CHOOSE THE RIGHT PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE FOR YOUR CUSTOM SOFTWARE

            

        You know it's essential to choose the right platform and tools for an IT project if you want the resulting system to be successful. Let's take a closer look at some factors to consider when choosing the programming language you will use to write source code for your software.

Languages are Not All the Same

     If you are multilingual, which of these languages would you choose to write an opera: French, German, Italian or Dutch? How about a love poem? Chances are that for each of those questions, one or two of the options stood out as suitable and one or two stood out as terribly unsuited.

As you plan what your software will do, some programming languages will be obvious misfits. Others will be appealing possibilities. You just need to decide among the ones that are appealing. Make a list of the answers to these questions:

• Will the software perform predictable sequences of activity, or unpredictable sequences?
• Must the software squeeze as much performance as it can out of the computer?
• Are specialized interfaces needed between the software and hardware devices (such as device drivers), or between the software and operating system (special hooks to operating system internals) or other applications (such as database engines)?
• Is the software a small, medium, large or very large application? Is it complex?
• What hardware platforms must the software be able to run on?
• What operating systems must the software be able to run on?
• Is availability of expertise an issue?

       These are enough factors to evaluate for most projects. There may be more factors you want to include for your specific project. Next, see which languages fit your needs best.

Strengths versus Weaknesses

     To the right of your list, add a column for each language under consideration. Go down the list of factors one at a time and apply a checkmark for each language that is well suited in regard to that factor. Get help about any language where you don't personally know about its strengths and weaknesses. Your spreadsheet needs to be filled with factual information, not fads or personal feelings.

Language differences should jump out at you from the completed evaluation chart. Here are some examples:

• Languages that must be compiled and linked to generate an executable program, such as COBOL, C, or C++, make much faster-running software than interpretive languages such as the original BASIC or Java. These languages have to be recompiled and relinked for every target operating system.
• Interpretive languages such as Java or BASIC execute relatively slowly. Software written in these languages can be taken from one operating system to another with little effort.
• For predictable sequences of work, procedural languages make fast-running, compact programs with low overhead. For unpredictable sequences of work such as responding to human users in a windowed user interface, they are cumbersome.
• Object oriented programs are intended for unpredictable sequences of work. They take more overhead than procedural languages, so object oriented code tends not to run as fast as procedural software.
• High level languages are more easily read by people, simpler to debug, easier to maintain, and reduce the chance of such errors as memory leaks. These are languages such as COBOL, FORTRAN or PL/1. They are less flexible than low level languages such as C. High level languages cannot readily manipulate bits or directly manage hardware.
• Low level languages like procedural C or object oriented C++ can perform almost as "close to the machine" as a computer's native assembly language. You can do nearly anything with low level languages. However, these languages are cryptic and do not include safeguards that are built into high level languages. That makes it easy for programmers to make such mistakes as memory leaks, and it makes software in these languages hard to maintain. The bigger and more complicated your software is, the more a high level language will save you from long term maintenance headaches.
• 
  

Ultimate Decision

After you finish filling in your chart, some languages will have more checkmarks than others. The ones with the most checkmarks, or with checkmarks by the most important factors, are your finalists. You might even be lucky enough to find all the finalists are similarly capable for your project. In that case, any language among your finalists will do, and you can pick the one among them that you find most comfortable.

About the author: Bonnie D. Huval has been a consultant since 1992, helping companies make more money. Her USA and UK business interests also include real estate, property management and a restaurant. Successful projects include cutting time to ship product from two days to two hours, and cutting downtime for product introduction by 40%. To get her business and IT consulting services, go to http://www.seneschal.biz. These services now include market entry facilitation for businesses in the USA that want to sell in the UK and Europe. Also visithttp://www.makesureyougetpaid.com to buy her ebooks and materials or download free information to help small businesses be more successful. Copyright 2010. This article may be reprinted only in its entirety, with full attribution.

SUCCESS THROUGH FLASH WEBSITE DESIGN

Websites have become more sophisticated and specialized in its look and the way it is designed. Thus to get better web based applications web designers have started using the flash technology due to its numerous benefits. The concept of flash is highly communicative and interactive in nature, so creating animations is loads of fun apart from connecting target customers with the company.

