FAQ’s

When we reinstall windows, everything on your computer is erased; unfortunately your programs are as well. We have to do this to ensure that there is no risk of infection on the new installation of Windows. If you have any trouble installing new programs, you may email, call or stop in and we can fully assist in any and all aspects of installing or reinstalling a program on your computer.

We install virus protection software on every computer that comes into the shop. We set this protection up to start when your computer starts and to update when you aren’t using it, so you aren’t slowed down. Now it will scan your computer for infections when you aren’t using it, so you won’t be inconvenienced or disturbed by the anti-virus

If you are a member or paid for a backup, we placed all of the backed up files on a DVD and sorted the files as they were in your original configuration.

The filing system on a computer works just like the one in your file cabinet. Files are kept in folders, folders are kept inside larger folders called sub-directories, and those directories are kept in the filing cabinet, your hard drive. To start looking through your folders, click the start button(bottom left hand corner of your screen). In the top right hand corner of the menu you just opened are a few of your main folders: Music, Documents, Pictures and Videos. These locations are the default places windows puts files of that type. For example, if you download a word document from your email to your computer and can’t find it, the most likely place it went is Documents. This trend is the same for music, videos, pictures, etc.

There are several steps involved in the backup and reload process.

First, we make a complete backup of all your personal documents. This includes your pictures, documents, music, favorites, and any other files that can be found. These files are saved to DVD and given to you when you pick up your computer.

We then format your hard drive. In essence, we permanently erase everything, make your computer blank, and start from scratch.

Then we reinstall Windows and all of the drivers to make it work properly. Once this is done we update the operating system and install all other necessary programs, such as Antivirus protection and an Office suite.

The hard drive is what stores all your files (Documents, Pictures, Videos, etc.)

Every time you open a program, it gets loaded from the hard drive into the RAM. This is because reading data from the RAM is much faster than reading data from the hard drive. The more RAM your computer has, the more data can be loaded from the hard drive into the RAM, which can effectively speed up your computer.

Also known as an "OS," this is the software that communicates with computer hardware on the most basic level. Without an operating system, no software programs can run. The OS is what allocates memory, processes tasks, accesses disks and peripherials, and serves as the user interface. (Windows, Mac OS, Linux, DOS)

Like a biological virus, a computer virus is something you don't want to get. Computer viruses are small programs or scripts that can negatively affect the health of the software of your computer.

A computer peripheral is any external device that provides input and output for the computer. For example, a keyboard and mouse are input peripherals, while a monitor and printer are output peripherals. Computer peripherals, or peripheral devices, are sometimes called "I/O devices" because they provide input and output for the computer. Some peripherals, such as external hard drives, provide both input and output for the computer.

Short for "Wireless Fidelity." (Yes, it is pretty much a rip-off of the term "Hi-Fi," or High Fidelity, which refers to high-quality audio or surround sound.) Wi-Fi refers to wireless network components that are based on one of the Wi-Fi Alliance's 802.11 standards.

Computer hardware refers to the physical parts of a computer and related devices. Internal hardware devices include motherboards, hard drives, and RAM. External hardware devices include monitors, keyboards, mice, printers, and scanners.

Computer software is a general term that describes computer programs. Related terms, such as software programs, applications, scripts, and instruction sets, all fall under the category of computer software. Therefore, installing new programs or applications on your computer is synonymous with installing new software on your computer.

Stands for "MPEG-1 Audio Layer-3". MP3 is a popular compressed audio file format that helped popularize digital music downloads beginning in the late 1990s. MP3 files are typically about one tenth the size of uncompressed WAVE files, but maintain nearly the same CD-quality sound. Because of their small size and good fidelity, MP3 files have become a popular way to store music files on both computers and portable devices, like the iPod.

Defragmenting your hard disk is a great way to boost the performance of your computer. Though the term "defragment" sounds a little abrasive, it is actually a simple and helpful process. After all, a defragmented hard disk is a happy hard disk.

Adding and deleting files from your hard disk is a common task. Unfortunately, this process is not always done very efficiently. For example, when you delete a bunch of little files and add a new large file, the file may get broken up into mulitple sections on the hard disk. The computer will still read the newly added file as a single valid file, but the drive will have to scan multiple parts of the disk to read it. Because hard disk seek time is one of the most significant bottlenecks in a computer's performance, this can drag down your computer's speed quite a bit. If you have a ton of "fragmented" files on your hard disk, you might hear extra grinding, sputtering, and other weird noises coming from your computer.