Posted by Christopher Lyons on Wed, Nov 11, 2009
A few days ago, we posted a blog regarding
Philadelphia computer/network health, and referenced that computers cannot become infected with the H1N1 Virus. Our readers have encouraged us to look at this subject from a different perspective; computers are often shared and worked on by numerous people throughout offices, schools, and libraries. Therefore, while it is still true that computers cannot be affected by the virus, they can surely aid in spreading it.
Throughout any given day, people often have meetings and shake hands, cough, or sneeze and then go on to touch their computers. In order to get through the flu season, especially with H1N1 lingering around, it is important to not only wash your hands consistently, but also to keep your office supplies and computer clean and sanitary. Cleaning your desk and office supplies can be a relatively simple task; however, cleaning your computer can be more difficult. Here are some general tips on how to keep your computer clean, and also how you can keep it from becoming a germ spreading vehicle.
Technically, you should be cleaning your computer often - every 3 months or so, to be exact. However, many of us rarely clean our computers, or even worse, some of us don't clean them all together!
Before you start, make sure to turn off and unplug your computer. Once you have shutdown and unplugged, feel free to begin.
Start with the keyboard; they are usually the main culprits in spreading viruses, and are also touched more often than any other part of a computer. As with all parts of a computer, never spray or put any sort of liquid directly on to your keyboard. It is important that you mildly spray a cloth or rag, and then wipe. If you're just trying to wipe dust off your computer, water will do the trick. However, if you want to keep it sanitary during flu season, a mixture of rubbing alcohol and water will work. Once you've prepared the water/alcohol solution, gently wipe the keyboard down. You can do the same with the mouse. For cosmetic purposes, if you'd like to clean out the dust and buildup in the keyboard, compressed air is the way to go.
The same rules apply to your monitor. When cleaning a monitor, use a lint free cloth to avoid scratching it, and never spray a cleaning solution directly onto your monitor. The water/rubbing alcohol solution will work well for cleaning up a monitor, and it is important to never use any kind of glass cleaner or commercial cleaning product.
As for the computer itself, you can also gently wipe it down with a water/alcohol solution. Aside from cleaning the computer, for safety reasons you may also want to take a look at the ventilation locations. In order to clean the vents you can vacuum the dust and dirt, but it is important to use a battery powered vacuum so you don't create static electricity that will damage your computer. Try to keep up with this often, because dust and dirt that are blocking the vents can cause some real problems with your PC.
Follow these tips to keep your computer clean and to keep it sanitary throughout the flu season. Now that we've covered how to keep you healthy, if you have any questions regarding your computer's health, be sure to check out Trigon's Philadelphia IT Health Check .