How to Set Up NVIDIA G-Sync for Gaming

Below I will give you my personal NVIDIA control panel settings I use for G-Sync that gives me smooth game play (results may vary).

Prerequisites

  • NVIDIA video card (obviously)
  • latest NVIDIA drivers
  • Windows 10 or above
    • these settings should work in older versions of Windows, but I have not tested that assumption
  • G-Sync or FreeSync compatible monitor
    • FreeSync is AMD’s version of G-Sync
    • NVIDIA (thankfully) allows FreeSync monitors to work with their proprietary G-Sync technology without you having to fork out a lot of money for a G-Sync “certified” monitor.
  • You must enable your monitor’s G-Sync or FreeSync technology (it is usually disabled by default)
    • On my FreeSync monitor (Samsung LS28AG700N), the setting is called “Adaptive-Sync”. I do not know if other FreeSync monitors have it labeled “Adaptive-Sync” too, but the naming should be similar.
    • If you own a real G-Sync monitor, look for a similar option to enable.
  • Set your monitor to use 120Hz or higher refresh rate
    • While you can use G-Sync with a 60Hz refresh rate, it really does you no good (I tried it; waste of my time; G-Sync works better with a 120Hz or higher refresh rate).

Ok. First you need to open the NVIDIA Control Panel. Usually you can right-click on your Windows desktop and select “NVIDIA Control Panel”.

Once the NVIDIA Control Panel opens, click on the option called “Set up G-SYNC”.

Please note that this option will not be visible if your monitor’s FreeSync (“Adaptive-Sync”) or G-Sync technology is not turned on.

Now set your settings just like I show in the picture below.

Once you set the settings, you need to click on the “Apply” button to save your settings.

Before we go on, you may want to turn on the G-Sync indicator as shown below.

This will tell the NVIDIA driver to display a green “G-Sync” text on the top-right of a window or full-screen application that is currently making use of G-Sync. This is a very helpful indicator letting you know if your G-Sync is working properly in a particular program.

Now we need to go to setup a few more things. On the menu to the left, click on “Manage 3D settings”.

Below I have highlighted the settings I use specifically for G-Sync. Set your settings like I have shown below.

Important Note: The “Max Frame Rate” works well when it is -3 your monitor fresh rate. For example, if your monitor is running at 120Hz (like mine), set the “Max Frame Rate” to 117 instead of 120. This works well for me. Likewise, if you have a 144Hz monitor, set the “Max Frame Rate” to 141 instead of 144.

Important Note #2: If you have frequent stuttering when playing games, try setting the “Low Latency Mode” to “Off” and see if that solves the problem. “Low Latency Mode” does not always play nice with everyone’s computer systems and games.

Scroll down to view the rest of the options.

As mentioned before, please remember to click the “Apply” button to save your settings.

G-Sync should now work. Open up a video game and – if you enabled the G-Sync indicator I mentioned earlier – you should see a green “G-Sync” text on the upper-right of your screen.

I hope this small tutorial has been helpful to someone.


Posted in Computers, Software, Tips & Tutorials, Video Games

Let’s Encrypt – Free SSL/TLS Certificates for Your Website

If you have a personal or small business website that you wish to secure via an SSL/TLS certificate, you can use Let’s Encrypt to do it for free.

It used to be when you needed web encryption for your website, you had to go to a certificate authority and pay for one. What is worse, the certificate would have to be renewed every so often. It depended upon how many years you paid for in advance.

If you opted not to renew your certificate, your web visitors would see a scary message telling them “Your connection to the website is not secure!”.

Technically the “your connection is not secure” message is incorrect. An expired certificate can still secure your connection to a server, assuming you have not enabled HSTS for your domain. It’s only that the web browser – and other software – will no longer “trust” the certificate because it has expired.

Some services give their users a user-friendly option to setup a Let’s Encrypt certificate for their website. However, for people like me with custom setups, we must use other less user-friendly solutions.

If you are interested, here is the “Getting Started” link:  https://letsencrypt.org/getting-started/


Posted in Computers, Internet and Servers, Security, Software

What Exactly Does “better” Mean, and Why You Should Always Give Context

I have noticed many times on the Internet, people will ask if A is better than B. However, they do not give any context of what they consider “better” to be.

Whenever someone asks me if A is better than B, I always ask them, “What exactly do you mean?”. This is so I can help them make an informed decision. Otherwise I am just guessing, and that will not be helpful to anyone.

Here is an example of someone asking if something is better without context.

A guy named Jeremy goes to a cellphone store and asks Greg the salesman, “Which phone is better to use?”.

Jeremy has not explained to Greg what his requirements are. He could be asking “Which phone is cheaper?”, “Which phone is the fastest?”, “Which phone has the most battery life?”, etc. You get the idea. His saying “better” does not give any context to Greg.

Now Greg proceeds to correctly ask Jeremy, “What are your specific requirements?”. Jeremy then responds saying he is looking for a phone that has a large screen and is not too slow. Now Greg has context – instead of just “better” – and he now can properly show Jeremy the phones that will meet his needs.

Now Jeremy leaves the store happy, since he was able to purchase the phone he wanted.

Something to keep in mind. When someone mentions “better”, that is just their opinion. It does not mean anything until you get their context, and even then, you still would have to agree with their reasons why A is better than B.

You can also have someone who does not care either way. In this case, “better” does not factor in for him.

In addition, you may have someone give their opinion that A is better than B. However, if there is ample, reliable evidence to prove that A is instead equal to B (e.g., scientific research done by two independent universities that came to the same conclusion using valid, reliable methods to test), then there is cause to not believe what the person said. It all comes down to using common sense.

Summary: It’s good practice to always add context when asking if A is “better” than B, otherwise you will have people misunderstand what you are asking and may (unintentionally) give you an answer that is not helpful.


Posted in Computers, General, Internet and Servers, Operating Systems, Security, Shopping, Society, Software

Several ‘no log’ VPN Providers Caught Keeping Logs

I have written before about being cautious concerning any VPN providers who claim they are not keeping logs.

Just this morning, I was sent an email concerning several VPN providers who had their data dumped onto the Internet, proving they had been keeping logs while claiming they do not keep logs.

This is more proof that you should never trust a “no logging” VPN service to not keep logs.

Now am I saying that using a paid VPN is useless? No, but you need to be careful which VPN service you are using. In my experience, very few are legitimate, and even the legitimate ones are probably logging enough data to eventually identify you.

VPN services are in it for the money and most will say anything (e.g., “no logs”) to make a quick buck. Not to mention they could be selling your user data on the side – a double-whammy.


Posted in Computers, Internet and Servers, Security, Software, VPN

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