Category  |   Discussion (0)Computers (General)

Main > Technology > Computers > Laptops > Performance & maintenance
Startup problems: Sometimes laptops don't start up at all. Try to take out the RAM chips (usually one at the back and one behind the keyboard at the front) and the hard drive. That often solves the problem. Also try another hard drive if you have one, if the previous steps have no effect. If it's a battery problem, discharge any residual power in the unit by removing the battery and unplugging the AC adapter, then holding in the power button for 7 seconds. Then try to start it with AC power only.   myxlfidian (150)

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Main > Technology > Computers > Internet > Browsing
Spelling checker: You can check the spelling of what you write in your web browser, such as when you are submitting tips to this site, by using browser add-on tools such as IESpell ( link ) or the Google toolbar.   Kevin Solway (173)

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Main > Technology > Computers > Internet > Browsing
Open links in a new tab or window: This is something I do all the time so that I don't lose the page I already have on the screen. Also, by loading several different links concurrently in this way you are able to load the pages more quickly than if you loaded them one at a time. This is particularly useful when you want to view several different pages from a slow-loading site.   Kevin Solway (173)

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Main > Technology > Computers
Drivers: Keep a copy of all the drivers you need for your computer on your hard drive. This way, when you need to reload a driver, you don't need to go hunting for an elusive driver disc. Make a folder on your hard drive called "Drivers". Inside this folder, create subfolders like "Video" and "Sound", and copy your driver files into the appropriate folder for when you need them.   Kevin Solway (173)

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Main > Technology > Computers
System Restore: If your sound suddenly starts going jittery, videos won't play or an application doesn't work the way it used to, including programs within web pages, just restore the PC to an earlier time through System Restore. Keep going back until it works if it doesn't the first time. None of your data or programs will be affected.   myxlfidian (150)

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Main > Technology > Computers > Computer hardware > Video Cards
If your video is still too dark, it's due to the age of your monitor. Older monitors get darker.   myxlfidian (150)

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Main > Technology > Computers
Standby Mode S3 Suspend: This is an incredible mode because it uses only 1 watt more than when you turn the whole PC off but leave it plugged in (soft power), but at the touch of a button you have your session back totally unchanged. The main benefits are quick resumption of what you were doing, huge power saving and a quieter room. It's an unbeatable feature everyone should use, but remember you may have to set the Standby or Suspend Mode to S3 in your BIOS.   myxlfidian (150)

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Main > Technology > Computers > Computer hardware
Sound cards: Onboard sound is definitely inferior to a PCI Sound Card. It also means more processing work is done off the motherboard.   myxlfidian (150)

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Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Html
Use percentages as widths in order to influence the layout in a manner compatible with variable screen sizes. For example, set a table to a width of 90%, rather than a width of, say, 600 (pixels).   Kevin Solway (173)

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Main > Technology > Computers > Computer hardware
Uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is a battery backup unit which can supply power to your computer for a period of time when your mains power is unavailable. The battery power kicks-in the instant the mains power fails, and gives you a chance to save your work or finish-up whatever it is you are doing. These units are now cheap enough for the home computer user.   Kevin Solway (173)

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Main > Technology > Computers > Repair & maintenance
A spare computer: It can be very worthwhile to keep a spare old computer that is not too dissimilar to your main machine. That way, if your main machine starts malfunctioning, you can either revert to your spare computer, or you can swap parts from your older computer into your main computer, to help you discover which part is failing. For example, if you suspect you might be having video card problem then it helps to have a spare working video card to be able to test your theory.   Kevin Solway (173)

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Main > Technology > Computers > Programming
Virtual machines: Modern computers are now fast enough, and have enough memory, to do your programming inside a virtual machine on your computer. This helps to isolate your programming environment from anything else you are doing on your computer, which can make your life easier. A bug in an experimental program on the virtual machine will not be able to wreak havoc on the rest of your files.   Kevin Solway (173)

