The Mendip transmitter will be switching form analogue to digital in 2 stages commencing the 24th March 2010 and the final switch over the 7th April, At Bristol and Bath Home Computers we have experienced flat panel (Plasma, LCD and LED) TV engineers at hand to help you prepare for the switch over.

We can visit you to check out your television setup and advise any changes that may be required to minimise the loss off your television enjoyment.

You can opt for a visit in the near future to make sure you are adequately prepared, advising you how to retune your TV set and DVD recorder when the two switch-over dates are reached.

We can also visit you after each of the switch-over dates are reached to retune the set for you.

Our costs for a visit from our professionally trained and experienced engineers (Not monkeys who have tuned in their own TV’s at home) are as follows.

Option 1/* Home visit at a time to suit (subjection to availability) prior to switch-over to advise you how to easily tune your set and DVD recorder £35 for your first set and £5 for each additional set.

Option 2/* Home visit at a time to suit (subjection to availability) to tune in your TV and DVD recorder soon after the digital switch-over (either date) £30 for the first set and £5 for each additional set.

Option3/* Home visit at a time to suit (subjection to availability) to tune in your TV and DVD recorder soon after the digital switch-over (both dates) £50 for the first set and £5 for each additional set.

* All options will include a free appraisal of your set-up and advice as to what if any other equipment may be required.

We are already heavily booked so contact us now to ensure you do not miss any of the programs you enjoy to watch.

We have reduced our hourly rate to £30 an hour so you can have the experience of our expertise at a price competitive to your local computer shop.

We will be introducing fixed price repairs, installs and upgrades for most desktop computers and more than competitive fees for laptop, notebook and netbook repairs.

Also in the pipeline is an insurance type repair contract for your computer offering you peace of mind for as little as £3.99 a month.

Watch this space for more information as it becomes available or contact us for more details on the above mentioned services.

On one day I had 3 customers allowing strangers to use their phone to do just that, they were not aware of it but they were doing it none the less, you may think it will never happen to you, but are you sure? you will not see this stranger, he is invisible, he can enter when ever he wants, he makes no sound has no odour but he can ring up a telephone bill for potentially more than you earn in a month in just a few days.

Have I scared you? good, be afraid, be very afraid, it could quite easily be you next, but hey, do not despair, there are things you can do to prevent it.

Ok this stranger I talk about is not a human, it is a computer program, it is invited into your computer from a website that you found, maybe on Google search engine, maybe your son visited websites that teach him about life in a rather graphic way, perhaps you received a email from a Russian ambassador offering to give you millions of dollars in a rather shifty bank transfer, however you get it it can be very expensive.

Do not despair there is a way to get around this problem and it needn’t be expensive, this hidden visitor is not a Virus as such, it is spyware, I always thought it was a trojan but names change as time goes by all the various threats all seam to cross borders as what type of the threat it is called but the fact is it is a very serious threat.

Most people now have broadband and the spyware dialler should not affect you, it may try to use your modem to dial an expensive premium rate service, but having broadband it will not succeed and not cost you anything, unless, you forget about the dial up modem and leave it connected, this was the case in 2 out of the 3 customers on the same day, the spyware set up an email account on one of the computers and could in theory dial when it wanted, as it happened it didn’t and the users telephone bill was not affected, lucky escape if you ask me.

Don’t rely on luck remove your modem cable from the telephone socket now.

On each of these sites I installed PC Tools spyware doctor, there is a free version that I could demonstrate the infections already on the customers computer, there were 128 threats on one of them, diallers as mentioned, Hijackers, and a host of other nasties.

The reason I chose PC tools is because when I was starting out in my Computer Career, when MSDOS 3.1 was new and Microsoft Windows 3.0 was a high tech interface, PC Tools were there making many of the DOS utilities easy to use and some other amazing DOS based commands, I wish I could remember what they were, I have grown up with PC Tools, I haven’t used them much since the DOS days but it has become a name I have grown to trust, there are many anti spyware programs that are in fact spyware themselves that I decided to go with a company that I knew its roots.

The installation was straight forward on each machine but there was a clash with one who was using AVG anti-virus, for a small extra charge they upgraded the spyware engine from PC tools to include anti-virus.

If you have a problem with your computer that you can not explain, perhaps you get a sales message popping up every few minutes, your phone bill is sky high or your browser keeps going to pron sites, download a free copy of this program and scan your computer, if you find any threats you can decide to buy the product and remove them or hope that you don’t get a £500 telephone bill, pray that you don’t have money moved from your bank account to an obscure Russian bank account.

How much does it cost to fix my computer? that is a question that most people ask when they contact us here at Bristol and Bath Home Computers! for about 75% of our customers that contact us it is FREE, we can and will fix your computer FREE for 75% of our callers, that is a fact.

Why and how can we afford to do that?

The simple reason is if we do not need to visit you for a repair we will not charge you, if we decide you need a visit to rectify your problem you can rest assured that the only way to fix your computer is if we come and have a look, we do not and will not pay you a visit if we can talk you through rectifying your problem over the phone.

