Latest Articles on LaptopLogic

The Perfect PC Setup for the Online Grinder

info@laptoplogic.com — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:11:24 +0100

Great advice to take as well: it's always best to buy something right the first time than have to buy it twice. Building a new PC can be a challenge. Check out this handy guide for crafting a PC that's perfect for scoring big with Online Poker. If you follow this guide you'll be sure to buy right the first time. My father once taught me a very important lesson: Always use the proper tool for the job.

If playing online poker is your job, or even your hobby, you’re going to want the right PC. The first thing to know is you don’t have to buy the most expensive computer and accessories to get what you need. You just need to know what you’re looking for. If you do it correctly, getting the optimal grinder’s PC won’t actually cost you all that much.

When you’re looking for items to buy you should be paying attention to:

1) Technical quality

2) Price

3) Compatibility

4) Comfort

The Box

The actual PC is the most important part but also one of the easiest pieces to configure. As long as you know the very basics of what you want, the details are relatively insignificant.

If you walk into a computer shop and say you want a Dual DVI 512meg vid card for less than $150, that’s exactly what you’ll get. The exact model and brand doesn’t really matter here. Your computer is made up of the following items:

Motherboard

Graphics Card

Sound Card

Network Card

CPU (Processor)

RAM (Memory)

Hard Drive

PSU (Power Supply)

Case

The Motherboard: This is the central nervous system of your computer. It controls everything else in the computer.

Although you really shouldn’t buy cheap anything when it comes to your computer, this is the one thing you never want to skimp on. You get a crappy Motherboard, and everything suffers.

If you’re piecing together a computer yourself, you need to also make sure your Motherboard is compatible with the rest of the items you’re about to buy. If you’re not a computer geek, just ask someone who is or someone in the store to help you set up your system.

These days, almost all Motherboards come with sound, network and graphics cards built in. This saves buying specific cards for these functions, which in turn saves you money. Although, I’d still recommend you get a Motherboard without an onboard graphics card, or just don’t use it. You’re going to want a real graphics card for your machine, so make sure the Motherboard has a PCI Express slot to accept your new graphics card. As for brand names, I will only recommend two brands: ASUS or MSI.

Recommended: MSI P45 Platinum

Graphics Card: If you want to run dual monitors (and I highly, HIGHLY recommend you do), you want to get a graphics card with Dual-DVI video outputs. Get an ATI or NVIDIA graphics card, ideally with a minimum of 512 megabytes DDR3 ram. This card will be far more powerful than anything you’re ever going to need, but considering the price of a card such as this you’d be a fool to buy anything less. This card will be more than enough power to run everything, including high-end games (but not at the maximum texture and graphics quality).

If you want to use your PC for high-end gaming as well as poker, grab a vid card with a little more juice.

Recommended: BFG GeForce (Nvidia) 9800GT

Sound Card: As mentioned earlier, pretty much every Motherboard sports an onboard 5.1 surround sound card. Unless you’re planning on doing high-end recording or music production, this will be more than enough for what you need.

Save your money and stick to the onboard option.

Recommended: Onboard

Network Card: All Motherboards have built in network cards, but if you want to go wireless you’ll need to buy a wireless card as well.

Recommended: Onboard

CPU: The Central Processing Unit is your computer’s brain. Any time your computer has to do a calculation or perform any sort of task requiring “thinking” or logic, it’s using the CPU.

Online poker actually requires a decent amount of CPU usage, especially if you’re running multiple tables across multiple screens. You don’t need anything crazy, but don’t get anything less than a Dual core Intel 2.6 gigahertz processor.

Why Intel? I personally hate AMD and will only recommend Intel chips. There’s a reason Apple Computers has begun using all Intel chips in their systems. Intel simply makes the best CPUs on the market.

All the dual core and better chips are 64-bit also, allowing you to use 64-bit software (such as Windows 7 Ultimate x64). In case you don’t know, 64-bit software can operate much faster with much more efficiency than its 32-bit equivalent. Since you have a 64-bit chip, you might as well use 64-bit software.

Soon enough there will be no such thing as 32 bit (also known as x86), as 64-bit is slowly taking over the entire marketplace.

Recommended: Intel Core 2 Duo E8200, 2.66GHz

RAM: Random Access Memory is your computer’s muscle. While your CPU is doing all the thinking work, the RAM is doing all the heavy lifting. The more RAM you have, the quicker your computer will run. Simple as that. Make sure you get RAM compatible with your Motherboard and a minimum of two Gigabytes.

If you want to have a high-speed machine (especially if you want to do any serious gaming), get 4GB and call it a day. It's also important to note that 32-bit operating systems can only utilize 4GB of RAM (actually a little less), so spring for the 64-bit operating system as mentioned above if you're going 4GB or higher.

It’s always better to buy RAM in pairs and buy all of it at once. Having different brands of RAM used in the same computer has been known to cause errors. Plus, all RAM these days is DDR (Dual Data Rate). This means to get the most performance out of your RAM, you need to have two identical chips in the correct RAM slots on the Motherboard.

If you want 4GB of RAM it’s better to buy two 2GB chips rather than four 1GB chips.

Recommended: OCZ Dual Channel DDR2 2x2048MB (4GB)

Hard Drive: As long as your hard drives are compatible with your Motherboard (almost all current Motherboards are running the SATA2 interface) just get the one with enough storage.

Every day the price of drives goes down and the storage gets bigger. Buy whatever’s big and cheap, probably around 500GB in size.

Recommended: Western Digital Caviar 500GB

PSU: The Power Supply Unit takes the power from your wall and distributes the correct amount of juice to everything in your computer. You want to make sure you get a PSU with enough power to run your computer without issue. Basically, get a 750-watt PSU and you’re good to go.

Recommended: Ultra LSP750

Case: All the guts and wires of the computer need to be contained somewhere –that’s your case. The case also includes all the fans required to keep your computer cool. If you don’t have fans, your computer will melt or set itself on fire.

When looking for a case you need to find something that looks cool, fits your parts and, most importantly, is quiet. With all the fans running in a PC, they can get pretty damn noisy. A good case will keep your computer cool and quiet without forcing you to wear earplugs in your own room.

