This post is long overdue but I am excited to be getting the opportunity to review the Xpad4Laptop’s and share my opinions

First and foremost this product does exactly what it needs to do. When using the Xpad4Laptop’s it was able to keep my HP DDv2700 series laptop up to ten degrees cooler than just sitting it on the desk.

One of the great things about this cooling pads is that it does not have any fans. It’s design is sound and allow the air to flow in and out of the laptop more naturally or how the laptop was designed.

When comparing the Xpad to other more complex cooling pads the Xpad not only out performed but also provided a more stable pad for the laptop to sit on. (Compared to the rocketfish fan cooled system.)

Overall I think this is an excellent product and recommend it to anyone looking to get a fan-less cooling pad.

As a side note I put the Xpad under my mac mini just to see and to my surprise it was able to keep the mac mini right around six degrees cooler.

P.S – View review coming soon!

If you’re reading this, you are hopefully a Windows user. If you are anything but a Windows user, enjoy the rest of the site. This particular post is meant to be a resource for those that have experienced the irreversible crashing or feel the need to restore their PC to the factory default conditions by reformatting. Either way, this post is here to help individuals seek a number of programs, through this single resource, to aid in the crash & reformat process. I would recommend downloading these programs and backing them up on an external source, such as a USB jump drive, external hard drive, or even copying them to a DVD-RW drive so you can install these programs before connecting to the Internet again.

Disclaimer: This is only meant as a compiled resource. I do not necessary recommend or endorse any one or numerous programs in this guide. However, I have placed a ** in front of them as they conform to my needs. Your particular needs may be different, depending on how often you use your Windows PC and what you use it for.

Service Packs: Service Packs are essential to your Windows operating system. They provide essential performance and security updates to help your Windows machine run more efficiently and be more secure.

Windows Vista

All versions: Service Pack 1

Windows XP

1. Home/Professional Edition (32 bit): Service Pack 1, Service Pack 2*, Service Pack 3*

Anti-Virus Software: There is a number of good anti-virus software out on the market. Some are paid versions while others are freeware versions. Personally, I believe that some of the freeware versions are equivalent to the paid versions, so I will be providing a number of anti-virus freeware.

1.**Avast Home Edition: I switched to Avast from AVG recently and I have to say, I’m glad I made the switch. Avast is a lightweight program specifically designed to find any all viruses, even the incoming ones, and remove them. Avast is ideal if you plan on running a separate, more sophisticated Anti-Spyware program.

2. AVG Free 8.0: AVG is one of the more popular free anti-virus software on the Internet. It combines its comprehensive Anti-Virus protection along with its newly created anti-spyware protection to keep your Windows machine protected and help it run more smoothly. AVG also comes with other tools in its software as well to help protect you while reading e-mail, surfing the Internet, and much more.

3. Avira AntiVir Personal: With extensive malware recognition of viruses, trojans, backdoor programs, worms, and more Avira makes Anti-Virus ideal for any Windows PC. Installation and configuration are done in a couple of steps. A help forum and phonme support are available, as well as a Knowledge base with virus descriptions available on the web site.

Anti-Spyware: Anti-Spyware software helps protect your Windows machine from unwanted and harmful malicious software intending to ruin the performance and security of your PC.

1.**SUPERAntiSpyware: Don’t let the cheesy name fool you. This program is considered on of the best out there. It’s light on system resources and has a very high detection rate. It’s unique repair tool makes this program one of a kind.

2.**Spybot Search and Destroy: Spybot is another unique anti-spyware program. Not only does Spybot remove spyware and other malware from your PC but it can also use methods inside of your browser to protect it from future attacks. That’s not all, though. Spybot also has the ability to back up your registry and recover components that may have been lost due to the spyware purging.

3. MalwareByte’s AntiMalware: A baby to the Anti-Spyware conglomerate, MBAM is a program that can detect some of the more advanced malware. It includes a number of features, including a built-in protection monitor that block malicious processes before they even start.

4. Ad-Aware 8.0 (Anniversary Edition): Lavasoft does a nice job when it comes to removing spyware. Ranked number one on download.com, Ad-Aware is most effective when combined with other security tools.

Firewalls: Another crucial component to protecting your Windows machine, a firewall acts as a filter keeping malware out and helps to keep your PC running as it should. If you’re looking for something to replace Windows Firewall, here are four really good suggestions.

1. Comodo Firewall Pro: “It’s Pro? And it’s free?” Absolutely! Comodo Firewall Pro has a number of components inside of this program to maximize the protection of your PC. First it has its Network Defense and Proactive Defense components, providing protection on the inside and outside of your Internet connection. Second, it has it’s own malware scanner, which will scan upon installation. Comodo also contains a variety of other tools to help you with your PC’s security: View Active Connections, My Network Zones, View Firewall Events, and much more.

