Power to the PC: How to Manage Your Laptop's Battery

Squeezing the most juice possible out of your laptop's battery is an art. When every last bit of power counts, keep yourself plugged into a wall whenever it's convenient -- this won't damage modern batteries the way it would old-fashioned power cells. Beyond that, Windows PC contain a rich set of options for managing and micromanaging which systems get power and when.




I'I've written about gadget battery technologies and how to calculate basic battery needs in previous articles like "Juicing Up Your Gadget Battery Power." I've also covered some of the ways to keep yourself charged up on the road with extended battery packs for smaller devices.

Continuing this theme of maximizing battery life on your devices, this article addresses specifics related to laptop PC power management.

Step 1

Plug the laptop into the wall power whenever it's convenient for you to do so.

Advances in rechargeable battery technology used in laptops means that memory effect is no longer an issue like it was in the days of nickel cadmium battery chemistry. Laptops right now are using lithium ion technology that doesn't create memory effect.

Keeping the laptop powered will ensure the battery is topped off so that when you need battery resources, you'll benefit from the maximum.

Self-discharge, where the battery looses its stored power over time, even when it's not being used, is around 5 or 10 percent per month with lithium ion battery chemistry.

Step 2

Replace batteries as they become less capable of charging.

A characteristic of lithium ion batteries is that they loose their ability to charge over time, and voltage can drop.

Step 3

If you are using Windows, select "Control Panel" from the Windows menu and choose "Power Options." Then choose a Power Plan.

Choose "Balanced" for a day-to-day combination of battery power use and wall power use. Choose "High Performance" if you don't spend long periods on battery power.

A balanced setting is a compromise between computer performance and power savings.

A High Performance setting increases display brightness periods and reduces sleep mode kicking in, resulting in better computer performance.

Step 4

Customize the existing power plan settings.

Screen brightness is one of the principal power hogs. A long period before the display turns off is another.

Reduce the time to when the display dims, the display turns off and the computer goes to sleep to extend battery life.

Good battery saving settings are a dim display at one minute, display turning off at two minutes, and putting the computer to sleep at 10 minutes.

Move the "Adjust Plan Brightness" settings to the right to reduce screen brightness within the power settings. The middle point of the plan brightness slider is good for battery savings.

Tip: Reduce screen brightness instantly by using the slider on the main "Select a Power Plan" window. Or use hardware buttons on the laptop's keyboard. Look for function keys with sun-like icons. Press the Down arrow along with the "Fn" key to decrease screen brightness and increase battery life.

Step 5

Create a new power plan by choosing "Create a Power Plan" if you run into issues with the computer going to sleep too quickly.

For example, if you're using a program that needs the computer to stay awake, yet you're on battery power, you can create a power plan just for that scenario. Then activate that power plan for that scenario.

Tip: Choose the "Never" setting for display and sleep times when plugged in if you use your computer a lot during the work day.

A business-style laptop uses well under 100 watts of power. For comparison, a common table lamp light bulb uses 60 Watts.

Step 6

Click on the "Change advanced power settings" option to micro-manage settings. A broad concept to keep in mind is that mechanical devices with motors use more power than non-mechanical. A fan and hard disk are examples. Processors also use significant power, although they're not mechanical.

Step 7

Disconnect USB devices that aren't being used -- for example, a USB cable connected to a camera.
Power is often supplied to the device from the laptop.

Step 8

Turn off radios that aren't being used when operating the laptop on battery power. If your laptop includes integrated WiFi or 3G connectivity, turn the one that you're not using off.

There are often hardware buttons you can use similar to those mentioned in Step 4. Look for a classic radio-mast antenna icon on the keyboard, or around the laptop frame for WiFi. It's the same control that you use for Airplane Mode.

Microsoft: Conserving Battery Power website

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Posted in: Technology

Why Twitter is wiping out its apps

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Twitter is cracking down on how developers use its content -- and many popular apps are getting caught in the crosshairs.

Twitter warned in June that "stricter guidelines" were coming for use of its application programming interface (API). That's the software link that grants access to tweets and other data.

A blog post published last week detailed those changes -- and it immediately set off a firestorm. Among other new rules, the policy requires developers to get permission from Twitter in order to grow their user audience and tightly limits access to Twitter's map of user connections. The new mandates even dictate that a tweet must be displayed almost exactly how it appears on Twitter.

