Tip of the Week: Find Your System Information Quickly

Want to buy that cool new video game but are unsure how much memory or what kind of processor your computer uses so you can make sure the software will work? Both Windows and Mac OS X keep these details, along with other hardware information, in a convenient place.

In Windows 7, go to the Start menu and type System into the Search box. Select System or System Information in the results to open a window listing your computer’s details. For a quicker way to the information, press the Windows key and the Pause key on the keyboard to open the System window; the Win + Pause keyboard shortcut works in the newer Windows 8 system as well.

On a Mac running recent versions of OS X, go to the Apple menu on the left side of the menu bar and choose About This Mac. The box that appears shows the OS X software version, processor and amount of installed memory. Click the More Info button to see additional details about the computer. If you want a shortcut to even more data, hold down the Option key on the keyboard and return to the Apple menu, where the About This Mac item now says System Information. Select System Information from the menu to get a big list of specifications.

Tip of the Week: Find Your System Information Quickly

Want to buy that cool new video game but are unsure how much memory or what kind of processor your computer uses so you can make sure the software will work? Both Windows and Mac OS X keep these details, along with other hardware information, in a convenient place.

In Windows 7, go to the Start menu and type System into the Search box. Select System or System Information in the results to open a window listing your computer’s details. For a quicker way to the information, press the Windows key and the Pause key on the keyboard to open the System window; the Win + Pause keyboard shortcut works in the newer Windows 8 system as well.

On a Mac running recent versions of OS X, go to the Apple menu on the left side of the menu bar and choose About This Mac. The box that appears shows the OS X software version, processor and amount of installed memory. Click the More Info button to see additional details about the computer. If you want a shortcut to even more data, hold down the Option key on the keyboard and return to the Apple menu, where the About This Mac item now says System Information. Select System Information from the menu to get a big list of specifications.

Tip of the Week: Find Your System Information Quickly

Want to buy that cool new video game but are unsure how much memory or what kind of processor your computer uses so you can make sure the software will work? Both Windows and Mac OS X keep these details, along with other hardware information, in a convenient place.

In Windows 7, go to the Start menu and type System into the Search box. Select System or System Information in the results to open a window listing your computer’s details. For a quicker way to the information, press the Windows key and the Pause key on the keyboard to open the System window; the Win + Pause keyboard shortcut works in the newer Windows 8 system as well.

On a Mac running recent versions of OS X, go to the Apple menu on the left side of the menu bar and choose About This Mac. The box that appears shows the OS X software version, processor and amount of installed memory. Click the More Info button to see additional details about the computer. If you want a shortcut to even more data, hold down the Option key on the keyboard and return to the Apple menu, where the About This Mac item now says System Information. Select System Information from the menu to get a big list of specifications.

Tip of the Week: Find Your System Information Quickly

Want to buy that cool new video game but are unsure how much memory or what kind of processor your computer uses so you can make sure the software will work? Both Windows and Mac OS X keep these details, along with other hardware information, in a convenient place.

In Windows 7, go to the Start menu and type System into the Search box. Select System or System Information in the results to open a window listing your computer’s details. For a quicker way to the information, press the Windows key and the Pause key on the keyboard to open the System window; the Win + Pause keyboard shortcut works in the newer Windows 8 system as well.

On a Mac running recent versions of OS X, go to the Apple menu on the left side of the menu bar and choose About This Mac. The box that appears shows the OS X software version, processor and amount of installed memory. Click the More Info button to see additional details about the computer. If you want a shortcut to even more data, hold down the Option key on the keyboard and return to the Apple menu, where the About This Mac item now says System Information. Select System Information from the menu to get a big list of specifications.

Top Speed From T-Mobile’s New Network

T-Mobile has made so much noise with its new no-contract price plan, it is easy to overlook its addition of LTE service â€" a faster kind of network â€" in Baltimore, Washington, Houston, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Phoenix and San Jose.

It puts T-Mobile head-to-head with AT&T, which the independent testing company RootMetrics  found to have the fastest LTE network in a recent report. T-Mobile was the only major carrier not to have LTE at that time.

