PC Troubleshooting for Non-Geeks

The Do-It-Yourself Computer Repair Manual for Beginners

by Mike Camp

Published by F. Wobst – www.eBook-Publishing.biz

This report is written to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered. Although reliable sources of information have been used in gathering material for this eBook, neither the author nor the publisher will accept any liability for the accuracy of its content nor the consequences of any reliance placed upon it. Copyright © 2006 by Mike Camp. All rights reserved. Contents of this report may not be quoted, paraphrased, or otherwise copied in any print or electronic format. For use of original buyer only. For additional copies or permissions please contact the publisher at www.ebook-publishing.biz .

813B-42313

Contents

1. Introduction……………………………………………………………………………3

2. The Software Side of Things………………………………………………………….5

3. The Hardware Side of It………………………………………………….……………8

4. Tools…………………………………………………………………………………11

5. Cautions and Precautions…………………………………………………………….12

6. To Upgrade or Not to Upgrade? That is the Question……………………………….13

7. When Hardware Goes Bad……………………………………………….…………..14

8. Replacing a Power Supply………………………………………………..………….15

9. Replacing or Adding Memory…...…..………………………………………………18

10. Replacing a Motherboard and CPU.…………………………………………………20

11. Installing a New Sound or Video Card………………………………………………25

12. Installing a Hard Drive……………………………………………………………….28

13. Installing a DVD/CDRW Drive……………………………………………………...32

14. Fixing Problems KISS……………………………………………………………….34

15. Software Errors………………………………………………………………………43

16. My Computer Won’t Start, and Other Common Problems.…..……………………..50

17. DSL vs. Cable Modem Comparison…………………………………………………55

18. Helpful Online Resources……………………………………………………………57

19. Books and Magazines………………………………………………………………..58

20. About the Author…………………………………………………………………….60

2

Introduction

Let’s face it, all of us use computers. Either in our work environment, or at home, or

both. And now it’s common to see them on airplanes, restaurants, and even in

automobiles. There are also more computer repair shops than ever before doing billions

of dollars in repair work each year.

I own a repair shop myself, and have owned and operated one for over twelve years. I

have certifications from Microsoft™, HP™ and Xerox™. I belong to the AMD™ system

builders’ organization, and Microsoft’s OEM system builder program. On a daily basis I

deal with the average computer user, which means I work for people just like you. You

are what the industry calls the “end user”, I am what the industry refers to as an OEM,

that is an Original Equipment Manufacturer. At least a dozen times a day I try to give my

customers advice on repairing their own machines and I spare no amount of time in

explaining and writing down the steps they should follow to get the job done. I must

admit that on more than one occasion I get a puzzled look and a question such as: “Why

are you telling me? Don’t you want my business?”

I do want the business, but I also know that almost anyone can repair and upgrade their

own computer, and save a lot of money in the process. My shop charges a reasonably

priced flat fee for all computer work. My prices are far more than reasonable and way

below the average for this field of work. So I have a question too. Why wouldn’t anyone

want to save anywhere from $100 to $400 dollars in labor costs.

3

It’s nothing to find any number of people all around the world repairing their

automobiles. Yet they do not have a degree in engineering, or they haven’t been to a trade

school to study mechanics and for the most part they have no extensive knowledge of the

inner workings of an internal combustion engine. Computers are far less complicated than

an automobile yet they have this mystical property to them that has no doubt been fueled

by the computer industry and computer repair facilities themselves.

This book will tell you in plain English how to transform that sluggish old machine to a

state of the art powerhouse through simple upgrades. It will also explain simple

techniques for troubleshooting and repairing your computer when that fatal day comes

and it just doesn’t start up again. I will tell you how to upgrade - and how to save so

hundreds of dollars by just doing it yourself.

I will go over the most common errors encountered by computer user’s everyday, and I

will tell you how to fix them and exactly what caused them in the first place. You know

how there is always someone that everybody calls when they have trouble with their

computers, the guy or gal that everyone calls a geek. Following the simple information in

this manual will give you more knowledge and know-how than the geeks in your

hometown.

4

The Software Side of Things

The software in your computer is nothing more than the programs that are running on the

computer after the initial start up. To the user, the operating system is your desk top, the

thing you see on your monitor with icons scattered all over it after windows loads. I am

using Windows as the example because it is by far the most common OS, or Operating

System and is still being used in all of its various flavors. When I say flavors I am

referring to the version of windows you are using, such as: Windows™ XP, 2000, ME,

98. Or 95, yes people still use windows 95. In fact I have a vintage IBM™ PC with

windows version 1.0 on it and it still works fine.

When you install a new program, software, on your computer it often refers to the flavors

like this: XP, 2000, NT, ME, or 9X. The 9x meaning any version from Windows from 95

through Windows 98SE.

The other software on your computer are the anti virus programs, office suites,

productivity packages and so on. These are the programs that allow us to interact with the

computer in a meaningful manner, they are what make the computer a useful tool for our

everyday lives. The biggest thing to remember here is that your software has nothing to

do with the mechanical function of your computer.

Anti Virus Programs

In this day and age anyone that use’s a computer should have a good anti virus program

installed and functioning on the machine. With a few hundred new viruses a day being

sent out over the worldwide web it is a foolish mistake to believe that you will not

5

encounter one. There are several brands of anti virus programs out there but I would use

one that has been around for a while. The most notable of these is Norton™, and

McAfee™ but there are many, many more. I suggest asking friends what works best for

them and check out the pros and cons on a few Internet forums before you purchase one.

Because most retailers will not let you return software after is has been opened read the

side panels of the software package before you buy it. This applies to every kind of

software from games to programs. When selecting software, flip the retail box around and

you will find a small side panel with all the information you need. This panel will tell

you exactly what version of windows the product is made for.

Spy Ware Programs

I would also recommend a good anti spy ware program and highly recommend Spyware

Doctor from PCTools™, their web address is www.pctools.com I have personally used

this program thousands of times and it has saved me many hours of labor and heartache.

It is a fact of life in this age of information, that if you are on the Internet, you have spy

ware on your computer. A tell tale sign of spy ware infections is that suddenly your

computer is moving a lot slower or even locking up when you try and access the Internet.

WARNING! Do not download anti spy ware from pop ups that appear on your

computer! Almost 99% of the time these pop ups will lead you to a site that has the full

intention of infecting your computer with much worse than spy ware!

This is important so repeat after me: “I WILL NOT DOWN LOAD SPY WARE

BLOCKERS FROM POP UP ADDS!

6

Productivity Programs

When we say productivity we mean office suites. Most computers some with a small

usable program for composing letters or memos but they leave a lot to be desired when it

comes to actually writing, or composing something meaningful. There are a lot of suites

out there, the most notable are Microsoft Office (features two of the worlds most popular

programs, Word, and Excel), Corel office suite (which features word perfect), and Lotus

also has an office suite. Again, do your research and decide which one is best for you.

