Speed Up Your FireFox

Yes, the fox is already pretty damn fast but do you know if you can actually make it faster?
That's the beauty of this program being open source.

So, this is what you do:

In the URL bar, type “about:config” and press enter. This will bring up the configuration “menu” where you can change the parameters of Firefox.

Note that these are what I’ve found to REALLY speed up my Firefox significantly - and these settings seem to be common among everybody else as well. But these settings are optimized for broadband connections - I mean with as much concurrent requests we’re going to open up with pipelining..... you’d better have a big connection.

Double Click on the following settings and put in the numbers below - the true / false booleans will change when you double click them.

Code:
browser.tabs.showSingleWindowModePrefs – true
network.http.max-connections – 48
network.http.max-connections-per-server – 16
network.http.max-persistent-connections-per-proxy – 8
network.http.max-persistent-connections-per-server – 4
network.http.pipelining – true
network.http.pipelining.maxrequests – 100
network.http.proxy.pipelining – true
network.http.request.timeout – 300

One more thing…
Right-click somewhere on that screen and add a NEW -> Integer.
Name it “nglayout.initialpaint.delay” and set its value to “0”.
This value is the amount of time the browser waits before it acts on information it receives. Since you’re broadband - it shouldn’t have to wait.

That's it, you should notice you fox running faster now : )

Related post :

Tips to Speed up Your Modem
Do you know that maybe at this momment, your browsing speed has been limited by your own modem? Then follow this to make sure!

BIOS Beep Codes - Error Codes

Finally after some long search i've found this information.

BIOS Beep Codes

Have you ever found your computer cannot be turned on? The power light is on but there's nothing happen but some beeping sounds. Then you got to know this information.

When a computer is first turned on, or rebooted, its BIOS performs a power-on self test (POST) to test the system's hardware, checking to make sure that all of the system's hardware components are working properly. Under normal circumstances, the POST will display an error message; however, if the BIOS detects an error before it can access the video card, or if there is a problem with the video card, it will produce a series of beeps, and the pattern of the beeps indicates what kind of problem the BIOS has detected.
Because there are many brands of BIOS, there are no standard beep codes for every BIOS.

Standard Original IBM POST Error Codes

Code Description

1 short beep System is OK
2 short beeps POST Error - error code shown on screen
No beep Power supply or system board problem
Continuous beep Power supply, system board, or keyboard problem
Repeating short beeps Power supply or system board problem
1 long, 1 short beep System board problem
1 long, 2 short beeps Display adapter problem (MDA, CGA)
1 long, 3 short beeps Display adapter problem (EGA)
3 long beeps 3270 keyboard card

IBM POST Diagnostic Code Descriptions

Code Description

100 - 199 System Board
200 - 299 Memory
300 - 399 Keyboard
400 - 499 Monochrome Display
500 - 599 Colour/Graphics Display
600 - 699 Floppy-disk drive and/or Adapter
700 - 799 Math Coprocessor
900 - 999 Parallel Printer Port
1000 - 1099 Alternate Printer Adapter
1100 - 1299 Asynchronous Communication Device, Adapter, or Port
1300 - 1399 Game Port
1400 - 1499 Colour/Graphics Printer
1500 - 1599 Synchronous Communication Device, Adapter, or Port
1700 - 1799 Hard Drive and/or Adapter
1800 - 1899 Expansion Unit (XT)
2000 - 2199 Bisynchronous Communication Adapter
2400 - 2599 EGA system-board Video (MCA)
3000 - 3199 LAN Adapter
4800 - 4999 Internal Modem
7000 - 7099 Phoenix BIOS Chips
7300 - 7399 3.5" Disk Drive
8900 - 8999 MIDI Adapter
11200 - 11299 SCSI Adapter
21000 - 21099 SCSI Fixed Disk and Controller
21500 - 21599 SCSI CD-ROM System

AMI BIOS Beep Codes

Code Description

1 Short Beep System OK
2 Short Beeps Parity error in the first 64 KB of memory
3 Short Beeps Memory failure in the first 64 KB
4 Short Beeps Memory failure in the first 64 KB Operational of memory
or Timer 1 on the motherboard is not functioning
5 Short Beeps The CPU on the motherboard generated an error
6 Short Beeps The keyboard controller may be bad. The BIOS cannot switch to protected mode
7 Short Beeps The CPU generated an exception interrupt
8 Short Beeps The system video adapter is either missing, or its memory is faulty
9 Short Beeps The ROM checksum value does not match the value encoded in the BIOS
10 Short Beeps The shutdown register for CMOS RAM failed
11 Short Beeps The external cache is faulty
1 Long, 3 Short Beeps Memory Problems
1 Long, 8 Short Beeps Video Card Problems

Phoenix BIOS Beep Codes

Note - Phoenix BIOS emits three sets of beeps, separated by a brief pause.

