TROUBLESHOOTING COMPUTER PROBLEMS

Most of us Computer Users get frustrated when our Computers suddenly stop working. It is, after all, a Machine, and should not Break Down without any prior Sign. Unfortunately, Computers are known to Breakdown and often without warning anytime. On the other hand, we, the Users of those Machines have to deal with it.

To help you in a little way towards a more progressive working relationship with your Computer, we have compiled several Tips, and Basic methods to act as helpful aids, when these situations arise. If all else fails, at least you will have some idea of what to say to the Person fixing your Computer.

This article contains useful Tips and Solutions to common Computer Problems. It will be divided into several Sections with an Introductory Section containing general knowledge.

BASIC KNOWLEDGE

When you get your PC, you should familiarize yourself with it. Read the Manual; specifically the section containing your Computer’s Hardware and Software details. The things listed below are what you as a minimum must know about your Computer.

1. Is your PC an Apple computer ? Is your computer made by IBM, Dell, Compaq or another manufacturer ?.
2. What Operating System does your Computer use ? Does it use Windows XP or Windows 2000 ? If you are currently using Windows 95, 98 or even millennium Edition, your Operating System is sadly out of date. You are missing out on a lot of things in terms of Internet Browser Capability, Games, Graphics and, most importantly, Updates and Remote assistance from your Software Developer.
3. The next important detail is your Computer’s Random On-Board Memory or RAM. If you have a Pentium four, you will have DDR type RAM installed in your PC. A lesser model PC like a Pentium 3 will most probably have SD RAM installed in it. Don’t think that all RAM are the same. With today’s Pentium 4, PC’s you can upgrade your RAM to high Heaven if you can afford it. A standard purchase of a Desktop PC will probably have 128 MB of RAM in it.
4. Remember to remember the last thing you were doing when the Computer stopped working. Were there other Programs or applications running as well ? Usually, a computer will Freeze or Hang. You can still see the Display, but moving the mouse or tapping the Keyboard won’t produce any result. Also, determine if your Computer is connected to a Network. When a Stand Alone Computer hangs, you just shrug and restart the Computer. When you’re in a Network, there are usually other reasons.

GENERAL ADVICE

1. The word is Reboot. When your Computer Hangs or a specific Program refuses to run or stops functioning, Reboot. It’s magic! Programs are like people. They’re not perfect, because they’re made by people. Once in a while, Programs will throw a Tantrum or, in Computer language, Glitch, and your Computer Malfunctions. One word, Reboot!.
2. Antivirus Software. It’s very important to have one. If you’re someone, who loves to get free stuff from the Internet, you will need Anti-virus software, since most of the Free stuff have something insidious attached to them. There are some Freeware Antivirus Programs, but they’re often no good, since their Virus definition Programs or Virus Database isn’t updated. To be able to Update, you will have to pay. You might as well buy a full Antivirus Program. It is wise to completely Scan your Computer once a week, if you are surfing the Internet everyday.
3. Problem details and specifics. Before you can begin to Repair or Troubleshoot a Computer, you need not be aware of all the factors involved in the Malfunction. As example for instance, we were encoding some Data in an excel file, while at the same time having an Internet Browser and another application running.

   Every time we pressed certain buttons on our Keyboard, the other application would close even though it was in a minimized Window. When we tried to open it again, it doesn’t want to anymore. In this case, we knew we had a Software problem. We then isolated the problem. Since we didn’t really know what was wrong, we closed all programs, and restarted the computer. We got the application running again, but we still don’t know what went wrong.

   In this example, we are trying to show you, that understanding why computers or programs respond in a certain manner can be unexplainable. It doesn’t really matter why, if you can bypass the error or Malfunction. What is important is that we knew, what the problem was, even if we did not know why. Most of the time, shutting down and restarting your Computer will be the thing to do, and you still would have no answer.

