Drusilla ,'Conversations with Dead People'
Got a question about technology? Ask it here. Discussion of hardware, software, TiVos, multi-region DVDs, Windows, Macs, LINUX, hand-helds, iPods, anything tech related. Better than any helpdesk!
Aren't you supposed to take the battery out if you have the laptop plugged into the wall for more than a few hours? Or have I got that wrong?
The battery will last longer and hold a longer charge if do that. But if, like me, you use a lap top as a portable desktop, and have places to plug it it in everywhere you go then that may not be a high priority. And leaving the battery in can act as UPS if the power goes out suddenly. (You should still have a surge protector though.)
OK, so I won't bother turning it off so much, but will unplug it more. It's a plan, anyway.
Did you need to turn it off for some reason, Jesse?
Yeah unplugging occasionally to discharge the battery and then recharging will maintain battery life. You don't want to discharge it all the way. You manual should tell the optimum discharge, And once you have discharged and recharged you can leave it plugged in a few days. At least that is what the manual on my HP says. )
Um... good, free editor/IDE for developing php web pages under Linux? I've used emacs/xemacs in the past.
Did you need to turn it off for some reason, Jesse?
Nah, I was just curious. I usually turn it off at night, but other people's references to leaving them on made me wonder.
I turn things off. But that is because I'm currently obsessed about the amount of power consumption for all my devices.
If it is windows machine, it is a good idea to turn it off occasionaly to clear the garbage that accumulates. Keeps your system running with fewer weird glitches. Though if you use automatic updates, it might be a good idea to leave it on overnight occasionally to do them. (I hate automatic updates. I can start a process before lunch or errand running or bedtime or whatever. But with the business clients, if it were not for automatic updates they would never get done.)
What brands do people recommend for blank DVD-Rs? Does it really matter? What's a good price? Now that I have a burner, I ought to stock up.
I've had good luck with RiData DVDs from newegg.com
Typically I've used Bluefish for editing PHP files in Linux but it's not an IDE. I'd suggest going to gnomefiles.org and searching for 'PHP' to get a bunch of choices. The various programs have ratings to help out the choice. Naturally you are only to get GTK based programs, there is kde-apps.org for KDE programs.