多年前，当我在一家电子商店修理电脑时，我很喜欢被视为某种魔术师。其他人不知道维修电脑有多容易，这让我在维修店(repair shop)忙得不可开交。从那以后我在互联网(Internet)旅行中看到的情况来看，人们仍然对尝试自己解决计算机问题持谨慎态度。这就是为什么我怀着极大的兴趣为傻瓜选择了故障排除和维护您的 PC 一体机。(Troubleshooting & Maintaining Your PC All-In-One for Dummies)这本书会不会是让简单的电脑维修“猫”出局的书？
“周日(Sunday)六种方式”解决问题
这本书承诺是“六本书合一”。“六本书”（实际上是一本相当大的书的六个部分）是硬件、软件、笔记本电脑、互联网、网络(Hardware, Software, Laptops, Internet, Networking,)和维护(Maintenance)。每个问题都从最常见问题的概述开始，然后详细描述每个问题，并提供找出实际问题的说明。然后，本书将引导读者完成解决方案，并且在大多数情况下，该过程听起来(process sound)很简单，以至于大多数人都不会害怕尝试一下。与所有傻瓜(Dummies)书一样，语气轻松愉快。作者丹·古金(Dan Gookin)在该系列中写了很多书，他在幽默和严肃的信息之间取得了平衡。而且，由于本书涵盖了许多重要的信息，这确实有助于使读者轻松进入该过程。克服对把事情弄得比现在更糟的恐惧是进行自己的计算机维修的最重要的一步，并且在您面前有明确的指示对于给新的计算机维修人员信心大有帮助(computer repair person confidence)。
最多的问题，最多的解决方案
正如人们所预料的那样，硬件(Hardware)和软件(Software)章节是本书中最大的章节。每章都有针对常见问题的小节，并从概述应该发生的事情和可能出现的问题开始。硬件部分以名为(Hardware)“Let There Be PC”的章节开始，该章节分为几个部分，对常见问题进行快速概述。这些部分中的每一个都有标题为“发生了什么”("What happens")和“什么可能出错”的章节。("What can go wrong.")这些介绍性章节为读者指出了本书后面的更详细信息。这是一个非常有用的资源，它使找到解决方案变得非常容易。然后故障排除和维护您的 PC All-In-One for Dummies(Troubleshooting & Maintaining Your PC All-In-One for Dummies)非常合乎逻辑地解释了您的计算机无法打开的原因，并引导读者完成可能的非侵入性修复（例如确保电源线(power cord)已插入，这是几乎每个人，无论多么有经验，都至少遇到过一次）。然后它逐渐进入操作系统问题、关机问题、存储问题、视频问题以及外围设备可能遇到的许多问题。直到第 145 页，这本书才暗示可能是打开电脑机箱(computer case)的时候了，让读者在此过程中建立一些信心。一旦“哦，天哪，我必须打开机箱”问题得到解决，解决电缆松动的问题，热量积聚(heat buildup)和电源(power supply)似乎很简单。这本书还解释了如何添加更多的内存、更多的卡和更多的存储空间，所有这些都是简单的任务，对新手来说可能看起来很可怕。
根据我的电脑维修(computer repair)经验，软件问题似乎比硬件问题更容易让人发疯，这是有充分理由的。尽管微软(Microsoft)尽了最大的努力，但Windows的行为并不总是像我们大多数人认为的那样，而且微软(Microsoft)的程序员似乎喜欢那些过于神秘而无法理解或无法告诉你真正问题所在的错误消息. 软件(Software)部分对每个常见问题采取谨慎、合理、逐步的方法(step approach)，这绝对是思考问题的最佳方式。它引导用户了解程序、进程和服务等计算机术语，并解释了(computer jargon)安全模式(Safe Mode)以及如何使用它，然后很好地向读者展示了如何成为一个高效的疑难解答者。它处理用户帐户和用户帐户控制(User Account Control)、系统资源和数据恢复，然后处理注册表(Registry)。我觉得很奇怪的是，几页关于编辑注册表(Registry)的说明以一个严厉的警告结尾，不要弄乱它。这是一个很好的警告，但为什么要告诉人们如何弄乱注册表(Registry)（即使有先备份它的说明）然后说不要这样做(Don't Do It)？尽管软件(Software)部分确实涉及其他版本的Windows，但其主要关注点是Windows 7，坦率地说，我认为仅此部分就值这本书的价格。
想小，想大
笔记本电脑(Laptops)部分的排列顺序与前几节相同，首先是笔记本电脑常见的电源和启动问题。(power and startup issues)它讨论了热量积聚(heat buildup)和可能导致的问题，并提到了可能有用的冷却设备。Windows Mobility Center上有一个部分，这是我在阅读本书之前不知道存在的部分，但从现在开始会定期检查。
有关于购买笔记本电脑包的建议，以及旅行时要采取的明智预防措施，以及关于笔记本电脑维护的一小部分，在这种情况下，这主要是指在不造成损坏的情况下清理东西。虽然它谈到购买更多内存和更大的硬盘驱动器，但并没有详细说明这些东西是如何安装的。我认为要么应该对这些硬件更新的完成方式有一个通用的解释，要么应该警告将这些事情留给有经验的技术人员。一些制造商比其他制造商更容易更换内存和硬盘驱动器(drive replacement)，笔记本电脑用户应该意识到这一点。
网络困境及其他
互联网(Internet)部分相当短，但包含有用的建议。我特别喜欢关于宽带调制解调器的部分。许多互联网连接(Internet-connection)问题都可以通过一些有关调制解调器的知识来解决，本节可以节省大量时间和(time and frustration)尝试接通ISP呼叫中心(call center)的麻烦。许多人会认为这值得这本书的成本。还有一个很长的部分描述了拨号连接的常见问题，这也很值得一读。我也喜欢关于如何 ping 的描述，其他可以让您领先ISP 呼叫中心一步的内容(call center). 对一整套常见的浏览器问题都有很好的清晰描述，但不幸的是，这些问题仅限于Internet Explorer，没有任何迹象表明相同的通用技术是否也适用于其他浏览器。随着Firefox和Chrome的日益流行，我认为这两个至少值得一提。至少关于电子邮件的部分保持相当通用，我认为这是一个加号。有一个很好的部分解释了恶意软件以及一个人最有可能获得它的方式，以及如果你发现自己遇到麻烦该怎么做的很好的可靠建议。不过，避免网络钓鱼的说明应再次提及(Again)Internet Explorer以外的内容。上的部分Windows Defender主要针对Windows 7用户，尽管作者为使用Windows Vista 和 Windows XP的人们提供了一个(Windows Vista and Windows XP)URL ，以查找他们从Microsoft中免费获得的软件版本。还有一节专门介绍使用Windows 资源管理器(Windows Explorer)进行 ftp 访问，但老实说，过去曾尝试过，我希望作者提到了一些很棒的免费 ftp 客户端，其中大多数更易于使用。网络(Networking)部分也主要针对Windows 7(Windows 7)用户，但有针对Windows Vista 和 Windows XP 用户(Windows Vista and Windows XP users)的明确说明。故障排除和维护您的 PC All-In-One for Dummies(Troubleshooting & Maintaining Your PC All-In-One for Dummies)详细介绍了在连接和维护家庭网络(home network)时可能遇到的所有问题，并且应该是一个主要的节省时间和保持一切顺利运行的全方位资源。
