Category Archives: Troubleshooting

Top Ten Tech Tips

| December 3, 2014

Here are my top ten tech tips (for today!): 1)      When in doubt, REBOOT.   Rebooting, not only computers, but a number of electronic devices, fixes numerous issues. For example: Windows is “running slowly” possibly means that a program may be misbehaving and hogging vital system resources; rebooting the computer can often times resolve that issue.  Another common example is when your “Internet is down;” rebooting your networking equipment (modem and router) can sometimes resolve this issue.  Unplugging your modem/router from power and plugging it back in is a common solution for a number of networking issues. 2)      If you don’t know the sender of an email DO NOT CLICK THE LINKS OR DOWNLOAD ANY ATTACHMENTS!   Bogus emails are one of the number one waysRead Full Article

Five Reasons You Should Retire Your Windows XP ASAP!

| October 28, 2014

Here are five reasons why you should retire your Windows XP computer as soon as possible: 1. Updates & Bug Fixes: Since Microsoft decided to end support for Windows XP back in April 14, 2014, there have been no more security updates or technical support. Without any patches, updates, and hotfixes, your computer is more vulnerable to viruses, spywares, and hackers. Your identity could be more easily compromised. 2.  Software & Drivers: Now that Microsoft has ended the support for XP, all software developers and manufactures will ultimately follow suit. Newly purchased hardware, such as printers, scanners, webcams, etc., will no longer have supporting software for Windows XP. Programmers will stop develop compatible applications and programs for an outdated operating system. With limited software andRead Full Article

Avoiding Computer Hackers

| April 3, 2014

We all use email as a primary source of communication on a daily basis–for business and personal use. Every day our in-boxes are bombarded with SPAM and advertisements. Some of these emails are legitimate, but some are phishing emails. Phishing emails are designed to steal your password, bank information, credit card information and other personal data from your computer. How can you tell if a message is a scam or legitimate? Here are a few tips to follow in order to avoid having your computer hacked  through these types of emails. Bad spelling and grammar – Hackers are great at coming up with ways to steal, but they aren’t so great at proofreading. If the message contains a misspelled word or poor grammar, it mayRead Full Article

Help, my computer is infected! Or, Ways to Prevent Your Computer from Being Infected

| March 6, 2014

Wikipedia defines Malware (short for malicious software) as: “software used to disrupt computer operation, gather sensitive information, or gain access to private computer systems.It can appear in the form of code, scripts, active content, and other software.’Malware’ is a general term used to refer to a variety of forms of hostile or intrusive software.” As a Rent A Nerd field technician, hardly a day goes by where I am not called upon to remove all manner of pop-ups, toolbars, fake antivirus programs and ransomware (a class of malware that restricts access to the computer system which it infects, and demands a ransom paid to the creator of the malware in order for the restriction to be removed). The main thing most people want to knowRead Full Article