_{Cover of the February 2000 issue of Maximum PC}

Maximum PC is my favorite current PC magazine. It has been published since 1998 and really since 1996 when you take into account that it is a revamped version of boot which started in 1996. Given the relative lack of computer magazines these days, this one amazingly still survives. The February 2000 issue includes:

Features

• MP3 Guide - This article includes an overview of software to create MP3s from CDs, tips on the best settings to use, how to create audio CDs, where to find MP3s online (Napster, Usenet, FTP servers), some of the legal issues surrounding MP3s, and more.


• Online Trading - A beginner's guide to online trading. These days anyone can trade for free via services like Robinhood but back at the turn of the century it wasn't quite so easy. There were still brokerages that allowed you to trade online but they typically had minimum amounts to open an account as well as fees that could really add up.

_{Table of Contents from the February 2000 issue of Maximum PC}

Reviews

• Hardware
• Falcon Northwest Mach V - Known for making high-end gaming PCs, this Falcon Northwest model gets pretty mediocre reviews here. Specs includ a 750MHz Athlon, 256MB of PC100 SDRAM, a Guillemot 3D Prophet with nVidia GeForce video card with 32MB of SDRAM, an Optiquest V95 19-inch CRT monitor (max 1600x1200 resolution), a Western Digital 27.3GB 7200-RPM UDMA/66 hard drive, a Toshiba 6x SD-M1212 DVD drive, a 100MB Zip Drive, a 56K US Robotics ISA modem, a Diamond Monster MX300 sound card, and more. All for $4,500.



_{Inside the Falcon Northwest Mach V}
• Dell Inspiron - A review of the Inspiron 7500 which includes a 500MHz Mobile Pentium III, 128MB SDRAM, ATI Rage Mobility with 8MB of SGRAM, a 1280x1024 display, a 25GB IBM hard drive, and more for $4,301. It gets a good review here with the primary complaint being the boxy physical appearance.


• Sony Spressa USB CD-RW - An external USB CD-RW drive from Sony (USB CD-RW 411 4U) for $330 that gets an excellent review.


• HP CD-Writer Plus 8200e - Another external CD writer that also gets a good review though a bit lower than the Sony and it is also a bit more expensive at $350.


• Diamond Viper II Videocard - A video card based on S3's Savage 2000 graphics processor. Specs include a 125MHz bus, 143MHz memory, 350MHz RAMDAC, AGP 4x, 32MB SDRAM, and more. It would set you back $200. It gets an ok review here with bad drivers seeming to be the biggest problem.


• Imation Superdisk USB - This USB Zip Drive competitor featured smaller sized slightly higher capacity disks (120MB) than the Zip drive, and could also read normal 3.5" disks but it was more expensive at $170 and slower. Plus everyone had a Zip drive.
• Iomega Zip 100 USB - The Zip drive had been around awhile by this point but the original ones connected via the parallel port or a SCSI interface. USB was far more convenient as a portable solution.


• Microstar 6167 Slot A Motherboard - This $199 motherboard features the Athlon 750 chipset and supports Slot A Athlon processors. This one seems to have been a rock solid choice.



_{Microstar 6167 Slot A Motherboard}
• FIC SD11 - Another Slot A motherboard but this one seems to be a little slower and have more compatibility problems than the Microstar motherboard. It uses the AMD 750 chipset + VIA 686A.



_{FIC SD11 Slot A Motherboard}
• Logitech Cordless Mouse Special Edition - A $50 wireless (using RF, this is before Bluetooth) optical mouse that includes different color snap on covers.


• Software
• MusicMatch Jukebox - According to Maximum PC, the best CD ripper and MP3 encoder ever but a terrible player.


• Real Jukebox Pro - Another CD ripper, MP3 encoder, music player but this one gets a terrible review.


• Audiocatalyst - Yet another all-in-one ripper/encoder/player, this one being pretty mediocre.


• Audograbber - This piece of software focusses purely on ripping CDs. It's not that great though.


• Canvas 7 - An affordable (well, $375) graphics design app for the web. Requirements include a Pentium with 32MB of RAM running Windows 95/98/2000 and 80MB of free drive space.


• Games
• Quake III: Arena - At one point it seemed like the Quake games would go on forever. Quake III: Arena allowed for 32 players on a LAN which added to the fun.


• Unreal Tournament - Another terrific sequel to a terrific first person shooter.

_{Table of Contents from the February 2000 issue of Maximum PC (Continued)}

Voices

• Ed Word - Editor-in-chief Jon Phillips talks about the Maximum PC lab. Apparently there was an online version in which they went a little crazy with the novelty of hyperlinks.


• Comm Port - Letters from readers with topics such as game packaging, emulation, Athlon coverage, camping, and more.


• Fast Forward - How you trade personal data for dollars when you make discount purchases online.


• Net Sensei - Web sites to help you plan parties and get togethers.

Tech Files

• Watchdog - Complaints about an Endeavor EX system from Crossline, and Microworkz. Plus, Guillemot acquires Hercules, a Toshiba class action lawsuit about faulty controllers in notebooks and more.


• Lab Notes - Testing the 2D performance of 3D video cards. Cards tested include the Creative Labs 3D Annihilator Pro, 3D Labs Permedia 3 Create!, MAtrox Millennium G400 Max, Guillemot Maxi Gamer Xentor 32, 3dfx Voodoo3 3500 TV, S3 Viper 2, and ATI Rage Fury Pro.


• Ask the Doctor - Questions about removing heatsinks from video cards, CD/DVD drive terminology, using nVidia GeForce cards with Athlon systems, upgrading a Pentium II in a Intel Seattle SE440BX motherboard, single vs. multiple DIMM performance, AGP 2X vs. 1X, and more.

Products

• Peripheral Vision - A look at new tech gadgets including the LP 330 "Dragonfly" LCD projector, the CamPrint device which allows printing photos directly from your camera, and USB PC RADIO which adds FM radio to your PC.

_{Back cover of the February 2000 issue of Maximum PC}

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