So I'm in the market for a new laptop yet again. My Toshiba is getting on for four years old, and it's getting a bit old and tired, but it pretty much does everything I want, so I'm happy to keep it in service. However, a couple of days ago it overheated spectacularly and died. After I propped it on its side and left it to cool for a couple of hours, it started up again without any visible problems, so this isn't an emergency yet. But when my previous computer started overheating when I tried to play games, it became more and more unreliable, dying due to overheating several times a day, then several times an hour, then pretty much all the time, and when I tried to get it repaired I was told the motherboard was fried and it would be cheaper to buy a new computer than replace it.
( people sometimes have opinions on computer acquiring )
Annnnnd computer overheated again while I was composing this, though I had nothing more exotic running than a browser with three tabs open. That confirms I need a new machine sooner rather than later. I have decent backups, though I'm sure they could be better, and I don't have hugely redundant backups, so I'm mainly relying on my external hard drive not failing. If the computer actually irretrievably dies tomorrow, I won't lose anything irreplaceable. Any ideas how to export settings from Firefox, that's one of the things that always trips me up when I have to upgrade my computer?
Alternatively, any suggestions for what I can do about a three-year-old laptop that's overheating? I'm now working with the computer propped up so air can circulate under it, but I have no idea if that's more than just a placebo. Is there a component I can replace that in fact costs less than 80% of the price of a brand new computer? Is there anything I can do at the software level?
( people sometimes have opinions on computer acquiring )
Annnnnd computer overheated again while I was composing this, though I had nothing more exotic running than a browser with three tabs open. That confirms I need a new machine sooner rather than later. I have decent backups, though I'm sure they could be better, and I don't have hugely redundant backups, so I'm mainly relying on my external hard drive not failing. If the computer actually irretrievably dies tomorrow, I won't lose anything irreplaceable. Any ideas how to export settings from Firefox, that's one of the things that always trips me up when I have to upgrade my computer?
Alternatively, any suggestions for what I can do about a three-year-old laptop that's overheating? I'm now working with the computer propped up so air can circulate under it, but I have no idea if that's more than just a placebo. Is there a component I can replace that in fact costs less than 80% of the price of a brand new computer? Is there anything I can do at the software level?
