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Computer Help

Computer Help Topics Got a question about your computer? Feeling frustrated? You've come to the right place!

Backup and Recovery

"Lost" Is A Four-Letter Word To Computer Users
Nobody likes to lose precious data when working on a computer. Here are some tips to avoid losing information forever.

What And Where Should I Backup To?
Backing up your important and irreplaceable files on both your desktop and laptop computer is an important preparation tool against any unforeseeable disasters. Hard drives crash, viruses attack, and the only way to inexpensively retrieve your information immediately is to have a solid backup plan. With so many options available for backup, choosing the correct location to store your files is important.

The Devastation Of Data Loss - And What You Can Do About It
Whether you use your PC for keeping personal accounts, contact details or important information the risk of data loss is a big risk and could prove very costly in the long run.

This Is Not A Crash Test, Dummy!
We’ve all heard the horror stories of people whose computers were struck with a power surge, a nasty virus, or some other calamity that wiped their hard drives clean, eliminating years worth of acquired data and hard work. What would be more heart-wrenching to learn: that your hard drive crashed with little to no chance of file recovery or that you could have prevented catastrophic data loss by simply following an effortless routine of backing up and archiving files?

Lost And Found: Recovering Your Computer Data
It’s not until you have a disastrous hard drive crash or computer malfunction that you realize you should have been regularly backing up your files, updating your anti-virus program, and learning how to bring you computer out of a coma. But what’s done is done and now it’s time to look at the options available to you for recovering your most needed files from your defunct computer. What do I do and how do I do it?

Compression

NEW! Hard Drive Depression? Try Windows® XP File Compression
Is your hard drive brimming with files and programs that prevent you from adding more to your computer? This article will walk you through compressing files on your Windows XP based personal computer to give you more space for saving everything from word processing files, to spreadsheets, photos, videos, music, and more.

Avoiding Compression Confusion: E-mail Large Files And Store Mass Data With Ease
Whether you're attempting to e-mail a large-sized file or back up a multitude of others, file compression software can save you a lot of time and space when it comes to handling a load of data. Easy to install and even easier to use, compression software has become the number one way to share and store data. Find out what you're missing if you aren't utilizing this type of software.

Ergonomics

NEW! We have Kid-Size Burgers. Why not Kid-Size Workstations?
Many parents take great pride in their children’s computer expertise. But have those same parents examined their child’s workstation? Is the chair the right height? Is the mouse the right size? It’s time to take a look at ergonomics for kids.

Ergonomics And Healthy Computing: Positioning Your Body At The Computer For Maximum Comfort
If you’re going to spend the majority of your day behind your desk at the computer, you need to think proactively about your posture and the equipment needed to decrease the stress and strain that you may be placing on your body. Try some of these important tips to make your time behind the keyboard more healthy and comfortable.

For Beginners

Don't Stress; You Know More Than You Think About Buying A Computer
Are you looking for a computer and finding it a daunting task? Keep in mind the basics and what you plan to accomplish with your computer, and the process becomes a whole lot easier.

Hardware Help

NEW! A Port for Every Ship: Expanding Your Computers Functionality with a USB Adapter
Got an old printer or mouse that you just can’t let go, but there’s no place to plug it into your new computer? Don’t give up until you’ve looked into USB adapters that allow you to connect your old serial and parallel peripherals to your new computer via the USB port quickly and inexpensively.

How To Tame Your Mouse  
Does your mouse work erratically, skip and jump across the screen, or freeze up? Most problems with the mouse are caused by dirt or miscalibration.

Keeping Your Computer’s Cooling Fans Clear
Just like the engine of a car, the processor of a computer needs to be kept cool to operate at optimum capability. Overheating can cause computer lock ups, loss of information, hard drive failure, and reduce the overall life expectancy of the machine. Some basic housekeeping can help keep your computer running nice and cool for a long time. Learn how a few dollars and an hour can save you a fortune of cash and frustration.

USB Versus FireWire®
Lost in the world of USB, FireWire®, firewalls and other computer jargon? Read below to find out what exactly to look for and why.

How To Upgrade Your PC
There are many options to consider when deciding if it’s time to upgrade your personal computer. Sometimes, the cost of a new desktop computer is actually lower than the combined cost of purchase and installation of computer hardware. Read on to learn about some items you might want to consider before making any digital upgrades.

Computer Disposal - Throwing Away Your Computer, Money, And Identity
Security is not only important while using your new PC, but when disposing of your old computer equipment as well.

Memory

NEW! Upgrading Your PC Memory
If you choose to upgrade the memory in your personal computer, it pays to do some investigation. Without knowing the processing speed of your computer and the memory your motherboard can accept, you could easily buy memory that isn’t even usable by your computer. What you think is an upgrade could actually leave you exactly where you started.

Getting The Most Out Of Your RAM
You don’t need to learn everything about your computer to understand how it works and what you can do to make it run more efficiently. Just a basic knowledge of how the computer utilizes the hard drive and RAM will give you some insight on why RAM is such a vital component to fast computing.

Step By Step Troubleshooting RAM  
It's rare but RAM modules can cause problems. Unfortunately, it's not always certain that the memory errors being reported by your system is actually due to problems with the RAM modules. Even worse is that an unstable system can be due to many problems including RAM failure.

