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Computer Best Practices
By Steve Standeven
Electricity powers your computer and related equipment quite nicely,
thank you. But it has a negative side as well. Some precautions are
required to keep your PC running before, during, and after power
surges or power outages. With the hurricane season in full swing,
any one of these suggestions might just save your PC.
Check Protection Devices Regularly
At least once a year, you should inspect your power
protection devices to make sure that they are functioning
properly. Insure 3 prong cords are used, especially if using
an extension cord. Make sure you always use a proper,
three-wire grounded cord to connect your PC to the line
power. If you need to use an extension cord, use a proper
one.
Use Dedicated Circuits, If Possible
Putting the computer on its own power circuit, so it isn't
sharing the power with your air conditioner, space heater,
and vacuum cleaner, greatly improves the power quality and
insulates the PC from power sags when these devices are
turned on. It also reduces electromagnetic interference from
these devices that might be carried over the power line.
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Turn Off Power
During a Blackout
When the power comes back on after a blackout, the initial signal
can be inconsistent. This can make things more difficult for your
power supply. Sometimes during storms you will experience false
starts, when the power comes on and then goes right off again. If
you have a blackout, turn off your equipment so you can control when
it comes back on.
Turn Off and Disconnect the Power Cord During an Electrical Storm
This is a simple precaution that protects your system from possible
problems during a thunderstorm. (It isn't as important if you are
using a UPS, of course.)
Voltage spikes can be carried along any convenient wire and into
your PC. In particular, wires that run between buildings are
susceptible to major disruptions due to lightning, which is why it
is illegal in many places to run copper network wiring outdoors.
After your power line, the next biggest problem area is your
telephone line. Lightning can be carried along the line and into
your home, damaging your modem and possibly even your motherboard or
other components. It is also possible for a spike to be carried
along a networking cable, causing similar effects. In fact, a spike
on a network line can damage every PC on the network! Your phone
line should be routed thru your power protection devices just like
your power cords.
You should always wait at least 30 seconds after turning off the
system’s power before turning it back on again. (If you are trying
to reset a program, technicians suggest waiting a full three
minutes). There can be some residual charge that needs to dissipate.
You should not run a laser printer off a conventional PC UPS. These
printers draw a tremendous amount of power when they start up and
most UPS units do not have enough power to handle them.
Always remember to close any files you are working on before you
leave your PC for a long period of time. The reason is simple: you
never know when the power may fail, and if it does and you have
files unsaved, you might lose any changes you have made to the file.
There is another reason not to leave a file left open in a word
processor or other program; you may accidentally hit the keyboard
and make unintentional changes to the file.
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