Since I’m in an LTE market, I took an AT&T LTE iPhone 5 and a T-Mobile LTE iPhone 5 and compared network speed.

Using the Speedtest app from Ookla, which records how quickly data moves across a network, I pinged a Washington server repeatedly and averaged the results.

Before I give you the outcome, let me point out that this is a highly unscientific test. All of my samples come from a single location. All were tested in a short time. And a lot of factors affect network speed, including how many people are on at a given time. Since T-Mobile’s LTE service is new, you can bet there isn’t a lot of competition for the signal.

With those caveats, I can tell you that T-Mobile was much faster than AT&T â€" more than twice as fast. AT&T averaged a download speed of 5.8 Mbps, while T-Mobile achieved 12.7 Mbps.

It is impossible to know whether T-Mobile will maintain those speeds when there are more people on the network. I can say that AT&T’s fastest download nearly rivaled T-Mobile at 12.82 Mbps, but other times fell as low as 3.83 Mbps. The T-Mobile speeds were much more consistent.

Also keep in mind that T-Mobile still offers LTE in only seven cities. AT&T has the largest LTE network nationally. If you want a fast phone and are usually in one of T-Mobile’s seven LTE cities, it’s certainly worth a look. But conduct your own tests. Although networks are nationwide, network performance is very local.

Top Speed From T-Mobile’s New Network

T-Mobile has made so much noise with its new no-contract price plan, it is easy to overlook its addition of LTE service â€" a faster kind of network â€" in Baltimore, Washington, Houston, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Phoenix and San Jose.

It puts T-Mobile head-to-head with AT&T, which the independent testing company RootMetrics  found to have the fastest LTE network in a recent report. T-Mobile was the only major carrier not to have LTE at that time.

Since I’m in an LTE market, I took an AT&T LTE iPhone 5 and a T-Mobile LTE iPhone 5 and compared network speed.

Using the Speedtest app from Ookla, which records how quickly data moves across a network, I pinged a Washington server repeatedly and averaged the results.

Before I give you the outcome, let me point out that this is a highly unscientific test. All of my samples come from a single location. All were tested in a short time. And a lot of factors affect network speed, including how many people are on at a given time. Since T-Mobile’s LTE service is new, you can bet there isn’t a lot of competition for the signal.

With those caveats, I can tell you that T-Mobile was much faster than AT&T â€" more than twice as fast. AT&T averaged a download speed of 5.8 Mbps, while T-Mobile achieved 12.7 Mbps.

It is impossible to know whether T-Mobile will maintain those speeds when there are more people on the network. I can say that AT&T’s fastest download nearly rivaled T-Mobile at 12.82 Mbps, but other times fell as low as 3.83 Mbps. The T-Mobile speeds were much more consistent.

Also keep in mind that T-Mobile still offers LTE in only seven cities. AT&T has the largest LTE network nationally. If you want a fast phone and are usually in one of T-Mobile’s seven LTE cities, it’s certainly worth a look. But conduct your own tests. Although networks are nationwide, network performance is very local.

Top Speed From T-Mobile’s New Network

T-Mobile has made so much noise with its new no-contract price plan, it is easy to overlook its addition of LTE service â€" a faster kind of network â€" in Baltimore, Washington, Houston, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Phoenix and San Jose.

It puts T-Mobile head-to-head with AT&T, which the independent testing company RootMetrics  found to have the fastest LTE network in a recent report. T-Mobile was the only major carrier not to have LTE at that time.

Since I’m in an LTE market, I took an AT&T LTE iPhone 5 and a T-Mobile LTE iPhone 5 and compared network speed.

Using the Speedtest app from Ookla, which records how quickly data moves across a network, I pinged a Washington server repeatedly and averaged the results.

Before I give you the outcome, let me point out that this is a highly unscientific test. All of my samples come from a single location. All were tested in a short time. And a lot of factors affect network speed, including how many people are on at a given time. Since T-Mobile’s LTE service is new, you can bet there isn’t a lot of competition for the signal.

