There is nothing worse at work than having to give a presentation when your computer fails on the spot. When your computer does not function it can cause huge problems in both your personal and professional life, so it is important that you quickly diagnose and fix the problem. Although there are thousands of potential issues that require computer repair, there are a few main categories that encompass the majority of problems you may face. Hardware Failure When your computer won’t boot up when you try to turn it on, it can be a really bad start to your day. Hardware failure is a common problem with computers and unfortunately can be the hardest problem for the layman to diagnose and fix himself. If your computer simply will not turn on, this is considered a hardware problem that could be caused by a drained battery. If your computer turns on but gives you a Stop Error (commonly referred to as the Blue Screen of Death), it is most likely the cause of computer hardware failure. The best thing you can do before calling a computer repair shop is to ensure that power is running to your computer. A helpful hint is to see/hear that the fan in your computer is running to confirm that power is reaching the unit. Software Failure Software failures can be as simple as getting a 404 Page Not Found error when you are trying to connect to a website, or as complex as your entire computer locking up when you try to open a new application. Luckily, one thing the average computer user can do to fix this problem is to reboot the machine. Many times this will fix any software problems you are having. It is important that you are constantly saving any open documents on your computer, because when a reboot if required, often times it will result in you losing changes to any documents you had opened but not saved. Computer Virus A computer virus cannot only render your machine useless, it is also a big threat to your privacy. Lots of personal information is stored on your computer – your address book, your personal photos, and many times sensitive financial information that you don’t want to get in the wrong hands. A computer virus can take over your machine and access some of this data, so it is important that you install antivirus software and update it regularly. Hackers are constantly changing the computer code, so your antivirus software may not detect a new virus if you haven’t updated it in a while. Most security breaches on personal computers are a result of users revealing their usernames and passwords via email to someone who is pretending to be a trustworthy client of yours. Never give our your computer passwords over email or instant messenger, and never install any program on your machine that you don’t trust.
