It Said I Was Infected

There is an epidemic of fake anti-malware software on the Internet-- which is collectively called "rogue anti-malware"

Marketed under hundreds of different names, such as VirusRemover 2008 and Antivirus XP 2009, this type of rogue software scares people by giving false alarms, and then tries to deceive them into paying for removal of non-existing malware.

This video (produced by the good folks at WOT*) shows what happens when a legitimate site gets infected and redirected to one of these bogus anti-malware scams.
Yes, folks, legitimate websites.

The people behind this scourge use many different ways to try to entice you to click-- realistic pop-up windows appear, offers of "free trials" arrive in e-mail, and "free scan" buttons on legit-looking 'fight malware' websites, etc..

As this video shows, the user is tricked into (scared into, really) providing their credit card # (oops.. might want to cancel that card..) to clean infections that weren't there before they clicked.
* The 'false positives' are not "cleaned" BUT, more adware and spyware is installed.
* A good percentage of my calls at Aplus Computer Aid are folks needing help with getting rid of these rogues, because they use the latest techniques to combat removal, and can be quite tough.. if not impossible.. to remove them.
* Is that anti-spyware program really spyware?
* A Website dedicated to combating this epidemic is Spyware Warrior. It has a pretty good list of known rogues, and much more detailed information.

Today's free download:  WOT is a free Internet security addon for your browser. It will keep you safe from online scams, identity theft, spyware, spam, viruses and unreliable shopping sites. WOT warns you before you interact with a risky Website. It's easy and it's free.

• Ratings for over 20 million websites
• Downloaded 1 million times
• The WOT browser addon is light and updates automatically
• WOT rating icons appear beside search results in Google, Yahoo!, Wikipedia, Gmail, etc.
• Settings can be customized to better protect your family
• WOT Security Scorecard shows rating details and user comments

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

PayPal -- Your account has been violated !!!

New, scary e-mail subject line.. Same bogus scam. (This one can slip past filters)

Clicking the link will take you to a realistic-looking but completely fake PayPal login page.

I'm Really Looking For New Friends

There is a *new* phishing method being employed on chat clients such as Skype. The cyber-criminals really, really, really want you to click on the links they send, so...

They spam messages posing as young men and women who are "really just looking for new friends".
It is similar to a "make a new Buddy" request

This is just a 'sex' twist on the 'fear' social engineering ploy I warned you about here, Skype- "Windows Requires Immediate Attention!"

I am too tired of this game to backtrack this hyperlink, so I can't tell you if responding to this chat will try to install spyware on your machine, try to sell you a "rogue anti-malware program", or both..
I will simply say -- once again -- never click the link.

I got six of these this weekend.. Wow! I'm popular, all of a sudden.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

Block IFRAME For Added Protection

If you are interested in Tech, and visit Websites such as this one, it will not be very long before you read about Firefox. (In fact just this week I posted an article.) And, it won't be long before you see NoScript mentioned. Odds are, you already have.

NoScript is a small program you download and add 'into' Firefox to enhance its functionality (these small programs are known variously as "add-ons", "plug-ins", and "extensions"-- different words for the same concept.)

NoScript gets mentioned in the Tech media a lot because it is a security tool that automatically "blocks" (prevents from running) certain web page 'elements' (scripts) -- Java, Flash, JavaScript, and XSS-- from running unless you click the Option button and select "Allow", or "Temporarily allow".

Which puts you in control, and goes a long ways toward preventing "drive-by downloads", and other malicious Internet attacks and activity from occurring should you happen to visit a Website which has been "poisoned" by a hacker.
(I don't mean to depress you, but the current state of the Internet is so insecure that this can be, literally, any Website.)

By default, NoScript is a powerful tool (to read the NoScript "About" page, click here) and for many people is the primary reason they have made the switch to Firefox.
(I'll let you in on a little secret; it is one way to measure a user's "savvy".. look for a Firefox icon.)

Tip of the day: Enhance your NoScript protection by turning on the IFRAME blocker feature.
IFRAMES are another dynamic Web element that cyber-criminals are now using as an "attack vector" (aka "method") with great success. Like the scripts mentioned above, IFrame attacks can happen invisibly and automatically. Oh, the joys of Web 2.0!

