วันอาทิตย์ที่ 30 พฤศจิกายน พ.ศ. 2551

Do You Have Dead Pixels?

Take a good look at your notebook computer screen. Do you find some tiny dark spots? You could have dead pixels. One of the most expensive parts of your notebook computer is the LCD screen.

LCD's are highly sensitive and any amount of pressure, touching or handling may damage it. As such, dead pixels aren't an uncommon thing. Apparently, some degree of dead pixels is to be expected. Still if you have a lot of them, it would be classified as a defective screen. So, how do you determine if you have dead pixels?

Before we go there, make sure it's not just dust. Clean your screen first. The best way to do that is to use a soft cotton cloth - no rags or paper towel as they can scratch your screen easily. Moisten the cloth with plain old water and wipe the screen gently.

Side note: I've also tried maintaining my screen dust free with a Swiffer Duster. These are inexpensive, very soft and they pick up the dirt not just re-distribute it. It has worked well. Of course, this will not take care of smudges or dried on dirt. So you'll still have to use the cotton cloth and water combo sometimes.

Once you've cleaned it, you can run a quick check with a free software called Dead Pixel Buddy. It's basically a very simple file that will rotate your screen through all the basic colors. This way you can tell if a pixel on your screen is not displaying properly. One tip, you might want to get a help of a friend. Two sets of eyes are better than one especially since pixels tend to be miniscule.

You can also do a low tech way by changing your desktop's background color to black, white, red, green blue and yellow, checking the screen each time you change the colors. This is of course not fool proof especially if you have tons of icons on your desktop but it's a good 'backup' check if you don't have Internet access to download the file or whatever the case may be.

If you do find dead pixels, don't panic yet, as mentioned earlier, a small amount of dead pixels could be inevitable but if you have a lot of them and your notebook computer is still under warranty, this may be a good time to call up the manufacturer and ask for assistance.

Related Resources:
5 Days To A Healthier Notebook Computer
http://www.notebook-computer-infocenter.com/5days-to-a-healthier-notebook.html

Dead Pixel Buddy
http://www.laptopshowcase.co.uk/downloads.php?id=1

Lynn Chan helps new owners learn proper notebook care and use. Take care of your investment, find out how at <a target="_new" href="http://www.notebook-computer-infocenter.com">http://www.notebook-computer-infocenter.com</a>

Bluetooth Basics - Bluetooth Technology Tutorial

Bluetooth Basics

Bluetooth technology is nothing new, but in many respects it still seems to be more of a buzz word rather than a well understood, commonly accepted technology. You see advertisements for Bluetooth enabled cell phones, PDAs, and laptops, and a search of the Geeks.com website shows all sorts of different devices taking advantage of this wireless standard. But, what is it?

History

Before getting into the technology, the word Bluetooth is intriguing all on its own, and deserves a look. The term is far less high tech than you might imagine, and finds its roots in European history. The King of Denmark from 940 to 981 was renowned for his ability to help people communicate, his name (in English)... Harald Bluetooth. Perhaps a bit obscure, but the reference is appropriate for a wireless communications standard.

Another item worth investigating is the Bluetooth logo. Based on characters from the runic alphabet (used in ancient Denmark), it was chosen as it appears to be the combination of the English letter B and an asterisk.

Capabilities

The FAQ on the Bluetooth.org (https://www.bluetooth.org/) website offers a basic definition: "Bluetooth wireless technology is a worldwide specification for a small-form factor, low-cost radio solution that provides links between mobile computers, mobile phones, other portable handheld devices, and connectivity to the Internet."

Just like 802.11 b/g wireless networking systems and many cordless telephones, Bluetooth devices operate on 2.4 GHz radio signals. That band seems to be getting a bit crowded, and interference between devices may be difficult to avoid. Telephones are now being offered on the 5.8 GHz band to help remedy this, and Bluetooth has taken its own steps to reduce interference and improve transmission quality. Version 1.1 of the Bluetooth standard greatly reduces interference issues, but requires completely different hardware from the original 1.0C standard, thus eliminating any chance of backwards compatibility.

The typical specifications of Bluetooth indicate a maximum transfer rate of 723 kbps and a range of 20-100 meters (65 to 328 feet - depending on the class of the device). This speed is a fraction of that offered by 802.11 b or g wireless standards, so it is obvious that Bluetooth doesn't pose a threat to replace your wireless network. Although it is very similar to 802.11 in many ways, Bluetooth was never intended to be a networking standard, but does have many practical applications.

Practical Applications

There are a variety of products that take advantage of Bluetooth's capabilities, from laptops and PDAs, to headphones and input devices, and even wireless printer adapters.

Many Laptops include an onboard Bluetooth adaptor to allow the system to connect to any Bluetooth device right out of the box. For laptop or desktop systems that do not have an adaptor built in, there are many USB Bluetooth adaptors available.

Bluetooth enabled PDAs allow for convenient wireless synchronization and data transfer.

Headphones can take advantage of Bluetooth for two purposes? audio playback and mobile phone communications. Using something a mobile headset with a Bluetooth enabled mobile phone allows anyone to go hands free, as well as wire free.

Logitech, and other manufacturers, also produce input devices that eliminate wires thanks to Bluetooth. You can add a Bluetooth mouse to your system, or both a mouse and keyboard. One advantage that Bluetooth wireless keyboard/mouse combinations have over the standard RF wireless keyboard/mouse combinations is range. Where most standard RF keyboard/mouse combinations have a range up to 6 feet; a Bluetooth keyboard/mouse combination will usually have a range of up to 30 feet.

Bluetooth printer adaptors make sharing a printer extremely convenient by eliminating the need for any wires or special configurations on a typical network. Printing to any compatible HP printer from a PC, PDA or mobile phone can now be done easily from anywhere in the office.

Final Words

At this point the popularity of Bluetooth might not be as large as some proponents would have hoped, but many devices are available for those interested. The cost and competition from other standards have hindered the widespread acceptance, but Bluetooth does offer a viable solution to many devices that might not have wireless connectivity without it.

<a target="_new" href="http://www.geeks.com">Computer Geeks</a> <a target="_new" href="http://www.geeks.com/pix/techtips.htm">tech tips</a> and <a target="_new" href="http://www.geeks.com/pix/techtips.htm">computer advice</a>

3 Easy Step To Locate A Real Bargain On Laptop Batteries

Looking for a real bargain on laptop batteries? How do I know the batteries are running good as advertised? Which merchants are offering quality rechargeable cells? Where can I get the bargain? Where to buy?

Many of you have some of these questions? Certainly!!. We surely want to saving our hard to earn $$ and only buy quality cells.

Here are the simple 7 ways to to locate the real bargain.

1. Shop online Why?

Most of suppliers/distributors are now targetting retail consumers themselves. The online store overheads are much less than retail stores. No store leasing, No utitlity bills and much less employee payrolls. With all these, they can pass the big savings to customers. Importantly, they have the same guarantee and warranty as retail stores..plus...it's convenient!!! Quailty merchants offer FREE shipping!!

2. Find the saving coupons

This is the beauty!!...."saving coupons"....Online marketting is highly competitive. They are million of stores out there. Merchants want to get noticed, they want sales...they issue saving coupons for marketting.......buying your laptop batteries using "online saving coupon" is double savings.

how to find?...here we go....

go to your favorite search engines "laptop battery coupon" as an example. you will find many coupons from many merchants.....now what...which one to buy?? ....let move to the next step.

3. Find the quality merchants (ONLY)

Now we found many merchants selling online and offering saving coupons. Let buy...?? Nope...not yet.....please make no mistake - buy from the cheapest possible stores is NOT a real bargain. We also want quality. laptop batteries need to meet or exceed the original battery specification. Merchants need to own the following qualities...

<ul>

<li>Free shipping

<li>Free handling

<li>Free customer support

<li>Well established in battery industry

<li>30 days return policy

<li>Full manufacturer warranty

<li>Guarantee to meet or exceed the original specification

<li>100% fully compatible with your laptops

<li>Online FAQs for yor battery inquiries

<li>Optional express shipping How do we know?.....Let brainstorm!!!!...Let hear from others!!!....Review customer comments....Most quality merchants are listing their customer testimonials, customer ratings from 3rd party rating system such as BizRate, epinion,Pricegrabber or Dealtime.

</ul>

You can normally locate the Bizrate reviews at the merchants' homepages. Simply click on the links they provide to review previous customers' comments.

Simply follow these 3 easy steps, you will find the real bargain comparing to local retail stores. Have a pleasant online shopping experience!!

About The Author

Jim publishes the laptop battery resource including tips, knowledge and information on cusomter reviews and merchant raintgs @ <a href="http://www.laptop-battery-resource.com" target="_new">http://www.laptop-battery-resource.com</a> Join the newsletter - subscribe today <a href="http://www.laptop-battery-resource.com/laptop-battery-newsletter.html" target="_new">http://www.laptop-battery-resource.com/laptop-battery-newsletter.html</a>

<a href="mailto:support@laptop-battery-resource.com">support@laptop-battery-resource.com</a>

วันเสาร์ที่ 29 พฤศจิกายน พ.ศ. 2551

Refurbished Laptop Batteries

There are three refurbished laptop battery types, each named for its component materials:

Nickel Cadmium (NiCad) batteries are hardly ever seen anymore. They have dismally low capacities (2000-3000 mAH) and contain heavy metals that harm the environment. Worst of all is the dreaded &quot;memory effect&quot;. When you recharge a NiCad battery before it is completely drained, the longevity of the battery is compromised. That is the memory effect.

Nickel Metal Hybrid (NiMH) batteries have twice the capacity of NiCad batteries (4000-6000 mAH) and are half as susceptible to the memory effect. But these too are becoming rare.