Microsoft Office is by far the most common suite out there and has an array of programs

from word processing to spread sheets, and it usually has converters for all the other

major office suite on the market enabling you to import almost any other format of

information. There are also programs dedicated to publishing and creative writing,

mathematics, spreadsheets, databases and just about everything else you could desire.

While on the subject of productivity lets not forget our email programs, after all they are

a vital part of our world today. Microsoft windows come with outlook express, and

Microsoft Office comes with Outlook. Both are equally popular email programs. Many

people prefer to use Netscape as a browser and it has its own email program. Then there

are others that desire to use the email programs offered by popular search sites like

Yahoo and Google and still more that like to use programs like Hot Mail or Juno mail.

7

The Hardware Side of It

The thing you see sitting on the floor under your desk, or sitting on top of your desk with

blinking green and red lights is the computer case. Some people call it a tower and yet

others like to use the word CPU even though the CPU is an entirely different piece of

equipment. Cases come in almost any imaginable size and shape, and any color under the

rainbow. For the most part, they are all roughly rectangle, the cube shape is also

becoming more and more popular because of its small size. Some have see through sides,

some are completely transparent and the multitudes of them are just metal.

The one thing you should consider when purchasing a new case is how easy it is to gain

access to the inner workings of the computer. The easiest use a latching mechanism

instead of screws, the next best use large thumbscrews that do not require a screwdriver

to unscrew. But by and far the majority have at least two screws holding on the side of

the case. A lot of cases offer easy access to the motherboard and components by allowing

the motherboard plate (the thing the motherboard is fastened to) to slide out the back of

the case, or fold out of the board side of the case by loosening a couple screws.

Many of the cases have arrays of lights on the front and sides and many now come with

bright neon colored cooling fan lights making the whole thing look other worldly when

the power is on. My advice is to choose a case that fits your needs, has sturdy back plates

to fastened component cards to, and is solid enough to muffle some of the sound

generated by the computer.

8

To open the average case, first make sure it is unplugged from the wall socket. Also

unplug any cables that are attached such as the mouse, keyboard, modem and video.

Now, facing the front of the computer lay the case on its right side. You can put a towel

under it if you are afraid you might scratch the finish on the case, definitely use a cloth of

some kind if it has a transparent side. Loosen the screws or latch and slide the slide panel

back until it unlocks, and then remove it and sit it out of the way.

Inside the Case

Since your case is lying on its side and you are looking down inside the case, the first

thing you will notice, besides all the wires, is the motherboard. It is a large circuit board

that occupies a large portion of what is now the bottom of your computer case. Seated in

special sockets on the motherboard is the CPU, (the microprocessor), the BIOS, two to

four long sockets for the memory and a collection of auxiliary slots.

The most common slots you see are usually white or blue in color, they are the PCI slots.

All PCI slots are 16 bit slots and are used for modems, NIC cards (Network Interface

Cards). There is usually at least one brown colored slot that sits a little farther back on the

motherboard than the other slots, it is also the closest slot to the power supply. This is an

AGP slot, it is used for AGP graphics adapters (video cards). AGP slots are 32 bit slots

and usually have some kind of mechanism to help secure the video card in place.

Again we are looking down into the case with the front of the case facing our stomach.

The large rectangle piece of metal in the upper right corner of the case, the one with all

the wires coming out of it is the power supply.

9

Usually in close proximity to the power supply is the CPU, or microprocessor.

Sometimes this CPU is located under the power supply and can not even be seen until

you remove the power supply from the case. When you see the CPU you will actually be

looking at the fan and heat sink that is mounted on top of it. The CPU is a small silicon

wafer sitting in a socket under this cooling device.

Near the CPU you will see from two to four long sockets with small latches at each end.

These are the DIMM sockets, or RAM sockets or in plain English this is where the

memory goes. You will notice that there is a small ridge near the center of each of the

memory sockets, this is to ensure that you can only put the memory stick in one way.

Looking down into the case, you will see some rectangle boxes in a housing that faces the

front of the case. These are the various drives installed in your computer, such as DVD,

CD, hard drives and floppy drives.

10

Tools

The tools you need to repair or upgrade you computer can be as simple or technical, as

you want. You can actually repair or upgrade a computer with little more than a couple

different sizes of Philips head screw drivers.

I would recommend having an anti static wristband when you are working with

components, especially memory modules or CPU’s. If you purchase a cheap computer

tool kit, I have seen them as cheap as $7.00 retail, it will come with all the tools you need

to work on your computer.

There are a few more tools out there that the shops use but are not necessary for the home

repair tech. Here are a few examples: a Soyo™ tech aid card, it diagnoses the computer as

it is booting up and is useful when you have a machine that just won’t boot all the way to

windows. There are also power supply tester, hard drive testers and on and on. But none

of these are on the have to have list for the home repairman.

11

Cautions and Precautions

There are a few do’s and don’ts when it comes to computer repair and I will touch on the

main ones here.

1. Always unplug your computer from the wall socket before opening the case or

otherwise working on the components in the computer.

2. Always touch the case or otherwise ground yourself (to discharge any static

charge you may have acquired) before touching any components. Static

electricity is the number one killer of computers in the world. Even a small static

discharge can fry a motherboard, CPU or other vital component.

3. Keep your new parts in their original static free package until you install them.

4. If you are installing software from media that is a copy, (not the original) scan it

with a good anti virus program first.

5. Do not wash your computer with a wet sponge. A damp sponge is all you need to

wipe down your machine.

6. Only used canned air for blowing dust out of components. Air supplied from a

standard compressor usually has some water built up in the air hose and you

risk damaging your computer.

12

To Upgrade or Not to Upgrade? That Is The Question

For me this is not much of a question. I don’t know anyone that couldn’t use a little

upgrading, a little more speed or better sound and graphics. In twenty years, I have never

seen a perfect machine. I have seen a lot of great machines and even a few that were

better than great but all of them can do more with the right upgrades.

If your budget is tight memory is the quickest and cheapest way to get a little more speed

out of your computer. On a megabyte by megabyte comparison, memory modules today

are cheaper than they have ever been in history. Hard drives are inexpensive also. An

extra 80 Gigabytes of disk space can do wonders for a machine that is slowing down

because there just isn’t enough room anymore. Most people do not realize that Windows

needs a lot of space to use as virtual memory and swap files, and many of the most

popular programs are resource hogs when it comes to virtual memory.

13

When Hardware Goes Bad

Every computer owner on the planet will eventually see a piece of hardware fail, after all

a computer is just a machine and machines wear out. There are a dozen moving parts in

your computer, all moving at blistering speeds without the benefit of continual lubricants.

RPM is short for revolutions per minute. Cooling fans are running at least 5500 RPM,

hard drives are spinning at 7200 RPM, some as high as 10,000 RPM. DVD and CDRW

drives operate at varying speeds the least of which is 5400 RPM. As you can see the

computer is running as fast as an INDY race car and it does it continually until the

machine is turned off.

