Computer Help Desk Support Indiana

Backups!: Why Backups Are Crucial In Todays Electronic World

Tuesday, February 22, 2011 by Britton Starr

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." -Benjamin Franklin

We've all heard this saying before. It addresses the fact that sometimes a little effort up front can save you from a world of trouble in the long run. I want to share with you about just such a situation. Today I'd like to compare this timeless quote to the world of PC Backup Solutions. While it may seem a little far-fetched at first glance, the comparison is quite valid. So why do I bring this topic up? Because if there is one thing I have learned in Computer Help Desk Support, it's that you should plan for the worst, even if you hope for the best.

Modern computers are incredibly complex. While a computer is meant to be as fault tolerant as possible, things can and will happen. Think about how we use our computers today. Banking, news, email, music libraries, taxes, homework, facebook, financing, photo storage, business correspondence, the list goes on and on. The problem is, if your computer fails you can lose everything. This is why in today's technologically dependent world, corporations aren't the only ones who need to think about backup solutions.

Reliable data backup can be a lifesaver, not to mention a sound investment. I once lost $600 worth of wedding photos, due to a hard drive crash. No red flags, no warnings. The data was just gone. Priceless memories, and part of my reputation as a freelancer lost because of a simple mechanical failure. Tax documents and massive music collections are just as vulnerable. Given the importance of such documents, even at home backups are a must. It's a lesson several of our Indianapolis IT Support customers have learned the hard way.

Let's put this in context of our quote. Our ounce of prevention is like our Backup strategy, being quite easy and rather affordable on the Indiana PC Repair customer. Solutions for a home PC can range from a USB Drive purchased for a few dollars use to back up key documents, to a robust and safe offsite backup available for a reasonable monthly fee. If we neglect these options however the results can be devastating. The loss of precious memories, the thousand dollar charges of advanced data recovery services, even potential financial or legal trouble. While some products like music may be purchased again, some documents are irreplacable and should be treated as such.

Clearly, we really are better off safe, rather than sorry.

In part two, which will be posted later this week, we'll look at the specific options and pricing we have available to help protect you and your valuable data. That's all for today. If you have any concerns about your computer's health, or feel it might be time for a tune up, please visit us for all your Computer Repair Mooresville needs.

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Computer Basics: Better Understanding Your Computer Part 2

Tuesday, November 16, 2010 by Britton Starr

Today I'd like to continue on to the second part of my blog on better understanding your computer. I thought we'd take a look at some of the other components that help make the computer an invaluable part of today's high tech society. So, today we're going to look at a Motherboard, a NIC, a Video Card, and finally a Optical Drive. In Computer Help Desk Support I routinely service a wide variety of machines. Having a familiarity with different types of hardware allows me to connect symptoms of a problem to the component that might be faulty. While knowing how the various parts of a computer work is essential to proper PC Repair, it also will benefit you in your everyday use of computers at home or work.

Motherboard

A motherboard (or logic board if you use a Mac) is an absolutely key part of your PC. This is the largest circuit board in the computer, and connects all the crucial components of the machine together. It provides a way for data to move from various pieces of hardware and back, and contains some of the most basic instructions your PC needs to operate. It also determines what types of hardware can be used in the machine at all, based on the various slots and sockets. My motherboard at home for instance, is a gaming board and will let me use parts like Intel Processors, and multiple video cards. Which brings me to my next point...

Video Cards

A video card is another important component of your PC. The video card is responsible for turning your computer's instructions into visible images, videos, or text that you can understand. It also renders any games, and translates any DVDs you might want to watch. Video cards are quite varied in design and form. Some performance cards are hulking pieces of metal with fans and giant copper heat sinks, while many smaller ones are built into the processor, such as on Intel's new i3 and i5 chips.

NIC

A NIC, or Network Interface Controller, allows your computer to communicate over a network. There are many types of NICs including Ethernet cards, Wireless cards, and 56k Modems. Many are built into the motherboards already. All of these share the common goal of allowing your computer to speak to the outside world. They use various networking protocols (languages) such as TCP/IP, UDP, and IMAP to let view webpages, send emails, or watch videos online.

Optical Drives

An Optical Drive is the component on your machine responsible for reading, and many times writing CDs, DVDs, or even Blu-Ray discs. This allows you to watch movies, install software, or burn DVDs. Each optical drive has a small laser, that reads the data on a disc as it spins. This data is stored as microscopic valleys and peaks on the disc's reflective surface. There are many forms of discs; CDs, CD-Rs, CD+RWs, DVD+Rs, DVD-RWs. Most optical drives on the market today can use almost any of them.

So I hope you feel like you've learned a little today, and feel even more comfortable with your computer. You may find knowing a little about the way a computer works can increase the enjoyment you getA out of using one. If you have any questions, or are perhaps considering a PC Hardware upgrade, please stop by our Mooresville, Indiana PC Repair Facility and let us take great care of you and your machine.

