After seeing the thread on colds, I got to thinking about this. This is a rather serious matter due to the spread of germs, and given that we're more indoors now than in the warmer months, we're also more prone to getting the latest bugs that are going around whether they're just a common cold, or worse. I'm not one of those paranoid people when it comes to germs and bugs, but having worked with people in my old job as a technician, I got somewhat cautious to put it mildly. :smile:

Some of the dirtiest places you can have around your house and office are the last thing on your mind. You think about the kitchen counters, fridge, bathroom, and even the floor, but how many have ever thought about their computer? Seriously! The personal computer, and other personal electronic devices, can be well, to put it mildly, quite gross!

The keyboard for one is covered with crumbs and stuff from eating at the computer. Heck, I even do it myself. Who wants their Sims to go unwatched while we eat, or miss catching up on emails while eating lunch. The thing is, seriously, we're dropping bits of goop into the keyboard along with crumbs from the morning's muffins, coffee, even grease from our fingers. This stuff adds up and really makes a gross keyboard.

The mouse isn't much better, well a bit better now that they don't have the ball on the bottom, but still they get covered with splooge! The hands are greasy, and when covered with food, that only makes them more dirty.

The display, well that can get really gross too from, and I hate to say it, sneezing and coughing. Yup! Cough, sneeze, splatter, spray, and now we have a smudge of stuff on the screen.

This may sound gross, which is really only a small part of the point I'm making here. The point is this is also quite dangerous for those that work around these computers. We're pretty immune to our own germs, but what we've done is spread stuff that can harm others around us. I never thought of this until my nephews visited. They'd visit; I'd get a cold or stomach bug. It wasn't just once or twice, it was every time! The same thing happens in the workplace too. People muck up their computers then call tech support for a technical issue. The poor technician is then exposed to the hazards left on the machines.

What you can do to prevent the spreading of unwanted germs and critters is keep your keyboard, monitor, and mouse clean. You can get those alcohol wipes and kits for computer cleaning. These work well but, I found that a little bit of soap and water does a good job too, and is also great for the pre-clean should stuff be really dirty. A tiny bit of soap on a damp paper towel will do a nice job with removing the grime. Using the alcohol wipes later on are great for the final cleaning.

I recommend those monitor cleaning wipes and rags over Windex(tm) or other spray cleaners unless it's meant for displays due to the fact that non-display cleaners can actually ruin the surface causing blurred displays among other things.

I use this process on my own equipment, which keeps things sparkling clean and not sticky. :smile:

But what about those of us that touch other people's computers? Wash your hands with a good hot soapy water, and then lather on that anti-bacterial stuff, and don't touch your face. As a PC technician (now retired), I handled up to 100 users a day. In my last years of doing this, I never caught the colds or flus going around because I made sure I kept my hands away from my face and my hands disinfected and clean. I suppose I'm a bit paranoid of germs after all.

John