Keep your laptop on top of its game!Find out how to care for your laptop, what can go wrong, and whatyou can fixA laptop is much more than a PC that shrank. It has unique needs,and this book shows you how to meet them. You'll discover how todiagnose and fix common problems, replace parts, add externalupgrades, and develop workarounds. You'll even get the lowdown onnetworks, and find out when to repair and when to replace yourlaptop.Discover how to* Treat your laptop properly* Identify common problems* Know when repair may not make economic sense* Install a new operating system* Troubleshoot CD and DVD drives* Add cool peripherals

Introduction.Part I: Putting a Computer in Your Lap.Chapter 1: A Field Guide to the Common Laptop.Chapter 2: How to Treat a Laptop.Part II: Explaining What Could Possibly Go Wrong.Chapter 3: Things That Go Bump in the Night (or Day).Chapter 4: When to Repair and When to Recycle.Chapter 5: Surviving Basic Training.Chapter 6: Brain Matters: Memory, Microprocessors, and BIOS.Part III: Laying Hands on the Major Parts.Chapter 7: Easing In to Hard Disks.Chapter 8: Floppy Drives: Relics and Memories.Chapter 9: Going Round and Around: CD and DVD Drives.Chapter 10: Tripping the Keyboard Fantastic.Chapter 11: Putting Your Finger on Pointing Devices.Chapter 12: Seeing the Light: LCDs and Video.Part IV: Failing to Communicate.Chapter 13: Networks, Gateways, and Routers.Chapter 14: Feeling Up in the Air.Chapter 15: Modems: The Essential Translators.Chapter 16: Breaking Out of the Box: PC Cards, USB, andFireWire.Part V: The Software Side of Life.Chapter 17: Installing a New Operating System or MigratingUpwards.Chapter 18: Adding or Removing Software, for Better or forWorse.Chapter 19: Essential Utilities for Laptop Users.Part VI: The Part of Tens.Chapter 20: Ten Quick Solutions.Chapter 21: Ten Essential Dos and Don'ts.Chapter 22: Ten of My Favorite Things.Index.