It won’t turn on
The scariest one, and usually the least serious. Most “dead” machines aren’t.
My laptop won’t turn on.
- Probably
- A dead battery, a charger or charging port that quit, or a screen that’s gone dark while the machine is actually running. Real motherboard failures are rarer than people fear.
- Right now
Do this firstTry a different outlet and a different charger if you have one. Hold the power button for 15 seconds, let go, press it once. If a fan spins or a light blinks, that’s a good sign.
- What I’d do
- Run hardware diagnostics to find out which part it is, not guess. If it’s the battery, I replace it. If it’s the screen, I replace that. If it’s something I can’t fix cheaply, I tell you that in plain English and you pay nothing for the look.
- How fast
- Most of these are same or next day. I carry common batteries and parts with me.
Apple, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Surface, custom builds. Call 718-555-0134 or email info@ttechs.pro.
It turns on but just sits on a black screen or a spinning wheel.
- Probably
- A failed update, a corrupted operating system, or a storage drive that’s on its way out. The machine is fine; the software on it isn’t.
- Right now
Do this firstGive it twenty minutes once. Updates can genuinely take that long. If it’s still stuck, turn it off and leave it off. Don’t keep force-restarting it, especially if you have files on there you haven’t backed up.
- What I’d do
- Check the drive’s health first. Get your files off it before anything else. Then repair or reinstall the OS, put your stuff back, and set up a backup so this is boring next time.
- How fast
- Usually same or next day. A reinstall plus copying your files back is a few hours of work.
The battery dies in about an hour now.
- Probably
- The battery is worn out. They’re consumable. A few years of daily charging and this is what happens; nothing you did wrong.
- Right now
Do this firstNothing dramatic. If the bottom of the laptop is bulging or the trackpad is lifting, stop charging it and call me; a swollen battery is the one version of this that is urgent.
- What I’d do
- Battery replacement. I confirm it’s the battery and not a power-hungry background process first, because sometimes it’s that and the fix is free.
- How fast
- Same or next day for the common models. I carry the usual ones.
It’s slow or acting strange
Slow is a symptom, not a diagnosis. There are about four real causes and I can tell them apart in minutes.
Everything is suddenly really slow.
- Probably
- One of four things: the storage drive is nearly full or is an old spinning disk, there isn’t enough RAM for what you run now, something you didn’t ask for is running in the background, or malware. “Suddenly” points at the last two.
- Right now
Do this firstRestart it properly (shut down, not sleep). If it’s still crawling after that, don’t install any “PC cleaner” you saw in an ad. Those are usually the problem, not the cure.
- What I’d do
- Diagnostics to find the actual bottleneck. Remove malware and junk if that’s it. If the hardware is the limit, a RAM or storage upgrade to a solid-state drive makes an old machine feel new for a fraction of the price of replacing it. I’ll tell you honestly if it’s not worth putting money into.
- How fast
- Same or next day. Upgrades are usually done on the spot.
A pop-up says I’m infected and to call a number.
- Probably
- A scam page, not a real warning. Windows and Apple do not put phone numbers in alerts. If you already called the number and let someone connect to your computer, treat that as a break-in.
- Right now
Do this firstDo not call the number. Do not pay anyone. Close the browser; if it won’t close, hold the power button until the machine turns off. If someone was already remoted in, unplug it from the internet and change your email and bank passwords from a different device.
- What I’d do
- Virus and malware removal, then check what else got installed, what got changed, and whether anything was taken. I’ll walk you through which passwords to change and in what order, in plain English, no lecture.
- How fast
- Same day available for this one. Call.
I think I’ve been hacked.
- Probably
- Either a password that leaked somewhere and got reused, or something installed on the machine. Most “hacks” on home computers are the first kind, and it’s fixable.
- Right now
Do this firstFrom your phone or another computer, change your email password first, then banking. Turn on two-step verification on the email account. Leave the suspect computer off until I’ve looked at it.
- What I’d do
- Malware removal and a clean-up of the machine, then go through your accounts with you. If the machine is too far gone to trust, I back your files up and reinstall the OS clean.
