The first thing that you will want to do when adding a new video card to your computer is shut your computer down and make sure anything that you have connected is disconnected but leave the computer plugged into the surge protector. You will then want to remove the cover and put on the grounding cover. You will then want to remove the video card that you have already installed onto your computer. You will then want to install the new video card into a slot in which it will fit. Make sure that you install the card gently but firmly.

Once you have inserted the video card you will then want to make sure that you install the cover and screws back onto your computer. After that is completed you will then want to reconnect your monitor, keyboard, and mouse. Once you have plugged everything back in you will then need to boot your computer back up. When you turn the computer back on if the monitor is working properly then you have installed the video card correctly.

From there you will need to make sure that you adjust all of the monitor settings to your liking as well as download any drivers and software that you might need for the type of video card in which you have installed. After you have completed this you will then need to reboot your computer to ensure that you have completed everything properly. It is a very simple process to complete and can really make it seem like you have just purchased a new monitor.

source: http://www.web-tech-rus.org/adding-a-new-video-card-to-your-computer.html

Computers are constantly being developed and upgraded and just as you purchase one computer, you find that a newer computer has come out that has newer components that make it more powerful. What are you supposed to do in this case? One good thing for you to do would be to purchase a computer that allows for you to easily upgrade particular components. If you choose this option then you will need to know what computer components you are able to upgrade.

Video card and graphics card

The video card and graphics card on a computer will definitely need to be upgraded from time to time. These two components are two of the most powerful components on a computer. After a while they undergo physical wear and tear and their capabilities can diminish. This is going to affect the quality of video images and graphics you see on your screen. Lucky for you these two components are probably two of the easiest to upgrade. You can purchase these online for great low prices and quick delivery.

Upgrading the hard drive

You want to have the most powerful hard drive you can these days, because often you’ll find yourself having to save more hard drive-consuming information than you thought. But it is not information; it is how that information is delivered. A lot of software allows information to be packaged in certain formats such as PDF format, zip files, and torrent files. These files take up more of your hard drive then if information was delivered in simple Word programs. So having a more powerful hard drive will definitely come in handy if you need to store image files, video files and much more.

Upgrading the soundcard

You want the sound on your computer to be loud and crisp. There are many software programs available these days that will require you to have a superior sound card which supports things like speech recognition software. Many people are also into the habit of creating video and online podcasts. An inferior sound card can cause the sound quality to be low. Upgrading the sound card is likely to be something you will need to do at some point during the life of your computer.

There are many other components you can upgrade on your computer and that you will probably need to upgrade at some point but many of the core components mentioned here are the ones that you need to pay the most careful consideration to. Some of these components may cost a lot of money depending on what type of features you want but if you are serious about having a computer that is up to date and gives you the best capability, then this shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

source: http://ezinearticles.com/?What-Computer-Components-Should-You-Upgrade?&id=5489841

With the economic downturn last year resulting in a higher cost of commodities, consumers nowadays are trying to find ways on how to save money. A simple black out on your computer can make you hundreds to a thousand dollars poorer by just paying for the technician to fix computer problems.

In the past, a consumer would usually pay $1,000 dollars to fix computer errors for an actual cost of $300 or even less! It will usually take an average user the whole day figuring out what to do and only minutes for the technician to troubleshoot the problem. In addition, the cost of repairs usually matches the actual price of buying a new computer.

However, the problem is the saved data in your broken computer. You will not have a choice but to have it repaired so you can retrieve your important files. Then you will be in the predicament where you pay twice, once for paying to fix the computer problems and second for paying for the new computer.

The solution is to learn how to fix computer problems. Computer problems may seem enormously difficult at first look, but most are quite simple to fix. Here are the some of the ‘how to’ fix computer problems.

Power Supply Troubleshooting. The first thing to do is to check if the power supply is working properly. Power supplies that come from affordable computers usually have a substandard power supply. The usual symptoms of a broken power supply are the computer reboots by itself and the computer not turning on. You can check if this part is not working by opening the CPU case without unplugging the computer and use a multi-tester. Although this is not an easy fix computer problem, it can save you money because you can already get people from the computer shops to install the power supply for you. It will save you money rather than paying for the services of a technician.

Fix computer problems with Video Card Failure. This usually starts from freezing to no picture on the computer monitor. Video card failure is a common problem because this computer part can lose contact with the main board. Freezing images usually caused by software that has higher demand for video bytes, either you upgrade your video card or try to minimize video usage. On the other hand, no picture in the computer is usually caused by a broken video card and usually gives an annoying sound when computer is turned on. Replacing a video card is a very simple ‘fix computer problems’ that when ranged from 1 – 10 for difficulty, it only registers as 2 or 3.

