Computer Repair

Windows Install

The operating system is software that manages your entire computer system.  It controls all hardware and all other software programs installed on your computer. Specifically, it controls every file, every device, every section of memory, every second of processing time, and every network connection. The operating system is what performs the task of recognizing input from the keyboard or mouse and sending output to your computer screen. It keeps track of your files and directories and controls your peripheral devices such as your disk drive and printer. It makes sure that the different programs and users running at the same time do not interfere with each other.  It also controls who can use the computer and how, while ensuring your systems security. In general, it is the boss and without it, nothing works. The most popular operating system is Windows, which has several to choose from like, Windows Vista, Windows XP and Windows 7.  These OS systems are easily upgradable to the latest versions and can be restored when your system fails. There are other operating systems such as DOS and Linux but Microsoft is by far the most popular and widely used.  In order to install a different operating system on your computer, you must do so while the original operating system is still installed so that you have access to all of the components necessary for the new system’s installation.

Installing or reinstalling an Operating System is no easy task. It is probably the most complicated and time consuming software installation you can perform on your computer. Microsoft offers two types of operating systems, the “full version” and the “upgrade version”. Although the upgrade version is cheaper it does require you to have a previous version of a Windows Operating System installed on your computer and during installation will ask and check to confirm there is a previous version available. This is the type of Windows installation you would do if you want to upgrade Windows.  The full version is designed to be installed when no other Windows version is present or when you do not have a valid license to a prior version. A new install of Windows is the kind of installation you would do if you get a new hard drive. When you encounter serious Windows problems or have a system failure it is often necessary to restore Windows on your computer.  In this case you may choose either a clean installation which will erase everything from your computer, or a repair installation which will copy over Windows but keep your files.

When deciding to upgrade your Windows Operating System there are a couple of versions available. Selecting the appropriate one will require a system check to ensure your computer compatibility and can support a new Windows Operating System.

You can upgrade Windows XP to the most recent Windows operating system and install Windows 7 which today is the most popular operating system but not yet the most used since that is still Windows XP. Each version and edition of Windows comes in a 32-bit or 64-bit version. Different editions also come with different features and service packs for upgrades. When doing a Windows 7 install it is important to understand the various types of windows installations available, such as a Windows 7 new install or a Windows 7 clean install, a Windows 7 upgrade installation, a parallel installation or a Startup Repair installation. Please note that per Microsoft, after October 22, 2010, you will no longer be able to buy new PC’s with Windows XP installed they will have Windows 7 installed.

So, weather you are looking to install windows XP, install Windows 7, restore windows xp, perform a Windows fix or Windows repair or install a Windows 7 upgrade there are things to consider and steps to take in order to ensure optimum performance of your computer system. When choosing to have our skilled technicians install or repair your Windows Operating System we will install the operating system, format your hard drive, install your drivers and devices, install Windows Updates and configure your network and internet connections.  

Windows XP		Windows Vista
Windows 7 Home Full Version: $199.99 Upgrade:      $119.99	Windows 7 Professional Full Version: $299.99 Upgrade:      $199.99	Windows 7 Ultimate Full Version: $399.99 Upgrade:      $219.99

Data Transfer

The technical definition for Data Transfer is the physical transfer of data (a digitalbit stream) over a point-to-point or point-to-multipoint communication channel. Some applications for this would include; Transfer Programs to a New Computer, Transfer Files to a New Computer, Copy Files from Old Computer to New Computer, Migrate one Windows OS to another Windows OS and a PC to PC File Transfer. If you have ever upgraded your Microsoft Operating System you know what a hassle it is to move all your files and settings from the old installation to the new one. It is extremely difficult to manually move all of your files and settings into the unknown file system of the new Operating System. Settings such as registry values, activation keys and user preferences are nearly impossible to move from (example) Windows Vista to Windows 7 for someone who does not have the technical expertise of data manipulation and transfer. Some data transfer devise options are:

The Floppy Disk Transfer – This should be done if you only have a few files to copy.

The CD Transfer – you can copy the files you wish to move from the computer to a CD-R disc, as long as the computer that you wish to copy the files from has a CD recordable drive

Networking Data – consider transferring and sharing data files on a local area network.

The USB Transfer- users can transfer files from one computer to another computer by using a variety of USB options.

External USB Transfer – external USB hard disk drives allow information to be easily transferred to the USB hard disk drive and then connected to another computer to transfer over the data.

Network the computers using USB to USB enables you to transfer large amounts of data between computers.

