I found this post at the Microsoft Answers forums. It turns out that the netbook just needed its bios updated to the newest version. Once this was complete, the freezing stopped. There is some great info in the post, but to save you some time, you can click here to download the bios. Just unzip it, and run the .exe file. It will update the bios on the netbook, and then restart. Also, just to be clear, make sure you either open that link while actually viewing this page on the Acer netbook, or transfer the .exe file over to the netbook if you are viewing this on a different computer.
Monday, December 26, 2011
Acer Aspire One D257 Freezing
My father-in-law picked up a Acer Aspire One D257 netbook for my son this Christmas. After he opened it up, I got it out of the box and started getting it ready. I set up the Windows 7 Starter edition, got the wifi set up, surfed some sites to check it all out. I decided to try and load the Eve Online client on it to see if it would be playable, as it might be handy to have this little netbook available to bring with me. Unfortunately, shortly after starting the client download, the netbook froze. The only way to clear it was to hold the power button down until it reset. Each time it rebooted, I would restart the client download only to have the netbook freeze again within a few minutes. At first I was just going to have the father-in-law return it, but I decided to check out some sites to see what I could find first.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Koodo LG Optimus One Review
I've had my LG Optimus One from Koodo for a couple of months now. I have to say, I'm very impressed with this phone.
With NO CONTRACT, this phone was only $150. With Koodo, I was able to put the entire $150 on my tab, which gets paid bit by bit each month. At any time of my choosing, I can pay out what I owe on my tab and walk away. No contract, no fees, no hassle. They also gave me a $100 visa gift card, so in fact the phone only cost me $50. Service with them has been great, and their data plans are excellent. I opted for the "data saver" plan, which simply only charges me for the data I use each month. Check out the page about it here.
It comes with Android 2.2, a 3.2" touchscreen, 2GB microSD card and WiFi hotspot capability. The guy at the kiosk tried to tell me this phone would be too slow to play any games on, because it is just an introductory phone, but I haven't had any issues yet. It plays Angry Birds just fine! :)
One of the things I truly love about this phone is the voice commands. These are available in most Android builds, as far as I understand. In the picture above, you can see the google search bar. At the right side is a microphone icon. Just touch that, speak what you want, and the phone does it! "Send text to John Henry, what time are we meeting tonight?" will bring up the text window and insert the text you want! It's awesome for when you're driving (hands free, right?) or when you just don't feel like typing out a big long message. You also get the same little microphone icon right on your keyboard, so if you start typing then change your mind, you can hit the icon and start speaking what you want to text instead.
These voice commands also work for web searching, placing calls, travel directions and more. This is how using your computer at home should be!
The camera does a fine job in normal lighting conditions, but suffers in poor light conditions. This is one of the things you sacrifice when buying a cheaper phone I guess. For the most part I am still happy with it, as I usually am taking pictures during the day in normal light conditions. The camera is 3.2 megapixels. There is no front facing camera, which I was also disappointed about, but again, it IS a cheaper camera so sacrifices must be made.
Here is a pic I took of us setting up for a gig my band played this summer:
and here is a pic from about the same angle, but after it has gotten dark:
So, poor light, poor pictures. This is true of many cell phone cameras though, so it's nothing I cry too much over.
Battery life is fair. I can get through an entire day, even with pretty heavy usage, but I have to charge every night. If I don't, I'm likely going to run out of juice before the end of the next day.
This is my first Android phone, and so far, I'm quite happy with it. The app store (Marketplace) is easy to navigate and stocked with plenty of things to play with. Live wallpapers, where the home screen background picture can actually show moving pictures, movies, and be interacted with, is lots of fun, and a cool "wow" factor to show off to friends. For an "introductory" phone, I find it reacts reasonably well to my touch (although it does sometimes take a little bit force to get a reaction), and seems quick to load up apps and switch from screen to screen.
So, all in all, for what turned out to be $50, no contract and an excellent monthly plan, I'm very satisfied with my LG Optimus One from Koodo Mobile. If you're thinking about an Android phone, but haven't tried one yet, this is an excellent way to test the waters.
With NO CONTRACT, this phone was only $150. With Koodo, I was able to put the entire $150 on my tab, which gets paid bit by bit each month. At any time of my choosing, I can pay out what I owe on my tab and walk away. No contract, no fees, no hassle. They also gave me a $100 visa gift card, so in fact the phone only cost me $50. Service with them has been great, and their data plans are excellent. I opted for the "data saver" plan, which simply only charges me for the data I use each month. Check out the page about it here.
One of the things I truly love about this phone is the voice commands. These are available in most Android builds, as far as I understand. In the picture above, you can see the google search bar. At the right side is a microphone icon. Just touch that, speak what you want, and the phone does it! "Send text to John Henry, what time are we meeting tonight?" will bring up the text window and insert the text you want! It's awesome for when you're driving (hands free, right?) or when you just don't feel like typing out a big long message. You also get the same little microphone icon right on your keyboard, so if you start typing then change your mind, you can hit the icon and start speaking what you want to text instead.
These voice commands also work for web searching, placing calls, travel directions and more. This is how using your computer at home should be!
The camera does a fine job in normal lighting conditions, but suffers in poor light conditions. This is one of the things you sacrifice when buying a cheaper phone I guess. For the most part I am still happy with it, as I usually am taking pictures during the day in normal light conditions. The camera is 3.2 megapixels. There is no front facing camera, which I was also disappointed about, but again, it IS a cheaper camera so sacrifices must be made.
