# Picking a new computer?



## woodtickgreg (Jan 6, 2013)

Wow, trying to pick through the sea of computers that are on the market is a daunting task, very confuseing. I am not supper tech savy but know enough to get into trouble. I do want to get a computer that I can live with for a few years. some things that I want are speed, a 17" screen with high defanition, 1tb hard drive, 6 or 8 gig memory, a good dedicated graphics card, back lit key board. And preferably a durable case, I don't care about weight. I am willing to spend about a grand, I got a nice x-mas bonus from work and I have added my tool savings to the fund to get a first ever for me new computer. I have looked at toshiba, and dell. the dell inspiron 17r seems to have a better screen 1080hd versus the toshiba Satellite P870-ST3GX1 Laptop 720. aside from the screens they spec out comparably. Everything else I am doing is on hold until I decide on which to buy as I don't want to spend any money until I get the computer. I was all set to get the toshiba but the prices went up after the new year, it was $950 ish before x-mas and $1,099 now. It's hard to decide between what you want, what you need, and what you can afford. The ones I want are 2 grand! Outa the question. The 2 I listed above meet the specs I require, but I am still undecided. :fool:


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## Kevin (Jan 6, 2013)

I bought a Lenovo from Best Buy. I can't really talk tech with you either but I know we have members that can. I just wanted to say you should consider using Best Buy or another local vendor like them, because the customer service I have recieved at BB in the past is about the best I've ever experienced. I haven't needed it for this computer but on a laptop once that I could not fix myself and it was out of warranty, AND I had bought it at Sam's, I took it to them and they fixed it in 10 minutes NO CHARGE! I doubt that's routine but I've always had great service in that place. 

If I have a prob with this computer I like knowing I can take it in and they'll get right on it. You can't get that buying from Gateway etc.


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 6, 2013)

I am also looking at a dell m6600 mobile work station as it has what I need for now and has huge plug in upgrade potential for latter upgrades. it could run as many as 3 hard drives. Don't know why I would want to do that but who knows? :dunno:


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 6, 2013)

Kevin said:


> I bought a Lenovo from Best Buy. I can't really talk tech with you either but I know we have members that can. I just wanted to say you should consider using Best Buy or another local vendor like them, because the customer service I have recieved at BB in the past is about the best I've ever experienced. I haven't needed it for this computer but on a laptop once that I could not fix myself and it was out of warranty, AND I had bought it at Sam's, I took it to them and they fixed it in 10 minutes NO CHARGE! I doubt that's routine but I've always had great service in that place.
> 
> If I have a prob with this computer I like knowing I can take it in and they'll get right on it. You can't get that buying from Gateway etc.


I agree with the best buy thing, I have always had pleasant experiances with them. I have one very close to me and I may stop in to see what they have. On line not much as far as the specs I am looking for. Talking to a living breathing person is always better.


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## Kevin (Jan 6, 2013)

woodtickgreg said:


> ...it could run as many as 3 hard drives. Don't know why I would want to do that but who knows? :dunno:



You just reminded me I haven't done a site backup in weeks!!!  glad we didn't have a crash I doing one as we speak. Thanks for the reminder!

:thanx:

:gigglesign:


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 6, 2013)

Kevin said:


> woodtickgreg said:
> 
> 
> > ...it could run as many as 3 hard drives. Don't know why I would want to do that but who knows? :dunno:
> ...


LMAO Funny


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## BangleGuy (Jan 6, 2013)

I have owned a few Dell laptops and the battery life (as in; after two years the battery is shot) has always been a problem. They also have seemed a little on the heavy side and a bit clunky. I have been using a ASUS UL50A for the past two years and love it. Lightweight and great battery. 
My desktop is a Dell and I have no complaints. Best Buy and Sam's have been my source for computers as well. 

Have fun shopping!


