*HP dv8 Owners Lounge*

Sure looks like you did good, Alan! Seems to work fine. I already had it so I didn't need to download all of it again...

I'm still trying to find what was fixed in the new "Fixed" version of the Restored version ... in the meantime while I'm looking into that, I posted a list below on the information on what was restored in the "Restored Edition" for those who may be interested.

Restored from Hiren's BootCD's 10.0 - 10.6
---------------------------------------------
Restored Dos Apps
---------------------------------------------
Acronis Disk Director
Acronis True Image
Active Partition Recovery
Active Password Changer
Active Uneraser
BootMagic
DiyDataRecovery Diskpatch
Drive Image 2002
Easy Recovery
HDD Regenerator
LapLink 5.0
Lost & Found 1.06
MpxPlay
Norton Disk Doctor/Editor 2002
Norton Ghost
NTFS Dos Pro
Ontrack Disk Manager
Paragon Mount Everything
Paragon Partition Manager
Partition Commander 2004
Partition Magic
Partition Table Doctor 3.5
PC Doctor 2004
PC-Check
PC-Config 9.33
Prosoft Media Tools
Registry Reanimator
The Troubleshooter 2002
Winternals Disk Commander 2001

-------------------------------------------------
Restored MiniXP Apps
-------------------------------------------------
Active Undelete
Defragger
DefragNT 1.9
EASEUS Partition Master
ERD Computer Management
ERD Explorer
GetDataBack for FAT/NTFS
Norton Ghost
Ghost Explorer
Winsock 2 Fix for Windows 95/98/Me

Regards,
- - Phil

 

I recently bought a new compatible screen(LTN184HT01-A01) but now I am stuck on the Page 70 of Service Manual.

The page 70(See upright page) states that the display enclosure bottom page must be removed, hence no more progress on this page as the excessive force is needed to remove this component.

Is there any possible solution to remove this component( display enclosure bottom Edge) ?

Thank you

 

On page 423.. about post 4223, there are a few guys heavy into monitor calibration and sorts... "rageman" and a few others.. maybe they have done before what your doing.

 

Others have tackled some "heavy" work on their display units but I don't know of any that have have actually removed it from the enclosure.

I've tackled the keyboard replacement and that wasn't very difficult but haven't had any reason to remove the display unit from its enclosure. Have you considered buying a replacement enclosure and installing your display into it? Installing the display unit into the enclosure seems like it involves a series of steps that aren't nearly as difficult or as risky as trying to extract the display from the enclosure would be. Swapping the combination after the new display is installed in its enclosure should be quite easy.

Regards,
- - Phil

 

Actually, I have calibrated the monitor with my EyeOne Pro and found that my screen ( 184HT03-001) is limited by its brightness of backlighting ( 161 Maximum/143 Average).
Contrast is almost 600:1 when 100% level of brightness is applied. However, I am worried about the longevity of this screen as 100% level of brightness is applied wherever I stop by.
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Btw, the Color Gamut is only 72% at best.( Same result from notebookcheck's M980NU review; Same 184HT03-001)

 

While I didn't ask why you were doing it, I gather that's what your reply is about.

What do you think about my suggestion as to HOW to do it?

Regards,
- - Phil

 

It's great and convenient but I prefer the spare part collections instead of the display assembly.

Anyway, Thank you for the advice.

 

I hope you work it out but, from your comment about part collections, I don't really understand yet what you plan to do.

Regards,
- - Phil

 

Display Assembly vs Display Assembly Components

 

Hi Woods /Phil

Well I got the DV8... really well built machine... i like it...

I looked at the service manual and the parts you said, and it doesnt look too bad a job to retrofit a TV tuner...

Mine has a round chrome blanking plug inbetween the left hand side rear USB port and the DC in socket (which has a little LED to the left of it), so I dont think I need the plastic cover that you mentioned... correct me if I'm wrong on that...

It looks like you dont have to touch the systemboard to do the upgrade which is handy...

Do you know if the little cardbus remote that comes with the non TV DV8 will do or will it need a different one... I see there are 2 listed in the parts list, but they look like there is one for teletext and the other not...

I got Windows Media Centre working with an external USB TV tuner, but the HP app doesnt pick up any channels after its done a channel scan..

Thanks


Adibee

 

Congrats, Adi! Glad you like it - that's a feeling that only grows as you use it more and more!

Regards,
- - Phil

 

Anyone who's using Everest Ultimate software should check out these threads (links below) for some important developments re the future of the program. The developer has left the company and taken the rights to the program with him and started up a new company. Current users of Everest have free upgrade rights to the new program called AIDA64 (which btw, supports SSDs) until October 20, 2010, so at least get that done so you will be able to use the new program without having to buy it again.

