A Solid State Hard Drive is the newest technology when it comes to hard drives for your computer. Well its not totally new but it might be for you. Of course I do not need to tell you that a solid state drive (SSD) out performs any predecessors from the past as any new technology would. In fact we are moving towards an almost permanent storage device that could possibly allow your data to outlive you.

Comparing a Solid state hard drive to a normal hard drive that we have now:

1. A solid state hard drive does not have moving parts therefore it is longer lasting.


2. It is completely silent whereas the older type hard drive makes working noises with its moving parts.


3. A normal hard drive is fragile and only has to be bumped to be damaged. It only needs a piece of dust to hamper its operation. A SSD


4. A solid state hard drive can access your files faster and open programs quicker. A normal hard drive has to start spinning to access the files, whereas a solid state just accesses the files.


5. It uses less power. Image what this means for laptop users? All the memory is handled by flash memory chips like our Random Access Memory (RAM). No need to drain power when motoring the spinning parts to access the data.

Advantages to buying a solid state hard drive:

1. Newest hard drive technology.


2. Access files faster.


3. No moving parts, therefore less can go wrong.


4. A safer place to store your precious files and data.


5. A power saver. A Greener option.

Disadvantages to buying a solid state hard drive:

1. Because the solid state hard is new technology it is still very expensive. We all know the price will come down as time goes by.


2. The largest SSD (Solid state drive) to this day is the 160 GB SATA Solid State Drive however the normal hard drives are 2TB for the same price.

Should I buy a Solid State Hard drive?

Do I think its worth paying a crazy price for a hard drive that is fantastic in every way? Yes of course I do. The first reason is that I am a typical computer user and need to access my files at lightning speeds. Even two seconds delay is too long now days. When I open a program I want it to be there on my screen in a split second. The days are gone when you started your computer, made a cup of tea, and then returned to start using it after it loaded.

As for the limited storage, this does not affect me. I try not to store files on my computer and religiously save everything on an external hard drive. This way my operating system has the main hard drive all to itself.

What is a Hybrid Solid State hard drive?

A hybrid Solid State Drive is a mixture of both the old technology and the new. The Seagate Momentus XT 500GB Solid State Hybrid Drive was the first hybrid on the  market. It retails for around $129 USD. It has proven Solid state like performance but without the hefty price. The only thing is it still has moving parts and can be fragile but the speed of access is definitely there.

From the Manufacturer

The Seagate® Momentus® XT drive enables laptop PC users to enjoy solid state-like performance without sacrificing storage capacity and affordability. The Momentus XT solid state hybrid drive utilizes Adaptive Memory™ technology to dynamically optimize performance by aligning to user needs. This perfect balance of SSD and HDD delivers low heat, noise and vibration, and is available in capacities up to 500GB.

How do you install a solid State hard drive?





Most SSD’s are 2.5″ which is the size of a laptop hard drive. They are connected to your motherboard via a SATA connection which most modern computers do posess. You can also buy a metal 3.5″ bay adapter which helps you install this small hard drive into a normal sized desktop computer.

Different hard drives of a computer

What is a hard drive? Often people think a hard drive is their entire computer system as they see it, and others think that it is something hard or solid in the computer. It actually is a storage device inside your computer, and yes, it is hard. . This is hiding inside your computer and is where all your data is stored when you save it. You may never see your hard drive unless you happen to open up your computer to fix a problem. A hard drive is merely one of the many components that contribute to your computer system as a whole.

What is the difference between Hard disk and Hard drive?

It can be confusing when someone is talking about a hard drive and you call “it” a hard disk or hard disk drive. You think to yourself “what are they talking about?” Well this is crazy, but they are talking about the same thing. A hard disk and a hard drive have been made up over the years. Originally the main storage device was called a hard disk and we had floppy disk drives. Eventually the words got mixed up and blended.. That’s my theory anyway.

3.5″ Desktop Hard disk drive:

The picture below shows a 40 gigabyte (the size or capacity) hard drive, 7200RPM (the speed or revs per minute). The 3.5″ hard drive is pictured on the left. We used to only have one option when buying a hard drive, however now there are three or more types to choose from. See more pictures of hard drives.

2.5″ Laptop Hard disk drive:

A laptop hard disk drive is considerably smaller than a normal desktop hard drive and also cost more. If you wanted to buy a 500gb laptop hard drive it would be very expensive, whereas a 500gb desktop hard drive is around $100. See more laptop hard drives.

Cd rom or DVD Drive:

This is where you put a cd rom or a DVD disc in. It could be a drive that can also read and write on cds or DVD disks. Plain old Cd roms are nearly obsolete as everyone now wants a DVD burner.. With dvd rom drivesyou can backup your dvd’s onto a DVD writeable disc. There is no point buying a cd rom when dvd rom drives are the same price and have more features.

