“GeekBusters” - Tech Myths Debunked!

Posted by ttblogger on 11/07 at 12:56 PM Permalink
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In this tech tip, we expose the myth and reality surrounding some of the biggest trends in our technology-oriented world. Hopefully, this will shed some light which can help you better understand how these crazy gadgets work!

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    Posted by Earl  on  11/07  at  06:39 PM

  1. Your discussion of hard drive space measurements missed one particular resolution; use of the terms KibiBytes, MebiBytes, and GibiBytes since 2000.  These cover the 2 to the 10th, 2 to the 20th, 2 to the 30th and are abbreviated KiB, MiB, and GiB.  Check out the Wikipedia page under KiB.

    2. Posted by Vernon  on  11/07  at  07:02 PM

  2. I understand some ISP’s JUST provides a node with enough bandwidth to cover basic usage, but not all of them do that. The cable ISP offered here in town has a guarantee of speeds for their service (80% to be exact) so that if I’m ever getting speeds lower than that, they take care of business to provide me the services I’m paying for (or as close as realistically possible). I’m not trying to be rude, or anything, I just get irritated when I’m working on someone’s computer and they ALWAYS blame their internet speeds on their ISP, instead of looking at other possible culprits. *Said while glancing at my router*

    3. Posted by Charles Griner  on  11/07  at  07:28 PM

  3. "Hard Drive Manufacturers use the binary method when manufacturing their drives but Windows reads the information in the decimal format to show the size.”

    I think this is backwards.  Hard Drive Manufacturers use the decimal method when marketing their drives but Windows reads the information in the binary format to show the size.

    4. Posted by Bernie Tapetillo  on  11/07  at  07:40 PM

  4. Thanks for this information was something I really did not know, so many thanks for your time and trouble to educate us out here in the real world

    5. Posted by Al A  on  11/07  at  07:44 PM

  5. Great article… When you wrote about the Cores and their relative benefits, I would have like to have seen some mention of how important the CPU speed is in relation to the cores or CPU, ie P4, Dual Core, Core2Duos, etc.

    6. Posted by lee  on  11/07  at  07:56 PM

  6. as for #3 with the confusing bits and bytes explanation, one could just say that 8 bits make 1 byte....so a d/l speed of “8 megabits!” is really a whopping 1 megabyte d/l speed. everything on the ascii table is also 8 bit, it became the standard because 8 bit was the pinnacle of technology at the time.
    I think it was #4 that was about hard drive size being smaller than advertised,Its easier to just can it “overhead” or housekeeping space, sector tables take space, plain and simple. thanks

    7. Posted by Lily  on  11/07  at  10:08 PM

  7. how about spy tech?  wink

    8. Posted by Paul  on  11/08  at  02:07 AM

  8. thanks for this myth busters.I have indeed been enlightened!. Especially in buying laptops and the Megabits and Megabytes.
    thanks

    9. Posted by dr. john  on  11/08  at  03:10 AM

  9. This is a great series from geeks.com. It certainly lends credibility to your outfit.

    10. Posted by Anthony Woods  on  11/08  at  03:54 AM

  10. 1. Why a cable Internet service provider’s (ISP) advertised speeds are not actually reality

    Actually depending on the DOCSIS configuration of the network you are connected to, each Downstream can actually handle around 32-42mb/s (with overhead).  Everyone that is connected to that downstream will share this bandwidth.  The New DOCSIS 3.0 gives the cable modem the ability to combine multple downstreams for higher bandwidth.

    11. Posted by Lynne Stevens  on  11/08  at  04:36 AM

  11. So when are you going to tell People of the fix Microsoft has in store for them in Feb ? It will shut their computer down when it finds anything which is not totally MS and has a serial number which Microsoft doesn’t like ! . . We techies are saying GO Microsoft LMAO

    12. Posted by Hap  on  11/08  at  05:50 AM

  12. Ref’s-#5; The 750 watt power supply you just purchased for $22 is really putting out 750 watts.
    While this statement is correct in the fact that a $22 supply most likely will not be rated well, your example is mostly incorrect and misleading as well. Without going into PWM Pwr Design 101, a good pwr design eng can design a Switching Supply that is very light; as in components used and not using large Transformers, with excellent high pwr output and a power factor close to 1, without the so called, Larger and heavier is better mind set.

