Coupons to Save on Best Sellers at TigerDirect until March 13

Oh, man, I hate including the number 13 in any of my headlines, but at least that date isn’t a Friday, it’s a Saturday. Small consolation.

Here’s a list of some best selling items I’ve found at Tigerdirect.com. I’m uncluding coupon codes you can use at checkout to save even more on their already low prices. You can check out their special pricing for Skylarking readers here, or read on while I spotlight some of the hot items.

SAVE $10 on an EVGA GeForce 9500 GT Video Card

($59 after using coupon code FEC1228 at checkout.) Do your computer games or video images appear to “stutter” or seem to move in an unusal manner? Then you should consider getting this video card replacement. It uses its own 1 gigabyte of DDR2 RAM (memory) instead of sharing the regular memory used by your computer’s programs. All you need is an available PCIe, or PCI express 2.0, slot on your motherboard. (Contact me or your manufacturer to find out if your computer has such capability.)

If you need real high end video support for 3D gaming, then consider getting two of these cards since they support SLI Dual Link technology. With SLI you can have two video cards linked together for double the video processing power. One card alone provides all the high def power you’ll need for gaming or video playback. Imagine the potential of two cards.

Each card comes with two DVI connectors and adapters for connecting your PC to any monitor or an HDTV. Two connectors allows you to have two monitors connected to your PC, if you need that. For example, I’m using two monitors on my Windows 7 computer, so I can run a different program on each monitor.

Dual Monitor setup on one PC

Right now I have the Tigerdirect site on one screen while I’m writing this post in another screen. Or I could be playing a video on one while working on the other. A client of mine uses two of these video cards for running 4 monitors on his home computer. He’s a day trader, and it allows him to monitor the stock market on multiple web sites while communicating with his colleagues.

Additional specs: Supports Microsoft® DirectX® 10 games, HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc® movies with brilliant clarity — as long as you have a HD or Blu-ray capable DVD player in your computer — powered by the PureVideo® HD engine. Include GeForce GPU support for NVIDIA PhysX technology for all you high tech gamers for a more dynamic and realistic experience. Full Vista Aero 3D support.

SAVE $27 on OCZ 4GB PC3-10666 Platinum RAM

(Regularly $106.99, now only $79.99 after $20 mail-in rebate (expires 03/31/10) and $7 instant savings.) Most new PCs today can handle 4 gigabytes of RAM (memory), but when you bought it it probably came with only 2 GB.  Now not just any RAM will do, but I’ve never had a problem yet with memory chips from OCZ. More RAM makes your computer start faster, your programs start and run faster, and your hard drive doesn’t work so hard either. Let your hard drive take it easy with these memory chips. I’d recommend checking with tech supprt at TigerDirect to make sure this memory is appropriate for your PC.

Are you running a 64-bit operating system? Then you might consider getting two pairs since your computer may be able to handle up to 8 gigabytes of RAM. Just go into your Windows Control panel and double click on System to see if you’re running a 64-bit OS. It will be clearly indicated.

Tech specs for those in the know:  This PC3-10666 RAM designed specifically for the upcoming Intel® P55 Chipset and subsequent Intel® Core™ i7, i5, and i3 (Socket 1156) processors. Configured for dual channel mode, these ultra-compatible 4GB kits ensure optimal performance with an ideal combination of low power requirements at 1333MHz.

I’ll talk more about some of the specials I’ve found, but here are a few quickies for now:

SAVE $40 – FREE Shipping – BFG GeForce 9800 GT Video Card. This 1 gigabyte GDDR3 equipped card fits into any PCIe 2.0 slot on your motherboard. Like the card above it supports dual monitors with its two DVI connectors for use on your monitor or HDTV. Regularly $139.99, now only $99.99* after $10 rebate (expires 03/31/10) and $30 instant savings.

SAVE $50 – FREE Shipping – Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300. Get a high speed processor for your demanding programs. This has a 2.50GHz clock speed for a 1333MHz FSB (front system bus). This is a Quad Core processor for ”original equipment manufacturers” (OEM). That means it costs a lot less because it doesn’t come in a colorful box like you’d see on the shelf. Uses a Socket 775 connector. $149.99* after $40 MIR, rebate expires 03/15/10.

