20 Top Tips

Follow these tips and you will definitely have a much faster and more reliable PC! The  icon means that the tip will work best under Windows 98.

1. Wallpapers: They slow your whole system down, so if you're willing to compromise, have a basic plain one instead!

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2. Drivers: Update your hardware drivers as frequently as possible.  New drivers tend to increase system speed especially in the case of graphics cards, their drivers are updated by the manufacturer very frequently!

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3. Minimizing: If you want to use several programs at the same time then minimize those you are not using.  This helps reduce the overload on RAM.

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4. Boot Faster: The 'starting Windows 95/98' message on startup can delay your booting for a couple of seconds.  To get rid of this message go to c:\ and find the file Msdos.sys.  Remove the Read-Only option.  Next, open it in Notepad or any other text editor.  Finally, go to the text 'Options' within the file and make the following changes: Add BootDelay=0.  To make your booting even faster, set add Logo=0 to remove the Windows logo at startup.

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5. Restart only Windows: When restarting your PC, hold down Shift to only restart Windows rather than the whole system which will only take a fraction of the time.

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6. Turn Off Animations:  Go to Display Settings from the Control Panel and switch to the Effects Tab. Now turn off Show Windows Content While Dragging and Smooth Edges on Screen Fonts.  This tip is also helpful with Windows XP because of the various fade/scroll effects.

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7. Faster Start-Menu Access: Go to the Start menu and select Run.  Now type Regedit and hit Enter.  The Registry Editor will appear on the screen.  Now, open the folder HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop.  You should see a MenuShowDelay value.  If you don't then do the following: right click on a blank space in the right pane and select New\String.  Change the name in the new value to MenuShowDelay.  Now that we have theMenuShowDelay value, double click on it and enter 0 in the value data field.  This sets the start menu delay to 0 milliseconds.

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8. Resolutions: If you are willing to do anything for faster performance from your PC, then try lowering your display resolution.  The lower it is, the faster your PC.

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9. Turn off Active Desktop:  Go to your Display Properties and switch to the Web tab.  Uncheck View My Active Desktop As a Web Page.  Since the Active Desktop option under Windows 98 uses a lot of system resources, this option can have a dramatic effect on the speed of the whole system.

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10. Defragment Often:  Windows 98's Defrag tool uses Application Acceleration from Intel which means that when you defragment your drive, data is physically arranged on the drive so that applications will load faster.

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11. Take your PC to Bed:  Using the Advanced Power Management feature under Windows 98 gives you the option to use the sleep command.  That way, you can send your PC to sleep instead of shutting it down and then restarting it.  It's as simple as pressing a button and then pressing the same button to wake it up.  You can tell Windows after how many minutes/hours of inactivity to automatically sleep the machine in the Advanced Power Management section of the Control Panel.

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12. Faster Internet Access: If you use the internet for reference and the sites you visit are rarely  updated then try the following.  In IE (the same can be done in Netscape) go to Tools, Internet Options.  Next, click on Settings... in the Temporary Internet Files  section.  Finally, select Never for the first option and double the amount of storage space to use, click OK!

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13. Benchmarking: Benchmarking can be very useful when run frequently.  It can tell you how your PC's components are performing and then compare them to other machines like yours.  For example, when you overclock your PC, you want to know how much more speed you have and whether it is stable.  All this and more can be discovered using benchmarking.  An excellent piece of software for doing this job is SiSoft Sandra which can be found in the Downloads File Archive!

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14. Refresh the Taskbar without restarting: If you in some way change the taskbar, either in Regedit or elsewhere, you can refresh the task bar without restarting.  Hold down Ctrl Alt Del, and double click on Explorer.  SayYes to close Explorer, but no to closing Windows.  This will refresh the Taskbar and system tray.

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15. Quick CD Eject: Instead of pushing the button on your drive, right-click your CD drive letter in My Computer and click on Eject.  This will also remove any icons that have become associated with the CD drive.

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16. Start Up Programs:  Windows can be slowed down when programs run on start up.  To eliminate this, check your Start up folder.  You can access it from the start menu: Start, Programs, Start Up.  Another way to eliminate programs from loading even before Windows actually starts is by doing the following: Click on Start, thenRun.  Type msconfig.  It will take quite a long time for this program to load, but when you finally see it on your screen, explore the different tabs.  They all have to do with how quickly your PC boots, so select what you want, and uncheck what you don't want!

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17. Fonts: When Windows starts, it loads every single font in the Fonts folder.  Therefore, the more fonts you have, the slower the booting process.  To get rid of unwanted fonts, simply go to the Fonts folder under c:\windows and remove whatever you don't want.  Fonts that have a red letter 'A' as their icon are system fonts, so don't delete them.

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18. Stretching Wallpapers:  Don't "stretch" your wallpaper in Windows 98 since it actually slows Windows down when you drag icons around on the desktop.

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19. RAM Matters: If you have less than 32MB then you should seriously think of upgrading it to at least 64MB.  Windows runs much more smoothly with 64MB or higher and tends to use less hard disk space for virtual memory.

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20. Partitioning: A very nice little thing you can do to boost system performance.  By partitioning your hard drive, splitting one physical drive into several logical ones, you can gain several advantages.  1. If you get a virus or you accidentally format a drive, not all will be lost.  2. By placing the swap file (Win386.swp) on a separate drive, The swap file will be less fragmented and thus, faster. 3. Place Windows on a separate drive and whenever you need to reinstall it, you rest assured that your data is safe on a separate drive.  Partitioning can be done using a few programs such as FDisk which comes with DOS.  However, FDisk formats everything on the hard disk before partitioning. Alternatively, you can use Partition Magic from Power Quest to partition your hard disk without losing your data.

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Hide Files or Folders Using Command Prompt

Hide Files or Folders Using Command Prompt

User Submitted. Thanks S.V.Vignesh Raaj (View Thread)

Trick to hide files and folders using Command Prompt
The most important thing is that, once hidden with this method, the files/folders cannot be viewed by any search options even if you click "Show All Hidden Files and Folders". 

Hiding the most wanted files and folders is very important nowadays and it's really a tedious job too. In order to make this tedious job an easy one, i'm going to deliver you a the trick now.