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How to install RAM on a Lenovo ThinkCentre All-In-One PC

Wednesday, November 3, 2010 by Britton Starr

Hello Indiana PC Repair customers, and welcome to my first blog.

This week I was reminded that we can all use a little help sometimes, even computer help desk support technicians. We sold a customer a Lenovo ThinkCentre A70. This All-In-One is a great, space-saving machine perfect for everyday computing. They do come a little light on RAM out of the box for running Windows 7. Since upgrading a PC’s RAM is both a practical and affordable performance improvement, it was an easy decision for the customer to decide on the memory upgrade. Upon trying to open the computer case, I encountered some difficulty. Being unable to find any Support articles online, I decided to document the RAM installation process from start to finish. You will need the proper RAM and a few simple tools to complete this job.

Unplug the machine. Be sure to ground yourself (removing any static electricity), by touching something that is metal and grounded, such as a pipe. This is a crucial step in PC Support and Repair, as it protects against accidental damage to your components.
Gently lay the computer on its face, screen side down.
Find the two case screws, each located in the lower corners of the case. Loosen these two screws. They are bracketed however, and do not come entirely out.
Next locate four small black rubber plugs. They should be arranged in a square, near the leg’s hinge. Using your fingernails or a paperclip, gently pull the plugs out of the case and set them aside.
Underneath each of the four plugs should be a screw. Remove these screws, and set them aside near the rubber plugs.
To remove the Leg assembly, rotate the bottom end of the leg up. The square black plastic piece should rotate with it, and can then be removed from the back of the computer. Set it aside for now.
With the leg stand gone, the back plate of the PC must now be removed. The case is held together by a series of small clips. Using a straight screwdriver, gently pry the case apart. Start near the corner screws on both sides, slowly working your way towards the middle. Eventually you should hear a series of ‘pop’ noises and the back of the case may be removed.
You should now be seeing something similar to this. Locate the RAM slot, it should on the left of the machine, towards the center.
If you have to remove the old RAM to install your new memory, this must be done first. This happens if you have two new sticks to go in, remove the old one by pushing down on its white tabs and pulling the RAM stick out.
We are just adding an additional stick, so we’ll install that one. First, locate the inset in the stick of RAM, and match it to the one on the motherboard’s slot. Open the white tabs on each end.
Put the RAM into the second memory slot, using the inset to help ensure accurate placement.
Push down firmly on both ends of the RAM stick, being careful not to let it turn sideways or go in crooked. When the RAM is in far enough, the white clips on each end should pop up helping to hold it securely in place. Check that the fit is snug.
Now that the RAM is installed, the computer must be put back together. Place the main black plastic panel back onto the rear of the machine, and press gently along the edges to begin snapping the back into place.
Tighten down the two screws located in the corner of the machine. You may hear several small pops as the case moves into alignment.
Press firmly along the edges of the case, to ensure a proper seal. This will help to keep unnecessary dust out of the computer.
Then we need to reattach the legs. Line the two small black plastic tabs on the top of the leg assembly up with the two small notches on the back of the computer. Slide these tabs in, and rotate the piece down like a hinge.
Replace the four screws that hold the leg assembly, and screw them in loosely. Check to make sure all four are seated properly, and then tighten down firmly.
Finally, replace the four black rubber plugs, to cover the screws that were just installed.

**Now that the RAM is physically installed, we’ll set up your computer to properly utilize it. If you end up needing Computer Help Desk services however, we are always happy to provide you with any IT services you might require.
After reconnecting all of the essential cables, like mouse, keyboard, and power turn the computer on. You may see a black screen with some text on it that you aren’t used to seeing, but that’s just the computer recognizing the new RAM.
Once Windows has started, click on the Start button in the bottom left of your screen. Then right-click on Computer, and click Properties.
In the window that comes up, click Advanced System Settings in the upper left panel. This will bring up the Advanced tab of the System Properties window. Under ‘Performance’ click Settings, and on this new window click Advanced at the top of this dialog box.
On the ‘Performance Options’ box, select Change to adjust what’s called your “paging file.” This file must be adjusted whenever RAM is installed. First, uncheck the Automatically Manage box. Then, make sure the Custom Size radio button is selected.
To set your paging file to the proper size, a small bit of easy math must be performed. Take the number of Mb’s (or megabytes of memory ) that the RAM now totals, let’s say for example 2048 (for 2 Gigs) of memory. You take this number, and multiply it by 1.5, so roughly 3000Mb. This is the “Initial Size” we’ll set. Add an extra 200 on, so in our example 3200Mb for the “Maximum Size” and hit Ok to accept the value.
Click Ok on the next screen to apply the changes we’ve just made. Click the red ‘X’ in the corner to close the open windows. Your computer should ask you to restart, and do so.

Congratulations, you’ve successfully installed your RAM. Now sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labor… likely a noticeably faster computer!

Should you decide that your machine is in need of a boost, come by our Mooresville, Indiana facility and let one of our qualified IT Support Technicians help you enjoy your PC even more.

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