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Maintaining and Troubleshooting Your Computer

You don't need to be a mechanic to use a PC, but you should perform some basic maintenance tasks on a regular basis to keep your PC in tip-top condition and running at peak performance.

Here you learn how to clean your monitor, keyboard, mouse, printer, and system unit; give your PC a regular tune-up to keep it running at top speed; troubleshoot common PC problems; and prepare for and recover from unavoidable disasters.

In this tutorial:

  1. Keeping Your PC Clean
  2. Vacuuming and Dusting Your Computer
  3. Cleaning Your Printer
  4. Giving Your PC a Tune-Up
  5. Checking for and Repairing Damaged Files
  6. Defragmenting Files
  7. Preparation and Troubleshooting
  8. Restoring Files
  9. Creating a System Image
  10. Creating and Using a System Repair Disc
  11. Troubleshooting Problems
  12. Enlisting the Assistance of a Windows Troubleshooter
  13. System Restore
  14. Identifying Troublesome Software
  15. Troubleshooting with the System Configuration Utility
  16. Starting Windows in Safe Mode