Wizard Wonky

Clear advice for technophobes

As I wrote this web site myself and have worked with computers for over 30 years - I thought I'd give you the benefit of my learning.

This can often be caused by overheating.
Without stripping the computer apart, the easiest solution is to fan the screen with a large book. About a minute should do.

This cools the screen output (you should see the reds and yellows be slightly dimmer and the blues intensify as it cools).

Water flows because one end is higher than the other. For electricity to work there also has to be a difference between the beginning of the circuit and the end. Cooling one end of the circuit (the screen) will, for instance, cool the other end (the computer) as it sucks heat through.

You know you typed correctly, yet the wrods seme tobe mispled!

This is actually a known computer fault (not always, obviously!)
The solution is to put a pencil or thin book under the back of the keyboard. This causes the electricity to trickle down to the front of the keyboard a little quicker.

Problem solved!

Slow down

For no known reason things suddenly slow down. Windows take several seconds to open, and so on. Now you know the reason - static.

Static electricity works the opposite way to ordinary electricity, and thus when present, slows it down.

The answer is to wear an anti-static band. You've seen them on the rear bumpers of cars so you don't get a shock when getting out. If you don't have a band, try a simple dog lead. Attach it to the wrist, or even better, to a collar around the neck.

It speeds up the computer considerably, especially in cloudy weather.

Typing

Help is at hand. Click here for a special Typing Tutor.