Lithium Ion (Li-Ion) batteries are today's laptop battery standard. They have all the capacity of a NiMH battery, but zero memory effect and zero toxins. Bonus: Li-Ion batteries weigh half as much as NiMH batteries.

In purchasing a battery, the consumer has three options: used, refurbished, or new.

Used laptop batteries that are not refurbished will probably only last you 30 minutes to an hour before needing recharging.

Refurbished laptop batteries are available from most manufacturers and retailers of refurbished laptops. These batteries are renewed, recharged, and tested. They are much better than plain old used batteries, but not quite as good as new.

New laptop batteries last a good couple of years ? 600-800 recharges ? as long as they are properly cared for.

Extending Battery Power

Whenever you are using your laptop near a power source, use the A/C adaptor. However, sometimes you will be forced to use your laptop with no access to a wall outlet, and the battery will run low. Here are three things you can do to extend the remaining power in the battery:

First, if your laptop processor features a power-save mode, switch over to power-save mode. This will slow the laptop by up to 50%, doubling battery life for that time period.

Second, turn off extraneous energy-sucking elements. The major power vampires in your laptop are the hard drive, the CD and DVD drives, any networking devices, and any excessively bright screen settings.

Third, you can double overall battery capacity by installing a second battery. Your laptop must have a universal bay in order to do this. All you have to do is remove the CD-ROM or floppy drive and put a battery in its place.

<a target="_new" href="http://www.i-refurbishedlaptops.com">Refurbished Laptops Info</a> provides detailed information on quality, cheap refurbished laptops by manufacturers like Dell, IBM, Toshiba, and HP, as well as refurbished laptop batteries and related products. Refurbished Laptops Info is the sister site of <a target="_new" href="http://www.e-rackmountcomputer.com">Rack Mount Computers Web</a>.

7 Steps to Cleaning the Laser Toner From Your Laser Printer

Cleaning a laser printer, fax, or copier of laser toner can be easy, provided you know what you're doing and use the right tools. This article will share with you some simple tips to help you clean your laser printers of laser toner like a pro.

A word to the wise: Before I begin, I'd like to stress that this article is intended only to assist you with basic cleaning of the laser toner from your laser printer. If you're unsure of your ability to perform any sort of printer maintenance, or if performing such maintenance will void the printer's warranty, you should contact a qualified service professional.

Some safety issues: Though laser printers come in various shapes and sizes, they all use laser toner (that messy black powder). While cleaning your laser printer, the last thing you want is to have laser toner in your lungs or on your skin. The tips provided in this article should help reduce the chance of you being bathed in laser toner while cleaning your printer.

Laser toner particles are so fine that they can take more than fifteen minutes to settle if they become airborne make that hours if you have fans or air- conditioners circulating them through an office. To avoid inhaling laser toner particles, try to keep the air in the cleaning area stable and leave the printer area for several minutes after cleaning. When you return, move slowly, open all windows, and begin vacuuming any laser toner from the floor, tabletops, and so forth.

Another dangerous area common to all laser printers is the fuser-roller compartment. The fuser roller gets extremely hot during the printing process and is usually covered for safety. Burns can occur, however, if you accidentally uncover and touch the roller. I recommend that you leave your printer off for at least one hour before cleaning it of laser toner.

As with all electrical equipment, make sure that the power cable is unplugged before you begin any work.

Here are the basic tools you need to clean the laser toner from the laser printer:
-Vacuum
-Compressed can of air
-Wash cloth
-Mask
-Cotton Swabs
-Isopropyl Alcohol (99 percent pure)
-Paint Brush (soft bristle, about a half-inch wide)
-Latex gloves (optional)

Compressed air:
You can buy this in any department store or office supply store. Ranges in price from $3.00 to $10.00 per 10 oz. bottle. Use adequate ventilation please.

Mask:
You'll want to prevent laser toner particles from entering your throat and lungs. While laser toner inhalation has not been proven to cause serious health problems, respiratory tract irritation can occur with exposure to large amounts of laser toner dust. Laser toner can also contain potentially hazardous compounds, such as styrene, ethyl benzene, and xylene isomers. Use a mask that filters both odors and fine particles, such as the ones used for painting and sanding. You can usually find these at local hardware stores.

Cotton swabs:
You can use the regular cotton swabs found in your local drugstore or those made especially for cleaning printers. The printer swabs come with six-inch-long sticks.

Isopropyl alcohol:
Do not use regular rubbing alcohol. Either use chemicals that are specifically designed to clean the heads of VCRs, cassette tapes, tape drives, and the like or use 99 percent pure isopropyl alcohol, which evaporates without leaving any residue.

Paint brush (soft bristle, about a half-inch wide): This is used to brush out toner from tight crevices. Since bristles may fall out during the cleaning process, pull out any loose ones before you use the brush. I don't recommend using toothbrushes.

Latex gloves (optional):
These must fit tightly on your hands since you want to maintain skin sensitivity. Drugstores usually sell them in boxes of 100. This is to keep your hands clean but if you don't have them you can just wash up with soap and water afterwards.

Okay, let's begin cleaning that laser printer of the laser toner. Now that you have the tools, it's time to unplug the laser printer, let it sit for one hour, and then follow the steps below:

1. Put on your mask and latex gloves if you have them.

2. Open the printer and gently remove the laser toner cartridge or laser toner bottle.

3. Use your wash cloth and wipe the laser toner cartridge. Place the laser toner cartridge aside.

4. Use your vacuum to remove spilled laser toner from within the printer's internal compartment. Try to prevent the vacuum's nozzle from actually touching any of the printer's internal surfaces.

5. Use your paintbrush to remove laser toner from any crevices. Use gentle motions and vacuum as necessary.

6. Many laser printers use very fine wires (called 'corona wires') that are often exposed. If your printer has such wires, take care to avoid vacuuming or brushing them. Breaking a corona wire can be a costly mistake. Dip a cotton swab into isopropyl alcohol and gently run it along the length of the wire. Also be sure to clean the underside of the wires. Never apply pressure.

7.Reinsert the laser toner cartridge, close the printer, reconnect the power cord, and you are done.

Avoid using the wash cloth inside the printer. Though you can use the wash cloth to clean the inside, I do not recommend it. There are many sharp points that can tear the cloth's fiber and leave loose strands inside the printer.

OEM vs. Remanufactured Laser Toner Cartridges Although many people buy OEM Name Brand laser toner cartridges, little do they know, they really are remanufactured! Can you believe it? Seriously folks, why spend many more dollars on OEM's when you can get THE SAME quality laser toner cartridges for half or less than half the price? When you buy an OEM laser toner cartridge, just look at the box! It says "Made of new and recycled materials". The OEM companies want you to send your laser toner cartridge back to them , so they can remanufacture it , and sell it back to you as new! Buying remanufactured laser toner cartridges saves the environment. Millions of laser toner cartridges get dumped in landfills every year. So, please, save the environment,and save your money!

Happy Cleaning!

Rafael Nunez is responsible for all product quality at Alchemy Toners, Inc. Find out how to get money for your empty laser toner cartridges while saving money and the environment by visiting: <a href="http://www.alchemytoners.com" target="_new">laser toner cartridges</a>

Trouble-shooting Hard Drive Problems - Part 1

It is extremely important not to make or write any changes to data on the hard drive without first verifying the hard drive configuration. Therefore, the first priority when unable to access information on a hard drive is to verify all of the configuration information dealing with the suspect hard drive.

Partition Parameter
Value or Equation

Partition Status
Bootable

Starting Head
1

Starting Sector
1

Starting Cylinder
0

Partition Type
Bigdos (drives greater than 30 MB), otherwise DOS 12

Ending Head
Total Number of Heads -1

Ending Sector
Sectors per Track displayed in Volume Boot Sector

Ending Cylinder
Number of Cylinders set in CMOS - 2

Total # of Sectors
Number of Sectors displayed in Volume Boot Sector

Start Absolute Sector
Number of Sectors per Track in Volume Boot Sector

Boot Signature
55AA

Step One: Make sure that Micro-Scope detects the hard drive

In Micro-Scope, System Configuration, Compare Settings - check to make sure that there is not an asterisk beside the number of hard drives detected value. If there is an asterisk, either the CMOS is set incorrectly, or there is an electronic problem (controller, cable, drive).

Step Two: Compare the BIOS parameters against the drive partition information.

In Micro-Scope, System Configuration, System Information - note the information displayed for the hard drive, specifically the parameters for the drive in question. Compare these parameters to the parameters in the MBR display under Micro-Scope, System Configuration, Partition Display using the following formula:

System Information
Master Boot Record

Cylinders
Ending Cylinder + 2

Heads
Ending Head + 1

Sectors
Sectors Per Track

If the information does not match, either the partition information is corrupt, or the CMOS setup or controller BIOS setup (if one exists) is incorrect, or there is a problem communicating with the drive.

Step Three: Check the drive functionality

In Micro-Scope, Diagnostics, Fixed Disk Tests - check the information in the Fixed Disk Selected window. Make sure that the proper drive type, model, and native parameters are showing in this window. If any of the information is incorrect, there is an electronic problem. Check the cable, controller and drive, re-seating all connections, and repeat the above procedure. After correcting the electronic problem, perform a read test on the first 10 cylinders of the drive. If any errors occur, then this is the most likely cause of the drive failure. Perform a read of the entire drive to determine if the errors are electronic in nature, or physical in nature. Electronic problems will result in the errors displayed not always being the same type or in the same location on the drive. If the problem is electronic, replace the cable, controller, and finally drive electronics and repeat the read test until no errors occur. If the error is physical, use an INT 13 type editor (such as Norton Advanced Editor), to block the entire drive and write the information to a daisy chained drive set to the same parameters as the faulty drive.