With those caveats, I can tell you that T-Mobile was much faster than AT&T â€" more than twice as fast. AT&T averaged a download speed of 5.8 Mbps, while T-Mobile achieved 12.7 Mbps.

It is impossible to know whether T-Mobile will maintain those speeds when there are more people on the network. I can say that AT&T’s fastest download nearly rivaled T-Mobile at 12.82 Mbps, but other times fell as low as 3.83 Mbps. The T-Mobile speeds were much more consistent.

Also keep in mind that T-Mobile still offers LTE in only seven cities. AT&T has the largest LTE network nationally. If you want a fast phone and are usually in one of T-Mobile’s seven LTE cities, it’s certainly worth a look. But conduct your own tests. Although networks are nationwide, network performance is very local.

Top Speed From T-Mobile’s New Network

T-Mobile has made so much noise with its new no-contract price plan, it is easy to overlook its addition of LTE service â€" a faster kind of network â€" in Baltimore, Washington, Houston, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Phoenix and San Jose.

It puts T-Mobile head-to-head with AT&T, which the independent testing company RootMetrics  found to have the fastest LTE network in a recent report. T-Mobile was the only major carrier not to have LTE at that time.

Since I’m in an LTE market, I took an AT&T LTE iPhone 5 and a T-Mobile LTE iPhone 5 and compared network speed.

Using the Speedtest app from Ookla, which records how quickly data moves across a network, I pinged a Washington server repeatedly and averaged the results.

Before I give you the outcome, let me point out that this is a highly unscientific test. All of my samples come from a single location. All were tested in a short time. And a lot of factors affect network speed, including how many people are on at a given time. Since T-Mobile’s LTE service is new, you can bet there isn’t a lot of competition for the signal.

With those caveats, I can tell you that T-Mobile was much faster than AT&T â€" more than twice as fast. AT&T averaged a download speed of 5.8 Mbps, while T-Mobile achieved 12.7 Mbps.

It is impossible to know whether T-Mobile will maintain those speeds when there are more people on the network. I can say that AT&T’s fastest download nearly rivaled T-Mobile at 12.82 Mbps, but other times fell as low as 3.83 Mbps. The T-Mobile speeds were much more consistent.

Also keep in mind that T-Mobile still offers LTE in only seven cities. AT&T has the largest LTE network nationally. If you want a fast phone and are usually in one of T-Mobile’s seven LTE cities, it’s certainly worth a look. But conduct your own tests. Although networks are nationwide, network performance is very local.

Q.& A.: Using Facebook Chat Heads

Q.

I use Facebook on my iPhone quite a bit, but lately these little circles with my friend’s profile pictures have been popping up around the screen. What are these?

A.

The circular images on the screen are Facebook’s new Chat Heads feature, which was included in a recent update to the iOS version of the Facebook app. When you see a Chat Head appear, it means that friend has sent you a message within Facebook.

Tap the picture to read and reply to the message. To dismiss a Chat Head icon, touch the image with your finger and drag it down to the bottom of the screen to a gray X.

The Chat Heads feature first appeared last month as part of the Facebook Home software for certain Android phones. In Facebook Home, Chat Heads can pop up when you are using other apps on the phone to keep you connected with your friends. On the iOS version, however, the Chat Heads are contained within the Facebook app itself.

Q.& A.: Using Facebook Chat Heads

Q.

I use Facebook on my iPhone quite a bit, but lately these little circles with my friend’s profile pictures have been popping up around the screen. What are these?

A.

The circular images on the screen are Facebook’s new Chat Heads feature, which was included in a recent update to the iOS version of the Facebook app. When you see a Chat Head appear, it means that friend has sent you a message within Facebook.

Tap the picture to read and reply to the message. To dismiss a Chat Head icon, touch the image with your finger and drag it down to the bottom of the screen to a gray X.