In the following chapters I will show you how to replace all of the major components in

your computer. None of these tasks are difficult, mind bending feats. Just take a deep

breath, relax and follow my instructions and everything will work like new, and you will

save hundreds of dollars in labor charges a computer repair shop would charge you.

14

Replacing a Power Supply

The reasons for replacing a power supply can be that the old one quit working, this is a

very common occurrence after a few years. Another reason might be that you just need

more power, many of the computers you by come with a power supply that is just barely

adequate for the consumption of your machine. If you add a new device or media card it

might be too much for that small supply. I recommend no less than a 450 Watt supply for

today’s demanding peripherals, and a lot of factory machines come with a 320 Watt

supply.

To remove the power supply you will first need to unplug the power cord from the wall,

and from the power supply its self. Next, remove the side panel from the computer case

so you have access to the inside of the computer.

Before you actually remove the power supply you need to unplug the power supply from

all of the devices inside the computer, including the motherboard. If you are not sure

where to reattach the new supply when it is installed I suggest labeling each of the

devices and the corresponding power adapter that is attached to it. You can use a piece of

tape and just number them, ie: put a small piece of tape on the device, and a small piece

on the power adapter that is connected to it, then just put a number on each piece of tape.

The reason for this is simple. When you install the new power supply you can look at the

number you have labeled a device with and then compare that to the number you placed

on a power adapter. All standard power adapters are the same, and they are made to plug

into the same devices no matter what kind of computer it is.

15

The only connector that seems to confuse people is the main power connector that hooks

into the motherboard. The connector on the motherboard is a 20 pin connector, and many

times the connector on the new power supply has 24 connectors. If you find this don’t

sweat it. Look at the connector on the new power supply and you will see that a four pin

block of the connector actually slides off the main connector block as in the figure below.

After the wires are all disconnected form their respective devices you can spin the

computer case around so you are facing the back of the computer. You will see four

screws around the perimeter of the power supply; these are the only thing holding the

power supply in place.

To install the new power supply, just do the reverse of removing one starting with

reattaching the supply with the four screws in the back. After all the wires are attached

16

you can stand the computer back upright and attach the power cord from the supply to the

wall.

If you hit the power button on the front of the computer and nothing happens recheck

your power cord, make sure it is firmly seated in the supply and the wall. If nothing still

happens unplug the power cord and open the case. Check and see if you have a four pin

connector on the motherboard, it will be close to the main 20 pin power connector. Make

sure that you have connected a 4 pin plug to this connection, it will be a different 4 pin

plug than the one you removed from the 24 pin main block.

If you still have nothing make sure you have power to the wall socket or power strip. Still

not sure? E-mail me mcamp@gci.net

17

Replacing or Adding Memory

First we will tackle the easier of these two components, the memory. Older systems use

SDRAM and all newer systems, those manufactured with in the last few years use DDR.

DDR RAM is twice as fast as SDRAM. This is because DDR RAM transfers data on both

the rising and falling edge of the clock. SDRAM only transfer data on the rising of the

cycle. So, DDR RAM transfers twice the amount of data per clock cycle and therefore is

referred to as DDR (Double Data Rate).

DDR memory consumes a lot less power than SDRAM. DDR RAM use’s only 2.5V, and

SDRAM use’s 3.3V. Therefore the low power consumption of DDR RAM helps to

reduce the amount of heat that is produced. This helps extend the battery life in portable

devices such as laptop computers, and reduces the overall heat produced by your

computer.

Unplug the power supply and remove the side panel of the computer. Lay the computer

on its side so the front of the machine is facing you. The memory sockets and modules

are located on the edge of the motherboard closest to the front of the computer. On some

machine you might have to remove the power supply or even the DVD and CDRW drives

to see it, this is the case some of the smaller HP computers on the market.

There are usually from 1 to 3 open slots, meaning that there are no memory modules

installed in them. It is a good idea to have all your memory banks filled with DDR or

SDRAM modules that are the same speed. The speed is simply how fast the DDR

transfers data, as an example, PC2100 transfers data at a rate of 2133MB per second. So

18

when you buy memory try and get it all the same speed such as, PC2100, PC2700 and so

on. The modules you purchase will be clearly marked as to what speed they are.

Looking down into the case you will notice that the memory socket each have a small

notch in them, if there is only one of these notches you are using SDRAM, if there is only

one notch you are using DDR RAM. These notches are always off center and prevent you

from installing the new memory module in the wrong way. When you insert the new

memory stick into the socket, the latches on each end of the socket should snap firmly,

latching the memory in the socket.

19

Motherboard Layout

CPU, memory, front panel connectors

Replacing a Motherboard and CPU

Buying a new motherboard can be a simple process but more times than not it is a

frustrating experience. There are literally thousands of boards out there all offering the

same thing. If you’re buying off the Internet just make sure you can return the board if it

doesn’t work out.

20

I would suggest going to a local dealer and asking a few questions. They in return will

probably ask you a few, the most notable being: what are you using the machine for? This

is an important question; after all, if you are a serious game enthusiast you want a board

that will support all the current video adapter configurations and some of the future ones

too. If it’s just a machine for normal home use you can save a lot of money on

motherboard selection. An average user just needs e-mail and some productivity

applications. Sound and video are not on the front of his list for performance.

If it is just a machine for homework, and average everyday use, get one that has most of

the features built into the board. Make sure it has sound, video and LAN on board. Some

even have a dial up modem built in or come with a modem riser that is easily installed

when the board is in the machine.

A game board needs to be more robust with almost nothing built in especially video, and

sound. If you plan on using PCI Express video cards make sure the new board supports

PCI Express other wise you will only have AGP as an option.

If you only want to upgrade the board and use all the old components off your current

machine, make sure you buy a board that supports your CPU. In other words, you can’t

put your AMD Athalon on a Pentium 4 board, the AMD use’s a socket 462 configuration

and the P4 use’s a socket 478 configuration.

With your new board in hand and you adequately grounded, open up your computer,

make sure it is unplugged first. Also unplug everything from the back of the computer,

this includes the mouse, keyboard, monitor, everything.

21

To keep from going crazy while you do this job, remove the power supply, drives, and

any wires that are attached to the motherboard. After everything is removed you should

be looking down into your case at basically just a motherboard with a few components on

it.

Now remove any cards that are installed in the various slots on the board, this will

include video cards, modems, LAN cards, and sound cards, anything that is occupying a

PCI or AGP slot. Now you want to remove the memory from the motherboard, simply

push down on the small latches at each end of the memory sticks and they will pop right

out.

You will also have to remove the CPU. To do this, first remove the fan that sits on top of

it. Some fans are held in place by levers. Little clips that are attached to the bottom of the

CPU socket hold others. For the clip type you will see a small slot on top of the retaining

device, place a small screwdriver in this slot and pry toward the fan see the picture below

for reference.

Here is the latch for the fan.