For Example: You have a folder named "collegephotos" and this folder is stored in (Disk Drive E). You think that it should not be seen by strangers who use your PC.

For that you need to follow the following instructions

1. Press windowkey+R: Run command dialog box appears.
2. Now type "cmd" and hit enter. A command prompt window displays.
3. Now type "attrib +s +h E:\collegephotos" and hit enter.
4. The folder "collegephotos" will be hidden (Note: It cannot be viewed by any search options)
   
   (To view this folder again, use the same command but replace '+' with '-' on both flags 's' and 'h')

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Command Prompt on Right-Click

Command Prompt on Right-Click

Many computer users, specially the programmers, need to launch a command prompt window every once in a while to execute some dos/shell commands. The problem is, when a command prompt window launched, the default path is normally the system path or the user profile's path. The users will then have to do all the "cd" commands to change the directories to the path he/she wants.

This trick shows you how to add an option called "Command Prompt" when you right-click on a folder in Windows. With this option, a Command Prompt Window will launch and its current directory will be the path to the folder you've selected.

Use this trick at your own risk.

Here's what you'll get:

The Solution
You can either edit your registry OR download the registry file and apply it on your computer.
Method I. Manually edit the registry:

1. Start > Run
2. Enter "regedit" and hit Enter
3. Expand to "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Folder\shell"
4. Right-click on "shell" and select New > Key
5. Make sure a new key is created under "shell". Change the name of this key to "Command Prompt"
6. Right-click on this new key "Command Prompt" and select New > Key
7. Change the name of this key to "command"
   
8. Here's what we should have: 
   
9. Double-click on the "(Default)" text on the right window to bring up the edit box
10. Enter this text into the Value Data field:
    cmd.exe "%1"
11. Click OK and close the registry.

Method II. Download and apply the registry file:

1. Download this registry file Here
2. Unzip it to a temp folder, then double-click on the .reg file to add the registry data.

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Burn CD without software in Windows XP

Burn a CD on Windows XP without using software

Windows XP comes with a builtin CD-copy feature that not many people are aware of. Although almost everyone has his/her favorite CD-copy software to stick with, it is still good to know about this CDR feature from Windows XP. You will find it very useful when you come to another PC that doesn't have a CD-copy software, and you can't just install your favorite software to it. With this feature, you can write some data or MP3 files to a CD/DVD, or erase a re-writable CD/DVD.

If you're using a Re-Writable CD (CD-RW), make sure the disc is blank. You might need to erase (or "format") it before use. For information how to erase a CD-RW on Windows XP without using any other software, see this article. 

Requirements: You need to enable the CD-R feature on Windows XP. If you haven't done so, see this article.

1. Insert a Formated-ReWritable CD or a Recordable (CD-R) disc into the CD drive.
2. From Desktop, double-click on "My Computer".
3. Navigate to the files/folders you want to copy to CD. Select them and press "Ctrl-c" to copy.
4. Browse back to the CD-ROM, and press "Ctrl-V" to paste. The files/folders will show up as temporary files/folders at this time.
   
   
   
5. On the left panel, select "Write these files to CD".
   
   
   
6. The window "CD Writing Wizard" appears with the default CD name. Change the CD name if you wish, then click "Next".
   
   
   
7. The "CD Writing Wizard" starts to write files/folders to the CD:
   
   
   
8. Once the writing process is complete, the wizard will disappear and the CD-Rom will be ejected.

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Reset Windows Password

Reset Windows Password

Forgot your administrator password? Don't panic, it happens to some other people too, and you have found the solution! The following instructions will show you step-by-step how to reset your local Windows password. This only works for local user accounts, however, not domain accounts.The password recovery tool from this page is written by Petter Nordahl-Hagen, and the original information, as well as the downloadable tool, can be found from his website. According to the author, this tool should work for Windows NT/2000/XP/Vista.

WARNING! Users who have EFS encrypted files on the Windows XP or Vista computers will loose access to the EFS encrypted files after recovery of your password!

Use this trick at your own risks

The tool to reset your password can be downloaded here.

I. Download the bootdisk:

1. Download the bootdisk, which includes the password recovery tool here. The file contains the ISO CD image.
2. Unzip (extract) the ISO file and burn it to a CD. Note that this is an ISO file, you must burn it to CD as an ISO image, not as a "data" file. If you're not sure how, see this article. Also, the image is bootable, you need to burn the image to a CD using the image burning feature; do not extract the contents of the ISO and burn them to the CD, you'll end up with a CD that can't boot!