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 6, 2013)

BangleGuy said:


> I have owned a few Dell laptops and the battery life (as in; after two years the battery is shot) has always been a problem. They also have seemed a little on the heavy side and a bit clunky. I have been using a ASUS UL50A for the past two years and love it. Lightweight and great battery.
> My desktop is a Dell and I have no complaints. Best Buy and Sam's have been my source for computers as well.
> 
> Have fun shopping!



From what I have learned, expected battery life for any brand is 1 to 2 years, anything over that is a blessing.


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## davebug (Jan 9, 2013)

Greg I am going to guess you are talking about a laptop so here it goes if it is a desktop I can help out their too, actually more so as I could just build you one. 

First thing I would say to bring your cost down is buy online from a out of state shipper with out distribution in your state. A little underhanded I know because you are supposed to pay sales tax on things bought online, but do we all pay sales tax on the wood we buy from each other at the end of the year? Some of you that own businesses maybe but those of that just buy it here and their I doubt it. Speaking of online go though one of your credit card portals to get extra cash back.

My go to computer parts manufacturer is Asus. All of the computers I build are built off their mother boards, and I buy their products when ever else I can. Their customer service is great lightning fried my wireless router a few months back. I called them and they told me send it in to them so I did. They sent me a new one back in 8 days no charge. It was not their problem it broke so they had no responsibility to fix it but they did anyway. 

Unless you are doing a lot of gaming or encoding I think that you would be fine with integrated graphics. The HTPC (home theater personal computer) I built has a I3 sandy bridge processor that"s last generation. It records 4 TV channels at once in 1080 and still has enough power to stream it to extenders. Most any new laptop should have the latest generation of processors Ivy bridge. Oh if you couldn't tell I am saying go with one of the I-serries chip-sets. 

On to the memory, the more the better. Do not focus to much on that though as manufacturers tend to charge an arm and a leg for it when its dirt cheap to buy on your own. It is easy enough to install, just unscrew a few screws pull pop it in. If you can put a key in a lock you can change out ram. You can get a 2x8 kit (16gb) for around $65 cheaper when on sale. 

Hard drive space, 1tb is a good size but the question I would ask to you actively need that much space for programs or is it to make sure you have enough for photos ect? If you need it for photos and other things you can always get a smaller HD in the computer and buy an external HD to store it all, heck you can pull the old HD out of a old computer and set it in a case to do the same. I love SSD's (solid state drives) I put them in all my computers now even laptops I just change out my hard drives with them. They are stupid fast, I don't know I would rather spend a few bucks then wait 5 seconds for a app to start. Those seconds add up or at least that is how I justify it. The problem is they are small unless you have tons of cash to spend. That is why I do a small SSD for the OS and external for extras like photos, actually I use my server so that all the computers have them but same idea.

The screen size is where you start to limit yourself as most consumers want smaller and smaller. I would say go with a touchscreen as that is also the way most software is headed but I think as of today the largest touchscreen laptops are 15 inches. 

The OS (operating system) you may not have a choice in the mater of what you get unless you want to pick one and pay extra for it. I love windows 7 mainly because that is what I am used to. I put windows 8 on one of my laptops to try it out, at first I hated it but it is just ok now. That is where the touch screen laptop would be nice to take advantage of some of W8 features that are more swipe action like then point and click. 

All things considered from the description you posted this would be my recommendation ASUS N76VJ-DH71. It has a crazy powerful processor, more storage then you want, the high end of your ram requirements, the screen size, dedicated graphics, and back lit keys. Also a few extra's like a blu-ray player and bluetooth 4.0.

The ram is upgradeable to 16GB for later upgrading. The big seller for me on this is the duel 1tb hard drives. Which give options now and down the road. One thing you could do is pull one of the hard drives which still leaves you with 1tb and add a SSD cache kit they cost about $50-75. What that does is give you the storage of a standard HD but some of the speed of a SSD by caching your frequently used programs to it for near instant response. Or pull one of the HDs add a SSD for the OS and use the other 1tb as storage. As an example I do still have one desktop that I did that option on. It went from taking around 2-3 minutes from the time I pushed the power button to the time I could open my browser restore 10-15 tabs and use them, to about 25 seconds with SSD caching. Compared to a SSD drive alone that does all that in under 15 seconds. 

