Cheap Tweaks

40+ underpriced, overperforming ways to get more from hardware, software, and the Web--from a $47 CPU upgrade to free Windows tricks.

Among my friends (both of them, including my chiropodist), I'm known familiarly as Budget Bob, the Frugal Freelancer, the Commodore of Cheap, the Prince of Penny-Pinchers. If there's a bargain to be had, I'm on it like lint on a blue serge suit.

Of course, being cost-conscious has nothing to do with cutting corners or buying shoddy goods. It means shopping and working smart--getting exactly the right tool for the job at the best price. (After all, cheap is such an ugly word, don't you think? Personally, I prefer "financially retentive.")

Chances are you can increase your PC's oomph, enhance or extend the capabilities of Windows and your everyday applications, and get more out of a peripheral without opening your wallet. Most of the 40+ PC pepper-uppers that follow are free, and even when a tweak does necessitate crowbarring your coin purse open, the damage never exceeds $50.

So whether your system's chronic complaints are traceable to a hiccuping hard drive, a recalcitrant operating system, or a sputtering Internet connection, I have the low- or no-cost cure for what ails it. And when you've seen it through its convalescence, you'll be able to enjoy the PC of Jack Benny's dreams.

Robert Luhn was editor in chief of Computer Currents and a senior editor at PC World. Contact him at pcwluhn@aol.com. Special thanks to Jim Aspinwall, David Bishop, David Blatner, and Gary Funk.