In the last couple of weeks I’ve had two instances of a computer not powering up as expected. First it was my own family desktop. Then last week a client asked me if I could replace the power supply in her desktop.

Her cousin had ensured her that the problem with her laptop not starting up was due to a fried power supply due to a severe lightning and thunderstorm that knocked out the electricity to the house.
It makes obvious sense. Occam’s razor theory would suggest that the most logical and simple cause is more than likely the one you’re …read more

As our computers get older the start getting a little sluggish during the start-up and shut-down process. Let’s face it, as we all get a little older it takes us a little longer to get started, luckily I shut-down really quickly.

I’m not quite sure why it took me so long to figure out the way to really speed-up my start-up and shut-down process was to completely stop doing it. I should start using the “Hibernate” function instead.
Are you using this already? Why not?
Doing consulting work I’m moving from client site to client site and home and back and here and …read more

The new MacBook Pros now all come with sealed batteries. This was just once the territory of the mighty 17 inch model. Not anymore. The recent refresh brought that technology to its smaller siblings, the 15 inch and the recent addition to the MacBook Pro line-up the 13 inch.
According to Walt Mossberg who had the chance to test both the 13 and 15 inch MacBook Pro and put it through the paces of his own battery test, both laptops performed well. The 13 inch lasted a slighty below the 5 hour mark while the 15 inch was 21 minutes above …read more

I recently got a new battery for my laptop. I’ve been working without a useful battery for quite some time now. I couldn’t even get all the way through an initial startup without getting a critical battery alert if I wasn’t plugged in. Now I’m happy to say I’ve got a new battery and can truly work wirelessly again.

After checking a variety of websites I ended up at DuracellDirect.com and purchased a replacement battery for my laptop. After receiving my battery, on the paper that was included with the packaging it gave me some tips on prolonging the life of …read more

I use an old Lenovo T60 and like to grumble about its performance. I’m sure the feeling is mutual. I also use a docking station at work. Makes life simpler. Recently, I had a problem with the way it powers the laptop.
The laptop had been docked, but the power supply unplugged due to some neighbourly reasons. When I restarted the laptop, it simply shutdown. When I powered it again, it brusquely answered with a series of flickers across three of its LEDs (power supply, battery life and something else that I don’t remember now) in a most NSFW manner. The …read more

How do you shut down your computer? How do you restart it? What about your monitor? How do you eject and close the tray of your CD/DVD drive? If “push button” is the category under which your answer for any of these falls, now is as good a time as any to change that habit.
The reason is not far-fetched. Push buttons have a very limited life as compared to that of a mouse. The mouse is built to be abused by humans. Moreover, push buttons are usually a part of something complex, and getting them repaired is more cumbersome and …read more