Comments | margotmetroland: New toy

margotmetroland

New toy

Sep 09, 2009 20:18

Welcome to my new laptop! It arrived this morning and is all new and fresh... and red! I went for the Dell Studio 15 in the end, with a bit of an upgrade on the processor. I know Dell isn't everyone's favourite, but in terms of bang for buck, it came out very well on the offer. I did get the free colour case upgrade (RED!) but I wasn't shallow ( Read more... )

Comments 19

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margotmetroland September 10 2009, 21:14:47 UTC

It's very nice, and is obviously much more intelligent than all other laptops 'cos it's red.

akicif September 9 2009, 19:54:29 UTC

Useful stuff: http://www.techspot.com/article/175-awesome-apps-you-didnt-knew-about/ and http://www.techspot.com/article/146-top-apps-after-reinstall/page7.html

(also tempting to suggest a vmware player and a virtual linux machine but that may be taking security/paranoia too far)

margotmetroland September 10 2009, 21:15:48 UTC

Ooh, thank you, I shall check those out.

I wish I knew what a vmware player was, all this techtalk just reveals my inner blonde!

missfairchild September 9 2009, 20:50:24 UTC

Enjoy the new toy!

Speaking of red-hued objects of desire, that icon is excellent.

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margotmetroland September 10 2009, 21:17:34 UTC

I haven't used it for ages because I look like Red Rum's sister in it - all teeth. It's about 4 or 5 years old, taken by one of team_waste in darkest Wales. I may have even been sober when it was taken.

margotmetroland September 10 2009, 21:16:21 UTC

Oh thank you. It was taken a few years ago at Summer Camp, in the blazing sunshine.

actually_not September 9 2009, 20:53:53 UTC

Ooh shiny!

Do you need:
the VLC player from Videolan for all your strange video format watching needs?
A bit torrent program for acquiring said vids in strange formats?
Spotify for all your random streaming music needs?

moral_vacuum September 9 2009, 22:00:54 UTC

I agree with VLC - excellent and incredibly user-friendly. Yes for Spotify too.

I would also suggest WinAmp (with ml_pod extension) as an audio player, far more user friendly than iTunes or WMP, and it's iPod compatible.

Torrenting - I use Vuze, which is very intuitive.

margotmetroland September 10 2009, 21:19:26 UTC

Um, I don't know what VLC player is, will I like it? And, more importantly, what will I do with it?

Spotify is def. on the list but I'll need to scrounge an invitation it seems.

I wish I understood tech.

actually_not September 10 2009, 21:24:31 UTC

I have Spotify invites. Shall send you one.

VLC allows you to play all the different types of video format that exist so if you're prone to downloading episodes of US TV or movies prior to their release then it's invaluable. I'm sure it also has legal uses..... :-/

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marypcb September 10 2009, 00:49:31 UTC

actually, the firewall in Windows Vista and 7 gives all the protection of any third-party firewall; you might choose a different firewall because you like the interface or the extra features it includes or integration or some other extra feature, but the Windows firewall in Vista and 7 is as secure as any other Windows firewall, and it doesn't break things the way eg Mcafee firewall does.

margotmetroland September 10 2009, 21:21:12 UTC

I've also considered installing myself as the Head of State, and I'm infinitely more skilled for that role! Seriously, I know nothing about Linux so it's probably best not to confuse me right now.

(bimbo bit) What's the difference between a firewall and anti-virus software? I really don't know.