Peripherals

Any device that connects to the computer, such as a printer, scanner, monitor, keyboard or mouse.

Why won't my TV volume control adjust the volume of my external speakers?

Episode 936

Matthew from Columbia, MD
Samsung HD TV

Leo says to try using the headphone out of the TV. The optical connection will work as well, but he needs to tell the TV in settings to control it. Some TV models don't support it, though, so it depends on the TV.

By default, most TV's only send line level when using HDMI or optical out because the manufacturer assumes that the user has an A/V receiver that they are adjusting the volume on.

How can I enable bluetooth on my HP Pavilion laptop?

Don from Aurora, CO

Episode 934

Leo says that while most laptops should have Bluetooth, it's possible that the Pavilion doesn't have it. In fact, the Chatroom says that their DV7s don't have it. There is a switch on the laptop that disables the radios, so it may be that the laptop switch is just disabled.

Go into the device manager and see if it has Bluetooth built in. Here's a technote that may help.

How can I install a CD Burner in my computer?

Tom from San Diego, CA

Episode 934

Tom bought a CD burner with a SATA connection and he can't use it with his IDE connector. Leo says Tom needs an IDE CD burner. The best thing to do, however, would be to just get an external USB CD burner.

Tom also is wondering about needing a driver for it. Leo says he shouldn't need one, but it will come with a lite version of CD burning software like Roxio CD Creator. Leo says physical media is dying, so it may reach a point where they will be hard to find.

Scanning documents

Tom from Riverside, CA

Episode 862

Tom is scanning black/white documents, but he gets a lot of black dots on them. How can he get better quality documents? Leo says that it depends on the software you’re using. There’s a utility called “DeScreen” in some scanner software. A third party program called VUESCAN is a good utility for boosting contrast to get high quality document scans. Also check out ScanTips.com.