John Healy's Tech Blog

Category: Notebook

Posts about Apple MacBook computers and Windows-based notebook PCs

  • Multiple monitors for work-at-home

    What with stay-at-home and work-from-home, I found this PC World article interesting. I talked with a friend over the weekend about using an external monitor with his notebook PC. He’d brought a 27″ monitor home from his employer’s office, and wanted to place multiple Office documents on separate screens.

    Note that the article considers 2K monitors (2560×1440), which also are inexpensive, as a compromise; but recommends 1920×1080 ones as the best choice for these reasons:

    • “bang for your buck”
    • “more monitors are better than more resolution.”

    Screen space at native resolution for hi-res monitors allows displaying more stuff; but the offset often, as noted, is tiny text and images, thereby requiring increasing text size for legibility anyway.

    And actually, both Mark Hachman (the writer) and I prefer adding at least a 27″ monitor. There are several ways to use such a monitor in its native (highest) resolution mode and boost text size. Some tweaks are global – no matter what applications and windows; and in some applications, like Web browsers, you can just increase/decrease text size on the fly.

    The article has photos of some different layouts.

    PC World > “1080p vs 4K: Which is better for your work-from-home setup?” by Mark Hachman, Senior Editor (May 4, 2020) – You can get more done with more screen space across multiple monitors, rather than a single high-resolution display.

    Should you buy a 1080p or 4K monitor for your home office? This is a question you’ll inevitably face, especially if you’ve been trying to work off of a single monitor or a cramped laptop display at home. If you have the budget and space to add a second or third monitor, you then have the choice between buying the ubiquitous 1080p resolution (1920×1080 pixels), [or 2K (2560×1440)] or 4K (3840×2160 pixels), the higher resolution that’s already common on TVs and some high-end laptops.

    PCWorld’s editors have been through exactly the same debate with our own home offices. The strategy we’ve landed on is this: Buy a 1080p monitor (or two!) now, to create your own dual-monitor or insane multi-monitor setup. Then save your pennies and upgrade to a far more expensive 4K display later. Because everyone’s situation is different, we’ll help you decide your best path forward.

  • The chips that power your personal computer – Intel’s overview

    Holy electron beams, Batman! Chips on a reel, eh.

    Ever wonder about how computer chips (microprocessors) that power your personal computer are made? Well, if you’re curious for a high level overview, this PC World article includes a YouTube video by Intel (below) and some additional manufacturing videos for other products.

    PC World > “This insightful Intel video explains how CPUs are made, in words you can actually understand” – From the concept stages all the way to store shelves – by Brad Chacos, Senior Editor (February 19, 2020).

    Intel Newsroom > Want to better understand transistors, wafers, photolithography? Not quite sure what to make of mask operations, die sort and prep, and assembly and test? This video will help you better understand these key concepts and their roles in chip manufacturing. (Credit: Intel Corporation)
    All the hard work that goes into the badass CPU at the heart of your gaming rig.

  • Is Windows 10’s built-in security all the free you need?

    Here’s an update to a topic discussed in my January 31, 2019, post “Best PC anti-virus — free or not” and whether Microsoft Windows 10’s built-in Windows Defender is adequate for many PC users.

    PC World > “Windows Security review: There are better options, but not for the ‘price’” – Windows Security (nee Windows Defender) has come a long way by Ian Paul (Dec 12, 2019).

    For years, the attitude towards Windows 10’s built-in security was that it’s a nice idea, but you really shouldn’t rely on it. That stared changing in 2019, with the major testing houses giving Windows Security top marks.

    Could it be true? Can you really ditch your $100 annual antivirus subscription and rely on Microsoft’s native solution instead? Here’s our opinion.

    The current version allows you to run four different kinds of scans, all of which are pretty standard for antivirus.

    For anyone who uses free, third-party antivirus, the new Windows Security offers pretty much all you need. Windows Security also has the added benefit of not harrassing you with notifications to upgrade to a paid product every few days.

    In addition, there’s an option for controlled folder access to keep malicious programs away from sensitive folders. If Windows Security misidentifies an app as unfriendly you can also whitelist it. This section is also where you can set up OneDrive for ransomware data recovery.

    Going back to the settings for Virus & threat protection, you can set up specific folders so they won’t be scanned, and adjust your notification settings.

    Then the App & browser control is where you manage Windows SmartScreen for apps and file downloads, browsing on Microsoft Edge, and the Microsoft Store.

    This section exposes one downside of Windows Security: It doesn’t really do as much as other third-party suites can do for third-party browsers.

    See the full article for commentary on how Windows Defender did in evaluations by testing labs: AV-Test, AV-Comparatives, SE Labs.

    From these results we can gather that Windows Security is highly cloud dependent for malware detection, and probably isn’t up to the job if your PC spends a good amount of time disconnected from the internet. It also means there are still far better choices for protection despite Windows Defender’s top ranking.

    Windows Security offers good protection, but if you look at the testing comparisons to other suites, there are still better options. Nevertheless, Windows Security has come a long way and should continue to improve its basic protection and detection capabilities.

  • Best antivirus protection for Windows 10

    UPDATE OCTOBER 19, 2019: “The best antivirus protection of 2019 for Windows 10 – Your PC needs protection against malware, and free antivirus software may be enough. Here’s the best antivirus protection to get for Windows 10, and what’s worth paying extra for” by Clifford Colby (October 19, 2019). CNET’s “best” recommendations stand from last August (below).

    I’ve previously noted PC World’s annual recommendations for PC anti-virus protection. Yesterday (August 3, 2019), Cnet posted their recommendations for Windows 10 PCs: “The best antivirus protection of 2019 for Windows 10 — Your PC needs protection against malware, and free antivirus software may be enough. Here’s the best antivirus protection to get for Windows 10, and what’s worth paying extra for.”

    Quick summary:

    • Best free antivirus: Microsoft Defender.
    • Best subscription antivirus: Norton 360 Deluxe.
    • Best on-demand malware removal: Malwarebytes (free version) – paid version permits automatic scheduled scans as well as other features.

    The Cnet article includes other tips for protecting your privacy and keeping your PC secure, as well as a summary of other PC anti-virus products (and discusses the situation regarding Kaspersky Lab’s product).

  • Best PC anti-virus — free or not

    I’ve written previously about PC anti-virus / PC security programs. Annual PC World reports. Both free and paid (subscription) products. The best? Well, this recent PC World article “Recent antivirus tests are bad news for paid security suites” (January 30, 2019) has an interesting take on the question and the status of free options.

    Paid security suites offer a variety of services, but their basic AV capabilities are being equaled by free apps.

    Traditionally, Microsoft’s Windows Defender was considered the “baseline” product, one which the paid suites would have to surpass to prove themselves worthy. And Windows Defender still retains a “Certified” ranking, and not the “Top Product” award that the others have.

    But if you rank each suite by its “protection” ranking, Windows Defender comes in sixth out of the 20 suites AV-Test evaluated. … Avast’s free antivirus suite blocked everything, both zero-day and prevalent malware.

    Independent German research house AV-test ranked 12 products.