Whats the best way to learn about computers?

[poppop]

First of all you guy's are great,But not gonna worry anyone to death about these things.I have done most everything myself,Cars trucks bikes,Built my garage90% myself.Wiring everything .Had to start somewhere,Is there a book or something.Where i could kinda get a crash course on puters.Kinda learn as you go type of thing,Not the brightest bulb in the box,Just average.Please dont recomend collage,To old for that,Some of you guy,s go through a computer,Like water through a funnel.Any step by step method.Ive heard of a book learning computers for dummies.Worth it or not?And again thank you guy's all of you for your help.She's still alive.The wife and the puter.

 

[marsmax85]

computers are a foreign language for me . I thank my kids and wife for keeping this thingy going ! If I could only learn to download upload and sideload .

 

[poppop]

computers are a foreign language for me . I thank my kids and wife for keeping this thingy going ! If I could only learn to download upload and sideload .

I bought one off e bay ,lasted about a month.Lost my this then my that,So i unpluged it camly.Opened the back door throwed the damn thing in the yard.Later on it went to the woods,Bike was broke car was broke chimmney caught fire,Computer was last straw.

 

[DMAN999]

Start by Reading Windows 7 All in One - For Dummies and
PCs All in one for Dummies.
Check your PM.

PS
You will need to Download and Install Adobe Reader from here:
http://get.adobe.com/reader/otherversions/

 

[MaxMidnight]

Gone are the days when you need to delve deep into the operating system or learn code to make the wretched things work. It is quite possible to achieve very good results without needing to know what goes on under the bonnet.

I agree that the Dummies series are good reference books but starting at the beginning and working through the whole book wouldn't be my idea of fun and I suspect that you won't remember much of what you have read

Start by deciding what you want to do with your computer i.e. word processing, spread-sheets, photo manipulation etc.

If you start with a purpose then you will not only begin the learning process but will also generate something that is of use to you and learn skills that are relevant to your needs.

Once you have decided what it is you want to do then find a programme that is appropriate for your needs (and I'm sure folk here will be happy to offer advice) and start to use it.
Some will be quite basic and easy to pick up others (e.g. Photoshop) aren't always intuitive and you will need to work through a learning curve before you can start to produce output.
The internet is a great source for finding out information and I'll assume that as you have managed to post the question here you have some skill in that regard.
Much of my knowledge has been acquired this way when I get to a 'How do I do xxx?' problem or a 'I wonder if you could xxx?' question.

It can be frustrating as hell be very rewarding when you get the desired result!

To quote Henry Ford ' Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right'
Believe that you can and soon you will be a computer quru.

 

[Rusty McNeil]

A fresh computer is so cheap these days, and most software so user friendly, that as long as you're backing stuff up they are like microwave ovens,
If they crash throw it out and buy another.

I spend the bulk of my time at work
In front of one out in the field running test software or doing reports and really don't know that much about them; hasn't been an impediment yet.

Backup/crash/burn/replace.

 

[dannymax]

' Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right'

Ol' Henry was right on the money there!

Terry, there was mention of a chimney fire....Did it spread? Was there much damage? Is it out? :confused2:

 

[98Redlne]

If you are looking for something that you can do web surfing, email, etc... with and don't really need anything massively powerful (no graphics editing, moving making, software development) then something like a tablet would be a good alternative (ipad or similar) without all of the bells and whistles of a full blown desktop system.

If you are looking for something with a little more expandability then a desktop system might be the way to go.

Being a software developer by trade I deal with computers and operating systems every fricking day and have come to a couple of conclusions based on my personal 20 years of experience and what I have recommended for friends and family.

My biggest recommendation is that casual users should "get a mac". Being the family computer guy, I get tapped for all of the IT support on everybody's machine. The only ones I don't need to provide support for on a continual basis are those with Macs. For all of the things that people may complain about regarding apple, one thing they do well is put out a stable operating system. My mac systems (2 laptops, and 2 desktops) just run. They always turn on, they are stable, generally easy to use and aren't nagging me to shut down and restart every other day because of some new vulnerability that needs to be patched.

