Netbook review Dell Mini 9

A few summers ago I made the decision that I wanted to buy a new computer. I went back and forth and eventually decided on a laptop that I could game on. After a few months, and a lot of gaming, I was looking in a different direction. For one, upgrading certain components in a laptop is difficult at best (video card, processor etc.), not to mention the laptop wasn’t as portable as I wanted it to be. Eventually I swung back on my decision of “I’ll just have one kick ass laptop,” and went towards having a really good desktop PC and some laptop that is good for work. After some research I came upon the Dell Mini 9 micro PC. Six months later and I couldn’t be happier with my decision to buy one.

PLEASE NOTE: THE MINI 9 HAD BEEN DISCONTINUED!!!! DELL IS NO LONGER SHIPPING THESE. However the Mini 10v is its replacement offering a slightly larger screen, and standard or SSD drive options for the same price.

Dell Mini 9 (Shipped with Windows XP)
Cost: $300 (estimated)

Pros:

Size Matters: First of all the size is a huge plus. At my job I have to constantly be moving to test equipment. The Mini allows me to keep portable without having to lug anything heavy around. Since the screen is smaller you also get the benefit of an increased battery life (the Mini 9 ships with a 4 cell battery).

Simple is good: The designers of the Mini 9 didn’t try to make it the end all for your PC needs. VGA, USB, Micro SD card, and Network, are all you really need to get around in the work/travel environment. The Mini is not a computer that you expect to render video on, or be a major gaming platform and the designers kept it simple.

A dream for modifications: Keeping in mind this is just a laptop so you cannot upgrade/mod everything, the Mini 9 does offer you a lot possibilities. SSD, Wireless, and RAM are all instantly accessible. With a larger SSD you could conceivably run Vista fine. Moreover you can install OSX with NO compatibility issues. As I type this my summer plan is to up my SSD to 64gb, install OSX and dual run that and Windows 7… kinda nice to be able to have a MAC for under $1000

Solid State Drive: Yeah, you can purchase and SSD without a Mini, but they are pretty awesome. The stock SSD is OK (The optimal SSD to get is by RunCore) in terms of read and write speed as a firm user of 7200 RPM disks I would say the stock SSD gets a slight nudge in speed. With a RunCore SSD it is easily twice as fast as a 7200 RPM disk.



Cons:

RAM Expansion slots are limited: I guess for a space saving measure Dell choose to only to have one expansion slot which limits you to 2 Gb of ram. I would strongly recommend going with 2 Gb as soon as you get it to avoid slowdown.

Keyboard: You will definitely take some time getting used to the cramped keyboard. You also should know that for whatever reason Dell decided to remap some of the keys (the function keys are in the middle of the keyboard). While this is not a huge deal to adjust to, there are just some keys that feel out of place.

CD drive: While I am not a person that uses a lot of CDs and DVDs, but not having one in the chasis can sometimes be a pain. You can solve this with a $40 external, but again some people just cannot fathom the concept of not having a CD drive pre-installed.
Solid State Drive: While it is a definite positive, you do need some time getting used to your computer making NO noise at all when you are opening files/programs. Slowly you begin to decent into a paranoid state of “Did I click that?” all the time.

Overall if you are looking for portable computing because you travel or want something small for class, the MINI series by DELL is a definite first choice in terms of netbook computing.

S

Here are a few pics:

Next to a CD for some scale.







Lid open, ready to go.

Here is the underside showing RAM, SSD and Wireless card.

Solutions for Capturing Video

Recently at my job I have had a string of people coming by asking for a DVD to edit media solution. There are a lot of students that use Mini DV tapes to record things, then have the tapes transferred to a DVD. The problem is that they reuse the DV tapes. At the end of the semester they have to put together a final DVD of all of their tapes. Therein lies the problem; how can you rip from a DVD into an editable format? While there are a myriad of long solutions (DVDx, handbrake etc., Pinnacle Media Systems has come up with a couple of great solutions that are worth the investment.




First we have the Pinnacle Media Dazzle ($49.99). Basically it is a USB compatible video input. You can take any composite (RCA) video and audio source and you can capture it to your computer. It requires a computer (PC or MAC compatible) and comes with very easy t0o use software.







Personally I prefer the Pinnacle Video Transfer ($100). This item is stand alone, so you don’t need a computer. All you have to do is plug in any composite video and audio source, then plug in your storage device. It can be any USB compatible storage! You can literally record a video onto your flash drive or a portable hard drive. It records into MPEG-4 so you can edit it as well. You can also record directly to an IPod or a PSP.



Both of these items are very good for capturing video off of you gaming system for posting/editing, and are VERY simple to use (they literally define the term plug and play). I would definitely recommend either if you are in the market for something to transfer video from VHS tapes, damaged DVDs, TV shows, or Gaming systems.

Video Game Music: Nintendo’s Hidden Treasures

Though I highly doubt I would ever just pick a game based solely on its music, a good soundtrack to a game can make or break it. As a professional musician it is something I pay attention to, and over the years I have started to put together a list of those games that have great music, but are not as well known. Yes Super Mario Bros. The Legend of Zelda, roughly all of the Megaman titles, Metal Gear etc. have great soundtracks, but what about those N.E.S. unsung heroes?

Please be aware that this is not a “Top 10,” nor is this finalized. Please don’t get offended if your favorites aren’t on the list. In fact, post them up under this so we can add to the list.

1. The Adventures of Bayou Billy – First of all just look at the cover of the game… it just screams “I rule.” Despite the overly macho cover, Billy is in fact one of the hardest games out there for the N.E.S. (If you play it all I have to say is… alligators in the first level). However despite the difficulty, the game is quite fun (Driving levels AND light gun supported stages). Best of all is the music. I just love the grooves on each level which will almost instantly get stuck in your head. Also, this is one of the few games that have a BGM test music menu so you don’t even have to play to listen.

