computer/ laptop advice



Many moons ago I worked in a call centre, one of the lasses on my team had a laptop bought through the company and it had broken down not long after getting it. She asked myself and a colleague if she sent it back for repair would they be able to find out what her and her boyfriend had been looking at, she was really worried because they had been looking at some animal porn "nothing bad though, just dogs getting sucked off and the like". :neutral:
 
Sounds like it might be time to flatten the HDD entirely and reload windows from scratch.

Good thing about Dell, any drivers he needs will be dead easy to find, as you can search your serial number on their driver site.

Start here - you need a decent USB stick, but apart from that it should be simple. Download Windows 10
 
Anybody know which component in a laptop determines the internet speed it achieves?

My laptop consistently gets lower speeds than other computers on the same network. This is the case with a wired connection and a wifi connection.

Is there a component I can replace to improve download speeds? Thanks.
 
Sykes The Pop Man said:
Anybody know which component in a laptop determines the internet speed it achieves?
My laptop consistently gets lower speeds than other computers on the same network. This is the case with a wired connection and a wifi connection.
Is there a component I can replace to improve download speeds? Thanks.
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If its affected on wifi and one wired, its strange. What spec is the laptop? Is task manager showing a high CPU load when you're doing your measurements?
Also, how are you measuring it?
 
Sykes The Pop Man said:
Anybody know which component in a laptop determines the internet speed it achieves?
My laptop consistently gets lower speeds than other computers on the same network. This is the case with a wired connection and a wifi connection.
Is there a component I can replace to improve download speeds? Thanks.
Click to expand...
You want to, at the very least, do a full virus scan like. It could be an indication that the laptop is sending/recieving traffic that you're not telling it to, or it could just be that the wifi adapter in the lappy is dying. Either way, the easiest thing to do 1st is a deep virus scan just to be safe.

I've never had a modern computer that couldn't max-out the wifi. When adapters fail they usually do all in one go in my experience, so it's very odd. As @PTR said, open task manager and see what's running in the processes and network tabs, see if you can spot anything you don't recognise.
 
bigmarlon said:
I've never had a modern computer that couldn't max-out the wifi.
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Wish I could say the same.
Had terrible issues with the Wifi on my new MSI gaming laptop. Something seriously wrong with anything other than the wifi driver it shipped with.
 
PTR said:
Wish I could say the same.
Had terrible issues with the Wifi on my new MSI gaming laptop. Something seriously wrong with anything other than the wifi driver it shipped with.
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I stick to PC's now like. Can't be arsed with lappy's anymore due to shit like you're both going through. They try to make parts so small these days that they fuck up at the drop of a hat, or should that be, the drop of a laptop :p
 
PTR said:
If its affected on wifi and one wired, its strange. What spec is the laptop? Is task manager showing a high CPU load when you're doing your measurements?
Also, how are you measuring it?
Click to expand...
bigmarlon said:
You want to, at the very least, do a full virus scan like. It could be an indication that the laptop is sending/recieving traffic that you're not telling it to, or it could just be that the wifi adapter in the lappy is dying. Either way, the easiest thing to do 1st is a deep virus scan just to be safe.

I've never had a modern computer that couldn't max-out the wifi. When adapters fail they usually do all in one go in my experience, so it's very odd. As @PTR said, open task manager and see what's running in the processes and network tabs, see if you can spot anything you don't recognise.
Click to expand...

Thanks fellas. I've opened Task Manager. There doesn't appear to be anything untoward running in the processes tab. The performance tab is showing speeds of between 1.8 and 2.2 GHz. This is with a wired connection to the router (BT Hub 6). I'm doing a virus scan now but this hasn't previously found any problems and the speed has been slow for months. Not sure about the spec of the laptop but it was about £500 3 years ago.

I do my speed tests using Speedtest by Ookla - The Global Broadband Speed Test
 
Sykes The Pop Man said:
Thanks fellas. I've opened Task Manager. There doesn't appear to be anything untoward running in the processes tab. The performance tab is showing speeds of between 1.8 and 2.2 GHz. This is with a wired connection to the router (BT Hub 6). I'm doing a virus scan now but this hasn't previously found any problems and the speed has been slow for months. Not sure about the spec of the laptop but it was about £500 3 years ago.

