March 2007

 

Spring is Sprung

by Cheryl Marshman, Editor

Spring is upon us and for me that means several things: beautiful weather, colorful flowers, and house cleaning.  I love the nice weather and enjoy the flowers that bloom in the spring but I don’t much like the spring house cleaning. I know it’s something that needs to be done but nevertheless I don’t like it.

This year besides the spring house cleaning I really need to do some spring computer cleaning as well.  My computer looks pretty dirty and dusty.

My computer keyboard looks like   the tray of my toaster...I’ve finally realized the reason you’re not supposed to eat at the computer.  Lately I’ve thought I needed new glasses, the computer monitor was getting blurry, but it’s just the layers of dust.  My mouse is even growing hair!

My CDs could use a bit of cleaning too.  I’m not very disciplined about putting my CDs back into the sleeve when I’m done using them.  I guess I could get a storage file for them, but haven’t got around to that yet.

I suppose if I’m going to all the trouble of cleaning the outside of my computer, I should clean up the data on the inside also.  You know, delete those .tmp files and outdated stuff I don’t need anymore.  Maybe I’ll even organize my computer files a bit better. 

I’m always trying to find the best or easiest way to do something so I decided to do some research on computer cleaning before getting started.  Besides, it was a good way to postpone the dreaded task.

In the end, it wasn’t as painful as I thought it would be.  Take a look at the article, Spring Cleaning for Your Computer and hopefully your computer will end up as clean as mine is now, without too much trouble.

I guess now I should start the spring house cleaning.  Except with my computer so clean and organized, I want to spend time using it.   Besides, I’ve heard it said that a clean house is a sign of a broken computer and mine works just fine!

Does this Compute?

See if you can figure out these computer riddles.  The answers appear at the end.

• What is a computer's first sign of old age?
• What does a baby computer call his father?

• What is an astronaut's favorite key on a computer keyboard?
• What happened when the computer fell on the floor?
• Why was there a bug in the computer?

Bust the dust. PC cases can get truly dusty, which is a risk to the long-term well-being of your computer. First, make sure to turn off the PC before doing any cleaning tasks. Then look at the fan on the back of your system: If it's fuzzy, use a can of compressed air (sold at hardware stores for less than $10) to spray off the dust in a sideways direction. Dust other case surfaces with a disposable dusting cloth, like Swiffer-brand cloths. If there's other gunk on the case (maybe a late-night coffee stain) a slightly damp paper towel will do the trick. Note: While dust lurks inside, too, don't go there unless you're very familiar with the PC's internal organs.

Detail your printer. To prevent printer jams and other foul-ups, give a small burst of compressed air to the printer mechanism that rolls in the paper. With an inkjet printer, make sure to print at least a page once a week in order to avoid cartridge clogs. To clean the outside of the printer case (usually unnecessary, unless the printer lives in a kitchen and has a close encounter with flying food), use a slightly damp cloth. Check out PCWorld.com for more printer-cleaning tips.

Kill keyboard crud. More goodies may lurk in your keyboard than live under your couch. Unplug the keyboard, and then turn it upside down to shake out the cookie crumbs and edible artifacts. A small artist brush works well for dusting between the keys as well as the surface of the keyboard.

Improve your view. When was the last time you dusted your monitor?  Unplug it and dust it with a disposable dusting cloth. If it's really dirty--say, with dirty fingerprints or a yogurt-covered handprint--unplug it and use a slightly damp cloth with water only. (Some monitor makers sell cleaning solutions, but you probably don't need one unless you have a fancy or expensive monitor.) Note: Do not use Windex-type glass cleaners or detergents and never spray water directly on the display.

Clean your CDs. Dirty CDs can cause read errors and/or cause CDs to not work at all. Cleaning CDs can be done with a CD cleaning kit however can also be done with a normal clean cotton cloth or shirt. When doing this with a clean cotton cloth or shirt, wipe against the tracks, starting from the middle of the CD and wiping towards the outer side of the CD. Never wipe with the tracks doing so may put more scratches on the CD.  It is recommended when cleaning a CD that water be used. However, if the substance on a CD cannot be removed using water, pure alcohol can also be used.