II. Understanding the process: You'll use the bootdisk created from the above steps to bootup your computer, which you want to reset your administrator password. You'll be asked for things like: which drive is the boot drive, which path to the SAM file, etc.. but don't worry, details will be provided. Once you have selected an account to reset the password, you'll need to type in a new password; however, it is highly recommended to use a BLANK password at this point, then you can change your password later in Windows. Follow the prompts to the end. You'll need to save the changes at the end! III. OK! Enough talking. Here are the steps: Startup your computer with the bootdisk created above. You should see a welcome screen following with a prompt: boot: Just wait, the bootup process will continute automatically. Then you should see a screen similar to this: ========================================================= . Step ONE: Select disk where the Windows installation is ========================================================= .... NT partitions found: 1 : /dev/sda1 4001MB Boot 2 : /dev/sda5 2148MB Please select partition by number or a = show all partitions, d = automatically load new disk drivers m = manually load new disk drivers l = relist NTFS/FAT partitions, q = quit Select: [1] Notice the last line "Select: [1]" which shows the [1] as default selection because the tool detected the bootup partition is [1]. This might be different on your own machine, so you should review the list shown under "NT partitions found:". The partition with the word "Boot" should be selected. Hit Enter once you confirm the selection. You should see a similar screen as follows: ========================================================= . Step TWO: Select PATH and registry files ========================================================= .... What is the path to the registry directory? (relative to windows disk) [windows/system32/config] : Notice the last line "[windows/system32/config]" which shows the default path. This was also detected by the tool. If the path is correct, hit Enter, or if you wish to enter a different path, enter it now then hit Enter. Here are the paths for different versions of Windows: - Windows NT 3.51: winnt35/system32/config - Windows NT 4 and Windows 2000: winnt/system32/config - Windows XP/2003 (and often Windows 2000 upgraded from Windows 98 or earlier): windows/system32/config Once you hit "Enter", you should see the next screen similar to the following: -r-------- 1 0 0 262144 Jan 12 18:01 SAM -r-------- 1 0 0 262144 Jan 12 18:01 SECURITY -r-------- 1 0 0 262144 Jan 12 18:01 default -r-------- 1 0 0 8912896 Jan 12 18:01 software -r-------- 1 0 0 2359296 Jan 12 18:01 system dr-x------ 1 0 0 4096 Sep 8 11:37 systemprofile -r-------- 1 0 0 262144 Sep 8 11:53 userdiff Select which part of registry to load, use predefined choices or list the files with space as delimiter 1 - Password reset [sam system security] 2 - RecoveryConsole parameters [software] q - quit - return to previous [1] Hit "Enter" with the default option selected "[1]". Then ...: ========================================================= . Step THREE: Password or registry edit ========================================================= Loaded hives: 1 - Edit user data and passwords 2 - Syskey status & change 3 - RecoveryConsole settings - - - 9 - Registry editor, now with full write support! q - Quit (you will be asked if there is something to save) What to do? [1] -> 1 Hit "Enter" with the default option selected "[1]". Then ...: ===== chntpw Edit User Info & Passwords ==== RID: 01f4, Username: <Administrator> RID: 01f5, Username: <Guest>, *disabled or locked* RID: 03e8, Username: <HelpAssistant>, *disabled or locked* RID: 03eb, Username: <pnh>, *disabled or locked* RID: 03ea, Username: <SUPPORT_388945a0>, *disabled or locked* Select: ! - quit, . - list users, 0x<RID> - User with RID (hex) or simply enter the username to change: [Administrator] Hit "Enter" with the default option selected "[Administrator]", or select another user account. Here you can enter the full user account surrounded by < and >, CASE-SENSITIVE, or enter the RID number (i.e. 0x1f4). Assuming you select the Administrator account, you should see the following screen: RID : 0500 [01f4] Username: Administrator fullname: comment : Built-in account for administering the computer/domain homedir : Account bits: 0x0210 = [ ] Disabled | [ ] Homedir req. | [ ] Passwd not req. | [ ] Temp. duplicate | [X] Normal account | [ ] NMS account | [ ] Domain trust ac | [ ] Wks trust act. | [ ] Srv trust act | [X] Pwd don't expir | [ ] Auto lockout | [ ] (unknown 0x08) | [ ] (unknown 0x10) | [ ] (unknown 0x20) | [ ] (unknown 0x40) | Failed login count: 0, while max tries is: 0 Total login count: 3 * = blank the password (This may work better than setting a new password!) Enter nothing to leave it unchanged Please enter new password: * At the prompt "Please enter new password", Enter the * for a blank password (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!) then press Enter Please enter new password: * Blanking password! Do you really wish to change it? (y/n) [n] y At the prompt, type in "y", then press Enter. Note that the default option is "n". Do you really wish to change it? (y/n) [n] y Changed! Select: ! - quit, . - list users, 0x - User with RID (hex) or simply enter the username to change: [Administrator] ! Enter the "!" to go back to the main menu. Then select "q" at the following menu to quit: <>========<> chntpw Main Interactive Menu <>========<> Loaded hives: 1 - Edit user data and passwords 2 - Syskey status & change 3 - RecoveryConsole settings - - - 9 - Registry editor, now with full write support! q - Quit (you will be asked if there is something to save) What to do? [1] -> q A prompt to save changes displays, enter "y" to save: ========================================================= . Step FOUR: Writing back changes ========================================================= About to write file(s) back! Do it? [n] : y The changes are saved! You should see the following screen, press Enter, and reboot your computer. Writing sam ***** EDIT COMPLETE ***** You can try again if it somehow failed, or you selected wrong New run? [n] : n

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How to Upgrade Laptop Memory

How to Upgrade Laptop Memory - Introduction

We show you how to upgrade laptop memory simply, giving your laptop PC a new lease of life.

Installing more memory in any PC, laptop or desktop, will give a great boost to its performance.

It should be reasonably cheap and easy to upgrade laptop memory on any laptop built after around 2003 giving you a significant performance increase and allowing you to run multiple applications smoothly with less lag.

Many laptops will come with only a small amount of RAM installed and this can significantly drag down performance, especially if your laptop does not have a dedicated graphics card with its own separate memory. 

You see most laptops will use an integrated ‘on-board’ graphic adapter and will share the system memory, thereby reducing the memory available for Windows to run programs and applications.

Windows will then have to use the laptops hard disk drive for temporary storage which, especially in a laptop with slower running hard disk drives, slows down your performance even further.

Another consequence of this is battery life – your hard disk drive spinning up and down all the time will unnecessarily drain that battery of yours far more quickly!

So, now the benefits of performing a laptop memory upgrade are threefold – smoother running, able to open and run more applications at the same time and extended battery life!

Is all this going to be expensive? Not at all – a memory upgrade is one of the best ‘bang for your buck’ upgrades you can perform – laptop or desktop PC.

Laptop memory modules have a smaller footprint than their desktop counterparts due to the space constraints of a laptop but basically they use the same technology. 

How to Upgrade Laptop Memory – RAM types

Most laptops in use today use DDR type memory in a variety of bus speeds such as PC2100, PC2700 & PC3200.

There are three main types of laptop memory in circulation, SDRAM, DDR RAM and DDR2 RAM. You will need to find out which type your laptop uses before you can proceed any further.

To determine which type of memory module your laptop requires you should refer to your user manual or go to the manufacturer’s website which should detail the type of memory you require.

Failing that, a quick search on Google should get you pointed in the right direction.

The latest laptops will use the DDR2 type of memory available in PC2-3200 speed and upwards.

You will find the simplest way to get information regarding the correct type of memory to use will be by visiting one of the major memory manufacturer’s websites and using their configuration tools.

Visit www.crucial.com and use their ‘configuration tool’ or try their ‘System Scanner tool’ if your laptop isn’t listed.