The next step, after the drive passes the read test on the first 10 cylinders, is to check the original partition setup of the drive.

Step Four: Check for the physical location of the master boot sector and the volume boot sector.

In Micro-Scope, Utilities, Fixed Disk Editor - use the FIND feature to search the last two bytes of each cylinder for a boot signature (55 AA). The first location where a boot signature should be found would be at cylinder 0, head 0, sector 1 (the master boot sector). The second location where a boot signature should be found is at cylinder 0, head 1, sector 1 (the volume boot sector). It is also possible to use the FIND feature to locate the volume boot sector by searching for MSDOS (in DOS based systems) or MSWIN (in Windows95 systems).

If there is a duplicate copy of the master boot sector found before the location of the volume boot sector, then it is possible that a boot virus has infected the hard drive in the system. The Rebuild Master Boot feature of Micro-Scope will eliminate any boot sector virus. Be sure to boot the system to the Micro-Scope diskette and immediately do a cold reboot of the system after using the Rebuild Master Boot feature.

If the volume boot sector is found in a location other than cylinder 0, head 1, sector 1, count the actual number of sectors before the volume boot sector, and compare that value to the value for the sectors per track displayed in the partition table described in step 2. If the values match, the most likely cause of the system failure is an incorrect CMOS setup. In this case the CMOS needs to be reset to the values indicated by the partition table described in step 2, remembering to use the formula described in step 2 when doing so. If the values do not match, set the CMOS Sectors Per track to the number of sectors counted before the volume boot sector and continue to the next step.

Step Five: Check the partition tables to make sure they are correct

Reboot the system to Micro-Scope and go to System Configuration, Partition Tables. Check the information displayed in the master boot record to see if there is any obvious corruption (that is, excessively large numbers, all partitions non-bootable, etc.) If there is no obvious corruption in the master boot record, then perform step 2 again. If the information matches at this point, go to step 6. If the information does not match, then set the sectors per track in the Master Boot Record to the number of sectors per track currently set in CMOS, set the starting head to 1, starting sector to 1, and starting cylinder to 0, and write the information to the drive.

Step Six: Verify the Master Boot Sector information

Display the Volume Boot Sector and use the values for heads and sectors per track (on the right half of the screen) to perform step 2 again.

If the values match, then the volume boot sector is probably okay. If any values in the Master Boot Record do not match the table to the right, reset the values to match the values in the table, and write to the drive.

If the values still do not match, both the Master Boot Record and the Volume Boot Record are probably corrupt. At this point, e-mail Technical Support for help in this situation. Future articles will provide more insight into the repair procedure.

Step Seven: Check the FATs

Check to see if the first FAT starts on the sector just beyond the volume boot sector. Use the find feature in the Fixed Disk Editor to search for F8 FF FF in the first three bytes of each sector. The first occurrence should be on sector two of head one. Continue to search until the second FAT is found, indicated by the second occurrence of F8 FF FF. Note the location of the cylinder, head and sector of the second FAT.

Based on the start of the second FAT, and the start of the first FAT, calculate how many sectors are in the first FAT. If necessary, read each sector starting at the first sector of the first FAT, keeping a count of the sectors that have been read until F8 FF FF is seen in the upper left of the HEX display, which would indicate the start of the second FAT. After calculating the sectors per FAT, compare this value to the value in the volume boot sector. If the values match, the drive should be accessible through DOS at this point.

Step Eight: Attempt to access the drive

Boot to a DOS-bootable floppy diskette and attempt to access the drive. If the root directory and sub-directories on the hard drive are readable at this point, then attempt to boot to the drive. If the drive boots at this point, the problem has been corrected. If the drive is still not bootable, e-mail the Micro 2000 Technical Support department for help.

Disclaimer - The Micro 2000 Tech Tip is a free service providing information only. While we use reasonable care to see that this information is correct, we do not guarantee it for accuracy, completeness or fitness for a particular purpose. Micro 2000, Inc. shall not be liable for damages of any kind in connection with the use or misuse of this information.

Micro 2000 Inc has been helping to solve the day-to-day challenges that IT departments face in order to keep their businesses operational as well as profitable for over 14 years. The company's primary goal is to put the customer first - through feature-rich, simple-to-use IT tools that can help IT administrators manage their jobs more effectively.

For more advice and free articles be sure to visit: <a target="_new" href="http://www.micro2000.co.uk">http://www.micro2000.co.uk</a>

How To Troubleshoot DVD Drives Fast

You really enjoy those dvd movies and games and the last thing you need or want is to experience problems with your dvd drive.

To prepare for the possibility of having your dvd drive leaving you out in the cold one morning,we will dicuss problems that may cause dvd failure as well as the procedures you should take to correct these problems.

As with all drives,be sure to double check the failure. If the dvd drive will not read the dvd,try running another dvd in the drive.Make sure the dvd has no scratches and is clean.

Visually inspect the drive if the drive is external and if the drive is enternal,check the computer.Check to see if the computer has good ventilation to help keep it cool.Here are the common dvd problems with their solutions.

DVD DRIVE HAS NO POWER

First..For external drives that have no power,first check to see if anything or anyone has caused the power cord to become unplugged.Rule out the wall outlet by plugging in another device such as a radio and see if it plays.

Second...If you've proven the wall outlet to be good,but you still don't have power,check the surge protector for any signs of damage.If the surge protector is good,check the cord.

Third..If you're certain the surge protector or wall outlet is providing power,double check the cord by plugging it in a few times.If no power is present,you will have to replace the cord or the drive itself.

Internal dvd drives receive their power from the connector from the power supply.Try another connector to the drive. if the internal dvd drive still does not receive power after using another connector,the drive is faulty.

DRIVE HAS POWER BUT TRAY WON'T OPEN

You may experience the tray failing to open.Should this happen,press the button a couple times to see if it will open.If the tray fail to open,reboot your computer and try to open the tray.

When rebooting the system,notice the monitor to see if the drive is recognized by the computer.Some systems will not display installed hardware during bootup.If this is the case,you will have to access your BIOS to check if the dvd drive is being registered.

You can also try the manual eject button on the drive to get it to open.Use something very small but firm to press in the pinhole in front of the drive to open the tray.

Shut the computer off and unplug it.Use something like a long paperclip to insert in the pinhole to open the tray. The tray may open a couple inches and you can grab it with your fingers to open it completely.

DRIVE IS NOT RECOGNIZED BY WINDOWS

Be sure the operating system is recognizing the drive by clicking on My Computer.Windows XP will show "drives with removable storage".If your drive is present, highlight the drive,right click and select properties.Click on properties and you should see "this drive is working properly".

If you see another message such as "this drive is not working properly",you may be able to update the device driver.If the drive is not present in My computer,reboot the computer and access the cmos setup.

In the cmos setup,the dvd drive should be present.The drive may not be properly installed or one of the cables have become disconnected if the drive is missing

If you check the drive cables and are certain they are connected correctly,it may be that the data cable is faulty and the drive controller may be at fault.And we can't overlook the fact that the drive itself may be bad.

DRIVE HAS POWER BUT WILL NOT READ DVD

First..try another dvd since a dirty or scratched dvd may not play.If the new dvd fail to play as well,check to see if the operating system is recognizing the drive

Click on My Computer and highlight the dvd drive.Right click and select properties.The statement "This device is working properly" should be present.If not or you see another message,try to update the device driver.

In the My Computer screen,highlight the dvd drive,and select the Properties screen,select Drivers,and then select update device driver.

Another cause may be the Windows Registry is corrupt. You can use software utilities such as PC Bug Doctor to repair your registry. Download this free repair utility at http://www.pcbugdoctor.com/download.html.

To make a backup of your registry with Windows 98, just go to Start, select Run, enter scanregw and click OK. This will run Scanregw.exe.

Restore your registry in Windows 98 by typing scanreg / restore at the Dos Prompt. You can also use.Winrescue XP at <a href="http://www.superwin.com/index.htm" target="_new">http://www.superwin.com/index.htm</a> is a neat little utility for backup and restore of Windows XP.

The dvd drive or writer is an awesome storage and data backup drive.Use it to the fullest to enjoy music,video, audio,and more.Understand everything about this drive before something goes wrong.

Should your audio die on you,check the dvd to be sure it is not dirty or damaged.Look at the audio cable for signs of looseness.Inspect this cable to be sure it is inserted in the connector completely and that is indeed inserted in the correct connector.

If you have a dvd drive,take the time to visit the support web site and download the latest device drivers or patches to keep your drive running at peak performance.

About The Author

Otis F. Cooper is the author of the award winning PC Super Pack,the Computer Training By Video course.For hundreds more free PC repair tips,sign up for his bi-monthly newsletter and learn the PC free at <a href="http://www.ultimatepcrepair.com" target="_new">http://www.ultimatepcrepair.com</a>

<a href="mailto:allaboutpc@juno.com">allaboutpc@juno.com</a>

Which Notebook Computer Has Your Name On It?

Notebook Computers Are Sexy!

Granted, the notebook computer may just be the sexiest accessory this side of a Baywatch Extra! But are they worth the extra money? Should your next PC be a notebook or laptop computer?

What are the pros and cons of owning a notebook computer? More importantly, which notebook is best for you?

There's no denying it -- notebook computers are sexy! Slim, svelte and lightweight; they always come across as looking sexy, the ultimate in high fashion accessories.

Maybe sexy isn't the most appropriate word -- we are talking about chips, hard drives and bits of metal. But you have to admit; they do look good on just about anybody!

However; don't let the good looks fool you! And don't get blinded by all that sleek metal and flashy designs.

The notebook is one little workhorse whose time may just have come. Growing in popularity as prices decline, it's definitely worth considering when you make your next PC purchase.

All kidding aside, finding the right notebook that has your name on it can be a daunting task!

