Some Essential Computer Maintenance Tips

We recommend the following PC computer maintenance tips to help keep your computer healthy, out of the Shop and in the home.
   

 Scan your PC daily with both an anti-virus and anti-spyware software. For anti-virus, we recommend ESET NOD32. For anti-spyware, we recommend SpyBot-SD (free).

1. Disk defragment your PC weekly. This helps improve speed and performance.
2. Keep your Operating System (Windows) and security software up to date.
3. Uninstall any unused or TRIAL/DEMO software. Unused software only bogs your PC performance down and clutters the hard drive. If you're not using it... uninstall it! Think of this as carrying around a bunch of junk in the back seat of your car.
4. Don't use web browser tool bars. Most of these act as "spy-ware", collecting your browsing habits while on the web.
5. Keep the dust out - using a can of air, clean all internal PC cooling fans and electronic components every 6 months. A dusty PC (internal) increases the heat, causing sluggish performance and reduces the life of your computer.
6. Backup your data regularly, at least once a week. Google Drive is an excellent tool for this type of task.
7. Use a UL Listed surge protector or UPS (uninterruptible power supply). This helps protect your PC and data during times of a power outage.
8. Disable unneeded system startup programs. This is done using msconfig in the Run/Search menu.
9. Properly shut down your PC, WITHOUT using the power button.
10. Properly disconnect USB devices and safely remove hardware, rather than "yanking" them out of the USB port.
11. Don't keep a cluttered desktop - remove all unused desktop shortcut icons, and place files in the My Document folders. This helps increase the computer's boot time and keeps you more organized.
12. Regularly clear internet browser cache, history and cookies. At least once a week should do the trick. This helps improve the speed of loading web pages and internet performance.