THE COMPUTER THREAD

[d00hickey]

Did you see the 16TB SSD announcement?

WHAAAAA...
Link?

Yep, not only is it the largest capacity SSD, it's the largest hard drive ever made. It's neat because it happened much sooner than most people predicted but the process of making the hardware is extremely expensive and inefficient.

http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/08/samsung-unveils-2-5-inch-16tb-ssd-the-worlds-largest-hard-drive/

It will be about $10,000 so start saving up now if you want it.

[LucasM]

Does anyone know if there is a permanent way to set the 'Set Priority' function in Windows 7 (under Task Manage/Processes, right-click)?  [I'm still waiting on notice I can get Win10, where it may be different.]

The reason I ask is because every time I open Ashampoo Burning Studio I have to remember to set the priority to 'High' for disc-burning, because without it, about 50% of the Blus I try to burn end up as coasters (and maybe 1/3 of the DVDs).  But setting it for 'High' priority doesn't 'hold' from one use to the next and it's dropped back down to 'Normal' by the time the program next starts.

Until recently checking [like, two minutes ago], it never made sense why ImgBurn would have such a dramatically higher rate of successful burns (but it can only be used with ISO files).  When I checked, it apparently installs itself and changes Win so that 'High' is the automatic priority setting!

Thank you for any help with this.  It's not a big deal, but it is an irritant, and it is one more thing I have to remember to do, so drains my mental resources (and I all-too-often forget when in bad shape).

[RVR II]

Successfully upgraded my laptop from 6 gigs to 8 gigs of RAM and a i3 to a i5 processor!

[RVR II]

Cross-posting this..

Should you wish to uninstall the Windows 10 icon in the bottom-right tray..

Click Programs, in its options select View installed updates. Use the search box in the top right corner of your Window to find KB3035583, which is the name of the update you want to remove. Once this update is displayed, click on it with the right mouse button and select Uninstall. Restart your computer.

I'm not ready to 'upgrade' and I'm sick of those damn popups trying to get me to download and install it

[RVR II]

Successfully upgraded my laptop from 6 gigs to 8 gigs of RAM and a i3 to a i5 processor!

And with this upgrade, I can now use my other video editing program, AVS Video Editor for my long-winded GoPro Dashcam videos I record while driving in Mexico for YouTube..
This program processes longer videos much faster than my main video editing program, Pinnacle Studio 14

[Variety of Cells]

Firefox just released their web browser for iOS devices.  Firefox has been my go to for a while, and I'm happy to be able to use it on my phone.  While I am a little biased, it is objectively faster than Safari.  A lot faster.  Pages load much quicker, including the dreaded Giftrax thread, which used to be painfully slow, to the point of some gifs not loading at all.  Now it loads up almost just as fast as any other page.

The only down side is that there's no option to change the default browser on the iphone, so the web integration on other apps will still take you to Safari.  But if you can live with that, I highly recommend it.  It can also sync to your desktop if you like, so if I find a website on my phone that I want to continue reading on my PC, I can just send it to my desktop instead of copying the address and emailing it to myself.  Saves a step. 

[RVR II]

Figured I'd get a head start on backing up files from the 2015 tax year in preperation for the start of 2016 and one Dell GX620 fired up just fine, got windows updates, and backed up what I needed.
Went to the next one, an older Dell GX280 'clam shell' tower and it didn't want to boot up at all; not even into the BIOS. Unplugged the hard drive, replaced cables, even removed the video card and nothing. Then I thought about pulling the RAM and re-seating it and voila! It boots up just fine now
Currently getting Windows updates and backing up files

[Parker_Hylton]

Figured I'd get a head start on backing up files from the 2015 tax year in preperation for the start of 2016 and one Dell GX620 fired up just fine, got windows updates, and backed up what I needed.
Went to the next one, an older Dell GX280 'clam shell' tower and it didn't want to boot up at all; not even into the BIOS. Unplugged the hard drive, replaced cables, even removed the video card and nothing. Then I thought about pulling the RAM and re-seating it and voila! It boots up just fine now
Currently getting Windows updates and backing up files

Glad you were able to figure it out.  On Saturday I decided I had enough of being badgered to upgrade to Windows 10.  I tried removing the KB's and editing the registry multiple times and it would ALWAYS find a way to nag despite the fact I have auto-updates disabled and have been careful NOT to update anything that clearly says Windows 10...which is deeply disturbing, which means they feel that SNEAKING updates in while hiding the content is perfectly legit.

Anyways...the laptop update went beautifully.  The desktop, however, took seven and a half hours of backups, restores, downloads, reboots, MB flashes.  Oh, and they effing took out SAFE MODE?! for the upgrade?!  That's the most idiotic...sigh...  anyway, once Windows 10 is successfully installed you can change msconfig to allow safe mode, but it doesn't automatically include the option.  Just...ugh.  At least after a full day's worth of work it's up and running, with sound problems being the only issue that carried on from the install.

