Sunday, April 24, 2011

Printer

I have bought a dell 560 Inspiron and have a old Hp 1200 laser jet printer. I cannot figure out how to plug the printer in the back of the desktop since there is a connection. Is there an adapter that can be set up here to use this printer?

Reply 1 : Printer

http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?lang=en&cc=us&taskId=115&prodSeriesId=411179&prodTypeId=18972&prodSeriesId=411179&objectID=c00224334 shows it has USB.

Did you try that?

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Options for 2 monitors dv7tQE

I am just curious what my best options are on HP Pavilion dv7t Quad Edition



17inch monitor obviously for the laptop...but is it possible to run 2 monitors off it and have the laptop closed? I know the laptop itself comes with HDMI and VGA. At this time, my monitors don't support that...



I didn't see any docking stations at least on their ordering "process" that had a dock supporting both DVI and VGA...

Reply 1 : Options for 2 monitors dv7tQE

I was told by HP that any notebook that had the VGA and HDMI ports would support an external monitor on each of the ports for 2 external monitors as well as supporting the notebook screen at the same time. Now that being said I have yet to try it myself and will soon do so as I just got my notebook today and have not had time to get to it. Ill let you know how it goes.

Reply 2 : Options for 2 monitors dv7tQE

Properly implemented DVI connections also include conventional VGA signals, all you need is a $5- dongle. The OP might want to check to see if the DVI connector on the available docks properly supports VGA.



With the price of most HP docks I'd be tempted to use something like a Matrox Dual2Go multi-display adapter and drive it from the laptops VGA connector.



As for running a laptop with the cover closed, you want to be damned sure that the cooling arrangements on the machine don't depend on having the keyboard open for airflow.

Reply 3 : Options for 2 monitors dv7tQE

Well I have confirmed that my Pavilion with HDMI and VGA ports will run an external monitor on each port at the same time but this will disable the notebook screen. Or you can run one monitor and the notebook screen. Not 3 together like HP support said that I could.

Reply 4 : Options for 2 monitors dv7tQE

Matrox also makes a triple head2go adapter in both analog and digital versions.



One major upside to the Matrox external boxes is the Most Excellent multi-monitor software they give you.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Darn you, Dell! (re: E6520)

Why'd you have to add a 10-key to the E6520 and the Precision equivilent?



So much uglier than centered keyboard / trackpad.

Reply 1 : Darn you, Dell! (re: E6520)

I know -- or go to that silver brushed cover instead of sticking with black. Not impressed with the looks of the E6520 at all. The hardware/electronics inside the laptop are, undoubtely, top-notch -- but I think they really failed on the design front. Especially since the new keys are going to be smaller.



I guess the dillema for me is will they fix it in the next version -- or should I grab an E6510 while they're still relatively available?

Reply 2 : Darn you, Dell! (re: E6520)

This is gonna be different for everyone as I'm glad they put a dedicated number pad (I want one). As far as appearance it looks fine to me, I like the lid on the E6510 more though. Waiting for reviews on the E6520..

Reply 3 : Darn you, Dell! (re: E6520)


Quote:








Originally Posted by TotalLamer
View Post

Why'd you have to add a 10-key to the E6520 and the Precision equivilent?



So much uglier than centered keyboard / trackpad.



Agreed. Uglier and ergonomically lousy. Those who need a number pad could use a USB pad or an external keyboard in the office and the embedded pad with NumLock+Fn on the road.



And it is an odd decision on a design that otherwise moves away from being a serious business machine (HDMI instead of DP, no USB 3.0, 16:9 display). Add to that the fugly design and Optimus (which precludes using Linux) and I'll be looking elsewhere for new systems. ThinkPad T420s or upcoming Vaio SA or Z might be like nice options.

Reply 4 : Darn you, Dell! (re: E6520)


Quote:








Originally Posted by pitz
View Post

I know -- or go to that silver brushed cover instead of sticking with black. Not impressed with the looks of the E6520 at all. The hardware/electronics inside the laptop are, undoubtely, top-notch -- but I think they really failed on the design front. Especially since the new keys are going to be smaller.



