How to Turn an Old Internal Hard Drive Into an External Drive

How to Turn an Old Internal Hard Drive Into an External Drive
By Jim Hedgecoth

Old Internal Hard Drive Converted Into a Useful External Hard Drive?
Everyone needs more storage space sooner or later, whether it's an external or internal hard drive and you've probably replaced that hard drive inside your computer for a larger capacity drive. But, what do you do now with the old drive lying around collecting dust? You can easily turn that old tired hard drive into an external harddrive without spending very much money. This type of hard drive can be extremely useful for transporting large files, adding extra storage space, or can serve as a back-up drive for your important data. It can also be a great tool for IT professionals who require software and tools handy to troubleshoot computer problems out in the field.

Choosing the Right External Hard Drive Enclosure
Before we begin, we need to determine the type of external drive enclosure that we need. The most important factor is choosing an enclosure that works with your old hard drive. Is your drive an IDE drive, or is it a SATA drive? If you have an older hard drive, it will most likely be an IDE drive; however some of the newer drives have a SATA interface. Simply double-check your drive's interface before you make a purchase. The next step when looking for an external hard drive enclosure is what type of cable to use. Is your current hardware mostly USB or FireWire? Most PC users will have USB ports on the back of their computers. However, some Mac users maybe prefer to use their hard drive with a FireWire connection. And then there are some who would like the increased transfer speeds provided by the eSATA interface. Keep in mind that in order to use eSATA, your PC must have an external eSATA port.
Other factors to consider while choosing an external hard drive enclosure can be merely aesthetic reasons as opposed to users requiring more functional features. Some enclosures come built in with "back-up" buttons that can be used to automatically launch software, or extra LED lights that help indicate drive activity. Others come with fancy paint or body designs to give you some style. Some external enclosures are also made of aluminum to help dissipate heat. The possibilities are endless.

Connecting Your Newly Converted External Hard Drive
Connecting your old hard drive to your new external hard drive enclosure is pretty simple. You will most likely not need anything other than a screwdriver. If you have an IDE drive, check that the jumpers on the back of the drive are set to the correct master/slave/cable-select setting according to your new enclosure's instructions. From here, it's simply a matter of securing the drive to the chassis, plugging in the power cables, and connecting the interface cables. Now you can close up the enclosure.

Last Step - Connecting to your PC
Most external enclosures will come with an external power supply and a data cable. Simply hook up the power supply to your new external hard drive enclosure, and connect the provided data cable from the enclosure to an available port on your PC. If the enclosure requires drivers to be installed, you should insert the CD and install it at this point. Your computer should automatically detect your new drive and assign it a drive letter. Double check that the drive is functioning properly by transferring some sample files back and forth. If all is well, then you have successfully turned an old hard drive into an external drive.

Jim Hedgecoth is an expert computer hardware storage device writer and frequent contributor to I/O Magic Corporation. I/O Magic is a leading Internet retailer offering data storage solutions such as portable hard drives, external DVD drives and USB hard drives.

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Do You Need to Defrag Your Computer?

Do You Need to Defrag Your Computer?
By Jill Armour

Over a period of time, the data on your hard drive can become scattered and disorganized. Defragging your computer is a process that scans your drives for this scattered data, and puts things back into sequential order again, which has numerous advantages. When your computer can more easily access data that was previously fragmented, your system will run much more smoothly than before, and your overall performance will improve significantly as well.

Generally with use, your computer will begin to slow down. You may find that it is not performing as smoothly or as efficiently as when you first purchased it. Sometimes this means that you are running out of free space on your computer, but it may also mean that your computer is having trouble finding disorganized, fragmented files.

When you run the defragmenting software on your computer, it will first run a system scan and let you know whether or not you are in need of a defrag. There is nothing wrong with regularly defragging your drives, which will keep your computer in good shape, rather than waiting for your computer to need the reorganization because things are a total mess.

The Defragging Process
Windows requires defragging more often than Mac computers, and computers running Linux, as the file systems on Linux and Macs tend to be stored more efficiently than machines running Windows. While you can download and run defragging utilities on Mac computers and computers running a Linux operating system, they are not needed as often. Defragging a computer running a Windows operating system involves a simple process. Keep in mind that in order to defragment your computer in certain Windows operating systems, you need to be logged in to an account with Administrator Privileges. Do you have Admin privileges on your computer?

Defragging A Windows Machine

1. From the "Start" menu, go to "All Programs".
2. Point to the "Accessories" tab.
3. Point to the "System Tools" tab.
4. Click on the "Disk Defragmenter" utility.
5. The Disk Defragmenter will display all of the hard drives on your computer. Click on the drive that you are interested in defragging.
6. Click on the "Analyze" button.
7. The Disk Defragmenter will analyze your drive and identify any fragmented files, notifying you of whether or not your drive is in need of being defragged.
8. If the drive is in need of being defragged, click "Defragment", and then simply wait.

The defragging process is simple: The utility moves through your computer file by file, identifying fragments that are not where they are meant to be, and returning them to their original space. Your drives have a natural order that it best operates at, where each file is organized like numbered pages in a book. When a page slips into the wrong order, it has to be located and returned to its place, and this is what the defragmenting process seeks to do to your computer's drives. When the natural order is returned and files are in the right place, your computer runs more smoothly and effectively. Depending on your computer's need for defragging, this process can take anywhere from a couple of minutes to an hour or more.

Taking your Defrag a Step Further
The Windows Disk Defragmenter is a fairly basic utility that only really offers the bare minimum in terms of defragging assistance. Many users have found that because the Windows defragment utility only deals with files on the drives, and does not handle page files and registry hives, that it leaves something to be desired. There are third party utilities that you can download and install that will provide a more effective experience when defragging your computer.

PageDefrag, for example, is a free downloadable utility offered by Microsoft's Sysinternals. You can find more information about this utility and can download it from http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb897426.aspx

Don't worry if you are not a techie. You can ignore all that command line stuff and run PageDefrag in default mode.

Some other free utilities for more effective defragmenting include:
WinContig, found at http://wincontig.mdtzone.it/en/index.htm
(Due to link limits, 3 defrag programs have been omitted. But you can google them! Look for JK DeFrag and SpeeDefrag and Ultra Defragmenter)

Paging files are internal space that is used by the operating system and the main form of memory, or RAM. These spaces are never defragmented using the standard defragging utility offered by Windows. Registry hives are Key Value pairs that are used to store options, paths and other data that a software or that the operating system may use. These entries also are not defragged by the standard default utility, but can be defragged by third party utilities like PageDefrag mentioned above.

How Often Should You Defrag?
Depending on who you ask this question to, you may end up with a couple of different answers. Determining how often to defrag your computer is ultimately up to you, provided that you are keeping some basic things in mind. There is no such thing as defragging too often. Defragging every day, for example, is not going to affect your computer in any negative way.

The more often you defrag, the easier the process will be, because moving more files takes a longer amount of time. The fragmentation of files and other elements on your computer is a fairly regular process. Defragging today will not protect your drives from fragmented files tomorrow.

Keeping these things in mind, the answer to "How Often Should I Defrag" is simple: As often as you feel that you need to, or as often as you would like to. You can set your computer up to run the defragging program every night while you're asleep, or you can run the defragging utility once a week while you are in the bath or at work or school. Defragging less often than this is not necessarily a bad thing, but more often is usually better when it comes to keeping your computer running smoothly, efficiently and effectively throughout its entire life.

Jill Armour is a total computer junkie who runs an online site called Computer Books Online She spends most of her "spare" time on the internet, working on computers, reading computer books, or occasionally sleeping.

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Do You Know How to Fix Computer Registry? Windows System Error?

Do You Know How to Fix Computer Registry? Windows System Error?
By Colleen Anderson

Do you know using a registry cleaner for your computer is really important for the smooth functioning of your computer? This is especially required if you face problems such as slow and difficult functioning of your computer. Sometimes it will be impossible to find out the exact reason why your computer is working so slowly. One really major reason can be the large database you keep stored inside your computer. You should however have to maintain it properly for the best performance from your computer. If you want to know how to fix computer registry, don't worry its pretty easy actually.