For users who do not have their own IT department or don't have someone at their disposal for IT support, Microsoft operating systems pretty much all suck. I deal with them day in and day out and the majority of the code I write runs on a MS operating system. I have used every MS operating system since the DOS days. There are few problems I have encountered that I have not been able to solve, however those solutions often required hours of research and some pretty hard core delving into the bowels of the OS to fix things that Microsoft broke on one of their updates or that some piece of spywhere screwed up. Because of what I do, I actually track the hours spent on IT support for various operating systems. The Macs have close to 80% less time spent providing support for operating system related problems (can't connect to the internet, can't see network drives, printing problems, virus or spyware issues, etc...). It has been a compelling enough argument that I have switched my primary development computers and laptops over to the mac platform. Since that time I have not had a single issue. "They just work"

The one thing people balk about regarding the Mac computers is the cost. A Windows computer with similar specs is generally about half the cost of the Mac. It isn't until you start to consider what your time is worth and how often the computer is "offline" that that higher initial cost is worth it. Don't even get me started about taking your machine to one of those guys at Best Buy (Geek Squad) or similar. The money you pay for that service will quickly chew up the savings you may have seen when buying a Windows system.

 

[MaxMidnight]

If you are looking for something with a little more expandability then a desktop system might be the way to go.

My biggest recommendation is that casual users should "get a mac".

....Microsoft operating systems pretty much all suck.

The one thing people balk about regarding the Mac computers is the cost. A Windows computer with similar specs is generally about half the cost of the Mac. It isn't until you start to consider what your time is worth and how often the computer is "offline" that that higher initial cost is worth it.

Whilst I can't claim to be a computer Guru, I have been using them from the time that a 33DX chip with 4 MB of RAM was considered a fast machine and Windows 3.1 was the latest operating system.
In those days trying to get some programmes to work could try the patience of a saint - especially the games that young sons just had to have.
Installing additional hardware was a chore as it frequently refused to play ball out of the box.

Oh how times have changed. I now have a computer with Windows 7 and it has never given me a Blue Screen of Death or caused me any issues. It carries out updates in the background and all hardware and software has worked strait out of the box without the need for intervention.

When I have had issues in the past it has either been because I have dabbled where I shouldn't or when at work because someone within our IT department had made a change without checking the likely outcome first.

As Poppop has managed to post on this site he must have access to a computer so perhaps which operating system to favour may not be relevant.

There are a couple of immediate thoughts that strike me about recommending a Mac based system, admittedly without ever having used one so forgive me if I'm wide of the mark.

• First there is the point raised about the cost of the hardware - in my book that would be a killer.
• The software written for Mac is far more limited.
• The biggest problem would be what to do should you encounter a problem. There are enough folk out there who are able to offer help on Windows hardware or software issues and also point one in the direction of how to get the best out of your chosen software.

Provided that you take sensible precautions, i.e. up to date anti-virus programmes, do system updates and perform routine back-up's then I suggest that the current crop of Windows software will give you very few issues.

When I first worked in the warranty department and then in customer relation for a major motor manufacturer all I saw were problems and complaints. I was amazed that we sold any vehicles.
It wasn't until I went out into 'the real world' that I started to understand that the reason we sold the most vehicles was because we produced a good product and that most customers were happy with their purchase.

Dare I suggest that you chosen profession has given you a slightly distorted view as all you tend to see are the problems?

 

[poppop]

Ol' Henry was right on the money there!