- How fast
- Same day available.
It’s making a clicking or grinding noise.
- Probably
- If it’s a rhythmic click, that’s a hard drive failing. If it’s a grind or rattle, more likely a fan. The drive version is the one to worry about, because every minute it runs is another chance to lose files.
- Right now
Do this firstShut it down and leave it off. Don’t run any “repair” tools on it. Don’t try to copy everything off it yourself; a dying drive often has one good run left, and you want that run to be the careful one.
- What I’d do
- Data recovery first, onto a new drive, before anything else. Then a storage upgrade to a solid-state drive, which has no moving parts to click. Then a backup so this is the last time.
- How fast
- I’ll start same day. Recovery time depends on how far gone the drive is; I’ll tell you what I’m seeing as I go.
Spilled, cracked, broken
Laptops dropped in coffee are a regular part of my week. The first ten minutes after it happens matter more than anything I do later.
I spilled coffee on it.
- Probably
- Liquid has reached the keyboard and possibly the main board underneath. Coffee with sugar or milk is worse than water because it leaves residue that keeps conducting after it dries. Whether this is a keyboard swap or a board clean depends on how fast you cut the power.
- Right now
Do this firstTurn it off now, hold the power button if you have to. Unplug it. Turn it upside down in a tent shape on a towel. Do not turn it back on to “see if it works.” Do not put it in rice. Do not use a hair dryer. Call me.
- What I’d do
- Open it up, disconnect the battery, clean and dry the inside properly, and see what survived. Keyboard replacement if the keyboard is done. If the drive is fine but the machine isn’t, data recovery so you don’t lose anything either way.
- How fast
- Same day available, and for this one you want it. Sooner is cheaper.
The screen is cracked.
- Probably
- Exactly what it looks like. The panel is broken, the rest of the machine is almost certainly fine. If the crack is spreading or there are black blotches growing, it’s the panel too, just a slower version.
- Right now
Do this firstKeep using it if you can, or plug in an external monitor or TV with an HDMI cable. Keep the lid closed when carrying it so the crack doesn’t spread.
- What I’d do
- Screen replacement. I’ll tell you the part cost up front so you can decide if it’s worth it for the age of the machine.
- How fast
- Same or next day if I have the panel; a few days if it has to be ordered for a less common model.
Some of the keys don’t work anymore.
- Probably
- Crumbs or an old spill under the keys, a worn-out key mechanism, or a keyboard ribbon cable that’s worked loose. If a whole row went at once, it’s the keyboard, not the keys.
- Right now
Do this firstPlug in any USB keyboard and carry on. Don’t pry the keycaps off with a knife; those clips are tiny and they don’t go back on.
- What I’d do
- Keyboard replacement, or a reseat and clean if that’s all it needs. I won’t sell you a keyboard if a ribbon cable was the problem.
- How fast
- Same or next day for common models.
My files
The one thing on a computer that can’t be bought again. Everything in this group is about protecting that first.
I need the photos and documents off a computer that died.
- Probably
- The files are very likely still there. A machine that won’t boot and a drive that’s lost its data are two different problems, and the first one is far more common than the second.
- Right now
Do this firstLeave it off. Don’t let anyone “try a fresh install” on it before the files are out; that’s the one thing that actually destroys them.
- What I’d do
- Pull the drive, read it on my equipment, copy everything to a new external drive you keep. Then, if you want the machine back, fix the machine. Then set up a backup that runs by itself so you never need this page again.
- How fast
- Simple cases are same day. Damaged drives take longer, and I’ll tell you what I’m seeing before you spend anything.
I don’t have a backup and I know I should.
- Probably
- You’re in the majority. Nothing is wrong yet; you’re just one spill or one clicking drive away from the item above this one.
- Right now
Do this firstNothing to panic about. If you have an external drive lying around, copy your photos folder to it tonight. That’s a start, not a system.
- What I’d do
- Set up a backup that runs on its own, local and off-site, and show you how to check it’s working in thirty seconds. Home office or small business, same idea, bigger drive.
