Wednesday, September 17, 2014
As a dentist you’re an expert at curing toothaches and correcting overbites. However, ensuring the efficiency and capability of your office technology might be out of the realm of your expertise.
Fortunately, there are relatively simple steps you can take to extend the lifespan of the computers in your dental practice. These “tech hacks” can help you save money while offering relief from chronic, nagging computer performance issues.
1. Maintain good computer hygiene
Although it may seem like an obvious fix, your office system will last longer if you keep it physically healthy. You’ve probably advised your patients on their tooth care along similar lines. Consider, first, the computer’s location within the office setting. It should have access to cool air and plenty of room to properly ventilate so it will avoid overheating. Inside the system, heat also can be generated by lingering dust and grime that have not been attended to. Give your system a regular thorough cleaning with either a small portable vacuum or compressed air two to three times each year to keep things fresh and like-new.
2. Upgrade memory
Computer memory upgrades—which vary in cost depending on the make and model of your system but start at only approximately $50 apiece—improve computer speed and help lengthen the life of the computer system overall. Memory (or DRAM), is a component in your computer that allows for short-term data access—loading applications, browsing the Internet, editing spreadsheets and more. The amount of memory installed in your office’s system determines how fast these applications are able to operate and how many different computer tasks your employees can be undertaking at once. 2GB of RAM may have been effective two years ago, but it will not keep up with your system needs today. Upgrading your system's memory is one of the easiest and most cost-effective ways to increase your system's overall performance and lengthen its active lifespan.
3. Upgrade storage
Contrary to popular belief, memory and storage are not the same thing. Storage, in contrast, allows for long-term data access, and comes in the form of a hard drive or solid state drive (SSD), an internal flash drive with incredible data access speed that takes over for your hard drive, allowing you to dedicate it instead to system archiving. Your computer’s storage allows you to access and store your files, applications and the operating system. The speed of the storage drive determines how quickly your computer is able to boot up, load applications and access saved files. Slow memory and slow storage components can play a role in bottlenecking data. It may be prudent for you to explore upgrading both types of memory.
4. Protect your system
The three previous tips for extending a computer’s life focus on updates to the computer itself; however, a computer’s life also can be shortened by security threats. You likely purchased standard anti-virus software when you initially bought the computer, but these measures require updating as well. Make sure to keep your anti-virus protection updated and your subscription active. In addition, it is important not only to create strong passwords, but also to regularly change them. Finally, regularly running a simple virus scan (with your updated anti-virus software) will help you keep things in check.
Together, these tips stand to extend the life of dental office computer systems and in turn help you save money. That being said, it is always better to be safe than sorry. Take care to ensure you do not lose your practice data in the event of a computer crash. There are several products and services available that handle data back-ups, though dentists can just as easily carry out regular back-ups to an external hard drive. These computer troubleshooting techniques will help free up a bit of the business budget that can be reallocated to achieving what matters most—delivering quality dental care.