Computer Techs: Where no BSOD gets left behind...

[Weekly Post] New Tech Tuesday - September 08, 2015

Tue, 08 Sep 2015 10:04:03 +0000

What new technology, tech tool, or website are you excited about? Post it here.

submitted by AutoModerator
[link] [comment]

Where do I go to recycle old/broken parts?

Tue, 08 Sep 2015 19:29:13 +0000

Where would I go to in the SoCal area to recycle computer parts after doing repair jobs? I hate just tossing stuff if I can recycle it, even if no money is involved. Thanks!

submitted by MrsFinger
[link] [8 comments]

What is your hardware lifecycle?

Tue, 08 Sep 2015 18:03:22 +0000

Just wondering what your hardware lifecycle is for your users regarding laptop/desktops? I'm not looking for Servers. Just workstations.

submitted by Texaradan
[link] [12 comments]

[Meta] Reduce the number of automoderator threads

Tue, 08 Sep 2015 06:36:11 +0000

Checking the last 7 posts on the front page, there's a total of 7 comments.

I recommend once a week, Monday mornings, sticky it, and just make it a general chat thread.

submitted by Paul_Swanson
[link] [2 comments]

What's your best tutorial?

Tue, 08 Sep 2015 05:13:35 +0000

I finally am getting around to updating a web portal for my technicians for quick reference and for learning on how to do wiring and networking. What are the best references/tutorials/pictures/youtube guides you've seen/used?

We do everything from new construction wiring in phone, network, and cameras to Troubleshooting servers and desktops.

I've crosstrained my techs but some of them work primarily in one field and forget things when they have to do other fields. Hence the reason for a webportal with a collection of tutorials and guides and such

submitted by CbcITGuy
[link] [3 comments]

Using E2B to make a flash drive that can boot a bunch of windows and linux partitions (64GB Flash drive)

Mon, 07 Sep 2015 22:32:49 +0000

So I've been searching around on the net and can't figure out what the heck I'm supposed to do to set up my flash drive so that I can slap all my ISO's in and they will all work. Do I need two partitions for E2B? Can I use one? Do I just throw all the win7 ISO's in the WINDOWS/WIN7 folder while putting all my linux ISO's in the linux folder? The readme says something about making a MAINMENU folder but there's already a Linux folder and the whole thing is quite confusing.

At the least is there a nice comprehensive guide for the process? I was reading this one but it's very confusing. http://www.easy2boot.com/make-an-easy2boot-usb-drive/make-and-e2b-usb-drive-using-rmprepusb/

Edit: I posted below about how to properly do this, in case anyone ever googles and finds this reddit thread. https://www.reddit.com/r/computertechs/comments/3k0tbn/using_e2b_to_make_a_flash_drive_that_can_boot_a/cuu55c7

submitted by Klokinator
[link] [13 comments]

[Weekly Post] A Case of the Mondays - September 07, 2015

Mon, 07 Sep 2015 10:04:23 +0000

Tell everyone how your Monday is going. Please go to into excruciating detail.

submitted by AutoModerator
[link] [3 comments]

[Request] Public Domain Terms of Service + Privacy for Computer Repair and Other Services Rendered

Sun, 06 Sep 2015 23:55:14 +0000

Hello, due to the new culture of sue first, think never. I have become concerned that its a matter of time till I run into an individual who tries to sue me for lost files or something else.

So I've taken on the interesting task of compiling a terms of service agreement and privacy policy.

I do a fair amount of support over the internet for friends of friends and family and consulting locally.

However, I think I need some protection to avoid any issues, I had a bit of scare recently with someone threatening action.

I was originally, just going to copy and paste a policy online. However, my patent lawyer friend was kind enough to tell me that is a copyright violation.

Does anyone have an public domain legalese document that would work in Canada & America?

Thanks.

P.S I do not wish to pay a lawyer X dollars to do this for me. Even if it means a more lengthily litigation in the future.

submitted by OSPFv3
[link] [4 comments]

[Weekly Post] Lazy Sunday - September 06, 2015

Sun, 06 Sep 2015 10:04:00 +0000

Take a load off. What are you doing to relax today?

submitted by AutoModerator
[link] [1 comment]

[Weekly Post] Freaky Saturday - September 05, 2015

Sat, 05 Sep 2015 10:03:39 +0000

What weird tech stuff happened to you this week?

submitted by AutoModerator
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Email Apocolypse!

Fri, 04 Sep 2015 03:05:14 +0000

We used to spend our time fixing computers and occasionally we would respond to a few emails. Innocent emails from clients that would usually turn into more billable work. Now however, we spend our time answering emails and occasionally we will fix a computer.

How do you deal with the onslaught of emails in a repair environment? It seems that every time we respond to an email it just creates more.

submitted by Likelyedible
[link] [9 comments]

Moving away from the repair shop world

Thu, 03 Sep 2015 17:52:39 +0000

I've been working at repair shops since I was 21 (now 26) and it's a fun job, I enjoy working with computers but just hit a point where it's fairly stagnant. I would rather be building up crazy machines instead of fixing an infected XP machine or yet another HP machine that's overheating..

