MSI MPG X570 Gaming PRO Carbon WiFi Motherboard

MSI MPG X570 Gaming PRO Carbon WiFi Motherboard

If you are interested here is the Amazon link

So far I have no issues with it.  That statement, however, is qualified by a story, [aren't they all...] which I am about to literally spell out for you below.  For you to read... or not.

THE STORY - INTRO

I had read reviews on Amazon, many good, about this board, not too many issues, easy install, etc.  So when I put together my new PC it started with me knowing I wanted to go AMD, and sprang from there.

I had replaced a Gigabyte graphics card in my now old PC a while back with an MSI one, which lasted significantly longer and I felt had less issues. So I felt confident choosing MSI for the MB and GPU this time around.

THE DISCLAIMER

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Here is where I insert my disclaimer that I am not being compensated in any way, by anyone, with any affiliation to the production or resale of the product, with this review.

Should be obvious by my page views, but there it is; above this sentence.  I will also say that I don't care either way.  It is what it is.

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THE STORY - THE REST OF...

So all the parts came in from Amazon just before the COVID-19 issues, and not a moment too soon.
Got it running after the worst time with this build.  Really a lot of needless issues, some of them my fault, others just... I don't know.  Anyway...

Long story short, and the reason for this post/review: After 20 min on the phone with someone from MSI, I had to RMA the board because we could not figure out why my external speakers would not work.  At the time we both agreed that the ports were probably just bad.  I had done all the things.

Do the speakers work?  Yup.
Did you update the drivers?  Yup.
Did you update the drivers from our site?  Yup.
Did you turn it on and off again?  Yeah, about 200 times...
Did you check the sound settings in windows?  Also yes.
Did you make the speakers the default?  Sure did.

Got the new board and had The. Exact. Same. Problem.

I was not happy.  The opposite, in fact.

THE FIX... MAYBE...

So I started messing around with the auto updater in MSI's Dragon Center to see if anything was missed and reinstalling updates, when i noticed  a section under Support called Microsoft Apps

I tried to update both of these and was taken to the Microsoft Store where I was shown that both were already installed.  So I opened the Realtek one and... voila!  Had sound.

Apparently installing them is not enough, you have to run them to have the software be initialized for the line out sound to work. Who knew.  Hopes this helps someone.

So can I just say, type,: How inanely stupid is that.
And, also MSI, if you happen to come across this post, please put something in your documentation about this, or am I just a bit late to the party?

I still like the board.  It looks cool.  The Mystic Light software works as well as can be expected, I don't have many RGB items to really do something with, and it seems that you have to pay more to not have RGB so... cheaper for the win.

Still messing with the BIOS.  Slowly trying my hand at OC.  Some of the setting location choices are weird at best.  Overall I like exploring and finding so there is that.  And there is always Google for the times when I don't have time.

World Hepatitis Day

So... I just found out that today the 28 of July is World Hepatitis Day.

In light of that fact, I think we should change Scurvy Awareness Day [which I also did not know was a thing] from May 2 to September 20.

That is all.

Uh... Dear Dairy...

So, stuff has been happening.  Lots.  There is always stuff.  Anywaywho, i haven't used this in a while.  And I'm paying for it, so I probably should use it more...ish.   Probably.

Captain America: Civil War

Hands down, the best Spider-Man movie to date.

Cajun Shrimp

So... had a bit of the munchies this afternoon, and seafood is allowed on my diet.  As is butter.
And most spices.  So I thought: 'Self, we have leftover shrimp.  And I'm in the mood for something a bit spicy.'  To which self replies:  Yeah!!! Go for it man!  :: in the Street Fighter Zero 3 announcers voice::

So I threw the below ingredients in a saute pan and something delicious came out.


Chili Powder
Ground Cayenne Red Pepper
Parsley
Italian Seasoning
Old Bay seasoning
Cracked Black Pepper
1/2 tbsp butter
1/4 fresh lemon

12 medium sized shrimp

Got the pan hot first then melted the butter.  Added the shrimp frozen ['cause i was lazy] and then the rest.  Added a bit more butter cause of the extra water but still didn't use more than what I have above.

No, there are no measurements for the rest of it.  Work it out for yourselves.  You know what you like better than I.

SO good over pasta.  Make sure to not reduce the butter sauce too much.

Someone else try it and let me know what you think.

Terraria 1.3

If you have not yet played Terraria, then you are missing out.  So much to do.  So much to see.  And way too much to make.  No hand holding.  Some pretty evil difficulty choices.  Some pretty unforgiving bosses.  Events that to complete solo, require an arena set-up time of no less than 3 hours.  Not counting the time it takes to test your wiring.  Oh, and wiring.

Mine carts.  Portal Gun [Yes the one from Portal, not as good though.  Still REALLY cool.]  NPC's with variable inventory.  I could go on... but I won't.  Buy it.  Play it.

Look, you cannot go wrong on this game for $10.  Can't wait for the next one.  Looks epic.

https://terraria.org/

HG 1/100 Serpent Custom [Mobile Suit: MMS-01 Serpent]

Unpainted as of yet.  It's a possibility for later.

Also as a side project I'll be uploading the images of the rest of my small collection of Gundam models, for nostalgia's sake.  Whoever that is...

Maybe within the next few days.  Don't look at me like that, I'm getting better... ish.

Anyway pics!

Yeah ...I know I need better lighting...

Windows 10

So I upgraded.  Got my approval this weekend.  So far, I'm liking it.  Nice mix of mobile/tablet functionality on my desktop.  Wondering why something like this didn't happen years ago.

Anyway... don't have many any negatives to say about it... yet.  I haven't yet run into the failed update reboot issues some have been complaining about, so I guess i'm one of the fortunate ones.