Due to its task flexibility, the flash web design components can be easily inserted into web. Due to the technology of flash it has become possible to post in the animated movies on the websites, else it was not possible to do that. Maximum usage of flash web design can be seen in flash intros and banner advertisements. Extensive flash movies are been made by many companies in order to promote their company and its products. Its use has been increased in last few years, as the rates have also been very competitive due to emergence of many flash web design companies in the market.

This technology is now being used to design and create online tutorials that are aimed to develop animations that are interactive and also the self-testing actions. Main advantage of this technology is, it creates sense of interest and curiosity in the users which is important emotion needed to bring in the target customers, convince them and make them to buying from your company. The first step of getting such positive response comes from flash web design presentations. For products that are complicated in features or prices can be presented in much more simplified manner with this creative technique. Different videos, charts, animations, graphics, sound, etc can be put inside the presentation.

You can also use it as a good learning tool, where flash can be sued for BANNER ADS, online presentations, online games, animated movies, etc. Thus you can see its use can be done in so many diversified ways. The main feature of  flash that is its interactivity has made it very popular among the website owners, customers and the web designCOMPANIES. The visitors can avail higher benefits of scrolling down the interactive menus and navigators thus giving a fantastic virtual tour to the people. Its use is very easy and yet professional in nature. Contact a good and reputed FLASH WEBSITE  designing company to get your website quality FLASH PRESENTATION  which can help you get more business in the future.

BACK UP YOUR IMPORTANT DATA TO EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE

      Computers are electronic device and they are unpredictable too. Your computer may stop functioning without any prior notice and you may lose your important data. It is true that total hard drive failure is not common in these days but it does happen. But attack of viruses and other malicious objects has been increased several times which is certainly a big headache to all the computer users.

     Hackers use diverse tools and techniques to steal personal and sensitive information of the PC users. So, to protect your important data from sudden system failure and from virus attack, you should back up important data to external Hard Drive. For data backup you can consult a remote computer support provider.

     An external hard disk drive is a type of hard disk drive that is connected to a computer by a USB cable or other means. It is useful for backup of files and information, data recovery, disc cloning, running virtual machine, and transferring huge data from one PC to other. It provides a destination for a user to backup their valued files too, in case the data held on their internal storage is lost, or the internal storage fails.

       When connecting it to your computer, position it safely and watch where the cables run to avoid mishap. It doesn't involve use of separate power supply and is easy to connect and use as it is a hot connection. Just like other hard drives, it can also be used to boot a COMPUTER  and also can be used as a removable media at the same time. However,EXTERNAL HARD DISKS   with more than 1TB storage require separate power supply.

    The internal structure of external hard disk drives is almost same as the normal Hard Disk drives, they include a normal hard disk drive which is mounted in a disk enclosure. Considering cost we can get improvements in outlook, portability, biometric security and option of multiple interfaces.

 If you would like to buy an external Hard Drive for DATA BCKUP  you have plenty of choices. First you need to decide what size of hard drive you are looking for. The market is flooded with various sizes external Hard Drives ranging from 120GB to several TBs. According to your requirements you can buy one for you.

     As far as brand is concerned, there are plenty of options as well. Seagate, Samsung, WESTERN DIGITAL , etc. are some of the most renowned brands that you can think of. Of late, Prices of the external hard drives have gone down significantly. Prices of the drive depend on the size of the disk and the brand as well. It is better to do some research before buying for the best deal.

HOW TO MAKE BEST USE OF YOUR LAPTOP BATTERY LIFE

Laptops are extremely convenient to use. You can take them anywhere and get some work done, or spend some time surfing the Net, or even watching some videos or chatting to your friends. Many places today are laptop friendly, in that they have power outlets available as well as WiFi sources. However, sometimes you can't find an outlet, or can't reach the closest one to where you happen to be sitting. For those time that you do need to depend on your battery, you need to pay careful attention to your battery life. If your battery dies while you are in the middle of an important conversation, or if you have several files open that aren't saved, then it can cause some serious trouble. And if you happen to be talking to somebody and get cut off, they may take it the wrong way and get angry at you. 