1) In Firefox, click on "Tools", then "Add-ons"
 
2) Scroll 'till you find NoScript, and click the "Options" button. (If you have not yet installed NoScript, click the "Get Add-ons" icon in the upper-left.)

3) Click on the Plugins tab. Place a check in the "Forbid <IFRAME>" checkbox.

That's it. You're done. Now when you visit a site that uses IFrames, you will have to approve them (aka "whitelist") before they'll appear.

[Note: the scripts and tools (Web 2.0 "features") mentioned in this article are NOT in themselves bad or dangerous, and it is thanks to them that the Web is such a rich and interactive environment.. but, in the wrong hands they can and are being used with evil intent.]

Today's free link: One of the more disturbing (outright alarming, if you ask me) hacker uses of IFrame attacks is the alteration of Search Engine results (Yes, you can't truly trust Google, Yahoo!, or MSN anymore) and Internet Security blogger Bill Mullins has posted an excellent article on this subject, Fake/Redirected Search Results - Consequences for You

* Firefox users: Update to 3.0.3 today.

Copyright © 2007-8 Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

Fraud Prevention Tips

Follow these tips to help protect yourself from fraud.

• Carry only necessary information with you. Leave your social security card and unused credits cards at home in a safe and secure location.
• Make photocopies of vital information you carry regularly and store them in a secure place, such as a safety deposit box.
• Do not provide your Social Security number unless absolutely necessary.
• Replace paper invoices, statements and checks with electronic versions, if offered by your employer, bank, utility provider or merchant.
• Shred documents containing personal or financial information before discarding. Most fraud and identity theft incidents happen as a result of mail and garbage theft.
• Review your credit report at least once a year, looking for suspicious or unknown transactions. You can get a free credit report once a year from each of the three major credit bureaus at www.annualcreditreport.com. For a small fee you can obtain a copy at any time directly from:
  • Equifax: 1-800-685-1111 or www.equifax.com
  • Experian: 1-888-397-3742 or www.experian.com
  • TransUnion: 1-800-916-8800 or www.transunion.com
• Place outgoing mail in a U.S. Postal Service mailbox to reduce the chance of mail theft.
• Promptly retrieve incoming mail to limit the opportunity for theft.
• Know your billing and statement cycles. Contact the company’s customer service department if you stop receiving your regular bill or statement.

Today's free download: I found this list on the Wells Fargo Fraud Information Center. This site is a valuable public service that contains much useful advice, such as "How Fraudsters Operate", "How To Protect Yourself", and "Online, Mobile, Computer and Email Security Tips". It is a free education, so check it out.

Copyright © 2007-8 Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

My Homework Is Missing!*

There have been occasions when I was not paying attention, and I saved (and/or downloaded) a file to some location I didn't intend. What's worse, I wasn't watching closely enough to notice what and where that location was, and the file was effectively gone. Of course, my misplaced file wasn't really gone ... I just had to find it again. That's when a desktop Search tool comes to my rescue.
Sometimes, though, the search comes up 'empty', or otherwise produces unhelpful results, and that's what I want to address today.

Tip of the day: Find that file by using the proper search tool, properly. Windows comes with a built-in search tool, and there are "better" tools available (usually as free downloads) as well. But let's start with the tool you already have. Windows Search is located in your Start menu (Start >Search) and is the magnifying glass icon.
If you cannot see a Search/magnifying glass: right-click on a blank area of your Taskbar and select Properties. Now click the Start Menu tab and click on the "Customize" button and select the Advanced tab. Scroll down and place a check in the box marked "Search", as shown below.

Launch the Search tool and click on the "All files and folders" option in the "What do you want to search for?" area, and then -- and here's the trick -- click on the "more advanced options" down arrow, and place a check in the top three checkboxes.

There are several "hidden" folders in the Windows filing system and it's possible your file was moved into one of these (particularly downloaded emails) and if that happened, it will not show up in a "normal" search. Selecting the subfolders option ensures that your search is as thorough as possible. Now enter the file name and click the "Search" button and enjoy the cute antics of the animated 'search puppy'.

Bonus tip of the day: Often, I cannot remember the exact, or complete, name of the file, and that's when the use of the wildcard symbol becomes very useful. Windows uses the "*" to represent "any".

Let's say, for sake of example, that I found a neat picture of a rose on the Internet (not copyrighted, of course!) and downloaded it. The actual file name is "DSCredrose16.jpg", and being the incredible complex and super-busy human that I am ... I download it to someplace other than where I expected. Searching for "rose.jpg", in this case, produced no results (sometimes it will).