Recommended: Cooler Master HAF 932

All the Rest

Now that you have a PC, it's time to accessorize. This includes:

Monitors

Mouse

Keyboard

Speakers

Chair

Monitors: I cannot be any clearer on this one. Monitors should always be plural. Once you start using dual screens, you’ll see why it’s impossible for you to ever come back. Your best bet is a pair of 20” or 22” widescreen LCD monitors, side by each.

Recommended: Two Viewsonic vx2262wm 22” Widescreen LCDs

Mouse: What mouse to use is really a matter of personal preference. You need something that functions accurately and consistently on the surface you’re using it on. If you want to avoid carpel tunnel I’d highly recommend you look into a trackball or “thumb” mouse, such as the Logitech TrackMan Wheel.

These let you keep your wrist stationary and use just your thumb to control the pointer. It takes a little bit of time to re-learn how to operate your mouse, but once you do you’ll find yourself being more accurate with less effort.

Also, these work on any surface without any surface jump errors. When your money is on the line, an accurate mouse is a requirement.

Recommended: Logitech TrackMan Wheel

Keyboard: This really doesn’t matter for poker as anything will work. Simply for ergonomics I’d recommend getting a split or wave keyboard. You will have to re-train yourself to type on it, but it’s a small amount of work to keep your wrists happy.

Recommended: Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000

Speakers: You’re going to need to hear your computer somehow. Use your headphones, grab cheap speakers, or buy a full-on surround sound system. Whatever works for you.

Chair: Anytime you’re spending hours at a time at a desk, you need a proper task chair to give you the back support needed to keep yourself healthy and pain free.

If you’re uncomfortable, you’re not going to be able to play your best game.

High-end office chairs can cost thousands of dollars, but you can find decent task chairs for cheap prices by hitting up Staples or IKEA. Just be sure to get a task chair instead of an executive chair. Task chairs keep your weight forward in the proper position for typing rather than lounged back where you need to strain to reach the keyboard.

Total Damage

If you buy everything I’ve recommended here, including the monitors, your computer will come to around $1,175. If you already have monitors, you’re looking at $815. Obviously the price will change depending on any different components you would like or if you need speakers and a chair as well.

I priced this out using the best mix of price and quality from TigerDirect.com.

It’s possible to shave a few hundred dollars off of this system without having to sacrifice all that much performance. But it’s always best to do something correct the first time rather than have to buy it twice.

If you have any questions about specifics parts, or compatibility, feel free to drop your question in a comment. I’ll see what I can do to help you out.

Intel Extreme Masters Global Challenge Season IV – Dubai

info@laptoplogic.com — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 02:11:53 +0100

The Intel Extreme Masters Global Challenge made its way to the middle east this October, putting $31,500 up at stake in the country of Dubai. Dell was all too eager to show off the power of its new Alienware M17x as gamers duked it out in Counterstrike and Quake for the prize money, and of course, gamer fame.

In the world of eSports there is nary a superior gaming circuit to the Intel Extreme Masters, which truly does span the globe – the previous stop before Dubai was Chengdu, and the location before that was in Cologne – and brings the world’s finest together to compete. The tournament is co-sponsored by Intel and Dell, who consider the event (at least in part) a showcasing of the power of their products. Intel certainly was excited to see the Core-i7 CPUs tearing up the framerates, as was Dell to see it do so on their Alienware M17x laptops.

The tournament ran from October 17th-21st and consisted of two parts. From October 17th-19th, the first Quake-Live event ever to take place outside of the U.S took place, with a total prize pool of $6,500. Following this from the 19th-21st was the main event – an intense Counterstrike 1.6 battle with a total prize pool of $25,000. Also at stake was an auto-berth to the world final, which besides the prize pool helped to draw the world’s best gamers to Dubai.

16 gamers participated in the Quake-Live tournament, and they were broken up into 4 groups as follows:

Group A:

Magnus "fox" Olsson (Sweden), Shane "rapha" Hendrixson (USA), Zhibo "Jibo" Fan (China), and Pierre-Emeric "l1nkje" Portier (France)

Group B:

Richard "noctis" Gansterer (Austria), Alessandro "stermy" Avallone (Italy), Felix "smoke" Pafel (Germany), and Pelle "fazz" Soderman (Sweden)

Group C:

Sebastian "Spartie" Siira (Sweden), Tim "DaHanG" Fogarty (USA), Anton "Cooller" Singov (Russia), and Anas "spammah" Ilyas (UAE)

Group D:

Alexey "cypher" Yanushevsky (Belarus), Kevin "strenx" Baeza (France), Chance "Chance" Lacina (USA), and Michael "madix" Hindersson (Sweden)

When the dust settled, the top two competitors from each Group would make it to the quarterfinals, with each #1 seed facing a #2 seed. After rapha defeated madix, fox beat stermy, noctis ended Cooller’s day and cypher finished off DaHang, it was time for the semis. Here rapha handed it to noctis and cypher beat back fox, setting up an epic showdown for $3000 – the bulk of the $6500 prize pool.

In the finals, rapha outdueled cypher to take home the crown. If you’ve got the time, check out the full 62:38 long fully moderated (in English) video here. Rapha, from the U.S., took home $3000, while cypher in 2nd place still netted $1500. In 3rd place noctis gained $800, and fox got $400 for finishing in 4th. The remaining players in 5-8th places garnered $200 each.

With the Quake-Live tourney in the rear view mirror, it was time to start the Counterstrike 1.6 tourney. This tournament ran from October 20th to the 22nd and, as we’ve said, had a large prize pool at $25,000. 12 players were divided into 2 pools as follows:

Group A:

MeetYourMakers(Sweden), Team ALTERNATE (Germany), fnaticMSI(Sweden), KerchNET(Ukraine), Assassins List (UAE), and Wemade Fox (South Korea)

Group B:

SK Gaming (Sweden), Virtus.pro (Russia), k23 (Kazakhstan), Vitriolic (Poland), mousesports (Germany), and IMPULSE (UAE)

This list of players included some of the world’s best CS gamers, including mousesports, who won the World Championship in 2008, fnaticMSI, who won it in 2009, and SK Gaming, who won the last Global challenge back in Chengdu. One of the interesting things about the way this pool was drawn up was that merely a few days before the tournament was set to start, there were only ten names up there – everyone but Assassins List and IMPULSE. Shortly before the tournament began a local qualifier was held and IMPULSE and Assassins made it to the top of the heap.