22

Once the fan is out of the way you will see the CPU its self. No matter what kind of CPU

it is there will be a white or silver lever lying along one side of the CPU socket, simply

lift this lever and then carefully remove the CPU from the socket. When a CPU is

installed or removed, there should be no force involved, these are zero insertion force

sockets. Installing a CPU will be just the reverse of the above-mentioned procedure.

After everything is removed from the motherboard, loosen all of the screws that are

holding it to the case. The motherboard should easily lift out of the case, but you may

have to gently pull it toward you, or the front of the case to free it from the back plate.

When you install the new board, make sure the screw mounts all line up with the new

board’s holes; they usually do because the manufacturers follow a standard. After the

board is seated and lined up correctly you can screw it down and reinstall the CPU and

memory modules.

Before you place any of the other components back on the board I would hook up all of

the front panel wires. These will be a small bundle of wires that go to the front panel of

your computer and they include the power switch, reset switch, speaker, and led lights.

See the picture below.

23

After these wires are attached you can begin reassembling the other components one at a

time, just like you removed them. Hey, this isn’t rocket science and you just saved

yourself hundreds of dollars in labor costs.

CPU installation!

24

Installing a New Sound Card or Video Card

There are many reasons for a better sound system, or a need for more video. This is

especially true for computer game enthusiast. I see it at least once a week; someone

comes in the shop complaining about their new game being choppy, and they just

upgraded their video card. Games today require the video and sound to basically be

married, they have to work together. A new sound card almost always fixes the problem.

Another reason for good sound is that you may use your computer to play music CD’s.

Again an experience that is greatly enhanced by quality sound systems. The same applies

to video cards, or video adapters as they are sometimes called.

Of course it doesn’t do any good to install a state of the art sound card if you have a

couple of clunky old speakers. If you invest the time and money in a new surround sound

card, by all means get some good speakers to go with it.

The operation of installing a sound card is almost identical to installing a video card and

the same basic work is involved. To install a new sound card, or video card, first unplug

the computer and lay it on its side so the front is facing you.. Open the case and you will

see the current sound card installed in one of the 16 bit PCI slots (most often these are

white in color). If you are not sure which card it is, just look at the back of the computer.

It will be the card with all the small speaker jack holes on it. If you have integrated

sound, meaning sound that is built into the motherboard, you do not have to remove

anything. If it is a video card you are changing, it is the one that the monitor plugs into.

25

You will see that the card is held in place by a single screw, remove the screw and lift the

card straight up and out of the computer. Some AGP video cards also require you to flip a

small latch that is located at the end of the card closest to the front of the case.

After your old card is removed your new card will be installed into the open PCI slot if it

is a sound card, or AGP slot if it is a video card. Refer to the picture of the motherboard

layout found earlier in this text for the location of the appropriate slot.

After seating the new card into the appropriate slot, replace the screw that will hold the

new card in place. Put the side back on the case and reattach the power cable and any

other cables you removed.

After everything is back together and the computer is started, wait for the Windows™

desktop to load. During this process windows will probably see the new sound or video

card. When Windows sees the new card a, ‘found new hardware window’ will open

telling you it wants to look for a driver for the new device. Usually the default mode for

26

this device found window is set to automatically look for the driver. Change this to the

other option that is offered by clicking on the appropriate box. Now click “next”.

At this time place the CDROM that came with your new video or sound card into either

the DVD or CDRW drive and close the drive door. In the new box that is displayed on

your computer screen click the box that says “include the CDROM drive in the search”

and then click next.

This process will take a little while but if you are patient, when it’s through your new

device will be installed and ready to go.

27

Installing a Hard Drive

In the early 1980’s a few megabytes of hard drive space was a lot, by the late 1980’s 3.25

inch format hard drives were beginning to appear in personal computers. Today, hard

drives hold 300+ gigabytes of data and run at speeds many times faster than the old

drives used to. Just to clear things up, a megabyte is equal to 1024KB, and a gigabyte is

equal to 1024MB. Megabyte is denoted as MB and gigabyte is denoted as GB and

kilobyte is KB.

So how much hard drive do you need? In other words how many gigabytes is enough?

That’s entirely up to you, if you download a lot of music or video files, then the bigger

the better. Additionally if you are a game enthusiast more hard drive is a good thing. The

bottom line is the average user only needs a small drive; say around 40 to 80 gigabytes,

for the high end user, a 250 gigabyte should be plenty. No matter which size you choose,

you can always add a second hard drive later.

To install your new hard drive, the first thing you always do before working on your

computer is unplug the power cord from the wall socket. Now lay the case on its side

with the front facing you, and remove the side panel.

Inside the front of the case you will see all of your drives arranged one above the other.

The hard drive and the DVD/CDRW drives are attached to the motherboard with a 40 pin

ribbon cable. Your hard drive will be a plain metal rectangle about 1 inch thick. After you

locate the hard drive you will notice the ribbon cable attached to the back of it. If you are

adding the new drive as a second drive you will have to set it as a slave drive before you

28

install it. A label on the front of the drive shows you where to pin out. To do this move

the jumper located on the back of the drive to the pins marked ‘SL’. If it is a new drive

and is replacing an old drive it needs to be set as a master marked on the drive as ‘MA’.

See the picture below for a view of the jumper.

The install guides that come with your new drive are great, they are clear and concise and

you would do well to read them and follow the directions given.

If this is going to be an additional drive and is set as a slave, it will need to be positioned

on the ribbon cable. A typical ribbon cable has three connectors on it. 2 of them are close

to each other and 1 is farther away. The connector that is farthest from the other two

connectors hooks into the motherboard, the master drive hooks into the other end and the

slave hooks into the middle connector. Please take a look at this picture for a better

understanding.

Master slave motherboard

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After you set the jumper to the correct setting you can install the drive in an empty drive

bay and secure it with the screws provided. Just look at the other drives for an idea of

how it should be installed. Once secured in the bay you can hook up the ribbon cable, a

rule of thumb for hooking up the ribbon cable to any drive is that the red side of the cable

always points toward the power connector on the drive. Every ribbon cable has one red

cable, this is pin one and it is always closest to the power connector when installed on a

drive.

After your drive is installed, you will need to have the installation disk that came with the

drive. When you power on the computer, insert the drive disk into the CDRW or DVD

drive. Your computer will boot to this disk and a menu will appear on your screen. From

this menu you want to choose the option that says ‘easy drive installation.’

After you make this selection your computer will show you another menu that lists all the

drives in your computer. Simply select the new drive you just installed and choose next.

This process will format your hard drive and make it available for your use as a storage

device.

If this is going to be a master drive then you will have to install an operating system on

the drive. To do this, power on the computer and insert your Windows system disk, it’s a

CDROM disk and will be labeled windows XP, window 98 etc. Your computer will boot

to the system disk and all you do is follow the screen prompts to install the operating

system.

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If the drive is just a slave there is nothing more to do and the drive can be used as storage.

To see if the drive is installed correctly as a slave, at the windows desktop, (1) open my

computer by double clicking on that icon. If the drive is installed it will show up in my

computer and it will already have a drive letter assigned to it.

