SSD or HDD could actually be slowing down because they’re beginning to fail…
Especially if it’s more than 3 to 5 years old, I would just clone it to an SSD and then work on the bottle neck from there. Or at least back it up if you don’t have it backed up 😉
It’ll drive you nuts but if you’re seriously wanting to help out of the goodness of your heart…
Set them all up with a remote connection that you can access. Then tell them to text or call you anytime they have a question or problem. Stress that it’s important that they contact you right away so that the problem doesn’t compound and make it that much more difficult and time-consuming to resolve.
I’ve owned my own repair/consulting business for almost 20 years. About 60% of the work that I do throughout the week is free for seniors or those that are mentally challenged. I couldn’t do it if I was married but sometimes I do wish I hadn’t started… with the cost of living rising I’m going to have to cut back on my free support which is unfortunate both for the people I’ve been helping and for me. I got a lot more satisfaction out of helping people that need it for free than I do making money… but for he doesn’t pay the bills.
Good luck and good for you for helping those that can’t afford to help themselves.
…
Side note, I’ve found that as far as Windows computers go. Getting people set up with Windows defender with all the bells and whistles turned on is in general good enough and unlike all the other paid services out there doesn’t pop up constantly with upgrades or questions that only leads to a phone call to you. Most of the time you, AKA me, would spend a minimum of 15 minutes on the phone explaining while remotely connecting to their computer and getting rid of it or doing the update or upgrade. At the end of the call, most of the time, it was a waste of my time explaining because they still don’t understand.
Therefore, you will save yourself time using just Windows defender and for the large majority of the people you’re helping it will be more than enough.
The one thing I’ve spent a little extra time teaching people how to use is the pop-up blocker ublock on Chrome. I’ll occasionally have to go over it with them or remote in and show them how to unblock pop-ups on certain websites but other than that most of them seem to remember. A good pop-up blocker plus Windows defender seems to be more than enough for most of the people I help.
Or, get them to use a Chromebook… well within most people’s budget and much safer than windows. Apple computers are sure nice but way out of the budget of most of the seniors I help.
Rant: It doesn’t help though when relatives buy them iPhones and iPads and expect them to figure it out or pay someone to help them 🙄
However, I do have a few seniors that used Apple products since they came out and are pretty good with them. That’s like less than 1% though 😅😥
I used over 12 terabytes this month… but that’s only because I had to restore files from an online backup 😅
Thankfully my ISP could care less.