Eye On Silicon

How effective is advertising on my vehicle using magnetic signs?
09:15, Sun 23rd Mar 2008   full post url

Just a couple days ago, I ordered some magnetic signs to advertise my business on the side of my car. I acquired these from VistaPrint. (that link is my very own money making link, if you're going to order some signs and you like this article, click that link to pay tribute!)

This is my first entry of many detailing the upcoming successes and failures of magnetic signs on my car.

Before I ordered any signs, I researched magnetic signs to find out what they could offer to my business. Unfortunately, all I could find were companies offering to sell me magnetic signs. Sure, their testimonials were convincing, but I wanted some hard evidence that the signs will work for my business - or even that they wouldn't!

Reading about the net, the few resources I did manage to find helped me to conclude the following important theories:

• Having a sign of any kind on your vehicle with your business name made visible helps create a trust relationship between yourself and your customers. Pulling up outside a house in an unmarked vehicle doesn't help your image, pulling up in a marked car shows that you mean business.
• Your vehicle is an advertising resource. Left untapped, it will do nothing for you. The cost of a magnetic sign only requires a small ROI to pay for itself.
• Using a van probably has a better trust value than using a car.
• Keeping your car clean is as important as advertising on it.

I ordered four signs on Tuesday and they arrived two days later on Thursday. I put them on my car that night and parked my car down the road near a busy intersection outside a fish & chip shop. I figured that this wasn't far to walk every morning, and lots of people would go past my car in their cars and on their trips between their car and the fish & chip shop.

The very next morning (Friday) I received my first call from the ad. A lady that lived near the fish & chip shop saw my car and asked if I could resolve their internet connection troubles. I, of course, said yes, and attended their house later that morning. It turned out that the computer had more problems than my time was worth, and I ended up taking the machine away for a reinstallation. I returned it later that day at a cost of £50. The signs cost less than that delivered, meaning my investment had been returned within a day!

I haven't had any more calls since, but I haven't been parking the car down there as its freezing outside. If I could get another call out every day from my signs, that'd be an extra £10k income a year. For the £35 I invested in these signs, the potential is amazing.

I believe the key to success with magnetic signs is the following:

• Make your signs as visible and to the point as possible. Make it clear as to what you offer, if you sell carpets then incorporating that into your business name would help; ie. "Carpet Men".
• Parking your car busy places can only lead to more impressions, and more impressions should lead to more calls.
• The bigger the better - if you're like me and you have bad eyesight, you'll be relying on big lettering in clear colours. Yellow and red are not very visible, blue and black are, green is somewhat inbetween.
• Imagery catches an eye. More important, eyes catch eyes! Spend time designing your image, I used a stressed looking lady staring at a computer screen to advertise my computer repair business. I figured people could relate.

I will be keeping track of the call outs I receive from my advertisement, and will post in due course with anything else that I learn.

My CD / DVD drives have stopped working in Windows XP (driver corruption and error code 39 / 41)
08:43, Thu 7th Feb 2008   full post url

Windows XP has had mysterous bugs from the day Microsoft said go, some serious and others just more... annoying. One such bug is corruption of the generic driver used for CD and DVD drives.

One day, you may just find that your D: drive has vanished. When you check in Device Manager, you see your drives have little yellow exclamations by them - what's up with that? You look further, and read:

"Windows cannot load the device driver for this hardware. The driver may be corrupted or missing. (Code 39)"

So, Windows can't load the driver. Why, you ask, has my generic driver suddenly stopped working? Is it a corrupt driver? Well, as far as we can tell, this problem is often caused by CD/DVD burning software such as Roxio or Nero "latching on" to the driver. The system files that these application suites add sometimes fail and inadvertently cause the driver to fail.

Fixing it is actually a quite simply task, we just need to remove what the burning software has added to the driver.

Follow these instructions:

1. Load the registry editor. (click Start, click Run, type "regedit" and click OK)
2. Using the navigation on the left, find your way to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class\{4D36E965-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}
3. Here you should find two keys named "UpperFilters" and "LowerFilters". Double click UpperFilters, delete any value stored, and click OK. Do the same for LowerFilters.
4. Close the registry editor.
5. Restart your computer.

Your drives should be usable again.

An important note: You might need to reinstall any CD or DVD recording software you've installed.

Laptop overheats? Here's the cool solution!
20:18, Thu 13th Dec 2007   full post url

A problem that plagues laptops like no other is overheating. The cooling system on a laptop has a very difficult job, to dissipate the heat created by the components (blame the processor!) to keep the laptop running at an optimal temperature.