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Installing a DVD/CDRW Drive

Installing a DVD or CDRW drive is very similar to installing a hard drive, the only

difference is that you do not have to install drivers for it and you can not format the drive

since it use’s removable media. One thing to remember is that a DVD drive will also play

CD’s so if you have a choice I would suggest installing a DVD rather than a plain old

CDROM drive.

On the front of your case there are usually one or two extra expansion slots. These slots

are covered by plastic plates made to look like the rest of your computer in color and

shape. The plates pop out giving you access to another drive bay. If your computer has no

extra expansion slots then the only way to install a DVD drive is to replace your current

media drive. This is actually a very practical solution, there are many drives out there that

serve both as DVD, DVDR (DVD recorders) and CDRW drives. They are called combo

drives and they save resources and space.

To install a new media drive, unplug the power from the computer. Then open the case.

To do this you will need to open both sides of the computer because hard drives and

media drives are held in place by 4 screws, 2 on each side of the drive. After it is open,

lay the case on its side with the front facing you.

Locate the drive you want to replace, or find the extra drive bay you are going to use. If

you are replacing a drive, remove the 4 screws, unplug the ribbon cable and power cable.

If the drive has a sound cable remove it also (it’s a small connector with a red and black

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wire that goes to your sound card or motherboard). Remove the old drive. The new drive

will slide into the computer from the front.

Note the position of the master salve jumper on the back of the old drive and set the new

drive to match it. This drive will be either a master or slave. If it is a second media drive

then it needs to be set as a slave.

Again, you do not need to install drivers for this DVD/CDRW drive. Windows has all the

drivers it needs to make the device operate efficiently. If it is a DVD drive, or a CDRW

drive it will come with an application disk for watching movies or recording information

(this is called burning). By all means after Windows starts, install these applications. The

most popular of these are Sonic, Nero, and WinDVD.

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Fixing Problems - KISS

The following chapters are what this book is really all about, fixing your own computer

and saving a bundle! We will go over the most common problems encountered by

computers users all over the world, and we will tell you how to trouble shoot those

problems in the most efficient and time saving manner. This is the same thing any

repairman will do when he fixes your computer in the shop.

KISS. This is what I tell everyone interested in trying to find out exactly what is wrong

with their defunct machine. KISS stands for Keep It Simple Stupid. In other words, if

your computer suddenly won’t turn on, look for the cause of the problem starting at the

power outlet on the wall. If the speakers suddenly stop working make sure they are still

plugged into the right jack on the sound card. Keep it simple!

I can’t begin to tell you how many times I have made a house call, crawled under the

desk and plugged in a speaker cable. So the customer paid me $65.00 to plug his speakers

in. Just remember, over time, things somehow become accidentally unplugged, or

loosened. Money is far too hard to come by to waste it paying someone to do something

you can do yourself.

My Computer Won’t Start

1. Push, or poke at the on/off switch. Sometimes they get dirty or even stop working.

2. Check to see if it the computer is plugged in at the wall socket or the surge protector

(if you have one), and the back of the computer.

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3. Plug something else in the wall outlet to see if there is power there.

4. Check the plugs to see if they are bent, or not making good contact in the sockets.

5. Does the power supply come on? If you’re not sure, make sure the fan on the back of

the power supply is turning.

6. Listen to the computer. It might be on and the trouble is with the monitor.

7. If the computer is on but the screen is blank, check to see if the monitor is turned on

and all plugs are securely plugged in.

8. If all is on, check the settings on the monitor like the contrast or brightness.

Beep Codes

If the computer doesn’t start, was there an audible beep or series of beeps? These are

called beep codes, they are generated by the BIOS, and they let the computer user know

what might not be working if the computer fails to start. Below is a list of beep codes for

the major BIOS manufacturers and they will help you diagnose what is wrong with your

machine if it just won’t start.

Below are the AMI BIOS Beep codes that can occur. However, because of the wide

variety of different computer manufacturers with this BIOS, the beep codes may vary.

Beep Code

1 short DRAM refresh failure

2 short Parity circuit failure

3 short Base 64K RAM failure

4 short System timer failure

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5 short Process failure

6 short Keyboard controller Gate A20 error

7 short Virtual mode exception error

8 short Display memory Read/Write test failure

9 short ROM BIOS checksum failure

10 short CMOS shutdown Read/Write error

11 short Cache Memory error

1 long, 3 short Conventional/Extended memory failure

1 long, 8 short Display/Retrace test failed

Below is a list of Award BIOS Beep codes that can occur. However, because of the wide

variety of different computer manufacturers with this BIOS, the beep codes may vary.

Beep Code Description

1 long, 2

short

Indicates a video error has occurred and the BIOS cannot initialize the video

screen to display any additional information

Any other RAM problem.

Below are IBM BIOS Beep codes that can occur. There are many varieties that ship with

this BIOS so the beep codes may vary.

Beep Code Description

No Beeps No Power, Loose Card, or Short.

1 Short Beep Normal POST, computer is ok.

2 Short Beep POST error, review screen for error code.

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Continuous Beep No Power, Loose Card, or Short.

Repeating Short Beep No Power, Loose Card, or Short.

One Long and one Short Beep Motherboard issue.

One Long and Two Short Beeps Video (Mono/CGA Display Circuitry) issue.

One Long and Three Short Beeps. Video (EGA) Display Circuitry.

Three Long Beeps Keyboard / Keyboard card error.

One Beep, Blank or Incorrect Display Video Display Circuitry.

Below are the beep codes for PHOENIX BIOS Q3.07 OR 4.X

Beep Code Description

1-1-1-3 Verify Real Mode.

1-1-2-1 Get CPU type.

1-1-2-3 Initialize system hardware.

1-1-3-1 Initialize chipset registers with initial POST values.

1-1-3-2 Set in POST flag.

1-1-3-3 Initialize CPU registers.

1-1-4-1 Initialize cache to initial POST values.

1-1-4-3 Initialize I/O.

1-2-1-1 Initialize Power Management.

1-2-1-2 Load alternate registers with initial POST values.

1-2-1-3 Jump to UserPatch0.

1-2-2-1 Initialize keyboard controller.

1-2-2-3 BIOS ROM checksum.

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1-2-3-1 8254 timer initialization.

1-2-3-3 8237 DMA controller initialization.

1-2-4-1 Reset Programmable Interrupt Controller.

1-3-1-1 Test DRAM refresh.

1-3-1-3 Test 8742 Keyboard Controller.

1-3-2-1 Set ES segment to register to 4 GB.

1-3-3-1 28 Autosize DRAM.

1-3-3-3 Clear 512K base RAM.

1-3-4-1 Test 512 base address lines.

1-3-4-3 Test 512K base memory.

1-4-1-3 Test CPU bus-clock frequency.

1-4-2-4 Reinitialize the chipset.

1-4-3-1 Shadow system BIOS ROM.