If I use wildcards, I don't have to worry about an exact match. Typing in "*rose*.jpg" (no quotes) will find it, because I told the search to 'match' any letters before the characters r-o-s-e and any characters after them as well, and to show me only pictures.

If I'm not certain the picture was a JPEG, and that it might be a GIFF, or a TIFF, or a PNG, or a Photoshop picture (.psd), or a bitmap (.bmp) ...I substitute a wildcard for .jpg, like this: "*rose*.*".
If I type *.* into the search for box, I will get a list of every file on my machine -- because I told it to 'match' every file name, and every file type.

Bonus bonus tip: Last night I was able to play Hero when my sister called begging me to help her "find" my niece's homework assignment. Normal Search techniques were only showing very old (early) versions of the project, and so they were scared that all their hours of hard work had vanished.

If you look just below the "Look in: Local Hard Drives" drop-down, you will see in bold "When was it modified?" This allows you to search by date (or date ranges). I used this to limit the search to just yesterday's activity. I quickly found the missing school project-- it had been Saved to a browser's obscure "Temp" folder (because it had been e-mailed, and she had "Opened" it instead of "Save"-ing a copy to her Desktop).

Today's free link(s): If you want a faster/better/more capable desktop search tool than the one built into Windows XP (and if you spend a lot of time searching for files on your machines, you may), the top three downloads are Microsoft's Windows Desktop Search, Google Desktop search, and Copernic. I must warn you that there are some privacy and security issues revolving around Google Desktop that may or may not remain valid -- that debate still lingers. I can also tell you that Copernic is the geek's choice.

* Original post: 7/26/07

Copyright © 2007-8. Tech Paul. All rights reserved.

Firefox 3.0.2 now available

Tip of the day: Mozilla has released a new update for its extremely popular Firefox Web browser. This update closes two "critical" security holes, and fixes several bugz (for details, click here), and I suggest Firefox 3 users get and apply the update.

Today's free download(s): Folks, we here at T4E Headquarters encourage you to give an "alternative" browser a test drive if you have not already done so. ('Export' your Favorites/Bookmarks to a .htm file, and then 'Import' them into the new browser.) Without question Firefox is the most popular alternative to IE-- and with good reason considering the multitude of capabilities you can enjoy when you discover Firefox Add-ons. Go on, give it a try, visit the download page here.

Also, we strongly advise you keep all the programs updated with the latest patches. Visit the Secunia Online Software Inspector for a quick scan: "The Secunia Online Software Inspector, or short OSI, is a fast way to scan your PC for the most common programs and vulnerabilities, thus checking if your PC has a minimum security baseline against known patched vulnerabilities." [note: you can also download the more robust Personal Inspector here too]

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

Fwd: BIG VIRUS WARNING *** DO NOT DELETE***

Folks, two weeks ago I wrote an article advising you to immediately delete, unopened, these types of e-mail.. which are inevitably forwarded to us by well-meaning friends and family.
There's one going around right now, warning about "the worst virus ever".

Please read, SEND THIS E-MAIL TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW!, and then please forward it to those friends and family members who show a proclivity to be helpful and concerned -- and fall for this scam. (You know who they are.)

These e-mails will contain an image (attachment) which will automatically be downloaded and displayed when you open the e-mail -- please see, HTML e-mail and image spam (repost) -- which automatically gives the cyber-criminal a matching valid e-mail address and machine/IP address-- yours.

You don't need to click any links, you just need to view the message, and the damage is done.

So even though the Subject line advises DO NOT DELETE, go ahead and do so-- immediately and unopened. You'll be protecting your Inbox and Identity.

Today's free link: Today's link is to a bargain shopper's Website recommended to me by a Loyal Friend and True of Tech--for Everyone. FatWallet.com has the steals, online coupons, price comparisons, and forums you're looking for.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

Questions About File Extensions*

Today I will answer a few reader questions in the (hopefully) now familiar “Q’s and their A’s” format, and provide a link to a free disk imaging program.

Q: What is a .bkp file?
A: First of all, it is helpful to know what a "file extension" is. The dot three-letters (sometimes four, as in website/index.html) ending you see at the end of file names is a method used to tell machines what category of file this string of code is (remember, it is just a series of 0's and 1's), and whether or not it is an "executable" file (such as a program.exe).
Your machine uses the extension to determine which program to use to open the file.

