You can feel it in the air. Everybody is just talking about the upcoming launch of Microsoft Vista. In fact, one of my most respected clients (read: favorite!) has asked us to write a sort of ‘Help File’ already for those who will be finding it hard to ‘come to grasp’ with Vista. Before I get any smirks, there ARE plenty of people who really need to be given step-by-step instructions folks regarding new software 😉
When you visit tech blogs, there is always a comparison between Vista and other operating systems and often, you will read about how Vista pales in comparison or that whatever it is that’s new ‘disappoints’. Well, the truth is, the average Joe is really only aware of Microsoft products! Try to talk to them about other ‘alternative’ software and operating systems and you get a blank stare in return. Such is the brand awareness for Microsoft products folks whether we like it or not.
Anyway, having said the above, you can imagine the anticipation for the launch of Vista. And for those who are a bit more ‘techie’ such is also the dread. Uh-oh, errors will abound now… software programs won’t work… tons of plug-ins to install… my PC will be a mess!
Here’s a tip: If you are thinking of purchasing Vista but don’t know squat about installation and all that other techie stuff, pls. have somebody else (a professional) do it for you! Another tip is to install it first in a spare PC or laptop you may have so that your main PC is still free for everyday use till you get the others up and running smoothly.
And here’s where I make my plug. He.He. But seriously folks, do have a device driver nearby. You NEED it to locate the new hardware drivers you need to ensure that your peripherals will still work after you upgrade your PC to Vista.
My sister popped that question to me a few days ago when she was trying to change her system’s clock and calendar.
I’m sure many of you have heard or seen the term a couple of times already. In fact, you most probably see it everyday as it is the first thing that usually comes up on your screen when you turn on your computer.
The term is actually an acronym for basic input/output system. It’s a small program incorporated in your motherboard that allows the computer to communicate with its peripherals, such as the mouse, keyboard, and the hard drive.
The BIOS is one of the applications that rarely get updated. Take note that it’s incorporated in your motherboard. So unless you have a new motherboard, chances are that your BIOS is outdated.
So, is there a way by which you can update your BIOS without having to scrap your motherboard?
Yes, there is.
One of the most cost-effective and simplest ways to update your BIOS is to download the new device driver for it. Finding the right driver may be tricky, especially since there are many different BIOS software. However, you can easily escape this nightmare by using a device driver finder on the Internet. The process would only take a few minutes, including its installation.
Have you ever thought of murdering your computer? My friend Jane almost hacked her Pentium III notebook to death when it stubbornly refused to download an MP3 file at the pace that she expected. Her brother gave a very simple yet convincing explanation as to why her notebook isn’t running as fast as his – it’s way too old.
Yes, it’s old. There’s no question that it will cough out blood when one would try to feed it with applications that are meant for core duo processors. But choking on a 15-second video clip using a high-speed wireless connection? Common! Jane almost resigned to the thought that the problem lies with the processor. She just comforted herself with the thought that it served her well for 2 years, and that it was already time to put it to sleep.
Her brother told me about her problem. I called Jane up and told her that I might be able to solve her problem if she’ll buy me dinner. Of course, I got a deal 🙂 We met at the pizza parlor near her office. I brought my Pentium II notebook with me to show her that there’s still life after core 2 duo. I ran a Kevin Garnett video clip from nba.com. The video ran smoothly. She was really surprised and asked if I upgraded it. I joked that loaded it with 5GB of RAM. She almost fell for it.
I checked her notebook’s BIOS and system info. Everything seemed ok. When I tried to check her media player and other applications that facilitate the downloading of files, I found out that they were already terribly outdated. No wonder Shaq dunked in slow motion when I tried to run a clip from nba.com. Fortunately, we’re using the same media player. I just gave her the URL of the Web site where she could download the driver that she needs to update her program. True enough, everything ran seamlessly after the installation. She didn’t even have to download the new premium (and paid) version of her media player. Device drivers are indeed cheap and easy solutions to laggard PCs and applications.
I did a little holiday garage cleaning yesterday and guess what I found – my old AMD K62 CPU!
