Laptops rarely need the kind of cleaning that desktops do, in my experience. I live with a mother and a cat, and my house is so dusty and full of cat hair that if you walked in and looked around for a minute you'd instantly stop breathing /before/ your allergies even have a chance to kick in. (Mom has a dust allergy, but I think she's built up a significant tolerance.) That said, our laptops are so clean inside it's a wonder that they don't squeak. I mean, really.
While I'm here... a bit of bad advice needs to be addressed, in a dramatic way, because it's really really really bad advice. (Sorry, Chris -- I call it as I see it.)
cthisbear wrote:Vacuum it ...but not full power.
OMG HOLY CRAP HECK NO.
DO NOT EVER use a household vacuum cleaner on a computer. You WILL kill it. FAST.
Why? Static electricity.
You know how when it's cold and dry outside and you scuff your feet on a carpet and touch a doorknob and all of a sudden ZAP! happens?
That's static electricity right there. Lightning is actually the same stuff, just more of it in one place.
That stuff does more than make you jump. It makes the little parts of a computer die, and it's brutally effective at that.
The kind of plastic that vacuum cleaner parts are made of, happens to be very very good at collecting and creating a TREMENDOUS static charge. You can be a few inches away with the hose and you will still fry everything that you wave it over, just like that *snaps fingers dramatically*
Those stupid little keyboard vacuums that don't do crap are the sole exception. They avoid electronically-murdering static buildup through a combination of using different plastics and not having any measurable suction.
You want to clean a computer? Get a can of "compressed air" (it's actually usually a chemical called tetrafluoroethane -- don't drink that crap, or breathe it straight from the can, it's bad for you if there's not a bit of distance between you and it). That stuff is commonly sold with names like "Dust Off". DO NOT GET THE 3M CRAP IF YOU CAN POSSIBLY AVOID IT (pro-tip: it's in a purple and white can with a purple top) because they put way too much bitterant in it (because us crazy Americans are so unhappy we need stuff in the can to keep us from doing stupid things for a brief moment of mild happiness) and you will be tasting that gunk for a full week. Trust me, I speak from experience, that stuff is NASTY.
Open the computer, through whatever means are required. Put the little straw in your can of compressed not-really-air. Hold the button down and wave it around in the general direction of anything gray and fluffy and pray that you don't have dust allergies like my mother does. Once you're done (or once the can indicates it's done, for the time being) put the laptop back together or whatnot, and carry on as normal.
You ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS UNLESS YOU DO NOT CARE IF IT WORKS AFTERWARDS blow your computer out. Then you get your vacuum cleaner 'fix' cleaning the room that you just sprayed computer-dust into. IF YOU VACUUM YOUR COMPUTER IT WILL DIE.
Also, get that lack of fan noise looked at. An overheating computer is very soon a dead computer. Air circulation is important! If your system is being quiet, chances are it's not a dust issue (by the time there's that much dust in there, it's already long dead from being clogged up) but rather an issue of the fans simply not doing their job. That's one of those weird issues where software problems cause hardware problems.
Start a thread in Beginner's Help if you want that looked at.