Unfortunately for the local heroes, when tournament play ended they were the only two contestants to be held without a point after playing five matches – but considering who they were going up against, you can hardly hold it against them. The top three winners in the tournament went to all three of the Swedish gamers – fnaticMSI came in first, followed by MeetYourMakers and SK Gaming. They were awarded prizes of $10,000, $5,000 and $3,000 respectively – that’s $18,000 out of the $25,000 prize pool all going to one country! Rounding out the top winners was Vitriol coming in 4th and earning $2,000, and Team ALTERNATE and k23 coming in 5th and 6th respectively, winning $1,000 each. The two local participants as well as all the other players did not go away empty-handed though, as 7th-12th place were each given $500 for their participation. And with that, an exciting week of gaming concluded in Dubai.

The Intel Extreme Masters is a computer gaming tournament that is now in its fourth season. Players from around the globe compete for individual prizes and a berth in the world championship, with a total prize pool this season of over half a million dollars at $530,000. There are six events in the season, the first three being the Global Challenges (of which Dubai was the last), and the last three being regional championships, which take place in the Americas, Asia, and Europe. In addition to these six events there is the ultimate battle, the World Championships, where the best of the best fight for the biggest prize pool of all. Although this Global Challenge didn’t offer all of them, players generally compete in three games: Counterstrike, QuakeLive, and World of Warcraft.

This year’s season began this past August and continues until March. The Global Challenges have concluded, and the regional championships are set to begin, starting with the American Championship Finals taking place in Edmonton, Canada from December 11-13. Following that, the Asian Championship Finals will take place in Taipei, Taiwan from February 5-9, and the European Championship Final will overlap with the World Championships at the CeBIT expo in Hannover, Germany from March 2-6.

The Top 14 Geekiest Wedding Proposals

info@laptoplogic.com — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 07:31:04 +0100

1. Chrono Trigger Proposal

No matter how many times you’ve beaten Chrono Trigger on the SNES, you’ve never seen this exact scene play out. In late 2008 this young former CS student, who goes by the handle TheRealPfhreak, hacked into the game itself to recreate his and his girlfriend’s favorite memories and finally propose to her. Even the girlfriend thought it was nerdy, as after nodding yes, she exclaimed, “You are such a huge nerd! I love this!” The clip is long, so you may want to follow the author’s advice and fast forward to 4:38.

2. Super Mario Bros Proposal

Just a few months ago, this man used an editor called Lunar Magic to construct his proposal inside a game of Super Mario Bros, spelling out “Lisa… Will You Marry Me?” in gold coins. Prime nerd love right there. She said yes!

3. Star Wars Proposal

Let’s step away from video games please, and get ourselves some footage from where real nerds go – to Star Wars conventions. This man proposed at Celebration III in 2005, and you gotta hand it to him on that costume. Quite a nerdy production!

4. Little Big Planet Proposal

Getting back to video games for a moment… this proposal is unique in that it gives the proposed a chance to actually answer yes or no in the game itself. When she marked yes, she was showered in hearts, and the level continued to take her on a ride on a heart shaped and much more. Great creativity here.

5. Cell Phone Proposal

This geek and his friends have set up a rig of hundreds of cell phones, and when the proposer dials a certain number, the LED screens of the phone light up and deliver a romantic message to his surprised girlfriend. Unfortunately, sources tell us this proposal is fake, and that it’s just a viral video designed to promote IBM’s RSC 2009 Developer Conference. If it was real though, pretty cool stuff.

6. Epic Movie Proposal

This one is pretty incredible. Apparently, this guy was able to secure two and a half million dollars in financing for free from Panavision and made a movie preview with body doubles of him and his wife, culminating in a shot of himself proposing. He had taken her to a theater secretly filled with friends and family. This may be a tinge more adorable than nerdy, but hey, film nerds are nerds too.

7. iProposal

It may not be original, but it takes a nerd to recreate an iPhone commercial and turn it into a wedding proposal. Nice work with the album covers… not so sure about the “please” at the end.

8. The Price Is Right Proposal

This man decided to propose on the game show “The Price Is Right”. Amazingly, as he pops the question, he scores a perfect $1.00 on the big wheel, and later wins the showcase showdown. This is a good choice for a nerdy game show to propose on… although personally, I want to see a proposal on a Final Jeopardy answer one day.

9. My Super Proposal

Rand Fishkin, of the Search Engine Optimization company & blog SEOMoz fame, originally wanted to propose to his girlfriend with a Superbowl ad. He raised some money but it wasn’t enough, so instead he proposed to her on a local ad in her favorite show, Veronica Mars. After positively (and adorably) flipping out, she says yes! The leftover money was donated to charity.

10. The Laser Cut Foam Core Proposal

This industrial designer wanted to do something interesting for his proposal, so he designed an art piece in a 3D program on his computer, and then constructed it out of laser cut foam core. He named the piece “My Early Muir Owl” (anagram for ‘will you marry me’) and brought in an actor who he called “Serge Gandaora” (anagram for ‘Sara and George’) to display the art piece at a gallery. Anagrams? Laser cut foam core? Need we say more? And check out that polished video.

11. The Final Fantasy Proposal

1UP Editor-in-chief James "Milkman" Mielke had the nerve (and the good fortune) to be able to ask Final Fantasy music designer Nobuo Uematsu to design the background music for his proposal, in which he featured a ring designed by famed Final Fantasy illustrator Yoshitaka Amano. The whole story is here . Check out the video above for pre-proposal footage of him asking Uematsu.

12. The Disneyland Musical Proposal

This gentleman recently arranged a musical score at Disneyworld to pop his big question. Quite a voice he has, and quite an adorable nerdy catch for his new fiancé.

13. Classic JK Wedding Dancers

Ok, so we’re cheating a little on this one as it’s not a proposal, but this famous adaptation on a wedding procession features some “unique” dance moves and is an absurdly popular YouTube sensation. If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s time.

14. Proposal Gone Wrong

This mild mannered fellow (we’re guessing an accountant of some sort) attempted to propose on live TV… he didn’t do the best job if it, and the results are somewhat painful to see. Ouch.

15 Rocking Google Chrome Extensions

info@laptoplogic.com — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:11:30 +0100

1. Dual View

For those who feel that even tabs are limiting, for those who cannot wait the two seconds it takes to control+tab to the next window, for those who need to see both pages now, the Dual View extension allows you to open two webpages in one browser. Navigation is a little funky, but for those who need to compare without flipping between tabs, you can’t do better than Dual View.

