Monday, April 23, 2012

CPU交換

これまでCPUはAMD Athlon64 3200+(2.0GHz)を使ってきたのですが、
さすがにシングルコア(コア1つ)だと役不足になってきたので、
同じく上位機種であるAMD Atlon64 X2 5200+(2.6GHz) の
デュアルコア(コア2つ)にCPUを交換したいと思います!
動作クロックだけ見ると2.0→2.6ですが、
コアの数が1つ→2つになるというのは処理速度がかなり違ってきますので、
これは期待がもてそうです(^^)



 
AMD Atlon64 X2 5200+をさっそく購入しました!
現在、発売からかなり時間がたっており値段もかなり下がっていましたので、
東京の秋葉原を歩いて一番安いお店で10000円ジャストで購入!
これはかなりいい買い物をしたんではないでしょうかヾ(=^▽^=)ノ
価格.comよりも安かったです!
CPUのバルクはこわいんで、ちゃんとしたパッケージ品を購入。
中にはCPU本体、CPUクーラー、説明書が同封されています(右写真)
 
CPUクーラーです。パッケージ品なのできちんと付属しています。

CPUクーラーの裏面のCPUと密着する部分です。
カバーがかかっていますが、グリスが薄く塗られています。
グリスはこれくらい薄くてOKということがわかりますね。
 
CPUはこんな感じです。
 
カバーの中をあけるとスポンジでピンの部分がガードされています。
ピンに曲がりや欠けなどないか確認しておきましょう! (右写真)
 
まずはCPUファンを取り外していきます!
参照先→冷却装置(CPUファン)の取り外し方法

こんな風に黒いマウントごとはずれましたね。
このマウントも新しいCPUクーラーに流用するので取り外します。
 
ひっかかっているツメをはずすだけです。
 
古いCPUクーラーと、新しいCPUクーラーを観察してみます(^^)
左が古いCPUクーラー、右が新しいCPUクーラーです。
(左写真)固定レバーは新しい方がカンタンなつくりになっていますね。
(右写真)クーラーの隙間は新しい方が大きくなり、高さも広くなっています。
これは冷却効果が期待できそうですね(^。^)
 
(左写真)左の古いCPUクーラーは中心が固定レバーの棒を通すために
空洞になっているのですが、右の新しいCPUクーラーにはそれがありませんね。
やはり構造の簡素化が図られているようです。
(右写真)冷却ファンは特に大きな変化はないようです。
 
電源コードをみていきますが、
左の古いケーブルが3ピンに対し、
右の新しいケーブルは4ピンに増えていますね(右写真)
4ピンになることで、PWM機能というものが使えるようになります。
この機能は マザーボードの環境センサなどで必要なファンの回転数を計算し、
CPUファンの回転数を自動的に適切な回転数にしてくれます。
またPWM機能は純正のCPU、CPUクーラー、CPUファンの組み合わせでのみ機能します。

CPUの表面です。
CPU名がAMD Athlon64からAtlon64 X2になっています。
それ以外は特に変化なしです。
 
新しいCPUを取り付けていきます!
CPUの裏面のピンのないところと
マザーボード側のソケットの切り欠きをあわせて取り付けていきます!
CPU表面の角にかいてある△印と
マザーボード側のソケット角にかいてある△印をあわせてもいいです。
ここはけっしてずれたり、浮いたりしないように注意してしっかりと取り付けましょう!

きちんとロックレバーも下ろしておきましょう!
しっかりカチッとなるまでしっかりと下ろしきります。
(力をいれすぎて曲げないように注意)
 
CPUの表面には専用のグリスを塗ります。
これがないと放熱がうまくできなくなります。
うす~く均一に塗るように心がけましょう!
  