The new App is a lot like Everest but adds:

+ 64bit benchmarks
+ 64bit System Stability Test
+ proper SSD support
+ GeForce GTX 460 and GTX 465 support
+ a lot of bugfixes, optimizations and improvements

If you have an existing EVEREST license, you're entitled to a free upgrade to AIDA64 (only until 10.20.2010). In such case, visit the following page for terms & conditions:

http://www.aida64.com/free-upgrade-aida64

See also:

AIDA64 1.00.1111 - nsane.forums

FinalWire Announces AIDA64 State of the Art Diagnostic Software - techPowerUp! Forums

 

Big BUMMER, Peter! As I bought Everest Ultimate based on your strong advocacy, I have already fired off a copy of my Lavalys email to Finalwire.

I gather that anyone with a license for updates for Everest Ultimate will not receive further updates and, after receiving AIDA64 v1.0, will not receive any updates for that product either?

I was a fan of Tamas Miklos' AIDA32 for years before it was discontinued in March, 2004. Do you know if this new release, AIDA64, is being done in association with him or is the new company, FinalWire, one which that simply bought the rights to AIDA32 and is using it as a basis for their new product (derived from AIDA32 and Everest Ultimate)?

Regards
- - Phil

 

Thanks Phil.

As you said, since I'm still under warranty, do I need to call HP customer service and demand that they ship me the HDX 18 backlit keyboard free of cost or do I have to pay for the keyboard? On the other hand, if I get the HDX 18 keyboard, will the keys fade again? I really don't want to be replacing the keyboard for life!!!. Also, does the backlit feature works fine? Does it have brightness sensor built in like the same way Apple MacBooks have?

Finally, is the dv8t keyboard identical in every aspect to HDX18 backlit?

Please reply.

Thanks.

 

I don't see what the problem is re AIDA64. You still will be entitled to the same future updates. Same as Everest (Lavalys), they just keep putting out beta versions (i.e., updates) that anyone can download from their download page. They install right over your licensed version. All you do is unzip or unrar (i.e., extract) the update right into the AIDA64 program directory over the existing files and it's updated to the latest version and still licensed. I already updated the initial version of AIDA64 with the first beta update that's out already. Worked flawlessly as usual. The beta updates come out approximately every two weeks, although I suspect they may come out faster for a while now.

Also, if you really feel gypped or entitled to more than what they are offering previous Everest licensees, one of the links I provided above contains a link to a simple method to create your own free licenses for the new app. (which also works flawlessly, btw). So imo, there's nothing to be concerned or upset about. I've already replaced Everest with the new app and am totally happy with it. I'm using its Vista Sidebar gadget and support (which also works in 7) to display several sensor items (GPU clock, temp, CPU temp, HD temps, etc.) in a gadget on the right side of my desktop (see screenshot, part circled in red, below). There's no difference except for the name and the new added features. I'd think you, especially would be happy with the new app's improved so called "proper" support for over 300 SSD's among other improvements.

 

Good to hear back from you.

I was telling you how others have gotten HP to send them a replacement DV8 keyboard under their DV8 warranty but you seem to be mixing up two issues due to adding my parenthetical reference to how I handled the same issues to my answer to your question about getting a replacement DV8 keyboard from HP. Hope this post helps clear up any confusion.

Since you have a DV8, you are not likely to be able to demand HP send you a keyboard for an HDX18. You can, like I did, order the HDX18 keyboard from HP for $18 if you want one. Since a DV8 doesn't provide power for the HDX18 backlighting, that becomes another issue if you wish to have that feature (as I did!).

Did you go review the HP HDX site I referenced regarding the backlit keyboard? It probably answers the questions you have and you'd probably get a lot out of reading through it (at least the last two posts there anyway).

The HDX keyboard (though it is silver not black) has not had reported key fading issues AFAIK and fits in place of the DV8 keyboard. To power the backlighting (which is an obvious additional difference), power must be applied to the additional ribbon cable on the HDX keyboard - that is not needed for the keyboard to properly apply keystrokes to the keyboard processor. After powering the backlighting, the lighting works fine in my DV8.

The HDX18 did not have brightness adjustment AFAICT but you could probably add that feature easily if you were to tackle the installation of the power connection to the HDX keyboard in your DV8.

Regards,
- - Phil

 

I asked a question and expected you'd quote my question if you were answering it. However, since I couldn't find answers to all my questions, I just quoted the recent posts to provide a context for my comment on your last post.

BTW, Peter, I would much prefer you quote what I wrote instead of using terms like "gypped" to characterize what you may have thought I was expressing! That's one reason quoting is a feature of this forum. It also makes clear what you're replying to and what you're not.

The "problem" seemed that the Everest Ultimate is ended and there will be no further updates to it. (Correct?)

