Computer Health Tips

The following general tips can help you avoid computer problems and get the most use from your computer.  Your local computer specialist can help you pick out a laptop from your local retailer and set it up with all of the following for about $500 to $1000.00.

Use an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) for your computer to protect it from crashing during power outages, low & high voltage spikes.  Never save anything on your computer; save everything on an external hard drive instead.  Run Scandisk and Defragmentation once per month if you are using a computer with the Windows operating system.  Keep at least 400 to 600 MBs of your C: drive free.  Do not allow more than 5 programs to load when you start your computer. 

Always use an antivirus program and a firewall program.  Keep all the computer disks you receive, together in a place that is easy to find.  If your computer specialist needs to work on your computer, provide all the disks and all your passwords to the computer specialist.  Setup your Windows Update to automatically update your computer.  Change all your passwords when your computer specialist is finished working for you or ask your computer specialist to help you do this.

SpeedTest.Net is a website that tests your internet connection speed so that you can get a better idea of how well your internet service provider is doing.  You click a big green button on the website that says “Begin Test” and within a few minutes you will see what your Download & Upload speeds are with your current Internet Service Provider (ISP).  After you see your test results you can compare your Internet Service Provider with other Internet Service Providers.