If you are like many entrepreneurs, bookkeepers, accountants and business owners, you keep track of your books on your laptop.  If you have a laptop that has a screen smaller than 17 inches, you will notice something missing compared to a traditional keyboard: the number pad.

A sample of a keyboard laptop on a 15" notebook.

Usually it is easier to use a number pad to do accounting - if you are familiar with a 10-key calculator, it makes life quicker and easier.  So, instead of using the numbers along the top of the keyboard, you can get a USB powered number pad.

An example of a USB number pad.

You can find a USB number pad at any computer store, with prices ranging from about $20 and up.  If you need to lighten your load in your notebook bag, consider purchasing the USB calculator by Canon - it works just as a ten key calculator, with the benefit of being able to plug into your notebook as well.

I get a lot of questions as to whether or not you should leave you batter in your laptop when you have it plugged in.  If you remove the batter while the computer is plugged in, you get the following benefits:

1. Slow down the batter aging process

   The life of your lithium battery decreases with higher temperatures.  When you have the notebook plugged in, the battery heats up as some power is sent to it to keep it charged up.  By removing the battery, you extend the life of the battery by keeping it away from the heat experienced while installed in the laptop.

2. Preserves charge cycles

   Lithium ion batteries slowly discharge over time.  By leaving your battery in the notebook, the laptop will top-up the battery on a continuous basis, losing some of your charge cycles.  By removing the battery, you will save some of your charge cycles (typically a battery will have 300 to 800 charge cycles during its' lifetime).

Along with the benefits, there are some negatives to having your battery out of your laptop.  Examples are:

1. Lose battery backup

   The battery in the laptop serves as a UPS (uninterruptible power supply.)  When you remove the battery, you no longer get the benefits that it has to offer such as protection from power outages and voltage drops.

2. Data loss

   If the power does go out while you are using your laptop due to a power outage, you run the risk of lost or corrupt data.  You need to be certain to save your work often to reduce the chance of lost data.

3. Need a UPS for backup power

   To help avoid data loss with your battery removed, consider plugging the laptop into a UPS (uninterruptible power supply.)  A good quality UPS can cost $100 or more, whereas you can buy a laptop battery for $50+.

With the introduction of Windows Vista, you no longer need to look at five different applications to keep your notebook under control.  Now you can use Windows Mobility Center to have access to the common controls you would use with your laptop in one place.

As you can see from the picture above, you have access to your volume, battery control, wireless, display, Bluetooth, etc.  Depending on the manufacturer, you may have additional options available.

How do you access the mobility center?

Hold down the Windows Key + X.

You may have spent a large amount of time researching what kind of notebook to buy. In your haste to get the laptop home you may have forgotten to purchase a laptop case. If you did indeed forget, here is a quick guide as to what to look for in a laptop case.

Why do you need a laptop case?

A laptop case serves three purposes:

1. Protects your notebook from damage
2. Stores your accessories and other items you will take with you on the road.
3. Disguises your laptop from thieves….

What to look for in a case:

1. Make sure that your laptop fits in the case. This also involves making sure that the case will close properly with the laptop in it. Though the case may fit most laptops, be sure it fits yours.
2. Be sure the case has room for all the stuff you will carry with you. Items such as your laptops’ AC adaptor, extra mouse, extra batteries, notebook cooler, folders, books, etc. Most bags come with compartments to hold these extra accessories. If you need a really large bag, get one with wheels and a retractable handle.
3. Look for a case with a handle or a shoulder strap. If you need your hands free, consider a backpack with a laptop compartment.
4. Look for a soft case. Soft cases tend to hold onto the computer better. If you do opt for a hard briefcase style, be sure that it has Velcro straps to secure the laptop from moving around in the case. This will prevent your notebook from being damaged while you carry it around.

Remember, your laptop case needs to hold your notebook safely, be able to hold all your laptop accessories and whatever other gear you need to carry with you. As long as you find a well-made case, bag, or backpack, you will be ready to take your laptop out into the real world.

Many laptop and notebook owners plug their laptops into a surge bar while at home.  This offers the laptop protection from power surges that can damage or ruin the electrical components inside.  However, have you ever brought any kind of surge protection with you when you are out and about?