4. Networked Computers. There are plenty of cases where Printers, Application Documents, Internet access and other Applications, fail to launch in Networked Computers. Usually, most of the Data is stored in the Main Computer or the Server. If your Networked PC is not connected to the Server because of, say, a loose or unplugged Cable or a Network Protocol Malfunction, your Computer cannot access Printers, Files, Documents and applications, that are based and saved in the Server.

   To check, try surfing the Internet. If that doesn’t work, there usually is a small icon on the lower right of your screen where the taskbar is. You will see a small blue monitor icon. If there is a red x over the icon, this means that your Network Cable is unplugged, the server is turned off, the Cable is damaged or your Network Configuration needs to be Set-up or Repaired.

** HARDWARE RELATED TROUBLESHOOTING **

The Computer doesn’t even blink when we turn it on.

1. Look to where your Computer is plugged in. Make sure that the Power Cables are firmly ensconced in their Slots. Most Computers come with a surge protector or voltage regulator.

   These devices ensure that Power transmission remains stable from the regulator to the Computer. The regulators have switches to turn them on or off. Check the regulator switch to make sure that it is turned on. Check if the regulator is plugged into the Wall socket.

2. Did you turn your monitor on ? Sometimes the LED lights that say whether the Computer is on or not are hard to decipher in certain situations. The Computer may be on, but your monitor is turned off.

   If you have a Desktop Computer, you sometimes hear the Hard Drive and CD/DVD drive warming-up, but your monitor remains blank. This could be an indication that your monitor is turned off, unplugged from the Power source, or that the Video Cable is not connected to the Computer.

3. Should you happen to receive error messages, write them down. Sometimes, error messages are easy to decipher. Messages such as “keyboard failure” or “mouse not detected” are very helpful, simple messages that immediately give you an accurate description of a problem.

   Some messages, however, can be very cryptic like two long beeps or short multiple beeps that sound more that three times. If this happens, you either have a problem with your RAM or Video Card. In cases like these, you will need to open your Computer. Doing this will be pretty useless, if you don’t know what a Video Card or RAM looks like. Your Computer has a warranty sticker.

   Check your warranty to see if it’s still Valid. In any case, the Video Card is the thing that has a Slot, that sticks out of the back of the Computer, to where you plug the Monitor Video Cable. Just pull out the Card, whip away the dust and plug it in again. Sometimes the Cards get jarred from their Slots, so you have to replace them properly. As for the RAM, better let somebody who knows what they’re doing to check it out.

4. When you last used the Computer, what did you do ? There are instances where people played around with their display settings, and when they next turned on the Computer, it would hang in the middle of starting up.

   Shut down the PC and Restart in Safe mode, so you can modify your Display settings to the lowest possible. Shut down Safe mode and restart in normal mode. You can adjust your Display settings again. Don’t even try to use the setting that caused you the problem in the first place.

   Don’t install Software when it isn’t compatible with the Computer or the Program needed to run it. For example, we were still using Windows 95 back then, and we tried running a Program, that needed Windows 98 to run. Our PC had more crashes that day than it ever had in a month.

5. Sometimes, you may think a Computer has Hung-up on you. If your Computer is on a Network, don’t Shutdown or Restart. There are some Networks, that require a considerable amount of time to communicate with its Workstations.

   This delay sometimes causes people with Networked Computers to think that their Computers have hung. Why is there a delay ? We have no idea! Remember, you don’t have to know why, just that what you are doing is working, so the why doesn’t really matter.

My computer gets stuck in the middle of Starting-up.

This is basically the same thing as your Computer not Starting-up at all. Restart your Computer in Safe mode. If it finishes loading, this means that there is an anomalous configuration in normal mode.

Try to remember all the stuff you did during the last session you had with your Computer. Try to logically figure out what might have affected your PC’s performance. For example, I installed MS Word and changed the settings of my Video Display the last time I used the Computer.

Installing MS Word certainly wouldn’t have affected the Start-up process of a PC since it only goes active every time a user activates it. On the other hand, I changed my display settings. The display setting can certainly affect the PC’s start-up process. I then need to Restart in Safe mode and restore the previous Settings.

