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Before you pick up the phone to call your IT guy, here are some tips and tricks, that Scurlock Systems and Associates recommends to optimize the speed and performance of your PC. In a few minutes time and with minimal effort, you can make the most of your investment by keeping your technology up to date.

Content
> Best Practices
-- AntiVirus and AntiSpyware
-- Operating System Updates
-- Defragmenting and Cleanup
-- Internet Explorer and Firefox
> Backups
-- FAQ
> Writeups
> Common Problems

Please note, if you have any questions regarding anything seen on this page, feel free to contact us. We can even perform these tasks remotely!

Best Practices
There are a number of things you can do to your system to keep it running smoothly and prevent problems from occurring, like viruses and corrupt files. We like to call those "Best Practices".

AntiVirus and AntiSpyware
It's the general rule of thumb, everyone always has something to say about it... "Make sure you have updated AntiVirus software!" One thing people often leave out, though, is the importance of AntiSpyware as well. You may be surprised to learn that at Scurlock Systems, we clean more spyware infections than virus infections! Honestly, there's only one way to combat this, and that's to have a proper protection program in place. We are big fans of AVG AntiVirus 8.0, as it has a quality AntiSpyware agent built right in! AVG AntiVirus 8.0 can be purchased through us, or here. That said, we've experienced a recent outbreak of a particularly nasty virus, called Antivirus 2009, which masquerades itself as an AntiVirus program. Unfortunately, it seems to get through all the major (AVG included) AV and AS software. Fortunately, a solution is available, called MalwareBytes AntiMalware. You can download that on our Utilities page.

Having the program is only half the battle, though. In order for your AntiVirus to be effective, you need to keep it up to date. The best part about AVG is the fact that it automatically updates every morning, without any of your input required! This is very important, because without the updates, you won't be protected from newly released viruses.
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Operating System Updates
You may notice the little yellow shield that can occasionally pop up next to the clock on your taskbar. That little icon means that there are updates to your Windows operating system. Here at Scurlock Systems, we firmly believe that OS updates are critical in keeping your system running as stable and as fast as possible.

When Microsoft releases an operating system, it's generally full of "bugs" for the first part of its life. To fix that, Microsoft releases updates and Service Packs (more on these later) which, essentially, make your system run smoother. Included in these updates also may be patches for security holes that hackers can use to get into your system.

Now over time, Microsoft releases a list of updates in what's called a Service Pack. Essentially, a Service Pack is made up of all updates prior to the Service Pack's release, as well as a load of new ones. Many Service Packs have new features in them, too, such as XP Service Pack 2's ability to use Wireless Network cards. Service Packs do not install automatically, so you'll have to install them yourself by running the Windows Update utility. (Start Menu > All Programs > Windows Update)
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Defragmenting and Cleanup
For optimum performance, you'll want to keep your system cleaned up and organized properly. To do that, you defragment your hard drive, keep the Recycle Bin emptied, and run the Disk Cleanup utility. Now, the frequency of which you perform these tasks is debated, but for most users, once a month should keep you running clean.

Defragmenting is essentially reorganizing your hard drive, it puts files and folders where it can access them quickly and easily. This can drastically speed up your load times for Windows as well as most programs. In Windows XP, you can Analyze your system to see if it needs defragmenting. To open the Defragmenter, go to Start > Run and type in "dfrg.msc" without quotes.

System Cleanup does exactly what you might think it does - cleans up your system. It deletes your temporary files, empties your recycle bin, compresses your old files, and more. You'll want to do this before you defragment, so the defragmenter can organize the emptied space properly.
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Internet Explorer and Firefox
If your internet seems sluggish, your connection may not be at fault. It could be an issue with your browser! There are a few things you can do to combat this slowness. First of all, try clearing your cache. In Internet Explorer, that's found under Tools > Internet Options and the Browsing History: Delete button. You can also clear the cookies and history there as well. In Firefox, you would go to Tools > Clear Private Data.

Most folks out there use Internet Explorer. For smooth operation of your internet, you'll want to make sure you have the latest version of IE, which is 7. You can do this by running the Windows Update procedure, listed above. Any further issues are a bit too complex to explain on this page, but you're more than welcome to contact us for assistance! We'll be glad to help you out.