        There are few things you can do to maximize your battery life. These can help you avoid those embarrassing situations, and keep you from losing any unsaved work. Of course, there's that little battery monitor in the bottom corner of your screen, but it's easy to forget about it until your screen goes blank. One thing you can do right away is check your power settings through the control panel. There are several options, designed for several situations. For using the battery, you can check the one that maximizes your battery life, or at least balances out your battery life with your processor speed. The fastest processor speed would give you the shortest battery life, and vice-versa. Just be sure to switch back into maximum processor speed when you are plugged in. 

      Another way to save battery time is to go easy on the processor and memory dependent software. Try and keep as few applications open as possible, and try to avoid using video at all costs. Video is a huge drain on system resources, and eats up your battery in a hurry. Streaming video, streaming music, and games are all resource intensive activities that should be minimized. You should also keep in mind that every time you drain and charge your battery, the amount of time you get out of a full charge decreases a little bit each time. After about a year of intensive use, you will likely need to switch your battery. They are pretty cheap, so you may consider buying a couple of backups if you are going to be doing some extended work where AC is unavailable, like on an airplane or in an extended lecture. 

        With these simple tips you can be sure to extend your battery life, and make sure you don't suffer any unexpected blackouts. Your data will be safe, and your conversation partners won't be annoyed.

WHAT IS SERVER VIRTUALIZATION TECHNOLOGY ?

      The term virtualization gets bandied about a great deal in the world of business, but what does that term really mean? The term virtualization is used to refer to a number of different technologies, but it is most commonly associated with servers and server technology.

In its simplest terms, virtualization means disconnecting, or decoupling, the software used on that server from the hardware itself. For servers, that means that the same hardware can be used to host a number of different servers, regardless of the type of software each one is running.

That means that the same physical piece of hardware can be used to host a server running Windows, another running Linux, another running OS/2 and so on. Since the software is no longer dependent on the hardware platform, a number of different software environmenets can share the same physical box.

      So with virtual server technology, you could have a single blade system running three separate Windows servers, two different Linux systems and so on. Since these server environments are virtualized, they can all run on the same blade server.

This approach helps companies save money on hardware, since the physical hardware is often the most expensive part of running a web or application server. Instead of each server running on its own dedicated hardware, several different servers can share the same environment, allowing companies to cut costs and reduce the complexity of managing their computer systems. Fewer servers means less need for costly support and maintenance, providing yet another cost savings for cash strapped companies.

Virtual Machines 

    The term virtual machine is often used in conjunction with virtual server technology. In essence, the virtual machine is the server environment that is running on a particular piece of hardware. So each Windows and Linux server running on that blade system is a separate virtual machine.

The virtualization process works by placing a thin layer over top of the physical server. That thin layer is used to partition the sever into distinct areas, with each area dedicated to a single virtual machine. The computing resources on the server are shared among all those virtual machines, allowing them to take advantage of the power available without needing to dedicate the entire piece of hardware to a single software process.

Separate Entities 

     One of the advantages of virtual server technology is that each vitual machine is its own separate entity. That means that a problem with an application or piece of software on one virtual machine will have no impact on the remaining virtual machines, even though all those other servers are running on the same piece of hardware. That strict separation of resources allows companies to run multiple servers on the same hardware, without fear that a problem with one system will bring the entire company to its knees.

     Server virtualization technology has been gaining traction in recent years, and it is only expected to grow in popularity as companies everywhere look for ways to get more done with fewer resources. By harnessing the power of a single piece of hardware to perform multiple tasks, companies can slash their hardware budgets without risking their critical systems or impacting their operations.

IMPROVE THE PERSONALITY OF YOUR BUSINESS THROUGH BUSINESS CARDS

        To someone new in the business world, creating a marketing plan can be quite a struggle. With no idea how to go about the process, a seemingly simple activity can turn into a chaos. But you need not worry, as there are simple ways to carry out a marketing campaign. The key here is to understand your goal. What is it that you want to achieve in your BUSINESS ?  Obviously, everyone would want to generate a good amount of sales and profits. If you keep your goal in mind, you can create a marketing plan that is effective and achievable.

Since you are new in the business industry, you might want to start with the simplest and easiest marketing strategies. The most important and basic among them is carrying out a business card campaign. Every business owner and professional out there today will tell you that if you want to succeed in the business world, you need to have your own business card.

