I write regular computer repair articles for various blogs and publications across the internet. In fact, I write much more for other blogs than I do for my own one here. Recently I've written a number of posts describing jobs I've undertaken for various clients here in Brisbane, Ipswich, Logan and the Redlands. I published one of these here on my blog under the title Help! My Computer's Full of Junk. That particular post was about my clean-up of a computer in Forest Lake which had been crippled by junk software and was struggling under the weight of multiple installed antivirus packages.
Read on for descriptions of some other recent challenges. Perhaps one of these will strike a chord with you relating to an issue you've been having with your own computer.
No WiFi on Mac
A client in Mount Cotton had lost the WiFi functionality on her MacBook. Right from the beginning I was fairly convinced that the internal WiFi hardware had failed. Nevertheless I carried out a comprehensive troubleshooting procedure. In the end I concluded that the WiFi hardware had indeed failed and that the easiest solution would be for the client to purchase a USB WiFi adapter.
Read all about it in my article Top 8 Ways to Fix WiFi Not Working on Mac Computer.
Problems with Microsoft 365 on a Mac
This one was a Mac issue of a completely different variety. The client in Carbrook was having difficulties with using the AutoSave feature when using Microsoft Word on her MacBook Air. In theory, as long as you're saving your files to OneDrive, the AutoSave feature should be exactly what it says - automatic. Unfortunately, as is often the case with computer issues, things weren't functioning as they were supposed to.
You can read the full details of this particular job in my article Problems With AutoSave Using Microsoft 365 On A Mac.
Random Computer Shutdowns
Computers which shut down randomly are frustrating to work with. They're also frustrating for the computer repair professional, particularly if the issue is intermittent and unpredictable. I found myself troubleshooting one of these recently for clients in Springwood. I'm happy to say that, after eliminating various potential causes, I was able to home in on the solution fairly quickly.
Check out my article Help! My Computer Keeps Shutting Down for a full write-up on the steps undertaken on this job.
Locked Out of Computer
A client in Wishart contacted me because he'd forgotten his PIN and was locked out of his computer as a result. I would normally be able to regain access for a client within a few minutes. However, that's assuming things behave as they are supposed to. Unfortunately, in this particular case, there seemed to be a glitch in Windows which prevented me from solving the issue right away. I had to jump through a few more hoops than usual, but the client was soon able to log back in to his computer.
Though I don't want to give away too many trade secrets, you might find some pointers in my article Locked Out of Windows 10, should you ever find yourself in a similar situation.
Upgrading an Old Computer
One of my most common jobs is to carry out some sort of upgrade on an older computer. Most commonly this would be an upgrade of the hard drive to an SSD. I've also carried out plenty of operating system upgrades, most commonly from Windows 7 to Windows 10.
I had a call from a client in Algester a couple of weeks ago, who wanted to upgrade an old Windows XP computer to Windows 10. The slowness of the old computer proved to be a major obstacle. Read all about it in my article Battles With Upgrading An Older Computer To Windows 10.
Problem Solved Using Disk Check
A previous Sydney client texted me a couple of weeks ago, saying, ‘Sound problems. No sound wit vlc video or windows player. Printer same as your last fix. Can you help please? What I thought would be a quick fix turned into a significantly longer session before the issue was resolved. Fortunately I was able to dip in and out of the job as it progressed as I was carrying it out remotely using the AnyDesk remote desktop software.
Following this job, I wrote a post entitled Rescued by Check Disk (chkdsk). It was an appropriate title as the solution to the problem was not something I would have foreseen at the outset.
As you can see, Norm's Computer Services is involved in resolving quite a variety of issues. These include hardware and software issues, and both Mac and Windows computer problems.
Whatever sort of problem you're having with your computer, please don't hesitate to get in touch. I'm here to help, whether you’re in Brisbane, or anywhere in the City of Ipswich, Logan City or the Redlands.