Monday, March 7, 2011
Speeding up your PC - 10 Ways!
By Mark Tiongco - March 6, 2011
Are you a victim of slow-PC syndrome? Do you wish your computer boots up Windows in seconds instead of minutes? Well fear not, you’re not alone! Many people have this issue and it can be remedied by several simple and proactive steps. In this Tech Tip, we examine 10 simple ways to quickly speed up your computer regardless if it’s a laptop or desktop.
1.) Turn off unnecessary programs during start-up.
Click START – RUN – and type “msconfig” – click STARTUP tab - uncheck the programs that are not needed upon startup such as ADOBE ACROBAT, GOOGLE UPDATE, QUICKTIME – You can see the program name, its file extension and location by the Manufacturer, Command and Location, respectively.
WARNING – IF YOU’RE UNSURE ABOUT A CERTAIN PROGRAM,DO NOT UNCHECK IT AS IT CAN HAVE UNPLEASANT CONSEQUENCES. ONLY UNCHECK THE PROGRAMS THAT YOU RECOGNIZE AND DO NOT NEED TO HAVE RUNNING AT START-UP (i.e. WINAMP AGENT)
2.) Use a free cleaning utility to clean out your system.
Free programs like C Cleaner delete old junk files, cached pages, temporary files and other unimportant data from your computer, thus freeing up your hard drive. If you’re looking for an all-in-one solution,Tune Up Utilities is an excellent program that can tackle all things cleaning-related so you don’t have to use multiple programs to clean your computer. C Cleaner also has a Windows Registry cleaning feature that can help clean out your registry for increased performance.
3.) Upgrade your computers hard drive to a new/bigger/faster one!
Hard drives are getting faster, cheaper and bigger so pick up a new one! Whether your current one is old, sputtering on its last spindle rotation, or almost at full capacity, you can purchase a 500GB, 750GB or 1 Terabyte drive that has much more buffer cache, faster spindle speeds and can even consume less power! (eco-green models) Even if your current drive is working fine, a second hard drive is handy as a large dumping ground for files or can serve as a place to store back-up images of your current hard drive. If you don’t feel like cracking open your case, you can opt for an external hard drive and dump your archive files there to free up space. The reason is because as a hard drive gets full, its performance decreases because it has to work harder to access files.4.) More Computer Memory (RAM) Scotty!
Now is the time to buy RAM/Memory if your computer was built within the last 5 years. The prices of DDR2 and DDR3 RAM have gone down significantly so it would be in your best interest to pick up at least 1-2 GB on top of what you have now. More RAM means that the computer can do a better of job of booting up programs, delegating tasks and increase overall system performance. Check with your respective PC manufacturer to determine how much RAM you computer can accommodate.
5.) Utilize Anti-Virus, Anti-Spyware and Anti-Malware programs
It’s not rocket science that if your computer is infected with a Trojan, botnet or other type of malicious infection, it can slow down your computer considerably. (And possibly compromise your IT security) Pick up a good anti-virus program like MS Security Essentials or AVG Antivirus if you fancy free versions. If you don’t want to have your system hijacked by a Trojan, pick up Malwarebytes’ Antimalware which can find and quickly eliminate programs such as “Avira AV” which auto-install and trick the unsuspecting victim that he/she is infected. (Then it will try to collect payment from “product activation” but it’s really just a hijacking program) Bottom line, your computer will run faster and much more efficient without these kinds of infections.
6.) Update Drivers
This obviously sounds like a chore but keep in mind that with the super fast pace of technology, having the most up-to-date software is important for a computer’s stability, compatibility and performance. For example, if you play PC games or do heavy graphics editing, your gaming/editing performance might suffer if you’re using outdated drivers from the video card manufacturer. (Or OEM PC maker)
7.) Take advantage of READYBOOST!
If you’re running Windows Vista or 7, utilizing ReadyBoost is one of the simplest speed tweaks you can perform! Just pick up a 2-4 GB USB flash drive, plug it into your computer and wait for it to be recognized. Afterwards, right click on the flash drive letter under My Computer and click the READYBOOST tab. Check USE THIS DEVICE and click OK and voilá! You’re done!
8.) Turn off User Account Control (UAC) and Aero
For Windows Vista and 7 users, turning off UAC not only eliminates the annoying pop-ups but also speeds up the computer.