Code Description

1-1-3 CMOS read/write failure
1-1-4 ROM BIOS checksum error
1-2-1 Programmable interval timer failure
1-2-2 DMA initialisation failure
1-2-3 DMA page register read/write failure
1-3-1 RAM refresh verification failure
1-3-3 First 64k RAM chip or data line failure
1-3-4 First 64k RAM odd/even logic failure
1-4-1 Address line failure first 64k RAM
1-4-2 Parity failure first 64k RAM
2-_-_ Faulty Memory
3-1-_ Faulty Motherboard
3-2-4 Keyboard controller Test failure
3-3-4 Screen initialisation failure
3-4-1 Screen retrace test failure
3-4-2 Search for video ROM in progress
4-2-1 Timer tick interrupt in progress or failure
4-2-2 Shutdown test in progress or failure
4-2-3 Gate A20 failure
4-2-4 Unexpected interrupt in protected mode
4-3-1 RAM test in progress or failure>ffffh
4-3-2 Faulty Motherboard
4-3-3 Interval timer channel 2 test or failure
4-3-4 Time of Day clock test failure
4-4-1 Serial port test or failure
4-4-2 Parallel port test or failure
4-4-3 Math coprocessor test or failure
Low 1-1-2 System Board select failure
Low 1-1-3 Extended CMOS RAM failure

Computer 101 : Why PC crash? Part 3 : Hard Disk Drive

OK guys, today in Computer 101 we will still talk about why pc crash. Sorry it's been a while since the last post, i've been very very busy at the end of year 2008. I only could check my blog by my cellphone. It will be some of physical exercise for my thumb if i try to make a post with it *grin. But enough of that, lets just talk about this now
Part 3. Hard disk drives

After a few weeks, the information on a hard disk drive starts to become piecemeal or fragmented. It is a good idea to defragment the hard disk every week or so, to prevent the disk from causing a screen freeze. Go to

* Start-Programs-Accessories-System Tools-Disk Defragmenter

This will start the procedure. You will be unable to write data to the hard drive (to save it) while the disk is defragmenting, so it is a good idea to schedule the procedure for a period of inactivity using the Task Scheduler.

The Task Scheduler should be one of the small icons on the bottom right of the Windows opening page (the desktop).

Some lockups and screen freezes caused by hard disk problems can be solved by reducing the read-ahead optimisation. This can be adjusted by going to

* Start-Settings-Control Panel-System Icon-Performance-File System-Hard Disk.

Hard disks will slow down and crash if they are too full. Do some housekeeping on your hard drive every few months and free some space on it. Open the Windows folder on the C drive and find the Temporary Internet Files folder. Deleting the contents (not the folder) can free a lot of space.

Empty the Recycle Bin every week to free more space. Hard disk drives should be scanned every week for errors or bad sectors. Go to

* Start-Programs-Accessories-System Tools-ScanDisk

Otherwise assign the Task Scheduler to perform this operation at night when the computer is not in use.

Related Article :

Computer 101 : Why PC crash? Part 1 : Hardware Conflict

Computer 101 : Why PC crash? Part 2 : Bad Ram

Computer 101 : Why PC crash? Part 2 : Bad Ram

We have talk about Hardware Conflict in Computer 101 : Why PC crash? Part 1 : Hardware Conflict
Now we're gonna talk about another reason why PC crash

Part 2 : Bad Ram

Ram (random-access memory) problems might bring on the blue screen of death with a message saying Fatal Exception Error. A fatal error indicates a serious hardware problem. Sometimes it may mean a part is damaged and will need replacing.

But a fatal error caused by Ram might be caused by a mismatch of chips. For example, mixing 70-nanosecond (70ns) Ram with 60ns Ram will usually force the computer to run all the Ram at the slower speed. This will often crash the machine if the Ram is overworked.

