Posted on 03/22/2013 4:41:59 PM PDT by dennisw
Got this for $350 when taxes are included. Has Windows 8. I have not opened the box yet and will wait until Sunday to see if there isn't some thing better out there at Best Buy, Staples, Office Depot etc...
So what do freepers think of this model? The CPU comes in at above 2100 on CPU benchmark site and I will be adding 4gb memory soon to make 8gb. This cpu is Ivy Bridge which is the latest
Recently got a laptop with Windows 8. I loved XP, I love Windows 7 on my home PC but HATE Windows 8 on my new laptop. I'm not an iPad touch screen kind of guy. Heck, I just make phone calls on my flip cell phone.
I hear you, although i run FF 19 with about 80-110+ tabs open (i try to get back to them) , and OpenOffice with about 15 docs open for more editing, and Thunderbird with multiple email accounts, using a 2005 Sony PC with 2.8ghz 64bit dual core cpu, and 4gb ram and a flash drive using ReadyBoost under W/8 pro 64bit.
However, the Intel mobo will not allow more than 3.38 gb or ram to be available, which i did not know when i upgraded from XP32 bit for 29.00. So i usually have about 1gb of free ram (and a page file on a separate drive)
FF used to use a lot of cpu cycles (and after restarting it i have almost all my free ram back) until i install the NoScript extension. Sites like Amazon send it up.
For some reason, I’ve always loved the HP computers. I’ll say that I buy the extended warranty from them, and their service has been fantastic. I actually had a guy in my house Thursday replacing a screen where the backlight had failed.
On the other hand, I just bought an ASUS gaming laptop, it’s a huge behemoth, 9.5 pounds, and in 2 days the power brick went bad, and it took them 10 days to send me a new one, and I had to pay to send the broken one back. (I actually bought a spare from a 3rd-party vendor to get the computer working).
But it is a nice computer.
letushopeitcomeswitgudspelangramrckr
Hold down the Windows key and tap the Pause or Break key (and the FN key on some) for a shortcut to the system window which will tell you this. Or do the Windows key and "i" key and hit PCinfo .
If you want more shortcuts let me know (or see FR thread here
Note also that if you want a vast improvement on sound, for about 2.00 you can get an FM transmitter. I wonder why it is not USB powered though
Better to hear the word of God with.
I suspect a certain brand of socialist psychologist is behind this.
Install Classic Shell (http://sourceforge.net/projects/classicshell/) or something similar so you can function without fiddling with the miserable Metro interface. To get back to a normal-looking desktop from anywhere, just press the Windows key.
You will still need to learn to use the "charms" and navigate Metro. Here is a Win8 tutorial that provides a reasonable start: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_E1UxI5I_jo
If your touchpad is like mine, there are no separate left and right click buttons, just markings on the pad itself. The entire pad is touch sensitive. You can still left and right click, but the cursor tends to move unexpectedly while you do so unless you are very careful. If you are a tablet user, you will already know about tapping instead of left/right clicking. If not, the easiest thing is to use a mouse. I like the Microsoft 4000 and 5000 wireless mice.
If you can't locate your BIOS, search for information on UEFI. If you want to boot from CD, you will have to do more than change the boot device series, for example by disabling secure boot or fast boot.
Good luck.
I am a fan of using mouses with laptops. I will look into that classic shell. It might tie up a chunk of system resources
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_E1UxI5I_jo — explains a lot.
You want some rotating disk for large scale storage. You also want SSD so the operating system runs damn fast. Make sure the SSD is fully error checked before you use it. Fast multi-core machines are often wasted waiting on show disk resources. A good SSD solves that problem.
I have a desktop where the sound output has become erratic. I bought one of these $2 USB devices to bypass it. I leave it unplugged most of the time
http://www.ebay.com/itm/USB-2-0-to-3D-AUDIO-SOUND-CARD-ADAPTER-VIRTUAL-5-1-ch-High-Quality-New-EN24H-/120987665271?pt=US_Sound_Card_External&hash=item1c2b6d4377
“You almost certainly need to have matching ram chips.”
Crucial will tell you what memory of theirs to buy. The memory I have bought from them has always been compatible.
The guy who sells us all our computer says Toshiba is one of the better brands around, not like the Chinese ‘garbage’ he sells us.
Well, Matt, sounds like a good little system. You’re welcome to come on down south and have a few beers while I fix it up for ya. $:-)
80% of what you wrote went right over my head. I’m just glad I have a better machine now, 50gb lasted my 5 years, so 500 should last forever, or until the asteroid strikes.
Why do they make us to learn something new and forget what we have already learned each computer we get? I have been dealing with computers since the early 70’s so I suppose that if you just came into computers these pieces of crap are all you know and seem good. I hated XP and now I wish I could put it on my new puter. When you get older you hate each generation pulling the rug out form under you and laugh at you when you fall on your face. You really have no history of computers. So what is UI? Why is it necessary to change things every time a new kid comes into power?
Checked out a few Tosibas at BB a few weeks ago. Even there mid line “L” series computers has a very spongy keyboard, to much flex for my liking.
Actually, it is very simple to figure out.
And, Windows 8 is actually simpler to figure out than someone who starts out new with Windows 7 or XP.
The UI, or user interface, is simpler than what you found on Windows before, and, if you’re brand new to computers, and you started using Windows 8, you’d probably start wondering why people did things the old way with XP and Win7. It’s that much simpler and intuitive.
But, perhaps it is hard for old dogs to learn new tricks, but the tricks in Windows 8 are not that hard. IN fact, it’s a lot easier to use Windows 8 than learning how to use a new smartphone you’ve never used before, yet people don’t complain as much when they pick up a new smartphone.
BTW, I’ve been around computers since the late 1960s, starting out with the IBM mainframes, and I also worked with just about every mainframe and mini-computer that there was. I learned them all and learning new things wasn’t as much a chore as a challenge to want to learn new things.
I’m all for simplicity, and to me, the way Windows 8 does things, is the way it should’ve been from the beginning. The problem from the beginning is that, people didn’t have touch screens which required the new OS and the simplicity of the new “UI”.
It’s all a matter of tastes, and the willingness to put in a bit of time to learn some new things or new ways.
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