Just go into Control Panel – Security Center – USER ACCOUNTS – TURN USER ACCOUNT CONTROL OFF.
For those of you who don’t care about the graphical fancy pants that is Windows Aero, you can turn it off and thus save Windows from performing unnecessary gratuitous graphics when you’re simply navigating.
For Vista - right-click on the desktop – PERSONALIZE – click WINDOW AND APPEARANCE – OPEN CLASSIC APPEARANCE PROPERTIES FOR MORE COLOR OPTIONS – COLOR SCHEME – WINDOWS VISTA BASIC.
For Windows 7 – right-click on desktop – PERSONALIZE – Select Windows 7 Basic theme – OK.
9.) Remove unnecessary programs in Windows
If you buy a computer from an OEM such as Dell or HP, it’s most-likely filled with “bloatware”, the programs that are usually trial but are installed with the OEM’s copy of Windows. While these programs are harmless, they get annoying because they slow your computer down considerably. You can either manually uninstall each program from CONTROL PANEL – ADD/REMOVE PROGRAMS, or you can download and install PC Decrapifier. This program searches your computer, targets the programs that are considered bloatware such as “Auto Backup – Free Trial!”, “McAfee 90-day Trial”, and “eMusic” and un-installs them to not only free up hard drive space, but also increase performance.
10.) Defrag the right way!
Defragmenting your hard drive the proper way can speed up your PC in addition to organizing your files. Some programs like Puran Defrag not only defrags your hard drive(s), it also defrags your boot files so your 
Windows start-ups are quicker. In addition, there are comprehensive programs like Raxco Perfect Disk that optimize the placement of data for maximum performance depending on the settings you choose.
Windows start-ups are quicker. In addition, there are comprehensive programs like Raxco Perfect Disk that optimize the placement of data for maximum performance depending on the settings you choose.While there are many ways to speed up your computer, the goal for these 10 speed tips are simplicity and ease of use. Yes, you can tinker with your Windows Registry files but if you make a mistake, you can crash Windows just like that! The most important thing to keep in mind is remembering to perform the above cleaning tasks every now and then. (At least once a month) Just like proactively keeping your car in good running condition (ahem, Skyline GT-R!) with timely maintenance, running these applications from time to time keeps your computer running in peak performance. Regardless of whether you have a dual-core, triple-core or quad-core CPU computer, you did pay for your computer’s performance so it makes sense to able to utilize all of it.
Please share with us any of your favorite or most effective performance tips in the comments section!
Sunday, February 27, 2011
10 Ways To Go Green On Your PC
By Mark Tiongco - February 27, 2011 | |
Let’s face it, hybrid cars, solar panels and wind farms are invading! The trend of going green is catching up to all of us whether we like it or not and we see it virtually everywhere. If you’re looking to save on your energy bill or want to do your part by conserving, this article has 10 tips that can help lower power consumption and reduce paper dependency with your desktop PC.
While more and more OEM computer parts manufacturers are upping the ante on computer power supplywattage and more stream processors on video cards, some companies like Seagate are taking a step backwards and creating hard drives that eat up less power. The idea behind a green hard drive is that its spindle speed is less, like 5900 rpm, but is engineered to perform virtually on par with its faster 7200 rpm siblings. The way they do is by enhancing other functions like offering 32-64mb cache buffer or utilize the new SATA 3 (SATA/600) interface which offers blazing-fast file transfers. These hard drives come in usually larger sizes, between 500GB to 2TB sizes and can be used in external drive cases.
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1.) Upgrade your computer’s hard drive to a green drive
While this sounds hardly relevant to going green, having a fast-performing computer is important for several reasons. First, a fast-performing computer equates to minimized waiting time. Minimized waiting time can increase your productivity of what tasks you need to get done quicker and not have to use unnecessary power. By fast-performing, I don’t mean raw CPU speed. What I mean is keeping your computer quick by performing consistent maintenance. (Just like how auto experts will say the best way to keep a car’s mileage up is by proper maintenance) For example, you can use
Yes, it’s been shown through sales that notebooks have steadily crept up to desktop computer sales in terms of number of units sold and yes it’s true they have surpassed desktop sales. The point is that if you’re looking to upgrade to a new system, you might want to consider picking up your next computer in a laptop form. Notebooks come in many shapes and sizes such as the good ‘ol 15.6”- 17” desktop replacement to the fun-sized 10” power-sipping 
It’s funny that no matter how many times I visit a coffee shop, whether it’s Starbucks or Panera Bread, I always see customers walk in with their notebooks and look around for the nearest outlet. Unless you’re carrying a 17” monster laptop, most 
In addition, if you need to perform a Print-Screen capture but want to reduce printer paper usage, there are free programs such asShow Chrome’s Tabs as Separate Aero Peek Thumbnails
If you want to enable it, all Chrome builds (including the stable build) will let you add the flag
--enable-aero-peek-tabs after the quoted path in the shortcut on your desktop or in your taskbar (if you hold shift when you right click you can go to properties and add it there).