後はマウントを取り付けて(左写真)
CPUクーラーも(右写真)のようにねじをしめて、
固定レバーをおろして元通りにするだけです!
ここでハードの取り付けはひととおり終わりましたね!(^^)
では、コンピューターを起動してみましょう!
起動できましたか?不具合はないですか?
スタートメニュー→マイコンピュータを右クリック→プロパティ
でCPUの状態を確認してみましょう↓

きちんと認識していますね。
これでハードの取り付けは完了です!
下の<注意事項>をお読みください。
おつかれさまでした~m(_ _)m


<注意事項>
今回はシングルコアからデュアルコアに交換しましたが、
コアが1つ→2つになりました。
こういった場合、OS側がシングルコアに対応しているので、
デュアルコアにした場合、
急に電源が落ちる、フリーズするといった不具合がでることがあります。
実はOSというのは、外から見ていると何も変わらないように見えますが、
インストール時に構成ハードウェア情報を収集し、
内部設定と初期ドライバを構築します。
また、それらの情報は一部レジストリにも反映されます。
ですので、コアの数が変わる場合は
OSは新たにクリーンインストールをするようにします。
こうすることでOSが自動的にデュアルコアに対応してくれるので、
デュアルコアCPUの性能をフルに発揮してくれます!
コアの数が同じであっても少なからずゴミ情報が残存するので、
できればOSのクリーンインストールをおすすめします!
また私の場合、
マザーボードのBIOSバージョンが少し古く、
新しいCPUに対応していなかったので、
BIOSのアップデートをする必要がありました。
BIOSのアップデートをしないと、パソコンが起動しないという不具合がでた為です。
この場合、交換前のCPUでBIOSのバージョンをアップデートし、
最新のものにしてから新しいCPUに交換することで、きちんと動作するようになります。
BIOSのアップデート方法はこちら→BIOSのアップデート方法
ですので、一世代前のマザーボードを流用する方は、
マザーボードメーカーのHPでお持ちのマザーボードのBIOSバージョンが
目的のCPUに対応しているかどうか確認してみましょう!

CPUグリスの安全な掃除方法

CPUを取り付けたり、交換したりする時にCPUにグリスがついていますよね。
このグリスはCPUの表面とCPUファンの隙間をグリスで埋めて密着させることによって放熱性をあげるためにつけますね。
でもこのグリスって乾くとけっこう頑固でとれにくいものです。
かといって精密機器でとってもデリケートなので
布でガシガシ拭くなんてもってのほかですね(^^;)
ここではとっても安全でCPUを傷つけないでグリスを掃除する方法を
ご紹介いたします!
もちろんお安く(笑)




CPUファンをはずしてCPUがお目見えです!
CPUにグリスがカッピカピにくっついてますね。
これは頑固そうですね~(~~;)

今回使うのはこれ!
サンハヤト株式会社の接点復活王という製品です。
俗に言う接点復活材というものですが、
古いコネクタなど電気の通る接点に吹きかけると、
電気が通らなくなっていたものも復活してくれます。
しかも表面を洗浄しミクロの皮膜をつくって保護してくれるので、
再酸化防止にもなります。(私はまわし者ではありませよ(^^;)
私はバイクをいじったりするのも大好き
(私のです→できるバイクメンテナンス・カスタム)なのですが、
バイクの電気系統にもこれをよく吹きかけます。
ゴムや樹脂もいためないので基本的にどこにでも使える万能選手ですね(^^)

まずこんな風にシュッ!っと一吹きします。
少し粘り気がありますので、流れなくて便利です。
この状態で30秒くらい待ちます。

で、ティッシュでサッと軽くふき取るとこんな風にきれいにグリスが落ちてくれます。
接点復活王はグリス汚れを溶かしだしてくれますから
ゴシゴシする必要がないのでCPUも大喜びですね(笑)

全体に吹きかけてやればこの通り!
文字もきちんと読めるくらいとってもきれいになりましたね(^^)


<まとめ>
私もCPUのグリスを掃除する際、アルコールを使ってみたり、専用の洗浄剤をつかってみたりしたのですが、アルコールはいまいちCPUによくない気がしますし、専用の洗浄剤も1500円くらいして、これだけに使う為に購入するのはとっても高い!(爆)
っということでそんなに高くなくて、いろんな用途に使えるものでグリスをきれいにしかも安全に落とせるものはないか?って考えた結果この接点復活材にたどりつきました!
もともと接点復活材なのでCPU事態に悪影響はない(むしろいいくらい)でしょうし、
これ1本あればCPUのグリス洗浄だけでなく各種コネクタや基盤にも使えます!
値段も1本1000円くらい(私はセールで500円(笑)ですので、
1本買っといても損はないでしょう!
試してみてくださいね~!

