The official company response is “You should get it.” Every once in a while a customer asks, why do you tell everyone they should get a backup?

Hard drives have a life expectancy of around 3-5 years. On a laptop, you’re looking at closer to 1-3 years. If you have any valuable data on your PC (pictures, music, tax returns, spreadsheets, databases, etc) and you don’t do regular backups, you should.  Software can be replaced. Windows can be re-installed, I-tunes re-downloaded, Word and Excel re-installed, but how do you get your graduation pictures back? What happens when the only copy of your digital pictures is on the hard drive that no longer works?

Do you have to get a backup from us? Nope. However, you are here already so why not?

Can I do my own backup? Sure.Have at it.

Our employees are required to ask, and get a signature saying yes or no. We don’t try to sell you on it, just making sure you know we are, or are not doing a backup.

Most routers are shipped with the wireless security off. That means you can easily connect all your stuff to it with no passwords and no fuss. Problem is, so can anyone else…..

Many of us know people who “borrow” other people’s wireless signals. Some places let you borrow it for free. Certain restaurants, hotels, bars, colleges, and even some cities provide free WIFI service. Do you want your home internet service to be a free WIFI hotspot?

That’s exactly what you have if you have not added security to your wireless network. Anyone and everyone can jump on and use the service you pay for for free. While that may sound like a nice thing to do, it is very dangerous to your computer and your wireless network.

Someone who is connected to your network can do all kinds of stuff to it. They can find out what type or router you have, and make it so they can get on and you cant. They can see all the shared resources you have on your pc’s and can go so far as to take over your pc. If you think a virus from the internet is bad, it pales in comparison to someone attacking you from INSIDE your network.

So what do you do? Set up security on your router. Don’t know how? Read the manual. Don’t want to know how, hire someone to do it for you.  You’ll be glad you did.

Most area municipalities do not offer a recycling program for computer parts and accessories.  You can check with your state EPA to see who if anyone will properly dispose of your old equipment. Some states have programs to recycle computer equipment. In some places it is mandatory to do so.

There are places that may pay you for your old stuff. Some of the bigger companies actually “recycle” computers. They extract the precious metals and reuse them in future applications.

You can donate your old computer to a charity like Goodwill, or the Salvation army. May be a tax write-off as well. Custom-pc will take an old computer off your hands. If it is a Pentium 4 or newer.

If you are going to dispose of an old computer, make sure it has been cleaned of all personal data. There are two ways that this can be accomplished. Custom-pc offers a complete data wiping service. We will delete your hard drive using an approved DOD (Department of defense) method. This ensures that your drive is clean and ready for donation / disposal. If you are donating your computer to us, the DOD formatting is free.

For those who don’t trust that method you can permenantly damage the hard drive with a handy sledge hammer. Make sure you bang it up real good. When the internal shiny silver parts are broken up, you are pretty much set.

Have fun!

Pre XP to Windows 7

Don’t even think about it. You will be much better off with a new install.

XP to Windows 7

You can purchase an “upgrade” version of Windows 7. You will have to do a fresh install though. Its not really an upgrade, you just don’t have to pay full price for the software.

Vista to Windows 7

You can actually “upgrade” to Windows 7, so your files and apps should also “upgrade”  without any problems.  The upgrade from Vista to 7 will be cheaper than from XP.

You can only upgrade from your current version to the new current version.

Vista Home Premium to Windows 7 Home Premium
Vista Business to Windows 7 Professional
Vista Ultimate to Windows 7 Ultimate

Let us know if you would like to upgrade, we can do it for you, saving your time & sanity!

If you are going to “use” this type of service, be careful. Read their policies very carefully. There are a few key questions to ask before you send your laptop on a cross country trip:

1) How long will it take to get your laptop back? – It may depend on parts availability or other factors, but if it will take more than 2 weeks, I wouldn’t do it.

2) How much is return shipping? – Is it built into the repair price? Does it vary depending on distance? Is it a flat rate?

3) How much will it cost? – Do i get an estimate first? Is there a pre-approved limit? – This may be the most important consideration. See if you can find out how much it is BEFORE you send it. Be careful of a place that low-balls labor and gouge you on the parts.