Commonly,business cards are made from a piece of paper or card that measure 3.5 by 2 inches. Although small, this card has a great power to get you and your business noticed out there. Because first impression matters a lot in business, a well crafted business card will help you create a positive and long lasting impression on potential customers. Remember that too much text can make your card confusing, and poor color choice can be a turn-off. As a general rule, you need to keep your card simple. As much as possible, keep the design fresh and unique, and convey concise, direct, and clear message.

It is important to remember that what you convey to your prospects is distinct and clear. Keep in mind that some elements of business cards  are industry-specific. What might have worked for a flower shop business will not work for photography studio. This is why it is crucial to ensure that your message is organized and delivered properly. With that in mind, here are some ideas on how to improve the personality of your business through your  BUSINESS CARDS: 

• Choose color carefully. If possible, add some vibrant colors. FULL COLOR PRINTING  at the back of the card is a popular trend right now. If you have enough budget, why not consider doing the same at the back of your car. You can also add colorful and eye-catching images and graphics to create a memorable and lasting impression.
• Consider a vertical layout. A vertical layout is one way to stand out in the crowd. This will give your card a unique look and feel that will surely attract attention out there.
• Print on both sides of the card. Make good use of every space in your BUSINESS CARD . Previously an uncharted territory, the back of your business card templates   can now be printed with addition information such as a list of your top products or services, a calendar, special offer, or even a map to your store.
• Customize. You can consider printing your card in different shapes and sizes. Just be sure that your cards will still fit in a wallet or business card holder. Otherwise, people will throw them away.
• Try edible cards. If you truly want to be unique, try a business card that can actually be eaten such as chocolate, biscuit, cookies, or peanut. Just be sure to leave something where your contact details are printed so your customers will have something to keep after they have consumed your edible business card. 

FULL LIST OF WINDOWS SHORTCUTS FOR USING COMPUTERS

        If you have installed the Windows 7 operating system recently or even if you are using Windows 7 operating system for sometime but do not know about the Windows 7 shortcut keys still then this article is a must for you. Although it is very easy to use the computer mouse but very few people understand that using the keyboard with the shortcut keys makes working on your computer even faster. You might not feel comfortable using shortcut keys but once you use them quite regularly you will find it a lot more comfortable than using both the keyboard and mouse. It is also convenient to know the keyboard shortcuts in case your mouse is sent for repair and you only have your keyboard to work with. There are some new functions introduced in Windows 7 like the great feature of using our own windows 7 themes. But to be frank many of the shortcut keys are not unique to the latest Windows version unlike Windows 7 Themes which is a completely new and unique function. If you have used shortcut keys in previous versions of Windows then you might find a lot of common shortcuts which will also help you in remembering. I am listing all the Windows 7 keyboard keyboard shortcuts below so that you know and can use them if you find useful. 




F1 Open the Windows 7 Help and Support
F2 Rename the selected item (use it instead of the mouse right click and rename function)
F3 Open the Windows Search (also opens search function while browsing in popular browsers)
F4 Displays the drop down list in IE and Windows Explorer. Also works for displaying drop down list of many other popular internet browsers but need to highlight the address bar first using Alt + D )
F5 Refresh (works for computer screens/windows explorers as well as opened website page in any popular browser)
F6 Move through different categories of items in the currently active window
F10 Highlight the menu bar in the currently active window
F11 Full Screen mode on or off (works for IE, Windows Explorer as well as all popular browsers)
Windows key + D Show Desktop (all active windows are minimized)
Ctrl + Esc Open start menu



