If you’ve been a faithful reader of Technibble so far, you may have noticed that our articles have been tech-related either as direct troubleshooting or developing social skills you’ll need in order to act and become a professional. However, thus far there haven’t been any real reports from workplaces that would showcase either of those two distinct, yet equally important aspects of being a successful technician. As this week’s special feature, what follows is a report from one such workplace, conducted by yours truly.
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Every once in a while all users come to face one of the necessities of running a Windows-powered machine - reinstalling the system. In some cases, the faulty registry caused it, in others, it’s an update gone awry; it might have to do with that new graphics card you installed, or you just might want a fresh start with your computer. Whatever your reason is, chances are you don’t want to spend several hours sitting beside the computer while it does its work. Enter nLite, a Windows 2000/XP/2003 installation deployment tool which lets you tailor the installation to your needs. Read the rest of this entry »

Last time on TNCT 301 we discussed approaches to constructing computers for different roles. One of the buzzwords that appeared while explaining a server setup was RAID. Originally called Redundant Arrays of Inexpensive Disks, RAID arrays have become a neccessity in every storage-intensive field, in order to both speed access up, as well as provide additional protection for stored data.

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Welcome to the expert section of the Computer Technician series. Although the topics we’re going to deal with here are mostly organizational in nature (with a couple of really troublesome, migraine-inducing problems), the “expert section” title isn’t misleading. Both small and large-scale, short or long-term, planning always takes a lot of knowledge and a great deal of intuition.
In some cases, more knowledge than fixing a computer problem, because the variables you have to count in are much more numerous. With any science, be it electronics, chemistry or digital circuitry, synthesis (creation) is much more complicated than analysis (disassembly).
In this issue we will discuss tailoring a computer configuration to a specific task, currently available components, and, of course, the depth of the client’s pocket. By doing a bit of planning you can ensure you know exactly what kind of workplace needs what kind of machine.

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In our last episode on Optical drives and firmware flashing, we discussed ways to upgrade your optical drive’s speed and features. While it’s a great finishing touch for both your own and your clients’ computers, it’s not exactly a common thing you’d be called up for. One of the most hazardous, annoying, and generally panic-inducing failures that happen on any computer are hard-drive failures. While they can be moderately to extremely hard to fix, diagnosing them comes first, so you could be able to determine just how much damage the disk sustained and can sustain before it finally dies.

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Last time, on TNCT 202, you could read about the various functions of the system’s BIOS and the means to upgrade them for the sake of either improving stability, or adding various options. In this course we’ll examine the workings of optical drive firmware, the reasons to upgrade it and the general procedure how to do it, because like the BIOS, there are some advantages to having a flashed drive.

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Last time, in the TNCT 201 article, we discussed a strategic approach to expanding your market. Regardless of whether you’re dealing with home repairs, SoHos or even your own computer, sooner or later you’ll have to fiddle with the lowest-level functions, either to fix or optimize something. Today we’ll discuss the nature of BIOS, its general functions - which vary between manufacturers and models - some common chokepoints, and finally, ways of upgrading or fixing it. Learning to use and upgrade your BIOS and other flash firmware is primarily for optimization purposes, but can come handy in overcoming some very basic hardware problems.

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In our previous articles in the TN 10x series we discussed some basic, local tactics that will enable you to get a computer fixed on a small, local scale, in order to get your job done, as well as get your paycheck. In this series of articles we will cover more advanced repair topics as well as some long-term strategies for planning and marketing, as well as some other topics relevant to an advanced computer technician. Although not nearly as short-term as on-site planning, expanding your market onto SoHos can be your first major step in achieving a constant supply of clients, experience and, of course, income.

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Previously, on TNCT 103, we explained the most critical component in a computer system. While knowing the insides of every component is crucial to becoming a knowledgeable (if not even good) technician, one of the biggest challenges when repairing any computer is definitely making a diagnosis.

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Last week, on Technibble: CT 102 we discussed the best way to prepare your software toolkit. Today, however, we’re back on the hardware railroad to discuss the one component your whole computer depends on: the Power Supply Unit. Any computer, no matter how perfectly planned, prepared or assembled, will fail to boot, sputter, smoke and eventually die if connected to an inadequate, weak or just plain faulty power supply. Picking a decent power supply isn’t much of a science; however, knowing what voltages run through your computer is, and knowing it will come in handy once you start actually repairing, as it might indicate what exactly went wrong with the powersupply. While you shouldn’t attempt to repair a PSU at any cost, knowing where the trouble lies will help you fill a replacement claim if the supply is still under warranty.

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