“What kind of charger do I need for my laptop?”

Determining what kind of charger you need for your laptop can be a tricky query. Thankfully, with the technology currently in place, it is much easier to find a solution.

If the laptop charger has the same voltage and the same pin connections as your original charger, you will more than likely be safe to use it and it will be compatible with your computer.

Three Steps to Finding Your Laptop Charger

1. Identify what type of laptop you have.

2. Use the model number on your laptop and search your brand’s website for the correlating charger. You can find the model number by clicking on My Computer >> Properties >> System tab. Within the System tab you will find the model type. If you have a Mac, click the upper left hand apple icon and click About this Mac.  Then click More Info >> System Report. There you will find the model type. Using the model information, a quick Google search will direct you to your charger.

3. Now that you know what to look for, purchase your charger and get your computer running again!

Additional help

If you purchase a new charger and realize that perhaps your charging issue is not with the charger but with the computer itself, it may be time to contact a professional who can inspect your computer and give a reliable diagnosis. If you want a hassle-free way to find a computer repair company in your area, check out TalkLocal. You will be directed within minutes to local professionals that can help you with any computer issues at a time that is most convenient for your schedule! TalkLocal is a simple, free, and easy-to-use service search engine that will save you time, unlike flipping through the yellow pages.

Parts of A Computer You Shouldn’t Repair Yourself

1. The Motherboard

This slab of delicate technology is exactly as important as it sounds. Serving as the main port that every piece of computer hardware connects to, the motherboard is the piece that brings your whole PC together. To top it off, it’s also probably the easiest to break. A small scratch could mean disaster for your PC, so if you don’t have the technical expertise to handle a motherboard with finesse, you should definitely have a professional come check out your problem.

2. The CPU

The CPU is a delicate issue for several reasons. One, it is inserted directly into the motherboard and locked in place, meaning that removing it might cause you to accidentally harm your motherboard. Two, it is covered by a heatsink, a weird metal object that keeps it cool. There is nothing inherently wrong with this, but there are so many heatsink designs that removing the heatsink might be a challenge if you don’t have a lot of experience with them. Three, your CPU is often the single most expensive part of your machine. It acts as your computer’s “brain” and it can often cost north of 200 dollars to replace one. For all these reasons, if your CPU is acting up, don’t go experimenting by yourself.

3. The Power Supply

This simple looking box can also seem very intimidating, with the wattage written in large bright letters around the outside and cords spewing from it that will eventually connect to the motherboard. The power supply is the life blood of your computer, and pumping that blood requires a lot of electricity. 500 watts or more is quite normal for PCs these days, so consider the damage that some unleashed electricity could do. Not only may you be hurt (although it is highly unlikely), but your motherboard could experience an overload of electricity when you tamper with a connected power supply.

4. The Video Card

For anyone who enjoys graphic intensive applications such as Photoshop, video editing, and games, the video card is an indispensable part of your PC. For more expensive cards it will often be a 10-inch long behemoth, complete with it’s own cooling system. This object could cost you anywhere from under 100 dollars to over 500. Simply put, when your video card is damaged, do you really want to risk further damage to this very important object by trying to fix it yourself? There really is not much you can do to repair a video card unless you are a computer hardware expert.

5. The Monitor

This seems obvious, but there’s really nothing you can do to help a damaged monitor. If pixels have burned out, opening up the monitor is only guaranteed to cause more problems. Computer experts generally struggle with repairing a monitor problem, so replacing the monitor often ends up being the only option. Regardless, when things go awry with your monitor, you should avoid tampering in any way that could implicate you for insurance or replacement purposes and instead let an expert check it out.

Use TalkLocal to find a computer technician in your area. We’ll connect you with up to three quality professionals in minutes who will repair your computer when you need it.

One of the great things about YouTube is that it provides a platform for anyone in the world to showcase their talent.  But one of the drawbacks is that it’s actually pretty difficult for new content to get discovered.  As a matter of fact, there are probably hours and hours of great content on YouTube that don’t even have 100 views.  And (unfortunately) there is no easy trick to getting thousands of views.  But there are general rules you can follow that—coupled with some luck and elbow grease—can help you become a YouTube star.