お手軽CPUファン掃除(埃取り)

ここではCPUを冷却するためについている
CPUファンのお手軽な掃除方法をご紹介します!
まあ私がよくやるくらいのものなので、お手軽(テキトー?) なやり方です(笑)
本当は一度外してやらなくちゃいけないのですが、
私はめんどくさいので外さないでやっています(~~;)
ホコリがたまってくると冷却効率が落ち、
CPUが高温になりパソコンの動作が不安定になってしまいます!
特に高性能なCPUの場合はこまめにホコリ取りしてあげましょう!
掃除サイクルと しては2週間に1回くらいやれば良いでしょう!




今回掃除するのはこのCPUファンです!かれこれ半年は掃除していません(^^;)
まがまがしいホコリがたくさんついていますね~!
 
用意するのはこれ!
綿棒とティッシュとストローです!
ストローはエアーダストスプレーの代用です。
ある方はエアーダストスプレーを用意します。

こんな風にホジホジします。

するとでてくるでてくる~!(爆)
こんな感じにファンを手で回しながらホジホジして、ストローでホコリを飛ばしましょう!

ん~なかなかきれいになりました!
これだけでもだいぶ違いますし、
ファンの作動音も静かになります。
こまめに掃除してあげましょう!

<まとめ>
今回はお手軽といいますかテキトーといいますか、
日ごろのパソコンメンテナンスとしての掃除を紹介しました!

ホコリがなくなっただけでもCPUファンの作動音もだいぶ軽減されますので、
こまめにやってあげましょう!

Friday, April 13, 2012

To Take Care Of Your Laptop Battery Power Energy

laptop-battery.co.in — Similar compare to all other computer products it is significant to care for your laptop power supply for the long existence of your product. You always need an additional laptop battery power supply to finish the important work in the laptop. It is very best if you give importance & make sure that it acts like as your computer.

What is the Laptop Power supply or deliver or provide?
The laptop power deliver or laptop power charger performs 2 main tasks. It controls the system from an AC outlet & keeps the laptop battery charged for those times when you are unable to plug in. In most cases, the laptop power charger consists of a rectangular shaped transformer with 2 cables running from reverse ends with 1 connected to the exit & the other to your laptop.
Laptop battery power supply
Probably it doesn’t need much effort to worry for laptop power supplies as there is not more components. There are number of faults that I usually see system users make that can reduce the life of the laptop AC adapter. They are twisting the cables, permitting the transformer to overheat, & contact to water as well as voltage overflow.


  1. Bending or twisting the cables on your laptop battery energy supply can cause the cable inside of wires to smash. The wrecked wires inside the laptop charger cable will disrupt the power & at the most horrible cause an electrical short that may hurt the system. Just make sure that the cable wires on the laptop energy supply are not pressed against the wall, your system, or lay under any table or chairs. I also observe lots of people covering the cords around the transformer when roaming with their laptop. Be cautious on how strongly you twist the cables to keep away from breakage.
  2. Overflow heat of the transformer on your laptop AC adapter can be the reason for damaging both the transformer & the line inside the system in charge for charging the laptop battery. The transformer of the laptop battery energy charger causes the creation of heat as it change electricity from the outlet into that essential for the computer. Though we work on adjust the heat, it is sensible to let it cool down at least every day so be sure to shut down the laptop at night. In total, place the transformer in a location that exposes it to free airflow area like in the corner place of your table or like surface. The free airflow assists dissolve the heat. Laying it on a mat is leaving to stop a little heat from dissipating probable causing it to lots of heat or overheat.

