BleepingComputer.com: New business

Good afternoon,

I would like to start a small business about computers repair. I know there are many competitors but I have been working a very long time in electronics, I enjoy electronics. I even think I am not so bad in electronics

My problem is I don't know where to start. Do I need specific tools, I think it is almost impossible to repair a motherboard but we never know. I think a lot of things can be done on a mobo before soldering components.

Do you know specific web sites where I could find some advises.

Thanks for your advices

Mike

I run a small business of my own, though I dont make a living off of it. All my customers I get by reference, and I keep them because I charge maybe a quarter what computer stores do, but thats kinda my goal-I know a lot of people who need their computers repaird or simply need new ones, and can't afford to take their dell down to office depot and pay 150 bucks to get a virus removed or a memory upgrade, so seeing as I just plain enjoy working on computers for fun Ill charge a quarter what the stores do, and be able to do what I enjoy and make a few bucks doing it. . .But I imagine, if I was going to do it for a living, I would charge a little more, but I would also recomend advertising, newspaper, craigs list, whatever you can afford, but the number one thing I think I can recomend is be honest, and fair, and do what you say you do. If you don't know how to fix a computer be up front about it-and recomend someone who can. Ive even done that-I get a computer with a major virus thats beyond my capabily to easily eradicate (I wont spend 2 days on a virus, I run Rkill, anda couple anti virus programs, and if that dont work I reformat) I tell them, hey I cant remove this without reformatting your hard drive, You can either take it to so and so who does do this kind of work, and I wont charge you anything for it, or I can backup your files, reformat your computer and restore everything to the way it was for x amount of dollars. . .which is almost as good as erasing the virus to begin with. And you need to find a fair price for your work thats not excorbent, in fact its good to be cheaper then your competition, but at the same time, you need to make money. Thats why I dont do intensive anti-virus-sure I could spend a week going through the registry and manually deleting a virus, but for what I charge (which isnt much since I cater to lower income people) I wouldnt be making any money, Id lose to much time-which is why I run Rkill, malwarebytes, and avast, and if that doesnt do it I give them the option to take it elsewhere or let me reformat, kinda like you said with motherboards, yes you can fix them with a soder gun-but is it really a smart idea to do so, you need to weigh in how much time and money its going to take, vs just replacing the entire motherboard, you have to find what works for you, and your client base. But, like I said the best thing you can be is fair and honest, and professional.

My .02.

A good knowledge of electronics will be an asset, but, a knowledge of software is required as well.

Like the patriot09, I also run a small repair shop out of my home. All Clients are by referral. My area and those surrounding have been hit very hard by the current economy. I have no set fee`s for services. My Clients pay what ever they feel my work is worth and what they can afford. In the case of major hardware failures where I can not fix it or the machine is to old to justify the price of parts to fix it I do not charge a penny for my time.

ramimi, on Oct 4 2010, 02:47 PM, said:

Unless you have experience repairing motherboards from a manufacturer (Asus, MSI, etc) I wouldn't bother. You can have a repair shop and just replace based upon part needs. You might be able to find parts on Ebay or even from the OEM.

In my experience, supporting personal computers is a pain in the rear. I have always worked in a corporate/enterprise environment and usually those are better due to a controlled atmosphere. Internet, admin rights, etc are always controlled. Well, the last one I worked for was the one exception but their IT department is full of non-technical idiots for upper management. I'll help out friends or family but I stay away from helping people on their personal computers - other than advice given here.

Good evening and thank you for your answers,
I think you are right when you say we cannot live off this business working alone.
In fact I would like to get complement of pension doing something I enjoy ... having both hands into electronics.
When I said computers, I was also thinking about electronic games ... wii for instance. I'll be soon retired and I'll have all my day to play with that .
Concerning hardware:
Do you know a web site where I could find how to test a power supply for instance ... I heard a PS out of a computer needs some tricks to work! .... the same for all kind of stuff
Concerning software :
I come from the time we were programming in assy code and I remember we were writing code to check memory, to move the heads of a floppy disc, ....
Do you know where I could find that sort of software ?
Many thanks for your answers
Regards
mike

Good evening,

For those who are interested, you can find information on computers repair on youtube. some are quite interesting.

Regards

mike