Fix Your Own Computer for Seniors for Dummies (ISBN - 0470500875)

387 Pages·2021·18.23 MB·English

Corey Sandler
Tom Badgett

Learn to:
• Diagnose common problems
using the index of symptoms

• Translate error messages and
know what to do

• Maintain your computer to help
prevent future difficulties

• Recognize when you need to call
for help

Fix Your Own Computer
For Seniors

Making Everything Easier!™

Open the book and find:

• Introductions to your PC’s parts
and operating system

• Ways to keep your computer
healthy

• Steps for stopping viruses,
malware, and spam

• When to repair and when to
replace your PC

• How to change your computer’s
memory

• Tips for repairing Windows

• How to get your printer and
monitor working again

• Tricks for fixing common PC
problems

Corey Sandler was the first executive editor of PC Magazine. He has
written more than 160 books, including all editions of Laptops All-in-One
For Dummies. Tom Badgett has published more than 50 books and
hundreds of magazine articles on technical topics. He has also worked
as a journalist and broadcast documentary producer.

Hardware/Personal Computers/PCs

$24.99 US / $29.99 CN / £17.99 UK

ISBN 978-0-470-50087-3

Go to Dummies.com®

for videos, step-by-step examples,
how-to articles, or to shop!

Make simple repairs to your
computer that extend its life
and save you money

Do you go into panic mode when your computer isn’t
working properly? End the worry with this accessible guide!
Expert Corey Sandler shows you how to quickly uncover
what’s wrong and fix it by following easy steps. In no
time, you’ll learn the best way to maintain your PC, solve
hardware problems, restore system settings, troubleshoot
issues, and more.

• Get to know the parts — from the mouse and keyboard to
the monitor, printer, and connection ports, discover how PC
components work

• Inside the box — develop a working knowledge of your PC’s
“brain” and the Windows operating system

• Keep your PC healthy — follow tips and techniques for proper
computer hygiene

• Upgrade memory and replace drives — change your PC’s
memory, hard disk drives, and CD/DVD drives

• Get Windows® back on track — repair, refresh, or reinstall
Windows to quickly get up and running again

• Diagnose the problem — use the Windows Troubleshooting
Wizard and make changes to your injured PC using a list of
solutions

• Enhance security — take the steps needed to protect your PC
from viruses and other threats

Fix Your Own Computer
For Seniors

Sandler
Badgett

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• Checklists

• Charts

• Common Instructions

• And Other Good Stuff!

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Fix Your Own Computer
For Seniors

FOR
DUMmIES

‰

by Corey Sandler
and Tom Badgett

Fix Your Own Computer For Seniors For Dummies®
Published by
Wiley Publishing, Inc.
111 River Street
Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774
www.wiley.com
Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published simultaneously in Canada
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by
any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under
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within the U.S. at 877-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax [phone].
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be available in electronic books.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2009940282
ISBN: 978-0-470-50087-3
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

About the Author

Corey Sandler is the author of more than a hundred books with more
than two million copies in print in more than twenty languages. A for-
mer Gannett and Associated Press newsman, he has appeared on NBC’s
Today show, the Travel Channel, and National Public Radio, and has
been profiled on CNN.

His fascination with the mystery of the life and death of Henry Hudson
took him on a year-long, 25,000-mile journey to England, Norway,
Svalbard, and the North Pole; up New York’s Hudson River to its source,
and deep into Canada’s wilderness of Hudson Bay and James Bay.

Sandler lives on Nantucket island, off the coast of Massachusetts.

About the Contributing Author

Tom Badgett is a writer and entrepreneur. He founded one of the first
national personal computer sales and programming companies in 1980.
He was a founding owner of the tenth-largest Internet service provider
in 1994 (U.S. Internet, now part of Earthlink), and was a founding part-
ner in IdleAire Technologies Corporation, a national provider of HVAC,
Internet, and other services for long-haul truck drivers.

