Our mission is to help businesses like yours increase productivity and get more out of the technology you invest in.
We specialize in solutions that safeguard and protect your data and keep operations running smoothly.
Premium IT Services
Intelligent remote monitoring, proactive maintenance, and behind-the-scenes remote support.
Network Security
Protect your business from threats like malware, viruses, phishing attacks, hackers and other threads.
Backup & Disaster Recovery
Ensure peace-of-mind in any situation with the most complete data backup solution available.
Cloud Hosting Solutions
Reduce infrastructure costs, collaborate, and get more done with our unique cloud solutions.
When you just want IT to work!
There are a lot of computer shops out there that you can call up to fix an issue or install a piece of equipment. They might be able to get you out of crisis mode, but they aren’t looking at the full picture.
At Decatur Computers Inc., we understand business. We consult. We provide solutions to solve everyday challenges. We just happen to fix computers as well.
We believe (and have proven) that if you proactively manage technology, run maintenance religiously, and monitor a business network, everyday issues and downtime will be greatly reduced.
This is what makes us different than your typical tech support company. Sure, we can fix computer issues when you have them, but our specialty is preventing them in the first place.
Are you looking for a partner you can trust your IT with? Sign up for a FREE IT Assessment to get started today.
IT Questions?
What Our Clients Say
This past year I have been planning my wedding, and I have a ton of spreadsheets and documents on my computer pertaining to the “big day”. I saved everything on an external hard drive just in case. One day I went to get one of the documents off of the hard drive and of course there were no documents in the file. My computer is very old so I have worried about it crashing. I have no clue where to take it to find out what went wrong. I was telling my cousin Steve Turner about it and he suggested Decatur Computers. I took it in, I was only there for about 10 minutes, they had great customer service, said that they would call me in a few days to let me know what they were able to do. I got a call that week, they not only retrieved everything on the hard drive but they also increased the speed of my computer so we were able to wait a bit longer to buy a new one. I would definitely recommend anyone to Decatur computers.
"These guys do a great job! I took my computer in to be updated and they not only did that but they got rid of all the bugs and viruses and it runs much faster. Then when I got home with the upgrade my printer wouldn’t connect. I called them up and they connected to my computer from their location and within half hour they had me back in service! It was also kind of funny watching them move the mouse and different things going on the screen while I was sitting here not moving a thing. :)"
Decatur Computers has given us excellent service in our computer needs. The staff provides professional, immediate service. A telephone call to them gets immediate help with any of the needs we have had with our current system. We are most happy to have them available, and the prices have been right!
“Decatur Computers has always provided prompt, efficient and affordable computer service at our home as well as at our place of business. We have also purchased several new computer systems from them and have been very pleased with the products they recommended for purchase. The technicians are always courteous. Any technical issues or problems we have had, they have addressed quickly to ensure that we had minimal down time if any at all. I would highly recommend Decatur Computers to anyone whether it be for residential or business services.”
“I run two small companies and have relied on Decatur Computers for over 7 years. The staff is very professional. One business runs a POS system the other data management . They are fantastic with both. There has never been a problem they cannot fix, even though both systems are very different. I would strongly recommend them to anyone for whatever they need.”
“I have worked with Decatur Computers for over 10 years. I have always had great service and fair pricing. Now that I have my own home based business I am looking forward to the continued relationship. The staff is always courteous whether it is on the phone, in shop or off site. I know that I can count on them to fix my problem or answer my question.”
With today’s technology advancing so fast it is nice to know there is a one stop shop for all technology problems. I personally have gained a lot of knowledge and had the best assistance with all my computer and software issues I have encountered. I would highly recommend Decatur Computers for anyone’s personal and business needs. As I always say ‘Why try to fix your own computer when that is what Decatur Computers does'”
Decatur computer and their staff go above and beyond to serve their customers. Mathew was very friendly and informative through the repair process. I received emails through the entire process updating me on the progress of my repair. I would highly recommend Decatur computer to anyone i know for repairs or upgrades. Thanks again to Mathew his great customer service and hard work.
Latest Blogs
What Does Optimization Require?