Get Dual View Here!

2. PageRank Status

This extension will appeal to the OCD monster in you (or your crazy blogging habits). Page Rank Status, a bookmark extension, allows you to click and instantly see the Alexa page rank of any website, including your own blog, your friends Facebook page, or some other obscure websites you may be stalking.

Get PageRank Status Here!

3. Adblock+

If we have to explain to you what Adblock+ is, you’re not a well-rounded Firefox addons user and you might be lacking critical comprehension skills. Nonetheless, we’ll tell you anyway, because that’s what we do. Adblock+ is a nifty extension that will take any ad on any website and make it magically disappear as if it had never, ever existed.

Get Adblock+ Here!

4. Click and Clean

The Click and Clean extension is based on the excellent CCleaner tool for PCs and it adds a small tab on the bottom of your browser. When you need to purge your browser history, your cache, cookies, and any other temporary data pertaining to your browser, push the Click and Clean for an instant virtual flush.

Get Click and Clean Here!

5. Bubble Translate

Bubble Translate is a Chrome extension that will translate any text from a foreign language to your native language. To use, simply highlight the text you want to translate, and a small popup bubble will appear above it.

Get Bubble Translate Here!

6. Smooth Scroll

The interesting thing about this extension is that it demonstrates just how anal some people are, and how…er…non-observant others are. Of course, the choppiness of scrolling in Chrome will be affected by your computer to a degree, but overall, you’ll experience a bit of hesitation when using Chrome. This can be remedied with the Smooth extension. Just note that some people claim to see massive improvements, while others see nothing at all.

Get Smooth Scroll Here!

7. Cleeki

Cleeki is a right-click dropdown menu that allows you to perform an array of actions to any highlighted word or text, including searching it on Google, looking up its definition, browsing for it on eBay and Amazon, emailing it to a friend, and many other things.

Get Cleeki Here!

8. AniWeather

This extension will display the current weather in one of 70,000 locations via an animation. It shows the current temperature, wind speed, and humidity, and displays the same info for the next four days. The location can easily be edited and the weather for each day is displayed in a flashing animation.

Get AniWeather Here!

9. Search in GMaps

As the name indicates, this extension allows users to easily search for directions/locations of any address in Google Maps with a single click. To use, highlight an address and then click the Search in GMaps extensions and Google Maps will instantly be pulled up.

Get Search in GMaps Here!

10. Page Editor

Page Editor is similar to Firebug. Run the javascript extension, and from that point on you can edit the content of any website. This is an especially useful tool for Wordpress users, or high school students trying to convince their friends that they’re hackers.

Get Page Editor Here!

11. oAutoPagerize

This auto page script extension for Chrome will automatically load the next webpage in a series on whatever website you’re visiting so that you never have to click the next button. Perfect for streamlined web searches, for those who spend a large amount of time on forums, or scrolling through blog archives.

Get oAutoPagerize Here!

12. Rocker for Chrome

Rocker for Chrome, also known as Chrome Mouse Gestures, is an extension that gives your mouse the ability to ‘rock’ your buttons for forward and backwards browser control. Holding the right button and tapping the left goes backwards, while doing the opposite goes forward.

Get Rocker for Chrome Here!

13. Google Image Relinker

Instead of fighting to click on the ‘view image’ link when searching Google Images, just use this extension to skip straight to the picture. Better yet, you can also choose to view the webpage hosting said image with or without the frame, effectively ridding yourself of the problematic redirection that happens when clicking the ‘remove frame’ link.

Get Google Image Relinker Here!

14. Scrolling Bookmarklets

There are a number of reasons you could need to have hands-free scrolling, none of which are obvious until you actually need them, at which time you don’t have anything to do that because it wasn’t obvious beforehand. Don’t find yourself unprepared—download Scrolling Bookmarkets.

Get Scrolling Bookmarklets Here!

15. McAfee Site Advisor

If you’re the paranoid type, or simply wise enough to be judicious about the websites you visit, the unofficial McAfee Site Advisor extension is probably a welcomed relief. This extension ranks a website based on the security threat and will issue a warning if the site is too dangerous to even visit.

Get McAfee Site Advisor Here!

Is Ubuntu Ready for a Non-tech-savvy Girlfriend?

info@laptoplogic.com — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 01:10:43 +0100

Technology has always been a tough sell for women. However, throughout the years, things have changed. One reason that you hear more women opening up to Windows is that it can be less intimidating than a Mac or even Linux computer.

What Makes Ubuntu Different?

Many people are buzzing about Linux’s newest OS, called Ubuntu, which operates under the open source GNU license. This small and stable operating system is making a splash around the world for it usability and high security levels, unlike previous Linux systems. Though it's cited as a user friendly OS like Microsoft Windows, it's still a Linux based system, so there are some differences when compared to Windows.

While it's not Windows, it's also not a Mac system, although it can be learned quickly once users dip their virtual feet into the Linux environment. Linux has made some big strides with Ubuntu, so we created a list ranking just how easy it can be for the beginner, male or female, to use Ubuntu.

Accessibility

One nice thing about Ubuntu is that it's very easy to find. Thanks to the GNU license, many people can modify and distribute it. It's not dominated by a corporation like the Windows or Mac OS. And while it's open source, meaning that you can download it for free, it can also be sold on the market. It would be highly recommended for those who decide to sell if for a profit to add something of value to make this a worthwhile purchase, because people can get the exact same system for free!

Some versions of Ubuntu that can be found on their website include the Desktop, Netbook, and Server editions. Of course you can also find other variations if you look hard enough., like Edubuntu and Kubuntu. However those two were not put out by the main creators of the original Ubuntu and might not contain all the core components of the original.

Production Tools

Most people use a computer to work or become more productive and Ubuntu is on top of that. Like all other mainstream operating systems, Ubuntu comes fully loaded with productive tools that can used for a multitude of things. Evolution is the software that Ubuntu uses for email, contacts, calendar, and other task features. It appears to work almost exactly like Windows Mail, with the layout included. So this should be easy enough to use even for newbie’s of Linux. This was most likely the goal of the software‘s creators to create an easy to use Windows Mail clone. However if you prefer to use a more well known web based email service, you can. Evolution does allow you to check more than one email account at a time, which should be a time saver for many people.