Don’t worry if the only memory available is a bit faster than you need – as long as it’s the correct type, i.e. SDRAM, DDR or DDR2 you should be fine.

Some laptops and desktop PCs gain extra performance by configuring their memory to run in ‘dual-channel’ mode which requires two identical memory modules to be used so remember that to take advantage of this you will need to replace both modules as a pair when upgrading.

Check that you don’t overdo the laptop memory upgrade beyond that which your operating system can cope with!

Windows XP and Vista will handle up to 4GB but older operating systems will not. 

How to Upgrade Laptop Memory – Installing Your Memory

Where exactly is your laptop memory located?

Most laptops will locate the memory under a cover in the base of the laptop but some have the memory hidden away under the keyboard. 

Refer to your user manual for help in determining access to your laptops memory.

Remember – laptop memory is extremely sensitive to electrostatic discharge and should be handled accordingly.

Use an anti-static wrist strap or at the very least ensure that you ‘ground’ yourself to a good earth connection to discharge any built up charge on your body before handling your memory modules for your laptop.

Handle the modules by the edge of the circuit board and do not touch the chips or edge connector strips.

Make sure that your laptop is completely shutdown and as a precaution remove the power adaptor and battery pack before removing your old memory and replacing it with new memory.

If your laptops memory modules are located under a cover on the underside of your laptop carefully place your closed laptop upside down on a soft surface covered table top and locate the screw or screws which lock the access panel in place. 

Once removed you will be able to pull or slide the cover open.

You may need to slide the cover over small plastic catches but there shouldn’t be any great resistance. 

How to Upgrade Laptop Memory – Keyboard Removal

Laptop memory located under the keyboard will require removal of the keyboard first – check your manual for details on this.

Usually there will be some screws hidden under small plastic covers which will need to be removed first before gaining access.

Removal of the keyboard must be undertaken very carefully and you should take extra care not to damage the delicate ribbon cable attached between your laptop and keyboard when removing it.

Carefully rest the keyboard on the laptop hand rest area ensuring that you do not pull, twist or tear the ribbon cable.

Now locate your laptop memory which again may be hidden under a cover of some sort. 

How to Upgrade Laptop Memory – Swapping Out the Memory

Release the old memory modules if already fitted to your laptop by releasing them from the small catches at either side of your memory modules. 

The module will spring upwards and you will then be able to remove it, taking care to ensure that you hold the module by the edges only. 

Now to install your new modules – take care to align the slot in the connector edge up carefully with the laptop memory slot.

Slot carefully in to place and then push the outer edge of the module down slowly until it clicks into place with the small catches – the module will start at an angle then end up flat, held in place by the catches. 

If you have more than one module you should now install the second module which is usually installed above the first in a similar arrangement. 

How to Upgrade Laptop Memory – Powering Up

Now to fire up! – replace your access cover and keyboard if you had to remove it and ensure that you refit all of the screws that you removed – we don’t want any left inside either now do we!

Now you can replace the laptop battery pack and AC adapter if required and turn on your laptop.

Enter the BIOS during boot up and confirm that the memory is recognised and that the correct amount is displayed.

If your laptop fails to power up correctly or doesn’t recognise all of your RAM then turn off immediately and carefully check over all that you have done.

More than likely one or both sticks of RAM are not located correctly.

If this fails you will need to double check that you have bought the correct type of memory – compare it against the old memory that you have removed earlier.

If this fails try one module at a time – if this works replace the working module with the other module in the same slot and confirm that this module also works.

Make sure you haven’t installed more memory than your laptop can support.

For users of laptops with older operating systems prior to Windows XP (Windows 95, 98 or ME) you will only be able to install a maximum of 512MB due to the limitations of the Windows operating system you are using.

Once you are up and running a very useful facility for checking memory operation is the Memtest 86+ program which gives your memory a thorough workout and ensures that your memory is running correctly.

It’s a free utility and can be downloaded from www.memtest.org/#downiso.

Download the utility which you can then install onto a CD-ROM as a bootable CD that you can boot your laptop up from and use to confirm correct operation of your memory.

If all else fails replace your old memory and check that the laptop is working correctly before repeating the above.

Hopefully with your new laptop memory upgrade you can now feel the benefits with a super fast, smooth running machine :) 

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Data Backup

You will see mention a number of times within this site about the importance of regular data backup.

To be honest, until you have experienced losing your own data you’re not going to fully appreciate just how important this is.

Seriously, the first time this happens you’re going to be so, so angry with yourself if you haven’t made provision for a data backup, and a regular one at that!

And if you’re working on some document or other that is really important to you, or perhaps for your work, then you do need to ensure that you are properly backed up.

Ok, enough of the lecturing lets investigate our data backup options. 

Back Me Up

So, what data should you make sure you’re backing up?

Let’s make a list of the most likely files and folders that you should be thinking of.

• My Documents Folder
• Digital Photographs
• Email Address Book
• MP3 and Music Files
• Video Files
• Accounts Data
• Project Data or Files
• Internet Explorer Bookmarks
• Software Downloaded from the Internet

That should be enough to get you thinking – what else would you consider you would be lost without if a failure occurred with your PC?

Sorry, that should read ‘when a failure occurs’!

Before you go down the data backup route, take a little time to make sure your files are in some sort of logical order.

This will make it a lot easier to organize your backup and to know where to look for various files when you come to reinstall them if needs be after a failure or if a file becomes corrupted for instance.

Now, on to back up hard drive options.

Hardware Backup

You need to decide where you will be storing all you’re back up data.

Here are a few of the most common choices.

• A separate partition on your PCs hard drive, i.e. partition your PCs hard disk drive so that it has a C: and D: drive available for access. Your data and programs will all be on the C: drive partition but you will backup all your important files and folders to your D: drive partition
• A shared network drive on another PC on your network
• An external hard disk drive attached when required or permanently via a USB interface
• A RAID mirrored set of drives
• A Home Network Attached Storage Device
• A second hard disk drive within your PC for data backup

All of the above options will have their pros and cons and the most important thing for you to do, once you have decided upon which option suits you best, is to ensure that you do actually carry out a regular hard drive backup.

