Your computer is made up of numerous individual components, such as memory, the main system board, hard drive, CD/DVD drive, power supply, monitor, and a few others. When a component goes bad, it's always cheaper and easier to replace the bad component rather than attempt to repair it.  This is especially true for desktop or tower computers that mostly use standardized interchangeable parts.  It's sometimes true for laptops as well, especially when the bad component is a hard drive or memory module, which are standardized.

If your desktop computer is down with a hardware problem and is reasonably new (bought new within the last 2-3 years) then it's usually worth fixing.  Generally, desktop computer replacement parts cost between $50 and $200, depending on the component.

Laptop computers are a bit dicier since they contain more proprietary parts that can cost more to replace than the laptop's value, especially true if your laptop is older than three years.  For instance the LCD display or system board can be quite expensive.  If that's the problem, then a laptop might not be worth fixing unless it's pretty new or still in warranty.  But even laptops contain some standardized parts which are less expensive to replace.

We can look at your downed computer and help you determine if it's worth fixing or not.  If not, we'll help you determine a suitable replacement.

Maybe your computer isn't broken, but if it's old enough you may consider replacing it anyway.  Computers are definitely not like a fine wine.  They don't age well.  If your computer is older than 4-6 years, then it may be time to consider replacing it.  Computer technology moves a long way in four years' time.

Buying a new computer is exciting but can be a bit daunting.  Trying to decide what features you need, how fast, how much memory and hard drive space can be quite a challenge if you aren't familiar with such things.

I will interview you in plain English (I mean, no computer lingo) to help you decide what you want and need.  No need in paying for features you won't use.  Then, if you like, I will make the purchase for you and deliver it to your home or office and set everything up.  All your programs and data are moved to your new computer and all setup is completed, ready for your use.

We do not mark-up computers.  We purchase current-technology computers specifically for you and pass along the actual cost of the hardware.

As a bonus, we will dispose of your existing hardware for you. Of course, all data will be completely and securely removed, making your old gear safe for disposal. This way, you are relieved of the environmental costs associated with trashing old computer gear.

This is one of the most-liked services that I provide.  My clients love not having to mess with any of the mechanics of purchasing and setting up a new computer.  I have installed probably a hundred new computers in the past two years alone for my clients.

Do you need a printer?  We will discuss the pros and cons of different printer types such as ink jet or laser.

For instance...

Ink jet printers cost less to buy, usually have a built-in scanner, and produce nicer looking photos.  But the liquid ink clogs up more easily, especially if you don't print much, and cost far more to operate (ink cartridges are expensive).

Laser printers cost a bit more up-front and do not print photos as nicely as an ink jet.  But they are faster, far less expensive to operate, and don't clog up.  A good choice if photo printing isn't important.

We'll help you choose the right printer based on your specific needs, without paying for features you don't need.

Most software is pretty easy to install.  But some products install uninvited add-ons that are often unnecessary, slow down your computer especially at start-up, and may even be a security threat.  Learn how to identify and prevent these uninvited extras from being installed on your computer.

Uninvited toolbars are very common.  Many free software products and even some pay-for products will offer to install toolbars on your computer.  My rule-of-thumb is that all toolbars are unnecessary.  You don't need them.

I can also install and tutor you on really cool and free software.  One of my favorites is Picasa, a free photo organizer and basic picture editor that Google created.  One of my favorite Picasa features is ordering prints from your computer that you can pick up at Walmart or other store or have them mailed to your home.  All for a lot less cost than printing them yourself.  I can show you how to do this.

You may have read or heard about spyware in the news.  But what exactly is spyware?  What can it do?  Can you tell if you have spyware on your computer?  How do you get infected?  How do you get rid it?  We'll show you some low-cost (and even free) tools that scan your computer, identifying and eliminating spyware and viruses.

One of the ways that spyware gets on your computer is from infected web sites.  Those are difficult to defend against because you don't know a web site is infected until you visit it.  But there are ways to protect yourself.

