“He’s dead, Jim” (McCoy to Capt. Kirk)

There are inviolable laws in nature. Bad things happen to good computers. Bad things happen at the worst possible time. Recently I have seen an unusual flurry of dead hard drives, (Martha, that’s where all our pictures and stuff are stored.) Five dead drives and only one person had backed up their drive. Four of the  drives were unreadable and the data gone. We’ve all seen on TV how computer drives are recovered in minutes so how is that done?

There are many companies that offer data recovery services. All of them start out with a diagnostic of the drive to determine if any chance exists of recovering data. If they believe they can recover data, then a quote is given for the service. Because each drive condition, number of files to recover, difficulty of getting the drive to a readable condition is different, the cost will vary in every case. For example, using one of the drives I saw recently, I emailed a leading data recovery company to inquire about recovering several hundred photos and twenty documents. The company responded with an explanation and approximate cost to attempt recovery. They wrote:

“The first step is to get it in so we can run diagnostic tests on your drive to determine what is wrong and what we have to do to recover your data. There is no charge for the diagnostics. Once we complete the diagnostics tests we will be able to provide you with a firm price for recovery. You are looking at between $499 and $1899 if it is recoverable.” They also provided an outline of the steps they will take. “Our engineers will evaluate the precise condition of your media. Once the diagnostics is complete, we will provide you with an exact price to recover your data. We will request specific files from you to verify the integrity of the data. You will receive a final price for recovery and return media options.”

Reviewing several company’s offerings for data recovery the prices started around $300 and went up from there. That doesn’t mean a drive’s data can be recovered for $300, it means that the minimum charge will be $300 and we all known what minimum means.

Now that we have established that non-functioning drives MIGHT be recoverable at a price. Doesn’t it make sense to copy over critical pictures and documents to a flash drive, external drive, DVD or even use some of the FREE cloud services such as seven gigabytes of storage from Skydrive or five gigs from Google Cloud, Amazon Cloud or if using a MAC, iCloud? Need more space, online storage is cheap, not so recovery. Even more important, BACKUP means there are two copies, the original and the copy. A client called me to ask how to get his files back from his backup on an external drive. The drive wasn’t functioning so I suggested he just use the original files on the computer. He had erased them because he made a backup on the external drive. Confusing? He made backups of the original, then erased the original which made his backup files the originals without a backup.

Make a backup of this column and tape it to the monitor as a reminder.

This week for just for fun and giggles I have a special offer. Anyone purchasing my book Grumbles from the Keyboard (or how I learned to stop worrying and love my computer) during the week of 10/24/13 to 10/31/13 from this site www.grumblesfromthekeyboard.com ONLY, will receive in addition to an autographed copy of the book, a coffee mug randomly selected from a stock of mugs collected from various sources that currently sit in my closet. These mugs have no connection to anything, not specially made, but they do hold coffee or other beverages. Of course if the mug and the autograph have no interest, the book may be purchased from Amazon.com.

Grumbles From The Keyboard

And while you’re there, pick up a copy of Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks! Find out how a geek, ties cooking and storytelling together in what may very well be a new genre.

Epicuria: An Adventure that Really Cooks!

 

Amazon Prime Trial Offer

Make My PC Faster! Go Baby Go…

Previously we discussed slow Internet connection speeds and how to troubleshoot before calling in a tech. This week we’ll attack a slow computer. Remember, there is no connection between the speed with which web pages load, (Internet connection) and the speed with which our computer starts up, programs open and our ability to navigate around the computer. Thinking that if we subscribe to the fastest Internet service available it will somehow speed up our computer’s functioning is doomed to failure. An easy way to prove this is to turn off the computer and disconnect the modem. Restart the computer and time it. Now shut off the computer and reconnect the modem, start the computer and time it again. No difference.