I also asked if AIDA64 would offer updates (since one of your links suggested to me that it wouldn't) and I'm that that they do. I, too, now have installed it and installed the available beta. That answered my second question. The resemblance to Everest Ultimate is palpable... Support for SSD is certainly welcome as well.

My third question related to Miklos' involvement and I presume that you didn't know since you didn't answer.

Regards,
- - Phil

 

I'm sorry my posting doesn't suit your standards, Phil. But it is what it is. I try to keep the quoting to a minimum, particularly when I feel it is fairly obvious what I'm responding to. In the future, I'll try to remember to make an exception in your case and quote your posts if/when I respond to something you said.

As you probably know by now, the new app is virtually identical to Everest in every way, except for the new features already mentioned. If you want to know more about it you are going to have to investigate further yourself. I posted some links in my first post to help you (and anyone else interested in the future of this app) get started on that.

It's really not very complicated, AIDA64 is Everest in every way but name and will be updated same as Everest was (approx every couple of weeks). I don't know what the future of Everest will be but I prefer to stick with the original developer's version which is AIDA64. I will probably be removing Everest from my machine in a few more weeks after I see how things shake out. I don't know the original developer's name but drew the conclusion from what I read that he is working on AIDA64 now and not Everest any longer.

I hope you have good luck with and enjoyment from whichever app you decide to use in the future.

 

My standards were not the issue. I simply couldn't tell what you were replying to. That seems more like anyone's standards... With messages intervening, it simply wasn't clear. I guess you could start with my name, or refer to me by name, if you didn't want to quote.

Sorry if I over-emphasized that issue. I only suggested quoting since it wasn't clear to me but I decided to reply anyway.

Since your OP, I installed AIDA64 and immediately noticed the similarity to Everest Ultimate ... From years of experience with the original AIDA32 which shows on the history chart on the FinalWire site, I just wondered if you knew if Miklos was still involved at AIDA.

Does that mean that Everest Ultimate will continue to be developed but just without the developer who now works for FinalWire? Without a simple "yes or no" to my previous question on this, I conclude that, if I will have a choice two programs in the future, Everest Ultimate will continue.

Regards,
- - Phil

 

It appears that Miklos is very involved with AIDA:

"FinalWire Ltd. today announced the immediate availability of AIDA64 Extreme Edition 1.00 software, a streamlined diagnostic and benchmarking tool for home users; and the immediate availability of AIDA64 Business Edition 1.00 software, an essential network management solution for small and medium scale enterprises.

As a descendant of the award-winning AIDA16 and AIDA32 software, and the successor to the widely popular diagnostic utility Lavalys EVEREST, the brand new AIDA64 version leaps forward into the next decade by introducing a collection of 64-bit processor and memory benchmarks, an enhanced 64-bit system stress test module, and a further expanded hardware database.

"After the splitting up of Lavalys, we at FinalWire are happy to continue our efforts of delivering a dependable monitoring software to our faithful users" said Tamas Miklos, managing director of FinalWire. "Since the introduction of our first diagnostic utility ASMDEMO in 1995, we have built a passionate community of hobby users, hardware enthusiasts, and professional overclockers. Using the valuable feedback we have collected from them in the past few years, we have created a software for the new decade of 64-bit multi-core systems."

New and Enhanced Benchmarks
Besides introducing 64-bit variants of its proven memory and processor benchmark methods, AIDA64 implements an optimized ZLib data compression benchmark and an enhanced set of fractal computational floating-point benchmarks. It also adds a new CPU benchmark method to determine cryptographic hash value calculation performance. All AIDA64 processor benchmarks are now fully ported to 64-bit, scale up to 32 processor cores, and utilize MMX, 3DNow! and SSE instructions to unlock the full potential of modern multi-core Intel and AMD processors.

Solid-state drive support
AIDA64 further extends its exhaustive hardware database by adding 300 solid-state drives (SSD), making the database count over 115,000 entries total. On top of the usual ATA auto-detect information the new SSD database enables AIDA64 to display flash memory type, controller model, physical dimensions, and data transfer performance data. The new AIDA64 version also implements SSD-specific SMART disk health information for Indilinx, Intel, JMicron, Samsung, and SandForce controllers.

Improved stress testing, alerting and hardware monitoring features
The popular System Stability Test module is now ported to 64-bit to put the most demanding workload on both the system memory and all available CPU cores. Overheating, over-voltage, and cooling fan alerts are now fine-tunable with alert sound and emergency application launch. The real-time hardware monitoring module was further improved by adding Intel QST 2.0, Koolance TMS-200, and DIMM thermal sensor device support.

Upgrading from EVEREST
FinalWire provide free upgrade path for EVEREST customers until October 20, 2010. For terms and conditions, visit this page.

Pricing and Availability
AIDA64 Extreme Edition and AIDA64 Business Edition are available now at the online store. Additional information on product features, system requirements, and language versions is available here. Join our Discussion Forum at forums.aida64.com.

