Is my computer going to the laptop cemetery? Mozy and Dropbox first!

 I have been babying this laptop for more than a year. I purchased it in August 2006 and really like this Toshiba Satellite A-105. For the last few years I have had a cooling pad underneath. This pad plugs into the computer via a USB port and the fan really does keep the overheated battery a bit cooler. I am good about backing up, clearing out cookies and other garbage, and doing defrag. Today it is making some new noises and that made me do an extra backup to Mozy and to an external hard drive. Then I double checked to make sure some vital files were backed up in Dropbox. All of this is so easy.

All this ensures that my personal files, research client files, genealogy databases, articles in progress, and other projects won't be lost in case the computer dies. Of course, the restoration of the programs and files to a new computer isn't a quick process, but at least I have the files from which to do just that! Backup your files today!

Dropbox is also great for sharing files with others. A lot of my volunteer work and some client work are shared via Dropbox. Check out Dropbox at http://db.tt/1XkTiSA and see how easy it is. I own no stock in the company but I could get some extra storage space if you sign up for Dropbox through this link.

Does your laptop computer overheat?

I happen to have a 4 year old laptop computer that overheats. For the last year I have had a cooling pad device that sits under it. The USB part that plugged into the computer worked fine but the end that plugged into the device itself was too loose. I was having all kinds of computer issues as it was not being kept cool enough.

I did some online research and found a good replacement. I didn't want to wait so I went to Office Depot and actually found the one I wanted in the store! It is a "Belkin Laptop Cooling Pad." It has one fan and you need no power other than plugging it into a USB port on your computer. This brand has space between the computer and the device for air to circulate. It can be elevated by popping open the stand and this also helps to circulate the air.

I have no financial interest in either Belkin or Office Depot but thought I would share this information on a product that really does work. I feel this has bought me some time to save more before I must buy a new laptop. This is the only computer I have so I really appreciate this product.