iCraft
Basic strategies to keep in mind when troubleshooting your PC.
(1) Safety First
Both you and your computer are delicate machines; take the proper precautions to avoid any electrical shocks before opening up your PC’s case. Turning off your computer isn’t enough; always unplug the power cord from the back of your computer’s case. And electrical shocks won’t just hurt you; they can also destroy your computer. Just walking across a carpet can generate enough static electricity to permanently damage your PC’s circuitry with a single touch.
(2) Don't be frustrated!
Don't be afraid of computer problems. It is often the best opportunity to learn.Stay calm! Solving computer problems needs to be done in an orderly, systematic way. Randomly clicking buttons and changing settings can end up doing more harm than good.
(3) Avoid Burning Bridges
Don’t make changes to your PC that can’t be undone. If you’re about to change a setting or install a new driver in Windows, make sure you’ve recorded the old settings or saved the old drivers. Likewise, when replacing an old file with a new one, don’t delete the old file. Just change its name slightly by adding a 1—or any number or letter—to the end of its name. (Just right-click the filename in Explorer and select Rename.) If you ever need the old file, it will be right there and easy to find.
And never forget the golden rule of troubleshooting: Back up everything, twice! Even after you’ve successfully fixed or upgraded your PC, it’s not unusual to find that important files have inexplicably disappeared.
(4) Check the Obvious
More often than not, a computer problem is caused by something really simple and obvious. It’s amazing how often a power cord is unplugged, a monitor cable is loose, or a CD is upside down in the drive. So before spending a lot of time and energy looking for a hidden glitch or changing complex settings, check the following list:
- Is it plugged in? Check all your connections and make sure they’re tightly seated. If you’re not sure, unseat and firmly reseat any suspect connection. If your screen is blank, check both ends of the power cables for your case and your monitor. If your PC is plugged into a surge protector, make sure the protector is turned on and running properly; sometimes surge protectors and power strips have built-in fuses or circuit breakers that accidentally shut down.
Turn your PC off and on again. Do the same for your monitor, printer, or any other device that may be involved. It sounds ridiculously obvious, but you’d be amazed how often turning everything on and off clears up a problem.
Check your drives for CDs, DVDs, or floppy disks that shouldn’t be there; your PC may be looking for a file that’s not there.
What’s changed? Problems often occur because something has changed in your computer. Have you added or removed any software or hardware in the recent past? Have you moved the computer? Have there been any recent power failures while the computer was running? These types of things are excellent clues for tracking down the source of problems. If possible, try to undo what ever was done; Windows XP comes with several tools like System Restore, which helps you backtrack to a time when your PC worked well.
Trial and ErrorThe most powerful trouble-shooting technique is to isolate the problem to a specific component by trial-and-error. Swap compatible components and see if the system still works. Try different peripherals on different machines and see if the same problem occurs. Make one change at a time.
Make notes!
Cabling and Connections
Make sure that all cables are connected properly. IDE and floppy ribbon cables and power cables can often go loose. Ensure microprocessor, memory modules, and adapters such as video card and sound card are inserted correctly and didn't alter during transportation.
Make notes of what you have done and all the error messages. You may need to use them later. For instance, when you see an unusual blue screen with an error message, copy the entire message onto a piece of paper. In many situations, that message may point to the right direction in getting the problem solved quickly.
Basic troubleshooting Startegy
How to check devices are working properly
Some Monitor troubleshooting tips.
Steps to improve the performance of your PC
Restore deleted files or previously saved versions of your files on Windows Vista
