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Laptop batteries (and most other batteries) consist of hazardous material. You need to dispose them according to the hazardous material disposal procedures. Enquire local authorities about disposal procedure.

Laptops, being mobile, usually participate on more than one network, and often use a static IP address at one location and a dynamically assigned IP address at another. For example, your computer might use dynamic addressing (DHCP) at the office but need to use a static IP address when at home to connect to a broadband ISP.

Windows XP Professional solves this problem by allowing the user to configure the computer to first try DHCP, and then, if the attempt fails, to try alternate static IP address settings.

MAC limiting the MAC addresses that can access the wireless network, you can prevent unauthorized computers from accessing your wireless network. Note that each MAC address is unique, and hence MAC address filtering can effectively prevent unauthorized computer access.

Microsoft Internet Explorer and Windows Explorer can be used for assigning Share and NTFS permissions on a Windows 2000 computer.

Microsoft Windows XP automatic update feature enables a user to stay current with the latest updates for their computer. You can enable or disable automatic updates by going to "automatic updates" tab of System applet of Control Panel.

Microsoft Windows XP comes pre-installed with a software firewall utility although by default this feature is not enabled.
Enabling the Windows XP firewall:
1. Click Start, Settings, Control Panel and open Network Connections.
2. Within the Network Connections window right click the Local Area Connection and select properties.
3. Within the Local Area Connection Properties window click the Advanced tab.
4. Finally, check the Protect my computer and network by limiting or preventing access to this computer from the Internet option.

Most laptop computers require a function key or software command to activate/deactivate the laptop video output signal. Usually, the activation/deactivation command acts as a toggle switch: repeat the command to display the image on the internal laptop display, the external display (projector) or both displays simultaneously.
Examples: Acer: Fn+F5, Dell: Fn+F8 will activate/deactivate laptop/external display.

MSCONFIG, short for "Microsoft System Configuration Utility" is designed to help you troubleshoot problems with your computer, MSCONFIG can also be used to ensure that your computer boots faster. Every time you boot your computer a lot of "hidden" programs load in the background. Some of these hidden programs are essential, but most aren't. Turning off some of these hidden programs (or services) can significantly increase your computer's performance and reliability.

MSDS stands for Material Safety Data Sheet. It is US state department document that contain information on any substance that is hazardous, and proper use / disposal.

NBTSTAT This utility displays current NetBIOS over TCP/IP connections, and display NetBIOS name cache.
NETSTAT Displays protocol statistics and current TCP/IP connections since the server was last booted.
TRACERT Used to determine which route a packet takes to reach its destination from source.
IPCONFIG Used to display Windows IP configuration information.
NSLOOKUP This utility enables users to interact with a DNS server and display resource records.
ROUTE Used to display and edit static routing tables.

Network is not configured with WINS server. WINS server resolves the NetBIOS names to IP addresses. The network need to be configured with WINS (or LMHOSTS file on each computer) for NetBIOS name resolution.

Never try to open the high voltage power supply in the field. It contain dangerous voltages and some times fatal. Replacing the power supply with a good one and sending the faulty one to the service center is appropriate.

Nickel Cadmium battery is not environmentally friendly and not as efficient as Nickel/Metalhydride or Lithium Ion. Nickel/Metal hydride, though environmentally friendly, not as efficient as Lithium Ion. Lithium Ion battery is environmentally friendly and very efficient.

Note that all other nodes on the network have been disconnected. If the switch port is blinking rapids even in the absence of any data, it is very likely that the switch port or the switch is bad.

Note that the floppy disk drive is not accessible only after some changes to the BIOS set-up. It is possible that the Floppy disk is disabled during the changes. Therefore, check the BIOS settings, before proceeding further.

Notepad and sysedit (system configuration editor) are the GUI programs that can be used for editing system files such as config.sys, autoexec.bat, and win.ini. vi editor is runs on Unix and Linux computers. Regedit is a registry editor tool.

Often manufacturers recommend using a pencil eraser to clean the connectors. Cotton swab dipped in IPA can also be used effectively.
Recommended cleaning procedures for various components are as below:
Computer Cabinet: Use mild detergent
Dust inside the computer: Use compressed air
Tape drive: Use tape drive cleaning catridge
Floppy drive: Use floppy drive cleaning kit
CD ROM drive: Use CD-ROM drive cleaning kit
Mouse: Use cotton swab with Isopropyl Alcohol.

On a stand-alone computer or a computer that is a member of a workgroup, a user account establishes the privileges assigned to each user. The three user accounts available are: Administrator, Limited, and Guest. The important features of these accounts are as given below:
Administrator account:
· Can create and delete user accounts on the computer.
· Can change other users' account names, passwords, and account types.

Limited account:
· Generally cannot install software or hardware, but can access programs that have already been installed on the computer.
· Can create, change, or delete his or her password.
· Cannot change his or her account name or account type. A user with a computer administrator account must make these kinds of changes.
· Can manage his or her network passwords, create a reset password disk, and set up his or her account to use a .NET Passport.

Guest account:
· Cannot install software or hardware, but can access applications that have already been installed on the computer.
· Cannot change the guest account type.

One of the most common causes of problems that may arise during the burning of CD-R or CD-RW is buffer under-run. If the source device is unable to keep the burner loaded with data, it may lead to improperly burned CDs, and hence rendering the CD useless. Some CD drives such as Sanyo CD-RW come with burn proof technology. If you intend to work on the computer while the CD is written, use CD drives that take care of buffer under-run.

PCI cards can be identified by the following attributes:
1. They have a single notch as shown in the exhibit.
2. Also, note that the finger contacts are very close.
The one shown in the exhibit is a Network Interface Card (NIC) that goes into a PCI slot on the motherboard. Note that PCI slots are smaller than the ISA slots. All ATX motherboards have PCI slots, and may or may not have ISA slots. AGP (Advanced Graphic Port) port is shorter than PCI slot and usually brown in color. A video card will have onboard video RAM sockets for adding video memory and also an output connect to connect to a video monitor.

Placing the paging file on different physical disks is optimal. This will improve faster access to the Paging file, and also distribute the load.

Port-Base address (in hex)-IRQ
COM4: 2E8-2EF - IRQ 3
COM2: 2F8-2FF - IRQ 3
COM3: 3E8-3EF - IRQ 4
COM1: 3F8-3FF - IRQ 4
LPT2 : 278-27F - IRQ 5
LPT1 : 378-37F - IRQ 7

Floppy Controller: 3F0-3F7 - IRQ 6
Hard Drive Controller, 16 bit, ISA: 1F0-1F8

Possible reasons for slow running of a computer may include insufficient memory, viruses and Trojan horses, too many TSRs (Terminate and Stay Resident) running at the same time, etc. Ensure that your computer has sufficient memory, hard disk space, and anti-virus software installed (particularly if connected to the Internet).

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