COMPUTER SALES AND SUPPORT

01929 475828

07974 120492

A. Please see our contact information page which shows our current charges here

Q.Why has my computer slowed down?

A. In nearly all cases it is due to software running in the background hogging system resources, this comes in many forms but is usually adware and/or spyware and is generated from visiting websites which hide this in the page. Many disks which load device drivers, so you can use new hardware devices, will often contain programs which you will never use but load up whenever the computer is started. Sadly these programs can be difficult to remove, removing them using add/remove programs rarely makes any difference and the more determined programs will hide in places making them difficult to find.

Q. But I never download things, how did this happen?

A. By definition every time you visit a webpage you are downloading HTML code which enables you to see the page on your monitor, if you only ever go to the BBC website for example you may never have a problem, but point your computer at more and more websites and sooner or later you'll have something else on your machine.

Q. How can I get rid of adware/spyware etc.

A. There are many utilities available which may help, the first one you may wish to try is ADAWARE which can be downloaded from www.download.com for free. Always use a good anti-virus application and make sure your computer is up to date, i.e. windows updates.

Q. I have one computer which I use for my business and/or personal data what should I be worried about.

A. Hard drive failure, hard drives are mechanical devices which will at some stage fail, very often this means the data is irretrievable so always backup your data. Make sure you are backing up your important data and not some useless file or shortcut by restoring the data occasionally to check the backup is working properly, never assume it is working.

Q. What questions should I ask before I buy my computer?

A. Firstly ask yourself what you expect to do with it, if you are browsing the internet and sending email, do you need a 3.2 GHz processor and a 200 GB hard drive. Don't be impressed by the big numbers, if all the components aren't matched equally then your Ferrari powered computer will struggle with its agricultural tyres. Ask about the motherboard as all the other bits are connected to this, so it's safe to say this is quite important, a cheap power supply won't help either. Don't necessarily expect to see Microsoft Word, Excel etc on the computer, this is a Microsoft add on which is not part of the operating system and is usually purchased separately.

Q. Is it worth upgrading my ? year old computer?

A. Obviously it depends on the age, but computer prices have fallen dramatically. 4 to 5 year old computers are generally borderline, the internet and other software packages have moved on and these now demand minimum system requirements far in excess of earlier PC's. Components on the motherboard will also begin to fail as they get older causing intermittent problems at best, making upgrading an old PC a risky venture, again quality components help.

Q. Is a laptop better than a PC.

A.Yes and no, they are obviously smaller and take up less space and if you need the mobility they are the only choice, however whereas nearly all the components on a PC can be easily repaired the opposite is true of laptops, parts can be difficult to source and repairs expensive.

If you would like to see other questions answered here please email your requests to us.