Brian

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Final Thoughts... Now, if you made it this far, THANK YOU. Hopefully I've given you the tools to search for a laptop that fits your budget, and meets my minimum requirements / specifications for a laptop. I'm sure some of you want a list with laptops that I can link to, and unfortunately, as soon as I create those lists, they become outdated. At some point I will create a WTB FAQ section with a few models listed, but I have other articles to write first. In reality, I want you to find one on your own. Bonus: If you have read my whole article and have mad it this far, here is a laptop that I would purchase for Photo Editing. The downside is that it hasn’t been officially released yet.

Now for an example of a laptop that I would utter my famous phrase of, "Skip It!!" I feel that it's important to demonstrate one that is almost there, but just misses a little bit. OK, we begin our search the same way, Google, Amazon and B&H. (Or your particular store that you usually shop at.) Then we look for a IPS-Based laptop. We come across one that runs $599.99. Seems really affordable, so let's take a quick look: Right off the bat, I see a i5 CPU and even though it has a IPS Screen, it contains a Touch-Screen, which are known to be a Pain in the Ass to Calibrate. Will this model be difficult to calibrate? Probably. Will you be tempted to touch the screen because it is a Touch-Screen, possibly. But what really catches my eye is the 8GB of RAM, a 256GB Main HD and the Integrated Intel Graphics. So this one I'd tell you to "Skip It" within 30 seconds or less. I have no mercy. Buying a laptop is like dating, if you are a non-smoker and you don't want to date someone who smokes or vapes, chances are you are going to pass or "Swipe Left." I use these same tactics when looking at laptops. Once you get the hang of things, you will be able to do the same. Moving on. Here is one that is $499: OK, the CPU is i3, so that's a "No." RAM is the BARE-MINIMUM AT 8GB, so no on that one. No mention of IPS Screen, even though I searched for it. It also has Integrated Graphics, so that's a "No" as well. That's why you MUST pay attention and assume nothing. IPS-Based Laptops aren't common and you really have to make sure of what you are buying. We now come across one that is $699. Using the same tactics, we look at the some key features again... OK, it's a i5, which is to be expected at this price-point. It's not a i7, which is something that I would prefer so that becomes a "No." It does mention an IPS Display, and it has a Dedicated Graphics card, so that's a positive. It's the 8GB of RAM and a 256GB HD. For today's standards, that would probably be ok for General Computing, but not photo-editing. That said, it doesn't have a Touch-Screen, which is a positive. Maybe it's worth investigating. Onto the specs... I do not see any mention of being able to upgrade the RAM, nor is there an option to configure this model with a larger HD. So far this laptop is going to be a "No." But I want to take a quick look at the reviews just to be sure, and I noticed this one: I know this review is hard to see, so I will type it out: I copied and pasted that review verbatim. Notice something? The storage is 512GB and it has a i7 CPU!! That review is NOT for this laptop model!! (This laptop is also marked as "New Item - Coming Soon..." So it's a fake review. Or one that was generated by a "Bot." This laptop screams "Skip It." I could go on and on, but I think you get the general idea at this point of how I look at things for people. With a little practice, stuff like this is easy. It's just a logical approach, that's it. For those visual types, here is that "Mental Checklist" written out: Initial Search. Main Target: IPS Based Laptop Find one that looks to be close to our initial price-point. Keep an open mind in terms of price. Take a look at initial specs, decide quickly if this model is worth pursuing. Check to see initial configuration matches the specs listed on the main page. See if there are any upgrade paths, e Compare my Minimum Requirements against the laptop. Note any Red-Flags! Pay attention to the Video Card, is it Integrated or Dedicated Video? Read multiple reviews, but take negative-reviews with a grain-of-salt. Pay attention to the Model / Configuration matches the laptop you are looking at. If something seems off, move onto the next one!! It's not worth wasting money. Rinse and Repeat.