I guess the dillema for me is will they fix it in the next version -- or should I grab an E6510 while they're still relatively available?



I dunno... I like the general design theme (except for the orange ring around the keyboard... ?) I just wish they kept the centered keyboard / trackpad look.



Also... about time they got rid of the HORRID speaker grills that plagued the first 2 gens of E-series. Seriousy... who thought that was a good idea? Constantly trapping dirt and IMPOSSIBLE to clean.

Reply 5 : Darn you, Dell! (re: E6520)


Quote:








Originally Posted by ExParrot
View Post

Agreed. Uglier and ergonomically lousy. Those who need a number pad could use a USB pad or an external keyboard in the office and the embedded pad with NumLock+Fn on the road.



And it is an odd decision on a design that otherwise moves away from being a serious business machine (HDMI instead of DP, no USB 3.0, 16:9 display). Add to that the fugly design and Optimus (which precludes using Linux) and I'll be looking elsewhere for new systems. ThinkPad T420s or upcoming Vaio SA or Z might be like nice options.



Don't you go dissing Optimus now.



That's the holy grail of laptops for me.



I don't want to have a separate "on-the-go" laptop and "gaming" laptop.



Optimus allows both to be the same laptop. Finally.



I'm thinking I might get a W520...

Reply 6 : Darn you, Dell! (re: E6520)


Quote:








Originally Posted by TotalLamer
View Post

Don't you go dissing Optimus now.



That's the holy grail of laptops for me.



I don't want to have a separate "on-the-go" laptop and "gaming" laptop.



Optimus allows both to be the same laptop. Finally.



I'm thinking I might get a W520...



I only dis Optimus because it has been reported to be flaky and, more important to me, prevents the use of Linux unless (pay attention Dell) you provide an override to turn it off (some Vaios have a mechanical switch -- smart). If Optimus is great for you that's fine.



I like the W520 specs also. Note that ThinkPads at least have a BIOS control to disable Optimus so that makes it a potential Linux platform (for those of us who care). Not as convenient as Sony's switch, though.

Reply 7 : Darn you, Dell! (re: E6520)


Quote:








Originally Posted by ExParrot
View Post

I only dis Optimus because it has been reported to be flaky and, more important to me, prevents the use of Linux unless (pay attention Dell) you provide an override to turn it off (some Vaios have a mechanical switch -- smart). If Optimus is great for you that's fine.



I like the W520 specs also. Note that ThinkPads at least have a BIOS control to disable Optimus so that makes it a potential Linux platform (for those of us who care). Not as convenient as Sony's switch, though.



I can 100% confirm that Optimus can be disabled in the BIOS. The Quadro card stays on all the time.

Reply 8 : Darn you, Dell! (re: E6520)

That's only because you have a last-gen Quadro which had the option of a physical or BIOS switch.



No 4xx/4xxx card or greater from Nvidia has a switch for Optimus. Only GTX and GTX-based Quadro can have Nvidia-only mode because the IGP is disabled or not present. The only exception seems to be the 460M, but no manufacturer has implemented it with Optimus.

Reply 9 : Darn you, Dell! (re: E6520)

There is a switch in the BIOS for the Nvidia 4200M



Optimus On = Intel 3000 GPU & Nvidia 4200M

Optimus Off = Nvidia 4200M only

What other pens will work?

I've posted this question in other threads.



I'd like to use a normal size pen instead of the thin one that came with my CF-18, as I have arthritis in my hands.



I have read that any Wacom Penable pen will work, but I have tried one that came with an Intuos tablet (Grip Pen ZP-501E-00A), but it does not work.



Can I do something to make it?



Has anyone succeeded in using a pen such as this?



I am running Windows 7.

Reply 1 : What other pens will work?

I am assuming that this is a digitizer model? If so, then yes, any digitizer pen should work.



Thanks

Reply 2 : What other pens will work?

