In this presentationyou will learn how to dress, how to behave, how to communicate with the customers, and how to work with PCs safely.

1. A+
Lecture 2: Operational Procedures
Kabul Polytechnic University (KPU)
Information Technology Community College (ITCC)
Prepared by: S. Md. Ali Murtazawi
Contact: sma.eee@hotmail.com
Date: 03-November-2015
In this lecture you will learn how to dress, how to behave, how to communicate with
the customers, and how to work with PCs safely.

2. Reference
• This presentation is based on the book:
“CompTIAA+ Certification Exam Guide,
8th Edition” Written by Mike Meyers.

3. Appearance
• Casual is the dress code that emphasizes
comfort and personal expression over
presentation, formality and conformity
• The problem with casual is that perhaps
our society is becoming too casual.
• Customers equate casual clothing with a
casual attitude.
• Remember that you are not just fixing
the computers, you are saving precious
family photos, you are keeping a small
business in operation.
• Nobody wants an unclean, slovenly
person doing these important jobs. Causal Ford Professional Ford

4. Honesty/Integrity
• Honesty means to tell the truth, and integrity means doing the right thing.
• In IT industry, one of the biggest temptations is lying to your boss.
• Being honest with your customers is a lot harder.
• Don’t sell people goods and services they don’t need, even if you get a cut of what
you sell.
• Don’t lie to your customers about a problem. don’t be afraid to say, “I don’t
know.”
• Too many techs seem to think that not knowing exactly what a problem might be
is a reflection of their skill.
• There is no greater proof of a quality technician than the ability to say “I don’t
know, but I know how to figure it out.”

5. Honesty/Integrity
• You have a lot of power when you sit in front of someone’s computer.
• You can readily read private email, discover Web sites surfed, and more.
• With a click of the Start button, you can know the last five programs the user ran,
including Word and Solitaire, and the last few documents the user worked on.
• Don’t do this; you really don’t want to know.
• Passwords are a big issue for techs.
• Avoid learning other folks’ passwords at all costs.
• If you only need a password once, let the user type it in for you.
• If you anticipate accessing something multiple times (the more usual situation),
ask the user to change the password temporarily.
• Don’t use or touch anything— keyboard, printer, laptop, monitor, mouse, phone,
pen, paper, or cube toy—without first asking permission.

6. Dependability/Responsibility
• A responsible person is answerable for her actions. A dependable person can be
counted on to perform those acts.
• The single biggest dependability issue for an IT technician is to show up for job
appointments and to show up on time.
• Failure to show up for an appointment not only is inconvenient, but also can cost
your customer a lot of money in lost time and productivity.
• Remember: “Five minutes early is on time, and on time is late.”
• Before you work on a computer, always ask the customer if there are up-to-date
backups of the data.
• If there aren’t, offer to make backups for the customer, even if this incurs an extra
charge for the customer.

7. Adaptability/Versatility
• Adaptability defines how someone adjusts to changes.
• Versatility is bringing a broad set of skills to the PC repair process.
• There is no universal PC repair manual to which you can refer to tell you how to
fix computers.
• For example, good techs should be able to fix most peripherals, even if they are
not experts on that particular device.
• Versatile techs are those who not only take the time to learn the processes of
whatever organization they work for, but also look to create technology solutions
for problems and inefficiencies.
• A big part of versatility is offering different repair options in certain situations.

8. Sensitivity
• Sensitivity is the ability to appreciate another’s feeling and emotions.
• Sensitivity requires observing others closely, taking time to appreciate their
feelings, and acting in such a way that makes them feel comfortable.
• Last, be culturally sensitive. We live in a diverse world of races, religions,
etiquettes, and traditions.
• If a customer’s religious holiday conflicts with your work schedule, the customer
wins.
• If the customer wants you to take off your shoes, take them off. If the customer
wants you to wear a hat, wear one.
• When in doubt, always ask the customer for guidance.