Virus and Malwares attack. Buying anti-virus and anti-malwares is the best thing to do. It cleans and protects your computer files and programs. Most shops will charge you approximately $300 just to clean your computer from viruses and malwares.

There are other ways to fix computer problems that can be researched. It is timely to start learning to fix computer problems because the computer is already part of our lives and not knowing could really be heavy on your pocket.

source: http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Importance-of-Learning-To-Fix-Computer-Problems&id=5916818

Most people that use a computer have no idea how they work, so does this matter? No, not at all, because you just need to know how to care for it. It is no different then owning a car. If you take care of it, then it will serve you well for years.

1. Antivirus program, make sure you have one installed. Set it to run while you are using your machine to check items you download. Schedule it to run a virus scan on your machine while you are not going to be using it but it will still be on.

2. Defrag your hard drive. This program can be found under “system tools” in windows programs. This will move data around on your hard drive to get rid of junk data not needed and to put data closer together for faster reading.

3. Run Disk cleanup to remove unwanted items on your hard drive. This program can be found under “system tools” in windows programs. This will require you to make some decisions while the program is running. First you will select the drive by letter that you want to cleanup. Then the program will run first to calculate the amount of space it will free up, this may take a while depending on how large your hard drive is. A screen will appear for you to add or remove check boxes. Most of the time the only boxes checked is to remove temporary files and items in the recycle bin. I recommend you only check those and do not use the “more options” tab unless you know what you are doing.

4. Pictures, remove them. Do not use a back ground picture or a screen saver. If you find that your computer is still going slower than normal then set your back ground picture and screen saver to nothing. Most computers come with a video card with enough video memory to make it work well for normal use. But over time the card starts to get over worked and can not handle all the graphics on the screen. This will make your computer work harder to show things on the screen.

5. Air flow, keep it clear. You computer just like you needs apace to breath. The fan inside the computer is very small and can not handle vent blockage. Take a look at the computer case to see where the air is going in at. If you notice that it is from the side and that side of the computer is against a solid surface you need to move it away. But you only need to move it enough for the air to flow. So maybe 2″ would do it. If the air flows in from the front or back then you may not have anything close to it that will cause a problem. You will need to look for dust accumulating on the out side of the computer case. If you see this use a can of compressed air to blow it away. This will also help keep the inside of your computer cooler.

Just follow the tips above and before you know it people will think you are becoming a computer expert.

source: http://ezinearticles.com/?5-Tips-to-Keep-Your-Computer-Working-Well&id=5737715

If your computer monitor is blank, you need to determine if the problem is the monitor or the PC. But it can also be caused by bad power and video cables, or even a bad power source. So if your monitor is blank, these steps should help you determine isolate the problem. Keep in mind there are a lot of factors that can contribute to a blank monitor, such as a bad video card, motherboard or power supply in the PC. On the monitor side, you could have issues with its power supply, cables or the LCD backlight itself.

Troubleshooting Computer Monitors

The first thing you should determine is if the monitor is a CRT or a flat panel. CRTs are older and prone to fail with buzzing sounds, such as a TV would. Flat panels can have a backlight go, which means it needs to be replaced. You should check to make sure the monitor is getting power, then play with the buttons on the front to confirm the brightness is turned all the way up. If you still see nothing, disconnect the video cable from the computer and see if a monitor disgnostic image comes up on the screen. Most newer monitors will display this image when there is no power to the monitor. It is a way to easily tell users that the monitor is okay but that there is no signal coming from the PC. If you recall seeing this diagnostic in the past but it does not show now the monitor is probably bad. Try it on another PC if you can to confirm.

You should also go directly into an outlet and by-pass any power strips you might be using. Plugging into an electrical outlet you know works can help narrow your power issues. You should also check any external power supply the monitor might have. Depending on the model, some have the power supply located in the cable, just as a laptop would. If this is the case, there should be a light on the power supply indicating it is OK. If you have a standard power plug, try replacing that with another.

Troubleshooting The Computer

If you have determined the problem is with the computer, you should make sure all connections are secure. Remove both ends of the VGA cable and inspect the entire cable for damage. Confirm the pins are not bent and then reconnect the cable. If the computer has a second video input, try the second one. Occasionally, a computer will have an on-board graphics adapter as well as a card that was later added by the user. Try going back to the original and see if this helps. If so, you may need to tell the BIOS which output to use. If the monitor comes on when the PC first boots but then shuts off when Windows loads, you probably have a bad video driver. Try tapping the F8 key at boot to get into Safe Mode. From here, you can download a new graphics driver from the manufacturer or roll-back the old driver from within the Device Manager. If the monitor is blank from the instant you turn on the computer, you have a computer hardware problem that could be the graphics card, motherboard or even the power supply.

source: http://www.pctechbytes.com/troubleshooting/computer-monitor-is-blank

If your computer will not start, meaning it seems like it is dead or partially dead, then you probably have a bad power supply. There are, of course, other components that can cause a no power issue, but usually we need to start at the source and check the power supply first. The power supply is at the rear of the PC, usually near the top of the case, and it is what gets plugged into the wall or power strip. If you open the case, you will notice the power supply is more complex inside. You will have a main power connector that is either a 20-pin or a 24-pin. You will also have multiple connectors that go to various components in the case, like the hard drive, optical drives and sometimes even the video card.

