Dec 18 2008
Do Not Do This And Your PC Will Last A Long Time
You may not feel that you have not done anything to hurt your computer, and in most instances this is true. But there are a few cases where it could be your fault, and that there was possibly something you may have done to cause your computer to go wacky. Let us take a look at some of those things.
Believe it or not, computers are somewhat conservative. They do not enjoy change very much. The most reliable system you will ever see is one that only has one or two programs such as Microsoft Word or Excel installed on it. This type of PC will run much better than any other you will come across. It is when you start installing lots of different programs on your PC that you begin to have difficulties. As we all know, this is the very reason we have computers in the first place, but you need to realize the risk that comes with each new pack of software.
The fact is that sometimes we put some many programs on our computer that we forget we installed them and then problems seem random. For instance, your sound may go away one day. Then if you remember, you may have installed a brand new program a week ago, but just now noticed the sound gone because this was the first time that you tried to listen to audio since then, so the problem seems random. Just bear in mind that it only takes a simple little screen saver or a wacky video sent by your friend to cause your computer system to crash.
Of course it would be wonderful if we had a PC for every piece of software that we own, but this is obviously not very feasible. So all you can do is attempt to manage your PC along with what programs that you install. One great suggestion is to keep a log on what software that is installed or updated on your computer. This could either be a small notebook or even a text file. You will want to make a note of not only the name and the version of the software, but you will want to notate the time and date that it was installed as well.
One great habit you should develop is researching a piece of software before installing it on your computer. You should ensure that your system has the capability to accommodate the requirements of the software. There is just no excuse at all for not being able to get this information. It can always be found at the website of the manufacturer or developer. If they have no presence on the internet, then you should not do business with them in the first place.
Another thing you could do to harm your computer is to manually delete files that should not have been deleted. Everybody gets in the mood to get on Windows Explorer and do some housecleaning. This is fine, but it should be done cautiously. As a basic rule of thumb, only delete files that you created yourself. Anything else should be left to the software, operating systems, or a qualified technician. To be more specific, only delete files, folders, and any files in the folders that are in the account profile area where you normally store files. And that is the only files you should ever delete manually.
Just remember that there is absolutely no reason to delete files anywhere else on your PC. While you feel that you must do this, resist the desire and urge to do so. Do not be confused at about this. Other files exist that you can get deleted; you just can not manually delete them. There are proper ways to delete cookies or old games that you no longer want to play for example. Old software usually has an uninstall option to remove those files, if not, use the remove software option in your control panel. You can also use the disk cleanup tool under system tools to clean away any unnecessary temporary files from your system. Just do not delete these manually and you should be fine.
When you consider the management of a healthy computer system, it is actually a matter of using a little bit of common sense. The application of the methods discussed here will make a big difference in the life of your computer system. The key is persistence. Never forget that it only takes one bad download or the deletion of one important file to cause your system to crash.