Windows XP users – or those with even older versions of Windows – who have the operating system installed on a notebook might have noticed that the battery meter icon in the system tray is not really the best way of displaying the current battery level. Hoovering over it would display the information needed but [...]
Notebook Hardware Control
When you are working with notebooks on the road you have to ensure that you make the best of the remaining battery power. Nothing’s more annoying than a notebook that is automatically powering down because of a battery running out of power. One way to take care of this problem is to reduce the power [...]
Notebook Tip: Disable Hardware that you do not use
Most notebooks have several hardware components installed that are not used by the user. A notebook with WLAN and network card for instance and a user that only uses the WLAN to connect to a network and the Internet. Every component installed is using battery and it is a wise step to disable those components that are not used – ever.
Display Notebook Battery Status
I find it hard to tell how much time I have left to work with my notebook when running on battery and always thought it would be nice to have an application that would display the notebook battery status somewhere on screen. BattStatt is a small software that displays the battery status in the system tray when hovering over the icon.
Save Notebook Power by disabling unneeded devices
Most notebooks tend to run out of power quickly and most of the time in an inappropriate moment. What most users do not know is that every component in the notebook is using power even if you are not using it at the moment. This leads to the conclusion that disabling unneeded components would save power and thus prolong the work time.
Windows Vista Aero Color Transform
I found a nice little Windows Vista utility to change the appearance of the Aero Glass theme even further by allowing color transformations. The normal Windows Vista style has a static color while the Vista Color Transform application may change colors over time.
The software offers a pre-defined sets of colors that have names such as Patriotic, My Eyes!! and Winter displaying small preview images of the colors that are cycled through. If you take Winter for example you see white and icy colors when you click on edit.