维护等
维护(Maintenance)部分详细介绍了有关制作备份和从中恢复的详细信息，这些都是需要阅读的。我也喜欢处理清理硬盘驱动器和移除不需要留在那里的空间猪的部分。（我从 32 兆，是的，兆，硬盘驱动器开始，所以我仍然完全赞成删除大量的垃圾。）我有点惊讶地发现有一个关于磁盘碎片整理(disk defragmentation)的部分。如今(Nowadays)，专家们并不确定驱动器是否需要进行碎片整理，尤其是因为最新版本的Windows会自动处理这一点，但这些信息对于使用旧版本(Windows)Windows的人可能非常有用或更旧的硬盘。我很高兴在维护(Maintenance)部分找到关于清洁计算机的部分，但这与笔记本电脑部分(Laptop section)中的如何清洁说明相一致，并且可以为处理脏键盘、指纹标记的屏幕和灰尘提供动力- 填充案例。
喜欢的和不喜欢的
我想很明显我喜欢这本书。事实上，写评论的时间比平时要长，因为我不停地在我想返回并应用到我自己的电脑上的页面上贴上便利贴标记。(Post-It)作者轻松愉快的方法使处理大量非常严肃的信息变得尽可能愉快。一切都(Everything)以一种可以让读者有信心(reader confidence)继续下去的方式进行了详细介绍。实际上，没有什么不喜欢的。我提到了告诉人们如何弄乱注册表(Registry)然后警告他们不要这样做的问题，以及非Microsoft程序完全被拒之门外。虽然以与Microsoft(Microsoft)产品相同的细节探索其他软件肯定是不可行的，但我确实认为应该提到一些替代方案，并通过URL(URLs)找到它们。
判决
并不是说我想让我的电脑维修(computer repair)同事破产，你懂的，但我真的认为每个不只是随便使用电脑，并且对他们的工作没有与工作相关的限制的人，都需要得到这本书。即使您决定不摆弄您的计算机，了解可能导致问题的原因也可以节省大量时间来请专业人士修复它。如果你决定自己做这项工作，那么很快你就会发现很多电脑维修(computer repair)人员很久以前就学到了什么——这些东西很容易。真的。你所需要的只是方向。
Book Review - Troubleshooting & Maintaining Your PC All-In-One for Dummies
Years ago, when I fixed computers at an electronics store, I rather enjoyed being viewed as some kind of magician. Other people didn't know јust how easy many compυtеr repairs can be, which keрt me very busy in the repair shop. And from what I've seen in my Іnternet trаvels since then, pеople are still wary of trying to fix computеr problems themselves. This іs why I pіcked up Troubleshooting & Maintaining Your PC All-In-One for Dummies with great interest. Could this book be the one that let the simple-computer-repair "cat" out of the bag?
Fixing things "six ways from Sunday"
This book promises to be "six books in one." The "six books" (actually, six sections of one rather large book) are Hardware, Software, Laptops, Internet, Networking, and Maintenance. Each begins with an overview of the most common problems, and then describes each problem in detail and gives instructions for finding out what's actually wrong. The book then walks the reader through the solution, and in most cases makes the process sound easy enough that most people won't be afraid to give it a try. As with all Dummies books, the tone is lighthearted. Author Dan Gookin has written a lot of the books in the series, and he's got the balance of humor to serious information down pat. And, since there is a lot of serious information to be covered in this book, that really helps to ease the reader into the process. Overcoming the fear of messing something up worse than it already is is the most important step in doing your own computer repairs, and having clear instructions in front of you goes a long way toward giving the new computer repair person confidence.
