Tag: computer repair minneapolis
10 reasons why Call That Girl is a great computer support option for your business of any size!
10 reasons why Call That Girl is a great computer support option for your business of any size!
1.) Awesome live helpdesk support (call in anytime!)
2.) Night and weekend support (for those workaholics)
3.) Smartphone assistance (Droid, iPhone and Blackberry) and (((synching issues too!)))
4.) PC and Mac repairs (hardware and software)
5.) Outlook help (who doesn’t have Outlook problems?)
6.) Online backup solutions (we can set this all up for you remotely)
7.) Printer, wifi and small network technicians available for onsite or remote help
8.) Prepay discount plans for those smaller businesses who want to save money and have helpdesk support “on the fly”
9.) We are customer service support specialists. We enjoy what we do and we do it well. We just love fixin’
10.) We have a great antivirus protection plan that offers…
a. Free lifetime product license
b. Email updates for alerts/outbreaks and upgrades of products
c. Free virus removals
d. $69.99 first year, $39.00 2nd year
e. Volume discounts
Now about you…
•If you are a one person company, we are a great solution for you and your budget. Pay as you need or buy our prepaid discount plan for minutes “on the clock” to use.
•If your company has 2-30 employees, we create one company ticket for you and any or all employees can call in as they need assistance. Just think of us as your own helpdesk
•If your company is larger and has a managed IT contract that you want to keep, but want to use our services for certain computer related repairs…we are a no-compete company. We have partnerships with many managed IT companies and work with them to get your computers up and running quickly. Many of our specialties that we do fast are virus removals, tune-ups and Outlook assistance.
Call Lisa today at 612-865-4475 or email lisa@callthatgirl.biz to discuss setting up a consultation and get us on your calendar to start enjoying your IT support again. Mention this blog and get 25% off your first appointment with us.
5 ways to save money when buying a new computer
Morning everyone! Today’s blog has a few tips on how to save money while buying a new computer. Be warned, some of the tips are of course to offer our services, but read the whole blog and you will find many other tips in the reading.
1.) I have to put on the list…is hire us to help you buy it. We can do a remote session with you, remote into your computer and help you find a few computers online that fit your needs, your future computing needs and your budget. Things we can discuss are if your old software is compatible, your printer is compatable, what hard drive size is right for you, backup solutions, antivirus programs you need and just answer every question you have. We book usually 30 minutes for this consult, at $59 for this consultation, we find we save you money because most people go to a store and listen to a sales person and walk out of the store OVERBUYING. Working with us gives you the straight answers because you are paying us. If you want an expensive computer, we will make sure you get it and show you a few different models. If your budget is tight, we can find you many models that are inexpensive and you can get more bang for your buck if you do it right.
2.) Don’t overbuy! Simple, a sale person is making commission so be prepared if you go into a store to be upsold to death. Be sure you’re buying what you need and can afford. What do you need? Everyone wants fast fast fast….most computers out now come standard with what you need and they are pretty fast.
3.) They say skip buying the store’s extended warranty. I am on the fence with this becuase I do think people in business should buy it, mostly because it’s your business computer and you need it fix asap. For home users, it’s iffy…if your last computer worked great for 8 years, this one will probably last that long too. Figure out your repairs you made for the past 8 years (for hardware) and it is equal to what you paid for it, you might want a warranty. If way less, you may not need it. Most extended warranties are $100-$200 and it’s just like insurance, you don’t use it you lose it. Many give you a new battery on the plan, so make sure you get that if anything!
4.) Do you really need Microsoft Office? What do you need with this program that a generic can’t do for you? People today are telling me that the Office programs are very expensive and if you don’t need Outlook, why not try the generic version of Word/Excel/Powerpoint? Try openoffice.org Using these free tools can save you up to $120 if you were going to buy the home and student version of Microsoft office.
5.) Finally the last way to save money. Can you setup the computer yourself? Don’t hire Dell to do the home install…their rates are much higher than paying us or a local company to come out and do the set up. They don’t have many extra’s in their install package, we actually sit and help you figure out all the bells and whistles. Many people hire us to help them or do it themselves until they get in a pinch. We do computer set ups for pc and macs and don’t mind getting on the floor and figuring out all the cords. If you are in business, having a professional company do the set up is worth the money. If you are a home user, it’s worth it if you don’t know what you’re doing. We save you headaches!
To book an appointment with us, please submit a request on the link below. We look forward to helping you before, after or when you have a computer headache and aspirin isn’t helping!
Easy Things to Try to Fix the Blue Screen of Death
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!
Call That Girl Now Offers Night and Weekend Remote Support
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
- Book an appointment as late as 8:00 pm during the week, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm on Saturdays
- No appointment –Call in before 8:00 pm
- Some service calls may have to be finished the next evening is any issues or research is needed to repair
- Sundays by appointment (no fee) or emergency ($50 fee)
Benefits of having remote technicians available…
- No dragging your computer out from under the desk and messing with all the cords
- You can spend 5-10 minutes getting us connected, then go enjoy your night with friends and family
- Our prices for remote support are more affordable than our big box competitors
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!
When should you not repair a computer?
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.
Our recommendations
- Desktop computer
- Laptop computer 3-5 years, replace if the repair is over $150 and you use it heavily. Laptops just start to fail much sooner than desktops units. The parts are smaller and for the most part, only live past 5 years if you are not a heavy user. But that’s not saying it’s the truth! It’s just what we notice….so if you have a 7 year old laptop running fine, you’re lucky! My tech Richard called it the other day, plan on spending $100 for every year you want a computer to last. I tend to say a bit more as the higher end laptops are not $700, but sometimes over $1000, so $150 for every year is my recommendation.
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 and You
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.