While it is fully supported and comes along with Ubuntu, you can still use Microsoft Outlook, though third party software (like Wine) is required to run them.

As for IM’ing people, Unbuntu comes with a handy and useful tool called Pidgin. Pidgin is a third party (and free) all-in-one instant messenger-that works like most IM services do, but allows you to have access to all accounts. As with most all-in-one messenger protocols, this will allow you to log in all your IM accounts via one piece of software. Not only does it save you time, but also precious hard drive space. Pidgin is very easy to use and can be easily expanded via plug-ins.

Internet & Web Browsing

Most people who use computers now use it for the internet. This allows us to become so much more productive. Having a good browser is key, and Ubuntu does come well prepared for internet browsing. It comes bundled with Mozilla’s Firefox 3 web browser, which is considered one of the safest web browsers available for use.

Firefox 3 now has easier manageable tagging, history and bookmarks for easier access. Firefox 3 still remains one of the best web browsers available today. It has a high level of protection to keep malware, phishing and viruses away from your PC. Firefox 3 will allow your PC to stay safe without much of a need for technical knowledge. However, most viruses do not run or are designed to run on Linux computers. So Ubuntu also has that advantage along with a safer browser.

Firefox 3 also makes it easy for users to customize and get the most out of their browser. It allows the users to download third party plug-ins to work in Firefox to make it more productive for users.

It also has a built-in ad blocker, so no need to search for a third party application.

Photo Management

Women love photos as keepsakes, they love to make scrapbooks and frame them. Ubuntu has a female user-friendly answer to that called F-Spot Manager. F-Spot Manager allows you to easily tag, upload and share your memories with family and friends.

It features the plug-and-play driver support that so many love about Windows easy interface and usability. Just plug in the camera and click once on import for a full download of your photos to your hard drive. Simple and effective. Once they're uploaded, your photos are ready to be tagged, edited, organized and uploaded.

Multimedia

Most of today’s computers are also used for entertainment purposes, so no system is complete without music and video players. Ubuntu luckily has both bundled with the system. Rhythmbox (the music player) and Totem (video player) only play free and open source file formats. However you can buy codecs to play other formats legally.

Rhythmbox allows you to stream music and download 100% free songs. Thus, you’re not likely to find mainstream radio hits on it, so you’ll have to browse or find something you will like. You can also share your music files on a network for others to hear.

Totem allows you play all types of videos including streaming Youtube, including free and proprietary videos. You can also buy more codecs that will support more file formats as you please.

Office/Business Tools

Whether you use your PC for work, play or school, you will find yourself needing office and business software. Luckily Ubuntu comes with Open Office which is easy and compatible with Microsoft Office. It has a application for spreadsheet, word processor, online notepad (called Tomboy) and presentations.

Open Office is an open source and GNU product, and many people also have created extensions that can extend the abilities of the original.

Conclusion

All in all, Ubuntu isn’t too hard to use or learn for anyone who doesn’t have much technical knowledge. While some of it will be a challenge, most of it isn’t more difficult than Mac or Windows. The look and feel might take some time to get used to, but that's the initial buy-in of picking up a new OS. Knowing the names and locations of what you are looking for can be tricky at first, but you learn pretty quickly.

13 Rocking GIMP Tutorials

info@laptoplogic.com — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 06:10:30 +0100

GimpLite Quickies

If you don’t have the desire to make blends or anything advanced, then the quickie tutorial would be a good start. Basically this covers how to edit the most basics of an image, like re-sizing, cropping, finding info about the image or small projects like that. Very simple and basic. This would also be just a good place to start even if you want to become advanced with the GIMP.

You can view it here - GimpLite Quickies

Simple Animations

While this may sound hard and advanced, it really isn’t. This tutorial is for the more advanced GIMP users who are used to navigating GIMP. But new users can reach this point pretty quickly. This tutorial is fairly easy to learn and will show you exactly how to do it.

You can view it here - Simple Animations

Blog Theme/Template Tutorial

Since almost everybody has a blog nowadays, finding free and unique blog themes are hard to find. So being able to create a good one is key, and with this GIMP tutorial you can learn a valuable skill. While this tutorial shows you how to make the templates, you will need to learn how to code it together. However this is very handy knowledge to have.

You can view it here - Blog Theme

Complete Website Tutorial

On the flip side if you don’t use a blogging platform and you want a whole website, then try this out. This tutorial teaches you not only how to create the layout, but also how to code them so they can be used. Again this is for more advanced users and web designers, it is still good for newbie’s so they can get used to working the tools in the GIMP.

You can view it here - Complete Website Tutorial

Forum Signatures, Icons, Blends and Banners

Have you been on forums, sites or even blogs and have seen those neat multi-imaged graphics that are all one color and sometimes have a faded design? Well this is one tutorial that shows you one way to make them in GIMP. However you can also find many more tutorials that show you other ways and tricks to make them as well.

You can view it here - Forum Signatures, Icons, Blends and Banners

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Custom Brushes

One thing that makes GIMP a great tool is the fact that even if it lacks a certain brush style, you can create the brushes that you want or need. This tutorial will show you the steps you need to create brushes for your own use or for the sharing with the GIMP community.

You can view it here - Custom Brushes

Converting Photoshop Into GIMP Brushes

Of course if you don’t feel like making your own brushes, then you can always download Photoshop brushes and convert them into GIMP brush format. While it is rather simple, it does take some time to get used to converting. This is one of the easier tutorials out there that shows you how.

You can view it here - Converting Photoshop Into GIMP Brushes

Selective Colors

While this may not be done often, it is still fun and useful for general GIMP use - due to the tricky nature of selective colors, this is better suited for people who feel more comfortable with GIMP. This tutorial teaches you how to pick colors to either edit or not to edit. This will likely require a few attempts at first to get it done right.

You can view it here - Selective Colors

Character Drawing

Drawing or sketching on a computer is hard, as it does not allow precise lines - however this tutorial will show you how you can come up with perfect characters without pre-sketching or scanning. This is a very handy tool for any web designer.

You can view it here - Character Drawing

Blending

Now while I recommended another tutorial for making forum signatures, this one goes more in detail about making images blend and fade in together. It’s also easier for people who are just starting out with GIMP, without working with too many layers at once.

You can view it here - Blending

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Colorize Black & White Images

You likely know that with almost every image editing software out there, you can turn any color photo into black and white. However with GIMP, you can also do the exact opposite by taking a black and white image, then turn it into a colored one that doesn’t look fake or edited. This tutorial shows you how.