How Virtual Memory Saves The Day
This article explains the concept of virtual memory to the average computer user. You may be surprised to learn how virtual memory silently makes your computer usage easier on a daily basis.

The ABCs Of Computer Memory
Computer programs use RAM to write and retrieve information, allowing for fast data retrieval and manipulation.

Maintenance

Getting Technical Support Help Online Is A Great Option
When your computer is on the fritz, never be afraid to ask for help. Have you ever given online technical support help a try? You should.

Basic PC Maintenance For The Novice: Prevention Is Key
This article teaches the novice PC owner a few tricks when it comes to preventative maintenance. The steps involved are simple. As long as you commit to taking them on an ongoing basis, you may be able to spare yourself a lot of grief, as well as money you might otherwise spend on professional technical assistance.

Have You Cleaned Your Keyboard Lately? Do It Yourself With These Easy Instructions!
Your keyboard is essential to your work. So why do you take better care of your favorite coffee mug than your keyboard?

Optimization

NEW! Using Windows® Free Disk Defragmenter to Optimize Your Computers Performance
Here’s a simple way to speed up your computer by doing a little electronic housekeeping. By running the Windows disk defragmenter utility you can reorganize your saved data so that the computer doesn’t have to work so hard to access it, thus increasing the efficiency and speed at which tasks are performed by your computer.

Simple Ways To Increase Your Computer’s Speed
Taking a few easy steps can make your computer run like it did when it was new.

Organizing Your Files

Learn How To Hide Files And Folders On Your Computer  
Do you have files and documents that are very sensitive on your computer that you wish you could hide from others? Chances are you do.

Reinventing The Search Utility With Google® Desktop
Can't find what you're looking for in the junk drawer that you call a hard drive? Try a Google Desktop search and expect accurate and lightning fast results! Using the same technology as their famous web search utility, Google has provided computer users with the ultimate search tool.

From Piles To Files: Organizing Your Electronic Data
If you work on a computer, organizing your files could make the difference between hitting or missing deadlines.

Media

NEW! The Role of Thumb Drives
If you constantly need to take your work with you then thumb drives may be the solution to all of your data transportability needs. Utilizing thumb drives will allow you to take photos, reports, presentations, and even video files anywhere you go. They also make a fantastic back up option for your most valued computer data.

NEW! Flash Memory: It’s not Just for Your Digital Camera
Is your flash memory card too small for the amount of pictures that you take with your digital camera? Don’t let it fall into disuse if you upgrade to a larger capacity card for your camera. That little flash card can be used anywhere you used to use floppy disks. Read on for some usage ideas.

Problems With Floppy Disks
Problems with the floppy drive are rare, but that is not the case with floppy disks themselves. Floppy disks are made super cheap and are very unreliable.

Microsoft Vista Help

NEW! Why Windows Vista™ Will Improve Your Computing Experience
As Microsoft’s new operating system, Windows Vista, gets closer and closer to release, beta testers are singing its praises for form and functionality. But what can you expect to get out of all this software improvement? Read on to learn about what Windows Vista will be able to offer you.

NEW! A New OS: Will You Be Able to Use Windows Vista™ on Your CPU?
With 2 million people already real-world testing Vista, Microsoft Windows new operating system, and a planned release for early 2007, will you be able to take advantage of this slick OS upgrade with your current computer? Read on to find out how you can learn if your machine is Vista capable.

Microsoft® Windows Help

NEW! Speeding Up Your Computer’s Start Up
Does it take forever to start up your computer? The number of programs that Windows is loading each time you start up may be slowing your computer down. Learn how to pick and choose which programs your computer loads each time it boots up.

How To Give Windows® XP Running Shoes: Customizing For Optimum Performance
It's a natural assumption that a newer, updated version of an operating system would make a computer run faster and more efficiently, right? That's not always the case as is easily seen with Windows XP. Learning how to customize your Windows XP operating system for the best performance may improve your computing experience.

Should You Use Windows® Update?
Is it a good time to use Windows® Update? Is it ever a good time? Here are the pros and cons for you to decide.

System Restore: The Big Undo
System Restore is the ultimate band-aid fix for buggy Microsoft® Windows®.

A Checklist For Reloading Windows® XP
Is your Windows® XP running as smoothly as it did when you first installed it? It may be time to reload.

Error Terror: What Does That Error Message Really Mean?
Nobody likes to make mistakes. So when a giant error message pops up, don’t crawl under your desk. There are better solutions.

Enjoying Windows® Indexing Service, But Not Sacrificing Performance
As each version of Windows® is released, Microsoft® is finding more and more ways to help make your computing experience enjoyable. The Windows Indexing Service is a feature available in Windows 2000 and XP that can greatly increase your file searching power on your own computer. Learn how to activate and control this powerful feature.

Display Properties - Windows® XP Tips  
Here are some useful settings in the Display section of the Control Panel that are often overlooked.

Customizing Windows® XP
Upgrading operating systems for your computer can sometimes be a traumatic experience. If you learned everything that you know about your computer in an older system, the rearrangement of items in the new system may cause some initial confusion and dismay. Here are a few tips to help you reacquaint yourself in Windows® XP after an upgrade and customize your experience.

Should I Use Windows® Update?

Some would say keeping your Windows® up to date is essential in keeping it free of the newest, worst viruses and the like. Others would say that updating your Windows is overemphasized, unneeded and a waste of time.


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