Basically, you have to narrow it down to a few simple steps. Then consider all your options before you make your decision.

First, ask yourself -- what types of tasks, jobs, do you want the computer to perform? Do you want it for traveling, business, or for use in the home?

Do you want it for simple tasks like email, web browsing or to use as a word processor? Do you want it for gaming, web authoring, heavy graphic work, dvd or MP3 downloading?

Next, consider all these options and find the notebook that best suits your needs. Remember, it's your needs that have to be fulfilled. Don't let a pushy salesperson talk you into buying something you will never need or use.

At the same time, make sure you buy a notebook that has all the features that will complete all the tasks you throw at it. In other words, make sure it can do the job!

Keep that question in the back of your head as you read the rest of this article. Especially, keep it in mind, as you browse thru all these sleek models and makes of notebooks. Don't be dazzled by all that sexiness!

Keep your eyes on the cursor!

Keep asking yourself -- what does my new notebook computer need in order for it to get the job done?

Lets take a closer look at all the options.

First, like anything sexy; notebooks come in all shapes and sizes.

SMALL: How small can they be?

They can be as tiny as well -- the small traditional paper notebooks -- with 10-inch displays. There is even a sub category known as Tablet PCs; these are very small tablets where you enter the data using a stylus. Common in certain fields, like health care or real estate.

Up a step from there -- are the 'Ultraportables'. You can easily take these anywhere as they fit nicely in a handbag or carry on bag. These are used by fliers and travelers, they are light and small with 12 inch screens without internal CD or DVD drives. They don't match the performance of other larger notebooks.

LARGE: How large can they be?

They can be as big as 6 or 7 pounds or more. Over an inch thick and come with 15 or 17-inch displays these are often referred to as 'Desktop Replacements'

And just as their name states -- these can replace your old desktop computer. For most purposes, these notebooks can perform all the tasks of a regular pc, have large screens, big keyboards, combo drives and very large hard drives. But you have the handy option of moving these from room to room for wireless networking, or even for traveling.

MID-SIZE

In between these two groups; we have the business class notebooks. These are often referred to as 'Thin-and-lights' -- they offer the best all around convenience of performance, portability and the different features.

Mostly preferred by the business travelers. They have 14-inch screens, CD-RW/DVD drives, wireless networking, because they are so versatile, these 'do-it-all' notebooks or laptops are becoming really popular.

Basic Rundown

That's a basic overview or rundown on the different types of notebooks. But you have to compare and contrast the different features in a little more detail if you want to figure out the best notebook that's suited for your needs.

Since there are so many types and varieties of notebooks; not to mention so many technical requirements... buying a notebook can sometimes be confusing. And for some people downright worrisome!

Will the notebook you choose get the job done? Will it be able to do the applications, or tasks you want it to perform?

Ease your Burden -- Make a Checklist!

If you don't want to be disappointed, here's a quick 'CheckList' of the features you want to check before you buy your notebook computer.

* Processor: The heart of your notebook or computer. It does the processing and applications. Most people prefer Intel Pentium Processors; the higher the number the faster it will process! Go with Pentium 4 if you can. Intel Celeron is another choice.

* Speed: This is how fast your computer can process data and perform your tasks. The faster the better! Latest models get up to a blazing 3.6 GHz.

Tip: You might also want to check the rotational speed of your notebook's hard disk as it can affect performance a 5,400rpm notebook disk is much faster than a 4,200rpm model. How fast the disk spins, will also determine the performance level of your notebook.

* Hard Drive: Check if it has a fixed drive; some units have drives you can swap. As for size; around 20GB for most notebook drives. You'll need only a 20GB or 30GB for most tasks on your notebook. If you handle large graphics or large amount of files (dvd, M3Ps,etc.) you need more -- 50 to 60GB or higher.

Also, keep in mind, that you also have the external drive(s) option for storing and media-burning.

* Memory: How much do you need?

RAM (random-access memory). This is what the computer uses to run applications and data on your operating system. It's generally agreed that you need at least 256MB for Windows XP and Mac OS X. You will only need 128MB for other operating systems in Windows or Mac.

* CD-RW Drive: You will need a CD-ROM for installing. And a CD-RW drive for burning your own CDs if that's one of the tasks you want your notebook to do.

Keep in mind another option -- many notebooks can access or use external drives for data storage, cd burning, etc.

* LCD Displays: Most have LCD screens; this is different from your desktop CRT (cathode-ray tube) monitor but most people are famaliar with this type of displays -- it's commonly found in digital camera and video recorders.

* Screen Size: You have to consider what size LCD display you want. If you're going to be viewing a lot of pictures or movies on your notebook -- a large 15 or 17 inch would be better suited for your needs.

Usually, LCD screens range in size from 12 inches to 17 inches (diagonal). Viewing is usually set at 1,024x768 resolution. Quality is almost standard in all these notebooks. But check them out at your dealers if picture quality is your main reason for buying a notebook.

Note-- Fujitsu LifeBook P ultraportable series has the smallest displays 10.6 inches. The Apple PowerBook has one of the largest at 17-inches.

* Modems: Most if not all notebooks have 56Kbps-modems and Ethernet connections. As well as connections (ports) for printers, VGA for external monitor and there should be one or more USB ports for keyboards, drives, MP3's and digital cameras.

* Antennas: Most notebooks have built-in antennas for wireless networking and portability. But check before you buy!

* Portability: Might sound like a strange question to ask about notebooks. Not really, most notebooks are very portable, easy to carry -- what they were designed for. However; larger notebooks like the 'desktop replacemets' with 17 inch screens and weighing over 7 pounds might not be the best choice for the heavy traveler. For example the new HP Pavilion zd8000 weights a whopping 12 lbs!

* Accessories: Lastly, you should look at some accessories that you might need with your notebook computer. Many come with a Docking station or port replicator -- somewhere to store and access your computer. Check on the functions of each before you buy.

You might consider buying an extra battery; especially if you're buying your laptop mainly for traveling and in the field work.

Laptop bag is another accessory you should definitely consider buying. Again, notebooks might seem lightweight and small but if you have lug it around all day and you're going to wish you had bought that carrying bag.

Now Assess Your Computer Needs?

Finally, we come to the main question that determines which notebook is right for you. (If money is no barrier!)

WHAT DO YOU NEED THE COMPUTER FOR? WHAT JOB OR TASKS DO YOU WANT THE COMPUTER TO PERFORM?

If you want something small to carry on a plane, or if you travel a lot, then go with an utralight -- often called ultraportables -- these are the lightest and smallest notebooks, about the size of spiral-bound notebook and weighing less than four pounds.

If you're a student and need something light weight but also a little sturdy with a large hard drive (hold MP3s) you might want to check out the 'thin and light' notebooks.

If you want to replace your main desktop with something more portable -- go with a 'mainstream' or 'desktop replacements'.

If you want something you can use at home, work and traveling around then you need 'thin and light.' If you want an 'all-around' 'all-in-one' 'do-it-all' notebook ... then buy a notebook of this type.

Because it's so flexible, and covers most of your computing needs; this is the one that's becoming the most popular.

That's it - JUDGMENT TIME!

You have considered most of the facts about buying a notebook computer. Now weight your options. Think about the tasks you will be doing with your notebook. Look at the checklist and check out the specs. Is everything covered. Will the one you choose -- have the features to do the job?

Keep that question in your mind. It's the most important.

If you're considered all these points; buying the notebook with your name on it will be just a little bit easier.

In no time at all, you may be walking around with one of those sleek, svelte -- dare we say sexy -- accessories tucked under your arm.

Titus Hoskins

----

For An Illustrated Version of This Article Click Here: <a target="_new" href="http://www.bizwaremagic.com/buy-notebook-online.htm">Buying Notebooks Online Guide.</a>

Copyright ? 2005 Titus Hoskins of bizwaremagic.com.
This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

Visit <a target="_new" href="http://www.bizwaremagic.com/">http://www.bizwaremagic.com</a> for more simple solutions to your online marketing tasks.

----

วันศุกร์ที่ 28 พฤศจิกายน พ.ศ. 2551

Routing, Routed, and Non-Routable Protocols

ROUTING PROTOCOLS

A generic term that refers to a formula, or protocol, used by a router to determine the appropriate path over which data is transmitted. The routing protocol also specifies how routers in a network share information with each other and report changes. The routing protocol enables a network to make dynamic adjustments to its conditions, so routing decisions do not have to be predetermined and static.

Routing, Routed and Non-Routable Protocols

ROUTING | ROUTED | NON-ROUTABLE

ROUTING PROTOCOLS

ROUTING PROTOCOLS are the software that allow routers to dynamically advertise and learn routes, determine which routes are available and which are the most efficient routes to a destination. Routing protocols used by the Internet Protocol suite include:

? Routing Information Protocol (RIP and RIP II).
? Open Shortest Path First (OSPF).
? Intermediate System to Intermediate System (IS-IS).
? Interrior Gateway Routing Protocol (IGRP).
? Cisco's Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP).
? Border Gateway Protocol (BGP).


Routing is the process of moving data across two or more networks. Within a network, all hosts are directly accessable because they are on the same

ROUTED PROTOCOLS

ROUTED PROTOCOLS are nothing more than data being transported across the networks. Routed protocols include:

? Internet Protocol
o Telnet
o Remote Procedure Call (RPC)
o SNMP
o SMTP
? Novell IPX
? Open Standards Institute networking protocol
? DECnet
? Appletalk
? Banyan Vines
? Xerox Network System (XNS)

Outside a network, specialized devices called ROUTES are used to perform the routing process of forwarding packets between networks. Routers are connected to the edges of two or more networks to provide connectivity between them. These devices are usually dedicated machines with specialized hardware and software to speed up the routing process. These devices send and receive routing information to each other about networks that they can and cannot reach. Routers examine all routes to a destination, determine which routes have the best metric, and insert one or more routes into the IP routing table on the router. By maintaining a current list of known routes, routers can quicky and efficiently send your information on it's way when received.