Floppy disk drive:

This is the smaller drive that takes those little plastic square shaped disks. They are rarely used now as they are no longer needed for a boot disk if you have a cd rom or DVD burner. In fact most new computers are sold without a floppy disk drive as they are obselette.

External Hard drive:

An external hard drive can come in two sizes like the desktop hard drive and the laptop hard drive. After all an external hard drive is just a case housing one of these hard drives. So if you have a 2.5″ external hard drive , this means it contains a laptop hard drive.

Now days we every second household owns an external hard drive. They are used to store files on safely away from the computer you are working on. For example, you can save your photos onto an external hard drive and if your computer crashes they will still be safe because they are not stored on your computer. There is no excuse if you do not own one of these fantastic storage devices as you can buy a 1 TB external hard drive for well under $100. That size hard drive can hold thousands of movie, songs, and more… It will store everything.

Facebook smiley faces on chat – Add a smiley face to Facebook chat

If you are into chatting on Facebook and communicating your lungs out without actually speaking then this Facebook chat trick is for you. I personally do not chat on Facebook but I know both my daughters are clearly engaged with anything to do with this website. In fact I never see my children and if I want to get them to do something I need to contact them on Facebook.  What is the world coming to?

Anyway that is enough of my opinion and lets get onto the cool smiley face tricks for chatting on Facebook. You will notice that these smileys codes are kind of similar to forum smiley code.

Facebook chat trick – add a smiley face to your Facebook chat. These codes do not come up properly on this Website so I have posted the true list on the forum.



smile, much better in real life though…

sad face, how can be sad you are on Facebook? Get over it!

really happy, its really sad that you are really happy about this…

wink, sleazy..don’t use it!!

^_^ happy eye face, ok whatever..

>:-( grumpy face, maybe you would be happier if you were getting some vitamin …?

:3 cat face, why would you want this?

:’( crying face, how embarrassing, do you want attention?

shocked face, I was shocked too when I found out that you could look so shocked!

glass face, hmmm..don’t crack a smile then..

B) same as above, oh how boring, this one is a copycat!

8-| cool shades, we all want to be cool.. that is why we are on Facebook..

rude face, I know someone that cried when they saw this..

.O.o woot!, we won’t even go there…It’s all too much for me.

-_- dork face, you shouldn’t pick on people, even online…

:/ duhh, like saying I told you so, or you are an idiot, or your brainless..

<(“) peguin, please tell me why you would want to use this..Does it mean anything to you?

(^^^) jaws, same as the penquin thing…WT??

3:) devil, this is when you have been naughty? Hope my kids are not using this one!

O:) angel, only good people can use this, otherwise the Facebook Gods will get you..

:* kiss face, you can kiss all you want on Facebook, just not in real life!

<3 heart, this is a cute one so I will not bag it out…

:v pacman, how 80′s is that? Didn’t pacman die with the Atari?

|] robot, don’t get this one, I guess you will just have to try it.

:putnam: guys face, who cares…we have profile pictures you know..

10 Tricks With A USB Thumb Drive

Any ordinary USB memory device can do a lot more than you probably thought it could. It can carry programs, encryption and even a full installation of Windows XP! Here is our tenlist for the coolest things you can do with a USB thumb drive:

Take your programs with you

We all know how frustrating it is when we take your files to another computer just to discover that the software required to read the files is not installed.

Here’s the simplest solution – take your programs with you – on your USB thumb drive. Here’s how to do it with Portable Apps:

1. Go to the Portable Apps website and download the installer, choosing the software you want to carry along.

2. Run the installer and install the software to the root of your USB thumb drive.

And you’re done! As soon as you connect your thumb drive into a computer, Portable Apps will open up automatically.



Surf anonymously

With Portable Apps and Firefox, you can surf the web without leaving any trace on the computer you are using. If you want extra security, install a Firefox security plugin such as FoxyProxy. To iput Firefox onto the drive, just copy-paste the Firefox folder from you computer, or install Firefox onto the thumb drive.



Set a program to run automatically (autorun)

Using autorun, you can set a program to start up automatically when you connect the drive to a computer. You can also use the same script for a data CD-ROM. Note that some computers have autorun disabled for security purposes. [Here's how to disable autorun.]

Open up notepad and paste the following script:

[autorun]

ShellExecute=filename

Label=description

UseAutoPlay=1

Make sure you replace filename with the full path to the file. For example, a file called program.exe in a folder called “programs” on the thumb drive would be /programs/program.exe

Replace description with a short description of the program, for example, My Jukebox or Mozilla Firefox.

