"What the mass media offers is not popular art, but entertainment which is intended to be consumed like food, forgotten, and replaced by a new dish."W. H. Auden
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Disco Stu's Top Tips to help Students Save Money
The biggie, of course, is GO HOME. You can eat free there. And Mum will probably do the laundry (if you crawl / look pathetic enough). It pays to save up your laundry till the trip is worthwhile - you can even take in laundry from your richer student pals ...
Safari Wildlife Photography Top Four Tips
I've been practising wildlife photography on safari for over twenty years now in places like the Kruger National Park, Chobe, Okavango Delta, and Hwange game reserves and these four tips have been indispensable in making sure that I get some decent ...
Top 10 Tips You Must Know When Buying a Car
1. You should purchase your new car at or around Christmas time because with everybody buying their Christmas presents, not many of them are looking to buy a new car, and it forces dealerships to up their sales strategies. Salesmen are more willing to ...
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1. Get Rid of Dust
One of the most common causes of overheating is dust and dirt. So you need to keep your system clean, inside and out. Try to clean it once a year using lint-free wipes. Make sure you use an antistatic wrist strap as well to protect your system when cleaning inside the case.
2. Get Power Protection
One of the saddest things in many PCs is that they are not surge protected. Surge protectors are a good investment - they protect your PC from that unfortunate power outage or lightning strike. Try to get one that has a warning indicator and is UL 1449 certified.
3. Turn Off the Monitor
One tip I always apply at home - turn off the PC monitor when its not in use. I treat the computer monitor like a TV - don't waste your monitor's power if you're not using it. This is especially important in LCD monitors, which may burn out or get bad pixels after long periods of use.
4. Keep the PC Running
Many people don't realize that its harmful to power up your computer from a cold state. This is especially true when done repeatedly within a short timeframe. Try to leave your PC running as long as possible - or use the Microsoft Windows' Power Management settings to put your machine into hibernation rather than completely shutting down.
5. Hard Drive Health Check
If you use Windows XP, you should regularly check your hard disk's health with an error-checking utility. In Windows Explorer, click on the drive's icon, select Properties -> Tools -> Check Now. If the check discovers several hundred errors, your drive could be full of bad sectors - you'd best backup your important data and then try to get it repaired.
6. Get an Anti-Virus Program
I still find it amazing that many home computer users do not have an anti-virus program installed. This piece of software is fundamental to any computer system. You should definitely consider getting a program like Norton Antivirus or The Shield Pro to protect against harmful attacks.
7. Check the CMOS battery
If you have a very
old PC (four or five years old), the CMOS battery on the motherboard may need to be replaced. The first sign of a bad CMOS battery is when your system clock starts losing time.
8. Take Care when Opening the Case
Whenever you open the PC case, turn off the power and unplug your PC. Ground yourself first - by touching anything inside the PC to avoid destroying your circuit boards with a static charge. Another option is to wear a grounding wrist strap. I've destroyed my computer power supply before because I forgot about this point.
9. Maintain the Mouse
What's one of the dirtiest components in a PC that you come in contact with? Yes - it's the modest little mouse. Years of using a mouse will get it filled with dirt and grime.
If you have a mechanical mouse, you'll realize this when the mouse starts to move erratically. To clean it, unscrew the mouse and use a small scraper to scrape the dirt off the two plastic rollers inside. Also remember to clean the scroll wheel if there is one. If you have a optical mouse, you need not worry about any internal rollers but you still need to clean the scroll wheel.
10. Clean Up the Registry
If you always add and remove computer programs in your PC, you can be sure the entries in your Windows Registry are pretty much in a mess. A clogged Windows Registry increases the time your PC boot up time and hogs system resources. Try to get a tool to help clean the registry safely, such as Registry Mechanic. Do not try to clean the registry yourself if you're not sure what you're doing.
Conclusion
I hope this article has given you many ideas on how to keep your good old PC in tiptop shape. Remember, take care of your PC and it will take care of you. Apply these tips once in a while to ensure a trouble-free computer system.
About the author:
Gary Hendricks runs a hobby site on building computers. Visit his website at Build-Your-Own-Com puters.com for tips and tricks on assembling a PC, as well as buying good computer components.
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Top tips for a great holiday in some of Scotland's best B&BsScotsmanHere the experts from {http://www. scotlandsbestbandbs.co.uk|scotlandsbestbandbs.co.uk|scotlandsbestbandbs.co.uk} offer tips for choosing a place which suits your needs. Are you looking for a rural retreat or city vibrancy, easy access to the hills or ... |
Stuff.co.nz |
Top tips for kids' birthday cakesStuff.co.nz"People see wonderful books, fabulous cakes, but they're a bit over the top," says Jones. "Straight away they want to be able to do these sorts of cakes. Strip it down and simplify the design. The kids up to three, they're looking at the colour. |
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Top tips launched for a summertime of easy recyclingWest Sussex GazetteNow West Sussex County Council, in conjunction with the district council collection authorities and Viridor – the county council's recycling and waste handling contractor – is launching a series of top tips to help residents ensure great recycling. |
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