If you want. Personally, I turn it on once a week, or something like that. Other weeks it's on all the time, depending on my mood, so I might not be the best example to follow. LOL!! The difference is, if I don't have a backup or lose something, it's my own damn fault. In reality, I don't store much on my Main HD so if it took a dump, I wouldn't lose much. You could leave it on all the time and let it backup every 30 min or so. The important thing is to exclude your main backup / external HD. You just want the TM Drive backing up the internal HD only. Start with one drive at a time. I would start with the Main Backup HD and if the Mac OS asks, "Use this for Time Machine?" (or something along those lines,) tell it no. Do the opposite for the TM drive. If it doesn't ask, you can always go into Time Machine in the Preferences (Gear Icon) and set things up directly. OH! One more thing! Read Part 2 of this Thread. It covers how to configure a MacOS to show all HDs, both internal and external, as well as Flash-Media Cards that have been inserted into a Card Reader. The Smell of D-76 Developer in the Morning was better than any coffee!! I started back with film myself. I joke that I spent my High School years in a Dark Room, and was being honest and not metaphorical. Please don't misunderstand my intent. When I write these massive responses to questions not only am I writing to you, I am also writing to whomever might come across this thread. I hear stories all the time of how you are "...going to make lots of money!" being a photographer. All it takes is a computer, a camera, Photoshop, a couple of PS Actions, a FB Biz Page, and Boom! "You are a Business!" In fact, a friend (in real life) told me yesterday how a Mom commented on how "You have a nice little hobby" going on and it must make you a lot of money! (The Mom also is a "Photographer" who shoots photos of her Dog.) Of course my friend, who is a real business and is an "On-the-Books, Newborn & Infant Photographer" had to be nice and just take it. It's all fun-and-games until you pay taxes. Federal Taxes. State Taxes, Local Taxes, State Sales Taxes, Municipal Taxes, Social Security (Twice - once from you and once from the Business,) Rent, Liability Insurance, Property Insurance, Equipment Maintenance, the list goes on-and-on. You know this from being in the industry, but so many "Photographers" run glorified Lemonade-Stands and have no-idea of the true costs of running a business. We haven't even figured in the amount for an Accountant and a Lawyer! All they see is the #hashtags & #humblebrags and want a piece of the action. The feeling of FOMO is strong. They don't realize that behind the #soblessed, #livingmybestlife and #Ilovelovelovemyclients is all the Bullshit that happens behind the scenes. The worry, the stress. The long hours. They just see how "Awesome" it is to be a Photographer!! It's not...most of the time, it sucks. LOL!! I highly recommend getting a APC UPS. UPS stands for "Uninterrupted Power Supply." Basically, it's a surge protector on steroids that has a battery. When there is a power fluctuation, (spikes, brownouts, power-outages) the battery automatically kicks in, providing stable & filtered current, allowing me to finish what I'm doing, or at the very least, saving my work and perform a graceful-shutdown. My UPS has saved my ass on more than one occasion. In fact, we had a bit of a Wind-Storm about a week ago and the power would go out for a second or so and then come back on. My UPS didn't even blink and my computer never stopped. It's a very nice thing to have and is WAY better than any standard surge-protector. Here is the current model of my UPS. It's the APC UPS BE600M1, 600VA. One thing to keep in mind with a UPS, is you DO NOT WANT TO PLUG IN A LASER PRINTER TO ONE OF THE PORTS THAT GOES TO A BATTERY. You will see a few ports labeled "Surge Only." Those ports are meant for a laser printer. The Mac, the EHDs, they go into the ports labeled, "Battery Backup." The reason is the high wattage that a Laser Printer requires when printing. The Fuser, which is the component that bonds the powered toner to the paper, is around 1800 Watts or so, depending on the model. That's too much for the UPS battery to handle and it will kill it over time. For mine, I have my laser printer and speakers plugged into the "Surge Only" ports and everything else in the "Battery Backup" ports. Finally, you must plug your UPS directly into the wall. You would be surprised on just how many times I see a UPS plugged into a surge-protector. UPS units tend to be expensive as compared to a $12 Power Strip, so people think they are "Protecting" their investment and plug the UPS into a damn $12 power strip. One, doing this compromises the functionality of the UPS and circumvents what it was designed to do: monitor and filter current; Two, not allowing the UPS to dump excess voltage properly during a power-surge / spike. Oh...by-the-way, your power outlet must be Grounded or the UPS will beep and bitch at you, flashing lights and all. So if you are in a older home with an outdated electrical system, you might be forced to use a conventional surge-protector. Power Strips / Surge Protectors wear out over time, and at some point, become glorified extension cords. So when you do get your UPS, pull it out of the box, hook up the battery (warning, you might see a little spark, this is completely normal as the battery has some charge on it,) and plug it into the wall. Then hookup stuff. Also, the UPS has a USB cable that connects to your computer. (This port that this cable uses is on the side / bottom and NOT on the top of the unit where the power plugs are. THAT USB port is for charging things like your phone, etc.) This cable allows communication to your computer and it has built-in software that will shut the computer down in the event of a long-term power-failure. Most UPS units give a 20-30 min of battery run-time, so if you do have a power outage, finish what you are doing, or at least save things, and shut down. If you are away from home, the UPS and Operating System will take care of things if the computer is left on. Have a good one! Enjoy your Purchases!!

