Frequently Asked Questions

If an infection happens, and your anti virus program has not eliminated it, then it must be solved as soon as possible, so your files will not be lost. You can come around at our service center, or ask another computer expert to solve the problem. Installing new updates for your anti virus program can also work, although sometimes this is not possible because it is prevented by the virus itself! In any case, do not just continue working! If you do, you will very probably loose files, and your whole computer might have to be reinstalled 

Unfortunately, you can. As said before, a computer virus can happen to every computer. It can come from everywhere: email, a cd, dvd, network, usb stick, and the internet. 

Normally, the antivirus program on your computer will show an alert that a virus is detected and stopped. In that case, everything is still good. The virus is eliminated, and you can just work on. But if your computer has been getting a whole lot slower lately, or are getting a lot of error messages, you have a strong indication that something is wrong. 

First, you need an antivirus program. There are programs for sale, but they are also available for free, see for instance www.avg.com.  Also, you need to update the antivirus program regularly, so the program can recognize new viruses. The new viruses are the most important to stop, so updating is very necessary. Then, you must make sure that you get updates for your computer software. A lot of viruses use an error in a program like Internet Explorer to spread around. You will not even notice when you get infected, but afterwards you will! Viafrica has a solution for these updates for everyone. For 30.000 shillings per year you will get the newest updates every week from us, which you only have to install on your computer. And if anything goes wrong, we are here to help. 

A computer virus is a computer program that can copy itself and infect a computer without the permission or knowledge of the owner.Often, the virus dramatically slows down the computer, and it can steal passwords you type, and delete files from the computer. In the worst case, you will lose all data that was on the computer. 

In the shop it might look like you will buy a legal copy, but often it is an illegal copy. The best check for a valid license is done by comparing prices with the official shops. If it is much cheaper somewhere, then it is probably an illegal copy. Also, you can often see it by looking at the quality of the cd cover, and the way the cd looks. Real cd's have a fine print in the surface, illegal copies often have no print, or a print/sticker which lies on top of the cd. 

Well, in the worst case the police might come and give you a fine or lock you up in jail. This does happen at businesses who use illegal software licenses. In any way, you are stealing from the person or company who created the software, by buying and using an illegal copy. Don't think they do not check this in Tanzania. We know of cases were people were fined for this. 

When you want to install a software program like Windows on your computer, then you have to accept the license terms they state (on the screen or on the cd). And you can not just say Yes, you must also follow the rules they set. One of these rules is “you may only use this software if you have bought an official copy.”, and another rule is “you are not allowed to copy the software”. These rules are set because the software companies want to make a profit on the things they produce. They can only make a profit if they sell a whole lot of copies, because creating a program like Windows takes an incredible effort. If people would just copy the software themselves, then the author would not make any money, and software writers would run out of a job. 

A software license is an agreement between the user (you) and the software company. Just like with a book, the writer of the software has copyright on what he/she wrote. Simply said: You are not allowed to copy a book someone else has written, and go sell those copies in a shop. The same rules apply to software. This rule is called the “copyright law”, which almost every country in the world has and respects. 

Software is a computer program. It is also called “software programs”. For example Windows and Internet Explorer. These software programs are made by large companies like Google, Adobe and Microsoft. There are also a lot of small companies that make software, sometimes for very specific purposes. 

The process of data backup involves storing data on a disk or drive separate from your primary computer. This can be on a floppy disk, a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM, a key drive (USB-stick), a Zip disk, a remote computer or an online service. The emphasis is on having two or more copies of your files, in this way if something happens to one then you will still have the other.Say, for example, that you are writing a report for your business. You can save this report both on your computer and onto a 3 and a half inch floppy disk. If anything happens to your computer, say you are infected by a virus which deletes all of your documents, once you computer is fixed you still have access to your report on your backup.  

Data backup is the saving of your files in a location remote from your computer. We perform data backup to protect against cases in which our files are lost or destroyed from our primary computers. If we have our files saved in reserve on a backup disk, then we can restore our files to our computer in the case of a crash or loss of data. This is important to anyone who uses a computer as there are some files that are simply irreplaceable, and if they are lost then they are lost forever.Backups are useful primarily for two purposes. The first is to restore a state following a disaster (called disaster recovery). The second is to restore small numbers of files after they have been accidentally deleted or corrupted. 

An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is primarily used to provide a backup power source to the parts in the computer case, the monitor and any other device plugged in to the UPS. It is like a short term battery that prevents your computer from immediately switching off in case of a power cut. A UPS keeps your computer running for a short wile. So when a power cut occurs, you will still have time to save your data and to properly shut down your computer. In addition to acting as a backup when the power goes out, most UPS devices also act as power "conditioners" by ensuring that the electricity flowing to your computer and accessories is free from drops or surges. If a computer is not receiving a consistent flow of electricity, damage can and often does occur.;

The first thing is taking well care of your computer. Damage to the computer hardware can also cause damage to the data on the computer, like your computer programs and documents.