Source: FinalWire Announces AIDA64 State of the Art Diagnostic Software | techPow(erUp

See also: http://www.aida64.com/about-finalwire

(I trust if you have any further questions, you will be able to find the answers yourself using the links provided here and in my previous posts on the subject. )

 

Thanks, Peter. A "Yes" would've been a simpler and equally satisfying response.

I had no other questions, Peter. But, if the same OP was to relate to a simple question like the one I asked you, I'd make the same attempt to get an answer here even if it again took three tries to get it. (Sounds like you hadn't read your own links back when I first asked whether Miklos was still involved. Ha-Ha! )

Regards,
- - Phil

 

I have the stock keyboard.. of course its not lit, but none of my keys have faded in the least.

I've read about fading keypads.... It must have been a bad silkscreening lot and they must have corrected the issue.

I have the DV8T 1100 CTO .. I assume every version built after mine is ok too.

 

Hello All...

Thanks for the buying advice a few weeks back. I received my new laptop and am quite excited to start using it. I went with the recommended SSD drive and wow, the system definitely runs fast!

My question is related to the SSD drive. I only added the 128 gb SSD drive, so I am curious what files I should leave on the SSD drive in order to maximize performance, and what files should I move to the 2nd hard drive? (due to space limitations) I am assuming I should move the "user" files so that my music and documents are stored on the second drive. Any other simple recommendations?

Thanks again.

-Jay

 

Okay, it sounds like they may all be manufactured that way. That makes sense. Sure sounds like you have the correct plug where the components will attach. I agree, I see no reason to purchase the plastic cover...

The little included remote should suffice. Mine actually came with 3 remotes, but I find myself using the 'default' remote more than the others. I have it stowed away in the expresscard slot. Quite handy!

I'm not sure about WMC or the HP app. If I remember correctly, you're in the UK? Perhaps it has something to do with ntsc vs. pal? Maybe there is something you can change in the HP app settings to get it to recognize channels. Does you external tuner not have a complimentary program? To be honest I actually prefer WMC over HP but that's just my preference....

Are you going to order the components and retrofit the tuner internally? If so, good luck, and please let us know if you need any assistance!

 

Hi Woods

I think I will have to go for it... just knowing that there is an empty slot waiting for a card will make it too much to resist... :O)

I did a channel scan with the HP app, and now n again during the scan you got to see channel previews, so it was detecting channels, but once completed there were 0 channels stored... The USB TV tuner is a Terratec DTXS Diversity, and it comes with an app Terratec Home Cinema, which is quite good...

When I ran the TV setup, it said MediaSmart Live TV is sharing the TV tuner device with other programs... You can go past this and run the setup... In the Select TV source it said Digital Antenna (DVB-T) and in the drop down there was Digital Antenna (DVB-T)2 ... It didnt recognise it as a Terratec like the other apps did, but it has 2 tuners so seems to be picking them both up...

Any chance of takin a photo of the 3 remotes or describing the differences...

Do u know the difference between the different tuner cards listed in the service manual?

I cant get the bits direct from HP UK so Im gonna have to source them from somewhere else... Its a bummer that the cable doesnt come with the tuner... u have to buy a cable kit seperately...

When I do the upgrade, I'll take some photos along the way so other people can use it as a guide ...

 

Assuming your SSD is your primary drive "it should be if it isn't".. you should install all your programs and windows to the C drive "SSD" and "do not" install anything to your secondary drive.

By not installing to your secondary drive, you will allow your secondary drive to last forever as it speeds down and the disks barely rotates until polled. This also saves battery power if your out and about.

No reason or advantage it putting your swap drive the the secondary drive either and it becomes the slow link the the chain and you lose the above advantages too.
I have my virtual memory size set to custom of 16 as a minimum and 12273 as a max... I have 8 gig or ram.
By setting is low allows your system to reboot quickly without the need to load a large file before it settles, and then unload it upon shutdown.. and no use in writing all that unnecessary stuff the the SSD anyway since you'll likely not ever need it if you have a lot of ram.

Just use your secondary drive as backup and extra storage and maybe an area to do temporary stuff if you want.

Use the secondary as a place to ghost or image your whole C drive to also!

 

Congrats, Jay! I'm sure you will love using it! Be sure to do a full image backup ASAP of both the SSD and HDD to external drives (more on that later) and make your recovery disks as soon as you complete installing all the current security and driver updates.

I have the 256 gb Samsung SSD and allocated my use of the SSD as follows:

SSD- Win 7 Ultimate, all updates, zero gb swapfile, MS Office 2010 , PhotoShop CS4, MathCad, and all other really large slow programs.

HDD- all other installed softwares(utilities, antivirus, anti-spyware , anti-malware, email clients) and data (accessing these is not what slows down a computer).

