If you telecommute to work, spend a lot of time on the road, or toil away on your novel in a dim corner of your local coffee shop, your laptop computer is likely an indispensable companion. To make your mobile computing experience as convenient as possible, Windows 98 has services designed specifically for laptop computers. These features will help you conserve power, share resources with another machine, and work more efficiently.

Manage power on your laptop
Typically, laptop batteries last only last a few hours—not good if your third latte suddenly inspires you to rattle off the thrilling conclusion, or if you’re about to e-mail your proposal to an important client—but the power management features in Windows 98 will help maximize your computing time when you are away from a power source.

Windows 98 has several predefined power “schemes,” customized for different computing scenarios. For portable computers, the “Portable/Laptop” scheme defines special settings to conserve power, reduce startup time, and extend battery life. To select this power scheme on your system:

1. Click the Start button, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Click the Power Management icon.
3. On the Power Schemes tab, select Portable/Laptop from the Power schemes list.

The Portable/Laptop scheme assigns default power management settings optimized for your laptop computer. In the Power Management Properties box, you can customize these settings to suit your specific needs. Depending on the level of power management supported by your hardware, you will find the following options:

• Power scheme settings: Set the amount of time before the system turns off the monitor, shuts down the hard disk, or puts itself in standby mode when the computer is left idle, including different settings for when you're using batteries versus when you’re plugged into a power outlet.
• Alarms tab: Select alarms to notify you when your battery is getting low or critical, and the power levels at which these alarms will activate.
• Alarm Action button: Choose the type of notification you wish to receive (text or sound), and what the computer will do when the alarm goes off (for instance shut down or standby).
• Power Meter tab: Check the power status of your battery(s).
• Advanced settings tab: Decide whether to show a power meter in the taskbar or to prompt for a password when the computer goes off standby.

Share and share alike
If you use your laptop when you travel and another computer when you’re at the office, or if you need to share documents with a coworker, try the handy Direct Cable Connection feature in Windows 98. With a direct cable connection, you can access files, folders, a network, printer, or other resources by connecting to another computer. An easy-to-follow wizard in guides you through the process.

Before you run the wizard, connect the computers together with a serial cable. The wizard asks you to specify the type of port used to connect the computers. It also asks you to designate a “host” computer (the computer with the data you wish to access) and a “guest” (the computer used to access the host). Finally, you designate files on the host computer you want to share--after all, not everyone gets to access your trade secrets.

Here’s how to connect two computers using the Direct Cable Connection wizard:

1. Click the Start button, point to Programs, point to Accessories, point to Communications, and then click Direct Cable Connection.
2. When the Direct Cable Connection wizard starts, simply follow the direction on your screen.
3. Follow steps 1 and 2, above, to run the wizard on the other connected computer.

Look ma, no wires!
Many newer laptops, handheld computers, and peripheral devices are now able to exchange information without wires or cords using the Infrared Data Association (IrDA) protocol. IrDA, which is supported by Windows 98, uses infrared light signals that are invisible to the human eye to exchange data. If your laptop computer has an IrDA port, you can place it opposite an IrDA printer to print a document. If a coworker’s computer also has an IrDA port, you can exchange information without a cable connection.

With the built-in support for laptop computers in Windows 98, you’ll get the most life out of your computer, save time sharing your work, and maybe even get your novel done before your big deadline. And, as you’re working on the go, you’ll know that Windows 98 is working right along with you.

Mark Reed thinks they should use nuclear submarine technology to build a laptop that would run for a year on a single charge.