[gallery columns="4"] Lately I've been taking a lot of notes and doing more writing than I normally do. I've also gotten a number of great emails from readers about what their writing with and pens they might like. [Check out these posts to see previous coverage of writing equipment.] First of, I started using a Platinum Preppy fountain pen. I'm not a big fan of fountain pens, but I do like the throw-away variety and, coming in at $3, the Preppy definitely falls in that category. It's a lot of fun to use and it doesn't have any of the problems you might associate with older fountain pens, like ink pooling or putting out too much ink. I started using it partially because I have been writing on a Behance notebook with rather thick pages, which the pen is ideally suited for. The nib does seem to dry up for a few seconds if I leave the cap off for too long, but past that I really like it. I've also been using  Pilot G2 Limited. I'm a big fan of the G2 so when I saw the Limited I has to pick it up, despite a selling for about $10. It is basically your standard G2 with a more metal parts and a bit more heft. It's a little longer than most of the pens I use, but that doesn't bother me. While I like the extra weight over the comparatively flimsy G2 and I appreciate the nice colors (there is a white as well at the gunmetal gray) and upgraded grip, I don't think it's worth the extra money. It's a solid enough pen, there are others I like more at the $10 mark. It's a must-try for G2 and Pilot fans, but I'd be a lot more impressed with it at $6. Finally, I've been using the Sharpie pen, though not as much as I was. This is a pen that everyone loves because it's cheap and can write on anything. Plus it is a Sharpie that doesn't bleed through. Overall, it's a pen that everyone should own, and while I prefer a standard pen for day to day writing (the Sharpie is not particularly smooth thanks to the material of the tip) it's something that has earned a spot on my desk. I've been taking more notes in ink lately (probably just because it's quick and it let's me organize my thoughts very easy) so I'll try to do these posts more frequently.

For as long as I have been reading/writing about computers I've always loved articles where people walk through the building of their own computer. Buyer's guides are fun, but that's not what I mean. I'm talking about someone who is building a computer for a reason and then talking about the components that they used, how they went to together, and the result. It doesn't matter if it's the smallest/cheapest/most powerful/etc. what matters is your goals and how you went about building a computer to accomplish them while working our real life limitations, like space and price. If you are interested (or have no idea what I am talking about) you can check out my latest PC build article or Josh Korwin's, which also ran on Geek. Logic Supply just did a great one on their blog using a Chenbro case and a Gigabyte Mini-ITX motherboard. It's very well done and reflects the advanced understanding of the components and how they work together that make these articles so interesting. Being an online retailer they have access to all sorts of great gear as well as a more experience working with the parts than almost anyone else. It's very interesting, and it's got to be the best way I can think of to inform consumers about your products. Tech Report has been doing them for a long time as well, though I can't seem to find my favorite on their site. (I'll keep looking, but I thought it was called the "Danger Box"...) These articles are a lot of work- not just on the writing side, but the research, the building, troubleshooting, testing, etc.- so we don't see them that often. We do see a lot of "Build a $500 gaming computer" type posts, but these are generally just going through Newegg and picking out some parts. They can't be helpful and fun to read, but without a computer being built, you don't get the same insights into the final product. I used to do these posts much more frequently. They were not only loads of fun, but they were generally my most successful articles (see "The Mini-ITX Project"). I don't do them as often largely because of time and space constraints. Additionally interest in articles like this has been waning. I won't get into it too much here, but with so many people moving to laptops and thanks to recent hardware advances outpacing software ones you don't have to build to have a great computer.

Inverted Castle, a site that I admittedly have never too to before, has a great essay on Everyday Shooter. It's smart, readable, and highly entertaining. Not to knock video game writing, but it's really refreshing to read posts like this now and then. Found via the Indie Games Blog