According to Wacom the "penabled" pen will work with your CF-19 unless it has a different digitizer than the CF-18. The Wacom Intuos tablet is NOT a penabled model, nor is the Bamboo. If there is any misunderstanding, the penabled model pens are listed at the Wacom eStore as . I know I have answered this question before. You will have to search for the type of pen you want, try the tablet forums, but I don't see the type you want on the Wacom eStore any more. They were there a year or so ago.

Rob, all digitizers are very much not the same, nor are the pens interchangeable between the different types.

CAP

Digits? No your digits won't work you need a pen

Edit: I'm in a really good mood so I did your homework for you. http://www.wacom-components.com/english/partner/index.html Any of the listed "Partner" products pens should work, my Motion LS800 came with a very nice full size pen which fits in it's "garage".

Reply 3 : What other pens will work?


Quote:








Originally Posted by capt.dogfish
View Post

all digitizers are very much not the same, nor are the pens interchangeable between the different types.



^^^ agreed ^^^

Reply 4 : What other pens will work?

Thanks!



Just a little confused with CF-18 and CF-19 references in the Captain's post above. I have a CF-18.



At least with the model numbers I was able to go to the European Wacom site.



They list two Penable pens the UP710E and the UP712 and guess what? Both are marked as 'This product is no longer manufactured and is no longer available'!



The US site does not offer International shipping!

Reply 5 : What other pens will work?

Try here maybe. No dealings with these companies. I just Googled the part number with uk.



Insight pen





Wacom UP712 at PinnacleMicroGB.co.uk

Reply 6 : What other pens will work?

The CF-18-19 seem to have the same digitizer. In the link I posted are listed a ton of compatible units from a bunch of different manufacturers. I'll test the Motion LS800 pen on a CF-18 digitizer this evening. There seem to be a lot of Motion users in Europe(mostly for general aviation), so you should be able to get a Motion pen over there. The Model I will be checking is a UP-7110E-63A.

CAP

Reply 7 : What other pens will work?

These are an inexpensive Penabled-compatible Digitizer Pen which I've had good luck with:



New Axiotron Digitizer Pen Modbook & Tablet PC by Wacom | eBay



And the same merchant's webstore if fleaBay auction bites it:



New Axiotron Digitizer Pen Modbook & Tablet PC by Wacom



mnem

Pointy.

Reply 8 : What other pens will work?

Kewl, or as we say up my way, wicked pissah! The Motion, which seems just like the Axiotron pen, works fine with the CF-18 as well, and Motion seems to have a presence in the EU with a slew of web sites, so Martin 4x4 should be able to get what he needs if Wacom won't play nice. The Axiotron is much cheaper than the Motion pen from Motion.

CAP

Reply 9 : What other pens will work?

And while Googling the pen, I came up with this at B&H. Unfortunately, my Panasonic Plasma is only 42".

Hitachi PXDUO-50P Interactive Plasma PX-DUO50P DIGITIZER B&H

Holy CSI Batman!

And this:http://www.logipen.com/lp/logipen_lp...FcTd4AodxX3qDQ

Also pretty nice. You could go crazy Googling, you really could.

CAP

HP Pavilion dv3-4050ea opinions

Hi,



I'm considering buying the new HP Pavilion dv3-4050ea but I haven't found any reviews or people's experiences about it. Does anyone have it or played with one?



I would like to know if it heats too much (is it comfortable on your lap?) and what is the battery life in light/internet usage scenario.



Details about it:









* Intel Core i5-450M Processor 2.4 GHz, Level 3 cache 3 MB

* 13.3" 1366 x 768 diagonal High-Definition LED HP BrightView

* 4 GB DDR3 (2 x 2048 MB, max: 8GB)

* 500 GB SATA Hard Disk Drive 7200 rpm

* SATA optical drive: LightScribe SuperMulti DVDR/RW with

Double Layer Support

* ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5450 Graphics (switchable), up to

2202 MB total graphics memory with 512 MB DDR3 dedicated

* HP TrueVision Webcam with Integrated Digital Microphone

* Altec Lansing speakers

* 3 USB 2.0 ports (3rd shared with eSATA port)

* HDMI output

* Integrated 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN

* 802.11 b/g/n; Bluetooth wireless networking

* 5-in-1 integrated Digital Media Reader for Secure Digital cards,

MultiMedia cards, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro or xD Picture

cards

* Weight: 2.085 kg / 4.6lbs

* 6-cell lithium-ion battery



Product page



Thanks

Reply 1 : HP Pavilion dv3-4050ea opinions

I actually ordered this laptop yesterday so it should come early next week. if anyone can tell me what possible issues to look out for that would be great also if anyone has some questions ill be happy to answer them when I get it.