There are a couple of ways to test the power supply. The easiest is to purchase a cheap Power Supply Tester. You can also use a multimeter to check for proper voltages of 3.3, 5.5 and 12.

You can also try running a jump from the PS_ON pin–the one with the green wire to a black ground lead. A paperclip can be used for this test.

Power off the computer, disconnect the power supply from the wall outlet. Insert one end of the paperclip down into the space where the green wire attaches to the power supply plug. Do the same for the black wire using the other end of the paper clip.

If the computer fires up, then you have a bad power supply. You can buy new power supplies straight from the manufacturer or go through your local computer repair shop. If you know exactly what type you need, you can purchase them online, as well.

Resolution Summary:

Check the power supply with a power supply tester.

You can also use a multimeter.

Jump the PS-ON lead to a ground wire.

source: http://www.pctechbytes.com/troubleshooting/computer-will-not-start

With so many brands of desktop PCs any novice computer user can easily be confused with all that is available on the market. It is important to understand the components in desktop PCs so not only you can understand the benefits but also makes it easier to decide what you will need for your PC.

The prices of desktop PCs can greatly vary depending on the model and the company that makes them; I will not go into bare-bone systems or homemade PCs but focusing on brand PCs like HP, Acer, Apple and other various manufacturers of desktop computers. There are many components within the PC that will affect how fast the computer will run and depending on what you are using the computer for you should decide what type of components you need. The processing power of the PC is from the CPU (central processing unit) and this will affect how many and how quick your PC will process what you do. The 2 manufacturers of CPU’s are Intel and AMD and the most common processor type used in most desktops is the Dual core which has 2 processors but if you’re looking to purchase a higher end model you could get the quad core or even a hexa core which is up to 6 processors.

Moving on to the next component is the video card; this is the part of the computer that processes all of the graphics that is displayed on your monitor. You will find that some desktop PCs will have built in video cards also known as on board video. While these have improved much over the years I strongly suggest getting a desktop PC that doesn’t have on board video if you plan to play PC games. Another component which is important is the memory, also known as RAM. The memory also can play an important factor in your computers overall performance, if you like to multitask or play PC games or do anything like video editing etc… you should have at least 3GB of ram and 4GB if you buy a desktop PC with windows vista.

Another component people will use often is the hard drive this is where all of your data is stored onto. So if you like to have a lot of music, games, and other media you will need to make sure you get a large hard drive. You can also put multiple hard drives in your desktop PC as long as you do not have a mini pc case. There are many other components within the PC but I covered the components which will have more of an effect on your desktop PC performance.

source: http://ezinearticles.com/?Taking-a-Look-at-the-Components-in-Desktop-PCs&id=5211091

While it’s easy to assume a video card is bad because there is no video displaying on the monitor, there are several reasons why that might be happening. So how do you narrow it down to the video card itself? There are several troubleshooting techniques to use to determine if a graphics card is bad, such as noting a steady degradation of performance, artifacts jumbling the screen and even failure to boot while hearing a string of beep codes. You can also swap in another card if you have a similar PC. Process of elimination is sometimes the key, as well. If you do not see the BIOS splash screen and eliminate all other possibilities, such as the cables, the power supply, the monitor and the motherboard–then the video card is probably bad.

Troubleshooting A Bad Video Card

If you power on the computer and there is no video, take notice of any unusual beeping from the computer. Depending on your BIOS manufacturer, you will hear a string of beep codes to indicate a video adapter failure, such as one long and two short beeps. If you hear any unusual beeping, look on the motherboard and find the BIOS manufacturer’s name on the BIOS chip. You can then refer to a BIOS beep code chart to determine the affected hardware.

If you see artifacts on your screen or other types of pixelation, your graphics card is probably going bad. Try re-seating the card and check the video card’s fan to make sure it is spinning fast and is clear of dust and other debris.

To rule out the monitor, make sure the brightness is turned all the way up and disconnect the monitor cable at the PC side. Most modern monitors will display a diagnostic screen if it is not receiving a signal. If the monitor displays this, then the problem lies with the computer and not the monitor.

