W3j Owners Lounge

What do you mean by 'I plead the 5th'?

 

ie...the 5th Amendment - Meaning my disclosure would get me in trouble...

I was kidding.

What happened is that I accidentally "backhanded" my screen trying to stop my 16 month old from falling off of the couch.

 

I already tried lot of things to fix the issue on my internet explorer 7.0, it's still the same it always stop responding when I tried to open multiple videos in youtube, too bad it can't run videos all at the same time. I even updated everything including my OS, I already used registry fixer etc. I ended up using Recovery CD to freshly install Windows, whats really surprising is that my problem still persists just plain Windows Xp Pro and Asus drivers on my W3J then I tried to browse using IE6, the same scenario, it still stops responding on youtube, so weird I got no problems like this using firefox hmmmmmm...... anyone, especially W3J owners do you got this problem on your notebook???? Any advice for me how to fix this, it's not that a big deal but you know, I want everything to run smoothly coz we spend lots of money on this.

 

I just tried a couple times for ya in IE, first time I opened 2 videos and it froze and shut down IE. Tried again and got 4 open, but could tell it wasn't happy about it (very choppy), the fifth shut all the IE's down. FF works smooth with up to 8, got bored after that, but they were all running smoothly. Doesn't bother me though, because I would never go back to IE after using FF for a week.

Oh ya, and this is IE 6, not 7.

 

In response to your problem with IE7. There are a few things you might need to look at.

#1: IE7 is buggy as heck. Go back to IE6 (if you can), until IE7 developers work out more of the bugs.

#2: You could very well have a Malware/Spyware problem on your computer. Noticeable performance drops, especially when using IE (which spyware targets), is a big red-flag for spyware infections.

Truth be told, IE isnt that bad...most of the 'problems' people talk about with IE, are because it is improperly set up, or they have a spyware infection. The 'security problems' that people talk about with IE, are simply because of this simple bit of logic: IE is on every windows machine on the planet. That's 80%+ market share. If you were a malware programmer...and you wanted to target something...wouldn't you try to punch holes in as many people as possible? Yes. How do you do it? Target something that you KNOW everyone has and uses. i.e.: IE.

If Firefox had 80% market share (which they dont, not even close), then it would have the same spyware problems IE does. Its not THAT much more secure, trust me.

If it's spyware, here's how you fix it.

Get both of these FREE programs:

SpyBot Search & Destroy 1.4

Ad-Aware SE Personal Edition 1.06

Install them. Update them.
- Run them both Back to back, one right after the other. Doesnt matter which first.
- Remove ANYTHING they find. Dont bother w/ quarrantine.
- IMMEDIATELY Reboot. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200.
- After reboot, run them again before you do anything else. Especially before you open IE or other internet programs.
- Rinse and repeat, until they both find absolutely nothing. Only then are you clean.


If that doesnt help, you might wanna try going to www.castlecops.com, get HiJackThis!, and post your result log on their forums. They have lots of people that can help you with this kind of stuff.

If that doesnt take care of it, let me know. As you can see in my siggy, this is what I do for a living. ;-)

 

You make excellent points throughout and I agree with most. Something to note, Microsoft's Windows Defender is out of beta and is available for free download.

Windows Defender

It is my preferred anti-spyware program, as it provides realtime protection, instead of only removing spyware after its already had a chance to wreak havok on your system. I can't say if Spybot or Ad-Aware provide this functionality in thier free versions, as I haven't used them in a LONG time.

To download Windows Defender, you have to go through MS's validation process, so if you have a pirated copy of Windows, you need not apply. Also, it only works on Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 and Windows XP Service Pack 2.

 

Another great program for picking up spyware and removing unnecessary stuff that could be slowing down your computer is hijackthis. It does require a certain amount of knowledge to figure out what's going on, but you can always run the logs through a log analyzer, such as http://www.hijackthis.de/

 

How long have you been using defender? I've never really heard of it. I would have assumed it to be an auto update through MS.

 

A few months as beta, its been released as a full product as of this week. Its not going to go out through auto updates(as far as I know) because its a new product.

 

I'll have to check it out.

 

hi, i got a problem..

occasionally, not often, but when i'm in battery mode, my w3j reboots itself for no reason.. i am running on main battery + optical battery on quiet mode.

i use power4gear to monitor the mode. this happens when i'm reading a pdf file or browsing the net. Anyone know why?

 

Hrmmm, sometimes windows will reboot without showing an error. Try turning that off and see if you get to see the error:

Right click My Computer and choose properties...
Click the Advanced tab...
Click the Settings button in the Startup and Recovery section...
Uncheck Automatically restart in the System failure section...