One way around this problem is to enter the BIOS settings and increase the wait state of the Ram. This can make it more stable. Another way to troubleshoot a suspected Ram problem is to rearrange the Ram chips on the motherboard, or take some of them out. Then try to repeat the circumstances that caused the crash. When handling Ram try not to touch the gold connections, as they can be easily damaged.

Parity error messages also refer to Ram. Modern Ram chips are either parity (ECC) or non parity (non-ECC). It is best not to mix the two types, as this can be a cause of trouble.

EMM386 error messages refer to memory problems but may not be connected to bad Ram. This may be due to free memory problems often linked to old Dos-based programmes.

Related Topic :
Computer 101 : Why PC crash? Part 1 : Hardware Conflict
See tips no 19 for memory test on this post
Installing RAM in your Laptop
Before You Buy Computer Memory Upgrades

Computer 101 : Why PC crash? Part 1 : Hardware Conflict

Have you ever found your PC suddenly stop running? or got the notorious blue screen of death? or even restarting by itself ? If you haven't, consider yourself very lucky :D

I'm gonna share to you about reasons why you get those very annoying and depressing momment

What can you do? More importantly, how can you prevent it happening?

Part 1 : Hardware conflict

The number one reason why Windows crashes is hardware conflict. Each hardware device communicates to other devices through an interrupt request channel (IRQ). These are supposed to be unique for each device. For example, a printer usually connects internally on IRQ 7. The keyboard usually uses IRQ 1 and the floppy disk drive IRQ 6. Each device will try to hog a single IRQ for itself. If there are a lot of devices, or if they are not installed properly, two of them may end up sharing the same IRQ number. When the user tries to use both devices at the same time, a crash can happen.

The way to check if your computer has a hardware conflict is through the following route:

* Start-Settings-Control Panel-System-Device Manager.

Often if a device has a problem a yellow '!' appears next to its description in the Device Manager. Highlight Computer (in the Device Manager) and press Properties to see the IRQ numbers used by your computer. If the IRQ number appears twice, two devices may be using it.

Sometimes a device might share an IRQ with something described as 'IRQ holder for PCI steering'. This can be ignored. The best way to fix this problem is to remove the problem device and reinstall it.

Sometimes you may have to find more recent drivers on the internet to make the device function properly. A good resource is http://www.driverguide.com/. If the device is a soundcard, or a modem, it can often be fixed by moving it to a different slot on the motherboard (be careful about opening your computer, as you may void the warranty).

When working inside a computer you should switch it off, unplug the mains lead and touch an unpainted metal surface to discharge any static electricity.

To be fair to Microsoft, the problem with IRQ numbers is not of its making. It is a legacy problem going back to the first PC designs using the IBM 8086 chip. Initially there were only eight IRQs. Today there are 16 IRQs in a PC. It is easy to run out of them. There are plans to increase the number of IRQs in future designs.

23 Ways To Speed Up Windows XP

Since defragging the disk won't do much to improve Windows XP performance, here are 23 suggestions that will. Each can enhance the performance and reliability of your customers' PCs. Best of all, most of them will cost you nothing.

1.) To decrease a system's boot time and increase system performance, use the money you save by not buying defragmentation software -- the built-in Windows defragmenter works just fine -- and instead equip the computer with an Ultra-133 or Serial ATA hard drive with 8-MB cache buffer.

2.) If a PC has less than 512 MB of RAM, add more memory. This is a relatively inexpensive and easy upgrade that can dramatically improve system performance.

3.) Ensure that Windows XP is utilizing the NTFS file system.

If you're not sure, here's how to check:
First, double-click the My Computer icon, right-click on the C: Drive, then select Properties. Next, examine the File System type; if it says FAT32, then back-up any important data. Next, click Start, click Run, type CMD, and then click OK. At the prompt, type CONVERT C: /FS:NTFS and press the Enter key.

This process may take a while; it's important that the computer be uninterrupted and virus-free. The file system used by the bootable drive will be either FAT32 or NTFS. I highly recommend NTFS for its superior security, reliability, and efficiency with larger disk drives.

4.) Disable file indexing. The indexing service extracts information from documents and other files on the hard drive and creates a "searchable keyword index." As you can imagine, this process can be quite taxing on any system.

