Your computer worked great when it was brand new, but over time has it become sluggish and finicky? It probably just needs some cleanup and maintenance to perform its best again. In this course, you'll learn how you can perk up your Windows XP computer by performing some basic file and application maintenance procedures, including virus detection, backup, error correction, and defragmenting. You'll also find out how to make problems less common in the future by avoiding internet-based scams that download performance-degrading software to your computer.

What Does Computer Maintenance Entail?

Computer maintenance consists not only of avoiding system problems, but also preparing for the possibility of problems happening anyway.

There are a few hardware-based things you can do to avoid problems, but these are mostly common sense like not putting your computer on a rickety table and not leaving a notebook computer unguarded in a crowded airport. This course focuses mainly on computer maintenance from a software perspective. You'll learn how to protect and improve your computer through a variety of utility applications.

Prerequisites

This course is designed for people who already have a basic knowledge of Windows XP and are interested in going to the next step. People taking this course should be comfortable running programs and managing files in Microsoft Windows (move, copy, delete, and so on).

If that describes you -- great! If not, consider taking a basic Windows XP course first or studying on your own with a book. There are many good ones; ask on the Message Board for a recommendation from your instructor and fellow classmates.

Windows XP Versions

One of the most common questions users have is, "Which version of Windows XP do I need for this class?" The answer: it doesn't matter. Any version is okay. A few of the utilities explained in this course are available only in Windows XP Professional, but you can work around them. There's no need to go out and buy an upgrade just to take this course.

This often begs the next question, "What's the difference between the versions?" Microsoft has a good article on its website called " Which Edition Is Right for You?" that explains the differences, but it's summarized here for your convenience. They're basically identical except that Windows XP Professional has some extra utilities and features. Most of these extras have to do with security and large-scale networking. Here are a few things you get with Professional only:

• Remote Desktop Connection: Allows you to connect to your Windows XP Professional computer from another computer on your network or on the internet.
• Microsoft Backup: Allows you to back up your computer.
• EFS (Encrypting File System): Allows you to encrypt files on an NTFS (NT file system) file system drive to keep other people from snooping.
• Connection to an Active Directory Network: Allows you to connect to a large-scale corporate network that uses Windows Active Directory.