Tag: USB

No one likes to get their computer fixed. It’s a big headache carting that heavy thing into a repair shop and waiting days or even weeks to get it back. It’s an overall painful experience, so I’ve done what I can and compiled this little list of things everyone should do before calling in the techs just to make the whole ordeal as painless as it can possibly be.

1.Restart your computer.
You may think this is a little silly, but there are a lot of people out there who never EVER turn off their computers. I know because my dear mother is one of them. It just doesn’t occur to them. You wouldn’t leave your car on overnight idling would you? So why do the same to your computer? Many times problems can go away simply by restarting your computer so the system can un-gum all its pathways and start fresh.

2.Make sure your computer is on.
This might seem like a joke, but I’ve known enough tech support personnel to learn that it isn’t, often monitors can get unplugged randomly so it’s always a good idea to make sure everything is connected.

3.Make sure EVERYTHING is connected.
Your computer has wires. Lots of wires. Power wires, internet cables, USB plugs, mouse and keyboard connections… and quite often more. It’s so easy to nudge something and a connection to come loose. Make sure everything is where it should be and in the right plug, and you’ll avoid lots of headaches. My other articles will go into a little more depth on what to do for more specific problems.

4.Check for manufacturer’s warranty because repairs are often covered.
Especially if you’ve bought your computer within the last 6 months to a year, repair will be covered on your warranty for unexpected glitches. Then it’s just a matter of putting it into a box and letting FedEx take care of the rest, because good manufacturers will take care of all those costs too.

5.Backup your data if you can.
These days more and more people are storing very sensitive information on their computers. Even at a repair shop, things can go wrong and your information can be lost. It is an EXTREMELY good idea to backup your important files whether by burning them to CD or DVD, or transferring them to an external memory drive. External Hard Drives are excellent for this, and they’re getting cheaper all the time. They plug into a USB port, and you can store all your information on these so if your computer goes out you won’t have to worry about anything going wrong and losing your information.

6.Delete anything you wouldn’t want someone else to see
This is similar to point number 6. Don’t blindly trust strangers with your information. If you have anything on your computer that anyone could use against you, make sure it isn’t there when you take it in by backing it up somewhere else and deleting it from your computer until it’s fixed.

7.organize any system info you have, papers ect.
When you first buy your computer it comes with a lot of things. Warranty papers, system info, driver CD’s, stickers with model numbers ect. If you can have all of this stuff handy when you take it to your repair guy, it will make your life, and his, a LOT easier, and the time he doesn’t spend figuring out that information without the papers, is money that’s not coming out of your pocket.

8.Check this website!
There are lots of useful tidbits in the articles on our website (see resource box below) and more are being added as they’re thought of. If it can solve even a tiny problem for you, then your life is that much easier and I can be content with the knowledge that I’ve made someone’s life a little bit better.

9.If you know of anyone more tech-savvy then you, ask them about it.
Now I’m going to put an asterisk on this one. If you have a friend who knows what they’re doing, let them take a look at it and they might be able to help you. However, you should not let them take apart and do any real fiddling unless you know they really do know their stuff. As in they’ve taken courses on computer repair or are actually techs themselves. There are so many times a simple problem was made worse because a friend took a look and “fixed” the problem. It’s a balance between saving on labor and potential for more damage. Even repair shops can break computers. The difference is, the shops have to reimburse you.

10.Check around.
Not all repair shops are created equal. Do your research, otherwise you may be stuck with a shoddy hack job while paying through the nose for it. Think of them like mechanics for computers. Some of them are good and honest, and some of them will do whatever they can to get more dollars out of you. I go into more detail about this here.

Well there you have it. These 10 simple rules have saved many people I know a little money and a lot of stress, so I hope that in putting this up, they can help out that many more. Tell your friends, they may just thank you for it.

How Do I Backup My Computer ? This is a very common asked by so many of my clients. There are dozens of ways to backup your computer and in this article I’m going to show you how to perform 3 of them. And they are…..

1. Backing up to CD or DVD.
2. Backing up to an external hard drive.
3. Backing up to secure online storage.

All 3 of these methods are not free, however they won’t “break the bank” either.

CD’s and DVD’s are very cheap (sometimes free), external hard drives can be found for less than $100 now and online backups are only about $50/year.

Not all backup methods are created equal. I’ll give you the pro’s and con’s for each one of them.