Most of the registry problems occur when you start installing large amount of software and hardware in your computer. This installing and uninstalling process will make the data base of your computer almost fragmented. It's necessary for you to regularly clean up your computer using a registry cleaner which will correct the functioning of your computer and is one of the answers of how to fix computer registry .But do make sure you use a registered registry cleaner to keep your computer free of database software errors .Although getting a free package is really attractive , please remember you get what you pay for!

Certain processes on your computer registry occupy a larger area and take up a larger of the computer processing time. These processes can change the size of the files. Changing the size of the files will keep the information in the files to be hived. This in a extremely long and complicated process and will cause the enlargement of files beyond the size of registry and cause a failure of the computer registry. Using a good registry cleaner can maintain the proper function of the computer and is a solution to your question of, how to fix computer registry.

If you don't do a registry cleaner immediately, you will notice certain symptoms and problems such as outdated or idle icons of the start menu, left over and idle files, unused and unnecessary drivers, and you may miss or corrupt your ID applications. Of course then you're in a dilemma as to how to fix computer registry.

You can try a soft ware of registry cleaner to fix such problems. Your registry should be kept error free and clean, else it will become a complex problem where you may not be able to edit or track changes of your files. So a proper editing of the registry is very important. You can do it easily by using specialized registry cleaner software.

Registry cleaner software will scan all your computer areas and will detect all entries that are invalid. Some software will even let you to have screening which is fully automatic to clean up your computer. Registry cleaner software will protect your system by detecting and removing destructive viruses as well. The most dangerous viruses among them are Trojans. This can cause serious injuries to your system by scanning and spreading into the registry. The changes caused by these viruses are almost irrevocable. It will prevent your computer from being restored to its original form.

The registry cleaner can scan the list of files, fonts, invalid association of files, startup run of windows, section of classes, section of software, paths of applications and common DLLs. Remember, you can achieve all these by only a few clicks. So make your computer stable and effective by fixing its registry problems, but first learn all the ways and means by which you can answer the all pertinent question of, how to fix computer registry. It is your choice whether or not to learn how to fix computer registry.

If you are sick and tired of error messages that often appear, you do not want to carry on working with a slow computer, get yourself a free computer scanning at Registry Cleaner Software to see what is wrong with your computer system.

Colleen Anderson is a career woman who wants to share with you how she works more efficient and time effective after installing computer registry software, visit Registry Cleaner Review to find out more information about the errors you experience.

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How to Use Firefox

How to Use Firefox
By Simon Surfer

If you want a secure, stable and fast browser then you need to look no further than Firefox. Whether your new to Firefox or a current user looking for some tricks or tips you should find this article helpful.
You can run Firefox browser alongside other browsers such as IE and Chrome, so you can keep your existing browsers while you take it for a test drive. You download Firefox by simply going to their website and downloading it and following the install instructions.

When opening a new window, it is a good idea to use the 'tab' option as this will enable you to have many pages on one window, which is easier to navigate instead of having many windows. When you enter the URL of the site you wish to visit it is unnecessary to enter www. or http:// as just the name followed by.com or whatever else is the domain ending, e.g EzineArticles.com will suffice.

If you're searching for a website you can use the address bar to do a search much like you do when using Google. just type in the keywords and it'll look for websites that relate to the keywords. If your not sharing your internet connection with others then you can customize Firefox to get the full speed it can from the connection, follow these steps:

Type about:config in the Firefox address bar. Press enter and then ok. Next type network.http in the Filter box the and double click network.http.pipelining, next double click again on network.http.proxy.pipelining.
Then double click on network.http.pipelining and type 30 in the dialogue box and enter.. Find an empty spot in the configuration settings and right-click then select New- Integer. Here make the the new entry nglayout.initialpaint.delay and make it a value of number 0. Lastly click on x to exit Firefox.

Your Firefox browser should now be faster at loading pages. I hope you have found the tips in this article beneficial.

Simon enjoys writing articles about many different subjects. Come and visit his latest website over at [http://www.maudiomonitors.com/] which helps people find information about M Audio Monitors.
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Firefox Add-Ons and Plugins

Firefox Add-Ons and Plugins
By Simon Surfer

Firefox has many plugins and add-ons that a user can find very useful. This article serves as a guide to some of the most useful add-ons and plugins. It is possible to do a search for plugins at addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox.

These are some of the most frequently downloaded plugins.

A useful add-on for blocking ads is Ad Block Pus. You can choose which ad you wish to block. There is a paid version too which auto blocks ads for you.

Another is Greasemonkey. This will help download Flickr files and give assistance to Tweets. This plugin will add scripting language to Firefox that has the ability to be customized.

An add-on that makes downloading videos from the net easier is Video Download Helper.
To open a site that will not open with Firefox use IETab. This add-on puts IE within Firefox.

If you use eBay often then you will find eBay sidebar tool a great help as it can keep an eye on your trades whilst you a busy with another task.

A useful plugin to help organize downloadable files is DownThemAll. It will collect all files that are downloadable and gives them to you in a list so you can choose which ones you'd like to download.
NoScript gives you the option of closing down JavaScript programs, so you can select the scripts you want.
Ghostery is useful in that it will notify you of which sites that you visit have "Web beacons" that track what sites you are visiting.

Lastly, Linky is a useful tool for opening pictures or links on a web page. You have the option of opening them all at once or one by one.

I hope this article has been interesting and you have found the information useful.
Simon enjoys writing articles about many different subjects. Come and visit his latest website over at [http://www.maudiomonitors.com/] which helps people find information about M Audio Monitors.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Simon_Surfer
http://EzineArticles.com/?Firefox-Add-Ons-and-Plugins&id=4257301

Installing A New Hard Disk Drive - A Beginners Guide

Random Access Memory (RAM) in our computers only holds information while the computer is turned on. Your word processor sits in RAM - as does that five page document you spent two hours typing in.
Turn your computer off, or (heaven forbid) you have a power cut, the contents of RAM is emptied and the word processor along with all that work simply disappears in a flash. You obviously need a way to save your work and that's where the hard disk drive (hdd) comes in.

Essentially magnetic media, the disc (or platter) inside the hdd works in a similar way to a cassette tape in as much as the information on it doesn't disappear when the power is turned off. But, after we have had our computers for a while, the hdd can either fill up or even start to fail, causing slow loading times and error messages. In this article, we'll look at the former - adding another hdd when your current hdd is full.
How long your hard disk takes to fill up depends on how big it is and what you use your computer for.

For a normal computer user, this can take a very long time. In fact, some users will never fill the hdd in their computer.

But, if you've taken up amateur photography for example, and take hundreds of photos a week, you can fill up the hdd in a few months. If you've bought a new video camera and want to create, edit and store movies, filling a hdd can happen much quicker. So if you get a message on your screen telling you that you are getting low on disk space, it's time to start deleting stuff... or sort out a new hdd. Yes, you can always plug in an external USB hard disk, but if you are on a budget, you can fit an internal hdd for a lot less - or spend the same and get a much bigger hdd!
The actual process is fairly straight forward and if you know how to use a screwdriver you should find it quite easy.

Preparation:
The first thing I do is check the computer's BIOS to see the current hdd configuration. The chances are that the BIOS screen is something you've never seen before and I strongly suggest that after doing what I'm going to talk you through now, you don't go into it again.
We are only going to look at existing settings now, but there are things in the BIOS that you can change to the wrong values and although your computer won't blow up or anything drastic like that, you could stop Windows loading or even stop your computer from switching on. To get to the BIOS, turn on (or restart) your computer and watch the bottom of the screen for a message which tells you what to press to go into the Setup screen. On most computers it's the Del key (the Supr key on Spanish keyboards where I live), but on some computers it's the F2 or F10 key. I've even seen the Ctrl+S combination used. Once you've seen what key(s) you have to press on the screen, hit the Reset button on the front of your computer and start tapping the required key(s) when you hear your computer 'beep'.

