Five quick & easy steps to give your PC a good Spring cleaning

By Rick Castellini, MCP Special to PRIME Spring has sprung and summer is nearly here. Along with your other spring cleaning chores, add these five computer cleaning techniques to keep your computer clean, cool, and healthy. PC cleaning guide: 1. Desktops: Unplug all of your cables (label them if necessary) and take the tower outside. Open up the side (usually thumb screws or a latch on the back of the computer) and blow the dust out of the system with a can of compressed air. You can get compressed air at any office or electronics store. I recommend starting from the top of the unit and moving towards the bottom, making sweeping motions from side to side. Pay particular attention to the vents on the case so your computer breathes well. Don't over spray the fans as you might cause damage by causing them to spin at too high a speed. You might have to repeat this procedure a few times until almost no dust is coming out of the computer. 2. Mice: If you are still using a mouse with a trac ball underneath it (aren't sure? Turn it over and look at it!), go to your nearest office super store, electronics store, even discount department stores such as WalMart or Target and spend $10-$20 on an Optical mouse. Since Optical mice use a beam of light to give the computer its location, thus there are no moving parts to get dirty. Except for an occasional wipe down of the mouse, no cleaning is necessary. However, if you want to hang on to your mouse using the little ball, you can and should clean it out a couple of times per year. Trac-ball mouse-cleaning steps 1. Turn it upside down 2. Remove the door holding the ball in place (usually twists) 3. Remove the ball and wipe with damp cloth 4. Get a cotton swab and rubbing alcohol or peroxide and wet the tip with the solution. 5. Use the moistened swab to clean the rollers (three of them) inside the mouse. You may even need tweezers to get out large chunks of lint. 6. Use a can of compressed air to blow out the mouse 7. Return the ball to the cavity and reattach the door. 3. Flat Panel monitors: Use a soft, cotton cloth dampened with just a little water to gently wipe your screen from side to side (gentle because the screen is not made of glass and can be damaged if you press too hard), then use the rag to wipe the back and base of your system. CRT users (big heavy monitors) can use the same technique, but they don't have to be as careful about pushing on the glass of the monitor. 4. Keyboards: Unhook it from your computer (if it's wired), then hold it upside down outside and use your compressed air can to blow out the crevices between all the keys. 5. Printers: You can use compressed air to blow the dust out of the inside of your printer, but like the computer, be careful about being too aggressive. You can also take that lightly dampened rag and dust off the outside and paper tray of your printer. Performing this kind of basic computer housekeeping can keep your computer from over-heating and allow it to perform at its maximum capacity. Remember, too, that computer equipment likes to breathe, so please don't leave your unit powered on and stuck under a desk or in a compartment where air flow is minimal. Now that your computer is nice and shiny, put off cleaning those windows until the fall! Rick Castellini is an author, computer consultant, and hosts a nationally syndicated computer radio show from Colorado. Visit his web site at www.HelpMeRick.com for new tips every week and sign up for his free weekly email newsletter. You can also follow Rick on Twitter @HelpMeRick