How to Care for a Computer

Your computer is a valuable piece of machinery and, like your car, needs to be serviced to keep it running smoothly. If you care for your computer on a regular basis, you can ensure that it will be ready when you need it. Learning to maintain your computer can also be a valuable skill you can use to help your friends and co-workers who need help maintaining their computers.

1. Get to know your computer. A manual came with your machine and you should keep it handy in case of problems. You also should skim the sections on areas where you frequently experience difficulty. Also utilize the help feature that comes with your operating system.

2. Be aware of tech resources around you. Technically-savvy friends should be your first line of defense, but don't rely on them all the time since they may get tired of fixing your problems. Online forums and support groups are also especially useful, since someone has usually experienced the same problems you encounter and posted advice.

3 Take precautions to protect the security and health of your computer. Install virus protection software, a firewall, and any other programs that can help protect your computer. Just in case, back up your computer files on a regular schedule. Special software is available to help with back up, or you can duplicate your work on a CD or external hard drive.

4. Know the signs of impending doom. If your computer freezes up, it's trying to tell you something is wrong. While rebooting your computer often solves the problem temporarily, the cause of the problem won't go away so easily. Check that your disk isn't full, since this is a common cause of poor computer performance.

5. Use the system tools that come with your computer. Tools such as ScanDisk and System Defragmenter can be found under the Accessories tab.

6. Maintain your computer on a regular basis to prevent sluggish behavior. Empty your recycle bin and delete bulky files that you aren't using. Clear out your temporary Internet files and delete unwanted emails from your inbox.

7. Organize your desktop each week, moving files into appropriate folders. The "My Documents" folder allows you to organize your computer using a virtual filing cabinet. Your computer desktop should resemble your actual desktop, neat and tidy.

8. Try to fix minor problems yourself. You can end a task by holding down the "Ctrl," "Alt," and "Delete" keys at the same time and then selecting the problem program from the Task Manager window. Also, undo any recent changes, such as the installation of a new program, if that might have caused the problem.