So if I where you living in Michigan I would buy it from here. If you have a discover card go though their shop discover card thing to get 5% cash back others cards may very. Since you are out of state you should not have to pay sales tax so money saved their. They also offer free shipping if you sign up for their free rewards program which will also get you 1% from them 2% if you go to them directly but I would only do that if you do not have a credit card to get the extra bonuses. 

That is all just my personal opinion and would be happy to answer any other questions if I can. It is a touch over your 1k price at $1099 but if you have the desire ability to buy as I said above the all in cost would be under $1000, $55 cash back bonus plus what ever sales tax it is around you 6%? so $66 more off. Also this same model is available at best buy if you wanted to buy it form their or if you just wanted to go try it out before you spend the money on it.


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## Mike1950 (Jan 9, 2013)

To add to above- I am the original computer yutz but my new machine is a stand alone big screen ASUS. The bad thing about my sony stand alone was the back of it was always hot and it fried. This machine can be on all day and there is not even a luke warm spot on it. I like my machine. No laptop but all in one package.


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## Kevin (Jan 9, 2013)

Dave you obviously know what you're talking about and that's all probably great advice, but this is why I buy my computers locally from someone with known great customer service:



davebug said:


> ...They sent me a new one back in *8 days* no charge. ...



I make a living with my computer and cannot wait 8 days or even 3 or 4 when same day or next day service isavailable locally, but even if I didn't make a living with it, saving a few hundred dollars just one time, compared to the frustration of long-distance, lengthy, non-personal, (potentially chronic issues if you got a lemon etc.) customer service just isn't worth it. I'm not raining on your parade though you gave some fantastic insightful advice.

Greg, for you it may well be worth the risk though. Most computers sit there and do their job trouble free these days but mail order customer service is a royal PITA - I watched my parents go through it with two computers they bought from Dell.


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## davebug (Jan 9, 2013)

I agree with you totally Kevin great customer service is worth paying for and like I said in my first post I pay extra to save time via the ssd drives that only save me a few seconds here or their. 

For me it is worth saving a little doing stuff like that but it also would not bother me if a system was gone for a week or two, between my wife and I we have 2 laptops, 1 desktop, 1 htpc (could be used as regular computer), a home server, and 2 tablets. Plus i do most of my own fixing and have spare parts. Yes it is overkill and some times I forget everyone does not have backups like that, if it where your only system yes that would be an issue. 

Do local stores even do warranty work if you do not buy an extended one from them? I really do not know. 

I try to buy everything online even do all of my grocery shopping online, I could probably be a shut in if I chose lol. I just do not like carrying heavy stuff up to my 4th floor walk up.

The other beautiful thing is buying it with a credit card in store or online most provide extended warranties free of charge. Discover adds 1 year they are my go to in case you could not tell.


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 9, 2013)

Dave, thanks for your info, I did not see it until today, some very good advice. 
I did pull the trigger on a computer today, I decided to go with a dell m6600 17" laptop. 750 gb 7200rpm hard drive, has space for 2 more hard drives, i7-2760qm quad core 6mb cache processor, 8gb ddr3-1333 sdram, has total of 4 dims for upgrade to 32gb if needed, nvidia quadro 3000m 2gb gddr graffics card, windows 7 xp professional, cuz I think windows 8 is for cell phones and app users. 
This is a premium buisness class computer that I can easily upgrade as needed. I paid a little more than I wanted but I think I also got much more, I even got a discount from my wifes work. Kevin will like this part, made in Texas.
I did look at the asus at best buy but it wasn't what I really wanted, it did fell much more solid than the toshiba's and dell inspiron's though. The model Dell I chose is what my wife uses at her work, they get new ones every 2 years, she has had no issues with hers using it all day every day for accounting firm work. Of course I put more goodies on mine, it's even prewired for 4g at&t access if I'm not near a wi fi hotspot. I do appreciate everyones advice as it helped me to make a decission on what to buy. 
Now I just have to wait for it to be built and shipped, supposed to see it on Jan 23rd. This is my very first new computer, I'm geeked!
Can't wait to trash this pos hp puter, I have to pick it up and bend it just to get on the internet or it won't connect. I'm guessing bad mother board.