If all goes well, you should see a plain text screen (either blue or black) and the words BIOS or Setup at the top of the screen along with the name of the company who made the BIOS. Depending on the motherboard in your computer this could be Award (Phoenix), AMI (American Megatrends Inc) or some other company.
Award's Phoenix bios is probably the most common and consists of a number of 'pages' - displayed in two columns. Using the up, down, left and right cursor keys, you highlight the page you want and press the enter key to enter the page. Pressing the Esc key backs out and returns to the previous screen.
Each page contains a number of options which you can change. Right now, we only want to look at the hdd configuration and NOT change anything, so that's all I'm going to say about the BIOS for now.
Other manufacturers BIOS screens work in exactly the same way, but instead of two columns there may be a single column or even a menu running horizontally across the top of the screen.
To see the hdd configuration in a Phoenix Award BIOS, you need to highlight the Standard CMOS Features page and press Enter. My own computer has the AMI BIOS with the menu running across the top and the equivalent of Award's Standard CMOS Features page is the first page you see and is entitled 'Main' - you don't need to select anything else.

On this page, it shows all the available hdd ports (IDE and SATA) and the model name of the hdd which is attached to it. Models starting with ST are Seagate drives and those starting with WDC are Western Digital drives. Samsung and Toshiba actually say Samsung and Toshiba in the model name.
If no hdd is connected to a port it may display 'Not Detected'. My Asus motherboard only has a single IDE port (supporting two IDE drives, master and slave), along with four SATA ports. Your BIOS will probably be different. It may only display ports that drives are actually connected to.
If your BIOS isn't like those mentioned, you'll simply have to open each page in turn, looking for mention of Primary IDE Master, Slave, or SATA 1, 2, 3, 4 etc. Remember, highlight a page, press Enter to go in and press the Esc key to back out if it doesn't contain the info you are looking for.
When you get to the screen which shows the drives in your computer, note down what they are connected to. This includes any CD/DVD-ROM drives.
This info tells you what ports are free to connect the new drive to, but it's also a quick indication of how successful the job was when you've finished. If you got everything right, the new drive will appear on the list. If not, it won't appear and if you got the settings wrong on an IDE drive, the drive that was there before you started could also disappear off the list!
Having got the info we need, as we have not made any changes in the BIOS, we can hold down the on/off button for 5 seconds to turn off the computer.
Before we actually start, you need to work out what you are going to need for the job - apart from a Phillips cross-head screwdriver. For example, as a computer engineer, I have a large stock of cables I can select from, but the chances are that you do not. The cable you buy (if you actually need one) depends on the hdd you buy.

As there are different types of hdd, when you pop down to the local computer store, your shopping list needs to have the correct items on it. In a nutshell, you need to take a look inside your computer to see what's in there already and what you can add. So, turn off the power switch at the back of the computer (if there is one) and unplug all the cables. If you aren't sure where all the cables go, spend a few minutes drawing a picture for later on when everything is plugged back in. To be honest, apart from USB devices, most of the cables will only plug into one hole.

All USB devices should work regardless of which USB socket they are plugged into, but you can save yourself possible future hassles by plugging them all back in exactly the same place you unplugged them from. So if nothing else, note where each USB plug goes.
If you have a standard case desktop PC, you just need to remove the panel on the left hand side (while looking at it from the front).

The side panel will have a 90 degree  lip at the back edge and there will be two Phillips screws securing it in place. Remove these two screws and slide the side panel towards the back of the computer and lift it away.
Note: If you have a branded computer like a Dell, HP etc. opening it up may be different so you will need to refer to the documentation which came with it.
Also, if it is still in warranty, (hopefully by now it won't be), then opening the case may void the warranty, so be aware of this. It has to be noted however that if you took it to your local computer shop, they too would have to open it up, so the result would be the same...

In a standard computer case, the CD-ROM/DVD drive(s) and hard disks will be mounted in bays at the front of the case. Optical drives like CD and DVD's go in the larger bays at the top and the hdd's in the smaller, 3.5" bays below.
Locate your hdd and look at the back end which protrudes out of the rear of the bay. There are essentially three main types of hdd - IDE/ATA, SATA and SCSI.
IDE is still the most commonly found type of hdd out in the wild, but is slowly being replaced by the faster SATA standard. All new computers bought today have SATA drives. SCSI is rarely used in relation to IDE and SATA, but is still available and tends to be found only in more specialist computers.
What Drive Do I Have Already?
All three types of drives are pretty much identical in physical size, but differ in the cables used to attach them to the system. As we need to look inside your computer to find out what free connectors are available, while we do that we can also easily check what type of drive(s) you have already.

How To Detect If You Have An IDE/ATA Drive:
IDE (Integrated Drive Electronics) is the original Western Digital name for the interface standard which eventually evolved into the ATA (AT Attachment) interface standard currently in use today.
Older motherboards had 2 IDE connectors (primary and secondary) and with each one being able to support a master and slave device, up to four drives (any combination hard disks or CD-ROMs) could be connected.

ATA drive data cables are flat ribbon cables, usually grey, approximately 5cm wide and having 3 x 40 pin connectors attached - one at each end and another part of the way along it.
If you currently have a single IDE/ATA drive, the ribbon cable will be connected to the motherboard at one end, to the drive probably using the 'master' connector at the opposite end and have a spare unused 'slave' connector around 15-20cm from the end.

Note: If you also have an IDE CD-ROM or DVD drive, it could be attached to the slave connector on the same primary IDE cable as the hdd, or attached on it's own using the secondary IDE cable.
Looking at the back of an IDE hdd, the 4 pin Molex 8981 power connector is located on the far right and the connector plug is female with 1 red, 1 yellow and 2 black wires.

How To Detect If You Have A SATA Drive:
Serial ATA (SATA) drives first appeared in 2003 and were faster versions of the previous ATA (IDE) drives. ATA was subsequently renamed to Parallel ATA (PATA).
Today, almost all new computers, laptops and netbooks are supplied with SATA drives as standard. Although most new motherboards still have a single old IDE connector on them for backwards compatibility, they usually have four or more of the newer SATA connectors.
SATA data cables are also flattened, but not as flat as IDE ribbon cables and nowhere near as wide. At around 1cm wide and slightly thicker, they come in various colours. I have red, blue, yellow and black SATA data cables.

Unlike IDE cables though, they only have one drive connector. As such, each SATA drive needs it's own data cable. If you have a SATA drive, follow the flat data cable back to the motherboard and you should see that it plugs into a SATA socket. There should be four, but it doesn't matter as long as there is one free.
Looking at the back of the hdd, the SATA power connector is located on the far left and the power cable has 1 red, 1 yellow, 1 black and 1 orange wire. The data cable plugs in just to the right of the power cable with little or no gap between. Most modern power supplies have both IDE and SATA power connectors.

How To Detect If You Have A SCSI Drive:
The third and last hdd type uses a standard called Small Computer System Interface (SCSI - pronounced 'scuzzy') and although they are nice and fast, they are also very expensive, so it's highly unlikely you will already have one of these in your computer without knowing about it already.
Most motherboards do not have a SCSI interface built in, so you can usually spot these drives as the data cable from the back of them normally connects to a SCSI interface card instead of directly onto the motherboard.

The data cable on a SCSI drive is just like an IDE ribbon cable, but much wider, so if the data cable on your hdd is wider than the one on the CD-ROM drive then you've got a SCSI drive. The power connector is also exactly the same as on an IDE drive. If you need another one of these drives, your local computer shop may have to order it for you as they aren't always stock items - or you could probably order one online a lot cheaper.

Decision Time
Your computer right now probably has a single hard disk and a single CD/DVDROM drive, but to be honest, it doesn't really matter if the current hdd is the older IDE/ATA interface.
If your motherboard supports SATA drives, I suggest you go for one as they are faster and generally easier to get hold of - unless cost is an issue and you can get your hands on a decent sized second hand IDE drive for next to nothing.
Either way, all you need is a free power connector and a data cable for the drive you end up getting.
Note: You do not have to stick to the type of drive you currently have. If you have an IDE drive you can still add a new SATA drive and vice-versa.
To Sum Up:
* If your computer has an IDE ribbon cable with a free connector, as well as a free IDE power connector you can safely purchase an IDE disk drive.
* If your computer only has a single IDE ribbon cable and both master and slave connectors are in use, as long as your motherboard has an unused secondary IDE port you can safely purchase an IDE disk drive, but you will also need to buy another IDE cable for it.
* If your computer has a free SATA port on the motherboard and your power supply has a free SATA power connector you can safely purchase a SATA disk drive. If you don't have one, you will also need to buy a SATA data cable.
* If you have no free IDE or SATA connections and no free IDE or SATA power connectors, you will probably find it cheaper and easier to get an external USB drive.
Tip! If you buy your new drive from your local computer shop, ask them if they sell 6-32 UNC drive mounting screws. Most of us who work with computers for a living have thousands of them lying around so the chances are they'll give you a handful for free!

