Home Computers Troubleshooting (Part 2)
Written on 16 October 2009 by Sherill
mgi-computers.com
More common problems are internet connection problems and sound problems. This is maybe due to some cable fault, network interface card problem, or simply a weak strength of your internet connection. There may also be sound problems. This can be caused by bad placement of speakers or incorrect sound settings. This will surely affect the output quality of the sound.
Still, there are other problems that would require you to have knowledge on basic troubleshooting so you can resume the smooth functioning of your PC. To avoid all of these problems, you have to consult an IT troubleshooter to provide regular computer check-ups.
Home Computers Troubleshooting (Part 1)
Written on 14 September 2009 by Sherill
usinfo.state.gov
Home computers are used by different types of people at home, ranging from geeks, experts, or novice users. Take for example if someone is earning from home, and is using the computer for his or her daily work or business; kids are using the PC to play online games; or housewives who are looking for new ways of decorating homes, searching for recipes, or being in touch with friends and family over the internet.
The worst thing that you can do to your home computer is to mishandle it, as this may result in expensive computer repair. Other problems are simple to solve.
Clean Your CPU Regularly
Written on 28 August 2009 by Yalung Brian
While our main CPU will always be closed, you will be surprised at the dust it can accumulate if you don’t check it regularly. Enclosed as it may, there are still holes to which these things go through. Besides, don’t forget that your computer needs ventilation and they are passages that can be gone through especially if turned off.
To clean your computer regularly would be a good way to maintain it as well. Just use a paint brush and perhaps a blower or vacuum to make sure that all the chips and the board are fused together without any dusts that can hamper your PC’s performance. Logical but true.
When Peripherals Don’t Fit
Written on 30 July 2009 by Yalung Brian
To most people it may not make sense but once your computer starts crashing or provides you with error messages that you haven’t seen before. You just have to backtrack a bit and see what you did. Other than perhaps installations, you should recall the last hardware component such as memory modules or even video cards that may have been incompatible with your system.
A computer is like a puzzle. If you place something there that does not fit, chances are you will be in for a lot of computer headaches. You don’t have to be a computer tech to know this. Just be aware of your computer’s history and you will be able to remedy the problem.
USB – Powered and Un-powered
Written on 19 June 2009 by Conrad
The many gadgets and gizmos we have in our possession may have one thing in common, they are most likely to have the ability to interface with your computer through a USB port. Older computers have passive USB ports that cannot provide power to devices hence the need for an external power supply to power the gadget. Newer standards have the ability to power devices directly form the USB port for which we can use as an example the ever popular iPod among the many, who use the USB port to charge and sync with the host computer. Continue »
Cooling Fans Explained
Written on 19 May 2009 by Conrad
Ever wonder why those small fans inside your computers continue to run even after years of use, thanks the bearing less motor for that which is actually derived from hard drive technology that uses precision motors to spin the fan without any contact points. If you’re technically inclined and are familiar with brush less motors, they’re the same principle with bearing less motors that spins the fans of our computers. They rely not on mechanical bearings but a sleeve bearing that has less friction compared to mechanical bearings that wear out in time. They will break down eventually for they do burn out or some part can fail, but overall, they are capable of serving us for many years. Continue »
Of Heat sinks and Temperature
Written on 19 April 2009 by Conrad
Cooling fans cannot work alone, for before they can blow away the heat produced by the microprocessor, it has to be dissipated and in that game, area is the key. Ever wonder why the heat sink of your processor has fins, area, it increases the surface area at which the cold air can be blown off from thus efficiently cooling your system. The more fins, the more area the heat has to dissipate out of and the better for the fan. Other more expensive after-market cooling systems use heat pipes(pure copper tubes filled with gasses that helps draw heat away from critical parts), exotic heat transfer materials and powerful fans to effectively cool the computer system. Continue »
Aftermarket Cooling Systems
Written on 19 March 2009 by Conrad
Many people see those fancy computer cooling fans in some geek’s computer and shrug them off as mere accessories yet beneath all the fancy looks and anodized aluminum fins are actually a lot of technology to cool off those hot, very hot computer processors. Left without proper cooling, a microprocessor whatever the manufacturer it may come from will fail due to heat stress. Though they are designed to take the heat, they can only do so for a limited time, which is what a cooling fan intends to do. There is however a simple yet irritating fact associated with too much cooling fans, noise. The hum or buzz yu hear with several fans running is quite a nuisance yet after sometime you’ll get used to it. Continue »
Speeding up your boot (part 2)
Written on 8 February 2009 by SherillThere are many ways you can speed up your booting. One simple way is to have your boot drive be a small dedicated drive that only houses Windows, while everything else can be installed in a separate hard disk or partition (just choose a different destination drive during installation of any program). This way, you also don’t need to backup everything in case of a reformat, as your personal files are stored separately from your system files.
You should also unplug any USB drives as they also contribute to slower startups.
Another way is to use MSCONFIG. Simply type msconfig into the “Run” option on your Start Menu, go to the Startup tab, and uncheck all the other unessential programs that Windows loads on startup, which makes your computer boot slower. To know which is important and which is not, look at the Command section to see which program the startup item is related to.
Heat, your PC’s worst Nightmare
Written on 11 January 2009 by Conrad
Heat is the enemy of any computer system or any other electronic device for too much can burn out specific parts rendering them useless and possibly catastrophically to fail and give you a puff of smoke that smells. There may be too much dust that has accumulated within your computer’s casing that it is causing excessive heating wreaking havoc to an otherwise healthy computer system. Get your vacuum and open the casing, removing most of the ones you can to allow reach into all nooks and crannies. Use a special metallic brush that dissipates static electricity or use a wrist strap to prevent damage from static. Use the steel brush to remove stubborn dirt while keeping the vacuum at a safe distance from the motherboard (you may just suck some small part like a vital jumper or worse).
Continue »