I already forgot the year when I bought this. I was looking for a cheaper alternative to Intel’s Pentium III, and my friend offered his slightly used K62 unit.
I’m feeling quite nostalgic these past few days. Maybe it’s because things are changing so fast. I’m bent on fixing this old unit of mine and putting it on our small the library. I’m also planning on installing the old Windows 98 OS in it.
Getting the right hardware to complement my old K62 processor is easy. However, getting new software to run on it is another thing. Take note that I’ll be using old components since the new video cards and motherboards do not support or recognize obsolete processors anymore.
I think my mom may have already thrown the installation CDs of my old PC. That’s murderous for my endeavor. I mean, how am I supposed to get things running on my old PC without the appropriate drivers? It’s not as if that I could use the drivers of my new laptop on my old desktop.
It’s a good thing that there are device driver finders in the Net. Although I know a lot about computers, finding the right driver for your PC (especially old ones) can be very frustrating. Believe me, it’s very difficult. I tried doing it myself and I ended up spending 4 hours just looking for the driver of my sound card.
If you’re feeling a bit nostalgic, or are quire hesitant to throw your old PC, try reviving it. Don’t worry about the drivers for your components, even if they’re already a decade old. Just run a device driver scan on your system and the program will surely find something to get your old computer breathing again.
Do you remember the buying frenzy spawned by Windows XP a few years ago? I was one of those who lined up in a nearby computer store for TWO HOURS just to make sure that I’ll be one of the chosen (more of “diligent”) few who’ll be able to first use the new operating system.
The wait was definitely worth it. Windows XP outmatched its predecessor from design to efficiency. However, that wonderful experience was short-lived as reality struck immediately when I ran my old applications thereafter.
The new OS wasn’t able to recognize the old programs that I had. It either refused to load it, or prompted a message that it is incompatible with the new version. The programs, too, did not recognize the new Windows.
I e-mailed Microsoft and the manufacturer of my old programs about the problem. They assured me that their software is Windows XP compatible, and that all I have to do is to download the new drivers that they have released.
I think I spent 4 days just trying to find the right driver for my old programs and for some of my desktop’s components. It was a nightmare. The fact that I was still using dial-up at that time placed an exponent on my frustration.
Now that Windows Vista is about to be released, I’m quite worried that I might go through the same experience again. Many of my friends who are not that knowledgeable when it comes to maintaining computers are already hesitant in shifting to the new Microsoft OS.
We might have exaggerated our apprehensions, though. There are many device driver finders on the Internet that can automatically locate and download the drivers that a user needs. I never forgot that harrowing experience of mine with Windows XP. However, I also did not forget the joy and the excitement that I felt when I first ran the successor of Windows 98. Needless to say, I’ll definitely be one of those Windows fans who’ll be rushing to the computer store early in the morning to take a crack at Microsoft’s latest offering.
Ok, so you use your PC to work (have lots of software installed probably), you print a few documents, you listen to music online, etc., etc. As you do all these things, your PC is interacting with various components to carry out what you want it to do.
So if you print something, your PC is communicating with your printer. It does this via the printer driver that came along with your printer purchase. Now, manufacturers constantly issue updated device drivers. This is not one big masterplan to make you buy their products again and again (or is it? he.he.); manufacturers create and issue new device drivers because they are constantly improving on the product to serve you better.
If you are EXTREMELY diligent, yes, you can just keep on surfing the web for updated drivers for your PC and its peripherals and download them for free. HOWEVER, who has the time to do that all day? Furthermore, most of us have hardly any clue what a device driver is, let alone look for it, download and install it!
So this is mainly why you would want to invest in a device driver scanner. It checks your PC for you, makes recommendations on device driver updates you need, and makes downloading them a cinch. Period.
An audio device driver enables your audio adaptor and PC to ‘communicate’ with each other. When you purchase your computer, it will most likely come with support (audio drivers) for the most common types of audio adaptors. HOWEVER, you do have to install them first before you can make full use of the sound card.
