Computers in a Monthly Fashion

Many average users of the computer only use it for email, browsing the internet, and sometimes chatting and paying bills. But sometimes when just doing your normal routine, your computer may start to slow down or have errors.

Some users will immediately call up their most technically inclined friend for assistance. But sometimes even then, they won't know the solution to the problem. So they call up the local computer shop and geek crew for an estimate. Once quoted $70-140 per hour, they immediately hang up and have to make a tough decision: Let the problem persist and hope it goes away after a few restarts, or get ready to open their wallets as far as they will go.

Fortunately, there are people out there who can help you solve your problem for only $40 per hour, but even then you get pretty lucky the person is who they say they are. I am that person. I am an honest individual who is what many call a geek and can fix almost anything when it comes to personal computers and small business networks. But this article isn't about me, it's about some of the things I do and am willing to tell you about the procedures for you to do it yourself and keep your computer running smoothly and hopefully without as many errors as before.

Now, after normal wear and tear of computers being used day in and out, the computer guts will sometimes wear out. This is normal, just like the human body getting old, except computers only last anywhere from 2 seconds (when something must have gone wrong in the factory build of the computer), all the way up to years and years on end and sometimes even up to 20 years these days!

But occasionally, computers will slow down. Sometimes it's a user error when people get used to such a fast speed that when their computer is run for so long, people often see it as getting slower and slower. Truth is that you are just getting used to the speed. Why not install some more memory or upgrade the CPU? Sounds complex huh? It can be.

Here are some normal and typical things you can do to keep your computer running healthy, safer, and more enjoyable knowing you are taking care of it and keeping out a lot of bad things.

Your Computer Run and Perform Faster

A high performing computer is a must these days. With internet connection going faster and new programs being developed, our computers may not be able to handle them all. That is why it is essential that we know how to make our PC perform faster.

First off, doing these methods won't make your old computer faster than it ever was when you first bought it. The steps provided below will make your computer organized and run faster than it does now. People who are already knowledgeable about computers knows these simple, yet, effective steps already.

Do a disk cleanup - Each time you use your computer, either running programs, opening files, browsing the internet, downloading various things, your computer saves a record. In time, all of these saved files and records will take up a lot of space in your hard disk, preventing your computer from finding the program you have commanded to open.

Its like looking for a needle in a haystack, the more hay there is, the slower the computer can find the needle so to speak. When you do a disk cleanup, the computer would ask for your permission to delete some of these files which have been left unused for a period of time.

To do a disk cleanup, click Start, then go to all programs, accessories, system tools then click on disk cleanup. A box will pop out asking you which drive to do a clean up on, in case you have several partitions or more than one hard drive). Click OK, then another box will pop out showing which files you can delete. Choose carefully and if you're not sure, don't erase the file.

Defrag your PC - Defragmenting your computer means organizing and arranging your files to follow a certain order and maximize the space available. It's like putting order in a room. This way, the computer can easily find the files or programs that it needs to access, thus making your computer perform faster.

Better Safe Than Sorry

If you're lucky, you will never have a computer that is struck by lightening, affected by a power surge, or data that is corrupted beyond repair. But if anything like this happens to you and you aren't prepared, it can be devastating.

Make sure your computer, monitor, and modem/router are plugged into a surge protector, not just a plain power strip. In the event of a power surge in the wiring in your house, a surge protector will protect your electronics from getting "fried". There are even surge protectors on the market that allow you to plug your phone line or cable co-axial line in them instead of directly into the computer or modem. For dial-up users, this offers protection against power surges coming into your computer via the phone line. For cable users, this can 'ground' your electrical circuit even if the wiring is your house is older and therefore not already grounded.

Also, make sure to back up your personal data and documents. If you followed the first tip about getting your CDs and information organized, reinstalling your software shouldn't pose a problem if need be. But what about your spreadsheets, the book you've been writing, the five years worth of digital pictures of your family? If you don't back up these types of items, they could be lost in the event of hardware or software failure.

There are many options available to you when it comes to backing up your information. You might choose to burn items to CD, copy documents to an external hard drive or flash drive, or move copies to an online storage service. Depending on the importance of the documents you're dealing with, you might want to choose more than one. Start by backing up information once a week, but find a back-up schedule that works for you and is reasonable.

If you decide to copy items to another hard drive or a flash drive, consider using synchronization or backup software to make the job a little easier. SyncBack is a freeware program that allows you to set-up profiles each with their own back-up or synchronization strategy. For instance, you could have a 'Photo' profile that would copy all the items in your 'My Pictures' folder to an external hard drive and a 'Work' profile that would synchronize files between your flash drive and your desktop, keeping only the newest version of each file.

For those wanting to try an online storage service, Box.net offers a basic plan free of charge. It includes 1GB of storage space and allows files as large as 10MB. Just bear in mind that even the most reputable online storage service is at risk of being hacked, so consider carefully before you use such a service for sensitive information.

Caring for your computer

Here are ways to extend the life of your system:

Be careful not to bump or drop your computer, and do not put any objects on top of it. The case, although strong, is not made to support extra weight.

When transporting your computer, we recommend that you put it in a carrying case.

Keep diskettes, modular drives, and your computer away from magnetic fields. Magnetic fields can erase data on both diskettes and hard drives.