I'm one of two techs in a small shop that's been here for 25 years. Great shop. Just making the $30k a year mark hurts in an area where you need $45k just to live. I make decent cash on the side by doing jobs for local companies on my spare time to ease it.

Where should I try to go next? Help desk? I hate active directory lol

submitted by Bver
[link] [38 comments]

'Eurosoft PC-Check' diagnostics users - reliable?

Thu, 03 Sep 2015 19:07:37 +0000

OK, this is an odd one. Mods: please delete this post if it's not appropriate. Thanks.

I have a client with a 6-month old Lenovo. Working happily with Win7 a few days ago, they upgraded to Win10 and decided it wasn't right for them (slow, buggy) and reverted. Then things started to get weird: stalling, sluggishness, pretty much the non-fatal signs of a failing spinning disk drive.

They took it into a high street repair store who ran PC-Check on the laptop. After less than 15 minutes of diagnostics testing it came back with a hard drive read verify failure and a motherboard DMA failure. The total bill was 20GBP (~30USD) and a complimentary photo of the diagnostics errors. There was no hard sell from the repair store, despite them being well-known for it around this area.

The warranty is still good, so it's being RMA'd, but I've never used PC-Check before. Actually, scratch that, never even heard of it before today. It looks like pretty standard diagnostic software, but I'm curious if anyone here has used it before and has some real-world feedback from it.

Thanks in advance.

submitted by pete-cooper
[link] [10 comments]

How much should I charge for data acquisition?

Thu, 03 Sep 2015 13:20:35 +0000

Client wants the Ashley Madison leak data for "analysis." I could easily get it in an SQL database form. How much should I charge them for the ~10GB?

submitted by Leete1
[link] [10 comments]

[Weekly Post] Triumphant Thursday - September 03, 2015

Thu, 03 Sep 2015 10:03:55 +0000

What have you accomplished this week? What conundrum(s) have you vanquished?

submitted by AutoModerator
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Unsupervised IT staff, how do you make your boss know you're actually working?

Wed, 02 Sep 2015 23:03:52 +0000

As office IT staff, sometimes our work can be easily overlooked, we often receive multiple cases and don't keep logs on them.

Our work can be easily overlooked, specially when things start functioning properly. So /r/computertechs, how do you do it?

submitted by lazyfinger
[link] [65 comments]

Help with Repair Business

Wed, 02 Sep 2015 20:09:02 -0700

I know everyone is probably tired of the business help threads but I haven't been able to find much help on this problem I'm having. I live in a DC suburb and there aren't any computer repair shops, only staples and best buy. I'm trying to start a computer repair business but I have had no luck yet. I've printed flyers, business cards, and I have a website with an email at that domain name. I have everything set up but I can't find any customers. I've put flyers in neighborhoods, and I've gone door to door. Generally speaking the results of door-to-door have been either "wow thanks!" or "my spouse is in IT but thank you". Still, there has to be demand out there. I'd love to run a repair business/help desk, it's my dream job (for now) and a lot better than the job I work now. I'm just looking for ideas here. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Other info: I am almost 18 which does put me at a disadvantage, but I am 100% confident with my skills and have been doing computer repair for family and friends for upwards of 4-5 years.

submitted by hotdinner
[link] [10 comments]

(advice) Chinese Brand Cell Phones

Wed, 02 Sep 2015 14:24:27 +0000

Does anyone here have any experience buying/importing cell phones? I live in a smallish town and am looking for way to expand my revenue. Cheapish cell phones would likely sell well in this area due to a lot of low income families and retired people looking for a simple, basic phone.

I've looked at alibaba but there are just far too many scams going on in that place.

Quantities will be slow to start, so I can't use anything that requires 20+ minimums, eventually yes but not to start.

If there is a better place for me to post this please let me know! I trust this community and although we are computer techs, I'm sure a few of us dabble in phones and tablets as well.

I've seen a few people recommend Aliexpress.com, any experience with them?

submitted by scuzbot2
[link] [20 comments]

Programming or Cybersecurity?

Tue, 01 Sep 2015 18:00:56 +0000

I'm at a point in my college career where I need to stop being a sissy and declare a major already. So, based purely on job security, income bracket, and market saturation, which would be a good choice for me in the long run? Programming or cybersecurity? I know I would enjoy both, but what is a smarter decision? Please, all biased opinions are certainly accepted.

