We do repair laptops. We can fix most laptop issues. We repair DC jack power connectors, motherboards and LCD screen problems. We have laptop accessories such as batteries, adapters and keyboards. So why do people seem so surprised when I tell them I can repair their systems? I am proud to report that HCS has been around since 1999 and I have stood behind my work for all these years. I have a staff of 5 (including a web designer) and I still go out into the field repairing networks. I live by my reputation and those who know my work will tell you that I will go that extra mile to keep my clients happy, Give me a call at 514-836-7408 for your laptop issues or visit our laptop page of our website.
Yearly archives for 2009
Vista loops and won’t start up
If you ever had the Vista Loop problem then the above message would be a dream of yours.
Vista is notorious for leaving us in a loop. What that means is you can’t get into Windows and you get a message asking you if you want Vista to :
Now the problem is if you select Launch Startup Repair (recommended), it cannot repair the issue. If you select Start Windows Normally then it just loops out of Vista. Sadly the issue is that you have some bad sector on your hard drive that have to be looked after. You can do this by running a disk repair utility. If you need any assistance repairing your desktop or laptop please give me a call at 514-836-7408.
Where can I repair my laptop in Montreal?
A laptop problem
Where to get a laptop fixed in Montreal is a question often asked by university students. It is hard to find any qualified people who can fix a laptop. McGill and Concordia students have often found themselves in need of someone to help them fix their laptop quickly and have learned to rely on our quick service. We see hundreds of defective laptops and thousands of problems.
We service all makes and models of PC laptops, notebooks and most desktops: Dell, Sony, IBM, HP, Compaq, Toshiba, Gateway, Averatec, Fujitsu, Acer, Panasonic, and others.
Typical laptop, notebook and computer repairs include:
DC Power jack / plug replacement
Motherboard repair
LCD Screen replacement
Virus removal
Software installs
System recovery
Memory upgrades
Data Recovery
Hard drive replacements and upgrades
Wireless install and security
Blue screen repair
Broken USB repair
At Les Specialistes HCS we pride ourselves on our quick and reliable service. We are experienced technicians and have been supporting Concordia and McGill students since 1999. We accept Visa, Mastercard through our on-line payment system. Whatever the emergency might be we can fix your laptop or desktop.
Slow Laptop Solutions Part 4
So in our previous Slow Laptop articles we went through hardware (Parts 1 and 2) as well as the joys of defragmentation and cleaning up your temporary files in Part 3. The final remedy is my personal favorite and it is the most common: the virus meets the virus hunter.
UNDERSTANDING Spyware and Malware
The difference between spyware and malware is the same difference as there is between telephone soliciting and telephone pranking: they are both annoying with one being used for commercial and the other being used for malicious intent. When I started seeing spyware, malware back in 2002, I began to see a something that I did not see before; I knew what viruses were but spyware acted the same way except I knew where they originated from. My tools in the past for removing spyware is to look in the registry, then it was Lavasoft’s adaware and Spybot Search and Destroy in conjunction with Hijackthis.
The removal of all these rogue software used to take me several hours manually by using all the software above. I was very successful at removing viruses and spyware with all those tools however it took a very long to remove all the files and if you missed one then the malware would pop up again. Now I have found the best piece of software for the removal of Spyware and malware and it is called Malwarebytes. I highly reommend it to those who are experiencing a slow machine due to viruses, spyware, malware or scareware.
Slow Laptop Solutions Part 3
OK so we got the hardware in parts 1 and 2 out of the way of why your laptop is running like a Rube Goldberg version of a computer rather than the fast and efficient machine you had purchased. But if your hardware is not the issue of its slowness then your machine has other issues that have to be addressed which are software related.
Temporary Files
Temporary files can often slow down a laptop They are files which were are created primarily for backup. Many programs will save a temporary version of a file every few minutes while the original file is open. Then if you have not saved the file and the program unexpectedly crashes or the computer is turned off, there will be a temporary file that was recently saved. Temp files are typically deleted automatically when the program is closed normally, but if the program quits unexpectedly, the temp files are not deleted.
However, some temp files are left behind even when a program is quit correctly. This may be due to programming errors that cause temporary files to not be correctly disposed of when an application is quit. These files can accumulate on your hard drive without you even noticing.