We'll also show you how spyware gets into your computer in the first place and how to avoid it in the future. 

Good grief, spam is everywhere!  But it's easier to avoid nowadays than before.  GMail, Google's best-of-breed and free public email service, has probably the best spam filtering around.

What if you already have an email address that gets a ton of spam, but you don't want to change email addresses because so many people already know it.  You can still benefit from Google's excellent spam filtering.  I can set that up for you!

Still running the original version of Windows that came with your computer?  Microsoft has tools for automatically updating Windows.  But just because Microsoft says you should download a patch doesn't mean you should blindly accept.  We'll help you decide which hotfixes and patches you need, and which ones you don't.

What would happen if your computer, or more specifically your hard drive, crashed?  What would you lose?  Financial data?  Digital photos?  Work files?  That book you're writing?  All Gone!

What will you do? ... What WILL you do???

The best defense is to regularly backup your data.  Yet few computer owners perform any sort of backup.

BUSINESS PEOPLE:  Backing up is especially important for business computers where the very survival of your business is at stake.  Not backing up is, really, inexcusable.  It places your business in great peril of data loss if your computer crashes, is stolen from your office at 1am, or ruined from fire.

Maybe you tried backing up but found the process tedious and inconvenient.  We can install an automated backup system that protects your data.  That way, if your computer dies, we can recover your otherwise irreplaceable data.  Or maybe something a bit more mundane happens such as accidentally deleting a file.  By having a backup, you can easily recover.

There are many backup systems on the market, each with their pros and cons.  Through interview, we can help you determine the best fit.

More people are wanting networks these days.  It's common to have multiple computers in your home, each sharing a single internet connection and a printer or two.  There are numerous ways to make this happen.  Networks can be wired, wireless, or both.

If you choose wireless, will it interfere with your cordless phones?  How do you fix that?  What about wireless security?  How do you protect yourself from unauthorized people accessing your wireless network?  We will setup a secure wireless network for you that is immune from rouges connecting to do their dirty work.

You know dial-up is slow, but what broadband service should you use?  DSL, AT&T U-Verse, or Cable such as Comcast?

We will discuss the pros/cons of various network solutions based on your need.

Do you have an iPhone, Blackberry, or Android phone?  Are you interested in getting an iPad but not sure how to set it up or what you'd do with it?

Mobile technology is more useful than ever before.  I can integrate your smart phone into your computer environment so that your calendar, email, contacts, etc. are all synchronized.  For instance, you can add an appointment on your computer and have it appear on your phone.

My specialty is the iPhone.  There is so much you can do with an iPhone -- it's utility value, especially for business people, is outstanding.

Would you like to access your computer while you're at work or elsewhere?  We can setup a solution that uses free software.

Maybe you want to securely extend your internal network across the internet to a remote location so you can access files.  There are programs, some free, that do this.

We also offer our consulting services via remote control.  Some consulting services can be accomplished via remote control, so we do offer that as an option where possible.

Do you have a digital camera (or want one)?

We will teach you everything you want and need to know for selecting a camera, taking good pictures, uploading them to your computer, organizing them, storing pictures securely, editing, and printing your photos.

We'll show you the best practices for effective ways to organize and store your digital photos so you can find them later on.  We can also teach you how to edit your photos for color correction, blemish removal, cropping, and many other manipulations.  We'll also show you how to share your photos without bogging down your friends email boxes with megabytes of attachments.

We'll go into detail on using Picasa, Google's free photo management program.

TVs are more computerized than ever. It's possible to browse the internet from your TV, watch Netflix movies online, Youtube videos, news sites such as CNN and Foxnews, and more.  Imagine watching pretty much any movie you want, any time you want, without driving to Blockbuster or Hollywood video.

We can integrate your TV and computer to make this possible.

How does paying less than $5 a month for your home phone service sound?  You can keep your existing home phone number and use your existing cordless phones.  You get caller-id, call waiting, voice mail, and all the usual custom calling features.  Plus, you get free domestic long distance and cheap international long distance.