4) Whats the warranty? – Who fixes it if it breaks again? Who pays for shipping if it breaks again? – Ask, ask, ask. The devils in the details.

There are no easy ways to research a distant company. You can start with their local BBB. If they have no unresolved complaints, that’s a start. Do a web search for their company name or phone number + complaints, see what you find.

No matter how much research you do, its a risky situation. Use all the information you can gather and make the best decision you can.

http://www.icustom-pc.com/infections

We now call it scareware because that’s what it tries to do. Scare you into doing something. Some of the programs are worse than others. Most are tying to get you to buy their software. Some just want to infect your pc so it can send out tons of spam using your pc as the server. The worse would be them getting your credit card number and draining your account.

Most of these scare tactics are embedded into hacked websites. Quite a few are hidden in banner ads spread across the internet. The attack comes from so many directions, its hard to say where you will see it next.

The best thing to do if it happens to you is close out of the browser all together. Make sure you do not click on anything, not YES or NO or Cancel.

Yes is YES,  no is YES, and Cancel is YES. Confused yet? If you find these pop-ups and scare warning are constantly happening, its time to have your pc cleaned for viruses & whatnots. It usually means that the virus has moved from the web to your pc, and now it can really annoy you.

If it happens when your not connected to the internet, then you are definitely infected already.

Be safe online!

Buyer beware, not all laptops are created equal. We make the choice to only sell high quality refurbished laptops.  We don’t have any of the $99 or even $199 used laptops.

Why you ask? If you sell junk, you will lose customers. No matter how low the price is, if the quality is low, they will not buy from you ever again. Companies survive on long term happy customers, not fast quick sales.

So you are looking for a laptop for yourself or your young student. Here are the things you should look for in a used laptop.

Warranty – how long is it, who does the repairs, what does it cover? Try and avoid anything with less than a 30 day warranty. Find out if they fix it where you purchased it, or do they send it out to be repaired. It will determine how long it takes (how long you are without your laptop).

Speed – How fast will it be? The faster the better, within your budget. I would look for laptops with at least a 1Ghz processor. A Centrino or Mobile type processor if you can find one.

Storage space – How many files can you save? If you don’t download music or movies, you usually will not need anything bigger than a 30Gb hard drive. If you do download large media files, look for a laptop with a bigger hard drive. You can also get an 250GB external hard drive for around $60 these days.

Memory -  How much can I do at the same time? Ram can be more important that processor speed in some cases. Look for a laptop with at least 512Mb of ram. If you have XP with SP3, get 1GB or more. You’ll be glad you did.

OS – which Windows version should i get? Personally, anything above Windows 2000 is OK. That being said, most new software complains if you don’t have XP or better.  Choose the one that you like.

Connectivity – Wireless, 56K Modem, Ethernet, Blu-Tooth? Get a laptop with built in wireless if you can. You can also add a wireless card to any laptop running 2000 or XP. If you see a laptop that doesn’t have a Ethernet or modem port, run!  If you find a used one with blu-tooth, that’s nice, you may find a use for it later on in life.

Screen size – 12, 14 , 15, 17? How good are your eyes? Its your choice. Larger screens are easier to read, but are heavier.

Power and battery – do not buy a laptop without a  working battery unless its dirt cheap. Laptop batteries can be expensive. A used laptop should get at least 30 minutes of run-time. Make sure you get a charger as well, and make sure it works.

Optical drive – DVD, CDRW, CD-ROM. Make sure it has some type of cd drive. If you want to burn cd’s get one with a cd burner. If you like to burn DVD’s, get one with a DVD burner. If you like to watch movies, make sure you will be able to. You will almost always need a optical drive at some point, do not buy one without it.

Following these should give you a pretty good idea of what to look for. You can find our list of used laptops here

http://www.icustom-pc.com/referb

When a consumer files a complaint with the BBB on a business, the BBB contacts that business and informs them of the complaint. If the business does not respond, they are given an F rating for not addressing a customers concerns.

