The basics - click on a topic
Backup your data
Do you backup your data regularly?
If, the next time you boot up your PC, the data files you have spent so long creating over the past weeks / months (or even years!) are no longer there, what will you do?
There are several backup facilities available. One (called Backup) is in all versions of Windows. Try it out now.
Backup media can be floppies (1.4MB), Zip discs (100 or 200MB), LS-120 "super" floppies (120MB), CD-R or CD-RW (650/700MB) and several types of tape. Zip, CD-RW and tape drives also come with there own Backup program.
The most useful type today for home and small business users is CD-R/-RW. Get a CD Writer!
Data Organisation
Keep all your data in one area on your hard disc, sub-divided into folders as needed. Microsoft's default is the "My Documents" folder when saving or opening files.
Other applications merely (tacitly) suggest mixing your files in the same folder as the software (not recommended).
Create a separate folder hierarchy preferably on a different physical or logical hard disc. Organising Backup is easier if your data files are in one area.
It is also quicker (and less expensive) to recover those files when your PC does not boot and you did not backup.
Screen settings
Many of the PCs we see brought in for repair are set to the lowest resolution possible (640x480) or 800x600 and slowest refresh rate (60Hz). All PCs and monitors manufactured in the last 7 years are capable of better than this.
Most web sites (including this one) are now designed to be viewed full screen at 800x600 or greater.
Refresh rates are not "visible" but slower than 72Hz is likely to result in eyestrain or headaches. Aim for 75Hz or higher, if your graphics card and monitor can achieve this. The limit these days is normally the monitor if it is an "entry level" specification, not the graphics card. Most monitors designed since 1997 will report the refresh rate. Use the front panel controls. Check the monitor handbook for details.
Do not confuse monitor refresh rates with games "fps" (frames per second).
Anyone working in an office using a PC for extended periods should ensure that the PC is not setup in a way that could cause eyestrain. Discuss with your office manager if in doubt.
The Start menu
Each application that is installed puts its shortcut entry in the Programs section of the Start menu. This gets so large that it stretches off the screen.
Re-organise your menu, creating new categories, moving shortcuts so that your frequently used applications are quick and easy to access.
The Desktop
Using Icons on the Desktop is a quick way to access your applications. If you have too many icons and cannot find the one you want, it is not quicker. Get rid of the ones you do not use. Avoid deleting the standard Microsoft system ones.
If your Background is so colourful it is difficult to see the icons, the solution is obvious.
Screen Savers
Screen Savers were originally created to "save the screen", i.e. to extend the life of the phosphors in the monitor's tube. The blacker the better.
My own favourite is "Flying through Space" with 10 stars. Not spectacular, but I do not need to buy a new monitor as soon as I otherwise would.
Templates
Any tasks that use the same document format? Create a template, Do not just copy a file over and over again. Inevitably, one day it will get overwritten.
Templates will not be overwritten (by mistake) using the "Save" on the File menu.
Defrag your PC's drives
Defrag (or Defragging) your hard discs tidies up the files which have become fragmented and scattered all over the disc, slowing the performance. Do it regularly.
The only time you should not do it is when you have deleted some files by mistake and want to recover them with a special utility program.
A second printer?
Using a laser printer for normal (black & white) tasks and a colour printer for those photos? if you are using the parallel (printer) port to connect, do not use a switch box to switch between the two.
Apart from the annoyance at forgetting to switch over, a recent tech note from one of the major printer manufacturers suggests some switch boxes may be reponsible for damage to the interface circuits in the printer and PC.
The degree to which this applies is not given but a less expensive and more reliable solution is to have a second parallel (printer) port fitted in the PC.
Most recent inkjet printers now have a USB connection so the above advice may not be relevant to you, BUT most laser printers still use a parallel port.
Windows - is not permanent
Unlike the old home computers of the 80's and the more recent game stations, the (Windows) operating system on a PC is held in files on the hard disc.
It is possible for these files to become corrupted. Possible causes are shutting down Windows incorrectly, mains power interruptions, poor install routines for new applications (including games), viruses, downloading from the internet and the age old "finger trouble". The latter is normally never admitted by the perpetrator. Essentially, you name it and it's happened!
Windows - is not free
The operating system on most PCs is Windows. It is normally pre-loaded on your PC when you buy and you should also receive the CD-ROM and license. It is all included in the price of the PC.
If you did not get them and Windows needs re-installing, I can supply you with an original Windows CD and do the job as well if you wish. Do not expect Windows free from us when your original supplier did not give you all you had paid for.
If you want to know how to implement any of these basic tips, use the extensive Help menu that is part of Windows. If still not sure: call or email.
Please do not expect the company to provide lots of free support time when your original supplier has a 50p or more per minute help line. We do, of course, provide help but need to charge a reasonable amount for the time taken.
This page gives only a few of the basic tips for using a PC more efficiently or averting problems.
If you would like to see a more advanced section on hints, email with suggestions.
