Laptops--call them notebooks, portable computers, or whatever else you like--are tightly engineered items. It's hard to get all the required components to obey stringent performance and power-management requirements, and still fit into a small case. The job usually requires a custom motherboard and other specialized components, and so the laptop owner who wants to upgrade his or her machine faces a much more difficult task than the owner of a desktop machine with a similar wish. One can swap out the hard drive, add more RAM, and make tweaks in software, but almost everything else requires the addition of external components, which kind of defeat the purpose of a laptop. That's the message the reader takes away from Scott Mueller's Upgrading and Repairing Laptops. It's not Mueller's fault that such computers are hard to do much with, and that your best upgrade procedure is often a visit to an auction site.

That said, Mueller does a great job of explaining how laptops work--how the engineers went about cramming all those heat-generating components into those miniature chassis in the first place. He also explains a lot of interesting component theory, such as how magnetic hard drives store data and how various DVD standards differ. The information makes for good reading, and comes in handy when you're shopping. He also demonstrates his skill--long well-reputed among builders and repairers of desktop machines--in teaching diagnostics. He explains, for example, how to test a laptop power supply, and why you should consider it a prime suspect in a malfunctioning computer even if the LEDs come on and the cooling fan spins. A CD-ROM features videos that show disassembly procedures--a strategy that works better than photographs and numbered steps. --David Wall

Topics covered: How portable computers work (and sometimes fail to work), and how to diagnose their woes. Sections address general troubleshooting concepts, system disassembly, and various subsystems such as memory, CPU, storage, and video. Coverage of PCMCIA (PC Card) is particularly good.

Book Description

Beyond cutting edge, Scott Mueller goes where no computer book author has gone before--right past all the warranty stickers, the hidden screws, and the fear factor to produce a real owner's manual that every laptop owner should have on his desk. This book shows the upgrades users can perform, the ones that are better left to the manufacturer, and how to use add-on peripherals to make the most of a laptop. The CD contains one-of-a-kind video showing just what's inside a portable PC. For readers who have ever wondered what goes on inside their portable PC, how to upgrade/repair the portable PC or how to live on the road with it, this is the one must-have book of the year!

From the Back Cover
Beyond cutting edge, Scott Mueller goes where no computer book author has gone before--right past all the warranty stickers, the hidden screws, and the fear factor to produce a real owner's manual that every laptop owner should have on his desk. This book shows the upgrades users can perform, the ones that are better left to the manufacturer, and how to use add-on peripherals to make the most of a laptop. The CD contains one-of-a-kind video showing just what's inside a portable PC. For readers who have ever wondered what goes on inside their portable PC, how to upgrade/repair the portable PC or how to live on the road with it, this is the one must-have book of the year!

About the Author

Scott Mueller is president of Mueller Technical Research (MTR), an international research and corporate training firm. Since 1982, MTR has produced the industry's most in-depth, accurate, and effective seminars, books, articles, videos, and FAQs covering PC hardware and data recovery. MTR maintains a client list that includes Fortune 500 companies, the U.S. government and foreign governments, major software and hardware corporations, as well as PC enthusiasts and entrepreneurs. Scott's seminars have been presented to several thousands of PC support professionals throughout the world.

Scott personally teaches seminars nationwide covering all aspects of PC hardware (including troubleshooting, maintenance, repair, and upgrade), A+ Certification, and Data Recovery/Forensics. He has a knack for making technical topics not only understandable, but entertaining as well; his classes are never boring! If you have 10 or more people to train, Scott can design and present a custom seminar for your organization.

Although he has taught classes virtually nonstop since 1982, Scott is best known as the author of the longest running, most popular, and most comprehensive PC hardware book in the world, Upgrading and Repairing PCs, which has not only been produced in more than 15 editions, but has also become the core of an entire series of books.

Scott has authored many books over the last 20+ years, including Upgrading and Repairing Laptops; Upgrading and Repairing PCs (1st through 15th and Academic editions); Upgrading and Repairing PCs: A+ Certification Study Guide (1st and 2nd editions); Upgrading and Repairing PCs: Technician's Portable Reference (1st and 2nd editions); Upgrading and Repairing PCs: Field Guide; Upgrading and Repairing PCs: Quick Reference; Upgrading and Repairing PCs, Linux Edition; Killer PC Utilities; The IBM PS/2 Handbook; and Que's Guide to Data Recovery.

Scott has produced several video training packages covering PC hardware, including a new 6-hour, CD-based seminar titled Upgrading and Repairing PCs Training Course: A Digital Seminar from Scott Mueller. This course is ideal for those who cannot afford to bring Scott in-house.

Scott has also produced other videos over the years, including Upgrading and Repairing PCs Video: 12th Edition; Your PC: The Inside Story; as well as 2 hours of free video training included in each of the 10th, 12th, 13th, 14th, and 15th editions of Upgrading and Repairing PCs, and Upgrading and Repairing Laptop Computers. Scott has always included unique video segments with his books, rather than using the same clips every year. Many people have collected each of the older editions just to get the unique video training segments included with them.

Contact MTR directly if you have a unique book, article, or video project in mind, or if you want Scott to conduct a custom PC troubleshooting, repair, maintenance, upgrade, or data-recovery seminar tailored for your organization:

Mueller Technical Research

2490 Spring Creek Road

Barrington Hills, IL 60010-9019

847-854-6794

847-854-6795 Fax

Internet: scottmueller@compuserve.com

Web: http://www.upgradingandrepairingpcs.com http://www.m-tr.com

Scott's premiere work, Upgrading and Repairing PCs, has sold well over 2 million copies, making it by far the most popular and longest-running PC hardware book on the market today. Scott has been featured in Forbes magazine and has written several articles for Maximum PC magazine, several newsletters, and the Upgrading and Repairing PCs Web site.

If you have suggestions for the next version of this book, any comments about the book in general, or new book or article topics you would like to see covered, send them to Scott via email at scottmueller@compuserve.com or visit http://www.upgradingandrepairingpcs.com and click the Ask Scott button.

When he is not working on PC-related books or on the road teaching seminars, Scott can usually be found in the garage working on several projects. He is currently working on a custom 1999 Harley-Davidson FLHRCI Road King Classic and a modified 1998 5.9L (360ci) Grand Cherokee—a hot rod 4x4.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Beyond cutting edge, Scott Mueller goes where no computer book author has gone before—right past all the warranty stickers, the hidden screws, and the fear factor to produce a real owner's manual that every laptop owner should have on his desk. This book shows the upgrades users can perform, the ones that are better left to the manufacturer, and how to use add-on peripherals to make the most of a laptop. The CD contains one-of-a-kind video showing just what's inside a portable PC. For readers who have ever wondered what goes on inside their portable PC, how to upgrade/repair the portable PC or how to live on the road with it, this is the one must-have book of the year!