Remember, if your cooling system goes down, your laptop will be useless - not to mention dangerous to your skin. Look after it, and your laptop will thank you for it in time.

Faulty power supply unit and eMachine computers
17:10, Wed 22nd Aug 2007   full post url

There is something that eMachine computers all have in common, other than the brand - they all have evil power supplies that eventually murder the system! The most common machine that finds its way into my workshop is, by far, an eMachine.

It seems to be mostly Intel socket 478s that fall victim to this problem, and I could never be sure whether it was the mainboard or the power supply that caused it. But today, while repairing a customer's PC, I caught the component red handed!

The keyboard socket had previously given up working, and the machine was acting a little weird. I suspected there could be a mainboard problem. Suddenly, the graphics went funky, and at this point I turned the machine off by holding in the power button.

When attempting to turn it back on, I was greeted by the notorious flashing power light. After checking the back of the mainbaord, I noticed the LEDs on the network socket were flashing in sync with the power light! OH NO! This isn't STANDBY, this is IMMINENT DEATH!

I quickly yanked the power cable out of the PSU, and promptly tried a new PSU on the mainboard. Sure enough, the system booted up! And amazingly, the keyboard socket works again! All of this was apparently caused by the PSU that came with the machine.

The repair bill would have run into the hundreds had the mainboard fried, so it's lucky I caught it. As for all my other customers, the pain on their face when I hand them the bill is something I could do without seeing!

For what it's worth (and it's worth a lot, you know!), maybe you should replace your PSU with a nice, new PSU from eBuyer. You can get them as cheap as £10, and you're definitely better safe than sorry!

I suppose the question remains - was the PSU always going to kill the mainboard, or has the mainboard been killing the PSU?

What is a virus, and how do I protect myself from viruses?
16:21, Thu 16th Aug 2007   full post url

Computer viruses are computer programs designed to interfere with your computer. The generic name virus covers spyware and adware too.

There are many different types of virus, one virus might corrupt or delete important data you have stored on your computer, another virus might log the keys you press and steal your credit card information, while another virus might throw pornography in your face. Every virus has something in common though - they're unwanted and with the right level of protection can be prevented.

Once you have a virus it can be a daunting task to remove it. It is therefore a reasonable idea to protect yourself from viruses at a system level to stop them entering in the first place.

If you already have a virus and you can't get rid of it, you may need to call a computer professional or re-install your computer with a fresh copy of Windows.

Here's some things you can do to protect yourself from the world of viruses:

1. Use well-known anti-virus and firewall software
   There are many security products on the shelf of your local computer store, in fact many of these products have made it to the supermarket shelves. A good security product is your best defense against viruses. We recommend AVG, which you can download for free at http://free.grisoft.com/. Use this in conjuction with the standard Windows firewall, and your computer will be protected from unwanted visitors and viruses.
2. Use a reputable anti-spyware product
   There are many anti-spyware products about that can help protect your machine from spyware, and even remove it if you get an infection. Lavasoft Ad-Aware is a popular choice, and AVG also offer a 30 day trial of their AVG Anti-Spyware product.
3. Be careful with what you browse on the internet
   Not every website is the same, and each website poses a security risk to your machine. Stick with websites like Yahoo, Google and Hotmail, and you'll have a safer computing experience.
4. Never open an email attachment unless you know what it is
   If you receive an email, even from somebody you know, don't open it unless you know what it is. If you know the person, give them a call and ask them if they sent you an email - if they didn't, they probably have a virus that sent itself to your computer through email!
5. Be cautious when opening webpages and receiving files when on an internet messenger
   If you use MSN, AOL, Skype or a similar messaging program, you may well be aware that you can send files to your friends. But maybe you're not aware that a virus can do the same! If you receive a message from somebody with a link, make sure you know what it is. Talk to them, ask them if they meant to send it to you, ask them what it is, and be careful.

Why defragmenting your hard disk is necessary
17:19, Sun 12th Aug 2007   full post url

Have you ever written lots of notes on a page of lined paper, looked at them and thought to yourself: "I should rewrite these notes to make them more readable." Of course you have, who hasn't! And in the world of computers, a computer can do the same thing!

One of the biggest problems facing disks today is the method a computer uses to store files. The computer quickly scans for free space, and stores the file in the free space it finds first. Sometimes though, the space it finds isn't big enough because there are files either side of the space, and so it has to store the file in fragments. A little bit of the file here, a little bit of the file there, and job done!