You can view it here - Colorize Black & White Images

Glass Effect

This tutorial is short and simple, yet it stays right to the point. It shows you how to get the glass or glossy effect that many navigation bars online or buttons seem to have. But it can be used for almost any type of image or graphic you want.

You can view it here - Glass Effect

Air Brushing

Most end users will want to know how to get that perfect celebrity-like photo touching, so no top image editing tutorial list can be complete without naming one. No need to go to Glamor Shots or any other professional photo shoot to get that picture perfect look. You can learn how to do it right at home with the GIMP. This Tutorial will show you how to get smooth skin and whiter teeth whenever you want for whatever photo you want to use. This is one of the better tutorials out there to learn air brushing from.

You can view it here - Air Brushing

While these are not ranked or put in a particular order, some tutorial programs are better than others. The internet is filled with thousands of the same type of GIMP tutorials, but most do not go into detail as these do. Feel free to look around and find your favorite ones to share with us and be sure to let us know what you think of the ones we listed here.

12 Captivating Drives for Every Computer Geek

info@laptoplogic.com — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 23:09:22 +0100

For some people, flash drives are simply a utilitarian tool in the work belt of a geek--small, light, easy to fill with cleaners and backup apps and other software of the trade. For the rest, however, flash drives are almost a fetish. Not only can the tiny bits of circuit and plastic retain essential data (sometimes dozens of gigabytes worth), but they can be disguised in clothing, attached to pocket knives and keychains, molded into resin, and just about anything else your geeky mind can think of.

1. IronKey USB Drive

The USB drive ideal for survivalists, conspiracy theorists, spies, and those with possible multi-million dollar ideas, the IronKey USB drive has a built-in 'self-destruction' and encryption features--the drive is encrypted, and if an incorrect password is entered too many times, the data will be corrupted.

2. USB Card

This USB drive says ‘sophistication’. It is dark and thin, shaped just like a credit card and able to be slipped into a wallet for easy access and removal. Since most people have their wallet on them at all times, this key is as convenient as the ones that go on a key ring, only without the increased likelihood of being crushed.

3. Memory Usage Meter Lexar

This flash drive is unique in that it has a visible meter on the outside of the drive that shows how much space is used up. It is a simple bar that moves up and down, and works quite well.

4. TrekStor USB Drive Bottle Opener

Minimalists believe that the best items are the ones that are multipurpose. If you fall into that group, then you can’t help but be excited over the TrekStor CO USB drive that doubles as a bottle opener. If you have a habit of enjoying a cold bottle of beer with your daily data habits, than this bottle open/USB drive is the perfect addition to your arsenal.

5. Frayed Cord USB Drive

This flash drive will appeal to the same individuals willing to wrap their laptops in duct tape and a bang their camera around on the concrete to make them look less desirable to thieves. This USB drive is places inside the cut-off end of an old USB cable.

6. iDisk Diamond

Perhaps most interesting, I always hear people talk about this little USB drive with the specific purpose of using it to store vital medical information—perhaps because it is so tiny that it can be attached to a bracelet or necklace without burden. No matter the reason, this thin little drive is awesome. The only downside is that with the small price comes small storage; only 256MB to be exact.

7. Imitation Flash Wristband

Colorful wrist bands are still trendy, right? These flash drive wristbands are small plastic bracelets available in a wide range of colors that clasp together at the USB end. The flexible plastic can be morphed for easy access to any computer port.

8. Transcend Biometric USB Drive

Transcend’s biometric USB drive offers all the security of a password without the inconvenience of actually having to remember said word. This flash drive comes with the security of accessing data with your own fingerprint. Of course, depending on the data you keep stored, you might lose your finger in a high stakes game….

##ADSENSE##

9. LaCie iamakey USB Drive

Ok, so the name could have used a little more creativity and thought. That doesn’t mean that this USB drive isn’t awesome, though. The problem with sticking any flash drive on your car keys is that it is quite obviously a USB drive, making it conspicuous to anyone with eyes. The iamakey, however, looks just like a metal keys, and makes it far less likely to be spotted smashed between the house key and car key.

10. Corsair Survivor USB Drive

This drive is perfect for those who are tough on their drives and need one that won’t get smashed in the car door, damaged on the floor, in the rain, or other adverse conditions. The drive is sealed in a little metal canister with a gasket around the lid to keep water out. While it is not waterproof, it is water resistant, and will keep your data safe in the pouring rain (maybe).

11. Imitation Clip USB Drive

The biggest fear (at least, my biggest fear) when carrying around a flash drive is those crappy little plastic openings on the end to fish a keychain or rope through—they’re so small that anyone who does a fair bit of moving around will eventually snap it, and that always seems to happen in the most unfavorable of locations. For that reason, the Clip from Imitation is an excellent device. The USB drive, which is quite slim, fits inside this rubber case, which has a large opening for a metal carabineer—you’re not likely to lose this drive on your morning hike.

12. Black Box Personal Pocket Safe

Black Box’s Personal Pocket Safe is about as close to steampunk as you can get from Amazon. For those who like to be a little retro, this flash drive has a 8 buttons on the top, allowing you to enter a physical code to lock/unlock it.

Work with Windows 7 Efficiently

info@laptoplogic.com — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 08:08:47 +0100

With the looming release of Windows 7, I think that Microsoft is finally getting closer to delivering those requirements.

Below I will highlight some of the new and enhanced features that will make using Windows more efficient than ever.

Super Taskbar

The new task bar in Windows 7 departs from the traditional look of the previous versions of Windows and provides additional features not found in other versions. Among those features is the disappearance of an icon and text box for each open application. They have also expanded the concept of Quick Launch tool bars, improved the use of multiple open windows, and increased the ease of accessing frequently used applications and files via the use of Jump Lists.

Quick Launch is Gone

One of the features that you will notice that is missing is the Quick Launch toolbar. Microsoft has replaced this with the ability to Pinup shortcuts to the Task Bar, much like the Quick Launch bar, without the separation.

##ADSENSE##

Icons Are In

You will also notice that the taskbar now displays icons for the open applications instead of an icon and name. This helps clean up some of the clutter. Multiple windows of the same application will display an icon with overlapping boxes, simply click on the icon and a small window will appear with previews of the open applications for you to access.

