Section: Hardware
December 05, 2007 by
Jason
Here are a few handy tips to clean your priceless collection of CDs and DVD discs.
But before you try any of these methods, remember that the disc media is very delicate and you may unintentionally damage the shiny reflective surface if you are not careful:
If dust particles are sticking to the CD surface, use a piece of soft cloth to wipe off the dust. To hold the CD, insert a finger or thumb inside the center hole of the CD or handle it by the edges but never touch the shiny surface. Read More»
Posted in Computer, Hardware | 2 Comments »
November 27, 2007 by
Jason A fresh update is available from Microsoft focusing on the microcode reliability of both 32-bit and 64-bit Windows Vista in scenarios where the operating system is integrated with Intel processors. Microsoft informed that the microcode reliability update for Intel processors does not impact only Windows Vista but also Windows Server 2003 and Windows XP. But as far as Vista is concerned, the company has been hammering away at the operating system ever since it hit the shelves. This is yet another example of Microsoft taking care of reliability issues affecting Vista. The update is designed to resolve “a possible Intel processor marginality and a potential source of unpredictable system behavior”, according to Microsoft. Read More»
Posted in Hardware, Windows Vista | No Comments »
November 22, 2007 by
Jason If you’re unwilling to pony up the kind of cash it takes to buy an HDTV and maintain a monthly satellite or cable subscription, but you still want to view HD content, you’re in luck especially if you already spend much of your time in front of a computer. With the help of some of the following tips, HD content without an HDTV can be at your fingertips.
Over the air
Believe it or not, getting HD content onto your computer through the use of over-the-air signals (OTA) is quite easy. The first step is finding out where the towers are located in your area. One option is AntennaWeb. Simply input your address info, whether you live in a single or multiple-story residence and if there are surrounding buildings and or/trees over a certain height, and it will show you the nearby sources of DTV signals and suggest the most appropriate antenna for you. Read More»
Posted in Computer, Hardware | 2 Comments »
November 17, 2007 by
Jason Few days back, I bought Windows Vista Business Upgrade the other day so I could start playing with it. Since I did not want to mess up the configuration of my current computer, I thought I would install Vista on a blank hard drive.
Sounds easy enough, after all the previous versions of Windows required you to have a legitimate copy of an older Windows operating system and simply asked for that copy during the install so they could verify upgrade compliance.
Before installing Windows Vista, I ran the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor on my current system. As I suspected, my video card was not up to Vista standards and the 512MB of RAM was on the low end of what Vista wanted. Read More»
Posted in Hardware, Windows Vista | No Comments »
November 15, 2007 by
Jason
By default, Windows XP will not allow you to use anything but the FAT and FAT32 file systems to format your USB drives. With a little fiddling you can also enable the NTFS file system on your removable devices though. As for whether you would want to, there are pros and cons.
On the positive side, enabling NTFS allows you to encrypt your documents with Windows XP’s built in file encryption (though you should only do this in a Windows 2000 or 2003 domain network). It also allows the use of file compression to stretch the capacity of your disk. You can also use NTFS to allow and deny permissions for individual files and folders within XP, something you can’t do with FAT file systems. You can also set disk quotas. In short, enabling NTFS on flash drives might have several benefits for IT departments that use or issue these devices as standard. Read More»
Posted in Hardware | 49 Comments »
November 11, 2007 by
Jason Depending on your combination of processor and motherboard, you may also be able to change the actual internal frequency multiplier of the CPU itself, which multiplies the FSB speed to arrive at the actual speed of the CPU in GHz or MHz.
For example: an Athlon XP 3000+ ‘Barton’ processor has a multiplier of 13 and uses a FSB speed of 166Mhz. 166Mhz x 13 equals approximately 2.16Ghz. Change the multiplier to 13.5 and you get (166MHz x 13.5 =) 2.24 Ghz.
Although a small change to the multiplier has a larger proportional effect on your systems speed than increasing the front side bus a considerable amount, the actual performance advantage of increasing the CPU multiplier is not so simple. Read More»
Posted in Hardware, Windows XP | 3 Comments »
November 09, 2007 by
Jason AutoRun starts Windows programs automatically
Every recent version of Windows has features known as AutoPlay and AutoRun. These functions are designed to launch applications automatically from a external device containing the necessary AutoRun information. This is what causes an installer window to pop up when you insert a software disc into your CD or DVD drive, for example, or makes a pop-up menu icon appear in the taskbar tray when you insert a USB flash drive. (In some cases, the action doesn’t occur until you double-click the flash drive icon in Windows Explorer.)
When a disc is inserted or a drive is connected to your system, Windows looks in the root directory of the new disc or drive for a file named autorun.inf. If found, Windows executes the instructions in that file. Read More»
Posted in Computer, Hardware | 3 Comments »
November 07, 2007 by
Jason If Windows ever notifies you about a weak signal, it probably means your connection isn’t as fast or as reliable as it could be. Worse, you might lose your connection entirely in some parts of your home. If you’re looking to improve the signal for your wireless network, try some of these tips for extending your wireless range and improving your wireless network performance.
1. Position your wireless router (or wireless access point) in a central location
When possible, place your wireless router in a central location in your home. If your wireless router is against an outside wall of your home, the signal will be weak on the other side of your home. Don’t worry if you can’t move your wireless router, because there are many other ways to improve your connection. Read More»
Posted in Computer, Hardware, Internet | 4 Comments »
November 02, 2007 by
Jason While Windows Vista is indeed an evolution compared to its predecessor, Windows XP, there is a cocktail of minor glitches with the new operating system that have contributed actively to the product’s rough ride so far on the market. When, even before Vista hit the shelves at the end of January 2007, Jim Allchin, the former Co-President of the Platforms & Services Division described it as neither foolproof nor perfect, he was right on the money. With Vista, a range of issues also came to the table including hardware and software incompatibilities, reliability and stability problems and poor performance under specific scenarios.
And just such a scenario involves the integration of certain DVD-R/RW drives with the latest operating system from Microsoft. Read More»
Posted in Hardware, Windows Vista, Windows XP | 3 Comments »
October 16, 2007 by
Jason
Windows Vista, Microsoft’s latest operating system, shipped to corporate customers in November 2006 and to the general public in January 2007. This move from the Redmond company was designed to emphasize the fact that Vista’s natural ecosystem could stretch with no real issues between the home and the business environments, blurring the lines that separate customers. In fact, with Vista, Microsoft aimed to catalyze an accelerated adoption in the corporate world. Having streamlined the upgrading process for home users as much as possible, Microsoft offered extensive support for Vista migration for businesses, but the matter is largely out of the company’s hands. Read More»
Posted in Hardware, Windows Vista, Windows XP | 2 Comments »
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