Well it’s been one of my busiest weeks ever for “Brain Picking” calls & visits.
Here’s a few highlights!
“My Hard Drive is making strange ticking noises, and my computer is going really slow”
Firstly, backup all your files & data ASAP, as it sounds like your hard drive is on it’s last legs & may be failing.
Once you have your stuff safely backed up, you can download a very useful tool called CrystalDiskInfo.
https://crystalmark.info/en/software/crystaldiskinfo/
It will give you a very quick diagnosis of the health of any hard drive/SSD or USB drive connected to your system.
“My Printer has stopped working since changing broadband suppliers”
As you have changed suppliers, you have probably got a new Router/Modem ?….. Yes!
In that case you will have to re-install/connect the printer to your WiFi, like when you first got it.
There should be a WiFi/Wireless configuration Icon or Button on the Printer.
If you need a guide, the Printer manufacturers website should have one available. Look for “Quick Start Guide” or similar.
“My Laptop has frozen and I can’t shut it down”
Just pulling the plug, like you can do on a desktop pc, is out of the question as a laptop has an internal battery!
And as most (maybe all nowadays) have the battery secreted away under the bottom cover, it can be a bit fiddly to take it out safely & quickly.
The easiest way to shut any type of computer down if it’s being grumpy, is to hold the power button down for 5-10 seconds, and it should shut down completely. If it just comes back to the frozen screen, you didn’t hold it down long enough, Try Again!
“Where’s Disk Clean-up Gone??”
Ah, Windows 11 hiding useful stuff again. Click on the “Start” button, in the little search box at the top start typing Disk Clean and it should appear in the menu, where you can pin it to your start menu for easy access.
“Why is my internet so slow ?”
There’s so many reasons for your internet speed slowing down. It could be your supplier having issues, Dodgy phone lines, Router/Modem problems, and that’s before the list of computer problems that can cause this.
First thing to check is your computer/device. Does it take forever to start & shutdown, open programs etc? If yes, your computer could be the reason, and probably needs a little TLC.
If the computer/device starts & runs well, test the internet speed by going to www.fast.com & see if you are getting what you pay for.
Bear in mind though, that if you are using WiFi, a low signal between you and your router/modem will slow things down quite significantly.
Connecting your device via Ethernet (Cat5/6) cable directly to your router/modem will get a more accurate speed test.
If the speed is below what you are supposed to get, contact your broadband supplier to get things checked out.
“Do I have to get rid of my Windows 10 Computer now it’s coming to an end, and won’t upgrade to Windows 11 ?”
I get this question on a daily basis. In most cases no. As long as you are using a decent anti-virus, you’ll have a few years left in the old beast yet!
As time goes by, things like Google Chrome & MS Edge may refuse to update, but that’s at least 2-5 years away.
“Where have all the options gone when I right click on stuff ?”
At the bottom of the list is the “Show More Options” button, Sneaky Win 11…
There’s a few ways to disable the truncated context menus, but make sure it’s someone who knows what they are doing!
Here’s a good article on Tom’s Hardware if you fancy a tinker..https://www.tomshardware.com/how-to/windows-11-classic-context-menus
Always glad to help 👍