2. Amagon - Out of all of the N.E.S. games I have played, this has to be the hardest/weirdest game I have ever played. Some guy in shorts with a rifle running around on an island with giant walking lions… did I mention you can morph into a Tarzan-like behemoth that can shoot lasers out of his chest? The game also boasts a really addicting soundtrack that really adds to the insanity that is this game.

3. Batman – While this was one of the few semi-decent, and by semi-decent I mean it doesn’t completely suck, Batman titles it excelled with the music. I can still hear the first level song in my head as soon as I think of it. That’s probably because the 2^nd level was too hard to ever get past.

4. Blaster Master – Blaster Master arguably has one of the best first level songs I have ever heard. Not sure how enjoyable the game was, but at least the music was decent.

5. Castlevania 1-3 – Seriously are there any Castlevania games that have a bad soundtrack?

6. Contra – Yes while it is a more popular game it still ranks up there in the top ten best game soundtracks. Just think about the base levels with the music. It just added so much tension and excitement to the game it made you jump every time you caught a stray bullet, or hit that stupid electric fence.

7. Dr.Mario – The other day I did an experiment. I captured the audio from this game (the song chill), looped it and played it at a party. Despite my desire to take credit everyone loved it. Dr. Mario truly has a seriously underrated and underappreciated soundtrack.

8. Ghosts and Goblins – Just take a minute and find a MIDI file of the first level. The composer of the soundtrack perfectly recreated the scary/funny feeling that permeates GnG. I mean you have to have some kind of hacky soundtrack for a game that can have you end up in your boxers throwing lances at zombies.

9. Gyruss – If I were to order these in a “Top 10” format this would definitely be #1. This soundtrack really plays up the intense action game-play throughout this game. There are also bonus points awarded to this game because the song is actually a Toccata and Fugue written by J.S. Bach (Toccata and Fugue in d minor). Perhaps it is my music degree, but I honestly appreciated having a taste of classical music in a video game.

10. Jackal - Not only does this soundtrack rock, but the game rules as well. Jeeps, guns, grenades, and P.O.W.s. If you haven’t played this game yet, go get it right now!

11. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - This game holds two awards, one for a really good soundtrack, and another for the most annoying and horrible game ever! 20 something years later and I STILL can’t find stupid Splinter!!! It’s one of those games I love to hate. Someday I’ll get the chance to actually beat it...

If you are looking for some more samples of the music from these games check out www.VGMusic.com. The songs there are MIDI reproductions so they do not sound 100% like the originals but they are pretty accurate recreations. If you have any additions please post away!

-Shaun

Reliving the Fighting Game Glory Days with GGPO!

If you're anything like me, you put a ton of quarters into the Street Fighter II machines at your local arcade. If your town is anything like mine, that arcade, along with the other arcades you frequented, have long been converted to Dollar Stores and cheap clothing retailers. So how can you recreate the "I'm AWESOME" feeling you got when you mercilessly beat that 5-year-old who needed a stool to see the screen in Street Fighter II? The answer is GGPO!

GGPO is a free hybrid video game matchmaking service and emulator that resembles a chat room. It's also heavily optimized for internet play. In fact I was thoroughly impressed by its performance and ease of use. You can barely tell you're playing online and performance comparable to that of Street Fighter 4 on Xbox Live.

GGPO only supports a handful of games at this point but chances are, if you like fighting games, you'll find at least one you'd like to play. Some titles that stand out are; Street Fighter III: Third Strike, Super Street Fighter II Turbo, Garou: Mark of the Wolves and King of Fighters 2002. See the GGPO website for the complete list.



One of the nicest things about GGPO is the interface. It's simple and intuitive. You click the game you'd like to play, select a user in that room and then "Challenge them." Alternately you can wait until someone challenges you. Once both players have accepted the match, the game will start automatically.

Another outstanding feature is the spectator mode. You can literally spectate any match that is taking place. All current matches are listed at the bottom of the user list. So if Daigo happens to join the room you could watch him play (and take his tactics). Even if you're terrible at the games but still enjoy watching the matches, this can be a useful program!

While I have no clue what the acronym "GGPO" stands for, the fact is that it is a fun program that eliminates the tedious configuration and poor performance plaguing similar offerings. I have always wanted to play Street Fighter online without shelling out $15 a month for Xbox Live and now I can without jumping through hoops. GGPO is not only a huge improvement to online multiplayer fighting games but it also fills the void that all the closed and forgotten arcades left in the competitive fighting game community (because we all have MAME cabinets now right?). Give this program a try and you will not be disappointed.

Helpful hints for first-time users:

1. Make sure you forward the necessary ports (UDP 6000-6009) in accordance with the directions on the GGPO site. Otherwise you will not be able to play.
2. Before you challenge anyone, make sure you have your controls configured properly. To do this, simply spectate any match and set your controls from there. Then exit the game and you're ready to go.

-Brett

Welcome to the Nerd Palace Blog

...and so it begins.

I can still remember the cold 1986 Christmas morning when I came running down the stairs to find a Nintendo Entertainment System sitting under the tree. While it was snowing, and I had a lot of other presents to open, I quickly commandeered the TV set, hooked everything up, and pressed the power button.

…I knew from then on my life would never be the same…

Twenty some years later and here I sit inside the Nerd Palace; an entire building dedicated to electronics and gaming, discussing the creation of this blog. Throughout our journey to creating the Nerd Palace we have learned, researched, and experienced a myriad of things revolving around gaming, and electronics in general. This will be the place for us to pass on what we have learned.

All of us hope you enjoy our postings at the Nerd Palace Blog. We all look forward to sharing our stories and advice with you!

-Shaun