Laptops For Dummies

THE LATEST ON GETTING THE MOST FROM LAPTOPS AND TABLETS

Not that long ago, laptops were seen as luxuries. Now they're practically an essential for many people, and—as faster computing power and super-sharp displays make many of them the equal of a desktop—the new wave of lightweight laptops is increasingly replacing the home PC with its bulky tower and multiple cords. Plus, you can use your laptop when chilling on the couch or venturing out for a quick coffee!

In this fully updated edition of Laptops For Dummies, bestselling tech writer Dan Gookin takes a friendly walk through everything you need to know, from the basics (if you're new to laptops) all the way up to the latest hardware and tech updates—including the recent release of Windows 10. Along the way you'll learn how to synchronize your laptop with other machines, coordinate email pickup across devices, and beef up your security. You'll also learn how to

* Choose the right laptop
* Check out tablet options
* Troubleshoot problems
* Maintain and upgrade

Whether you're choosing a new laptop or want to maximize what you're getting from the one you have, Laptops For Dummies has you covered, wherever you want to work—or play!

DAN GOOKIN combined his love of writing with his gizmo fetish nearly 30 years ago, and has written more than 170 books explaining technology in a fun, non-threatening way. In 1991 he penned DOS For Dummies, launching the entire For Dummies franchise. Dan's books have 12 million copies in print and have been translated into more than 30 languages. INTRODUCTION 1

