With all the powerful features come built in with the modern notebook computers, they are threatening the very existence of their desktop alternatives. The modern consumers have practically run out of good reasons to buy desktop computers as they can find all the essential features available with the notebook with no dramatic difference in the prices. Well, despite how close the notebook computers have come to their desktop replacements, some of us still need one or more features which may not be found in the notebooks.

However, this is not a very good reason why you should buy a desktop computer while you can get the same features and even more in a notebook at the same price. I have seen many users complain about the small screen size, absence of DVD burners, and other stuff like that which some standard low-cost notebooks might not have. However, the good news is you can always upgrade your notebook with any accessories you want. Let`s talk about a bit about the common features people have been heard complaining about and how to solve these problems easily.

DVD Burner: Some people crib that the notebook doesn`t have a DVD burner. If you are one of them then you can buy an external DVD burner and connect it with your notebook via the USB port. You will be ambushed with a galaxy of DVD burners; however, you can count on Hewlett-Packard DC4000 External DVD RW Writer. It can convert video from different formats such as Betamax, Digital8, VHS and Hi8. It also works as any other standard DVD writer and burns music, data, photos to DVD and CD. While taking a DVD burner take care of the compatibility of the accessory with your notebook.

Flat-LCD Screen: Few prefer watching their favourite action flicks on your notebook; blame it on the small screen. Take home a Flat- LCD screen monitor and watch your favourite movies in the virtual theatre surroundings. You can search and check for different Flat screen LCDs available and compare their prices. Also check for the contrast ratio, resolution and scanning frequency.

Musical Experience: Listening to music on the tinny notebook speakers is hardly interesting to any music lover. If you are suffering from this problem, buy your notebook a pair of speakers, preferably a model that comes with 5.1 speaker system with Dolby Digital and DTS Hardware decoding. It will offer you superlative sound quality both for listening to your favourite music and watching your favourite movies on your notebook.

Notebook Keyboard: Using the keyboard of the notebook can be tiring and painful for your fingers. How often have you ended up with your finger experiencing an unusual pressure? Even the notebook users may have experienced the generated heat on their hand. An additional keyboard is the best solution for it. You can enjoy the functionality from a wireless keyboard with a separate media pad for accessing. The keyboard combo is also available with a wireless optical mouse have great sensitivity of movements. Keyboards of varied types are available; just you need to find the best for you.

USB Mobile Port Replicator: Of course you are taking a notebook to take it with you wherever you go. But where are you going to plug in all these accessories if you are taking it to some other place. You can`t afford every time to plug them out while moving and plug in again while using. You can sort the problem out with an USB mobile port replicator. Whatever you need to plug into your laptop you can plug into it and plug in the USB mobile port replicator to your notebook.

Troubleshooting a laptop or a desktop computer can be a daunting task but with a systematic approach you can learn to cope with some of the headaches when facing a computer crash. There are so many possibilities and scenarios that can cause your computer or laptop to go down. When problems occurs the first thing to do is to determine if you have a software or hardware problem, finding out if the problem is actually a physical issue like a bad component such as memory, hard disk, motherboard etc. or a software issue like a bad driver, a virus or spyware, corrupt system files etc.

If you suspect a software issue and don’t really want to spend the whole day finding out if you have a bad video driver or virus , spyware, or system file corruption, then the best thing to do is to format your computer or laptop, meaning wiping out the hard disk clean. I suggest doing a backup of important data if possible if your operating system is accessible. If your data is extremely important like for most people and a backup system was never put in place before the time of the crash, and the operating system is not accessible, then you will have no choice but to remove your hard disk physically from the computer or the laptop and place it in another computer as a slave. If you are equipped with an external hard disk enclosure, you could simply install that drive that needs to be backed up inside that enclosure and you will directly connect the enclosure via a USB port to a working computer. You will then be able to access your drive and backup all important data directly to that computer.

Once the backup is done and most important configuration are written down, again if your operating system is somewhat accessible. You are now ready for the following step, formatting (wiping your hard disk clean) and re-install the operating system, providing that you have your official operating system license cd, then once the operating system is installed, you will need to re-configure all your internal and external peripherals such as: sound card, video card, network card, modem, printers, scanners etc.(keep in mind that on some systems depending on the chipset of the motherboard, you will be spared from installing some drivers, nevertheless it is always advisable to get the latest drivers from the manufacturers sites. Your final step will be to restore all backed up data, and finalize the installation of all additional software and other downloads that you may require. Don’t i repeat please don’t forget your email and address book backup too. Once the computer is formatted, it will be impossible for you to go back and recover lost data if you are not a professional with specialized tools and software.

A hardware issue is a little difficult to pin point especially on laptops, many issues can make a computer or laptop not want to boot up or even turn on. I would advise calling a professional if you aren’t sure what is it you are up against.