    13. Posted by Jeff Grasz  on  11/08  at  06:21 AM

  13. I have a question about the multi-core myth.  I understand that only a few programs, mostly games, will recognize and use the multiple corps, what about multi-tasking?  Will I see an increase if I have three or four Word docs open, and Firefox with two or three tabs and Excel with three different workbooks and and Explorer with two or three tabs and iTunes?  This is my normal multi-monitor setup where I am doing research and putting together the information into reports.  By the way, the system I am running is a Phenom X4 with 8 GB of DDR3.

    14. Posted by Ralph Strader  on  11/08  at  07:43 AM

  14. I can build a computer, but I’m not a tech. I knew long ago that more than dual core was a waste of money. If you’re going to do more than a dual core processor can accomplish, then get a secretary. Cheaper in the long run.

    15. Posted by Erus  on  11/08  at  08:00 AM

  15. The part about where the 52x is not 52x. What you are saying is really also only partcially true. infact most 52x drives are not 52x by default and will not run 52x by defualt. They will run 48x. This is due to the actual discs. Spinning a disc at 52x (which not many are rated for) can cause the disc to shatter within the drive.

    If you want your drive to attempt to run at its fullest it is required to remove the safelock on the drive. This is done by holding the eject button for about 5 seconds. You will see the drive light blink on most models. Now the drive is in MaxSpeed mode and will stay there until you reboot your computer.

    16. Posted by Brendan  on  11/08  at  09:07 AM

  16. I think your article on multi core processors helped my decision when I build up my next desktop. I will put the extra cost of the processor into more memory and stick with a single core.

    17. Posted by George Alger  on  11/08  at  09:52 AM

  17. On your disk size comment, you did leave out the very important note that normally the OS will take a percentage of that space for the File Allocation Table and other system functions thus reducing the amount of available space for file and program/user use.

    18. Posted by Phil Frsbie, Jr.  on  11/08  at  01:18 PM

  18. Clarification for download speed: While it is true that cable is shared (as opposed to DSL), with ANY type of connection you are limited by the speed of the server you are downloading from and their connection.

    Also, cable today is still trying to get past its past poor performance reputation.  I switched from DSL to cable over a year ago and never looked back.  The best DSL speed I qualify for, at 3Mbps, is much slower than the basic 8Mbps cable speed, and DSL is more than double the monthly price.  Perhaps I am lucky, and most of my neighbors on cable are not huge downloaders, but I regularly see speeds of 4-6 for single downloads, and I have have always easily attained my max total 8Mbps download speed when downloading from multiple servers.

    19. Posted by Arthur Yellin  on  11/08  at  02:20 PM

  19. Can one of you geeks explain in SIMPLE, non-technical, language (like this fine article) why my old Dell 8250 can take up to 2GB RAM - IF it is PC800 but only 1.5GB if the RAM is PC1066?

    I assume that the numbers 800 and 1066 are the operating speeds of the RAM.  If that is correct, I do not understand why the motherboard + processor can only recognize/access/utilize LESS of faster RAM.

    20. Posted by Hap  on  11/09  at  08:54 AM

  20. A write up about, “Bad Capacitor Plague”, was the main cause of computer power supplies going bad, it was around early to mid 2000s and some where still being sold in equipment as of early 2007.

    21. Posted by Katbalu  on  11/24  at  04:00 AM

  21. This article is great and you guys are fantastic!! Happy Thanksgiving!

    22. Posted by Lynne Stevens  on  11/29  at  03:57 PM

  22. Well I call the cable company here in phoenix a lot of names and most are not printable here. . They have said they deliver 3 megs !  I get 417 KBPS MAX when I first started with them I got 957 KBPS and some where they cut my speed in HALF so I cut what I pay them in half actually I should pay them only 40 % of their bill not 50 % .. Their speed is 3 megs server to server not to my front door . . I can watch the network in and out in Linux They tried to pull your getting 3 megs on me I downloaded a file from http://www.coasttocoastam.com took over 32 seconds for 13.5 megs you do the math . . Same file at the library Wifi at 1 meg per is 13.5 seconds . . And I am paying for 3 megs NOT ANY MORE

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