After installation, you may still get errors concerning the audio device driver. This is because it may no longer be updated by the time you install it (audio device manufacturers issue updated drivers all the time!).
What you can do is visit the website of the sound card manufacturer to check if they have updated drivers available. If not, you can conduct a free device driver scan from companies who offer such search tools.
Everyday, thousands and thousands of people use computers but only few really know how they work. Well, that’s part of the beauty really, you don’t have to understand it 🙂
Before, we only used computers at work, but today, almost every home has a PC for use in both work and play. Most home PC owners, have no clues as to how to maintain their PCs properly. Are you one of them?
You probably thought that once you purchased your PC, that’s it. Well folks, no. You don’t have to be a PC specialist or anything but a few basic maintenance measures won’t hurt as well. This will not only ensure that your computer works at its best each time you use it, it will also make your PC last longer (proving to be a better return in investment).
One of the ways to improve PC performance is to ensure that you have updated device drivers. Unfortunately, the need for device drivers is not obvious all the time. More to the point – by the time you get a message that you should download a device driver, that means you NEED that device driver already.
Say you need to print something ASAP, and all of a sudden you get a message saying that you need to download a specific printer driver (e.g., hp priinter driver, epson printer driver, etc.), you can pretty much kiss that printout goodbye because it will take a LONGGG time to find the printer driver you need.
Moral lesson here? It’s better to be pro-active. Just as you would conduct a virus scan on your PC to ensure it is not infected, run a device driver scan every now and then. The sooner you find an updated device driver for your PC, the better.
What are device driver finders? We often take our computers and what we can do with them for granted. But as always, it’s the ‘little things’ that count. A device driver is actually a specific type of computer software which enables your PC to communicate with your hardware devices such as your keyboard, modem, printer, scanner, camera phone and others. Without device drivers, you will not be able to use these gizmos no matter how you connect them (cables and cords galore!) to your PC.How do device drivers (a.k.a. computer drivers) work? Put in simple, non-techie words, every time you use your computer to, say, connect to the Internet or print a page, the device driver is the software that your PC ‘consults’ so that it knows which hardware to call up to perform the function. As such, if software drivers are not updated, then you can imagine chaos happening ‘behind the scenes’ of your PC.
When you buy your PC, printer, scanner, etc., they already come with their respective device drivers. Great! So why do you need to update them all the time?
The thing is, by the time you purchase your PC and hardware devices, the device drivers in them are probably already old. Why? Because manufacturers update their products all the time so that they function better. R&D is basically non-stop.
Consider an HP printer (and that constant need for HP printer drivers!). You bought it what? Two weeks ago? How long has it been ‘on the shelf’? Three months? Delivery time to the shop…Assembly time… We are talking about possibly six to eight months since the printer was assembled and brought to your home. In that time, plenty of newer HP printer drivers may have come out already!
Device Drivers – The Need to Update Ensuring that updated drivers are installed on your PC is the first line of defense against plenty of computer problems, frustration and headaches. And it’s not really that manufacturers are hiding these drivers. Not at all. They are often posted on their websites for you to download, install and use.
HOWEVER, the problem is, by the time you realize you have outdated computer drivers, an error has probably already occurred or you are already pressed for time and just want the task done already! You may think you can keep track of all the drivers you need but trust me, you can’t. Your PC and the hardware and software you use will most likely enable you to track hundreds or even thousands of device drivers! Now who has the time for that?
The answer is simple – you need a device driver scanner that can simply go over your PC in minutes and tell you which drivers need updating. Mind you, these scanners are not only there to inform you of what you need but also enable you to download and install the device drivers in minutes.
Good question, one I get asked a lot 🙂
We often take our computers and what we can do with them for granted. But as always, it’s the ‘little things’ that count. A device driver is actually a specific type of computer software which enables your PC to communicate with your hardware devices such as your keyboard, modem, printer, scanner, camera phone and others. Without device drivers, you will not be able to use these gizmos no matter how you connect them (cables and cords galore!) to your PC.How do device drivers (a.k.a. computer drivers) work?