5 Tips to Increase Your Laptop Battery Life

Owning a laptop can be a really great comfort, especially if you connected wherever you need to continue. However, as known to all laptop owners, there is one thing that staying connected can be a great challenge, the battery life lasts long enough. On average, most laptop owners get more than 3:57 hours ago the battery life on their computers. If something a little more time than that, there are some things to consider.
  1. Keep your hard drive in Shape – is that we intend to ensure that your hard drive is better. You can do so at a speed that is good in the defragmentation process regular laptop. Faster processing and uses less laptop battery will extend its life. On the same note, you can also process on the bottom that do not really need to stop running.
  2. This discharge is not necessary – unless you are near a decision that you have all those things you plug in external devices such as mice, keyboards withdraw, speakers, etc. suck all the energy very quickly . You want to make sure that your CD drive is empty. Even if you do not keep the CD spinning inside to the laptop battery.
  3. Go easy Lights and Sounds – prolong the laptop battery life is to weaken this mean that the light of the LCD and reduction or elimination of sounds. Try to keep the lights on the lowest level that can take your eyes for the sounds, if you can live without them completely, then it would be preferable to simply turn off completely.
  4. Tweak the power options – if your system is running Windows XP or Vista, you will have access to advanced features to help you, your laptop will power. You can select various settings and optimize the battery by adjusting these parameters.
  5. Skip the themes and screen savers – done under the standard view on your laptop does not really hurt. It runs the same way anyway. Mostly, these things are only cosmetic, and they can really use to go to a lot of battery power so easily without them. You can not use it anyway, if your laptop is off.
How can I maximize the performance of my laptop battery?
There are several steps you can take to help you get maximum performance from your battery:
Prevent the Memory Effect – Keep the battery healthy by fully charging and then fully discharging it at least once every two to three weeks. Exceptions to the rule are Li-Ion batteries which do not suffer from the memory effect.
Keep the Batteries Clean – It’s a good idea to clean dirty battery contacts with a cotton swab and alcohol. This helps maintain a good connection between the battery and the portable device.

Exercise the Battery – Do not leave the battery dormant for long periods of time. We recommend using the battery at least once every two to three weeks. If a battery has not been used for a long period of time, perform the new battery break in procedure described above.
Battery Storage – If you don’t plan on using the battery for a month or more, store it in a clean, dry, cool place away from heat and metal objects. NiCad, NiMH and Li-Ion batteries will self-discharge during storage; remember to recharge the batteries before use.
Sealed Lead Acid – (SLA) batteries must be kept at full charge during storage. This is usually achieved by using special trickle chargers. If you do not have a trickle charger, do not attempt to store SLA batteries for more than three months.

6 Tips for Getting Maximum Shelf Life for Your Laptop Battery

The more time you spend on your laptop, the more you’ll appreciate and understand the importance of its laptop battery life. The truth is, regardless of how much your laptop is capable of, it’s only as good as the laptop battery that keeps it powered. With that in mind, here are 6 very important things you should know about the shelf life of laptop batteries and how to go about maintaining them to ensure you’re getting as much out of them as possible
  1. Keep your laptop battery cool- The hotter your laptop battery, the quicker it loses its charge capacity. Laptop battery manufacturers will usually store their products at around 60°F. Don’t put it in the refrigerator or freezer as this could cause serious damage.
  2. Avoid running your laptop battery completely dry- While the belief exists that it’s best to completely discharge your laptop battery with every charge, this isn’t the case when it comes to Lithium Ion notebook batteries. Today’s batteries perform best when they’re recharged while they still have 10-20% capacity remaining.
  3. Charge your laptop battery to its full capacity the first time and every time- New laptop batteries almost always arrive completely discharged. Give your laptop battery a complete charge upon receipt, and allow it to fully charge each time you plug it in.
  4. If you don’t need it, don’t use it- The capacity of a laptop battery decreases with each cycle of charging and discharging. Even if your laptop is plugged into the wall, the laptop battery is still going through a constant charge-discharge cycle. If you know you’ll be working from a location where you’ll be near an electrical outlet, go ahead and remove the battery and store it in a cool location (see#1).
  5. Don’t keep laptop batteries stored for long periods of time- While it’s nice to have spare laptop batteries around, laptop batteries are always losing at least a small bit of their charge. Assess your replacement laptop battery needs, and keep yourself supplied accordingly.
  6. Don’t charge your laptop battery before long periods of inactivity- When it’s necessary to have a spare laptop battery or two around, be sure to store them with just 10-20% capacity remaining. This will keep it performing at a high rate once it’s time to put that spare laptop battery into action.