Remember, if you get those Beeps, this indicates a Hardware problem with your RAM or Video Card.

I can’t move the Mouse or use the Keyboard

Always check the Cables first. Are they firmly connected ? If they are, then you may have a problem with your Cable. These Cables contain tiny Wires inside them, that can be severed or cut if not used properly. When this happens, connectivity between the Computer and your Peripheral is lost.

For those people whose Mice (Mouses) work erratically, it may be a Cable problem. A more likely problem is with your Mouse that has a Ball and Rollers. The Ball picks-up dirt as you move the Mouse around.

The dirt sticks to the rollers which stalls the Free movement of the Mouse. Unscrew the ball cover (underneath the Mouse), remove the ball and scrape the dirt off the rollers with a slim pair of scissors.

One of our contacts, who kept on buying Mice, because he thought that the felt attached to the rollers was deteriorating. The rollers are mostly made of pure plastic and have no felt material stuck to them. What he thought was felt was actually dirt.

If you have erratic Mouse movement, believe me, its just hard dust. On the other hand, don’t break your Mouse looking for a ball if it doesn’t have one, because it may be an Optical Mouse. Optical Mice use infrared to determine the pointer movement so it doesn’t have a ball.

Okay, if the problem remains unresolved, try using another Mouse or Keyboard. It may be a case of severed Cables. Restart your Computer with the new Mouse or Keyboard.

My floppy, Zip Disk or CD drive isn’t reading

Floppy Drives and Zip Disks are removable Media. They are not affixed or screwed into the Computer. Because of their mobility and constant exposure to movements that cause shock or bumps, they wear out more often.

A floppy Dive is usually assigned the drive letter A:\\. Your primary Hard Drive is always assigned drive letter C:\\ while the CD/DVD Drive has Drive letter D:\\. If you have multiple Hard Drives, the primary Drive will be C:\\ and the second D:\\ while the CD/DVD Drive will be E:\\. A Zip Drive is connected to the Computer through a Port. It will be assigned a letter after the CD/DVD Drive.

Confused yet ? Ok. Floppy Drives are A:\\ and B:\\, Hard drives are C, D, E, etc, if you have more than one. The CD/DVD drive letter is assigned after the Hard Drives, while any other removable storage media such as a Zip Drive will be assigned after the CD/DVD Drive(s).

To find out if all of your Disks are working, go to my Computer, and you will see all your Drives listed there. If one Drive you installed is missing from the list, then you have a Problem.

The Floppy Drive is pretty much useless nowadays. They are used by geeks, who have those old, small DOS Programs, that help in Trouble Shooting a Computer. Because of the relatively small amount of Data it can contain (you can’t even store one complete MP3 song in it), it is rendered almost obsolete.

More often than not, a Floppy Disk becomes unreadable, because it was exposed to sunlight or magnets or water or dust. Sometimes, you can save a Floppy by Re-formatting, but it won’t last long.

Zip Drives were made popular, when the Hard Drive evolved from a Kilobyte to a Megabyte storage device. Mainly, Download freaks like me use them extensively. Also, I get to carry my important Files with me wherever I go, and stick it into an available Computer.

If the Computer doesn’t read it, it can be because a Driver File is missing. A Driver File is what is used to a run a Device. All the Devices of your Computer (Sound, Video Cards, Monitor, Hard Drive, Floppy, etc.) have Drivers. In older Windows versions, you have to manually install a Driver. Windows XP automatically installs these things. Now, I installed the proper Drivers, and it still isn’t working. That’s a Bummer. My zip drive isn’t working anymore.

In CD/DVD drives, the optic lens of the Drive is very sensitive. A little scratch on the CD/DVD Disk surface will prevent the drive from reading it. Also, computer CD/DVD Disk Drives are very sensitive to fake or pirated Software or Video. Most of the time, they will run, but will exhibit errors or screen Image Break-ups. Sometimes, they won’t read at all.