Reply 2 : HP Pavilion dv3-4050ea opinions

Hi guys how did you get on with this laptop? I'm considering it too but there isn't much info out there for it. Thanks

Reply 3 : HP Pavilion dv3-4050ea opinions

hi guys, got my laptop today so i thought id just give a few first impressions.

overall im very impressed with the build quality, look and feel. its very quick and snappy in everything ive done so far. a big plus for me is the keyboard which is very well spaced and each key has great travel and clicky feel to them. the track pad really isnt as bad as what alot of reviews said about other laptops, it just needs a little time to get use to it (not as good as a mbp trackpad but w7 is better than osx imo).

the screen is really good too and isnt as reflective as i expected and is fine at about 50% brightness.

A couple of issues i found is that use can hear the fan but its not that annoying and music easily masks this even at low volume. Two more issues i found was that the speak seems to click when i do certain things ie click on weblinks which I know its supposed too anyway but is dosnt sound normal to me; the other problem i have is that the fingerprint reader really dosnt work. I dont think its broken its just that the device manager dosnt detect it and no amount of fiddling with drivers seems to provide a fix.



in all im very happy with the laptop and i would be very happy to recommend it, ill post pictures and info if anyone is interested.

Reply 4 : HP Pavilion dv3-4050ea opinions

Good stuff. I had a look at it in Dixons and its pretty nice, compact, and the screen seems reasonable as well. Seemed pretty light but didn't have the battery in at the time. It could be a bit more solid (think my Dell Studio 15 is a bit tougher) but fine if you ask me.



Decisions decisions! let me know if you notice anything else good or bad about it

Reply 5 : HP Pavilion dv3-4050ea opinions

well i've had it a few days now and im still happy with it apart from the fingerprint scanner still not working. after spending the best part of 3 days trying to fix it, i've given up and I called Hp support and they are going to pick it up tomorrow. I would still defiantly recommend it as its very solid to the touch and looks the part on my desk.

Reply 6 : HP Pavilion dv3-4050ea opinions

do you mind putting up some pictures?



Also comment on the built in cooling system perhaps?

Reply 7 : HP Pavilion dv3-4050ea opinions

ordered mine yesterday - will arrive while I'm in Ibiza so as soon as I'm back will post comments.



750 from PC World with discount code (despite normally telling my clients NEVER buy from PC World, for the discount I thought definitely worth it!)

Reply 8 : HP Pavilion dv3-4050ea opinions

Did anyones come with a remote?

Reply 9 : HP Pavilion dv3-4050ea opinions

for those lucky owners, how about the battery life? 'cause I am thinking about buying this but the weight and the battery life are crucial for me.



In my opinion 2kg is heavy, but it worth with such a good performance, so if the battery life is up to 6h with a normal use and with the wifi on, for sure I will buy it!

Reinstalling OS problem

I've bought my new DELL VOSTRO A180. Once I've installed window but after that I tried to reinstall Win XP, 7, 98 but for each, after copying files when system reboots, it does further installs window but stops at message "Press any key to boot from CD". So what should I do now??

GOBI in a new CF-52 or CF-31 with i3/i5 CPU

Does anyone know how to activate the slot for the GOBI device?

All new CF-52 and CF-31 as well with the i3/5 CPU do not have a dip switch to activate the slot for the GOBI device.

The CF-30, 19 and CF-52 MK1/2 always have 2 or 4 dip switches to configure the slot.

Does anyone have an idea???