As a result, users are starting to see changes -- and even disappearances -- in some of their favorite Twitter-linked apps. Blogging site Tumblr found its Twitter API access revoked late Wednesday, effectively shutting down the site's "Find Twitter Friends" option. Photo app Instagram lost the same feature last month, shortly after Twitter ended its tweet-syndication deal with LinkedIn (LNKD).

Developers have been complaining about the new mandates in blog posts and, somewhat ironically, tweets. They're frustrated that after years of encouraging third-party app development, Twitter is yanking the rug out from under many of its partners.

"They have a right to do what they want with their own API, but it changes what Twitter is about," said Burt Herman, co-founder of social curation site Storify. "Twitter was built up on the backs of developers. And some apps are arguably a better use of Twitter for users than Twitter is itself."

Even some of Twitter's own employees are vocally displeased. "This @tumblr business just stinks," Twitter engineer Alex Choi tweetedWednesday night.

Twitter did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the changes.

Among the new rules: Apps will now be limited in how many times per hour they can access Twitter's API. Some apps that attract more than 100,000 users will need permission from Twitter to add more users. And tweets that are grouped together in a timeline cannot be included with "non-Twitter comment" -- a problem for popular apps like Flipboard and Storify that combine multiple social-media streams.

Twitter made it especially clear that it doesn't want anyone copying its core business. It took specific aim at "'traditional' Twitter clients" like Tweetbot and Echofon, which aim to replicate what Twitter does but add an easier user interface.

Twitter signaled last year that it didn't like those kinds of apps. It bought out the most popular independent client app, TweetDeck, and suggested that it would start cutting off the oxygen supply for the rest.

"Nearly eighteen months ago, we gave developers guidance that they should not build client apps that mimic or reproduce the mainstream Twitter consumer client experience," Michael Sippey, Twitter's director of consumer product, wrote on the company's blog last week. "That guidance continues to apply today."

For apps that aren't traditional Twitter mirrors, things are more confusing. For example, the "no grouping content in a timeline" rule flies directly in the face of Storify's model. But, in response to tweeted outrage, Twitter's product director Ryan Sarver later tweeted that Storify is "a good example" of what Twitter wants to see in outside apps.

Related story: Pop went the social media bubble. Now what?

That confusion fueled a post from Instapaper creator Marco Arment, whotook to his influential blog to detail his take on the new guidelines. He had particularly harsh words for the 100,000-user limit before app makers require special permissions from Twitter.

"Translation: 'Once you get big enough for us to notice, we're going to require you to adhere to more strict, unpublished rules to make sure you don't compete with us or take too much value from our network,'" Arment wrote.

He's concerned about the new rules' murkiness. "Effectively, Twitter can decide your app is breaking a (potentially vague) rule at any time, or they can add a new rule that your app inadvertently breaks, and revoke your API access at any time," he wrote.

Others said the criticism was overblown. Tech writer Anil Dash wrote a postcalling the changes "mostly pretty reasonable," though he conceded that the rules were written vaguely enough to make developers uneasy.

"The people who most eagerly participate in the pile-on usually have the least skin in the game — they just want to complain," Dash wrote.

Hunter Walk, the director of product management at Google (GOOG,Fortune 500), said Twitter did developers a service by at least finally releasing the rules: "Regardless agree/disagree w new @twitter API requirements I'm glad they ripped band aid off, gave clear guidance to devs," he tweeted.

But that isn't enough to keep developers from feeling shafted, said Herman, the Storify co-founder: "They can do whatever they want with their API, but it's clearly sparked a lot of bad feelings."

"The Twitter founders always talk about freedom of expression, but it seems like that has somehow shifted," he added. "You can't control freedom of expression on the Internet." 

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Posted in: Technology

Wayne Rooney out for four weeks with thigh injury

anchester United striker Wayne Rooney faces four weeks on the sidelines after suffering a nasty gash on his right leg near the end of United's 3-2 win over Fulham on Saturday.

He was injured when blocking a free kick and Fulham's Hugo Rodallega landed on the England international's thigh.Rooney was carried off on a stretcher, and will miss two World Cup qualifiers.

"Wayne Rooney's been whisked off to hospital immediately and it looks a bad one," said manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

"I think he could be out for four weeks with a bad gash."