Alt + F4 Close active program or window. Also opens Windows 7 shutdown popup if used from desktop.
Alt + Tab See a preview of all open windows and programs in order to select one of them
Alt + Esc Same as previous function but does not give preview but directly cycles through all open programs and windows
Ctrl + F4 Close the current tab or document. Only for programs and browsers which allow multiple tabs or documents.
Shift + F10 Open context menu of selected item
Alt + D Highlight the address bar (works for IE, Windows Explorer as well as all popular browsers)
Alt + P Turn on or off preview panel in Windows Explorer
Alt + Left Arrow Go back in Windows Explorer (also works in all popular website browsers)
Alt + Right Arrow Go forward in Windows Explorer (also works in all popular browsers)
Alt + Up Arrow Go one directory up in Windows Explorer
Alt + Spacebar Open menu of the active window
Right Arrow Open the next menu to the right, or open a sub-menu
Left Arrow Open the next menu to the left, or close a sub-menu
Shift + Arrow Select a block of text or number of items (works a bit like the right click multiple select feature of mouse)
Ctrl + Arrow + Spacebar Select multiple items on an active Window or on the desktop. Keep on pressing control key, use arrow to go the item and press spacebar on the items to select.
Ctrl + N Open new windows (works for IE, Windows Explorer as well as all popular browsers)
Ctrl + T Open new tab for most of the popular browsers including Internet Explorer
Ctrl + Shift + N Create a new folder
Ctrl + Shift + Esc Open the task manager
Ctrl + A Select all
Ctrl + C Copy selected item
Ctrl + V Paste the selected item
Ctrl + X Cut the selected item
Ctrl + Y Redo an action
Ctrl + Z Undo an action 



Ctrl + Mouse wheel scroll Increase or decrease font or icon size (works for IE, Windows Explorer as well as all popular website browsers)
Delete Delete selected item and move it to recycle bin
Shift + Delete Delete selected item permanently without sending to recycle bin
Esc Cancel active task (also works for canceling popup windows in most cases)
Home Scroll to the top of the currently active window (for Windows Explorer) or website page (for popular internet browsers)
End Scroll to the end of the active window (for Windows Explorer) or website page (for popular browsers)
Page Up Gradually scroll up the currently active window (for Windows Explorer) or website page (for popular internet browsers)
Page Down Gradually scroll down the currently active window (for Windows Explorer) or website page (for popular website browsers)

Best Computer Setup For Day Trading With a Dual Monitor Screens

      Many day traders limit their opportunities in the market by using outdated and or poor technology. If the field of Day Trading, where you will spend 6-14 hours a day in front of your computer screens, you can begin to imagine how important it is to find the best computer set up with it comes to your monitors. Today we'll have a look at installing dual monitors on your PC to give you the most screen real estate possible and reduce eye fatigue.

Buying a new PC

You'll find nowadays a new PC will come as standard with dual monitor capabilities. All that is required is for you to get a second monitor and literally plug it in to the back of your PC. You may find that the 2nd monitor connector has a DVI connection type and all you may require is a $5 convertor if you don't have that specific plug.

Dual monitor on your laptop?

Most laptop users don't even realise they could be running a second monitor by simply plugging in a second monitor. All that is required is to get into you display settings and configuring the second monitor and you are up and running. You don't need any special equipment, just plug that 2nd monitor into the laptop and you'll be up and running with a dual monitor set up.

Upgrading an old PC

You might have an old PC that doesn't currently have the option for a 2nd monitor. If this is the case then you'll need to invest in a dual monitor video card. These are usually no more than $75-$125 and you can get a technician to install it or plug it in yourself. Once again, head into your display settings once installed and configure your 2nd monitor.

If you are a day trader you'll find a dual monitor set up is the best option as you need a clear screen with plenty of screen real estate. By using a dual monitor display you can access plenty of trading tools and drag and position your screens very easily.

TROUBLE SHOOT - COMPUTER HARDWARE HOW?

There could be many reasons why you’d want to troubleshoot your computer, well, one actually and that’s because something is not working right. The process of troubleshooting is something you learn after working for a long time with computers. Often enough when there’s a problem, nothing is going to explicitly tell you what is causing the problem and how you can fix it. By taking logical steps and walking through the process of troubleshooting you should be able to solve almost any computer problem, software or hardware related. It involves identifying the problem(s), finding the cause of that problem, determining the solution, executing that solution, and testing and checking that solution to see if it solves your problem. 

         As an example let’s say one day while using your computer the screen suddenly turns all black and you can’t see anything. We found a problem now what would be the first step to take to fix it? First check to see if the monitor is on and is receiving power, most monitors when they have power, but no connection or connection problems with the computer will display a message that says this monitor is working, but make sure you check your cables. So the next logical step to take would be to check the cable to make sure it is properly connected and secured to the VGA slot behind your computer case and to make sure the monitor cable is plugged into the monitor. Now, here’s where you have to decide what would be the next best course of action to take. you could either swap out your monitor with another monitor that you know is working to see if the problem is the monitor itself and nothing else or you can try to see if the problem is your graphics card. If your replacement monitor works, good, then you know your culprit is a bad monitor and you’ll most likely have to get a new one, because monitors are dangerous and too costly service. If the replacement monitor you used shows up a black screen as well, the next thing you’d do is check to make sure the graphics card is properly seated in the motherboard, if it is and the display is still not showing up, then swap out the graphics card to see if your problem is fixed. 

