The advent of globalization and computer technology has left most of us dependent on computers. Laptops have also been increasingly popular these days as more and more people conduct their internet surfing, business work, or schoolwork outside of the house. Because of this fast paced lifestyle and mobile living, we often forget to perform some very basic but crucial maintenance on our computers, resulting in system crashes, viruses, program and hardware malfunction. For those of you who have experienced these PC let downs, you know how devastating and frustrating it is, especially when you have important work to do. To help you in avoiding these computer mishaps I have prepared a short maintenance guide on how to take care of your laptop, inside and out.

The data and the software programs that you have in your laptop are probably the most important things that you should safeguard. That is why it is crucial that you perform the following maintenance tasks in a weekly basis. I cannot stress too much how important it is to get that anti-virus and firewall software updates. Intruders, hackers, trojans and viruses are your number one enemy when it comes to data and software. Perform a simple weekly update and you get to save those valuable data from corruption and lost. Speaking of data, if it is entirely possible, create back ups for your data and email. There are a lot of ways of making back ups for your data. It may seem trivial now but if and when your laptop crashes you will be kissing those backups as they may just save your life.

Other than these weekly laptop maintenance tips, it is also good to schedule these monthly tasks for your laptop. Every month examine your files and the programs that you have installed or saved. Determine which of them you need and which you can delete. Cleaning your hard drive does not only save you those space it also makes your laptop run smoother and faster. After deleting those unnecessary files and properly uninstalling those programs, set time to defragment your laptop. I know it takes time especially if you have accumulated all those data but defragmenting is just essential to maintain your laptops well-being and to make your computer run better, avoid system crashes and frozen programs. Just like anti-virus and firewall software updates, keeping your other software up-to-date is also a good way to help make your laptop run better and faster.

Finally, it is as important if not more important to clean the outside of your laptop. We all know that those accumulated dust and dirt can cause problems for your laptop and eventually for you. Set aside time in cleaning your laptop because if you hastily clean your laptop you may be doing more damage than good to your laptop. First read your laptop’s user manual and find out the recommended way to clean the exterior of your laptop. In cleaning the outside of your laptop, do not use harsh cleaning agents or those that have ammonia as they cause damage to the laptop. Also only use materials that are made of cloth and are not rough.

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