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Laptop Care and for the Girlfriend
Since I have moved most of my files over to my new iBook I am going to leave my old PC laptop over at my girlfriend Kymberly's place. I set her up with a Windows XP user account so she can have her own password but she can't install stuff or change the OS software and screw things up that bad. She has has never owned a laptop before so I thought I would put together a list of suggestions on the care of the little buggers.
If you are going to eat and drink around the computer make sure that your drink never goes over or can spill onto the laptop. All it takes is one can of pop spilled into a powered on laptop and it is all over.
If it is resting on a couch or blanket make sure that the heat vent does not get covered up. Try putting a book or something flat underneath it.
Close the lid when you are not using it so curious kitties do not sit on it. Don't let kitties chew on the cords or scratch the screen. They do have enough weight to knock the keyboard keys out of place so when Lucy comes over to give you kisses make sure that she does not sit on the laptop. Kitties have a way of being really interested in what every your are doing and are touching are you know all too well.
I know it would be really cool to watch a DVD while you are taking a bath but I do not trust kitties to not come over and jump on the laptop and knocking it off it's chair/stand. Plus computers and large amounts of humidity and water are not a really good mix.
Never ever use glass cleaner on the screen. Only use water and a soft cloth. Anything else can scrape the hell out of the screen.
If it were to drop from more than a foot it could sustain fatal damage. So Be careful.
Make sure you disconnect from the net when you are done or it will tie up your phone line.
Save your work often. If you are using a webmail account like Yahoo! Mail you can type your mail in OpenOffice.org Writer and copy it into the Webmail window.
If you want to burn a CD make sure that you do it when the power cord is plugged in and don't move the laptop or do any other major tasks or you are likely to burn a dead CD.
Don't use the laptop if it has been sitting out in the sun and if you are going to use it when you have a log in the fire make sure that you keep it a ways away so it does not over heat.
When the anti-virus software wants to update itself just let it do it. It should only take a minute or two when you first log on to the net and it does not need to do it every time. Never ever use Internet Explorer or Microsoft Outlook. It is not worth the risk. Use Firefox instead. Never run a program or attachment that was emailed to you even if you know who it is from.
If some times when you first start it up or it wakes up and some letters on the right side of the keyboard give you numbers instead of letters hold the CTRL key (lower left ) and hit the Scroll /Lock (on the upper right) key. This is a simulated numerical keypad and it can be a pain.
Make sure you shut it down or set it to Hibernate when you are done. If it is on the power cord you can set it to sleep by closing the lid but hibernate and shutting it down is better for long periods of time. It should automatically hibernate if the battery is running out on you.
If you have any questions let me know and I hope that this was not that patronizing.
Jake at February 28, 2005 
Nerd
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Comments
I made my own screen cleaning solution out of rubbing alcohol and water. I put it in a $0.49 spray bottle, spray a bit on and wipe it down with a lens cloth. It's just like the $15 kit you can buy, but much cheaper.
Posted by: danny at March 1, 2005 7:48 AM
She takes a bath with her cats? Just shut the door on the little cretins ..err.. cats.
Posted by: Manda at March 1, 2005 10:04 AM
Rubbing Alcohol will eat away at the plastic screen of a laptop and scratch it. Water and a clean cloth is about the only thing you can do the clean a laptop screen.
Well if she shuts the door they will whine and beg to be let in. When you take a bath they will sit on the edge and keep you company.
Posted by: Jake of 8bitjoystick.com at March 1, 2005 5:22 PM
umm... Jake I generally think ur quite level headed but if I were ur gf i'd feel very patronised by the list you've left; it'd be insulting to even the dumbest of blondes.
Make sure you don't spill drinks on the laptop...geez...
Posted by: Rich at March 2, 2005 3:29 PM
Hey a desktop keyboard can survive a drink spilled in to it but it would kill a laptop.
She is happy with her new PC I believe.
Posted by: Jake of 8bitjoystick.com at March 2, 2005 4:51 PM
I appreciate all the info. I do not feel you were patronizing. So thanks for the use of the lap top. me and the kitties love it.
PS If I don't let the kitties in the bathroom while bathing they body slam the door and are out of control. Yes the have won the battle!!!!
Posted by: kymberly at March 9, 2005 8:31 PM
Ooh, I love this blog! My bf would get a kick out of this mostly because I've probably done half of the things listed (not with my new laptop mind you... my preecccioouusss). I think I'm gonna send him this link just to hear him gloat.
Posted by: Redhead at June 18, 2005 2:24 AM