Never turn off your computer when the hard drive light is on because data on the hard drive could be lost or corrupted.

Avoid subjecting your computer to extreme temperature changes. The case can become very brittle and easy to break in cold temperatures and can melt or warp in high temperatures. Damage due to either extreme is not covered by your warranty. As a general rule, your computer is safest at temperatures that are comfortable for you.

Keep all liquids away from your computer. Almost any liquid can result in extremely expensive repairs that are not covered under your warranty.

Avoid dusty or dirty work environments. Dust and dirt can clog the internal mechanisms.

Set up a regular maintenance schedule according to the table below to keep your computer running at its best.

Some Advanced Pointers

Use the NTFS file system. It is more stable than FAT and has better security. It is possible to convert from FAT32 to a NTFS file system after you setup your system using the CONVERT command. However, using the CONVERT command to convert a FAT32 file system to NTFS will result in a 512 byte cluster size. I read that a 512 byte cluster is considered too small and degrades overall performance. Whereas if you do a clean install and format your drive with the NTFS format in the beginning, you will get an optimum 4K cluster size. A larger cluster size means faster overall hard disk access.

If you used the Convert program and wound up with a 512 byte cluster size, there is a way to change it to 4K, but you will need 3rd. party software to do so. There are only 2 applications in the world presently that I know of that can do this trick: Paragon's Partition Manager and Powerquest's Partition Magic Version 8. Previous versions of Partition Magic do not have the the option to change NTFS cluster size.

I highly recommend dividing your hard disk into at least 2 partitions. The first partition should be only for your operating system and installed software. The second extended partition (D drive) should be for your data only, for example, documents, photos, mail boxes address books, etc. By partitioning your hard disk, you won't have all your eggs in one basket so to speak. If your system crashes and you need to reformat C drive, D drive will be untouched and you therefore lose none of your precious work. It is possible to tweak the default system folders like My Documents, Desktop, and Favorites so that the default is a folder on D drive, not C drive. To partition a hard disk you need to either do it from the beginning with FDISK or get a partition manager like Partition Magic. Using FDISK on a hard disk with data on it results in data loss.

Some Good Habits

By default Windows 2000 and Windows XP sets you up as an "Administrator". You should change the account settings to a limited user and only log in as an Administrator when you need to make changes to Windows such as installing new programs. This is for your own protection, and especially so when surfing the Internet! In the Linux operating system, the Administrator account is known as "Root" or "Super User" and no Linux User in his right mind would surf the Internet as Root. That would be like walking through a battlefield naked and defenseless!

To change your account to a limited user, go to Start, Settings, Control Panel, Users and Passwords, and click on your account name and then click on Properties. Change the account type to User and then click OK. For this to work there must be at least one account that has Administrator privileges so you should not attempt to change the account to User if the name of the account is Administrator. If it is, create a new account with your user name and password. Make sure that the Administrator password is set. It should not be the same as the Limited User account password.

Basic Computer Maintenance

Getting Started:

Windows gives you these tools to help your system run more smoothly — Disk Clean Up, Scandisk, and Disk Defragmenter (and I recommend using them in that order).

However, before doing any of this, it is advisable to be sure that all non-essential data is removed from your system, particularly tiny files (these up the space). Directories to check include C:\WINDOWS\TEMP, C:\WINDOWS\RECENT among others. You can also clear your browser cache and empty your email trash bins.

There are third party utilities to scan your drive for files of specific types (eg. files with 0 size, *.tmp files, etc. However, if you routinely clear your cache, history and recent lists, this is really optional. The tools provided by Windows should be all that you need.

Programs in the background may prevent scandisk/disk defragmenter from working properly, so before beginning, it is recommended to disconnect from the net*, turn off all virus programs, firewalls, etc. The easiest way to do this is to press CTRL+ALT+DEL and follow the instructions there to shut everything off but SYSTRAY and EXPLORER**.

However, even then, a previously unmaintained system may experience problems running scan disk/disk defragmenter, in which case I recommend powering down, and restarting the computer in Safe Mode***. Most of your programs may not work in Safe Mode, because Windows bypasses your start up files, and many drivers will not be loaded. However, scan disk and disk defragmenter will both work in Safe Mode.

Running scan disk and disk defragmenter for the first time in a long time may take a very long time indeed, however, once done, the next time should not take nearly as long.

When should one defragment? This depends on how the machine is used. If you just log on to surf forums once in a while, or otherwise only use the computer moderately, once a week should be sufficient. However, if you are running 24/7, downloading 2-3GB per day, and visiting hundreds of web sites, the system can get bogged down, and will need more attention, such as every 3 or 4 days.

Another time to scan or defrag is when installing or uninstalling large programs. Installers create TEMP files and/or directories, and delete them when the installation is complete, however you end up with program data scattered all over the drive. Scan/defrag before and after installing a large program (eg. Microsoft Office, or a Corel Graphics suite) will help the computer run more efficiently.

How do I run these programs? Whether in Safe or Normal mode, these programs are found by hitting the Start Button, Programs, Accessories, System Tools - all three are located in this area. Start the programs one at a time. In the case of multiple hard drives, you have the option of whether to do them all at once, or one at a time. Generally I scan/defrag C D E and F drives at the same time, and the C drive by itself after a major crash, install/uninstall or CD burning session (where I free up a lot of space on the C drive after deleting).