I figured i'd ask the group of people who would know the best. Don't downvote me into oblivion <3

submitted by xsp4rrow
[link] [14 comments]

Running CHKDSK /r Outside of the OS Without Install Disc

Tue, 01 Sep 2015 14:16:16 +0000

From time to time I have to run a chkdsk on a windows disk from outside the OS for one reason or another and typically I just use the windows installation CD (vista, 7, 8, etc) and use the command prompt to run a chkdsk /r

I was curious if anyone knew of a tool that would simplify this process where I didn't have to find the correct OS disc to get to the command prompt to run the chkdsk. Would a tool like Hirens in Mini XP allow me to run a full /r on the drive, or is using the windows install disc the best method?

submitted by 0mega5upreme
[link] [17 comments]

[Weekly Post] New Tech Tuesday - September 01, 2015

Tue, 01 Sep 2015 03:02:32 -0700

What new technology, tech tool, or website are you excited about? Post it here.

submitted by AutoModerator
[link] [comment]

E-Learning Deals for us techies.

Tue, 01 Sep 2015 06:05:44 +0000

submitted by pocketdrummer
[link] [8 comments]

creating a Windows 10 generalized image for use on PCs that have been upgraded from 7 or 8

Mon, 31 Aug 2015 22:05:59 +0000

Our shop uses a generalized image for system repairs: one each for XP Home, Pro, Vista Home, Business, etc etc etc.

Our hangup right now is on creating a W10 image that will activate in the following scenario:

End user has W7 or W8
End user upgrades to W10
we need to reimage the PC for them

We know that just USB installing W10 will activate, because MS recognizes the hardware ID or whatever.

However, if we try to reimage with our generalized W10 image, when it goes through OOBE it doesn't seem to "do the right thing," and recognize that it is a previously upgraded PC.

Any thoughts?

submitted by kqkrqi
[link] [9 comments]

How to disable startup programs - Advanced Autoruns Tutorial

Tue, 01 Sep 2015 03:19:56 +0000

submitted by paxamime
[link] [3 comments]

Recovering Office Product Key after factory reset

Tue, 01 Sep 2015 01:17:30 +0000

Recently I decided to do a factory reset on a laptop I had just upgraded from windows 8 to windows 10. I wanted to be back to a factory-fresh installation, but soon afterwards realised I had made a very stupid mistake, since the office installation which came with the laptop now requires me to enter the product key (Home and Student 2013), which I have lost.

I have however in the past used key finder software on my laptop, and so I know the license number of my license, and the last 5 digits of the product key. However, when I contacted both Microsoft and Asus neither of them proved very helpful

Does anybody know of any methods or tools to find the product key of office 2013 for a certain serial number, or perhaps if there may be a way to recover it from the now reset operating system? Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

I suppose I may have to use LibreOffice otherwise, which seems decent except for the inevitable compatibility headaches with the rest of the world using Microsoft.

Note: The PC is now as it was from the factory, meaning there is a program installed where I would enter the product key. I've lost the product key though, so I can't re activate my license.

submitted by kitkatorangepro
[link] [4 comments]

I want to get into IT or become a Repair Technician but I have a big question for all of you in the field

Mon, 31 Aug 2015 02:07:23 +0000

Hello, I am thirty in a dead end job looking to make a life change. I only have a high school diploma and I am currently studying to take the A+ exam. My question is should I enroll in a four year school, go to a school for 30,000 that is only one year and gives me a certificate, or should I keep studying on my own and taking the exams like A+ or become a certified Microsoft professional and then apply to local business or repair shops. I have a decent amount of computer knowledge but I think hands on I would soak it in like a sponge. Those in the field what does your hiring department look for, what should I do to help me get a foot in the door. Is a four year school or expensive one year certificate course the wrong way to go about it now a days? Please respond and thank you so much for your time. I hope this is the right thread.

submitted by BazaCNN
[link] [64 comments]

Computer Techs: Where no BSOD gets left behind...

[Weekly Post] New Tech Tuesday - September 08, 2015

Where do I go to recycle old/broken parts?

What is your hardware lifecycle?

[Meta] Reduce the number of automoderator threads

What's your best tutorial?

Using E2B to make a flash drive that can boot a bunch of windows and linux partitions (64GB Flash drive)

[Weekly Post] A Case of the Mondays - September 07, 2015

[Request] Public Domain Terms of Service + Privacy for Computer Repair and Other Services Rendered

[Weekly Post] Lazy Sunday - September 06, 2015

[Weekly Post] Freaky Saturday - September 05, 2015

Email Apocolypse!

Moving away from the repair shop world

'Eurosoft PC-Check' diagnostics users - reliable?

How much should I charge for data acquisition?

[Weekly Post] Triumphant Thursday - September 03, 2015

Unsupervised IT staff, how do you make your boss know you're actually working?

Help with Repair Business

(advice) Chinese Brand Cell Phones

Programming or Cybersecurity?

Running CHKDSK /r Outside of the OS Without Install Disc

[Weekly Post] New Tech Tuesday - September 01, 2015

E-Learning Deals for us techies.

creating a Windows 10 generalized image for use on PCs that have been upgraded from 7 or 8

How to disable startup programs - Advanced Autoruns Tutorial

Recovering Office Product Key after factory reset

I want to get into IT or become a Repair Technician but I have a big question for all of you in the field

How to disable startup programs - Advanced Autoruns Tutorial