Rick's Daily Tips

Q&A: Can I use RAM in my PC that’s faster than my motherboard’s rated speed?

Posted on October 28, 2019

Question from Eric: My computer’s manual says the motherboard supports DDR3 RAM at speeds up to 1333Mhz.

I want to replace the old RAM sticks with new ones to max it out but right now the slowest DDR3 RAM sticks I can find locally are rated at 1600Mhz.

I don’t want to order online if I can possibly avoid it but I don’t want to damage my computer either.

Can my computer use the faster RAM or would it cause problems?

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Review: ProBlogger’s Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income

Posted on October 27, 2019

Many people dream of blogging for a living, but relatively few bloggers earn enough from their blogs to live comfortable and secure lives. But one person who has achieved that goal (and more) is “Problogger” Darren Rowse.

Darren has teamed up with co-author Chris Garrett to put together the ultimate roadmap to earning a comfortable living as blogger.

And believe me, if you like the idea of working from home doing something you love AND making the kind of money you’d like to make, this roadmap will surely help get there.

ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income (#ad) lays out everything you need to do in order to create, publish and maintain a successful blog, then use it to generate a healthy income for you and your family. [Read more…]

Caution: ALWAYS plug your PC into a battery backup device before updating your motherboard’s BIOS/UEFI firmware!

Posted on October 26, 2019

The motherboard in every Windows PC is equipped with firmware code that the CPU uses to initialize the computer’s hardware components and prepare the machine to boot up into Windows.

Depending on the age and model of your PC, this firmware is typically referred to as either the BIOS or the UEFI.

In a nutshell, the firmware in older PCs is referred to as the BIOS while newer computers have a UEFI Control Panel.

Just keep in mind that regardless of what the manufacturer of your particular motherboard calls it, the onboard firmware performs the same basic “bootstrap” tasks.

Manufacturers occasionally release firmware updates for their motherboards in order to fix bugs, optimize hardware performance and add new features.

Personally, I don’t recommend installing BIOS/UEFI updates unless they are absolutely necessary, for the following reasons: [Read more…]

Q&A: Is it ok to replace a computer’s power supply with one of higher wattage?

Posted on October 25, 2019

Question from Debra F.: I need some advice in order to settle a disagreement between me and my boyfriend.

My computer stopped working and my boyfriend says he can fix it by replacing the power supply. He put the one out of his PC in there just to see if everything else still works, and it does.

The original (bad) power supply is rated at 350 watts but he wants to replace it with one that’s rated at at least 600 watts.

My question is will the extra wattage put out by a stronger power supply damage my computer? My boyfriend says it won’t but it seems to me like it would. Which one of us is right?

I’d also appreciate it if you could recommend a good brand that doesn’t cost a lot. Thanks in advance for your help.

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]