Computer Help
Where and How to Get It
Well there's no denying it - No matter how new or how well maintained our computers are, we all encounter computer problems sooner or later. The good news is that we don't have to face them alone. There are a ton of resources available to walk us through computer issues but it may take a little knowledge in knowing how to access them. This article will show you how.
1. Remember help files. It's funny, but people seem to forget that every computer and every program installed on a computer comes with its own help file. Even the operating system of a computer has a help file and it really should be the first place to look for answers. Help files are designed not only to guide the usage of a computer, they're also designed to solve problems. Inside a help file, look for a section called, "Troubleshooting" (or something similar) when you need to resolve an issue. This section is reserved for solving problems specific to the software or hardware that you're using.
2. Product websites. If you're having a problem with a piece of software or with a hardware part, try the website of that software's or hardware's manufacturer. Most (if not all) manufacturer's reserve a portion of cyberspace and dedicate it to support the products that they build. Microsoft's help desk is good example.
3. Fan sites. Fan sites probably isn't a good name for this resource, but you can find websites that are dedicated toward supporting the users of a particular software program or piece of hardware. We've called them "fan sites" because the maintainers of these sites have no affiliation with the manufacturers that they support! Call them what you will, but their free help is immeasurable and without it, we wouldn't have some of the wonderful workarounds and unique problem solving techniques that we have today.
4. Usenet newsgroups. Another underused resource on the Internet, Usenet newsgroups have hundreds of discussion groups dedicated to some of the most popular computer systems, operating systems, hardware manufacturers, and individual software programs. Sometimes, the representatives of these companies participate, but most of the time, the support in this group is user to user, which is just as valid because you're
working with a team of experienced people.
5. Support Lines. Another source for help that we shouldn't forget are the support systems of various manufacturers. You can reach these systems by calling the phone number associated with the product that you're having trouble with. Calls may be free (1-800 or 1-877 number), or they may cost a small fee (1-900).
6. PC support groups or user groups are another option for help. These are groups that meet in libraries, computer stores, or other local areas and they discuss all sorts of issues related with a particular product. Even if you aren't experiencing a computer or software problem, user groups are fun to participate in and they can help you network into other interests such as job or teaching opportunities.
7. Surprisingly, you may even get a helping hand from the salespersons at your local computer store. We don't recommend that you make this your first pit stop when you experience a problem, but we don't recommend that you rule this option out altogether either. Computer salespersons are hired for a reason - and that's their knowledge. Often, these kind folks can help you resolve an issue over the phone and prevent you form having to buy a costly solution.
As you can see, help is easy to find - You've just got to know where to look for it. Most of the contacts within these resources are extremely friendly and willing to take the time to walk you through a problem at little to no cost. From online discussion groups to the files on your own computer, help is often just a click away.
Word count 653
|
Accessorizing Computers What Comes Out of the Box is a Really Just a Starter Kit Yesterday, we spent about three ...
read more
Automating Things with Batch Files They Work on Today's Computers Too! If you're familiar with MS-DOS at all, you'll recall ...
read more
Basic GUI Terminology Knowing What You're Working With Helps Technicians Getting help with your computer software can be easier when ...
read more
Buying a Computer What To Do And Why It isn't fair, but buying a computer is just plain easier for ...
read more
Cheap and Fast Software An Introduction to Shareware Visit any computer store today and you'll find what seems like miles ...
read more
A Few Common Computer Errors (And What They Mean) Computer errors can pop up when least expected, they can cause ...
read more
Computer Help Where and How to Get It Well there's no denying it - No matter how new or how ...
read more
Computer Security In Today's Society, Protecting Your Computer Is A Requirement Advances in computer technology is a double-edged sword. On ...
read more
Customizing Your Computer with Preferences Making Your Computer Work with You - Not Against You Although you did not design ...
read more
Dust Kills Cleaning the Unit Fan is Essential Computer Care Between taking care of the household, the kids, the pets, ...
read more
Programs Included With a New Computer Are they good enough to stand on their own? The Windows operating systems already ...
read more
Introduction to Programming Controlling Your Computer with a Programming Language In a previous article, we introduced automating some tasks with ...
read more
Networking Home Computers Increasing Productivity With the Whole Family Have you ever thought about networking your computers at home? If ...
read more
Open Source Software If you've spent any lengthy amount of time on the Internet, you've probably heard of open source ...
read more
Protecting Children Online Steps Toward Making Your Computer "Weirdo-Proof" It's an unfortunate fact of reality, but children are the most ...
read more
Selling Your Computer Looking At Alternatives At some point, your needs are going to outgrow the capabilities of your computer. ...
read more
Smartphones What's the craze all about? If you haven't heard of smartphones, we'd like to learn where you've been hiding ...
read more
Software Piracy It's Best To Avoid It At All Costs Like electronic identity theft, computer viruses, and the spread of ...
read more
Understanding Compression What It Is and What's Involved Downloading files from the Internet has always been one of the most ...
read more
Understanding Operating Systems Every new computer that's brought home from the store has an operating system installed onto it. But ...
read more
Using Computers It's Not Rocket Science These days it's strange to hear people say, "I'm just not computer literate," as ...
read more
Viruses What They Are And One Reason Why People Make Them Over recent years, computers have become synonymous with viruses ...
read more
What's That File? An Introduction to File Extensions In an effort to be "user-friendly," Windows (and perhaps some other operating ...
read more
When Less Is More Clean Your Disk Drive of Unnecessary Files and Your Computer's Performance Will Improve When it comes ...
read more
Working With Computers In Today's Society, There's No Escape Well, we've been warned that this time would come - probably ...
read more
|
|
|
Disclaimer:
The Publisher has strived to be as accurate and complete as possible in
the creation of this website, notwithstanding the fact that he does not
warrant or represent at any time that the contents within are accurate
due to the rapidly changing nature of the Internet.
This site
is a common sense guide to Computer Help. In practical advice websites,
like anything else in life, there are no guarantees of income made.
Readers are cautioned to reply on their own judgment about their
individual circumstances to act accordingly.
This site
is not intended for use as a source of legal, business, accounting or
financial advice. All readers are advised to seek services of competent
professionals in legal, business, accounting, and finance field.
Any
perceived slights of specific people or organizations are unintentional.
|