Blog Archives

• Taking the plunge with a new PC

  Posted on June 3rd, 2019 at 02:20 Tracey Capen Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  Buying a new PC was once a fairly simple shop-and-buy process. There wasn’t much to consider beyond memory and drive capacity — and maybe an upgraded video card.

  But recent innovations have made choosing a new machine more complicated. Intel’s Optane technology, for example, claims to make a hard drive as responsive as an SSD!

  See the full story in the June 3, 2019, AskWoody Plus Newsletter (Issue 16.20.0)

  Hardware, LangaList, Tech Help AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Buying PCs, hardware, LangaList, Windows

• Langalist: Remove vendor-installed junkware, vet “Update needed” and booting a Virtual PC

  Posted on May 13th, 2019 at 02:41 woody Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  Fred continues his LangaList streak, tackling three subjects:

  • How to uninstall pre-installed junk on a Win10 PC
  • Is that “Security update needed” popup bogus?
  • Can you use a Virtual PC to boot your computer?

  Interesting questions. Insightful answers.

  Out this morning in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 16.17.0, delivered free to all Plus members.

  Tech Help AskWoody Plus Newsletter, crapware, LangaList, Virtual PCs

• Langalist: When a Win7 “no reformat reinstall” is not the way to go

  Posted on May 6th, 2019 at 02:08 woody Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  Fred Langa’s back with more advice about wiping out your system when you re-install Win7. It isn’t as simple as it seems.

  He also looks into System Restore on non-system drives.

  LangaList out this morning to Plus members in AskWoody Plus Newsletter 16.16.0.

  Tech Help AskWoody Plus Newsletter, LangaList, System Restore, Win7 no reformat re-install

• LangaList: “I know to de-fragment my HDD and not to de-fragment my SSD. Do I de-fragment my hybrid drive?”

  Posted on April 26th, 2019 at 07:28 woody Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  Interesting question – without a simple answer.

  Follow Fred’s advice on Langa.com.

  Hardware Disk Defrag, LangaList

• LangaList: Should you force your machine onto Win10 1809 or wait for 1903?

  Posted on April 22nd, 2019 at 05:40 woody Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  It’s a tough question. Fred Langa takes you through the pros and cons, and offers some solace during these trying times. If every version of Windows were good, it’d be a no-brainer. Demonstrably, that isn’t the case.

  Fred also has a peek into a bit of history with us still — the old 8.3 filename. It’s there, on your system, whether you know it or not.

  LangaList lives in this week’s AskWoody Plus Newsletter 16.15.0, out this morning to AskWoody Plus Members.

  Tech Help AskWoody Plus Newsletter, filenames, LangaList, Win10 1809, Win10 1903

• LangaList: How to move a recalcitrant machine to Win10 version 1809 and “no-format reinstalls” of Win10

  Posted on April 15th, 2019 at 05:21 woody Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  Two big ones from Fred Langa’s bottomless bag of tricks….

  If you want to get to Win10 1809 – just to bide your time before Win10 Great Unknown version 1903 hits the stage – there are some ways to blast through the blocks.

  And, if you’re accustomed to the Win7 “no-reformat reinstall” process, there’s an analogous-but-different alternative in Win10.

  Details in this week’s AskWoody Plus Newsletter 16.14.0, out this morning to AskWoody Plus Members.

  Windows News AskWoody Plus Newsletter, install Win10 1809, LangaList, no-reformat reinstall

• LangaList: A reader’s laptop becomes a fire hazard!

  Posted on April 8th, 2019 at 03:50 woody Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  It looked like a weird Surface Pro screen problem, but it was actually something much, much worse!

  Plus… Controlling ads and ad-like notifications in Win10.

  More (un)common sense from the inimitable Fred Langa.

  Details in this week’s AskWoody Plus Newsletter 16.13.0, out this morning to AskWoody Plus Members.

  Other AskWoody Plus Newsletter, LangaList, Surface Pro screen, Win10 ads

• LangaList: Secure Boot problems and how to fix them, mirror your phone’s screen

  Posted on March 25th, 2019 at 06:40 woody Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  Fred Langa’s latest foray into the belly of the beast:

  • How to diagnose and fix Secure Boot timing problems
  • Free ways to mirror your smartphone’s screen on PCs and TVs

  All in the latest LangaList.

  Details in this week’s AskWoody Plus Newsletter 16.11.0, out this morning to AskWoody Plus Members.

  Other AskWoody Plus Newsletter, LangaList, Mirror smartphones, Secure Boot
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