For those of us who are installing a new Windows computer or simply want to improve the performance of an old one, Mark Kaelin, Chad Perrin and Scott Lowe at Tech Republic prepared 3 great lists of things you should and shouldn't do:

• 10 Things You Should Do to a New PC Before Surfing the Web
• Boost Security by Disabling These 10 Windows XP Services
• 10 Windows XP Services You Should Never Disable

By Gene Barlow
User Group Relations
Copyrighted June 2009

(Ed. Note - In preparation for Gene Barlow's webinar at the August 12th General meeting, this article is reproduced with his permission.)

Backing up your computer’s hard drive on a regular basis is the most important thing every user should be doing on their computer. The hard drive on your computer will eventually crash and when it does, you will be protected if you have a good backup. Without a backup, your computer will no longer function and all of your important files and pictures will be lost. Start doing backups today and be safe!