Why You Need To Backup Your Computer

Currently, hard drives in desktops or laptops have a limited lifespan and WILL fail after 2-3 years (sometimes earlier than that). When your hard drive fails there is a pretty good chance all your data will be unretrievable.

Hard drive failure isn’t the only reason to backup your computer, other data disasters can happen such as:

* fire
* flood
* theft
* accidental file modification
* accidental or intetentional file deletions

Those are just a few of the ways you can lose all your documents, pictures, music and so on.

Backup Your Computer To CD or DVD

Backing up to CD or DVD involves copying data such as your pictures to a blank CD or DVD disc.

Requirements:

* CD or DVD burner drive. Most computers that were made in the last 5 years usually have at least a CD burner. DVD burners are very affordable (some are as cheap as $40.00).
* Blank CD’s – Holds 700 Megabytes
* Single Layer DVD’s – 4.4 Gigabytes
* Dual Layer DVD’s – 8.5 Gigabytes

Pros:

* It’s cheap. CD’s and DVD’s cost almost nothing these days. Burners are very affordable as well.
* It’s very easy to burn a few files or folders.
* Backups are small and portable.
* Backups are safely accessable for 5 years.

Cons:

* It’s not automatic.
* Disc’s are easily scratched and may become unreadable if not taken care of properly.
* Succeptable to fire, flood, theft and damage.
* Large backups can take an hour or more.

How to burn a file or folder (easily):

1. Insert a blank CD or DVD into your burner.
2. Right click a file, folder or group of files and folders then select “Send To” and choose your CD \ DVD RW drive.
3. A prompt will pop up asking you to give the disc a name. Give it name and click Next.
4. Windows will now format the disc and begin burning it.
5. Eject the disc to complete the burning process.
6. Congratulations! You’ve just burned data to a disc. You may continue to add data to the disc until it’s full (see disc limits above).

Backup Your Computer To An External Hard Drive

Backing up your computer to an external USB hard drive is one of the most popular ways to backup these days. Simply purchase an external USB hard drive, plug it into a USB port on your computer and boom…instant storage!

There are 2 types of external USB hard drives. One drive requires an AC adapter and the other does not (it’s simply powered by the USB cable). Drives that require an AC adapter are usually larger and faster.

Requirements:

* 1 external USB hard drive.
* 1 USB cable.
* 1 USB 2.0 port on your computer.
* AC Adapter if the hard drive came with one.

How to install your external USB drive:

1. Plugin the USB cable to the back of the external hard drive.
2. Plugin the other end of the USB cable to an open USB 2.0 port on your computer.
3. If necessary plugin the AC adapter to a power strip and connect the other end to the external hard drive.
4. If there is an ON/OFF switch make sure it’s set to the ON position.
5. You may now hear your computer make some “found new device” sounds and you’ll see some balloon popups saying that your computer is installing a new device.
6. After the balloon messages go away (about 30-60 seconds) open your “My Computer” in Windows XP or “Computer” in Windows Vista and you should see your external hard drive. It’s most likely labeled D:\ or E:\ but can be any drive letter.

How to backup files and folders to your external USB hard drive:

1. Now it’s time to perform our first backup. Please keep in mind that there are many ways to backup data to your external hard drive and I’m going to show you one of the easiest ones.
2. Right Click any file or folder and select “Send To”, then choose your external hard drive. Windows will now copy that file or folder to your external hard drive.
3. Simple huh! Just remember to backup your important files and folders often. If you’re asked to overwrite backed up files and folders just say yes or “copy and replace”.

Pros:

* You can backup lots and lots of files.
* External hard drives are portable.
* Very easy to install and use.
* 1 time fee.

Cons:

* It’s not automatic.
* Prone to hard drive failure…it’s just a hard drive after all.
* Often infected by USB worms if you “pass it around”.
* Susceptible to fire, flood, theft and damage.

Backup Your Computer To Online Storage

Backing up your computer online is the latest (and greatest) form of personal backup. Let’s go over all the pros and cons first.

Pros:

* Automatic Backups ensure you’ll never have to remember to do that backup. Everytime you add a new file to your computer, Carbonite (my online backup software), will immediately back it up.
* All files are encrypted. Only you can access, download and read your files.
* Unlimited space. Backup as much as you want!
* Backups are “off site”. You’ll never have to worry about fire, floods, theft, damage and file deletions.
* Does not require any expensive equipment.
* It’s cheap, at only $49.99 per year for unlimited secure storage!
* Files will have little green dots on them so you know they are backed up.