Optimization of your operations is key to remain successful in an increasingly competitive market. This optimization will require you to do three things:
These three requirements may sound fairly vague, but there are plenty of ways that you can adjust your business to embrace them.
Practically Using Business Optimization Practices
To better understand the three requirements of optimization, it may help to review a few real-life scenarios in which these optimization practices would appear.
Identify, understand, and accept the way to optimize your business.
The first key to optimizing your business is to understand what about it can be improved. Through careful analysis of your processes, you will be able to identify where your inefficiencies lie. From there, you can identify whether something is necessary to your business, or is ultimately just wasting time and resources. Then you can determine if an improvement can be made, or if it should just be abandoned. With this knowledge, you can trim the fat from your processes and boost their efficiency.
For example, perhaps there is a member of your business who needs to approve projects at every stage before progress can continue, but this member is exceptionally busy and therefore can’t always review things efficiently. This would most likely hold back your progress. Understanding this could lead to a reexamination of your process, and the determination that approval may not be necessary beyond the initial implementation of a project and the final confirmation to put it into action, saving everyone involved some time and stress.
Changing focus to meet the demands of your market and clients.
While you may view your business as the culmination of a personal goal and the means to put food on the table, your audience is going to have a much different impression. The way they see it, you’re there to provide them with what they need, whether that’s a particular product or service. Since your business can’t really exist without them, their priorities will have to come first.
Automation provides a few simple methods of ensuring that you know what those priorities are, and that your audience finds your business effective at fulfilling them. This is especially true where issue reporting is concerned. Let’s face it, while the first report is useful, the rest quickly become a distraction as the issue is resolved - plus, you have to acknowledge that the report was received. The right IT can help you optimize this process as much as possible by handling these responses through automation, letting you better spend your time solving the problem.
Give your employees the power and tools to succeed.
Want to know the biggest flaw that the members of your workforce all share, including you? You’re all human beings, which makes you inherently flawed and prone to mistakes. The right technology solutions can help to make sure that your entire team is managed properly, given a comprehensive schedule to keep each of them on track and their processes standardized.
These solutions can have the added benefit of providing you with the data needed to further optimize your workflows, boosting productivity, and reducing the stress put on your employees.
Are you ready to optimize your IT? Give Decatur Computers Inc. a call at 217-475-0226, and keep coming to our blog for more handy tips and content.
Why Instant Messaging?
For a better grasp on why the instant message is rising in popularity now, it helps to look at the changing face of the average employee. Workplaces are increasingly filled with members of Generation Y, who had a front-row seat to the introduction of instant messaging on a personal scale. As a result, these employees are more accustomed to quick, to-the-point, and (most crucially) rapid communications; something that email solutions aren’t always known for.
More to the business side of things, the inherent boost to productivity that instant messaging provides is hard to ignore, as are the benefits that even the typical approach to the instant message has when directly compared to email. Furthermore, because more businesses are adopting these solutions, their security has become a priority to their developers. At the rate that security is improving, instant messaging solutions could soon be as (if not more) secure than email.
This is not to say, of course, that business email is likely to be totally replaced by instant messaging anytime soon. This is to say that email will likely shift to be used more for external communications, while business messaging applications will probably be the way that internal communications are handled.
So How Does Instant Messaging Influence Productivity and Office Culture?
The benefits of using a more “chat”-based interface to collaborate within an organization are by no means a new discovery. A study by the McKinsey Global Institute released in 2012 reported that, with managing email and collaboration attempts taking a respective 28 and 20 percent of an average employee’s week, a messaging platform for business use would be a huge benefit.
These conclusions have proven to be prophetic, with instant messaging and chat being used in businesses everywhere to provide the benefits promised while also promoting the development of a discussion. However, in order for these results to stay true in your business, you need to make sure that these tools are not abused. We’ve compiled a few suggestions on how to keep your company chat a place of productivity.
Establish Channels for Non-Business Interests
As counterintuitive as it may sound, keeping communications in the workplace strictly work-related can ultimately hurt your overall productivity. However, once a conversation in one of these messaging apps deviates from a business-related topic, it can be impossible to salvage it. One way to balance this out is to establish certain conversations for business-only matters, and others for employees to bond over common interests and casual topics.