With so many file transfer options available our trained computer technicians will help select the best means by which to transfer files for you. Our Data Transfer Service will include the transferring of your data from one place to another and even transferring it back to the original source if need be. We can perform a hard drive transfer, a file transfer, a computer to computer transfer or just transfer your most important data to a new computer. We are available 24/7 and we offer valley wide service with convenient appointments to meet your scheduling needs. We are a mobile computer service so we come to you free of charge and offer in home computer service as well as business computer service and repair.

SOLUTION

•  Transfer data from one device to another
   Includes transferring back to original device……………………$99.99

Software Install

Software Installation is the act of putting the program onto a computer system so that it can be executed (or used). Some available means of software installation include Installing or updating software from a downloaded file or installing new software from a disc. 

Some software can be executed by simply copying it to a computer and then executing it with no further action required. Other programs are supplied in a form not suitable for immediate execution and require an installation procedure. This Installation procedure could include the creation or modification of shared and non-shared program files, opening files supplied in a compressed form, creating or copying files to required locations such as folders/directories, customizing the software to suit the installed hardware as well as the user’s preferences, providing information about the software program to the operating system, creating links or shortcuts and much more.

Software installation implies that once installed, the program can be executed or accessed over and over without the need to reinstall it each time you want to access or use it. Some computers come with pre-installed software that may be a trial version only and thus requires you to purchase the software and install it once your free trial period is over. 

When you have purchased a new software program and choose Desert Computer Solutions to perform your software installation service, our qualified computer technicians will perform a test of your systems suitability and available mass storage space to ensure your system is capable of supporting the new software installation. We will install and configure the software, search for and install new software updates, create your user preferences such as shortcuts and ensure your system is operating properly. Desert Computer Solutions offers valley wide service, we come to you for free and we are available 24/7 to service your computer needs.

SOLUTION

• Determine computer compatibility
  Installation & configuration of software
  Perform necessary software updates
  Create desktop, start menu and quick launch bar access shortcuts……………………$29.99
  excludes operating systems
  

Hardware Install

Computer hardware parts can actually be divided into two separate groups. One of these groups consists of the system unit which contains the motherboard, CPU, audio, video and network cards, hard disk and CD/DVD drive, RAM memory circuits, floppy disk, memory card readers, power source unit, fans and the cabling that is used to connect all of these components together. The cabling is true only for some desktop computers. For Notebooks or Laptops and even some desktop computers some of these hardware components may be integrated onto the motherboard. Among these integrated hardware components we have the audio card, the video card and the network interface card, but not necessarily all of them together. The other group is made of the external devices and peripherals that get connected to the system unit with cables or use other types of new technology like wireless to connect them. These are the monitor, printer, scanner, keyboard, mouse, microphone, external webcam and computer drawing tablet.

With major advancements in technology made almost every week it does not take long for your new computer to become out of date and not operate as quickly and efficiently as it once did. However, almost all computers can have internal hardware upgrades installed to make them run quicker, store more information, connect to the latest in high speed internet or support the newest all in one printer/fax/scanner/copier and maybe someday coffee maker.

The most common hardware installation is probably memory or RAM. Adding or upgrading RAM is an easy and relatively inexpensive way to boost your computer’s performance. Newer computers come with more preinstalled memory than say your 2 year old computer came with and with these advancements in technology more and more memory is being used and installed to maximize a computers performance. When deciding to upgrade your computer’s memory it is important to know that not all computer memory is the same. Most computers today use DDR or DDR2 types of memory but it is not only important to purchase memory (RAM) that is compatible with your computer but it is equally as important to purchase high quality RAM since it is quite common to have computer problems due to the use of sub-quality RAM.

Another common hardware installation or upgrade is the computer hard drive. Just like anything, computer parts including hard drives wear out and leave your computer inoperable. A Hard Drive is one of the most important components of your computer since it is a non-volatile storage device for digital data. In other words, it is what holds all of your computers information. Most often times when your hard drive is going bad it will give you warnings such as, “Bad Sector” or “Read/Write Error”. When you see these warnings pop up it is critical to back up your important data immediately or it may be lost forever. If your hard drive fails then you will be forced to go through a new hard drive installation and possibly a hard drive upgrade to render your computer useable again. 

There are many other internal hardware and external hardware installations that can be done. Some examples include; Power Supply Installation, Video Card Installation, Wireless Adapters, Sound Card Installation, Optical Drive Installation, AMD /Intel Processor Installation and Mother Board Installation just to name a few.

When you find yourself in need of a computer upgrade or replacement such as memory or a new mother board it is important to know that although it may seem easy to open up your computer and replace parts there is much more involved in the process of performing a memory upgrade installation or a hard drive installation or just a RAM upgrade and most internal hardware upgrades or hardware replacement should be done by a trained computer technician. When choosing Desert Computer Solutions to complete your hardware installation needs we will come to you for free, valley wide, 24/7. Diagnose your computer, recommend the necessary hardware component, install your internal component and configure your component in your system ensuring its usability. If you are not sure what your computer problems are or what your computer upgrade options are then please give us a call and we will be happy to help figure out what upgrades or replacements are needed and available for your system.