You may very well have the best laptop money can buy, but without a functioning laptop battery your laptop is useless. Knowing how to get the most from a laptop battery and putting that knowledge to action will make a big difference and can save you a lot of money and headaches.

Breathe new life into your laptop’s battery

Eventually and unavoidably, laptop batteries die. And they don’t obey Moore’s Law: next year’s laptop batteries are unlikely to last twice as long as this year’s. laptop Battery technology may improve a bit over time, but don’t expect major laptop battery breakthroughs in the near future.
Proper care can delay the inevitable. With luck, your laptop battery could last until you need to replace your aging notebook (perhaps with a laptop that has longer laptop battery life). I’ve also included a few tips on keeping the laptop battery going longer between charges, so you can work longer without laptop AC power.

Don’t run it down
Squeezing every drop of juice out of a lithium ion battery (the type used in today’s laptops) strains and weakens it. Doing this just once or twice won’t kill the laptop battery, but the cumulative effect of frequently emptying your laptop  battery will be to shorten its life span. (For the one exception to this rule, see “Heal a sick battery” on the next page.)
The good news is, you probably can’t run down the laptop battery, anyway – at least not without going to a lot of trouble. Most modern laptop models are designed to shut down before the laptop battery is completely exhausted; in fact, both Vista and Windows 7 come with a setting created expressly for this purpose. To see it, click Start, type power, and select Power Options. Click any one of the ‘Change plan settings’ links, and then click the Change advanced power settings link. In the resulting dialogue box, scroll down to and expand the laptop Battery option, and then expand Critical laptop battery level. The setting you see there will probably be about 5%, which is a good place to leave it.
For its part, Windows XP offers no such native setting, although your laptop might carry a vendor-supplied tool that does the same job.
Myth: You should never recharge your laptop battery all the way.
Considerable controversy surrounds this issue, and I have interviewed experts both in favor and opposed. But I’ve come down on the side of recharging a laptop battery all the way. The advantages of leaving home armed with a fully charged laptop battery – you can use your PC longer without laptop AC power – are worth the slight risk of doing damage.
Keep it cool
Heat breaks down the laptop battery and reduces its overall life. When you use your laptop, make sure that the vents are unblocked. Never work with the laptop on pillows or cushions. If possible, put it on a raised stand that permits plenty of airflow.
Also, clean the vents every so often with a can of compressed air; you can buy one at any computer store. Be sure to follow the directions on the can, and do this only when the notebook is turned off.

