+ Computer Cleaning Advice:
I suggest you start by erasing everything off your computer and starting over. There are too many people who have too many things on their computers that serve no use and take up a lot of unnecessary drive space. You may notice your computer taking forever to work - this advice will fix that right up.
Your computer comes with CD-Roms when you first get it home. These are used to "format your hard drive". The CDs basically erase everything you've done to your computer since you bought it way back when. If you don't have them with you anymore, I suggest bringing your hardware (that big box that your keyboard is hooked up to) down to a computer store and ask them to format it for you. It'll cost you about a hundred dollars but it's worth it. I also suggest you upgrading your hard drive to a Pentium 4 if you haven't already. It only costs 75$ here in Prince George if you go to CMO Computers.
Burn all your important documents and photos to a CD, but try not to get lost deciding what to save.
Unplug your computer from the internet, load in your computer's CD-Rom and just follow the prompts til your computer is cleared again. Once your computer's all clean you're ready to follow the rest of my advice. All the programs are safe, I have them in my laptop and haven't had a problem yet - and I've had this laptop for 3 years.
+ Windows XP Operating System
Windows are the screens you see when you're surfing the Net or using a program such as Excel or Word. Start off with Windows XP Home Edition. You can purchase one at Staples at a pretty reasonable price. The Office XP Pro version will have Publisher, Word, Excel & Powerpoint. These are programs used for creating documents, files and media presentations and are all up to date.
Windows XP is a standard for modern offices and homes, so I do suggest shelling out the money. Right now Live is being pushed by Microsoft but give it a year or so before paying that one cuz noone else is.
Take the time to go through the set up. Create your own Live ID name; you are going to be given a short tutor on creating your own email address and screen name, how to log onto your computer and then how to get online. You won't have to reload your Telus CD or anything to access the internet - Windows XP does it itself. Simply plug in the internet cord into your computer and Windows XP will show you what you have to do next to get back online. it almost runs itself.
Windows Service Pack 2 or 3
Upgrades to the Windows programs are going to help your computer work more efficiently online and using their programs. You can download Windows Service Pack 2 by clicking here. The upgrades are free. You will be walked through the loading program so be patient, read through the screens carefully and it should take about 20 minutes or so for this step. Your computer will be screened for patches and program updates, so choose the Express option and let your computer load up what it needs. You will be walked through the steps as well.
Windows Movie Maker 2 is also a great add on feature that comes with Service Pack 2. you might want to check it out if you like making movies for friends! Don't be afraid to explore some of the Microsoft free products that are available on their website. If you don't download Service Pack 2 you won't be able to download the program anywhere else.
+ Windows Security
Once your computer's on, you'll want to activate your Windows Security features if you haven't already. Your Firewall should be Active, as well as your Automatic Updates. You can see these settings by clicking on Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools and then Security Center will be listed there. You will need Virus Protection. If you don't want to whip out your Visa, I suggest clicking on Suggested Options, and downloading your free year of eTrust's Antivrus program - it's easy, looks awesome and is pretty fast.
eTrust EZ Antivirus
Free for a year and it integrates itself as part of your Windows Security feature painlessly. Every computer should have a good basic anti virus program and I have never had a problem online since loading this up. Clicking on the silver-blue shield at left will open up the download page for this product.It runs while you're on the Net as well, just as a security feature.
Ad Ware Eraser
Ad-Aware Personal provides advanced protection from known data-mining, aggressive advertising, Trojans, dialers, malware, browser hijackers, and tracking components. It is free, it scans pretty fast, you can choose from different types of scans (fast or thorough) and it is easy to learn. It looks nice too. If you do a lot of downloading, at least run this every few days and you shouldn't have any problems surfing.
Windows Defender
I haven't loaded this into my laptop yet and I've been surfing for a week with a new hard drive. It does stop pop-ups but not all of them... and when you arrive to a download page it does stop your pc from automatically loading up the program - you have to right-click and save as to get some Windows programs to load, or click "Temporarily Allow Pop-Ups". It is worth the extra click or two for a bit more security, especially if you're online and you don't want to accidentally load something onto your computer that will make your whole system crash and load you with porn pop-ups and redirection URLs. That just makes going online unpleasant.
Windows Media Player 11
This is a great basic program for playing your music and watching DVDs or downloading MP3s. It is free, it does a great job and it updates itself constantly. This program will list your favourite songs into playlists for you, which is helpful if you have a lot of CDs at home and want to use your computer to play them like a radio stationfor yourself. If you're comfortable enough online after a while, there are even skins you can download online to change its look.
Internet Explorer
When you go online, you need a web browser. Internet Explorer is pretty much an industry standard and it has simple easy to see icons that pretty much explain themselves. It comes with its own Google search engine as well, and you can do without the MSN Search bar by clicking it OFF - it just adds garbage to your screen and I always advise people not to download Yahoo or MySearch to their tool bars because it slows down your computer – they’re just garbage.
And that's my advice on getting your computer up and running all brand new again!
If you've followed all the steps, you should be happy to get it all over with and can now safely go online without frustrating pop ups or viruses.
If you need more help, just use my Contact Me link at the top of the page.
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Other Important Downloads
Powerpoint Viewer If you don't have Powerpoint but other office people use this, download it free.
Flash Player: used in a lot of games and websites (do NOT download the Yahoo tool bar).
Adobe Reader: everyone gets adobe files once in a while, though I think they're a waste.
Shockwave: used in a lot of websites and games.
Limewire: a safe file sharing program for downloading free music, movies and videos.