You are probably familiar with the more common file extensions: .doc and .txt for text, .xls for a spreadsheet, .jpg for pictures, and .htm or .html for webpages. Frankly, there are quite a few dot whatevers -- too many to list here-- the short answer is a .bkp is the backup file created by Windows Backup utility. This is the file you will use to restore your files should something untoward happen, and so you should treat it with care, and store a copy in two locations; on a CD or DVD and on a different drive or partition.

If you ever run across a .xyz file extension that you've never seen before, and have no idea how it got there or what it does, the place to find out is the website FILExt.

Q: My computer is not showing file extensions, how do I make them visible?
A: You must turn off the "Hide Known File Extensions" feature. Open Windows Explorer using the shortcut mentioned in this prior article (Windows key+E) and from the Tools menu select (click) "Folder Options". Then click on the "View" tab. Find and uncheck the checkbox by "Hide known file extensions", as shown below.

Now click on the "Apply to All Folders" button, and then "OK".

Vista users: In Vista you access this Options window via the Folder Options applet in the Control Panel. Start> Control Panel> Folder Options.

This answer is a good security tip as well, because hackers will sometimes take advantage of this by sending executable code disguised as something harmless.

Here's how they'd do it: say they wrote a virus, we'll call it "nastyvirus.exe". If you received an email with the attachment nastyvirus.exe, you probably wouldn't click on it (and if you did, you really shouldn't be using a computer un-chaperoned! Sheeze). So the bad guy renames the virus "cutepuppy.jpg.exe." If the Hide known extensions feature is on, it will appear to you as "cutepuppy.jpg" and you'll be inclined to think the email attachment is a picture... and NOT a piece of nasty code.
Please note: for some inexplicable reason, Microsoft has Hide Known Extensions enabled by default. If you have not already turned this off, please do so now.

Today's free links: regular readers of Tech--for Everyone know that I routinely advise making system backups for the purposes of "disaster" recovery. One highly recommend backup method is to make an "image" of your hard drive or partition with a program like Norton Ghost or Acronis True Image.
If your hard-drive is made by Maxtor or Seagate (Seagate has purchased Maxtor), you can download a free, basic version of Acronis, to clone, image, or transfer your system. The tool is called Maxtor MaxBlast. [note: if you backup the image to an external drive, it must be a Maxtor/Seagate drive as well.]

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul, All Rights Reserved. post to jaanix

Free Long-distance*

Phew, what a morning! I have been troubleshooting practically since I got out of my nice, warm bed. But, I don't mind: it's what I do for a living.

This morning, as I was thinking about what to write today (and helping people with their technical troubles), it occurred to me what a tremendous boon two particular technologies are -- namely, Remote Assistance, and VoIP/teleconferencing. I simply could not run my business (shameless plug: my online repair shop, Aplus Computer Aid) without them.

Remote Assistance allows me to view my client's computer screen (and if they permit it, issue mouse and keyboard commands) just as if I were sitting in front of it... basically "transporting" me, across any number of miles, to their computer via the magic of the Internet. This is truly amazing stuff, if you think on it some and.. it saves me quite a bit on gas.

Instead of saying into the telephone, "Okay, what do you see now?" and then trying to decipher the client's response.. I see on my screen exactly what they see. This saves so much time (and, my client's money) and miscommunication that a repair that might take an hour can be accomplished in fifteen minutes. Yes, amazing stuff.

But to get to the title of today's article and the other "distance-eliminating" technology, let's switch gears to IP telephony (aka "VoIP"). Regular readers of this series know that I am out here on the Lefty Coast, and that I have a young niece and nephew on the other coast -- roughly 3,000 miles away.
Loyal Friends and True also know that I do not like to fly.

In the golden olden days, this East Coast/Lefty Coast situation would lead to  large long-distance phone bills and occasional cross-country drives. But thanks to VoIP, and webcams, I can not only talk with (and see) my niece and nephew, but I can do so for free.
Yes, amazing stuff.

What makes this so neat/cool/awesome is (in my mind, anyway) the "webcam". These cameras (that often look like a plastic tennis ball) can be had for as little as $15 retail, and they make all the difference. Most new notebook computers come with cameras built-in.

