Marc Thomas – Daves Computer Tips

How To Care For Your Laptop The Right Way

Marc Thomas — Mon, 11 May 2026 05:08:46 +0000

I’ve had numerous laptops over the years, mainly because they were shiny and I wanted them at the time. But I’m not a huge fan for numerous reasons, not least battery life, cooling, and how easily they break. Writing this today, I’m reminded of the times customers bring their laptops to me for repair in nothing but a plastic supermarket bag or similar flimsy material.

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New Video Game Pragmata Shocks ‘Modern Audiences’!

Marc Thomas — Wed, 06 May 2026 04:01:45 +0000

Don’t you just love the internet, where armchair lawyers, virtue signalers, social justice warriors, vicarious offenders, and those taking offence by proxy take to their keyboards and mobile phones, piling onto the offended wagon en masse over a heart-warming game that has won over millions of gamers worldwide? Described by developers Capcom as a unique sci-fi action-adventure game that…

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The Surprising Facts About TV Licenses

Marc Thomas — Tue, 05 May 2026 05:44:35 +0000

In my naïveté, I always thought the UK was the only place on Earth where a TV license was enforced. But no, around two-thirds of European countries require you to pay for a license, as do many countries in Africa and some in Asia. In the UK, the TV license is used to partly fund the BBC, a publicly owned corporation, and it’s strictly enforced, as I remember only too well from my childhood.

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How To Watch YouTube Ad-Free

Marc Thomas — Fri, 01 May 2026 07:21:03 +0000

I signed up for YouTube Premium a couple of years ago because where I live, it’s dirt cheap at around $3 per month. But I know that it’s much more expensive elsewhere, from $9 to $16. For me, the biggest plus is no more ads, which can be infuriating and pop up several times during each video. In fact, today, some fifteen-minute videos can have up to eight ads inside, which is absolutely ridiculous.

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How To Correctly Diagnose RAM Problems

Marc Thomas — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 04:10:58 +0000

RAM stands for random access memory, and to you and me, it’s the memory modules we have in our computers. Unfortunately, most laymen who are not familiar with RAM confuse PC memory with hard disk space, and I could write a book about the number of times I’ve heard my customers say “My PC is running out of memory”, when what they really mean is that they are running out of disk space.

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Are You A Slave To Technology?

Marc Thomas — Mon, 20 Apr 2026 04:44:50 +0000

We live in a leafy suburb of Buenos Aires, very close to the Rio de la Plata (River Plate), and opposite us is an excellent cycle path that is used by both cyclists and pedestrians alike. Every weekend, I would see hundreds of cyclists zooming past our front door, and for years told myself that I should be doing something similar, especially being the wrong side of 60. So, in December…

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Operating System Age Verification – Are They Crazy?

Marc Thomas — Mon, 13 Apr 2026 04:51:17 +0000

No one would disagree that children need to be protected from unsuitable content on the internet – the UK OSA and recent Australian laws are good examples of this kind of government intervention – but age verification at the operating system level? You’ve got to be kidding, right? No, I’m not. California, Colorado, New York, Brazil, and the EU are introducing laws that require operating…

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Like It Or Not, Likes Rule

Marc Thomas — Wed, 08 Apr 2026 04:30:14 +0000

How many times are we asked to carry out these orders on YouTube when all we want is to get to the reason we clicked on the video in the first place? Likes do have their place, up to a point, because if you like a video, you’re probably more likely to share it with others. However, being asked to like it in the opening seconds of a video is a tad presumptuous. If I could draw an analogy here – you’…

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Epic Games Of Fortnite Fame Lays Off 1000 Employees

Marc Thomas — Tue, 07 Apr 2026 04:14:12 +0000

Despite annual revenue in the region of $ 6 billion from Epic Games Store, Fortnite, and Unreal Engine, the company has just laid off a further 1,000 employees. Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic, cited a downturn in Fortnite engagement since the beginning of 2025, with that particular blockbuster being a cash cow for the company. Earlier this month, the company increased the prices of in-game currency…

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My Struggles Setting Up A Windows 11 Home Network – Part Two

Marc Thomas — Mon, 30 Mar 2026 04:01:42 +0000

I’ve spent far too long struggling with home networking in Windows, so after a brief sojourn and more extensive research, I discovered that a Windows Update in 24H2 had broken this feature. I don’t know exactly which update it was, so along with thousands of other users, we’ve had to revert to what I term as ‘ghetto mods’ for home networking to function correctly. But this is not simply isolated…

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My Struggles Setting Up A Windows 11 Home Network – Part One

Marc Thomas — Tue, 24 Mar 2026 04:05:46 +0000

I’ve been struggling with Windows home networking for longer than I can remember, with most results being hit and miss, which is not how I usually experience computing. It either works or it doesn’t, and when it fails, it’s usually due to a user setting. But lately it could be down to Windows updates, at least according to my research. So many times I’ve thrown my arms in the air with home…

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How Many Computers Do You Own?

Marc Thomas — Tue, 17 Mar 2026 04:48:51 +0000

First, let me make it clear that I’m not being braggadocious here, but I am curious about how many computers people use in their households, be they Windows, Linux, or Apple-based. In my recent experience, I’ve found a shift to more mobile use, and many of my customers are moving away from laptops and desktop computers. Even the younger generation, for whom I’ve built gaming PCs…

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Does Anyone Remember Telex?

Marc Thomas — Mon, 16 Mar 2026 04:03:47 +0000

My first proper job in 1979 was with a Canadian shipping line, Cast Containers, which ran a North Atlantic container service between Antwerp, Montreal, and the Great Lakes. On my first day, I was thrown into a small office with a phone, a copy of the Yellow Pages, and a notepad marked ‘TELEX’ with sections such as TO, FROM, and MESSAGE for me to fill in. My job was to cold call manufacturing…

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Would You Climb Everest Or Sail Around The World?

Marc Thomas — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 04:04:41 +0000

This is way off-topic, but poses some interesting questions. Recently, I’ve been watching YouTube documentaries about mountaineering in the Himalayas, most notably the 1996 disastrous Everest expedition and the controversial 2008 K2 team climb, which also ended with fatalities. What struck me about both of these expeditions was that nature has a habit of showing us who’s in charge…

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