Matt's Tech Blog

What is a firmware? Why do we need to constantly update our firmware? What does a firmware have to do with a DVD Burner? Do these questions sound familiar to you? Are you also curious when it comes to firmware DVD Burner updating? Well, look no more because it will all be addressed in a jiffy! The first thing you need to know is that all CD/ DVD Burners and Re-Writers come with a firmware. A firmware is a set of coded instructions that is stored permanently on a chip within the optical drive that internally controls the electronic device. This firmware can easily be updated by the user by downloads from the World Wide Web.

But this still leads us back to one of the questions, why do we need to update our firmware? Undoubtedly, the more obvious advantages include the fact the latest firmware has the ability to fix many of the bugs and viruses that came with the DVD Burner when it was purchased and has the capability of providing your DVD Burner with extra features such as the ability to burn a Dual Layer Media! But what is a Dual Layer Media (also referred to as the DL DVD+R Media)? It is the newest technology of optical discs with a remarkable 8.5Giga Bytes of storage capacity! This can allow up to 16 hours of VHS quality video, 4 hours of DVD quality video and over 120 hours of MP3 audio! There are also firmware available that enables the computer user to change the Book Type and Bit Setting of their DVD media! In essence, this allows for more compatibility with compact discs that have different Book Types that the Book Type Value of the burner.

Fundamentally, Firmware DVD Burner updating is imminent due to the fact that new Media is constantly being placed onto the market for consumers which have higher burn speeds with different Media ID’s. In order for one’s DVD Burner to be able to use these new Media, new and updated firmware has to be released that has greater compatibility with more Media types. Hence this is the reason why updates are important. It must be noted however that usually when a new DVD Burner is introduced onto the market for sale, it is likely that it will be compatible with media already available to the public so there is no immediate need for a Firmware DVD Burner update!

But the most important thing you should remember is one should take precaution while updating their firmware! Even though they can be easily acquired through internet downloads, there are various unofficial and hacked firmware that can potentially damage your burner and void all warranties that came with the purchase. Thus, it is always good to research before any downloads are made and even more importantly, visit the DVD Burner manufacturer’s website that will provide you with the official firmware. Happy updating!

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Today I’m going to teach you how to get all the Outlook features for free. First you have to go to http://www.mozillamessaging.com/en-US/thunderbird/ and download Thunderbird.

Step optional: After installation it will ask you to import all your Outlook settings you can select yes or no.

Step one. go to tools, then account settings.

Step two. In the add account Wizard you can select e-mail account or Gmail account. For this walk-through will use e-mail account.

Step three.enter your name and e-mail address you’d like to receive mail from.

Step four. Go to the website that your e-mails hosted from and find out the information for your pop protocol. (IE. Pop.website.com smtp.website.com)

 Step five. Type in your incoming server (The pop address) outgoing (SMTP address)

Step six. Type in your user name. My user name was my whole e-mail address. (IE: name@site.com )

Step seven: Enter the name you would like to name the account. This can be whatever you like.

Now if you want to add two E-mail address do all the same above but go to tools, account settings, outgoing server and click add. Now you will be able to add another outgoing mail server.

Troubleshooting.

If you can send E-Mails try going to Tools, account settings, outgoing server. Select your outgoing server and click edit. Now you will see “Use secure connection” TLS is the most common I have come across so try  that first if it still doesn’t work try SSL

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If only man was that great to develop something so divine as a flawless, faulty-less computer! Impossible! The truth is, we all have to go through issues facing our personal computers, and how irritating it can be! Nothing is more frustrating than having a faulty computer or devices that may seem to have a life of its own and not follow the commands of its owner.  Many of these instances call upon us the owners to try to find out what the problem is, as to resolve it before it reaches a point where it will cost us!

That is where the concept, Computer Troubleshoot comes in! It involves a process of elimination where the problem with the computer or its devices (including peripheral) is sourced and then resolved (if it is even that simple)! Usually when one goes through this process of elimination, a major factor has to be established in order to begin. It is figuring out whether the problem with the computer is because of a malfunctioning hardware or outdated and/or corrupted software. Hence, troubleshooting can be broadly divided into two aspects, that of the hardware and software components. Now this all might be a tedious process and does require some patience and persistence!