There are many companies that produce routers: Cisco, Juniper, Bay, Nortel, 3Com, Cabletron, etc. Each company's product is different in how it is configured, but most will interoperate so long as they share common physical and data link layer protocols (Cisco HDLC or PPP over Serial, Ethernet etc.). Before purchasing a router for your business, always check with your Internet provider to see what equipment they use, and choose a router, which will interoperate with your Internet provider's equipment.

NON-ROUTABLE PROTOCOLS

NON-ROUTABLE PROTOCOLS cannot survive being routed. Non-routable protocols presume that all computers they will ever communicate with are on the same network (to get them working in a routed environment, you must bridge the networks). Todays modern networks are not very tolerant of protocols that do not understand the concept of a multi-segment network and most of these protocols are dying or falling out of use.

? NetBEUI
? DLC
? LAT
? DRP
? MOP

RIP (Routing Information Protocol)

RIP is a dynamic internetwork routing protocol primary used in interior routing environments. A dynamic routing protocol, as opposed to a static routing protocol, automatically discovers routes and builds routing tables. Interior environments are typically private networks (autonomous systems). In contrast, exterior routing protocols such as BGP are used to exchange route summaries between autonomous systems. BGP is used among autonomous systems on the Internet.

RIP uses the distance-vector algorithm developed by Bellman and Ford (Bellman-Ford algorithm).

Routing Information Protocol

Background

The Routing Information Protocol, or RIP, as it is more commonly called, is one of the most enduring of all routing protocols. RIP is also one of the more easily confused protocols because a variety of RIP-like routing protocols proliferated, some of which even used the same name! RIP and the myriad RIP-like protocols were based on the same set of algorithms that use distance vectors to mathematically compare routes to identify the best path to any given destination address. These algorithms emerged from academic research that dates back to 1957.

Today's open standard version of RIP, sometimes referred to as IP RIP, is formally defined in two documents: Request For Comments (RFC) 1058 and Internet Standard (STD) 56. As IP-based networks became both more numerous and greater in size, it became apparent to the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) that RIP needed to be updated. Consequently, the IETF released RFC 1388 in January 1993, which was then superceded in November 1994 by RFC 1723, which describes RIP 2 (the second version of RIP). These RFCs described an extension of RIP's capabilities but did not attempt to obsolete the previous version of RIP. RIP 2 enabled RIP messages to carry more information, which permitted the use of a simple authentication mechanism to secure table updates. More importantly, RIP 2 supported subnet masks, a critical feature that was not available in RIP.

This chapter summarizes the basic capabilities and features associated with RIP. Topics include the routing update process, RIP routing metrics, routing stability, and routing timers.

Routing Updates

RIP sends routing-update messages at regular intervals and when the network topology changes. When a router receives a routing update that includes changes to an entry, it updates its routing table to reflect the new route. The metric value for the path is increased by 1, and the sender is indicated as the next hop. RIP routers maintain only the best route (the route with the lowest metric value) to a destination. After updating its routing table, the router immediately begins transmitting routing updates to inform other network routers of the change. These updates are sent independently of the regularly scheduled updates that RIP routers send.

RIP Routing Metric

RIP uses a single routing metric (hop count) to measure the distance between the source and a destination network. Each hop in a path from source to destination is assigned a hop count value, which is typically 1. When a router receives a routing update that contains a new or changed destination network entry, the router adds 1 to the metric value indicated in the update and enters the network in the routing table. The IP address of the sender is used as the next hop.

RIP Stability Features

RIP prevents routing loops from continuing indefinitely by implementing a limit on the number of hops allowed in a path from the source to a destination. The maximum number of hops in a path is 15. If a router receives a routing update that contains a new or changed entry, and if increasing the metric value by 1 causes the metric to be infinity (that is, 16), the network destination is considered unreachable. The downside of this stability feature is that it limits the maximum diameter of a RIP network to less than 16 hops.

RIP includes a number of other stability features that are common to many routing protocols. These features are designed to provide stability despite potentially rapid changes in a network's topology. For example, RIP implements the split horizon and holddown mechanisms to prevent incorrect routing information from being propagated.

RIP Timers

RIP uses numerous timers to regulate its performance. These include a routing-update timer, a route-timeout timer, and a route-flush timer. The routing-update timer clocks the interval between periodic routing updates. Generally, it is set to 30 seconds, with a small random amount of time added whenever the timer is reset. This is done to help prevent congestion, which could result from all routers simultaneously attempting to update their neighbors. Each routing table entry has a route-timeout timer associated with it. When the route-timeout timer expires, the route is marked invalid but is retained in the table until the route-flush timer expires.

Packet Formats
The following section focuses on the IP RIP and IP RIP 2 packet formats illustrated in Figures 44-1 and 44-2. Each illustration is followed by descriptions of the fields illustrated. RIP Packet Format

? Command&#8212;Indicates whether the packet is a request or a response. The request asks that a router send all or part of its routing table. The response can be an unsolicited regular routing update or a reply to a request. Responses contain routing table entries. Multiple RIP packets are used to convey information from large routing tables.

? Version number&#8212;Specifies the RIP version used. This field can signal different potentially incompatible versions.

? Zero&#8212;This field is not actually used by RFC 1058 RIP; it was added solely to provide backward compatibility with prestandard varieties of RIP. Its name comes from its defaulted value: zero.

? Address-family identifier (AFI)&#8212;Specifies the address family used. RIP is designed to carry routing information for several different protocols. Each entry has an address-family identifier to indicate the type of address being specified. The AFI for IP is 2.

? Address&#8212;Specifies the IP address for the entry.

? Metric&#8212;Indicates how many internetwork hops (routers) have been traversed in the trip to the destination. This value is between 1 and 15 for a valid route, or 16 for an unreachable route.

Note: Up to 25 occurrences of the AFI, Address, and Metric fields are permitted in a single IP RIP packet. (Up to 25 destinations can be listed in a single RIP packet.)

RIP 2 Packet Format

? Command&#8212;Indicates whether the packet is a request or a response. The request asks that a router send all or a part of its routing table. The response can be an unsolicited regular routing update or a reply to a request. Responses contain routing table entries. Multiple RIP packets are used to convey information from large routing tables.

? Version&#8212;Specifies the RIP version used. In a RIP packet implementing any of the RIP 2 fields or using authentication, this value is set to 2.

? Unused&#8212;Has a value set to zero.

? Address-family identifier (AFI)&#8212;Specifies the address family used. RIPv2's AFI field functions identically to RFC 1058 RIP's AFI field, with one exception: If the AFI for the first entry in the message is 0xFFFF, the remainder of the entry contains authentication information. Currently, the only authentication type is simple password.

? Route tag&#8212;Provides a method for distinguishing between internal routes (learned by RIP) and external routes (learned from other protocols).

? IP address&#8212;Specifies the IP address for the entry.

? Subnet mask&#8212;Contains the subnet mask for the entry. If this field is zero, no subnet mask has been specified for the entry.

?Next hop&#8212;Indicates the IP address of the next hop to which packets for the entry should be forwarded.

? Metric&#8212;Indicates how many internetwork hops (routers) have been traversed in the trip to the destination. This value is between 1 and 15 for a valid route, or 16 for an unreachable route.

Note: Up to 25 occurrences of the AFI, Address, and Metric fields are permitted in a single IP RIP packet. That is, up to 25 routing table entries can be listed in a single RIP packet. If the AFI specifies an authenticated message, only 24 routing table entries can be specified. Given that individual table entries aren't fragmented into multiple packets, RIP does not need a mechanism to resequence datagrams bearing routing table updates from neighboring routers.

Summary

Despite RIP's age and the emergence of more sophisticated routing protocols, it is far from obsolete. RIP is mature, stable, widely supported, and easy to configure. Its simplicity is well suited for use in stub networks and in small autonomous systems that do not have enough redundant paths to warrant the overheads of a more sophisticated protocol.

Review Questions

Q&#8212;Name RIP's various stability features.
A&#8212;RIP has numerous stability features, the most obvious of which is RIP's maximum hop count. By placing a finite limit on the number of hops that a route can take, routing loops are discouraged, if not completely eliminated. Other stability features include its various timing mechanisms that help ensure that the routing table contains only valid routes, as well as split horizon and holddown mechanisms that prevent incorrect routing information from being disseminated throughout the network.

Q&#8212;What is the purpose of the timeout timer?
A&#8212;The timeout timer is used to help purge invalid routes from a RIP node. Routes that aren't refreshed for a given period of time are likely invalid because of some change in the network. Thus, RIP maintains a timeout timer for each known route. When a route's timeout timer expires, the route is marked invalid but is retained in the table until the route-flush timer expires.

Q&#8212;What two capabilities are supported by RIP 2 but not RIP?
A&#8212;RIP 2 enables the use of a simple authentication mechanism to secure table updates. More importantly, RIP 2 supports subnet masks, a critical feature that is not available in RIP.

Q&#8212;What is the maximum network diameter of a RIP network?
A&#8212;A RIP network's maximum diameter is 15 hops. RIP can count to 16, but that value is considered an error condition rather than a valid hop count.

This article is submitted by Kashif Raza <a target="_new" href="http://www.networkingtutorials.net">http://www.networkingtutorials.net</a>

Is A Laser Printer Right For Me?

The average home computer user definitely does not need a laser printer. Sure laser printer prices have fallen considerably in the last couple of years. But have you look at the cost of laser toner? The average laser toner cartridge sells for over $100. The cost of replacement ink can really ad up on you. Cost of ink should not be the only factor that deters you from buying this kind of printer though.