Here's how:
First, double-click the My Computer icon. Next, right-click on the C: Drive, then select Properties. Uncheck "Allow Indexing Service to index this disk for fast file searching." Next, apply changes to "C: subfolders and files," and click OK. If a warning or error message appears (such as "Access is denied"), click the Ignore All button.

5.) Update the PC's video and motherboard chipset drivers. Also, update and configure the BIOS.

6.) Empty the Windows Prefetch folder every three months or so. Windows XP can "prefetch" portions of data and applications that are used frequently. This makes processes appear to load faster when called upon by the user. That's fine. But over time, the prefetch folder may become overloaded with references to files and applications no longer in use. When that happens, Windows XP is wasting time, and slowing system performance, by pre-loading them. Nothing critical is in this folder, and the entire contents are safe to delete.

7.) Once a month, run a disk cleanup.

Here's how:
Double-click the My Computer icon. Then right-click on the C: drive and select Properties. Click the Disk Cleanup button -- it's just to the right of the Capacity pie graph -- and delete all temporary files.

8.) In your Device Manager, double-click on the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers device, and ensure that DMA is enabled for each drive you have connected to the Primary and Secondary controller. Do this by double-clicking on Primary IDE Channel. Then click the Advanced Settings tab. Ensure the Transfer Mode is set to "DMA if available" for both Device 0 and Device 1. Then repeat this process with the Secondary IDE Channel.

9.) Upgrade the cabling. As hard-drive technology improves, the cabling requirements to achieve these performance boosts have become more stringent. Be sure to use 80-wire Ultra-133 cables on all of your IDE devices with the connectors properly assigned to the matching Master/Slave/Motherboard sockets. A single device must be at the end of the cable; connecting a single drive to the middle connector on a ribbon cable will cause signaling problems. With Ultra DMA hard drives, these signaling problems will prevent the drive from performing at its maximum potential. Also, because these cables inherently support "cable select," the location of each drive on the cable is important. For these reasons, the cable is designed so drive positioning is explicitly clear.

10.) Remove all spyware from the computer. Use free programs such as AdAware by Lavasoft or SpyBot Search & Destroy. Once these programs are installed, be sure to check for and download any updates before starting your search. Anything either program finds can be safely removed. Any free software that requires spyware to run will no longer function once the spyware portion has been removed; if your customer really wants the program even though it contains spyware, simply reinstall it. For more information on removing Spyware visit this Web Pro News page.

11.) Remove any unnecessary programs and/or items from Windows Startup routine using the MSCONFIG utility.

Here's how:
First, click Start, click Run, type MSCONFIG, and click OK. Click the StartUp tab, then uncheck any items you don't want to start when Windows starts. Unsure what some items are? Visit the WinTasks Process Library. It contains known system processes, applications, as well as spyware references and explanations. Or quickly identify them by searching for the filenames using Google or another Web search engine.

12.) Remove any unnecessary or unused programs from the Add/Remove Programs section of the Control Panel.

13.) Turn off any and all unnecessary animations, and disable active desktop. In fact, for optimal performance, turn off all animations. Windows XP offers many different settings in this area. Here's how to do it: First click on the System icon in the Control Panel. Next, click on the Advanced tab. Select the Settings button located under Performance. Feel free to play around with the options offered here, as nothing you can change will alter the reliability of the computer -- only its responsiveness.

14.) If your customer is an advanced user who is comfortable editing their registry, try some of the performance registry tweaks offered at Tweak XP.

15.) Visit Microsoft's Windows update site regularly, and download all updates labeled Critical. Download any optional updates at your discretion.

16.) Update the customer's anti-virus software on a weekly, even daily, basis. Make sure they have only one anti-virus software package installed. Mixing anti-virus software is a sure way to spell disaster for performance and reliability.

17.) Make sure the customer has fewer than 500 type fonts installed on their computer. The more fonts they have, the slower the system will become. While Windows XP handles fonts much more efficiently than did the previous versions of Windows, too many fonts -- that is, anything over 500 -- will noticeably tax the system.

