Continued from previous post………………
Re-boot and use the CD as boot disk, formatting the hard drive (you can chose the type of file system as you do so, Fat32 or NTFS). Make sure you check or select make disk bootable in the format menu. After the format (a few hours if you have a large hard drive) run the fdisk utility that allows you to partition your hard drive into several small ones or you can simply select the hole drive as the primary partition from which you will be booting from. (more…)
There comes a time when you simply have tons of files and programs that are getting onto your nerves and even with uninstalls of unused ones still fails to speed up your perfectly good PC, then the only option would be to do a clean re-install of your OS and all the programs you may be using. It may be a good time to do a total PC cleaning, taking out hidden dust bunnies and others from the innards of the PC, with a healthy memory upgrade to match. You could also consider upgrading your hard drive to a larger one if you think you’d be needing it. First step, back up all files (documents, pictures, audio and others) onto CD’s or DVD’s for safety’s sake. (more…)
If the blue screen appears yet again, power down and remove your memory modules (if you have many, mostly four) connect them one by one till you get the lot installed. Any defective modules would make themselves apparent with the blue screen soon after. If you have to get new memory modules, be sure to check the specifications of your older ones for there are compatibility issues. If you cannot get hold of the same specification memory modules, you can consider upgrading to a better and newer lot. You may get better performance and extend the life of your PC for a tad bit longer (new ones come out at a rate of every few months)
Use the canned air to blow out the dust bunnies that are visible (if you see a thick layer of dust, relocate outdoors so you don’t get people sneezing uncontrollably as you spray on) paying close attention to the CPU itself and the heat sink. A vacuum cleaner would also be good but use it with caution for it is mostly made of plastic and it can damage the computer. It can also be too powerful that it sucks some jumpers and other small parts into oblivion. Check for corroded pins on the connectors and use the contact cleaner (others use an eraser which not only removes the gold plating on the contacts but abrades them to the point they thin out).
This process is for medium to advanced PC users only for not understanding what to do can send your CPU six feet under so be sure you have enough technical skills to do the following before you start. Disconnect all power cords and peripheral cables from the connectors on the back of the PC, this is not only for safety but it also prevents everything from crashing down as you pull the CPU out. Open the casing (usually with a cross-head screwdriver) and remove the cover to expose the internal organs of the CPU. Find the power supply and touch it with your hand for a few minutes to dissipate any static charge that you may have stored in you (good idea to get a static wrist-strap that you strap around your wrist and clip onto the metal casing to prevent static build-up), all the internal components of your computer is made of static sensitive electronics that would get trashed should stray static electricity get into them. Best to remove all the internal wires and connectors from the hard drives, floppy drives (if you still have and use them), CD drives, power connectors to the CPU and other cards attached or installed within the CPU.
SAFETY FIRST:
If you know what you are about to do, by all means continue. If not, take the CPU to the computer store for them to clean (better safe than sorry). If you don’t know what to do but am bold enough to try, some tips. DISCONNECT all power connections to the CPU before handling. Some ungrounded computers have current leaking all over and touching the metal case would send a jolt of electricity through you (IT HURTS BELEIVE ME!!!). There are a lot of wires and connectors inside and outside of the computer system so use labels if you deem them to be necessary or if you have the manual with you that would be the best. You can also get your digital camera to snap a few pictures of the outside wires (especially the ones inside, a wrong connection can destroy components). Most computers have color coded connectors but some after market accessories don’t, so if you’re not sure ask questions just to be safe. The tools you would need are: can of air (store bought that is void of moisture), contact cleaner, possibly a vacuum cleaner (so you don’t send dust flying all over) a set of screwdrivers, sometimes a pair of pliers and some containers to store screws.
Everybody who has been using windows for quite sometime may have encountered the blue screen of death but more often in Windows NT or newer versions of operating systems based on it. The blue screen is a memory stack overflow error that has resulted from an illegal operation that in other words means you’re in deep trouble. If you just happened to be doing your term paper and you failed to set the auto-save function to a shorter interval or do an actual hard save (or back-up) and this happens when the application or document is open, pray. For office users, you might get some luck with auto recover information that sometimes results from such operations.
