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You are finishing up a 10-page report for school or work when suddenly your computer shuts down on you. Frantically you throw your arms up in the air and yell at your computer because you forgot to save. You check and find the power is still working, power cords are plugged in correctly, and you know you just ran a virus check last night. So what could possibly have shut the computer down?

DUST!

Clumps of dust can nestle around your processor, cuddle up to your power supply and choke ventilation. Computers can become havens for dust and other natural-borne air pollutants when not properly cleaned.

Let’s start off with a brief explanation of how dust collects in and around your system. Static electricity. Yes, you can blame static electricity for attracting dust to your computer. Why? Well, when a computer is in operation it creates a field of static electricity which attracts dust particles in the surrounding environment. A CRT or LCD monitor also creates static electricity. In fact, if you put your forearm up the monitor screen you may feel the little hairs on your arm rise! This is a perfect example of the static field encompassing your monitor.

Not to worry though, you won’t have to spend hours on end cleaning your computer system to prevent hardware failures and loss of ventilation. If your computer is in a clean environment you shouldn’t have to clean it out more than three or four times a year! A clean environment in our opinion is one without tobacco smoke, large amounts of pet dander or outdoor pollutants (smog/road dirt/sand). If any of these conditions are present in the computer’s environment more frequent cleanings should be considered. Let’s discuss these conditions that affect the quality of a computer’s environment. Smoke; smoke can seep into the openings of your case and settle on your motherboard and other hardware. Smoke is also responsible for discoloring keyboards, mice, cases, screens and wires. Pet hair; this can be worse than dirt because of how much larger it is. Hair can easily block the ventilation of a computer system.

Note: If you notice any dirt inside one of the plug heads use a little compressed air to blow it out.

Case Cleaning:

This is where the dust goes at night to cuddle up with your processor. Dust is not your friend, it is not something to be laughed at, and it deserves respect. This is war ladies and gentlemen! Load up with some compressed air because you?re heading off to the frontlines! Actually, cleaning a computer case isn’t that difficult. In fact, the entire process won’t take more than about 20 or 25 minutes if the dust is really bad.

1. Turn off your computer.
2. Remove the side cover of the computer case, exposing the motherboard and other hardware components.
3. Inspect all cables and connections. Be sure to look for cables that are frayed, loose, pinched, snug or otherwise damaged. If you come across any cables that are damaged in any way or form you should immediately replace them. If a cable is frayed do not attempt to patch it up with electrical tape, this is very dangerous fix. We also advise that you replace snug cables with longer ones before it accidentally snaps.
4. Now its time to get out the compressed air. Shoot the canned air at everything in your computer. Pay special attention to the heatsink and fan on top of your processor. This area collects a lot of dust. Some other areas to focus on are add-on cards (audio/video/modem), case fans, hard disks, power supply and removable media drives (cd-rom). A vacuum may help suck out the dust while you knock it loose with the compressed air. Caution: Follow the directions on the back of compressed air! Do not spray hardware at close range! If you choose to use a vacuum, do not attempt to vacuum anything in your computer!!!
5. If you notice dust in the PCI and AGP slots of your motherboard it may be wise to remove each add-on card and shoot some compressed air into the slots to break away the dust.
6. If your case has an air filter remove it and run it through warm water to remove the dust. To dry it simply use a cloth (lint-free if possible) and gently dab away the excess water. Place the filter back into the case.
7. Replace the side cover of the computer, but check first that there aren’t any cables that are lying next to any fans. Fasten the cover and restore the power.

Now you are all set to use your computer without worrying about damaging the inside components and losing important data.

Over time, whether they’re a relic we still rely upon or a recently purchased powerhouse replete with cutting edge technology, our computers are home to needless software – rubbish, essentially – that would be best disposed of. Those old computers collect outdated software through the years, while brand new systems are often filled with trial software that most people end up ignoring upon use.

Aiding in the cleanup effort is a helpful utility that quickly removes unnecessary junk from your computer, freeing you from the task of uninstalling them individually.

Called PC Decrapifier, this program requires no installation, commencing with its task once you run the executable.

Once you’ve moved past the end user agreement, the program will alert you to its inability to distinguish between trial software and the full version of the same application. You should be mindful of what you’re selecting, which will save you the headache that’ll surely arise when you realize that you’ve removed an application that you use often.

You’re then asked to specify if the computer you’re “decrapifying” is old or new.

It then offers you a chance to create a restore point, which will return your computer to a previously saved state should the removal of certain programs result in the occurrence of certain errors. Doing this is critical, as the removal of any program brings with it the removal of ancillary files – drivers, libraries, etc. – that may be used by other applications. However, you should know that the creation of a restore point will guarantee the recovery of any programs you remove.

After you’ve done that, the clean-up begins.

Although there’s a possibility the program will not detect any programs that need to be removed, which can happen on computers owned by those who are more pro-active in monitoring what’s installed, it does provide you an opportunity to select all of the programs you’d like to dispose of.

Once you’ve selected the programs, PC Decrapifier commences with its job, eliminating all of the programs you’ve checked as unnecessary. Doing this frees up your hard drive and may remove programs that impair your system’s performance with unnecessary processes running in the background.

For those of you who want to get a head start on spring cleaning, PC Decrapifier is certainly up to the task.

You can download it here