Save the file as autorun.inf, making sure you select “All Programs” from the save menu, not “Text document”!



Help! I’m lost!

Ever lost a USB drive? Even if you haven’t, there’s a pretty good chance you’ll lose a few during your life. And with all the important information on it, it could be a disaster to have it fall into someone’s hands.

A good idea is to encrypt all the information on the drive, but you would still want it back, wouldn’t you? Luckily, the folks at the Daily Cup Of Tech have come up with a solution.



Save a program called “Help! I’m Lost!” on the drive, that a finder just can’t get around opening. The program opens a message box with your personal “I’m lost” message. It’s a good idea to offer the finder a bigger reward than the drive itself, so that they’ll be interested in contacting you.



Hide the drive inside something

Why not surprise your friends and co-workers by sticking something that looks like a broken USB cable into the computer’s USB drive?

You’ll be sure to get a few shocked faces when you start to play a movie from it.

The guys from Technobuzz.net show us how to do it. (You are gonna need an unbelievably small thumb drive for this…)

Secure your PC

Just like with an RFID badge, you can use a USB drive to lock and unlock a PC. Insert it to begin working and pull it out when you’ve finished, locking the computer. There are several programs for this . Rohos, a commercial program and WiKID, a semi-open source one.

If you really need to secure your computer with a USB drive, I suggest you give Rohos a try, as WiKID is rather complicated.

Portable jukebox

Don’t just carry the music with you, also carry the player! You can install audio programs such as WinAmp and CoolPlayer+ on your thumb drive. Just unextract the ZIP folders to the USB drive.

If you want the jukebox to start up automatically when you connect the memory stick to the computer, use the autorun feature shown tip 3 and point it to the exe of your audio player.

Encrypt your data

If you carry any sensitive indormation on your USB memory stick, a good idea is to encrypt it. Hardware-level encryption will help, but it will cost extra. You can get a free program to encrypt your data just as securely. For this I recommend TrueCrypt, but most others will also do.

You will need admin access on the computer you want to use your encrypted thumb drive on, so this it’s usability a little.

Run a standalone OS for dedicated tasks

The easiest OS to boot from a USB drive is probably Linux. There are many small capacity Linux versions out there that will fit on your drive. The best 3 are Puppy Linux, Damn Small Linux and Webconverger.

Make sure you select a version that needs less space than your USB drive’s maximum, so you have room for files and software.

And this leads us nicely to the final tip…

Run Windows itself from a USB thumb drive

Modifying Windows to work on a USB drive is quite difficult, but luckily there are some tools that will do it for us. Note that you will need a separate Windows license for this, as Microsoft only lets you use one for each single computer, and a USB drive is treated by them like a computer…

What you’ll need:

1. A licensed copy of Windows


2. A USB device, min. 1GB (We recommend a USB hard disk, as a flash memory stick will become unusable after 100000 writing processes. Assuming that only 2 processes are used per second, the drive will last only 60 days with 8 hours of work each day… A hard disk doesn’t have this problem.)

Here is the link to the full tutorial, translated from German.

How to use Bluetooth technology to connect laptop and cell phone?

We can use Bluetooth technology to connect laptop and cell phone. We can move videos, images, photos etc from a desktop computer or a laptop to our cell phones. In order to use Bluetooth technology to connect laptop and cell phone we need a laptop and a cell phone which support this technology.

If the laptop doesn't support it, we can use a USB Bluetooth dongle. Just plug it into the USB port of the desktop computer or laptop. Leave the rest to Microsoft Windows. It will find the driver and install it itself. If it is not supported, we can manually install it via the manufacturer's compact disk. Follow these simple steps in order to use Bluetooth technology to connect laptop and cell phone: (In this example, we are using Windows Vista.)

Turn on the Bluetooth feature on your cell phone.

Make this setting: my Phone's visibility -> Shown to all on the cell phone.

Open Bluetooth Devices by clicking on its icon in the Control Panel.

OR

Look for the Bluetooth driver in the Device Manager and double-click on its icon.

Click on the Add button in Bluetooth Devices dialog box.

Check the box for "My devices is set up and ready to be found" in the Add Bluetooth Device Wizard dialog box.

Click on the Next button.

This device wizard will display the name of the found Bluetooth device close by.

Click on the device name that you would like to add and click on Next.

Select "Let me choose my own key" or "Choose a passkey for me" and click on Next.

It will now display the passkey. Key this into the cell phone. Now the laptop is initiating to install the Bluetooth device. (Click Yes as you see the prompt message on the cell phone to allow connection with the laptop.)

Click on the Finish button to close the dialog box of Add Bluetooth Device Wizard.