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Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Algorithms
Shell sort: An efficient way to sort up to a couple of hundred items.
Procedure ShellSort(var a: array of Word);

var

bis, i, j, k: LongInt;

h: Word;

begin

bis := High(a);

k := bis shr 1;// div 2

while k > 0 do

begin

for i := 0 to bis - k do

begin

j := i;

while (j >= 0) and (a[j] > a[j + k]) do

begin

h := a[j];

a[j] := a[j + k];

a[j + k] := h;

if j > k then

Dec(j, k)

else

j := 0;

end; // {end while]

end; // { end for}

k := k shr 1; // div 2

end; // {end while}



end;
   Kevin Solway (173)

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Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Algorithms
Quick sort: Efficient sorting of large numbers of items.
procedure QuickSort(var A: array of Integer; 

iLo, iHi: Integer) ;

var

Lo, Hi, Pivot, T: Integer;

begin

Lo := iLo;

Hi := iHi;

Pivot := A[(Lo + Hi) div 2];

repeat

while A[Lo] < Pivot do Inc(Lo) ;

while A[Hi] > Pivot do Dec(Hi) ;

if Lo <= Hi then

begin

T := A[Lo];

A[Lo] := A[Hi];

A[Hi] := T;

Inc(Lo) ;

Dec(Hi) ;

end;

until Lo > Hi;

if Hi > iLo then QuickSort(A, iLo, Hi) ;

if Lo < iHi then QuickSort(A, Lo, iHi) ;

end;
   Kevin Solway (173)

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Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > CSS
General CSS tips:
  • Keep it Simple: complex code will cause you a lot of trouble in the long-run. Concentrate on usability rather than fancy colors.
  • Margins and padding: take care with these on all elements that you use, as different browsers will use different default amounts of margin and padding.
  • Don't use "divs" for everything when a HTML element will do (eg, e.g. p, h1, h2, h3, h4, h5, h6, ul, ol, dl etc...)
  • Validate your CSS code: link    Kevin Solway (173)
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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > CSS
    Useful snippets:
  • Fancy table borders: <table style=”border: 2px blue”>   Kevin Solway (173)
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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Delphi Code snippets
    Converting strings to and from Pchars:
    Use"StrPCopy" to convert a string into a pchar.
    function StrPCopy(Dest: PChar; 

    const Source: string): PChar;

    Use "StrPas" to convert a pchar into a string.
    function StrPas(Str: PChar): string;
       Kevin Solway (173)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Operating systems > Linux
    For help using Linux, check internet forums.   kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Operating systems > Linux
    To test Linux, try it 'live'. This means it is not installed onto your computer. You can trial-run a downloaded package from within Windows or straight from a CD (e.g. Knoppix).   kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Operating systems > Linux
    Take a test to find a distribution to suit you: link    kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Internet > Downloading
    Use a download manager. It reduces the risk of losing files if there are server problems, because the manager can resume from where it left off.

    Some managers also check file integrity, by using a checksum matching process. E.g.:

    Using Free Download Manager, right-click on the downloaded software in the list of downloads, select 'Check file integrity', and enter in the box the md5sum provided on the download website.

    It will be something like: 512c8346b0f8eb35f28c4eb96454d391   kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Internet > Searching
    Google: To narrow your search results:
  • Group words within quotation marks to keep the words together; for example, a search for "south africa" will find more specific results than searching for the words without the quotation marks.
  • If you are searching for a site within your own country, you can restrict your search to sites that have the appropriate domain name, for example, to search only sites that have the Australian ".au" extension, you can specify in your search: site:.au   Kevin Solway (173)
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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi
    Some keyboard shortcuts:
  • <ctrl><shift><i> : indent selected rows
  • <ctrl><shift><u> : unindent selected rows
  • <ctrl><shift><0..9> : set or remove the bookmark 0..9.
  • <ctrl><0..9> : jump to bookmark 0..9 in the currently opened file.
  • <ctrl><shift><g> : create a new GUID.
  • <ctrl>t : delete word
  • hold <shift> key down : then use arrows, home and end keys, to select text.
  • <ctrl><home> : jump to start of file
  • <ctrl><end> : jump to end of file
  • F12 : switch between form and code   Kevin Solway (173)
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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Delphi Code snippets
    Some one-liners:
  • Display last system error message:
    ShowMessage(SysErrorMessage(GetLastError()));

