ssd choice and 1 issue!

[BrodyBoy]

Lolol. Thanks again for all your input. I'm taking my coworkers comments with a grain of salt so to speak. Definitely gonna do the ssd. Was looking at the crucial with the transfer data cable. Not the data cable that comes with the crucial mind you. There is a transfer cable system using usb 3.0 from a company called apricorn because i've read better reviews on them from amazon. Thought it might make the process of switching over easier.

Do you have a lot of personal data on there already? Stuff that you need to move/transfer?

Whatever you've got, you really don't need to buy any extra cables, etc. to move your data or installation. People do it here all the time....you can get step by step instructions if you need them.

[440hsp]

hey brodyboy. Yeah i have abunch of stuff on my hard drive. Lots of programs and stuff but i know i can move those to my 1tb ext. Hard drive. I would like to have my computer with no bloatware if possible like there was when i first bought it. So it wont be bogged down by all the stuff i dont need. Do you have any tips for me when installing my wlan card and memory? I've never done it before but i've looked inside the back of the case already and it looks fairly straight forward. Will i need drivers or whatnot for the wireless card or anything else for the ram install or basically i need to shut the computer down, take the battery out,install everything then turn it back on? Not gonna do the ssd right now until i get a little more money together. Btw, can you point me to a link maybe that would help me with transferring my data thats needed? I made recovery discs the first time i turned on the laptop. Would those help?

[BrodyBoy]

hey brodyboy. Yeah i have abunch of stuff on my hard drive. Lots of programs and stuff but i know i can move those to my 1tb ext. Hard drive. I would like to have my computer with no bloatware if possible like there was when i first bought it. So it wont be bogged down by all the stuff i dont need. Do you have any tips for me when installing my wlan card and memory? I've never done it before but i've looked inside the back of the case already and it looks fairly straight forward. Will i need drivers or whatnot for the wireless card or anything else for the ram install or basically i need to shut the computer down, take the battery out,install everything then turn it back on? Not gonna do the ssd right now until i get a little more money together. Btw, can you point me to a link maybe that would help me with transferring my data thats needed? I made recovery discs the first time i turned on the laptop. Would those help?

Sure....the WLAN and RAM upgrades are pretty easy. When you open that big back panel, you have access to both components.

RAM:
The RAM slots use standard spring mounts. There are little metal "tabs" on either side of the RAM module....you just push those outward and the module will spring upward. Once the module is tilted up, you can slide it out of the connector and put the new one in at the same angle. Be sure to push the new module all the way in, until it feels fully seated into the connector. Then just push it down until it "clicks" and locks into place.

When you turn the computer back on, the BIOS will recognize the new RAM and report it to Windows automatically. You don't need to change any settings.




WLAN:
Also pretty straightforward, but you need to make some software changes. First, download the latest Intel WLAN driver. Then you want to completely uninstall the existing Atheros WLAN software. Once these tasks are completed, you power down, disconnect the AC and battery, and physically swap out the WLAN card. The only slightly tricky part is that you can't actually see the connector, since it's kind of tucked under the edge of the opening. But an easy way to guide the new card in accurately is to keep the screw hole on it aligned with the little mount for it...if those are in line, the card will slide right into its slot.

After you have swapped the card and restarted the computer, Windows will recognize the new hardware and look for a driver for it. You can cancel that or wait until it's done and reports that it doesn't have the driver. Close that wizard and then just install the Intel WLAN driver you downloaded earlier. Chances are, the default settings will work fine with your network, and you'll just need to add your network password.

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Since you aren't doing the SSD now, let's cross that bridge when you come to it. There are several options for setting up the OS on it, as I mentioned earlier. When the time comes, we can go over those in detail and you can decide which approach you want to take. Then we can cover the step-by-step.

[440hsp]

brodyboy i appreciate that man. You've been a great help. Yeah i agree that the ssd questions can wait. Thanks again brotha

[Zygomorphic]

Have you ever considered a hybrid drive? Seagate makes them, and they are fast. Not as fast as an SSD, I'll confess, but faster than any mechanical drive, and almost on par with the slowest SSD's for Windows boot. Also, the 500 GB variant is only ~$100, so it is a lot more cost (space) effective than a true SSD. Just a thought, I happen to have one, and it works quite well.

[440hsp]

zygomorphic, i did consider the hybrid drive for sure. Was thinking about swapping the drive for several months before i completely decided to go to a full ssd. The money isnt an extreme problem but i just dropped around 150.00 with one day shipping for the ram and the intel 6300 so i decided to wait til my next check to get the ssd. After that i should be at a standstill ( i think) at what i can upgrade hardware wise with my g74. Just want to see the full potential of my laptop or the best it can achieve with my help. Lol

[440hsp]

trying to figure out all the bloatware to remove on this thing without messing it up before i disk defragmant it for the first time. I thought i had the defragmenter on a schedule but i guess i didnt. Also just did the nvidia update for the graphics card and went to msconfig and cleaned up unnecessary starting programs. Geese there's a bunch of crap on here that slows my laptop down.

[BrodyBoy]

trying to figure out all the bloatware to remove on this thing without messing it up before i disk defragmant it for the first time. I thought i had the defragmenter on a schedule but i guess i didnt. Also just did the nvidia update for the graphics card and went to msconfig and cleaned up unnecessary starting programs. Geese there's a bunch of crap on here that slows my laptop down.

Take a look in Control Panel. While some of the listings may not be familiar, you'll probably see quite a few things that you know you don't want/need/use....like extra toolbars, pdf readers, Asus utilities, etc. Those are good targets to start with.

If you have replaced any of the free/trialware with your own programs, those can go as well. If, for example, you use some other security software, uninstall the Trend Micro trial. If you have your own productivity suite, get rid of the MS Office free version. If you don't use stuff like Windows Live Essentials, Chrome, ExpressGate Cloud, etc., get rid of them.

Don't uninstall things you don't recognize....ask first, as some of the entries are drivers and you do need them.

[440hsp]

Hey brodyboy glad you chimed in. I wanted to know what asus crap i can take off. Asus ai recovery,face logon,live update,usb charger plus,virtual camera, and webstorage. I dont know what they do but i want to remove any program i dont need. Also with the windows essentials i have quite a few of those but i just dont wanna uninstall something that i need. Thats why i was scared to touch them

[BrodyBoy]

Here's a sample shot of the G74 Control Panel programs list, as shipped. Everything that's lined out is non-essential and expendable, so if you don't use these things, uninstall them.