Archive for July, 2014

Paul W

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South City Computer was glad to help me with a recent problem I had with my computer and printer. The service they provided was prompt and corrected the problems I had within a few minutes. The technician was able to work his computer techno-magic and made my printer compatible with the new Windows 7 system. I’m very appreciative and grateful for their help.

Is your motherboard dead?

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Motherboard repair st louis computer repairMotherboards also known as the logic board to Mac folks are a pretty big culprit of many computer problems. Because they are so complex with so many different components and parts, the risk of failure is much greater.

If you think the motherboard has failed or is going about to fail, and you’re not afraid to “peak under the hood” of a computer, here are some steps you can take to try to determine if this is the cause of the computer problem. Please remember the motherboard is also a very sensitive electronic device and just touching it can cause damage so it is probably best to have an expert computer technician diagnose a motherboard issue. If you are a hands off kind of computer user, we are happy to provide our expert service and advice. Bring your computer to South City Computer so that we can test your motherboard for you.

Check that the power supply on the computer is functioning

Does the computer’s power supply turn on, if there is no power coming out of the power supply this could be the issue and it is probably not the motherboard. However sometimes a dead power supply can also be indicative of a power anomaly that could have also fried the motherboard.

Check the power connector to the motherboard is securely fastened

The cable the connects the power supply to the motherboard comes loose for whatever reason and causes the motherboard to stop functioning. A loose power cable can cause the motherboard to stop functioning.

Try replacing the ROM battery

Sometimes the culprit is just a dead battery on the motherboard.

Examine the board for corrosion, dust, or burn marks

Any of these things are signs of motherboard failure.

Check for bulging or busted capacitors

The capacitors often bulge and burst causing the logic board to stop functioning properly.

Dust

Dust, hair and dirt can cause a motherboard to short out and stop functioning correctly. If the motherboard board appears to be really dusty, try blowing it out with some canned air.

Corrosion

You may notice a little corrosion on the motherboard. You can attempted to scrape this off gently to see if it fixes your motherboard.

Look for burn marks on the motherboard

Sometimes the electronic chips or the electrical circuitry on the motherboard will malfunction and cause an electrical fire which will leave burn marks on the board and possibly melt the board. If the motherboard appears to have had an electrical fire it is probably not fixable.

Remove any extraneous PCI cards

Sometimes video cards, sound cards, or network cards that are plugged into the motherboard will cause the motherboard to stop functioning. Remove any extra PCI cards to see if the motherboard starts to function properly again.

Make sure all PCI cards are fully seated

If the PCI cards come lose the motherboard may stop working. Double check that all the cards are fully seated in their slots.

Most new computers have on-board video cards, but if the computer has a PCI video card, check to see if power is connected to video card.

Try booting with one stick of RAM

The RAM in the computer can sometimes go bad. This will cause the motherboard to stop working. Remove all but one stick of RAM from the board, and also try a different stick of RAM if possible as well.

Make sure all memory is fully seated into memory slots

The RAM sticks sometime come lose, and this can cause the motherboard to stop working.

Is CPU still securely fastened to the board

The CPU is usually connect to the motherboard with thermal paste. Sometimes this thermal paste that glues the CPU to the motherboard wears out over time. This can cause the CPU to stop making a connection with the motherboard and will cause the motherboard to stop functioning.

Does the CPU fan still function

If the you don’t hear the CPU fan or feel any air moving from the CPU fan, it could be the reason the motherboard stopped working. If the CPU overheats, it can cause damage to the motherboard.

What happens if I drop my computer?

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Of course, one sure way to break a computer is by dropping it, but many people wonder what actually happens to the computer when it gets dropped that makes it stop working. There are a number of different issues that can arise, with the most simple being screen and case damage. If the case becomes damaged, you may also be facing the chance of a part of the motherboard being broken off, making the computer irrepairable. The most common issue, however, is hard drive failure.
The hard drive in your computer is the part that stores both your personal files, and the files needed to boot the computer and run an operating system such as Microsoft Windows. The hard drive is also the most delecate part of the computer. It works a bit like a traditional record player, but on a microscopic level. A small arm moves back and forth, the end of which contains a device that can change the polarity of molecules on the platter, the surface that the arm moves over. Because the data on the platter is stored so densely, any damage to it can cause failure. When the computer is dropped, it’s possble that the arm can scratch the platter, making it difficult for the computer to read. As the drive continues to be used, the scratch will become deeper, eventually causing failure. The hard drive will often make some noise if this is about to happen — see our article about noises your computer might make.

