Tech-Help Column |
After Toni Locke's writeup about us in the April edition of the Metro, we here at S.I. Computers have had such a fabulous response from the community that we have decided write a tech-help column. We have a family-run computer store and repair center, located at 2710 MacArthur Blvd., at Coolidge. Carlos Salazar, proprietor, has a background in electronics and previously worked in the telecommunications industry. His fiancée, Carolyn Wells, has a B.S. in Computer Science, and Carlos' father, Jose, completes the team. |
This month's topic is viruses. Viruses are propagated largely through attachments on e-mail messages but can also come from files transferred from an infected computer (by floppy, zip disk, or over a network), or from files downloaded from file-sharing services. The damage done by a virus ranges from icons "dancing" around your desktop to deleting e-mail messages or important system files, preventing your computer from working. The good news is that most virus damage can be repaired or prevented. First, get up-to-date virus-scanning software! There are many different programs available. Our preference is Norton Antivirus 2003 (available for $12 at our store). In addition, beware of e-mail messages that contain attachments, especially if they have a file extension of .exe, .scr, or .vbs, or attachments from an unfamiliar sender. Save attachments to your hard drive, and scan them with your virus-scanning software before opening them. Be careful downloading files from file-sharing services. Audio, video, and image files are usually safe, but software files could be viruses. Most of these services have a setting to filter potential viruses. If your computer does get a virus or you see suspicious activity, most damage can be repaired, and we are here to help. Call 530-0204. Feel free to e-mail us at service\@sicomputers.net. E-mails will be answered in the order received. |
