Does a Full Hard Drive Slow Down Your Computer?

One of the biggest misconceptions in the computer world is that a full hard drive will slow your computer down, and the answer is… not as much as you think! A computer is built to run with the effective speed of the machine split between several factors which when put together form the core speed of your machine. For example there are several variables you need to be aware of when deciding if you machine is much slower than it should be, and what is the culprit when it comes to a slower machine. For Example, a lot of the reasons you’re finding your machine to be running slower than normal is the things you cannot see. Worms, Bad Registry Indexes, Broken Links, a poorly fragmented HDD and malware. These unseen factors can create such a detriment to the computer’s speed that the inexperienced might believe that all the computer needs Is upgraded computer RAM Memory. Not a bad idea to get started when increasing the speed of the computer, but if ineffective in improving performance you’re going leave a lot to be desired.
Prior to examining the hard ware of your computer you’re going to want to check out how the software is working. Several good free software based solutions to your dilemma, involves easily acquired software which you can find online. For example when it comes to clearing out excess files and archives which have been created long ago is CCleaner. What makes CCleaner so fantastic and useful is its ability to find everything that you never would’ve thought of. It makes an excellent cleaner with the ability to free up a lot of space giving you back your valuable HDD space.
Another cleaner which I would use is Glary Registry Repair, this handy little software clears up all the errors created in your computer which deals with the installation, use, and uninstallation of various software and pro grams you have used over the course of the computers lifetime. One of the best examples of this is its ability to clean out the excess baggage from leftover programs you no longer use. Once this is completed, I would suggest using Defraggler. Your computer does come with a built in Disk Defragmenter program, but it is generally week on the offerings. Defraggler is extremely easy to use with an extremely basic interface; its foolproof design is why I implore my customers to use Defraggler and its thorough fragmenting abilities.
Once you are done with everything that you can possibly do on the software side, is when you should go ahead and start checking out the hardware side of things. The first thing you should look at is the RAM, if you press CTRL ALT DEL on your keyboard, you’re going to get a window to come up on your screen, this window holds a lot of key information related to your computer’s performance. With the Windows Task Manager open, you’ll notice a tab called ‘Performance’. Upon clicking this tab you’re going to be presented with everything currently running on your computer. If you click the ‘Mem Usage’ you should be able to see what’s taking up the core of the speed and memory on your computer. If you see that your CPU Usage is high and that all the processes you have running is to much for your computer, than it would be advised to look into upgrading your currently installed RAM memory.
If you are feeling particularly confident, I would suggest checking out how upgradable your CPU is. If you have a Single Core processor, check and see if your motherboard is compatible with a Core 2 Duo processor, this alone would greatly impact computer speeds for the better. Thank you for reading and visit us at USA Computer Store in Broward Florida! And we are well known for computer repair Fort Lauderdale and computer repair Broward

Should I fix my computer on my own?

If you are thinking about fixing your computer on your own, I highly recommend giving this article a quite read. I’ll be going over most of the basics and dos and do not’s…. All in under 600 words! Before I get to deep in this article I would first want to say that if your problem is centred around a click that you hear coming from inside the case I recommend you seeing your local computer repair company. Your information is at risk of being lost due to hard drive failure when you start hearing clicks from the inside. And if you have a computer fails to boot normally, go see your local computer repair company because computers that fail to go into Windows is having a problem which typically cannot be resolved by some of the most gung-ho do it yourself kind of guy.
What can you do on your own? Memory problems, viruses (sometimes), various software problems, and replacing failed hardware. If your computer is failing to turn on properly, it is suggested to check the hardware first and foremost. This is done easily by opening up the computer and checking the inside. I would start by removing all memory sticks, DDR Memory sticks are long and held in place by 2 clips which have to be moved away from the sticks. In order to safely remove the memory. If my description isn’t accurate enough, go ahead and go to Youtube and check a video to see how it’s done. When done checking memory, I would take out the PCI or AGP video card and then try turning the computer on to see if it works properly without the card. And if the computer turns on properly, it would be pretty safe to say that the video card was the problem. If the computer is still non-responsive as before than the problem hasn’t been resolved.
This is more or less as far as you would be able to go on your own. Anything else you would want to test requires you to have a spare part in order to make sure that the part removed was defective. And purchasing spare parts puts you at risk of buying something you won’t need in the end. If you are unable to get it to turn on by this point, it might be time to see the experts, like us at USA Computer Store.

