Spilt Drink on My Laptop.

[507021]

It's " that @ is swapped with (there are a few other differences around \ ~ and `)

That reminds me of the time a few years ago somebody decided to change my keyboard settings so that the " and @ keys were swapped around. It took me a while to realise what had actually happened so I could correct it!

 

[cjmillsnun]

I've recently had to upgrade to Windows 8.1 from Windows 7. I'm still not 100% taken with it to be honest - for example I think the lack of a proper start menu is bizarre. I think I'll try the new Windows 10 operating system on a different computer first before I decide on whether to keep Windows 8.1 or go upgrade my operating system to Windows 10

Has anybody tried Windows 10 yet?

You will want Windows 10. The start menu is back to normal.
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I've had a computer repair shop opposite mine for years now - very handy for a non-nerd like me (I do him favours too, and buy any computer-related stuff from him). He swears by Windows 7, so that would be good enough for me. He buys computer keyboards on ebay all the time, had 2 in yesterday, £10 for the two, may even have included postage: new, by the way. So don't go spending a fortune, but DO make sure you have the exact reference number needed, cos like phone chargers only the precise one will do. If you get an American spec, the @ key will be where the ! key is on a UK spec, otherwise exactly the same.

Also there will be no £

 

[507021]

You will want Windows 10. The start menu is back to normal.

Thanks for that. After being used to having a start menu for the last 14 years of using computers it's taken a fair bit of getting used to. I wanted to wait until Windows 10 was released before buying a new computer - however that plan didn't work out because my previous laptop gave up a few weeks before Windows 10 was due to be released

 

[Busaholic]

And, on the Greek version, no Euros.

 

[507021]

And, on the Greek version, no Euros.

Needed a laugh today
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How did you get on Rob?

 

[yorksrob]

Needed a laugh today
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How did you get on Rob?

It's as dead as the dodo. I can feel a distress purchase coming on.

 

[507021]

It's as dead as the dodo. I can feel a distress purchase coming on.

Sorry to hear that Rob. At least you've had a couple of years use out of it though

If you're buying a new laptop then I would personally recommend HP which is what my current laptop is and for what it is it's very good. Another brand that I'd recommend is Lenovo as their laptops aren't too bad either from what I've been told

 

[me123]

It's " that @ is swapped with (there are a few other differences around \ ~ and `)

Macs do it this way, so I've been using this for some time. I find it's actually easy to get used to and, whilst I'm normally reluctant to let Americans win, I find it's much more intuitive, particularly for the ' and " keys.

That reminds me of the time a few years ago somebody decided to change my keyboard settings so that the " and @ keys were swapped around. It took me a while to realise what had actually happened so I could correct it!

The downside is that other computers are, of course, usually set up for a British layout. One of my passwords at work had the symbol @ in it, so it wasn't very long before I locked myself out by typing " instead and wondering why it wasn't bloody working!

It's as dead as the dodo. I can feel a distress purchase coming on.

Sorry I would recommend a Mac if you can afford it - I've never spilled water on my Mac therefore it's much better :P. On a more serious note, mine has outlived quite a lot of Windows PCs so the initial outlay does tend to work out cheaper in the long run. Whatever you go for, it's easy to run out and buy a cheap one to keep you going - do your research and get a good laptop that'll be suitable for your needs.

 

[NorthernSpirit]

Happened to me 7 years ago. Ended up with a few sticky keys. Put in a claim on insurance for repair, they replaced it. Trouble was, original Notebook (a Sony Vaio) had XP OS. The replacement had Vista!

I operate off Vista, quite good too considering that my previous PC was Windows 98!
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If you think Windows 7 is bad, please never try Windows 8, it will turn you insane

I've also got another PC which has 8.1 on it, its a nightmare to use and what is it with its autolock zooming? It does my head in, how I cannot wait until the warrenty on the 'new' PC expires and i can then install 10.

 

[dgl]

If going for new laptop may I suggest Fujitsu, decent quality laptops and made in Germany!

Also their eco policy of having laptops that can be easily disassembled for recycling means they are easy to disassemble for repair.

 

[507021]

I've also got another PC which has 8.1 on it, its a nightmare to use and what is it with its autolock zooming? It does my head in, how I cannot wait until the warrenty on the 'new' PC expires and i can then install 10.

I had that problem when I first bought this computer where it would zoom in or out on my internet browser and Microsoft Office. To solve the rather frustrating issue what I did was the following:

- Open the Control Panel and select Synaptics TouchPad
- Under the Settings menu uncheck the "MultiFinger Gestures" option
- Click OK

Hope that helps

 

[dgl]

Another option to disable the multi-touch/zoom is to un-install the touchpad driver and let it revert to the standard mouse driver.

Noticed that when I reinstalled win8 and the touchpad didn't respond to gestures (wish I'd left it that way) but the touch pad still worked like a mouse as normal.

 

[HilversumNS]

Should you go down the new laptop route, don't forget that the hard disk from your current laptop will still contain all your data, including any personal stuff.

I have had some joy accessing disks by removing them from dead laptops and putting them in a cheap USB hard disk caddy.

 

[prod_pep]

Should you go down the new laptop route, don't forget that the hard disk from your current laptop will still contain all your data, including any personal stuff.

I have had some joy accessing disks by removing them from dead laptops and putting them in a cheap USB hard disk caddy.

Yes, I did this about two weeks ago after my old laptop gave up the ghost with almost complete success. I bought the cheapest hard drive enclosure from Curry's which was £9 and after a full drive scan and a bit of messing about I was able to access and transfer over virtually all of my old files (at least 300GB worth of data). The odd one or two had corrupted but nothing significant was lost.

It's a slow process but an awful lot cheaper than giving your laptop to a computer specialist and asking them to rescue everything for you. One bit of advice though - you might need a strong screwdriver. The hard drive tray was an absolute bugger to get off for me and I ended up with a couple of cuts on my hand from grappling with it.

 

[Puffing Devil]

Don't rush out and buy a new laptop. A Chromebook may do all you need for £200

https://www.google.com/intl/en_uk/chrome/devices/chromebooks.html

Just beware of printing - you need to have a compatible printer that is connected to your wifi.