- How fast
- One visit. Book it when it suits you.
Wifi and network
Networks held together with prayers and outdated routers. I see a lot of them. I’m CCNP and Network+ certified, which mostly means I can fix yours without guessing.
The wifi drops in the back bedroom.
- Probably
- The router is in the wrong place, it’s the one your internet company gave you years ago, or there’s plaster, brick and a bathroom between it and the bedroom. Brooklyn walls eat wifi.
- Right now
Do this firstGet the router off the floor and out of the cabinet if it’s in one. Restart it. If that helps a bit but not enough, that tells me what I need to know.
- What I’d do
- Walk the apartment with a signal meter, find the dead spots, and fix them the right way for your layout: move the router, add an access point, run a cable to where the signal needs to start, or replace a router that’s past it. Not a plug-in “extender” that halves your speed.
- How fast
- Usually one visit. I bring the common gear.
The internet keeps cutting out and my provider says it’s fine.
- Probably
- They’re measuring the line to your building; you’re living with what happens after it. An ageing router, a bad cable, two devices fighting over the same address, or interference from twenty neighbours’ networks. It shows up as “working” on their screen and useless on yours.
- Right now
Do this firstNote the time next time it drops and whether it’s every device or just one. That’s the single most useful thing you can tell me.
- What I’d do
- Test from the wall inward, so we know whether it’s them or you, and you have something concrete to tell them if it’s them. Then fix whichever part of your side is the problem.
- How fast
- Same or next day.
Our office network is a mess and nobody knows how it’s set up.
- Probably
- It grew one problem at a time. Someone added a switch, someone else added a second wifi, the person who set up the printer left. Nothing is documented and it works until it doesn’t.
- Right now
Do this firstDon’t unplug anything to “see what it does.” Take a photo of the cabinet or shelf where the boxes live and send it to me with your email.
- What I’d do
- Map what’s actually there, write it down in a form the next person can read, and then tidy it: replace what’s past it, remove what’s doing nothing, set up wifi that covers the whole floor, and make sure the backups are real. Ongoing IT support after that if you want a person to call instead of a queue.
- How fast
- A first visit to map it, then a plan with prices. No surprise invoices.
TV, sound, smart home
“Smart” homes that won’t listen. Soundbars that won’t talk. Usually one setting, occasionally one cable, and I know which.
The new TV won’t talk to the soundbar.
- Probably
- The soundbar is plugged into the wrong HDMI socket on the TV (only one of them carries sound back out), the setting that lets the TV control the soundbar is off, or the cable that came in the box isn’t up to it.
- Right now
Do this firstLook on the back of the TV for the HDMI socket labelled ARC or eARC and make sure the soundbar is in that one. If it already is, leave it; the rest is menus.
- What I’d do
- Set the TV, soundbar and whatever boxes you have so one remote runs the lot and the sound comes out of the right thing every time. Hide the cables while I’m there if you want them hidden.
- How fast
- One visit, often under an hour.
The smart home stuff just won’t listen anymore.
- Probably
- Your router changed (new provider, new box, a reset) and a dozen little devices are still looking for the old network. Or the wifi in that room was always marginal and the devices gave up before you noticed.
- Right now
Do this firstCheck whether the wifi name or password changed recently. If it did, that’s your answer and it’s tedious rather than serious.
- What I’d do
- Get every device back on the network, on the right band, on a network that reaches it. Put the smart devices on their own corner of the network so they can’t see your laptop. Set it up so the next router change doesn’t take everything down with it.
- How fast
- One visit for most homes.
I bought the TV, the speakers, the projector. I don’t want to be the one who installs it.
- Probably
- Nothing is wrong. You have boxes and a wall and a Saturday you’d rather not spend on it.
- Right now
Do this firstLeave it in the boxes. Send me a photo of the room and the wall and tell me roughly where you sit.
- What I’d do
- AV setup and installation: mount it, wire it, hide what can be hidden, set it up so it works with one remote, and show you how before I leave. Home theater or a living room TV, same care.
- How fast
- Booked at your convenience. Usually a single visit.