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by Professors Susil W Gunasekera,Shekhar B. Rizyal, and Sudan Bhattarai

The most effective way to cut down your computer repair bills and have an uninterrupted service from it, is by regular Preventive Maintenance. There are things in the computer's environment and there are others created by you through ignorance and inattention, that can drastically reduce the lifespan of your computer.

Allocating a place...

Nowadays, every office room has, minimally, a single computer. An Institution may have its 'Computer Unit'. Educational Institutes have 'Computer Laboratories'. An 'Internet Cafe or Cyber Cafe' has a series of time-sharing computers in cubicles. In commercial institutions computers reside in unintended artificial environments. At home, your PC is usually in an ultra clean environment in the Study.

I am unable to define the ideal micro-environment for a computer to suit all work environments. However, in allocating a place, it is well worth adhering to the following basic guidelines:

Do not keep your computer near the window. At a window, your computer can get exposed to direct sun, showers of dust and rain water-spray. Heat, dust and moisture have damaging effects on the delicate electronic fabric of your computer.

Avoid direct sunlight on your PC...

Place the computer in a shadowy area in the room as it is an electronic device. Beams of sun can be blocked with curtains or drapes and require no structural alternation to the room.

Do not allow dust to invade your PC...

Dust is attracted electrostatically to electronic devices like computers. Dust can stick to the circuit boards inside your computer and if not removed, the circuit boards get coated with a fine greasy sheath of dusty.

Dust sheath act as a thermal insulator (heat retaining), preventing the intended heat dissipation from electronic components. Dust can also clog 'air vents' of the computer and build up on 'cooling fan' vanes. As time goes on, this leads to the deterioration of the sensitive 'chips' inside a computer. Dust in the computer interior must be removed with vacuum suction, periodically which is the job of the computer technician who knows the computer inside-out. Mop the room floor and remove dust from furniture and fixtures to keep the external environment clean.

Clean the floppy drive head with a special commercially available cleaning device. This prevents 'write/data read' errors into and out of diskette or floppy. Also remember to keep the computer and its accessories covered (when not in use). Use a polythene, as polythene can keep out rain water-spray, unexpected water leaks from the roof and other spills through the ceiling.

Heat and thermal shock can reduce the lifespan of a computer...

Heat reduces the lifespan of computer chips. Therefore running the computer in a safe temperature environment is the prophylactic measure. By this we do not mean that you consider air-conditioning the room. No - if the cost of air conditioning exceeds the anticipated benefits.

Avoid water spills...

Generally water spills (i.e. drinks) onto the computer and accessories happen in the hands of operators. Every article and book I have read on the subject on 'Caring For Your Computer' forbid liquids near the computer. If liquids spills on the keyboard, turn off the computer, disconnect the keyboard and drain out the liquid and allow it to dry thoroughly before re-use.

Safeguard your computer from electrical perils...

You must employ a competent electrician to check the electric supply or establish electrical connections. An important starting point is the wall-socket power outlet to the PC.

Protect your PC from voltage fluctuations...

Voltage fluctuation is a perennial problem and has inadvertent effects on your computer. However with a little investment you can safeguard your computer by a 'volt-guard' or 'power conditioner'. Volt-guard or Power Conditioner will smooth the electric supply however these devices cannot power your computer when the line voltage is zero.

If there is power failure or a power cut, the computer will switch of in an unauthentic manner. Such an abrupt exit can corrupt the file you are working on, the computer software, or even damage the computer hardware. To meet such a situation, use an Uninterruptable Power Source (UPS). UPSs are priced at an affordable cost.

Do not switch-on/switch-off your computer just like that...

Do you not agree, your computer experiences the greatest stress at switch-on and at switch-off? When do electric bulbs burn out? You know that bulbs burn out when you switch on or switch off an electric lamp. It stands to reason, not to switch-on and at switch-off your computer at will.

Plan your work and once the computer is switched on - let it run.

Lightning is deadly...

Warning - Switch off your computer impending lighting. A foolhardy individual, who may ignore this warning, can loose his life. Who is there to worry about the computer?

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