About This Book 1

And Just Who Are You? 2

Icons Used in This Book 2

Where to Go from Here 3

PART 1: THIS LAPTOP THING 5

CHAPTER 1: THE PORTABLE COMPUTING QUEST 7

The History of Portable Computing 7

The Xerox Dynabook 9

The Osborne 1 9

The loveable luggables 9

The Model 100 10

The lunch buckets 13

Dawn of the PC laptop 13

The search for light 15

Modern Laptops 17

The notebook 17

The subnotebook 18

The tablet PC 18

CHAPTER 2: A LAPTOP OF YOUR OWN 21

Do You Need a Laptop? 21

Why you need a laptop 22

Why you don’t need a laptop 23

Laptop Shopping 23

Things to ignore when buying a laptop 24

Things to heed when buying a laptop 24

Software for Your Laptop 25

The operating system 25

Other software 26

Laptop Hardware Buying Decisions 26

Important laptop hardware guts 26

Communications options 28

The green laptop 28

Service, Support, and Warranty 29

The Final Step: Buying Your Laptop 30

PART 2: SAY HELLO TO YOUR LAPTOP 31

CHAPTER 3: FROM LAPTOP BOX TO LAP 33

Laptop Box 101 33

Removing the laptop from the box 34

“How long should I keep the box?” 36

Submitting the warranty 36

Set Up Your Laptop 36

Finding a place for the laptop 37

Charging the battery 38

“Should I plug the laptop into a UPS?” 39

Bye-Bye, Old Laptop 40

Deciding when to retire an old laptop 40

Disposing of the old laptop 40

What to Do Next 41

CHAPTER 4: TO TURN ON A LAPTOP 43

Turn On Your Laptop 43

Step 1: Open the lid 44

Step 2: Adjust the lid for optimal viewing 45

Step 3: Locate the power button 45

Step 4: Punch the power button 46

It’s Windows! 47

Running Windows for the first time 48

Activating Windows 49

Signing in to Windows 49

What’s Next? 51

Migrating your files 51

Reinstalling your programs 53

Adding other accounts 54

CHAPTER 5: TO TURN OFF A LAPTOP 55

End Your Laptop Day 55

Keeping the laptop on all the time 56

Finding the shutdown options 56

Shutting down your laptop 58

Restarting Windows 59

Putting Mr Laptop to sleep 60

Hibernating the laptop 61

Locking Windows 62

Signing out of Windows 62

Switching to another user 63

Shutting down when the laptop doesn’t want to 63

Shutdown Options and Configuration 63

Setting the power button’s function 63

Determining what happens when you shut the lid 65

Activating hibernation 66

CHAPTER 6: TRADITIONAL LAPTOP TOUR 67

Around Your Laptop 67

Locating removable storage slots 68

Attaching the laptop to something sturdy 69

Keeping the air circulating 69

Discovering the webcam 69

The Pluggable-Innable Holes 70

Look at the Pretty Lights! 71

This Isn’t Your Daddy’s Keyboard 73

Exploring the keyboard layout 73

Finding the secret numeric keypad 74

Having fun with the Fn key 75

This Isn’t Your Momma’s Mouse 76

Using a touchpad 77

Obtaining a real mouse 78

CHAPTER 7: THE TABLET PC TOUR 81

Tablet PC Types 82

The Tablet PC Tour 83

The Pen Is Mightier than the Mouse 85

Introducing the digital pen 85

Using the pen as a mouse 87

Touchscreen Text Typing 88

Summoning the touch keyboard 88

Exploring the touch keyboard varieties 88

Typing control-key combinations 91

Scribbling text on the screen 91

Windows Does the Tablet PC 92

Special Tablet PC Software 94

CHAPTER 8: YOUR LAPTOP AND WINDOWS 95

The Big Windows Picture 95

Viewing the desktop 96

Exploring the Start button menu 97

Working on the taskbar 98

Visiting with the Action Center 100

Using the supersecret shortcut menu 101

Shouting at Cortana 101

Windows and Your Stuff 101

Exploring your laptop’s storage 101

Accessing your User Profile folder 103

Finding programs 104

Settings and Options 105

Opening the Settings app 105

Visiting the Control Panel 106

Using the Quick Settings 107

Accessing the Windows Mobility Center 108

PART 3: OUT AND ABOUT WITH MR LAPTOP 109

CHAPTER 9: YOU AND YOUR LAPTOP 111

User Accounts 111

Accessing your user account info 112

Eschewing an online account 112

Setting an account PIN 114

Changing your user account picture 115

Adding online accounts 116

The Perfect Display 117

Setting the display resolution 117

Changing the desktop wallpaper 117

Adding a screen saver 118

Setting the display orientation 119

Adjusting screen brightness 120

Removable Storage 120

Adding storage 121

Using the AutoPlay notification 121

Controlling AutoPlay settings 122

Ejecting media and storage devices 123

The Software Side 124

Adding new software 124

Removing software 125

CHAPTER 10: PORTABLE POWER 127

The Battery Will Get a Charge Out of This! 127

Using the battery (or not) 128

Locating the laptop’s battery 128

Monitoring the battery 130

Charging the battery 131

Using a second battery 131

Replacing the battery 132

When the Power Gets Low 132

Setting low-battery warnings 132

Using the Battery Saver 134

Reviewing the power management plan 136

CHAPTER 11: THE PRINTING CHAPTER 137

The Great Printer Hunt 137

Finding printers in Windows 137

Connecting a printer directly to your laptop 139

Adding a network or wireless printer 140

“What is the default printer?” 141

Something Needs Printing 142

Printing a document 142

Stopping a printer run amok 144

Printing when you don’t have a printer 145

Printing a PDF document 145

A Portable Printer for Your Laptop 146

CHAPTER 12: EXPANDING YOUR LAPTOP’S UNIVERSE 149

USB Expansion Options 149

Understanding the USB thing 150

Attaching and removing a USB gizmo 151

Dealing with USB-powered devices 152

Using a USB hub 153

Perusing potential USB goodies 154

The Bluetooth Thing 155

Checking for Bluetooth 155

Pairing with a Bluetooth gizmo 156

The Laptop Becomes a Desktop 157

