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  • On the case..

    The new Coolermaster CM690 II Advanced case has now been in service for thirty five days. In that time, it has not displayed any of the annoying characteristics of it’s predecessor. Windows has not shutdown once and everything is working. I still dare not set up any Windows 8 apps because I have no desire...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Mon, May 6 2013
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  • The difference that a FULL driver makes..

    The desktop tower: Windows 8 – not quite fully supported AMD Phenom II X4 running at 3,4ghz 8gb high performance RAM ATI HD4250 video WD 500gb High Performance SATA The Netbook: Windows 7 – fully supported Intel Atom running at 1.6ghz 2gb standard RAM' Intel GMA 3150 WD 320gb SATA Take a look at...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Mon, Apr 29 2013
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  • Windows 8 - Network hardware compatibility ..

    After a week of moving my workspace around, tidying up cable runs, committing an aging Panasonic Fax/Phone machine to the local Goodwill store, I thought it best to try out some of my older network adapters. The two adapters are: An Ultra USB 2.0 Fax Modem A D-Link DWL- G132 USB network adapter I am...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Sat, Apr 27 2013
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  • WLAN–LAN switch not supported under Windows 8

    Maybe you remember setting the WLAN / LAN switch on your notebook BIOS, disables your WLAN adapter when you plug in an Ethernet cable to your NIC and enables the WLAN when it is unplugged. This feature, even if it is correctly configured in the BIOS of your notebook, it will not work on Windows 8. Sadly...
    Posted to WSSRA by Thomas K.H. Bittner on Sat, Apr 27 2013
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  • Build Notes..

    While my case was away, I looked for replacements which had an external SATA drive bay incorporated into the top panel. It was this feature which attracted me to the CM6790 II originally. Coolermaster and Thermaltake both produce cases with the facility, but having the external bay is only the first...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Wed, Apr 3 2013
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  • I got a case..

    .. a CM690 II Advanced Evolution. This is a fancy title for what I had before. I was promised the latest version, the USB 3.0 type, but it isn’t one of them. To be honest, I don’t care as long as it doesn’t exhibit the same behaviour as the old one did.. As a result, the adapter cable I ordered from...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Tue, Apr 2 2013
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  • Back in business.. soon

    I have received notification today that a new Coolermaster CM690 II case has started the journey to London Ontario, eta being April 2nd ‘by the end of the day’. The new case will have USB 3.0 ports, two of them,  Needless to say, my 880G motherboard knows nothing about USB 3.0. It was ‘on sale’...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Tue, Mar 26 2013
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  • The Great Wait..

    Two great waits actually.. Wait #1. My old case arrived ‘home’ at !0:45, Monday, 18 March. It now has to be checked out by Coolermaster technicians, and in time I will get an email telling me that something is being sent back to me. Due process is probably the worst phrase in the world to somebody like...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Tue, Mar 19 2013
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  • On the production front..

    While my Coolermaster CM 690 II is on its way to California, I have squeezed as much of my PC as possible into a totally inappropriate case.It has less structural integrity than the average aluminium food container but is a better option than leaving the parts loose on top of my desk. The heat sink and...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Wed, Mar 13 2013
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  • In the news..

    iPad mini sales are cutting into iPad sales are cutting into iMac sales. And this is a surprise? Hardly.. Of course, it does throw a spanner into the works for other manufacturers in as much as there has been a rush to bring out largish tablets. Apple are proving that smaller is what consumers really...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Fri, Jan 25 2013
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  • PATA/SATA vs. SSD..

    A PATA/SATA hard drive.. .. is good value per Gb.. .. is available in a lot of sizes.. I can tell that you were expecting more, and there is.. Mechanical hard drives start off life quite well. Treat then carefully, don’t let them overheat, don’t drop them and they can last a good few years...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Thu, Jan 17 2013
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  • Speedfan and Windows 8..

    If you didn’t already know, SpeedFan 4.47 doesn’t like Windows 8, but there is a fix. It is called SpeedFan 4.48 beta6 and to get it, you have to sign up.. http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php SpeedFan is a very useful utility for desktop PCs and I do recommend using it. This is what it can do for you...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Sat, Jan 12 2013
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  • The involuntary shutdown..

    .It wasn’t .the motherboard or OS installation or the power supply per se. At first build.. Two SATA cables coming from the power supply, one to the two hard drives, the other to the SATA DVD drive. Two Molex power cables coming from the back of the power supply, one to two fans of the four fans and...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Thu, Jan 10 2013
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  • Stuff not working?

    Apps.. . It could be that your preferred anti-virus solution is the culprit. Posters in the MS Community forums are reporting that some anti-virus solutions are having adverse effects. It could well be my problem too, but if I never saw another app on this PC, it would be too soon. Apparently, turning...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Thu, Jan 10 2013
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  • Touch..

    I saw reference to an article in Scientific American where there was talk of Gorilla Arm. Did this refer to the muscle control needed to keep one’s arm extended or the reach? I sit a comfortable 36” away from a a 19” widescreen monitor. I have space on the desk to put things down, the glare does not...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Wed, Jan 9 2013
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  • So the chipset driver update didn’t pay off..

    .. but the shutdown issue hasn’t come back. While the hard drives were being CHKDSK’ed on other machines, I had my tower up on the desk and gave it a thorough cleaning. And no, it wasn’t because the machine was overheating. I often clean out the case, so this task was not unusual. While executing the...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Sun, Jan 6 2013
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  • Try to fix one thing..

    .. and it all goes wrong. I found a chipset driver on the Gigabyte website for my mobo, a GA880g, and thought that it may be a good plan to install it and maybe get beyond the involuntary shutdown issue. Ha.. first sign that it may all go wrong. The ‘America’ download server could only give me a corrupt...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Sat, Jan 5 2013
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  • Tying up loose ends..

    Both are related to the computer either becoming unresponsive and/or having to shutdown. 1. The Ultra power supply When the computer started to shut down, I knew that it was an issue with the supply itself. That removing the power cord and re-inserting it, told me as much. I had chased down other routes...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Tue, Nov 20 2012
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  • A new member..

    .. and hopefully less intransigent than the Toshiba was. The new laptop is a July 2012 Lenovo T71 G780, Windows 7, Core i3 2370 (Sandy Bridge), 4gb, and a 17.3” display. Specifications are better than the Toshiba by virtue of the fact that the Lenovo is newer by almost three years. The Toshiba in it...
    Posted to Mike's Window by Mike Hall on Fri, Nov 16 2012
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  • 9 Ways to Improve Wireless Connectivity for Your Computer

    Everyone knows how frustrating a sketchy Wi-Fi signal can be. You’re about to send an important file. You’re about to Skype with your sister who lives in Australia. And then the signal goes dead, and your wireless internet goes down without...
    Posted to Minty White by on Mon, Nov 12 2012
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