The most problems, the most solutions
As one might expect, the Hardware and Software chapters are the biggest in the book. Each chapter has subsections for common problems, and starts off with an overview of what's supposed to happen and what could go wrong. The Hardware section starts out with a chapter called "Let There Be PC" that is divided into sections that give a quick overview of common problems. Each of these sections has chapters titled "What happens" and "What can go wrong." These introductory chapters point the reader to more detailed information later in the book. This is a very helpful resource and it makes finding the solutions very easy. Then Troubleshooting & Maintaining Your PC All-In-One for Dummies moves on quite logically to why your computer won't turn on, and walks the reader through possible non-invasive fixes (like making sure the power cord is plugged in, which is something nearly everyone, no matter how experienced, has encountered at least once). Then it works its way gradually into operating system issues, shutdown issues, storage issues, video issues and the many problems one can have with peripherals. It's not till page 145 that the book suggests that it might be time to open up the computer case, allowing the reader to build up some confidence for that along the way. Once the "Oh my gosh, I have to open up the case" issue is dealt with, fixing problems with loose cables, heat buildup and the power supply seems pretty simple. The book also explains how to add more memory, more cards, and more storage, all of which are simple tasks that can appear scary to the newcomer.
In my experience with computer repair, software problems seem to drive people crazy more often than hardware problems, and for good reason. Despite all of Microsoft's best efforts, Windows doesn't always behave the way most of us think it should, and Microsoft's programmers seem to love error messages that are either too cryptic to understand or don't tell you what's really wrong. The Software section takes a careful, reasonable, step by step approach to each common problem, which is absolutely the best way to think things through. It walks the user through computer jargon like programs, processes, and services, explains Safe Mode and how to use it, and then does a good thorough job of showing the reader how to be an efficient troubleshooter. It deals with user accounts and User Account Control, system resources and data recovery, and then deals with the Registry. I found it rather odd that several pages of instructions on editing the Registry ended with a stern warning not to mess with it. That's an excellent warning, but why tell people how to mess around with the Registry (even with instructions to back it up first) and then say Don't Do It? Although the Software section does deal with other versions of Windows, its primary focus is on Windows 7, and quite frankly, I think this section alone is worth the price of the book.