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Yahoo Email and Upgrading from Vista to Windows 7

I read this question online recently:

I am upgrading from Windows Vista to Windows 7. How do I back up my Yahoo! emails and do I need to do it?

If you have a free Yahoo! email account then there is no need to back up your emails because the emails are stored on Yahoo!’s servers and not your computer.

If you have a paid Yahoo! email account, called Yahoo! Mail Plus, which costs $19.99 per year, then it is possible that you could be downloading email messages to your computer with a program such as Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows Mail, Eudora, or some other program or email client.

Western Digital My Passport Essential 320GB USB 2.0 Portable Hard Drive – Midnight Black

Generally, when you are upgrading from Windows Vista to Windows 7 there is no need to erase your hard drive. When the hard drive is erased it is usually referred to as a “clean install”. While it’s always good idea to do a backup before an upgrade, it isn’t necessary. When upgrading from XP to Windows 7 the hard drive must be erased, so this is a case where it would be a good idea to have a backup of some sort.

Still, if you want to take the precaution of doing a backup, go to a computer store and get yourself an external USB drive such as a MyPassport from Western Digital and use the Windows Easy Transfer wizard to copy important files to the external drive. For more info on Windows Easy Transfer go here: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-vista/features/easy-transfer.aspx

For more info on upgrading from Vista to Windows 7 go here: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/help/upgrading-from-windows-vista-to-windows-7

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$450 System Hardware Wrap-up

In two earlier posts I spoke about a PC I built for a client last month. The whole system costs about $400—$450 in parts. The goal was to spend about $60 per part or less. The basic parts needed to build a complete system were:

1. a motherboard (also called a mainboard)
2. a processor. For $60 I could get a good basic dual core processor. The best thing is in the next year or two the client can upgrade to a faster, more modern processor for about the same price. Currently a quad core processor will set you back about $130.
3. RAM (memory). For around $60 I used 2 GB of RAM, but the mainboard and 64 bit operating system will allow this system to be upgraded to 4 or even 8 GB if the client chooses to do so later.
4. a hard drive for storage or programs and other files
5. a case (to put all the parts above into) with a power supply. This part was only $35 in my budget.
6. an operating system. For this system I used the new Windows 7 Professional 64 bit edition.
7. an optical drive, or in this case a combination CD and DVD burner. I didn’t have to buy this part; I just reused the one that was installed in the client’s previous computer.

In my second post on this system I recommended some parts available from Tigerdirect.com to cover the first 3 items on the list above. Please note the client will be reusing the monitor from their previous computer system. You can probably do the same.

Here are my recommendations to cover the final 4 items on the list, and I’ll add on a DVD drive just in case you don’t have one, but you’d like to build a similar system.

• Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 500 GB SATA drive ($50)
• Case and power supply: Apex PC-375 Black Mid-Tower Case with a 300 watt power supply ($35)
• Operating System: Between all the hardware I’ve only spent $283 before taxes and shipping. So I’ve got about $167 left for the Windows 7 operating system. I have two flavors to choose from in my budget: (1) Windows 7 Home Premium edition (32 bit) for $110 or (2) Windows 7 Professional (64 bit) for $150. The 32 bit system will limit my future RAM potential to 4 GB, while the 64 bit system can upgrade to 8GB. 4 GB is fine for most systems. I went with the Pro version.
• DVD Burner: Samsung SH-S223C DVD-RW Drive ($25) This one burns CD-R discs, too. The client had a Sony DVD burner from their previous system. A similar Sony model would cost about $50 to $60. If you already have a DVD drive from your previosu system, you can reuse. Windows 7 comes on a DVD, so that’s why your need a DVD drive. A CD drive will not do.

So that’s all the parts. Now comes the assembly once you’ve got them all. Tomorrow I’ll tell the steps in brief for putting it all together.

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