I have a home server, and building it is one of the best things I could have done – it serves as a host for all of my music and movies, a place to back up my files, and even a music server so I can get to my tunes from any Web connected device in the world.

If you’re curious how to build a home server, it’s easier than you might think! The fine folks at PC Mag have a step-by-step guide to help you pick the right components for your system, put them all together properly, and find the right software to power your home server. Don’t be put off by the word “server,” it’s not nearly as frightening as you might think, and it can really turn around your home network and the way you organize your digital life!

[ PC Mag: How to Build: A Home Server ]

After a couple of years, your Mac just doesn’t feel the way it did when it was fresh out of the box and you were busy taking unboxing photos, does it? It’s okay, we understand.

My “just deal with it” threshhold is a little higher than some people’s, so it takes a bit longer than you might expect for me to get fed up with little quirks on a computer. That being said, I know many people who have older Macs start wondering as time goes on if there’s anything they can do to get to get back that lovin’ feeling that they knew so well when their machine was new. Now, there’s help!

Over at PC Mag, they have a suggestion: start fresh! There’s no reason to be afraid to wipe your system clean and start with a fresh install! It’s not as hard as it sounds, and since Apple makes it easy to copy and back up your data, preferences, and applications, you shouldn’t hesitate if you think it’ll improve performance. The article is a little light on details, and definitely shouldn’t be substituted for a full guide on backing up your data and installing MacOS from scratch, but it’s a good primer.

[ Refresh Your Mac ]

Over at Cult of Mac, author Craig Grannell has posted a roundup of six great utilities that you may or may not have heard of that will transform the way you interact with the menu bar in Mac OS X.

Among some of my favorites are iStat, which I’ve been using a dashboard widget of for years (although I’m seriously thinking of making the switch to the menu extra), iTunes Menu (which allows you to control iTunes from the menubar instead of having to find it under your apps or again, use a deashboard widget), and Isolator (which keeps you from getting distracted by fading apps other than the active one).

It’s a pretty good list, and I think I’ve found a few good ones to download myself.

[ Cult of Mac :: Six of the Best: Mac OS X Menu Extras ]

If you haven’t spent your economic stimulus check yet, or you’re just looking for some bargains to ring in July 4th with, head over to PCMag.com to check out columnist (and all around awesome lady) Jen DeLeo’s column, Cheap Tech: The 20 Best Products Under $100.

She’s got a bunch of awesome gear that I wouldn’t have expected, too – a lot of really sweet stuff, like the Blackberry 8800, the 16GB Corsair Flash Voyager GT flash drive, and the Canon Powershot A460, that are all under a hundred bucks! So if you’re shopping for a new cell phone, a new digital camera, or some other nifty computer accessory, check out these July 4th deals and shop from home, instead of heading out to some stuffy car dealership!

[ PCMag :: Cheap Tech: The 20 Best Products Under $100 ]