Hi! My name is Brian, I'm 17, and I'm a senior in high school. I've been messing around with computers ever since my family got our first one, a 486 DX2/66 with 8 megs of RAM and a 340 meg hard drive running Windows 3.1. The first thing I ever "fixed" on that 486 was something I broke myself: I messed up the CONFIG.SYS file trying to free up enough memory to run a game, and it wouldn't boot. My dad was NOT happy. I spent the whole weekend with the DOS manual and got it working again, and I've been hooked ever since.

Since then I've upgraded that 486 about five times, built my own computer, and fixed pretty much every PC on our street. I also fix all my relatives' computers every Thanksgiving. ;-)

Next fall I want to study computer engineering in college. I'm working on my applications right now, so wish me luck!

I made this page because I kept answering the same questions over and over. Now I can just say "go look at my page." Everything here is stuff I've actually done on my own computers. If your question isn't here, e-mail me and I'll try to help.

Is your computer slower than it used to be? Before you go buy a new one, try these. They're all free and they're all built into Windows 98.

Tip #1: Run ScanDisk, THEN Disk Defragmenter
Do this about once a month, or whenever things start feeling slow.

1. Close all your programs. Turn off your screen saver too (right-click the desktop, pick Properties, go to the Screen Saver tab and set it to (None)). If anything writes to the disk while Defrag is running, it has to start over.
2. Go to Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > ScanDisk. Pick your C: drive, pick Standard, check Automatically fix errors, and click Start. Every few months do a Thorough scan instead, which checks the surface of the disk for bad spots. That one takes a long time, so go eat dinner.
3. When ScanDisk is done, go to Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter. Pick C: and click OK. On a big drive this can take an hour or more. Go watch The X-Files or something.

Why ScanDisk first? Defrag picks up your files and moves them around so all the pieces are together. You don't want it moving stuff around on a disk that has errors on it. Fix first, then defrag.

Tip #2: Trim Your Startup Programs With msconfig
Does your computer take forever to start up? Are there like fifteen little icons down by the clock? Every one of those is a program running in the background and eating your memory. Here's how to clean it up:

1. Click Start > Run, type msconfig and click OK. That opens the System Configuration Utility.
2. Click the Startup tab. That's a list of everything that loads when Windows starts.
3. Uncheck the stuff you don't need, click OK, and restart.

Leave these checked: your virus scanner, SystemTray, and ScanRegistry (ScanRegistry backs up your registry every day, which is really handy if something goes wrong).
Usually safe to uncheck: the little helper programs that come with printers and scanners, the QuickTime and RealPlayer tray icons, and Find Fast from Office 97 (it indexes your hard drive in the background and slows everything down).

Unchecking something in msconfig doesn't delete it. If something stops working, just go back and check it again. If you aren't sure what an item is, leave it alone or e-mail me.

Tip #3: Keep Windows Update Current
Microsoft puts out fixes for Windows 98 all the time: security fixes, Y2K fixes, and driver updates. Click Start, and at the very top of the menu you'll see Windows Update. Click it while you're online and it looks at your computer and tells you what you're missing. Get the critical ones first, especially the Year 2000 update. I check about once a month. (Yes, it's slow over a modem. Start it before bed.)

Tip #4: Empty the Temp Folder
Programs leave junk files in C:\WINDOWS\TEMP and never clean up after themselves. When I first checked mine it had 80 megs of garbage in it!

1. Restart your computer and don't open any programs.
2. Open My Computer > C: > Windows > Temp. (If you can't see the files, go to View > Folder Options, click the View tab and pick Show all files.)
3. Do Edit > Select All and delete. If Windows says a file is in use, skip that one.
4. Empty your Recycle Bin!

Windows 98 also has Disk Cleanup (Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools) which empties your temp files, Temporary Internet Files and the Recycle Bin all at once. Easy.

This is the big one. NEVER open an e-mail attachment you weren't expecting, even if it came from somebody you know.

In March 1999 the Melissa virus went around the world in a couple of days. It showed up as an e-mail with the subject "Important Message From" and the name of somebody you knew, with a Word document attached called list.doc. If you opened the document, it mailed itself to the first 50 people in your Outlook address book. It clogged up e-mail servers all over the place.

Then on April 26, 1999, the CIH virus went off (some people call it Chernobyl, because April 26 is the anniversary of the Chernobyl accident). It hides inside .EXE programs on Windows 95 and 98. On the trigger date it wipes out the beginning of your hard drive, and on some motherboards it also erases the BIOS chip so the computer won't even start. A kid at my school had to get his BIOS chip replaced. The most common version goes off again every April 26, so it isn't going away.

How to protect yourself:

• Get a virus scanner (Norton AntiVirus and McAfee VirusScan are the big ones) and update it every couple of weeks. A virus scanner with old virus definitions is almost useless.
• Don't run programs people send you, even the funny ones. If your buddy really sent it, he can tell you.
• In Word 97, go to Tools > Options, click the General tab and make sure Macro virus protection is checked. Then Word warns you before it runs any macros in a document.
• Only download programs from places you trust, and scan them before you run them.
• Back up your important stuff! (See the Y2K checklist.)

First the bad news: you will never connect at 56K. Nobody does. Here's why:

• The FCC limits how much power can be sent down a phone line, and that knocks the top speed down to 53.3K. So 53,333 bps is the best you can possibly get, even on a perfect line.
• Uploads (sending stuff) top out at 33.6K no matter what. The 56K part only works on downloads.
• 56K only works if there's just one analog-to-digital conversion between you and your ISP. Some neighborhoods have phone company equipment on the line that adds another conversion, and then you're stuck at 33.6K or less. Not much you can do about that one except ask the phone company.
• Line noise. Old wiring, corroded jacks, long phone cords, splitters and cheap phones all add noise, and noise means a slower connection.