If the hard drive has trouble spinning up, that could be the source of your issue. Basically, it's not ready in time for the motherboard so it's throwing an error. Well, I take that back. It seems your model has a SSD HD, so there isn't a "Spin-Up" problem, but I'm still thinking the drive is having an issue. This problem will get worse over time. From what I can tell, your laptop looks to be a bit of a pain to take apart and chances are you will break stuff trying to replace the HD. Other things you can look for is to run the Lenovo software and see if there are any firmware updates and such for your laptop. Who knows, you might get lucky. Other than that, a trip to a repair shop is likely in your future. Personally, laptops today aren't meant to be repaired and are a PITA to take apart. I speak from experience.

You answered your own question in the next sentence: At a cost per GB, it's cheaper in the long run to spend an extra $110-ish dollars to increase the capacity from 4TB to 12TB. If you think about it, you are buying an extra 8TB of an Enterprise-Grade HD for only $110 more. It's like buying a iPhone at 64GB or spending the $50 more (or whatever) and getting the 128GB model. Of course, do you need a 12TB HD? Probably not, since you are just starting out. That being said, today's entry-level cameras usually start at 24MP. Which means much larger RAW file sizes as compared to a 12MP camera. When you shoot professionally, you want to make sure your ass is covered so you will end-up taking MORE photographs than you realize. Not to mention, Photographers tend to get lazy. Why bother creating 100 adjustment layers to edit a photo when you can use a bought PS Action from Cutesy Name Photography? Just click Amazeballz Color-Pop #5, Vintage-Hazy Thing #2 and Super-Duper Sharpening for FB and you are done!! You have to remember, each time one of those actions duplicates a pixel layer (i.e. Background / Main Layer) and then flattens, it doubles the file-size. So all of a sudden, you go from a 20MB RAW file to a 326MB .psd file. Times that by 100 edited photos from the Smith Family Session at the Park, and then...space becomes a commodity. So of course you could spend $320 and be fine, only to turn around in a year and spend another $320. Or you could have spend the extra $110 and be done with it. In the end, you spend more money for only 8TB! (If you purchased another 4TB drive.) $420 for 12TB vs $640+ for 8TB. I'm a HUGE PROPONENT of the "Buy it Right...Buy it Once" philosophy. I hate-hate-hate wasting money on this sh*t. So while 12TB might be overkill, and it probably is for your situation, it's more future-proof. This really depends on your budget, and the amount of data that you have on your HD. While you might have a 12TB G-Drive, and only use say--3TB of data, you could get away with getting a smaller EHD, something in the 6TB or 8TB Range. Since the EHD will be stored off site, and not be used other than a off-site backup, your requirements are lower. Yes, a Tandberg RDX System is meant for being portable / off-site storage, those cartridges contain little HDs in them and they AREN'T Cheap. Here is a 2TB RDX Cartridge for $270. So that 12TB G-Drive for a few hundred more doesn't look that expensive. But why recommend a RDX system? Because those cartridges are designed for going from Point A to Point B, as they have plastic durable cases and the cartridge itself is more durable. (That said, you don't want to go throwing them around either.) The nice part about a RDX system is the flexibility. If you need a larger storage capacity, you don't have to re-invent the wheel, just purchase a larger RDX Cartridge. The docking unit is the same for either. In reality, a RDX unit is meant for a Server that is currently using a Tape Drive to produce backups. When you want to increase the capacity of the tapes, chances are you are replacing the Tape Drive itself and buying more tapes. So while $270 may seem like a lot, it's better than spending $1500-$5000 (or more) on a Tape Drive and then forking out a few hundred for each Tape Cartridge. And you will want 10 tapes at a minimum, for a "A Week" and a "B Week." Then have a Monthly Backup, plus a cleaning Tape and a few spares on hand. In the end, Server-Grade Components add up very quickly. The last Server I installed for a Pediatrician's Office had a Tape Drive and Cartidges and it cost around $7000 when it was all said and done, plus $15,000 for the Server itself and then the licensing fees for the software. Believe me, you have no idea on how the Professional Grade computer stuff costs. $420 is "Cheap." But you aren't in that world. I'm just trying to give you a