We have been asked a few times now in Burton on Trent about child internet safety and being a person myself that has children this is a thing after my own heart so this is my first part in a small series on the matter and what you can do to help control your child. and the area of possible problems are :
These include the following:So-called ‘drive-by downloads’ (i.e. malicious programs that install on your computer automatically when you view a web page)
The risk of infection through peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing programs that give others access to your computer;
Unwanted advertising, including pop-ups and adware programs: these are sometimes installed automatically with freeware programs that are available for download on the Internet
Sexually explicit (or other inappropriate) content
Being tricked into disclosing personal information (about them or you)
Downloading pirated material (e.g. music or video files)
Being targeted by online bullies
Being approached (in Internet chat rooms, for example) by paedophiles
What steps can I take to protect my children? Children can be just as vulnerable online as they are in the real world and it’s important that you understand the potential dangers. There are things you can do to minimise the chance of them being exposed to these dangers.
Talk to your children about the potential dangers they face online.
If possible, locate your computer in a family room and try to make the computer a shared family experience.
Encourage your children to talk to you about anything they experience online that upsets them or makes them feel uncomfortable.
Restrict the content that can be accessed from your computer. Many Internet security solutions let you do this. In addition, Internet Explorer includes a Content Advisor that can help you do this (this can be found under Tools | Internet Options | Content ).
Follow the guidelines above for protecting your computer from malicious programs and hackers and explain to your children how this helps protect them. Provide guidelines for them on what they may, or may not, do. Here are some of the things you should think about:
Also ask yourself are you happy to let your children ?
Register on social networking or other web sites?
Make online purchases?
Download music, video or program files?
Use instant messaging programs?
Visit Internet chat rooms?
Remember that the answers may change as your children get older.
In the next part I’m going to try and set out how you you might be able to control via Software.
One of the most common things to go wrong with Desktop computer is PSU (Power Supply Unit) and what it does it sends power other components in a computer. And specially designed to convert general-purpose 220-240V in UK to usable low-voltage DC power for the internal components of the computer.
The most common computer power supplies are built to conform to the ATX form factor. This enables different power supplies to be interchangeable with different components inside the computer. And they will turn on or off from a signal from the motherboard.
Common thing that make me think a power supply has gone are :-
1) Machine is completely dead.
2) The Light comes on but nothing else
If you need help with any Computer Maintenance Repair problem in the Burton on Trent area just give us a call.
One of the common the common problems with Laptop and one of the widely Laptop Repair is the laptop shutting it self off in the middle of the program. The most common reason for this is dust in Fan Unit. This will very true of a Older Laptop.
Check out this short film :-
Although I don’t recommend taking it apart but you could alway do it another way, try buy Compressed Air Dust remover and blowing it into the Air vents on a regular basis this will stop the build up.
If it really bad then you could alway bring it into out Burton on Trent Branch.
I’ve just been out to a customer in the Burton on Trent area who had a virus Antivir, it seems different to the previous virus that was doing the rounds. So please make sure you have you anti virus software upto date. If it’s expired then I recommend you install Microsoft Essentials ( download )or Kaspersky Anti Virus 2010 ( download ).
It great have a 20 MB, 8 MB connect etc.. but I only get 5 MB where I am, but if the quality of the connection is very poor you not going to be able to download videa, Play Music use Internet Telephone for example so a good tool yo check out your connect is Ping Test.
We give each test result a grade to help you interpret the overall quality. We also show the specific packet loss, ping and jitter values that make up your grade. When we are unable to measure one or more of them you will see a grade of N/A. Certain firewall configurations, Java not being installed or other technical issues can cause this, but it is possible that simply testing again will fix the problem. Feel free to test often, and read on to learn more!
A - excellent result! Expect all Internet applications to work very well assuming you have sufficient bandwidth. Use Speedtest.net to see. MOS greater than 4.37 (Example - a ping below 50 ms with 0% packet loss)
B - Very good! Your connection should work well for any Internet application. Some online games may not perform optimally. MOS between 4.28 and 4.37 (Example - a ping around 90 ms with 0% packet loss)
C - Acceptable. Your VoIP quality will suffer some, and you will have a disadvantage in many online games. Most streaming media will be fine. You should try testing again to another server close to you. MOS between 4.00 and 4.27 (Example - a ping around 150 ms with 1% packet loss)
D - Concerning. Most online applications will not perform well but should function in some capacity. Try testing to other servers to verify the result. You might need to contact your ISP for help. MOS between 2.50 and 3.99 (Example - a ping around 300 ms with 3% packet loss)
F - Very poor. Real-time Internet application performance will suffer greatly on such a connection. Test to other servers to confirm the result, but definitely talk to your ISP about troubleshooting the issue. MOS lower than 2.50 (Example - a ping above 500 ms with 20% packet loss)
There are several computer shops in Burton on Trent offer a wide range of computer services, all I can say there are good and bad shops but then again I would say that !! But I think the things that set PCProblem apart from the others are :
No Fix - No Fee (yes that’s true I recently rebuilt a customers laptop to fix a problem with the USB, but the problem was still there after the rebuild so the customer paid nothing)
Repair Centre not a Computer shop - We don’t sell stuff apart from the stuff relating to the computer repair.
Experience - 21 years in the computer industry dealing with computer from Dos / Windows for Workgroup and up..
Response - We try and get to customer Fast, fix the problem fast
Mobile and Office - We don’t charge no matter where we look at the problem. Some problem are better looked at in the office and other types onsite.
FREE Advice - If you just want to chat about the computer / laptop problem then that’s ok
One of my customers in Burton on Trent recently had a Microsoft Xbox 360 with the Ring of Death (RROD) and they have tried the various methods on You Tube to resolve the problem most common described is rapping the Xbox in a towel. These do work but only for a very short period of time. Or you could get it modified but that’s going to cost money and will invalidate the warranty. So what would I suggest well Game station in Burton on Trent offer a 3 year warranty for something like £30 and they will sell you this even if you haven’t got the receipt. But once you’ve done this they will exchange the xbox 360 for you (reconditioned) and also remember it’s happy gaming for 3 year because you have the warranty.
The critical acclaim for Windows 7 keeps coming, with early previewers calling the system “stable, smooth, and highly polished,” amongst other things. However, while Windows 7 may be shaping up to be the operating system Microsoft has been hoping for, more mundane issues may present a serious problem for pc users looking to upgrade come spring 2010.
One of the most common pc problems we are faced with here in Burton on Trent and, no doubt around the country too, is the confusion and potential pitfalls of upgrading operating systems. With multiple versions of the Vista operating system, each one demanding a different upgrade version of Windows 7, Microsoft has created quite a puzzle for many upgraders, but the fun doesn’t end there.
While most operating system upgrades should take a matter of minutes, or an hour or two at most, Microsoft’s latest benchmark for upgrading a 32bit Windows Vista installation with 650GB of data and 40 applications to its Windows 7 counterpart takes a whopping 1,220 minutes. That’s almost a day - on a mid powered machine.
Microsoft didn’t test the same upgrade process on a low powered machine, such as a netbook, but the results are likely to be a staggering install time – perhaps days. Admittedly, netbooks rarely hold more than 200GB’s of data, and certainly less than 40 applications, but the implications of the medium spec test are worrying, to say the least.
If you are worried about problems upgrading to Windows 7, you can check Microsoft’s upgrade page, which aims to answer any questions you might have. We will bring you more results as they come in, but don’t hold your breath!
People in Brizlincote Valley in Burton on Trent only seem to be getting 1 mb > 1.5 mb depending on where you live but it appears this might change in June 2010 but on the BT speedcheck it’s saying something different.
