Problem
I have a Dell laptop that is about two years old, running Windows XP. CPU-Z and the General tab under System in the Control Panel both tell me that the computer is running at only 800MHz, which is half of the 1.60GHz the processor is rated for. My current power setting under Control Panel => Power Options => Power Schemes is Always On, because I use mains power instead of the battery. If I try using any of the other power settings, the processor just runs slower. How can I make the computer run at or close to 1.60GHz?
Answer
Have a look the Dell QuickSet application, which appears as a large Q in the System Tray (Notification Area) in bottom right side of the screen, or in the Control Panel.
QuickSet is Dell's proprietary software that manages the power and other settings, such as the screen's brightness and the network connectivity. Dell must think that QuickSet does a better job of managing those settings than Windows XP. If you try to manage the power settings directly through the Windows Power Options in the Control Panel, QuickSet can often override them, although sometimes it does not.
For example, you could have Windows XP's Power Scheme set for Always On, but if QuickSet is set for Maximum Battery Life, it could override the Windows XP setting. As you should know, Windows slows the processor down in order to extend the battery life. It is usually always best to have Windows managing the power.
Sony, Toshiba, Lenovo and others all have programs like Dell's QuickSet. Most of them can be uninstalled easily in Add or Remove Programs in the Control Panel. If not, most of them allow you to turn them off via a setting of their own, such as: Use Windows to manage the power options.
What do I have to know in order to use my notebook computer in the US and Europe?
Question
I will have to use my laptop computer when I travel to the US and Europe from the UK. Are there any important considerations that I should know about in order to be able to do that?
Answer
You shouldn't have a problem charging the laptop in the US or Europe, because the power supplies on most laptops can accept 100-240V at 50Hz or 60Hz. However, make sure by checking the label. However, you will need an adapter in order to be able to plug it into the mains. Someone using an American laptop in the UK would have to use an adapter that allows it to be connected to the UK mains system. You can also buy surge protectors for additional safety. Read the information on these two pages:
LAPTOP USE ABROAD - http://www.travelproducts.com/store/laptops.htm
ELECTRICAL MATTERS - http://www.travelproducts.com/store/electric.htm
Traveling With Laptops In The Post-9/11 World -
http://www.informationweek.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=6503586
It has become more difficult to take a laptop through airport security. You will probably have to switch it on to prove that it is a working computer, not a disguised bomb.
You can use a laptop on a plane, but you should deactivate the wireless network adapter, because you don't want to log on to other laptops wirelessly and you don't want other laptops logging on to yours. You can do that via Network Connections in Windows XP by right-clicking on the adapter.
Note that the computer's warranty might not allow it to be serviced outside the UK, so check with its manufacturer before you go abroad. You should also have sufficient travel insurance to cover the value of the computer in case it is stolen, lost, or damaged.
How can I connect my laptop computer to a TV? - Hooking up laptop to a TV
Problem
I have an HP ZV5000 laptop computer and I want to hook it up to my TV and home theatre equipment. What is the best way to do this using S-Video or Composite video? I am very confused about all of these connections.
Answer
Have a look at the available output ports on your computer's video/graphics card, or its motherboard's ports panel if it is an integrated motherboard that has an inbuilt graphics chip instead of a separate AGP or PCI Express graphics card. The available output ports are: a 15-pin D-sub VGA port, a DVI port, and an S-Video port. Your computer could have one, two, or all of those ports.
Next, you have to identify the type of television TV you have - an analog or digital TV. If it's an analog television, it should have an S-Video input port. If it's a digital television, it could have any of these input ports: S-Video, 15-pin VGA D-sub, component video, or a DVI input.
Now you have to match the output port from the computer with the input port on the TV. A VGA D-Sub or DVI match provides the best quality of image and picture production. If you have a component video connection on the TV and a VGA D-sub output on the computer, you can connect them by making use of an adapter. An S-Video connection provides the poorest quality of image and picture production, so you should only use it if you can't use either of the other alternatives.
Turn the TV channel to AV1, or whatever you plugged it into. Consult your laptop's user manual to find out how to make it display on an external monitor. In Windows XP, you will probably have to make the secondary monitor (the TV) the primary monitor under Control Panel => Display => Settings.
