Technology Tip Number 42
Be Your Own Tech Specialist

This primarily applies to problems you might have with your computer at home but it can happen anywhere.  While working on your computer did you ever get an alert message and you had no idea what it meant?  You know, something that looks like this:

I can’t tell you what an error messages like this means but I can tell you how to find out:

1. When an alert box pops up with an error message in it take note of what it says.  If it doesn’t make sense to you write down exactly what it says (or highlight the text and copy it if you can)

2. Open up the internet and go to a search engine (google, yahoo, ask).   Type (or paste) the error message into the search engine and click “search”

3. Look at the responses carefully.  Chances are you are not the first person who has ever seen this message before.  Some of the people who have seen that error before have actually made entire web pages up about their experience.  Some of these websites might tell you how to fix the problem.  In many cases the company that created the software will create a website that offers free downloads that you can use to repair the error.  Check out these sites for a solution to your problem.