There is some preventative maintenance you can perform on your computer that
will help reduce the number of hardware failures experienced over the life of
your computer system, as well as prolonging the life of the system.

Use your vacuum cleaner with the soft brush attachment to suck out all the
dirt and dust from around and under the keys of your keyboard.  This helps
keep the mechanical portion of the keys clean, and avoids the problems of
sticking or periodically missing keys.  While you have the vacuum, suck out
around the disk drives, all the cabinet seams and flat surfaces, and across the
back of the machine where all the cables are exposed (be careful not to loosen
any cables by mistake).  The monitor case (especially around the cooling vents)
can also benefit from a cleaning.  Open up the printer cover where you access
the ribbon, and suck out the paper dust from the bottom of the case.

The glass face of your monitor can be cleaned with a soft cloth and glass
cleaner or methyl alcohol.  This removes finger prints and the dust buildup
from the screen.

If the computer is left on unattended for any period of time, turn down the
brightness control so that the monitor phosphor does not get burnt with the
image.  Try to make this a habit, even if you only take a short break.  This
can significantly extend the monitor life.
