Mr. Modem: Whether to choose an extended computer warranty

Two years ago I purchased a new computer from Dell that carried a one-year warranty. I also purchased an extended warranty for one year. It is time to either renew the extended warranty or let it lapse. Is it wise to renew the extended warranty for another year?

Statistically, extended warranties aren’t worth the dollars spent on them. Countless studies by Consumer Reports and others show that while extended warranties are very profitable for the companies offering them, the return to consumers is minimal.

I never purchase them myself, but some people feel more comfortable having them, so ultimately it’s a matter of how much value YOU place on the peace of mind (if any) you receive from having such a warranty.

Historically, the number of claims presented under extended warranties are far fewer than the dollars collected, so if people did not purchase the extended warranties and just paid for repairs as needed, they would generally come out ahead.

For a computer that you have been using for a year, and presumably using without any major problems, you will probably be fine proceeding without an extended warranty, although there are no guarantees. (Oh, the irony.) That’s why it ultimately comes down to how comfortable YOU feel having an extended warranty versus not having one.

I am operating Windows 8.1 on a Samsung laptop. My problem is that the computer returns to the sign-in page after about two minutes of inactivity. It’s driving me crazy. Do you know of any way to extend that time?

That can be changed, but first check several areas. Check your computer’s Power Settings or Power Management, check Hibernation, and check Sleep mode. The easiest way to get to any of those areas is to use the Start > Search feature and type whatever you want to find such as “Power” or “Power Management.” It’s easy to find items that are deeply buried within Windows by using this integrated Windows search.

After locating those areas, I would review the times shown to determine which is configured to the two minutes you referenced and extend that time accordingly. Two minutes is a very short amount of time for something like that. I would tend to disable it completely by setting the time to zero, but you can select whatever “time-out” is appropriate for your usage.

How does one detect if a keylogger is installed?

A keylogger is a program or device that surreptitiously records every keystroke entered on a keyboard. Parents, employers, suspicious spouses and private investigators are the primary users of keyloggers, but criminals also use them in order to steal password information and other personal data.

Unless it is a physical device that is attached to the keyboard — which would be easy to spot — there isn’t any definitive way to be able to detect the presence of one. Keylogging software is designed NOT to be detectable, which is precisely why it is installed in the first place.

This story was originally published June 22, 2015 at 12:50 PM with the headline "Mr. Modem: Whether to choose an extended computer warranty."