If it’s a virus that has you down, fear not I have just the solution for you. You will need another computer and a USB flash drive. You have to go online with computer #2 and download Malware Bytes. This handy little program is excellent at eliminating viruses and providing you with excellent on the fly security. Then copy and paste Malware Bytes on to your USB and connect it to the infected computer. Go ahead and start the program and run the scanner, the scanner should pick up and disable current viruses you have causing problems.
If Malware Bytes were to fail to completely remove the infection, then other measures need to be taken. A more in depth scan and analysis needs to be made in order to make sure a computer is properly cleaned. And if you feel like you’re the man for the job, I urge you to be careful. There are lot of fake antivirus removal software online and trying to use the wrong one would only cause your problem to worsen. You might even render the computer incapable of proceeding into windows or you might prevent yourself from using the computer at all by deleting a required file.
If you have a broken laptop screen, that should pose no problem at all as long as your equipped with a screwdriver and replacement screen. All you need to do really is remove the laptop’s front bezel and then the inner screws that attach the screen to the hinge. Once the screen is loose from the hinges to ahead and disconnects the cable behind the screen with care. Pulling to fast and too hard would potentially damage and rip the cables within. This damage would make fixing things a whole lot harder. In any case, be careful and take your time. Thank you for reading and visit me at USA Computer Store in Broward Florida! And we are well know for computer repair Fort Lauderdale and computer repair Broward

The Main Advantages of Moving Over to Cloud

You might’ve heard of it, but it’s the new buzzword of this generation. The Cloud! Google has it, and it is fantastic! When it comes to the Google Cloud, and its innovative features, one may wonder why they would ever own another computer again. For the uninformed out there, the cloud is more or less an online “home” for your information. If you are working on a document at home in the cloud, you can get up and get to work, and voila the document is as it was when you last saw it at home. How the cloud works, is that you’re given your own online cloud account with the ability to create and save documents and files online. This online cloud that Google has developed has an auto save feature which is very smart and ultra responsive to any changes your making! This is great if you’re a company and you’re trying to integrate all the employees into an online gathering spot so that information can be dispersed amongst everyone with efficiency and accuracy.
The best thing about the cloud however, is its ability to be accessed anywhere so long as you have an online connection. This is a great way to stay in touch with your documents no matter if you have just your Smartphone on you. This ability to have access to your information anywhere without having to formally upload it to a server or ftp truly is revolutionary. And it also creates a great safeguard from viruses which have a restricted means of infecting your computer and files. By having your information available to you at an instant with a click of the button you can rest knowing that your information is never at risk of being lost. That is unless the unthinkable happens…
If there is one vulnerability that the Google Cloud has its requirement for a persistent online connection to provide you with the information you have stored online in its database. If for some reason Google’s cloud servers were to ever go down or become offline for any reason whatsoever, you are going to find yourself in a helpless position as you await the for servers to go back online. This one vulnerability is the big one we should all be concerned with, considering in Google’s EULA it states that Google is not responsible for any lost information on the cloud. Being that Google itself is aware that this possibility might reveal itself as a reality, it is good to always backup your information on the cloud at least 1 a month, because… you never just know.
Even though the cloud does have this issue, you have to wonder if the future is going to embrace this type of technology, and the answer is a resounding yes. Everyone nowadays wants to have access to information at the moment they of their choosing. Never before in the history of modern man has information been so easily accessible from anywhere than before. It truly is remarkable that the majority of corporations have been extremely clever in tracking their customers and their interests. A lot of companies have been getting used to opening up their own “company portal”, where a customer has their account and personal information. The biggest example of this i believe is Facebook, and Facebook in a sense is a cloud in the purest form. Where you have your account name and password is your key to instant access that is constantly being generated through everyone’s uploads. This ability to post information and have anyone connected to you is able to see it is an amazing concept. Thank you for reading and visit me at USA Computer Store in Broward Florida! And we are well known for computer repair Fort Lauderdale and computer repair Broward.

Is the IPad Worth it?

The iPad is truly a revolutionary device; it provides the user with an extraordinarily simple interface coupled with extreme portability. It accomplishes what no other device before it could, which is position itself as the new frontier for technology. What truly is fascinating however is how it created a marketplace when there was none to begin with, when people are asked if they want a tablet, they simply remark with “I want an IPad!” However, with all its features are you as a person willing to adopt it into your everyday life?

Do you have a laptop? Is it old? Is it heavy? Do you have a desktop? If you have just a desktop, I would recommend to you, sure get one, no reason why you shouldn’t. By having an IPad you replace any need of yours that a laptop could have provided. The iPad can be used to easily manoeuvre the web, and store information. However its biggest inconvenience i s the inability to multitask properly when cross referencing, and not supporting flash on websites.

