Dell laptop Inspiron 15R N5010 – first impression

After my previous laptop (HP DV6200 ) ended up as a giant paperweight I’ve now bought a new Dell Laptop. I wasn’t sure about buying a dell after myprevious bad experience with the Dell delivery and helpdesk, but this laptop was the best I could find for the budget available. Fortunately it arrived quickly with no problems this time.I’ve only had the laptop a few hours so this review is based on first impression with the...

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MP3 downloads from Ubuntu One – Linux

It’s been a while since I last bought music online, but I wanted a new Album for my daughter so that she can practice a song for a pantomime she’s dancing in. I thought I’d give the Ubuntu One music store a try.When I first bought music online there was limited choice of retailers and I went with Apple iTunes. Unfortunately theiTunes...

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Mobile broadband on Ubuntu Linux – O2 ZTE MF100

I’ve already provided details on how to get O2 Mobile Broadband Pay As You go on Ubuntu Linux with Huawei E160. I have now got a new dongle created by the ZTE Corporation known as the ZTE MF100 HSDPA USB Stick. The process to get this new dongle working is just as easy as with the Huawei E160. Which is to say it’s not completely automatic,...

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Wireless networking – Wifi slow or broken – try changing channel

In the good old days of wireless networking the world was a wonderful place. You bought a wireless router plugged it into your broadband and it just worked. There was an issue of not enabling security, but that just made it easier for others to borrow your network (good or bad depends upon your personal opinion).The problem is that now everyone...

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Belkin N Wireless Router F5D8236UK4 802.11n cable router and 4 port switch

I’ve been having some problems with my wireless Wi-Fi network connection at home for the last couple of months. Most of the time the network works fine, but occasionally the network slows down to the point where it becomes unusable. This happens mainly in the evening and I believe is due to interference from a neighbour’s wireless network.At...

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Lock computer when leaving it unattended

An essential part of computer security is to always lock your computer whenever you leave it. It only takes a couple of minutes with your back turned for someone to access your personal information or change your Facebook status (frape). Logging out can be a bit of a pain, so luckily there is a quick keyboard shortcut that allows you to...

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Ubuntu Linux – slow wireless network speed – force adapter speed

In the past I have had very poor networking performance on my wireless network (Wireless LAN / WiFi) which appeared to have been caused by interference from other networks. I’ve since upgraded to a Belkin N Wireless Cable router which has certainly improved performance, but I notice that I’m still get some quite slow WiFi speeds...

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