On all three, your Antivirus Software may be preventing access, because of the presence of a Virus. In this case, you need to Scan and clean the drive before accessing it.

** NETWORK RELATED TROUBLESHOOTING **

Are you connected or logged-in to the Network ?

The easiest way to determine whether you are connected to the network is to check for Internet access (if your network has or allows internet access) or check for Files and applications you know to be in the Server or another Work Station.

If you fail to access two or more of these, it could mean that you are not logged-in or connected to the Network. For MAC users, you need to access System Preferences, then, Network. Check if the Built-in Ethernet is selected.

If you do not see any Network or IP address assigned, you need to recheck your physical connections to the Network.

I am unable to Access or Log onto the Network

Are there any other Computers connected to the same Network ?

If there are, are they connected to the Network ?

Try to log into the Network using your Usernames and Passwords through another Computer. If you are able to Log-in, then there could be something wrong with your Network connection or configuration.

Have someone else try to log in using your Computer just to Double check. The most common mistake in logging-in is Password errors. Usually, the caps lock feature is on, which automatically translates all you type down into upper-case letters.

At any rate, always check the Cable connections first when experiencing log-in problems.

I am unable to access my E-mail

Re-type your Password. Verify that the caps lock feature is turned off. Again, check your Network Cable connections. Try another Workstation, and have someone else try yours.

I cannot use the Network Printer.

Check if you are logged into the Network first. If your Network supports multiple Printers, try Printing on another available Printer.

You need to isolate the problem. Is your Computer Malfunctioning ? If it is, then nothing you do will work. Try everything you can, and every possible combination to rule out a cause for error.

If your Computer seems to be working fine with another Printer, check the first Printer to see if there is a problem with it. However, if everything you do in your Computer does not work, use another Workstation or Computer to verify what you have so far. Should the other workstation function normally, then you might need to check on the shared Printer settings of the Network.

Normally, a Systems Administrator will do this for you. If you have a Stand-alone Network at home, you need to access the Server, and allow access to the Printers on the Workstation you were using. If the Printers refuse to work in any other Workstation, then there might be something wrong with the Printer.

I have no Web Access

Check if other Workstations have access to the Web. If they do, check to see if you have an IP address. If you do, ask your Systems Administrator to check your Internet sharing settings from the Server. If you are a MAC user, check out the TCPIP Control Panel to find out whether the Server is using DHCP. Enable it if your building’s Wetup includes DHCP Connections.

** SOFTWARE RELATED TROUBLESHOOTING **

My Application does not work

When was the last time you used the Application ? Do you remember deleting any Files, that you think could have affected the performance of the Software ? Some Applications share Files such as MS Word and Excel.

For instance, you could have deleted some part or the whole of Excel. In the process, some shared Files used by Word or Power Point may have been deleted as well. Did you just install the application ? If so, where there any errors that showed up during installation.

You might have to uninstall the Application and install it again. In any case, this would be the end Scenario for any Software problem, if any prior attempt to fix the problem should fail.

On a Network, the Application may be installed on the Server instead of in your Computer. In this case, make sure your Network Cables are firmly plugged-in, and ensure that your Workstation is allowed to access the Application.

Again, if all else fails, uninstall and reinstall the Application.

For MAC users, you will need to rebuild the Desktop by restarting the Computer, and holding down the option, and Apple clover keys at the same time.

The Computer just keeps Crashing

If you are using Word or Excel or any other Application where you can save multiple Data, open a different file instead of the one you were accessing. The saved data File may have been corrupted, and this can be a cause of Software Crashes.

If the Crashing continues, close all Programs and shut down and restart the Computer. If all else fails, uninstall and reinstall the problem Software.p>

** DATA OR FILE RELATED TROUBLESHOOTING **

When you have problems opening a File from removable Media such as Memory sticks or Floppy Disks, try Copying them onto the Hard Drive and access the Files from there.

In some cases, your Files could have been Corrupted, so you will need to rename them before you can open them.