How to Fix Any Computer... And Quietly Weep

If you're a diehard reader of Tom's Hardware, then you're likely the sort who does all his own work on your computers. Sure, hardware may have its problems but sometimes those issues may seem minor in comparison to a software headache. After all, you can always swap out a piece of hardware, but it's tougher to just pick out something that's just not working at the software level.

We may have dozens upon dozens of guides on how to better your computing experience here at Tom's but sometimes it all just comes down a simple couple of steps. The online comic strip The Oatmeal has an illustrated guide on how to fix any computer:

 

Republished with permission from Matthew Inman, creator of "The Oatmeal" web comic.If you like what you see from The Oatmeal, then you're going to need 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth.

Marcus Yam
Marcus Yam served as Tom's Hardware News Director during 2008-2014. He entered tech media in the late 90s and fondly remembers the days when an overclocked Celeron 300A and Voodoo2 SLI comprised a gaming rig with the ultimate street cred.
  • Thilindi
    "Buy a new Mac. Overdraw your account. Quietly Weep."

    Ok, now THAT was funny.
    Reply
  • plznote
    "Light from Saturn"
    Blame Sun Microsystems.
    Hilarious.
    Reply
  • CyberAngel
    I'm still using my Amiga 3000....
    Reply
  • hangfirew8
    Linux Kernel is written in C, not C++.
    Reply
  • guruofchem
    We weep quietly for you, CyberAngel...
    Reply
  • irsoccer05
    That was pretty funny. I'm impressed.
    Reply
  • azconnie
    Step 3, reload your files from that backup you were keeping. You were backing up, rite?

    If this says anything, it's PC FTW. It's the only one that can be reasonably serviced at home with minimal cost, and hazard, provided you take very simple preparation steps.

    On a related note, Windows: Partition HDD. Install to new partition. Take salvageable files from old partition and install to new. Delete old partition. BACK UP FILES THIS TIME.
    Reply
  • a-nano-moose
    What if my Abacus crashes?
    Reply
  • puddleglum
    CyberAngelI'm still using my Amiga 3000....Yeah, I loved my Amiga 3000 more than anything I've used since or anything you can get today.
    Reply
  • cookoy
    pretty much sums up what our IT support team is doing
    Reply