[RVR II]

I have that particular Windows 10 update Memorized now (KB3035583) and successfully removed it from my remaining office computers this morning

[d00hickey]

I have that particular Windows 10 update Memorized now (KB3035583) and successfully removed it from my remaining office computers this morning

A friend of mine told me about some open sourced app that automatically removes any windows 10 associated updates automatically. I tried a google search to no avail. I think it's some DIY app someone made for themselves. I'll try to find out what it's called soon.

[LucasM]

Starting yesterday I smelled something like 'burning tech' around my office.  Then it went away.  Then it came back and I could actually isolate where it was coming from, my mini-tower.  I took the cover off to try to figure out what it was, and couldn't at first.  So I cleaned dust off the vents, and closed it back up.  A little later it started back up.  But also the sound of a failing fan this time.  So I took the cover off, and briefly touched the fan for the main body vent, and the one over the chip, and each started right back up, so I managed to crouch down and twist enough to look at the underside of the power supply (not easy, with the thing sitting on the floor), and it was that that was failing.

So I know I need a new power supply.

This is what is currently in it:



Should I try to get one as identical as possible, or should I increase the wattage, as I seem to recall hearing 420 was kinda' on the low side these days?  Anyone have a brand recommendation?  [A link to Amazon would be ideal, as I think I can replace it myself, as long as I'm very careful to match the wire colors/voltage/amps for each thing.]

[RVR II]

You have a 520 watt there. A like Antec power supplies myself so if your not running a powerful computer then a similar wattage should suffice but if you are running a lot of stuff (software and hardware) I'd go with something higher; around 750 watt or higher maybe.

http://www.amazon.com/Antec-80-PLUS-ATX12V-EPS12V-0-761345-25750-3/dp/B00O08NCQ2/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1449455157&sr=1-1&keywords=antec+power+750

[MartyS (Gromit)]

That Antec is probably overkill if a 520 was doing OK.

I've been using Corsair supplies the last few PCs I've built, here's a 600W one:

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-CX600-CP-9020048-US-Power-Supply/dp/B0092ML0OC

If you want to save a bit more there's this one from Thermaltake, I've never used one of their power supplies but have used their cases and fans and they seem to be good quality:

http://www.amazon.com/Thermaltake-Standard-Bronze-ATX12V-SP-650P/dp/B00B6A8N3O

PC power connectors are pretty well keyed so it's very hard to connect something wrong, you shouldn't have a problem doing the swap yourself.

[LucasM]

Thanks RVR II and MartyS.

I saw mine said "Peak power: 520 watts" but only "Total power: 420 w".  Despite the higher number being used for the part number, I didn't remember that 'peak' was what was considered it's proper designation (I built a computer from component parts back in the Windows '95 days, but that was obviously ages [and two head injuries] ago).

From what RVR II wrote, I do tend to keep a lot of programs active at one time (often picture editing, video, audio, plus at least 4-5 others) with USB-linked plug-ins common (e.g. external Blu-ray burning drive powered by the USB), so sounds like a larger supply might be worthwhile.  But I think MartyS's right, I've not had any problems other than the fan itself, so just bumping from 520 peak to 600 peak should be enough (and save me about $35).

Despite my less-than-stellar current condition, I just couldn't see fighting crowds twice both on the road and in store to pay someone at Best Buy (the only semi-reliable computer repair around here) $150 or more to plug one in for me.  Particularly since they might have up to a two-to-three week wait time - maybe more if people are setting up/customizing computers and electronics for Xmas gifts.  I can't deal with the crowds, or do without my main computer that long (my laptop is difficult to use, and is quite old; it's still running the Windows XP that came installed in it, partly because that was the last Win version to support some peripherals I couldn't afford to replace - but that gives an idea of the age/lack of processing power in it: it is a good five minutes after booting it up before I can open firefox, and then it takes about a minute for the program to show up ).

I have taken the cover off this computer as much as possible (given I have a cat that enjoys pulling on and chewing thin or loose wires) so heat doesn't build up any more than absolutely necessary until the new power supply arrives.  Plus I'll be shutting it off more often than I used to (sort-of keeping myself on a timer) to preserve it and give additional cooling time so I don't fry anything while waiting for the power supply to arrive.  With the Corsair being from Amazon, Prime'll have it to me by Wednesday.


MartyS: thanks for confirming that the power-swapping will be easy (connectors different for different amperages), as I was anticipating on going only by wire color.  As it is, I still may just cut the old power cable wires off near the old power supply, just to make sure that in my possible overwhelm I don't miss one: if there's an old/loose wire still connected to something, I'll know I haven't finished yet.

[MartyS (Gromit)]

I thought I had clicked on the prime button when doing my searches, I hate when you add a search term that it usually unchecks the prime button, must have happened when I sorted by review rating and the Thermaltake one showed up.