Get organized, set aside a regular time to do this.

You can instruct Windows to do this for you or you can install a third party piece of software to organize this all for you.

We would recommend that you consider an external backup of some sort as the safest option available to you.

Backup With a Simple Touch!

Maxtor ‘OneTouch’ external hard drives offer a simple option with backup being automated to occur at a particular time of day of your choice and the facility to backup at any time using the front panel ‘OneTouch’ button.

Just written an important document and want to ensure that it’s backed up immediately?, just hit the ‘OneTouch’ button and you’re all safe and secure!

The Maxtor ‘OneTouch’ is available in various sizes depending upon your budget, from 160GB up to a massive 1TB!

Good Enough?

The external hard drive will protect you against your primary hard drive in your PC failing and accidental deletion of files.

It is still susceptible though to power surges and system viruses or Trojan horses etc.

This leads us to the next option – read on for our recommended 'bells and whistles' backup plan.

Online Backup

Why would you want to go down the online data backup route rather than organizing your own backup?

Well, probably the best and most important reason you might choose to do this is the assurance that you won’t lose your important data due to any potential mishap with your PC or hardware backup facility that you may have set up at home.

Let’s see, if you choose to go down the RAID mirror route for instance and your PC power supply fails with a fault that causes damage to your hardware then you may well lose both / all RAID mirrored disks!

Or you may just fail to do an automated backup successfully and when you come to reinstate your data after a failure or whatever, you find your precious data just isn’t backed up as you had envisaged.

With an online backup scenario you will have access to your backed up files no matter what disaster befalls your PC.

An online backup is probably the safest route to take, for the home PC user, to ensure peace of mind against losing their precious data.

Which online service would we recommend?

Well, there are a number of services on offer but the one we would recommend for ease of use, functionality and pure value for money has to be Carbonite.

The latest version, Carbonite 3.5 offers a year’s online backup for around $50 with free upgrades and support for both Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7 platforms.

Carbonite provides an incremental style of backup once the initial file selection has been made.

A wizard is used initially to allow you to choose which folders / data you require to be backed up.

Auto Pilot

Once set up the process is completely automatic and the folders you have selected will be incrementally backed up in the background without you having to instruct the program to do anything.

The connection is secure and encrypted and the moment you add or modify files, Carbonite will automatically backup your data via your internet connection.

And what’s more, there is no limit to the amount of data that you can back up!

If you need to add files and folders then this can be achieved with a simple right click of your mouse.

File recovery is again performed with a simple 'right click and select' option. 

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Two Computers One Monitor

Two Computers One Monitor – With a KVM 2 Port Switch, Yes You Can!

Two Computers One Monitor – Introduction

Two computers one monitor and a lack of desk space!

A not uncommon problem today is that of an office or home setup where you have two computers that you wish to switch between regularly but only have room on your desk for one monitor, keyboard and mouse, especially if you have a widescreen LCD monitor filling your desktop!

Maybe you have a PC setup dedicated to gaming and another PC for all of your other applications or setup as a server etc.
Some gamers and computer buffs like to have multiple setups with one PC a ‘latest spec’ machine and the other as a backup or new build PC.
With this kind of setup it would be very annoying to say the least to have to keep unplugging your monitor, keyboard and mouse from one PC only to have to reconnect it to the other – back and forth all the time!
Well not to worry – there is a way around this!
KVM monitor switches are available which allow the connection of two or more PCs to one monitor, keyboard and mouse.
KVM stands for, yep, you guessed it, keyboard, video and mouse!
It’s a neat little device that you can connect up between two or more PCs with a single set of user interfaces and switch between your PCs using a simple keyboard shortcut command – brilliant eh!
The keyboard command is usually something simple like a multiple tap of your shift key for instance.
Manual KVM switches are also available which require you to simply press a button to switch between PCs. 

Two Computers One Monitor – Remote Control

It’s even possible to set up dual PC sharing without having to site the PCs locally to each other by using a local / remote KVM switch.How does this work?
Well, your local KVM switch simply plugs into your keyboard, mouse and monitor and a CAT 5 type network cable connection is made between the local and remote KVM switch boxes.
The remote Ethernet KVM switch then connects to your remote PCs keyboard, video and mouse inputs, and you’re all set to go. 

Two Computers One Monitor – Who Makes Them?

These handy little devices are easily obtainable from a number of manufacturers, such as Belkin, D-Link, TRENDnet and Iogear KVM switches and can be purchased quite cheaply from online stores such as tigerdirect.com.Obviously it’s best to spend a reasonable amount to ensure a good quality product, you are dealing with some quite sensitive signals here especially for your monitor connection and the cheaper models may be more susceptible to crosstalk and interference of the signals. 

Two Computers One Monitor – Is there another way?

Sharing a monitor between two PCs can also be achieved very simply if your monitor has dual inputs.You will simply need to select the input using the monitor input selector.
Obviously your individual PCs will still require their own keyboard and mouse but this is still another possibly cheaper option to consider.
Ok, well we’ve talked about the KVM switch solution and sharing a monitor using dual inputs but are there any other options open to you?
Well, in fact yes there is! 

Two Computers One Monitor – Software Approach

Another option which is brilliant for those that require remote operation of a PC is the software based control via your home network or even over an Internet connection.Who provides the software?
There are a number of software solutions around, some you have to pay for and some, such as ‘Windows Remote Desktop’ are available free.
Another free option is ‘LogMeIn’ who provide a free option for users with basic requirements.
You will need a high speed home network LAN and decent broadband Internet connection in order to use this to the best of its abilities.
Note that this isn’t strictly a software KVM type solution as your remote PC will still require its own keyboard video and mouse but you will be able to use one monitor, keyboard and mouse locally to view two or ore computers remotely. 