18.) Do not partition the hard drive. Windows XP's NTFS file system runs more efficiently on one large partition. The data is no safer on a separate partition, and a reformat is never necessary to reinstall an operating system. The same excuses people offer for using partitions apply to using a folder instead. For example, instead of putting all your data on the D: drive, put it in a folder called "D drive." You'll achieve the same organizational benefits that a separate partition offers, but without the degradation in system performance. Also, your free space won't be limited by the size of the partition; instead, it will be limited by the size of the entire hard drive. This means you won't need to resize any partitions, ever. That task can be time-consuming and also can result in lost data.

19.) Check the system's RAM to ensure it is operating properly. I recommend using a free program called MemTest86. The download will make a bootable CD or diskette (your choice), which will run 10 extensive tests on the PC's memory automatically after you boot to the disk you created. Allow all tests to run until at least three passes of the 10 tests are completed. If the program encounters any errors, turn off and unplug the computer, remove a stick of memory (assuming you have more than one), and run the test again. Remember, bad memory cannot be repaired, but only replaced.

20.) If the PC has a CD or DVD recorder, check the drive manufacturer's Web site for updated firmware. In some cases you'll be able to upgrade the recorder to a faster speed. Best of all, it's free.

21.) Disable unnecessary services. Windows XP loads a lot of services that your customer most likely does not need. To determine which services you can disable for your client, visit the Black Viper site for Windows XP configurations.

22.) If you're sick of a single Windows Explorer window crashing and then taking the rest of your OS down with it, then follow this tip:
open My Computer, click on Tools, then Folder Options. Now click on the View tab. Scroll down to "Launch folder windows in a separate process," and enable this option. You'll have to reboot your machine for this option to take effect.

23.) At least once a year, open the computer's cases and blow out all the dust and debris. While you're in there, check that all the fans are turning properly. Also inspect the motherboard capacitors for bulging or leaks. For more information on this leaking-capacitor phenomena, you can read numerous articles on my site.

Following any of these suggestions should result in noticeable improvements to the performance and reliability of your customers' computers. If you still want to defrag a disk, remember that the main benefit will be to make your data more retrievable in the event of a crashed drive.

Registry Cleaner >> Boost Operating Speed - Repair ActiveX, DLL, Runtime Errors - Stop System Crashes

Do you feel your PC's slowing down? or even stop running and crash? >_< , dont think to reinstall your OS yet, maybe you just need to clean your windows registry

A Registry Cleaner is a specialized software tool used to safely clean out and repair the Windows Registry. The Windows Registry is a database which stores configuration settings for all hardware, selected system options, memory setup and software installed on your computer. This includes user preferences, settings and licence information.

Manually editing the registry is extremely dangerous for your computer's operating system. It reaaaaally not recommended for n00b (like me). However, problems can also occur if the registry is not regularly maintained. If you don't fix registry problems as they arise or don't try to prevent them from occurring at all, then your computer system may begin experiencing system crashes, stalls or slower operating speeds. If you place high importance on fixing registry problems and preventing system crashes you'll end up with greatly improved system stability and operating speeds.

The Windows Add/Remove Programs utility and even official software uninstallers do not thoroughly clean your registry entries. A registry cleaner is a tool that allows you to get rid of troublesome and obsolete registry entries created by software and drivers that were not properly uninstalled in the past. It does not require any technical expertise to use it so don't be concerned about any limitation in computing knowledge.

As well as fixing registry problems, an even bigger advantage of having a good quality registry cleaning tool is that it can prevent problems from occurring in the first place. It will help you to repair and prevent many types of computer errors including ActiveX, DLL and runtime errors. Regardless of how old your computer system is or how it's used, there are many good reasons for cleaning an error-prone registry.

Some good reasons to clean your registry:

• you frequently install and uninstall programs
• you uninstalled programs that were never completely uninstalled
• you have Spyware or Adware programs that you can't uninstall
• you have uninstalled hardware
• you have unused drivers on your system

With so many changes occurring over time through the normal use of your computer, your registry can become filled with errors and obsolete entries. Whenever you remove programs, it's highly probable that not all the components are completely removed from your hard drive or registry. If your registry is not properly cleaned of these obsolete entries and errors you'll be left with ongoing system problems as your computer attempts to process invalid instructions.

I'm not suggesting a specific registry cleaner here, just search by google, you'll find plenty of them. If you're too lazy to do that (sigh) this the search result for you

A good quality registry cleaner should also be able to detect:

• Missing startup programs
• Missing file associations
• Invalid application paths
• Invalid device drivers
• Missing help files
• Missing DLL files
• Missing system fonts

What is svchost.exe And Why Is It Running?

