OK – Think about your car for a minute:
It has 17,000 miles on it,
It goes up to 90 miles and hour and gets 24 miles to the gallon.
You use it for taking your kids to school, getting to work, and running errands.
It’s a big investment,
So every three thousand miles you change the oil, check the windshield wipers, the lights, and the tire pressure. Right?
Now think about your computer:
This holds all of your data for the past 4 years.
It runs constantly 8 hours a day, five days a week, not including running the overnight backup
It is capable of processing 733 million pieces of information every second,
You use it for everything: email, word processing, finance, web surfing, contacts, scheduling.
If it broke down, you’d be really stuck.
It’s a big investment, right?
So? When was the last time you serviced it?
Never? You’re not alone…
Here’s what to do to keep your computer working tip-top.
Once a month:
This should take about 45 minutes of your time and about 2 hours of computer time. The more you do it, the faster it goes.
1: Manually update the data files on your antivirus software (it’s all automatic)and run a full scan.
2: Run your computer’s clean up utility to get rid of temp files and other junk.
3: Run your popup blocker, (Adaware or SpyBot S+D) and update the data files and run a scan.
4: Empty your recycle bin.
5: Dump your internet cache and cookies.
6: Go through your email and delete anything that is no longer relevant. Organize your Inbox. Check any mail rules to see if they are still working for you.
7: Back up all of your documents, your internet Favorites/Bookmarks, your email databases (you can find them in your email software’s “Help”), your desktop icons, and any account names and passwords: In short anything that you really can’t afford to loose. This data should be backed up off of the computer (CD-R, Zip disk, or one of those cute little USB flashcards they sell now).
8: Go to http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/ and install the latest security updates. It’s all automatic.
9: Manually update the data files on your antivirus software (it’s all automatic) and run a full scan.
10: Run Scandisk and Defrag.
Once every three months:
This shouldn’t take more than ½ hour.
1: Go to “Start, Settings, Control Panel, Add/remove Programs” and uninstall programs you installed to test and never removed.
2: Update your computer’s emergency rescue restore files.
3: Run a registry cleaner to clean up the Windows registry.
4: Manually clean the computer: Use a can of compressed air to blow out the keyboard and the vents for the air flow that cools the computer.
5: Use a damp cloth to clean the keyboard, mouse, mouse pad, monitor .
6: Flip the mouse over, open the hatch for the mouse ball and check and clean the rollers for gray/brown dirt or hair, and clean it off with a swab and alcohol.