Here is a pic I took of us setting up for a gig my band played this summer:
and here is a pic from about the same angle, but after it has gotten dark:
So, poor light, poor pictures. This is true of many cell phone cameras though, so it's nothing I cry too much over.
Battery life is fair. I can get through an entire day, even with pretty heavy usage, but I have to charge every night. If I don't, I'm likely going to run out of juice before the end of the next day.
This is my first Android phone, and so far, I'm quite happy with it. The app store (Marketplace) is easy to navigate and stocked with plenty of things to play with. Live wallpapers, where the home screen background picture can actually show moving pictures, movies, and be interacted with, is lots of fun, and a cool "wow" factor to show off to friends. For an "introductory" phone, I find it reacts reasonably well to my touch (although it does sometimes take a little bit force to get a reaction), and seems quick to load up apps and switch from screen to screen.
So, all in all, for what turned out to be $50, no contract and an excellent monthly plan, I'm very satisfied with my LG Optimus One from Koodo Mobile. If you're thinking about an Android phone, but haven't tried one yet, this is an excellent way to test the waters.
Swype Parsing Error
Swype has released a new android beta, but many people (myself included) are getting a parsing error when trying to update.
The solution is to install manually:
1. You have probably already uninstalled your current version of Swype. If you haven't, do this now (settings-applications-manage applications)
2. Uninstall your Swype Installer app
3. Go to http://beta.swype.com/android/get on your mobile phone and install the new Swype Installer.
4. Use the new installer to install the new version of Swype (3.25)
Ta da! You are now the proud owner of the newest version of Swype!
The solution is to install manually:
1. You have probably already uninstalled your current version of Swype. If you haven't, do this now (settings-applications-manage applications)
2. Uninstall your Swype Installer app
3. Go to http://beta.swype.com/android/get on your mobile phone and install the new Swype Installer.
4. Use the new installer to install the new version of Swype (3.25)
Ta da! You are now the proud owner of the newest version of Swype!
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Monday, June 27, 2011
Android Voice Actions Not Working Properly
I got my new LG Optimus One the other day. This is my first Android phone, and I must say, even though I bought a cheaper introductory phone, I am impressed!
I'll post a full review of the phone after I've gotten to know it better, but for now I had to post on a problem I was having, and have finally solved.
The problem was with the Voice Actions option the phone comes with. Here is the video describing what you should be able to do:
Looks cool, eh? Ya, I thought so too! Trouble was, when I hit the voice command button next to the google search window and said "Send Text To John Henry How's it going?" it would leave the "to:" field in the text window blank and put "John Henry How's it going?" into the message field. No matter what variations I tried to speak, this happened continually. After much internet scouring, I found a forum message somewhere with the answer.
For some reason, Google will not properly sync your phone contacts with your actual google account contacts. Its your actual Google account contact list it checks against when you speak commands to it. Here is what you need to do on your phone:
1. Open your contacts. I just clicked the icon right from the home screen.
2. Click the menu button, choose the "more" option, and select "import/export".
3. Choose "Export to SD card".
4. Hit the menu button again and select "Select All". This will put a checkmark beside all your contacts.
5. Select "Done".
6. Click Ok. It should save the file as 00001.vcf by default.
You have now made a back up on your SD card of all your contacts. Plug your phone into your computer, and enter into USB mode. Find the 00001.vcf file and copy it over to the computer. I always copy stuff like this to the desktop, it's easy to find. If you're having trouble getting your phone connected properly to your computer, see my previous post HERE.
7. Log into your Google account (on your computer, not your phone) and click on the "contacts" option in the top left.
8. Click on "Import Contacts" in the middle left of the screen, and select your 00001.vcf file here.
Once your contacts are imported, unplug your phone (safely! Use the remove USB option on the taskbar by your clock) and you're done!
It seems to work best for me if I say "Send Text To" then the name of my contact, followed by the message. I hope this helps, and keep checking back for my full review on the LG Optimus One.
I'll post a full review of the phone after I've gotten to know it better, but for now I had to post on a problem I was having, and have finally solved.
The problem was with the Voice Actions option the phone comes with. Here is the video describing what you should be able to do:
Looks cool, eh? Ya, I thought so too! Trouble was, when I hit the voice command button next to the google search window and said "Send Text To John Henry How's it going?" it would leave the "to:" field in the text window blank and put "John Henry How's it going?" into the message field. No matter what variations I tried to speak, this happened continually. After much internet scouring, I found a forum message somewhere with the answer.
For some reason, Google will not properly sync your phone contacts with your actual google account contacts. Its your actual Google account contact list it checks against when you speak commands to it. Here is what you need to do on your phone:
1. Open your contacts. I just clicked the icon right from the home screen.
2. Click the menu button, choose the "more" option, and select "import/export".
3. Choose "Export to SD card".
4. Hit the menu button again and select "Select All". This will put a checkmark beside all your contacts.
5. Select "Done".
6. Click Ok. It should save the file as 00001.vcf by default.
You have now made a back up on your SD card of all your contacts. Plug your phone into your computer, and enter into USB mode. Find the 00001.vcf file and copy it over to the computer. I always copy stuff like this to the desktop, it's easy to find. If you're having trouble getting your phone connected properly to your computer, see my previous post HERE.
7. Log into your Google account (on your computer, not your phone) and click on the "contacts" option in the top left.
8. Click on "Import Contacts" in the middle left of the screen, and select your 00001.vcf file here.
Once your contacts are imported, unplug your phone (safely! Use the remove USB option on the taskbar by your clock) and you're done!
It seems to work best for me if I say "Send Text To" then the name of my contact, followed by the message. I hope this helps, and keep checking back for my full review on the LG Optimus One.
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