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I know I haven’t posted much the past week, but I’ve been busy with school. Don’t worry though, I will start posting very soon. In the meantime, I had some fun a couple nights ago and decided to film it. With a little duct tape the night can be so much fun. The video is long, but I had to show how long it took to wake these guys up.
![](http://r3fresh.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/1375685165_0026af5223.jpg "Picture by Flickr user \\"wohnai\\"")
College is expensive, everyone knows that. Even with loans and scholarships, students and parents are looking at finding the cheapest way to get through school. Having $3000 less in loans at the end of your college stay may seem dismal, but to some it’s worth it.
Buying books for the upcoming year at school, I had the option of going through the school’s book store, which is what most of the students do at the beginning of each semester. The other option was something that hit me a couple months ago. Amazon.com. I’ve only bought a few books from Amazon, but I always saved a reasonable amount of money from them, even on new books.
Looking at the total cost for the college books store, the bill totaled about $400. I thought this was extremely expensive for eight books that I wouldn’t touch a year from now. What was even more annoying was the fact that it was $400 for used books.
Next, I went to Amazon.com, entered the ISBN numbers into the search, compared prices from different merchants, and had generated a bill of $175. $175 for eight books that would have cost me $400 at the book store? Yes! Also, four of the eight books I purchased were brand new. One used book was new, but the shipment had gotten “sun damage” and the publisher was selling them at used prices. Even my math book, which I bought for $0.83, was in great condition, only some minor highlighting.
I don’t think college books stores are trying to screw you, but like any business they need to make their money. With Amazon, I found cheaper prices on every book I purchased and next semester when I’m looking at buying books again, I will definitely use Amazon.
Tips for buying books from Amazon:
I recently purchased a Dell 24” LCD to replace my budget 22” Acer monitor. I’m very much enjoying my new Dell monitor, which handles colors way better than my Acer ever could, but I have noticed my Dell emits a ton of heat.
Sitting at my desk, I can actually feel the heat that the monitor puts off. I never had this problem with the Acer, but Acer was also smaller and not nearly as bright as the Dell. Luckily, I’ve found some ways to reduce the LCD heat.
Distance: Having this massive monitor means you can have a little space between your face and the screen. The old 17” CRT monitor is way gone and now you can give your face (and eyes) a rest. I’ve moved my monitor about 2-2 ½ feet away from where I’m sitting. So far this has helped reduce the heat, although after using the LCD for a couple hours straight I still notice the warmth.
Height: My desk has a heightened platform that I used to put my external hard drive on, but for the sake of room (and heat), I’ve put my monitor on top of it. Having the monitor higher has put most of the emitted heat over my head. I couldn’t have done this with my last monitor because of the poor viewing angle.
Brightness: Like a said before, the Dell is leaps and bounds brighter than the Acer. Having a brighter monitor makes pictures pop and makes text legible. The downside of having a brighter monitor is the heat. The brighter the monitor, the more heat it will give off. Looking at my monitor settings, my brightness is at 50/100, which seems low. I couldn’t imagine having the LCD at maximum brightness; I’d have a tan in a couple hours.
The easiest way to reduce LCD heat is to have constant air circulation by your workstation. If you’re not near an air vent, open a window. If you don’t have air conditioning or aren’t near a window, buy a cheap desk fan. Local office supply stores, like Staples, sell them for under $20.
One more thing, don’t put any misting devices near your monitor or computer. It may seem like a good idea, but it’s stupid. Now I’m not saying this to say it. I have actually seen (“cough” a family member “cough”) using a misting device at their computer. Enough water can ruin your monitor and short out your computer. Follow the tips above and you’ll be much cooler than you’re past monitor setup. I know I am.
Tags: acer, brightness, dell, distance, heat, LCD, monitor, new, reduce, tips