Jump Lists

A Jump List is a mini version of your favorites and history put together. When you right-click on application icons located on the Task Bar a Jump List will appear. The Jump List allows you to Pinup your favorite websites (as is the case with Internet Explorer) allow users to quickly access applications and files that are frequently accessed.

After using these features for a while you start to realize the amount of time saved and how Windows is becoming more efficient for you.

Top Freeware Every Computer Should Have

info@laptoplogic.com — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 03:09:34 +0100

AVG Anti-Virus Free

This free anti-virus is a small and non-intrusive anti-virus software that works well. It uses a “Resident Shield” that works well and is even better at detecting some viruses and other threats that Norton and other commercial products can not. Some features are anti-virus, anti-spyware, e-mail scanner, ID Protection(this requires activation by user), resident shield, link scanner and update manager. One detail you may find handy is that the settings are already set for business hours to do a scan when your computer has the best chance of being on(unlike Norton). It also places every infected file or folder it finds into a virus vault (his can be emptied when required) that you do not delete. It also notifies you when it detects bugs or any threats much like most others anti-virus programs, although AVG may find more than their commercial counterparts do. Note-A premium paid version is available, but the free version is just as wonderful.

Where to download- http://free.avg.com

##ADSENSE##

Gimp

This free and advanced image editor very professional, without having the cost of Adobe Photoshop or Paint Shop Pro. You can also download an animation suite to go along with it for a complete pro package. All without paying a dime. It even allows you to create professional designs for web sites. With GIMP being open sourced, it allows users to help build the GIMP even more and to add more features all the time. Many people use it for all types of purposes and it does have large user base that helps the whole GIMP community out. Highly recommended for anyone who needs or wants to do some virtual artwork or layouts.

Where To Download- http://www.gimp.org

CutePDF

This small and simple application is great to turn files into pdfs. It is a virtual printer where you send the desired file to be “printed” into a PDF. It's small and may only have one purpose, but it is a good program to have on hand and perfect for someone who needs a small application to do such.

Where To Download- http://www.cutepdf.com

Miranda IM

Again this small yet multifunction tool allows you to be on all main instant messengers at the same time, while not taking a lot of resources. It even supports IRC chat rooms. Miranda supports AIM,YIM,MSN,ICQ,IRC, and Gadu-Gadu.

Where To Download- http://www.miranda-im.org

Media Monkey

Most OS’s already come with media players. However many do not play all types of audio formats nor can they convert files. This is why Media Monkey is a popular freeware, as it supports many audio files and can convert them easily. While they do offer a paid version (Media Monkey Gold), the free one covers the needs of most users . It looks and acts much like iTunes (minus the music store), however it plays and covers much more audio formats than any other music player around. One thing that comes handy is the easy to make play list and file conversions. Most media players lack both of these tools, so it makes Media Monkey a popular option. You can also “sync” iPods and iPhones with Media Monkey.

Where To Download- http://www.mediamonkey.com

Spybot-Search and Destroy

We all know in the world wide web, we will get infected with spy ware and adware. While Microsoft and many anti-virus companies claim that they cover this-it doesn’t cover it all. So using a third party software that is designed for spy ware and adware alone is the best thing one could use to protect and prevent. Spybot-Search and Destroy is recommended by professional PC repair companies all around the world. This freeware scans your PC for many types of spy ware and adware that your computer may never be scanned for otherwise. It also takes care of tracking cookies and many other types of unwelcomed intruders that attach themselves to your pc. They also allow you to make your computer immune to those known problems and infections, which will allow you not to be re-infected by them again.

Where To Download- http://www.safer-networking.org

While these are just a few applications you can get for free, the internet is full for many more. Many sites have full list of many types of freeware, rather it is system tools to games! A rule of thumb to live by, if they have a commercial version of it, chances are they have a free version of it. So next time you plan on buying software, do a search online and see if you can find something just like it for the cost of nothing

Windows 7: Should you Upgrade?

info@laptoplogic.com — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:09:38 +0100

Should You Switch to Windows 7? Pros, Cons, and an Informed Analysis With Windows 7 making its public debut in just a few short days, this article is for those of you wondering if it's worth the cost of upgrading from Vista. You might have heard some people say that it's Vista with a little more eyecandy, but after running Windows 7 through the gammut for a couple weeks, we can officially say that there's more to it than that. Below are all the features, updates, tricks, tips, and other niceties that have been added to Windows 7 that make it, in our opinion, far superior to Vista. With everything good comes things bad, however, and you want to know about what problems to expect before you drop the change for this bad boy. Knowing that, below you'll also find some cons that you should be aware of, and a final conclusion about who should upgrade and if it's worth its pricetag. If you want some benchmarking stats, skip to the end.

PROS

We'll start with the goods first. Below are all the things we've noticed over Vista and very much like, including new features, minor fixes, and everything in between.

1. Wordpad is Finally Updated

When was the last time you opened Wordpad? Yeah, that's what we thought. Wordpad in Windows 7 is many times the rich-text editor of its yester-edition. It has been completely changed into quite a capable word processor, with ribbons and coloring scheme that looks very similar to Word 2007.

2. Popup Preview

When you hover the mouse over a taskbar app that is active, yet minimized, you can view a real-time preview of the application. If you let the mouse hover for a few seconds, a fullscreen-sized preview will appear over the rest of the windows.

3. Recent Activity Jumplists

Right-clicking on an app in the taskbar, even if it isn't active, will reveal a list of all recent activity performed with that specific app. Right-clicking on the app name within the jumplist will reveal another list that allows you to view properties, run as admin, and other more advanced options.

4. Corrected Recycle Bin Menu

How many times did you accidentally delete the Recycle Bin icon instead of emptying it by clicking delete instead of empty, both of which were listed? Microsoft corrected this minor inconvenience by removing the delete option from the Bin menu.

5. Drag to Resize

Resizing windows has never been as simple as it is in Windows 7. To maximize a window, drag it to the top of the screen. To resize it to half the screen, drag it to the right or left side of the desktop.

##PAGEBREAKS##

6. Rotate Your Desktop Wallpaper

If you're like many computer users, you grow weary of seeing the same wallpaper all the time. Instead of manually changing the wallpaper or downloading an app to do it for you, Windows 7 can be configured to automatically rotate your wallpapers.