The Bluetooth device (the cell phone) is now displayed in Bluetooth Devices dialog box. Select the Bluetooth device and click on the Properties button.

The Properties dialog box for the device will become visible. Choose the Services tab.

Check the boxes for the services you want.

In the end you can launch the items of the cell phone. Transfer photos, videos etc to cell phone via Bluetooth technology.

This method can also be used to connect laptop to Bluetooth devices like Bluetooth mouse, Bluetooth keyboard, Bluetooth headset, etc.

Top tips and tweaks for Windows 7

Windows 7 Features Walkthrough

Want to learn what is new in Windows 7? The How-To-Geek has put up a comprehensive screenshot tour, which walks you through the new features in Windows 7. Take a look at what you should expect from Windows 7 beta to learn more.

10 Things You Should Know Before Installing Windows 7

Windows 7 is in beta, and there are bound to be several things which will not work. The Windows 7 center has a list of 10 things you should know before you install Windows 7.

Dual Boot Windows 7 With Windows XP and Vista

Windows 7 is still in beta and it would be a tad bit early to get a brand new PC to just run Windows 7, so it makes more sense for users to stick to a current machine and dual boot Windows 7 with the current operating system. Adam Pash from Lifehacker has put up a nice tutorial using which you can dual boot Windows 7 with Windows XP and Vista.

What are Windows 7 System Requirements?

Windows 7 is not as resource hungry as Windows Vista, and you can run Windows 7 on a really low configuration. Learn more about the Windows 7 System Requirements.

How To Get Genuine Windows 7 Beta Product Key?

If you have downloaded Windows 7 Beta 32-bit or 64-bit, you will not be able to run it unless you use a valid product key, read our earlier guide to know, how you can get a Genuine Windows 7 Beta Product Key.

List of Compatible Anti-Virus for Windows 7

Windows is one of the most exploited operating system and you definitely cannot survive online threats without a good anti-virus and anti-spyware software. The How-To-Geek lists has compiled a list of Anti-virus softwares compatible with Windows 7.

5 Great Features in Windows 7

Martin from Ghacks talks about 5 Great Features you should know about in Windows 7, he promises that those features are not just run of the mill.

Extend Windows 7 Trail From 30 To 120 Days

The Windows 7 product keys are programmed to run for 30 days, however the How-To-Geek has a tutorial that will help you extend Windows 7 trial period from 30 to 120 days.

Shortcut Keys in Windows 7

Shortcut Keys definitely save users a lot of time, and Minty White has come up with a handy list of shortcut keys available in Windows 7, definite time saver.

Hidden Themes In Windows 7

The latest versions of Windows are more about looks, and Windows themes are definitely a craze, however Windows 7 does not allow users to use all the themes out of the box. Nirmal points out a neat trick that will allow you to use all the hidden themes in Windows 7.

How To Remove “Send Feedback” link from Windows 7 Title Bar?

Windows 7 is in beta mode and Microsoft is looking for feedback, fair enough, however many users are irked to see the “Send Feedback” link in the title bar of all the windows, Minty White talks about a registry hack that will allow users to remove the “Send Feedback” link from Windows 7 title bar.

Windows 7 Problem Steps Recorder

Windows 7 comes with a useful tool “Problem Steps Recorder” that will allow users to record screen activities just like a regular screen capture program albeit for debugging purpose. The I Started Something blog tells us more about the Problem Steps Recorder and how you can use it.

How To Enable Aero In Windows 7?

We all love eye candy, but with that comes the need of a higher configuration PC. BlogsDNA tells us how to Enable Aero in Windows 7 on a decent configured PC.

How To Set Taskbar Buttons to Show Text Instead of Icons Only?

Windows 7 has a icon only taskbar, however Tech Recipes shows users How to set the Taskbar Buttons to Show Text Instead of Icons-Only.

How To Enable Run Command In Windows 7?

The run command is hidden by default in Windows 7 and blame it on the improvised start menu, however this trick can help you enable and display the run command in Windows 7.

How to Enable – Disable Taskbar Thumbnails Preview in Windows 7?

BlogsDNA has another interesting tutorial where they talk about the trick to enable or disable the taskbar thumbnails in Windows 7.

How to Enable – Disable Quick Launch Toolbar in Windows 7?

The Quick Launch bar has been disabled by default in Windows 7, BlogsDNA tells us How to Enable – Disable Quick Launch Toolbar in Windows 7

How to Show AM / PM Symbols in System Tray Clock in Windows 7?

Windows 7 uses a 24 hour clock to display the time, Tweaking with Vishal shows us change it back to show AM / PM Symbols in System Tray Clock in Windows 7.