Rooney had started United's 3-2 win on the substitutes' bench but replaced Shinji Kagawa on 68 minutes, and lasted less than 25 minutes before being forced from the field.

Rooney is now likely to miss England's two World Cup qualifiers against Moldova and Ukraine on 7 and 11 September, as well as three league games including the away fixture at Liverpool on 23 September.Without his 26-year-old forward, Ferguson will have to rely more heavily on recent acquisition Robin van Persie.

The Dutchman scored his first goal for his new club on his home debut in the hard-fought win, and his new manager was full of praise after the final whistle.

"It was fantastic strike [from Van Persie], no hesitation. A magnificent hit that set the place alight," said Ferguson.

"This was his first game at Old Trafford and he'll come on from that."

Van Persie, 29, admitted that his goal, which equalised Damien Duff's early opener for Fulham, was a perfect introduction to life at Old Trafford."The ball came and I wasn't really thinking about what to do. I had only one thing on my mind and it went in the far corner, exactly what I wanted," he admitted.

"I liked it out there. It's a big stadium, a great stadium with great fans. They have been very nice to me today, and I do appreciate it.

"It's a massive club and I'm just happy to be here. It's a new challenge which I'm looking forward to and I'm glad we got three points."

For Fulham manager Martin Jol, whose sides have never beaten Manchester United in nine games of trying, the first-half performance from his team undermined the Cottagers' later attempts to get back into the game.

"We didn't play well in the first half and didn't deserve anything," he confessed.

"But we can play football, we are growing and we can be a good team. If we do the right things that we can do we are a good team, and I enjoyed the second half."

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Posted in: Football

Reddit co-founder plans 'Internet 2012' bus tour

The economy has been front and center during this presidential race, followed by issues such as national security, abortion and taxes.

But are the candidates talking enough about the Internet?

Some big-time Web players don't think so and plan to launch a nationwide bus tour to see if they can change that.

Start-up guru Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of social sharing site Reddit, is raising funds for the Internet 2012 Bus Tour.

"From taxes, to health care, to immigration -- Democrats and Republicans can't seem to agree on anything," reads the text on the project's IndieGoGo fund-raising campaign. "But there's one thing no one's really talking about that both sides should be championing: The Open Internet."

Ohanian, who also founded travel site Hipmunk and philanthropic geek-merchandise vendor Breadpig, was active in this year's fight toderail the Stop Online Piracy Act. That bill and related legislation were designed to crack down on illegal sharing of copyrighted material, but critics attacked it as an overreaching assault on Web freedoms.

Ohanian said that the success of Reddit, which was launched in 2005 with just $12,000 in funding, speaks to the importance of a free and open Internet to the economic growth both parties promise to deliver. The site was bought by Conde Nast in 2006 and, last month, had nearly 40 million unique visitors.

"We got to live the American dream by having this great startup success at a company that continues to grow," he said in an interview with CNN. "There is really no other industry right now where you can say that.

"There are companies right now, starting up all over the country, who could be the next Google."

Tour leaders have drafted what they're calling the Internet Declaration of Freedom. It calls for promises to never censor the Web, promote international access to fast, affordable Web services and defend online privacy, among other things.

And they're encouraging both major U.S. political parties to add Internet freedom to their official platforms.

Ohanian said he's heard "on pretty damn good authority" that some sort of Web-freedom language will be proposed for the Republican platform. He hopes that will help spur Democrats, many of whom also opposed SOPA and similar bills, to do the same.

"I would love to hear it brought up during the debates," he said. "I would love it to be the thing that Obama and Romney try to one-up each other on."

The bus (painted half-red and half-blue to give it a bipartisan vibe) will travel from Denver -- site of the first presidential debate October 3 -- to Danville, Kentucky, where the vice-presidential debate will be held eight days later. It will start with a kickoff event on October 1 in Denver.

Along the roughly 1,000-mile journey, they plan to host meet-ups with supporters, promote local Web start-ups, support candidates friendly to their cause and register people to vote.

Reddit is funding most of the cost of getting the tour from town to town, but the fund-raising campaign will cover expenses such as hosting local events, promotional material and documenting the journey.

The campaign is shooting to raise $40,000. Unlike fellow fund-raising site Kickstarter though, IndieGoGo doesn't require that goal to be reached for the tour to receive all the contributions.

