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Posted - June 21 2008 : 08:39:20
Listen now. or Download the archive.
Question: A listener in Longview asks, “My hard drive seems to be going bad. Do you recommend repairing it or buying a new computer?”
Answer: In general, I'd say replace it. Replacing a hard drive will usually cost around $100 for the drive, and $90 or so for labor to transfer the data. Your cost will ultimately depend on where you have the repair done, and I have heard of service centers that charge as much as $400 to do this. Now, when you look at that kind of cost, and that a new computer may only cost $500 and be much faster, with a brand new warranty, then it becomes much more a question of “Which do you want?” When looking at having to repair your computer, as you almost certainly will, it's a good idea to determine as best you can what the range of the cost will be. While I can often give you a ballpark figure for a given repair, it usually requires at least some analysis to be certain what it will take to fix the system. If your data's at stake, well, it's always a good idea to backup because as we've said before, your data is sometimes irreplaceable. If it's a data thing, I always recommend getting all the data you can before doing anything drastic. She wasn't doing this, but if you're looking for a good excuse to get a new computer, a better problem is a bad motherboard. With those, you usually either can't replace it economically, or you wind up replacing so many parts you basically wind up with a new computer anyway.
Cool Site: www.driverside.com The price of gas has made us all more conscious of what we spend on things. We may be doing more of our own auto maintenance. We care more about the mileage our cars get. We may just want to trick out our cars. This site, driverside.com, can tell you things like what your car's worth now or in the future. It can help you find parts and accessories for your car. If you've lost your owner's manual or don't know the service schedule for your car you can get that information. And the experts tell us that proper maintenance will make our cars run better and be more fuel-efficient. You can search by make/model, or you can enter the VIN number of your car to get information tailored to that particular car.
Cool Gadget: Well, we mentioned backup, and so I'd like to bring up a backup gadget called drobo from Data Robotics, Inc. It's a backup robot that connects to your computer with a USB 2.0 cable. You have to install two drives, and you can put up to four hard drives up to a terabyte each in it and then you can put your stuff there. The thing is, if you run out of space, you either add a new drive if you have less than four, or you remove the smallest drive and replace it with a larger one. The Drobo keeps your files available even while you swap drives. The Drobo is only the enclosure, you buy the drives separately. We'll have a link in the show notes in the forums.
It's All “Geek” To Me: Java – Besides being a synonym for coffee, Java is a programming language
Final thought, the forums have more notes, links to places we've mentioned, and an archive of the shows. That archive is getting better and larger, so if you've heard something you'd like to find out more about, check them out.
Links
Driverside: http://www.driverside.com
Data Robotics Drobo: http://www.drobo.com While you're there, be sure and watch the videos, this thing is way cool!
Java on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Java_(programming_language) Note: Snitz doesn't allow me to put the "(programming_language)" part into the actual link, so you'll have to copy and paste this one into your browser's address bar - Sorry!
Download Java: http://www.java.com |
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