How do I tell if my laptop has Bluetooth? I'm assuming that's different from the wireless capability. I want something to integrate with my phone, but I suspect I need a widget to plug into my laptop to actually utilize the Bluetooth capabilities.

If I do need a widget, technically called a dongle, I believe (which sounds obscene), what kind should I get?

Google Desktop has gone away -- it's been a while since I checked anything about it, so the fact that it's been gone for almost a year is par for the course.

Of course, I have desktop widgets I'm still using every day, which I'd be very sad to lose entirely.

Is there any successor to this group of widgets and a store-like place to acquire them?

Argh. Cablevision pushed through some kind of update to my modem last night that broke my internets and I finally got it working again, but now about every third URL I go to is coming up with the Cablevision "domain not found" search page. This was not happening before and I do not want it to happen now. What router setting do I need to tweak to make the Omnibar work again?

[eta: Ok, got it. "Opt out of DNS assistance" my ASS.]

Hmph.

Sony says I have to have at least ten dead pixels before my warranty coverage kicks in. Somebody remind me in February to see if it looks any worse, or I should buy extended coverage, maybe.

Admittedly it's only a little smudge, but I don't like the idea that it's broken and unfixable.

So last week I bought an Apple TV and found it pretty much unusable. Mostly the problem is with the sound--even with nothing playing, there's pops coming from the speakers while my TV is using the Apple TV as its source. While playing music the sound cuts out for a fraction of a second about every 10 seconds. Also, there is a small amount of snow on the screen.

I tried using a different HDMI port on my TV and tried a different HDMI cable, but no nothing changed. So today I exchanged the Apple TV for a new one. It has the same problems.

Any ideas? My BlueRay drive is connected to my TV via HDMI cable and it sounds fine.

Doesn't it seem likely that it's not the AppleTV if you are having the same problem?

Can you plug your AppleTV into someone else's TV?

Doesn't it seem likely that it's not the AppleTV if you are having the same problem?

Yeah, that's what I'm thinking.

Can you plug your AppleTV into someone else's TV?

I don't know anyone here with a digital TV. Perhaps my boss?

It could just be my TV. It's a generic model from Radio Shack I bought three years ago. But it's worked fine until this issue. I was kinda' thinking of getting a new TV, so this might be a good excuse for that.

Ooh, my TV has an optical audio input, and the Apple TV also has optical output. I think I'll give that a try next.

Oof. No luck. Time for a new TV, I guess.

Okay, so, my cell phone provider (Virgin Mobile) is getting rid of my existing plan, which I do understand. They are trying to convince me that their new plan will save me money, which I'm not buying.

My cell phone research and knowledge is really very limited. If I switch providers, can I keep my old phone? Or will most of them make it much more convenient to just get a new phone with a contract?

I currently don't have a contract, but I'm willing to at least consider it. I use my phone much more for texting and internet than voice.