Page 40 - IT Essentials And Data Recovery For Online Businesses

Protecting The Hardware

One thing will shorten the life of your computer hardware very quickly, and that is

excess heat. A cooler running computer is a longer-lasting one, and fortunately,
this is very simple issue to take care of.

First of all, make certain the case cooling fan in the back is operating (you should

feel a nice breeze when you stick your hand back there. Also, be sure and allow at
least 4 inches of clearance back there – plenty of air circulation is key to long

service life. It’s also a good idea to clean the fan blades periodically, both on the
case fan and the CPU cooling fan.

At least once a year – twice if you’re located in a dusty old building – you should

open up the case and use a can of compressed air (available at most electronics
stores) to blow out all the dust that tends to accumulate in there. Dust acts as an

insulator and can cause the hardware to run hotter than it would normally. Blow

dust out of your keyboards as well, as accumulation can cause the keys to become
sticky.

Note: do not use one of those “mini-vacs” to remove dust and vacuum the inside,

as these give off electromagnetic energy that can harm your computer’s
components. For this reason, you’ll also want to avoid using a television, radio, or
any sort of appliances or power tools near your computer (and vice-versa). These

may not actually damage your computer directly, but they can interfere with its

performance.

Today’s flat-screen monitors need less care than the old kind that used picture

tubes, but you should wipe the screen gently with a soft damp cloth once a month

or so and blow dust away from the ventilation openings in the back every so often.

The old-style mechanical type of mouse – with the ball – requires frequent cleaning.

The advantage of the old-style mouse is that it’s very inexpensive. Nonetheless,