It won't be the first time that folks from Reddit (current general manager Erik Martin is joining Ohanian) have sparred with presidential campaign players over Web freedom.

The site targeted Republican vice-presidential candidate Paul Ryan last year for his perceived support of the Stop Online Piracy Act. Critics considered Ryan, chairman of the House Budget Committee, to have been too vague in his stance on the legislation and objected to the $288,600 in campaign funds he had received from groups considered to be for it.

Reddit users launched "Operation Pull Ryan," publicizing the congressman's muted stance on the issue and throwing support behind his political opponent. Ryan eventually announced he would oppose the bill, calling the Internet "one of the most magnificent expressions of freedom and free enterprise in history" and saying "it should stay that way."

"A bunch of random people on the Internet made it an issue," Ohanian said. "A bunch of citizens got him and his team to come out with a statement in opposition. That's impressive."

Reddit also joined Wikipedia and other sites that went black for a day in January to protest that legislation, which was eventually shelved without a vote.

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Posted in: Technology

McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh is to step down as Fota chairman

McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh will step down as chairman of the Formula One Teams' Association (Fota).

He took over from Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo in 2009, but will not stand for re-election.

Ferrari, Red Bull and Sauber withdrew from the group in a dispute over teams' spending after the 2011 season."We have tried to be a galvanising, stabilising force, trying to understand the issues of all the players," said Whitmarsh.

"Whatever happens, we'll continue to try and do those things. But I think it would be quite neat for someone else to have a go at it.

"I care about Formula 1, whatever role I'm in. McLaren, I think, has been an extraordinarily good citizen, in my opinion, of the sport."

The future of Fota was thrown into doubt by the dispute late in 2011,but Whitmarsh feels that his not seeking re-election will present a chance for someone else to continue its work.

"At the moment we've got 10 races left and I'll concentrate on that and on other things.

"We'll see what happens, but my recommendation to them will be that someone else does it. It'll be a good opportunity for them."

Fota was formed in 2008 with the aim of representing the interests of the teams when dealing with the sport's governing body the FIA, the commercial rights holders and F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone.

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Posted in: Formula1

Robin van Persie crowned his full debut for Manchester United with a stunning first goal for his new club in a nervy win against Fulham.

Robin van Persie crowned his full debut for Manchester United with a stunning first goal for his new club in a nervy win against Fulham.

The Dutchman's strike came after Damien Duff had given the visitors the lead, and it came in a scintillating first half as Shinji Kagawa and Rafael added further goals.

David De Gea turned Mladen Petric's point-blank effort on to the bar but the United keeper then failed to reach a Fulham cross as Nemanja Vidic deflected into his own net.And when it looked like United might throw away their advantage, the Spaniard stopped Moussa Dembele's close-range shot before the home side finally restored a measure of calm to the game.

A late injury to substitute Wayne Rooney and defensive worries aside, where Michael Carrick again had moments of alarm as a stand-in centre-back, Sir Alex Ferguson's side were dominant for large periods of the game and they could easily have scored more as Kagawa hit a post and Rafael had a second goal disallowed.

The successful introduction of Van Persie in an alternative 4-2-3-1 system left United fans purring about his attacking threat and he may have to play without Rooney in coming games, after the England striker suffered a nasty gash to his thigh following his introduction as a second-half substitute.That worrying finish to the game, when Rooney was caught by Hugo Rodallega, was in contrast to a buoyant beginning after six-time Olympic sprint champion Usain Bolt was paraded to cheers of "Fergie, Fergie sign him up" before kick-off.

The party mood was punctured after three minutes, however, when Duff tucked in Bryan Ruiz's clever free-kick, although there were question marks about the hosts' marking.

The lull did not last long as the impressive Antonio Valencia probed down the right, and when Van Persie marked his full debut in stunning fashion there was a huge roar to blow away any thoughts of a spoiled occasion.

The Dutchman's goal came from the left when Patrice Evra crossed and Van Persie met it after one bounce with a superb strike into the opposite corner.It immediately put any minor queries about his role in the United attack to bed, and his link-up play with Kagawa just behind him showed signs of a more fluid system which could suit United in Europe.