Although a pain to deal with, it’s certainly not a deal breaker for most people. And this is because of the apps, making it much easier to use than a laptop on many levels. The ability to download and use apps on an iPad is what sets it apart significantly from a laptop. There’s no fear of downloading the wrong object or acquiring a dangerous virus from simply trying to implement a new program you came across one day.  Downloads are heavily moderated and inspected prior to release to ensure that users are getting the best programs and apps possible. Aside from this however, any app you get on your iPad is going to come from the App Store, which means no competition for your dollars and prices are going to be set a little higher than normal due to covering the cut that Apple receives from selling something on the store.

Aside from these nuances, you can expect an excellent device visually. The image is extremely vivid and sharp which makes for an easy experience on the eyes. Videos play in crisp 720p and the device never feels to hot even when running for a lengthy amount of time. It’s very nice to use in bed because it takes up considerably less space than a laptop. Why don’t I have an iPad? Because I don’t have a need for it.
Like many of you, I wonder too if I need an iPad for myself. But then when I look at what I have I know that the iPad just isn’t for me yet. I have computers everywhere I go and with the assistance of Gmail and Google Cloud I’m able to work at home and resume work where I left off at the office.

My laptop is quite cumbersome but once I set it down, it feels like a portable desktop. Is it practical? No. But it works for me and that’s all that matters. The thing I miss the most from not having an iPad is probably the Face time. Face time is truly an incredible application. It allows me to video-chat with family across the globe and see their expressions and their eyes light up when they speak with me. What I need to do is get the iPod Touch. But I have a Google Nexus which does a good job of being a phone with a bunch of apps that I use occasionally. I like the iPad and until my laptop dies, which should be in about 2-3 years, I’ll probably be using this for quite some time to come. Thank you for reading and visit me at USA Computer Store in Broward Florida! And we are well know for computer repair Fort Lauderdale and laptop repair Fort Lauderdale.

Disassembling Your Laptop Properly

There comes a time in every young man’s life when their computer bites the dust. And they need to take apart their laptop to perform some type of cleaning. When taking apart a laptop, you typically need 4 things, a pen, tape, screwdriver, and maybe a torx screwdriver. With these 4 items you’ll be set to disassemble about 90% of the laptops out there.
First thing is first, we need to turn the computer upside down and start removing all the screws from underneath. When the screws are removed go ahead and wrap them in tape and label them as bottom cover so that you remember where they belong. Once the bottom screws have been removed, go ahead and remove any small covers that present themselves. Go ahead and remove any memory modules and hard drives you find, and it’s also a good idea to go ahead and remove the wireless card. Don’t forget to keep an eye out for any arrows pointing you towards something, it usually means that it is meant to be removed to further disassembly the unit.

With all the bottom screws and covers removed it is time to remove the CD Drive and the screws hidden away underneath the CD Drive. With everything properly removed go ahead and turn the laptop right side up. Check the back of the laptop first to double check and make sure that there are no screws hiding underneath plastic covers. Go ahead and open the top cover, and look down at the keyboard. Many times in order to remove the keyboard you need to push up on it from underneath (Usually through the CD Drive), if not that, then you need to go ahead and look for little holes towards the top of the keyboard, this is a clear indication that you need to put in a flathead and push these levers back in order to raise up the keyboard. Once you lift the keyboard out, you need to remove the cable behind the keyboard in order to make sure it isn’t improperly ripped out. Then go ahead and proceed to remove any screws you see. And any other remaining cable unplugged. Go ahead and check and see how your screen hinges are doing as well, it might be a good time to unscrew and remove the screen from the rest of the computer.

By this point you should have just the palm rest of the computer to deal with, by making sure all the screws on the palm rest are gone it should make removing it a cinch. When lifting on the palm rest, take care that no cables from beneath are still attached, do this slowly as to make sure nothing is ripped. When the palm rest is successfully removed go ahead and start pulling up on the motherboard gently. And when you are given resistance, take a moment to look closely and see exactly which screw you need to remove in order for the motherboard to come loose. Be careful when removing screws, because removing the wrong ones will cause problems in the future and delay getting the computer back up in running when putting it back together.

With all the screws removed from the motherboard it should be ok to take it out and place it to the side. With the motherboard placed to the side you should have easy access to the heat sink and fan on the motherboard. Go ahead and check to see if there’s any dust build up on the vents. And if there is go ahead and clear it out properly to make sure that any previous overheating problem is cleared up. Thank you for reading and visit me at USA Computer Store in Broward Florida! And we are well know for computer repair Fort Lauderdale and laptop repair Fort Lauderdale.

Easiest way to uninstall programs

Uninstalling programs can be a terrible hassle these days, especially when the program itself fails to open or becomes horribly bugged to the point where it’s built in uninstaller fails. This happens most commonly with Norton, MacAfee, Kaspersky, several Windows installed programs, and a variety of other applications that doesn’t seems to have a proper built in installation feature. Many programs don’t want to have a proper uninstall feature because of revenue they generate through advertising, or the hope that you will purchase their upgraded enhanced version of their product with the intent of replacing their failed piece of software.