Net result is about 40-50% use of each drive that is nearly optimum for best performance of both SSDs and HDDs.

I've run mine with this arrangement for nearly a year and it has given me no problems. Still just as fast on benchmarks as the first day I started it up on my SSD!

BTW, I use an eSATA connection to a Vantec SATA drive dock for all my Ghost imaged drives for quick-swap backups - very fast, nearly as fast as internal drives. I am looking forward and nearly salivating in anticipation of USB3 connections and USB3 devices as they promise to be every bit as fast internal drives.

Hope this helps.

Regards,
- - Phil

 

Here's something that may be of interest to people who are upgrading to Intel SSD's (or perhaps any brand SSD) now or in the future:

Download Intel Data Migration Software For SSD Drive

Need data migration software for newly purchase Intel Solid-State Drives (SSDs)? Then you may try out Intel Data Migration Software. Intel Data Migration Software is a set of powerful and easy-to-use hard disk utilities which has been developed by Acronis for existing and new Intel Solid-State Drives (SSDs) users.

Intel Data Migration Software copies your drive’s contents from your old storage device to your new Intel Solid-State Drive to help make this transition smooth and painless. This migration software has been designed with user friendly features that able to auto detect old and new drives, and guide the user through a simple cloning process. With Intel Migration Software, the hard disk contents such as operating systems, applications, documents and personal settings can be transferred from old to the new SSD within minutes.

“The Intel Data Migration Software, powered by Acronis, makes the process of migrating to Intel Solid-State Drives faster and easier for both home and corporate users,” said by Troy Winslow, director of product marketing, Intel NAND Solutions Group. “Having a simple and accessible method to clone a user’s existing drive, makes it that much easier for consumers to start experiencing the high performance of solid-state drive computing.”

The Intel Data Migration Software is available as a free download from Intel:

Download Intel Data Migration Software (version 1.0): Intel_Data_Migration_Software.exe (Direct download link)

Download Intel Data Migration Software User Guide (version 1.0): Intel_Data_Migration_Software_User_Guide.pdf (Direct download link)

Source: Download Intel Data Migration Software For SSD Drive My Digital Life

My guess is that it only works to transfer to Intel SSD's, but maybe it will work as free cloning software to any drives so long as one has an Intel SSD in the system, or perhaps it will work w/o limitation. Someone should try it and see. I personally have no need of it since I already have cloning software that works on any drive w/o limitation.

 

I have no need for it, either, Peter, since I've already made that transition to SSD over 6 months ago. The Intel freebie sounds like a good place to start for an existing HDD-based system if you have just acquired an Intel SSD that is supported. Reminds me of DiskWizard by Acronis - the freebie from Seagate that only works when a Seagate drive is connected in the PC. Very useful if you meet its conditions for use.

Another option everyone should consider is the free download of Hiren's BootCD which includes Ghost 11.5 as a better universal free choice which is known to work (I use it every week to clone my Samsung SSD for backup purposes) and it works perfectly every time.

Regards,
- - Phil

 

It may work perfectly but unfortunately, it requires user intervention to remember to use it each time one wants to make a clone. It can't work if one doesn't remember to use it, each and every single time one wants to make a clone. Not everyone is as OCD (uh, I mean diligent and reliable) about backing up as you.

Imo, for the majority of users, it's much better to employ a system that one can set and forget and that thereafter makes the backups AUTOMATICALLY on a schedule without requiring the user to ever do anything once the initial schedule has been set and enabled. My system is completely backed up each and every single day w/o my having to move a finger or turn my system on or off, or interrupt my work if I happen to be doing something else with my computer while the back up is being made automatically in the background. I used to use cloning but I have come to the conclusion that this method is more reliable because it does not depend on the user to not only remember to make the backup but actually follow through by taking the time and effort to make the backup. And it is more convenient because it does not interrupt the use of the computer while the backup is being made.

I do still manually make a clone of my primary drive (which includes the C partition among others) every couple of months, just to have one as an additional backup on a spare laptop drive to store in a remote location. But I have recovered my system many times by using automatic compressed backups and have found it to also be very reliable, with the added reliability of always being made whether the user remembers to and follows through by actually making the clone or compressed backup or not.

The other advantage is that many more compressed backups can be fit and stored on a single large capacity external drive, whereas clones usually require more storage space.

 

This was the topic I replied to, and suggested another FREE product for the Migration task for ANY SSD product, not just Intel. FREE and "universal" use were key words, Peter.

This was my reply to you, Peter. Nothing HERE that would benefit from PAYING for it nor using it REPEATEDLY!

Seems like a totally different topic. We hashed over your NEW topic over about a month ago and it seems unbeneficial if your "faux response" confuses people that might not initially realize that you have changed the subject after you started it talking about migration of a HDD system to an SSD system.