• Avoid Heat & Vibration
  All drive components, both electronic and mechanical, are sensitive to heat and vibration. Keep your computer in a dry, controlled environment that is clean and dust-free. And do not put heavy things on top of the computer. Set up your computer in an area with very little traffic to ensure that it does not get bumped. Heat and/or vibration are two of the leading causes of hard drive failure.
  

• UPS
  This is an uninterruptible power supply which protects your computer from power cuts, and peaks and drops in power.

• Anti-virus software
  Using Anti-virus software, like discussed in the radio show of 2 weeks ago, helps protecting your data. This software prevents your computer from getting infected by computer viruses. However, even this software gets out-dated so make sure you update this software at least a few times every year.
  

• Passwords
  When more people use 1 computer and/or the computer is connected to a (local) network you can protect your data with passwords. With passwords you can 'lock' the data in order to make sure that not just everyone can access and modify it. You can 'lock' documents, files or even a whole computer with a password. You can share the password with people that should be able to access and use the data. Make sure that you regularly change your password so that other people can't guess the pass word and access your data.
  

• Backups
  Making an electronic copy of the data on your computer so that it will not easily get lost in case something happens to the computer. For example, if you have a fire at home of in your office and you loose all the paper documents that you had stored there. In order to prevent these documents from getting lost, you can make a copy of it and store it in another place, outside your office or house. You can do the same with the information on your computer and hence prevent that information from getting lost. You can make electronic copies of your data and store it in another place than the computer you were using.

Due to damage to your computer, computer viruses, or flaws in software the information on your computer might get lost and in most cases can not easily be restored or found back. It is like protecting your house or office against theft of fire. You lock your home or office to prevent thieves from coming in and steal your possessions. And in order to prevent your (paper) documents from getting lost by damage of e.g. fire, you can make a copy of it ans store it somewhere. In case of fire you will still have that copy and you will not completely have lost your documents. You can do the same with the (important) information on your computer and hence prevent that information from getting lost or stolen. It is always harder to retrieve of restore the data than prevent it from getting damaged or stolen.

Computers are not cheap. Viafrica helps the schools that apply for a computer room and who meet the requirements with setting up a computer room. However, it is only the start. The school should be able to create financial resources for maintenance of the computers and for buying new ones in the future. A way of generating money for this might be opening up your computer room for the community after regular school hours (and possibly even giving them computer lessons). By doing this, the school generates extra income and the people from the community benefit from having computers in their vicinity and learn how to use them.

You can apply @ Viafrica. These people can help you sort out the requirements of the school and what you need to do in order to have a computer room at your school. Some requirements:

• School needs to be able to maintain CLASSworks financially for now and in the future (money should be set aside for new computers and for maintenance)
• Use of computers should be supported by the school management
• Schools need to have proper room for a computer room (connected to power, dust free, etc)
• Schools needs to make two teachers available for training so that Viafrica can train these people to become ‘computer teachers’. There are additional teachers’ trainings after implementation of a computer room, so teachers should be available for training in the future as well.

No, but it can make things a lot easier and more fun.

First of all, computers can be used for school administration.

Second, really expand the amount of teaching materials available at school. You will not need a library full of books as computers can contain a lot of information.

Third, computers can help making the lessons more lively. Electronic teaching materials can contain movies, other animations and exercises that require much more input and cooperation between children. This might also help making classes more attractive to both pupils and teachers.

Fourth, computer classes should not only be seen as an extra subject in the school curriculum. Computers can also be used in other subjects like math, biology or English to name a few. They can also be used to link different subjects to each other (why not use results from a practical Biology class for mathematical calculations in Math class).

Fifth, it improves the teachers’ and pupils’ computer skills which might also be helpful outside school. E.g. as more and more companies start using computers, it might help students in finding a job in the future if they have gained computer skills at school.

CLASSworks, an abbreviation for 'Computer Learning And Sustainable Support works', guides a school through all the essential parts connected to the management and usage of a computer lab. CLASSworks starts with the preparation of a suitable computer room, the training of teachers and the management of hard- and software. CLASSworks is the main programme of Viafrica. Through CLASSworks schools are supported with the realisation and implementation of a digital learning environment. Viafrica delivers hard- and software, trains teachers and supports schools with the usage through seminars, trainings, maintenance and end-user support. Schools are responsible for the running costs, teachers and infrastructure.