Download the episode - MP3 - M4A

Show Notes
We kick off Episode 6 by talking with Drew Henry of Nvidia about the optimized PC initiative and Hybrid SLI. Our editors answer your e-mails covering everything from PC gaming to our favorite TV shows. To wrap up the episode, Geoff and Jordan talk to long-time forum member and new TR blogger Mike "just brew it!" Uchima about the stone age of computers, building "The Beast," brewing mead, and much more.

Send in listener mail and we'll answer on the podcast. - jdrake@techreport.com

Interviews:

Drew Henry of Nvidia (0:03:05)

Topics discussed: Optimized PCs, Hybrid SLI, Nvidia's Analyst Day, and more.

Mike "just brew it!" Uchima (1:08:48)

Topics discussed: Computing way back when, building "The Beast," hand-built computers, when geeks weren't so cool, home-brewing and more.

Listener Mail:

Are consoles ruining the PC gaming market? (0:41:29) - from Silus:

"I'm not a hardcore PC gamer, but I like to play games whenever I can as a good form of entertainment, but lately, I've been witnessing something that saddens me greatly, which is the decrease of the quality in some PC Games, which I largely attribute to the cross-development with consoles. I have nothing against consoles, since I believe they have their place in the market, but when developers start to focus on console development, the quality of the PC Game, which usually is a console port, goes down the drain and I already avoided a few games, because of this. As a specific example, there's Epic Games, that publicly said they were definitely shifting focus to console development (as if UT3 wasn't a good hint already), while being part of the PC Gaming Alliance...This is absurd in my eyes and I have a hard time understanding the reasons behind this. I know that by focusing on consoles, they're looking toward a more profitable market, but by focusing on consoles how exactly do they improve the quality of PC Games ?!

I would like to hear the opinion of TR's staff on this, since I feel that my hard earned money is being spent on some games (in Europe they are more expensive than in the US), that are nothing more than console ports. And then I listen to these software houses complain about piracy, which is their ultimate reason to shift to consoles, but that just seems like an excuse to go after more dollars."

Has the Phenom B3 leveled the playing field? (0:54:49) - From Ed:

"I am "specing" out a new PC to build myself. I've been an AMD customer since the 1990s, but with the market being what it is, I am looking at Intel Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad motherboards (leaning toward XP Pro OS). With the B3 AMD Phenom, has the playing field been leveled? Also, with the VERY close relationship between Microsoft and Intel, is there code within either XP or Vista which gives the advantage to Intel over AMD.”

Which drivers should I use? (1:01:09) - From Daren (Malebolgia on the forums):

"One thing that's always bugged me about ATI drivers, is which one will give you the best performance. Some people on the forums swear by the 'ATI Catalyst Software Suite', others use ATI Omega, and the rest swear by just using the 'Display Driver'. Which one do you guys recommend?”

What are your favorite past or present TV shows? (1:02:59) - From Garret (mi1stormilst on the forums):

"Favorite past and present TV shows? Some of my favorites are Firefly, Battlestar Galactica, M.A.S.H., and Breaking Bad."

Staff TV Show Picks:

Geoff - Top Gear.

Scott - Battlestar Galatica, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, anything by Joss Whedon.

Cyril - Rome, House M.D., Deadwood, South Park, Arrested Development.

Jordan - Heroes, The Office, The Simpsons.

That's all, folks! Check back on May 31 for the next TR podcast.