Installing The Drive:
Having got your new drive and if necessary, the correct data cable for it, all we need to do now is install it.

SATA Drives
If your drive is a SATA drive, there's no configuration involved you can just pop it into an empty bay and screw it in. There are four screws - two each side, but if I'm honest, I only ever use two screws because you have to take the other case side panel off to put them in. If I go back to a machine at a later date and have to take the drive out, it's a time saver only having to remove one side panel to do it. The drive bays have support rails either side which keep the drive horizontal and the two screws you do put in prevent it from moving, so the other two screws really aren't necessary.

Next, you connect the SATA power cable to the drive. The power connector plug has an 'L' shaped ridge in it which only matches up with the groove on the drive connector when it's the correct way round, so don't force it.

Finally, you connect one end of the SATA data cable to the motherboard and the other end to the drive. Like the power cable plug, the data cable has the 'L' shaped ridge so match them up before trying to force them in.

Note: The plugs on the end of a SATA cable are identical, so it doesn't matter which end plugs into the drive and which plugs into the motherboard. And that's all there is to installing a new SATA drive.

IDE/ATA Drives
As an IDE cable can have two devices attached - like a hdd attached as a master and a CD_ROM attached as a slave, all IDE devices have to be set as either master or slave and have the correct connector attached.
Setting the device is done with a tiny jumper which shorts out two pins on the back of the device.
Each hdd manufacturer can have different jumper settings, so on the top of the drive you will find a sticker showing the various jumper configurations.

For example, on Seagate drives, shorting out the two pins furthest away from the power socket by placing a jumper on them makes the drive the master device. Leaving the jumper off the same two pins sets the drive as a slave device.
On an IDE ribbon cable, there are three connectors. Two are closer together at one end and it is these that plug into the two IDE devices. The one on it's own at the other end plugs into the port on the motherboard.
Of the two connectors close together, the one on the very end of the cable is plugged into the master device and the other one into the slave device. So, once you have decided which connector is going to be plugged into your new drive, you can set the jumper accordingly.

A second hdd will work fine set as a slave as long as the slave cable connector is plugged in, but if given the choice I would always add a new hdd as a master on the secondary IDE channel with a new IDE cable - even if the slave connector on the primary IDE channel was free.
In theory though it shouldn't make any difference and in any case, the chances are your master and slave on the primary IDE channel are already taken with your hdd and CD/DVD-ROM drive. If so, set the new drive to master and when you connect the new IDE cable, plug the master connector (the one on the very end) into the drive.

You can now put the drive into a free bay and screw in the two screws.
Attach either the free connector on the existing IDE ribbon cable to the drive, or connect one end of your new IDE ribbon cable to the motherboard and the other end to your new hdd. Note: One edge wire of the IDE ribbon cable will be marked in a different colour to make it stand out. This is to help when plugging it in as the connector will only fit one way round. When the marked wire is closest to the power connector, the cable will be correctly oriented, to plug in. Finally, plug the new drive's power connector in. This has chamfered edges at the bottom so it too can only be plugged in one way round. When the power plug is the correct way round, the yellow wire is nearest to you when looking into the case from the left side.

At this point, you should be done and in a perfect world you would put the side panel back on, connect all the cables and power on your machine. But it might be wise to leave the side panel off a while longer while you connect the cables and power up - just in case there's a problem and you need to go back in and change anything.

As described right at the beginning of this article, power up, go back into the BIOS and go to the page which lists your drives. If a new hdd model number has appeared next to a port which wasn't there before and those that were there before are all still there, then congratulations - you've successfully installed your new hard disk!

If the new drive doesn't appear (or one disappears), you now have to start the trouble-shooting phase.
At this point, we have no changes to save in the BIOS so we can hold down the on/off button to turn off the computer.

Trouble-Shooting:
First check that all cables are present and firmly pushed in.
With the computer turned off, place the metal end of your Phillips screwdriver in one of the screw holes of the new hdd's case and push the screwdriver handle to your ear. Turn on the PC and if the drive powers up, you'll hear the hdd drive motor whine and clicking noises through the screwdriver. If there's no sound or vibration, swap the power connector with a working drive and check again.
If there's still nothing, you have a dead drive and should return it. If it starts working, try the first power connector in the other drive. If that's now dead, use another power connector (there's usually a couple unused).

If the drive you installed is an IDE drive and is powering up OK and/or a previously working IDE drive has disappeared of the list in the BIOS then you have set the master/slave configuration jumper incorrectly. On an IDE ribbon cable, only one device can be master - the other must be set to slave. Set them both to the same and neither will be detected by the BIOS. Also with IDE drives, make sure that the drive set as master is attached to the connector on the END of the IDE cable and the drive set as slave is attached to the other connector.

With new SATA drives, you can do the screwdriver test for power, but there are no jumpers to get wrong, so make sure the power is off and try connecting the data cable to another SATA port on the motherboard.
Assuming all has gone to plan so far, you should be able to turn on your computer and it will boot into Windows as normal. If you have Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7 then your new drive should be detected automatically as new hardware. Just wait for the 'your new hardware is ready to use' message.

New drives will have to have one (or more) partitions created on them and then formatted before you can use them. In some versions of Windows some or all of the process may be automatic and you may just see a pop-up box asking if you want to format the new drive. You can just say yes.

I use Windows XP and this process has to be done manually, but it's quite easy to do and covered in my article 'Preparing A Hard Disk For Use In Windows XP'.
Barrie J Capel is a computer engineer with over 30 years experience in hardware, software development and IT Training for local government in the UK. He now lives in Tenerife, Spain and is the owner of Tenerife-based IT specialists Computech Tenerife and newly formed sub-division Computech Tenerife Web Designs.

Since he is no longer involved in active IT training, he has put his many years of experience to use developing a number of 'how to' guides which he gives away totally free of charge on the Computech Tenerife website:
For more information on services, free software and a list of other guides available, (many including useful photographs and available as PDF files), please visit:
http://www.computechtenerife.com

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How to Change, Upgade or Remove an IDE Hard Drive

Hard drives - Hard drives are a little more complicated. First off, you have to know what you want to do with the hard drive. By this, I mean either you want it set to either SLAVE or MASTER. If you want to boot from the hard drive (load windows or whatever other OS off it) then you want it to be your master. If you already have a master, and you want to use this as extra space, set this hdd to slave. This setting change requires a jumper on the back of the hard drive to be moved. It may sound hard, but it's easy. These jumper configurations can be found on the back of the hdd; most have a small label which states which way is which. After setting the jumper, take the IDE cable that runs to your primary hard drive. This is the long, usually grey cable that runs from a slot on your motherboard to your primary hard drive. If you are putting your new hdd in as a slave, this cable should have a second connector on it not being used. Connect this to the new slave hard drive, but don't disconnect the cable from your other HDD.

If you're putting a new drive in as master, then you need to take the cable running right to your old HDD, detach it, and connect it to the new master HDD. In both cases, you will need to connect a power cable to the HDD. This runs from your power supply, and you should have a few extra not being used. Connect one connector to the 4 pronged connector on the hard drive.

Once the hard drive is all connected, make sure it is fastened to the chasis on both sides of the case. This can be done by removing the case, then bolting the hard drive on one side and then the other. This is important - if you only bolt one side of the HDD, it can lead to corruption of files on the HDD.