Using a full-size keyboard and mouse 158

Adding a monitor 158

Running the laptop with its lid closed 159

CHAPTER 13: O THE PLACES YOU’LL GO 161

In the Bag 162

Features to look for 162

Things to pack in your laptop bag 163

Things to do before you leave 164

Flying with Mr Laptop 164

Is your laptop case one carry-on bag or half a carry-on bag? 164

Laptop inspection 165

All aboard! 165

Airplane mode 166

Air power 167

In-flight Wi-Fi 167

Café Computing 168

Find a good seat 168

Other tips ’n’ stuff 169

In a Hotel Room 169

Mind the Laptop’s Temperature 170

CHAPTER 14: PRESENTATION INFORMATION 171

The Show Must Go On 171

Giving the dog-and-pony show 171

Setting up your presentation 173

Printing out a slide show 175

To Create a Better Slide Show 176

Starting your presentation 176

Driving home your point 177

Building a better presentation 178

Keeping your audience awake 178

Selling a presentation 179

CHAPTER 15: A LAPTOP AT PLAY 181

The Laptop Media Player 181

Exploring Windows Media Player 181

Running the Photos app 183

Using the Groove Music app 184

Expand the Laptop’s Media Universe 185

Ripping music from a CD 186

Uploading pictures and videos from a phone or camera 187

Taking a picture 189

Media Sharing 190

Copying media to your OneDrive 190

Adding media from your OneDrive 191

Connecting to a network media player 192

Sharing your laptop’s media 193

Laptop Phone Calls 194

eBooks on Your Laptop 195

PART 4: LAPTOP NETWORKING 197

CHAPTER 16: THE NETWORKING THING 199

The Big Networking Picture 199

Make the Network Connection 202

Connecting the laptop to a wired network 203

Accessing a Wi-Fi network 203

Connecting to a hidden Wi-Fi network 205

Tethering to a smartphone 206

Break the Network Connection 207

Disconnecting from a wired network 207

Releasing the Wi-Fi connection 207

CHAPTER 17: NETWORK LIFE IN LAPTOP LAND 209

Network Configuration 209

Locating network central 209

Setting the network security 211

Controlling the Wi-Fi radio 212

Forgetting a Wi-Fi connection 213

Getting the laptop’s MAC address 214

Your Laptop, Windows, and the Network 215

Setting your laptop’s network name 215

Exploring the network 217

Checking the sharing status 219

Sharing a folder 219

CHAPTER 18: YOUR FILES FROM AFAR 223

Files from Here to There 223

Walking files between computers 223

Using octopus net to connect computers 224

Quickly transferring files over Ethernet 225

Using the Windows Sync Center 225

Cloud Storage Synchronization 225

Understanding cloud storage 226

Exploring cloud storage options 228

Synchronizing cloud storage files 228

Sharing a file from cloud storage 230

PART 5: SECURITY AND MAINTENANCE 231

CHAPTER 19: INTERNET SAFETY 233

Security Central 233

Viewing the Action Center 234

Checking the Windows Security Center 235

Keep Windows Up-to-Date 237

Checking the update status 237

Postponing an update 237

The Malware Scourge 238

Doing a virus scan 238

Dealing with a quarantined file 240

Behind the Firewall 240

Finding the firewall 241

Dealing with a firewall warning 242

Safe and Private Browsing 243

Browsing in secret 243

Purging your web browsing history 244

Location Information 244

General Security Settings 245

CHAPTER 20: A MORE SECURE LAPTOP 247

The Hot Laptop 247

Before Your Laptop Is Stolen 248

Marking your laptop 249

Registering the laptop and its software 249

Paying attention to your environment 249

Attaching the old ball-and-chain 250

Protect Your Data with a Strong Password 251

Back Up Your Data 253

Preparing for backup 254

Configuring File History 254

Checking the backup schedule 256

Restoring an older version 257

Restoring more than a single file 259

The Laptop Reset 261

CHAPTER 21: LAPTOP TROUBLESHOOTING 263

The Universal Quick-Fix 264

Restarting the laptop 264

Signing out of Windows 264

The Windows Troubleshooter 265

Restore the System 267

Doing a system restore 267

Restoring the previous version of Windows 268

Common Problems and Solutions 269

“The keyboard is wacky!” 269

Touchpad touchiness 269

“My laptop won’t wake up” 270

Power management woes 270

“The battery won’t charge” 270

CHAPTER 22: LAPTOP MAINTENANCE AND UPGRADING 271

New Laptop Hardware 271

How ’bout Some New Software? 272

Upgrading your software 272

Upgrading to a new version of Windows 273

Laptop Maintenance 274

Maintaining the storage system 274

Keeping it clean 274

Grooming the keyboard 275

Cleansing the screen 275

PART 6: THE PART OF TENS 277

CHAPTER 23: TEN BATTERY TIPS AND TRICKS 279

Don’t Drop the Battery, Get It Wet, Short It, Play Keep-Away with It, Open It, Burn It, or Throw It Away 279

Reduce the Screen’s Brightness 280

Power Down the Hard Drive 280

Add RAM to Prevent Virtual Memory Disk Swapping 281

Keep Memory Empty 282

Guard the Battery’s Terminals 283

Avoid Extreme Temperatures 283

Store the Battery if You Don’t Plan to Use It 283

Understand That Batteries Drain Over Time! 284

Deal with the Low-Battery Warning 284

CHAPTER 24: TEN HANDY LAPTOP ACCESSORIES 287

Laptop Bag or Travel Case 288

Spare Battery 288

External Storage 288

Cooling Pad 288

Minivac 289

USB Lamp 289

Full-Size Keyboard and External Mouse 290

Privacy Screen Filter 290

ID Card or Return Service Sticker 291

Theft-Prevention System 292

CHAPTER 25: TEN THINGS TO THROW IN YOUR LAPTOP BAG 293

Power Cord and Brick 293

Spare Battery 294

Mouse or Digital Pen 294

Screen Wipes and Cleaner 294

Laptop Lock 294

Removable Media 295

Headphones 295

Office Supplies 295

Cables, Cables, Cables 296

Not the End of the List 296

Index 297