Jim Sanderson is Digital Journal‘s expert tech advice columnist, author of Lemon Aid: Personal Computers and president of Dominion Business Machines. Check each issue of Digital Journal to get advice from our PC doctor! You can also watch Jim Sanderson on David Onley’s television show HomePage, airing each week on CP24 and Canadian Learning Television. Send your questions and comments to Jim at sanderson@digitaljournal.com.
Q: I’m thinking of buying a notebook and there seems to be a lot of things to consider, so I’m getting a bit frustrated. Any advice? — Carol
A: First, do you need to run any specific programs? If so, check their recommended specs and operating system, as this will immediately narrow your choices. Otherwise, a 60GB hard drive and 512MB of RAM are generally the minimums these days, and an upgrade to one gig of RAM is worth considering. Processor selection can be complicated, but simply put, Intel Mobile Celeron, AMD Sempron and their equivalents are suitable for light and medium users. Intel Centrino, Pentium 4 Mobile, and AMD Turion and Athlon equivalents are recommended for IT professionals and power users (read: high-end graphics and audiovisual applications).
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Finally, some observations about manufacturers: Notebooks from smaller companies usually cost less because they’re built from generic parts and don’t include the manufacturing controls and depth of support provided by bigger names like Toshiba, HP Compaq and IBM. If you choose a lesser-known manufacturer, consider purchasing an extended warranty. Notebook replacement parts can be expensive. Hope that helps, Carol. Good luck with your new system!
Q: Does solid-state flash memory have a lifespan? Is it possible to leave a memory card for a long period of time without the data on it being corrupted? — Patrick
A: These keys do have a lifespan but it’s related to use, not time. As you probably know, flash memory keys are small, versatile and easy to use. Two-gigabyte models are now common, providing enough room for hundreds, even thousands of photos, documents and video files.
The memory employed in these keys has a lifespan that depends on how often it’s used. This is because the insulation that coats the charge-storage mechanism loses a tiny bit of its capability with each erase/write cycle. In simple terms: A key wears out after a certain number of operations. How many? Quite a lot, so don’t worry. Current products are rated between 10,000 and 100,000 cycles. In terms of time, according to research done by Toshiba, a 10,000-cycle endurance provides for a complete erase and rewrite once a day for 27 years — well beyond the expected life of the hardware.
So, Patrick, probably more important will be the lower-tech problems of misplacing the key or forgetting its password. Guard against these issues by backing up regularly to other media and writing down your password. You can fit a lot of hard work on one of these little things, so give some thought to keeping it safe.
Q: I am in the process of upgrading my computer and I have come across memory that’s overclocked. What is this, and do I need to do anything about it? — Cam
As the term implies, Cam, overclocking is the practice of making a computer component run beyond its intended level of performance. This is usually achieved by either modifying a motherboard’s settings, changing values in the mainboard’s BIOS or physically resetting switches on it to “push” a component to perform faster than usual.
In the past, overclocking was most commonly used to speed up the central processor. But now that other system parts — video cards and RAM — can take advantage of customized settings, they too can be boosted. In the case of overclocked memory, the speed at which it accesses the front-side bus (the data channel leading into a CPU) is increased by changing the BIOS value during startup, a one-time operation.
The net result of all this can increase a component’s performance by as much as 10 per cent — an attractive dividend when all that’s required is a single setting change. But there are serious risks to consider, notably voided warranties and excessive heat buildups that cause programs to crash. So this is like souping up your car engine — not recommended unless your computer is a hobby system you like to tinker with for fun. When upgrading, it’s much better to buy parts that are known to be compatible and set your motherboard to drive them at recommended speeds. In your case, Cam, if your system has already been overclocked and is stable and reliable, you’re okay. But you say you’re upgrading, so be careful. If the delicate balance is adversely affected by the new parts, get a reliable technician to reset all the components to factory-approved levels.
Digital Journal recommended products:
LACIE CARTE ORANGE
The size of a credit card with a retractable connector, this USB 2.0 8GB (or 4GB) flash drive is a safe and convenient way to store data.
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VOODOOPC ARIA
Equipped with Microsoft Windows Media Center 2005, the VoodooPC ARIA is a versatile and stylish home entertainment backbone. The ARIA features a built-in touch LCD screen, high-performance audio and video, dual TV tuners and a Logitech remote.
Price : $4,350 (CAN) $3,650 (US)
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