Cons:

* requires a broadband internet connection

How to get started with Carbonite Online Backup:

1. Go to Carbonite.com.
2. Look over to the right and you’ll see “Start Your Risk-Free Trial”.
3. Enter your email address and any password you’d like to use (twice).
4. Click “Start Your Free Trial”.
5. Enter how you heard about Carbonite.
6. Click the “Install Now” Button.
7. Click Run.
8. Click Run again.
9. Click the OK button to refresh your desktop.
10. Click Next on the Welcome To Carbonite window.
11. Click Next again to have Carbonite backup your documents folder (this folder contains documents, pictures, music and videos) and desktop.
12. Click Next 2 more times and then click the done button.
13. Now you’ll notice a little yellow lock in your system tray. The yellow lock indicates that Carbonite is backing up your “My documents” folder and Desktop. Once the backup is complete that lock will turn green.

Note: Your first backup can take days (or even weeks) depending on how many files you are backing up. After that initial backup future backups will only take a few minutes.

Computer users and PlayStation3 owners have long been dreaming of using the PS3 controller with their computer to play games with more ease and with more functionality. This has now become possible as you can use PS3 controller as a USB device as well as a wireless device with the help of a Bluetooth adapter of your computer. There is a program developed by some independent developers which can be downloaded and used along with the Bluetooth adapter to enable you effectively use your wireless PS3 controller.

Steps for downloading the driver for USB controller : For this, you need a USB cable with Windows XP onwards operating system.

Go to the webpage http://dl.qj.net/download/ps3-dualshock-3-controller-drivers.Html and download PS3 DualShock3 controller driver to the desktop and then unpack the zipped file.

Connect the PS3 controller with USB cable to your computer and check for the LED on the controller. If it blinks, the controller is connected.

Go to Control Panel Systems and click on the pop up windows Hardware tab then click on the Device Manager option.

On the Device Manager screen there is an option named USB Human Interface Device, right click on it and choose Update Driver.

You are required to click on install option in the pop up window. Then select dont search I will choose option and click on Next.

When the next screen comes, click on Have Disk, click Browse and choose desktop. Here, click on DS3 Drivers and choose DS3drv1.02. Keep clicking till you reach the file beginning with Dual Shock. Open and install this file.

Go back to Control Panel and click Game Controllers. Here, select PlayStation3 Controller, go to Properties and finally press the Home button located in the middle of the controller. You should now be able to view a cursor in a box located in the left of the controller window, responding to your joystick movement. Your job is done and you can play games using your just installed PlayStation3 controller with a single USB cable.

Steps for downloading the driver for wireless controller : For this, you need Bluetooth adapter and MotionInJoy software which needs to be downloaded and installed. This software allows your computers Bluetooth adapter in seeing the PlayStation3 controller and you will be able to use this as a game controller.

Restart the computer and keep on pressing F8 unless a BIOS screen appears. In the Advanced Boot Options screen, use the arrow keys to reach Disable Driver Signature Enforcement option and then press Enter then save and exit if you do not know how to make changes in the BIOS setup, you can get this done by an efficient Microsoft tech support provider.

Plug in the PlayStation3 controller and allow your operating system to install the required drivers. Press Start button, click MotionInjoy folder, right click on Install USB driver and select Run as Administrator. The controller will be synced to USB. Again go to the MotionInjoy folder, right click on Install Bluetooth Driver and select Run as Administrator option.

Unplug the PlayStation3 controller and press PS button of the controller to switch it on. The Bluetooth adapter of your computer will sync the controller automatically to your computer and you can use it as a game controller.

In case you have any problem in using these drivers or if youre no confident enough you can seek a remote computer support.

Once you have decided to give your kids a computer and an office for school work, what exactly the second step? The primary decision you need to make is what kind of computer to buy. Your choices are desktop, laptop, tablet.

Desktops have been traditionally what is thought of when one imagines a computer. The benefit of desktops is that you can have excellent hardware. Furthermore, the components in a desktop are usually easily accessible, so you can upgrade it later on, rather than purchasing another new computer. You could improve the video card, or add a hard drive. Desktops also usually contain six or more USB ports, whereas laptops only have half that many. The most powerful CPUs and GPUs must have large cooling fans, and these will only fit in a desktop. Desktops also can display to multiple monitors. The drawback of desktops is that they are not portable. They are designed to reside on your desk. A desktop is ideal if you need a fast computer for graphics design. Reliable desktop manufacturers are Alienware, CybertronPC, and Sony.

