Upgrading and Fixing Computers Do-it-Yourself For Dummies

by Rathbone, Andy

• ISBN13: 9780470557433
• ISBN10: 0470557435
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-09-22
• Publisher: For Dummies

Summary

Upgrading & Fixing Computers Do-it-Yourself For Dummies is the repair manual for people with little to no experience working on the insides of a PC. The book looks at both simple/basic fixes and larger projects to help individuals rev up their computer or bring it back to life. Parts include: Boring, Basic Repairs - walkthroughs of the basics from adding new peripherals like printers and keyboards to moving files from one PC to another. Beefing Up Your PC - recommendations on expanding memory, enhancing speed, and updating power supply Teaching an Old Computer New Tricks - instructions for revving up a PC's multimedia capability Keeping Up with Communications - the steps for readying a PC for high speed Internet connections, connecting to a network, and securing with firewalls Windows 7 and Beyond - the hardware and software tasks needed to ready an old machine for a Windows 7 upgrade.

Author Biography

Andy Rathbone is a bestselling author of computer reference books including Windows For Dummies, which has sold millions of copies in its several editions. Andy has also covered consumer technologies such as TiVo and MP3 players.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Getting Ready to Upgrade

Start Here First

Assembling Your Tools

Making Your Computer Work Better

Keyboards, Mice, Game Controllers, and Monitors

Printers and Scanners

Adding More Memory

Adding or Replacing a Hard Drive

Adding a DVD Drive

Fine-Tuning Your Computer's Sound

Beefing Up Your Computer's Video Card

Replacing the Power Supply or Laptop Battery

Teaching an Old Computer New Tricks

Creating a Home Theater with Windows 7's Media Center

Upgrading a Computer for Editing Movies

Repurposing an Old Computer

Communications

Adding or Replacing a Modem

Linking Computers with a Network

Filtering Out Evil with Firewalls

Introducing Parts to Windows

Hiring the Right Driver for Windows

Installing or Upgrading to Windows 7

Troubleshooting and Fixing Windows 7

Moving from the Old Computer to the New Computer

The Part of Tens

Ten Ways to Find Help Online

Ten Cheap Fixes to Try First

Appendix: The Rathbone Reference of Fine Ports

Index

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.