It seems disingenuous to suggest that you were replying to me on that subject which is particularly irritating when THAT wasn't the case!

I'm beginning to think you're just a shill for getting people to BUY something from Acronis that they can get for FREE elsewhere. Ha-Ha!

Regards,
- - Phil

 

Well two of the remotes are the expresscard type slot remotes. They are pretty much identical except that one of them has a circular 'wheel' that adjusts volume. The third is a traditional looking WMC remote. It looks pretty much like this:

Amazon.com: HP Remote Media Center Remote Control Same AS 5070-2584 50702583 439128-001 438584-001: Electronics

The other two sort of like this:
Amazon.com: HP Mobile Remote Control Express Card - Remote control - infrared: Electronics

I'll try to snap some photos in the next few days....

Kind of. What I'm not sure about is which one you need since you're in the UK. Probably the easiest thing for you to do is just go here:

HP PartSurfer

Put in your info and see which is compatible. It may have some sort of brief description to help determine the differences. I also notice there are two different PAL external antenna cables. Appears one is male the other is female. That may be something you need to consider as well.

You are correct about the cabling. It says in the Service Manual:

"The TV tuner module spare part kit does not include a TV tuner module cable. The TV tuner module cable is included in the Cable Kit, spare part number 496891-001."

Sounds great about taking photos and making a guide. Good luck.

 

Well one thing I do know.... once we find something that works and we trust, we want to share it so others can benefit and we feel good about them feeling good or we love the glory for the find!....... the problem comes in when its assumed out way is better than the other guys when we haven't tried the other guys yet!

I work in a field thats very specialized, and whether your slinging a hammer or placing delicate instruments inside the human body.... there are protocols written from the experts in the field that are constantly "violated" because someone else has found a better way or something that simply fits their comfort zone better for the skill level they operate at. Seems no one does it exactly the same regardless of protocol!

Free is a very good price for sure!... some of those utilities on Hiren's CD aren't cheap yet they work perfect from the disk. I don't know if there are other accompanying utilities or venues that make the product easier to use and understand or not but the people who put together Hirens are pretty sharp..... getting the utilities to work from such a simply menu is the first miracle..... but even giving you choices of what menu to use it from if the next miracle... and free is the third!

On the other hand, money is no big deal if paying a little means I get a product that makes my life easier.

Its good we are all so passionate.... too bad we can't all get together from time to time over a nice dinner and really get to know each other...... email, texting, and forums just doesn't do justice to adequately represent the intents of the words presented.

Its hard to not step on toes no matter what you say if the other person is sensitive or is expecting to get slammed or mistreated.

Its amazing this thread has gone this long and I'm glad we have all figured out a way to endure each others personalities through it all!

Good thing we don't have to live with each other!.... that would be a bit much!

 

No - actually, it just shows you didn't read the thread, Alan, since Peter changed the topic in his 2nd or 3rd post after having made a useful contribution with his first post.

I was not happy that he did that under the guise of a long-winded reply to my post on an entirely different matter just to plug his favorite. My comment was that I found his "creating that" out of nothing was shameless and disingenuous.

Except for your comments not applying to specific thread, I agree with your most of your philosophical heart-pouring comments.

Regards,
- - Phil

 

Again, sticking with the philosophical here.... I've won many arguments before but still lost the lesson because all the person remembered was the emotional impact of me winning the argument in a passionate vehement manner.... and the breach of heart as the relationship was torn.

The real challenge is to communicate and win the argument leaving the table with both parties feeling good so the lesson is learned and the relationship is maintained to learn another lesson another day.

I admit, I'm really poor at the skill myself.

When in the position of leadership, many love to criticize but fail worse when the same challenge is handed to them.

I comment wasn't targeted at the technical detail or content in the thread, but rather I was impacted by and what caught my attention was the language and temperature of the thread.

While its necessary to argue sometimes.. it never feels good..... When dealing with family, sometimes the relationship is more important than the argument.

My mom now lives with me...... its a challenge I have to deal with close up!

If you follow any of my posts a few years back on priuschat.com you will find I held up my end of many arguements like a coon cornered on a log in the river with some very heated debates and discussions with people who don't believe fat meat is greasy... so I'm not afraid of a good spirited debate.... but it hurts more to see it happen among what I feel is family on this thread.

I've got over 5500 posts on that forum and have not one real friend to show for it when I walk away from the table..... a fact I'm not proud of, but I've spoken my heart and what I believe and that causes polarization..... usually to the negative when your outnumbered as people go with the flow of the masses.

I guess its none of my business and its unavoidable in many cases. I just hope someone catches themselves before they say something they can't retract.

Just hope you guys don't kill each other before you can shake hands and agree on being different.

