When I first laid my eyes onto those curves, something in me hinted that this one is the one for me. It was like one of those moments when you feel just right in your heart. Hence without much of ado I decided to commit myself to that special one. So this is how without any inquiry and research, just because I felt good about it, I decided to go with my decision. And the first baby step towards a long journey was taken.
Initially in spite of my curiosity I didn’t take much of an interest in the new entry in my life. It was although we were in each other’s seeing but the time was not right. Call it a destiny or something else, I took admission to PG Diploma in Bio informatics and it was at this point when we two really started, in real sense, hanging out together. As the time went by we both got to know each other and slowly but steadily a relationship started building up and before I could understand anything I was in love with my laptop! Yes you read it right. No you are not dreaming. It’s true my first love and stable relationship was with HP pavilion dv5 series Entertainment Notebook PC. HP dv5-1002AU model to be more subtle. To brag about my notebook PC, here’s the configuration I brought it in:
Operating system: Genuine Windows Vista® Home Basic 64-bit
Processor: AMD Turion™ X2 Dual-Core Mobile Processor RM-70, 2.0 GHz
Internal drives: 250GB
Hard disk drive speed: 5400 rpm
Display size: 15.4″ WXGA High Definition Bright View Wide screen
Display resolution: 1280 x 800
Graphic subsystem name: ATI Radeon™ HD 3200 Graphics
Network interface: Integrated 10/100/1000 Gigabyte Ethernet LAN.
Network interface: Integrated 10/100/1000 Gigabyte Ethernet LAN.
Modem: High speed 56K modem.
Wireless technologies: 802.11b/g WLAN
Now everything was going great in our little love paradise when the first problem hit the shores of our love island. It happened this way. One day as usual I was busy downloading some stuff (guys know what it is……..) and suddenly out of nowhere my laptop shuts down. My heart is in my mouth counting my teeth. What in the name of sweet lord happened to it, not to mention fate of my download in the dark? My initial reaction was that I lost my laptop. After some time somehow I gathered all my wits and restarted the system. It rebooted normally. Heart back to its biological position but now brain in action. ‘What happened?’ was the first question that came to my mind. So I decided to do some soul searching and went onto Google (of course Google is the place where most of the people of my generation these days do all sorts of searching).
After a bit of searching, thanks to Larry Page’s algorithm running at the back-end, I triangulated on the real problem my laptop faced. In technical jargon it is known as ‘Overheating of laptop’. And this brings us to the discussion of one of the many problems we gonna discuss on this blog relating to laptop.
An overheating laptop can have far-reaching negative effects on the hardware. In many laptop configurations, two of the hottest components---the processor and the hard drive---sit next to one another. Heat can cause a cascading effect that shortens the life of both components. Additionally, overheating can permanently reduce the capacity of the lithium-ion batteries that power most laptops.
Here are some of the common reasons why laptops heat up:
1. Clogged laptop vents: Your laptop’s cooling system is clogged with dirt and dust.
2. Room Temperature: If your laptop's vent is clear of any obstruction, but you still feel your laptop heating up, the problem may be caused by the temperature of the room where you are working. Hot room temperature contributes to the heating up of your laptop.
3. Improper Placement of Laptop: You are using your laptop in a way that is preventing the cooling system from working properly.
4. Malfunctioning laptop internal fan
5. Over performing laptops: Multiple heavy processes running simultaneously can also lead to heating problem.
6. Processor heat sink's being dislodged (generally from dropping the computer)
How to prevent or solve these problems:
1. Clean laptop vents: An aerosol air duster (available from all good PC Stores) or a vacuum cleaner with a crevice tool.
2. Work in a Cooler Room:
3. Check Your Laptop's Internal Fan
4. Adjust Power Settings: Adjust the laptop's power settings to a level that won't overpower your laptop's capabilities. Laptops today have the option for various usage settings. Study the best settings for your laptop, specifically those that could lessen the heat generated by your laptop.
5. Laptop Cooling Pad: These cooling pads are available in any computer store. Although using them may not make a big difference but they can reduce your problem up to a certain level.
Consider adding a heat-monitoring program on your laptop. SpeedFan is probably the most popular: http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php.
As the saying goes- “A problem is a chance for you to do your best.” It was only when problem struck in our lovely relationship that I started taking more interest in my laptop. I hope this blog helps first time laptop users to come around their problems. This is the first post in the series of problem- discussion and solving. Next in the series is Vista episode. So coming soon…
