An area for learning and Maintenance reminders.
PC Preventive Maintenance Tips
Preventive maintenance is one of the most ignored aspects of PC ownership. Most people seem to think that the PC doesn't need preventive maintenance, and so you should just use it until it breaks, and then repair or replace it. These people generally find themselves repairing or replacing much sooner than those that take definite steps to avoid difficulties in the first place.
![Picture](/uploads/8/1/7/6/8176274/6338634.jpg)
Here are some reasons why you should develop a preventive maintenance plan for your Computer:
Preventive Maintenance Improves Performance:
Some parts of your system will actually degrade in performance over time, and preventive maintenance will help to improve the speed of your system in these
respects.
Here is a great example of what happens when a computer is let go without dusting the CPU fan and the heat sink
- Preventive Maintenance Saves Money:
I'm sure we've all heard the old adage "an ounce of prevention is worth a
pound of cure". It's true, but it is also true. Avoiding problems with your
PC will save you money in the long run, compared with laying out cash for
new components or repair jobs. - Preventive Maintenance Saves Time:
Saves time? How can taking two hours a month or whatever to perform
maintenance save time? Simple: because it saves you the much bigger hassles
of dealing with system failures and data loss. Most preventive maintenance
procedures are quite simple compared to troubleshooting and repair
procedures--now those can really eat up your time at a fantastic rate. - Preventive Maintenance Helps Safeguard Your Data:
For most people, the data on the hard disk is more important than the
hardware that houses it. Taking steps to protect this data therefore makes
sense, and that is what PM is all about.
Preventive Maintenance Improves Performance:
Some parts of your system will actually degrade in performance over time, and preventive maintenance will help to improve the speed of your system in these
respects.
Here is a great example of what happens when a computer is let go without dusting the CPU fan and the heat sink
PASSWORD QUICK TIPS
A password is typically somewhere between four and 16 characters, depending on how the computer system is set up. When a password is entered, the computer system is careful not to display the characters on the display screen, in case others might see it. Good criteria when choosing a password or setting up password guidelines include the following:
Many networks require that you change your password on some periodic basis. A strong password has at least 15 characters; has uppercase letters; has lowercase letters; has numbers; has symbols, such as ` ! " ? $ ? % ^ & * ( ) _ - + = { [ } ] : ; @ ' ~ # | \ < , > . ? / is not like your previous passwords; is not your name; is not your login; is not your friend's name; is not your family member's name; is not a dictionary word; is not a common name. |
Random Password Generators can be found here:
http://www.iobit.com/passwordgenerator.html http://www.thebitmill.com/tools/password.html http://www.multicians.org/thvv/gpw.html http://www.techzoom.net/tools/password-generator.en |
Computer security
![Picture](/uploads/8/1/7/6/8176274/5921922.jpg)
Nobody is immune from catching a computer virus, becoming victim to a phishing scam, or being the target of a
clever piece of spyware unless one practices technology or computing abstinence. To completely avoid computers, the Internet, and, to an increasing degree, gadgets such as cell phones,
PDA’s, and mp3 players is not an option in today’s high-tech world. You can, however, significantly lower your risk by taking some precautions.Several common methods for significantly
reducing your risk and includes firewalls, spyware, anti-virus, anti-fishing, root kit removal, Active X controls,
and Anti-spam. Two good articles on this subject can be found here:
http://www.schoolcounselor.com/resources/computer-security.htm
http://www.cert.org/homeusers/HomeComputerSecurity/
Also you can find good resources at Microsoft Safety & Security Center: http://www.microsoft.com/security/default.aspx
Why is My Computer So Slow?
There are many things that can cause a slow computer such as a virus, spyware, or hard drive fragmentation. If you are experiencing a slow computer drop me an E-mail so we can figure out why. The form below is for us to see only.
clever piece of spyware unless one practices technology or computing abstinence. To completely avoid computers, the Internet, and, to an increasing degree, gadgets such as cell phones,
PDA’s, and mp3 players is not an option in today’s high-tech world. You can, however, significantly lower your risk by taking some precautions.Several common methods for significantly
reducing your risk and includes firewalls, spyware, anti-virus, anti-fishing, root kit removal, Active X controls,
and Anti-spam. Two good articles on this subject can be found here:
http://www.schoolcounselor.com/resources/computer-security.htm
http://www.cert.org/homeusers/HomeComputerSecurity/
Also you can find good resources at Microsoft Safety & Security Center: http://www.microsoft.com/security/default.aspx
Why is My Computer So Slow?
There are many things that can cause a slow computer such as a virus, spyware, or hard drive fragmentation. If you are experiencing a slow computer drop me an E-mail so we can figure out why. The form below is for us to see only.
