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Computer Tech Tips
ComputerTechTips was started because there is a huge need for everyday computer tech tips. As a computer tech and network engineer, I field a wide variety of questions each day. I decided to post the answers to those hard to answer questions here. You will find a wide variety of information posted on this website and I will constantly add new solutions to many of your technical problems, so check back often. If you are having a problem with your computer please send us and email describing the problem and we will glad to help you.
Anti-virus software keeps your computer and network safe from malicious viruses that can compromise your data and computer systems. I have used many times of anti-virus programs including McAfee, Norton, Trend Micro, AVG, and CA. Most of these require a subscription service and many of them consume your computer’s memory causing programs to run slowly. I recommend the free version of AVG or Avira. I have found these anti-virus packages to out perform all of the major anti-virus systems including McAfee and Norton. I have also seen them catch viruses faster! If your computer is running slow, you might want to see if your anti-virus software is “hogging” all of the system memory. You can download the free versions of AVG and Avira here:
Avira: http://www.free-av.com/en/download/1/avira_antivir_personal__free_antivirus.html
AVG: http://free.avg.com/download-avg-anti-virus-free-edition
A dusty room can lead to a computer nightmare. Dust is easily sucked into the power supply and computer case. As the dust collects, it will restrict airflow throughout the computer. The restrictive airflow will cause computer components to overheat and shorten their lifespan. To help combat a dusty computer, I recommend getting your computer off the floor and on top of a table or shelf. Every 3 months unplug the computer, pop the computer case off the computer, and carefully use an air compressor to blow out all of the dust. You will surprised how this will affect the cooling of your computer and decrease those hardware problems.
ISO images are compressed copies of CDs/DVDs that are stored in an archive format with an extension .ISO
ISO images allow you to digitally store information located on CDs/DVDs. You can create an ISO image using software such as WinImage, WinISO, MagicISO. Once you have an ISO image of a CD or DVD, you can store it on a hard drive or burn it another CD/DVD using Nero Burning Rom. I use ISO images to store backups of important CDs/DVDs. Keep in mind, audio CDs and other multi-track disks cannot be converted to an ISO image. If you have important disks at home you might want to consider making a digital archive.
Hard drives fail usually after 2-3 years of extensive use. Extensive use means filling up the drive and erasing the drive constantly. You can also wear out the drives more by having them on all the time. Heat is another factor that can kill a hard drive. Be sure you have adequate cooling if there are multiple drives in your computer case. Also be sure to leave some space between the drives for cooling purposes. I recommend staying away from Maxtor hard drives since they will usually not last more than a year. I go with Seagate hard drives in all of the systems I build. I am very hard on disk drives and Seagates can withstand a lot of abuse.
A question came in from Tom.
Question: I am thinking about replacing the RAM on my Dell Inspiron E1505 from the current 512 duo to the 2-1GB memory. The 512’s have 533 MHZ. Can I install two 1 GB 667 MHZ or should I stay with the 533 MHZ?
Answer: I recommend you upgrading the RAM to 2 GB with the 667 MHZ bus. I found a great deal on the RAM directly at Dell.com for $34.19
Here is the link: http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/products/Memory_Upgrades/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&cs=19&sku=A0944558
You need to remove the 512 sticks that are in there now and replace them with the 2 1GB sticks. 2GB is the highest amount of RAM your motherboard will support.
****If you have a question please send it to us at tech@computertechtips.com and we will do our best to answer your question in a timely manner.****
Every Microsoft Windows operating system has a registry. Your system registry holds a wealth of information about your computer, which is why we constantly hear from users that after using their PC for a short length of time, it no longer works the way it used to. This is due in part to invalid entries that exist in your system registry, that might exist because of software you are no longer using or software that was not properly removed. By removing these invalid entries, you can significantly increase the performance of your PC.