perspective. My rule of thumb is to have a Time Machine Drive that is at least double in storage capacity of your Main HD. So a 2TB would work, or a 3TB would be fine as well. I personally have a 4TB TM Drive (left-over from my old iMac) that is USB 3.0. Why? More backups that last a lot longer, more peace-of-mind that I won't run out of storage as quickly, etc. Especially for folders like the Downloads folder, which tend to get out of hand very quickly without you realizing it. I'd rather TM have space to hold onto an important folder, then to delete that folder to make room for the crap that I just downloaded and is now occupying space on my main HD. Yes. They only time that they are onsite is when you are transferring data. Either to Backup your Main Storage Drive or Restore it due to some file loss / corruption. As far as the amount of drives, if you have one drive that stays off-site, you are ahead of 98% of the people in here. Having a "A Month" and a "B Month" or an "A Week" / "B Week" would be best, at least to start out with. Just be sure to put a physical label on each drive so you can keep them straight. Get a Calendar, and on each Sunday, alternate / mark A or B. This way you will know which drive to target first to recover stuff from. It just helps streamline things and if you do it at the beginning, it will become part of your routine. While backing up is essential to any business, let's keep things in perspective. COVID19 has killed all of my friend's Photography Businesses, which are genuine and on-the-books-pay-their-taxes-businesses...many are permanently going out of business, since as a small business owner, you don't qualify for un-employment. Of course, you could apply for a small business loan, but since that money available has run out in a few days, that's an issue as well. But that's a topic for a whole other post. What I'm really getting at is: Photography calls many... ...but chooses few. Don't think for a second that once you open your Business, that people are going to be breaking down your door for photographs. You have to Hustle. You have to Network. You have to Market & Pimp yourself out. You must be pumping out content on almost a daily basis. So before you go blowing lots of money on hardware, stick with the basics. Let's get you a REALLY GOOD Main Backup Drive, preferably a Thunderbolt Version G-Drive and a decent Time Machine Drive. Start there. The off-site backup stuff can wait. Personally, I feel that it's better to get a File-System / Folder Structure in place before blowing money on six hard drives. Heck, take a look at what lenses you are using. I'd rather you upgrade your main lens, get some clients, exceed their expectations, which gets you more clients / money...then to blow it on a bunch of hard drives for images that you don't have. Yet. Believe me, I personally fell into the trap of, "If I only had this....I could do this." Translation: "If I only had this lens, or this light, or this camera body, or this modifier, or this _____, I could do ___________." I am guilty as charged. The only thing now is I have a lot of fancy gear that produces the same crappy photos because I need to evolve as a Photographer. So don't fall into the trap of trying to buy your way through things. It never works and only puts you into debt. OK, I'm really digressing here. Houston, we have a problem... You have two Thunderbolt 2 ports. All the current-model Thunderbolt Drives, at least the G-Drive line, is Thunderbolt 3...which is a USB-C Style port. Thunderbolt 3 ports on a Mac can accept Thunderbolt 2 Drives, but not the other way around. Meaning you can't have a Thunderbolt 3 Drive going to a Thunderbolt 2 Port on a Mac. It won't work. BUT!! I was able to find a Thunderbolt 2 G-Drive. So guess what? You don't have a choice. Buy this 10TB Drive! All of the current model Thunderbolt G-Drives are TB3 / have the USB-C connector. There isn't an adapter cable that you can use with your computer. I had to really search to find that drive and it's in stock. Plus, like I said, you have limited choices. The good news is you can use this TB 2 drive on a new iMac in the future as TB3 (or the soon-to-be-released Thunderbolt 4) is backward compatible with TB2. To put it another way, Big can go to Small, but Small can't go to Big. Make sense? For the Time Machine Drive: I'd get this one and use a USB 3.0 port. G-Technology 4TB G-DRIVE USB G1 USB 3.0 Hard Drive. The cool part with G-Drives is they come Mac-Formatted and have all the necessary cables included in the box. I did find another drive for the TM drive and it's a 3TB drive for like $25-ish less, but I'd spend the extra $25 and get a 4TB drive.