1-4-3-2 Reinitialize the cache.

1-4-3-3 Autosize cache.

1-4-4-1 Configure advanced chipset registers.

1-4-4-2 Load alternate registers with CMOS values.

2-1-1-1 Set Initial CPU speed.

2-1-1-3 Initialize interrupt vectors.

2-1-2-1 Initialize BIOS interrupts.

2-1-2-3 Check ROM copyright notice.

2-1-2-4 Initialize manager for PCI Options ROMs.

2-1-3-1 Check video configuration against CMOS.

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2-1-3-2 Initialize PCI bus and devices.

2-1-3-3 Initialize all video adapters in system.

2-1-4-1 Shadow video BIOS ROM.

2-1-4-3 Display copyright notice.

2-2-1-1 Display CPU type and speed.

2-2-1-3 Test keyboard.

2-2-2-1 Set key click if enabled.

2-2-2-3 56 Enable keyboard.

2-2-3-1 Test for unexpected interrupts.

2-2-3-3 Display prompt "Press F2 to enter SETUP".

2-2-4-1 Test RAM between 512 and 640k.

2-3-1-1 Test expanded memory.

2-3-1-3 Test extended memory address lines.

2-3-2-1 Jump to UserPatch1.

2-3-2-3 Configure advanced cache registers.

2-3-3-1 Enable external and CPU caches.

2-3-3-3 Display external cache size.

2-3-4-1 Display shadow message.

2-3-4-3 Display non-disposable segments.

2-4-1-1 Display error messages.

2-4-1-3 Check for configuration errors.

2-4-2-1 Test real-time clock.

2-4-2-3 Check for keyboard errors

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2-4-4-1 Set up hardware interrupts vectors.

2-4-4-3 Test coprocessor if present.

3-1-1-1 Disable onboard I/O ports.

3-1-1-3 Detect and install external RS232 ports.

3-1-2-1 Detect and install external parallel ports.

3-1-2-3 Re-initialize onboard I/O ports.

3-1-3-1 Initialize BIOS Data Area.

3-1-3-3 Initialize Extended BIOS Data Area.

3-1-4-1 Initialize floppy controller.

3-2-1-1 Initialize hard-disk controller.

3-2-1-2 Initialize local-bus hard-disk controller.

3-2-1-3 Jump to UserPatch2.

3-2-2-1 Disable A20 address line.

3-2-2-3 Clear huge ES segment register.

3-2-3-1 Search for option ROMs.

3-2-3-3 Shadow option ROMs.

3-2-4-1 Set up Power Management.

3-2-4-3 Enable hardware interrupts.

3-3-1-1 Set time of day.

3-3-1-3 Check key lock.

3-3-3-1 Erase F2 prompt.

3-3-3-3 Scan for F2 key stroke.

3-3-4-1 Enter SETUP.

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3-3-4-3 Clear in-POST flag.

3-4-1-1 Check for errors

3-4-1-3 POST done--prepare to boot operating system.

3-4-2-1 One beep.

3-4-2-3 Check password (optional).

3-4-3-1 Clear global descriptor table.

3-4-4-1 Clear parity checkers.

3-4-4-3 Clear screen (optional).

3-4-4-4 Check virus and backup reminders.

4-1-1-1 Try to boot with INT 19.

4-2-1-1 Interrupt handler error.

4-2-1-3 Unknown interrupt error.

4-2-2-1 Pending interrupt error.

4-2-2-3 Initialize option ROM error.

4-2-3-1 Shutdown error.

4-2-3-3 Extended Block Move.

4-2-4-1 Shutdown 10 error.

4-3-1-3 Initialize the chipset.

4-3-1-4 Initialize refresh counter.

4-3-2-1 Check for Forced Flash.

4-3-2-2 Check HW status of ROM.

4-3-2-3 BIOS ROM is OK.

4-3-2-4 Do a complete RAM test.

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4-3-3-1 Do OEM initialization.

4-3-3-2 Initialize interrupt controller.

4-3-3-3 Read in bootstrap code.

4-3-3-4 Initialize all vectors.

4-3-4-1 Boot the Flash program.

4-3-4-2 Initialize the boot device.

4-3-4-3 Boot code was read OK.

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Software Errors

This is an endless topic in its self, endless because as long as they make new software

there will be new errors. There are even a few new ones that come up from time to time

on operating systems that are many years old and have been used extensively by millions

of people. But don’t give up when you see one of these demons appear, there has been

enough data compiled on most of the errors that a fix is quite possible.

I will try and list the most common of these errors by starting with the most dreaded of

them. It is commonly known as the Blue Screen Of Death, and is technically a protection

fault error of some type. The list is quite long but I believe you can find almost any of the

more common blue screen messages here.

The Blue Screen of Death

The blue screen of death (BSOD) is the Windows general protection fault, or GPF error.

People call it this because what they see when it is activated is an image of white text on

a blue background. The BSOD is a screen that is generated by the operating system when

it has suddenly halted with an error. When you see this screen, the system locks up, and

must be rebooted. Many times the blue screen includes some hexadecimal values from a

core dump, and they can potentially be used to determine what caused the crash in the

first place.

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The blue screen of death is not limited to novice users, it can happen to anyone at

anytime. At the Comdex trade show, Bill Gates, the Microsoft Chairman, encountered the

blue screen while he was demonstrating Windows 98.

Some common STOP messages and what to do about them:

0x0000000A IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL When you see this error, you can

bet it is a bad device driver. Press the f8 key on boot up until you see the boot option

screen then use the last known good configuration. If you get to the Windows desktop,

get rid of this driver. If it is critical that you have the driver, contact the vendor for an

updated driver. to avoid seeing errors like this one, before you add any new drivers, make

sure to run RDISK and at least update the information.

0x00000019 BAD_POOL_HEADER This is a rare one, and if you can make it

appear again, retrace all the steps it took to get there and last thing you did is the cause.

To recover press the f8 key on boot up until you see the boot option screen then use the

last known good configuration.

0x0000001E KMODE_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED If you are running

outdated drivers, or having some type of hardware problem it will cause this error. If you

are sure that you haven’t recently changed drivers, then I suggest that you reseat the

CPU(s), the memory, and any other chips that may have crept out of their sockets.

Believe it or not, this usually works.

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0x00000024 NTFS_FILE_SYSTEM When you see this error try and get booted far

enough to run CHKDSK /F! But since this error can keep you from booting far enough

into the system to run chkdsk, the only way out is to install your operating system again.

Make sure that you install the new system to the same drive, but in another directory. The

setup CHKDSK will usually clean everything up and get things back to normal. After it's

done, change the BOOT.INI to point to the original system and reboot. If everything

works great after you reboot, delete the one you just installed and clean out the

BOOT.INI.

0x00000051 REGISTRY_ERROR Press the f8 key on boot up until you see the

boot option screen then use the last known good configuration.

