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How do I reboot my laptop? - Would be great if you could tell me clearly how to do this! I have no idea, my laptop is comppletely fecked like everything is total slow and always freezes. I need to wipe everything off it and, well.. not download all the crap I have on it the now? Please, thanks:D. x

Best Answer: Most computers have a factory reset option...You press F8 or F10 repeatedly at start up until you to a screen like this: http://nayahspace.com/images/stories/images/Vista-image-restore-image-F8-Dell.jpg And then you select "repair your computer" and then "restore factory settings". - Chungyen

You may be ready to try a version of Linux, Ubuntu. I highly recommend 8.10. This version is a long term support, verses the 9.04, and the entire operating system will fit on a single cd. Just to get you acquainted with Linux, check out www.ubuntupocketguide.com. Very few users even install any kind of virus protection, however there are freeware versions, clamav is one. The reason is that the Linux operating system does not have as many vulnerabilities as Windows. As one programmer, and system analyst for Microsoft phrased it, "The Microsoft operating system is like a giant ball of Bandaids, every new threat requires another bandaid, and you just hope that the entire ball won't unravel. The problem is the operating system itself, and it's exposure to attack!" Be sure to check out official Linux, and Ubuntu forums. You will see that some people have a little trouble at first, but the voluntary Linux community is always there to help! If you decide to install Linux 8.10, your update to 9.04 will be automatic, without any loss of data. You may as well kiss your files goodbye if you update Windows from XP to Vista, for example. There is a guided way to install Ubuntu on a portion of your hard drive that is unused. This is called a dual operating system. After doing this, you can 'break into your hard drive', and retrieve most files, and copy them to Ubuntu. If you copy a virus, it most likely won't affect Linux. Free, as in free operating system, is not quite the same as free beer. You have complete freedom to view every line of software, and even the right to change any parts you wish. However, in this case, it is also completely free of cost. If you visit your local computer retail store, you will find that many of the mini notebooks, (my grandmas name was Minnie), no longer have Windows. Linux is the operating system of choice! This way you don't lose any of your files, and if you have an application which absolutely requires Windows, you can simply restart your computer, and choose Windows. - Mike P

op. system install / re-install steps print a copy of this file print a copy of computer notes export browser Fav's / bookmarks back-up files, programs ; power down disconnect network and external drives power up delete tif files ( temp internet files ) and cookies; un-install programs; delete folders; delete accounts empty recycle bin restart computer Go to BIOS and set boot order with CD boot 1st place O.S. CD in CD drive, 'cept don't close it power down close CD drive with O.S. CD in it restart computer format primary HDD; ( Fn + F10 ) = disc eject ( DELL ) install op. system; adjust screen resolution; load software for external drives and hardware; test for internet connection; install additional programs as necessary If your computer is several years old, consider buying a new hard drive for the fresh install of the op. sys.. When re-installing the o.s., allocate 15gb (15000mb) of space for the op. sys.. Format in NTFS. Partition the rest of the hard drive in 7000mb to 20000mb allocations creating up to 10 partitions. Then, after you boot, you can allocate / format the rest of the hard drive under disk management; >(r-clik) my computer > manage > disk management Allocate +/- 7 to 20 gb of space for each partition, format in NTFS. Install additional software (Adobe pdf reader, Java R.E., printer, wireless adaptor, office suite, web browser, widgets,etc.) to a low capacity partition. AVOID installing to the partition that host's the op.sys.. AVOID storing anything in the user account “My Documents” folder as that will consume space in the host partition. Download software to a low capacity partition, install software and programs to another low capacity partition. Create and download documents to another partition. Store music and images and other media files on another partition. leave at least one partition unused, for migration. At least once a year, migrate your stuff to a unused partition, (especially if you do a lot of document creating, editing, deleting), then format the abandoned partition, for the next time. With only the op. sys. on the hosting partition, and other file types separated by partitions, it will be easier for your computer to run the op., and easier to run everything else. Also, the search feature will work much faster as you will only have to search a partition for the file you want to find. And, with your files and software on other partitions, your stuff is already in back-up, and the next op. Sys. Re-install will be already half done and much easier to do and you will only have to format the host partition and not the whole hard drive Also, increase your RAM to at least double of mfg. Configure or even max it. http://www.gtopala.com/siw-download.html Check the RAM and CPU load with the task manager to determine if you need to increase the RAM capacity; 1st> (r-clik) taskbar 2> task manager 3> performance Get widgets to monitor the RAM load and CPU load http://downloads.yahoo.com/ To be more thorough, “wipe” the hard drive before the op. Sys. Install with DBAN http://www.answers.com/topic/darik-s-boot-and-nuke Use Eraser to overwrite the contents of the recycle bin instead of emptying the recycle bin; 1st> Open Eraser 2> clik explorer tab near bottom left 3> clik recycle bin in the the explorer tree to show contents of recycle bin 4> edit > select all 5> drag and hold contents over the eraser tab The explorer closes and eraser opens 6> drag contents back to the eraser que, drop contents 7> set eraser to make one pass; Edit > preferences > erasing > pseudorandom data > OK 8> (r-clik) eraser que> run all > close http://portableapps.com/apps/utilities/eraser_portable Occasionally use ccleaner for maintenance purposes; http://www.filehippo.com/download_ccleaner/ Occasionally, create a new user account, copy / paste contents from the current user account, to the new user account, then delete the old user account http://puppylinux.org/main/index.php pg - purdygoode

Reboot means 'Restart'. What you want to do is 'Reinstall Windows'. Start your computer from the Windows CD. [To boot from your Windows CD, the BIOS settings on your computer must be configured.] When you see the "Press any key to boot from CD" message, press any key to start the computer from the WindowsCD. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the Windows installation. - Nayomie

If you are talking about rebooting or powering down your laptop because it froze and what not, you have 2 ways. 1. Hold down your power button until it shuts off 2. Take out the power cord first then your battery. If you mean you need to reinstall windows and get it back to the "factory state" then 1.power up your laptop, put in your windows or recovery cd and reboot again and let the disk run before going into windows and follow the direction. 2. on some laptops, you have a special menu button (an acutal key on the laptop) that will automatically go into a recovery mode and let you reinstall windows. I hope this helps? - maximum fire power

Before you go to that extreme, run the free program Spybot: Search & Destroy. Many of your problems may be due to worms and trojans and keyloggers and other bad-guys. Spybot will show you which are poluting your computer, and delete them. Good luck! - Book Researcher

To do this, you need the operating system that you should have on a disc when you bought your computer. What you need to do, is when the computer is off put the disc into your computer. Then, turn on your computer and just follow the directions to redo your computer. Caution: This will delete everything on your computer. Make sure you save everything you want to save before you do this. - Mystery Person

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