If your PC is sluggish, the screen freezes more, the hard disk makes strange noises and/or you reboot frequently due to error messages then computer diagnostics are essential to sort out the trouble.

A complicated machine is bound to have trouble in delivering every time, smoothly. Apart from external factors sometimes, internal factors also might result in the malfunctioning or crashing of a computer. To determine the nature of the problem there are computer diagnostic tools. Though the word diagnosis means identifying and analyzing the problem, computer diagnostic tools go all the way to set things right after preliminary diagnosis. A comprehensive computer diagnostic tool would diagnose dead PCs, motherboard, power supply, memory, hard drive and the central processing unit. Data recovery diagnosis is a part of this process too.

Computer diagnostic tools flood the markets in both software and hardware form. A lot of computer diagnostic software is available for free and can be used by an end user without any technical help. The assistance of technicians may be sought to set problems like stuck keys on the keyboard, mouse related problems, rolling pictures, memory loss and loss of data with the help of computer diagnostic software.

Most of the computer diagnostic programs are easy to run and come with useful instructions that can be performed by PC users themselves, unless there is a serious problem concerning the hard disk or the CPU. Computer diagnostic programs should be run periodically by end users even when there is no obvious problem to check for troubles that might be lurking in the system. It is advisable to leave some space in the drives to accommodate the computer diagnostic software. Computer diagnostic programs would run a set of tests either individually or simultaneously to identify the problem and prepare a report. This report may be saved for future reference. After this, the computer diagnostic program would proceed to trouble shoot.

Computer diagnostic software can retrieve lost data in minutes. However, complete testing of a PC by using a computer diagnostic program may take as long as 100 hrs. The costs of computer diagnostic software is higher than the cost of computer data recovery software, as the later does a myriad of functions that includes identifying, analyzing and trouble shooting that also includes data recovery.

Windows mode computer diagnostic software is compatible with 2000, 2000 Pro, XP and 2003. DOS mode computer diagnostic programs are compatible with IBM XT, PC, AT and Pentium, Pentium Pro, Pentium I, II, III, and Pentium IV to name a few.

The CPU is the part of a computer that controls the operation of the computer. All arithmetic and logical operations, decoding of instructions and the execution of instructions are performed by the CPU. Early computers used several chips to handle the task. Some functions are still handled by support chips, which are often referred to collectively as a chip set.

Get information about clock speed and FSB Speed of Intel Pentium series processors.

Intel Pentium

Clock Speed: 60-166 MHz

FSB Speed: 33-66 MHz

L1 Cache: 16 KB

Introduction: 1993

Transistors: 3.3 Million

Package: PGA

Socket: Socket 7

Intel Pentium Pro

Clock Speed: 150-200 MHz

FSB Speed: 50-66 MHz

L1 Cache: 256 KB

L2 Cache: 256 KB – 1 MB

Introduction: 1995

Transistors: 5.5 Million

Package: PGA

Socket: Socket 8

Intel Pentium-MMX

Clock Speed: 133-166 MHz

FSB Speed: 66 MHz

L1 Cache: 32 KB

Introduction: 1996

Transistors: 4.5 Million

Package: PGA

Socket: Socket 7

Intel Pentium II

Clock Speed: 233-450 MHz

FSB Speed: 66-100 MHz

L1 Cache: 32 KB

L2 Cache: 512 KB

Introduction: 1997

Transistors: 7.5 Million

Package: SEC

Socket: Slot 1

Intel Pentium Xeon

Clock Speed: 400 MHz-3.06 GHz

FSB Speed: 100-533MHz

L1 Cache: 8-32 KB

L2 Cache: 256 KB-2 MB

L3 Cache: 0-1 MB

Introduction: 1998

Transistors: 7.5 – 140 Million

Package: SEC and PGA

Socket: Slot 2 , Socket 603 and Socket 604

Pentium Celeron

Clock Speed: 850 MHz-2.4 GHz

FSB Speed: 66-400 MHz

L1 Cache: 8-32 KB

L2 Cache: 256-512 KB

Introduction: 1998

Transistors: 7.5 – 44 Million

Package: SEC and PGA

Socket: Slot 1, Socket 370 and Socket 478

Pentium III

Clock Speed: 450MHz – 1.33GHz

FSB Speed: 100-133MHz

L1 Cache: 32KB

L2 Cache: 256-512 KB

Introduction: 1999

Transistors: 9.5 – 28 Million

Package: SEC and PGA

Socket: Slot 1 and Socket 370

Pentium 4

Clock Speed: 1.3-3.06GHz

FSB Speed: 400-800MHz

L1 Cache: 8 KB

L2 Cache: 256 – 512 MB

Introduction: 2000

Transistors:

Package: PGA

Socket: Socket 423 and Socket 478

HP G71t review – Pros

This is a short review of the HP G71t. When I first saw this laptop, I was not very impressed. I was mostly impressed by its pleasant design. A high-gloss imprint finish in black and silver will always draw attention. However, at first glance, its performances seemed minor. After testing it, I realized how wrong I was. It is true that this laptop is not especially powerful or fast. However, it is very balanced. Mobility and power are both subtly balanced. It is powered by an Intel Pentium T4300 working at 2.1 GHz and having 1 MB of L2 cache. FSB is 800 MHz. We will find 2 GB of DDR2 system memory (2 DIMM) and that the hard drive has 250 GB of storage capacity.

The graphics are rendered by an Intel 4500M Media Accelerator. When it comes to the screen, you will be pleasantly surprised. In this review we must tell you all the facts so let’s skip to the chase. It has a 17.3-inch HD and High Definition HP LED widescreen display. Of course, BrightView is enabled. The maximum resolution it can support is 1600×900, which is quite enough. The image is amazingly clear, crisp, and bright. The display is definitely a success! The primary optical drive accommodates a LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support. What’s original about this model is that you can personalize it and choose to add a microphone or a microphone and a webcam. It also has a Wireless-G Card.

HP G71t review – Cons

Well, to start, it is not as powerful as I would have expected. The processor is not the fastest in its category and the RAM is DDR2. Graphics card is modest. However, since we must present everything in this HP G71t review, we must say that the price is amazing. Just $569.99! This explains a lot. There are also a few things missing.

HP G71t review – Rating

This laptop is very good if you think of its low price. And it even has a few things other more expensive laptops don’t: personalization and Wireless. If you think of its price you will realize that this is a very good deal. I will give it a rating of 3 out of 5 stars. To conclude this review, if you are on a budget, this laptop is perfect for you!

(Laptop details & Operating system)

The Sony Vaio VGN-NW20EF/S is a very a stylish, light weight laptop, which provides, reliability, productivity & is very affordable. For the cost this laptop will work for both cooperate and home users superbly. It boasts to host the latest Windows 7 which comes with a number of great improvements leaps away from vista and one the father for XP

(H.D.D & CD/DVD Drive)

The storage capacity is excellent, you have a massive 320GB of hard drive space which give you plenty of room for storing movies, music, pictures document and all your applications. It has a DVD+-RW/+-R DL/RAM DVD to play all your favourite cd’s dvd’s. You can also Burn your important data files on blank CDs and DVDs using the optical drive Verdict.

(VGA connector & Webcam)

It has a vga connector so you can plug an external monitor, LCD TV or Plasma directly to your laptop for the bigger picture on things, something i enjoy doing when i choose to watch a film through my laptop at home.

The webcam fixed on the front screen panel. is ideal for video conferencing, or just talking to family and friends on MSN messenger or any other platform of web communication of your choice.The Keyboard on the Sony Vaio VGN-NW20EF/S is well designed for ease of use and comfort with large keys. palm rest and a touch pad which is very highly responsive.

(Wifi & Networking port)

It has Wi-Fi technology which connects you to any Wi-Fi enabled network so that you can connect anywhere which has a wi-fi hotspot so you can access the internet on the move. There are 3 USB ports and an Ethernet port for networking.

(Processor & Screen size)

The Sony Vaio VGN-NW20EF/S has an Intel Pentium T4300 processor, and has dual Core technology one of the best on the market now!. It has 3GB DDR2 RAM and 2.16GHz Dual Core T4300, this allows you to run multiple applications with less stress on the laptop for a smoother experience. Also enjoy superb quality videos and pictures on the 15.6 inches X-Black Wide screen LCD display for vibrant colours and sharp image resolution.There is also Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500M which allows movie watching and playing 3D games without any problems.