0x00000077 KERNEL_STACK_INPAGE_ERROR Probably a bad L2 Cache,

or a defective CPU, it could also be defective SMP hardware, or maybe you just need to

reseat the CPU. You could also have a bad SIMM/DIMM (memory stick). If it is

0xC000009C and 0xC000016A you could have a failing hard drive. Try to get back in

and run CHKDSK /F. if it is 0xC0000185 then you should check the termination on the

SCSI bus and check the IRQ' controllers. If you are using SCSI, the busses are terminated

at each "End".

Single drive Terminate controller and drive.

Internal drives only Terminate controller and only the last drive on the bus.

External drives only Terminate controller and only the last drive on the bus.

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Internal and External

drives

Terminate last internal drive and last external drive. Do not

terminate controller!

0x0000007A KERNEL_DATA_INPAGE_ ERROR See the information above

for KERNEL_STACK_INPAGE_ERROR

0x0000007B INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE This means that it can't find

the boot partition. Here are some possible causes.

Did not find correct controller during setup.

Make sure that it is detecting the

controller during setup, you may need a

driver disk to do this.

During Setup, detected wrong controller or

did not detect all the controllers.

Check all of the controllers, making sure

that they are detected during setup, you

will need a driver disk. Or diag card.

System reboots after normal activity, it dies.

A virus has probably infected the boot

sector. Boot with a floppy disk and run

anti-virus software.

System reboots after normal activity, and then

it dies.

The Boot sector is probably corrupt. Use

your setup disk and select repair. Fix the

boot sector when prompted to do so.

0x0000007F UNEXPECTED_KERNEL_MODE_TRAP Using SIMMs and

DIMMs of different speeds can cause this. Make sure your BIOS is reporting the correct

46

amount of memory and also displays the correct processor speed. This can also be caused

by bad connections, reseat the CPU/the memory etc. the motherboard gets hot and

expands, and when the machine is off it cools back down. This expansion and contraction

can cause chips to creep out of their sockets.

0x00000080 NMI_HARDWARE_FAILURE This error can be caused if you use

non-parity memory in a parity based system. It can also be caused when you Mix

parity/non-parity memory, or use bad SIMMs, or it could be a bad L2 cache.

Here are some ways to avoid seeing too many general protection

faults.

If you are seeing GPF error messages on a regular basis I recommend that you do the

following to help resolve the issue.

1. Remove all TSRs

Disable or unload any TSRs, or any programs that are running, before you run the

program that caused the GPF.

2. Delete all program temporary files

When you install a program it first installs some temporary files and many times they

remain on the hard disk until you physically remove them. So, delete all temporary

47

files that may still be residing on the hard disk drive from currently or previously

running programs. Just go to accessories, system tools, and choose ‘disk clean up’.

3. Run Scandisk and Defrag

Try to run scandisk and defrag on the hard disk drive. Your hard disk drive may have

a problem that is causing the swap file or data files to become corrupt or invalid.

4. Make sure your computer has more than 200 MB available

If your computer is running low on hard disk space windows just won’t function

correctly, it need lots of free space for swap files. If there isn’t enough space it will

cause programs to be swapped between your system memory and the hard drive more

frequently. If this happens you are very likely to see a GPF occur.

5. Recently installed software or hardware

If you are having GPF problems and recently installed new software or hardware, try

to uninstall, or reinstall that software or hardware to make sure it is not causing your

problem.

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6. Update your BIOS.

Sometimes you can flash your bios with a new update and solve many GPF problems.

7. Disable Power Management and screen savers

If GPFs are occurring when you are away from the computer, or when the computer

has been inactive for a while, attempt to disable power management and screen

savers.

8. Operating System

If Windows or an overwritten Windows related file is the culprit that caused a

General Protection fault, try to reinstall your operating system. Most commonly the

General Protection Fault will involve Explorer and KRNL386.EXE.

9. Bad memory or other bad hardware

Many times bad memory is the primary cause for random GPFs. There are some

programs out there that will test your computer memory from a floppy boot disk. One

such program is “Check It”, a great resource to check your entire motherboard and

components.

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My Computer Won’t Start and Other Common Problems

Here are a few fixes for the most common problems encountered.

1. My Computer Won’t Start

Push, the on/off switch several times. Sometimes the switch gets dirty or just worn out.

Check to see if it the computer is plugged in. if you are using a surge protector, try

plugging the computer directly into the wall. And make sure the power cord is plugged

into the computer it’s self.

Plug a lamp into the wall socket to see if there is power there.

Check the plugs on the cord to see if they are bent and not making good contact in the

sockets.

Listen to the computer. Maybe it is on, and the trouble is really with the monitor.

If the computer is on but the screen is black, make sure the monitor is turned on. If it is

on, check the settings on the monitor such as contrast and brightness.

2. My Printer Won’t Print

Is the printer actually on? If it is, try turning it off for about 30 seconds then turn it back

on.

Make sure all the ac cables are plugged in from the wall to the printer. Also inspect the

parallel or USB cable from the computer to the printer. Make sure all the cables are

firmly seated.

Is there paper in the printer? Is the paper pushed completely into the paper tray and

feeding properly?

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Are there any papers jammed in the printer? Are the ink cartridges empty?

If everything checks out, turn the printer off and shut down the computer. Then re-boot

the computer and turn on the printer.

To check the operation of the printer, click "Start" then "Settings" then "Printers". Click

on your printer and make sure that it is the Default Printer. In XP, click “start’ then

"Control Panel" then "Printers and Faxes".

Check the Printer Settings tab and make sure that there are not already some printing jobs

in progress. If there are, just cancel the jobs and try to print again.

3. Scanner Won’t Work

Just treat it as a printer and do the same things that applied to the printer that wouldn’t

print. Check plugs and cords, then test communications, and drivers.

4. Mouse Is Acting Erratic

Turn the mouse over, there is a round object with arrows on it. Turn the object in the

direction of the arrows and remove the ball that is inside the mouse. Wash the ball with

soap and water and dry it well. Inside the mouse, you will see 3 rollers. They probably

have dirt built up on them. Scrap it off with a pencil eraser, so that the rollers are clean.

Put the ball back in and replace the cover.

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6. Mouse Stops Working

If it is a PS2 mouse, shut down the computer. Then unplug the mouse and plug it back in.

Restart the computer and see if it works now. If it is a USB mouse you can unplug it with

out shutting down the computer.

If the mouse stopped working after you recently installed or re-installed hardware, you

may have an IRQ conflict.

7. The Keyboard Isn’t Working

Shut down your computer. Then unplug the keyboard and plug it back in. Restart the

computer.

Try blowing the keypad out with a can of air, sometimes bits of dirt or paper get under

the keys and screw things up.

8. My Computer Takes Forever to Start

Click "Start", then "Run". In the "Open" field type "msconfig" and click "OK".

A config utility will open. It will have "Tabs" at the top. Click the one that reads

"Startup". This will show you a list of programs that run when you start Windows. They

will have check marks in the boxes to their left. You do not want all of them to start.

