Mashed Articles

Writen by Josh Riverside

Printer inks are inks manufactured especially for printers. The quality of printing depends on the type of ink, type of paper and the type of printer used. The quality of ink is reflected in the quality of the final product.

Printer ink is made from a combination of dyes or pigments, distilled surfactants, de-ionized water, biocides and fungicides, buffering agents, humectants and resins. These combinations ensure that the ink produced matches the quality specification of OEM ink. Dye or pigment of a particular type and quantity is used, and the surfactant helps in balancing the paper wetting and surface tension. Resins ensure paper adhesions and humectants minimize evaporation.

Printer inks are either dye based or pigment based. Dye based inkjet inks are brighter in color and can produce sharp quality printing. They are stable and can be stored for long periods of time. One of the drawbacks of dye based inkjet inks is that they are slow in penetrating and usually take up to ten seconds for drying. Since the drying time is long they often tend to blur. On the other hand pigment inkjet inks are light, fast, waterproof and fade resistant. They also dry much faster than the dye based ink and are more suited for color ink as they prevent blurring. They also have lower toxicity levels than dye-based ink. One of the major goals of the inkjet ink manufacturers is to develop ink that is durable, fade resistant, and waterproof and has the ability to print on any media.

Printer inks should be checked for compatibility with the cartridge while purchasing as they are not generic and can only be used in the cartridges they are manufactured for.

Writen by Ryan Fyfe

Video technology has increased significantly over the past years, and is continuing to grow at an incredible rate. Digital Video Disc’s aka DVD’s are the most likely the last big jump in consumer video technology that everyone is familiar with. To keep up with the ever advancing world of electronics a new format of video storage will be released soon called Blu-ray.

Blu-Ray is a next generation optical disc that will blow the socks off of what we all know today: DVD. Conventional DVD’s use a red laser that have long wave lengths, which limits the storage capacity on a disc. Blu-Ray uses a blue laser which has much shorter wave lengths. Because the wave lengths on the Blu-Ray are much smaller it can focus on a spot with much greater precision, allowing for data to be packed much more tightly than the red laser DVD’s.

Blu-Ray discs can hold up to 50GB’s of information which 10 times that of a 4.5GB DVD. 10 times the storage will greatly increase the amount of information that we can save on any one disc and will change the way we save information. Dual Layer Blu-Ray discs will be able to hold up to 4 hours of High-Definition Video. High Definition video is going to hit big here, Blu-Ray is an example of a technology that is going to make it happen. 50GB is probably comparable to size of many of our hard-drives, and to picture having all of that information on a small disc that we can slide into a pocket and take wherever we want is a bit scary.

Expect to see Blu-Ray replacing DVD and VCR over the next few years, following along with the transition of video to High Definition Video. Video isn’t the only thing that will benefit from Blu-Ray technology; I would expect that it will also become the standard for PC and other types of storage.

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Feel free to reprint this article as long as you keep the following caption and author biography in tact with all hyperlinks.

Ryan Fyfe is the owner and operator of Videos Area Which is a great web directory and information center on Videos and video technology such as dvd and blu-ray.

Writen by Gary Hendricks

Motherboard technology changes so rapidly that the notable motherboard manufacturers like ASUS, Gigabyte and MSI come out with new boards every few months.

To help you out, I’ve consolidated a summary list of the top 5 Pentium 4 motherboards which I recommend.

These boards are all great performers – you won’t go far wrong if you build your Pentium 4 system using them. So let’s take a look at the list:

Intel D875PBZLK

The Intel D875PBZLK is a Socket 478 motherboard that gives leading performance for Intel based systems. It supports AGP 8X and 4X, comes with built-in LAN support, USB 2.0 and serial ATA features. A very nice motherboard indeed.

Abit IS-10

The Abit IS-10 Socket 478 motherboard releases incorporates the the Intel 865G chipset to deliver mind boggling speed and power. All the standard features of a good motherboard are there – in-built video and audio, LAN support, USB 2.0 and serial ATA. A very popular item in the market.

Gigabyte 8I848P-G

The Gigabyte 8I848P-G is a Socket 478 motherboard with integrated audio, AGP 8X and 4X support, Gigabit LAN, USB 2.0 and serial ATA features. This full-function platform delivers excellent performance and rock-solid stability. A very affordable board that should be in a budget enthusiast’s shopping list.

ASUS P4P800E Deluxe

The ASUS P4P800E Deluxe is a high-end offering from the motherboard manufacturer. Built around the Intel 865PE chipset, this motherboard includes lovely features like IEEE 1394 connectivity, Multi-RAID technolog, as well as 8-channel audio, Serial ATA, USB 2.0 and Gigabit LAN. You get giddy just reading that don’t you? There’s also an interesting Wi-Fi slot that can be used for wireless LAN upgrade.

Gigabyte 8I915PL-G

A second Gigabyte board on our list? Well, yes. The Gigabyte 8I915PL-G Socket 775 motherboard is a solid performer with built-in audio, LAN support, USB 2.0 and serial ATA features. Most importantly, it comes with PCI Express support, which is needed to power the next generation of video cards.

Conclusion

OK – which of these motherboards would I buy? I’ve always liked Gigabyte and Abit motherboards so I’d certainly recommend the Gigabyte 8I848P-G, Gigabyte 8I915PL-G and the Abit IS-10. Ultimately, its your own decision – so consider what features you need and your budget, then make an informed choice. Happy shopping!

Gary Hendricks runs a hobby site on building computers. Visit his website at Build-Your-Own-Computers.com for tips and tricks on assembling a PC, as well as buying good computer components.