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If Something Goes Wrong
Develop good computing habits
Save your work frequently.
You can never predict when your computer will lock, forcing you
to close a program and lose unsaved changes. Many software
programs build in an automatic backup, but you should not rely
solely on this feature. Save your work! See “Computing tips” on
page 81 for instructions.
On a regular basis, back up the information stored on your
hard disk.
Here are some ways you can do this:
❖ Copy files to diskette, following the steps in “Saving your
work” on page 90.
❖ Connect a tape drive to the system and use specialized
software to copy everything on the hard disk to a tape.
Some people use a combination of these methods, backing up all
files to tape weekly and copying critical files to diskette on a daily
basis.
If you have installed your own programs, you should back up
these programs as well as your data files. If something goes wrong
that requires you to reformat your hard disk and start again,
reloading all your programs and data files from a backup source
will save time.
Read the user’s guides.
It’s very difficult to provide a fail-safe set of steps you can follow
every time you experience a problem with the computer. Your
ability to solve problems will improve as you learn about how the
computer and its software work together.
Get familiar with all the user’s guides provided with your
computer, as well as the manuals that come with the programs and
devices you purchase.
Your local computer store or book store sells a variety of self-help
books you can use to supplement the information in the manuals.