The Chat Heads feature first appeared last month as part of the Facebook Home software for certain Android phones. In Facebook Home, Chat Heads can pop up when you are using other apps on the phone to keep you connected with your friends. On the iOS version, however, the Chat Heads are contained within the Facebook app itself.

Q.& A.: Using Facebook Chat Heads

Q.

I use Facebook on my iPhone quite a bit, but lately these little circles with my friend’s profile pictures have been popping up around the screen. What are these?

A.

The circular images on the screen are Facebook’s new Chat Heads feature, which was included in a recent update to the iOS version of the Facebook app. When you see a Chat Head appear, it means that friend has sent you a message within Facebook.

Tap the picture to read and reply to the message. To dismiss a Chat Head icon, touch the image with your finger and drag it down to the bottom of the screen to a gray X.

The Chat Heads feature first appeared last month as part of the Facebook Home software for certain Android phones. In Facebook Home, Chat Heads can pop up when you are using other apps on the phone to keep you connected with your friends. On the iOS version, however, the Chat Heads are contained within the Facebook app itself.

Q.& A.: Using Facebook Chat Heads

Q.

I use Facebook on my iPhone quite a bit, but lately these little circles with my friend’s profile pictures have been popping up around the screen. What are these?

A.

The circular images on the screen are Facebook’s new Chat Heads feature, which was included in a recent update to the iOS version of the Facebook app. When you see a Chat Head appear, it means that friend has sent you a message within Facebook.

Tap the picture to read and reply to the message. To dismiss a Chat Head icon, touch the image with your finger and drag it down to the bottom of the screen to a gray X.

The Chat Heads feature first appeared last month as part of the Facebook Home software for certain Android phones. In Facebook Home, Chat Heads can pop up when you are using other apps on the phone to keep you connected with your friends. On the iOS version, however, the Chat Heads are contained within the Facebook app itself.

The Early Word: Control

In Today’s Times

• The Obama administration plans to contest a judge’s order for the Food and Drug Administration to make a morning-after birth control pill available to girls under 15 without a prescription, the administration’s current age limit. The appeal reaffirms the administration’s election-year decision to block such sales, “and puts the White House back into the politically charged issue of access to emergency contraception,” Pam Belluck and Michael D. Shear explain.

• Americans overwhelmingly agree on the need for background checks for gun buyers and a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, but split on partisan lines on whether President Obama or Congressional Republicans are better suited to make the best decisions on those and other domestic issues, Ashley Parker and Allison Kopicki write, summing up the latest New York Times/CBS News poll. They add that the gap could explain why Mr. Obama and Democrats “are still struggling to translate public support into tangible political backing for their initiatives.”

• Immigration is on President Obama’s agenda on Thursday as he begins a three-day trip to Mexico and Costa Rica to meet with Latin American leaders. Michael D. Shear and Randal C. Archibold write that discussions between Mr. Obama and President Enrique Peña Nieto of Mexico on Thursday, which will also encompass economic and trade matters as well as the drug war, come as lawmakers in Washington are considering an immigration overhaul that would affect millions of Mexicans who are in the United States illegally.

• The death of gun legislation in Congress last month hangs over efforts on Capitol Hill to overhaul immigration laws, portending a bumpy ride, Jennifer Steinhauer writes.

• Edward Wyatt gets a feel for Tom Wheeler, President Obama’s pick to lead the Federal Communications Commission, while Annie Lowrey examines the president’s choice of Representative Melvin Watt, Democrat of North Carolina, to lead the regulator that oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Around the Web

• Attempts by Republican governors to reduce income taxes have been blunted by their allies in Republican-led legislatures, where lawmakers have raised concerns about revenue losses, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Happening in Washington

• Economic reports expected Thursday include first-quarter productivity and weekly jobless claims at 8:30 a.m., followed at 10 a.m. by weekly mortgage rates.

• Adm. William H. McRaven, the commander of the United States Special Operations Command, will discuss his vision for Special Operations and the command during a program at the Woodrow Wilson Center that begins at 12:30 p.m.

• At 1 p.m., Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. will hold a closed-door meeting on gun safety with law enforcement officials at the White House.