Bringing my computer in to get reformatted
 

I tried to reformat myself but kept getting an error, so I'm bringing it to a computer services store for them to reformat and reinstall XP. I have already backed up all data that I need is there anything I should do before/after i bring my computer in? I was thinking about removing all poker software to not make it so obvious that it's used for poker.

Re: Bringing my computer in to get reformatted
 

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I tried to reformat myself but kept getting an error, so I'm bringing it to a computer services store for them to reformat and reinstall XP. I have already backed up all data that I need is there anything I should do before/after i bring my computer in? I was thinking about removing all poker software to not make it so obvious that it's used for poker.

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Lol, waste.

And no, you've already backed up all of your data, they are just going to boot to CD and delete/reinstall XP on your current partition, they aren't going to be browsing between your personal files.

Edit - Make sure you hand them your drivers CD as well if you aren't sure you know how to install them.

Re: Bringing my computer in to get reformatted
 

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Lol, waste.

And no, you've already backed up all of your data, they are just going to boot to CD and delete/reinstall XP on your current partition, they aren't going to be browsing between your personal files.

Edit - Make sure you hand them your drivers CD as well if you aren't sure you know how to install them.

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I have to say that this is not always true.

If your dropping off your computer and are not going to be standing there watching them reformat then it's best to not assume they won't be messing around on your hard drive, in fact, it's one of the small perks of the job, searching for funny/embarrassing things on other peoples computers.

If there is anything on your computer that you'd really not have others see, I would suggest you delete it/them before taking it in.

Disclaimer - This is not always the case. I've just worked with some messed up people.

Edit - If you have the time, you might wanna post what the error is and the trouble you are having reformatting, this is a simple procedure and shouldn't be to hard to figure out what the issue is and help you with it.

Re: Bringing my computer in to get reformatted
 

I own a computer and tech support business and I get jobs like yours fairly often. While I don't mind helping people on the forum, it's nice to see small businesses like mine still get some jobs from time to time. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Stihgnob, has a good point. While most computer tech's #1 motive is to get your computer fixed and back to you as soon as possible, there is alot of personal sensitive data and people just leave wide open for prying eyes. I would at the very least delete any thing you don't want anyone to see, as Stihgnob said. Granted, deleting is not erasing but a person would have to go to alot more work to see your senstive data if it's been deleted compared to if you just left it in My Documents.

As for the poker apps, I wouldn't worry about uninstalling them but you might consider logging into them and clicking "sign out" and unchecking the "automatically sign me in" box. That way, no one could just auto sign into your poker accounts and play if they wanted to.

Again, this is probably all overkill but it's better safe than sorry.

Re: Bringing my computer in to get reformatted
 

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As for the poker apps, I wouldn't worry about uninstalling them but you should DEFINITELY log into them and click "sign out" and unchecking the "automatically sign me in" box. That way, no one could just auto sign into your poker accounts and play if they wanted to.

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