I do my speed tests using Speedtest by Ookla - The Global Broadband Speed Test
Click to expand...
You might want to try Process Exporer from windows. It's just a fancier version of Task Manager but it lists and links everything running. It 100x better than TM, only 1.8mb anarl and no need to install or nowt. Makes it easier to find/pinpoint running processes and it's oficial microsoft so no need to worry about it being malware.

Process Explorer - Windows Sysinternals

Also, Hitman Pro is a canny 2nd opinion after your normal anti-virus. It scans in under 5 mins and targets network activity, cookies, internet related shit. Again, it's tiny and doesn't need to be installed. Always good to get a 2nd opinion because no AV is perfect.

HitmanPro Malware Removal Tool: Secondary Anti-Virus Scanner | Download HitmanPro 3.7

Fingers crossed, all of the above is an unecessary precaution and you've just got a shite lappy. ;)
 
PTR said:
Sounds like it might be time to flatten the HDD entirely and reload windows from scratch.

Good thing about Dell, any drivers he needs will be dead easy to find, as you can search your serial number on their driver site.

Start here - you need a decent USB stick, but apart from that it should be simple. Download Windows 10
Click to expand...

Once it is downloded onto the USB. Where would I go from there ? I’m considering just taking it to the shop.
 
bigmarlon said:
You might want to try Process Exporer from windows. It's just a fancier version of Task Manager but it lists and links everything running. It 100x better than TM, only 1.8mb anarl and no need to install or nowt. Makes it easier to find/pinpoint running processes and it's oficial microsoft so no need to worry about it being malware.

Process Explorer - Windows Sysinternals

Also, Hitman Pro is a canny 2nd opinion after your normal anti-virus. It scans in under 5 mins and targets network activity, cookies, internet related shit. Again, it's tiny and doesn't need to be installed. Always good to get a 2nd opinion because no AV is perfect.

HitmanPro Malware Removal Tool: Secondary Anti-Virus Scanner | Download HitmanPro 3.7

Fingers crossed, all of the above is an unecessary precaution and you've just got a shite lappy. ;)
Click to expand...
Thanks for that. I’ve tried both and there’s nothing suspicious so it looks like you are right. I’ve just got a crap laptop.
 
Upthere said:
Once it is downloded onto the USB. Where would I go from there ? I’m considering just taking it to the shop.
Click to expand...
1, First, prechecks... Check the USB is at least 8gb. Also, you need to make sure it's the right OS for your computer (32 or 64 bit) so check which one you currently have before doing anything.

2, When you're sure, download the Win10 tool, plug in the USB, run the tool, and it'll create a bootable USB version of Windows Installer.

3, Once that's done... with the USB plugged in, restart the lappy and press whichever key opens the boot menu on your system (usually either ESC, F1, F2, F8 or F10)

4, Then select the USB drive, or, change the boot order so that the USB is 1st on the list and above the HDD/SSD on the list.

***warning, after this point there's no going back***

5, Windows 10 installer will load up. (If you're scared, now is the time to press cancel.) Then it's just a case of clicking next/accept/choosing your windows version etc, and it'll do the rest. It'll give you the option of saving any personal files you may have on there. It's upto you whether or not you do. After the final "install" prompt it'll do the rest and install a clean version of W10.

6, Once installed and all done, do a windows update. It'll probably remind you of that anyway.
 
Sykes The Pop Man said:
Thanks fellas. I've opened Task Manager. There doesn't appear to be anything untoward running in the processes tab. The performance tab is showing speeds of between 1.8 and 2.2 GHz. This is with a wired connection to the router (BT Hub 6). I'm doing a virus scan now but this hasn't previously found any problems and the speed has been slow for months. Not sure about the spec of the laptop but it was about £500 3 years ago.

I do my speed tests using Speedtest by Ookla - The Global Broadband Speed Test
Click to expand...
How much slower are you getting compared to on your phone?
 

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