 

Certainly don't have anything to add ... in philosophy, I agree with your reasoning. It's really too bad that you don't apply yourself nearly as passionately to the wrongness of others who precipitated the responses here... Of course, that might require disagreeing with someone here... Ha-ha!

AFAIK, Peter and I have many times agreed to disagree amicably (at least from my side) and you won't find more well-reasoned discussion of real issues of interest to readers of this forum than when we disagree here. I really felt I had to write what I did when I thought a "line was crossed" and I even did that with humor (note all those funny faces?)!

Regards,
- - Phil

 

I think your admired greatly here on the forum as well as is everyone else here who adds to the soup.
Nothing was specific to any one person as it takes two to tango and three to brawl!

I guess the older I get the more I value a good time with friends... seems life is short and they are hard to come by.

If not for "all" the personalities and input this thread, it wouldn't have taken on a life of itself to last this far.
I appreciate everyone here... everyone is most helpful to help sort out the confusion of keeping a system running like a fined tuned engine.

I'm still amazed at how smooth my system runs, and it was you guys who helped me get it there!

Once we have done all we can do to get ours running perfect and then when we get bored, its fun to help others get theirs running perfect too!

I suppose everyone here pretty much has the same heart.. but as texting goes... so goes lots of room for misunderstandings.

I appreciate everyones indulgence as none of us are perfect and we all have shortcomings, and read posts too fast "or not at all" before we respond and don't proofread well to make sure what we typed sounds like what we mean't.

Sorry for any misunderstandings I have caused and it certainly shows good faith and good spirit to have a good response concerning my comments and I have mean't only to mend and not to hurt......
I appreciate everyone watching my back and I appreciate your concern Phil that I don't trash my system as I explore some of these risky updates.... and thank the Good Lord for Ghost!

 

I'm very glad your system is purring along ... I kid you a bit about all the risks with updates you take for the "fun of it" but respect that you are doing what it takes to keep your PC safe, etc., with backups (however they are done : ). I'm also glad that you have fun here talking about whatever you think is needed at the time (certainly that's a good thing in some contexts). And of course, we all benefit from "happy spirits".

Regards,
- - Phil

 

Hi everyone. It's been a long time since i've posted. I still keep up with the thread. Thanks Alan for the link to the files. And thanks to everyone who take the time out to share and help each other along. I'm not as techie (I can follow an assemble/disassemble manual, yes) as some of you guys are and so your discussions has taught me a whole lot. Even your last couple of non-technical posts Alan have valuable endless merits to them.

My system too has been running fine. I do not however keep the battery in it. The battery was run down to 40% and placed in a ziplock bag in the fridge. And it only made sense I did that because my system is always plugged into an apc ups (it's ~4yr old battery will soon need replacing) so it became kind of pointless to be running one battery off another.

@Phil - congrats on the backlit keyboard project.

@Alan - we seem to have gotten keyboards from the good batch. It's heading up to a year since i've had this baby and i don't have one key that's fading in any way.

Question: Does win 7 have options enabled when installed on an SSD to sort of, optimise itself for running off an SSD? Wouldn't these options by disabled in installation is on an HDD? And if one were to restore an image from an HDD to an SSD, wouldn't these SSD-based options (if there are any at all) be disabled thereby resulting in the overall system performance not being optimised?

 

There was a time with older SSDs that it made a difference if the OS was installed or copied to the SSD. These days, it makes no difference. Win 7 accommodates whatever it is running from. It operates using ATA for either HDD or SSD. If you switch and reboot, it should be optimum for whichever it recognizes in Device Manager. Of course, if the SSD supports TRIM, it will operate with that support to minimize wasted space and keep the OS and SSD synchronized with regard to the free space available.

Why do you ask? Considering upgrading your primary disk to SSD?

Regards,
- - Phil

 

Hi Woods

The expresscard remote that came with mine has a little silver wheel that also clicks up down L & R, ... It doesnt control volume but works like a mouse scroll wheel to navigate media centre and forward / reverse dvd playback...

Just for info it seems that the -001 tuner variant is NTSC\ATSC (USA) ; -002= DVB-t (UK digital & analogue); -003= DVB-T (UK Digital); -004= DMB-T (Hong Kong Digital/analogue)

Not 100% sure about the 2 antennae... F-PAL vs PAL, but I'm pretty sure I'll be able to get an adapter if either is wrong... Probably the F-PAL is like an satellite TV F connector, or maybe just a female PAL...

Its really hard trying to source the parts here... I'm waiting for a few companies to get back to me with quotes... HP dont sell direct but gave me a few authorised suppliers...


Adi...

 

Hi adibee:
You are correct about that. I was going from memory, but that is not the remote I often use. But the one with the wheel I have does do exactly as you say... I'll still take some photo's as soon as I get a chance.