Terry, there was mention of a chimney fire....Did it spread? Was there much damage? Is it out? :confused2:

Yea danny were ok ,That was about 2 years ago,I used to open the draft and the doors,And let the chimney catch fire ,Very easy to do ,And cleaned out the chimney for the most part,I was unaware that that was a hole in my chimney liner, most of my chimney was stainless steel,The inner part was not,I had replaced it years eariler with regular stove pipe,It rusted very fast.The inner liner caught fire on the outside and caused the second safety liner to catch fire too! all that was left was the outer liner,Which was smoking along with the roof,I ran and grabed a full cofee pot and dashed it into the wood heater closed the doors and shut the draft,Got more water in a pot becuase i broke the hot coffeepot with cold water,Througed more water in the heater,It is made of heavy gauge steel the only thing cast iron was the doors ,the cooling the heater so fast warped the inside of it ,didn,t do any damage to the doors or the outside.Went back outside a sprayed the garden hose on the roof and chimney,cooled everything down and watched for smoke the rest of the night,I was very lucky,Dont try that anymore,Another 5 minutes ,I dont believe anyone could have saved it ,The fire dept could have put out what was left,Im gonna post this and let everyone see how dangerious it can be and how fast it can happen Please everyone be careful.cirmstances can change year to year

 

[DMAN999]

^ I'm glad you're OK pop.

And as for reading those Books not being useful, I would absolutely disagree.
They will give you a much better understanding of a Windows Based PC and they are written in layman's terms so they can be understood by just about anyone.
Learning is Never a bad thing in my book.
And you can also use them as a reference if you ever do have an issue with your PC.

 

[Fire-medic]

I am not a computer engineer, I don't have any Microsoft certifications, but I do use a computer all-day every working day. I do word processing, spreadsheets, data acquisition, retrieval, and manipulation, not-much digital imaging work, and payroll and human resources for about 100 people a semester at the place where I work. We have nearly 500 students a semester whose paperwork I have to track, access, store, retrieve, and check.

I have a Mac desktop, a Mac Pro laptop, and an iPad. At home I have a Windows desktop and I actually find using a Windows computer easier for me, because I have used Windows-based products more-than I have Apple.

Your local adult-education classes for your school district will probably have classes at minimal cost you can take, and there are no grades, it's just about helping you to learn how to use your system better.

I agree about modern computers, a few hundred dollars gets you a great desktop, but generally the laptops cost much-more $ esp. for Apple, as-noted. I would advise getting a new Windows and take that adult-ed class, they probably have a number of different classes you can take based on what you want to do w/your computer.

When I have problems w/my computer, I ask my son, who has a B.S. in computer science, or my wife or daughter both of whom are EE's (electrical engineers, my wife deals w/transmission for utilities, and my daughter's majors were computer engineering & EE) or, I take it to a local shop where I get things fixed w/o having to ask a family member, and the repair is usually faster because I don't need to deal w/the family obligations interfering w/the needed consult.

Get something new and affordable, and take those classes, and then just use it.

 

[DMAN999]

I am not a computer engineer, I don't have any Microsoft certifications, but I do use a computer all-day every working day. I do word processing, spreadsheets, data acquisition, retrieval, and manipulation, not-much digital imaging work, and payroll and human resources for about 100 people a semester at the place where I work. We have nearly 500 students a semester whose paperwork I have to track, access, store, retrieve, and check.

I have a Mac desktop, a Mac Pro laptop, and an iPad. At home I have a Windows desktop and I actually find using a Windows computer easier for me, because I have used Windows-based products more-than I have Apple.

Your local adult-education classes for your school district will probably have classes at minimal cost you can take, and there are no grades, it's just about helping you to learn how to use your system better.

I agree about modern computers, a few hundred dollars gets you a great desktop, but generally the laptops cost much-more $ esp. for Apple, as-noted. I would advise getting a new Windows and take that adult-ed class, they probably have a number of different classes you can take based on what you want to do w/your computer.

When I have problems w/my computer, I ask my son, who has a B.S. in computer science, or my wife or daughter both of whom are EE's (electrical engineers, my wife deals w/transmission for utilities, and my daughter's majors were computer engineering & EE) or, I take it to a local shop where I get things fixed w/o having to ask a family member, and the repair is usually faster because I don't need to deal w/the family obligations interfering w/the needed consult.

Get something new and affordable, and take those classes, and then just use it.

Taking classes at a Local Community College is a Great Idea for new or Older or Non-tech saavy Users.
I actually taught a few of those classes years ago while I was at NC State (also majoring in CPE/EE).
As long as the teacher is fairly knowledgeable, those classes can be a Big help.