Unless you are printing hundreds of pages each day you really don't need a laser printer. Today's inkjet printers have incredible print resolution, are very affordable, and replacement ink cartridges do not cost a lot. If it's print quality that you're concerned about, consider that you can't even tell the difference between a laser printout and an inkjet printout.

Another thing to consider is the size of the printer. Generally laser printers dwarf the smaller inkjet printer. So if you're looking for something compact, then a laser printer is definitely not right for you. It's not going to fit on your desk at home.

If print speed is one of your main concerns, than a laser printer might be right for you. Most laser printers can print many more pages per minute than the average inkjet printer. The last consideration should be maintenance and or replacement costs. The parts used in laser printers are more expensive than those used in inkjet printers. So if something breaks, it going to cost a bundle to fix. I generally look at inkjet printers as easily replaced. Because they are so inexpensive to begin with, if something breaks, you can just start all over with a new printer.

Bill Smith is an expert on printers and ink cartridges. Visit his site, <a target="_new" href="http://www.buythebestbuy.com">http://www.buythebestbuy.com</a>, for additional information about printers.

Ergonomic Products 101

Human beings are scaling new heights day by day. Markets are becoming more and more complex and competitive. Companies launch new products, market them, but even then are not sure if their product will match the taste, need and pocket of the consumer. This is because numerous brands are associated with a single commodity. Some companies try to win the consumer's heart via a low price while a few others offer an impeccable quality at significantly good amount. But at the end of the day what matters to the consumer is how the products minimizes the labor, enhances the work and its durability. This article will shed light on some of the eminent and world's top quality products called 'Ergo Products'. There are a wide variety of ergo products. They range from keyboards, mice, armchairs to keyboard stickers, footrests, foot switches etc. The ergo products one amongst the largely used ones nowadays . The reason being their consumer friendly nature and their troubleshooting strategy.

1. The first and foremost widely used ergo product besides many others is the ergo keyboard. These keyboards come in different shapes, sizes and colors. For instance there are Ergo Flex Keyboards, Comfort Track 35 PM, Evolution Desktop, Pace Keyboard and so forth. These keyboards provide different advantages and come in varying but affordable price range.

The main and basic advantage of the ergo keyboards is that they are designed in such a fashion that they reduce the threat of various problems that may afflict those who work on online for hours together. They are made keeping in mind the excess strain on user's arms and hands while working. Quite often the extra exertion results in chronic disorders such as tennis elbow, tendinits and the like. These disorders are mainly read under the name of CTDs i.e. cumulative trauma disorders. It is not just the posture of the hands that is distorted but also the entire body that gets uncomfortable due to it.

So, the ergo keyboards are mainly concerned with safeguarding you against the musculoskeletal (MSD) ailments. The large list of ergo users have revealed that how these keyboards have enhanced their work proficiency and comfort. Their feather touch keys and other comforts make the work easy and stress free for the users.

2. Ergo products focus on the all round health of its users. This is made evident by the uniquely designed and convenient ergonomic chairs. Two most popular ergo chairs are the Salli Saddle Chair Classic and the Salli Saddle Chair Twin. Both these are at the same manageable price of $ 345. Some of the few of the many advantages of the ergonomic chairs are the ?

* The height of these chairs can be adjusted according to that of the person seated on them. This enables the person to have the ground support even with a small height.

* The depth of seat can also be altered to allow shorter as well as taller people take the backrest support.

* The backrest height can also be adjusted as suitable to the user.

* There are facilities if accommodating the lumbar support to prevent the frequently occurring problem of flattening of lumbar spine.

* What more, even the height and width of the padded armrests can be modified to met the comfort of one's shoulders and upper arms.

3. Last but not the least are the super beneficial ergonomic mice. There are again different kinds of these. The Graphical Tablet, Quill Mouse, Zero Tension mouse and the Evoluent Vertical Mouse to name a few. The mice have the merit of giving total relax and minimum exertion to the user's palm, fingers and forearms. With these ergonomic mice you can bid goodbye to the aching palms and tired fingers. A simple touch or clicking the button will do maximum of your work and will save you from the trouble of rotating the mice here and pressurizing your forearm.

This is not all for the ergonomic products. There are many others that have not been mentioned and perhaps cannot be enumerated in a single go. A lot of information is available online regarding them. So waiting for what?go &quot;ergo&quot;..!

Mansi aggarwal writes about <a taret="_new" href="http://www.ergo-items.com"> Ergonomic Products</a> .

Best DVDs for Your Personal DVD Player

When bought personal DVD player, the very next thing to do is purchasing an important DVDs collection with your favourite movies, documentaries, shows, cartoons. Here are few hints before buying.

Have you just bought a portable personal DVD player and no clues about what DVD shows can you enjoy? Well, net is abounding in all kind of tops. In order to pick up what you wish before your escape into vacation, take a glance on these ones. These following pass for significant classifications. According to bestdvd.co.uk:

Top 20 DVD's

Title Total %

1. American Beauty 6%

2. Fight Club 96%

3. Se7en 95%

4. Halloween (Ltd Edition) 94%

5. American History X 93%

6. The Matrix 93%

7. Terminator 2 93%

8. Shrek 93%

9. The Abyss 93%

10. Fellowship of the Ring 92%

11. Gladiator 92%

12. The Holy Grail 92%

13. Jurassic Park 92%

14. Tarzan 92%

15. The Sixth Sense 91%

16. Independance Day 91%

17. Three Kings 91%

18. Blade II 90%

19. Silence Of the Lambs SE 90%

20. The Green Mile 90%

Best DVD's of 2003

According to amazon.com, these are:

<li>The Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King (Widescreen Edition) DVD

<li>Finding Nemo (Collector's Edition) DVD

<li>City of God DVD

<li>Seabiscuit (Widescreen Edition) DVD

<li>Master and Commander - The Far Side of the World (Widescreen Special Two-Disc Set) DVD

<li>The Last Samurai (Widescreen Edition) DVD

<li>Kill Bill, Volume 1 DVD

<li>Pirates of the Caribbean - The Curse of the Black Pearl DVD

<li>X2 - X-Men United (Widescreen Edition) DVD

<li>Mystic River (3 Disc Deluxe Edition) DVD

Top 10 Films of 2004, So Far - Independent Film

This top is realized by worldfilmabout.com:

<li>The Trilogy, together, Lucas Belvaux' "On the Run," "An Amazing Couple," and "After the Life"

<li>Before Sunset

<li>Dogville

<li>Festival Express

<li>Maria Full of Grace

<li>The Five Obstructions

<li>The Dreamers

<li>Bon Voyage

<li>Control Room

<li>Coffee and Cigarettes For the RZA

DMC Awards

According to dvdmoviecentral.com, DMC Awards let us know which are:

<ul>

<li>the best overall DVD

<li>THE TWO TOWERS: SE

<li>Finding Nemo

<li>Black Hawk Down: Deluxe Ed.

<li>Pirates of the Caribbean

<li>Who Framed Roger Rabbit

<li>Best children and family DVD

<li>THE LION KING

<li>Finding Nemo

<li>Sleeping Beauty

<li>Harry Potter/Chamber

<li>The Love Bug

<li>best documentary feature

<li>CASABLANCA (Bacall on Bogart)

<li>The Great Dictator (The Tramp and the Dictator)

<li>The Two Towers: SE (Gollum)

<li>Black Hawk Down: Deluxe Ed.

<li>Tokyo Story

<li>best video quality (color)

<li>STAR TREK: NEMESIS

<li>Finding Nemo

<li>Identity

<li>Blue Crush

<li>Sleeping Beauty

<li>best video quality (black&white)

<li>THE GREAT DICTATOR

<li>Coup de Grace

<li>Umberto D

<li>Wings of Desire

<li>In Cold Blood

<li>best restoration (pre-1970):

<li>ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST

<li>The Great Dictator

<li>Metropolis

<li>The Love Bug

<li>Sleeping Beauty

</ul>

Even those who are in love with classic movies should be satisfied. Movies such as "Sunset Boulevard" (1950) Special

Collector's Edition DVD or "Roman Holiday" (1953) Special Collector's Edition DVD have been released recently. The picture and sound are as good as on any contemporary film.

About The Author

Dana Scripca writes for <a href="http://www.allportabledvdplayers.com" target="_new">http://www.allportabledvdplayers.com</a> where you can find more information about portable DVD players

Please feel free to use this article in your Newsletter or on your website. If you use this article, please include the resource box and send a brief message to let me know where it appeared: mailto: <a href="mailto:danascri@gmail.com">danascri@gmail.com</a>

Video Encryption

What is Video Encryption?

Video Encryption is an extremely useful method for the stopping unwanted interception and viewing of any transmitted video or other information, for example from a law enforcement video surveillance being relayed back to a central viewing centre.

The scrambling is the easy part. It is the un-encryption that's hard, but there are several techniques that are available. However, the human eye is very good at, spotting distortions in pictures due to poor video decoding or poor choice of video scrambling hardware. Therefore, it is very important to choose the right hardware or else your video transmissions may be un-secure or your decoded video may not be watchable.

Some of the more popular techniques are detailed below:

Line Inversion:

Method: Whole or parts of the signal scan lines are inverted. Advantages: Simple, cheap video encryption. Disadvantages: Poor video decrypting quality, low obscurity, low security.

Sync Suppression:

Method: Hide/remove the horizontal/vertical line syncs.

Advantages: Provides a low cost solution to Encryption and provides good quality video decoding.

Disadvantages: This method is incompatible with some distribution equipment. Obscurity (i.e. how easy it is to visually decipher the image) is dependant on video content.

Line Shuffle:

Method: Each signal line is re-ordered on the screen.

