29th January 2002
Purchased a laptop in the past year or two? If it's running with "Intel inside," then you've probably got a SpeedStep processor. And yes, that's a good thing - for the most part. It was designed to maximize battery life by slowing down the processor when it's not needed. Support for this technology is not built into any Windows OS, save XP; you'll need the utility from Intel.com to have full control over how fast (or slow) your processor runs. Unless, again, you're running Windows XP (which supports it OOTB). So, the maximum megahertz for your notebook is (for the sake of argument) 800. How do you know your processor is running at that speed? Tap WinKey + Pause to pull up the "My Computer" Properties sheet. There, you'll find the "true" speed of the processor. Beneath it, you'll see the speed at which it's currently running. Let's say you don't care about prolonging battery life, though. How can you be sure you're always running full-bore? Change your current Power Scheme to "Always On." You can do this quickly by left single-clicking the battery icon in your System Tray. If that icon isn't there, enable it through the Power Options applet in your Control Panel.