What makes our computers run slow? Hardware and software are the two culprits. Many name brand computers have a hardware diagnostic feature built in. Some are accessed before the computer starts by pressing a function key as soon as their logo appears on the screen. Others have a folder in All Programs that may have diagnostic programs in them. For example my HP machine has something called HP Support Assistant. This HP program helps you maintain peak computer performance and resolve problems through automatic updates and tune-ups, built-in diagnostics, and a variety of assistance options. HP machines shipped 2012 and later already have HP Support Assistant, and older machines may download it from http://www8.hp.com/us/en/campaigns/hpsupportassistant/hpsupport.html?jumpid=reg_r1002_usen_c-001_title_r0001#.UlrTopDD-1s.  Check the website for the computer’s manufacturer for a diagnostic download if there isn’t one already on the machine.

If the hardware checks out, we can take a look at software. An easy way to determine if a specific program is causing the problem is to open system configuration. Go to Start and type in MSCONFIG. This will open a window with tabs across the top. Click on the tab labeled Startup. Windows 8 users will find this in Task Manager. By un-checking the boxes to the left (Windows 7 and older) or highlighting and clicking disable (Windows 8) we can tell that program not to start when we boot up the computer. Use a process of elimination. Uncheck half of the items and restart the computer. If nothing changes, uncheck half of the remaining items until we find the one that causes the problem.

The issue may also be the number of programs starting up when our digital dynamo boots. Use a search engine to find out what each item is in the Startup and ask is it necessary. If it is not something we use continuously, preventing it from starting doesn’t remove it, just leaves it idle until we need it freeing up resources for other software to use.

Remember there is no free MakeMyPC faster program for $59 that will do any of this. “Cleaning the Registry” is pretty much like putting lipstick on a pig. Pretty, useless and a waste of money.

Don’t forget to pick up a copy of my books, Grumbles from the Keyboard for computer users and Epicuria: An Adventure that Really Cooks! for the Gourmand in the house. Remember: Santa is only a few weeks from visiting and even he recommends Grumbles from the Keyboard! See what he has to say right here.

Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books ISBN: 1467985899 ISBN-13: 9781467985895

Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books ISBN: 1456561731 ISBN-13: 9781456561734

Fast and Furious, or Not

A common complaint heard from users is, “my computer started to run slow.” There is, despite TV ads, banner ads, advertisements on the Internet no way to magically make the computer run faster. There is always a cause and the key to speeding up the computer is to find the culprit. It could be hardware related, software related or intruder related. But a step by step process of elimination can often identify the cause and suggest solutions.

First we need to identify the area of our computer that is actually slowing down. Is it the computer itself or is it the Internet connection? How do we tell the difference? If our complaint is that it takes a long time for websites to load in our browser then the problem is related to either our browser, our Internet connection, or our Internet equipment i.e. the modem or router. Let’s test our equipment first. Open a browser and go to speedtest.net. Run the test and compare the results to the rates promised by our providers. For example, Comcast promises to deliver 16 mbps or better on my plan and my test came back at 26 mbps. If the test had come in at something less than 16 mbps it may require some other diagnostic investigation. Before calling the provider take a few further steps, start by powering off the modem and powering it back on. If using one of the modems that has phone and or TV on it as well, it will have a backup battery, so find the reset button and push it. After the modem powers up check the speed again. If the problem still exists, it’s time to check the router if we have one. Power it off and on again. Do not reset a router as this will remove all the settings that were created when the router was installed. Still no improvement? Connect a computer directly to the modem and test again. Still no improvement in the speed, it may be time to call the provider. They will have the ability to check the signal from their end and determine if there is a line problem. With DSL it could be a bad phone line, surge protector, filter or modem. With cable it might be bad coax cable, splitter, lose connection or modem.

If connected directly to the modem solves the speed issue then a router may be the problem. Before tossing the router, go to the router’s control panel to look for a firmware update that the company may have issued to resolve certain issues. We can also reset the router back to factory conditions by pressing the reset button. Test the speed again to see if the problem goes away and then re-enter the previous router settings such as network name and security password.

Remember these steps are to resolve slow Internet page display issues. None of this is related to the speed of our digital domestique.

Don’t forget to pick up a copy of my books, Grumbles from the Keyboard for computer users and Epicuria: An Adventure that Really Cooks! for the Gourmand in the house.

Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books ISBN: 1467985899 ISBN-13: 9781467985895

Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books ISBN: 1456561731 ISBN-13: 9781456561734