You must match the screen resolution that the TV uses with the screen resolution that the PC is using. You do that in Windows under Display => Settings.
Compatible screen resolutions and video standards might be provided on the back of the TV. If not, you should be able to find them listed in the TV's user manual.
If the VGA D-sub TV input is PC compatible, one or more of the following video standard and screen resolutions should be provided:
VGA = 640x480
SVGA = 800x600
XGA = 1024x768
SXGA = 1280x1024
The following page provides more information on these standards and many others:
Computer display standard - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_display_standard
The 15-pin VGA D-sub input might not be directly PC compatible. If this is the case, one or a few of the following television formats and their compatible screen resolutions should be provided on the back of the TV or in the TV's user manual:
480i - not compatible with PC's
480p = 720x480
720p = 1280x720
1080i = 1920x1080 (interlaced)
1080p = 1920x1080
To provide sound with any of the above-mentioned connections, you connect a 1/8" to L/R RCA cable from the audio output on the computer (on the sound card or motherboard if it is an integrated motherboard) to the corresponding audio jack on the TV.
To provide sound on a laptop computer that doesn't have an RCA Composite port, buy an RCA-headphone jack adapter, which costs about £2/$3. You connect an RCA cable to the RCA Composite input on your TV, plug the other end in to the adapter, and the adapter into the headphone or line-out plug in your laptop computer.
If you require more information, the articles and pages linked to below describe in detail how to connect the different types of PC video/graphics ports to analog and digital TVs.
How To Connect a Computer To Your TV -
http://www.techlore.com/article/10061/?page=1
PC to TV and TV to PC Converters - Provides USB converters -
http://www.keyzone.com/converters/index.htm
Connect your Media Center PC to a TV -
"The S-Video cable works well with most standard TVs. The procedure below explains how to connect a TV to your computer using an S-Video connection." -
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/mediacenter/using/setup/connecttv.mspx
TV Connection cables -
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/mediacenter/using/setup/cables.mspx
How to use the S-Video out of your computer - http://www.svideo.com/compaq1700.html
PC to TV cables - http://www.svideo.com/pc2tv.html
If you enter connect + tv + pc (as is) in the Google search box at the top of this page (with its web radio button enabled), you can find plenty of other useful pages.
Shutdown problem: My three-year-old notebook PC started freezing and now it starts to shut down at random intervals
Problem
I have a three-year-old Dell 250N notebook PC. It was working perfectly well until all of a sudden it started to freeze for no reason. Then, after about two weeks of doing that, it started to shut down randomly, often after only a few minutes of having been switch on. The actions I've taken so far without success are: scanned for spyware and viruses with updated scanners, and used the restore disc to restore the system. I noticed that the bottom of the PC becomes very hot, so I bought a set of feet thinking that it would help the airflow, but the problem remains.
Answer
The laptop's circuitry appears to be shutting it down in order to prevent damage to the processor. It is doing that because the laptop is overheating, no doubt because of an accumulation of dust inside the case that reduces the effectiveness of the cooling fans and the heatsinks that depend on them to expel hot air. The solution is relatively simple. Click here! to go directly to information on overheating laptops and how to clean them on on Page 4 of this article on laptop PCs.
Some of the newer PC games run very slowly at their lowest settings on my ageing laptop, but its manufacturer doesn't have updated drivers for the video/graphics card
Problem
I have an elderly Intel Pentium 4 business laptop PC that has a 2GHz processor and an ATI Mobility M6 graphics chip. I use it for office work and to play PC games. Some of the newer games run very slowly, even with the lowest screen resolution. The ATI Catalyst drivers won't install. A message comes up telling me to obtain the drivers from the laptop's manufacturer. But the manufacturer's site only has the version of the drivers that are already installed.
Answer
The ATI Mobility M6 graphics chip is elderly by current standards, but it should still be able to play many 3D Games at reasonable speeds.
Click here! to go directly to information about laptop graphics drivers on Page 2 of this article on laptop PCs.
The simplest solution is to install the ATI Omega drivers. They can be obtained from: http://www.omegadrivers.net/.
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