Rick's Daily Tips

Q&A: Should I buy a larger power supply than I currently need for a home-built PC?

Posted on December 20, 2023

Note: The links in this post are affiliate links.

Question from Julian: My older brother has offered to help me build a gaming computer using the money I got for my birthday.

He gave me a list of parts to order and everything looks ok, but I have a question about the power supply.

He said a 600 watt PSU will power everything I’m planning to put inside the system but that I should buy a 750 watt PSU in case I ever want to add anything else to the system.

The thing is the 750 watt power supply that he recommended will cost about $40 more than the 600 watt one I’m looking at on Amazon.

What I’d like to know is do you think it’s worth an extra $40 to buy a larger power supply than I really need, and do you think the 600 watt power supply will be big enough? [Read more…]

Give an old PC new life by replacing Windows with Linux

Posted on December 17, 2023

Do you have an older computer that you’re thinking about replacing because it runs too slowly?

Well, there is a much cheaper alternative (it’s free!) for you to consider.

I know how enticing the idea of simply junking it and replacing it with a brand new PC can be, but you might be better off replacing the operating system instead.

[Read more…]

How (and why) to delete your DNA test results

Posted on December 16, 2023

It’s hard to turn on your TV anymore without seeing an ad for one of the commercial DNA testing services.

AncestryDNA, MyHeritage and 23andMe are all spending massive amounts of cash on ads to try to lure as many people to use their service as possible.

And it’s easy to understand why. Just about everyone we talk to these days has either already submitted their DNA for testing or are planning to in the near future.

But truth be told, there are very real and serious risks involved with allowing any commercial company to store your genetic information in their database.

[Read more…]