Laptop running slow

Posts Tagged ‘computer repair’

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Maintenance contracts are an important part of any computer business. They allow you to create a steady stream of income in the relatively unsteady business of computer repair. In this article we will talk a little bit about maintenance contracts and how to get them. There are two types of service contracts, business and residential with business ones being the easiest to obtain.

A typical business maintenence contract would be a legal contact specifying what a “service call†is, what is covered and what is not. Accompanying the contract is a maintenance plan outlining the tasks that you would do on each visit. These tasks may include:

• Checking the Antivirus and Windows Updates are up to date
• Running a scan for viruses, adware and Spyware
• Running a scandisk/defrag
• Clearing out any temp folders, cookies, cache, recycling bin etc..
• Clean dust out of airvents, fans and heatsinks to prevent possible problems

You may also have a clause in the contract that you will offer repair work at a discounted rate should any tasks fall outside the bounds of the maintenance plan.

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Running a Computer Repair Business Last updated: 8/7/0 3

Q. What advice/comments do you have on repairing laptop computers?

A. I try to avoid them and have been burned quite a few times by attempting to work on them. One cannot usually work on laptops effectively without a very large supply of parts, extensive documentation, and experience. The parts are usually hard to identify and get, expensive, and difficult to return. The documentation is almost impossible to get. There are an “infinite” number of models and manufactures, and many manufacturers have gone under, and they keep changing. The cases have no rhyme or reason and are often hard to figure-out, and they are very fragile. They are difficult to take apart, put back together again, and avoid breaking or marring while doing it. You need a large shop (or depote–thats’ what I usually use if I can’t avoid them) in a large city that specializes in laptops, and you will usually pay to the nose for parts and labor. If it has a bad motherboard, chances are that it is beyond economical repair. Except for basic repairs and troubleshooting, the same is true for printers and monitors, although to a lesser extent, and they are now so cheap that in most cases they aren’t worth fixing if they are outside of warrantee. Them’s the facts as I see ‘em… Larry

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Where do I send my computer for repair? Question:

Where do I send my computer for repair?

Answer:

Computer Hope does not have any repair shops, as mentioned in CH000468. If your computer and/or computer component needs to be replaced or repaired, please refer to the below section that applies to your situation.

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I ran across this posting by accident, and while I usually enjoy your stuff, I have to take exception with general tone of this article/video Chris. You all but recommended the “Big Boys” by implying that local techs are sneaky and dishonest and out to take advantage of every unwary customer. When did big box stores become the safe place?

As one of those “small local repairmen”, I live and die by reputation and customer referrals. I’m not working for $10/hr and a Best Buy discount until a “real job” comes along. My business is how I feed my family. As such, I care for and protect my customers interests to a fault. I’m looking for a long-term relationship (because it is mutually beneficial), and glowing referrals to friends and associates, not just a chance to take their money once. I ALWAYS go the extra mile.

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Computer, Automated Teller, and Office Machine Repairers

• Nature of the Work
• Training, Other Qualifications, and Advancement
• Employment
• Job Outlook
• Projections
• Earnings
• Wages
• Related Occupations
• Sources of Additional Information

Significant Points

• Employment is expected to decline slowly.
• Job prospects will be best for applicants with knowledge of electronics, certification, formal training, and repair experience.
• Workers qualify for these jobs by receiving training in electronics from associate degree programs, the military, vocational schools, equipment manufacturers, or employers.

Nature of the Work About this section

Computer, automated teller, and office machine repairers install, fix, and maintain many of the machines that are used by businesses, households, and consumers. For large or stationary machines, repairers frequently perform the work on site. These workers—known as field technicians—often have assigned areas where they perform preventive maintenance on a regular basis. Bench technicians commonly repair smaller equipment and often work in repair shops located in stores, factories, or service centers. In small companies, repairers may work both in repair shops and at customer locations.

Computer repairers, also known as computer service technicians or data processing equipment repairers, service mainframe, server, and personal computers; printers; and auxiliary computer equipment. These workers primarily perform hands-on repair, maintenance, and installation of computers and related equipment. Workers who provide technical assistance, in person or by telephone, to computer system users are known as computer support specialists or computer support technicians. (See the section on computer support specialists and systems administrators elsewhere in the Handbook.)

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See also my Guide to used laptop prices

Before we talk about how to upgrade a PC, we have to address whether or not it’s cost effective to do so. I measure cost effectiveness two ways. One, can you simply buy a new or better used PC for the amount of money it will cost you to upgrade your current box. You can buy new PCs with XP starting at $100 and Windows 7 starting at $200. Two, will the upgrade really have a significant impact on the user experience (ie, will you be happy that you spent the money). I’ve written about this in more detail on my other site, but I’m going to sum up here in a quick table, with links to illustrated upgrade procedures below. The obvious one I don’t talk about is power supply, because that’s not really an upgrade item, it’s a repair item, since nobody upgrades their power supply unless they need to:-)

