Proper Use Of The Computer

Proper Use of the Computer

iSchools Project Team HUMAN CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT GROUP Commission on Information and Communications Technology

Health Concerns • eyestrain • head, shoulder, neck, and back pains • hand and wrist injuries

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Proper Workstation Design 1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6.

Position in a well-ventilated room Use an adjustable workstation: ergonomic computer chairs Place the monitor 16 to 24 inches away, at eye level or slightly at a lower angle; tilt the monitor or adjust the light source; adjust the brightness and contrast settings Use extendable/retractable legs of the keyboard Mouse must be easily accessible by your dominant hand Use a document holder to minimize vertical head movements 3

Good Posture 1. Sit up straight. Feet flat on the floor, use a footrest if needed. •

position your lower arms parallel with the floor and level to your keyboard, with elbows at your side

2. Keep wrists straight vs. carpal tunnel syndrome 3. Do not lean into the monitor but sit close enough to the keyboard and the mouse to stay relaxed. 4

Good Working Habits 1. Tap on the keys/mouse buttons gently 2. Avoid long, uninterrupted periods of typing – Take short stretch breaks, ideally every 20 minutes, to prevent fatigue

3. Avoid staring at the monitor for long periods – Take vision breaks: focus on objects at least 20 feet away – Do eye exercises

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Proper Care of the Computer

Computer = Investment! Hardware Software Maintenance Supplies 6

Power Surges 1. Use an Automatic Voltage Regulator (AVR) 2. Unplug your system during lightning storms, even if it is surge protected. 3. Disconnect from the Internet during lightning storms to protect modems. 4. Avoid octopus connections. 7

Basic Troubleshooting • Do not panic! • Create a boot disk / startup disk. • If the computer hangs or is acting weird: – Ctrl+Alt+Delete to bring up the Task List. – Do a manual reboot or shut down the computer and turn it back on after at least 10 seconds. – Avoid by not opening too many apps simultaneously. 8

Basic Troubleshooting •

If a hardware component is not functioning well or not functioning at all: 1. examine the power button, power cords, cables, and connectors 2. try rebooting so that the computer can detect the hardware 3. call the lab technician for a replacement hardware component. 9

Basic Troubleshooting • • •

mouse or the keyboard not functioning well: usually due to dust and dirt “Non-system disk” message: check if diskette is inserted in the disk drive drive has difficulty reading storage device: ask the lab technician to examine and clean the drive

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Basic Troubleshooting •

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“safe mode”: generally due a corrupted operating system, or bad sectors in the hard disk, or having a non-compatible hardware connected - use the system utilities to try and fix the problem printer not functioning properly: use the Printer Properties – Maintenance tab scan for viruses

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Basic Troubleshooting • •

final resort: contact your vendor in case your unit is still under warranty. If not, then contact the local computer shop or the lab technician Never try to tinker with the internal hardware unless you have undergone special training on computer maintenance.

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System Utilities • Error-checking vs. bad sectors • Defragmentation to increase the speed of access and retrieval. • System Backup for easy restoration in the event of a system crash or failure. • Disk Cleanup to free up space on the hard disk. 13

Regular File Back-ups •

to portable storage devices like CDs, flash drives, and diskettes – for easy retrieval of files vs. accidental file deletion, a system crash, or hardware failure – take care of storage devices: keep away from heat, moisture, and magnetic fields like phones, and speakers 14

federlvoice.dcc.dla.mil www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au www.winnpsb.org/dhs/troubleshooting/bct.htm Microsoft Help feature Tan, Computing for Life Book A. FNB Publications, 2005.

Commission on Information and Communications Technology