No program. The Hard Drive is probably going bad. It could also be a heat problem / failing component on the motherboard, in which case it’s not worth fixing. But I’m leaning towards the Hard Drive. What is the Make/Model of the laptop? Can you create the recovery media or has that been done already? Also, how fast is your internet and what version of OS are you running?

In case. you are wondering... What Macintosh Desktop Computer does Brian Recommend. Whatever you do, SKIP the current 21.5" iMac. The 2009-2011 21.5" models were "fine." They just had smaller screens, but similar components to their larger counterparts. IT IS NO LONGER THAT WAY. The current 21.5" iMacs are severely crippled and are a complete waste of money. Please give my article a read before buying ANYTHING.

What I like about that drive, is it’s a 7200RPM drive. Eco-friendly / cheap drives are usually 5400RPM. So not only is it faster, it’s a HD that is tougher because it’s faster and it’s meant for gaming. More than likely, it’s a WD Caviar Black Drive, which is the kind that I have owned for the last 30 or so years and the ones I buy.

We will need to repartition and format this drive for use with a computer, and that will take about 5 or so minutes to do. Here is a drive I would buy for what you are looking for: WD Black 12TB D10 Game Drive for Xbox One External Hard Drive 7200 RPM WDBA5E0120HBKNESN (WDBA5E0120HBK-NESN) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07XV8JN31/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_dDIKEbN38VMJ0

Oh yeah, a new computer is in your future. Especially if you have a newer camera. The more MP you have, the harder your computer has to work. So while a 12MP camera worked will with your 2011 iMac, it’s a different story if your camera is now 20-24MP. That being said, the biggest things that kill a Mac are a full HD (which is what you have) and tons of files & folders stored on your Mac Desktop. In reality, you want to never go above 80% full on any HD. So with a 2TB Drive, you are gonna need to free up about 500-700GB. Or more. 106GB might sound like a lot, but it isn’t. Today’s GB is yesterday’s MB. For example, if this was the late 1990’s or early 2000’s, you have a 2GB HD with 106MB free. Yep, it’s that bad. If you haven’t purchased CleanMyMac X from Macpaw.com, it’s the best $40-ish you will spend. It really helps clearing out gunk that accumulates with normal computer use. I run CleanMyMac weekly Oh, be sure to check your downloads folder. You would be surprised on just how much junk is in that folder. Be ruthless. Cull-Cull-Cull. Those 75 photos of your lunch from 5 years ago? Delete them. Those blurry shots that have no use or will never see the light of day? Delete them. like I said, your target should be 700GB free on your main HD.