I’ve known of folk who have had such a bad failure of software that it has left them with no choice other than to redo their entire operating system. This is a normal route to go if the computer in itself hasn’t ever had a proper cleaning, but for computers which haven’t been cleaned properly over time it can become difficult to remove certain programs or applications due to problems that have compounded itself into one giant mess! Headaches will mount when you attempt to search for the files on your own to remove the buggy program by searching all your folders looking for traces of it, but unfortunately it is not that easy.

Whenever you install anything onto your PC it installs in 2 specific locations. The first being the one that are the most familiar and adept to make changes to is your Program Files folder, and the second being many minor changes to the registry. These changes to the registry are the most critical to your asset, because a corrupt registry could bring your entire system to a crawl as windows fails to string together inputs by you the user.

Now this is where I have the answer for uninstalling faulty or problematic programs, and it’s not the cure all be all, but it is effective. The program that I whole heartedly recommend is revo uninstaller. This program performs wonders and you are in luck, because I’m going to walk you through its use step-by-step. First thing is first, go online and google search “Revo Uninstaller” Free download. You could download from CNET or the website of Revo itself for the most secure of downloads. When you are done downloading the program, go ahead and open it. As the program loads you will notice that all the programs you have installed on your computer have begun to load itself on your screen. When all the programs finish presenting themselves you will be able to click on the offenders that you would like expunged from your computer.

Once highlighting a program for extermination you will move your mouse towards the top, and select the uninstall option. When doing so you are going to be shown a new window with several different methods of uninstalling. Go ahead and selection the option “advanced” and once you do select “next.” And you will notice that the program will start its own uninstalling utility, and if it allows you to you should proceed to uninstall the program. Should the uninstall fail you should have no worries because that is where revo shines! Once you are done with this first process, you should have revo left open. Click next, and then Revo is going to start plucking all the program related files from the system and then you will have to select then delete them. And then proceed to do the same thing with the next list of installed registry code.

Hopefully this info helps! Don’t forget to come by and visit me at USA Computer Store in Broward County, Florida and we are well known for computer repair Fort Lauderdale  and laptop repair Broward.

Best Computer System Cleaners

To keep your computer clean, inside and out, is often a challenge! I’m not talking about the dust and dirt that tends to accumulate in your computer’s case, but the nasty stuff that tends to cause your computer to become slower, little by little as you use it regularly.

I’m sure this is a problem you are familiar with, you bought a computer and the first thing you notice how fast it is. Everything runs without a hitch and programs are snappy like the beat of a well versed drum.

However 6 months later you start noticing a few things. It first starts out with programs needing to take a couple of extra moments to open, surfing the web starts to become a chore as things feel like they come to a crawl at moments. Even something such as turning on your computer seems to take forever and ever and ever. “This cannot be right!” you have probably thought to yourself, and you are correct!

Much like a motor car, a computer needs their fair amount of touch, love, & care. The problem is, if you are not sure exactly what to do, then you could end up playing around and damaging your computer. This is why, unless you are a PC expert, you should stick to using programs to help you do the fiddling!

The first thing you notice once you start searching for a good, safe, & efficient computer cleaner software is that there are a ton of them, more than you or I could ever count! Being the computer savvy person I am, it’s with the most honorable intent that I present to you the software that I personally feel does the best job. Some PC cleaning software can be dangerous, if it is not well made, or designed to damage your system, you could get negative effects. Check the software has lots of good reviews, if from a trusted source and experts like it, before you go downloading it onto your PC.

My favourite PC cleaner is CCleaner, which I think is an amazing little program. With a quick and simple Google search it is bound to come up – easily available on internet, if you’re unsure as to where to download it, always try to get it from the official website.

This program is super handy because it clears out the majority of junk and trash you have incidentally stored and have hidden away in places you wouldn’t have imagined! When you launch the program you’re going to be presented with a handy onscreen menu; you should select ‘analyze’ and then ‘run cleaner’. Once completed you’ll notice that a whole lot of space on your computer has been freed and a sense of speed has been restored to your machine.

The second program that I would like to recommend is Glary Registry Repair which is a dandy little tool that I highly recommend, because I have seen it perform some truly glorious work.

Mostly everyone has heard of a computer registry, and that at times their registry becomes out of sync due to the programs that they have installed and uninstalled over.

Glary Registry Repair attempts to help you spot and fix the errors in your registry, so that your computer can run faster.

There are many different programs that you can use to speed up your computer and clean your registry. These are my personal favourites; however feel free to choose your own.

Computer Store are well known for computer repair Broward  and laptop repair Fort Lauderdale