So, what do I do?

First and foremost, turn it off. This is one of the rare cases where it is OK to turn your computer off immediately by holding down the power button. Since Windows will try to write a bunch of information out to the hard drive during the shutdown process, it is good to just skip that in this case. You should not do this if your drive is not failing.
Don’t turn it back on. No matter how bad you need your data, turning the computer or drive back on will only increase your chance of irrecoverable data loss.
Protect the computer. Since the computer can’t be used anyway, take it and put it somewhere that it will be protected from any further shocks. If you have a padded case, put it in there. If your comfortable with removing the hard drive, you can take it out and put it in a padded container. Otherwise, I recommend puting it somewhere on the floor, but where it won’t get stepped on, like under your bed.
Bring it to a professional. Data recovery is a complicated task. This is why you should carefully bring your computer to a professional to have it looked at. South City Computer has an in-house data recovery specialist that can diagnose your issue and help you recover your data. We use advanced imaging technologies to pull raw data off the drive if necessary. We can then search this data for your important files. We also have specialists that can replace your hard drive with a new one and move your files over.
Don’t let a drop cause data loss in the first place! We offer comprehensive backup and recovery plans that eliminate the need for data recovery in case of a failure. We have some more information here, but you can also give us a call at 314-400-7918 for more information and to sign up.

Free Computer Checkup!

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happy-computer-userIf you’re seeing this page, then congratulations! You have received a free PC checkup!

How to receive your checkup:

  1. Call us at 314-400-7918 and schedule an appointment
  2. Visit our store at 3235 Ivanhoe Ave. at your scheduled appointment time

That’s it!

Your free checkup includes:

  • Physical inspection of computer
  • Power supply inspection
  • RAM Capacity Assessment
  • Virus Scan
  • Hard drive diagnostic
  • Startup assessment
  • Bloatware removal
  • Updates to Windows
  • Disaster recovery plan consultation
  • System reinstallation media (to be archived here — get a copy for only $9.99)

Choosing the right backup for you

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Backing up your data is an absolute necessity. Lost data can cause ridiculous amounts of downtime, and some things may be irreplacable. There are many ways to back up your data, here are the pros and cons of some of the most common ones:

External Hard Drive
Pros:

  • Fast
  • Can have lots of space depending on drive
  • Often come with software to make backing up easier
  • Free once you have the equiptment

Cons:

  • Damage to your computer (viruses, etc.) can result in damage to the drive if left plugged in
  • If the building is destroyed, the computer and the backup will both be destroyed

Online backup, such as Carbonite
Pros

  • Usually provide software for seamless backup
  • Off site, so data is secure

Cons

  • Expensive.
  • Recovery can take a long time depending on your internet connection speed

Backup with South City Computers
Pros

  • Uses BitTorrent Sync to back up in real time
  • Off site, so data is secure
  • Reasonably priced
  • Recovery can be done either by downloading, or picking up media in store
  • Local business means you can speak directly to a technician

Cons:

  • Can’t think of any

Microsoft healthy smart watch to be released later this year

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Microsoft is entering the market of smart watches just like Sony, Google, Samsung and Apple with the greatly anticipated iWatch. However, Microsoft is producing a watch that focuses on fitness and health instead of just apps. Rumors have been circulating the Internet for some time now about the new Microsoft smart watch, and a patent filed by Microsoft for a “Wearable Personal Information System” is more proof that the company is probably planning to introduce a smart watch to the consumer market. The Microsoft smart watch will include several different sensors to monitor the watch wearers health vitals.

A few features have already leaked into the news about the Microsoft smart watch. Those features include a blood-glucose monitor like Apples iWatch is rumored to have, a heart-rate monitor, and a UV sensor.

No solid release date has been set for the Microsoft smart watch, but sources from the company say the watch should be out by the end of the year.

