard your system against viruses, spyware, and malicious hackers Table of Contents The 100 smart home hack tips are organized in ten (10) chapters, including the following: Ch 1: Basic System Board Hacks Ch 2: Basic System Board Setup Ch 3: CPU Hacks Ch 4: Memory Hacks Ch 5: Disk Hacks Ch 6: Disk Drive Performance Hacks Ch 7: Video Hacks Ch 8: I/O Device Hacks Ch 9: Boot-Up Hacks Ch 10: Configuring a New PC Target Readers This is a fascinating book that is filled with 100 clever, important hacks for today's modern PCs. More, better, faster, cheaper, easier, cooler, safer: All these and more capture our desire to understand and get the most out of our investment in PCs. From making a PC boot faster, to improving its reliability, to using multiple operating systems, to being able to recover quickly when something goes wrong, the PC hacks in this book will improve your PC experience and make you a lot more computer-savvy. You can read the book from cover to cover, but each hack stands on its own, so you can also browse and go to the different sections that most interest you. If there is a prerequisite you need to know about, a cross-reference will guide to the right hack. Since you will be hacking your PC, you are seriously encouraged to for follow three basic tenets of PC ownership: Back Up, Back Up, and Back Up. While the hacks are not intentionally designed to harm a PC system, life with a PC is not a matter of if your system will crash, but when. Pay careful attention to the details and precautions for each hack. Not all hacks will work with all PCs or installed hardware. After you have done your backup, it will be to your benefit to gather all your manuals and driver disks or visit the web sites for your PC and peripheral vendors to get current documentation and drivers. If your PC or any of its components are under manufacturer's warranty, you should think twice or three times about the impacting of hacking on it. If a hack could void your warranty, you will probably want to wait until the warranty expires, before trying it. Among enthusiasts, the term hack refers to a "quick and dirty" solution to a problem or a clever way to do something. The term hacker is very much a compliment, praising someone for being creative and having the technical chops to get things done. O'Reilly's important, successful Hacks series is an attempt to reclaim the word, document the ways people are hacking in a good way, and pass on the hacker ethic of creative participation to a new generation of hackers. Seeing how others approach systems and problems is often the quickest way to learn about a new technology. The material assumes some degree of comfort with electronics and electrical engineering, although you do not of course have to be an electrical engineer to perform the hacks. You will need to be comfortable with working with integrated circuits, electrical assembly, soldering wires, and dis-assembling electronic devices. This is a highly specialized book that specifically targets a unique audience, namely those confident in their skills and abilities to follow the excellent hacking instructions that are replete throughout this important book. Book Contents 304 pages; paperbound; acknowledgements; preface; tons of additional tips and warnings; code examples; figures; b/w photographs; tables; index; cover colophon Author Jim Aspinwall About the Author Jim Aspinwall has been the Windows Helpdesk columnist and feature editor for www.CNET.com, and the author of three books on PC maintenance. A resident of Campbell, California, Jim is also an amateur radio operator, an electronics technician, and an OSHA-certified tower climber, maintaining radio transmission sites in northern California. ISBN October 2004 - First Edition 0-596-00748-5 List Price $24.95 $36.95 CAN About O'Reilly Media O'Reilly Media is the premier information source for leading-edge computer technologies. The company's books, conferences, and web sites bring to light the knowledge of technology innovators. O'Reilly books, known for the animals on their covers, occupy a treasured place on the shelves of the developers building the next generation of software. O'Reilly conferences and summits bring alpha geeks and forward-thinking business leaders together to shape the revolutionary ideas that spark new industries. From the Internet to XML, open source, .NET, Java, and web services, O'Reilly puts technologies on the map. O'Reilly Media creates products that they
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