Sony comes with an energy saving illumination technology which does not let the screen dry access draw on battery life. With all this in mind im sure you will be concerned with the battery life… This ill be discussing next

(Battery life)

Despite having a high quality screen, a fully charged Sony Vaio VGN can provide 4 hours of battery life which is understandable if you take into account the overall specifications of this superb machine.

(Dimensions & Weight)

It has a slim dimension of H29 x W370 x D249mm, and has a robust brushed aluminum casing, Laptops for me should mean light weight, small and can fit neatly in a pouch or laptop bag so carrying it around should be made easy. Some laptops in my opinion are not laptops and i would rather consider them desktops because they are just too big and bulky. But sony Vaio VGN-NW20EF/S notebooks are designed to be carried around. Sony Vaio VGN-NW20EF/S has a robust stylish silver chassis which only weighs 2.7kg. If your job requires a lot of traveling then this is the one for you.

(Over All)

Sony Vaio VGN-NW20EF/S is a stylish sleek and very practical laptop. The specifications and battery life warrants it a high demanded piece of equipment to have. If quality but at an affordable price tag for the specifications is what you want then go for the Sony Vaio VGN-NW20EF/S without a doubts.

Audio is hard on your computer taxing its resources. Although this is not as big a problem as it was when we were recording on a Pentium 400 it still makes sense to practice good habits when it comes to your computer hard drive. Here are some tips to speed your audio up.

Separate Audio Hard Drive: If you can afford it a drive reserved just for audio will make things much easier on you. Only audio files are to be stored on this second drive.

Keep Your Drives Clean: Keep the junk off of your hard drive. Any excess programs will slow your system resources that could be used for things like plug ins and more tracks. Check your task bar and see what programs are running in the background such as your anti-virus or messenger service.

Minimize: Turn off as many things as you can although make sure you are not connected to the Internet when disabling your anti-virus.

Back Up: Always back your computer up on a regular basis. Make this a habit like clockwork or else your hard drive will crash at the worst time possible. Don’t ask me how I know this.

Defrag: Defragging your computer once a week will speed everything up. Your files tend to get jumbled up when stored on your hard drive and defragging tends to sort things out for you.

Format: I like to format my hard drives a least once a year although I probably do so a couple times a year. Things slow down as time goes by and formatting is on e of the best speed recovers I have found. A new clean drive always seems to speed up a lot.

Number Of Plugins: Plugins are one of the most taxing things you can do to your computer. When you are recording always use as few as possible turning off anything that is not vital. Add them back in during playback if you need them.

Number Of Tracks: Likewise watch the number of tracks you are using. The more tracks you use the harder your computer has to work. Only use as many as you have to have. You probably do not need 17 back up harmony parts.

If you follow these tips and use your head you will be recording audio better than you ever have before.

Forget “Thinkpad”: Lenova is now offering an “Ideapad”! The Lenovo Ideapad G550 2958-9PU is an affordable, yet versatile notebook that delivers great performance for general tasks. Whether you want to chat with friends, surf the internet, work, or do homework, you can do so on this notebook.

One neat feature is the facial recognition technology. Nobody can steal your PC if the log-on requires facial recognition! This technology works with the integrated webcam. The detection feature is designed to recognize the difference between the owner and a picture of the owner. Thus, nobody will be able to use a photo of you in order to gain access.

Here are some more details about this Lenovo Ideapad G550 2958-9PU:

· Dual Core processor (Intel Pentium T4500)
· 15.6″ HD LED-backlight widescreen display
· 250 B SATA hard drive
· Stereo speakers and built-in webcam
· 4 GB DDR3 memory
· 6-cell battery – up to 4.5 hours of life
· Integrated Ethernet 802.11b/g
· Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500M
· DVD player/writer

This notebook has a one-key rescue system. All you have to do is touch one button to restore and recover data. It can also recover important system files should the system ever become corrupted with a virus. With features such as these, you can trust that your investment will be protected!

The design is pretty impressive. The system has a sleek black finish, numeric keypad, and a spacious keyboard and touchpad. The touchpad is fairly large and smooth. The keyboard design provides a tactile feel, which means you can type comfortably. You won’t have to worry about the keys feeling “greasy”.