See if you see a blue screen error next time. Also you can check your event viewer see if there is an error corrosponding to the same time that your system reboots itself. Right click My Computer and choose manage, and take a look at the event viewer see if errors are logged at around the same time you noticed the system rebooted itself.

Figuring out what the error is will greatly help in the diagnosis of the issue.

 

Most likely your system is set to automatically restart on system failure. Check your Event Viewer for event errors. Or else go into Control Panel | System | Advanced, click on the Settings button in Startup and Recovery and uncheck the "Automatically Restart" box and the next time a failure happens, the error will remain onscreen

 

k thanks .. i'll do that now..

under manage -> event log which is the one i look after for the errors? the application or system?

 

Check em both. Just look for an error around the time/date that the last time your computer rebooted itself.

 

I seem to remember a few months back that people were having troubles with two battery configs - specifically when it went to switch from say the optical batt to the main battery.

It would be a good test to full charge both and while you're using it, keep tabs on the power lvl of the optical battery...see if it's shutting off when that battery is depleted, as opposed to just switching batteries seamlessly.

 

ya i'm going to try it this weekend.. thanks for the info.. i was suspecting it was probably due to battery being loose or something but both batteries can't be loose at the same time.. i thought this because my computer never rebooted or crashed while on adapter.

 

Hello W3J owners.

I'm considering a W3J as my first laptop and I just have a few last things I want to check. I haven't got that gut feeling yet about this purchase so I just thought I'd come and talk about the things I'm still unsure about.

The most important thing is the viewing angle which I've heard a lot of criticism about. My question on that is: would 2 buddies be able to sit comfortably in chairs side by side to play games on the W3J without being distracted by the poor viewing angle? Being spoiled by 10 years on a CRT, this is by far the biggest concern I have about the W3J

But another thing I've wondered about is the native resolution. I'm worried that it is too big for my tastes. I know what I should do is to see it up close in person but that might not be possible since I live in hick territory. The resolution I'm used to is 1200x900 on a 17 inch CRT, which I actually don't know how that compares to the W3J's native.

The last question I still have is the keyboard. A comfortable, easy to use keyboard is very important to me. On desktops I have always used the curved ergonomic keyboards so getting used to the square laptop keyboard is going to be tough as it is, let alone any quibbles that might come up with the W3J keyboard specifically.

Anyway I've always liked the W3J, despite its relatively high cost. I'm a little worried that I have looked at any other brands besides Asus and Dell, but they are the that seem to stand out. Thanks.

Luc.

 

get it. You won't be disappointed. No other laptop comes close at all.

 

@ luc23:
1. Yes, 2 buddies would be able to do it without being distracted. BTW what games do you plan to play with your friend?
2. W3J's native res is 1280 x 768. This res is perfect for 14" screen IMO. IMO again any res above that will make text too small. Other than that, I like to play NFSMW, and to make it look beautiful, not distorted, I like to play it at the native res (using hack since NFSMW does not support widescreen res) with medium to high settings and I get 20-30 fps in average. If W3J has a higher res screen, say 1440 x 900 like A8Js, I don't think I can get a comfortable fps with the X1600.
3. The keyboard is OK.
4. To sum it up... breakspirit is right.

 

Thanks robohgedhang, and breakspirit.

Those comments are definately reassuring. After much back and forth it appears as though I'll end up chosing the W3J as soon as it's in stock, barring any surprises. Ya, it's expensive, and yeah, it's got the lesser CPU compared to the cheaper A8Js. But the asthetics, battery options, and bluetooth will likely seal the deal for me.

I know a lot of people have been praising the HP lineup, but they just don't seem as appealing as Asus. If it wasn't the W3J, it would probably be the A8Js or the Dell Inspiron 6400 (e5105).

And the game I'll play most with buddies is EASports NHL07, which IMO is the best hockey game for PC since NHL02

Can't wait

 

luc23, in EASports NHL07, is there any option to play it @ 1280 x 768 resolution? Oops sorry I'm being OOT.

 

I'm not sure. I can't check right now because I'm running Vista and NHL07 doesn't work on it.

Are you saying I should expect problems if I can't run it in native resolution?

I really know nothing about LCD's.

 

Anyone else see that Asus released a new BIOS on their public FTP site?

ftp://ftp.asus.com/pub/ASUS/nb/W3J/W3J210AS.zip

I installed that 209 beta bios thats been floating around with that graininess fix:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=80149

Anyone else try this 210 version yet?

 

There's a new thread on it. It doesn't resolve the infinite reboot loop when installing Vista.

~ Brett

 

Yea, just looked at the other thread...

