Computers Businesses and individuals alike have all grown to rely on computers. The reliance is never more apparent than when something happens to horrid little box that makes our lives easier. We expect computers to react a certain way, in certain situations. It nearly always comes as a surprise when beloved little box, know as a computer, refuses to boot up. Probably even more shocking, is dawning that we've neglected to backup or prepare for unforeseen disaster that has just been thrust upon us.

Regardless of number of times you have experienced dread of being unable to access information trapped in god-awful computerized contraption, we are always invariably unprepared.

The reality of it is that computers, not only contain moving parts, but they like other machines, they are prone to failure at some point in their lives. Not only can hardware failures occur, but viruses can also corrupt data making it impossible to retrieve. Regardless of litany of words used to bully box into behaving, truth is that only offence is a good defense.

So how do you prepare for a computer tragedy?

Prepare for Worst In structuring an offense it's important to realize power of reinforcements: backups are invaluable and will save countless hours of shameless degradation. Be sure that you backup data and files on a regular basis, there are a number of tools that will automate process.

The standard (standard in this case meaning free) warranty on a new laptop typically runs anywhere from 90 days to a year. That probably doesn’t seem like much when you consider how long you expect to own your laptop. What happens when your laptop poops out on 91st day?

First of all, even if your laptop only includes a 90-day warranty (and assuming you’ve purchased a reputable brand- name system), chances of your laptop dying on 91st day are very, very slim.

Manufacturers don’t offer a 90-day warranty with expectation that their product will malfunction shortly thereafter. A shorter warranty is likely, at least in part, to be a marketing ploy to push you toward an extended warranty.

All major laptop manufacturers offer a long menu of extended warranty options, each menu item with its own price tag. The two biggest components that factor into cost of an extended warranty are duration and location.