Create Quality Content

First, you really do need to produce good, creative content on a regular basis.  It’s true that stupid things sometimes get views on Youtube, but by-in-large the people who have reliable audiences got there by making consistently good videos.  You should find your niche; make videos about something you know.  There are successful YouTubers who do videos about just about everything—from celebrity impersonations to beauty tutorials to discovering the most calorific food in the world—so find something you’re interested in and stick to it.

Be Active on YouTube

You should also upload regularly, that way people who like your videos will subscribe so that they’ll be informed every time you make a new video.  You should also be sure not to upload too much—say several times a day—because people may feel like they’re being spammed.  Once every few days is great, and at the very least you should try to have a new video up once a week.

You also should try to connect to the YouTube community.  Find other Youtubers who make videos like yours, or who are interested in the type of videos you make, and talk to them. You can find these Youtubers by going through the comments of popular videos that relate to yours. Then you can write on the channels of the people who commented.  You might also go through the list of the people who subscribe to channels similar to yours and talk to them.

Connect with Other Users

You can do “sub for sub”—trading subscriptions to up your subscriber count—if you want. This may be a good way to get your first hundred or so subscribers, because having subscribers may give your channel a certain level of credibility; people like to subscribe to channels that other people are subscribed to.  But ultimately you want views and repeat viewers, not a high number of subscribers that never check your channel.

It’s a good idea to “friend” a lot of people, especially if they seem to be interested in the type of videos you make.  That way—even if they’re not subscribed to you—your videos will still come up on their homepage.  It’s like free advertising.

If someone “friends” or subscribes to your channel check out they’re channel, too.  It’s a good idea to comment on their page or videos (if they have them).  And you may want to say more than just “thanks for subscribing;” take an interest in what they do, as well.  People are more likely to continue following your channel if they feel personally connected to you.  So it’s a good idea to also keep up those relationships.

Also be sure to post your video to your Facebook and Twitter, so your friends can check it out that way.

Finally, just keep at it.  It may be discouraging to work so hard and not see an immediate pay off, but despite the well publicized outliers—like Susan Boyle—Youtube success generally does not come overnight.  For any other issues or questions with computer usage, you can use TalkLocal to find computer technicians in your area. Good Luck!

The computer fan serves the purpose of keeping the motherboard and the other components inside your computer from overheating. You may be more used to hearing your computer fan go off when your computer use is prolonged or the computer is engaged in an extensive operation requiring significant power, such as running an anti-virus scan. Here is some useful information on why your computer fan turns on and off, and what you can do about it.

The Problems, The Solutions, and The Possible Misdiagnose

You may notice that your computer fan is making abnormal noises while it is in operation. This is mainly because of the “Worn out” components of the fan. The following are the two components that get easily worn out.

1. The Fan Blades

Dust builds up inside the computer through time – although the computer fan tries to prevent this natural consequence, not all of the dust is expelled from your system. Some of the dust sticks to the blades itself, creating an imbalance between the blades. Unbalanced blades contribute to uneven rotation of the blades, creating the unsightly noise that you may find disturbing.

To counteract this problem try to use Q-tips to wipe off some of the dust buildup on your fan. Do not bang your computer in order to shake the dust out, as it may dislodge some crucial hardware inside your computer and cause permanent problems.

2. The Bearings

The bearings eventually wear out due to the friction in the rotation of the blades. However this “wearing out” process can be accelerated by various environmental factors influencing your computer.

Operating a computer in a dusty area, hot area, areas exposed to the sun directly, or a smoking area attracts dust to stick to your fan blades. Imbalance in your fan blades caused by the dust buildup exacerbates the rotation and increases the friction experienced by the bearings. Avoid these environments to preserve your bearing for a longer time.

Possible misdiagnoses may occur from a noisy hard drive instead of the fan. In order to check if this is the problem, unplug the cables from the hard drive and power up the computer, and check if the unsightly sound still exists.

Additional Help

If the above recommendations do not resolve the issue, it is possible that there may be further complications in your computer system. At this point it is recommended that you call for help from the local experts. TalkLocal can help with finding the correct local expert to fix your computer quickly, which can save you time and energy in a stressful situation.