If you DO see a BIOS boot screen when the PC begins to boot, but the monitor then goes blank as Windows loads, then you probably have a problem with your settings or driver. try booting into Safe Mode by tapping F8 when booting. From Safe Mode, you will be able to correct any driver or display issues that are causing the screen to go blank in Windows.

source: http://www.pctechbytes.com/hardware/symptoms-of-a-bad-video-card

Normally Computers are built to be professional, reliable machines. There was the time when computers got collapse, and resulted in data loss and system shakiness. Your computer may hang; send error messages, or worse, no longer work at all. For computer users, troubleshooting problems can stop their work. If you know how to fix a computer, you can save hundreds or even thousands of dollars in repair jobs, professional fees, and even going so far as to buy a new one.

The most common top 10 computer troubleshooting and their tips to fix that problem are as follows.

1  The computer is unable to start up If the computer does not turn on when you press the power button, the following suggestions may help you to determine why the computer will not start up: Check the computer is plugged into an AC outlet properly. Plug another electrical device into the outlet to be sure that the outlet is providing adequate power.

2  The computer screen is blank.If the screen is blank, the computer may not be set to display the image on the computer screen. First, check if the monitor plugged in to a power outlet and is connected to the computer securely and make sure the monitor power button is on. If the power light is not on, it means that the outlet is not delivering power to the monitor.

3   Trouble with video card. If the power light of the computer and monitor is on and nothing comes up on the screen when you start your computer then there must be something wrong with video card. You should take your computer to a repair shop or change its video card with the new one.

4  Software is functioning abnormally. If the software is unresponsive or responds abnormally, follow these tips. Restart your computer and run a virus scan. For this purpose you should have reliable antivirus software installed on the computer to fix this issue.

5   Windows do not boot properly. If windows do not boot properly then you should have reinstall windows with the windows recoverable CD.

6  The computer is on but not responding. If the computer is turned on but not responding to software or keyboard commands, then it must be freeze or halted. Press and hold the power button for at least 5 seconds, it will be turn off. Now restart your computer.

7  An external device is not working If an external device does not function as expected, turn it on according to Manufacturers instruction; be sure that all device connections are secure and receiving electrical power and compatible with the operating system. The correct drivers are installed and updated.

8  Slow working computer. You can improve your computer working performance by cleaning hard disk of unwanted files, run the disk defragmented utility, get rid of unneeded icons on your desktop, install a firewall, install antivirus and Anti spyware tools, schedule regular registry scans.

9   Slow working internet. To increase your browser performance, you must frequently clear cookies and internet temporary files.

10   Internet network problem. If your computer can not get connected to internet then check IP address, check network cables are connected properly, make sure that servers or gateways firewall application is not blocking http requests from your PC.

source: http://ezinearticles.com/?Top-10-Computer-Troubleshooting-Tips&id=4413569

Anybody with a computer knows that computers are unpredictable. Before we are forced to call in an expert, there are a few things we can try on our own to get that computer to behave. Assuming you are a home user, here are some Basic Computer Troubleshooting Tips To Try On Your Own. This article may not help you to solve today’s problem, but it should help you with the overall troubleshooting process.

Keep in mind that there are many types of problems. They can be hardware related, software related or even network related. The first step to solving a computer problem is to pay close attention to any messages that are displayed. It is surprising how many people close the message boxes without really reading them. This is an important key. Often, the message will indicate the source of the problem. Many times, software is the culprit to a problem. Knowing what program is producing the message can be a big help.

If you still do not understand the message, go to the internet and type the message into your search box. Even experts use this tactic. You will be surprised by the amount of results. Chances are, there are dozens of other people experiencing the exact same problem.

Solving a computer issue can be similar to the work of a detective. Sometimes there is no message. In this case, ask yourself when the problem started and what were you doing. If your screen suddenly goes black and you just moved your computer, this can be a good indication that the plug or even the video card itself came loose.

If you were busy using your photoshop and dreamweaver applications, a black screen could also mean that you had too many programs open and the memory conked out. Restarting can be a miraculous cure to many a problem. Restarting can solve a printing problem, an internet problem, a freezing problem and more. Basically, a restart stops any processes that are running, including the unwanted ones.

There are occasions when restarting the computer will not keep a computer from freezing. One of the most common reasons for an extremely slow or freezing computer is having more than one anti-virus program running. If you do not know what a particular problem is, system restore is also a good thing to try.

Sometimes a problem can be of a completely different nature. Perhaps the current issue is an annoying toolbar or trying to find a lost document. Again, use the internet for answers. Type in your question and keep it simple and specific. You might type something like: How to remove zango toolbar. Or you might try something like: Locate lost word document.

Because of the myriad amount of possible problems, it would be quite an impossible feat to cover even a vague amount of remedies here in one short article. Knowing how to read and understand messages is the first step. Knowing when to reboot is another. When all else fails, there will always be someone to call. Do not ever allow yourself to become too frustrated.

source: http://ezinearticles.com/?Basic-Computer-Troubleshooting-Tips-to-Try-on-Your-Own&id=4550412