Clean the mouse. A dirty mechanical mouse (mouse with a ball) can cause the mouse to be difficult to move as well as cause strange mouse movement. To clean the rollers of an optical-mechanical mouse, you must first remove the bottom cover of the mouse. To do this, examine the bottom of the mouse to see which direction the mouse cover should be rotated. As in the illustration, the mouse cover must be moved counter clockwise. Place two fingers on the mouse cover and push the direction of the arrows.  Once the cover has rotated about an inch, rotate the mouse into its normal position, covering the bottom of the mouse with one hand and the bottom should fall off including the mouse ball. If this does not occur, attempt to shake the mouse gently.

Once the bottom cover and the ball are removed, you should be able to see three rollers located within the mouse. Use a cotton swab, your finger, and/or fingernail and move in a horizontal direction of the rollers. Usually, there will be a small line of hair and or dirt in the middle of the roller, remove this dirt and/or hair as much as possible.

Once you have removed as much dirt and hair as possible, place the ball back within the mouse and place the cover back on. If the mouse still appears to be having the same issue, repeat the above process; if after several attempts the mouse is still having the same issues, it's likely that your mouse has other hardware issues and we recommend that it be replaced.  Note: Cleaning your mouse pad with a damp cloth can also help improve a computer's mouse movement.

Defrag the hard drive. Your PC hard drive needs help to stay in tip-top shape.  The Disk Defragmenter utility in Windows groups all the bits of data that get strewn across your hard drive. By regularly defragging your hard drive (at least once a month is recommended), you reduce the amount of time required to access files and programs. To run the utility, close all open applications, click Start, Programs (or All Programs), Accessories, System Tools, Disk Defragmenter, and follow the instructions.

Stop file mayhem. If you don't organize your PC files once in a while, your hard drive starts to resemble the junk drawer in your kitchen. First, clean out your temporary files: From My Computer, right click the C: drive.  Select Properties and Disk Cleanup. When the next then click OK. Another window will ask, Are you sure you want to perform these actions?....click  yes.

For more in depth information about cleaning the data on your computer refer to:

GCCLC article series by Roger Thornburn, “Cleaning your Computer”, online @ theunion.com

1st in series  (June 19, 2006)

2nd in series (July 31, 2006)

3rd in series  (Aug 14, 2006)

4th in series  (Sep 4, 2006)

5th in series  (Sep 18, 2006)

Documentation from a seminar taught by Roger Thornburn, Cleaning the Cr@p from Your Computer.  Can be downloaded free @ the GCCLC website

Tips & Tricks:  CDs

by Doug Worthy

Tips for Ejecting a CD

There are several things which could prevent the ejecting process; one could be bad or failing electrical components.

If the CD Tray won’t eject to remove a CD, there are several procedures you can try before calling help.

1. Try clicking the eject command, found in My Computer. Just right click the CD icon, select properties, then left click eject.
2. If that doesn’t work, try rebooting the computer. Afterward, the eject button may now work.
3. If the CD still won’t eject try to add something to the CD. It may eject automatically after the writing to CD is complete.
4. Lastly,  use a straightened paper clip and push it into that very small hole you see in the front of the CD  tray.

Calling tech support of the manufacturer should be your last option, but if you do, have the details of your device handy, model number, etc.

Do CDs Last Forever?

CDs you put your valuable digital photos on do not last forever. Over time, the quality of digital photos will deteriorate.

PC World Magazine stated that home burned CDs are not the same quality as CD’s bought in stores with programs on them. They do not have the same protective layers and can degrade in as little as 5 years.

It’s difficult to distinguish high grade CD’s from poor ones since few companies use life span as a selling point.

Storing CDs in a cool dark place may slow the deterioration. Having a date on your CD would establish a good reference for the future.

Some experts claim your burned CDs may last up to 10 years, but not to rely heavily on this.  For advice about storage, handling, cleaning, and properly labeling CDs checkout this website:

http://www.itl.nist.gov/div895/carefordisc/

 

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Photos Submitted by GCCLC Students and Volunteers