South City Computer Installs 23rd Ward Democrats Phone Bank

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For politicians campaigning for office, having an accessible easy to use turn-key phone bank system is tantamount winning in any election. Being able to reach voters and have person to person discussions is still the best way to advertise a candidacy, promote a platform, and earn votes.

Building on experience installing a phone bank during last years’ Mayoral and Aldermanic races, where South City Computer was chosen to install phone banks for Mayor Slay and Alderman Vaccaro, South City Computer has just finished installing a small call center for the 23rd Ward Democrats phone bank during this upcoming election cycle.

This phone bank will be used by volunteers phone banking on behalf of Sharon Quigley Carpenter in the upcoming weeks in their efforts towards her re-election.

“The turnkey campaign phone bank is a new product based on an enterprise telecom switch and easy to use web based management interface. It comes packaged with phones, laptops, and a wireless router plus all cables and surge protectors needed for the system.” Says Nestor Wheelock, project manager at South City Computer.

Since cost is always an issue, and campaigns end, this system is available to be leased for a flat fee based on the number of volunteer workstations needed.

Additionally, the package includes the first 2000 minutes free plus all the features of a PBX including email attached voicemail that can be routed to staffers. Calls can be made from mobile softphones so volunteers and staff can call from anywhere they have a strong wifi or mobile data connection.

Aside from the benefit of enabling volunteers to easily phone bank for campaigns, the campaign phone bank system includes the option for data and voter sorting services to make it easy for volunteers to call the right people at the right times, conduct surveys, and do what it takes to boost turnout and win the election.

“This unique product came our of years of research and development experience with VOIP in our Pink Asterisk IT studio, and also because of the hard work from the development community that wrote the software. We’ve productized the system so it’s turn key and available for any campaign.”

There is a new website coming soon specifically for this product. You can find it at http://campaignphonebank.com

Business IT

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We understand our Small/SOHO Business IT Customers rely on us for our experience and knowledge about a diverse set of computer systems. So whether you need backup and recovery, to save big bucks on telecom, increase efficiency, automate tedious manual processes, tighten security and worry less about your computers and critical data, we are your guys.

We provide on call break/fix/setup services on systems you own, or we can lease full turn-key office systems with build to suit software packages that are reliable, low cost, and cloud integrated for both office based and mobile users.

Of course we service Microsoft Windows systems, but in todays world you have a plethora of options including the cloud and Linux which can save you big money and headaches. As St. Louis’ premier Linux and Open Source computer shop, all of our technicians are highly fluent in modern tech. We can help you to get rid of IT headaches and leverage computers to make you more money and save you more time.

#TBT Dial-Up internet still exists

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That’s right, if you’ve got an old modem card in your computer and have a landline phone, you can still dial-in to log on.NetZero, along with some other providers from back in the days of 56K are providing dial up internet for free. You can try it out for yourself if you like, but just to give you an idea, it would take nearly 2 hours to load a 2 minute youtube video.

Upgrading from XP — go to Vista, 7, or 8?

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By now, the word should be out that all Windows XP users should have upgraded. If you haven’t, it’s strongly recommended that you do. But what newer version of Windows do you choose? Here’s a guide:

Windows Vista is the version of Windows that came out just after XP. A license key is relatively inexpensive. The mainstream support period for Vista already ended in 2012, however, the extended support period will continue until April 11, 2017. At that time, you will need to upgrade again. Unfortunately, Windows Vista is known for having bugs that have remained unaddressed by Microsoft, and therefore running it on hardware that is outside the realm of mainstream computer models is inadvisable. It will run on most hardware that could run Windows XP.

Windows 7 is the most popular of all the options. It is the most liked version of the three, and provides superior performance and reliability compared to Vista. It also retains the same interface style found in Windows XP, so you won’t have to learn a new system. Windows 7 is in it’s mainstream support period, so Microsoft will still be frequently releasing patches and updates for it. Mainstream support will last until January 13, 2015, and extended support will last until January 14, 2020. It will run on some hardware made for Windows XP.

Windows 8 is the newest version of windows. It has a different user interface, and provides users with tablet functionality. It’s mainstream support will last until January 9th, 2018, and it’s extended support will last until January 10, 2023. It will generally not run on hardware designed for Windows XP.

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