I am a young, aspiring computer engineer into Internet Marketing, hardware, software, web design, SEO and just about anything related to computers. Please come check out my growing PC forum at [http://www.markspcforum.com]

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Setting Your IDE Drives the Right Way

If you have a desktop computer which you bought around three years ago, chances are you have an IDE hard disk drive. Though this type of hard drive is now being replaced by the faster Serial ATA, or SATA, configuration drives, there are still a lot of computers that have IDE drives on them. As the years go by, there might come a time when you need to replace or add another IDE drive to your computer. In such case, you need to know how to set your IDE drive the right way.

IDE drives can easily be recognized by looking at the type of cable that connects them to your computer. As opposed to the SATA cable which looks like a flat electrical cord, IDE hard drives uses a wide, thin, and ribbon-like data interface cable called ATA-7 which usually has three forty-sockets, one at the end that connects to the motherboard, one near the middle and another one at the other end for each of the pins found at the back of your hard drive.

If you need to augment your storage space with another IDE drive, you have to configure it in such a way that one becomes the primary drive and the second one becomes the secondary drive. Naturally, you have to set the new drive as the secondary because your old hard drive contains the operating system for your computer. Well, that is unless of course you wanted your new IDE drive to hold your operating system in which case you have to set it as the primary or the master, but that would mean reformatting and installing the operating system on it, not to mention the drivers that your computer needs and a plethora of software applications that you use. If you want to make it simple, then you can just set the new drive as secondary storage.

At the back of each hard drive, there is a small area immediately to the right of the 40-pin socket that contains eight pins in a four-pair configuration. This is the master and slave, or the primary and secondary selector. You will normally find a small jumper in that selector. Look at the label on your hard drive and see the proper jumper configuration for master or slave. If you intend to have the new drive act as a slave, then just follow the configuration as shown by the illustration on the label of your hard drive.

Next, secure the hard drive on the drive bay of your computer, and then attach the unused forty-socket connector of the IDE cable to the back of the hard drive. Be careful not to push it forcefully to avoid damaging the hard disk pins. There is a notch guide on the connector so you would never go wrong. Attach the power and close the case of your computer. You can then power up your computer and enjoy the additional storage space.

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Web Site Optimization - Designing Your Website For the Search Engine

When it comes to web site optimization, the key to success is to know how to design your website so that it ranks well in the search engine. To do this, you have to understand how search engines rank web pages. Google, which is by far the most important search engine is open to how they rank pages and it will do well for you to read their algorithm before designing your web site.

The following are general optimization tips that you need to get started:

1. Texts - The first thing you should understand about search engines is that they are designed to read text. That's why the first thing for you to do for web site optimization is to make sure that every element in your web site has the appropriate texts. This means placing alternate text for every image, flash, or videos you put up on your website.

2. Know Your Keywords - Another thing to consider is to know which keywords are highly searchable. Then create a list of keywords you should include in the content of your websites. Make sure that the first 250 words or so have these keywords woven intelligibly in the text. This will help improve your page ranking.

3. Validate your Code - Every web designer knows that site optimization also includes validating your HTML and CSS codes. This will ensure that the search engine will not ignore your site because of invalid codes.

4. Tag Your Headings - You should put relevant tags to your headings to improve your page ranking. Don't just include your site name, but say something meaningful to help search engines find your site more.


5. Remove Hidden Texts - Search engines penalize web sites that have hidden texts in them because some dishonest individuals used these hidden texts to stuff keywords into their sites. That's why search engines ignore any site that has hidden texts in them.


6. Increase your links - The more pages that link back to your web site, the more you'll increase your page rank. That's why another basic tool for site optimization is to increase the number of web pages that link back to your website.

There are of course dozens of tips about site optimization. You should keep the tips mentioned above in mind while designing websites, as well as keep tabs on the latest web site optimization tips.
Which one of these 11 Web Design Mistakes will you make? Claim YOUR Free Report at http://www.webdesignmistakes.com.

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What is Targeted Website Traffic?

Targeted Website Traffic is a tactic generally applied to Websites, Blogs, eCommerce sites, Informational sites, etc. Very often these sites sell products, services, tie-in related affiliate products, and use keyword (content) targeted advertising (Google AdSense, Kontera, etc.) programs. Basically this technique applies to, and should be implemented by anyone conducting an online business. But it is not limited to just that.
Rather than receiving and/or relying on 'unexpected' organic sources of free traffic, targeted website traffic is a focus on niche users who would have specific interest in a website or offer. This can be accomplished in many ways. Here are two.

1. Organic traffic, gained from quality content based in and developed on good keyword analysis. It is the most stable and reliable source. Moreover, it is more likely that targeted niche visitors will convert from a visitor to a consumer, and then perhaps remain as long-term customers.
2. Paid Targeted Website Traffic Generating Systems A good technique specifically for well thought out marketing applications.

Internet Marketing Companies - Targeted Website Traffic Systems
Internet Marketing Companies offering a targeted traffic program usually operate a network of advertising, and/or maintain an inventory of sites with high traffic volumes. When you, as the Webmaster subscribes to these services, the visitor traffic through these networks (generally, but not always sites with a similar focus to yours) are redirected to your site. The total number of visitors redirected to your site generally depends upon the package purchased.

Webmasters should learn how to increase targeted web site traffic, and understand the need of this technique in generating and maintaining sales. Of course, using just any application to generate all types of visitor web site traffic, does not, and will not do.

Yes, it's a RUSH as you sit and observe the large, but fleeting flurry of unique visitors to your site. Unfortunately, the bulk of these were not keyword targeted properly anyway, and then, it ends. Results from this activity are that you have no further entrenchment gains in your niche, and no enhancement to the site's market sustainability.

Nothing is truly gained from this experience and ultimately you have not encouraged any solid website sources of traffic. Now there are exceptions to this rule, and it is based on the marketing needs of the moment. Today's discussion is based mostly on the needs of new internet marketers that should be developing and working on a good base of new, sustainable, quality traffic. Then, hopefully that traffic begins to evolve into that useful "recurring visitor's" category.

This principle is likened to using an Adwords Campaign Program like Google before your site is ready. You may generate an amount of website traffic, of course, and not always fully targeted, but the money is spent and when the campaign is over, the traffic to your site ends.

So, of course, if you have relied solely on advertising or targeted traffic services, when and if the money runs out, so does the website traffic.

Traffic Disappeared, What's Next, Actually What's Before?
Well, many problems exist here, but it boils down to content.

1. No Quality Content on the site to encourage user stickiness or maintain normal organic hits.
2. The lack of good content will result in the Search Engines Results Pages (SERP) not seriously recognizing or ranking your content.
3. Quality Content is the avenue that gains free targeted traffic from the search engines.

So develop content and articles to get your free targeted traffic, organically.
During many a round table discussion, or while conducting seminars, I always get the question about "how to increase web presence" for their sites? And I always respond "By providing good quality content and gaining backlinks!"

Quality content is always the first step. When you achieve that, then strategic programs that offer traffic boosting services (whether Paid Traffic Generating System, PPC, etc.) becomes the next step. This is not to suggest that a fully developed web site is required for implementation, but some level of development is good. It could in fact be the boost needed!

Developing Targeted Traffic Strategies with a Plan
Targeting quality traffic involves the effective enticement of visitors who are actually interested in your content, and, not all content should be sales oriented. You should also be optimized to receive site hits that can build and create a community (forum) that responds to your information, while also responding to your offers.

For example, when people have interest in buying Traffic Generating Tools, they find and frequent a web page on or about traffic generation tools and may also read the various reviews about these targeting website traffic tools. Now remember, not all of the website visitors traffic is created equal! Always track and analyze your Hits and Visits! Because...

Website owners always want to drive and deliver more internet traffic. But, not all visits to a web page are quality hits. People get caught up with driving inbound traffic to sites and fail to determine whether it is achieving the goals of their online strategy. It is always important to go back and review your original marketing plan goals and determine if you're traffic generating system is on target. Review the keywords that land people on the website and compare it to your original or developed keyword list. Are they the "Buying Keywords" that you spent so much time researching? If not, you may need to regroup and focus on what is important and then optimize. Yes, all the traffic to your website is important in a way, but again, it's the quality of the traffic that counts.

Surprisingly and regardless of your research, the growth and evolution of some website categories are by happenstance, and they can and will reveal the important keywords to focus on.