Some common issues people face which can be solved when you computer troubleshoot include, hard drive clutter, when the computer runs extremely slow as well as when the mouse, keyboard or other hardware devices fail to work. Did you know that the simple Control, Alt and Delete action is also a troubleshooting strategy that determines which one of the frozen/slow programs on your PC is not responding? A simple action we undermine its power almost daily!

Take for instance, that you are trying to communicate with your friends via your Windows Live Messenger in a voice conversation but they are unable to hear you. Your troubleshooting instincts would kick in instantaneously where you would either think it is the Windows application itself that is at fault or your microphones. So you would restart the program and if the problem still exists, then through the next step in your process of elimination, you would try to obtain if it is indeed your microphones at fault. Some common troubleshoot procedures may include checking to see if the microphone is connected properly in the microphone jack at the back of the computer ( if it is not within the system), checking to see if the sound drivers were set up properly in the operating system as well as checking to see if the battery-ran microphone has battery life. Perhaps with no success after all these checks, then a computer consultant can be called in to assess the situation ($$$)!

Also consider the situation, with an issue with the computer software, where your computer programs refuse to open or are running too slowly, you experience unexplained crashes and error messages and the Control, ALT and Delete initiative fail to work. Then it can be one of many things; RAM usage needs to be minimized by closing those programs not in use, the PC needs to be shut down and restarted, the PC needs to be rebooted or systems scans need to be run to eradicate viruses, malware and other forms of malicious software. Again if these initiatives prove unsuccessful, then perhaps it’s time to ask the computer specialist to do his own troubleshoots for a special fee! But otherwise, before you jump the gun to pay a fee, computer troubleshoot! Its free and simple as ABC!

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What is the point of having a CPU meter gadget? Do people really find use for this gadget or is it just one more additive that Windows should have avoided while trying to promote its Vista brand? Well, there is not a straight forward yes or no answer to this question. The concept different strokes for different folks can be applied here as it all depends on the user and how much tasks he/she is doing on the system. For those persons who are constantly on their computers, doing a million tasks at once, constantly using up their RAM and CPU capacity, then this gadget would prove very beneficial. As with many inventions in life, the CPU gadget was brought about to make our lives easier, so why not take advantage of it?

The indispensable purpose of this meter gadget is to determine how much of a computer’s RAM and CPU are being used by the user where all in all, he or she would be able to tell when space is needed on their personal computer. As these handy gadgets are found on every Windows Vista Home and Premium system, they are not only easy and simple to read with the basic screen display (which displays usage in terms of percentage) but also are useful in tracking down causes of several problems on a PC such as when a browser or application freezes!

Now for those individuals who find that the CPU gadget their computer has is too simple and incapable of providing an effective live reading of all their processor cores to their liking, then acquiring more complex gadgets off the internet would be the answer. Please take note that these are acquired through free downloads and only on rare occasions will persons be selling these gadgets unless it is truly sophisticated and ‘divine’. Such complex meter gadgets show individual core usage (such as eight core and quad core), core and system temperatures (to avoid the PC from over-heating) and RAM usage. But when will a person need all these fanciness? Well, suppose you need to be constantly tracking your system’s resources as you have a variety of programs open and hence are multitasking for long hours daily, where even when you’re not personally using your PC, these programs are still running; then the ability for your personal computer to withstand all of this will become a concern to you especially if there are signs of continuous slowness and cases where programs are freezing. The only solution to this problem would be to have a meter gadget, e.g. say the CPU meter gadget version 1.2.2 that supports multiple CPUs and displays each core results separately and accurately.

But then again, for those persons who seldom use their personal computers in this regard and would prefer to have a simple CPU gadget such as the one all Vistas have and have no idea where to find it on your computer, then, locate the Windows side bar which is a little icon usually found on the right side of the Menu Bar (that has the start button) and click open where of the many gadgets shown, CPU meter will be one of them. Click and explore!

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1.Right click on the start bar and click start task manager.

2.Click the Performance tab.

3.Click on the bar named memory to sort the applications by how much memory they are using.

4.Now end Process on any software you’re not using right now.

5.(Optional) Refer to this post to stop the software from starting with your computer. Stop startup programs.

Edit: Sorry forgot a step this is to clear up some confusion.

6. You will be prompted with a warning box. If you are closing word or some other app make sure everything is saved first. And closing an applictation that you don’t know could cause the system to be unstable but after a restart everything will go back to normal so you don’t really need to worry.

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