Now, what many people don't know is that Internet Explorer isn't the only or best browser available. Scurlock Systems recommends Mozilla Firefox to be used instead of Internet Explorer, for many reasons: it's more secure, more stable, faster, and has the ability to block those pesky advertisements. There are a number of tweaks to speed up Firefox, but one modification we recommend is an addon called AdBlock Plus. This will prevent many popup ads and banner ads from cluttering your web experience.
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Backups
The saying goes "It's not if you lose a hard drive, it's when". Unfortunately, technology is complex, and therefore there's no foolproof way to prevent failures. Therefore, we at Scurlock Systems want to make sure that when it happens, the damage is minimal. The best way to do that is to back up your critical data.

Backup FAQ's
There are many ways to back up your data, and not each way is going to work for everyone. Hopefully, these Q&A's will clear up some of the confusion.

Q: What are the most important things to know about backing up my data?
A: Well, you need to choose what you're going to back up, what media type(s) you're going to back up to, and how often you'll perform the backup.

Q: Okay, so what should I back up?
A: Well, you'll need to find out what's most important to you. This includes your My Documents, Favorites, Desktop items, Outlook data, iTunes music, and the like.

Q: So I've chosen what I want to back up, what do I back it up to?
A: Well, there are several media types, which one(s) you choose depends on how much data you have. If you have less than 10GB Data, we always recommend MozyPro online backup. For greater amounts of data, or if your internet connection is too slow, you can always use a USB Flash drive, external hard drive, CD/DVD, or a Tape drive if your system is outfitted with the proper hardware.

Q: What programs should I use to back everything up?
A: Well, MozyPro is it's own backup program, so that takes care of itself. However, if you choose to back up to physical media such as a USB Flash or an External Drive, we recommend using Cobian Backup found on the Utilities page. Now, if you choose to back up to a CD/DVD, we recommend doing that manually using your pre-installed CD burning software. If you choose to use a tape drive, there are different specialty programs that can be installed depending on your specific needs. Please contact us for more information.

Q: I've figured out what I should back up and what I should use, but how often should I use it?
A: Well, that depends. We don't recommend going more than a month between backups at minimum. However, you'll have to consider this: How long

Q: What if I still have questions or need help?
A: Feel free to contact us and we can answer any question you may have, as well as set up your backup system!
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Writeups
There are some procedures that are fairly difficult to explain, but not difficult to do. So we've created these handy step-by-step writeups that you can follow should the need arise.

> Writeup: How to Manually Update Windows
For when Automatic Update fails you, manually update Windows yourself!

> Writeup: How to Run a Manual Backup of MozyPro
There is an ongoing issue with MozyPro and their automatic backups. We are working closely with them on this issue, but in the meantime, here's how you can make sure your data is safe.
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Common Problems
There are a few common issues that you may have with your system that you can combat on your own. Some of these are discussed here.

USB Printers
Most, if not all, printers are installed with an automatic association to the specific USB port that they're plugged into. So, if you've unplugged your items recently, and your USB printer no longer works, try plugging it into the original port. Also, when installing a USB printer, do not use a USB hub, as some issues have been reported. Speaking of USB hubs...

USB Hubs
There are some reported issues with people losing connectivity on USB devices that are plugged in to a USB hub. The best solution is to reboot the hub (unplug/replug the power source). That should reset and solve any issues.

Outlook Data File
If you're having issues with your computer running slowly when Outlook is open, you may want to check how much space you're using. You can do this in Outlook by Right-Clicking your Personal Folders on the left-hand side of the screen, and clicking Properties, and then clicking Folder Size. If your total size is more than 1GB (1,000,000 KB), then try deleting some of your deleted items, etc. This should speed your system up significantly.

Screensaver Password
Depending on if you want to have more security on your computer, or you want to have the convenience of sitting right down and going to work, you can activate or deactivate the password-protected screen saver function. You simply must right click your desktop, and click Properties. Once in that window, go to the Screen Saver tab, where you'll find a checkbox that mentions either the "Welcome Screen" or "Password Protect". You can check/uncheck that box according to your preferences.