All Posts

Home Theater PC – Richard’s Approach

Post Posted on by

This is the second in a series of blog posts about Home Theater Computers (aka HTPCs), where several Puget employees get a chance to explain their approach to home theater computing. You can read William’s entry here.

If I had to sum up the goals of my home theater with a single word, it would be “Convenience”. I actually don’t spent that much time in my living room, but when I do, I really want to minimize hassle. I don’t mind a lot of work setting things up the first time, but I just don’t want to waste my precious R&R time juggling five remotes, three pointing devices, and a keyboard.

Technology Primer – Power Supply Wattage and Efficiency

Hardware Article Posted on by

Power supplies are a critical piece of hardware in modern computers, but there are some aspects of them which aren’t well known or understood. This article will explain some of the less known aspects of power supplies, such as what wattage and efficiency ratings really mean, and what other factors you should consider when selecting a power supply for your next computer.

Technology Primer – ATI Radeon HD 6000-series

Hardware Article Posted on by

ATI has just launched their next-generation graphics card line, starting the process that will see the venerable Radeon HD 5000 cards replaced by 6000 models over the coming months. The first such cards, released today, are the 6850 and 6870 – known also by their codename ‘Barts’. In this article, we’ll take a look at what makes them different, and how their performance compares with the competitive offerings from NVIDIA.

Upgrading my wireless network

Post Posted on by

In the Romero home we have three systems that heavily use the internet in one way or another, two of which are connected wirelessly. Our trusty Linksys WRT54G has been our gateway to the world wide web, but recently the router has been suffering as heavier loads have been put on it. With a subscription to Netflix and a Steam account playing those highly addictive online FPS’ games, the demand for internet among the three systems has become overwhelming, especially on the computers operating on wireless.

Home Theater PC – William’s Approach

Post Posted on by

This is the first in a series of blog posts about Home Theater Computers (aka HTPCs). It’s really neat to see how people approach their home theater experience differently, so several of us were asked to write about our setup, what we chose, and why we chose it.

Technology Primer – USB 3.0

Hardware Article Posted on by

For over a decade, USB has been the most common standard on computers for connecting peripherals. It has grown from a port found in small numbers on brand-new systems in the late 1990s to the near-universal standard for everything from input devices to data storage, and is even in widespread use for charging mobile phones. Our modern desktops feature between six and twelve USB ports, a testament to their widespread usage. This article is an introduction to the latest version of USB, with information on performance, availability and backward-compatibility.

What is the value of a quality PC?

Post Posted on by

This evening, I came across a forum thread online, in which users of electronic trading workstations were comparing Puget Systems to other PC builders (mainly bargain basement PC builders). An owner of one of our PC’s posted the following:

“I paid a $600 premium for my last computer from Puget. Since I typically keep a computer for about three years, I’m paying about 55 cents a day extra to have super reliable trading machines backed up by great customer service. For me, it’s worth it because computer problems mean time away from trading and/or time away from my wife and kids. Everybody has to make his own price/value decision.”

I love the thought process!

Adobe Premiere Pro CS5 – Mercury Playback Engine

Post Posted on by

Traditionally, over at least the past 15 years, the main role of a video card in a computer has been to accelerate 3D graphics. That is a large part of what has made modern computer games possible, and it has also contributed heavily to CAD / CAM work and digital animation. Video cards have also helped with 2D graphics and video playback, but the main focus has been on 3D speed.

Is Starcraft 2 breaking video cards?

Post Posted on by

Along with a few other guys here at Puget, I’ve been really enjoying Blizzard’s new game – Starcraft 2. While the basic gameplay remains the same, Blizzard has definitely brought Starcraft into the 21st century, with updated graphics, better game control mechanics, better online matchmaking, great cinematics, and overall a much smoother and more intuitive experience.