September 8 , 2006
Back to School and Back to Work
We hope you had a good restful Summer. Now it's time for work, so let's talk about ways to improve your productivity and avoid computer hassles that can waste so much time and fray your nerves.
Yours truly,
Avi Smith-Rapaport, We Care Computers LLC
Could Your Laptop Spontaneously Combust?
Not
too long ago a UPS
cargo jet burned when a shipment
of laptop batteries lit themselves on fire. (Thankfully there were no serious
injuries.) The problem was traced to Sony, the battery manufacturer.
Apparently impurities in the affected batteries slowly work their
way to the surface and pierce the battery cells, resulting
in short circuits. Laptops need a lot of energy to run unplugged for
hours at a time. Imagine that energy released all at once!
Dell has recalled 4.1 million laptop batteries. You can check if yours is affected here: http://www.dellbatteryprogram.com/.
Apple has recalled 1.1 million batteries. Check your serial numbers here: https://support.apple.com/ibook_powerbook/batteryexchange/.
Laptop Repair Now Available
When your laptop breaks you really don't want to wait weeks to send it across the country for repair. If you don't have an on-site service contract or warranty coverage, your favorite neighborhood computer service (Yo!) can fix laptops at a reasonable cost. Laptops have replaceable components, just like desktop computers. Don't suffer with slow repair service. Get help with your laptop.
Dead Disks and Data Recovery
Oh no! Did your hard disk self-destruct? We hope you were using one of our recommended backup solutions. If not, how can you recover all your valuable data? We can suggest two possible solutions:
- Many times we've been able to recover data from dead disks in our workshop. Shop service can cost several hundred dollars and takes a few days.
- If that fails and your data is really important, we can send your disk to a secret laboratory in Israel run by the world's top data security experts. This service can be a lifesaver, but it's not cheap.
By the way, if your computer ever starts making funny sounds, that could be your hard disk about to wipeout your data at 7200 rpm. Don't wait for that to happen! Replacing the hard disk before it fails is easier, cheaper and a lot less stressful.
More Free Stuff From Google
I've been testing a variety of experimental services from Google Labs. Google Calendar and Google Groups are especially useful, and free.
Google Calendar allows you to create multiple, color-coded calendars. You can have separate calendars for work, school, and home, and check a box to display or hide each one. Best of all, you can share calendars with other Google users.
Now my wife and I can look at each other's calendars and add events to them. I've also created a separate calendar for each kid so we can tell who has to be where and when. The program is so simple anyone can learn to use it in just a few minutes.
Google Groups is a way to create an online mailing list and XML feed. The group has an administrator to control who can join the list. Messages can be sent to one group mailing address for distribution to everyone, rather than having to CC a long list of people. Recipients can join the list (subject to approval) or remove themselves. This saves tons of time, and also prevents recipients from accidentally replying to all by mistake.
--
That wraps up this newsletter. Thank you for reading! We look forward to hearing from you soon.
Avi Smith-Rapaport
