Broken Computer Help

Before we delve into the issue of a broken computer, let’s talk about the different categories of computers. Basically there are three very general categories: Desktops, laptops, and then Macs. We wouldn’t discuss the differences between laptops and computers, but there are certain issues that are related solely to a laptop and solely to a desktop.

A damage assessment always needs to start with finding out the type of computing device you are dealing with (remember that often times each computing device has a different backup strategy ).  . If it's a Mac instead of a PC, the approach to fixing it is completely different than what one would take when getting a normal notebook in shape, and the other way around. A laptop is not only smaller than what people keep on the table next to their flatscreen monitor but it's also more complicated in its design and thus harder to fix. If you're not the kind of person people describe as 'born with a screwdriver in their hand', you should jump to the last paragraph now (the one that deals with the costs of fixing a broken computer).

A desktop is not easy to find your way around in for the first time, but a laptop is definitely a full-fledged labyrinth in comparison. It's probably enough to mention that they have everything the big boxes do, plus a few parts that are not used in non-portables. Battery and the integrated flat screen are the two most common causes of the unit acting up.

Also, some manufacturers pick non factory-standard solutions that might (and will) make replacing parts all that much more difficult. Sometimes it's a screw that requires special tools, sometimes it's a complete new interface (especially for connecting the screen panel when dealing with a broken computer screen), and the worst of it all: you won't know you need special parts until you actually start disassembling.

Causes of malfunction (Help, my computer is broken).

There are three major causes of computer malfunction. Hardware, software, and user related. Hardware is the part of the computer you can kick; software is what you swear at. The beauty of computer hardware is the level of complexity they maintain with relatively low amount of failures.

To further iterate the grouping of hardware issues we can differentiate between reparable and irreparable cases. Sometimes it's just a cable slipping out of its socket causing your hard drive to fail to show up, sometimes it's the processor getting fried, you'll know the type when you see it. Sometimes it's just a simple case of going through the crashed hard drive data recovery process.

There are so many tiny parts inside the box, so if you don't know the main ones by heart, you better leave them to the professionals. A hardware technician (repair guy for short) usually works for $15-$30 per hour, that's the least you should be expecting to pay, plus the price of the replacement part(s).

For some almost inexplicable reason, formatting your hard drive seems to cause problems. If you've recently formatted and it seems to have broken your computer then you may want to look into something called data recovery software after format. This software can often times recover the lost data from the formatting process.

Software

If hardware is the body of the computer, software is the soul, and though it's not even comparable to the human soul in its complexity, it definitely has the means to lay some traps for you.

Viruses are made out to be the ultimate boogeyman, the thing you should be afraid o,f and unfortunately are named as the culprit in many cases where they really are not. It's not that viruses are nice pieces of code, but they're definitely not the threat they once used to be. That said you should always run a full virus sweep when you experience abnormal operation, just for good measure.

The new 'viruses' of the decade are spyware and malware. They rarely do direct damage to your files, but they can be as annoying as the vuvuzela, and that's not everything, spyware is specifically designed to steal your valuable pieces of information including the browsing history. Free software is available such as Spybot search and destroy and Ad-Aware. It is a good strategy to use them back to back when malicious code is to be dealt with.

The user

Some may argue that they don’t understand how a user could be the cause of a broken computer, but it's really simple. There are two billion people using Internet worldwide, with a penetration of 77% in North America. In layman terms it means that almost everyone is on the net now, and that means there are lots of people using a computer who shouldn't be trusted with operating such a sensitive device. Errors are bound to happen.

They may not care about what they do, or they are causing problems against their best intentions. The best way of counteracting this cause of broken computers is fixing the issue they've caused. If you know people who just can't get along with the ‘broken computer”, the best approach you can take is to teach them the basics. Or take the computer away, whichever works.

Ways to fix broken computer

Again, there are so many ways to break a PC that they'd fill a book, so you won't find much more than the first steps here.

The body of a laptop or desktop PC is a ridiculously complicated machine; the most you can do is check the connections and cables and keep everything clean. If you own a notebook, don't eat or drink in front of it. Spilled coffee and tea accounts for at least ten percent of all dead notebooks; likewise, breadcrumbs will cause various side-effects including, but not limited to, stuck keys. If it's more serious than that then start looking for a professional.

Software is what you can do something about. Keep your backups up to-date and ensure that at least a firewall and a virus scanner is in operation. Keep the operating system on a different partition, separated from the data, and don't click on everything you download on-line (not that you would, just saying).

The user problem can't be avoided. We're human, we make mistakes and we learn from those mistakes. If you do that, you're on the best course to become a proficient computer user who doesn't pose a threat to anything digital.

The necessary evil - Money

It all depends on what went wrong. Here are the most common problems that occur around laptops and their estimated cost to fix.

-Broken/Scratched/Faulty screen - $75-$200
-Dead charger, or DC jack problems - $20-$70
-Replacing the keyboard - $15-$50
-Dead hard drive or DVD-RW - $30-$60
-Broken battery - $75-$150
-Faulty motherboard - $150 to 'Get a new laptop'

Desktop computers are generally cheaper to put in shape again due to their better modularity.

- New motherboard - $50-$100
- faulty video/sound/network/raid card - $10 to $200
- Jammed hard drive - $50 (plus data recovery)
- Over surge or voltage spike - $50 to the whole computer

Software related costs are fairly universal for both types of hardware, but they largely depend on what you're dealing with. Data recovery services can cost you four figures, whereas a proper virus scanner can be had for less than $50.