Why Highly Targeted Web Site Traffic?
Of course, different sites have different goals. A site could be developed specifically for leads and list building, another for product, advertising or affiliate sales, while others could be developed for branding purposes. So, no matter what your goal, tracking should be done to see whether the targeted traffic generated from various sources is actually helping you achieve the goal of highly targeted visitors.

Affiliate Applications While Targeting Website Traffic
Interestingly, the affiliate process seems so easy that you'd believe affiliates are making money right and left or hand over fist. Unfortunately, that's not what happens, a large majority of affiliates rarely see any payments, if at all! Fortunately, like us, there are affiliates who do make money online, and quite frankly, a lot. But this group of affiliates remains a minority. Very often they have a team of others working with them. More importantly, they understand what is necessary (sometimes by falling upon strategies), and effective in driving traffic.

I hope the information we provide at NicheBreakthroughs helps you in your endeavor!
Affiliate programs are usually a straightforward way to make money on the World Wide Web. I can't say that its hassle free, as you must be careful and sure of whom you affiliate with. And, always make sure you leave funds available in your account in case a vendor has charge-backs.
Generally, it helps to know and have experience with products you affiliate with.
It is usually the seller/vendor/merchant responsibility to complete the sale, receive payment, provide the merchandise, service or software download, handle complaints and possibly make a refund.
For the affiliate, the job entails working your site, increasing your web presence, driving targeted traffic and ultimately collecting the commissions when sales are made.

For tips on Targeting Traffic, Niche Marketing, Niche Marketing Tools and Niche Website Development and answers to your niche market questions, then discover how to start making money online with affiliate programs.
Review strategies and methods taught at http://NicheBreakthroughs.com - Go there now, and learn ways to start making money online today!!!
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Please Help Me Fix My Computer For Free

About a year ago, I said the exact same statement, "Help me fix my computer for free." While I would have normally be willing to pay just to have my computer fixed, the problem was I was heavily cash strapped and I really did not have any budget for my computer. So I told that same phrase to a friend of mine. While he did not personally come over to my place and fixed my computer, he did however offered some tips and suggestions.

Now if you are just about to shout to any one, "Help me fix my computer for free", then you should first do a some online searching for the specific problems you are experiencing with your computer. You see, the computer is such a complicated piece of machine and he it has various parts, but it can be divided into two: the hardware and the software. You must first find out where your computer problem lies. Whether it's on a specific computer part or on a software installed in your computer.

When you do an online search, you can word it with our exact problem phrase, Help me fix my computer for free, and I guarantee it will yield very helpful results. These search results would probably be blogs, forums and websites that offer free information on how to fix your computer. But since it is free, you should not just follow the first tips that you encounter. Do a little bit more searching for related topics and pieces of advice. If two or more people and experts are advising the same solution, then it is probably the best answer to your computer problem.

You can also ask for help on forums that tackle computer issues and computer related technical problems. Just open up a thread with the subject, "Help me fix my computer for free" and I am sure there are a lot of kind hearted people who would be glad to help you out. I actually use this often whenever I encounter a computer problem is just too hard to fix. So far all of my queries have been answered satisfactorily. Sometimes other people would point out to me how very easy it was to actually fix my computer and when I heard their suggestions, I would say to myself, "Why didn't I think of that before!". Sometimes we just have to be shown the obvious things.

Aside from asking help from other people online, you can also download some softwares that are designed to fix specific computer problems. There are a lot of free and open source softwares out there. You can find a free registry cleaner, an anti virus, anti spyware and other computer fixing programs. Just be careful with the software that you will download. Try to ask other people's opinion first before you install any software on your machine. There are websites and online tech magazines that can tell you if a specific software is even worth trying.

Finding an answer for your "Help me fix my computer for free" dilemma is actually very easy if you just follow the above stated reminders.

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A Step by Step Approach on How to Clean a Computer Registry the Safe Way

Whatever function that you did in your personal computer, the data are stored in the computer registry. Be it a useful or obsolete data, the registry still keeps it in safe and for future retrieving of the data. In time, unwanted and useless data build up in the registry which results to slow performance of the computer and its malfunctioning.

One of the symptoms of this malfunction is when the computer is slower than average. If you are having this problem, it is time to clean and fix computer registry immediately before it is too late. Be mindful that unclean registry can corrupt your computer and make it unusable.

If you do not know how to clean computer registry, you check online solutions.

All professional technicians advise computer owners to have the computer registry clean up every six months to make sure the computer will function with utmost capability and efficiency. There are two methods to clean the registry- manual and with the use of registry cleaner software. For non-techies, it advisable to use a registry software cleaner that can scan and fix the errors in the registry. Computer technicians advise to never attempt to do the cleaning of the registry manually by removing or deleting values in it because if you have mistakenly deleted an important value in the registry area, the computer may have more serious problems like not booting up totally.

Here is the following step-by-step approach to clean a computer registry:
Create a Back-Up. It is important to have a back up if you are planning to clean and fix the registry. Having a back up helps you in case errors occur during cleaning that cause you to lose files. Having a back up allows you to simply restore the registry. It is also vital to have the back-up stored in another external hard drive.

Shut down all applications and programs in your computer. Close all windows opened. Do not use your computer just yet.

Run the registry cleaning software. Leave the cleaning and fixing of the registry to the registry cleaner software program. Do not attempt to use your computer while the software is cleaning and fixing. Do not do what so ever in the computer. Remember your registry records whatever you do in your computer so it is counterproductive if the programs are running and even moving the mouse. Just leave the software to clean and fix computer registry by itself completely.

Delete unnecessary programs that your registry cleaner software suggests, but only when you are sure that it is indeed unnecessary. When the computer registry fixing software is finished, it will suggest some programs that it thinks are not part or useful in your personal computer. Do not delete a suggested program if you are not sure because you might end up removing a program that you indeed need but rarely used.
When the computer registry repair is done, re-boot the personal computer. Test your personal computer if it has improved its speed and its function.

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The Best Computer Registry Cleaner

There are countless registry cleaners in the market today. This is because almost all people anywhere in the world experience computer problems. Unfortunately, several registry cleaners can give more harm to your computer windows registry than give you the solutions you need.

Windows registry is the center of any computer. It contains all the important information in your computer system and it is essential to take good care of it. Your computer registry can easy get corrupted and if it happens, several problems may arise. Usually, companies that have no full understanding of the instructions and functions sell registry cleaners. This may result to more risk on your computer registry.

Most people find it almost impossible to find the best computer registry cleaners. Looking for a legitimate source of important information about the best computer registry cleaners is even harder. With the numerous product reviews, it is difficult to decide on whom to trust. In addition, spam-review sites are increasing in number, which do not really provide good reviews but promote affiliate links under the disguise of a real review site. These sites have a certain goal of launching you to a site and encourage you to purchase their product. If you do, seventy-five percent of the sales go to them. They do not provide quality products but their product reviews are for sale. Be aware of these websites because once you click on certain links, it will generate more problems in your computer registry.

The best computer registry cleaners are those that have the proper application and can make the computer function properly. Most computer registry cleaners can detect errors in your windows registry but do not the ability to eliminate the problems. You must remember that there are dozens of inferior programs that have similar open source software script. These programs cannot clean your windows registry effectively.
You can find the best computer registry cleaners through the internet, which can guarantee proper and safe registry cleaning. This includes XP Medic that offers many benefits compared to ordinary registry cleaners. XP Medic is particularly produced for Windows XP system, which has a stable program and an automatic feature. It also includes a one-click restore feature.

One of the best computer registry cleaners in the market is the Registry Patrol Application, which is a very efficient registry cleaner. The good thing about this computer registry cleaner is the fact that it has a simple interface and is not complicated to utilize. It is specifically designed for people who do not have computer expertise. It has a straightforward application that is very easy to understand. This is a great choice for people who need to repair their windows registry with a non-complex program.

Both of these programs can definitely clean your windows registry effectively. These are safe to use and you do not have to worry about losing important data in your computer registry. However, it is recommended to download the free trial version of any computer registry cleaner before purchasing so that you can test the software's ability.