You are no doubt reading this article because you are wondering why on earth there are nearly a dozen processes running with the name svchost.exe. You can't kill them, and you don't remember starting them… so what are they?

So What Is It?

According to Microsoft: "svchost.exe is a generic host process name for services that run from dynamic-link libraries". Could we have that in english please?

Some time ago, Microsoft started moving all of the functionality from internal Windows services into .dll files instead of .exe files. From a programming perspective this makes more sense for reusability… but the problem is that you can't launch a .dll file directly from Windows, it has to be loaded up from a running executable (.exe). Thus the svchost.exe process was born.

Why Are There So Many svchost.exes Running?

If you've ever taken a look at the Services section in control panel you might notice that there are a Lot of services required by Windows. If every single service ran under a single svchost.exe instance, a failure in one might bring down all of Windows… so they are separated out.

Those services are organized into logical groups, and then a single svchost.exe instance is created for each group. For instance, one svchost.exe instance runs the 3 services related to the firewall. Another svchost.exe instance might run all the services related to the user interface, and so on.

So What Can I Do About It?

You can trim down unneeded services by disabling or stopping the services that don't absolutely need to be running. Additionally, if you are noticing very heavy CPU usage on a single svchost.exe instance you can restart the services running under that instance.

The biggest problem is identifying what services are being run on a particular svchost.exe instance… we'll cover that below.

If you are curious what we're talking about, just open up Task Manager and check the "Show processes from all users" box:

Checking From the Command Line (Vista or XP Pro)

If you want to see what services are being hosted by a particular svchost.exe instance, you can use the tasklist command from the command prompt in order to see the list of services.

tasklist /SVC

The problem with using the command line method is that you don't necessarily know what these cryptic names refer to.

Checking in Task Manager in Vista

You can right-click on a particular svchost.exe process, and then choose the "Go to Service" option.

This will flip over to the Services tab, where the services running under that svchost.exe process will be selected:

The great thing about doing it this way is that you can see the real name under the Description column, so you can choose to disable the service if you don't want it running.

Using Process Explorer in Vista or XP

You can use the excellent Process Explorer utility from Microsoft/Sysinternals to see what services are running as a part of a svchost.exe process.

Hovering your mouse over one of the processes will show you a popup list of all the services:

Or you can double-click on a svchost.exe instance and select the Services tab, where you can choose to stop one of the services if you choose.

Disabling Services

Open up Services from the administrative tools section of Control Panel, or type services.msc into the start menu search or run box.

Find the service in the list that you'd like to disable, and either double-click on it or right-click and choose Properties.

Change the Startup Type to Disabled, and then click the Stop button to immediately stop it.

You could also use the command prompt to disable the service if you choose. In this command "trkwks" is the Service name from the above dialog, but if you go back to the tasklist command at the beginning of this article you'll notice you can find it there as well.

sc config trkwks start= disabled

Hopefully this helps somebody!

System Restore, my saviour^^

Yesterday i just got bad experience with my virus scanner, i downloaded the update and have it installed on my pc, just like i did every weeks before. But that day was special, after the update proccess finished, the antivirus stop running. First, i dont realize it yet tho, i just about to watch a movie with windows media player and got "internal error occured" message. What on earth has happened?

Ok, dont panic yet, i try to restart my pc. Strange... the shutdown proccess looked a little bit different -_-a. After booting proccess completed, i just found i cant get in to windows again. I always got error message in login screen. After several attempt, i gave up :( .

I restart my pc again and login to safe mode. And without any hesitation, i restore my pc to several weeks before :( . After few minutes of waiting... taadaaa, my windows is back and running : ) Many of my installed programs has gone, but that's ok.

So guys, maybe this's look like simple and easy to forget, but system restore can be very helpfull in such a critical time like that. Just remember to create a restore point every week : )

How to create a restore point :

• Click system restore from start windows > program > accessories > system tools
• There'll be a choice, to create a restore point or restore computer to a restore point
• Choose create a restore point
• Put a description the click OK, done

How to restore your computer :

• Click system restore from start windows > program > accessories > system tools
• Choose restore computer to a restore point
• Choose the restore point that you have created or outomatically created by windows after you install someting
• Windows will restart and done

Installing RAM in your Laptop

This guide was developed to instruct readers on the proper procedures for installing memory modules into a laptop computer. It includes step-by-step instructions for the physical installation of a memory module into those laptop systems that have an access panel to the memory modules. Not all laptops have this type of access. If yours does not, then it will probably require installation from an authorized technician.