That should work just fine. Web Cams are so universal now, practically any will do. For $50, it doesn’t break the bank. Now if you are doing stuff that will end up on YouTube or some sort of video podcast, that’s different and a little more expensive.

Ok, so I can see where it says “Installed”l into the video card.” Interesting. I’ve only calibrated my Mac. So do your test prints match your screen? Also, it’s possible that any video card utility software gets in the way of the profile.

A monitor profile does not "LOAD" on a graphics card. It's just a profile that Windows loads & uses. For clarification, if a profile truly "loaded" on a graphics card, you could take that card out of your computer and install it into another one and that profile would still be intact. This doesn't happen; it does not work that way. The profile that the calibration software creates is stored on your hard drive and when Windows boots up, it's supposed to load that calibration profile. So if it's not, we need to figure out why Windows isn't loading the profile and not why it's not being "stored on the video card" because it won't. @Damien Symonds: Calibration is more your thing. Could you help out?

After the calibration routine, the color profile is created and saved on your HD. So Windows isn’t loading the profile when it boots? Also, the Spyder4 series is quite old by technological standards, and it a good idea to make sure you are using the latest version of the calibration software. Also, which Operating System are you running? Could you fill this out for us? Details about your Computer’s Health

Here is a link to PS CC for $9.99 a month: https://www.adobe.com/creativecloud/photography/compare-plans.html Make sure you sign up for the 9.99 plan and not the 19.99 plan. How is it different? You download the full version of PS CC to your computer to work locally. The ONLY difference is a Adobe Module that consistently “Phones Home” to the Adobe Mothership. If your subscription is current, Photoshop starts. If it isn’t or you aren’t logged in, PS doesn’t open. Hopefully, you have decent internet because PS CC is quite large to download. It will take a look at your CS5 and import all of your Actions and such. I will warn you, there are parts of the latest version of PS that have changed, so an Action or two might error out; this is usually due to things being in a different spot than they used to be in older versions of PS. Oh! One more thing...32-bit plug-ins won’t work with Catalina, so if you do use plug-ins, they might need to be upgraded as well.