These little video devices do a good job at letting you see and be seen, and even the cheap ones have pretty good resolution. No.. you cannot get a hug over a webcam, but you can see a smile.

So if you have a computer, and you have the Internet (how else would you be reading this article?), and you have loved ones who live farther away than next door.. and you don't have VoIP and a webcam.. what are you waiting for? Get on the bus!
Buy a webcam, insert (and run) the Install CD, and then plug the camera into a USB port. It is basically that simple. Buy one for your loved one's house -- if they don't already have one -- too.

Then, you'll need some way to contact them ("call" them) and start your Internet visit. If you are already using an Instant Messenger (IM) to "chat" with them, then you already have the method. Most, if not all IMs have video capability as well as "phone" (or "voice"). [Click View >Options if you have difficulty finding these features.] Typically, you have to pay a fee ("subscribe") to use the phone/voice.

Today's free link(s): To avoid those fees, both you and your loved ones can download a VoIP client -- such as Skype or SightSpeed. You will then set up an account, in very much a similar manner as you do opening a free email account (Hotmail, GMail, Yahoo Mail, etc.).. you set up a User Name/password. Then you add Contacts, or "Search For" contacts, again in a manner very similar to email.
Once configured -- and it really isn't hard -- a visit with a distant friend is only a click away. Thanks for listening, and have a great weekend.

[update: a reader wanted to know how the make the video window larger in Skype; right-click on the video image and from the choice select either "Windowed Mode" (my reco) or "Full screen".]

*Original posting 12/27/07

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

Simple E-mail Encryption

Who's reading your e-mail? Are you sure it is only the person you sent it to? Could it hurt you, or your business, (or, your election campaign?) if someone else was reading it? Wouldn't it be great if you could ensure that only the intended recipient could read it?

In prior articles, I have explained (in my limited way) that the encrypting of files, and sending them to someone else, where they then need to decode them, is best done by the exchanging of "keys" in what is called "Public-key encryption" (for Wikipedia's explanation on that, click here). I will not be lecturing on that today.. though, I invite you to click the link if you're interested in (or curious about) cryptography.

It is not hard to understand how encrypting your writing -- so that it can travel across the Internet in an unreadable format -- is a "good thing".. a desirable thing.. and would have serious benefits.
The encrypting of e-mails is often required by businesses, and they install cool (and expen$ive) machines on their networks that automatically encrypts all company e-mail. But what about us? Here at home? How do we do it? Can it happen automatically.. like it does at our job? Well, yes and no. The first step is to get yourself a "key".

I mentioned in a previous article that I had started using a new (to me) e-mail client (Windows Live Mail) to access my webmail accounts. Live Mail, and all other e-mail clients (Outlook, OE, Thunderbird, etc.) natively support the use of "keys", and allow you so "sign" and/or encrypt your e-mail with a single click... assuming you have taken a couple of steps first.
You may have noted that I have been putting the word key inside quotes; that's because when I'm speaking at the level of how crypto works, I am actually speaking about algorithms and when I talk about using those keys, I am talking about "Certificates". To encrypt your e-mail you need to get a Certificate... which is really a key (pair). Confusing, I know.

Tip of the day: Get a Certificate for your e-mail account(s). There are several Certificate Authorities that offer free Certificates for the personal use in e-mail, but I have found that if you are using any Microsoft products.. or you suspect that your recipient(s) may be using Windows and/or Outlook (which is a fairly good bet), you want to get your e-mail certificate here:
Today's free link: Comodo Free Email Certificate

Fill in the form, and use the e-mail address that you want to protect with encryption (If you use more than one e-mail address regularly, repeat this process for each one: each account needs its own Cert), and click on the "Advanced Private Key Options" link, and place a check in the "User protected?" checkbox, and enter a "Revocation password (twice). Click "Agree & C ontinue".

A window will open telling you that a Certificate is being "requested on your behalf".. agree. Now you will see the screen (pictured). Click "OK".

If all goes as it should, the Comodo webpage will change to a "Congratulations!" page, and instructs you to check the Inbox of the account you created the Cert for. Do so. There will be an e-mail from Comodo containing a link. You will need to click it to complete the process (Copy>Paste links into the address bar of your browser, remember?!).

