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Keeping your kids safe online

Keeping your PC in good health

Thursday 23/02/2012

Just follow our simple tips below for trouble free computing (mostly!)

We've been working in the I.T. / computer industry since the dawning of time itself, as depicted in the opening scenes of
'2001: A Space Odyssey'.

...OK, well perhaps not quite that long, but we were certainly building and servicing PC's when they first became mainstream and popular (long before the web arrived) and long before that, as kids we honed our skills on home computer classics such as the ZX81, Spectrum, Commodore 64, QL, Amiga, Atari, MSX machines, and even pre-web 'viewdata' services like, compuserve and prestel; ahhhh the memories!

These days we mainly concentrate on 'digital media' (websites, software, graphic design, music, animation etc.) rather than 'hardware', but we're still happy to exclusively assist local Longdon villagers from time to time when they have PC problems.

*So if you need refreshingly honest and conveniently local professional assistance with a problematic computer, just ask Eva or Barry in Longdon Post Office who they'd recommend. They have passed our details on to many a happy local resident and we always get exceptional feedback.

Anyhow, getting to the point, we thought we'd put together a few basic PC health tips that anyone can follow:

1. Install an excellent and FREE Antivirus package!

If you do nothing else to protect your computer, these days it's essential to have a good Antivirus package installed. And as you may have gathered, this will do exactly what it says; help protect your PC from Viruses and other malicious software or 'malware'.

Many locals that we've met have often paid for Antivirus packages that require ongoing subscriptions, however, despite the hype, there's really no need to spend anything on Antivirus software if you're just a home computer user. So, unless you already have this covered with other software of your choice, we highly recommend that you install either:

Avast Free Antivirus

or

AVG Free Antivirus

*If it's just for personal use, be sure to only select the
FREE VERSION available via either above link.

2. Install an excellent and FREE Firewall package!

A Firewall is simply a program that will block malicious communications emanating from or to the web. Just like an Antivirus, a Firewall will help protect your PC from malicious software and activity.

There are firewalls already built into later versions of Windows, and some people are content with these. However we've seen many a poorly computer infected with nasties, despite running Windows' own built in firewall. So if you want a little extra protection you should try a stand-alone firewall package. We recommend that you download and install one of the following (both are free for home use):

ZoneAlarm Free Firewall	or	PC Tools Firewall Plus
(Easier to install and use)		(A little more complex)

*If it's just for personal use, be sure to only select the
FREE VERSION available via either above link.

3. Some general tips:

• If nothing else you really should follow tip 1!
  
  
• Before letting young children loose on any computer, at the very least you should enable and lock on the strict SafeSearch filters in Google, YouTube, Yahoo and other key services. The most convenient way to achieve this across all major search engines is by installing a simple internet safety application such as SafeSearchLock. Good for your PC, but more importantly good for your kids!

  
  
• Always shut down your computer properly. We see a lot of machines with corrupt data or hard drive problems caused by improper shut downs(e.g. Just turing it off without shutting it down properly). See next related tip...
  
  
• As we all know, Longdon is prone to power cuts and drop outs, so we highly recommend that you buy and use a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply). This is a simple little device that sits between the mains supply and your computer. It will filter out mains spikes / drop-outs and in the event of a power cut it will keep your computer powered up for a short while, allowing you time to save your work and properly shut down your computer. A good domestic UPS can be picked up for as little as £30, preventing problems such as hard drive failure, power supply failure and data loss. Money well spent!
  
  *NB. A UPS is not necessary for laptop computers as they have their own built in backup battery supply.
  
  
• Keep your operating system up to date with Microsoft Windows Updates. This will ensure that the latest security vulnerabilities are addressed on your computer, reducing the risk of problems. If you're not familiar with Windows Updates or how to get them, you can go directly to Microsoft's Update site by clicking here.

  
  
• It sounds obvious, but try not to install any software on your computer that you don't really need! If you do install something and find that it's not for you, uninstall it. This way you'll have a faster machine, more drive space and importantly, a better idea of what you should and shouldn't have on your computer when something dubious pops up. This will help you with the next tip...

  
  
• Watch out for fake Antivirus alerts and fake Antivirus software! This is a common and often convincing ploy used to attack or take over your PC. So, whilst browsing the web, if you suddenly see all kinds of alarming infection warnings on the screen, before you act, make certain they are genuinely coming from your installed Antivirus software (rather than an generically named Antivirus product you can't quite remember installing). So many people have been caught out by these attacks.
  
  
• Don't ever open, respond to, or click an attachment in an email from anyone you don't know and completely trust. Likewise, don't be fooled by offical looking emails containing web links or attachments purportedly relating to your bank, building society, PayPal, Visa, Microsoft or any other similarly sounding officious organisation. Put simply, none of the above will ever send you an unsolicited email or web links / attachments of any description.
  
  
• If someone cold calls you declaring to be from Microsoft or some form of IT service center, claiming that you need an upgrade or that there's a problem with your PC, please hang up. No legitimate IT company will EVER cold call you out of the blue like this. Unfortunately this is a fairly prevalent scam going around which we've experienced first hand. You can read more about this on our scams page.
  
  

Best of luck, and be careful out there ;-)