For nearly 250 years, the intricate detail and complexity of skin’s nervous-system wiring has thwarted attempts at understanding. But if researchers studying skin could be imagined as technicians reverse-engineering a supercomputer’s peripherals, they’d have just traced about four lines back to the motherboard.

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We know you’ve got questions, and if you’re brave enough to ask the world for answers, here’s the outlet to do so. This week’s Ask Engadget inquiry is coming to us from Everest, who ain’t skeered to dip his toes in the Linux sea. If you’re looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com.

“Hey guys! I’m building a new computer with Ubuntu Linux in mind, and was wondering what motherboards (preferably from Intel or ASUS, but any reputable brand will do) you folks would recommend with great compatibility for stuff like WiFi straight out of the box? Compatibility with the first- or second-gen Intel Core i processors would be great, too. Thanks!”

Anyone who has dabbled in Linux knows the pains of incompatibility — it’s the price we pay for being exactly who we want to be — but if you’ve got any trouble-free recommendations, comments are open!

Ask Engadget: most compatible motherboard / components for Ubuntu desktop? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 24 Sep 2011 22:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WiFi hacking is nothing new. It’s likely something you’ve done yourself without even thinking twice about it or even thinking of it as stealing. With a regular connection distance of about 100 feet, it’s no surprise that so many people just utilize the connection that their neighbors pay for, especially in apartments where the units are less than one hundred feet apart. For people who also show interest in web design Wellington, website design Auckland or Excel training, you can check online.

There are even ways to maximize your free connection and WiFi hacking, like purchasing an antenna or even building your own. These additions will increase the area that your free connection will expand. These were initially created to help maximize a connection for businessman that are constantly traveling. Where he may not be in a spot that offers a wireless connection it could hinder his productivity. An antenna allows you to lengthen your access area and still link up to the internet. An antenna will also come in handy if you live in an apartment where all of the activity around you can hinder the connection and speed of your internet. But WiFi hackers are using these to make stealing internet that much easier.

WiFi hacking is also popular for gamers that play Xbox games via the internet. Some people don’t want to pay for a WiFi connection just to play video games if they don’t have a laptop or wireless connection device otherwise in the home. There are now devices available to allot for WiFi hacking here as well. These are a bit more complicated and often require removing the motherboard of your Xbox and doing a serious overhaul. WiFi hackers are serious about their free internet! Seemingly, the money they’re saving in the long run more than makes up for their time and effort.

Unfortunately for the people whose internet is being hacked, it can pose a possible threat. If the WiFi hackers are using your connection to hack into an offshore bank and rob it, you could easily be mistaken for a criminal and held liable. But there is hope! Make sure you have a secure connection and that your files are secure.

Unfortunately WiFi hacking isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Stealing an internet connection form your neighbors will only work in certain spots in your home, and it will cut in an out. It’s a very weak connection and by no means reliable. You may only be able to use your laptop while sitting on the left side of the couch. It doesn’t make your life very much easier. 

We’re not normally all that stoked with motherboards, but Gigabyte’s awkwardly named Z68XP-UD3-iSSD just about got our attention at Computex. The highlight here is the Intel 20GB SLC SSD latched onto the board’s mSATA slot, which is right next to the LGA1155 CPU socket and the four DDR3 RAM slots (together supporting up to 32GB). Alas, Gigabyte says it won’t be offering upgrade options for the SSD, though there are certainly alternatives out there in the wild if you dare to venture. But if none of this interests you, then there’s always our multi-screen Angry Birds hands-on video after the break.

Continue reading Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3-iSSD motherboard eyes-on

Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3-iSSD motherboard eyes-on originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 13:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There are a lot of things that one can do by oneself with a computer, but unless someone has had a kind of computer training, people are generally baffled when it comes to a laptop motherboard, and when it proves faulty, you’ll stop at nothing to get it repaired.

To really repair the motherboard by oneself, you might require the proper combination of equipment and computer know-how to really establish the problem with a laptop motherboard.

A laptop motherboard boasts its own uniqueness from other parts in this class, depending largely on the model that you bought; the worth of the motherboard varies a lot. However, aside from this, the parts installed in the motherboard make it distinctive from another motherboard, even if they might be made by the same company.

Similarly, some parts of a main board might actually break; at one point or another during its use, and you must be prepared for this when it occurs. In reality, depending on the level of damage, a faulty motherboard might need to be totally replaced, or in some cases, it might just mandate replacement of the faulty motherboard parts.

The reason for the significance of a laptop motherboard lies in its function in the modern computer. It’s also known as the main board. It is the main operating unit, responsible for the logic processes that happen in the ALU. From this, you might reason that a computer ceases to operate if the motherboard is faulty, but, this is not the case.

With the motherboard, every part of the entire device is linked up; one to another, and similarly, the laptop motherboard is connected to every other peripheral devices and internal parts of the computer.

It is possible to follow along with some walk through tutorials if you suddenly discover yourself with a faulty laptop motherboard or dual processor motherboard. This might prove good in some cases, but the best remedy is generally to contact the manufacturer of the computer, particularly if the repair process is still covered by the warranty.

Conclusively, if you try by yourself to repair and determine the problem, it might take you quite a bit of time. Apart from that, in the long run, you might actually give more damage than was initially observed to the computer before. It is therefore more sensible to leave the fixing of a laptop motherboard to the professionals.

For more information in connection to the laptop motherboard you may also consider researching a best gaming motherboard.

And for even more information take a look at the following video…

Perhaps you have looked at building your very own laptop? Well, it isn’t a difficult task. The issues you’ll face range from the selection of proper components, as well as building and assembling the machine.

A great reason to build your own laptop is flexibility. When you order a notebook, you’re usually stuck with a short set of options. True, a do-it-yourself notebook currently isn’t as easy as a build-it-yourself desktop PC is. For instance, you usually have no say inside the graphics components as soon as you select the “shell,” meaning the main unit containing the motherboard and LCD display. But if you will want certain solid-state drive or an ultra-low-voltage CPU, most notebook vendors don’t offer a choice. Fortunately, because you’re building from scratch, you are able to pick anything you want.

Something you should take note of before you begin building your own personal laptop is to get a great supplier. Many computer suppliers on the market provide basic, ‘barebone’ laptop kits that you can customize or increase, so those work best places to start off with.

There are many different methods to build a laptop. You are capable of doing it yourself, or else you can have someone take action for you personally. Everything is dependant on what you need to get out of your laptop, the method that you wish to go about getting it and just how much work you need to put in it.

When you build your own laptop, you have many considerations. These considerations are features you want, size and life of the battery. Generally, after you have decided on the constituents going into a laptop, it’s quite difficult to grow or modify your build (unlike a desktop PC which includes many expansion slots, etc.).

Cruising would be to think about the ports you’ll need. Do you need Firewire, USB, sound and VGA? Work out the ports you will need, combined with three factors above. Then you can certainly determine a barebone base to your laptop.

How Will You Utilize the Laptop

If you need laptops for general office applications, you may get away with a low performance laptop. If you want to utilize the machine for video editing or gaming, you will want a top performance machine. Usually, that does mean a larger, heavier build and shorter life of the battery.

Developing a laptap can be quite rewarding. Take the time to look into your alternatives, consider the options and make your final decision on how to build a custom laptop all on your own.