Computers for Charity's

Bits and Bytes

Issue #2 SPECIAL EDITION Nov 2011

Charity Changes You. A

personal note from the CTO: Jeffrey Kill. If anyone had told me that starting a charity would change me so much as a person I would not have believed them. After all I am a Christian and I've always been charitable. I've given a little time to Salvation Army , the Old Newsnboys, Global Connections, Special Olympics, and a number of other charities over the years. I volunteer at my church and put my money in the plate. I've worked hard at showing random acts of kindness to those around me. As I pointed out on previous occasions, every little bit helps. There is something entirely different about taking on a cause that no one else seems to be championing and trying to make it work. Gone are the days of volunteering for a day or an event and getting on with my life. With Computers for Charity, over the last few years I have had to work constantly with every spare moment at my disposal. I have had to wear the hat of the CEO, CTO, Marketer, Promoter, Web Developer, Organizer, Speaker, Fundraiser, Volunteer Coordinator, Event Planner, and all around Laborer. At first there was just me working on computers form my home in Bowling Green, Ohio. Then there were a few other volunteers; namely, Kimberlie Morris and Richard Rowold who helped me with office tasks as

well as providing me with a great deal of encouragement and inspiration. Turning Point Church graciously allowed us to use a small room next to the sanctuary to start our endeavor. It was adequate and we were grateful to be able to provide a service through the church that no one else was providing. As we began to meet needs in our church and beyond one thing became apparent. There was no shortage of needs, rather a shortage of time and talent to meet them. I started advertising through the internet and joining social networking sites to promote the effort and to solicit computers, parts and volunteers. I signed up for environmental, recycling, and technological oriented sites who shared common interests and visions. We joined Techsoup and became a a Microsoft Registered Refurbisher. I joined several Open Source communities and began to participate in them. I also joined Wood County Area Ministries and other charity organizations that are working to meet diverse needs

In This Issue

Charity Changes You Dust Bunnies Can Kill

What is Malware?

Page 2 in our local community. As the word began to spread and the donations increased we began to run out of room. We also began to get more volunteers. As individuals came to drop off equipment and saw the scope of our vision they wanted to help in some way. As we provided computers for people they too were inspired by our effort and we quickly found a place for them within the organization. We formed a Board of Directors who's sole purpose would be to handle the paperwork involved in the formation of a non profit. We found it would be easier to obtain a 501 (c)(3) through the Methodist Church than it would be to tackle this on our own so we worked with the West Ohio Conference of the UMC to set that up. The important thing was to remain a nonsectarian/secular charity under a faith based organization. Our vision is to become another one of the great charities that have sprung forth form the church and now have a vital role in the public life of our society. and children services to name a few. With a great tradition of charity and social action, the Methodist church has a longstanding record of meeting people at the point of their needs. That is the part of the gospel I hoped to fulfill through Computers for Charity. Living a life of service to the community is a tall order. As Jesus healed all who would come to him and fed the masses, we hope to meet a very significant need in our modern culture. Access to a computer has become more than just a want. So we obtained our Non Profit Status and moved into a bigger room, with a separate office upstairs. We now have room to host computer classes which are still in development. I also have developed several presentations to demonstrate the reason why refurbishing and reusing electronics is preferable both in an environmental and a humanitarian sense and have taken this message to as many churches and other organizations in our community as will have me. We've made great strides in organizing our collection and recycling methods as well as our record keeping and office work. We have over 20 volunteers who come on an irregular basis and we hope to soon have a weekly staff of at least 10 dependable volunteers. We continue to reach out to other charities and non-profits who's services we hope to enhance by our own. Living a life of service to others is a tranformative experience as well.

Overcoming Limitations

The need to move into a bigger space and to get out from under the local churches limiting tax structure became apparent. We would need to write receipts for donations and do fund raising to be able provide the type of service that we wanted to and to plan for future expansion.

A Methodist Tradition
The mixing of secular and sacred for the cause of charity is nothing new for the Methodist church. Just look at other great efforts such as the Methodist Hospitals, Nursing Homes, food banks, job training,

Serving An Important Need

God has given us each a purpose in life and the skills to achieve that purpose.