Your e-mail will look like this. When you've copy>pasted the e-mail's link into your browser's address bar, and requested the Cert download, Windows will then automatically try to install it for you, but needs your permission..

Click "Yes" to give it.

This tells you you're done, and now you can digitally "sign" your e-mail.. which is the first real step to exchanging encrypted email.. which I will describe tomorrow.
Now, e-mail a link to this article to the person(s) you want private conversations with, and tell them to click the link and follow the Comodo wizard and get their key.. you're going to need it. Once you and they do this, encryption is a click away.

The conclusion of this How To is now available here.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

You'll Thank Me One Day*

Baby's first steps. Graduations. Birthday parties. Wedding ceremonies. Today's topic came from a recent conversation with a friend of mine-- "That's what life is; an accumulation of memories"--  and it got me onto to thinking about Deep Things.. and yes, I took a little stroll down my own Memory Lane...

But this is, after all, a tech site, and I am a World Renown Tech Journalist, and so I will not get all nostalgic on you, nor 'share' some of my favorite recollections. No, I won't. But I will point out to you that more and more frequently, we are coming to rely on our computers to help us 'remember'.

What do I mean by that? Well, now that we have digital photography, the odds are pretty good that the pictures you take -- of baby's first steps, graduation, B-Day parties, etc. --are not in a shoebox, or photo album, but are on your hard drive. Your "home movies" too.
Perhaps your computer is the only place you have those pictures/memories.

Tip of the day: Loyal Friends and True to this series know that once a month I remind my readers to make a backup copy of their important files (Ahem), and to store those copies someplace else. That's because hard drives fail. (Not all that often, I grant you that, but they do die.. and not just from old age.) They can also get corrupted by malware, or erased by a virus or hacker, or...

If -- for some bizarre and mysterious reason -- your computer (or, just the hard drive) croaked and started pushing up daisies, would you lose the only pictures you have of Junior's birth? Of your hard-earned graduation? Of your Grandmother?

Well, don't let your heart get broken because you just "never got around" to making backup copies. Make copies today! Burn some CD's/DVD's and one other form of storage-- another (external, maybe) hard drive, or perhaps online.

To help you, I refer you to two prior articles--
1) Windows has a built-in Backup Utility, found in Programs> Accessories> System Tools and my advice for using it is here, http://techpaul.wordpress.com/2007/07/02/automate-your-backup-and-get-some-peace-of-mind/
Apple has a built-in Disk Imaging ability that is just great, but often overlooked: http://techpaul.wordpress.com/2008/04/03/how-to-use-apples-disk-imaging-tool/.

2) Instead of buying an external drive, you might prefer to take advantage of an online storage service.. of which there are many. My article on selecting one is here, http://techpaul.wordpress.com/2008/04/26/online-storage-for-data-backup/

Folks.. there are many, many reasons to make backup copies, and one reason not to (can you guess what it is?). Almost everyday in my real job I get calls from desperate people in a panic.. they're panicked because they only have the one copy of their important stuff: don't be one of them!

Today's free link: Perhaps you would like a backup tool other than Windows' own.. SyncBack is worth taking a look at. From C/Net Editor review, "This straightforward backup utility makes it a snap to safeguard and synchronize your files, and its freeware price just sweetens the deal. Surprisingly flexible for a free program, SyncBack can save your files anywhere: on external hard drives, in ZIP archives, on network drives, on CDs (using UDF), or transfer them via FTP. Recovering from a drive loss is also cinch, with a convenient restore tool that replicates folder trees along with the files in them."

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

A Real Life Review of Google's New Browser

Google recently made news with its entry into the Web browser "war" -- a direct challenge to Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Mozilla's Firefox.

Google's browser is called "Chrome" (no, I don't know why). It is still in Beta, but was released to the public early this month.

Needless to say, the "tech community" was a-buzz. Why would Google build a browser? Aren't there enough of those? (Read Google's answer here.)
It was fun to watch.. especially the conspiracy theorists.

But seriously, are you still searching for the perfect Web browser? Or, do you have your favorite 'tweaked' just right.. and it would take some kind of revolutionary quantum leap forward to get you to change? (I am one of the latter.)

I recently exchanged e-mails with a frequent reader of Tech--for Everyone, and the subject of Chrome came up. Since she is an excellent writer (check out her poker-oriented blog http://www.gadzooks64.blogspot.com/) and computer savvy, I asked her for her opinion of, and experiences with, Chrome.