You can really immerse yourself in games and movies. This Lenovo Ideapad G550 2958-9PU system offers 3D sound enhancement and a high-definition LED display. The audio and video quality are impressive. If you want to play games, you won’t have to worry about lagging thanks to the 4500M Media Accelerator.

Overall, this is a great laptop that offers a lot for its money. It’s light, yet sturdy. You won’t have to worry about it overheating, even when you stream multimedia. If you want to travel with it, it has everything needed for a wireless connection. You can trust that the Lenovo Ideapad G550 2958-9PU will meet all of your daily needs.

Recently my daughter’s old Pentium III Compaq laptop completely died. This happened near Christmas so her gift list was an easy one. The problem was that I did not want to spend a lot of money. The other problem was that I hated her having a computer.

I hated it because I constantly had to work on it. She used the computer for homework, instant messaging, and browsing. Every couple of months, I found myself removing spyware and other junk from the computer. Occasionally it was easier just to re-build the computer by re-installing ALL the software, including the operating system. I track her internet usage through my router so I know that she has not been to “questionable” sites but these things continue to work their way into her computer.

I decided to consider something that I had never before considered. LINUX! I picked up another Pentium III (this one was a bit more powerful than her old laptop) desktop for under $100.00. I added some old memory that I had sitting on a shelf. I downloaded SUSE Linux and went to work.

I was pleasantly surprised at how easy the installation was! There was very little interaction and my choices were very simple. In about 30 minutes, I had a working computer connected to the internet.

There are a few things with which I was very pleased. It was running very well with the old hardware. If I had used Windows XP I would have been forced to get a newer computer and spend hundreds of dollars. The operating system came with a browser (Firefox) and complete office software (OpenOffice – which is compatible with Microsoft Office products). There was also a very nice instant messaging tool that allows her to use many different IM clients in one piece of software. It had CD ripping and burning software as well as several audio programs. On top of that, the operating system and all the software were FREE!

Now I know most of the people reading this are thinking, “Ok, we have another anti Microsoft guy here”. That is absolutely not true. I am a Windows and web developer by trade and use Microsoft products exclusively (except for using Firefox as a browser when testing). I am a huge believer in the products that Microsoft produces simply because they work and in most cases work VERY well together.

The best thing about this change of operating system is that my daughter’s computer is now free of spyware and is not targeted by most viruses. The fact is that most viruses and spyware target Microsoft Windows only. Now I can rest easy knowing that I won’t be rebuilding a computer every few months.

Amd Athlon Processors History began with the original Athlon Classic, which is the first seventh-generation x86 processor and since it is the first, it remained to be the first performance lead over Intel for a couple of years.

It showed a lot of promise as it showed superior performance compared to the Pentium 3 which was the champion at that time. The second generation Athlon called The Thunderbird came along in year 2000. It had a speed ranging from 600 to 1400 MHz. AMD replaced the 512 KiB external reduced speed cache used by the Athlon Classic with 256 KiB of on-chip, full speed exclusive cache. The Thunderbird at this time, won over rival Pentium 3 but AMD did not stop there. AMD released The Palomino or the Athlon XP. XP meaning “Extreme Performance”. Then AMD released The Thunderbird which is at 1.8 GHz. Then the fifth generation Athlon came along, Barton core processors, running at the same speed as the Thoroughbred predecessors.

Finally, the Mobile Athlon XP was introduced. It has lower power consumption, and lower heat production which is basically used for the notebook. AMD is not stopping and is still continuing to improve its processors as to beat it’s rival Intel. See cpu-lab.com for more details on the AMD Processor.

AMD ex CEO Jerry Sanders vision was to create a “virtual gorilla” that would equip AMD to compete with Intel. A couple of years later, AMD released Athlon K7 processor. AMD got lots of benefits working with Motorola as AMD was able to refine copper interconnect manufacturing to the production stage one year earlier than Intel.

So how do you make sense of all the CPUs out there? Well, let’s start by splitting them into four broad categories:

Obsolete Processors Budget Processors Mid-Range Processors High-End Processors
Obsolete Processors

These would refer to those processors which were around 5 or more years ago. They will typically come with older refurnished or budget computer systems. Be very careful if you are purchasing such CPUs as your system’s speed will definitely slow to a crawl. Worse still, some software on the market today simply cannot be run using older processors.