If you have a problem with your computer give us a ring, you may well be one of the 75%, if your not then you choose if you want us to visit you and correct your problem.

If you want someone to come and have a look and hopefully repair your computer there are many people who can do that, most offer a no repair no fee option.
If you want someone to come around and repair your computer then call us, we do not need the no repair no fee option, with us failure is not an option we can fix it!

You do not want different engineers coming to your door you want one who can fix it.

You can call us for any reason, to help remedy a fault, for advice on purchasing, or just a computer chat, we are a local Bristol number and eager to help, call Steve 0117 9071966.

The companies that refill cartridges have had many years of practice and now I have every faith that their cartridges are as good if not better than the original cartridges, the companies are still trading and the use of remanufactured cartridges has increased, most companies offer guarantees about their products so you are sure to get a good deal, the price of remanufactured cartridges is so much cheaper than the originals that even getting a few bad cartridges you will have saved the cost of the printer after just a few cartridge changes, that’s like getting a free printer after every few cartridge changes.

I have been doing some checks and the company below appears to offer the best deals, if you find otherwise let me know in a comment and I will change the recommended supplier.

I have covered the dangers inside a computer, I have also covered the precautions that our engineers take when working inside your equipment, now I will give you some information about how you can work inside your computer with relative safety.

If you have read our previous posts you will be aware that there is little inside a computer that can harm you and that there is more chance of you damaging your computer, I will first cover aspects to protect your computer and then how to protect you.

Protecting your computer
It would make sense to explain how to protect yourself first after all you are far more important than a computer, the reason I do it this way is so you minimise damage to the computer while you are putting into effect your personal protection measures.

Static is a major contributing factor in the breakdown of computers, eliminating the damage from ESD (Electrostatic Discharge) can not only save money by not needing to purchase replacement components but also the annoyance of not being able to use the computer, this is a pain for for the home gamer but has more financial consequences for business users.

For the home computer repair amateur a static strap is essential, for the professional a static mat is preferable but the less conscientious engineer would only use a strap, Anti-static straps can cost very little around £5 but can save an enormous amount of money in the long run.

The following product is ideal for the occasional upgrade of your own computer.

This product is ideal for the more enthusiastic home computer hobbyist and essential for the computer professional.

The use of electrostatic straps and mats
Its a good idea to attach a strap to the computer before opening the case, I find a convenient spot being the fan grill, take care not to put the clip in too far in case you switch the computer on later and it prevents the fan from moving, using a mat, stand the computer on part of the mat attach the clip to the computer again the fan spot is ideal, try to avoid removing the strap while you are working on the computer.

When working on your computer and you remove a component, that can be a video card, hard disk or cpu etc never put the item down on the table, carpet and especially do not put it on top of an anti-static bag, it can be safely put down on the computer case because that is at the same potential as the component and you, if you use a mat items can be put down on the mat without risk of damage.

Never use a normal vacuum cleaner to clean dust from a computer, doing so will dramatically degrade your components, normal vacuums cause a great deal of static and putting this near a computer is almost guaranteed to degrade or destroy your system.

Physical connections in a computer are normally keyed so they only go in 1 way, sometimes it takes pressure to push the connection in, if it does need pressure you must ensure that it is the correct way around as using pressure on an incorrectly keyed plug will sometimes make it fit and can cause damage when power is applied.

Always handle components by the edges or expansion slot metal bracket, do not touch any integrated circuits or edge connectors on the board with bare board.

Ensure the power cord is removed, switched off or power is isolated on the power supply before removing any components, use of the power button on the front of the computer is not sufficient to isolate all power from the internal components.

Protecting you
Computers can have sharp edges, the case edges and internal components can pose a danger and is well worth looking out for before commencing any activity inside, attach your anti-static strap then check out the edge of the case, take cover off and check around the casing for sharp metal edges, any sharp metal places can be protected with the use of insulating tape, the metal case is earthed to prevent electromagnetic radiation and interference to other equipment try to avoid insulating the side panel or case top.

Removing components can require some force, ensure you will not damage your hands when removing tightly fixed components when they come free if possible use a flat blade screwdriver to break the seal before removing components.

I have set this post up as a list of testimonials from our customers.

If anyone has used our services please leave a comment with your experiences.

I am currently working on an amazing scheme where you can receive low cost computer repairs reducing our hourly rate buy a staggering 33%, to qualify for this unbelievable scheme will only involve a small amount of commitment from you, if you are fortunate enough to live within 10 miles of our offices (All Bath and Bristol included) you are entitled to register for this scheme, if you are outside the 10 mile zone the scheme is still available but there will be a small call out fee.

This is a trial scheme and may at any stage be discontinued however all customers already registered for the scheme will benefit from the savings for as long as your computer breathes life, ensure you are registered by either leaving your contact details as a comment or email amazingoffer@milsom.biz for more details, do it today to avoid disappointment.

Remember many companies have a no fix no fee policy,

We don’t need that, WE CAN FIX IT!!!!