Thinking smaller, thinking bigger
The section on Laptops is arranged in the same order as the previous sections, beginning with power and startup issues common to laptops. It talks about heat buildup and the problems that can cause, and mentions cooling devices that may be useful. There's a section on the Windows Mobility Center, which is something I didn't know existed till I read the book, but will be checking regularly from now on.
There's advice on buying a laptop bag, and sensible precautions to take when you travel, and a short section on laptop maintenance, which in this case mostly means cleaning things off without causing damage. While it talks about buying more memory and larger hard drives, it doesn't go into detail about how these things are installed. I think either there should have been a generic explanation of how these hardware updates are done, or there should have been a warning to leave these things to an experienced technician. Some manufacturers make memory and hard drive replacement a lot easier than others, and laptop users should be aware of this.
Web woes and beyond
The Internet section is fairly short, but packed with useful advice. I especially liked the section on broadband modems. A lot of Internet-connection problems can be solved with a bit of knowledge about modems, and this section could save plenty of time and frustration trying to get through to your ISP's call center. Many people would consider this worth the cost of the book. There's also a good long section describing common problems with dial-up connections, and this also is well worth reading. I also liked the descriptions of how to ping, something else that can put you one step ahead of the ISP call center. There are nice clear descriptions of a whole host of common browser issues, but unfortunately those are limited to Internet Explorer, without any indication of whether the same general techniques will work on other browsers as well. With the increasing popularity of Firefox and Chrome, I thought those two deserved at least a mention. At least the section on email is kept fairly generic, which I thought was a plus. There's a good section explaining malware and how one's most likely to get it, and good solid advice on what to do should you find yourself in trouble. Again, though, the instructions for avoiding phishing should have mentioned more than Internet Explorer. The section on Windows Defender is aimed primarily at Windows 7 users, although the author provides a URL for people using Windows Vista and Windows XP to locate their versions of the software free from Microsoft. There's also a section devoted to using Windows Explorer for ftp access, but honestly, having tried that in the past, I wish the author had mentioned a few of the great free ftp clients out there, most of which are easier to use. The Networking section is aimed primarily at Windows 7 users as well, but there are clear instructions for Windows Vista and Windows XP users. Troubleshooting & Maintaining Your PC All-In-One for Dummies goes into great detail about all the problems one might have in connecting and maintaining a home network, and should be a major time-saver and all-around resource for keeping things running smoothly.
Maintenance and more
The Maintenance section goes into a wealth of detail about making backups and restoring from them, which should be required reading. I also liked the section that deals with cleaning up your hard drive and removing space hogs that don't need to stay there. (I started out with a 32 meg, yes, meg, hard drive, so I'm still all in favor of removing mass quantities of junk.) I was somewhat surprised to find a section on disk defragmentation. Nowadays, experts are not so certain that drives need defragmenting, especially since the newest versions of Windows take care of that automatically, but the information could be very useful for people who are using older versions of Windows or older hard disks. I was amused to find a section on cleaning your computer in the Maintenance section, but that goes along with the how-to-clean instructions in the Laptop section, and could provide an incentive for dealing with scummy keyboards, fingerprint-marked screens and dust-filled cases.
Likes and dislikes
I think it's obvious that I liked this book. In fact, writing the review took longer than usual because I kept stopping to put Post-It flags on the pages I wanted to come back to and apply to my own computers. The author's light-hearted approach makes dealing with a wealth of very serious information as pleasant as can be. Everything is covered in detail and in a way that can give the reader confidence to carry on. There wasn't much not to like, actually. I mentioned the problem with telling people how to mess with the Registry and then warning them not to do it, and the fact that non-Microsoft programs were completely shut out. While it certainly would not have been feasible to explore other software in the same detail as the Microsoft offerings, I do think some alternatives should have been mentioned, with URLs to find them.
Verdict
Not that I want to put my fellow computer repair people out of business, you understand, but I really think everyone who uses a computer more than just casually, and who doesn't have work related restrictions on what they can do, needs to get this book. Even if you decide not to fiddle around with your computer, knowing what is likely to be causing the problem can save a lot of time when it comes to asking a professional to fix it. And if you do decide to do the work yourself, well, pretty soon you'll discover what a lot of computer repair people learned long ago—this stuff is easy. Really. All you need is the directions.
