Hey everybody,
Although most of what I needed to say is in the announcement video for this web site (paradoxically), I needed to write a message welcoming everybody to our new house for written opinions content material. This will even present some further data. Before we even get began, a be aware: This is a piece in progress! We are nonetheless actively engaged on including content material to and enhancing bugs on the web site. The picture comparability device particularly is one the place we’re actively enhancing the habits. But this can be a sturdy begin, and definitely a far cry from the place we had been in 2008. And 2022. And principally any time that I used to be the one liable for constructing the web site.
Fortunately, this one was constructed by Wendell from Level1Techs. You ought to try his YouTube channel here!
Overview
The Features
Ad-Free
This web site is AD-FREE. It will keep ad-free. To assist us make that doable, particularly as we’ve employed particularly to preserve this web site and get previous & new content material alike imported, and for those who discover this useful, please seize a Modmat, Solder Mat, piece of commemorative glassware, or a T-shirt from our retailer! Or chip-in on Patreon.
Being ad-free additionally means we’re sustaining our video-first method (as the adverts will stay there, they usually pay the payments), nevertheless, with further staffing energy to deliver content material to the web site. The superior upside of this video-first method is that it means we now have a TON of property and stills we will seize to actually construct image-heavy pages (that load quick) to present appears to be like in any respect angles of merchandise, clear set up directions, and steerage for PC builders.
Function-First
This web site is FUNCTION-FIRST. That means our goal is simplicity, each from a upkeep perspective (for a really small workforce) and from a usability / bloat perspective. We will largely be specializing in textual content, photos, charts, and tables for net content material.
FAST
This web site is FAST AF. Because of Wendell’s engineering work, and since there are not any adverts, the web site hundreds very quick. The solely locations we now have some slower loading are pages with graphics high quality comparisons due to the further javascript, however the featureset is value it for these.
Community Service & Searchability
This web site is ARCHIVAL. Our purpose is to not solely get previous content material ported over to the new structure, however to proceed including our video content material in written format. That contains interviews, options like the Artesian piece, and benchmarks alike. We have observed a pointy decline in viable technical publications in written format, and we’re rising involved about the lack of preservation of technical data in a extra everlasting, searchable, and discoverable format than simply video. We love YouTube and dealing on it; nevertheless, particularly for folks not as instantly engaged with this area of interest, it’s nonetheless simpler to discover issues on the net. And much less typically irritating, as ctrl+F is a lot simpler.
Image Comparisons
This web site has IMAGE COMPARISONS. As we proceed to improve protection of graphics high quality variations and recreation graphics optimization, we might be making use of side-by-side and split-screen picture comparisons. The backside nook of those comparisons even permits you to select which screenshot is seen, as we generally have extra than simply 2. Try it out in our Starfield Optimization Guide or our Ray Reconstruction Explainer.
Methodology ‘Storage’
This web site incorporates CONSOLIDATED METHODOLOGY. That begins right here. But see beneath for data.
The Plans
As we regularly add content material to this web site, our primary quick plans are as beneath:
- Implement a floating desk of contents for simpler article navigation. We have bits and items of this in place, however we’re engaged on getting it to observe (in an un-obnoxious means) as you scroll.
- Improve loading velocity and ‘jumpy’ habits of picture comparability pages.
- Add extra check benches to our new Test Bench web page, but in addition port-in the public-facing a part of our check methodologies and SOPs.
- Import manufacturing unit excursions in written format for academic use.
A Personal Message
To use a drained phrase, this has been a “labor of love” from our workforce. I had been the just one sustaining the web site for over a decade, and finally had to cease updates because it turned too cumbersome with the time calls for of working the enterprise, benchmarks, and YouTube channel. We had to give attention to only one factor, and that was YouTube. It’s the solely place we made sufficient to truly function.
Wendell approached me in 2022 and needed to rebuild the web site. That’s as a result of, someday round perhaps 2020, I famous in a video that we needed to rebuild it (and it by no means went anyplace), and he actually needed to protect our benchmark content material completely in the most accessible format doable. I agreed, so we began engaged on this upfit. I’ve all the time been gradual with executing the ambitions, however we do finally get there. 3 years later, we lastly made it — thanks, Wendell.
Wendell has been enormously affected person with me on this time. My net skillset is prehistoric by at the moment’s requirements, and so there was quite a lot of studying. We each needed this to be a consumer-first effort to make it simpler to find out about PC {hardware}, how the factories work (these conversions are coming!), and element efficiency. We supply that in video, nevertheless it’s not going to attain folks simply stepping into the business.
