We get a lot of phone calls here at Cowabunga! Computers asking us  questions on whether is computer is worth fixing or should they get a replacement.  Well, the simple answer is this.  It Depends.  About 2 years ago, I was so mad at my laptop, I threw it against the door and actually got wedged into there.  And since the HD panel was sticking out, we yanked out the hard drive, did a data recovery and left the laptop in there to remind me of the frustrations that customers must feel.  Of course it was a pain in the okole when we moved out of that space and I had to patch that door up with foam and stuff but what a great reminder!

When a computer breaks, it can depend on a lot of things.  Charles at McCully 76 can tell you the same is true for a car.  Car mechanics are good and certified.  But they still throw a computer to your car and it spits out information.  So like a car mechanic, we run software through your computer and it tells us everything from the temperature of your computer processor to the speed of your fan to every little screw and bolt in the computer.  Depending on the problems, we have software that can tell you everything about your sound card, mother board, RAM, video card, NIC cards, you name it.  Depending on the size of your hard drive and your RAM or even the speed of your processor, it can take anywhere from an hour or two days just to scan!

That’s just for the hardware.

Once we eliminate what is a hardware problem or not, we can move on looking at WINDOWS (Microsoft) challenges.  That’s a little bit more easy to figure out as well so it isn’t as bad.  But lets go back to finding out if it is worth it.

Some questions to ask yourself would be:

1. Are you comfortable with the speed of your computer?
2. Do you have a hard time adjusting to other Operating Systems?
3. Are you a nester and don’t like change?
4. Don’t want to spend too much money?
5. Do you want the latest and greatest?
6. How many times has this problem happened in the past? 

Ultimately, the question I ask friends is.. are you comfortable with the speed of the machine?  Do you always want to get the latest and greatest?  Remember a few things when you get a new computer.  

1. WINDOWS 7 is coming out in October.  Most of the customers who get computers now will have a chance to get a free upgrade certificate.
2. You have to make sure that any software you are using is going to be compatible with the new Operating System.  Whether it is XP to VISTA or looking forward to WINDOWS 7.
3. Drivers.  Make sure that anything you plug into your new computer is good to go as well.  For the most part, it is.  But always make sure that there are current drivers for Printers, scanners or anything else you attach. 

When you choose a repair store, make sure it is someone you trust.  Look for a RoadRunner Approved or go to a reliable website like womf.com or yelp.com and go check em out.  Do your homework.  Not all comptuer repair stores are created equally.  Most of them are at a flat rate.  But sometimes, asks yourself... Did you feel a warm and fuzzy?  Do they call you back?  Do they work out of a car or a real office?  Do they come to you wearing tshirts that say I am a Dork and you are not?  Or are they in a uniform?  Importantly, are they insured?  Cn they give you corporate referals and other items so you can verify them!  Trust us, we work on a number of computers with stickers from other stores and it makes us wonder why they stay in business by looking at the quality of the repair.  Remember that it is very important to do your homework!  If you want to, go to www.hawaii.rr.com and go look at a list of the vendors that RR endorses! 

Getting a new computer is always exciting and nice but you can always upgrade and repair.  Computers now days are built relatively good and unless you have a laptop, I would almost say stick with upgrading  and repairing.  Lets wait a little bit until WINDOWS 7 comes out and the first service packs come out.  After all, if it aint broke, …. And if it is broke, find a good service company that you trust who can be honest about the current worth of the computer!  Next month… what to upgrade and invest in!