Power Supply	Memory	Hard Drive
Video Cards	Wireless Adapters	Sound Cards
Optical Drive	AMD / Intel Processors	Mother Board

SOLUTION

• Installation of internal PC components
  Install any necessary software
  Configure the PC component for applicable use………………….$49.99 
• Mother Board Installation……………………$149.99
  

PC Tune Up

Computer Optimization or Computer Clean Up is a very essential element of keeping your computer running quickly and smoothly. As your computer hard disk becomes cluttered with more software and files it becomes sluggish and slow to open files or connect to the internet. There are many reasons for this to happen but the most common reasons are a fragmented hard drive, insufficient disk storage, lack of RAM and even outdated computer components. Every time you create a document or folder, download music from the Internet, transfer your pictures from your digital camera to your PC, or even transfer data onto CD’s, you are using up more of your computers’ hard disk storage which then makes your computer take longer to search and find the files you want to access. This is when a computer cleanup is necessary.

Newer PC programs such as Windows Systems are getting more and more resource intensive as well as larger and this makes it tough for your computer to keep running at peak performance. When Windows starts up it automatically loads a number of programs, many of which you may not need and as you install more and more programs, the list of non-essential programs continue to grow causing a slow computer startup and slow computer performance. Fragmentation of your hard disk is a major reason for your computer running slow. For instance, the Windows operating system stores files in different locations on the hard disk. If the stored locations are not adjacent to each other, the disk is fragmented and retrieving the files takes longer. Other reasons for a slow computer could be a shortage of physical or virtual memory, spyware, malware, viruses and other similar problems. A computer cleanup will take care of these problems.

In today’s world of computer technology and necessity we all want and need our computer to run as fast as it possibly can. Our Computer Clean Up Service will fix your slow running computer and we will provide you with tips on how to keep it running at maximum efficiency. Our trained computer technicians will come to your home or office and optimize or cleanup your computer to enhance speed and performance. We will clear out your junk files, clean up your system registries, perform a windows cleanup, disable startup programs that are not essential, defragment your hard drive, update your Windows System software, configure your user accounts and make any recommendations that may help in making your computer faster and decreasing your start up time.  So when your PC is running slow and you are looking for a faster computer, give us a call and we can help. We are available 24/7 and provide in home computer service, business computer service and even remote computer assistance when possible.

SOLUTION

• System functionality check and enhancements
  Installation of critical Windows updates
  Removal of unwanted software
  User account & Windows firewall management
  Cleanup of all temporary files & system defragmentation
  Start-up and shutdown optimization……………………$39.99

Recovery CD

A System Restore disc or Recovery Disk contains a backup of your operating system, drivers, application software, files and registry. This disc allows you to restore your computer back to an earlier point in case of complete system failure or if you accidentally delete vital system files needed to keep your computer running optimally.

When you buy a new computer often times it comes with some sort of data restore/ recovery disc. This is used to restore your operating system and software back to factory condition so your PC will run as it did when you bought it.

When you do not have a restore disk the best practice is to have one made. This is usually done by saving an image of the partition where the OS & installed programs are located. The image is saved to a single file or split into a spanned set of files if it’s total size exceeds file size limitation. There are two main sources for hard drive recovery which are, storing the image on another hard drive or storing the image on a recordable disc (CD). The advantage of storing the image to a hard drive is faster speed and the flexibility of overwriting images. This option is very useful for those who make frequent changes to their images.  The other option, burning images directly on to a CD or DVD is the most common. The downside of this is that it may require the user to use the bootable floppy along with these discs to restore your hard drive. No matter which way you prefer it is essential to have a recovery disk so that you can perform a windows restore, perform a laptop recovery or have a means to do a disk repair.

When your computer has a system failure, your OS does not work, your software programs do not work, your hard drive crashed and it is necessary to reinstall your data then having your Recovery CD will make the process of hard drive recovery much easier.  Having a recovery cd is an important part of being a computer owner and user. You should always have a backup of your data which is done on a regular weekly or monthly basis as well as a System Restore CD in the event of catastrophic system failure. Desert Computer Solutions’ trained computer technicians will come to your home or office, we will create a recovery cd for you ensuring your Operating System, Drivers, Registry, Software and files are all securely stored and ready for use when necessary. This valuable tool will fix your desktop or laptop corrupt hard drive and allow you to recover data, reinstalling it to your computer. We offer Valley Wide Service, 24/7 and we come to you for FREE.