7. Open music faster

Many people avoided using Media Player as their primary music player because it took so long to open an song. Microsoft seems to have figured out that we don't need an entire media player open just to listen to a song, so they added a smaller minimalist player that opens quickly when you open a song.

8. The New Taskbar

The taskbars you're used to are no longer existent in Windows 7 (unless you change the settings). In its place is a new taskbar that is visually similar to the KDE bar. It has pinned applications arranged in buttons, and each applications glows when it is active. Minimizes apps are minimized to the applications button, and appear in groups when you hover.

9. Quick Desktop View

Lets say that you want to see your desktop quickly to get the name of a file, check and see if you saved something, or some other reason. One way to do that is to minimize your windows. With Windows 7, all you have to do is move your mouse to the bottom right corner of the screen. All the windows will turn transparent until you move it again.

10. Shake to Minimize

The transparent corner trick is nice, but maybe you want to minimize all the open windows except the one you're using. Instead of manually clicking them all, just grab the menu bar on your active window and shake that app all around. Every other open app that it comes into contact with will minimize. (Note: we've found this feature to be a buggy on occasion if you're shaking a small window on top of a maximized window.)

##PAGEBREAKS##

11. Improved Search Feature

The search bar makes locating files on your computer easier than ever. With Vista, you would search and get a list that was separated into apps and files; if you wanted anything more specific, you had to add filters. In Windows 7, search results are split up into specific types and locations. See the screenshot for an example.

12. Device Stage

Device Stage basically adds everything you could need to manage a device into one easy to use page. You can click links for support and downloads, you can perform tasks that are specific to that device, and even see photos of the device when its plugged in. In addition, manufacturers can create their own Device Stage so that it specifically caters to their customers. Very nice.

##ADSENSE##

13. HomeGroup Sharing

As sad as it is to say, DVD and CD technology is quickly becoming obsolete. Digital media is the way of the future, and most people find it preferable to have digital movies and music over hard disc movie and music. With the increase in cheap desktops, such as the Eee PC and cheap Inspirons, many people are connecting a media computer to their TV. HomeGroup makes it simple to share those media files between all the computers in the house, giving the less-than-tech-savvy users the ability to set up a wireless streaming home media system.

14. Windows XP Mode

I've had some trouble getting certain games (cough, cough Call of Duty) to install, but that isn't a problem because Win 7 comes with an XP mode. You can install and run a program as if you're using XP, which is very convenient when it comes to those games you want to play.

15. Recent Activity Itemized Per Program

You know how in Vista you can click view recent activity in a list, where you'll see music that's been played, files that have been edited, etc? Well in Win 7, each app that can alter and play files has its own dedicated recent activity list, where you can view recent activity performed with that specific app. Example? There is a small arrow next to the menu listing for Word. When you click it, you can see a list of the most recently opened files.

16. View Available Networks

A gripe I had in Vista was the difficulty in viewing the available networks; you'd have to double-click and a pop up window would appear, where you then had to select a network and choose the CONNECT button. That's no longer the case in Windows 7, however: single-left-click on the Wi-Fi meter in the taskbar and a nice available networks popup will appear, where you can do all the connecting and switching you need.

17. Triple-Mode Magnifier

There is a triple-mode magnifier that come with Windows 7, one of which is the normal dock at the top of the screen that shows everything zoomed in. Another mode is full desktop zoom, which zooms the entire desktop, and moving the mouse will make it scroll. The third mode is a small square zoom lens which is stuck to the mouse; when you move the mouse, everything under it is nicely magnified. Overall, it is much easier to use than squinting at the dock on the top of the screen.

CONS

Here's where we mention the less than great stuff. I'm a bit surprised to note that after running this system through the ringer, I'm yet to find more than one bug, which is listed below. I'm sure if you tear through the system enough, you'll find a few annoyances, but overall things are running much more smoothly out of the box than Vista did.

1. BitLocker Won't Relock

They'll eventually get a bug fix out, but if you're looking to purchase Windows 7 Ultimate with the intention of using the very nice BitLocker encryption feature, be aware that, at the time of this article, you can't relock an unlocked drive without rebooting. Some people have had luck running a command line lock script, but to do so you need full admin rights--simply right-clicking on the command prompt and choosing 'run as' won't work.

2. Freezes More Than it Should

I've been using Windows 7 daily for two weeks on a Dell Latitude D620 with a T2300 Duo Core processor and a gig of RAM. Said laptop dualbooted Ubuntu and Vista for a couple years and ran without issues. Vista didn't freeze except when I'd do something less than smart, and it, in general, ran quite nicely.

Windows 7 hasn't been running so nicely.

In my experience so far, using this computer five+ hours a day, it freezes at least a half-dozen times. I am a power user constantly opening and closing browser tabs, switching between AIM and media player, downloading and watching videos... at times, it seems that Windows 7 grabs its hair and screams in frustration (assuming, of course, there's little digital hairs in there).

This issue will probably be ironed out with SP1, and it most definitely isn't a show stopper; the majority of the time, things run fast and smooth. You should be aware of the problem, however, and know that when it does happen, you're going to have to kick your feet back and wait for all the tasks to catch up (which has taken as long as four minutes in my experience, but usually only a few seconds).

CONCLUSION

So, you might ask, is it worth upgrading?

Maybe. I'd say that if you've got Vista running nicely on your computer and its configured the way you want, don't waste your time buying, backing up, installing, updating, and configuring a new OS; the upgraded features aren't really worth it.

If you're wanting the fresh and the best, you like the way it looks, you want to be up-to-date, or any other reason, then my answer is: sure, why not? Except for the occasional hiccup when you start throwing endless processes at it, the system runs nicely. The only bug I've found is one that most users won't even care about (and only on BitLocker). The eye-candy is very nice.

If you're a productivity hound, if you like to be able to work as fast and efficiently as possible, then yes, I recommend that you upgrade. My primary OS has been Ubuntu for the specific reason that I can configure it to work as efficiently as possible, and I must say, I'm really liking the new Windows 7 taskbar and similar features. I can toggle and resize windows in just a few seconds, flip through open apps, view desktop, and scroll through open applications very fast and efficiently. I love the new taskbar and the way it aggregrates open windows into the buttons; you can now have dozens of apps and docs open without seeing a chaotic mess of buttons in the taskbar.

So there you have it. The cool new features. The real-world use. The issues. Go forth and make an informed decision.

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