Reply 1 : GOBI in a new CF-52 or CF-31 with i3/i5 CPU

Does it show WWAN "enabled" in the BIOS? Did the GOBI come installed OEM or did you install it? Have you installed the CSA application from Panasonic?



Glen

Reply 2 : GOBI in a new CF-52 or CF-31 with i3/i5 CPU

The CSA application is only for the US; users of Toughbooks outside the US (or Canada possibly) do *not* need the CSA at all for any reason.



The DIP switches have disappeared as there is now only one 3G modem (that is used on Europe and in the US, the DIP switches used to configure the antenna between EVDO and UMTS modes as well as some other stuff).



And lastly, the BIOS is not configured for HSPA (Gobi) unless you have actually bought the Toughbook with HSPA. This means that if you bought the device without HSPA (and have retrofitted the Gobi device yourself), then you may not be able to enable it in the BIOS unless someone can prise a BIOS patch out of Panasonic or knows of some way around it.

Reply 3 : GOBI in a new CF-52 or CF-31 with i3/i5 CPU


Quote:








Originally Posted by r-d-e
View Post

Does anyone know how to activate the slot for the GOBI device?

All new CF-52 and CF-31 as well with the i3/5 CPU do not have a dip switch to activate the slot for the GOBI device.

The CF-30, 19 and CF-52 MK1/2 always have 2 or 4 dip switches to configure the slot.

Does anyone have an idea???



The CF-52 MK 3 and the CF-31's use a Gobi 2000 modem. To activate the slot for the Gobi device, you have to enable it in the BIOS. The bad thing is that it's a written program (I don't know the name of) that is "programed" into the BIOS.



Toughbooks that use the Gobi 1000 modem, dipswitch settings enable the slot. You probably already knew that though.

Reply 4 : GOBI in a new CF-52 or CF-31 with i3/i5 CPU

Resellers can do it, so obviously it can be done.

Reply 5 : GOBI in a new CF-52 or CF-31 with i3/i5 CPU


Quote:








Originally Posted by old busted
View Post

Resellers can do it, so obviously it can be done.



You're right it can be done. In my previous post I said it could be done.

Reply 6 : GOBI in a new CF-52 or CF-31 with i3/i5 CPU


Quote:








Originally Posted by Comptronic
View Post

To activate the slot for the Gobi device, you have to enable it in the BIOS. The bad thing is that it's a written program (I don't know the name of) that is "programed" into the BIOS.



Before the WWAN:Enable/Disable option appears in the BIOS (assuming a WWAN card is present), there is a flag in the BIOS for the WWAN that is invisible.



If the flag is set to disable, then the WWAN:Enable/Disable option will not appear, regardless of whether the WWAN card is there or not.



If the flag is set to enable, then the WWAN:Enable/Disable option will be present if the WWAN card is also present.



In Europe, the flag is set to disable by default for other reasons: if you order a 3G Toughbook unit, then the flag is set to enable. I'd presume the same is similar in the US, but obviously I'm not entirely sure.

Reply 7 : GOBI in a new CF-52 or CF-31 with i3/i5 CPU

So the million dollar question is: How do you set the flag to enable?




Quote:








Originally Posted by Pinecone
View Post

In Europe, the flag is set to disable by default for other reasons



What are these "other reasons"?



Glen

Reply 8 : GOBI in a new CF-52 or CF-31 with i3/i5 CPU

My assumption would be antenna-related, not really sure.



As for flipping the flag, I think you can do it with the BIOS update exe (BU52m3.exe or whatever) but I'm not sure on the syntax and Panasonic are horrific at documenting the switches by /?

Reply 9 : GOBI in a new CF-52 or CF-31 with i3/i5 CPU


Quote:








Originally Posted by Pinecone
View Post

My assumption would be antenna-related, not really sure.



As for flipping the flag, I think you can do it with the BIOS update exe (BU52m3.exe or whatever) but I'm not sure on the syntax and Panasonic are horrific at documenting the switches by /?



I wouldn't say they're horrific. I do agree that they do make some mistakes on their documentation and procedures.