Remove all the check marks (by clicking on them). Do not remove the check marks for:

"SystemTray" , "ScanRegistry", "LoadPowerProfile" or "Task Monitor." Also leave a

check mark in anything that has the name of, or abbreviation of, your antivirus program

or anything that looks like it might apply to "Norton™" or “McAfee™” products.

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Click "OK" at the bottom and you will be asked if you want to re-start your computer.

Click yes. If, in the future, you notice things that you are used to loading when you boot

up, but aren't and that you want to load, go back and check their boxes

9. My Computer Won’t Shut Off

Go through everything that was described in “MYCOMPUTER TAKES FOREVER".

This will minimize the number of programs that Windows has to close before shutting

down. Click "Start" then "Run" In open, type "msconfig." When the System

Configuration Utility appears, click "Advanced." Put a check mark in "Disable Fast

Shutdown. That usually fixes it.

Tid Bits

Speed up that machine!

The most obvious way to speed up a computer would be to replace the CPU with a faster

one. This is by far the most efficient way to increase computer speed, but it is also the

most expensive. Before you spend hundreds of dollars on a new CPU, you should first

make sure that your current hardware configuration is used efficiently. Most modern

computer are very complex machines, and Windows is a very complex piece of software,

it usually takes some tweaking to get all the performance out of your hardware. On most

Windows PCs, there are at least 33 processes running at any time. Since most of these

programs are invisible to the user, it is not very easy to know exactly what your computer

is doing most of the time.

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Memory and Page File Usage:

Running out of physical memory or RAM is another common reason for performance

problems today. Many people do not know it, but the use of long file names is a real

culprit. If you create a file and then save it without giving it a name, Windows will

probably use the whole first sentence as the name, sometimes 20 or 30 characters long.

Running out of RAM can cause severe stability problems and even crash your computer.

Try to monitor your memory usage and free up some RAM as soon as memory usage

exceeds 70 or 80%.

Applications running in the background:

If you have installed shareware, freeware, plugins, components, and other files, you

probably have a lot of programs running in the background. These programs are almost

always invisible, but they still consume valuable resources and make start-ups take longer

than necessary.

Run disk clean up from the “start, “accessories”, “system tools”. This program looks for

cache files and temp files and cleans your system out. I recommend it about twice a

week. Also go into the control panel and open Internet options. Delete the off line files,

empty the cookies, and clear the history. All these things will help your computer run and

start faster.

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DSL vs. Cable Modem Comparison

In terms of theoretical peak raw performance, cable modem generally wins the speed

battle over DSL. Cable technology can, in theory, achieve networking speeds of

approximately 30 Mbps (using a 100 Mbps network interface card), whereas most

forms of DSL cannot reach 10 Mbps. (VDSL is one variant of DSL that matches

cable's performance, but it is not generally available.)

Both cable modem and DSL performance vary from one minute to the next depending

on the pattern of use and traffic congestion on the Internet. This means that both

services will rarely -- if ever -- reach peak performance.

Both cable and DSL service providers have commonly employed the controversial

practice of bandwidth caps for their home customers. Bandwidth caps place an artificial

limit on the maximum speed a customer can achieve by monitoring their current usage

and throttling network packets if necessary.

DSL services typically offered today typically range in performance from 128 kbps to

1.544 Mbps. It can be difficult to pin down precise speed numbers for DSL because

of the many variations in equipment. DSL is also a distance-sensitive technology, and

that complicates the performance picture even further...

Cable Speed

Cable service providers usually don't quote absolute performance numbers like the DSL

vendors because of the differences in dedicated versus shared bandwidth.

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Congratulations now you’re a geek too. If you retain a little of what’s in this short

help guide you will have your friends asking you for help, and behind your back

they will be calling you a geek. But that’s not really a bad thing!

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Helpful Online Resources

If you run into problems that you just can’t fix or your computer starts doing things out of

the ordinary the Internet is the best place to look for your answer.

Personally I just bring up Yahoo, Google or some other search engine and do a search on

exactly what I am looking for. Let’s not forget that the manufacturers of almost every

piece of equipment in your computer, including the software have web sites with volumes

of FAQ’s (frequently asked questions) and general all around support for their products.

Here are a few of the best sites:

www.microsoft.com - Having windows problems? This is the ultimate place to go, they

have seen and answered almost every imaginable problem on the planet.

www.selfhelpforums.com - Here is a place where people just like you have posted their

computer problems and they always get ton’s of answers and fast fixes.

www.symantec.com - When you are sure that you have a virus, because things just

suddenly start happening on your computer (like the desktop is rearranging itself) do a

search Norton’s knowledge base or viruses.

www.tigerdirect.com - These guys have a help section also, and they are a good place for

replacement parts and hard to find items.

www.driversguide.com - If you need the drivers for anything at all this is the place to go!

You do have to register but it’s free! This is a great resource for any computer user.

www.pctools.com - You can find help for a lot of problems on this site, and links to other

great sites. These guys sell the best anti-spyware product on the planet!

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Books and Magazines

Any repair tech worth his salt will have a small library of manuals books and magazines

in his arsenal of tools! No matter how many years you have worked in the computer

industry no one knows it all! I will list the magazines I read most often, sometimes there

is only one article in the whole magazine I really want to read but it might be the answer

to a problem! The books I recommend are just a few of the tens of thousands currently in

print.

Magazines:

PC Today: A great magazine covering all the latest trends and answering some tough

questions, such as “how much speed is enough”?

Computer Shopper: This magazine will tell you what’s out there commercially and the

draw back and benefits for each of the components listed!

PC Magazine: Another all time favorite, lots of info on almost every aspect of

computing!

Maximum PC: I really love this one! Many times you can get a CD-ROM packed with

great tools and utilities plus some sample games!

Books:

Upgrading and repairing PC’s by Scott Mueller: This is the premier book and is used in

many university classes on the subject of computer repair!

Upgrading and repairing computers for dummies: This is one of the dummy series that

cover everything computers!

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Bigalows: This is a repair pocket manual that keeps everything simple. It covers

everything from beep codes to complete overhauls!

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About the Author

Long before going to college or getting any certificates the author was building IC chips

with DIP Sockets and a few resistors, DOS was the best operating system on the market

and there weren’t any hard drives (for home users). Michael Camp has been involved in

computer repair since the late 1980’s. He has owned and operated a few repair facilities

including a mobile repair shop. Mike also installs and services state of the art surveillance

systems for local businesses.

In 1998, feeling the need for a formal education and a piece of paper that says he knows

what he’s doing, Michael attended the University of Alaska Fairbanks studying computer

science, hardware and software troubleshooting, and computer office information

systems.

Still not enough in today’s demanding world the Author studied at home and was

certified by Microsoft, HP, and Xerox. Mike currently owns and operates a computer

sales and service store in Chugiak, Alaska. The author also travels extensively through

out the state of Alaska as an on-call IT technician for a large company based in Missouri.

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