If you go to start Chrome and realize it didn't work, close down the browser and make sure you end all Chrome.exe processes in the task manager. Certain plug ins are more persistent than the actual browser and will retain chrome's settings (such as this one) until the entire browser restarts (at least in the dev version, to which this is not exclusive).
Friday, February 11, 2011
Yesterday Microsoft announced the release candidate of Internet Explorer 9, which is very close to the final product. Here’s a screenshot tour of the most interesting new stuff, as well as answers to your questions.
The most important question is should you install this version? And the answer is absolutely yes. Even if you don’t use IE, it’s better to have a newer, more secure version on your PC.
What’s New Under the Hood in Release Candidate vs Beta?
If you want to see the full list of changes with all the original marketing detail, you can read Microsoft’s Beauty of the Web page, but here’s the highlights that you might be interested in.
- Improved Performance – they’ve made a lot of changes, and it really feels faster, especially when using more intensive web apps like Gmail.
- Power Consumption Settings – since the JavaScript engine in any browser uses a lot of CPU power, they’ve now integrated it into the power settings, so if you’re on battery it will use less CPU, and save battery life. This is really a great change.
- UI Changes – The tab bar can now be moved below the address bar (see below for more), they’ve shaved some pixels off the design to save space, and now you can toggle the Menu bar to be always on.
- Pinned Sites – now you can pin multiple pages to a single taskbar button. Very useful if you always use a couple web apps together. You can also pin a site in InPrivate mode.
- FlashBlock and AdBlock are Integrated (sorta) – there’s a new ActiveX filtering that lets you enable plug-ins only for sites you trust. There’s also a tracking protection list that can block certain content (which can obviously be used to block ads).
- Geolocation – while a lot of privacy conscious people might complain about this, if you use your laptop while traveling, it’s really useful to have geo-located features when using Google Maps, etc. Don’t worry, it won’t leak your privacy by default.
- WebM Video – Yeah, Google recently removed H.264 from Chrome, but Microsoft has added Google’s WebM video format to Internet Explorer.
Keep reading for more about using the new features.
Questions You Might Have
You probably want to get to the screenshots, but first, here’s a couple of answers to questions you haven’t asked yet.
- No, Internet Explorer 9 does not work on Windows XP.
- Yes, you can install IE9 over top of the beta version if you had that installed.
- Yes, If you have 32-bit Windows, you should install the 32-bit version.
- Yes, If you have 64-bit Windows, you should install the 64-bit version (which includes the 32-bit version). Not sure? Here’s how to see what version of Windows you have.
- Yes, you should upgrade to this version.
- Yes, if you click this link it will take you to the download page.
Again, even if you don’t use IE as your primary browser, it’s better to have this new, more secure browser than smelly old IE8.
Now You Can Move the Tabs Below the Address Bar (Again)
The biggest problem with IE9 for most power users is that the tabs and the address bar are on the same row, which quickly turns your tabs into tiny little unusable tab-lets. Did I just write that?
Now you can simply right-click on the tab bar to move the tabs to a separate row.
And now you’ll have a lot more space. The impressive thing is that even with the change to use two rows, it’s still pretty compact compared to other browsers.
Sadly there’s no option to put the tabs up top.
Pinning Multiple Sites Together
This new feature is slightly confusing at first, so we’ll walk you through it—imagine first that you’ve pinned a site to your taskbar, by simply dragging the site’s icon down to the taskbar. Easy.
Now browse to another URL in that window, and then right-click on the icon on the left-hand side, and choose “Add as a home page”. This will add that page as well, so the next time you open up that pinned site, it will open both.
The much simpler method, however, is to just go to the Tools icon on the right-hand side of IE’s tab bar, choose Internet Options, and then put the URLs you want in there.