What I don't get, and it is not a major thing by any means, but why is there a search bar on my taskbar that I cannot get rid of?  I mean, I guess its useful for searching your PC for stuff you lost or thought you lost, but if I'm going to search the web, I think I'm just going to use Google.  I have issues with Bing.  Nomenclature-wise.  Best not to ask.

Social Media vs. Privacy

Social Media demands the surrender of more than a little of our privacy.  The various social media sites that the majority of people are aware of, want a slice of our collective lives.


"Post more pictures of your kids, they are so adorable!"
"Really?!  You were where? I've gotta see those pics!"
"Got a new swim suit the other day, pics to follow!"
XYZ wants to follow/friend/+1 you
ABC has viewed your profile


Perhaps you are okay with this.  Most people are.  Let me state right now that I am not wholly opposed.  I believe that some good can yet come of social media.  Honestly that term is becoming less and less relevant to reality and this discussion, but I digress...

Here is my issue, phrased in an easy to understand formula:

Having an online presence even with improved online security, and with said security implemented and acted on, does not equal a more secure presence.  Online or otherwise.

Here is the formula portion:

Digital self + use of enhanced encryption on digital self < Hacker
Hacker = damage to physical self

Now, I have no idea what people think in this regard, but based on the evidence, I have to assume that most people think that their digital self, online persona, avatar, or whatever that data will be eventually called, is safe.  Secure.  Protected.

It.  Is.  Not.

Now I don't know why people would think that this data would be safe.  Maybe it is because their idols do.  Their role models.  But these are the same people who take nude/semi-nude shots of themselves and shunt them to to world wide net for safekeeping.  Then get all uppity when their online photo service gets hacked, and said pictures get released out in the, dare I say it, wild wild web. Yeah, that was just as bad written as it sounded in my head.  Sorry, won't happen again, move on.

Make no mistake, whoever did that wasn't right, and they should receive just punishment for the crime.   These idols/celebrities had their privacy, and a few other things violated.  Yes, the only people who should have those images should have been the intended recipient. But, if those images were just for a special/certain someone, sending them through the web and archiving them there has already been proven to be a bad idea.  I'm sure I could find links for 'be' and 'a' but you get the idea.

As idols that most people look up to and follow the example of, they should really know better.  There is also no clear reason to why they [with 'they' being the majority of celebs - and yes, celebs because I'm too lazy and tired to type out and spell check the rest of that word, but will finish this sentence...] don't.

Catfishing, revenge porn, cyber-bullying with accompanying suicides, and the like have all been on the rise, but so has the increase in the efforts to implement security to mitigate and possibly prevent such attacks.  These efforts have obviously failed.  But these are not new tricks.  It is the same old blackmail, extortion, regular bullying with suicides and... *ahem* drag queen-ing!?

Now there are a few reasons as to why this is the case, with the sad truth of it being, in most cases, it never had to have happened.

Common Sense.  Unfortunately not so common anymore.  The use of our brains have been more focused now on instant feedback and use of portable devices, rather than a comparatively lengthy thought process to figure out a dilemma on our own.

Common, pardon, Rare sense should tell you that hackers love a challenge.  Even if it isn't to be malicious or hurtful.  See the Black Hat Conventions.  There is no hurdle that these people will not vault if given the opportunity.  This should tell you that if at all possible you would NEVER want to put anything remotely sensitive, incriminating, personal, or important, in a medium that is uncertain unless absolutely necessary.  Much less complain about it afterward when the inevitable happens.

It also tells you that geo-location for your photos with uploads is a great way to get robbed.  As is setting the GPS in your car with your exact home address.  Just why?

A support system is also needed.  Especially is this true of children and teenagers.  This is one of the benefits of social media, as long as you can trust the unknown on the other end.  Children and teenagers ideally can use their parents [that incidentally is another topic...] or trusted person.  The key is to have more than one someone who has your best interests at heart, is not looking to take advantage of you, and will actively work to help/protect you.  Sadly, the same is true for adults even if most won't admit it or accept the assistance if offered.

Lastly actually use the security features for your platform of choice.  If someone wants your data, they are going to get it.  Do you have to make it easy for them?  At the very least you know you tried to make them work for your identity, or those naked pics, or your credit card information and bank account.

Get the companies that run your platform of choice to make their policies more transparent, the security more robust, and the instructions more comprehensible.

The upside to all of this is that it is much easier to keep in touch with family, friends, schoolmates, etc.  Especially ones that live in another country.  It's easy to collaborate and brainstorm ideas with people you will probably never meet in person.

This is a world where most people are hyper-connected.  We do not have to be stupid about how we remain so.  To that end I have devised a rule:

If you want to be able to delete it later, don't put it in a place where, by it's very nature, redundancy, triple backups and numerous mirrored servers are not just a given, but a requirement.

...It's just my opinion though.

Colitis and stuff...

So... I'm going on a detox/diet [Ooo new word... dietox!] to try and help heal my colon.
Ignoring the title of the post, this is now about recipes.  'Cause I have to find new ways to eat roughly the same food.  Ha ha.  Roughly.

Fruit Smoothie
1 banana
1 granny smith apple.
1-2 handfuls of cherries
1-2 handfuls of raisins
1 handful of grapes
2 plums
1/4 pineapple
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1 tbsp honey
1/2 cup water
lots of ice

Cut the up and peel the fruit that you can/wish, Put what's left in a blender, add honey and spice.
Blend.  Add water and ice as needed, desired.  Obviously you can add or remove fruit as you wish to suit your tastes.

Enjoy.


This picture I find SO funny.  Not the best place to be looking doc.