  • Convert a number to currency:
    FloatToStrF(Value, ffCurrency, 15, CurrencyDecimals); // "15" is the precision, where "Value" is a "Double"




  • File name of application:
    ExtractFileName(Application.ExeName);

  • Path of application:
    ExtractFilePath(Application.ExeName);

  • Let other applications use the CPU when you're in a loop:
    Application.ProcessMessages;
       Kevin Solway (173)
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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Delphi Code snippets
    Running on Vista?
    function IsWindowsVista: Boolean;   

    var VerInfo: TOSVersioninfo;

    begin

    VerInfo.dwOSVersionInfoSize := SizeOf(TOSVersionInfo);

    GetVersionEx(VerInfo);

    Result := VerInfo.dwMajorVersion >= 6;

    end;
       Kevin Solway (173)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Computer hardware > Optical drives > DVD
    Making a bootable DVDROM:

  • Choose an ISO file suitable for your computer. This file contains the operating system. It is either for: PowerPC (Mac), or 32bit (x86, pre-2004), or for 62bit (x86_64, new computers).

  • Choose a burning program that can burn ISO images. Follow steps like these:

    - Erase the DVDROM disk you wish to burn the file to, or see that it is empty.

    - In Nero 8, choose: Burning ROM, DVDROM(boot). Settings: Image file, no emulation, loaded sectors: 4, no relaxation of restrictions. Select 'New (compilation)'. In the main menu, select: Disc / Set ISO labels (e.g. 'OPENSUSE11X86_64'). Then: Recorder/Burn image.

    - In CDBurnerXP v4, choose: Burn ISO image. Settings: Select ISO image, Disk at Once, Write speed: 4x (5540KBps).

  • Test the DVD works. First enter the BIOS/setup to change the boot sequence to begin with CD/DVD. To enter BIOS, press your computer's BIOS key before the POST (e.g. F2).   kellyjones00 (593)
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    Main > Technology > Computers > Operating systems > Linux > SuSE
    For a free and excellent operating system, try the new openSUSE 11. Installation is easy. But you will need to install DVD-playing codecs separately from here: link (as the usual codecs are proprietary software)   kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Operating systems > Linux > SuSE
    Security: Like all Linux distributions, internet-security is not the issue it is in Windows because Linux installs all system files in a separate "root" partition inaccessible in the normal runlevel. It can only be accessed by a "root" password. However, SuSE ships with the AppArmor firewall should you think it necessary.   kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Operating systems > Linux > SuSE
    Desktop environment: This presents a range of the typical user's applications, with variations. The options in SuSE are: Gnome, KDE 3.5, or KDE 4.0. Gnome is the simplest, and most stable; KDE 4.0 has less stability but most development.

    Multiple desktops: A single desktop is basically the graphic user environment, that sits "under" all the programs/windows that are opened. It usually holds shortcuts to the user's favourite applications. To have multiple desktops, e.g. one for file management, one for internet and email, one for entering commands in the console, and so forth, do this:

    Right-click on the toolbar panel, 'add widget' and choose KPager for as many desktops as you like. Give desktops short memorable names like 'fs' for filesystem, 'mu' for music, and these will display in the tiny KPager icon on the toolbar panel.

    Attach applications to particular desktops by right-clicking on an application's titlebar and choosing either 'To Desktop: mu' or 'Advanced/Special Application Settings/Desktop/Apply Initially/mu'.

    A short-cut: Alt+Tab or Alt+Shift+Tab cycles forwards or backwards through desktops.   kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Operating systems > Linux > SuSE
    Short-cuts: Find shortcuts and tips in KTip.
    - Use the command-line to run KTip (or any application or command).
    - Type Alt+F2 to run the command-line.
    - Type KTip in the command-line to run KTip.
    - You can also browse URLs by typing them in the command-line.

    Some useful shortcuts:
    - Double-click on title bar of application to reduce it to titlebar only.
    - Hold Alt key and left-click on window to drag and move it with the mouse. Hold Alt key and right-click and drag window to resize it.
    - Middle-click pastes text after copying with left-click selection.

