RCS technicians have compiled some helpful tips for you, to help you troubleshoot minor issues and enhance your safe computing experience. Please use these for guidance, but remember the number one tip:

When in doubt call Real Computer Solutions!

At Real Computer Solutions, we believe Internet safety may be the single most overlooked factor by parents when it comes to the overall safety of their children. The Internet offers children of all ages vast opportunities for learning, constructive entertainment, and personal growth. At the same time, parents must be concerned and aware about the risks kids face online. The challenge for parents is to educate themselves and their children about how to use the Internet safely. By taking responsibility for your children's online computer use, parents can greatly minimize any potential risks of being online.

Real Computer Solutions strongly recommends you have a look at the following websites for an in depth view of this subject.

http://kids.getnetwise.org/

http://www.safekids.com/

http://www.staysafeonline.info/

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E-mail is one of the most common ways for computer viruses to spread. Use these tips to help protect you, your family and your company.

• Be extremely cautious of opening any attachments from senders you do not recognize. Never open if the attachments are executable files (". exe", ".vbs", and ".scr") or a double file extension (such as ".txt.vbs"). Beware - These emails will usually have some tempting message to try and encourage you to open them before you have thought twice.
• If in doubt about any email with an attachment use your antivirus software to perform a scan before opening it, or delete it.
• Beware of "phishing" scams. These are sophisticated scams designed to fool users into thinking they are being contacted by trusted organizations such as banks or Microsoft. They try to con users into divulging financial information or to try and infect the machines with Trojans or worms. Be extremely cautious of any emails, however legitimate they appear, that ask you to divulge any personal information. If in doubt contact the organization that the email claims to be from before taking any action.
• Spam. Unsolicited "junk" e-mail sent to large numbers of people to promote products or services. Sexually explicit unsolicited e-mail is called "porn Spam." Also refers to inappropriate promotional or commercial postings to discussion groups or bulletin boards. Pop up ads can silently download software that will use your computer to send out Spam.

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Making regular backups of the important files on your computer means that even if disaster strikes you will have saved those crucial files.

Possible Options:

• Burn CD's regularly of all your important files.
• Get a second internal Hard Drive installed and copy important files to it. This way you will always have a copy if one Hard Disk fails.
• Get an external Plug and Play USB Hard Drive. This will avoid the need to open the computer casing.
• Utilize Real Computer Solutions remote back-up servers.
• If your machine starts misbehaving in any way back up as soon as possible.
• If your machine starts to make any strange noises - especially scratchy ones - back up as soon as possible. Remember - Contact RCS...we are available 24 hours a day.
• Establish a scheduled back-up. This can run once a week or once a month. We recommend backing up as often as possible so you do not lose valuable time and money if your data is lost.

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• Back Up before installing any new software, regardless of the source.
• Scan all disks, CD-ROMs, and DVD-ROMs before using them in your computer. You never know if a nasty virus is lurking on a seemingly innocent disk.
• Don't install pirated software onto your computer. Illegal copies of software, those downloaded from hacker websites or sourced from file-sharing programs often contain hidden viruses.
• Before installing any software, be sure you know exactly what is being copied onto your system. Sometimes seemingly-innocent software can contain viruses or Trojans that can take control of your computer. This is a particular danger with file-sharing programs that allow you to trade MP3s, videos, etc. such as Kazaa and Limeware.

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• Get a good Surge Protector - A power surge or lightning strike can destroy your computer and valuable files in an instant. Power surges and lightning strikes are bad news for computers. Surges often go unnoticed, sometimes lasting as little as 1/120th of a second. But they are much more common and destructive than you might think.
• A battery back-up is highly recommended. A popular brand you may choose is APC, a leader in the industry. The purpose of the battery back-up is to provide you with enough time to shut down the computer during electrical storms or power outages. Please make sure to unplug your computer and battery from the outlet during thunderstorms or they may get zapped!
• Static electricity. If you are going to open you computer casing yourself be extremely cautious of static electricity - this can damage Mother Boards and Hard drives in a fraction of a second, often beyond repair. There are various ways to stop this happening including anti-static wrist bands and bench mats. If in doubt call RCS for help. You can still get shocked by electricity if you are not careful.
• Shut down before unplugging or plugging in any cables. Doing so with the power on can create a short circuit in the Mother Board which may damage it beyond repair. This is particularly true of Keyboard and Mouse Ports . USB cables however should be safe. If in doubt shut down first. Please remove any and all jewelry... they are all very good conductors.

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Learning how to utilize short cut keys on your keyboard can saw you time. Below are some common shorts you can use. Please click here for the full version of shortcuts.

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