I am still having to run a fan to keep the computer cooled. I have a 6″ AC clip-on fan hooked to the cart. In the warmer weeks prior, this was fine. But now that it is cooler (it is currently 55F), my mouse hand is freakin’ freezing! So when I am not playing a game, I turn the fan off.
With the Dell, I went through several different cooling systems, none of them lasting long. Right now the Dell (which is miraculously still alive!) is using one by Vantec. It is cheap plastic and bows in the middle. Sheesh. The one before that isn’t being made anymore. It connected (like most of them do) via a USB cable. The end on the fan itself was on a removable USB hub. Sounds good except that hub had to really be set right before the fan would work. I also have a USB fan by Thermaltake sitting at the back of the Dell directly onto the heatsink.
Now with the Toshiba, the heatsink is on the side so I have to be careful what I put on that side so the thing gets adequate air. I also have a short piece of 2×2 along the back to raise it up off the table. Anyone have any advice on laptop cooling? What works?
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I also just bought Dragon Naturally Speaking 10 (DNS). I got an email (from a company I have bought stuff from before) announcing they had a great price at about a third of the cost. So I grabbed it. I’ve used voice software before with mixed results. ViaVoice was decent. I’ve had several older versions of DNS. I’ve only had it for a few days and have done limited training with it. But I will say that first impressions are this thing rocks!
First off, when setting up the user profile, I had to select a language. I selected US English (duh). Then, I got to choose SOUTHERN US English. How cool is that?
I’ve used it in several different situations and overall, I’m really impressed with this software. I can talk in a normal voice, without pausing to clarify words, and it keeps up fairly well. I have to get used to saying punctuation, though. I don’t think about it as I use a keyboard, ya know? I figure I’ll work with it during the day then in the afternoons and evenings, when the house is noisier, I’ll use the keyboard to edit and continue.
There’s this “DragonBar” thing that is always on top of whatever. I dislike things that do that. Sure, I can take away the “always on top” check mark, I guess.
Then I found out I could make that go away and still get to almost everything through the tray icon. Right-clicking is the way to go, dudes.
On the other hand, Nuance (who makes/sells DNS now) is heavily attached to Microsoft. Which means it is designed to work with Word and I would assume it does it quite well. But I use OpenOffice.org (OO.o), dammit. So when it scans the My Documents (which isn’t where I keep my manuscript files anyway) to build up the vocabulary and dictionary, it only scanned in the .rtf and .txt. It skipped the .doc because this laptop doesn’t have Word installed. It also offered to scan emails to further learn my writing style but only works with Lotus somethinganother, MS Outlook (every hackers dream), and some other MS based email. Not Thunderbird. Really annoying.
But, it will open OpenOffice.org and any other program that is listed in the Start Menu. I renamed a few things to make it easier to say (“OpenOffice.org Writer” was a bit long). I can dictate into OO.o but I am limited in some things. Not sure what exactly. Mostly I think in controlling macros (which I don’t like) and accessing other MSWord stuff.
A few other bugs I have about it: it came in a DVD. Not a CD, a DVD. Luckily, this Toshiba reads both. But what if it didn’t? Would a CD drive read a text DVD? And, with all that it downloads onto the computer, it does NOT download and install the .pdf extended help files. WTF? I found them (the written itty bitty manual mentions many times where they are) and drag/dropped them onto the desktop. What a silly little thing to not do automatically.
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I am doing my laptop shopping again. The Toshiba came to me used but in great condition. It has a few weird quirks (don’t we all?) and I knew from the beginning it was only a temporary fix to my laptop problem. Anyone have any recommendations? I like the Lenovo stuff. And Dell for the most part. I abhor HP/Compaq and I want to stay away from no-name brands and cheap brands. I need a “desktop replacement” computer. I use it constantly. 12-16+ hrs a day (I have no life, ya know) I like the bigger screens (my eyes are 43yrs old and not getting any younger). I don’t want lightweight, I want usable. I want one that is easier to keep cooled. I will wait until the next MS OS comes out since Vista is Satan wearing a “Blue Screen of Death” mask.
Speaking of which, am I the only one freakin’ about the idea of MS Sync in cars? They can’t get their OS right and they want to be in my car? I don’t think so!
Hey there,
I am not sure why you hate HP/Compaq. I have worked with them for the better part of ten years and I have yet to have a laptop die on me because of the hardware. Maybe I am a lucky one. If you want advice pertaining to that brand, I can help you out. If you are not going that route, have you though of getting a Apple Macbook or a Macbook pro? They are very cool laptops that do not run very hot and they have lots of software that is free or comes with the laptop.
To address your overheating issues, I am sort of perplexed. Do you have lots of dust in the room? Do you regularly clean the fan units in the laptops? How about getting a laptop cooling pad? Even with a heat driven laptop like the HP ZD7000 series, which would burn your lap if used with games, a cooling pad and regular cleaning of fans with canned air seemed to solve my problem.
If you need any additional help, you know where to find me.