Probably not.

I realize that surges are usually few and far between (unless you live out in the country) but it is still a risk.  You can think of it to be similar as to looking both ways before you cross the street – you probably will not get hit by a car, but you take the precaution (looking both ways) before crossing to minimize your risk.

An example of what they look like is below:

Think of them as not only protection for your notebook, but also as an insurance policy.  Most travel surge protectors come with a equipment guarantee:  if the surge protector fails to protect what you have plugged into it, your equipment will be covered to a certain dollar value of replacement.

So, protect that investment you have made in your notebook:  buy a travel surge protector and use it wherever you plug in your laptop. 

p.s.  I forgot to mention prices.  You can get them as cheap as about $5.00.  Check your local computer store or any online auction site.

Most of us have a wireless router at home.  This allows us to roam around our house with our notebook or laptop and enjoy being able to access the internet and our network safe from hackers.  Unfortunately, many of us take this protection for granted - and forget about it when we connect to wireless networks outside our home.

Prime examples of this behavior would be taking your notebook to school, going out for coffee to do your work, or sitting in the park connecting to your city's free wireless internet.  It is these situations where one forgets about the firewall at home and runs the risk of their computer being hacked.

If you do take your notebook out of your home, be sure to install firewall software on your computer.  Examples of software available are Zone Alarm (there is a free version available), Norton Internet Security and others.  Basically the firewall will protect your computer from outside attackers and keep your data safe when you are both at and out of your home.  A firewall is like a parka in winter - you wouldn't go outside at -40C naked - give your laptop the same consideration.

I had the honour of going to a client's house to do some work on their website.  As you all know my laptop is a little old (about three years old) and I was demonstrating to the client how to upload their photos to their stock photography agency website. Needless to say, though my battery meter said I had over an hour remaining, my laptop battery decided to die.

Thinking about it, I had just read an article about laptop batteries and their expected lives. According to research a laptop battery should be good for about three hundred charges or so and you can expect the maximum battery life to decrease by 1 % per month. So in my case, I should expect only about 64% of the original charge (or roughly an hour or so).

Checking out the battery calibration utility, we can see that my 4400 mAh battery only has 2935 mAh capacity. Breaking out the trusty calculator, that leaves me at 66.7% of the original capacity.

Anyways, if I had just looked at the battery configuration utility, I would have known what to expect. We will look at battery calibration in a later article.
 

For those of you with Windows Vista, there is a new technique that can boost your battery life by up to twenty minutes.  You may have heard of ReadyBoost which uses either a USB flash drive or memory card to supplement your PCs memory.  Test have shown that you can get an increase of up to twenty minutes of battery life by taking advantage of ReadyBoost - it keeps your machine from having to use the harddrive and therefore saves battery life.  Try it out!

Today, my laptop and I went on the road to do a website consulting job.  When I went to put all the stuff I needed into my laptop bag, there was not enough room.  You should always consider bringing these necessities when you take your laptop on the road:

1. Laptop

I know this might be a no-brainer, but there is nothing more frustrating than packing up everything, going out "with" your laptop and finding it not there.

2. Power Adapter and Batteries

The second most frustrating thing is to forget either your extra batteries (where you cannot plug in) or your power cord (if you do not have extra batteries).  Lets face it:  your laptop is only useful if you have power.  So, definitely don't forget the power cord or extra batteries.

3. Mouse

A mouse is something especially important should you be going somewhere to work for an extended period of time.  Provided you have the space to setup on a table or desk, a mouse provides less hand strain than the pointing device provided on your notebook.  Also, when doing tasks that require some precision such as image editing or CAD drawings, a mouse does a much better job than the pointing device on your notebook.

4. Notebook Cooler Pad

This accessory is especially important should you be working with your notebook all day.  A notebook cooler pad is a base that plugs into your notebook via USB and pulls the heat away from the bottom of the laptop.  This not only helps the laptop dissipate heat, but it also prolongs the life of your laptop.  It is very important if you are working in an environment where the heat is excessive - every bit helps.