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## davebug (Jan 9, 2013)

Glad to hear you got some thing, fingers crossed that they get it out to you on time. I have a larger knowledge about all things tech then I do wood so if you have any questions lmk. 

If you don't already have one I would say pick up a laptop cooling pad, one with a fan, they usually run between $15-40 and will keep that power house nice and cool.


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 10, 2013)

davebug said:


> Glad to hear you got some thing, fingers crossed that they get it out to you on time. I have a larger knowledge about all things tech then I do wood so if you have any questions lmk.
> 
> If you don't already have one I would say pick up a laptop cooling pad, one with a fan, they usually run between $15-40 and will keep that power house nice and cool.



Thanks for all your advice, It's nice to have another techy among us.  Yea I know about the build and shipping thing, it's just an estimate time. But I have waited this long for a new computer so a little more time won't kill me. LOL They did give me a tracking number to keep me interested.


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## kweinert (Jan 10, 2013)

davebug said:


> All things considered from the description you posted this would be my recommendation ASUS N76VJ-DH71. It has a crazy powerful processor, more storage then you want, the high end of your ram requirements, the screen size, dedicated graphics, and back lit keys. Also a few extra's like a blu-ray player and bluetooth 4.0.



I wonder how easy it is to install Linux on. Some of the Secure Boot stuff these days causes an issue.

I'm not really in the market right now, mine is still going strong, but this does look like a nice box and should have the power to do the sort of stuff I do (programmer in 'real life' :)


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 17, 2013)

I received notification that the computer was shipped today and I should receive it on monday, 2 days earlier than expected.


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## Kevin (Jan 17, 2013)

woodtickgreg said:


> .... Kevin will like this part, made in Texas....





woodtickgreg said:


> I received notification that the computer was shipped today and I should receive it on monday, 2 days earlier than expected.



Not so fast. My friend is the local postmaster and says they have a slew of Dell computers staying overnight before heading north. Said I could come handpick through them and take one. Just looking through the pile here for one going to Clinton Township . . . . .


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 18, 2013)

Kevin said:


> woodtickgreg said:
> 
> 
> > .... Kevin will like this part, made in Texas....
> ...



Ha Ha Ha, you missed that one, left Nashville, Tn. @ midnite. The force is strong with this one, it wants to be with me.  Fed Ex rocks!


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 21, 2013)

Got the new puter today. First impression is wow this is no toy. Feels very solid and heavy, nice touch to the keys, backlit keyboard is cool, awesome screen and no glare. Charging the battery now and will give it to my computer tweak friend for more set up and more software, I might be able to drop it off to him thursday. He works too so he'll probably have it and this computer for a couple days, so if you don't see me here for a few days that's why. WINDOWS 7 PROFESSIONAL!  It's very simaler to the vista I am running now. This is the first new computer I have ever had and it's way cool, all metal, a guys computer.  It has every possible input and output I could ever need, can be docked also. Can you tell I'm a little giddy? Haven't been this excited about something since I found my lathe.


