Be prepared before you power-up
The first danger you face once you have your PC set up and ready to use is power problems in the form of spikes and surges, brownouts and outages. Protection against these problems is easily obtained by using either a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) which will probably have surge protection built in as well; or a Surge Protector which will at least stop power spikes from damaging your equipment.
Differences between a UPS and a Surge Protector:
- A UPS will allow your PC to continue to run during power outages and/or brownouts, so that you can exit and save your work before shutting down your PC.
- A UPS will sound an alarm indicating a power problem, most Surge Protectors don’t have this feature.
- Replacement batteries for the UPS will be required after 2-3 years, Surge Protectors don’t have batteries.
- Surge Protectors don’t protect against outages, just surges or spikes that might damage your equipment.
- UPS equipment is more expensive that Surge Protectors, but provides greater protection.
Both provide telephone line protection if you are using a dial-up connection. Most PCs that are damaged by surges and lightning, by far, are hit through the TELEPHONE line, not the power cord. Even cable connections have been known to carry destructive surges if not properly grounded. You can purchase special protectors for this, and some UPS units have network protection built in.
Neither of these devices will provide protection if your home wiring is not properly grounded.
- Never assume an outlet is grounded. Even if you’re in a new home, there is always the risk for human error during installation. If you’re in an older home, check every outlet to ensure protection for your machines. A tester will cost you $3 at the local hardware store, compared to several hundred or thousand dollars for a new computer.
- Always check your UPS to determine if there is a fault in the line (if your UPS has a fault detector). If the UPS detects a fault, use another outlet. If the fault indicator shows a fault, better check your wiring.
As far as using a UPS, if the alarm sounds and your PC begins to run on its batteries, don’t keep on as if nothing had happened. The UPS has given you a chance to save your work, and your PC, from being damaged or lost, so don’t waste it. Stop what you are doing and save your document, close your browser, or whatever you were doing, and shut down your system. Sure, the power may come back on in just a few seconds and it will seem like a waste of time, but the next time may be much longer and if the batteries don’t last the entire time you’ll regret delaying.
Next time I’ll cover the other danger your PC faces, attack by Internet.
Where can i find spell check on my new word 2007? Also how can i make Cox home page my defaut page? when i try to do it it say error and will not accept the settings is keeps google as my home page
I just got a new dell lap top with Vista windows and still trying to learn how to use it.
Thanks
Casey
to hat fellow who posted asking bout setting cox’s home page. It’s based on what internet Explore you are using. If it’s I E 7, it’s a little hard then 6, although it’s the same thing, there’s no way to fix hat problem, I am havig same problem too
I aquired an Acer Notebook from my company when they went out of business. I need to reformat my hard drive but, found that the bios is password protected. How can I bypass this? I am running Windows XP home edition. Can I reformat my hard drive without entering the bios? Please help, this notebook is running very slow and sometimes does not want to boot up to windows, not even in safe mode. “HELP”