Generally there are only so many steps you can take before you solve the problem and everything is back in order. Make sure that before you start testing and swapping out parts that the problem wasn’t caused by you changing a software setting in Windows or some ambiguous option in the motherboard’s BIOS that causes your problem. 

Motherboard 

The motherboard is the heart of the computer, every part of the computer relies on the motherboard to function correctly. It maintains connection between every PC component and ensures that things are operating smoothly between them. Many signs of motherboard failure is that the computer won't boot up, not reaching the POST test, erratic system behavior, different combinations of components not working. Because everything is connected to the motherboard certain parts may or may not work correctly if the motherboard is faulty so be sure to test those parts before thinking they're dead and getting new ones. 

Be sure to do a visual inspection of the motherboard to make sure all cables are seated properly, the fans are spinning, and that the CMOS battery is in it's proper place. 

Also check for any broken or leaking capacitors, those can immediately render a motherboard dead. 

Make sure that all of the jumpers are set correctly as well, you should be able to find jumper information in your motherboard's manual, and if you don't have the manual you should be able to find the manual on the Internet at the motherboard manufacturer's website. 

Many of the problems caused by a bad motherboard is also similar to problems caused by a faulty or dying power supply, so be sure to check if the power supply is faulty or swap it out for another to see if your problem is fixed. If you have a spare motherboard you can try swapping out the motherboard to see if that solves your problem, if that's the case then the motherboard is most likely faulty. If you think the motherboard is faulty and it is still in warranty you should be able to send it back to the manufacturer for a new one with no hassle, sometimes they might even pay for the shipping & handling if it is a big problem that is happening with a certain line of motherboards. Make sure that when you open a motherboard you keep all of the packaging and the box, and if there are any stickers that will void the warranty if removed make sure you do NOT remove them, so that way it is easier to send back. 

Power Supply 

If you suspect your power supply is giving you trouble, make sure you check it out fast, because power supplies can make trouble with the rest of your system as well. Irregular voltages sent from the power supply can short circuit and overheat your components thus frying them and making them unusable. Some faulty power supplies have even caught on fire, but if you’re lucky it might just smoke a little and start to smell. A few signals that your power supply is bad or is going bad would be erratic and seemingly random system behavior like system hangs and crashes, and burning smells along with smoke. 

If you recently upgraded your system or added new hard drives, disk drives, a graphics card or anything for that matter, be sure to check if your power supply is being overloaded with hardware. A good way to check is to use a power supply calculator. One time when I upgraded my system with a new fancy PCI Express 16x Graphics card, well it was fancy back then, I had problems with the graphics card performing while in 3d games, it was all due to my power supply being unable give it enough juice on the 12v rails so it performed poorly and didn’t act as it should have, I even swapped out the graphics card for another one believing it was bad, after checking the manufacturer’s forums it seemed like a lot of people were having problems with faulty cards, so I figured mine must have been faulty too. After getting the new card it seemed like it performed better for a little bit longer, which could’ve just been some optimizations they did to circuit board. Seeing how they sent me an upgraded version of the same card, but it wasn’t until I checked my power supply wattages that I found the real culprit. 

The first thing to do to diagnose your power supply is check the power supply connectors, make sure everything is plugged into the motherboard and the power cable is plugged into the power supply, you wouldn’t believe how many people forget to plug in their computer. Many power supplies also have a power switch on them so check to make sure that no one accidentally or purposefully switched it off maybe for a prank. Check the fan to see if it is spinning at the correct speed and if it’s dusty vacuum it out. Determine if the power supply cables are giving out the right amount of voltage, if you computer will let you boot you should be able to check them in the BIOS menu to see if the correct voltages are being given. Normal power supplies give +3.3 volts DC, +5 volts DC, -5 volts DC, +12 volts DC, and -12 volts DC. 