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Unique Windows 7 Fixes You Must Know

There is lots of registry cleaner on the internet now that it becomes confusing for some people to choose the right windows 7 fixes that would be most appropriate for their system. It is important you get just the right cleaning tools because for instance, if you use the wrong cleaner to clean the windows XP operating system, the result would be disastrous. This is all about knowledge and awareness because there is very efficient registry repair tool you can easily use for your windows XP without any sort of side effects.

The issue of compatibility plays major role in the effectiveness of some registry repair tools. While some would be just fine for most of the windows operating systems that have registries, other usually selects the ones they clean or may even damage some others out rightly. The unique nature of windows 7 operating system makes it even possible for its registry to get 'confused' much easily than the earlier versions. This is because it comes with lots of 'brains' to help the operating system in terms of data and all information regarding the particular system. These are rightly there for the optimal performance of the system but it has turned out to be the lower points too.

The registry can rightly be described as the 'memory' of the system and this simply implies that all the actions taken by the system would have to be remembered by the registry. The task isn't always easy for the registry especially when the system is subjected to too many or frequent uses. This would push the registry to start behaving funny by trying to save many data at once and then end up wrongly saving some. This would usually result in slower responses from registry because such wrongly saved data would become confusing to the registry.

The windows 7 fixes that would help you to completely take care of this sort of registry unfortunate development are the registry cleaner. You don't have to argue about the efficacy till you try it. I say that because there are some people who had said that they would be careful in how they use their PCs and wouldn't have any need for the cleaners only for them to have their systems almost crippled by obsolete files in the registry. The obsolete files are those ones you had deleted entire from your computer. They simply move away from where you can access them and get stored at the registry. These all result in slowing down the speed of your system with time.

You don't have to wait till your system start reporting errors before you use registry cleaners to sort it all out. You have to use the scanner from time to time to scan your entire computer and know which of the arrears that requires cleaning. Don't hesitate to clean those areas if you must have the speed of your system intact. The registry cleaner is thus the windows 7 fixes you can rely on for any of your registry's problem to avoid system crashes.

Trying to clear out the windows 7 fixes? We can show you how to do this and make your computer boot and run 10 times faster using the FREE download at http://www.FixMyComputerQuick.com.

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Using Gmail IMAP With Mozilla Thunderbird

If your like me and use multiple computers, you may find that using IMAP for your email is a huge benefit in keeping organized and synced across multiple systems. This is great for anyone that uses a desktop computer at work, laptop at home, and/or a phone on the road.

Everything you do within your IMAP email is reflected on all systems you use. If you delete an email, it's deleted from your desktop, your laptop, your phone, etc. If you organize your email on one computer, it's organized on every computer you use. Pretty nifty huh?

I've always been a big fan of Gmail. I used it as my primary email system so that I always have a back up of my email in case my computer crashes, which has come in handy on more than one occasion. I have my business email addresses forward to my Gmail account so I can access all of my email accounts directly from Gmail.

Originally, I was using Outlook 2007 with POP3 to download my messages from Gmail to my computer keeping copies of my email on Gmail's servers. This was great when I was only using one computer for email, but now that I'm accessing my email from multiple computers I needed a way for them to all be synced. This is where Gmail's IMAP came in handy.

Making the switch to using IMAP was pretty easy, with one slight problem. Outlook 2007 and Gmail IMAP don't work well together. After I set up IMAP within Outlook, it became so sluggish it wasn't worth using.
I got frustrated with the program not responding, taking forever to load messages, and overall bad performance. Browsing my folders took much longer than necessary. Even trying to send an email could take up to 5 minutes before it would allow me to even open the new email. This wasn't going to work for me.
I read articles on how to speed up Outlook with Gmail's IMAP and was unsuccessful at finding a solution that actually worked. While the methods I found did speed up Outlook slightly, it was still very sluggish and time consuming.

During my research I came across a comment that a user posted in response to the problem that Outlook had with Google IMAP. The user mentioned that they had the same problem and switched to Mozilla Thunderbird and haven't had any problems since the switch.

Since I hadn't found a better solution, I decided to give Mozilla Thunderbird a try.
After installing and setting up Mozilla Thunderbird, I was more than happy with the results. I can browse my emails with the same speed I would if I were using POP3. I'm able to add folders, create filters for my mail as well as sync up my Google Calendar. Now we're talking!

Now, I can access my email from any computer and have everything organized and up to date. No need to keep two separate systems organized having to repeat processes on both machines. IMAP does it all for me.

Setting everything up was very simple and didn't take much time to set up.
Here's what you need to do:

1. First, you need to download the latest version of Thunderbird: http://www.mozillamessaging.com/en-US/thunderbird


2. While your downloading Thunderbird, go to your Gmail account and make sure that IMAP is enabled.


3. Now, install and set up Thunderbird. The set up is actually a breeze. You just put your email address and password in the set up screen, and it does everything else for you!

Now you should have your IMAP set up within Thunderbird! Pretty easy huh?
Mozilla Thunderbird doesn't come with a calendar system natively, but with a light weight plug-in you can add calendar functionality just like you would have within Outlook.
Adding a Calen
If you want to add a calendar system to Thunderbird and have the ability to sync with Google calendar, you'll need to download and install Lightning and the Provider for Google Calendar plug-ins. These plug-ins add a calendar system to Thunderbird and allow you to sync back and forth with Google Calendar.
Here are the links for these plug ins. The install instructions for the plug ins are on the download pages. You can search for them within the plug ins section of Thunderbird Lightning for Thunderbird Provider for Google Calendar.
Once you have these installed, you'll need to access your Google Calendar.
Here is a very simple tutorial on how to do this. Once this is set up, your ready to go! https://wiki.mozilla.org/Calendar:GDATA_Provider#Accessing_your_Calendar
Now, you can set yourself up with IMAP and have a system that's reliable and easy to use! I hope you enjoyed this article. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact me.

As a web design and development company, using Thunderbird in this fashion has helped us keep on top of our leads and contacts with multiple computers!

John Paul Rawlins of Studio Interactive Website Design and Development is a man of many talents. He's worked as a graphic and web designer, a writer, an editor, a web marketing specialist, an entrepreneur, and even a musician - all before the age of thirty. He's traveled the United States, living coast-to-coast and developing a client base from the Horse Capital of the World to the City of Angels. Thanks to his impressive portfolio of work, his natural ability to network and his numerous sites and side projects, he's made a name for himself in the global design industry. Visit his website for web design and development.

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Managing and Maintaining Your SEO

Managing and maintaining your search engine ranks is important if you want to attract new visitors to your website but it can be a full time job to maintain successfully.

There are many tools online that you can use to monitor your SEO results and keywords that bring visitors to your page. But be careful, there is a lot of advertisements and online solicitation that will only take your money and not give you the SEO tools that they promise you.

I would recommend that you go for either SEO Elite or Web CEO. These tools will allow you to see what keywords draw in your visitors, how many hits your getting daily, weekly, monthly and they also include search engine ranking tools that will allow you to track where your site ranks for certain keywords.

There are hundreds of thousands of searches on Google every hour, if you targeted a keyword that most people search for that's related to your website you can result in driving a large amount of traffic to this.


Whether you launch a search engine optimization program in-house or outsource the program, you should keep the following training opportunities and skill sets in mind:

o Advanced SEO techniques, including page titles, META descriptions, META keyword sets, internal page cross-linking, search engine submissions, robots.txt files and domain name management;
o Comprehends keyword weighting, proximity, density and related factors;
o Search term ranking analysis;
o Link popularity building research, management and strategy;
o Online forum and industry newsletter monitoring;
o National SEO conferences;
o HTML and advanced programming languages;
o Web site content writing;
o Essential Web site usability practices;
o Keyword research, including a firm understanding of language and the way people search;
o Web analytics, including understanding common and complex metrics associated with visitors, unique visitors, page views, online sales, profitability and more;
o Ability to see the big picture and not go so overboard with SEO practices that the web site gets banned from major search engines;
o Appreciation for ethical standards (i.e. should know about cloaking, keyword stuffing and the differences and nuances associated with "black hat" and "white hat");
o Marketing and branding experience;
o Project management, including ability to effectively communicate needs and foster cooperation from appropriate stakeholders;
o Familiarity with pay per click (PPC) programs and how their performance directly relates to natural SEO results;
o Management of paid inclusion (72-hour rapid indexing programs);
o How to adjust to the changing algorithms of search engines.