Page 3 Finding a way to meet the needs of others through our God given talents is a fulfillment of the gospel and of our own potential. We begin to think less about the My, Me, Mines, and our own needs become less significant in the face of others struggling with basic and more complex problems than our own; The 30 year old woman who was recently handicapped and is now living in an assisted nursing facility who desires a computer so she can go to school online and still make something of her life. The Grandmother who is caring for her granddaughter and wants her to be able to do her schoolwork at home as opposed to walking across town to the library daily. The newly unemployed worker who lost a lifetime job and needs a computer to search for a new position. The single mother who is struggling at meeting the basic needs of her family and would like her children to have access to technology so they are prepared for the modern world of education and employment. The college student on a tight budget who needs to have access to research and educational materials online. The Elderly person who simply wants to keep in touch with their family the way we do nowadays, through email and social networking. The mentally and physically handicapped, to whom access to technology can be an equalizing factor and provide a way to connect with others and overcome the limitations placed on them by society. Providing a way for people to obtain an independence as well as an interdependence with the modern communities that are part of our lives. Bridging a digital divide that has shrunk considerably in recent years, but for those behind the divide, how much deeper it has become. My heart aches for all of the clients we help. As we meet the needs of those in our community I had to throw away all prejudice and pretensions. I've had to ask myself what I would do if my most hated enemy came to us for help. The answer is help them in any way that I can. As the charity has grown, I have grown as a person in ways i never imagined. It is a process that has helped me to heal many of my own personal wounds and I hope to share this experience and this journey with as many of you as possible. We continue to grow and are heading in exciting new directions. I'm looking forward to seeing what challenges and opportunities the future is going to bring us! Thank you all and God bless you, Jeffrey Kill Founder and CTO of Computers for Charity

Dust Bunnies Can Kill

A good system cleanup Isn't just about scanning for viruses and uninstalling bloatware and unneeded services. It's also about physically cleaning the internal components of your system. If your system is behaving poorly or running louder than normal, it may be a victim of the Killer Dust Bunny. In all seriousness Dust is a destroyer of many a computer. Dust settling on the outside of your computer case may appear to be just a

It's Not Just About Computers

This is about a lot more than providing computers for people, it is about providing hope.

Page 2 minor cosmetic issue which can be easily addressed with a cleaning cloth. However, the fact that there was dust on the outside is a good indication that there will be dust and other debris within the computer case itself. Dust can also contain conductive material and particles can stick to circuit boards and cause a short circuit. Even home computers if not properly cleaned can succumb to problems caused by too much dust. A dirty fan doesn't rotate fast enough to keep the CPU cool. This causes the computer's fan motor to work harder - and a harder working motor can raise the electric bill. Worst case scenario: A completely clogged fan just stops rotating altogether. Then the CPU will overheat and fail. No CPU equals no computer! At high temperature, fail safe software, shuts down your computer to prevent damage. other symptoms of an overheating computer. A simple sign to look out for is constant or frequent fan operation. If you are afraid to open your computer case to clean out your system never fear. Our techs are well versed in the art of combating the lethal Dust Bunny! generally screw things up. Malware often comes bundled with other programs. These programs usually popup ads, sending revenue from the ads to the program's authors. Still others, install themselves through holes in Internet Explorer like a virus would, requiring you to do nothing but visit the wrong web page to get infected. The vast majority, however, must be installed by the user. Getting infected with Malware is usually much easier than getting rid of it, and once you get Malware on your computer it tends to multiply. We have developed comprehensive ways of dealing with malware and other nasties you may encounter and we can help if your computer has been infected. http://computersforc harity.webs.com

What is Malware?

There are several ways in which dust and debris accumulation can impact your computers operation and overall performance. Built-up dust can cause two things to occur: It can restrict airflow by accumulating on and in ventilation holes, slots, and fans. It can accumulate and act as a thermal insulator like the insulation in your home's attic and walls. Both of these conditions will cause your computer and its internal parts to operate at higher than normal temperatures, which can cause them to fail sooner than they should.

Short for malicious software, Malwre consists of programming (code, scripts, active content, and other software) designed to disrupt or deny operation, gather information that leads to loss of privacy or exploitation, gain unauthorized access to system resources, and other evil behavior. It can hijack your browser, redirect your search attempts, serve up nasty pop-up ads, track what web sites you visit, and

This can happen during boot-up or in the middle of intensive CPU tasks. Blue Screen of Death and frequent memory errors are some of