Are there any other tech heads out there like me who wish deployment of better connectivity technology would move a little faster?

A month or so ago I visited a friend in Florida. While I was there his ISP was installing fiber to the house for Internet connectivity. Of course it made my mouth water thinking of the reliability and speeds he would have.

That is just totally cool that they are converting their entire network for all consumers to fiber connectivity.

After installation he purchased a connectivity package which allowed for up to 20MB download speeds and I believe 6MB upload. Now if you are an avid tech head or a system administrator you know just what that means…..no more slow uploads due to those darn limiting QOS files.

I hope this practice becomes a standard for all high speed Internet ISP’s. I dont know about you but that would enable me to be twice as productive when uploading websites or large files.

Currently I can only dream of a connection like this, but maybe…just maybe one day I will have something comparable.

An associate of mine recently signed up for so called unlimited wireless broadband access with a major provider. They installed their hardware and configured it for broadband access.

After a day of using the service they noted that they kept losing connection once every 30 minutes so they decided to contact the service provider for assistance.

After three days of troubleshooting the connection problem the service provider concluded it may be a tower problem that was at the root of this issue. They suggested waiting a couple of days for the engineers to review the information and they would contact them back.

After waiting an additional day past the set time frame my associate decided to contact the provider back. Of course they apologized for the lack of communication. They reviewed the case file and this time concluded that the issue was not a problem, but rather by design.

They explained that their towers are set by default to log users off automatically regardless of activity. Well this causes problems for users who work through wireless broadband for hours on end. Especially if accessing information remotely.

I think they should rename their “unlimited Internet access” plan to something more precisely descriptive…..such as the unlimited Internet for a brief period of time plan.

Be sure if you are looking into wireless broadband that you ask as many questions as possible about connectivity and speeds before you decide on a particular plan or you will end up where my associate is………trying to get out of their two year contract.

The other day I was approached by a friend asking if I could upgrade some hardeware on one of his computers. Of course I told him it may be possible.

My friend stated he only needed it for internet and that it would not be running any applications other than Windows which was already installed and configured.

After accepting the hardware to go over there was something I had not seen in quite a while. It was a 75mhz Cyrix chip with 72 pin memory. Wow! I couldnt believe it. It’s like a paleontologist coming across a great find.

Well after the initial shock wore off I contacted my friend again and said I can do some upgrades but I will not make any guarantees as to how or even if it would do what they were wanting it to do and he agreed that was ok.

Well the upgrades worked for what they wanted it for. Just to realize…..what they spent on upgrades (in the range of $200) could have been put torwards a new computer with better functionality.

Get rid of that old hardware.

This week I purchased a new laptop from one of the major manufacturers. Since I was using previous components such as an air card to connect wirelessly to Internet from anywhere I assumed due to the configuration of my new laptop that I would have no difficulties in upgrading.

Once my new laptop was received I notice that the air card would not fit as the pcmicia slot was not a standard slot but rather a proprietary slot designed by the manufacturer.

I contacted the manufacturer and of course I was told I could buy a new air card to use with the laptop for $199.00. You can imagine my outrage. I stated that they should note on their purchase page that it was not a standard slot so future customers would not find themselves in this same situation.

Of course it is difficult to get anywhere with someone who does not speak english very well so I doubt they will make these changes.

I metioned to the support personel that there used to be a few companies who started to employ this tactic so customers had to buy their proprietary equipment. Those being Packard Bell, Acer and the original Hewlett Packard company. We all know what happened to their market share.

Bottom line when purchasing a new laptop computer you may want to chat or speak with their sales personnel before completing your sale.

The registry contains extended information, settings and various other values for the Windows 98, Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows ME, Windows XP Operating System. Within the registry you can control a majority of the operating system as well as fix issues with Windows. However we only recommend users extensively experienced with the Windows registry edit it manually.

Before going into the Registry and changing or deleting anything I always recommend that you backup the registry.
To back up the registry Go to Start/run and type in the command field “regedit” without the quotes. Once the interface is open select file and then export. You should select the save in location as the root of c:\. You will need to provide a name for the file. Once completed select save.

The computer registry consists of two files hidden in the Windows directory, system.dat and user.dat. User-specific system information is contained in the user.dat file and computer and hardware specific information in the system.dat file.

Microsoft Windows now includes a new feature known as system restore. This great new feature enables a user to backup and restore their important registry and system files from an earlier date. By default this feature automatically creates a backup of the system each day When working properly. If you wish to create a restore point using system restore follow the steps below.

Try downloading the bug doctor software to test your pc for problems.

Creating a restore point

1.Click Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, System Restore

2.Select the option to Create a restore point

3.Click next and follow the remainder steps.

Reversing to a previously created restore point

1.Click Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, System Restore

2.Select the Restore my computer to an earlier time option and click next

3.Select the day and the restore point you wish to restore and click next.

Using regedit to incorrectly change data can render you system non-functional and it can cease to boot up. Please do not attempt to manually edit registry information if you are not experienced in doing so.

Keep your pc running like new with the brand new version of PC Registry Cleaner Version 2.0

With everything you have to stay on top of to maintain computer performance and security here is one more. Anytime you update system software or third party software it can impact how your hardware performs.To maintain peak performance you as well needto update your hardware drivers. This is necessary due to changes made in either system or third party software.

Microsoft and other software vendors design their software to work in specific conditions. These conditions are set by the latest hardware available and how it relates to software functionality.When you update these types of software your hardware may not work optimally or you may experience a failure of the device or software.

Just as you update Windows or any other software you should maintain the latest version of your device drivers. Here is the easiest way to keep drivers updated. If you own an OEM computer such as a Dell, Gateway, HP, Compaq or Toshiba you should visit their support pages to obtain the latest version of software and drivers for the devices installed on your computer. These updates will be listed by published date. Be sure to follow any specific installation
instructions provided by the manufacturer.

If you do not own an OEM machine or if it was built by your local computer store then review your hardware documentation. Your receipt should list the installed components. Once you have the list of devices you can search each manufacturers website for the drivers and software individually. Be sure to follow any recommendations or directions
provided by any hardware or software manufacturer when updating device drivers.

Updates to device drivers are not published as frequently as other software updates so you should check periodically for updates. Manufacturers usually publish driver updates every few months as a general schedule.

Having worked in support for sometime I am amazed at the number of old 486 an first generation Pentium class computers still being used. Most people simply upgrade to new hardware. It is beyond me why people still use this old obsolete hardware.

Considering all of this I have compiled a list of the top ten ways this old hardware can be used.

10. Stack the cpus up to be used as a coffee table.

9. The old hardware is wonderfully suitable for taking space in your garage.

8. Donate the old hardware to a museum.

7. This hardware is great for occupying your local computer shops time by asking how it can be upgraded.

6. The CPU’s are great for holding projects down on a work bench.

5. Use a baseball bat on the old hardware to take out your frustrations with your new computer.

4. If you have a dog that diggs holes they are great as filler when covering the holes.

3. They are great conversation pieces for discussing the old days of computer hardware.

2. Several of them together can make a cool fort for the kids in their room.

Finally the last one, drum roll please!

1. Use your old 486 or Pentium class as a replacement boat anchor.

Just remember this old hardware is not upgradeable to current software standards. Don’t trouble yourself with figuring out how you can maintain these older components.