As a computer specialist, I have serviced almost any kind of problem that has reared its ugly head. For the most part the headache is unbearable to the owner of the system because everything that they have is on that computer. My philosophy, the data is invaluable! These are the standard measures that I go by as a technician.

$90 an Hour

Can be less depending on the job, easy jobs that take a long time, I will negotiate.

$20 an hour drive time for distances greater then 10 miles from North Hollywood, CA.

Virus Infestations

Between four and six hours, a lot has to do with the size of your hard drive/storage facilities, each file has to be tested to determine if the virus has infected it. The other major factor is the type of infestation. If the virus is a rootkit, a virus that has become part of the operating system, then it can take quite a while to get to it.

Optimization

Between two and four hours of work. To help reduce costs, it is recommended that you defragment your system prior to contacting. Defragmentation can take up to six hours alone to run.

Hardware Additions

Depends on the hardware, estimate between one to three hours depending.

Analysis

I am sometimes called just to determine what is wrong, this process can take between one and three hours depending on the issues.

The absolutely last possible solution that will be done, is a re-install. 90% of all corrections to a windows computer can be fixed without a reinstall of the operating system. Several technicians will immediately want to reinstall windows to correct all problems, it is a quick fix. This is the last possible step because in the process of reinstalling windows, the customer will likely lose access to some of the programs on the computer. Also, since the activation process of windows has changed drastically in the last four years, it is highly likely that you will become the victim of counterfeiting of windows causing your computer not to work right 30 days later. If a technician tells you that he needs to reinstall windows, contact me first!

If you do become the victim of piracy, then it will cost you $160 more when the computer stops working. DO NOT get caught unaware, make sure to ask the technician what they are going to do before they do it, most technicians don't like to tell you because they don't want to spend your time trying to explain it. Stay with the technician to make sure that they don't reinstall Windows.

Policies for Computer Repair