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Friday, March 30, 2007
How to improve your Wireless internet connection
On tonight's Tech Check, Chase and Sam talked about improving your WiFi internet connection. Here are the four tips we gave:

1. Have your router in a central location, elevated off the floor, and away from potential sources of interference, like metal filing cabinets, wireless phones, etc.

2. It is best to use wireless equipment manufactured by the same company - i.e., use a Belkin router with a Belkin wireless card, etc - this doesn't make a huge difference, and you shouldn't replace a piece of equipment that is working well - but it's a good tip if you are buying new wireless equipment.

3. If you are continually losing your wireless signal, or it fluctuates from low to high, then enter into your routers settings and change the channel. Don't know how to do this? Go to the router manufacturer's homepage to look for instructions, or simply google it.

4. Finally, consider using a wireless repeater, or a high gain antenna. More information about all of these steps can be found in the links below:

Microsoft: 10 tips for improving your wireless connection.

Wikihow: How to improve WiFi connection.

Cnet: How to improve router signal strength.

We hope this information improves your wireless computing experience!
posted by Chase Thompson @ 9:40 AM   0 comments

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Thursday, March 15, 2007
Laptop care tips - how to care for your laptop
Okay, so tonight's Fox 6 Tech Check was pretty silly, we know, but here are some tips that will keep you from turning your laptop into a very expensive paperweight.

On Tech Check, four laptop care tips were presented:

1. Don't use your laptop on a soft surface, like carpet or a bed or anything that could clog up the air intake, which would cause overheating and shut down of your system. Some laptops don't have air intake on the bottom of the chassis, so aren't as vulnerable to overheating as others, but it is still a good idea to keep your laptop on a hard surface to provide maximum air circulation.

2. Avoid temperature extremes - keep your laptop away from heat sources, and fire. ;)

3. Avoid eating around your laptop - the keyboard to a desktop computer can be replaced easily and cheaply if it gets liquid, or chips in it, but the laptop keyboard is much more difficult to replace, and quite expensive. In addition, a liquid spill into your laptop keyboard can mean trouble for more than just the keyboard!

4. Finally, carry your laptop in a properly padded carrying case. A backpack, or other non- padded enclosure doesn't work very well, and leaves your laptop vulnerable to damage.

One important laptop care fact that didn't make it into the final cut tonight is dust removal. Your laptop should have 2 or 3 air intake ports, either on the sides or bottom, where air is brought in via a fan and circulated around the CPU, hard drive, etc to provide cooling. Laptops are notorious for getting these vents clogged with dust, even in clean environments. It is important to follow your manufacturers' directions to clean the air intake on your laptop, but often all it takes is a can of compressed air sprayed at an angle to the intake to clean out the dust. If this is done improperly, it could lead to problems, so be sure and check your users guide for more info. Take a look at your laptop's air intakes now - if they look clean, you should be okay, but if they are dusty, it's time to take action before your computer overheats!!

Here are some other practical laptop tips from Lifehacker: CLICK HERE
posted by Chase Thompson @ 5:01 PM   0 comments

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Thursday, March 08, 2007
Y2K7 ... Better safe than sorry!
First off, this isn't a "run to the hills, the sky is falling!!!" alarm. But it is something you want to make sure that you guard against. What you need to do is simple, but it just might take some time.

Here's the video link if you want to see it again: CLICK HERE

Read the two articles linked below to educate yourself on what this is about:

CLICK HERE for the Wikipedia article that explains exactly what Y2k7 (or the Daylight Savings' bug) is about.

CLICK HERE for another informative article and get ready to protect your systems.

Some things to keep in mind :

If you are running XP service pack 1 or earlier you will not be able to fix your system via Windows automatic update. With XP SP1 you just need to update to SP2. Earlier operating systems like Windows 2000, Windows Me, and Windows 98 - you can use the handy Time Zone Editor to update your system Sunday - just be sure to re-update it when D.S.T. is over! CLICK HERE FOR The Time Zone Editor. By the way, if you are still using Windows ME - then you have our deepest condolences!!

CLICK HERE if you are a Mac user and are wondering if you need the patch or not.

You will also need to check any time sensitive programs you use on your computer to see if they need to be patched. (For example Outlook will need to be patched in addition to your Operating System)... The easiest way to do this is go to the manufacturer's website and search their support page for "Daylight Savings Time" or "Y2K7".

DON'T FORGET your handheld devices that are windows based (cell phones and pda's) will need to be updated CLICK HERE for info on that.

BOTTOM LINE... You just need to make sure your electronic devices are up to date!!!

If you are an IT person you really want to make sure this little bug is exterminated on your server and programs so it will not create big problems.
posted by The Knowles Family @ 6:54 PM   1 comments

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Thursday, March 01, 2007
Cell Phone Tricks and Tips...
It's no secret that cell phones aren't just for talking anymore. Here are some ways to get the most out of the cell phone you have!

This article was taken from PC World magazine online. CLICK HERE for the article.

You can txt msg Google (46645) to receive addresses, local listing infos, word definitions, measurement conversions, sports and weather. CLICK HERE.

You can use your SMS capability to receive Google Calendar alerts and save money by making international phone calls. CLICK HERE.

Take notes using your camera phone and take advantage of a free 411 service. CLICK HERE.

Let your friends know where you are with one msg and send voice mail via e-mail. CLICK HERE.
posted by The Knowles Family @ 7:06 PM   0 comments

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