The Windows XP operating system, for example, needs the newer crops of CPUs to function. Overall, I’d only recommend buying these processors if you want to do extremely simple tasks with your PC – like word processing or general web browsing. Some examples of processors in this category would be: the older AMD Athlon CPUs and Intel Celeron CPUs, AMD Duron CPUs, and Intel Pentium III CPUs.

Budget Processors

Strapped for cash? Consider purchasing CPUs in this category – which include yesterday’s top-of-the-line CPUs which have been discontinued or the newer budget CPUs. While you may not get extremely good performance, these CPUs will give you the best bang for your buck.

While you’re not going to get super-duper performance for more CPU intensive activities like gaming and video editing, the speed provided by these CPUs will be more than enough for general applications. Under this category, you’d be looking at processors like the AMD Athlon XP, AMD Sempron, Intel Celeron (2.4 GHz and higher), as well as the Intel Pentium 4 (2.6 GHz and lower).

Mid-Range Processors

The CPUs in this category would have been king of the hill just 6 months ago. Due to the entry of newer, faster CPUs, processors will drop in price and become more affordable. These processors will still scream in performance and are very popular among current PC owners.

Whenever I upgrade my computer, I always go for CPUs in this category. To sum up: thes CPUs here give slightly outdated but extremely powerful performance. Examples include the AMD Athlon XP (2800+ to 3500+) and the Intel Pentium 4 (2.8GHz and higher) CPUs.

High-End Processors

Want drop-dead performance? The CPUs in this category will scream even if you run the most demanding gaming or video editing applications in the market today. Of course, be prepared to fork out serious cash. If you absolutely want no less than the best, be an early adopter and go for one of these CPUs.

Personally, I tend to avoid buying top-of-the-line CPUs for two reasons – the high prices and stability. These CPUs are not only expensive, they are also unproven – I’ve heard cases of extremely new CPUs crashing or overheating. CPUs like the AMD Athlon 64 FX and the Intel Pentium 4 Extreme Edition fall into this category.

Conclusion

In summary, always consider your computing needs when selecting a CPU. If you want to do simple word processing or general computer tasks, go for the budget or low end processors. If you are more into gaming or do CPU intensive work like video editing, go for a mid-range or high-end processor.

So your computer is dying on you every now and then? Shutting off or restarting without any prior notice? You are losing valuable data? Well, all these indicate that your computer is getting old. You have probably abused it way too much. Loaded in a number of programs and filled it up with downloaded files and now there is hardly any hard drive space for the computer to function! This happens to most of us sometime or the other. What seemed like a huge memory at one point of time 120 GB for example, now hardly matters anymore! Ah if only I could delete all those MP3 files! But alas! That’s not possible. So when your computer outnumbers its days, when your requirement exceeds what your computer can offer you, what do you do? Do you just throw it away?

Getting a good deal out of your old computer may get tricky! With technology advancing at a rapid speed, no body wants to be stuck with an old computer and not reap the benefits of the developments. Most recent software are incompatible with older operating systems and it becomes necessary to get a new computer. When we say a good ‘deal’ for your computer, remember it does not always mean money! A good deal can also refer to putting your computer to good use although it may apparently appear to be useless and you are almost ready to sell it off as junk. Well selling off your computer as junk or advertising it for sale can be some of the traditional ways of ‘dealing’ with an old computer. However here are approaches that you may consider.

Give it to the kids. Your kids must already be in need of computers. Give your old computer to the kids. They can play their educational CDs, play some games, write their homework and reports and store songs. They will also have a good thing to show off to their friends in the next sleepover!

Give it to the less fortunate. Many people can’t afford a new computer. Get in touch with your local communities and donate your computer to those who may need it. They can learn computing skills, understand the basics of a computer and can then graduate to a better machine. There is no more satisfaction than giving back to the society. You can consider giving to the old-age homes as well. Introducing computer to the elderly people has proven to be a great trick in encouraging them to stay involved more.

Use it as storage. You can consider using your old computer as storage. Store receipts, old files, documents, spreadsheets in your old computer. You can also use it as a back up of your important documents and folders. As long as you do not want to run multiple programs on your old computer, it should work fine as storage. If you take your old computer out of the internet networking then it is safe from the hackers as well.