You’ll notice that both of the ones that I added are now in here.
How to Enable “FlashBlock”
Internet Explorer has a pretty useful feature that blocks any ActiveX controls from running except for sites you specify them on—since the only plugin required for most sites is Flash, that essentially makes this a FlashBlock feature.
Just head to the Tools icon on the right of the tab bar, then Safety –> ActiveX Filtering. That’s it.
Now the next time you go to a site that needs Flash, click the little circle with the line through it, and turn off ActiveX Filtering for that site.
I really wish this feature was in Google Chrome, and every other browser.
Enabling Tracking Protection (Possibly Ad Blocking)
You can enable the Tracking Protection feature through the same menu as the previous feature, and once you do, it will pop up the Manage Add-ons screen, where you can select the “Your Personalized List” item on the right.
Once you do, you can enable it, or click Settings to see more.
Under here you can choose to automatically block everything, or just choose the content you want to block. It’ll show the most frequently used stuff, and let you block it. If you aren’t seeing enough there, adjust the 10 down to 3, and you’ll see more.
You should be careful with using the Automatic block here, because it appears to block some things required for certain sites to function, like common javascript libraries such as jQuery.
Tweaking Performance for Battery Life
To tweak the power / performance settings, head into Power Options –> Edit Plan Settings –> Change advanced power settings, and then scroll down to the bottom of the window.
Now you can configure the settings if you want, though we’d advise just leaving them be.
Go forth, and download it.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
LG Optimus 2X review: Double the potential
Introduction
Begun the dual-core revolution has. And there’s no scouting time – the offensive starts with the big guns. The LG Optimus 2X is not just counting on the fancy Tegra 2 name to generate the sales – it is a powerful smartphone through and through.
LG Optimus 2X official photos
The fancy camera with Full HD video recording alone is enough to bring any handset into the limelight and the fact that it’s not even the Optimus 2X key feature speaks volume. As far as hardware evolution goes, the Optimus 2X promises to be one of the biggest steps forward in the mobile phone industry.
Key features:
- Quad-band GSM and dual-band 3G support
- 10.2 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA
- 4.0" 16M-color capacitive IPS LCD touchscreen of WVGA resolution (480 x 800 pixels)
- Android OS v2.2 Froyo with LG Home launcher
- Dual-core 1GHz ARM Cortex-A9 proccessor, ULP GeForce GPU, Tegra 2 chipset
- 512 MB RAM
- 8 MP autofocus camera with LED flash and geotagging
- 1080p video recording @ 24fps, 720p@30fps
- 1.3 MP front-facing camera with videocalls
- Wi-Fi b/g/n and DLNA
- GPS with A-GPS, digital compass
- 8GB internal storage and microSDslot for up to 32GB cards
- Accelerometer, gyroscope, and proximity sensor
- microHDMI port with HDMI mirroring
- Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
- Stereo FM radio with RDS
- microUSB port (charging) and stereo Bluetooth v2.1
- Smart dialing, voice dialing
- DivX/XviD video support
- Innovative gesture controls
- Adobe Flash 10.1 support
- Dolby Mobile and SRS sound enhancement
- LG Optimus GT540 Unlocked GSM Quad-Band Phone with 3 MP Camera, Android OS, Touch Screen, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth--International Version with No US Warranty (Black)
Main disadvantages
- Despite similar technology LCD isn’t quite as impressive as the iPhone4 screen
- No dedicated camera key and no lens cover
- 1080p recording isn’t well polished
- No Android 2.3 Gingerbread at launch
- Audio quality is only average
- Below average speaker loudness
There are always a few compromises necessary with modern-day smartphones, but those are brought to a minimum with the Optimus 2X. You have a relatively good display (large, too), lots of oomph under the sleek hood and an excellent snapper at the back, plus all but the kitchen sink in the connectivity department.
LG Optimus 2X live shots
Or at least that’s what papers will make you believe. Our experience, however, has thought us better than blindly believing the fancy PR talk. The excellent first impression certainly helps the Optimus 2X cause, but we’ll only be able to recommend it wholeheartedly if it passes the test of a full review.
So, shall we start? Join us after the break for the hardware review.
Continue reading at: http://www.gsmarena.com/lg_optimus_2x-review-564.php
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Black Berry 9780 sale!
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