 

I hope I am posting this in the correct area, since I aspire to be a W3j owner. I am finally giving in an buying a laptop. I really have no idea how I got this far without buying one. I build my own servers and workstations, so I am well versed in hardware, but I am a noob with laptops. After doing a lot of research I believe the W3j is the right one for me. You can't beat the bang for buck ratio. Plus, I hate paying hundreds extra for a name, ie. Sony. I also use Asus mobos and love them. I am buying this so I can do things on the go like web design, network admin, etc. I also want a computer I will not need to replace for a long time. I am looking at upgrading to the following specs:
1. Core 2 Duo T7200 2.0
2. 2gb DDR2 667 Kingston
3. 80gb 7200 Seagate

This will run around $2200 with shipping from geared2play. I am looking for info on the following:
1. Is it worth spending the extra money on the W3j compared to the A8Js.
2. Whats the best brand of hard drive for a laptop. Geared2play offers Hitachi, Fujistu, Seagate.
3. How is the wireless range. I am thinking about getting a wireless card with external antenna to boost the range, because most places I go won't have a heavily modded router/ap like I have.
I really just need a little extra arm twisting to convince me this is the right one for me. Thanks in advance for any help.

 

the dreaded bright spot has come to haunt me... i've bouthg it for 3 months already... any suggestiosn on what i can do?

 

hey guys few weeks ago i posted this problem, and got some helpful replies to look at the event logs and stuff and it happened again. When i checked event log nothing special nor any error. I disabled auto-reboot option in system recovery.

I think the problem is, when my optical runs out of power, and is switching to the main battery, that is when the computer reboots itself.

Which battery runs first if both are plugged in? the optical right? and if it is the problem, is the w3j suppose to reboot when it switches from optical to main battery? or do i have some defect?

thanks in advance.

 

Hmmm, I'm not sure what BIOS you're running but maybe you should try flashing with the beta in the sticky at the top of the forum, even if it's the version you're currently using since something might have gotten corrupted.

~ Brett

 

I've been trying to make the same decision as you. The W3J is definately more expensive than the A8Js or say, a Dell. But things that are keeping me in the W3J camp are: Better build, Better looks, Optical battery, Bluetooth.

And don't feel too bad. I'm buying in Canada and if I go ahead with the W3J and all the upgrades its going to cost me almost $3000 when all said an done

 

What's an "optical battery" ??

 

He's referring to the extra battery in the swappable bay which is able to house an optical drive, I gather.

~ Brett

 

I believe Geared2play offers bluetooth as an upgrade for the a8js, if that helps you decide. For me, I think the build quality of the w3j is going to be the big factor in going with the w3j.

 

Another point to consider is that you can buy a spare battery for the a8js. All you have to do is swap it out when you need. It wont be as easy as with the w3j, but its a work around if you dont feel like spending the extra cash on the w3j.

 

i am using the newest beta driver that fixed the grainy screen issue.

 

You might want to re-flash anyway. If possible, you might want to try to reinstall the OS as well. A workaround would be making the computer hibernate before swapping between the two batteries.

~ Brett

 

but wouldn't that work only if i plug in the optical drive or main battery separately? i currently have them connected at same time and i'm assuming they auto-switch when 1 runs out or.... is that not possible

 

Hi Pomme what kind of Mobility Catalyst driver do you use for your W3J? Is it the 6.9 version?

 

i use the new omegas, ya its the 6.9 catalyst

my powerplay is disabled.

 

Maybe you should try to revert to 6.8? Just an idea...

 

How to adjust sensitivity of the Asus BT mouse that comes with W3jp?? I want to lower sensitivity but can't find setting anywhere

 

Start --> Control Panel --> Mouse --> Pointer Options Tab --> Adjust the pointer speed slider

Also, I just got my W3J so I can now officially be part of this thread .

~ Brett

 

I tried this but it affects both touchpad and BT mouse. Touchpad sensitivity is perfect ...I only want to lower it for mouse

 

I had to find a middle ground between the two. I'm very comfortable with both now.

~ Brett

 

How have people gone about updating their video card drivers? I kinda wanna stick with ATI but I can't get the newest driver on their website to install and there's no update option in the ATI control panel.

~ Brett

 

Brett, I answered your question in your 'W3J + 7200 mini review' thread.

 

Hey all, I just got the W3J and I'm loving it.

I have a problem though. Forgive me if I'm repeating anything (I did do several searches) but is there a fix for the video card? It randomly freezes up and locks up and gives me a black screen when I try to play a game. Am I overheating? Or do I really need to get ahold of Asus?

I've updated the bios and drivers.

Is anyone having a similar problem?

 

Try reinstalling the video driver. Maybe something's corrupt. If that doesn't work, then yea, it sounds like you might want to talk to Asus.

~ Brett

 

Anyone who is having any problems with their system not hibernating properly should look at applying this windows patch:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/909095

Originally from this post:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=1674645&posted=1#post1674645