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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.
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Intelligent remote monitoring, proactive maintenance, and behind-the-scenes remote support.
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Protect your business from threats like malware, viruses, phishing attacks, hackers and other threads.
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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.
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
Sometimes software bugs can be thought of as a minor problem. It can cause a software to act erratically or it can have little or no effect on the operational effectiveness. What it can do, however, is open up problems. For the small business, who has to be mindful of the way every dollar is spent, this can be felt by customers and workers alike.
For any business, having a positive reputation is important. A software glitch can cause major problems in this arena. Consider a support portal that doesn’t work the way it was designed. It may not seem like a top priority in the grand scheme of things, but if it is a problem for your customers, it is a problem for your business; especially if it shows up on social media platforms. The truth is, with so much business being done online, that customers talk to one another, and if several people have the same negative experience, you’ll bet that you are going to lose sales as a result of it.
Outside of a beta test, if your company uses software in the course of doing business, it better work as designed. In fact, a lack of attention to detail, such as several grammatical errors, or a problem with a UI can make a massive difference in the quality of your overall product. Most people operate under the assumption that if your business isn’t run with the care needed to fix small issues, there most likely are larger issues that will pop up eventually.
When software isn’t updated regularly, whether it is a website, an app, or simply operational software, chances are there are vulnerabilities just waiting to be discovered by hackers. People don’t want to do business with companies that could potentially put their personal or financial information at risk. Patching software, and properly testing it is the least you can do to keep it from being a timebomb just waiting to go off.
Outside of the operational and security concerns, which are extremely important, not having a patch management strategy that keeps software working properly is a big problem for a business; especially if the software is neglected for a while. Your problematic software isn’t just a problem when a customer or vendor finds it, it’s a problem when it doesn’t work right. Software that doesn’t do what it’s designed to do costs your business time and money every time someone uses it and needs to make manual adjustments. The value of software systems is the built-in automation and integration. If you are double-checking, or worse yet, not doing anything about problematic software, you are just throwing money away.
Software is a major part of your business, and as more businesses have applications developed, integrations created, and ultimately involve software systems into more aspects of their business, the more diligent you will have to be to ensure that this software works the way it has to to be a benefit, and that it is patched regularly with the latest threat definitions.
If you would like to learn more about how to get control over your business' software, give the IT professionals at Decatur Computers Inc. a call today at 217-475-0226.
In October of 2019, Microsoft started looking into what is explained in the patent as “Emotion Detection from Contextual Signals for Surfacing Wellness Insights” technology. This basically boils down to an elaborate explanation for the collection of various indicators, such as those from biometrics, fitness trackers, smart watches, and usage data from Microsoft Office software, to give employees insights into mental wellness. The idea here is to make employees more aware of how well they are handling stress and suggest ways to handle it in a safe and healthy way, such as going for a walk or taking a short break.
If we apply this idea, it might be a bit easier to understand. Let’s say Jim has an important meeting within the hour. He starts to get anxious, which manifests itself in subtle ways like typos, spelling errors, or taking longer to perform certain tasks. He might not realize it, but it is in fact affecting his ability to perform in the workplace. A notification might pop up on his device that tells him he is feeling anxious, which then tells him what he can do about it based on his current schedule.
Filing a patent for an idea is entirely different from actually using it, so who can tell if Microsoft will actually implement this technology? While we don’t know for sure if this idea will see the light of day, it is certainly nice to know that someone has their eyes out for the employees of the world—especially those who might be under a lot of stress in the workplace.
While Microsoft might be one of the more recent patents in the bunch, it is far from the only company considering these ideas. Here are just a couple of examples of how some tech companies are prioritizing stress levels during the pandemic.
It might sound like common sense to know when we are stressed, but it’s not always so simple. Sometimes it takes a notification to snap us back to reality, especially when we are in the midst of an intense work session.
Most of your employees are in tune with their own emotions, but others might not be so keen to admit when they are feeling stressed or anxious. They might have an unhealthy relationship with their work to the point where they can become too absorbed in it and fail to respond to their own emotions. When this happens, it’s important that they know it’s time to take a step back and destress for a moment. Encouraging them to do so is in the best interest of your company, as stressed-out employees are less likely to do their best work.
Do you think this technology has a place in the workplace, or do you think it’s superfluous and unnecessary? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to subscribe to our blog.
The average worker in the United States gets distracted from their work every 11 minutes or so, and it takes 25 minutes to regain focus on whatever they happen to be working on. As you might expect, more complicated tasks will require more time to refocus due to the greater mental effort required to shift focus back to the more challenging work.
Considering how most workplaces want to squeeze out all of the productivity they can, this turnaround rate is far from ideal. Therefore, minimizing distractions is an important part of making the most of all resources available, including your employees. In order to make this happen, it’s critical that you acknowledge how big a problem distractions can be. There are two different types of distractions: external and internal.
One might argue that distractions are bad no matter what they are, but there are benefits to understanding the difference between internal and external distractions, as well as their impact on productivity.
External distractions are all over the place in the business world. These kinds of distractions come from emails, phone calls, instant messages, and sudden meetings, all of which come from a place external from the user. These external distractions are compounded by internal distractions, those that come from within the user themself. These come in the form of various mental blocks that keep the user from focusing on the task at hand, such as the inability to prioritize tasks or weigh options accordingly. You can compare it to looking at a restaurant menu. If there are too many choices, making a decision can be difficult. Smaller menus, on the other hand, encourage quick decisions.
Many workplaces set the schedules of their employees, so this naturally isn’t a perfect comparison. We think it is a fair assessment that these internal distractions stem from an inability to prioritize tasks assigned to team members. This isn’t always their fault, though; if everything is identified as an important or high priority, who can blame them for not knowing which task is the higher priority? This all creates a situation where employees do not know how to identify the most important tasks, leading them to make decisions that are not as efficient or are done out of order.
Other internal distractions manifest themselves in the form of wandering thoughts or trying to plan for the future without adequately focusing on the present. All in all, internal and external distractions make true productivity a rarity in even the most dedicated employee. Still, despite these challenges, it’s possible to help your employees overcome their distractions, and it all starts with sharing some best practices with them.
Let’s revisit the menu scenario we brought up earlier. Too many options make it difficult to focus on the task at hand, so if you can eliminate options that lead to more work or an inability to focus, you can improve productivity. For example, spending a few minutes clearing your area of distractions or thinking about the most important tasks can save quite a bit of time down the line. It’s a classic case of saving a lot by spending a little upfront.
Just like how having a clear goal in mind can help you work toward it, so too can having a set endpoint for a specific task at hand. Give yourself a set amount of time to work on something, then transition to the next task. Even if the task is not completed within that time frame, keeping your mind fresh and focused by switching things up can be beneficial. On the other side of things, you might actually get even more done than you anticipate.
If you can control your environment, you can control your ability to focus on your work. If there is a lot of noise, for example, you can try to use a pair of headphones to drown out the noise. If there is something distracting going on in your office, you might try to work from a different room with a laptop. If the room smells, it can be quite the distraction, so do your best to avoid situations like these that make focusing on tasks difficult.
If you can successfully identify these distractions, you can more effectively avoid them in the workplace, leading to more productivity overall.
What are some of the worst distractions you have found in the workplace, and what have you done about them? Subscribe to our blog for more great ways to overcome common workplace obstacles using the power of technology.
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