Component Cost Range Time Outcome Motherboard $50 – $250 1 hour to 3 hours (depends on Windows) If you’re talking about a PC that’s several years old, upgrading the motherboard with a new motherboard, an inexpensive new CPU in an advanced technology family, and some DDR-2 or DDR-3 memory, is equivalent to building a new PC with a slowish video card (if the bus technology is compatible). You’ll really see the difference, you’ll be in a great position to upgrade the rest, but why not just build a new one from scratch? In any case, the bug in the soup is getting Windows happy with a new motherboard underneath – goes pretty smoothly sometimes if it similar technology or the same manufacturer, but usually it’s a pain in the behind for a newbie. CPU $30 – $300 5 minutes to 1/2 hour (depends on heatsink) The only time it makes sense to upgrade a CPU is if you have a low speed CPU in the same family. If you replace a 1.4 GHz CPU with a 1.6 GHz CPU, you’ll need benchmarking software to see the difference. On the other hand, if you replace a 700 MHz CPU with a 1.4 GHz CPU, it will scream. That’s cheap, the expensive proposition is replacing a 2.4 GHz CPU with a 3.2 GHz CPU. I’d only consider it if you’re a gamer or a serious data cruncher. The CPU has to be a physical match for the socket (which changes every couple years) and explicitly supported by the motherboard, so don’t try it without motherboard documentation, unless it’s in the cheap end of the range. RAM $20 – $100 5 minutes to 15 minutes If your system supports more RAM and you can figure out what kind it is, go ahead and buy all you can stuff in there, at least up to 1.0 GB for Windows XP, 2.0 or 3.0 GB for Vista, and more 4.0 GB for 32 bit Windows 7, 8.0 GB or more for 64 bit. The performance gain will really depend on what software you are running, but it’s cheap, it’s easy, and it does make a difference. Hard Drive $50 – $ 200 15 minutes to add as second drive, several hours to move operating system and all data and make primary drive Your PC was probably built with a hard drive that could take advantage of the interface speed, so it’s unlikely you can jam a new hard drive with a faster interface into your PC, your motherboard won’t be up to it. You can buy a hard drive with a bigger cache or a faster spindle speed, but you won’t notice the difference most the time. You can buy a second identical drive and do RAID 0, which will speed up reads appreciable. However, the only reason I’d upgrade a hard drive is if I needed more space, and I’d probably add it as a second drive. Otherwise, you need to Ghost the original boot drive over, or reinstall everything from scratch. CDR or DVDR $30 – $100 15 minutes to 1 hour (depends on case geometry, software installation and update) If you don’t have a recorder, it’s well worth it, but make sure you don’t buy a “bare” drive, which means no software. Hint: They don’t record without recording software. I would never upgrade to get a higher speed drive, it just doesn’t make a difference. Nobody runs software off discs, you install it to the hard drive. Unless you’re in the production business, record speed is irrelevant. Video Card $50 – $500 15 minutes to 30 minutes (depends on software install) Only if you’re an artist or a gamer. Otherwise, a video card is a video card is a video card. If you’re a gamer, you may even buy two high end PCI express cards to run in tandem, though that can cost you closer to a grand. With video cards for gaming, you pretty much get what you pay for, but make sure your power supply can handle the extra load because these things eat major wattage. Modem $10 – $100 15 minutes to 1 hour (DSL and cable modem can take a while to configure) A 56 Kb/s modem is a 56 Kb/s modem, but sometimes they fail slowly with age, so a new one might buy you a slightly faster connection rate due to a lower error rate. If your ISP makes a change and your dial-up goes to pot, try a new one, they’re cheap. Changing to broadband (DSL or cable) is the difference between night and day. However, the DSL or cable modem may be free, it’s the monthly fees that get expensive. Sound Card $10 – $50 15 minutes to 30 minutes (disabling motherboard integrated sound and installing software can take time) Unless you’re a musician or an avid gamer, there’s very little to be gained from from upgrading your sound card, sound quality is really a function of the amplified speakers. If you’re a gamer, graduating to 5.1, 6.1 or even 7.1 means more surround sound and low end, which can have a big impact on games (or watching DVDs).

I’ve been putting together an illustrated guide for all the basic upgrades you can do to a desktop computer. The first one I did was probably the most common (and the poorest photography since I was just starting the work), and illustrates how to replace a hard drive. This is one of those jobs where the physical installation is pretty easy if you can handle a screwdriver, but if you aren’t just adding a second drive for more capacity, the software setup takes forever. Transferring your operating system from and old boot drive to a new boot drive really requires a third party software solution like Ghost, though many retail hard drives come with a utility to do this for you as a one time bonus. It doesn’t always work.

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At http://geekteks.com get A+ service & a fix guaranteed! Call 877.433.5835 today!

The audio/video is out of sync on this video. View the video response for an in sync version or click here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbR4wS…

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Author: McClay Robinson

Article Source: MiNeeds.com, where consumers get competitive bids from Web Designers & Computer Service providers. Read reviews, compare offers & save. It’s free!

Article Link: http://www.mineeds.com/Tustin/Diverse-Technology-Solutions-1/Articles/Why-is-My-Laptop-Computer-Running-Slow-

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Remote computer repair is a field that is fast picking up and becoming the preferred choice of customers looking for repairs for their PCs. These remote computer repair specialists can repair most of your PC problems by remote control, as long as you have a high speed Internet connection. Specialists usually charge an hourly service fee.

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