Posts by wearymason4

...you could also try running BlueScreenView to see what's up http://www.resplendence.com/downloads ....or just keep an eye on your temps using something like Core Temp

AdwCleaner is pretty much just a tool for cleaning up your browser after you accidentally let some sketchy add-ons or plugins slip in from random websites. It doesn't really dig into much else besides your browser settings and whatever’s hitting your PC at startup.
Most browsers are actually set up to ask for permission before installing those kinds of extensions, so when you run a scan with Malwarebytes, it basically assumes everything you clicked "yes" to is totally fine.
At the end of the day, the mistake falls on the user.
Malwarebytes is only going to step in and scrub things out if they're actual threats, like a worm, a trojan, or a bot.

Check if anyone else is showing up on Skype. Honestly, it might not even be an issue on your end—could just be a glitch with whoever you're chatting with.

Since HP uses Intel and Broadcom Wi-Fi chips, they’re probably installed correctly if the connection is actually working. If the speed is dragging, it’s either signal interference, being too far from the router, or just Windows acting up because it's busy choking the bandwidth with background updates...

...maybe try jumping into the BIOS and messing with the USB settings.
Plug the drive into one of the ports on the back, but if you see a USB3 port, skip it—try using a USB2 slot instead.

I haven't touched AMD since back in the 486 days. It’s just been AMD for me and my kids, and honestly, never have we run into a single headache with their drivers. Even now, my son’s latest 8-core CPU didn't give us any grief setting up macOS, and the graphics card drivers were smooth sailing too.

Look, you're out here forcing core counts on a CPU and who knows what else... maybe expecting everything to just work perfectly without a hitch? You can't really be surprised when things get messy.

Are you talking about DDR400 for those 3GB? Because there's no way that 667MHz is part of the same set—that's definitely DDR2, and they won't play nice together.
You can't just mix different generations like DDR, DDR2, DDR3, or DDR4... it's a no-go.
Technically, you can run different sticks if the motherboard's BIOS recognizes them, but it'll just throttle everything down to match whatever the slowest stick in the bunch is.
Obviously, life is much easier and smoother if you just use identical sticks from the jump.

"......because it won't let me boot this ISO file from my USB or CD. Pls halp."

.You can't just "boot" an ISO file directly. You have to actually burn it onto a CD/DVD or flash it to a USB drive using something like > first.

You should be able to grab the drivers right here: http://www.dell.com/support/home/

Try heading over to the Device Manager, right-click that specific part with the yellow exclamation mark, hit properties, and hunt down the hardware ID. Just plug that ID into Google to see what you're actually dealing with.

ps: when you picked up that router at home, it probably came with two Ethernet cables in the box...

It’ll probably just be a mismatch between WEP and WPA2/PSK, or maybe just a typo in the password. Even if you have WPS turned off, anyone who happens to snag your SSID and password can still hop on.

ps: - I actually disabled WPS on my own router because some neighbor was clearly trying to brute-force their way in through that specific hole. 😁
- I'm not sure how it works for you, darkowl72, but do you even get an alert when someone tries to ping your router? Does it give you the choice to block them or let them in?

...plus, what if there’s just a bunch of dust gunked up on the CPU heatsink and the AMD chip is throttling because it's overheating?

When you're saving files to an HDD, it’s totally normal for them to get split up into different fragments, especially if they're larger than a few MB.
Once you go through with a clean reinstall of Windows, any data that was sitting where those new system files needed to land is gone for good. Even if it's just one tiny fragment of a file that got overwritten, the whole thing is toast. You'll just end up getting a "Bad status" error when you try to access them.

like "Recuva"

A repeater is just going to tank your speeds and cause more lag, so honestly, running a LAN cable straight to the router is definitely your best bet.

To deal with WiFi interference, you can manage it yourself by setting fixed, different channels on your routers. For example, set the 2.4GHz band to channel 4 on the ground floor and channel 8 upstairs... just make sure you spread out the channels for 5GHz too, if you're using that.

Look, BIOS isn't hardware, so you don't exactly install a driver for it. Every motherboard comes with its own specific BIOS version that you might need to "flash" if you're looking for exactly the right update for that specific board revision. If you try to flash the wrong version, you're looking at a bricked PC that won't even boot, or at least some of your hardware stops working entirely... plus, it's totally normal for all your settings to reset to "default" after a mess like that. You can find the instructions in your manual on how to tap into the BIOS during those first few seconds after you hit the power button—sometimes it even tells you what key to hit right on the splash screen. The manual should also cover how to toggle the Wi-Fi via the keyboard...

ps: if the Wi-Fi is disabled in the BIOS, it's not going to show up in the Maid Manager, and you wouldn't even be able to attempt installing a driver for it anyway.

...maybe you picked up a knockoff from overseas ...try plugging that SD card into your PC and dumping like 50GB of data onto it....

Rachel Ortiz56 hit the nail on the head. You really need to grab those drivers directly from your laptop manufacturer's website, because looking at "Device Manager," it's pretty clear that nothing is there for the USB controller or the LAN.
I've honestly never touched any "Driver Booster" type stuff—it's just total junk if you ask me.

ps: Even if the drivers are missing, you'll still see voltage at the USB ports, but they won't actually talk to the system.

If your provider's central office was hitting capacity, you'd just see speeds tanking in the evenings. But if the connection is actually dropping out? That’s more likely due to interference from new VDSL users jumping on that same long stretch of cable (it's an SNR margin issue).
A buddy of mine dealt with something similar by switching over to a mobile Xfinity Gateway... honestly, that might be a solid move for you too since you wouldn't be tethered to that old, long line anymore.

ps: You didn't mention who your ISP is, what modem you're running, or even drop a screenshot of your DSL stats....

There’s another way you could play this, honestly. Just plug that external USB drive straight into the TV and watch your movies right from there.

Look, even if everything is perfect—you're sitting right next to the router and there’s zero interference—you aren't actually going to see more than about 27Mbps if you're running on that 54Mbps "g" mode. It's just how it works. That 54 number is just the modulation speed, but Wi-Fi using the 802.11 protocol isn't just raw internet data flying through the air. It’s constantly sending and receiving little packets that include control data too. Plus, if there are other gadgets nearby fighting for the same channel, things slow down while they're busy transmitting. And if there's any noise, the system ends up re-sending packets over and over until it finally gets an acknowledgment that they arrived safely before it moves on to the next one.