Completing important tasks
After you have set up your computer, perform the following tasks, which will save you time and trouble later:
vCreate a diagnostics diskette. The diagnostics tool can isolate hardware problems and is part of the Product Recovery program. Making a diagnostics diskette ahead of time assures you will be able to use of the diagnostics tool if the Product Recovery program becomes inaccessible. See “Creating a Diagnostics diskette” on page 26.
vRecord your computer machine type, model, and serial number. If you need service or technical support, you will probably be asked for this information. See “Recording your computer information” on page 9.
Keep this Quick Reference in a safe place. It is the only publication that has important information about reinstalling
Updating your operating system
Microsoft makes updates available for various operating systems through the Microsoft Windows Update Web site. The Web site automatically determines what Windows updates are available for your specific computer and lists those updates only. Updates could include security fixes, new versions of Windows components (such as media player), fixes to other portions of the Windows operating system, or enhancements.
For details about updating your operating system, refer to the Access IBM program.
Installing other operating systems
If you install your own operating system, follow the instructions that come with your
Updating your antivirus software
Your computer comes with the Norton AntiVirus software you can use to detect and eliminate viruses. You should run the LiveUpdate application to get the latest updates from the Norton AntiVirus Web site. LiveUpdate will download the latest virus list and Norton AntiVirus will use the new list when it scans your computer the next time.
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