Need advice 2

[startover]

Hi Everybody,

I have been reading tek-tips forum for a while and i have seen some very helpful suggestions and advice given.I want to become a PC technician or PC repair man.I dont have much knowledge about the computers and iam working in healthcare section.I thinking of a career change and i want to become a technician and iam 33 years old.Can somebody suggest me or advice me regarding studying the basics and trouble shooting techniques and some good books or materials i can find on the internet.I have seen some advertisements on some diagonistic tools do i really need tis type of tools.Any advice or suggestions will be highly appreciated.
Thankyou.

 

[schase]

That is kind of two different - but related items.

For personal knowledge, get a couple of older machines off of ebay or some where that you can use to pull apart and put back together, or maybe a ghz machine that you can do the same as well as install multiple OS's

Toolwise - your mileage varies depending on what it is you will be doing. For example at work, I've got just a small toolkit for computers, my OS disks and the Ultimate Boot CD.

For learning wise. Best place to start is to go for your A+ Most do core first followed by the OS. Two great sources for info is the A+ 4Real by TCat, and Mike Meyers book is also recognized as the one to get. If you do get the A+ 4Real, locate on here (or maybe Glister will post it) on where to find the printed version.

As you go through the A+ sections, you can stop and mess around with a computer to some degree. But most of the information are items that you just need to memorize (i.e. LPT/COM ports, IRQ's, etc).

The A+ test really has gone beyond an easy exam. My OS test for example had WIN95 through XP. The tests are not very deep in knowledge but it is very wide range of topics.

Best wishes, and we're always here to provide advice where we can.

"Ever stop to think, and forget to start again?"

Stuart
A+, Net+, Security+

 

[glister]

A+ 4Real - HardCopy - $48.95

http://www.booksurge.com/product.php3?bookID=IFUT00001-00001

A+ 4Real - Paperback - $34.99

http://www.booksurge.com/product.php3?bookID=IFUT00001-00002

A+ 4Real - Free Online

http://www.certiguide.com

A+,N+,S+,L+,I+,HTI+,e-Biz+,Security+,CETma,CFOT,CCNT,CCTT,ACSP,ISA CCST3

 

[startover]

Thankyou Schase for the valuble input also glister for the website address.Schase please bear with me i may sound stupid but toolwise where can i get a good toolkit,OS disks and the ultimate boot CDs.Learning wise i will go through those books you refered to me.Thanks a lot for your advice as iam very new to this field i may be asking some stupid questions please be patient with me all.Any advice and suggestions will be most welcome.

 

[glister]

Jensen tools

http://www.jensentools.com/product/category.asp?parent_id=275

A+,N+,S+,L+,I+,HTI+,e-Biz+,Security+,CETma,CFOT,CCNT,CCTT,ACSP,ISA CCST3

 

[schase]

Never a stupid question, unless it's wheres the best braindump to memorize a test.

For Ultimate boot CD - it's free and pretty handy.

http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/

just follow for the windows version - and using nero or something create a CD from ISO.

Toolkit - probably something simple to start with. Like

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=171940&CatId=0

It will take care of most of what you need. A power supply tester is real nice to have.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=561263&CatId=1795

For my own use (I run the IT Dept at a business) I found learning how to make patch cords invaluable. That takes some RJ-45 ends, and a crimper.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=325570&CatId=0

-the RJ-45 ends you can pick up at about any home depot or Lowes.

and a continuity tester. Its basic, but will at least tell you if you've not crimped a wire for at least some continuity.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=997068&CatId=0

OS Disks a different story, if you have some great, if not you can probably find licensed versions on Ebay.

"Ever stop to think, and forget to start again?"

Stuart
A+, Net+, Security+

 

[startover]

Thankyou Schase and glister for the valuble input. Regarding the OS disks do they come with a limited no of licences like two licences or three licences or is there something else.Also can you guys recommend me some good troubleshooting books to start for software and hardware trouble shhoting or is the book by mike meyers and A+ 4 real is enough.iam really grateful to you guys for the valuble advice you have given me now i can start to study the basics and look forward to pass the A+ and enter into IT field.

 

[schase]

As long as you have the OS disks, and I believe "legally" they cannot be OEM disks. But at anyrate, they allow you to install on one computer.

You can install say 98 on that computer - format the disk, install win2k, format install 98, format. etc. and as long as you have the licenses for the disks - legally your perfectly fine.

you will find great basis for troubleshooting in the Mike Meyers and A+ 4Real books. Beyond that it takes time and experience and researching a whole lot.

"Ever stop to think, and forget to start again?"

Stuart
A+, Net+, Security+

 

[schase]

i should expand on that above OS license bit.

As long as that OS is installed on one particuliar computer at any given time you are ok.

You cannot "legally" install 98 on 3 machines with the same OS disk. Even though 98 is really easy to install on multiple machines, and the chances of getting caught are probably less than winning the lottery 5 times in a row, legally is a different story.

An off the record comment - if you were to install the same license on a few computers and those computers ran the OS for a very short period of time - say a week or so. I would be highly surprised if you got caught. It's when people use the same license on multiple computers as the perm. OS that tends to get them in trouble.



"Ever stop to think, and forget to start again?"

Stuart
A+, Net+, Security+

 

[Wishdiak]

Regarding the OS disks do they come with a limited no of licences like two licences or three licences or is there something else

Typically the jewel case or paper sleeve that contains the CD will have a license number on it. If it has only one license number, then you can legally install on only one machine.

While you might be able to physically install an older OS like Windows 98 on multiple machines using the same license, businesses are subject to license auditing. If you plan to work at a business someday, you want to keep in mind that each machine must have a valid OS license.

Wishdiak
A+, Network+, Security+, MCSA: Security 2003

http://www.wishdiak.com