Give it a rest
If you’re going to be working exclusively on AC power for a week or more, remove the laptop battery first.
Otherwise, you’ll wear out the laptop battery – constantly charging and discharging it – at a time when you don’t need to use it at all. You’ll also heat the laptop battery up (see “Keep it cool” above).
You don’t want it to be too empty when you take it out. An unused laptop battery loses power over time, and you don’t want all the power to drain away, so make sure the laptop battery is at least half-charged when you remove it.
Never remove the laptop battery while the PC is on, or even in standby or sleep mode; doing so will crash your system and possibly damage the hardware. Even inserting a laptop battery into a running laptop can harm the system. Remove or reinsert the laptop battery only when the laptop is completely off or hibernating.
If you’ve never removed your laptop battery, consult its documentation. (If you don’t have that, you can probably find the details online.) The instructions typically involve turning the laptop upside-down and holding a button while you slide the battery out.
Don’t allow the laptop battery to go too long without exercise or to run out of juice entirely. If you go without the battery for more than two months, put it in the PC and use it for several hours, and then remove it again. Also, before you take the laptop on the road, reinsert the battery and let it charge for a few hours before you unplug the machine. Allow the battery time to obtain a full charge before you remove the AC power.
Heal a sick battery
Myth: You can rejuvenate a worn-out battery.
This isn’t the case, strictly speaking. You can’t make degraded lithium hold more electrons than it does now. But if the laptop battery is running out unexpectedly fast, or if your laptop is having trouble figuring out how much power it has left, you may be able to fix the battery’s “petrol gauge” so that it gives you a more accurate reading.
If you suspect that the laptop battery can’t determine whether it’s charged or not, run it through a couple of cycles: drain it, recharge it to 100%, and then repeat. How do you drain the battery? Don’t bother with the settings described in “Don’t run it down” on the previous page. Altering them isn’t safe (since you might forget to change them back), they may not be getting an accurate reading, and they quite possibly won’t let you set the critical laptop battery level to 0%. (If they did, Windows would likely crash.)
Instead, unplug the laptop AC power and keep your laptop running (you can work on it if you like) until it automatically hibernates. Then reboot the PC and go directly to the system setup program. I can’t tell you how to find your way there; each computer is different. Turn on the PC and look for a message that says something like ‘Press the X key for setup.’ Immediately press the designated key.
Getting the timing right may take a couple of tries. If the PC doesn’t have enough power to boot, plug in AC until you’re at the setup program, and then unplug it.
Leave the notebook on until it shuts off. This can take some time (45 minutes on my laptop); setup uses a lot less power than Windows does. Once the laptop is off, plug in the AC power, and then wait a few hours before rebooting to Windows and confirming that you have a full recharge. Repeat the process once or twice.
With some luck and proper care, your battery will still be useful when you’re looking for a new laptop.
Extend a laptop battery’s life between charges
The tips I’ve outlined above should lengthen the amount of time before you need to replace your laptop’s battery. On a day-to-day basis, however, you should be far more concerned with another type of battery life: how long you can keep your laptop running without AC power. You may know most of the following tips already, but it never hurts to refresh (or recharge) your memory.
Dim your screen: Your laptop’s backlight uses a lot of juice. Keep it as dim yet readable as you comfortably can.
Shut off unneeded hardware: Turn off Bluetooth. If you’re not using the internet, turn off the laptop’s Wi-Fi receiver, as well. Don’t use an external mouse or other device. And finally, mute the notebook’s sound system; this not only saves power but also avoids annoying everyone else in the cafe.
Avoid multimedia: Save hefty chores such as photo editing and watching videos for when your system has laptop AC power. If you must listen to music, use your iPod (or a similar dedicated device).
Know when to sleep and when to hibernate: You need to think about when you want to save power by sending your laptop into Standby or Sleep mode, and when you want to hibernate it.
There is a difference. XP’s Standby mode and Vista and Windows 7’s Sleep mode keep your PC on, using some power, but less of it than in normal use. Hibernate saves the PC’s state to the hard drive, and then shuts it off entirely so that the system uses no power.
Regrettably, Windows takes much longer – sometimes minutes – to enter and leave hibernation. And during those minutes, the battery is draining heavily and you can’t work.
Windows XP’s Standby mode isn’t really all that efficient. If you know that your XP laptop will be inactive for more than about half an hour, hibernate it. Otherwise, use Standby.
Vista and Windows 7 do a much better job with their Sleep mode. Don’t bother hibernating your notebook unless you think that you’ll be going more than two or three hours without using it.