Advantages: Provides a compatible video signal, a reasonable amount of obscurity, good decode quality.

Disadvantages: Requires a lot of digital storage space. There are potential issues with video stability. Less secure than the cut and rotate encryption method (see below)

Cut & Rotate:

Scrambling Method: Each scan line is cut into pieces and re-assembled in a different order.

Advantages: Provides a compatible video signal, gives an excellent amount of obscurity, as well as good decode quality and stability.

Disadvantages: Can have complex timing control and requires specialized scrambling equipment

The cut and rotate video encryption method is probably the best way of achieving reliable and good quality video encryption, an example of a good implementation of this system is in the Viewlock II

Implementing vice scrambling

The video scrambling hardware, in particular the decoder should function correctly even if there is a noisy (for example having what are commonly known as 'snow' on the screen. 'Snow' is when there are flecks on your TV screen, often seen in poor reception areas) or unstable signal. If the link to the encrypted signal should stop working then this should not be a problem. The link between the video encoder and video decoder should be regained and the decryption quickly continued.

The very nature of security camera systems is that they are often outdoors as so must be able to withstand the rigours of the weather. The video encryption hardware should be stable under or protected from the effects of rain, sunlight, extreme heat and cold. It should not be damaged if there is a power spike in the supply. In these systems the video encoder emits a wireless signal to the video decoder unit before it is viewed, it obviously must be the case that the very act of broadcasting the signal does not effect the video encoding hardware and likewise the video encoding hardware should not effect the radio transmitter.

The most important item is that the video scrambling system should be secure, else why bother? It is amazing how some encryption methods can easily be cracked. For example certain cable television stations 'encrypt' their channel broadcasts via a relatively un complex method, which can easily be decoded using a number of cheap bits of electronics from radio shack. That would obviously be illegal! The cable TV's method of encryption is very crude, they usually just dynamically alter the vertical sync signal so that your TV cannot get a proper lock on it and so it scrolls randomly.

The other extreme is to scramble the transmitted video signal too much so that it is costly both in equipment and time to the video at the receiver. Remember that this is a 'live' video scrambling broadcast followed by a 'live' video decryption display. ANY electronics can be copied, given enough money and time, but making this process as hard as possible is of benefit as it at least delays the time when illegal copies will be available.

Finally and most obviously each user must have a unique encryption key so that other users of the system cannot view the transmitted video by accident or purpose without the key owners knowledge. The total number of possible user keys must be such that it is highly unlikely for someone to guess the correct key.

<a target="_new" title="Video Scrambling" href="http://www.ovation.co.uk" >Ovation Systems</a> are specialists in the design and manufacture of high quality covert video surveillance equipment. Products include the <a target="_new" title="Viewlock" href="http://www.ovation.co.uk/Video-Encryption.html" > Viewlock II </a>video encryption system.

วันพฤหัสบดีที่ 27 พฤศจิกายน พ.ศ. 2551

How to Add or Remove an IDE ROM drive

CD ROMS - If you're adding or removing an internal cd-rom, dvd-rom, or just about any internal ROM that has an opening CD door, read on. Almost all IDE devices such as CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, etc. including burners and dvd burners are all installed or removed in the same fashion. If you're removing your rom, first remove the scrues from both sides of the rom. Make sure both sides are removed or you won't be able to get the device out. Once the scrues are off, unplug the drive; both the IDE ribbon cable that goes to your mainboard and your power cable. You may also have another wire running from your cd-rom to your sound card. This wire enables sound to play from your rom drive to your sound card, so when you play a cd on your drive you can hear it. Yank all cables running to the drive, then remove it. Simple.

To add a drive, first you must mount the drive in the correct position and remove the IDE bracket on the front of the case. An IDE bracket is just a simple piece of plastic on the front of your case. When removed, your drive can then be accesible from your case's front. Remove one such plastic bracket by simply pulling at it and it will come loose, then mount your drive inside the case with the door facing frontwards. Now, your drive will not stay in that position unless you mount it with some scrues, so do so to both sides of the drive. Then, connect an IDE ribbon cable to one side of the ROM. The other side of the cable should run to the secondary IDE slot on your motherboard. If you're not sure which is which, the primary is the one that runs to your master (primary) hard drive, and the secondary runs to your rom drives. You can connect up to two rom drives on one cable, as it will have one end that connects to your board, one end that connects to a drive, and a middle connector for another drive. Run a power cable to the drive as well. As for connecting a sound cable - it can be done, but it really is not required. Should you need to listen to music from your cd player, you're better off just copying the music to your hard drive, then listening to it. This will cut down on your used system resources, and for slower PCs skipping will be eliminated.

I am a young, aspiring computer engineer into Internet Marketing, hardware, software, web design, SEO and just about anything related to computers. Please come check out my growing PC forum at <a target="_new" href="http://www.markspcforum.com">http://www.markspcforum.com</a>

วันพุธที่ 26 พฤศจิกายน พ.ศ. 2551

The Road Ahead

<P align=left>We live in an area that has begun to use Green<BR>Bins for household waste. Our regular garbage<BR>is picked up every other week and the only<BR>weekly garbage collection is our green plastic<BR>bins, to be filled with leftover food products<BR>and other organic waste.
<P align=left>When the program first started, I was sure<BR>we could never change our ways, but before<BR>long, depositing bones and leftover food in<BR>the bin became automatic.
<P align=left>Why am I telling you this? Because using the<BR>computer will also become easy for you the<BR>more you try. Sure, the learning curve is<BR>steeper than remembering which container<BR>to use for which type of garbage, but the<BR>idea is the same. Every time you perform a<BR>function or solve a problem on your computer, <BR>it will be easier than the time before.
<P align=left>This week, I read a book written by Bill Gates<BR>in 1996 titled 'The Road Ahead'. Gates said, <BR>"Computers frighten almost everyone<BR>(everyone but children), before they learn to<BR>use them. When people spend more time with<BR>computers, they understand them better.<BR>You can start by playing computer games or<BR>doing other simple things. Once you start<BR>using them, I think you'll like them."
<P align=left>With the Internet, we can keep in touch with<BR>old friends and make new ones; have virtual<BR>experiences of flying an airplane, driving a<BR>car, even dissecting a toad. Pilots and doctors<BR>practice their work without worrying about<BR>accidents. Every school can have a wonderful<BR>library thanks to the Internet.
<P align=left>Gates saw then how much our world would<BR>change because of computers. Banking and<BR>shopping online, distance learning, the ability<BR>to telecommute and work from home - all of<BR>these grew as software became better and<BR>more powerful.
<P align=left>Gates talked about his own futuristic house. <BR>Anyone in the house wore an electronic pin that<BR>told the house who and where you were. When<BR>it got dark, the pin would turn on lights nearby<BR>and turn them off when you went away. Music<BR>would play near you and the phone ring nearby<BR>only if the call was for you. A home control <BR>console activated choices of lighting, music,<BR>and temperature. That was in 1996, so who<BR>knows what his home is like now!
<P align=left>The book ended with a cartoon showing a mutt<BR>using a computer and saying "On the Internet,<BR>nobody know's you're a dog." How true - on<BR>the Internet, we are all on equal ground.

When in my 40's, the university library where I worked was computerized. The thought of using those machines at my age was so intimidating that I moved to another department. I transferred back a year later, determined to learn.

<P align=left>To my surprise, computers were easier to use than I imagined, and so enjoyable that I went back to school full-time.
<P align=left>(c) Carol Bremner 2003<BR><A href="mailto:cabremner@creativehomecomputing.com">cabremner@creativehomecomputing.com</A><BR>projects - hints - products<BR><A target="_new" href="http://www.creativehomecomputing.com">www.creativehomecomputing.com</A><BR>

Do You Have Dead Pixels?

Take a good look at your notebook computer screen. Do you find some tiny dark spots? You could have dead pixels. One of the most expensive parts of your notebook computer is the LCD screen.

LCD's are highly sensitive and any amount of pressure, touching or handling may damage it. As such, dead pixels aren't an uncommon thing. Apparently, some degree of dead pixels is to be expected. Still if you have a lot of them, it would be classified as a defective screen. So, how do you determine if you have dead pixels?

Before we go there, make sure it's not just dust. Clean your screen first. The best way to do that is to use a soft cotton cloth - no rags or paper towel as they can scratch your screen easily. Moisten the cloth with plain old water and wipe the screen gently.

Side note: I've also tried maintaining my screen dust free with a Swiffer Duster. These are inexpensive, very soft and they pick up the dirt not just re-distribute it. It has worked well. Of course, this will not take care of smudges or dried on dirt. So you'll still have to use the cotton cloth and water combo sometimes.

Once you've cleaned it, you can run a quick check with a free software called Dead Pixel Buddy. It's basically a very simple file that will rotate your screen through all the basic colors. This way you can tell if a pixel on your screen is not displaying properly. One tip, you might want to get a help of a friend. Two sets of eyes are better than one especially since pixels tend to be miniscule.

You can also do a low tech way by changing your desktop's background color to black, white, red, green blue and yellow, checking the screen each time you change the colors. This is of course not fool proof especially if you have tons of icons on your desktop but it's a good 'backup' check if you don't have Internet access to download the file or whatever the case may be.

If you do find dead pixels, don't panic yet, as mentioned earlier, a small amount of dead pixels could be inevitable but if you have a lot of them and your notebook computer is still under warranty, this may be a good time to call up the manufacturer and ask for assistance.