The Japanese midfielder, a summer signing from Borussia Dortmund, then helped himself to a home debut goal on 35 minutes when he tucked in from close range after Mark Schwarzer saved Tom Cleverley's shot following a corner.

And it began a frantic 10 minutes before the break where Kagawa hit the post and Rafael had a goal disallowed for offside before the Brazilian full-back headed in Ashley Young's centre.Fulham should have pulled one back moments later but somehow De Gea turned Petric's effort on to the bar, with Ruiz firing over from five yards.

Having established a two-goal cushion, United reduced their tempo after the interval but, similar to last season's 4-4 draw with Everton, which proved crucial in the eventual destination of the title, they carelessly let the Cottagers back into the game via a defensive howler.

There appeared to be no danger when Matthew Briggs crossed from the left but De Gea got the wrong side of Petric as Vidic inadvertently back-heeled into his own goal.

De Gea made amends for that clanger by saving twice from Dembele and he also stopped a late Ruiz header with Vidic also blocking Rodallega's shot.

And although United tested the Fulham goal further, they will hope their quartet of injured centre-backs - including Rio Ferdinand and Phil Jones - is back in action soon to shore up the defence.

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Posted in: Football

Ferrari in quandary over Fernando Alonso’s team-mate

Ferrari are aiming to finalise their 2013 driver line-up by the end of September as they search for a replacement for Felipe Massa.

The team have not decided whether he will be dropped, but it is likely.

Ferrari have had talks with Jenson Button, but he is likely to stay at McLaren, while sources close to Ferrari dismiss reports that Lotus's Kimi Raikkonen could return.

The favourites to partner Fernando Alonso are Force India's Paul di Resta and Nico Hulkenberg or Sauber's Sergio Perez.

Ferrari are interested in Button, but any attempt to do a deal is complicated by the fact that the 2009 world champion is under contract to McLaren.

Button is in the first year of a 'two-plus-one' contract, with the two fixed years taking him to the end of 2013, after which McLaren have the option to retain him.

A further complication to Button joining Ferrari is that the Englishman wanted to sign a two-year contract.

The Italian team only want to sign a one-year deal with their second driver for 2013 with an eye on the possible arrival of Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel in 2014.

Ferrari have an arrangement with Vettel for the season after next, but it is not clear whether it is a firm contract or the equivalent of a letter of intent for him to join them.

Sources close to McLaren and Button dismiss talk of him moving to Ferrari as "complete rubbish".

Rumours of Raikkonen returning to Ferrari in 2013 emerged at the Hungarian Grand Prix last weekend - he last drove for the team in 2009, after which Ferrari terminated his contract and paid him not to drive in 2010 to make way for Alonso.

Sources close to Ferrari say the Finn's representatives did approach them to inquire whether they were interested in taking Raikkonen back, but were told the team were not interested.

Ferrari have been left in a quandary as the other drivers on the list are all to a certain degree unproven, and the team are unsure whether any would be an improvement on Massa.

But the Brazilian's inconsistent form this year means they are leaning towards replacing him.

Force India's Paul di Resta is one of the favourites to replace Massa at Ferrari

Massa started the season a long way off the pace of Alonso at a time when the Ferrari was very difficult to drive.

His qualifying pace has improved in recent months but he continues to struggle to score points in races and has tended to get involve in incidents.

Ferrari are seeking a second driver who can back Alonso up and also score enough points to help them win the constructors' championship.

Perez is a member of Ferrari's driver academy, but the company's president Luca di Montezemolo has already said this year that he feels the Mexican is not experienced enough to drive for Ferrari.

Hulkenberg and Di Resta have very similar levels of experience to Perez, both having raced in F1 for a season and a half.

Ferrari have long been keen on Robert Kubica, but the Pole has still not sufficiently recovered from the horrendous injuries suffered in a rallying crash in February 2011.

Kubica, 27, can drive a road car and a rally car without problem but the nerves in his right arm, which was partially severed are still not healed suffiently to allow him to move his fingers quickly or accurately enough to operate the controls on an F1 car.

Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali said at the Hungarian Grand Prix last weekend: "We're not in any rush to make any decision or to announce anything because we want to pick the right time.

"We are totally in line with Felipe and for us Felipe has to be protected because it's important for this championship and this is the situation.

"So at the moment there is nothing new on that subject."

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Posted in: Formula1