Ask A Geek

Q: What should I do to to my new computer running Windows 7 before I start using?

A: It is that time of year again where students head back to school and people start buying new computers. If you bought a new computer, received a computer, or just want to make sure that your computer is setup securely then you are in the right place! We are going to give you the top 5 things you need to do to your computer to make sure it is safe and we will even throw in 2 extra hints about keeping your data safe! Read the rest of this entry »

Q: The portable hand-held TV’s that I am looking at all run on battery power. I am wondering if the battery is dead if I can plug them in and they will work while also recharging, much like a laptop?

The reason I ask is I want to get something in case we lose power due to a hurricane.

A: The first big thing everyone needs to remember is that we have switched from analog TV to digital TV so you need to make sure you get a digital TV. Technically stores are only allowed to sell digital TV’s so this is only an issue if you are buying a used TV from someone on a site like ebay or if you are planning on using an old portable TV that you have had for a few years. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: What are the main upside and downsides to using an external hard drive verses a hard drive installed in your computer?

A: There are two major upsides to an external hard drive; portability and ability to use it with multiple computers. There are two major downsides to external hard drives as well; speed and reliability. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: Will putting a larger hard drive in my computer make my computer run faster?

A: The size of a hard drive alone will not effect the speed of your computer. In certain circumstances, specifically where your hard drive is completely full, adding a larger hard drive would be required to allow you computer to run correctly but it would not in and of itself speed up your computer. It would just fix the issues related to you not having enough hard drive space. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: Can I backup my text messages from my Android based phone?

A: You can get a free app in the marketplace called SMS Backup by Christoph Studer that will allow you to backup your text messages to a gmail account. If you do not want to backup to a gmail account then you can find other apps that will let you backup your Android based phone to other media.

Q: I want to install a router for my two laptops, one desktop computer, and a Linksys Skype phone. Would a Wireless-N dual-band router with Gigabit Ethernet and USB ports be enough to run all the devices?

A: Your slow point is going to be your Internet connection not your router. The wireless router you are looking at has a lot of nice features and in theory can handle speeds of up to 300 Mbps (more likely to be around 100 Mbps though) over the wireless network and over the wired network it can handle 1000 Mbps. Mbps stands for a million bits per second and is a common way to measure how much data can be transferred in a second. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: I have a Broadband Internet connection that uses a high speed modem connected to cable. I am wondering if turning off the cable modem will protect my computer from hackers when I am not using it.

A: If you turn off or disconnect your cable modem then there is no way for anyone to get to your computer over the Internet so you are protected. It seems like it makes more sense to turn off the computer though since there are some parts of the computer that only have a certain lifespan so by turning it off instead of the modem, or even as well as the modem, could possibly give you more life out of your computer Read the rest of this entry »

Q: What’s the advantage of buying Windows 7 full version over Windows 7 upgrade?

A: The full version of Windows 7 allows you to take a computer that has no operating system at all on it and install Windows 7. The upgrade, while there are some workarounds, expects you to have a licensed version of Windows XP or Windows Vista already installed on the computer. This means you have to old on to your old operating system disc and license key in case you ever have to reinstall Windows again, which would involve installing the older operating system then installing the Windows 7 upgrade. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: I am using Windows XP and I am wondering how you stop the window opening and asking “open with which program”?

A: At the bottom of the window you should see a checkbox that says ‘always open with this program’. If you check the checkbox then moving forward every time you try to access the file it should automatically open with the file you select without prompting you to ask what file program you want to use. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: I have a computer with built in wireless but the closest WiFi hot spot is about 3 miles away. Is anyway to get the WiFi signal to travel 3 miles?

A: Technically it is possible to transmit a WiFi signal 3 miles because the record for the longest transmitted WiFi signal is 238 miles. In the real world a few hundred feet is much closer to the maximum that you will ever see and even then it is limited by any obstacles that are in the way. Maybe some day our WiFi equipment will get better but until then it will just be geeks with too much time on their hands sending WiFi signals long distances.