It’ll be good for enterprise. But it’s additionally simply one thing we each needed to do.
But half of this web site is sentimental. As I mentioned in the video above, I’ve felt unhealthy for abandoning the web site updates since the ~2018-2020 period once we slowed publication. Selfishly, that’s not as a result of we obtained emails practically weekly with folks asking us to publish our content material written once more, however as a result of the web site was the final side of the enterprise that my dad, earlier than his surprising passing in 2015, had been personally accustomed to. He noticed the movies, however the web site was the place I spent all my time (and the purpose I dropped out of faculty). He was the one who signed me up for a Microsoft Front Page class after I was about 12, so I’ve him to thank for the early HTML expertise. And I suppose I even have him to thank for getting me began on what was most likely the world’s worst web-building device, however perhaps he needed to “build character.”
I grew up constructing GamersNexus and he obtained to watch the course of and was unbelievably supportive. I’d publish a (most likely very poorly accomplished, by at the moment’s requirements) evaluation of one thing like a Tuniq cooler I’d saved for, and he’d learn it and discuss to me about it. He was most likely one among two individuals who’d learn these. He truly made the unique model of this emblem in 2008, too. He made it in Microsoft Word. He advised me that (no matter model it was) saved vector information — I by no means fact-checked that, nevertheless it appeared to have been true. The emblem has been maintained and up to date, however makes use of his unique G/N design. I take accountability for the terrible font selection (and I additionally added the Photoshop CS3 mix modes to the emblem).
Without getting a lot additional into it than that, the level is that a minimum of half of this effort is as a result of I needed to protect this side of the enterprise as a method of preserving these reminiscences. Although the movies had began earlier, the large push didn’t occur till 2015 — and the purpose is as a result of it was not optionally available to have the enterprise work. It had to work, and it had to instantly develop into a method of supporting the household. Video was the means ahead.
I don’t need to linger on the subject since you’re all right here for expertise, however I did need to share it in a uncommon private message simply to give some visibility into what drives this web site. And final time I shared something shut to this, we had quite a lot of you electronic mail me to say thanks as you’d related with the loss and the perseverance. So to these of you who wanted it: Look forward and push on, however there’s no disgrace with discovering methods to stay related with these reminiscences to proceed the life and reminiscence of these earlier than us.
But we by no means supposed to go away the web site behind, and now we’re again. I’m enthusiastic about that. The web site works higher than it ever did. It’s additionally good to have a spot to write some ideas and updates instantly and extra personally for as soon as, as I typically hold that out of movies to give attention to the product.
This web site hundreds quick and it has a extremely certified workforce sustaining it. Patrick, Jeremy, and Jimmy did the bulk of the work pre-loading the content material into the web site for launch. A large thanks to the workforce for pushing on that, and to Wendell and Krista of Level1Techs for, as Wendell calls it, “computer janitorial” work.
Publishing Plans
We’re including extra content material practically every day. We might be balancing a mixture of pulling previous, still-relevant content material ahead first, alongside importing new content material. The present plan is to publish written variations of our movies on a one-week delay, generally it could be quicker.
The conversion course of for scripts is usually straight-forward; nevertheless, some issues work higher spoken than written. For these sections, we are attempting to hold a pointy eye to strip issues like directional phrases (right here, this, that, these) that don’t make sense with out some pointing, and likewise making an attempt to clean-up the colloquialisms that don’t switch properly to writing. That means you’ll discover some phrase selection variations, however for the most half, they’re a reasonably shut 1:1 illustration.
We additionally repeatedly reduce content material from movies for time. Our Cities Skylines 2 piece had a complete part written about superior graphics, however we reduce it as we had been working too lengthy already (the video goal size is ~30 minutes). This is an algorithmic choice, not a content material choice. Because we don’t have to battle an algorithm right here, we hope to deliver this slicing flooring content material to the written model of the opinions and checks.
Thanks for the help, everybody. Go discover the web site. Oh, and all the previous content material continues to be right here – it simply doesn’t look pretty much as good. You can discover it with a Google search for those who want one thing particular.
Try these pages that we spent some additional time on:
Oh, and a few enjoyable historical past. Here’s what the previous web site seemed like:
2008 (Launch)
~2011 Era
~2014 Era
~2015 Era
2016-2023
I’d say it’s factor that Wendell and Krista stepped-in for this one.
– Steve