Good info, that seems in-tune with what I was seeing as I was searching but could never really get a precise answer... Glad you figured out which applies to your scenario!

This one I have no idea about.

Good luck with it all!

 

Thanks for the info Phil. I envision doing the upgrade one day but not any time soon.

 

How is the LCD on this laptop (1920x1080)?

Are the blacks really black?

How is the contrast ratio?

 

Hi Woods

Have you got any good places to get the TV parts from over there... Over here they say its obsolete... !

I tried ImpactComputers but they only have the NTSC tuner...

If you have any phone numbers I can call them direct...

Thanks


Adi...

 

Sure, you can try here:

Laptop Parts & Repair, Notebook Computer Repair, Printer Parts - Spare Parts Warehouse

Their direct number is 1-877-253-8898

They may only have the NTSC tuner as well, but it's worth a shot to see if they'll work with you. They should be able to get you the components you need and they ship internationally...

 

windows7 takes care of the more obvious tweaks, but there are a few more fine tuning mods you can do also.

In a situation like this there are "absolutes" that win7 can mod that will help virtually anyone using SSD... but there there are the others.

"Others", meaning some tweaks are based on special use and preference..... ie:.. whether to have a swap "page" file at all, verses a small one that has latitude to grow later "after the bootup" if needed if very large applications with video etc are rendered, or whether to disable indexing, or write caching. All of those "preferences" are argued pro and con for different reasons until there is just no absolute.

Windows will do some of the more obvious things like disable defrag etc.

But there are some good speed tweaks that pertain to those who have SSD disks as well as not.

For anyone comtemplating a new purchase..... just spend your extra money "if you want speed" in the following order.
1. Extra ram - everything uses it!.. its cheap "until you hit the price curve" and gives grace when things step out of the norm. 4gb sticks are cheap... go for it!.... 8gb sticks you will pay dearly and the cushion is not worth the price for such unless you have some elite use and application from the normal user.
2. GET AN SSD DRIVE!... yes they are worth it if you care about instanteous speed!.... for quite a while, hardrives "as fast as they are" are in large still the bottleneck in the chain for operations... SSD drives are much faster and therefore the speed of your ram and processor are realized once that bottleneck gets widened!
3. Fastest processor you can afford!.... while like ram, it has its fingers in everything thats done on a computer.. the extra money spent for the 10% extra speed is rarely realized since the processor is rarely maxed anyway. But unlike ram, you pay a fair amount more for that extra speed you will rarely need.

A good example... two systems with one processor being 10% faster than the next, if everything else is equal, both systems will appear the same in speed "until" you hit something with the need for quick intense processor brain power..... yes it is sweet to drive around with a big engine in your car even though you rarely need it.... so if you have the coins.. go for it.

I personally got the I7 Q720 but wish I would have gotten the fastest now that the sting of my purchase is gone.... oh well... I don't really need it... its just for funs sake... but yes If I had it to do again, I would go for it!

 

I agree with the items listed but would refine their importance just a bit, Alan.

1) I would go for at least 4gb so Win7 would almost never need to use a swapfile.

2) Since I have had one for more than 6 months now, I now realize that I should've opted for the SSD at the outset in the selection process as it has single-handedly transformed my DV8 (which didn't come with it and had to be swapped with the primary drive after using the system for 3 months). Those who know computers would know that the permanent storage devices (HDD, CD, etc.,) are the slowest devices in terms of their impact on perceived speed of the entire computer. Tripling the speed of retrieving and loading programs from storage with an SSD is an amazing improvement and is immediately noticeable!

3) this is where I'd rate the importance of the additional RAM (above 4gb with Win 7) in priority as it allows the largest programs to load quicker and without using the swapfile.

4) fastest available processor - can be quite significant but not just its speed alone - pay attention even more to the amount of cache it includes as this can be much more important than the absolute mHz figures. The 820QM's 1.73mhz is only 6% faster speed than the 720QM at 1.62mhz and would cause me to yawn if it were not for the fact that the 820QM offers over 33% bigger cache with its 8mb. I chose the 820QM because of the larger cache as that is the speed-limiting component in the CPU and offers greater than 33% faster throughput PER CLOCK CYCLE into the processor than the 720QM. Together with the seemingly trivial 6% faster speed, the 820QM ends up being nearly 40% faster than the 720QM. (I agree that you should've opted for the 820QM for speed performance if you could have afforded it. )

Regards,
- - Phil

 

If you can swing the cost, Jefnel, there's NOTHING you can do that will more dramatically speed up your DV8! I didn't do it at the outset (see my post below this one) and really wish I had ordered my DV8 with it.

Regards,
- - Phil

 

Excellent point.. I forgot about the bigger cache on the faster processor... that indeed gives a kick to everything....

thanks!... thats the one thing I can't upgrade now!