Most people with a decent line get somewhere between 44K and 50K. I usually connect at 49,333 bps, and sometimes 50,666 on a good night.

How to get your best speed:

1. Make sure your modem is V.90. V.90 is the official 56K standard (since 1998). If you have an older x2 or K56flex modem, check the maker's web site. Most of them can be upgraded to V.90 for free. Then make sure you're dialing your ISP's V.90 access number.
2. Plug the modem straight into the wall jack with a short phone cord. Take out splitters and extension cords. Try unplugging the other phones, the answering machine and the fax and see if it gets better.
3. Listen to your line. Pick up a phone and press a number to make the dial tone stop. If you hear hiss, crackling or buzzing, call the phone company and tell them you have noise on the line.
4. Turn off call waiting or an incoming call will knock you offline. In Dial-Up Networking go to Dialing Properties, check To disable call waiting, dial: and put in *70 (that's the code in most places).
5. Try a different access number. Sometimes one number from your ISP connects way better than another.

How fast did I connect? Double-click the little two-computers icon down by the clock. It'll say something like "Connected at 49,333 bps." Remember a web page can still be slow if the server on the other end is slow. That's not your modem's fault!

Less than 100 days to go!

Don't panic. Most home computers are going to be just fine. But here's what I'd do, in this order. Print this out and check things off!

[  ] 1. BACK UP FIRST.
Copy your important files (letters, Quicken files, your address book, saved games...) to floppies, a Zip disk, or a CD-R if you have a burner. Do it before any of the tests below. While you're at it, make a Windows 98 Startup Disk: Control Panel > Add/Remove Programs > Startup Disk tab.

[  ] 2. Test your BIOS date rollover.
The clock chip on your motherboard keeps the date when the computer is off. Some older ones (mostly from before 1997) don't know how to roll over to 2000 and jump to 1980 or 1900 instead. Here's how to test it:

• Get offline first.
• Restart and go into BIOS Setup (usually you press Del, F1 or F2 while it's starting up, the screen tells you which).
• Set the date to December 31, 1999 and the time to 11:58 PM. Save and exit.
• Let Windows start, then do Start > Shut Down and turn the power off. Wait five minutes.
• Turn it back on, go into BIOS Setup again and look at the date. It should say January 1, 2000.
• Leap year test: 2000 IS a leap year, and some things get that wrong. Set the date to February 28, 2000, 11:58 PM and do the same thing. It should come back as February 29.
• SET THE DATE BACK TO TODAY WHEN YOU'RE DONE! Some programs freak out if the date is in the future.

If it fails, look for a BIOS update from your computer or motherboard maker. On a lot of older PCs you can also just set the date by hand on New Year's Day and it will keep the right date after that.

[  ] 3. Install the Windows 98 Y2K updates.
If you have the original Windows 98, get the Year 2000 Update from Windows Update. Windows 98 Second Edition already has those fixes built in, but run Windows Update anyway. Not sure which one you have? Right-click My Computer and pick Properties. The original says 4.10.1998 and Second Edition says 4.10.2222 A.
Also go to Control Panel > Regional Settings > Date tab and change the Short date style to M/d/yyyy, so you see four-digit years everywhere.

[  ] 4. Check your old software.
Programs from before about 1997 might not handle the year 2000 right, especially money programs, tax programs, old spreadsheets, and anything that stores years as two digits. Check the software company's web site for Y2K info and patches. (Old DOS games are usually fine. They don't care what year it is.)

[  ] 5. Back up AGAIN in December.
And print out paper copies of your important money stuff before New Year's. Just in case.

Don't pay $50 for some "Y2K Fix" program you saw in an ad. For almost every home PC, the steps above are all you need.

Q: Every time I turn on my computer it says "Windows was not properly shut down" and runs ScanDisk. Why?
A: That happens when the power gets turned off without going to Start > Shut Down first, or when it crashed. Always use Shut Down and wait for "It's now safe to turn off your computer." If it still happens when you shut down the right way, e-mail me.

Q: How much RAM do I need?
A: For Windows 98, 32MB is the least I'd put up with, 64MB is the sweet spot, and 128MB is great if you play games or work with pictures. Adding RAM is usually the cheapest way to speed up an older computer. BUT RAM prices went way up after the big earthquake in Taiwan this week, so shop around before you buy.

Q: I got a blue screen that said "A fatal exception 0E has occurred." Is my computer broken?
A: Probably not. It just means a program crashed. Press a key, save whatever you can, and restart. If it keeps happening in the same program, it's usually a driver (video card drivers are the usual suspect), so get the newest one from the maker's web site. If it happens everywhere, it could be bad RAM or overheating.

Q: Should I get a Pentium III or a Celeron?
A: If you've got the money, the Pentium III is nice. But for most people, and for gamers on a budget, a Celeron is a great deal. See my Build Your Own PC page for my Celeron 300A running at 450 MHz.

Q: Do I need a new computer because of Y2K?
A: Almost definitely not. Go through my Y2K checklist first.

Q: Netscape or Internet Explorer?
A: I use both. Netscape 4.6 is what I surf with most of the time, but Windows Update only works in Internet Explorer, so I keep IE 5 around too.

Q: Can you come over and fix my computer?
A: If you're a relative, you already know the answer (yes, but you have to feed me). Otherwise I'll do my best to help you by e-mail. If you need a real repair shop, Precision PC Repair has a page right here in SiliconValley too.

Q: What computer do you have?
A: A Celeron 300A overclocked to 450 MHz that I built myself this summer. The whole story is on my build page. The old 486 still works too. It's my DOS games machine now.