» Something is wrong with my computer! Can you help me?
Yes, no matter what problem you are experiencing with your computer, we can help with just about all of it. We can fix it ourselves or even walk you through how to fix it yourself. Even if your needs are outside the scope of our services, we can point you in the right direction on what you can do, or refer you to someone who can fix it.

» How can I tell if I have a virus?
Each virus, worm, etc. behaves differently. The easiest way to detect infection is to have your virus protection software up to date and run a scan on your PC. Don’t have a virus scanner? You can easily get one by heading down to your local computer store or purchasing one online. Or get a free virus scan from Trend Micro. If you don’t even want to touch your PC, you can contact us for a free quote and we’ll handle everything.

» How do I prevent viruses?
The best way to prevent viruses is to not be on the Internet, but that’s no fun, so we’d recommend remembering a couple easy steps;
1) Make sure you have virus protection software, and keep it updated.
2) Don’t open any e-mail attachments from people you don’t know, or weren’t expecting from someone you do know. Attachment files we don’t even consider opening from an e-mail are one with file extensions of .EXE, .SCR, .CMD, .COM, .BAT, .SCT, .VB, .VBE, .VBS, .PIF. If you want a longer list of what files to be suspicious about check out this page about “Executable file extensions".
3) Keep your operating system up to date. Windows 2000 and above users can set Automatic Updates, and Windows will stay current on all critical updates, including all Internet security-related updates. If you’re still running Windows 98 and below can manually update your operating system by visiting the official Microsoft update page, or better yet, upgrade your operating system. Using anything older than Windows 98 is bad practice and increases your computer’s chance of infection.

» How do I get rid of "spam"?
The best first step to avoiding unsolicited e-mails is simply to be careful with whom you give your e-mail address to. Also be wary about where your e-mail gets posted on the Internet. Guestbooks, Livejournals, message boards, etc. are all places where spamming software crawls to look for valid email addresses to spam to. If you have to post your email somewhere try changing its appearance slightly (name @ domain.com, or nameNOSPAM@domain.com) This way a program that looks for email will get it wrong, but real people will be able to see that they need to remove the spaces, or the word NOSPAM to email you correctly.
We’d also highly recommend getting a secondary free web based e-mail to use in cases you think you are likely to get spammed. For instance, that online contest you entered to win a Britney prize pack, or the free lottery website you play daily are very likely to use your e-mail address for any number of unscrupulous things, so for those you would use your secondary e-mail address. This way your primary “real” e-mail address stays spam-free, and your secondary account will receive the brunt of the unsolicited e-mails.
For those of us who have all ready had our permanent, primary e-mail addresses added to bulk mailing lists and are receiving troublesome amounts of spam, there are options (software, hardware, and online scripts) that can help. These weed through the junk mail (each able to use different methods) and deliver only “real” e-mail to your inbox. We can suggest some highly effective options based on your set up, so feel free to contact us for a free quote.

» How much does PC troubleshooting cost?
Prices vary between providers, but our rates are competitive and fair. Please click here for all technical support prices.

» My computer is running slow. How can I speed it up?
There are a couple of things you can do- mainly maintenance things you should do anyway.
For instance, use Ad-aware from Lavasoft (free or paid version) to remove spyware from your PC, and defragment your PC at least monthly.
Next, check your bottom right of the screen. Are there a bunch of icons next to your clock? If so, you might have too many background services running and eating up your CPU cycles and memory, so try disabling a couple. Have a lot of programs running at once and your PC is bogging down? You may want to invest in more system memory (RAM). You can also use some built in Windows “system tools” to do a clean up of your drive. They will mainly clear all your cache, lingering files, temp files, etc. Check in your control panel and double click on “add and remove programs” and get rid of programs you don’t use anymore.
If you are running Windows, (and do not have impeccable PC maintenance habits) you will find that about every couple years your entire computer may seem to be running poorly. The Windows operating system has many upsides, but arguably as many downsides. One of them being a shelf life of about 2 years before a clean install (aka: reformat) is needed. If it has been more than 2 years since you reformatted your computer, or you are unsure what a reformat is, it’s time to back up all your essential data and reinstall Windows. This is a pain, but it’s part of using a Windows based PC, and can help your computer run much faster and smoother.
If you would like additional assistance in speeding up your computer, contact us for a free quote.