For additional information about installing computer memory into your computer system, it is recommended that you read any user manuals that came with your computer for specific procedures that may be required. For more information for purchasing memory upgrades for a computer, please refer to the Before You Buy Memory upgrades article.

1. Turn off the computer and remove all power cords from the computer system.

2. Locate the panel used for access to the memory modules. This is generally located on the bottom of the laptop computer. Refer to your laptop instruction manuals for locating the panel.

3. Remove any screws that the panel in place and place somewhere safe to prevent losing it.

4. Remove the panel from the laptop and set aside.

5. If replacing or upgrading an existing memory module, remove the memory modules by undoing and module clamps and gently lifting the edge of the module to a 45-degree angle and then pulling the module out of the slot.

6. Align the notch of the memory module with that of the memory slot and gently insert the module into the slot at a 45-degree angle.

7. Once all the pins are in the slot, gently rotate the module down flat until the clamps lock into the module into place.

8. Replace the memory access panel onto the laptop computer.

9. Replace any screws or fasteners that hold the panel in place.

10. Replace the power cord and power up your computer system.

Once the memory has been installed into the computer, the physical process is complete. When the computer is powered back up, it may be necessary to go into the computer BIOS to let the system properly detect the new RAM that has been installed in the computer.

Installing memory by your own is quite simple but risky. Don't do it if you are not really sure about it. Sometime it is better to let an expert to do it for you. It may cost you to buy a new laptop if you're reckless ;p

Please refer to the user manual for the computer system for any additional information.

Before You Buy Computer Memory Upgrades

One of the easiest ways to boost performance for any PC is to add memory to the system. But before you go to get that memory upgrade, be sure to gather information about your computer to ensure you get the right memory for your system. You need to know what type of memory the computer uses, the memory module sizes and what already exists in the system.

How Much Memory Do I Have?

Find out how much memory is in the computer by examining the BIOS or operating system. For Windows, this can be located by opening up the System properties from the Control Panel. Also open up the case while the computer is off and find the memory slots to determine how many modules are installed and how many slots are available. If all the slots are full, you may have to take some out to put more in, if the system can use larger modules.

How Much Do I Need?

Check your operating system and application programs. Often they will have a printed “Minimum” and “Recommended” memory listing somewhere on the package or in the manual. Find the highest number out of “Recommended” section and try to plan on having this much or more memory by the time you are done upgrading your system memory.

What Type Does Your Computer Support?

Look through the manuals that came with your computer or motherboard. Included in the documentation should be a listing of the specifications for the memory supported. This is important because it will list exactly the type, size and number of memory modules that are supported. Many retailers and memory manufacturers have this information in case you can’t find the manuals.

- Crucial Memory Advisor
- Kingston Memory Finder
- PNY Technologies Memory Configurator


How Many Modules Should I Buy?

In general it is best to try and buy as few modules as possible for the amount of memory that you wish to install. This will increase the potential for future upgrades on the system. Thus, if you have 3 memory slots, one of which has a 1GB module in it, it would be better to buy another 1GB module to get to 2GB of total memory than to purchase two 512MB modules

How to Buy a Computer in 2008

If you want to know how buy a computer this year, you make up a small percentage of people that will actually do their homework to prevent making a big mistake! Many will purchase a computer that will not stand up to their needs - it will either be inadequate or be way more than they needed. (And in the latter case, they will also spend hundreds more than they wanted to!) Avoid pain and regret and learn how to buy a computer perfect for your needs today!

Step1 Learn your definitions!

Take some time to get to know the basics of computer “lingo” so you cannot be tricked into buying more computer than you need. The salesman in the store likely profits from upgrading you and before you know it, you’re walking out the door with a computer suited for a professional animator when all you needed was to do the basic computer functions like e-mail and simple web surfing! Don’t let this happen to you.

Step2 Know your type!

