How to Make Your Laptop Last Longer
Laptops are used frequently, misused often,
and expensive to replace. The following
instructions will help ensure your laptop lasts
as long as you have a use for it.
Steps
Part One: Safety and Care
1
Know where your laptop is at all times
and treat it with care . Be cautious about
leaving the laptop unattended, and know
that dropping, jostling, or bumping may
cause damage to the hard drive.
Do not place drinks next to the
computer. One accidental spill onto the
keyboard will damage it, probably
beyond repair.
Always hold the laptop by the bottom
(keyboard half), never the screen. Use
two hands.
Correctly remove the wireless card (if
applicable) before transporting.
Do not store the laptop where very cold
or very hot.
Do not place the laptop close to any
electrical appliance, because it
generates a magnetic field.
Purchase a luggage tag. Attach it to the
carrying case and fill it out with your
name. Make sure that no flap that
covers your name.
Attach something unique to the carrying
case. This will help prevent someone
else from mistaking your case for theirs.
Label all parts of the laptop with your
name. Put a sticky address label on the
top of the laptop, inside, under the
keyboard, both parts of the power cord,
CD-ROM/DVD-ROM/Floppy drives, and a
USB drive.
2
Protect the screen and body of your
laptop . Your laptop will last much longer if
it doesn’t get damaged.
Never twist the screen on its hinges, as
this could crack the screen.
Never close the lid when a pencil or pen
is left on the keyboard. This could crack
the screen.
Do not ever scratch or push on the
screen.
Don’t slam the lid down.
Always transport the laptop in a padded
carry case, and never stack items on the
lid of the laptop.
Stickers leave a residue that can cause
permanent damage.
Clean the screen with a lint-free cloth.
Do not use window cleaner, such as
Windex; the ammonia will dull the
screen. Use a screen cleaner from a
computer supply store.
3
Make sure your electrical cord helps your
laptop, and doesn’t hurt it . Treat your
laptop’s electrical cord as an extension of
the laptop itself.
Be careful when removing the power
cord. Yanking it out of the laptop from
a distance will cause damage.
Do not wrap the cord tightly around
itself. Instead, loosely wrap it in a figure
eight pattern.
Never turn the laptop over when it is
plugged in. This could break the adapter
plug at the back of the laptop.
4
Remove disks with care . Small pieces are
easy to snap off if you are not careful.
Do not use damaged floppy disks!
Remove disks from CD-ROM drive or
floppy drive before carrying.
Part Two: Software
1
Make sure you understand your
computer’s software requirements. Some
software can be susceptible to viruses and
can inhibit performance.
Understand your laptop’s up-time. Up-
time is a measure of your operating
system’s reliability. Unix-like operating
systems such as BSD and Linux have the
longest up-time. Research and compare
up-time records yourself.
Downloaded software and screensaver
often cause conflicts and use valuable
memory. Remember that laptops are
tools for learning, and keeping them
free of unnecessary programs will help
it working quicker with less freezing.
Always back up all files in at least two
places.
Virus protection is very important.
Beware of Spyware. It is the latest
computer security problem. Spyware is
software designed to collect computer
users’ personal data without their
knowledge. Spyware is secretly installed
with many downloaded Internet
software programs, and transmits
information about computer usage and
generates pop-up advertisements.
Microsoft estimates that spyware is
responsible for half of all PC crashes.
Part Three: Routine Laptop Maintenance
1
Your computer, like your car, needs
regular tune-ups . This will improve the
laptop’s ability to run smoothly.
Run “Disk Cleanup” and “Defragment”
tools at least monthly. You can find this
under “Accessories,” listed with
Programs. Start > Programs >
Accessories. Be sure to turn off screen
saver before performing maintenance.
Check for disk errors at least monthly.
Open “My Computer.” Right click on
drive C, then select Properties. Click on
the Tools tab. Where you see Error
Checking, click on “Check now.” Select
“automatically fix file system errors,”
and then Start. You may be prompted to
restart the machine.
Set virus protection software to
download and install updates
automatically and enable virus real-time
protection.
Perform weekly virus scans.
Set your computer to automatically
download any newly released Windows
updates. To do this: Open the Control
Panel (Start > Settings > Control Panel)
and double-click “System.” Click on the
Automatic Updates tab and make your
selections. Most people prefer the
option “Download updates for me, but
let me choose when to install them.”
2
Adjust your printer settings. This feature
allows printers to work fast, using the least
amount of ink.
On your PC, click Start > Settings >
Printers.
All printers that have been installed are
shown.
Click on a printer to select it.
Right-click, and then choose Properties.
Click on the Setup tab, and under print
quality, select draft.
Click on the Advanced tab, and put a
check in the box by “print in gray-
scale.” At school, we request you print
in gray-scale for most assignments. For
special projects when you need
something printed in color, you can
remove the check mark.
3
Adjust your power settings. This will help
your laptop conserve power and run
efficiently.
Start > Settings > Control Panel.
Select the Power Management folder by
double-clicking on it.
Select Portable/Laptop from the drop-
down menu.
Click on the Alarms tab, and set the
alarm to ring at 5%, and to shutdown at
1%.
Click on the Alarm Action button, and
put a check mark next to Sound Alarm
and Display Message.
Underclock it for the ultimate in
longevity.
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