Related Resources:
5 Days To A Healthier Notebook Computer
http://www.notebook-computer-infocenter.com/5days-to-a-healthier-notebook.html

Dead Pixel Buddy
http://www.laptopshowcase.co.uk/downloads.php?id=1

Lynn Chan helps new owners learn proper notebook care and use. Take care of your investment, find out how at <a target="_new" href="http://www.notebook-computer-infocenter.com">http://www.notebook-computer-infocenter.com</a>

วันอังคารที่ 25 พฤศจิกายน พ.ศ. 2551

Hard Drive Selection

Perhaps the biggest mistake people make when building their computer(s) is to underestimate the importance of the hard disk drive (HDD). In our modern society, bigger is synonymous with better, so when you go to buy a hard drive you look at how "big" it is, its data capacity. But is that all you should be considering when buying your hard drive?

Like every other component of your computer, the HDD is far too complex a system to describe in any sort of detail here, but hopefully by the end of this article you will know what to look for when you go to buy your new hard drive.

There are 4 primary aspects to look at in a hard drive (in order of importance):

<li>Rotational frequency and average seek time

<li>Buffer size

<li>Internal/external transfer rates

<li>Capacity

Rotational frequency has become a large selling point (5400/7200/10000/15000RPM) recently, so you shouldn't have too much difficulty finding out what the rotational frequency of your HDD is when you go to buy it. Now of course the faster it spins, the faster it can read from the disk (there are other advantages also), but be aware that the faster it spins, the more wear is put on the drive, and the more likely it is to encounter errors and malfunctions later in life. Hard drives are pretty much the only systems within your computer that have moving parts (CD-ROM, floppy disk drives, and fans also have moving parts, but they're all cheap and if they break you won't lose all the data you've accumulated over the course of owning your computer, be sure to back up your data regularly!).

If you know anything about physics or engineering, then you know that moving parts produce friction and wear, and a faster spinning platter (the part that holds the data and spins) means more friction, and therefore more wear on your drive. Of course the faster it spins the faster it can read data from the platter. So what can you do? well again you backup your data as much as possible and you get the fastest spinning drive money can buy (which is 7200RPM for ATA devices (the sort you are buying) and 15000RPM for SCSI and some Serial ATA devices (you might get Serial ATA, that depends on your motherboard)). So look for a "7200RPM" label on the drive you're thinking of getting, it's important!

The "buffer" I'm referring to is the transfer buffer that temporarily stores data to read from or write to the hard drive. The reason for this is that the bus (data channel between the hard drive and the motherboard) can only handle so much information at a time, and it takes a long time for the data to be found and retrieved from a platter (random seek time), so it takes a big chunk of the requested data and stores it in a very fast data buffer to be sent at the bus's convenience. So with a larger buffer you can queue more data for transfer over the bus without having to keep sending requests to slowly find more data from the platters. Some newer drives come with as much as 8MB of buffer capacity, but it is more common to see 2 or 4MB. Usually a drive with a large amount will use that as a selling point and print it on the box/website, otherwise you can assume it has a 2/4MB buffer. My advice is to find one with as much as you can afford.

Now for the transfer rates you're going to need to do some searching, the best way to find these numbers is to go to the manufacturer's website and look at specification sheet for the model you're looking to buy (actually this is the best way to get all the information I've talked about so far). One thing to look out for is that you may read something that says 133MB/s or ATA/133 or SATA150 or 150MB/s, and these are not the numbers you are looking for, those numbers describe the bus connecting the hard drive to the motherboard, and are theoretical peak numbers, which tell us virtually nothing. Also, if you are buying a Maxtor, don't bother looking up actual transfer rates, as Maxtor is apparently afraid to release such information. Not to say Maxtor's are bad drives, actually Maxtor has risen to the top in terms of technical support and they are much more willing to replace broken drives than some other companies, which is important since some ridiculously large amount (something like 10 or 15%) of hard drives are either dead on arrival or die within the first few weeks of use. As with the last two points, when looking at transfer speeds (if you can find them) always try to pick the one with the highest numbers you can afford.

Notice that the first three of the 4 major aspects were all speed related? That was done intentionally to give you a sense of the importance of speed in the hard drive, because they are very very slow creatures, and for your gaming experience you don't need an enormous hard drive so much as a fast one. To increase speed substantially more you can set up a RAID, which is a network of hard drives which (in RAID0 mode) share portions of the same data, such that accessing data takes 1/n time (n = number of hard drives attached) compared to 1 hard drive. To do this you really need a hardware RAID chipset, which are commonly included on higher-end mainboards.

Finally, capacity is an unnecessary nicety. The smallest hard drives you can buy today that are still within those higher speed classes are all about 30GB, which is more than enough for your games. But since games are not everything, and if you happen to be an iTunes member or like to download anime then you will really want some extra space. So I would recommend getting something between 60 and 120GB, any more and you're going to be paying through your teeth, any less and you might be looking to buy a supplementary hard drive in a couple years. And, oh yeah, 300GB hard drives from Maxtor are out, but they are comparatively slow, so I wouldn't recommend getting one for gaming, I like to stick to single platter drives (40-100GB usually), as they produce less heat and are less likely to break down on me.

That is really all you need to know in order to make a good choice when upgrading your hard drive or buying one for a new computer. Of course there are many other resources on the web if you would like more detail on the inner working of hard drives.

About The Author

J A Carpunky <a href="http://www.computer-gaming-system.com" target="_new">http://www.computer-gaming-system.com</a> - visit our website for further information.

วันจันทร์ที่ 24 พฤศจิกายน พ.ศ. 2551

How To Troubleshoot DVD Drives Fast

You really enjoy those dvd movies and games and the last thing you need or want is to experience problems with your dvd drive.

To prepare for the possibility of having your dvd drive leaving you out in the cold one morning,we will dicuss problems that may cause dvd failure as well as the procedures you should take to correct these problems.

As with all drives,be sure to double check the failure. If the dvd drive will not read the dvd,try running another dvd in the drive.Make sure the dvd has no scratches and is clean.

Visually inspect the drive if the drive is external and if the drive is enternal,check the computer.Check to see if the computer has good ventilation to help keep it cool.Here are the common dvd problems with their solutions.

DVD DRIVE HAS NO POWER

First..For external drives that have no power,first check to see if anything or anyone has caused the power cord to become unplugged.Rule out the wall outlet by plugging in another device such as a radio and see if it plays.

Second...If you've proven the wall outlet to be good,but you still don't have power,check the surge protector for any signs of damage.If the surge protector is good,check the cord.

Third..If you're certain the surge protector or wall outlet is providing power,double check the cord by plugging it in a few times.If no power is present,you will have to replace the cord or the drive itself.

Internal dvd drives receive their power from the connector from the power supply.Try another connector to the drive. if the internal dvd drive still does not receive power after using another connector,the drive is faulty.

DRIVE HAS POWER BUT TRAY WON'T OPEN

You may experience the tray failing to open.Should this happen,press the button a couple times to see if it will open.If the tray fail to open,reboot your computer and try to open the tray.

When rebooting the system,notice the monitor to see if the drive is recognized by the computer.Some systems will not display installed hardware during bootup.If this is the case,you will have to access your BIOS to check if the dvd drive is being registered.

You can also try the manual eject button on the drive to get it to open.Use something very small but firm to press in the pinhole in front of the drive to open the tray.

Shut the computer off and unplug it.Use something like a long paperclip to insert in the pinhole to open the tray. The tray may open a couple inches and you can grab it with your fingers to open it completely.

DRIVE IS NOT RECOGNIZED BY WINDOWS

Be sure the operating system is recognizing the drive by clicking on My Computer.Windows XP will show "drives with removable storage".If your drive is present, highlight the drive,right click and select properties.Click on properties and you should see "this drive is working properly".

If you see another message such as "this drive is not working properly",you may be able to update the device driver.If the drive is not present in My computer,reboot the computer and access the cmos setup.

In the cmos setup,the dvd drive should be present.The drive may not be properly installed or one of the cables have become disconnected if the drive is missing

If you check the drive cables and are certain they are connected correctly,it may be that the data cable is faulty and the drive controller may be at fault.And we can't overlook the fact that the drive itself may be bad.

DRIVE HAS POWER BUT WILL NOT READ DVD

First..try another dvd since a dirty or scratched dvd may not play.If the new dvd fail to play as well,check to see if the operating system is recognizing the drive

Click on My Computer and highlight the dvd drive.Right click and select properties.The statement "This device is working properly" should be present.If not or you see another message,try to update the device driver.

In the My Computer screen,highlight the dvd drive,and select the Properties screen,select Drivers,and then select update device driver.

Another cause may be the Windows Registry is corrupt. You can use software utilities such as PC Bug Doctor to repair your registry. Download this free repair utility at http://www.pcbugdoctor.com/download.html.

To make a backup of your registry with Windows 98, just go to Start, select Run, enter scanregw and click OK. This will run Scanregw.exe.

Restore your registry in Windows 98 by typing scanreg / restore at the Dos Prompt. You can also use.Winrescue XP at <a href="http://www.superwin.com/index.htm" target="_new">http://www.superwin.com/index.htm</a> is a neat little utility for backup and restore of Windows XP.

The dvd drive or writer is an awesome storage and data backup drive.Use it to the fullest to enjoy music,video, audio,and more.Understand everything about this drive before something goes wrong.

Should your audio die on you,check the dvd to be sure it is not dirty or damaged.Look at the audio cable for signs of looseness.Inspect this cable to be sure it is inserted in the connector completely and that is indeed inserted in the correct connector.

If you have a dvd drive,take the time to visit the support web site and download the latest device drivers or patches to keep your drive running at peak performance.

About The Author

Otis F. Cooper is the author of the award winning PC Super Pack,the Computer Training By Video course.For hundreds more free PC repair tips,sign up for his bi-monthly newsletter and learn the PC free at <a href="http://www.ultimatepcrepair.com" target="_new">http://www.ultimatepcrepair.com</a>

<a href="mailto:allaboutpc@juno.com">allaboutpc@juno.com</a>