Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2016 July 1

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July 1[edit]

Why my laptop batterie does not work?[edit]

Hello,I have an HP Elite book and The battery does not work as usual I need to keep the charger connected to the PC or it will turn off

Regards Fathima — Preceding unsigned comment added by 183.83.53.90 (talk) 11:37, 1 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I've removed the link to your business, as it doesn't help others answer your question, and sure looks like you're actually intending to advertise that business. -- Finlay McWalter··–·Talk 11:47, 1 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]


Unfortunately, rechargeable batteries will lose their capacity over time. This process is sped up if the battery is exposed to lots of heat, and sadly that is exactly what happens in laptops. I don't know what happened to your specific battery, but if you've noticed that the length of time you can use the battery on one charge has slowly gotten smaller, leading to this situation where you now can barely use it, odds are that what i am explaining is what happened. If this is the case, your best bet is to look around for a replacement.
216.173.144.188 (talk) 12:59, 1 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
It could also be that the charger is broken, if it runs directly off wall power, versus off the battery being charged by wall power. StuRat (talk) 17:43, 1 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
I think Stu means the internal circuitry controlling charging, since the Switched-mode power supply external charger is clearly operating correctly if it reliably runs your laptop when connected. Dbfirs 11:21, 3 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Correct. StuRat (talk) 15:25, 3 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Mathematica's pricing model[edit]

Mathematica has a license price for industry that costs thousands, and a home license for some hundred. What makes people pay x times more? Couldn't people just buy a home license and compete professionally against those honest people who paid thousands for their licenses? --Hofhof (talk) 17:37, 1 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Is the home license version identical ? Typically home software versions can't be used on as many workstations and/or have limited functionality. StuRat (talk) 17:41, 1 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Here is the breakdown between the two versions and here is an FAQ about the differences. Looking at the differences, I suppose there's not much keeping a business from buying the home edition so long as they register it to an individual and pay with a non-corporate credit card or the like. clpo13(talk) 18:46, 1 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Yes, until they find out and sue you. The answer is the same as the answer to the general question: "Couldn't people just do illegal activity X and compete professionally against those honest people who obeyed the law?" --71.110.8.102 (talk) 19:06, 1 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
I wonder if the home edition marks the output somehow, but cannot image how.
The part of having to find you and sue you makes the pricing model kind of awkward. They created an enticing loophole. I suppose they did the math and the scheme turns profitable to them though. After all they have Mathematica.--Hofhof (talk) 12:19, 2 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
We have an article on software licensing audit, explaining how businesses verify that they are complying with license requirements. In many cases, such an audit is mandatorily enforced by external authorities like governments or representatives of the business financiers and investors. In other words, it is difficult to cheat - at least, on a large scale. Nimur (talk) 14:18, 2 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
If I were to use the home edition to design something that I then sell on Shapeways, it's not obvious how they could detect my transgression through "marked output". (But I haven't bought it, because that's my most likely use.) —Tamfang (talk) 01:01, 3 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
The answer is simple. Mathematica program is a tool like a nail gun. If you work in the industry, you would (or your company would) pay thousands of dollars for that tool and it would be tax deductible as a work tool. If you instead buy a home edition of that tool, then you cannot claim tax deductibility and can be charge with violation of licence. If you work in the industry, you would be paid thousands of dollars in earnings and you would be able to afford that tool. 110.22.20.252 (talk) 23:05, 2 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
The real problem with Mathematica is not that you have to pay $2745 for a work tool but that you can ONLY install it on one machine even though only one person is using it. So you cannot install it on one machine at work and one laptop at home even if you are the only person using it. It is a per machine licence and not a per user licence which kinda sucks. 110.22.20.252 (talk) 23:14, 2 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Additionally, software licenses frequently come with "support" so that a professional license probably includes better support and more of it. Part of what made M$ so successful is their software support model which most enterprise companies in the world, including the one I work for, are willing to pay a premium to take part in. Vespine (talk) 04:10, 4 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

WinRAR[edit]

I’m wishing to use WinRAR. I know how to Add to __________ and Extract Files…, Extract Here, Extract to __________, by 'right clicking' the mouse. What I’d like to know, when you drag n drop 'files and or folders' out of the WinRAR 'folder window', it saves the content(s) to another location first as it opens up a 'processing window', that’s if it’s a large volume - from what I recall...

  1. Where does it open up and saves first? – Definitely somewhere in the “User Folder” from what I recall.
  2. Can I delete the [temp] stuff from point (1) – reason for asking, as I recall, sometimes I cancel[led] some big files and or folders, due to it taking a long time to complete...

Can someone help me please? -- Apostle (talk) 18:32, 1 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

These files are saved in the temp folder, usually accessible on Windows by typing %temp% into a file explorer window. The exact location is C:\Users\<your name>\AppData\Local\Temp on Windows 7. These files are safe to delete, though some may be locked by running processes and can be deleted after a restart. (more info: [1]) clpo13(talk) 18:39, 1 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Okay thanks. -- Apostle (talk) 11:36, 2 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

What do you guys suggest I do? E.g., save files and folders in a WinRAR folder, drag n drop whatever I wish to use, to another folder whenever I wish to use it, then drag n drop it back into the WinRAR folder... - Is this even a good method/way to keep files appropriately/in small measuers...? -- Apostle (talk) 11:36, 2 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Probably not. It depends what you actually want to achieve. Disk (and other storage) space is generally cheap (to most people), and zipping things up to save room smacks of desperation. A 3Tb hard drive is around $100; few users have files that will fill that. Another cheap sorage option is writing to blu-ray disks, which can store 25Gb for around $1 each - lots of PCs already have a BD-writer; if not, those can be bought for about $50. Or maybe you have DVD-R, which store 4.7Gb.
There are some reasons why people zip up files - conveniently packaging lots of stuff into one single file, and such. But the question really is, why do you want to zip things in the first place? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.20.193.222 (talk) 14:15, 2 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Agreed. In my experience, files get put into RAR and ZIP archives to make them easier to upload/download, either across the net or onto some kind of storage medium. The amount of compression on stuff like JPGs and most video files is quite small anyway as they're essentially pre-compressed. In fact, I've sometimes found that zipping actually increases the total files size. Matt Deres (talk) 17:37, 2 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Okay. Now I know why I should use it for... Thank you both. Regards. -- Apostle (talk) 18:28, 2 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]