Keep your computer and diskettes away from any magnetized objects. Phones, copiers, stereo equipment or devices with motors generate a magnetic field that may damage your data.
• Keep your system away from heating and air conditioning vents, radiators, and open windows. This will prevent temperature fluctuations in your system hardware and reduce airborne particles like dust and smoke from entering your system.
• Never unplug a component while your system is running. Exit all programs and shut down your computer when plugging or unplugging computer devices and peripherals. Ignoring this advice can easily result in a short, therefore damaging either your computer or the device you are adding or removing. The only exception to this general rule is a USB component (like a digital camera) that is designed to be plugged in and out while the machine is running.
• Buy a Surge Protector. Surge Protectors are special power strips that absorb any power surges that may seriously damage memory chips and other components. You may want to shut your computer down during severe thunderstorms.
• Use antivirus software to detect viruses that can cause substantial damage to files in your computer. Be careful what you receive in Email and download off the Internet. The Internet has increasingly become a popular means of transporting viruses to personal computers. Fordham’s Email system in (Lotus Notes) is the only Email package you should trust to eliminate Email viruses before they come to your computer.
• Use anti-static mats under your computer. This will decrease the amount of static electricity in the vicinity of your computer. Static electricity is one of the primary causes of data loss.

Tips for Windows XP Users
Compatibility Mode
If you’re having trouble running older programs originally developed for previous versions of Windows, you’re not out of luck. Luckily for consumers, Microsoft built Compatibility Mode into XP. Compatibility Mode allows you to run a program using the shell of the original program it was developed for.
Here’s how to access a program’s Compatibility Mode in XP:
• Find the executable or program shortcut icon you’d like to run.
• Right-click the icon and select Properties.
• Click the Compatibility tab and place a checkmark next to the text labeled “Run this program in compatibility mode.”
• Select the operating system that the program was originally intended to run on.
• You may need to fine-tune the three fields under “Display Settings” if an older program requires 640×480 resolution or 256 colors.
• Click Apply.
Try starting the program after making these changes. If it still gives you trouble, try a different operating system. If the program was written for Win95 and worked fine in Win98, there’s nothing that says it still won’t work fine with Win98.

Device Driver Rollback
One of XP’s new features is the Device Driver Rollback. With this feature you finally have the option to quickly go back to a previous version of a device driver if the updated driver causes problems. When you update a driver, the old one will be saved to a special directory in Windows.
You won’t have the option to roll back a driver if you’ve never updated it. Since every device has the ability to roll back its driver, you’re going to need to access your Device Manager to do this.
Here’s how to access the Driver Rollback feature for a particular device inside the Device Manager:
• Left-click the Start menu and then select Control Panel.
• Double-click the Performance and Maintenance icon.
• Double-click the System icon.
• Click the Hardware tab.
• Click the Device Manager button to open the Device Manager.
• Expand the device menu you’d like to roll back.
• Locate the device you’d like to roll back and double-click it to bring up its properties.
• When you launch the properties for a particular device, click on the Driver tab.
• Click the button labeled “Roll Back Driver” to complete the process.