2. Zone Alarm: Zone Alarm Free, fortunately, is now available for your Windows Vista machine. And, thankfully, it is still a #1 firewall used amongst Windows 2000 and XP users. Zone Alarm is a more unbloated version of Comodo, in that it only does a few simple tasks. First, the firewall portion protects your PC at your discretion, allowing you to set the filter on certain applications connecting to the Internet. Second, the Internet lock halts all web traffic while your Windows 200o/XP machine is not in use or if you have not opened a web browser. Third, the Zones portion of the program monitors overall activity on your PC and notified you when a new application wants to connect to the Internet.

3. Sunbelt Personal Firewall: Sunbelt Personal Firewall helps users control how their computers exchange data with other computers on the Internet or within the local network. It’s a necessity for all desktop computers connected to a broadband Internet. Versions 4.2.2 and prior are FREE for home and personal use.

4. Sygate Personal Firewall: Whether your working, banking, gaming, or even chatting, Sygate protects your Windows machine by actively looking for Trojan applications and hostile intruders that wish to break your system. If an attempt occurs, it blocks it by default. The same is true for applications; if an unauthorized application attempts to access the Internet, it, too, will be blocked by default. (Note: Since November 30th, 2005, all Sygate Firewall products have been discontinued. The last version is still available through the above link.)

Internet Browsers: Having the right Internet browser makes all the difference when it comes to your PC. It’s good to have an all-around browser: fast, open source, and secure. Having all three of these components in a browser will make your Internet browsing more enjoyable and less of a hassle.

1. Mozilla Firefox: One of the more common browsers on the open source market today, Firefox is known for its speed as well as its flexibility when it comes to your browsing experience. Firefox has over 5,000 add-ons and plug-ins to make your browsing experience more secure and enjoyable for you. Integrated anti-phising and anti-malware measures within the browser make this Internet browser a must have.

2. Internet Explorer 8: The recently released IE 8 is supposedly faster, safer, and more customizable. If you use IE 7 and are looking to update, click the link above.

3. Avant: The Avant browser is more of a secret in the web-browsing community, in my opinion. Avant is based on Microsoft Internet Explorer’s rendering engine but built by a smaller programming firm. Avant is wicked fast and preloaded with an abundance of skins for personalization. Tabbed browsing and toolbars are also features of this browser, among others. Avant lacks expansion and has been known to create problems in Vista. This is a good alternative to IE.

4. Maxthon: For those of you who want to try something different from IE and Firefox, Maxathon is a good alternative. With its ADs blocker and advanced content filter, Maxthon is ideal for those that want to escape from “the norm”.

5. Flock: Flock, as the company is aptly named, believes that users today are using the Web differently than they did years ago. Flock believes that the web browsers of today have not kept pace with these changes in online behavior. Hence, the browser ‘Flock’ was born, an open source browser that meets the stands of today’s web browsing. Many versions of Flock are available.

6. Safari: Safari is Apple’s pride and job web browser. All though it was designed for the Mac OS platform, it has also been made avaialbelt o Windows users.

7. Opera: Opera is a little farther along in the web browser community in terms of development. Opera is the only Web browser that comes complete with everything you need to productive, safe, and fast on the Internet.

8. Seamonkey: Formerly known as the “Mozilla Application Suite”, Seamonkey contains a web browser, a mail client, an HTML editor, Web development tools, and an IRC chat client all in one package. Ideal for those that want a somewhat leightwieght application to do a number of tasks.

9. Netscape Navigator: An oldie to the browsing community, Netscape Navigator offers high speed web browsing and instant messaging capabilities as well as tabbed browsing, support for buddy icons, and more.

10. Google Chrome: A newbie to the browsing community, Google Chrome combines a design sophisticated with technologies that allow your to surf the Web faster, safer, and easier. (Note: The download link above will take you to the Google Chrome website, where you must accept the EULA before downloading. Also, the 474k downloadable file is only a stub installer. You must remain connected to the Internet during installation to complete the full download of Google Chrome.)

File Clean-up/Recovery: File Clean-up programs are nice to get any un-needed files off of your system. What is an un-needed file? Anything in your Temporary Internet Folder, cookies, sometimes the tmp, etc. Some browsers can clean up your files, while there are other more sophisticated programs to clean up the rest of the junk. File Recovery programs allow you to retrieve files that have been deleted permanently from your hard drive and recover them to a manageable state.

1. Ccleaner: Formerly known as “Crap Cleaner”, this program cleans your hard drive of all un-necessary files that clutter your hard drive. This free system optimization tool removes such files to give Windows the ability to run fast and free up needed disk space.

2. ATF Cleaner: ATF Cleaner is a nice program if you don’t want to install another program onto your hard drive. It’s easy interface makes cleaning up files a breeze.

3. Recuva: Don’t let this program’s pronunciation fool you. Pronounced “recover”, this file recovery technology allows you to recover files that have been permanently deleted from your system, whether it was by you, a virus, or even an annoying Windows error.

Fun Programs: Every Windows machine should have some sort of interesting and appealing program on it. Check out these programs below:

1. ObjectDock: A program from Stardock, ObjectDock gives Windows users the feel for the Mac OS X dock. Customizable icons, grouped icons, and other customizable features make this program a must have.