Nix Gossip from the Get-Go
However, while a bit of casual conversation can ultimately benefit productivity in the office, the wrong kinds can just as easily eliminate it and eventually cause greater issues for the business over time. Make sure that every employee is aware that there is a zero-tolerance policy on gossip and inappropriate over-sharing. This will help you protect both your employees, and your business as a whole.
Have the Right Amount of Fun
Along with the rise of instant messaging, the use of emojis and memes in communications has also increased. While they can be incredibly efficient at communicating a message, certain ones communicate things that have no place in the business environment. Furthermore, the temptation to overuse these alternatives to text can be overwhelming, and reduce a conversation to a time-wasting and distracting search to find the silliest image to share.
Disconnect If Need Be
We get it - sometimes you need to be able to work without the interruption of notifications. Don’t be afraid to turn them off for a little while to accomplish something greater.
For more ways to improve your communications, productivity, and other business processes, keep reading our blog, or reach out to Decatur Computers Inc. by calling 217-475-0226.
Firefox Quantum
Mozilla implemented new features for Firefox Quantum, including an overall improved performance to its backend. The browser itself also has a new user interface, giving it more viability against popular browsers like Google Chrome.
The new rendering engine is great for users of Firefox Quantum. Dubbed Stylo, it can potentially speed up the browser’s rendering by almost two times. You can implement extensions offered only on an Android web browser, as well as themes for how it is displayed. Furthermore, your account will allow the browser to sync directly with your Firefox browser on your desktop, giving you access to your bookmarks and browsing history.
Firefox has focused on privacy features, with tracking protection and automatic data wiping being two notable ones.
Brave Browser
Compared to Firefox Quantum, Brave is much faster and adds in even more built-in privacy protection. These include tracking protection and other extensions found on the desktop versions of Chrome and Firefox. The user can customize these features to their preference, and they can even take advantage of fingerprint protection to keep websites from collecting their browsing history. A bonus is that these preventions also speed up load times. Furthermore, this particular browser has its own cryptocurrency depending on how long users spend while browsing. All in all, privacy is what Brave focuses on, so if it’s something you prefer, try it out.
Google Chrome
Chrome is Android’s default web browser, and anyone who has used it in desktop form understands why. Android integrates with the Windows 10 operating system quite nicely, and any devices using Android have nice, clean functionality with any of Google’s many mobile apps. Chrome’s main priority is optimizing the user’s experience through any means possible. Chrome is the clear-cut winner in terms of browsing speed, even though some other browsers might perform better on specific sites. If all you’re looking for is a great web browsing experience, Chrome is the ideal way to do it on an Android device. If mobile data is a concern, you can even turn on the Data Saver option to minimize your expenses.
Samsung Internet Browser
Samsung’s flagship Internet browser provides a couple of noteworthy benefits, including the ability to install an ad blocker of your choosing from those offered by Samsung. Anyone who has used a mobile device to browse the Internet knows how annoying ads can be. While these might be the only available extensions for the Samsung Internet Browser, there are other apps that can help you keep your data private. Samsung’s useful navigation features can help you get around, particularly while using multiple tabs (just swipe through them in the URL bar for easy navigation). There is even a button to take you right back to the top of the page when it’s needed. Video is also much easier to view, as Samsung has a Picture-in-Picture mode and Video Assistance, pausing the video when adjusting the video’s size or orientation.
Microsoft Edge
Microsoft’s slimmed-down version of the Edge browser can be used on Android OS. It’s quite quick, and it can sync up with the desktop version, allowing you to take your browsing session on the road with you. If you log into a Microsoft account, all of your data can be synchronized with the browser. Additionally, Edge has a dark mode, allowing users the opportunity to change the usual black-on-white display mode to a white-on-black display mode, ideal for nighttime users. Finally, Edge can use Adblock Plus for native ad blocking, making it ideal for those who don’t want to deal with annoying ads that disrupt their user experience.
What’s your ideal Android web browser? Let us know in the comments.
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