Hardware

Infopackets Reader Walt H. asks: " Is it possible to create an image [backup] of your hard drive to an external USB hard drive? If so, what limits are there in creating the image and restoring it? I can't add another hard drive to my laptop, plus I ... thought a portable USB drive could allow me to image more than one computer. " Side note: USB is short from for Universal Serial Bus. It's a small port usually located at the back of your computer and is pretty much the standard connection used for external computer peripherals today (such scanner, mouse, keyboard, printer, etc). My ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Reza M. asks, " Can you tell me, how I can update my computer's main board BIOS? " My Response: Flashing a BIOS simply means to update the BIOS. A BIOS is a computer chip which contains simple instructions required for operation ... particular to a device. Since not all main boards are the same, the steps taken for flashing a motherboard BIOS can only be generalized. I will attempt to explain the procedure, but must first advise: do not flash your BIOS unless you absolutely need to (IE: an update is required to have the device function properly). The reasoning for ... (view more)

This article is a bit technical and relies on know-how from a previous article I've written about RAID. In brief, the word 'RAID' is a techy-term which stands for Redundant Array of Independent (or Inexpensive) Disks. A hard disk array is simply a ... bunch of hard drives chained together. Benefits of using RAID are generally two-fold, and include: increased file read / write performance (known as RAID-0), and data redundancy for backup purposes (known as RAID-1). I've previously written an article about RAID if you would like to read up on it . It is very simplistic and explains RAID essentials ... (view more)

How do you record audio from a tape cassette to the computer, and finally, to a CD recordable disc? That was the question I asked Infopackets Readers in yesterday's visitor feedback section of the Gazett e. Before I get into the reader's ... submissions, let me first point out that a few users recommended using the Line In port instead instead of the MIC port (as I suggested yesterday), for clarity reasons. Chris M. and Kooby both write: " It is better to use the Line Out or Aux RCA output on the stereo receiver rather than the tape player, because now you could record LP's, radio, or ... (view more)

Tom S. asks: " I have some old cassette tapes I would like to put on CD using my computer's CD burner. How do I hook the cassette player to the CD burner to get the best audio quality? " My Response: Audio quality with respect to a cassette tape ... recorded to a CD will only be as good as the source (tape) and the equipment used to read the tape and input it to the computer ... and of course, the ability to modify the digital recording in order to improve sound. Two great reasons for recording your analog tapes to digital might include: a) wear and tear: digital media doesn't lose its ... (view more)

My computer sound system is about 10 years old. I remember when I first got my sound system. It was the first of its kind: the Labtec SB-8 came equipped with two satellite speakers and a separate subwoofer. A beautiful sound system, indeed. The ... Labtec woofer sits on the floor and has an adjustment knob for bass intensity. It sure does produce some loud thumps! The two satellite speakers sit near by monitor and allow me to further adjust bass and treble at a push of a button. I can even plug in a headset for quiet listening. All of these options are pretty standard these days on sound systems ... (view more)

CMOS or BIOS? What's the difference? The CMOS (pronounced "sea moss") is a computer chip responsible for storing settings of a computer system. The word "CMOS" is actually an acronym which stands for Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor. Try and ... say that 10 times without slipping! Most users have undoubtedly witnessed a message stating "Press DEL to enter Setup", or something similar when a computer has been powered on. If the DEL key was pressed at this instance, something called a CMOS utility screen would appear on the screen. Various hardware settings can ... (view more)

This is the third installment on a series of comments based on the following scenario: " When someone buys a new computer (either brand name or clone) that is preloaded with an Operating System (OS), is the seller obliged to give the client an ... original CD which includes the Operating System? " Last week I provided various short-but-sweet answers to the above question from various readers of the Infopackets Gazette. The gist was that retailers are required to provide Windows on a CD, whether it comes pre-packaged like Compaq, and Dell machines do -- or, if it comes with the basic ... (view more)

Last week, I wrote an article which listed Xmas Gift ideas for under $50 bucks. In the list of suggestions, I mentioned that I've used ink refill kits with my Canon BJ-200 for about 10 years now and have had great success. The same day I posted the ... article, a received an email from Derek M. who disagrees with the use of ink refill kits. Derek writes: " One of the things you recommended in your list of inexpensive tech-related gifts was ink refill kits, and you cited refilling a Canon BJ-200 series printer. Many of the other ideas (optical mice, keyboards, speakers, etc.) were very good ... (view more)

Update 20181211 : Notice to readers: this article is quite old (originally posted 2002), but still provides an excellent overview of computer processor history from the early 1990s to 2002. If you want to read a much more recent and up-to-date ... article about processors, we suggest reading " Which Processor is Better: Intel or AMD? - Explained ". Otherwise, please continue reading! -- Almost exactly a year ago this day I wrote an article which compared differences between AMD and Intel Processors. Oddly enough, today I received a question from Ali N. which asked, "What is the ... (view more)