Memory 

Faulty RAM can have many adverse effects on your system. Constant lockups, computer rebooting, memory error message (duh), system crashes, and sometimes refusing to boot up are all signs of memory errors. Though, these are also signs for motherboard, hard drive, and power supply problems too. Luckily for you if you think your memory is subject to causing a disruption in your system there are programs that can check the memory for it's performance and to see if it is generating any errors. 

Memtest86+ is an amazing memory diagnostic program. It is based off of the original Memtest86 that has been around since 1994 and is used by system-builders, average joes, and professionals in the IT world. It's a standalone memory check test which means it can be easily run without a bootable operating system, that's good if you can't just seem to get your PC started and want to rule out your memory as quickly as possible. 

How To Use Memtest86 With Your Floppy Drive To Test Your Memory 

First go their website at www.memtest.org and select the most appropriate version to download. You can download the bootable iso or the Pre-compiled floppy drive depending on whether you want burn a CD or use your floppy drive. We're going to go into details on floppy method. 

Open up the .zip and extract the files to a folder, then click on install.bat, you will be asked to “Enter target diskette drive:”. Type A and hit enter then it will ask you to insert a formatted diskette into drive A: and press -Enter-: after you hit enter it will write some files to your floppy so you can boot your computer with the floppy to test for errors. 

After the floppy has been formatted with Memtest86+, leave the floppy in your floppy drive and reboot your computer. Remember to set your floppy drive as the first boot device in your BIOS menu. 

The program will automatically load and perform the memory diagnostic tests on your computer. During the testing if there any errors they will show up and at the end of the test it will tell you how many errors you've had. 

After testing your memory if you receive any errors you should make sure that your memory is okay either by swapping it out and seeing the problems still occur or try your memory in another system. If the memory passes the tests then you proceed to troubleshoot something else with good faith that your memory is fine. 

Hard Drive 

The hard drive is that ultimate safe to everything important on your computer. It keeps all of your information, files and folders, music, videos, favorite websites, and programs. With a bad hard drive there's no reason to have a computer. In terms of fixing a computer if the hard drive isn't salvageable then most people don't even want to bother with the rest, because their computer is probably a piece of junk that has been handed down from time to time. Generally when a hard drive is about to fail it's usually years down the road from first acquiring the computer. So the next best option rather than replacing the drive is to just buy a new computer, or build a new one, because your old one sure is probably not running as fast as it used to. 

Luckily before your hard drive kicks the bucket there is usually a few warning signs: 

Abnormally slow file transfers 

Problems with booting, especially when Windows is being loaded 

Corrupted files 

Disappearing files or folders 

Loud hard drive noise is a good sign that there is a mechanical problem going on inside 

If your hard drive exhibits any of these signs be sure to transfer all of your files to another source immediately, and do not continue to do day-to-day activities with that hard drive. If it doesn't show any of these tell-tale signs, however you have a gut feeling that your hard drive is on the brink of destruction you can try using many different drive testing utilities available on the internet. The hard drive manufacturer usually has at least one qualified tool that you can download from their website and run. Other ways to check the health of your hard drive involves running the Windows Error Checking tool by right clicking on your hard drive in 'My Computer' then selecting 'Properties' and going to the 'Tool' and clicking on “Check Now”, or checking the SMART status located in your motherboard's BIOS. SMART stands for Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology. Most motherboards nowadays has this technology. It should be automatically enabled in your BIOS, if it's not then your hard drive won't get checked. What it does is on boot up it will perform quick tests on your hard drive to ensure it is running correctly and it will continue to monitor it for any errors or abnormal problems that may occur as long as the computer is turned on. 

Monitor 

Watching movies, videos, playing games, and looking at NSFW material are all amazing things we can do on our computers. Yet there may come a day where you just want to get on your computer and relax in your computer room looking at all that NSFW material you have bookmarked under the “Special Sites” category, but you can’t because your monitor won’t turn on. No, you don’t frump and punch holes in the walls to look for an outlet for your rage. You troubleshoot it, and hope to god that your monitor isn’t broken! 

When diagnosing a screen problem, half the time it’s usually something very easy, like a cable coming loose, or the monitor getting unplugged accidentally; unfortunately the other half the time it’s probably a problem that’s related to your monitor being old, or a problem that’s related to your graphics card instead. So you may have to diagnose both items at the same time to see which solves your problem. 

