Are You the Master or the Slave?
Master or slave, which would you prefer to be? Before I get myself into too much trouble here, I need to explain that I am talking about the computer / user relationship that we all have with our PC devices. We get people coming through the door every week that can largely be categorised into either of these two positions when it comes to their computers.
If you are always waiting for your PC to turn on or to open a file, or alternatively if you are battling with pop-up windows or lock-ups, crashes or bluescreens then really you have become the slave. Your master (the computer) will dictate to you when it is going to work, how fast it will work and how long you will wait. When your PC is your master you will often have trouble finding the file that you just downloaded or the scan that you need to email. Let me say now that this is not a healthy relationship for either of you!
We see the same at many businesses when we take over the IT maintenance. Instead of the computers being an efficient useful tool, they have effectively become the master and the business then revolves around dealing with bad computers. In a business this problem can be masked by putting on more staff or putting up with less productivity – but again, neither of these options are healthy.
Like it or not Windows 10 is here to stay for a long time yet and if you don’t like it, you simply have not had it configured properly. Once configured right, Windows 10 is easily better than any of its predecessors offering more speed, stability, options, ease of use and more security. There is good reason that it has around 1 billion (and growing) users world-wide.
I have said this many times previously – computers do not have a personality and are not out to get us. Rather they are the sum of their individual parts, programming and setup, so if they are making us their slave then they need an upgrade, a reformat, a reconfiguration or a replacement. Once a good quality PC has been setup correct, we see many customers getting year after year of faithful use from their PC’s with a simple annual service to keep them on track.
We also see many people trying to do all the PC setup and maintenance themselves. This can work to a degree; however you also must consider what your own time is worth and what your data is worth if you are ever facing an IT disaster without a proper backup system. Remember that an IT disaster can come from a virus, theft, fire, flood, hackers or simply from leaving your laptop in a Taxi.
If you are into self-help, then we have a “Help” section on our website where you can find every previous Byte Me article that I have ever written (currently 432 of them) as well as a “Troubleshooting” section. The troubleshooting section is very user friendly and lists a range of PC symptoms as well as their respective possible causes and lastly some potential solutions. If you are having problems but can still browse the web please check it out. Click here to go to Kerr Solutions IT Troubleshooting
When you think about the number of successful phone and email scams there are in this country, there is little wonder they work so well. Can you imagine how much less successful they would be if most of us had fast, reliable Internet connections and well sorted computers? Don’t become a slave to your PC, pick up the phone and get some professional help.
Future Byte Me topics can be emailed to [email protected] and Bruce is contactable at Kerr Solutions, 205 Musgrave Street or on (07) 49 222 400.
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