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Steve
Basciano of High Voltage Computer Service in Edwardsville,
IL answers your questions about computer and technology
issues. Have a question for Steve? Send
us your question and watch for your answer online.
We
have DSL internet on our home computer but I would like
to have my laptop connected to the internet also. I was
wondering what I need to get to make a wireless connection
for my laptop. I have been doing some research and kind
of figured out that I need a wireless router. Please let
me know if this is correct.
You
are correct that you will need a wireless router. Also,
make sure your laptop has wireless capability, or you
may need to buy a wireless card for it. When
you do get your wireless router, please make sure to take
the time to set up the security with a 128 bit WEP or
WAP password. This will keep everyone in your neighborhood
from gaining access to your Internet service as well as
your computers.
Windows
Vista - 32bit or 64bit?
Windows
Vista comes in two versions, 32 bit and 64 bit. Many people
have questions about which version you should install.
64 bit is more secure and is more complex in nature. It
looks the same as 32 bit vista, has very little performance
advantages and is not widely supported with software.
Eventually in the years ahead, we will all be switching
to 64 bit software, but as of now, going to 64 bit will
just cause you more headaches on top of the headaches
you already have with Vista. Although I have heard that
32 bit programs can run on 64 bit Vista, I know first
hand that almost in all situations you run into problems
trying to do this.
I
switched over my personal computer to windows Vista 32bit
last weekend. To say the least, I am not impressed at
all and I am not real happy with Vista. Vista is very
annoying with all the pop ups to run simple programs,
and glitches you always tend to run into. I liked my XP
professional much better. At this point I am going to
continue to use Vista, so I can try and make heads or
tails of the glitches and what work arounds there is in
the software.
As
a professional, unless you have to, I would not upgrade
to Vista. Even with the release of Vista SP1, this did
not fix anything noticeable, and in fact has created new
issues. Stay with Windows XP -- this is the most reliable,
stable software Microsoft has created as of yet.
TIP:
Computer Maintenance - Every 3 Months
Every
3 months you should take the side cover off your computer
and clean the inside. Computers are a magnet for dirt
and dust. This can create static electricity inside your
computer as well as overheat problems. Computer processors
today are designed to throttle down (Slow Down) when the
temperatures rise too high on the CPU. This prevents the
CPU from burning out, but can cut the speed of your computer
drastically.
I
always recommend disconnecting everything on your computer,
taking the unit outside and use cans of air to blow out
all the dirt and dust. You will be shocked on how much
actually comes out. Make sure to clean the fans really
well with air, and also all the heat sinks. The heat sinks
mounted under fans usually will clog with dirt. Make sure
to clean these very well. Also, take the time to blow
air through the power supply. This is the box with all
the wires coming out of it. These power supplies will
tend to fill up with dust and dirt. Clean it thoroughly
with compressed air.
Doing
the cleaning once every 3 months will help prevent failures,
fan failures, overheated components and lost information.
Remember, the #1 enemy to electronics is heat!
High
Voltage Computer Services, www.gohighvoltage.com
- Log into our Free Forums and check out our Specials
on the Contact Page! Thank you!
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If
you have any questions or need help, please contact me.
High Voltage Computer Service, www.gohighvoltage.com
or pcrepair@gohighvoltage.com.
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