Welcome to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ page). Below, we have tried to answer the most common questions visitors to this our Web site may have. If you find that your question is not answered on this page, please email us roger@helpwithcomputers.biz or call us at 01837 840171.

• What are the charges for help? We normally charge a fixed hourly rate for services, with an additional charge for travelling for non-local visits. See our Services page for more details.
• Do you repair computers? We do not repair hardware faults on computers, although we are happy to run tests to provide diagnosis.
• How big a geographical area do you cover? We normally concentrate on the West Devon (UK) area around the villages of South Zeal, South Tawton, Belstone and Sticklepath.  Outside this area we may wish to charge for travelling.  If we need to travel substantial distances, these are best negotiated on an individual basis, as we can sometimes reduce costs by fitting in with other activities.
• What sort of computers do you work with? We work mostly with PCs running various versions of Microsoft Windows, but are happy to work with any small computer - including obselete ones - as long as some documentation or other information is available.
• What sort of tuition do you provide? We are happy to teach almost everthing from the electronics to the design of applications; our special interests include computer graphics and computer music, but we will teach about operating systems and applications, although you may find instruction in Microsoft Word is cheaper at your local technical college!
• Which operating systems do you support? We have most experience in Microsoft Windows, but have used MAC and Linux and other UNIX based systems. We have experience with mainframe systems and DEC Vax systems as well. We have also used various microprocessor-based systems, single and multi-user.
• Would you work on a non-standard system? We would be happy to work on any system - ancient or modern - as long as some documentation is available; we have some experience in reverse engineering system software, but you should be warned that this can be unproductive and expensive in the absence of documentation.
• Do you write programs? We have Microsoft Developer’s Studio Version 6 and various other development tools (including Linux tools), and are happy to undertake small programming tasks. Pressure of work means we are unlikely to accept major commissions in this area, although we are happy to project manage such jobs.
• Which programming languages do you support? We have experience in several microprocessor assemblers, 3 GLs such as C and Fortran, and visual development tools such as Visual Basic.  We have used JAVA, PERL and other platform-independent tools, and are always happy to learn new ones!