PC ProSchools – TechTalk

Currently there is a debate going on in our country about Net Neutrality over whether there should be some agency governing the internet.  The side that wants regulation says that it can curb some of the illegal activities that occur on the internet and regulate the providers from handing out a rate increase for no good reason. The opposite side says that for years the Internet has been an open source of information and a regulating policy will mean limited access to the extensive source of information and slow innovation.

Last September FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski outlined actions he believes should be taken to preserve the free and open Internet. He said, “The Internet is an extraordinary platform for innovation, job creation, investment, and opportunity. It has unleashed the potential of entrepreneurs and enabled the launch and growth of small businesses across America. It is vital that we safeguard the free and open Internet.”

• Consumers are entitled to access whatever lawful internet content they want.
• Consumers are entitled to run whatever applications and services they want, subject to the needs of law enforcement.
• Consumers can connect to networks whatever legal devices they want, so long as they do not harm them.
• Consumers are entitled to competition between networks, applications, services and content providers.
• Service providers are not allowed to discriminate between applications, services and content outside of reasonable network management.
• Service providers must be transparent about the network management practices they use.

On  September 7^th the US Court of Appeals ruled in favor  of Comcast in saying that the  FCC does not have the authority to require Comcast, a major Internet provider, to treat all Internet traffic and access the same on its network.  This could lead to your internet provider charging you more to access some web content than others, or content providers might have to go through the same type of contract negotiations as providers do with Cable systems, this could lead to you not being able to access your favorite website while they negotiate.

Microsoft Excel is a popular application used by many companies for tracking and storing data. As a Help Desk Professional, you may be called to fix problems with Excel. Here is a list of problems and their solutions that you may find useful:

1. Remove Passwords on Excel Password Protected Sheets and Workbooks
   You may need to open an Excel spreadsheet that has a password. Passwords can be lost and forgotten. When that happens, you can follow the steps described in Remove Passwords on Excel Password Protected Sheets and Workbooks to help you open a password protected spreadsheet.
2. Solving Common Excel Setup Problems
   When you are having trouble getting Excel to open or working correctly, you have to fix a setup problem. Solving Common Excel Setup Problems describes a few setup problems and their solutions.
3. Removing Add-ins
   Microsoft Excel allows you to install Third Party Apps that extend the functionality of Excel. ASAP Utilities helps you to automate frequently used tasks in excel. You may be having a problem with an Add-In. Microsoft Excel doesn’t have an obvious way of deleting the Add-In. Excel.Tips.Net explains how to remove the Add-In.
4. Excel Formula Errors and How to Deal With Them
   When you create formulas in Excel, you can cause errors to occur. In order to fix an error, you need to know what it means. Learn what #NULL!, #DIV/0 and other error message mean and how to solve them.
5. Repairing corrupted files in Excel
   Files can become corrupt and require repairing. Microsoft Excel has an automatic recovery which attempts to repair that file. Sometimes, you may need to manually repair the file in order to get your data. Try to manually repair an Excel spreadsheet by following Microsoft’s tips.
6. Top ten ways to clean your data
   Sometimes a spreadsheet can have empty rows, misspelled words or extra spaces. You need to clean up the spreadsheet in order to get it to work correctly. Try this tips from Microsoft on cleaning your data.
7. Troubleshoot Errors When Saving Excel Files
   When you save an Excel spreadsheet, an error may occur and you can’t save the file. Microsoft provides common save errors and their solutions.

Bonus Tip

Cheat sheets or quick reference cards lists shortcuts and functions. Use a cheat sheet as a reference so that you work in Excel faster.

Allow me to share a little story about what not to do with a computer.

A few years back, a girl I was dating told me that her mother had a computer.  I was thinking, “Great, who doesn’t.  What do I have to fix now.”  She went on to tell me that the computer was running slow, making a lot of noise (fans constantly running), and it would suddenly turn off from time to time with an error message stating that the CPU reached a critical temperature.  Oh boy, I have to see this.

Her mother’s home was inhabited by two cats, and a white-haired English Setter that shed so much, it looked like it was snowing in the house.  The computer, a small HP desktop, sat right on the floor in the living room.  This is NOT optimal placement for a PC; it was sucking hair in like crazy.  I immediately asked her mother when was the last time it was opened and cleaned.  I could have called it, but I had to hear it: “Never.”  Of course.  Never.

I proceeded to open the case of the PC.  Oh my goodness!  It looked like an entire small animal was stuffed inside that computer!  I have never seen so much hair and dust in a computer, and trust me, I have seen a lot.  We had to use a vacuum cleaner to suck most of the hair out, and follow it up with air dusters cans.  Turning the system back on and using it exhibited an immediate performance improvement.  Well of course!  I then told her mother to please place that PC up on a table or something to get it off the carpet.

About a year later, long after the girl and I stopped dating but still talked, she called me to say that her mother’s computer was having problems again.  I first asked if she ever moved it like I said, and of course the reply was “No.”  I then asked what happened, and she told me that her mother said she heard a “Poof!” from inside the PC, and then it would no longer turn on.  Obviously, something finally gave up, probably the processor or power supply.  She asked if I could look at it again, and I simply said “Nope.  It’s done.  Get a new computer.”  I know that I could have probably fixed it, but I didn’t even want to bother, as she never listened to me before.

I really don’t have to emphasize the point in this article.  Take care of your computers.  It’s that simple.

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