Two Computers One Monitor – KVM Switch Cables

KVM switches are available with two or more sets of connections for the sharing of multiple PCs with a single monitor, keyboard and mouseSome KVM switches have VGA inputs and outputs and PS2 connections for mouse and keyboard whilst the newer models have USB ports for today’s USB keyboard and mouse connections.
Your KVM switch will usually come complete with a set of cables. You will need to check that the KVM switch that you select has the correct connector types for both of your PCs that you intend to share with your monitor keyboard and mouse.
Many KVM switches available today have the facility to connect a set of speakers and a microphone which can also be switched between your PCs.
A KVM switch will, due to the technical limitations regarding signal quality etc, need to be sited in reasonable proximity to your PCs – say within 2 to 3 metres.
By the way, with a basic KVM switch there should be no reason why you should not be able to mix and match between a PC and Mac as long as the keyboard and mouse are compatible with both setups. 

Two Computers One Monitor – Best KVM Switch

Where would we suggest that you look for the best KVM switch?Well, Belkin, Iogear and TRENDnet offer some very good KVM switches and a very compact dual port KVM switch can be obtained very cheaply from all of these manufacturers.
All are exceptionally easy to configure and install and do not require any device drivers or other software installation on any of the PCs that you intend connecting it to.
A very simple device available cheaply is the Belkin 2 Port KVM switch called the Belkin Flip which is offered in PS/2 or USB connector variants.
This is a really cute little device which sits between the two computers, a single monitor and your keyboard and mouse.
It comes with a ‘remote’ button that you use to swap ‘on the fly’ between your two PCs.
The Flip remote button has two colors along its edge which shine green or yellow with the color indicating which of your PCs is currently under control of your keyboard and mouse.
The Flip’s remote button can be attached to the top or underside of your desk using the included adhesive patch if you so desire.
No software installation is required with this model – it really doesn’t get any simpler!
Actually, there is also a variant of this model that has wireless remote included! 



Belkin F1DG102W 2-Port USB KVM Switch with Wireless Remote
Belkin’s Wireless Remote version of the ‘Flip’ allows you wire free switching between two PCs or a PC and a laptop with the KVM to PC and KVM to keyboard etc. cables neatly hidden away from view.
This beauty also features audio support, allowing you to share a set of speakers between PCs!
The Flip lets you to listen to music files on one PC whilst working on your other PC by using the handy ‘audio lock’ feature.

Features

• Share a single monitor, USB keyboard and USB mouse between two PCs
• Share a set of speakers between two PCs
• Wireless RF remote has a range of 10 feet
• ‘Active’ PC indication using bi-color LED indicator
• Includes 2 built-in cables for connecting computers
• Supports screen resolutions up to 2048x1536
• MAC and PC compatible

A good example of a competing Iogear KVM switch model is the
Iogear GCS42UW6 Compact KVM Switch
The IOGEAR two-port USB KVM switch supports both the MAC and Windows operating systems and allows a single monitor keyboard and USB mouse to be shared between two computers.
Switching between the two computers is by use of a manual switch which is attached to the top of the KVM switch housing.
Again, this device features plug and play operation does not require any software to be installed.
Features

• Share a single monitor, USB keyboard and USB mouse between two PCs
• No external power required
• Supports screen resolutions up to 2048x1536
• Integral 6 foot USB and VGA cables
• Compact design features two attached KVM (USB and VGA) cables
• Microsoft Windows 2000 upwards and Appple Mac OS 9.0 upwards
• Manual Push button computer selection
• LED indication of active PC

A further excellent example of a competing Trendnet KVM switch model is
TRENDnet’s TK-207K 2-Port USB KVM Switch
This 2-Port USB KVM Switch allows connection of two PC’s with an integrated set of keyboard, monitor, and mouse cables.
Switching between computers is by push button selection or ‘hot keys’ with LED indication.
Again no external power is required as the Trendnet KVM switch obtains its power from the cables attached to your PCs
This device features plug and play with no software installation required.
Features 

• Share a single monitor, USB keyboard and USB mouse between two PCs
• Two sets of detachable KVM Cables included
• Supports screen resolutions up to 2048x1536
• Supports Microsoft Windows and Apple MAC
• Hot-key computer selection or push button selection
• Microsoft Windows users can specify hot keys
• Power adapter not required – USB power driven

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PC Buying Guide

PC Buying Guide - Introduction

Hmm, how to choose a PC?

Need a little guidance choosing the right computer?

Before purchasing or attempting to build your own PC you will need to decide upon your choice of components and what the main purpose of your PC will be.
Is this PC going to be for general family use, perhaps surfing the Internet and sending emails etc or are we talking about a high-end spec computer?
Maybe you want to play the latest games or are planning to make home movies and do lots of video editing?
Obviously you don’t want spend more than you have to and it would be pointless to pay for features that you do not require.
To help you in choosing a new computer presented below are some suggested PC specifications at the time of writing (2010) for various intended uses.
Now, before we look at this, which processor are you planning to use, AMD or Intel?
Both companies offer processors with similar performance and a large variety of specification options and jostle for position in the performance stakes.
Obviously, there is a phenomenal price difference here between the low and high end for both manufacturers.
If your requirements are not extreme then we would recommend you go for a mid range PC, which should be adequate for most peoples needs.
Let the rich kids and gaming fanatics pay for the latest and greatest. Give it a few months and the price will start a tumbling and then you too will be able to afford these due to the constant introduction of the latest must haves!
Our suggestion to get an idea of pricing and what’s currently available is to look at www.tigerdirect.com
This is one of the sites that we use to look at pricing for all our PC purchases. They offer extremely competitive pricing and give good service with lots of helpful customer feedback ratings, which can be extremely informative in themselves.
Ok, as promised, some suggested systems to help in choosing the right computer for you. 

PC Buying Guide - Budget PC System

Ideal entry level PC great for internet and email. This is a competent performer that won’t break the bank but will still deliver excellent performance whilst being able to offer reasonable gaming support. 

