First notebook (Z63a) just arrived...

and I am wanting suggestions on how to make this computer zoom with the basics installed. I know some of the basic stuff is resource intense.

First impression are IT IS GREAT !!! I do not game, wanted long battery life, not too large a screen but big enough to have my aging eyes see it. ANY suggestions are appreciated. I have a linksys wireless router I am using.

Thanks,
mike

P.S. I picked this one because of the comments in this forum! I did buy it on E-Bay so I think I got a ripping deal.

P.P.S. I really hate emoticons like I used above

 

What do you mean exactly you want it to zoom?

 

The required stuff...anti-virus, firewall, adobe PDF alternatives, I don't want the essential software to load it down. I want it to run the basics as efficiently as possible.
Mike

 

I think mikey wants it to fly.. go fast.. go vroom vroom and zoom to the moon.. or maybe just sail smoothly right away.

congrats man. by right it shud be smooth sailing straight away. u can underclock the processor and stuff, replace norton with less resource hogging antivirus, but that's probably it. anyone?

 

Dys,
Yea! I want it to run efficiently as possible. I am putting AVG anti-virus as we speak. Is firefox or Opera better than IE...maybe netscape Navigator?
THanks,
mike

 

Hey mike, congrats! Glad u like your lappy. If you want fast, Opera is king, I'd say it zooms. Firefox is best if you use their plug-ins (extensions) and is more secure than IE, but not much faster. For convenience you can just use IE. I've not tried Navigator since the 90s though, dunno abt their development.

For rather mandatory spyware protection, you might wanna get Microsoft Defender (free) or Spyware Doctor. And Zonealarm as a firewall.

 

i like firefox. heh heh but never did try the rest, or found the need to.

i heard defender is good, but im using S&D and im fine

 

hit up this thread in Software: "best free software for windows".

there are a few cool utilities, like ccleaner (first page), or tuneXP for streamlining your computing. find an XP tweaking site for some guidelines on how to turn off useless startup services and pointless system processes. perhaps tweakxp

 

I dunno why, but the versclid.exe program is slowing down my IE. Perhaps it's not the same for you guys... I'd stick with Firefox

 

What is the main purpose of your notebook going to be? Buisness? General Use? etc.. Then we could guide you what programs you should and shouldn't install.

 

hoimin, thanks for linking that thread, I don't really look at much outside the Asus sub-forum...that thread has some great links, and a few of those links have awesome content within...I never know where to look for stuff like that, thanks again for linking that over.

Here's a link I bookmarked a while back Mikeylee

http://www.notebookforum.ca/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?t=557

Check it out, congrats on your Z63, great choice, enjoy it

 

Bwen,
The notebook is a toy. Going to use it for maybe some very like business stuff (light use of MS Office apps), a lot of web use, reading (I tend to read lots of pdf files), and who knows what else. My hope is to ween myself from the desktop to mostly using the notebook. I am a curious kind of guy, so I am constantly looking stuff up.
Mike

 

you're welcome CalibratedComa. that link (notebookforum.ca) is also available here in one of the stickies, courtesy of Coriolis (i've been trying to get speedfan to work on my z63a, but to no avail... incompatible motherboard perhaps...).

re: pdf readers
i am currently using GSView for PDF and PostScript files. it lacks the scrollability of Adobe but uses a lot less memory.

 

Just look at this.

http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,125507,00.asp

 

For general notebook speed optimization, check out this thread http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=2002

I undervolted my Z63 using Notebook Hardware Control and added 20-25 minutes to battery life using the max battery settings on 46% brightness. My voltage settings are 0.748V@6x and 1.100V@13x. A good guide to undervolting is at http://www.thegamebooks.com/undervolting-intel-pentium-m---how-to-keep-your-gaming-cool-t78.html. You could also use RMClock, but I find NHC to be easier for my limited purposes.

For PDF viewing I would suggest Foxit Reader http://www.foxitsoftware.com/pdf/rd_intro.php. This is a little .exe that you download and install, then set as your default reader -- pdf files will open near instantly instead of you having to wait around for Adobe to load in.

My choice for free firewall is ZoneAlarm Free http://www.zonelabs.com/store/conte...sp?dc=12bms&ctry=US&lang=en&lid=staticcomp_za. This is essentially the same firewall that ZA uses with their pay version of their internet suite, I think. You have to enter your email address to get the download link sent to you.

I haven't been able to get Speedfan to work on my Z63 either - temps read OK, but the software can't detect any fans. For improving your boot times, I would normally suggest Microsoft's bootvis, but for some reason it seems to hang on the optimize part after reboot on my Z63 - I'm still looking for a solution to this.

I concur with using tunexp to tweak your settings.

To improve your broadband or other internet connections, check out http://www.speedguide.net/downloads.php. Using the 2k default zip files for speed tweaking, I got a 30% increase in download speed.

 

Yea, SpeedFan only works for certain motherboards right now - the V6 doesn't work neither. It works fine on the Z70va(The one I made the guide with)

If you want yours to work, SpeedFan has a submit info button, where you fill in the specs of your motherboard, etc. and submit it to Al(The guy who made SpeedFan), and hopefully, he can do something about it

 

Thanks all...great ideas.
I feel silly saying this, but I never thought having a notebook computer could be so much fun. :^)
mikeylee

 

Yeup, notebook computing is a totally different experience.

Congratulations on your new baby, she's a beaut'~!!!

Like a rock, oooooooh like a rock~! Haha, did you name her yet?

 

Hmmm...never thought to name it. I would have to come up with somethng socally acceptable.
mikeylee

 

Congrats on the Z63A... I love mine!
In fact, I just bought the bluetooth module for it... it should be here in a week or two. It should be a challenge installing it...but it'll be worth it

Then it will be more like a W3A than a Z63A...

 

AuroraS,
The guy I bought mine from sent me a 3-Com PC Card bluetooth module. I have not tried it yet though. I am loving this computer. I am going on a few trips and am looking for to spending quality time with it while my wife works
mikeylee