The search engine optimization field is complex and ever-changing. To keep pace, you should have plenty of skills on hand. Overall, the SEO program process should be simple: set goals, choose the best keywords, optimize pages, submit to search engines and refine efforts in light of rankings and web analytics.

Michael Murray is vice president of Fathom SEO, a Cleveland, Ohio-based SEO firm. He authored the �U.S. Manufacturers Resist Natural Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Online Sales Leads� study and a white paper, "Search Engine Marketing: Get in the Game." michael@fathomseo.com
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Fixing Browser Hijack - Few Clicks and Start Browsing Normally

Getting pop-ups while using the Internet can be quite irritating and annoying. However, browser hijack programs can do more than that when left to do damage in your computer for long. The best bet for the job is reliable antivirus/antispyware program which can automatically deal with browser hijacks.

Browser Hijacking Described
A browser hijack program is one of the ways that third party gains control of computers today. One sign of its presence in your computer is when you start getting annoying pop-ups when you are using the Internet. You may also observe that browsers no longer look as it used to. And you won't even be able to reset your browser. There might be some new bookmarks of unfamiliar websites as well. Some do this only for the purpose of advertising and bringing you to their websites though. But others would have other plans too. For instance, the browser hijack program may be capable of recording passwords to your email address, bank accounts and credit cards. The problem is you don't know when you could already be getting it while using the Internet.

Signs of Browser Hijack
You will know when you already have the hijacker program in your computer when you observe a slowdown in computer performance. When you launch your browser, the homepage would already be different. And what's even alarming is when you cannot change it back. What you have to know is that the hijacker programs run from the time you turn on your computer until you turn it off. And it even eats up the resources of the computer so it makes the computer slower.
In addition to that, the new bookmarks would be noticeable too. You would notice folders of new bookmarks added. And it is the work of the program.

How Browser Hijack Programs Spreads
There are a number of ways you can get the hijacker programs. Since people share files quite a lot on the Internet, you would most often get malicious programs when you download files. When downloading in file sharing sites, even the people sharing their files may not know they are sharing the program along with their music or video files.
When downloading freeware, some sites would also intentionally embed the badware program with the free software they offer. Because of this, it is usually advisable to acquire free software from the official site instead.
Of course, you can also get the program or the virus when you visit malicious websites. The program is simply installed without any permission from you. Before you know it, you would be feeling its effects.

How to Get Rid of Browser Hijack Programs
There are two ways to get rid of hijacking. First is, manual removal of infected files and second is using an automated tool. Manual removal of the virus is not easy since It requires a lot of knowledge to find the infected files and delete them. If you are not a computer geek, you should not attempt manual removal because you may end up doing more harm than good.

The best solution is using an automated removal tool (a spyware remover software) which will scan your computer and delete all the threats right away without any manual intervention. This method is very safe and guaranteed to yield results.

Browser hijack programs are rampant in the Internet. Such kind of viruses are knows as Google redirect virus and this guide will help you a lot in fixing Google Hijack Virus quickly and easily. Make sure that you visit the blog and read about the 5 minutes fix for Google Redirect Virus. Things can be resolved very quickly with the right removal method.

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How to Remove Security Shield Virus

The presence of Security Shield is never a welcome event as this software is a bogus one which is programmed to show you fake infections. The truth is, there is really no threat in your computer but this fake software itself. So when you encounter the same occurrence it's only right that you take action right away. Take time to find out how to remove Security Shield from your computer once and for all.

This software looks like a genuine antivirus software but It is completely fake. When it penetrates your computer it may disable any other existing antivirus in your computer. And it would even disable the task manager so that it actually effectively disables other processes in your computer. The problem is it can disguise itself as another legitimate process so it is hard to detect too.
Once this bogus software gets installed in your computer, It will start doing fake scans. It would then come up with fake results showing you a number of grave threats to your computer system and even to your personal information. Furthermore, it would promise to clean up your computer if you purchase the full version of the software and thus stealing money from you. The call to action can be quite persuasive if you are not aware that this is just a trick to let your purchase the software.

Do not buy this software though as there is usually no other threat than this fake software itself. What you need really is stronger and real efficient antispyware to get rid of it.

How You Get This Fake Software In Your Computer
Fake antispyware and antivirus software like this one usually gets into your computer as you click on certain banners. When you visit anomalous or suspicious sites, malware may also get installed without you knowing it. That is why you should be careful when using the Internet and should not just click on anything or visit just any site.

How to Remove Security Shield - Manually and Automatically
This software may be very tricky to handle. But an advanced computer user would be able to work around the problem. But then not all computer users are that knowledgeable and manual removal may not be the right option for them. Manual removal usually requires editing associated registry keys and values of this fake product and if you don't know what you are doing, you may end up doing more harm to your computer by deleting legitimate files and registry keys.

Instead of manually removing Security Shield, there is a way you can actually effectively remove this virus in a matter of few clicks. What you actually need is real antispyware software. When you have it in your computer, you can automatically run the software and remove this virus as well as other viruses which are hiding in your computer without your knowledge. A genuine Spyware Remover would even further protect you computer from future threats as well. Rouge antispyware and antivirus software would not be able to penetrate your computer next time and you can be assured of a safe and clean computer.

If you are not having success while removing this virus, please follow this guide to Remove Security Shield virus once and for all. This guide offer both automated and manual removal steps to remove Security Shield Virus completely from your computer in a few clicks!

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How to Recover Deleted Files in Windows XP/Vista

Windows XP has an excellent data recovery tool. This is the Recycle Bin which can be found also in other Windows operating systems. This utility, however, has limited functions. If you have emptied the bin, then you need to know other approaches how to recover deleted files in Windows XP.
Some people will tell you that lost data should be handled by recovery services. This is untrue and those people probably want you to spend big on recovering data. Getting back lost files in Windows is easy. You can simply use affordable data recovery software to get the files you need.

How Windows XP Handles Deleted Files
Windows XP has a unique file allocation system. Your file is stored by the operating system in a file cluster. When a file is deleted, XP does not remove it from the file cluster. It simply marks the space as available. The electronic footprint of the deleted file is still stored in the hard drive until it is overwritten by other programs or files.
So there are several things you need to do to completely recovery deleted files from Windows XP. First, avoid installing new programs on your computer. Second, do not defrag the hard drive. Lastly, run a file recovery tool to save the deleted files.
These steps do not require expert knowledge. All you need is reliable data recovery software to save your files. Windows XP can also help you because the system allows full restoration of lost data.

The Big Advantages of Using Recovery Software
Some computer users panic if they accidentally delete important files. Remember that data loss is actually a cause for concern since you can suffer from serious consequences if you will lose data permanently.
However, there is no reason for you to panic. A trusted data recovery tool can be used to retrieve files from your hard drive or from other removable devices. You can enjoy big advantages if you recover data using software.

First, the process is fast and efficient. After installing the software, it can perform data recovery automatically. All you need to do is to select the files you want to save. Then choose the destination folder where you want those files saved. Run the recovery tool and your important files will be restored for you.
Second, using data recovery software is the cheaper approach. Data recovery firms charge hundreds or thousands of dollars for services rendered. If you use software, you will be able to save a lot of money.
Lastly, data recovery software is a trusted tool. The process of recovering deleted files from XP is safe. Your files will never be corrupted. You can also retrieve lost files from other media devices.

So if you really want to learn how to recover deleted files in Windows XP, there is no need for you to take advanced computer lessons. What you need to do is to get the best data recovery tool available in the market today, install it on your computer and let it do the work for you.

If you accidentally deleted files from your computer, then you need to act quickly. You have to know how to Recover Deleted Files in Windows XP by using the most reliable data recovery software which is available in the market today. Visit my blog to download a software for free for Recovering Deleted Files from any media. You can download the software, install it and preview your deleted files without paying anything.

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