AMD Processor Based Budget PC

Processor - AMD Athlon II X2 245, 65Nm Architecture,2 x 1Mb Cache & 2.9GHz Clock speedMemory – Kingston 2GB 240Pin DDR2 800MHz
Motherboard - Gigabyte MA74GM-S2, Micro ATX Form Factor, AMD 740G/SB700, Socket AM2+/AM2, HD Audio, ATI Radeon 2100 On-board graphics, DVI, VGA, PCI-E, Gigabit LAN, USB 2.0, SATA, RAID
Hard Drive - Western Digital WD3200AAKS Caviar Blue 320 GB 3.5 Inch 7200 rpm, 16MB Cache, SATA Interface
Optical Drive – Lite-On IHAS124-04, 24x +R/-R DVD Writer SATA Interface
Case - Cooler Master Elite RC-341 Mini Tower Computer Case - Micro ATX Format, 2x 5.25 Bays, 2x 3.5 Bays, 4x Fan Ports, Black
Power Supply - Ultra LS350 Lifetime Series 350W Power Supply - ATX, SATA-Ready, PCI-Express, Lifetime Warranty
Keyboard - Logitech Corded Mouse PS2 / USB
Mouse - Logitech Corded Keyboard - USB 

Intel Processor Based Budget PC

Processor - Intel Pentium Dual Core E5400, 45 nm Architecture Dual Core, 2MB Cache, 2.7 GHz Clock speedMemory – Kingston 2GB 240Pin DDR2 800MHz
Motherboard - ASUS P5KPL-AM SE Motherboard - Intel G31, Socket 775, µATX, Audio, Video, Intel 3100 On-board graphics, PCI Express, 10/100 LAN, USB 2.0, Serial ATA
Hard Drive - Western Digital WD3200AAKS Caviar Blue 320 GB 3.5 Inch 7200 rpm, 16MB Cache, SATA Interface
Optical Drive – Lite-On IHAS124-04, 24x +R/-R DVD Writer SATA Interface
Case - Cooler Master Elite RC-341 Mini Tower Computer Case - Micro ATX Format, 2x 5.25 Bays, 2x 3.5 Bays, 4x Fan Ports, Black
Power Supply - Ultra LS350 Lifetime Series 350W Power Supply - ATX, SATA-Ready, PCI-Express, Lifetime Warranty
Keyboard - Logitech Corded Mouse PS2 / USB
Mouse - Logitech Corded Keyboard - USB 

PC Buying Guide – Mid Range Home PC System

Choosing a mid range PC system will give you probably the best performance versus price ratio and with the right selection of graphics card, monitor and speaker system this will be a great choice for HD video, Audio, Gaming and Digital Lifestyle computing. 

AMD Processor Based Mid Range PC

Processor - AMD Phenom II X4 945 Quad Core Processor, 3.00GHz, 6MB Cache, 2000MHz (4000 MT/s) FSB, Retail, Socket AM3, Processor with FanMemory - Corsair XMS3 TW3X4G1333C9AG 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 RAM, PC10666, 1333MHz, 4096MB (2x 2048MB), 240 Pin
Motherboard - Asus M4A79XTD EVO AMD 790X Socket AM3, DDR3, ATX, PCIe 2.0, 12x USB 2.0
Graphics Card - HIS H567Q1G, ATI Radeon, HD 5670 Video Card, 1GB GDDR5, PCI-Express 2.0, CrossFireX, DVI, VGA, HDMI, ATI Eyefinity
Hard Drive - Western Digital WD5001AALS Caviar Black Hard Drive, 500GB, 3.5 Inch, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache, SATA Interface
Optical Drive – Lite-On IHAS124-04, 24x +R/-R DVD Writer SATA Interface
Case - Cooler Master RC-692-KKN2 CM690 II Advanced ATX Mid-Tower Case - ATX, 7+1 Expansion Slots, USB 2.0, Front blue LED fan, SSD adapter & built-in hard drive dock
Power Supply - OCZ ModXStream Pro Power Supply, 600-Watt, Modular, Dual +12V Rails, SATA, 80Plus

Keyboard & Mouse - Logitech 1500 Cordless Rechargable Desktop USB/PS2 

Intel Processor Based Mid Range PC

Processor - Intel Core i5 750 2.66GHz, 8MB L3 Cache, 2.66GHz Clock speed, Supports VirtualizationMemory - Corsair XMS3 TW3X4G1333C9AG 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 RAM, PC10666, 1333MHz, 4096MB (2x 2048MB), 240 Pin
Motherboard – Asus P7P55D LE Motherboard - Intel P55, Socket LGA1156, CrossFire, 2133MHz, DDR3
Graphics Card - HIS H567Q1G, ATI Radeon, HD 5670 Video Card, 1GB GDDR5, PCI-Express 2.0, CrossFireX, DVI, VGA, HDMI, ATI Eyefinity
Hard Drive - Western Digital WD5001AALS Caviar Black Hard Drive, 500GB, 3.5 Inch, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache, SATA Interface
Optical Drive – Lite-On IHAS124-04, 24x +R/-R DVD Writer SATA Interface
Case - Cooler Master RC-692-KKN2 CM690 II Advanced ATX Mid-Tower Case - ATX, 7+1 Expansion Slots, USB 2.0, Front blue LED fan, SSD adapter & built-in hard drive dock
Power Supply - OCZ ModXStream Pro Power Supply, 600-Watt, Modular, Dual +12V Rails, SATA, 80Plus

Keyboard & Mouse - Logitech 1500 Cordless Rechargable Desktop USB/PS2 

PC Buying Guide – High Spec Gaming PC System

Ultimate PC for Gaming, Home Video Editing, Intensive Multi Tasking, 3D Modeling, High Definition entertainment etc with ‘Top Of The Range’ performance 

AMD Processor Based High Spec/Gaming PC

Processor - AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition AM3 CPU, 3.40GHz, Socket AM3, 6MB Cache, 2000MHz (4000 MT/s) FSB, Retail, Processor with FanMemory - Corsair XMS3 TW3X4G1333C9AG 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 RAM, PC10666, 1333MHz, 4096MB (2x 2048MB), 240 Pin
Motherboard - Asus Crosshair III Formula AMD 790FX, Socket AM3, PCI-Express DDR3 Motherboard, Dual Channel DDR3, 5 x SATA 3Gb/s, 1 x IDE, 6 x USB 2.0, 1 x Firewire, 1 x eSATA, 7.1 HD Audio, Gigabit LAN
Graphics Card - XFX HD577AZNFC, ATI Radeon HD 5770 Video Card, 1GB GDDR5, PCI-Express 2.0, CrossFireX Ready, Dual DVI, Display Port, HDMI
Hard Drive - Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black Hard Drive, 1TB, 3.5 Inch, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache, SATA Interface
Optical Drive – Lite-On IHAS124-04, 24x +R/-R DVD Writer SATA Interface
Blu-Ray - Lite-On IHOS104, Blu Ray ROM, BD-ROM 4X, DVD-ROM 8X, CD-ROM 32X
Case - Cooler Master HAF 922M ATX Black Mid-Tower Case, 5 External 5.25" Drive Bays, 5 Internal 3.5" Drive Bays, 2 x 200mm Fans, 1 x 120mm Fan
Power Supply - OCZ ModXStream Pro Power Supply, 600-Watt, Modular, Dual +12V Rails, SATA, 80Plus
Keyboard – Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard
Mouse - Logitech MX518 Gaming Grade Optical Mouse 

