Lisa Hendrickson is the owner of Call That Girl. She is an Outlook Expert and Microsoft 365 Consultant.
Guest Posting by Liam Tidwell of LiamTek.com another computer repair owner from my social networking circles. Enjoy his post today folks!
I hear the above often, very often.
So in this post, we will answer the following questions:
1 What is defragging?
2 Does it really make a difference?
3 Can it hurt my computer?
First things first what is fragmentation? Think of a hard drive as an empty book. You then fill it with programs which we will call chapters. Front to back of course. Now a “chapter” gets longer but it is in the middle of the book, so you just put a note on the last page of that chapter that says see page X for the rest of this chapter. Now after enough revisions of the chapter it becomes pretty hard to read. Think of defragging like taking the book apart and putting it in a 3 ring binder so each chapter can be put in order from first to last page. That is defragmentation in a nutshell.
Does it make a difference? Yes. Does it make a noticeable difference? Maybe… That depends on how you use a computer. The performance difference really is dependent on how old the hardware is and how fragmented the drive is versus how often the drive is accessed for what you do. I’ll just say that defragmenting won’t slow you down any. Most people won’t notice a speed difference on their computer until it is in the 9-11% range and a defragmentation is capable of doing that.
Can it hurt my computer? Yes, absolutely. Will it? Probably not. Running a defragmentation is very demanding on a hard drive and can kill one that is on the verge of failing anyway. But this is why we do regular backups. For most people defragging your computer every 3-4 months will do just fine.
So there you have it, the basics of defragging. Why do people defrag? Simple, they want to speed up their computer. If your PC is slow enough that it is bothering you, chances are you will need more than a simple defrag. There are two main ways to get that new PC speed back. Hardware upgrade & software tune up and defragmentation is a small part of that process.
If you are looking to speed up your laptop or desktop PC, Call That Girl can of course help.
Click here to book an appointment or call us to get some help if you’re scared to defrag yourself! 612-865-4475
Sunday Funday! Well, it’s not so fun for me today, I have been traveling for the past week and have oodles of catch up work to do today. At least it’s Mob Week on A&E and I can catch up with some good old school gangster flicks.
Moving along to our Blue Screen of Death topic for the day.
Let’s start with why we can get them.
Blue screens of death, in a nutshell mean that something in your computer isn’t happy. Think of it like your computer is getting sick or just starting to get sick. It’s a sign of something going wrong or is seriously wrong. It doesn’t mean your computer is dead or you need a new one, but something is wrong.
Next up: Error Codes
Usually there is an error code at the bottom of your blue screen. It’s usually full of 0x000 type numbers. Write everything down, including the words towards the top that are in FULL CAPS.
How to fix this yourself in a few easy steps
1.) Shut down your computer. You will have to power down the computer with the power button. I recommend holding it in for 8 seconds, then release. You will hear the computer shut down and see no lights at all. You may see your monitor light still on, that is ok because it has it’s own power source.
2.) Leave your computer off for 10 minutes
3.) Turn back on your computer
4.) If you still have the blue screen, your computer may not be happy with some of things you have plugged into your computer. I will recommend you shut down your computer again and unplug everything from your computer but the power cord and the monitor. This includes the mouse and keyboard. Leave computuer off again for 10 minutes.
5.) Turn back on computer and see if blue screen is still there. If so, Call That Girl and get your computer repaired. Or call us to get your data off your hard drive and consider getting a new computer if your computer is old. Sometimes the price of getting the data and repairing your computer is not worth it. But usually it is! We ask the right questions to help you determine what is best for you, your computer and your budget.
Final question….as a blue screen of death can happen at anytime as well your hard drive could seriously crash, are you backing up your stuff? Call us today and get a data back up consultation done for just $32.50.
Here is the Call That Girl Pink Screen of Death!
The time has come folks where we can now support you remotely weekday nights and weekends. I am excited about having on enough support technicians to offer extended hours! Keep in mind, onsite support or drop off to our locations is NOT available after hours.
Our availability to start remote service calls
Benefits of having remote technicians available…
We now have a technician with back up staff to work nights and weekends. Finally, no more rushing home to get on your computer going by 5:00!
And just buy new? To figure it out, that is the question today folks!
We try to find out the age of the computer and how many problems you have had in the past before telling you to repair your computer or just replace it. These factors are very important when considering either option.
Let’s start with reasons you may have to make this replace or repair decision:
Virus-probably worth removing, prices are usually affordable (for sure if you call us!)
Motherboard is capped (starting to show signs of aging) or not functioning, Replace
Power– probably worth replacing the power supply (should be affordable)
Screen goes out (laptop), that will cost you around $225. Should probably replace laptop if over 5 years old
Screen goes out for desktop, replace the old monitor and buy a new one, if you plan on always using desktop computers
Laptop touch pad goes out for mouse–try plugging in a regular mouse and see if that works, affordable replacement!
Just starts going wonky!–probably the software or operating system, needs a reload, very affordable on an older unit and can be done for under $150
Your computer just shuts off randomly or gets really hot, Replace probably. Those are internal issues and it’s rare we can repair hot. Hot is usually a sign of deeper issues inside laptops.
5-7 years, if the value of the repair is under $150 and you have not had many issues, then we recommend repairing. If over $150, start thinking about how much you paid for the computer and how relatively inexpensive a new one may be. Computers are getting cheaper everyday.
No matter what, it’s always up to you, the customer to decide on a repair and it’s value to your pocketbook. Whether you come to our shop for a diagnosis or another shop, it’s sometimes best to have a second evaluation done, especially if the repair will be costly. We are known to be very affordable and our diagnostic is $25 or free if we can tell you right away what is going on (without having to spend time on it).
Did you also know that we are about half the cost of the big box guys? Yep, compare prices today and you will see the difference of pricing.
Your computer is probably your best friend at this point. It knows more about you than anyone else. It knows your thoughts, your dreams, your goals, your sadness, your banking information, your sneaky Google searches, your tax information, your business, your kids homework, your precious pictures, your private picture collection, your musical likes and dislikes, usually all of your passwords…. your internet usage….is YOU.
The point of this blog today is to alert everyone of computer safety basics
1.) Please, please please…back up your stuff! (that best friend of yours can lose your data or make it expensive to get back). After backing up, be sure to take your external hard drive away from your computer, put in a safe or at least in a secret place. Leaving it next to your computer is not recommended. Theft or fire, both will be gone!
2.) Create a log in password for your account if you have not. (make it harder for thieves to get into your account if they steal your computer)
3.) Create your children accounts on the computer that does not allow them administrative rights. (Too many parents allow their children full admin controls and they are getting more curious these days!)
4.) Use parental controls if you have young children (this will stop them dead in their tracks when they are searching on the internet)
5.) Get a battery powered surge protector for in case of storms. (After each storm, I can’t tell you how many people lose their power on the computers, modems, etc). If you have everything plugged into these devices, it should give you up to 20 minutes of computer power (*and internet!). The last power outage I had, I kept on playing on the internet in the dark.
Just a few thoughts from me and issues we see with our clientss. Have a great week folks!
If you would like to book an appointment with us, feel free to call 612-865-4475 or fill out the form below.
