Computers constantly have dusty fans, fingerprints on compact discs and devices etc. They can get quite dirty very easily from normal everyday use. If a layer of dust is present, it will act like a blanket on the motherboard, heat sink and other components, preventing heat from escaping. Overheating causes eventual disaster. Corroded chips cannot transfer data effectively, resulting in interruptions, or even complete stoppage of data processes. Metallic dust can cause electrical shorts and is especially destructive.
When working around electronics there are some precautions that should always be taken when cleaning. It’s important to power off the system first and to use an anti-static wristband or mat. Never work on carpeted surfaces and never spray cleaning fluids directly onto computer components. Always spray the cleaner onto a cloth then wipe. Do not allow any cleaner to run or drip near circuit boards, or near seams on device casings and allow circuits or electronics to become damp or wet.
To clean the build-up of dust from inside your computer case, use compressed air to clean around the fans, power supply and areas where the dust is building up. Be careful not to aim the air directly towards any circuit board or electronic components in the case. Use short blasts and arm movement to direct the falling dust outside of the case.
You can use the small brush to dislodge dust in areas where the compressed air did not remove the build-up . You can also use the brush to wipe dust away from the inside case walls and the wires. If dust has fallen down to the bottom of the case, dampen the anti-static cloth with the electronics cleaner and wipe along the bottom of the case to remove it. You can also use the damp cloth to wipe all around the metal case of your tower and the cover.
Disk defragmenters can detect computer files whose contents are broken across several locations on the hard disk, and move the fragments to one location to increase efficiency. When files are created, deleted, or modified it's almost a certainty they will become fragmented. Fragmented simply means the file is not stored in a contiguous location. The more fragmented files there are on a drive, the more performance and reliability suffer as the drive heads have to search for all the pieces in different locations.
The main use of the disk defragmenter is to move all the files around so that every file is stored in chronological order on sequential rings of the disk. A good defragmenter may also try to place all applications close to the operating system on the disk to minimize movement when an application loads. A hard disk is a collection of information buckets called "clusters". Each cluster is a fixed size. When you create a file on disk, Windows assigns enough clusters to the file to hold it.
Clusters aren't required to be next to each other on the disk. In fact, that's part of what the "Random" in "Random Access Storage" means; data can be accessed and stored on the disk in random places. So when Windows creates a file, it keeps track of which clusters make up the file and in which order they should go.
The Disk Defragmenter Utility is designed to reorganize non-contiguous files into contiguous files and optimize their placement on the hard drive for increased reliability and performance. When Disk Defragmenter first opens you'll see a list of the hard drives displayed at the top of the screen. The Estimated Disk Usage before Defragmentation and Estimated Disk Usage after Defragmentation will be blank until a drive is selected and the Analyze button is clicked.
It’s important to protect your computer from the latest threats by installing virus protection software. You can use free software from the Internet or buy a package at your local computer store.
Once you install the software, you need to make sure you are using it correctly. To help prevent the most current viruses, you must update your antivirus software regularly. You can set up most types of antivirus software to update automatically.
Computer viruses can cause serious damage to files and programs which can lead to data lose. It can also lead to programs not running properly. They are software programs that are deliberately designed to interfere with computer operation to record, corrupt, or delete data, or spread themselves to other computers and throughout the Internet.
Most antivirus programs will monitor traffic while you surf the Web, scan incoming email and file attachments and periodically check all local files for the existence of any known malicious code. Anti-virus software typically uses two different techniques to accomplish this. Examining files to look for known viruses by means of a virus dictionary and identifying suspicious behaviour from any computer program which might indicate infection.
Anti-virus software scans the files of your computer to look for certain patterns found in the file's code. Each virus has a specific pattern or code used to infect files. Once the anti-virus software finds a suspicious pattern, it will alert the user of the threat. However, virus patterns often revolutionize, so it is recommended to update software regulaurly to ensure that they can be found. Once a virus is detected, the anti-virus software will allow the user to access tools to decide how to handle the threat. In most cases, you can ignore or delete a potential threat.
Backup and restore Wizard
If your computer is equipped with a compact disc (CD) recorder, you can back up files or folders to a compact disc-recordable (CD-R) or a compact disc-rewritable (CD-RW).
Copy files and folders to a CD
To copy files and folders to a CD, insert a blank writable CD into the CD recorder. Double-click “My Computer”, and then click the files or folders that you want to copy to the CD. Click on either “Copy this file”, “Copy this folder” or “Copy the selected items” In the “Copy Items” dialog box, click the CD recording drive, and then click “Copy”.
In My Computer, double-click the CD recording drive. Windows displays a temporary area where the files are held before they are copied to the CD. Check that the files and folders that you intend to copy to the CD are displayed under “Files ready to be written to the CD”. Under “CD Writing Tasks”, click “Write to CD”.
After the CD Writing Wizard starts, follow the instructions in the wizard. When the process is finished, the wizard displays a check box for you to choose to create another CD like the one you just made. If you want to create multiple copies of the same CD, click “yes, write these files to another CD” and insert another blank, writable CD into the CD recorder. Follow the instructions in the wizard.
First shut your computer down fully to ensure that there is no power. Once the computer has safely shut down, turn the internal power off by the switch on the back of the power supply. It’s also important to disconnet any AC power cords and to remove the front bezel as well as the chassis cover before removing the CD/DVD-ROM Drive.
Once all is done, you will be able to insert the drive within the drive rails or directly into the drive cage of the computer. In order for the drive to thework, it needes to be connected by a small two wire cable with a standard connector. Plug this cable into the back of the CD/DVD drive. The other end of the cable will plug into the motherboard depending on the computer.
If you've got files all over your desktop, find them a permanent home in an appropriate folder. As you accumulate files and images, you might find that you require additional folders to restructure the way in which they are organised. Alternatively, you might like to create a hierarchy of folders right from the start, assuming you have a clear idea of how you want to store the files and images.
Copy - clicking on this option will copy the file or folder into (the clipboard) memory. You can then navigate to the folder where you want to copy the file to, right click (as if making a new folder) in the right hand pane and select “paste” from the menu that appears. Rename - this option allows you to rename the file or folder, simply type in the new name and press the “enter” key.