Computer Help?

[Lillium]

I wasn't sure where to post this, but like...

I have a mic that's built into my laptop, but ever since I upgraded to Windows 7, it doesn't work.  How do I fix this?

 :face_palm I wish I was more technologically savvy.

[Peter B.]

Maybe this will help (it didn't help the guy who asked, though  ):

http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/GettingReadyforWindows7/thread/562f2350-44d2-4495-981d-c416d0337bd7

[Lillium]

Yeah, it didn't work for me either.  It seems to be a bug.

x] I installed my rockband mic on my cocmputer.  It works for like sound reording and voice recognition, but it doesn't seem to work for my messengers.  I'm thinking of just buying a new one, they can't be too expensive, right?

[Lillium]

Second computer related question:

My battery no longer charges any more on my laptop.  Well, on very seldom occasions, it does.  Right now, it's at 6% strength.  The computer recognizes the battery and the charger, because I can plug it in and it shows that it's, "6% available )Plugged in but not charging)." Um, what? I think I may need a new battery, but when I take out the battery, I notice that sometimes one of the copper prongs is askew.  So, I realign it then put the battery back in, but that fails to help.  I fear that if I get a new one, I'll encounter the same problem.  Before I waste some money, I'd like to know if it may be some other problem I'm unaware of.

This sounds silly, but does a charger need a driver? If so, that may explain my problem cause I recently upgraded it.

Thanks!

~Lil

[Madbunny]

Yeah, it didn't work for me either.  It seems to be a bug.

x] I installed my rockband mic on my cocmputer.  It works for like sound reording and voice recognition, but it doesn't seem to work for my messengers.  I'm thinking of just buying a new one, they can't be too expensive, right?

Get a cheap USB mic, or get a gaming headset that has a mic attached.

Prices start about 6.00 bucks.

Second computer related question:

My battery no longer charges any more on my laptop.

There are two main possibilities.

First, it's the battery.
Second, it's the computer.

Read and follow this guide.  (It looks more complex than it actually is.)
http://www.rm.com/Support/TechnicalArticle.asp?cref=TEC401640

 

[JNTB]

Sometimes you have to go into the Windows Control Panel and tell Windows which sound input source to use. You might have a simple problem of a muted input line. Anything plugged into the analog jack should work.

[Whitney]

I think I may need a new battery, but when I take out the battery, I notice that sometimes one of the copper prongs is askew.  So, I realign it then put the battery back in, but that fails to help. 

Is the messed up prong on the battery or on the computer?  If it is on the battery get a new battery.  If it is on the computer, consider that it is time to get a new computer or pay someone to fix it (which might not be cost effective).

[Lillium]

I think I may need a new battery, but when I take out the battery, I notice that sometimes one of the copper prongs is askew.  So, I realign it then put the battery back in, but that fails to help.

Is the messed up prong on the battery or on the computer?  If it is on the battery get a new battery.  If it is on the computer, consider that it is time to get a new computer or pay someone to fix it (which might not be cost effective).

One of the two plastic prongs on the computer fell off because of my sister.  One of the prongs on the battery was bent, and the plastic coating fell off of one of them too.  SO yeah, may be both.

[jetson]

Go get a new MacBook for 999 and be a happy camper like me!  If it doesn't have to be a laptop, the new Mac mini is only 699, and you supply the mouse, keyboard, and monitor.  Cheap, small, works very well, and will make you one of the elitist Mac users that you are subconsciously jealous of...

[Madbunny]

Go get a new MacBook for 999 and be a happy camper like me!  If it doesn't have to be a laptop, the new Mac mini is only 699, and you supply the mouse, keyboard, and monitor.  Cheap, small, works very well, and will make you one of the elitist Mac users that you are subconsciously jealous of...

Or a netbook for 275, or an EEE pc for 219.

If all you do is internet, and or writing stuff, like word documents they work just fine.  I have one of each of these at work that I use for meetings (the netbook) and set the little pc up for our secretary.  Since it's so small (the size of a paperback book) it was pretty easy.

Though, the Mac stuff does have a few advantages, power, elitism, and bragging rights among them.

[JNTB]

If all you do is internet, and or writing stuff, like word documents ...

... use any computer and run Ubuntu or Xubuntu for free. I will probably do this with my old Dell laptop soon.

[HAL]

... use any computer and run Ubuntu or Xubuntu for free. I will probably do this with my old Dell laptop soon.

I agree with this. I have used Ubuntu for 3 years on one PC, and although it used to be a little flaky at times, the latest release hasn't done anything weird at all. That is, I haven't had to go to the Ubuntu support forum and beg for help from an expert for some arcane command-line solution in a long time.

I'm using it right now as a matter of fact.

[Madbunny]

I Like their logo..

Yeah, that would be a reasonable solution too.  Plus, being an 'off' OS like the mac they don't have the same virus issues PC does.

[pattylt]

I have an old Toshiba laptop that I run Ubuntu on.  A friend was getting a new laptop and literally threw this one away.  He thought the harddrive was trash and I asked if I could have it instead.  He was fine with that so I wiped out XP, installed the distro, purchased a wireless card so I could hook to my wireless at home and Starbucks and am still using it to this day.  The battery won't hold a charge for more than 5 minutes so it isn't very portable but I don't want to spend any more money on it either.  The wireless card can be used in the future, the battery not so much.