2. Automatic Wallpaper Changer: I’m sure the lot of you tend to change your wallpaper often, so this program is a must have for you. AWC, as it is commonly called, allows you to set a timer between wallpaper changes as well as customize other particulars with the program.

3. Desktop Sidebar: If you’re a Windows XP user, you may to a certain extent envy the Windows Vista sidebar. Well, envy no more. Desktop Sidebar has a variety of features that you’ll drool over. Preinstalled features include a System Performance monitor, RSS feed, Calendar, Volume Control, Media Player, Shortcut area, and weather information, just to name a few.

Well, here you have it. Your guide to for your Windows machine. Everything you need to getting started on your new Windows machine, whether your new to Windows or simply recovering from a crash or reformat. If you have any other programs you wish to see on this list, please leave a comment.

* Also available for the Tablet and Media Center Editions

Windows Wednesday for April 15, 2009
The Ultimate Guide to Securing your PC. The topics included Updating your computer, Installing Malware Protection, Installing a Firewall and Fun things to do when you are secure.

For more information about the topic’s discussed on the 15th please visit Zetacon’s Post “Your Ultimate Guide to Windows (Part 1)”

Questions brought up during the show :

• Is AVG still going to provide a free version in the future? The question to this answer is Yes. AVG is still going to provide a free version of their software to End Users. Emails that AVG users got about AVG not being free was a fishing attempt.
• What is a good linux CD to download and burn to help me try to fix my broken and infected computer? Our recommendation is SystemRescueCD it will allow you to boot to a live CD to try to fix the most common of system issue.

Dave answers your questions about how he records audio for our podcasts and shows you a few tips getting started with your own audio setup.

Using his Alesis MULTIMIX8 FireWire Mixer he can record up to 8 different channels, gives a brief description of the “knobs” on this mixer and shows you his preferences for mixing his audio.

Along with his mixer Dave uses the Marshall MXL990 XLR Condenser Mic and Heil PL2T Mic Arm to position the mic for optimal recording.

Next Dave explains how to setup the Alesis mixer in Garage Band to get the 8 different recoding channels if need be. Along with setting up the mixer we get a look into some basic features of Garage Band and techniques for podcasters!

Watch the video above for more details and if you have any questions do not hesitate to leave a text response below or shoot Dave and email at David@geekologist.net

The Lenovo S10 Netbook is one of the more affordable and reliable Ultra Mobile PC’s on the market. Check out the specs and details below

Pros:

• Large keyboard compared to most Ultra Mobile PC’s
• Express Card slot.

Cons:

• Poor battery life.
• Less than expected system specs compared to the EEE PC.

Specs:

Starting price	$439
Processor	1.6GHz Intel Atom N270
Memory	1GB, DDR2 SDRAM 533MHz
Hard drive	160GB 5,400rpm
Chipset	Mobile Intel 945 Express;
Graphics	Intel GMA 950
Operating System	Windows XP Home Edition SP3
Dimensions (WDH)	9.9×7.3×1.0 inches
Screen size (diagonal)	10.2 inches
System weight / Weight with AC adapter	2.7/3.4 pounds

If you have anymore questions do hesitate to leave a comment below

Wireless keyboard and mouse combos are continually to grow in popularity. They’re perfect for typing while you are sitting back and relaxing, keeping pets from getting tangled in the wires, and keeping an overal clean look on your desk. However, sometimes your keyboard will just not work, whether you’re hooking it up to another computer or even simply changing the batteries. The following is a troubleshooting guide to aide you in getting your wireless/keyboard mouse combo functioning properly again.

1. Follow the instructions provided in your user manual for connecting the keyboard and mouse to the wireless sensor. If reconnecting does not work, go on to the next step.

2. Check to make sure the batteries are not dead. While this may seem like the most basic thing to check, it can also be overlooked. Some wireless sensors can even tell you when the battery is dying or dead. If the batteries are dead, install a fresh set of batteries and reconnect the keyboard and mouse.

3. Check the drivers for possible updates. Although not often a common problem, you should have Windows Device Manager check for it automatically or check the manufacturer’s website yourself.

4. Uninstall the drivers, unplug the wireless sensor, and restart your computer. Once your computer is fully booted, plus the wireless sensor back in and allow Windows to recognize the device. Sometimes a fresh install of the drivers will allow the keyboard/mouse combo to work again.

5. Battery Conductor Nodes. Look on the inside of the battery compartment, specifically at the positive/negative node springs, whichever is easier to access. If the spring is compressed, it means the springs are not receiving the electric charge from the battery to power it. Therefore, the spring needs to be uncompressed. Take a small screwdriver and carefully pop the spring out a little bit. Reinstall the batteries.

These are very basic things to check before assuming that your keyboard/mouse is completely dead. If your keyboard/mouse combo continues to cease functioning, consult your owner’s manual for further specific troubleshooting.