Laptops are smaller and easy to transport compared to traditional desktops. In the past they had been not as powerful as desktop models, but more recently, laptop computers are designed to be just about as able to be productivity machines as desktop computers, for most everything but the most power hungry applications. One of the downsides of laptops are that they have space limitations, and processors designated for them draw less power. What this means is that laptops can’t have the large fans that are essential to use the speediest CPU’s. A standard hardware configuration includes an Intel or AMD brand CPU in a laptop. Additionally, there are fewer USB ports. The components are precisely installed, and swapping components after you own the computer may not be possible. Some laptop computers give you the ability to upgrade the RAM. The primary reason to buy a laptop is that it is portable. If you take your work with you, then this is a good option. Excellent laptop brands are ASUS and Microsoft.

Tablets may appear to be laptops without keyboards, and in some cases, that is exactly what they are. With the widespread availability of touch screens, tablets are universal. Most businesses sell laptop and tablet combination computers. Alternatively, you can shop for a separate removable keyboard for quite a few tablets. Tablets are portable, and thin. Tablets aren’t usually considered as the initial choice for your office computer. The attitude is changing, however, because tablets have advanced in the last few years. As an example, you can download office applications. You can also give presentations. They are superb for a mobile lifestyle. Tablets use one of three major operating systems. For example, iOS. Good tablet manufacturers are Google and Lenovo.

As regarding the general theme, the Sony Vaio VPCEB1J1E/WI laptop computer is not a fashion icon, but it is yet another solid, really well placed together notebook computer coming from Sony. Whilst suppliers have a tendency to over complicate their own designs in an effort to stand out, Sony achieves to create a sense of type in a far a lot more restrained way. Every thing is in the appropriate area and posesses function, leaving ones own option of coloration to make the affirmation – in the event that’s what you want.

Connectivity seriously isn’t too poor, either. Though the VPCEB1J1E/WI laptop computer doesn’t have eSATA or USB ‘sleep and charge’ features, it does own mini-FireWire – a significantly rare terminal on laptop computers lately. Everything else is very normal, such as: three USB ports (2x left, 1x right); High-definition multimedia interface along with VGA for video; a 34mm ExpressCard port, audio jacks (1x earphone, 1x mic); an Ethernet port around the backside along with independent memory card slots intended for Sony’s little-known forms plus the extra normally applied SD card format.

Plenty of manufacturers deliver their own laptop computers in the selection of styles, but Sony happens to be on it for for a longer time as compared to most. A person can certainly trace that all the way back towards C Series around February 2007, that was replaced by the CR Line in August that time and then the CS Series recently. Regrettably, though the outgoing CR was preferably handy, the CS was really a substantial step backward, thus we weren’t surprised to notice it straight away replaced by the Sony Vaio VPCEB1J1E/WI using the advent of Windows 7.

You will find 5 colourings accessible: white, red, pink, blue and black. Any pink version regardless of own liking, is most likely the least likable choice of them all. Even those that love pink will probably see the brighter, a lot more lively shade viewed around the lid and hand rest fails to sit well with the instead sickly, light shade utilized within the rest in the laptop. No true problems might be made of the other picks, nevertheless, and all of us in particular enjoy the red/black and white designs.

As for our product, it is powered by an Intel Core 2 Duo P7450 running at 2.13GHz that’s supported by a plentiful 4GB DDR3 Ram memory. Sony has also possessed the experience to install a 64-bit variation of Windows 7, so all that system memory is becoming set to very good use. A 512MB nVidia GT 230M graphics cards serves up the visual treats, while regarding to hard drive you obtain a 320GB disk drive. Gigabit Ethernet, Wireless-N Wi-Fi along with Bluetooth are all existing as well, creating a thorough spec.

In common with all of Sony computers recently, the VPCEB1J1E/WI shows an isolation-style keyboard – an advancement Sony itself started. Without doubt this could be the identical keyboard as located within the VAIO NW Series earlier within the same year, which is beneficial news since it have an brilliant keyboard. Sony has seriously nailed the key measures on these kinds of keyboards, getting rid of the shallow feel of earlier efforts when keeping the snappy response. Allied to a faultless design, the Sony Vaio VPCEB1J1E/WI laptop computer features among the ideal keyboards of any kind of consumer laptop.