All of the HP/Compaq computers I have met were bloated with adware, spyware, and all sorts of useless software the user couldn’t get rid of unless they did a swipe and used a different OS disk. I am too used to making my own stuff and putting my own software on my own machine. Other than the usual OS upgrade, there’s not much else fluffy stuff I want.
Yes, our house is dusty. 10′ ceilings and all these critters = dust. I clean the fins often, even took the Dell apart several times to clean the inside. This Toshiba doesn’t get too hot just ‘net surfing but it will with even the simplest of games.
The pads, the heat absorbing ones, it looks like they would block the fans underneath. Have you tried one yet?
I’ve never seriously considered a Mac. I saw a commercial lately that made it look like they have dual OS going.
OK.
Just from my professional experience, I have worked with HP and I can assure you, that you are absolutely correct. They have so much crap on the machines when you get them. NOW, saying that, it has NOTHING to do with the quality of the machines. HP is a tough notebook. I have has salespeople drop them from cars, elevators and windows. They will take a beating. NO machine needs to have proprietary software on them. I wish you were closer. I could easily set you up with a functioning machine and nearly bet a paycheck (um.. yeah when I start next week) that you would not be loaded down with spyware and you would not have to spend 1 red cent.
Kevin will tell you that I play with software all the time. I rebuild my laptops nearly every week and try different things. Right now, I am basically living off of Ubuntu, a Linux desktop. It is a cool OS and it is completely free. Once set up with some technical installations of some software, you will have a fast, free and really cool eye candy machine with lots of free software. Do a google search for Windows Alternative software and you will see there is an alternative to most all “paid” software that are free with Linux.
I have never tried heat absorption pads. I just know from experience, if the fans are on the bottom, the laptop MUST be elevated for air flow. I recommend going to Walmart or Kmart and spending the $15 for a Laptop Fan cooling mat for your laptop. Secondly, if the fans are on the side, never put them on a bed or furniture that is soft or cushiony. It will sink down and block the fans. After a few times with excessive heat, you will see performance issues and fams will burn out.
Lastly, if traveling, ALWAYS visually look for the laptop to be turned off and not in Hibernation mode where it is still trying. Sometimes, it will get hung up in hibernation transition and burn up with the travel bag closed up with no circulation.
That is my two cents. Let me know if you have other questions. It is late and I can not see straight, so sorry for the grammar mistakes.
When I get my hamshack set up, it will have a linux desktop to run the software stuff. It may be a dual OS with Win 98 or something older like that.
I use a lot of alternative software such as OpenOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird, Spybot, etc. I donate to them all to help them continue existing.
I need a desktop replacement quality laptop. I don’t mind dumping the harddrive contents and restarting with a clean copy of XP. (I’m not touching Vista with a ten foot cyber pole. Some people have good luck with it. Most don’t.) If I could get a clean OS, I’d consider getting an HP.
What do you think of Lenovo?
Kev talked me into an HP printer that is really good. Prints super fast which is what I wanted. Right now it isn’t working because I need to clean it.
Lenovo… It is an IBM laptop still, but I liken it to a Lexus or BMW. If you like to pay way more for a laptop and get high end parts. Go with Lenovo. But you will be supporting China, since China is the owner of Lenovo. (Had to throw that in there).
Win98 is not the way to go. XP is the best solution for you if you are not considering spending the money for an iMac or Mac book. Linux is a great solution, but sometimes installing software, it can be hard. You can find plenty of documentation on the internet, but if you do not feel like playing in a sandbox where sometimes it works and sometimes it don’t, go with XP Service pack 2.
I typically throw that on a machine with all the alternative software you mentioned and also STAY AWAY from SYMANTEC OR MACAFEE etc… Go with AVG or AVAST for virus protection. If you have a router (Linksys or Dlink etc) you are one step ahead of the hackers and malware. You are using NAT (Network Address Translation) It is like saying your home address is 123 Historia lane, but really, it is another address that only you know internally on your network (example; 192.168.1.100)
Also, for spyware and malware, add these add ons to Firefox… AD Blocker Plus, AVG Safe Search. I run these with AVG Virus protection and I nearly never get a pop up or spyware. If I do, AVG will scan nightly to get rid of it. I swear by it and all of it is free.
As for Vista, I agree, if you do not have to use it, don’t. It is has some good things in it, but none that I think is worth the trouble that XP could not give you with some extra freeware out there to match the specs of Vista. (Clear and transparent themes, widgets and gadgets etc.
The Toshiba I got from friends who worked for Sun sorta kinda. The laptop came with Sun’s Symantec virus and firewall. I hated it. It had like, seven or 8 processes running. I finally decided earlier this week to dump it and install AVG, ZoneAlarm, and SpyBot on this machine like I have on the Dell. I also ran PC Tune-up (by the same folks as ZoneAlarm) and it is running better than it was. I need to get in there and clean the fan/heat sink next. I used to use Lavasoft’s AdAware but I started not liking it so much. I tried their firewall for a year or so but lacked the IT/engineering degree to figure out how to use it properly.
I already use AdBlocker ’cause I hated the banner ads and flashing ads. I didn’t know AVG had a Firefox plugin. I’ll go get that in a bit.