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## NYWoodturner (Jan 21, 2013)

woodtickgreg said:


> Got the new puter today. First impression is wow this is no toy. Feels very solid and heavy, nice touch to the keys, backlit keyboard is cool, awesome screen and no glare. Charging the battery now and will give it to my computer tweak friend for more set up and more software, I might be able to drop it off to him thursday. He works too so he'll probably have it and this computer for a couple days, so if you don't see me here for a few days that's why. WINDOWS 7 PROFESSIONAL!  It's very simaler to the vista I am running now. This is the first new computer I have ever had and it's way cool, all metal, a guys computer.  It has every possible input and output I could ever need, can be docked also. Can you tell I'm a little giddy? Haven't been this excited about something since I found my lathe.



Cant wait to see the restoration thread - You know you will break it down and put it back together... Its in your DNA  Congrats


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## Kevin (Jan 21, 2013)

woodtickgreg said:


> Got the new puter today. First impression is wow this is no toy. Feels very solid and heavy, nice touch to the keys, backlit keyboard is cool, awesome screen and no glare. Charging the battery now and will give it to my computer tweak friend for more set up and more software, I might be able to drop it off to him thursday. He works too so he'll probably have it and this computer for a couple days, so if you don't see me here for a few days that's why. WINDOWS 7 PROFESSIONAL!  It's very simaler to the vista I am running now. This is the first new computer I have ever had and it's way cool, all metal, a guys computer.  It has every possible input and output I could ever need, can be docked also. Can you tell I'm a little giddy? Haven't been this excited about something since I found my lathe.



:no dice. more please::no dice. more please: Well between you and Ken getting new computers I feel like I'm not keeping up with the Jones'. Maybe I'll buy a new pair of socks or something tomorrow to hold me over. Wait, I just shelled out $205 for a new regulator. 

Congraqts Greg I'm happy for you. I know what a pita that computer has been for you.


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## Kenbo (Jan 22, 2013)

Once you've had a chance to take her for a test run, be sure to let us know what you think. We want a full report. Congrats on the new computer!!!!!!


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 22, 2013)

Kenbo said:


> Once you've had a chance to take her for a test run, be sure to let us know what you think. We want a full report. Congrats on the new computer!!!!!!


Will do.


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 26, 2013)

Dropping of my old and new computer to my friend on sunday, he's gonna transfer all my files, pics, and book marks to the new computer and load with a bunch of software. I may not be on line tomorrow and possibly monday. he said he might have it done tomorrow, fingers crossed. I can't wait to get this new computer in use, my old one is giving me so much trouble, takes forever to connect to the internet, I still have to pick it up and bend it to get it to connect,  freezes up quite a bit to. I'm anxious to get it up and running but I have to work around my friends busy schedule, I will wait for free tech work.


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 28, 2013)

Ok, so I'm up and running again with the new dell. I really like the backlit keys, it's way faster than my old puter, windows 7 professional is a little different than the vista I was running but I'm figuring it out. The wide screen is pretty cool, but doesn't seem as tall, graphics and color are way better than the hp ever was, and there is no glare at all on the screen, seems to have great viewing angle also. I am used to using the touch pad mouse, not a external mouse, this one is off centered and to the left a bit, probably due to the number keypad on the right, I am getting used to it. I think I have to figure out a way to make the print larger as it seems smaller than my old puter and is causing some eye strain. I like the feel of the keys too. So far so good, I'll update more as I go, this is after only a few hours of use, been online about 3 hrs so far and still have 1 hour and 39 mins of battery life.


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 29, 2013)

I found this kind of humorous, I have this giant 17" screen on my new puter but everything I bring up, emails, wood barter, etc came up in print so small my old eyes where watering trying to read it and it gave me a headache. I worked on it all last nite, and again today when I came home from work and I finally figured it out! Now I got big print that I can see without my glasses.  And now the widescreen is just awesome, me so happy! I'm really starting to love this new puter, a little more tweaking and I'll be good.


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## Kevin (Jan 29, 2013)

CTRL + or CTRL - will increase or decrease font and inage size but I guess you figured that out.


