laptops Archives - Page 3 of 4

Q&A: How can I force my laptop to connect via Ethernet instead of Wi-Fi by default?

Posted on July 30, 2013

Question from Bill T.: Rick, my office doesn’t have Wi-Fi installed at all. For security reasons my company requires everyone to connect our laptops to the network via Ethernet (we have a cable at each desk).

The problem that many of us have is our laptops ignoring the wired Ethernet connection altogether and connecting to an open Wi-Fi network from the building next door.

What we all do at the moment is turn Wi-Fi off, but what we’d really like to be able to do is leave it on and have our laptops default to a wired connection whenever one is available. Can you tell me what settings to change in Windows 7 to make this happen? Your help will be very much appreciated. Thanks!

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Q&A: What’s the best way to add RAM to my laptop?

Posted on March 25, 2013

Question from Ron A.: Rick, I have a laptop (HP Pavilion dv4170us) with 1GB of RAM that is currently running Windows Vista. I looked it up online and found out that it will hold up to 2GB.

I’d like to max out the RAM at 2GB but I have a question. Do you recommend replacing the RAM modules that are already in there with all new RAM or just adding an additional 1GB to boost the total to 2GB?

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Q&A: Is it safe to run my Sony Vaio Z laptop with a bad fan?

Posted on February 10, 2013

Question from Camille: I have a 2 year old Sony Vaio Z laptop that works great but I recently noticed that the fan never comes on anymore. It does seem to get hotter than usual but it never gets too hot to touch. Since it’s over 2 years old I hate to spend a lot of money on getting it fixed. Do you think it’ll be ok to run it with a bad fan?

Rick’s answer: Camille, if I were you I’d spring for the repair bill and have the fan checked out and replaced if it indeed turns out to be defective. My guess is that it is, but there are other problems besides just a bad fan that can cause it to stop spinning. [Read more…]

Q&A: Why won’t my HP laptop turn on?

Posted on February 5, 2013

Question from Sean W.: I have an HP laptop running Windows Vista. Now all of a sudden it won’t turn on. When I press the power button some of the LEDs light up then go right back out and the system is dead. Do you think my computer is fried? Or maybe the power adaptor?

Rick’s answer: Sean, I don’t think anything is “fried”. I believe a hard reset to the machine will probably get you back up and running. Try this: [Read more…]

Should you buy a used laptop?

Posted on January 14, 2013

As a general rule, I don’t recommend buying a used laptop computer. Why? There are several reasons:

1 – The prices of new budget laptops have dropped to the point where they can now be considered disposable items. Why pay $200 for a used laptop that might have all kinds of hidden problems when you can pay $350 and get a brand new one with a warranty.

2 – For various reasons, the useful life of a typical laptop is around 5 years. After that you’re running on borrowed time, and paying for the privilege rarely makes sense. [Read more…]