Computers are an important part of life, but many people don’t know how to do some of the more basic tasks. While most people don’t need to know all the intricacies of how a computer works, there are a few simple things that every computer user should know how to do. These are the most important aspects of successfully navigated today’s technological world.
[Read also: Let Your PC Know Who’s The Boss!]
1. Protection from viruses
Viruses and malware are some of the most dangerous aspects of using a computer, but the good news is that it’s fairly easy to avoid these on a personal computer. Start by learning the difference between trojans, viruses, and other types of attacks. Then, invest in a good antivirus software. This is an inexpensive way to protect a computer and even a phone if needed. However, in addition to this software, protection usually depends on a little common sense. Don’t open suspicious links, download programs from untrusted sources, and ignore pop-ups saying that a computer is infected.
[Read more: Where Do Computer Viruses Come From?]
2. Keep a computer young with regular maintenance
Many people find that they have to replace their computers every few years, but it’s actually possible to extend the life of a computer with regular maintenance. It’s very easy to keep up with computer maintenance by using a simple guide and tutorial to cleaning up files, defragging, and other basic tasks. Regular maintenance will not only extend the life of a computer, it will also keep it working as fast as possible.
3. Keep personal information secure
Unfortunately, privacy online is becoming a huge issue and many people expose themselves without realizing it. Use strong passwords, remove personal information when possible, and don’t use any public Wi-Fi networks without protection. Keeping personal information is fairly easy with a little care, and by taking a few basic steps, it’s easy to protect personal information from being shared with third parties. If you already have your private information out there, you might want to find the best company to remove your personal information from the internet.
[Related: 4 Scary Ways Your Personal Information Is Being Used]
4. Learn shortcuts
One of the great things about computers is that they can do things much faster than humans. Learning keyword shortcuts to find specific words on a webpage, save files, printing, and opening new tabs is a great way to be more efficient when using a computer. Learn the basic shortcuts and use them on a daily basis to save time.
5. Avoid paying top dollar ever again
Many people want to find inexpensive technology and computers online, but may be struggling to find sites that are secure and cheap. There are many sites which offer secure payment and shopping and have great deals such as 12% off clearance laptops. When shopping on one of these sites, look for the secure seal at checkout which guarantees that any payment information isn’t being shared. Also, sites which use Paypal are a great asset as this third-party payment method is one of the safest ones available. Use the online world of shopping to find the best bargains and always verify before sharing credit card information.
These are some of the basic skills that every computer user should learn. They make using computers much easier and can help to save both time and money in the long run.
[Image credit: photostock, FreeDigitalPhotos.net]
Nice points Peter. Keeping his own computer safe, secure and quick is what defines an expert PC user. And I am glad I follow each of these points 🙂
I always keep my antivirus updates, regularly scan my PC, do all those maintenance tasks. I even open up my PC cabinet and clean off the dust once a month. Then there are those shortcuts too that I prefer using.
And those are some simple basic things that could potentially prolong our computers lifespan. Worth investing our money, time and effort in them. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Mahaveer!
One can easily be a master of his/her PC by learning some shortcuts, computer tricks, & by taking care of your PC regularly with some tune-up utilities program or defragmentation if your PC is not connected to the outside world by any means. Real problem starts when PC is connected to the outside world for the sending/receiving of information, He/she will be targeted by viruses, Trojan horses, worm & some other blended threats. Some of these Trojan programs are designed to provide back door entry to some malicious users, who can steal your personal information. An updated antivirus can help a bit but not 100 percent as I have a feeling that these antivirus companies itself create these threats for selling its product in the market.
You know what? I somehow have the same thinking just like you that the antivirus developers were the one creating viruses at the same time as well just for the sake of selling their products. It’s possible right who knows?
Nice tips bro. I use Avira Antivirus for protecting my laptop against viruses and Tune Up Utilities to keep my laptop in good health. 🙂
I can tell you have a ‘very happy’ laptop there, Naser! 🙂
Yeah, never ran into a problem and is working smoothly since 2 years. I never had to format it even once 🙂
I Agree with all the points especially with the fourth one …In context of operating system like Linux , we need to learn the shortcuts(keywords,commands) ..if you don’t learn them you’ll be considered an amateur ..and on Operating System like Windows , you should be aware with the fundamentals of virus removal techniques and knowledge on securing the computer and shortcuts to make your work easier ..
Regards,
Pramod
I don’t think one can know everything about computers to be frank.
I used to know a lot more shortcut keys years ago. It seems like in recent years I only use a few of them now. I think ctrl+c and ctrl+p I use the most often. I guess the Prt Scr button is sort of a short cut that I also use often.
As for the deals I don’t know too many sites any more. I used to get computer parts from Newegg years ago. There is just so much competition with all the web sites out there now. One thing is for sure though the price of a new computer or laptop is a fraction of what it cost when I first got into them.
I use the PrtSc button more often as it’s very handy when capturing screenshots. However, I never used both ctrl+c and ctrl+p. I prefer to use the mouse to perform copy and paste tasks. Alright, that makes me not an expert I know 🙂
I’m no computer expert, but I was never afraid to try and explore my computer. I totally agree that what you have listed in here are some things that all computer users should be aware of.
Good to know, Derek! Learn from mistakes, trial an error and never afraid to try things out will lead you to a better computer user each and everyday. Thanks for the comment.
I already know lots of Shortcuts and still working on so that I can remember more of them…BTW Great article..Peter
Virus protection is really a must do thing for a PC, I once got attack from a Malware and my hard disk got vanished, it was really a dreadful experience, since then I never forget to check my PC daily for viruses.
Also learning shortcuts saves our time and also makes us mature PC user too..
Nice post!
Prevention is always better than cure when it comes to virus protection for your system. Many only realized the importance of it AFTER their system got infected. Lesson learned the hard way I supposed? Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Jafar! 🙂
Yep Prevention is better cure, I learned this truth after my all data got vanished. I still feel so sad when I remember that incident, hopefully I had backed up some of my most important data in cloud storage!
You are right, learned a lesson very hard and bad way! Even I lost passwords of some of my premium subscriptions because I keep damn hard pass, impossible to remember!
The last point is really important because normal customers do end up paying a lot of money to service their laptop… I had a chat a with an US computer technician on a forum and he said that HP charged his customer $249 just for virus removal with 7 days in-service facility… But that computer technician solved the customers problem in just an hour…
$249 for an hour job? Now that’s really absurd.
Also learn some shortcut keys and couple of MS-DOS commands. It will make you look like a geek 🙂
I strongly agree with your last point. Why sacrifice your hard earned money for little things when you can all do by yourself. I just feel sad when I see that happening. Indeed, Knowledge is Power!
I am out of here 🙂