Course Description
Course Details
Don't spend your hard-earned cash on expensive PC repairs! The vast majority of the problems people experience with their computers are completely avoidable, and most can be solved with nothing more than a few minutes of your time. Intro to PC Troubleshooting takes you step by step through the typical hardware and operating system problems encountered by technicians, teaching troubleshooting techniques to decipher any problem, and giving you the skills you need to solve them. Once you've mastered the basics, the course launches into some of the more advanced and nasty problems that crop up in the PC, teaching you how to diagnose and fix those problems as well! Finally, Intro to PC Troubleshooting shows you how to maintain and optimize a Windows PC. So what are you waiting for? Let's troubleshoot - and fix - some PCs!
How It Works
This course is fully online, you require internet access and an email account. The course duration is 6 weeks, followed by a 2-week period to complete the final exam (online, open book). Lessons are released on Wednesdays and Fridays of each week, for a total of 12. You are not required to be online at any specific time. In addition to the specific lesson content, there is a discussion board with each lesson and often there is an optional assignment to apply the learning. Following each lesson, there is a short multiple choice quiz. Your score on these quizzes does not count towards the final mark but completing these helps solidify your learning as well as prepare you for the final exam. The final exam is an open-book, multiple choice exam and you need to achieve a minimum of 65% on the final exam to pass the course. There is only one opportunity to pass the exam. A certificate of completion from WatSPEED is available within four weeks of successful completion of each course and can be accessed in your student portal. Many of the Ed2Go courses are eligible towards the various online certificates offered by WatSPEED.
Requirements
A computer equipped with any Microsoft Windows 95 or better. You will also need access to one or more computers that do not contain any data you consider sensitive.
Syllabus
Lesson 1 - The Computing Process. Lesson 1 starts you on the path to troubleshooting PCs like a pro. You’ll first look at input devices, or how you tell the computer to do stuff. In the second part of the lesson, you’ll explore the pieces that do the work inside the computer. The final section describes the output devices, where the computer communicates to you.
Lesson 2 - Troubleshooting Theory. This lesson will take you through the troubleshooting process. It’s not a guide to solving specific computer problems, but the steps explained here will enable you to tackle any computer problems you might encounter. The three main steps are identifying the problem, testing solutions, and completing the process.
Lesson 3 - Operating System Overview. Lesson 3 introduces you to some of the basic components and tools of an operating system. First, you’ll find out about the primary functions of operating systems. You’ll then explore the major parts of Microsoft Windows, including the Desktop and Windows Explorer. You’ll finish the lesson by learning about the most important troubleshooting tools for fixing operating systems.
Lesson 4 - OS Fixes. Lesson 4 leads you through the basic steps of troubleshooting an operating system, including startup, video, sound, and application errors. You’ll look at tools like Safe Mode and the System Configuration utility and learn about driver rollback. You’ll end the lesson by learning how to troubleshoot audio/visual errors.
Lesson 5 - Avoiding OS Obstacles. How would you like to prevent system problems instead of rushing to fix them? In this lesson, you’ll master the three most important types of preventive maintenance: backing up data that’s on a hard drive, updating or upgrading the operating system, and using Windows utilities that help you monitor and maintain the OS.
Lesson 6 - Networking Basics. Lesson 6 covers the basics of networking. First, you’ll find out how networks work and what the necessary components are for a wired network. Next, you’ll discover wireless networks and everything that separates them from their wired-network brethren. Finally, you’ll learn about the biggest network of them all, the Internet.
Lesson 7 - Troubleshooting Network and Internet Issues. Lesson 7 covers the steps to take when trying to fix your network or Internet connections. You’ll learn how to troubleshoot wired and wireless networks, share files, and fix a dial-up or broadband Internet connection.
Lesson 8 - Preventing Internet Problems. Keep your computer safe from Internet-based attacks, including viruses and spyware! You’ll discover the many types of malicious software that can infect your computer, and I’ll walk you through the five-step process of recovering from a virus infection. You’ll also read about safe browsing and safe email use, and you’ll find out how to configure a firewall to help defend your PC.
Lesson 9 - Introduction to PC Hardware. All PC techs needs to get their hands dirty eventually, which means diving inside the case and checking things out from the inside. In this lesson, I’ll teach you about the power of different PC parts, including what to look for when shopping for new parts. I’ll also guide you in the safe and proper handling of components.
Lesson 10 - Installing Hardware. Replacing hardware components can dramatically improve your PC's performance. For instance, RAM can speed up your computer, a second hard drive increases your data storage capacity, and expansion cards can add features and ports to your computer. In this lesson, you'll learn to handle RAM, hard drives, and expansion cards.
Lesson 11 - Maintaining Hardware. Dirt happens! You can't make your PC last forever, but you can make it last longer and run better by keeping it clean. Get out your canned air and your distilled water (but not your pencil erasers or your household vacuum cleaner), and I'll show you safe and effective ways to check, clean, and maintain the inside and outside of your computer. We'll also talk about how to donate an old computer, and I'll explain how to throw away a computer without losing data or harming the environment.
Lesson 12 - Life of a PC Troubleshooter. You've come a long way since the beginning of this course. Before you complete your PC troubleshooting training, I'll remind you about the computing process and about troubleshooting theory. Combined with your new knowledge of PC hardware, software, and networking, you can use these tools to fix all sorts of problems. I'll also discuss your future as a PC troubleshooter, including the certifications and careers available to anyone with the right skills.