Badgett is a prolific writer, having published more than 50 books and
hundreds of magazine articles for major U.S. and international publish-
ers on technical topics from computer software to computer communi-
cations and security. He produced more than 30 instructional videos
and interactive DVD programs on similar topics, also marketed interna-
tionally. Badgett has worked as a magazine writer and technical editor
(Ziff-Davis, McGraw-Hill), broadcast DJ, journalist and documentary
producer for radio and television. He taught computer programming,
journalism, photography, technical writing, and speech and theater at
the college level for several years.

He holds a BA in language and an MA in documentary film from the
University of Tennessee.

Author’s Acknowledgements

Publishing is a team sport, and I had some great players and coaches all
around. Thanks to Tonya Cupp, Katie Mohr, and Kathy Simpson for
their professional work on moving this title from concept to print. And
once again, to old friend Tom Badgett for coming off the bench to
pinch-hit in a key moment of the game.

Author’s Dedication

To my dad, now in his tenth decade, a senior amongst seniors.

Publisher’s Acknowledgments

We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments at http://dummies.custhelp.com.
For other comments, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 877-762-2974,
outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax [phone].

Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:

Acquisitions, Editorial

Project Editor: Tonya Maddox Cupp

Acquisitions Editors: Katie Mohr, Tiffany Ma

Copy and Development Editor: Kathy Simpson

Technical Editor: Sandy Berger

Editorial Manager: Jodi Jensen

Media Development Associate Producers:
Josh Frank, Marilyn Hummel, Douglas Kuhn,
and Shawn Patrick

Editorial Assistant: Amanda Graham

Sr. Editorial Assistant: Cherie Case

Cartoons: Rich Tennant
(www.the5thwave.com)

Composition Services

Project Coordinator: Katherine Crocker

Layout and Graphics: Samantha K. Cherolis,
Joyce Haughey, Christine Williams

Proofreader: Jacqui Brownstein

Indexer: BIM Indexing & Proofreading Services

Publishing and Editorial for Technology Dummies

Richard Swadley, Vice President and Executive Group Publisher

Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher

Mary Bednarek, Executive Acquisitions Director

Mary C. Corder, Editorial Director

Publishing for Consumer Dummies

Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher

Composition Services

Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services

Contents at a Glance

Introduction ............................................................................. 1

Part I: A Computer Is Not a Toaster .......................................... 7
Chapter 1: Getting to Know the Parts You Can See ...............................................9
Chapter 2: Thinking Inside the Box .......................................................................27
Chapter 3: Looking Through Windows and Other Software ...............................47
Part II: Keeping Your PC Healthy
with Preventive Maintenance .................................................. 65
Chapter 4: Taking Care of Software .......................................................................67
Chapter 5: Practicing Good Computer Hygiene ...................................................85
Chapter 6: Keeping Intruders out of Your Computer.......................................103
Chapter 7: Getting Help When Prevention Fails ............................................... 121
Part III: Fixing Sick Hardware .............................................. 137
Chapter 8: Repairing the Monitor ...................................................................... 139
Chapter 9: Solving Electrical and Mechanical Problems ................................... 157
Chapter 10: Installing Memory ........................................................................... 175
Chapter 11: Changing a Drive, Made Easy ........................................................ 185
Chapter 12: Fixing a Malfunctioning Printer ..................................................... 209
Chapter 13: Taking Care of Your Mouse (or Trackball) and Keyboard ........... 221
Part IV: Resetting the Operating System ............................... 237
Chapter 14: Repairing, Refreshing, and Reinstalling Windows ........................ 239
Chapter 15: Checking and Changing System Configuration ............................ 253
Chapter 16: Restoring Your Computer’s Settings .............................................. 263
Chapter 17: Working in Safe Mode .................................................................... 279

Part V: Troubleshooting Your PC ............................................ 293
18: Managing and Troubleshooting Devices ..................................................... 295
19: Relieving Hard Times for Hard Drives ......................................................... 307
20: Fixing Common Problems ............................................................................ 321
Glossary .............................................................................. 335

Index ................................................................................... 349