Intel Processor Based High Spec/Gaming PC

Processor - Intel Core i7 930 Processor, 2.80GHz, 8MB L3 Cache, 4.8GT/s QPI, HyperThreading, Quad Core, Bloomfield, LGA 1366, Retail, FanMemory - OCZ Gold Tri Channel 6GB PC16000 DDR3 2000MHz Memory - 3x2048MB
Motherboard - ASUS P6X58D Premium Motherboard, LGA 1366, Intel X58, SATA, SLI Ready, CrossFireX Ready, Triple Channel DDR3 support, RAID, Hyperthreading, USB 3.0, SATA 6Gb/s
Graphics Card - XFX HD577AZNFC, ATI Radeon HD 5770 Video Card, 1GB GDDR5, PCI-Express 2.0, CrossFireX Ready, Dual DVI, Display Port, HDMI
Hard Drive - Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black Hard Drive, 1TB, 3.5 Inch, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache, SATA Interface
Optical Drive – Lite-On IHAS124-04, 24x +R/-R DVD Writer SATA Interface
Blu-Ray - Lite-On IHOS104, Blu Ray ROM, BD-ROM 4X, DVD-ROM 8X, CD-ROM 32X
Case - Cooler Master HAF 922M ATX Black Mid-Tower Case, 5 External 5.25" Drive Bays, 5 Internal 3.5" Drive Bays, 2 x 200mm Fans, 1 x 120mm Fan
Power Supply - OCZ / GameXStream / 850-Watt / ATX / 120mm Fan / SATA-Ready / SLI-Ready / Active PFC / Power Supply
Keyboard – Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard
Mouse - Logitech MX518 Gaming Grade Optical Mouse 

PC Buying Guide – Home Theatre PC System

For a home theatre PC you will be looking for solid quiet performance and a compact aesthetically pleasing case with full remote control. Fans should be kept to a minimum or ideally none at all to ensure for quiet unobtrusive performance. 

Home Theatre PC Components

Case - Silverstone Grandia GD02B-MT Black Micro STX HTPC Case with Remote and Built-in Touch-ScreenProcessor - Intel Pentium Dual-Core E6500 Processor, 2.93GHz, 2MB Cache, 1066MHz FSB, Wolfdale, Dual Core, Socket 775
Processor Cooler - Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 LP Low Profile Quiet Intel CPU Cooler
Memory – Kingston 2GB 240Pin DDR2 800MHz
Motherboard - ASUS P5KPL-AM SE Motherboard - Intel G31, Socket 775, µATX, Audio, Video, PCI Express, 10/100 LAN, USB 2.0, Serial ATA
Graphics Card - Sapphire ATI HD5450 1GB GDDR3 PCI-E HDMI Fanless, Quiet Graphics Card
Hard Drive – Samsung F Series Ultra Quiet, Spinpoint HD154UI ECO Green F2 1.5TB SATA Interface
Blu-Ray - Lite-On IHOS104, Blu Ray ROM, BD-ROM 4X, DVD-ROM 8X, CD-ROM 32X
Power Supply - Corsair CX400W Power Supply, Whisper Quiet, 400-Watt, 120mm Fan, SATA-Ready, 80Plus, ATX 

PC Buying Guide – Professional Video Editing PC System

Video editing is very demanding on your PC. You need the ultimate in speed if you want to wait minutes rather than hours when you are rendering video. You’ll also want lots of storage capability with a high performance graphics card, hard disk drive and high speed RAM.For the professional using say Adobe CS4 a separate video editing card such as one from Matrox will provide a much faster real time editing function with better suited features and on-board Firewire capabilities. 

Professional Video Editing PC Components

Processor - Intel Core i7 980X Extreme Edition Processor, 3.33GHz, LGA 1366, 6.4GT/s QPI, 12MB L3 Cache, Six Core, HyperThreading, Gulftown, Retail CPU and FanMemory - Corsair XMS3, Tri Channel, 12GB, PC10666 DDR3 Memory, 1333MHz, 12288MB (6 x 2048MB)
Motherboard - Asus P6TD Deluxe Intel X58 Socket LGA1366 Motherboard - Socket 1366, ATX, Audio, PCI Express 2.0, USB 2.0, RAID
Graphics Card – Saphire, ATI Radeon, HD 4870 TOXIC edition, 512MB
Optional Video Editing Card – Matrox RT.X2, Full Length PCI Express Video Editing Card for use with above suggested Graphics Card, Motherboard and Processor.
Hard Drive – 2 x Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black Hard Drive, 1TB, 3.5 Inch, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache, SATA Interface
Optical Drive – Lite-On IHAS124-04, 24x +R/-R DVD Writer SATA Interface
Blu-Ray - Plextor PX-B940SA Blu-Ray Burner, 12X BD-R DL/SL, 2x BD-RE, 16x DVD+R/-R, 8x DVD+RW, 6x DVD-RW, 8x DVD+/-R DL, SATA Interface
Case - Cooler Master HAF 922M ATX Black Mid-Tower Case, 5 External 5.25" Drive Bays, 5 Internal 3.5" Drive Bays, 2 x 200mm Fans, 1 x 120mm Fan
Power Supply – Corsair, 1000Watt Modular PSU, HX1000, 80+ Ultra Quiet


Please note that the above systems are only suggestions and you should confirm specifications, compatibility and expected performance yourself before purchasing.

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