    - Within Konqueror which is a file manager, web browser, and server file manager:

  • fish://username@hostname -this accesses server files you have ssh access to, when typed into the location bar in Konqueror;
  • gg:----- -fill the blank with a search term to search in Google;
  • help:/------ -fill the blank with application name to open the help handbook for that application;
  • F4 -open a terminal console at the current location to avoid having to change directories manually.

    - Within Konsole, the terminal console, which is similar to Window's command-line program:

  • kmail --composer - typing this into the console has the email program open up only the composing window to send an email.   kellyjones00 (593)
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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Algorithms
    Rounding: The built-in round function might not always return the result you want. For example: Round(25.5) = 26, but Round(26.5) = 26.

    It is called a "banker's round", and rounds to the nearest even number. For a large number of operations, there is no bias.

    The following function will round-up if the fractional part >= 0.5:
    function RoundN(x: Extended): LongInt;

    begin

    Result := Int(X) + Int(Frac(X) * 2);

    end;

    The following function will round (as per RoundN), but to a certain number of decimal places:
    function RoundD(x: Extended; d: Integer): Extended;

    // RoundD(123.456, 0) = 123.00

    // RoundD(123.456, 2) = 123.46

    // RoundD(123456, -3) = 123000

    var n: Extended;

    begin

    n := IntPower(10, d);

    x := x * n;

    Result := (Int(x) + Int(Frac(x) * 2)) / n;

    end;
       Kevin Solway (173)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi
    Moving and sizing a component precisely:
  • To move a component to an exact spot, select the component, then press and hold the CONTROL key, then use the cursor keys to move the component in 1 dot increments.
  • To resize a component precisely, select the component, then press and hold the SHIFT key, then use the cursor keys to resize the component in 1 pixel increments.   Kevin Solway (173)
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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Video tutorials
    The best free video tutorial series for Delphi beginners is by Nick Hodges: link . It is far shorter and clearer, being more principle-driven, than the 3DBuzz series link .   kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Delphi Code snippets
    2 ways to do 'if and, then':
    if (SentenceAge >= '18') then

    if (SentenceAge <= '20') then

    Result := IntToStr(TrQi4) + ' - ' + IntToStr(TrB);


    if (SentenceAge >= '18') and (SentenceAge <= '20') then

    Result := IntToStr(TrQi4) + ' - ' + IntToStr(TrB);
       kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Computer hardware > Peripherals
    Headphones: Some brands like Sennheiser make a range of models with detachable cables. Each ear has a cable with a 3.5mm jack that plugs right into the ear. If the headphone fails in one ear, its almost always the cable, which costs less than a third of the price of a new set of headphones. Cables are the most common failure point of headphones but over 95% of headphones do not make them as detachable, replaceable genuine accessories.   myxlfidian (150)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Internet
    Color-blind people usually can't distinguish reds from greens. Make webpages friendlier by not using a red/green combination to contrast things.   kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Repair & maintenance
    Inter-media copying: Copy files from the first external media to the hard-drive, then copy the copies to the second external media. This is much faster than copying from one external media to another external media (e.g. CD to USB drive, or USB drive to USB drive).   kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Software > Good free software
    Applian FLV Player: Use the mouse scroll-button to fast-forward or rewind video in Applian FLV Player. link    kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Software > Good free software
    OpenOffice.org: Draw can be used for architectural drawings. Calc is like Windows Excel. Writer produces PDFs. Cross-platform.

    Cinelerra: video-editing software (Linux).

    Synfig: vector-based animation software. Cross-platform.

    Audacity: sound-editing software. Cross-platform.

    Knights: chess front-end (Linux).   kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Software > Good free software
    RSIBreak: Configuration includes variable break periods, variable periods of activity, and counting idle moments. One-click-install packages for various Linux distributions. Works with KDE desktop. link    kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Internet
    Broadband and moving house tip: it's important first to check with the main telecommunications service provider to see if phone-lines in the precise area of your new abode do usually get broadband. For example, some residences are too far from the local telephone "exchange" for broadband (ADSL) and can only get dialup or wireless.   kellyjones00 (593)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Delphi Code snippets
    Horizontal scrollbar for listbox
    listbox.Perform(LB_SETHORIZONTALEXTENT, 900, 0);
       thesource (378)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Delphi Code snippets
    Array of byte to string, and string to array of byte:
    // string to array

