Troubleshooting Tips

Simple Solutions to Common PC Problems

Your computer will not boot up. You’ve lost your Internet connection or your screen freezes. Computer problems like these can strike terror in even the toughest among us. But don’t panic. What seems like a complicated problem may actually have a simple solution.

When trouble strikes, first go through these troubleshooting checklists.

Your computer will not boot up (turn on):

1. Make sure the monitor is turned on.
2. Check all the connections – to the computer, from the computer to the power strip, and from the power strip to the outlet – and press firmly into place. Sometimes even a slight bump to a component can break a connection.
3. Plug something else (like a lamp) into the electrical outlet to see if the outlet has gone bad.

You’ve lost your Internet connection:

1. Check to see if the phone or Ethernet cord is firmly plugged in and connected.
2. If your Internet service is through a phone line, check the function of that line by plugging in a phone and seeing if there’s a dial tone. Call for line service if you don’t hear one.
3. Wait a few minutes and try again. Sometimes this is a temporary problem. Also, try restarting your computer.
4. If none of these troubleshooting tips restore your service, call Internet Tech Support at 515-597-HELP (4357).

The screen has frozen up:

1. Try a warm boot, which means restarting the computer without fully shutting it down first. A warm boot can be accomplished by pressing the CTRL - ALT - DEL keys simultaneously, or by selecting the restart command from an operating system menu.
2. If a warm boot doesn’t work, a cold boot is the next step. This means you turn the power off on your computer, and then back on again. A cold boot forces the computer to turn off without shutting down applications one by one, so you may lose unsaved data. But hopefully, you’ll at least be able to restart your computer.

It’s probably time to pick up the phone and call a computer expert if these techniques fail to work. Remember, it’ll be cheaper and easier for an expert to fix your problem if it hasn’t been compounded by hours of desperate do-it-yourself maneuvers.