She has kindly agreed to allow me to share with you what she wrote.. a non-techie's review:
"Chrome is definitely nicer than Firefox is some respects. I certainly don't have the Flash issues with it that I sometimes have with Firefox...

The interface is clean, but I prefer that my actual window space be maximized and the menus and toolbars to be as small as possible...

I realize this is still a Beta release so I hold out hope that the issues I had with it will be addressed prior to release. (Issues = nit picky quirks.)
• Every time Chrome opens it opens in the same place and size: WHICH IS NOT THE PLACE AND SIZE I WANT IT TO BE. Even after I maneuver it into the spot I want and the size I want, it continues to open where it darn well pleases. A nuisance for sure but not necessarily a deal breaker.
• Chrome must have and/or allow Add-ons: I LOVE my Delicious Toolbar, Woot Watcher, Abduction!, Adblock Plus, Colorful Tabs, Forecastfox, ScribeFire… you get the picture. I assume Chrome won’t have any need for IE Tab. Honestly, I could live without all of those BUT Delicious. I have to have my Delicious. I assume the Chrome will take Add-ons once it’s released. I can’t see anyway they could not allow developers from creating add-ons.
• For something that is supposed to be so streamlined I find the title area to be pretty large compared to my compact theme for FF. I think they could do a better job minimizing the browser and maximizing the viewable area. Since Chrome has no footer bar, it appears they have pretty comparable viewing areas..
Other than those quirks I found Chrome to be delightful (my emphasis). I would be inclined to give it a serious go as my default browser when it's released.. provided I will have access to my Delicious bookmarks toolbar!

There’s a good chance I will use it before IE when I run into a Webpage that just won’t load right for me in FF. I recently pulled up a page with video feeds from all over the areas being hit by the hurricane. Firefox just didn’t want to load that page correctly while Chrome loaded it just fine.
I will be giving Chrome another tryout once they release the full version, that’s for sure. It definitely needs some work before it will replace Firefox as my default browser.

So there you have it-- an average person's (by that I mean, not a tech blogger's) experience with Google's new browser.

I don't have anything to add (except, I hope they get the Safari bug repaired). I welcome competition in the browser market. I am looking for serious improvements in security (and speed is nice too).
Who will win the "browser war"? You got me.

Today's free download(s): The new generation of Web browsers are here, and if you're still using IE 6, well, please stop. Try a more secure and capable browser-- such as:
* Microsoft's Internet Explorer 8 (currently in Beta2).
* Firefox 3 from Mozilla (first update released).
* Google's Chrome (Beta).
* Apple's Safari for Windows.
* Opera 9.5 Avant Maxthon Flock 2.0 etc.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

Great Anti-spyware, Free From Google*

I am a "downloader". I get a real kick out of downloading cool and/or useful programs -- particularly when they're free. A lot of you are "downloaders" too, and one of this site's more popular items is the daily free download link I post at the end of each article.

I also like the fact that when I am considering spending money on a program, I can (usually) download a "trial", which I can use to see if it works as I hope it will before I lay out my hard-earned cash.

By taking advantage of these trials, I have avoided spending money on programs which failed to live up to their promise. And I have found some great programs (games, mostly, but that's just me) that I would not have found otherwise.

Today I want to tell you about a "package" of downloads put together by Google. This "pack" of download includes some of the programs I have featured in my "Today's free download", and a couple that I haven't yet.

The one (included) program that triggered me to write today's article is Spyware Doctor. Spyware Doctor is a for-pay anti-spyware tool that has consistently ranked number 1, or number 2, on the Best Anti-Spyware lists (currently number one). It is well-worth the $30 price.

The Google Pack includes an effective, though smaller, version of Spyware Doctor, (free!) as well as an impressive list of other applications. One of the truly great features of the Google Pack is that you can pick-and-choose which of these programs to download to your machine. (You could, conceivably, download a "pack" of one.) The default selections are shown here, but I would do a little checking and unchecking before I clicked the "Download" button.