Web Browsers can create “Temporary Internet Files” or “Cache” to store user data, including Cookies, images from visited Web pages, and the user’s browsing history.
It is suggested that ever few months you should clear out your temporary files.
How to clear out your temporary files
-
Click on Start and then Run.
-
In the text box in the Run window, type %Temp% and click OK. A folder full of files and other folders will appear. This is your Temporary Files folder.
All of the folders and files you see in this Temp folder are no longer being used by Windows XP and can safely be deleted.
-
Click Edit and then Select All from the menu.
Note: If you’re prompted that there are hidden files in this folder, just click on OK to bypass the message. Then click Tools -> View -> Select Show Hidden Files. Click on OK.
-
Now that all of the files and folders are selected, hit your Delete key on your keyboard.
-
Confirm that you want to delete the files by clicking Yes on the Confirm Multiple File Delete window that opens.
Defragging / Defragmentation
The best way to describe what defragmentation means is to imagine your hard drive is a book. With a book you can easily go through the book because of the way iti is organized,; eg. The pages are organized in numeric order, page 2 comes after page 1. Now imagine someone decided to rip those pages right out of the book and toss them up in the air so they would fall out of sequence in your room. It would take you alot longer to find the second page if it wasn’t in order and you had to find it someone on the floor. Over time, as you add, delete and move files your hard drive begins to fill up and data begins to be moved around all over your drive making files that should be together appear at different points of the drive…page 2 no longer follows page 1. Defragging organizes the drive and puts files that are fragmented back with files that they are related to.
How to Defrag your Hard Drive
1. Open My Computer and right-click on the C: drive (or whatever drive is your main drive). Select Properties, then click on the Tools tab and select Defragment Now.
2. Walk away from your computer and let the defrag begin.
You don’t have to defrag that often. I usually recommend once every few months.
Slow Laptop Solutions Part Deux
Other hardware issues that might be slowing down your laptop include Hard Drive, Power Adapter, and CPU overheating.
Hard Drive
Test the hard drive to see if the speed is fine. A decent piece of software that I use to confirm the speed is Roadkil’s Diskspeed utility. When is scores really low you know it is time to change it. By the way, don’t forget to back it up.
Power Adapter
Sometimes (and not very often) the power adapter is slowing down the performance of your laptop. Sadly there is no easy way to test to see if that is the case unless you happen to have a spare adapter.
HOT! HOT! HOT!
Finally, you might want to invest in a laptop cooling tray (even if you are not experiencing slow response time. ) The tray will prolong the life of your laptop and it is a great way to get some extra USB ports. We sell them, as a matter of fact we sell all the hardware we have mentioned in order to speed up your laptop. Call us at 514-836-7408
Slow Laptop Solutions Part 1
f you’re experiencing a laptop that struggles to do the basic things that you require then maybe you should buy a new laptop and that will solve that problem. But if you are in search of a solution that does not involve throwing out the baby and the dirty water here are some easy solutions to try.
Part 1: Memory Upgrade
An easy solution is to add memory. But will it solve the problem? At HCSMONTREAL we sell memory but do you need it? First step is too see how much memory you have and how much of it are you using.
1) Right-click the My Computer icon, and select Properties from the menu that appears.
2) Look under the General tab where it gives you information about the Operating System (OS) you use to find the amount of RAM in megabytes (MB) or Gigabytes (GB). Make note of the memory and OS
These amounts are my recommendation as of today (July 19, 2009) and based on the assumption an antivirus is installed:
If you are using Windows 3.11, 95, NT 98, Me then your problem most likely is that it’s time for a new computer.
If you are using Windows 2000 you are on the borderline of being told to get a new computer. However the minimum memory requirement is 128 megabytes (MB) of RAM.
If you are using Windows XP the minimum memory requirement is 512 megabytes (MB) of RAM.
If you are using Windows Vista the minimum memory requirement is 2 gigabytes (GB) of RAM.
But adding memory doesn’t actually solve anything unless your computer was short of memory to begin with. If your system is slow despite having adequate memory than it is time for some solutions that take real effort. See Slow Laptop Solutions Part 2 for further solutions