Articles about computer hardware
A man called me, his computer an older Dell Vostro 230, would rapidly power on and off continuously. At first, I thought overheating, but there wasn’t much dust inside. I disconnected everything, still the same. I removed the memory chips, there was beeping, a good …
Macrium Reflect is great backup software. So great that when they discontinued the free version in 2022 I decided to buy the paid version. Currently, the only free Macrium Reflect is the 30-day trial. I’ve had no problems with Macrium Reflect. However, I’ve had problems …
I came across this odd trackball mouse that I’ve used on and off over time. I started clicking around with all the buttons to see what they would do. That’s when I discovered this auto-scrolling thing. That is you click on the page and the …
For those of us who use a Windows laptop, one of our concerns is the battery. A laptop’s lithium-ion battery performance degrades over time and will not hold a charge for as long as it did when it was new. Getting good information on the …
I was called by a guy who had problems printing a document. He was trying to print a document but the printer selection box was completely blank. It would give me a message about installing a printer first but when I clicked on the “Find …
If you’re thinking of buying a USB condenser microphone, you need to read this. I am by no means an audiophile, nor do I profess to be; what I am is a gadget freak. Some time ago I went crazy for portable Bluetooth speakers and …
I had to replace my mouse. Bought one at the dollar store that I thought was wireless. Should have read the package more carefully. It’s a “VX Gaming” mouse. It lights up and cycles through the colours. It seemed a bit flaky at first but …
It’s more than eighteen months since my last post in this series and I’ve had a busy time. Thankfully, the pandemic is just a bad memory and life has returned to normal, although much has changed, some of it for the better. New PC builds …
Thinking of buying a new PC and uncertain of exactly what hardware specs you need? In this article, I’ll do my best to steer you in the right direction. I last wrote about this topic back in 2016, but it was brought to light again …
Of all the usual PC peripherals, multifunction inkjet printers must surely be the weakest link. The thing that bugs me most about these printers is the ongoing cost of keeping them supplied with ink. With the exorbitant price of genuine replacement ink cartridges, the less …
An Uninterruptable Power Supply (UPS) is essentially a battery backup that continues powering your devices after a power outage. Plus, of course, a UPS will provide protection against damage caused by power surges. But I’m pretty sure most of you would already be aware of …
Reading While Relaxing Just Got Easier If you are like the millions of people that read e-books on a kindle, kindle fire, or just about any mobile device then this little trick might be the ticket to easy reading while relaxing in a lounge chair …
A guy called me because when he printed something up he was getting blank pages. He called with this problem before and originally, it turned out he was out of ink. But he only recently got a new ink cartridge and it shouldn’t be empty …
A recent Malwarebytes blog post queries just how safe your personal data is when you leave your computer in the hands of a repair shop. To be honest, it’s not something I’ve ever considered because I’ve always performed my own repairs, but it does bring …
