Mike Elansky is the operator of Nerds to Go, an on-calloperator who makes sure sick computers feel better.

Trouble on the information highway?

NerdsToGo knows your exit

June 2005
West Hartford

By Tracey Weiss

He's not a doctor of medicine, but Michael Elansky is certified to make a house call. Mr. Elansky and his brightly decorated yellow Toyota Scion XB, which he calls an NRV (Nerd Response Vehicle) can stop over anytime through NerdsToGo, a three-year-old company. He makes personal visits to homes and small businesses providing help for sick computers and offering a number of technology based services. Mr. Elansky, a West Hartford native and resident, is one of the a number of "nerds" making the rounds throughout the nation through the Guilford-based organization. Dr. Robert Cerciello is a fan of his service. "He always calls me back, he prompt, not expensive and he knows what he's doing." Dr. Cerciello said, "He's conscientious about his work." Mr. Elansky's own deal with NerdsToGo guarantees, but does not limit him, to making calls in town. "I was the fastest-certified nerd in the company." Mr. Elansky said of the company's training program. That makes sense, since he has a degree in the electronic engineering from the University of Hartford and several years experience at SNET and Lucent Technologies as a computer consultant. "I was one of 40,000 people laid off from Lucent," he said. "So I started to do some private consulting. I was looking for a partner when I found NerdsToGo on the web." WIthin a little more than a month, he was on board with NerdsToGo, truck and all. He's been in business since February. "Cars need oil changes, right?" Mr. Elansky said. "But you don't call up Lexus and "have them walk you through something like that. When you have a plumbing problem, you call a plumber. "So why are people expected to do their own maintenance on their computers? How can you fix your own computer? When I come out, I make sure you're happy.

Everyone drops the ball on service. I'll come out to your house or business and fix it there, or if I need to take it home with me to fix, I'll bring your computer back to you." Mr. Elansky is currently building a computer hard drive in his vehicle, to allow him to fix sick computers in the driveway of a house call. "My office is my car, so I'm building the computer in my car so I can fix things right there," he said. Mr. Elansky's gift of fixing technology extends to the house he shares with his fiancee, Sandy Gaetano. Electronic controls have taken the place of light switches and other ways to turn things on and off. The living room, framed by varying colors of fiber optic lights built into where the uppermost corners of the walls meet the ceiling, is accented by a ceiling panel of twinkling star lights. A Remote control can bring down teh screen over the fireplace mantle to show the latest movie, which is turned on through a projection screen installed over the stairs. Colored lights shine over the front porch of the house, and of course, Mr. Elansky's private office is accented with moving drawers, lights that go on with a foot pedal and an array of other practical maneuverings to work and live more effectively. Wormy woes Mr. Elansky and NerdsToGo also provide other computer services besides repair. Including computer installations, system analysis, wireless network integration services, upgrade services and one-on-one computer training. They also offer service contracts, basic training and instruction. Internet connection services, upgrade support, web design and hosting and for all of their services, and 24-hour phone support. But maybe of the biggest services they provide is worm and virus protection.

Mr. Elansky is a big fan of a program called F-Secure, which he always recommends installing on any home or business computer to prevent the inevitable scads of computer infections. "I was so impressed with this product, I went to California to train to become a certified partner," he said. "It uses 10 scanning engines to detect viruses. Most programs like McAfee or Norton will update customers once or twice a week about new viruses. But he said there are 10 to 20 new viruses every day. "F-Secure updates customers a minimum of twice a day. If you think you're protected by what you have, and your computer seems slow, it's because they're in your system, but you don't know it. Some comapines give you a false sense of security." The program has been featured in the magazines such as Vanity Fair and Wired, and has helped customers like Dr. Cerciello stay infection-free. "My computer was running really slow," he said. "Mike installed the program and now my computer's working well. I've been secure here for two years. Just today, it found nine critical viruses." Mr. Elansky's partnership with F-Secure allows him to offer a discount for the product, which amounts to about $65 for the initial installation and minimal charges for updates. "If you don't like it after six months, I'll give you your cash back," he said. "It's my personal guarantee." He also guarantees that as people's computer problems grow, he'll grow with the company. "I want to be a regional director and have five nerds working for me. I want to help everyone all over Greater Hartford." Call Mr. Elansky at 1 800 390 NERD."