In Layman’s Terms:
Mac Address, DNS, IP Address, Gateway
![Picture](/uploads/8/1/7/6/8176274/2111093.png)
Mac Address
A Media Access Control Address, also known as a hardware or physical address,
is a unique value associated with the network adapter on your computer.
Basically, it’s what’s used to identify and associate with a system over a local
network.
It doesn’t go all that far- usually, your MAC address is only used to
identify your system by your Router, though there are a few processes that make
use of it. They’re hardly relevant to this definition.
No two MAC addresses are the same, and MAC addresses generally never change.
Some of you might be wondering how MAC addresses differ from IP addresses- the
definition of which we shall address in a moment.
A good analogy to this end involves mail delivery: While an IP address can be
thought of as your home address- something which can most certainly change, and
often does- a MAC address is your physical identity- your name, gender,
et-cetera. These are features that are unique to you, and just as a MAC address
lets a router know what unique system to deliver data to, your name allows a
mail carrier to know what unique person to deliver to. Not a perfect analogy,
but it should work just fine for us.
DNS
![Picture](/uploads/8/1/7/6/8176274/4810044.png)
DNS stands for “Domain Name System.” See, IP addresses are used by computers
to locate and connect to each other- this includes the servers on which websites
are hosted. Problem is, IP addresses are…kind of an unholy pain to remember.
As a result, we have the Domain Name System/Service. Instead of having to
remember an IP address, you can simply type in the domain name of the website-
for example. www.google.com. The Domain Name System will translate that domain
name into an IP address so that your computer can find the location that the
domain name corresponds to, without you having to memorize a needless string of
numbers.
To that end, errors such as “Your DNS appears unable to resolve IP addresses”
means that the DNS can’t attach an IP address to the domain name you’ve typed
in. If you’re looking for something of an analogy, I’ve a rather imperfect one
for you: the DNS is kind of like…an automated phonebook. You type in the last
name, and it gives you the phone number.
Kind of a flimsy analogy, but it works.
to locate and connect to each other- this includes the servers on which websites
are hosted. Problem is, IP addresses are…kind of an unholy pain to remember.
As a result, we have the Domain Name System/Service. Instead of having to
remember an IP address, you can simply type in the domain name of the website-
for example. www.google.com. The Domain Name System will translate that domain
name into an IP address so that your computer can find the location that the
domain name corresponds to, without you having to memorize a needless string of
numbers.
To that end, errors such as “Your DNS appears unable to resolve IP addresses”
means that the DNS can’t attach an IP address to the domain name you’ve typed
in. If you’re looking for something of an analogy, I’ve a rather imperfect one
for you: the DNS is kind of like…an automated phonebook. You type in the last
name, and it gives you the phone number.
Kind of a flimsy analogy, but it works.
IP Address
![Picture](/uploads/8/1/7/6/8176274/5406275.png)
An IP-Internet Protocol-Address is how your computer is identified and
located online. It’s a fluid value, and often tends to change. . There are
actually two kinds of IP addresses- a local IP, and a global IP. A local IP
works within a single network, and a global IP works over the entire Internet.
In order to find a system online, you’ll need the global IP, among other
things.
Let’s say you’re accessing a website. Your computer sends a request to your
router, which sends the request to the website. That website responds by sending
data to the global IP address of your router, which then proceeds to send data
to your system’s local IP address. Make sense?
You could think of a local IP address as your home address, and a global IP
address as your home city’s location. Again, that’s anything but perfect; but
it’ll do.
located online. It’s a fluid value, and often tends to change. . There are
actually two kinds of IP addresses- a local IP, and a global IP. A local IP
works within a single network, and a global IP works over the entire Internet.
In order to find a system online, you’ll need the global IP, among other
things.
Let’s say you’re accessing a website. Your computer sends a request to your
router, which sends the request to the website. That website responds by sending
data to the global IP address of your router, which then proceeds to send data
to your system’s local IP address. Make sense?
You could think of a local IP address as your home address, and a global IP
address as your home city’s location. Again, that’s anything but perfect; but
it’ll do.
Gateway
![Picture](/uploads/8/1/7/6/8176274/4330049.png)
A Gateway is the point at which a network connects to either another network or
to the Internet. Routers used to be referred to as Gateways, and the term is
still used when referring to the IP address of the router(known as the “gateway
IP”) which connects a network to the Internet.
to the Internet. Routers used to be referred to as Gateways, and the term is
still used when referring to the IP address of the router(known as the “gateway
IP”) which connects a network to the Internet.