So, for the price of a wireless card, I have a completely functional, virus free and quite zippy for the webz, computer.  My daughter loves it so much she has had it at her place for months now. 

[JNTB]

A friend was getting a new laptop and literally threw this one away. 

I always send my old one back to Dell for recycling.

So, for the price of a wireless card, I have a completely functional, virus free and quite zippy for the webz, computer.  My daughter loves it so much she has had it at her place for months now. 

I have trained my daughter to use cloud services like Google Docs and Windows OfficeWeb to create and store documents. She doesn't need anything fancy. So when her HP laptop finally needs to be reloaded (OS decay), I may just load up Ubuntu. The HP install disks come with a truckload of crap that I have to go in and delete. Not so with Ubuntu -- it's crap-free.

[Madbunny]

I have an old Toshiba laptop that I run Ubuntu on.  A friend was getting a new laptop and literally threw this one away.  He thought the harddrive was trash and I asked if I could have it instead.  He was fine with that so I wiped out XP, installed the distro, purchased a wireless card so I could hook to my wireless at home and Starbucks and am still using it to this day.  The battery won't hold a charge for more than 5 minutes so it isn't very portable but I don't want to spend any more money on it either.  The wireless card can be used in the future, the battery not so much.

So, for the price of a wireless card, I have a completely functional, virus free and quite zippy for the webz, computer.  My daughter loves it so much she has had it at her place for months now. 

I've been thinking about doing something like this in my classroom.  I have a huge pile of parts left over from years of student projects, upgrades and so forth. Surely enough to build five or six working computers. 

ed my daughter to use cloud services like Google Docs and Windows OfficeWeb to create and store documents. She doesn't need anything fancy. So when her HP laptop finally needs to be reloaded (OS decay), I may just load up Ubuntu. The HP install disks come with a truckload of crap that I have to go in and delete. Not so with Ubuntu -- it's crap-free.

What's your opinion on how well it works for people who've never used it and are unfamiliar with computers in general?

[JNTB]

ed my daughter to use cloud services like Google Docs and Windows OfficeWeb to create and store documents. She doesn't need anything fancy. So when her HP laptop finally needs to be reloaded (OS decay), I may just load up Ubuntu. The HP install disks come with a truckload of crap that I have to go in and delete. Not so with Ubuntu -- it's crap-free.

What's your opinion on how well it works for people who've never used it and are unfamiliar with computers in general?

Cloud services or Ubuntu?

I have only made passing use of Ubuntu, but obviously if you are just going to cruise the web and send email or even chat, you really don't  need much. Only if you require a program that just won't run on Ubuntu would you need to install a dual boot with Windows.

As far as cloud services, my daughter uses 3-4 computers to type up stories that she submits to a fan fiction website. Since I didn't want to hear her get all upset when something was missing or deleted, and since I didn't want to chase her around with multiple backup strategies, she chose to write her fan fiction stories using Google Docs. She required very little training because she already knew how to use a computer and a toolbar to format things. If you are learning to use a computer for the first time, Google Docs makes it easy because the options are limited and you don't have to go through all sorts of hoops to get something simple done. It's easy to figure out where to store things. You'd have to throw a newbie into it to get their opinion, of course.

[Madbunny]

A big problem I have with my curriculum now is that it's highly reliant on MS office.  All the books use it for the lessons.  I don't particularly want to wind up teaching a program that only some of my students can afford, yet I still want to teach them something that will be compatible with their real world experience once they leave school. too.

Xubuntu looks like a decent alternative that I can use to teach how to install and configure a computer.. maybe.  I'll need to try it a couple times and see what crops up, remembering that my high school population is only semi-literate to begin with.

[pattylt]

Install Open Office.  It operates almost identically to MS Office, it is free and you can save the files as .doc files so they are completely compatible.

Another thing I love about Ubuntu.  Open office is installed with the distro and my daughter had no problems learning to use the software it comes with.  If you have to install hardware or printers it is a different story but the OS itself and the software written for it are quite easy to learn.  All free!

[JNTB]

Xubuntu is for older, less-capable computers. Ubuntu will probably run on anything with 512MB RAM -- not sure of the requirements.

OpenOffice Write is very similar to Word 2003, but after that Word started using "ribbons" which look different but still function as toolbars. The Calc program is like Excel but a bit more different when it comes to style of entry and other features, like charting. Still, if they can learn one, they can learn the other. I believe there is documentation online that you can use for lessons.

If your computers access the net freely, then you should try Office.Live.com which is Microsoft's answer to Google Docs. They are both stunted versions of office programs, but quite usable for learning the basics. I just tried Office on the web on both Ubuntu and Mac and it works fine on both.

[Whitney]

EEE pc for 219.

If all you do is internet, and or writing stuff, like word documents they work just fine. 

I have one (I'ts over a year old now), it fits in my purse and can run photoshop elements, sketchup, and inkscape without issue.  Downside is that you have to buy an external cd drive if you have any programs to install from a disk...but I haven't had to buy one yet and if it crashes it would make more sense just to buy a whole new netbook rather than having to buy an external drive just to see if re-installing windows fixes the problem.

I'm going to see if I can use it to remote access my desktop and run autocad remotely...would be awesome if that works.

[Lillium]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/NewProduct.aspx?Item=N82E16834115787

I'm thinking of buying the above computer in September.

[Amass]

Hi Lillium, did you ever get to buying that acer?  I have been thinking of buying an acer myself, but am not sure how good the brand is.