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## woodtickgreg (Jan 29, 2013)

Kevin said:


> CTRL + or CTRL - will increase or decrease font and inage size but I guess you figured that out.


I did it by clicking on view, checked zoom text only, and clicked zoom again till I liked it. The size of the page and pictures was ok, just not the text.


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## sbwertz (Feb 10, 2013)

Kevin said:


> I bought a Lenovo from Best Buy. I can't really talk tech with you either but I know we have members that can. I just wanted to say you should consider using Best Buy or another local vendor like them, because the customer service I have recieved at BB in the past is about the best I've ever experienced. I haven't needed it for this computer but on a laptop once that I could not fix myself and it was out of warranty, AND I had bought it at Sam's, I took it to them and they fixed it in 10 minutes NO CHARGE! I doubt that's routine but I've always had great service in that place.
> 
> If I have a prob with this computer I like knowing I can take it in and they'll get right on it. You can't get that buying from Gateway etc.



Kevin, I am a computer consultant. I've had my own consulting business for more than thirty years. I sincerely hope you never have to take your computer in for service. The Geek Squad from Best Buy has the worst reputation in the industry. I hate to think of the number of times I've had to go in with a client and do battle with Best Buy just to get basic warranty work done. Have a look at this site

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/retail/best_buy_geek_squad.html

Nothing you can do about it after the fact, but I wouldn't recommend them to ANYONE.


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## sbwertz (Feb 10, 2013)

Dell is good. Other good brands are ASUS , Acer, Gateway, Lenovo, Samsung. Dell is in the midst of a buyout, and I don't know how that is going to affect service. 

I have had a lot of trouble with the following brands..HP, Compaq, and Toshiba, and EMachines just became an orphan...Acer is stopping manufacture on them. Sony is close to bankruptcy. 

I've been a computer consultant since the early 80s, and HP, Compaq and Toshiba used to be good brands. But not any more. They use cheap components that don't last. 

The Dell should give you good service. They are well made machines. 

Sharon


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## sbwertz (Feb 10, 2013)

woodtickgreg said:


> I found this kind of humorous, I have this giant 17" screen on my new puter but everything I bring up, emails, wood barter, etc came up in print so small my old eyes where watering trying to read it and it gave me a headache. I worked on it all last nite, and again today when I came home from work and I finally figured it out! Now I got big print that I can see without my glasses.  And now the widescreen is just awesome, me so happy! I'm really starting to love this new puter, a little more tweaking and I'll be good.



Easiest way is to hold down the CTL key and run the scroll wheel on the mouse to make the print bigger or smaller. Roll the wheel forward to make the print bigger, backward to make it smaller.


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## woodtickgreg (Feb 10, 2013)

sbwertz said:


> woodtickgreg said:
> 
> 
> > I found this kind of humorous, I have this giant 17" screen on my new puter but everything I bring up, emails, wood barter, etc came up in print so small my old eyes where watering trying to read it and it gave me a headache. I worked on it all last nite, and again today when I came home from work and I finally figured it out! Now I got big print that I can see without my glasses.  And now the widescreen is just awesome, me so happy! I'm really starting to love this new puter, a little more tweaking and I'll be good.
> ...


Mouse?.....LOL........I just use the touch pad on the puter, I got really used to it on the last laptop. But thanks for the tip.


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## sbwertz (Feb 10, 2013)

woodtickgreg said:


> sbwertz said:
> 
> 
> > woodtickgreg said:
> ...



Touchpads have a scroll feature, where if you drag your finger down the right side of the pad, it acts like a scroll wheel. On many laptops, holding down the CTL key and sliding your finger up the far right border of the touchpad will increase font size, dragging it down will decrease size. (You have to have scrolling enabled in the control panel for the touchpad),


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## woodtickgreg (Feb 10, 2013)

sbwertz said:


> woodtickgreg said:
> 
> 
> > sbwertz said:
> ...


I just did it, it worked, Thanks


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