    StrPLCopy(pansichar(@arr), str, sizeof(arr));



    // array to str

    procedure AnsiStringFromBuf(var S: AnsiString; Buffer: PAnsiChar; Len: Integer);

    // Usage: ansistringfrombuf(str, pansichar(@arr), sizeof(arr));

    begin

    setstring(s, buffer, len);

    setlength(s, strlen(buffer));

    end;
       thesource (378)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Delphi Code snippets
    Detect when system is shutting down:
      private

    procedure EndSessionMsg(var Msg : TMessage); message WM_QUERYENDSESSION;





    procedure TForm1.EndSessionMsg(var Msg : TMessage);

    begin

    if backingupinprocess then Msg.Result := 0; // prevent system from shutting down or logging off

    Msg.result := 0;

    if Msg.lparam = 0 then

    begin

    ShowMessage('System is shutting down');

    end

    else if (DWORD(Msg.lparam) and ENDSESSION_LOGOFF) = ENDSESSION_LOGOFF then

    begin

    ShowMessage('User is logging off');

    end;

    end; // EndSessionMsg
       thesource (378)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Delphi Code snippets
    Focus a combobox:

    Normally, you can focus a component by using its "setfocus" method. However, a combobox requires the use of a different method.
    procedure TForm1.focuscombobox(combobox : tcombobox);

    var editHWnd : HWND;

    begin

    editHWnd := FindWindowEx(Combobox.handle, 0, nil, nil); // get the handle of the edit component

    if editHWnd <> 0 then windows.setfocus(editHWnd);

    end;
       thesource (378)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Programming > Delphi > Delphi Code snippets
    Reading old versions of unpacked records:

    Different versions of delphi use a different number of bytes to align record fields. Using the following compiler directive may help in reading records that were used with older compilers.

    {$A4} // Set alignment to 4 bytes, for reading old format (Delphi 4) unpacked records

    As a rule, when creating the declarations for records, you should specify the use of packed records. For example:

    TPackedRecord = Packed Record
    . . .
    end;

    This future-proofs the record in the case that future versions of Delphi use a different number of bytes for field alignment.

    There may be some cost in performance, depending on the number and size of records, since unpacked records can be accessed faster.   thesource (378)

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Networks > Networks & connections > Wired networks
    Supply power over an ethernet cable using POE ("power over ethernet") technology. This is ideal for providing power to security cameras which may not be near a power source. This can be done with a POE switch (pictured), or a POE injector. If the camera or device does not support POE then an active POE splitter is required at the destination end of the cable to separate the data from the power, and to reduce the voltage to an appropriate level for the device.   thesource (378)
     
     


    Click to enlarge

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    Main > Technology > Computers > Networks > Networks & connections > Wired networks
    Run TWO ethernet signals over a single ethernet cable by using splitters (pictured). This can be preferable to running an extra cable, however this is only possible when you are not using Gigabit ethernet speeds. Slower speeds, such as 100Mbps, which is fast enough for most purposes, use only four of the eight wires in the cable. Splitters divide the cable into two lots of four, enabling you to use all eight wires for two separate ethernet signals. You will need a splitter on each end of the cable.   thesource (378)
     
     


    Click to enlarge

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    Main > Technology > Computers > USB (Universal Serial Bus)
    Extend your USB cables beyond 5 metres. USB signals normally won't travel more than 5 metres along a normal USB cable, due to signal degradation. Sometimes you might want to use a USB device, such as a camera, that is more than 5 metres away from the computer. This problem can be solved in two different ways:

    1. A USB cable extender booster (see image).

    or

    2. A USB extension over ethernet cable, which requires two adapters, and an ethernet cable between the two adapters.   thesource (378)
     
     


    Click to enlarge

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    Main > Technology > Computers > USB (Universal Serial Bus)
    Collections of free portable applications are available which you can download onto your USB memory stick, and which do just about everything. These are great for travellers. One such suite of apps is called "Portableapps" and another is "Liberkey".   thesource (378)

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