It’s uncommon to enter a household that doesn’t have at least onecomputer system inside it. Computer systems have become increasingly more important over the years, as they are used for business, education, home use and much more. In the USA, close to 90% of all households have at least one personal computer, according to 2016 statistics. And, as computer users, it makes sense for us to care for them, as much as is feasible. In this article, we will be going through a number of basic care methods you can and should deploy for your system(s).
1. Backup Your Data
Your computer could encounter an issue at any time. This issue could be as a result of a power outage or cyberattack. For this reason, you’ll want to ensure you always have a backup copy of the most important data on your system. There are several methods that you can use to back up your data. The first, and most common method is to use the cloud, which you can quickly and easily transfer copies of your data to. The second most common method is to use an external storage device. You’ll want to ensure you have multiple copies of your data backed up.
2. Keep Liquids and Food Away From Your System
This one goes without saying – you’ll want to keep food and liquids away from your systems, as much as possible. One of the easiest ways to permanently damage your keyboard is for a liquid substance to fall on it.Additionally, food particles can also fall and get stuck in between the keys of your board. This may, not only cause your keyboard to act unresponsive, but also for it to look less visually appealing.
3. Remove Dust from Vents and Fans
You should definitely have a cleaning regiment for your system in place. If you have a tower PC, then the vents and fans within the case can and typically do attract dust. Over time, this dust can cause your system to heat up and start to run a little slower. Cleaning out the fans and vents is a simple process that will have long term positive effects, if done correctly and consistently.
4. Acquire Cooling Pads
As previously touched on, overheating can have an adverse effect on your systems performance. If you use your system for long periods of time, then you should consider investing in cooling pads. Cooling pads are a device that is attached externally, designed to prevent your system from getting too hot. Apart from using cooling pads, you can also acquirebadditional fans. Another thing you can do, is avoid using your system when room temperature is very hot.
5. Use a Surge Protector
A surge protector is an appliance or device that is designed to protect appliances, such as your computer system, from voltage spikes. They do this by limiting the amount of voltage supply, by either shorting or blocking it. This prevents the power from exceeding safe thresholds. This is best practice for computer and laptop users.
6. Use Antivirus Software
Antivirus software or internet security software, is amongst the most important thing you should have on your system. These tools are capable of protecting your system from bad neighbourhoods, while surfing the net, spam emails and viruses that can infiltrate your system and corrupt important data on it. A lot of people neglect to install an antivirus program, as they believe they do not really need them, but if your system was to fall prey to a malicious file, a Trojan horse, a worm or spyware, the amount of money you’d have to spend on restoring the system, would be far more than the cost of a simple antivirus program.
7. Defragment Your Hard Drive
One way that you can maintain your system, is by defragging your hard drive. If you’re on a Windows based system, then it should come with a disk defragmenter tool, preinstalled. All you need to do is access it. In the event that you do not have one, then you can shop online, for one of the many disk defragmenter tools available in the marketplace. One thing to note, is that these tools are only applicable for mechanical drives and not SSDs.
8. Keep Your Software Up-To-Date
If there are any available updates for installed software, then you should be prompted. It’s very important that you take the time to keep all your software up-to-date. This should also include your operating system, as these updates are designed to fix glitches, bugs and security vulnerabilities. All of which are designed to ensure your system runs more efficiently, and is protected from cyberattacks.
9. Transport It Safely
Laptops can be very delicate pieces of machinery. After all, they are relatively small, and they are filled with many little microchips. So if you’re constantly on the move, any small little bump, could cause a multitude of problems for it. If you’re constantly carrying your laptop around with you, then it’s very important that you keep it in a padded carrying case. This will ensure its kept safe from scratches and dents, but will also ensure no dust or debris is able to get into it.
10. Keep Your Pets Away
Make sure you don’t have your laptop setup in a room with animals. Your pet’s hair can easily get inside your laptop and adversely affect its functionality. Plus, your pet could also damage your system accidentally, by knocking it off a table.
11. Don’t Put Heavy Items on It
Never put heavy materials on top of your laptop system, such as piles of books or the like. As the weight of these objects could damage your computer screen and its internal components. Also ensure it is kept free from other objects and that it has a lot of airflow.
12. Run Essential Maintenance Tools
There are a wide range of maintenance tools that you can acquire for your computer. We touched on defragmenters and internet security tools, but there are also spyware removal programs and registry cleaner tools. One of the simplest ways of ensuring your system is in tip top condition, is to invest in the many maintenance programs and run them, on a consistent basis.
Uchenna Ani-Okoye is a former IT Manager who now runs his own computer
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