There is good news and bad news. First the bad news... Your CS5 won’t ever work again. Not even CS6. You are aware of this. Now for the good news... It’s not as bad as one might imagine. The latest version of Adobe Photoshop CC 2020 works with Catalina, and most of the bugs have been worked out, with each update making it better and more compatible. Fortunately, the Adobe PS CC plan is just $9.99 /month, plus applicable tax. For example, with my PA State Sales Tax, my subscription is $10.59 a month, which is on-par with other subscription services / media. Now at this point, people will complain that they do not like the idea of not “owning” Photoshop, they don’t want to spend the money, it’s too expensive, blah-blah-blah. You can thank two groups of people for this: 1. Software Pirates — I was curious one day and investigated just how many copies of PS were being downloaded illegally and by my personal opinion, the monetary loss was anywhere from 1 Million to 3 million per day, perhaps more. 2. People that refuse to upgrade on a normal basis. In order for a company to remain viable, it needs a consistent source of income. People who held onto their older copies of PS did not help this fact. “...but Brian! I bought Photoshop CS5 for $700 back in 2011, it’s really expensive and I can’t afford to upgrade!!“ Yes, it’s been almost 10 years since Photoshop CS5 was released. April 12, 2010 was the original release date. Since Apple decided to change the programming language at the last minute which the MacOS used in order for software to work, this delayed the Mac version by a year or so. Well, Steve Jobs was pissed at Adobe, which helped this happen but that’s a story for another thread. So let’s get back to the cost. I’m picking $700 because it was around $699 or so way-back-when. Adobe would release a major update every 2-3 years or so, for a smaller price of $299. So they wanted you to purchase PS for $699 and in about 2 years or so, upgrade it for $299. So over the course of 5 years, you’d spend about $1000. Then the cycle would repeat with the next major release, CS6. Then CS7, etc. The problem is, people didn’t upgrade. Spending $300 after paying $700 just a few years earlier didn’t make sense to the average person. So they held onto their copies of CS5 for years. Or CS4, CS3, etc. People forget, Photoshop is Professional-Grade software. It’s intent was to be used by Professionals and upgrade fees are just the “Costs of doing Business.” The “Consumer” version, Photoshop Elements, usually was less than $100, but it didn’t have all the features of the full version-so most people used Photoshop. Now cue all of the Cutesy Name Photography Businesses or Samantha Jane Photography’s who started to sell Actions & Plugins in the early 2000’s. Elements didn’t support Actions easily back then, so most people just used the full version of PS. The problem is, Photoshop is Professional Grade software, with a price-tag to match. It is expensive. Not everyone could afford that cost, so they turned to Pirating and installing illegal copies. So Adobe lost out on all that revenue. It got to a point where they had to make a decision; either increase the price for legit copies, close up-shop or switch to a subscription model to make things easily affordable for the masses. They chose the last option, which is now known as Adobe Photoshop Creative Cloud. How is it affordable? A period of 5 years was the model that Adobe based their models on. (Well, this is my guess and it makes for easy Math.) Take 5 years, that’s 60 Months. So if you buy the main version of PS for $700 and then upgrade it for $300 in 2-3 years, that’s $1000. So $1000 divided by 60 is... ::: Drumroll Please ::: $17 a month. Well, I’m rounding up, it’s $16.66 on a calculator. So in reality, Photoshop costs LESS today than if you “owned” a copy AND you get Lightroom along with your subscription. So in reality, $9.99 a month isn’t that bad.

Personally, I do not like Seagate Drives. I've had more failures with Seagate than any other brand. I've even had one "Smoke" on me. Man, I really need to write that "The Hard Drive Article." I DO NOT recommend the "$79 Special" from Best Buy or the "This looks like a good one on Amazon..." Hard Drives Which is what you are linking to. I personally do not cheap-out when it comes to a hard drive, especially if it's going to be a main source for all of your backups. For that, I like something called "Enterprise Grade" Hard Drives. Warning, these drives are usually on the expensive side, but they are meant to last. For my iMac, I have two G-Drives. One 12TB for my Photos and Files, and a 2nd that is 4TB that is used for Time Machine ONLY. Since you have a Mac, chances are you are using or have a Thunderbolt port. If that's the case, I'd recommend getting this 10TB Drive. The cool part is they come Mac Formatted and include all cables in the box.