A few files being stored this way won't really take its toll on your machine, but if 10% of your files are stored this way you might start to notice a bit of disk lag. How much lag you'll notice depends very much on the system you're running, if you don't have much RAM and your computer therefore uses the disk for virtual memory, you'll probably find yourself having to wait several minutes between switching windows.

There is a cure to the problem though, and it's called defragmenting.

Every copy of Windows comes with a defragment tool, it's a good idea to defragment your disk now and then just as a health check.

Follow these steps to defragment your disk:

1. Go to your desktop, and double click the My Computer icon. If you can't find the icon on your desktop, then click Start and click My Computer there.

2. Right click disk (C:) and click Properties, select the Tools tab and click the Defragment Now button.

3. When Disk Defragmenter appears, click Analyze.

Wait a moment while Disk Defragmenter checks your disk's fragmentation level. After a few moments, the analysis will be complete and you will be advised as to whether or not you need to defragment.

4. To complete the defragmentation, click the Defragment button.

What does RAM do, and how much should I have?
15:38, Thu 9th Aug 2007   full post url

RAM stands for Random Access Memory.

Imagine RAM as the equivalent to our "thinking memory". When you're trying to work out a long equation, or complete a puzzle like a Sudoku, your thinking memory is what limits your ability to do so. If you can't remember something, you have to go back and read it. The more you have to go back and read, the longer the entire process will take.

Your computer does the same thing - it can only remember so much at a time. It's important not to mix the purpose of RAM and your hard disk space; RAM is a precious resource that applications use to temporarily store data, and hard disk space is what you use to store your precious documents that should be backed up!

The problem with RAM is computers never seem to have enough of it. The more you load at once, the more RAM you'll need.

When your computer finishes booting, it will have an "idle" RAM usage level of, let's say for argument's sake, 300 megabytes. This is fine, because your computer has 512 megabytes.

The problem occurs when you open four Internet pages that suck up the remaining 212 megabytes of RAM and you suddenly find yourself firing on three cylinders! Your mouse cursor starts to judder, images redraw slowly from top to bottom, and everything else comes to a grinding halt. Your hard drive at this point would probably sound like something from The Matrix.

"WHY?" you scream at the top of your lungs, "why is my brand new computer running like POOP?" The answer is simple; no matter how new your computer, the laws of computing still apply. If you don't have enough RAM, your computer will grind to a halt.

But there are solutions to this problem!

Solution 1: Purchase more RAM

This is the best option if you can afford it. It's similar to buying somebody a house closer to work to save them that 3 hour commute everyday. By giving your computer more RAM or "thinking memory", your computer will have less to do. If it has less to do, it can spend more time concentrating on the tasks you actually want it to do, thus the tasks you're trying to get done will get done quicker!

These days, you can upgrade your PC's RAM moderately cheaply. Fitting it is an easy job you can do yourself, just open up the side of the case and look for the memory slot that it clips into. Crucial sell memory and even have a memory selector you can use to find the correct memory for your PC. It's worth spending a little more on RAM if you can, because more expensive RAM is generally more reliable. What's an extra few quid or dollars anyway?

Upgrading RAM is one of the best upgrades available for your PC, and the difference is almost always noticeable. It will make your PC boot quicker, run quicker, shutdown quicker and will help improve performance all round. It reduces wear and tear on the hard drive, improves cooling by reducing the machine's work load, and gives you a better computing experience with little to none frustration.

Solution 2: Make better use of your RAM

This is a solution that has been long forgotten, but can make the difference between a PC that runs like a moped going uphill, and a Ferrari. By making better use of your RAM and therefore reducing your memory usage, your computer will have more RAM to use for the applications you load.

Here are a few tips:

• Try removing any programs you don't need from startup. Applications for your printer and camera can usually be loaded from the start menu. Any icons in the tray bar count towards your total RAM usage.
• Uninstall unnecessary toolbars. If you have the Yahoo, AOL and Google toolbars installed, try removing one of them!
• Run a spyware removal tool such as AVG Anti-Spyware. Get rid of any adware or spyware from your machine that could be using up precious RAM and processing power.

Combining both of these solutions is a smart move for any computer user.

These days, RAM is cheap enough for everybody to upgrade. We recommend you do so if you have the money, as the difference you'll notice will definitely be worth it.

If you have any questions, leave a comment with your email address or email support@lowestoftpcrepair.com.