9. Communication
• In many cases, a PC problem results from user error or neglect. As a technician,
you must show users the error of their ways without creating anger or conflict.
• Use statements such as “I know how frustrating it feels to lose data.”
• Avoid using the word “you,” as it can sound accusatory.
• Communicate with users the way you would like them to communicate with you,
were the roles reversed.
• Don’t interrupt customers as they describe a problem; just listen and take notes.
You might hear something that leads to resolving the problem.
• Remember that an angry customer isn’t really angry with you—he’s just
frustrated—so don’t take his anger personally.

10. Electrostatic Discharge (ESD)
• ESD simply means the passage of a
static electrical charge from one item to
another.
• ESD will destroy the sensitive parts of
your PC, so it is essential that you take
steps to avoid ESD when working on
your PC.
• ESD only takes place when two objects
that store different amounts of static
electricity come in contact.
• To avoid ESD use an anti-static wrist
strap.

11. Electrostatic Discharge (ESD)
• The moment you take a piece out of the
PC, it no longer has contact with the
systems and may pick up static from other
sources.
• Techs use anti-static mats to eliminate
this risk.
• An anti-static mat acts as a point of
common potential; it’s typical to purchase
a combination anti-static wrist strap and
mat that all connect to keep you, the PC,
and any loose components at the same
electrical potential.

12. Electrostatic Discharge (ESD)
• Any electrical component not in a PC needs to be
stored in an anti-static bag, a specially designed
bag that sheds whatever static electricity you have
when you touch it, thus preventing any damage to
components stored within.
• Almost all PC components come in an anti-static
bag when purchased.
• Experienced techs never throw these bags away, as
you never know when you’ll want to pull a part
out and place it on a shelf for a while.
Always unplug a PC when working inside it.

13. Electromagnetic Interference (EMI)
• A magnetic field interfering with electronics is electromagnetic interference
(EMI).
• EMI isn’t nearly as dangerous as ESD, but it can cause permanent damage to
some components and erase data on some storage devices.
• You can prevent EMI by keeping magnets away from computer equipment.
• Certain components are particularly susceptible to EMI.
• Never get a magnet close to
Floppy disks
Hard drives
Flash drives
CRT (tube) monitors

14. Radio Frequency Interference (RFI)
• Many devices emit radio waves:
 Cell phones
 Wireless network cards
 Cordless phones
 Baby monitors
 Microwave ovens
• In general, the radio waves that these devices emit are very weak, and almost all
electronic devices are shielded to prevent RFI.
• A few devices, speakers in particular, are susceptible to RFI.
• RFI will never cause any damage, but it can be incredibly irritating.
• The best way to prevent RFI is to keep radio emitting devices as far away as
possible from other electronics.

15. Physical Safety
• IT techs live in a dangerous world.
We’re in constant danger of
tripping, hurting our backs, and
getting burned by hot components.
• If you don’t keep organized,
hardware technology will take
over your life.
• All cables in a business
environment are carefully tucked
away behind computer cases, run
into walls, or placed under cable
runners.

16. Physical Safety
• Another physical safety issue is heavy boxes. Computers, printers, monitors—
everything we use—all seem to come to us in heavy boxes.
• Remember never to lift with your back; lift with your legs, and always use a hand
truck if available.
• Also, make certain mounted components don’t exceed the weight limitations of
their mounting hardware.
• You also need to watch out for hot components.
• First, watch for anything with a cooling fan. Presence of a cooling fan means that
something is hot enough to burn you.
• Also look for labels or stickers warning about hot components.

17. Physical Safety
• Last, when in doubt, move your hand over components as if you were checking
the heat on a stove.

18. Tools of the Trade
• The basic tech toolkit consists of a Phillips-head screwdriver and not much
else—seriously—but a halfdozen tools round out a fully functional toolkit.
• Most kits have a star-headed Torx wrench, a nut driver or two, a pair of plastic
tweezers, a little grabber tool (the technical term is parts retriever), a hemostat,
an IC extractor for removing various chips, and both Phillips-head and flat-
head screwdrivers.
• A lot of techs throw in an extension magnet to grab hard-to-reach bits that drop
into cases (an exception to the “no magnets” rule).
• Many also add a magnifying glass and a flashlight for those hard-to-read
numbers and text on the printed circuit boards (PCBs) that make up a large
percentage of devices inside the system unit.

19. Tools of the Trade