Some thoughts... Hmm...it might be the motherboard, specifically the capacitors on the motherboard. Those are the things that look like water towers in a city. You might have to pop open the cover and with a flash light, go looking for them. I know, at this point you are wondering why you are doing this and WHAT are you looking for. Basically, you need to see if there are any "Poofy" Capacitors or ones with goo coming out the top. You want these cylinders or things that look like batteries to be straight on all sides. If any are budging or are "Poofy" or have the Electrolyte Material coming out of them, that's your issue. This web page has a really good photo of what I'm talking about. The four Capacitors on the left have the "Goo" coming out of them, and the ones on the right are "Poofy." They really need to be dead straight on all sides and have a flat top. Here is another good photo of a bad Capacitor with it being "Poofy" and not leaking all the way. Basically, it looks like a marshmallow instead of a metal cylinder / Coke can. Now, if this is the case, do not touch the capacitors or the goo. Just leave them be. If you do have something like this going on, I would backup-backup-backup ALL of your important files, all of your actions, your e-mails, receipts login info for various things, etc.,etc...while you still can. In fact, I think you should do that now, regardless. If you do have bad caps, you are looking at replacing the motherboard, or buying a new computer. While it's true that the motherboard can be repaired, most local places do not do component-level repairs. It is possible that your Power Supply could be under-powered since you are driving two monitors, and the graphics card has to work a little harder. Does things stay on with just one monitor plugged in? It also could be just a bad power supply. You could also have a crap ton of dust blocking the cooling vents and you have an over-heating issue. This is especially true if anyone smokes around the computer, it's in a high-traffic area that has lots of dust or have pets. Over the years, I've seen all sorts of crap in computers. In fact, I just resurrected an OLD UNIX Server a few weeks ago and it had about and inch of dust inside; I had to take it out side to get rid of the dust, and yes...I did create a Mushroom Cloud. I've also had dead mice in computers and have found a bunch of other stuff over the 27 years I've been a Tech. Even if you think you are a "Clean Person," you'd be surprised on just how much dust / crap gets sucked into a computer. Especially if it's buried under the desk. Oh! One more thing. This is also related to a heat issue. Are all of the fans spinning and you have good airflow? Speaking of an heating issue, your thermal paste that is between the cooling block / fan and CPU could be completely dried out and the CPU is overheating. That is totally repairable, but I'd have a tech-savvy person do this (or one who builds computers) as too much thermal compound is just as bad as too little. Final thought: It might be your surge protector. How old is it? More than 5 years? What happens when you plug your computer directly into the wall or use another outlet/circuit in your home? Better? Same? Check your Power Settings in your Control Panel. Is your computer going to sleep and just not coming out of it? The whirrling noise has me leaning towards a hardware issue at this point. Basically, we need to trouble shoot. I don't think this is something like a bad Windows Update screwing things up, but something is wrong with the hardware. Again, if you haven't backed up, now is the time to do so. Just in-case things really go "Ka-Plooey" and you can't retrieve your data.

Some process could have just been hung up. It happens. Also, be sure to run Windows Updates. Yes, even though it says there are no updates, click the "Check for Updates" button anyway. Windows Updates always lies and says there are no updates, which fools people.

Can you unplug it and then remove the battery?

HP Laptop Drivers are such a Pain in the Ass to deal with. The more I mess with them for my clients, especially the newer ones, the less I like them. You MUST PURCHASE A IPS BASED DISPLAY if you are editing photos. I don't care how big or small it is, IPS is the key. What IPS does is ensure that the colors, contrast, brightness is consistent from edge to edge...which is kinda important if you are editing photos. I'd still mess around with that external display's settings and re-calibrate. You can always set things back.

32" inches is quite large, don't compare it to a Flat-screen TV size. You aren't going to be sitting 6-8 away like you would with a TV. In fact, most folks can get away with a 27" model just fine. Heck a Dual 24" setup is also one to consider, but not with a laptop...unless it has a high-powered video card. Also, 32" sounds great, until you fork out $1300 to get one. What I would do is purchase a Dell 27" IPS Monitor for editing, such as this one and a SpyderX Elite, which has the best chance of calibrating two displays, especially when it comes to laptops. You could *Try* and keep using your ColorMunki, but I think you will have much better results with a SpyderX Elite. (I also own a ColorMunki and will get a SpyderX Pro for myself next.) In addition, there might be some sort of mode you can change within the External Monitor's Settings, it might be something called "Picture Mode" or something along those lines. I'd try something like "Movie," which really warms up the picture, or just anything different really and then re-calibrate. Oh, you definitely want to keep using the HDMI cable for your external for the best results.

Welp, full disclosure... I had to upgrade to Catalina yesterday to fix my iPhone 6s, which got corrupted during the latest update. So now I'm stuck with Catalina as well. The good news is, the world did not end. The latest version of PS CC seems to have the majority of bugs worked out, so if you do take the plunge and get PS CC, things should work out for you.

Here is a 14TB Thunderbolt G-Drive: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1480233-REG The cool part with G-Drives, is they include cables...which they should for that amount of money.