First, check all your cables, I know this is probably getting a little old with the checking connections and everything, but so many computer problems can be avoided if people just remember that their computer isn’t always going to stay the same way they left it. A foot could kick out a cable, a dog or a cat that got to curious, or almost anything can render half your hardware useless. 

After checking all your cables, make sure your screen has power, if it has power and shows a message such as “This monitor is working correctly please check your cable” and shows bars of color on the screen, that means that your monitor is not getting a signal from your computer. Try swapping out the monitor for another one to see if it still says that message. If it does then that means the problem is most likely something to do with your graphics card not seated in the motherboard, or just isn’t working properly, you may want to try swapping out another graphics card to see if that solves your problem. 

Generally monitors don’t have that many diagnosable problems. Either they work and they work well, or they don’t work and you have to replace them. When working on a monitor you should never open them, they aren’t meant to be serviced and contain high charged capacitors that hold lethal doses of electricity. We wouldn’t want to read about a computer guy in the obituaries now would we? 

Graphics Card 

The glorious graphics card, it’s an amazing thing really. It makes all those pretty HDR (High Dynamic Range) pictures look just that good, it keeps your games running smoothly, and your videos in HD. Yet these things can be pains when they’re just not working right, because if something is wrong there’s not a strict hardware or software solution, you have to analyze the current situation to see what’s up. 

First and foremost if you’re having any problems with your graphics card, probably the best thing to try to do first is see if there an updated driver for it at the manufacturer’s website that may solve the problem, or if there isn’t an update try uninstalling your graphics drivers and reinstalling them this little action can solve so many problems. 

If there’s little jaggies or weird colorful mishaps known as artifacts appearing on your screen you may want to check the temperature of your graphics and make sure is getting enough cooling, and that the fan is working properly. If the cooling checks out okay you may also want to check your power supply ratings to see if it is giving enough juice to your graphics card. Nowadays most graphics cards need a lot of power on the 12v rails, make sure your power supply can give you that power that the graphics card needs. 

Sound Card 

Some of the typical problems people have with sound cards is either A) no sound or B) no sound. Sounds card typically aren't very expensive so having to replace one if the current one isn't working is no big deal. However, if you're one of those audiophile types who expect 100% original recording quality with your $300 sound card replacing one of those is as expected a lot more harder to do. 

Sound Card Troubleshooting 

Check speaker cables make sure they're all connected and plugged into the right spot on your sound card. Also check the speaker's power cables. 

Make sure windows volume is turned up and the volume is not muted, also make sure that you have all the wave and playback volume turned up and not muted. If you have 'Digital Output Only' checked in your Advanced Controls for Playback Controls, try unchecking it to see if that solves your non-sound problem. I found that if I have that checked my sound card won't give me any sound. 

Try reinstalling your sound card drivers, also try checking on the internet at the manufacturer's website for any updated drivers that may be available. They increase your sound card's compatibility with your system. 

If the previous tips didn't help, then you may just have to replace your sound card, or atleast swap it out for another one to see if it might be a problem related to your sound card's connection to the motherboard instead. 

Processor 

The processor is the actual thinking part of the brain of the computer. It does all the calculations needed to make a computer run, and does them all in split second timing. It determines how fast your computer generally runs, and most of the time is a bottle neck for systems that have had everything upgraded except the CPU. 

If your processor’s not working, it’s not the end of the world, generally most processors that work correctly for a few weeks, should work correctly for the rest of it’s lifespan, which varies from 5-10 years or so. As long as you’re not overclocking the processor or letting it overheat too badly your processor should be fine, and it could just be a BIOS setting that’s messed up, or a jumper setting, but for kicks just check to make the processor is seated properly and the heat sink is attached to the processor and the motherboard. The heat sink should be attached tightly to the motherboard and not have room to move about, you should be able to pick up your motherboard by grabbing onto the heat sink without any problems. Check in your motherboard manual to make sure all the jumpers are set correctly for your type of processor. Any jumpers set incorrectly can cause the processor to not work, or function correctly or at it’s optimal speed. Also check the heat sink to see if it is cooling off the processor, if it’s not doing a very good job you may want to look into investing in a better one that gets the job done.