When a customer files a complaint and the customer is the problem (hey it happens), the BBB does very little investigating.  A recent customer purchased a power supply and attempted to get a refund 6 months later. He said it never worked and now he wants a refund. Company policy is either you bring it back within 10 days, or you can get a replacement if it is defective.  The policy is printed on all our sales receipts. It is also displayed (rather largely) in all our stores.

The customer filed a complaint with the BBB and they tried to force us to take the part back.

While our company has a A rating, I do not believe the new system is fair, transparent or accurate.

The old rating system gave consumers a quick answer on if a company was safe to do business with. A business either had a satisfactory or unsatisfactory rating. If you had addressed all the consumer complaints against your business you had a satisfactory rating. It didn’t mean you had no complaints, it just  means you resolved them (almost impossible to have no complaints if you have been in business for many years). If you had consumer complaints and you did not address consumer concerns you had an unsatisfactory rating.

The problem with the new system is that business who don’t want to pay the BBB yearly ($400+) do not get an A rating. You can be in business for 25 years with thousands of satisfied customer and not a single complaint and only have a C rating. I would love to do business with someone who hasn’t had single complaint in 25 years. But a quick glance at that business reveals a C and you would probably continue looking for someone else. The company with an A may have hundreds of complaints but since they are a dues paying member, they have an A.

It seems the BBB wanted a way to generate more revenue. It allows companies to buy a good rating, while penalizing business who are not members. The real problem is that it erodes the reputation the BBB has worked so hard to build, one that consumers trust and depend on.

People have a right to have their voice heard when they are mistreated by any business. The BBB is one of the few advocates for consumer protection. When the BBB tries to make consumers happy by forcing companies to violate policy is bad business. Especially when the BBB receives 85% of its funding from businesses.

A warranty (accent on first syllable) is a guarantee. A warrantee (accent on last syllable) is a person or party who is guaranteed something.

Lets say you go out and buy a brand new car. You write your hefty $15,000 check for a nice sporty compact. Because someone told you to, you purchase the extended bumper to bumper warranty. On your way home you come around a corner then BAM you hit a deer. Oh my. Your new car is ruined.

Who do you call? Your spouse? Best friend? Insurance agent?

Now why wouldn’t you call the dealership? You purchased the extended warranty right? We know not to call the dealership because the warranty doesn’t cover accidents. Doesn’t cover rocks from the road and definitely doesn’t cover collisions with wild animals.

Almost any new computer comes with some sort of warranty. (If it doesn’t run!) How come when we get a virus or some bad spyware do we go running to the dealership? (Place where you purchased your computer) The warranty probably doesn’t cover that. Just like your vehicle warranty didn’t cover the deer accident.

Our company struggles with this issue just like Dell, HP, and Gateway does. The standard warranty covers things that go wrong with the computer that the user (driver) did not cause.

When we kindly (very kindly) try and explain the warranty does not cover virus and spyware we are branded the enemy.

Not sure how to fix this perception. If companies offered a software warranty with new computers, it would make them much more expensive.

What do you think?

Most people think a surge protector will protect your pc in the event of a storm of lightining strike. That is most certianly false. They probably didnt lie to you when you bought it, you just didnt know what you were buying.

A surge is another name for a power spike. Its when the voltage in the wires exceedes whats its supposed to be (115v in U.S. homes) for a short period of time.  Surges happen all day and night in homes. Everytime the ac comes on, fridge starts running, or garage door goes up. Those motors put an instant strain on the electrical system evey time they start. That can either lower the voltage on the line or cause it to go up depending on other appliances in the home.

Today’s sophisticated electonics require a constant voltage to operate. Whenever the voltage changes, electonics have a hard time regulating the power it needs to opertate. That can cause things to break down early or blow up.

A surge protector tries to level out spikes. A good one may even prop up a low voltage condition. If the spike it too much it should send the overage to ground (which is why grounding is important).

Some of the el-chepo models are only glorified extension cords with a power light. They offer no spike protection at all.

So why didnt yours work for that lightining strike? A typical power surge is 10-25 volts. A lightining stike could be 50,000- 250,000 volts. There is no way some $20 piece of plastic is going to stop lightining.

They do make systems that protect from lighting strikes, and cost several thousand dollars.