Top 15 Ways to Extend Your Laptop’s Battery Life

Laptops tend to lose their charm quickly when you’re constantly looking for the nearest power outlet to charge up.  How do you keep your battery going for as long as possible?  Here are 15 easy ways to do so.
1. Defrag regularly -  The faster your hard drive does its work – less demand you are going to put on the hard drive and your laptop battery.  Make your hard drive as efficient as possible by defragging it regularly. (but not while it’s on laptop battery of course!) Mac OSX is better built to handle fragmentation so it may not be very applicable for Apple systems.
2. Dim your screen – Most laptops come with the ability to dim your laptop screen.  Some even come with ways to modify CPU and cooling performance.  Cut them down to the lowest level you can tolerate to squeeze out some extra laptop battery juice.
3. Cut down on programs running in the background.  Itunes, Desktop Search, etc.  All these add to the CPU load and cut down laptop battery life.  Shut down everything that isn’t crucial when you’re on laptop battery.
4. Cut down external devices – USB devices (including your mouse) & WiFi drain down your laptop battery.  Remove or shut them down when not in use.  It goes without saying that charging other devices (like your iPod) with your laptop when on laptop battery is a surefire way of quickly wiping out the charge on your laptop battery.
5. Add more RAM - This will allow you to process more with the memory your laptop has, rather than relying on virtual memory.  Virtual memory results in hard drive use, and is much less power efficient. Note that adding more RAM will consume more energy, so this is most applicable if you do need to run memory intensive programs which actually require heavy usage of virtual memory.
6. Run off a hard drive rather than CD/DVD - As power consuming as hard drives are, CD and DVD drives are worse.  Even having one in the drive can be power consuming.  They spin, taking power, even when they?re not actively being used.  Wherever possible, try to run on virtual drives using programs like Alcohol 120% rather than optical ones.
temp Top 15 Ways to Extend Your Laptops Battery Life
7.  Keep the laptop battery contacts clean:  Clean your laptop battery’s metal contacts every couple of months with a cloth moistened with rubbing alcohol.  This keeps the transfer of power from your laptop battery more efficient.
8. Take care of your laptop battery – Exercise the laptop Battery.  Do not leave a charged battery dormant for long periods of time.  Once charged, you should at least use the laptop battery at least once every two to three weeks. Also, do not let a Li-On battery completely discharge. (Discharing is only for older laptop batteries with memory effects)

9. Hibernate not standby – Although placing a laptop in standby mode saves some power and you can instantly resume where you left off, it doesn’t save anywhere as much power as the hibernate function does.  Hibernating a PC will actually save your PC’s state as it is, and completely shut itself down.
10. Keep operating temperature down - Your laptop operates more efficiently when it’s cooler.  Clean out your air vents with a cloth or keyboard cleaner, or refer to some extra tips by laptop-battery.co.in.

11. Set up and optimize your power options – Go to ‘Power Options’ in your windows control panel and set it up so that power usage is optimized (Select the ‘max battery’ for maximum effect).
12. Don’t multitask – Do one thing at a time when you’re on laptop battery.  Rather than working on a spreadsheet, letting your email client run in the background and listening to your latest set of MP3′s, set your mind to one thing only.  If you don’t you’ll only drain out your laptop batteries before anything gets completed!
13. Go easy on the PC demands – The more you demand from your PC.  Passive activities like email and word processing consume much less power than gaming or playing a DVD.  If you’ve got a single laptop battery charge – pick your priorities wisely.
14. Get yourself a more efficient laptop -  Laptops are getting more and more efficient in nature to the point where some manufacturers are talking about all day long laptop batteries.  Picking up a newer more efficient laptop to replace an aging one is usually a quick fix.
15. Prevent the Memory Effect - If you’re using a very old laptop, you’ll want to prevent the ‘memory effect’ – Keep the laptop battery healthy by fully charging and then fully discharging it at least once every two to three weeks. Exceptions to the rule are Li-Ion batteries (which most laptops have) which do not suffer from the memory effect.
Bonus Tip #1: Turn off the autosave function.  MS-Word’s and Excel’s autosave functions are great but because they keep saving regular intervals, they work your hard driver harder than it may have to. If you plan to do this, you may want to turn it back on as the laptop battery runs low. While it saves laptop battery life in the beginning, you will want to make sure your work is saved when your laptop battery dies.
Bonus Tip #2: Lower the graphics use. You can do this by changing the screen resolution and shutting off fancy graphic drivers. Graphics cards (video cards) use as much or more power today as hard disks – Thanks Andrew
Update 7/7/07: Bonus Tip #1 to give caution about turning off autosave, tip #8 to change information about discharging batteries – thanks to all who pointed it out. Added Bonus tip #2, Tip #1 to add in clause in regards to Mac OSX, Tip #1 about the spinning of hard drives – thanks to all who pointed it out