This is so important. There are 4 different types of computer users: Home, Home Office, Media, and Media Creator. You may fall into one or two categories which might make you an exception, but the idea is that knowing your target needs will keep your budget in tact and give you the information needed to tweak your decision when the “pressure” is on at the store. Step3 Set your budget. If you walk into the store without knowing your budget, you’re just asking to spend more than you need to. The salesman will give you many reasons to overpay. It goes something like this: “This is the last one on the floor”, “This model is selling fast, I don’t know if it will be here tomorrow if you wait”, “I can give you this model for $100 less if you buy now”, “You won’t find this deal again”, and it goes on and on. After you set your budget and know the “ballpark” range you expect to pay, you won’t feel like you are in such a rush to buy.

Step4 Know your choices and their price range.

This step is kind of integrated into the last one but it bears mentioning on its own. There are different types of computers since there are different types of users. Now that you know your user type, you can zone in on your computer type and its price range. You may discover that a Mac is better than a PC for your needs. That can give you valuable information to target certain stores. Not all stores sell Mac computers so this information will save you time before you start shopping. If you surf a few minutes on line, you will easily see what the price range will be for the computer needs you have.

Step5 Shop around.

Treat your computer buying experience like shopping for a car. This time of year (and beyond), the newer computers are pushing out last year’s models but since you now know your needs (after figuring out #2), you can benefit from the “blow out” sales you will see as you shop. Take your time.

Step6 Don't forget peripherals!

Many people go out, buy a computer and then come home finding out they needed to consider things like a printer, router, new software because the old software doesn’t run on the new machine, and other incompatibility issues. It is important to think through the extended needs that might come about when buying a new computer.

Step7 Stick to your checklist.

Bring a copy of your needs (like a cheat sheet) on the shopping trips with you. If you have a list of the specs you are interested in, you can easily see which computers meet your needs while you are in the store and eliminate the ones that don’t. This will keep you from getting confused. A side benefit to this is to show the salesman that you know what you are looking for and it will discourage them from talking you into buying more computer than you need!

I hope this'll help you to learn how to buy a computer in 2008 and you have become more informed on what necessary tools are needed to make your next computer buying experience a painless and profitable one! Good luck!

Few Things to Consider Before Purchasing a Laptop Computer

OK, you wanna buy a laptop and have the money, but before you start to waste it for something you dont actually need and regret it for sure (believe me, i know) maybe you need to read this before.

This are few things you need to consider before you decide to buy a laptop :

1. Portability - The main reason to have a laptop or notebook computer is portability - the need to take your entire computer from one place to another. If you don't need portability, then you should probably buy a desktop.

2. Expense - Laptop computers cost almost twice as much as comparably equipped desktops. Shocking isn't it?You can actually buy two comparably equipped desktops for the price of one laptop. So if you have to have a computer in two separate places, you would be better off with two desktops (if they were reasonably close together you could hook them together in a wired or wireless local area network (LAN).

3. Speed - Laptops are 20-30% slower than a desktop with the same features (CPU, hard drive capacity, etc.). Slower CPUs, motherboards, hard drives, and video systems all contribute to the speed loss.

4. Upgradeability - Laptop computers are mostly non-upgradeable. Whatever CPU, video card (built into the motherboard), sound card (also built-in), and screen, that come with the laptop are the same parts the laptop will end with. While it is possible to upgrade main memory, and removable drives, the upgrades can cost twice as much as a desktop's. Upgrades using PC cards or docking stations are also very expensive.You can also upgrade newer laptops through their USB, USB 2.0, and Firewire ports. Only USB 2.0 and Firewire ports can run high speed devices e.g. hard drives and DVD drives. Again, all external drives cost almost twice as much as an internal drive.

5. Serious Gaming. You will need to spend at least $2500 for a laptop that can play current games at a respectable speed. I don't recommend laptops for serious gaming no matter how much you are willing to spend. Why? Because if you love to play games, about 1-1.5 years after you purchase your laptop you will find it isn't fast enough to keep up with the latest new game. At that time, you will regret buying a gaming laptop. However, if you have the money, and want to throw down $2500 every year or so, more power to you. On the other hand, if your computer budget is limited, it's better to have a functional laptop and spend your gaming dollars on an upgradeable desktop.

Hope this little stuff will help you to decide to buy a laptop or change your mind and buy a desktop computer instead.

Regards,
Sabrinna