For Publishers

To help people before it is too late. I frequently receive calls from friends requesting my assistance in recovering from some sort of computer disaster. In most cases, I am unable to assist them. Once the disaster has occurred it is too late to take preventative measures. Furthermore, my friends invariably have taken no steps to be able to recover from such a disaster. So by the time they call me, there is no way to prevent the disaster, and no easy way to recover. If you follow the advice and instructions in PC Fear Factor, I guarantee that you will never find yourself in this situation.

Who is the target audience for PC Fear Factor?

PC Fear Factor is intended primarily for non-technical users of computers – typically home, home office, and small office users – who don’t know how to protect themselves from computer disasters that result in the loss of irreplaceable data or the loss of use of their computers. Having said that, computer experts who lack expertise in the areas of disaster prevention and recovery have told me PC Fear Factor is a very valuable tool for them as well.

How will readers benefit from the book?

PC Fear Factor teaches you how to prevent avoidable computer disasters, and how to recover quickly, easily, and completely from unavoidable disasters. If you follow the instructions and advice in PC Fear Factor, you will be ready for whatever fate or felons throw at you. You will even be able to recover from the embarrassing but all too common self-inflicted computer disaster. You will never be a victim again!

Does the reader have to be a computer expert to benefit from or understand your book?

Absolutely not! PC Fear Factor is written in clear, conversational, language. I provide plenty of analogies to explain concepts, as well as detailed, step-by-step instructions (and plenty of pictures!) for each disaster prevention and recovery task. Any person who uses a Microsoft Windows personal computer will be able to implement these disaster prevention and recovery procedures, even if he or she is not a computer expert.

Why is this book important?

Personal computers play a more important role in our lives than ever before. We use our computers to store digital photographs, digitized documents, music, videos, web sites, financial records and other critical documents. We depend on our computers to be available night and day to do dozens of things that were once considered to be conveniences of life and are now considered to be essential. At the same time, our computing environments – the hardware, operating system, and applications - have become increasingly more complex, fragile, and more prone to failure. Yet most people never consider the possibility of a computer disaster, or the terrible impact it will have on their lives in terms of lost data and lost time, until it is too late.

What is unique about PC Fear Factor?

PC Fear Factor is the only comprehensive book on PC disaster prevention and recovery on the market. If you go to the store and buy a book on Microsoft Windows – even if you purchase one of those 1100 page muscle builders – you will find nothing on the subject of disaster prevention, and a few scant pages on disaster recovery. And what you find is often wrong, so very wrong. For example, every Windows XP book I have read recommends a file backup utility that Microsoft doesn’t even provide to home users who purchase a computer with Windows XP preinstalled!

PC Fear Factor provides in depth solutions to problems. The book doesn't just provide high level solutions and refer you elsewhere to find a detailed solution. Step-by-step instructions for hundreds of disaster prevention and recovery tasks are included.

Another unique aspect of PC Fear Factor is that I personally use each of the disaster prevention and recovery tools discussed in PC Fear Factor. You receive instruction based on how the product actually works, not how the documentation says it works. Sadly, there are often significant differences! In fact, I have had several software vendors tell me that PC Fear Factor does a better, more accurate, more complete job of explaining their product than their own documentation!

Is there an underlying theme or premise for PC Fear Factor?

Yes, and it is one I think most people will grasp immediately, even if they have never articulated it themselves. The underlying theme is that computers are unstable equilibriums, and that any change – even the most seemingly innocuous one – can disrupt the unstable equilibrium. By definition, when an unstable equilibrium is disturbed, disaster follows, because the system does not return to its previous state of equilibrium. Sometimes, you don’t even have to make a change to your computing environment to disrupt your unstable equilibrium. Sometimes – and I think readers will relate to this – the simple act of powering down one’s computer and turning it back on precipitates a computer disaster. Something has caused some critical system files to become corrupted, and in doing so has turned your computer into an elegant but expensive paperweight.

How do you think Microsoft would respond to your assertion that personal computers are unstable equilibriums?

I believe that they have already responded in the affirmative. Each new version of Microsoft Windows contains new disaster recovery tools. For example, Windows Millennium and Windows XP have a System Restore feature, which enables users to recover from certain types of computer disasters. The fact that Microsoft finds it necessary to keep adding disaster recovery tools is, in my opinion, a tacit admission that personal computers are unstable equilibriums.

What are some causes of computer disasters?

Aside from the obvious causes – computer viruses, computer hackers, and a hard disk crash – you need only look in the mirror to see the most frequent cause of computer disasters. How often have you made an ill-advised change to your computer that trashed your system? There are so many ways that we, as users, cause self-inflicted computer disasters that it would be fruitless to attempt to describe them all.

But we, as users, aren’t entirely to blame. There are disasters caused by ill behaved software applications and software conflicts, and disasters of mysterious unknown origin. But even if you are unable to determine precisely what caused a disaster, you will still be able to recover if you follow the advice in PC Fear Factor.

Can you elaborate a bit on the difference between a preventable and unavoidable computer disaster?

A preventable disaster is one that can be avoided through the proper use of disaster prevention tools, procedures, and safe computing practices. For example, most computer virus related disasters are preventable. An example of an unpreventable disaster is a hard disk crash – the mechanical failure of the computer component that contains all of your precious data.

Does Microsoft provide all of the solutions discussed in PC Fear Factor?

No – very few, in fact. The fact is, whenever Microsoft strays to far from their core competency – the basic Windows operating system – they don’t do a very good job. For example, the Windows XP Internet Connection Firewall is inferior to commercially available products, and Microsoft even admits to such on their web site. Specialization is here to stay, and software companies that specialize in one particular area of disaster prevention or disaster recovery tend to do a much better job than vendors that try to be all things to all people.

Will readers have to spend a lot of money to implement the solutions you recommend in your book?

No. In fact, some of the software tools I recommend are absolutely free, and the others are very reasonably priced. I also include tips on where to find the lowest prices on these tools. And many recommendations are procedural in nature, requiring no special software.

Two of the chapters in PC Fear Factor are directed at people who are about to purchase, or have just purchased a new computer. Why is this?

From the moment you decide to buy a new computer to the moment you put your new computer into service, the decisions you make and the actions you take will have a great impact on how disaster prone or disaster free your new computer will be. These chapters provide advice on how to avoid a computer disaster before you purchase a computer, as well as a structure and process for putting your new computer into service. Computers are always vulnerable to disasters, but they are especially vulnerable during the first thirty days of operation because you are making many changes to your computing environment, any one of which can trigger a computer disaster. PC Fear Factor will help you keep your computer disaster free during this critical period.

There are a lot of different versions of Microsoft Windows out there, and I would assume that the disaster prevention and recovery process is somewhat different for each version of Windows. Do you address this in PC Fear Factor?

Yes. PC Fear Factor addresses the three currently supported consumer oriented versions of Microsoft Windows: Windows 98, Millennium, and XP. And you are correct – in certain cases, the detailed instructions for a task differ depending on the operating system. This is especially true for Windows XP, which has a different heritage than 98 and Millennium.

What steps have you taken to ensure the accuracy of all of the information and instructions provided in PC Fear Factor?

Great question. I am a quality control fanatic. I have read through this manuscript 1000 times. I have executed every instruction in the book. Que Publishing's best technical people have reviewed the manuscript. Various software vendors have reviewed relevant portions of the book for accuracy.