First, uncheck the "make Google my Homepage" as you probably have already set your desired "Home" for your browser. Also, uncheck the box for Adobe Reader. If you must have a "reader" to open PDF files, use any other free reader (unless you enjoy being hassled while you compute, and prefer a slow boot), such as PrimoPDF (included at the bottom of this article).
Do not check Real Player. Those of you who are security conscious (hopefully all of you) should keep the checks in Norton Security Inspector (which includes antivirus and anti-spyware) and Spyware Doctor.
I have mentioned the others before, except for Google Talk, which is an IM, and Google Photos Screensaver. Those of you who want to take advantage of this unique download bundle offered by Google, click here.

Today's free download: (Yes. Another one!) Those free "trial" programs I mentioned above are not always such a wonderful thing-- particularly when they are 'forced' upon us against our will. Whenever you buy a new computer, it will come preloaded with all sorts of trialware (as it's called) that most of us don't want. If you have just purchased a new PC, download and run the wonderful PC Decrapifier and clean off that stuff.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

Skype -- "Windows Requires Immediate Attention".. Not!

Folks, after a quiet period, cyber-crooks are once again using Skype to send phishing "chats" in an attempt to defraud you. So, I am reposting this article. It is the exact same ruse, but the name has changed.

Yesterday a "chat" window (Skype) opened on my machine, and presented me with a dire warning from someone named "Software Update" "Registry Scan Online®". It said that "WINDOWS REQUIRES IMMEDIATE ATTENTION" and, it provided me with a solution. 

(Click on image to see large version)

Please, folks, tell me you have spotted this for what it is. Please tell me that you knew --instantly-- that this is a cyber-crime attempt; that it is Phraud-ulent.

Please tell me that you know what will happen if the link provided in this message is clicked; and, please, please, please tell me you would never click the link.

Just in case you aren't sure:
* "Software Update" "Registry Scan Online ®" doesn't exist.
* "www.onlinemonitor.info" "www.registryscan.com" is not registered in ARIN (the registry of Internet addresses).
* clicking the link will allow scripts to run, and/or take you to a poisoned Website which will install malware on your machine, or/and it may take you to a site that will sell you a rogue anti-spyware program (please read my article, Is that antispyware program really spyware).
* Microsoft DOES NOT alert you via Instant Messaging. No legitimate company does. Period. Ever. This is a classic example of a hacker's attempt to get you to click their link.

All of this so they can rip you off. It's their full time job.

Please point your less-savvy friends and family to this article and educate them to the dangers of spam (unsolicited) messages and tell them-- NEVER CLICK THE LINK.
[Note: while this article directly references the VoIP client Skype, you may see this type of thing in other Instant Messaging/Chat programs.]

Today's free link(s): I have assembled on my Website a collection of links to the best free anti-malware programs to help you prevent infection.. and clean up if you've been infected. To see them, click here.

Also, Bill Mullins has posted a very complete tutorial, Think You Have A Virus?-- Some Solutions, which is quite probably the best one-stop lesson on malware I have ever run across. (I also recommend his How Fake/Rogue Software Affects Real People.)

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

Fw: Your Credit Score may have Updated‏-- Scam Alert

Folks, a new scam e-mail is appearing that warns of changes to your Credit Score. In the ones I have seen, the Sender is "Credit Report Time".

Delete it. Directly contact legitimate services -- such as your bank-- if you really feel the need to check your activity/credit report.

Speed Up Your Camera -- Kill the Logo

Digital cameras truly are a modern marvel. They're quick, highly portable, easy to use, and produce instant results. You can use one pretty much any time, anywhere.

And with digital images, you don't have to hide away in a dark closet and handle noxious chemicals to crop and edit your prints. Now, we eliminate red-eye, and fix contrast, etc., with the click of the mouse.

As I wrote in Digital Cameras and You, the convenience and quality of digital cameras has all but done away with 35mm film.

Tip of the day: Speed up your digital camera's boot time by disabling the splashscreen.

Almost every digital camera displays some kind of company logo when you turn it on. This is wasted time and energy that does nothing but slow you down.. and might even make you miss your shot. If your make/model allows it, (and most do) turn this "feature" off.

The exact method will vary from camera to camera, but typically the option your looking for is in the General Settings area of the main menu.
The phrasing may be "show" or "enable", and you want to un-select this. And, it may be labeled "welcome screen" or "splashscreen", or even, "startup screen".
(If you just cannot locate the menu option, consult the manufacturer's Website.)

This quick settings change, will give you a faster power-up, and allow you to be more responsive in your picture taking.

For those of you shopping for a new digital camera, you might want to read my article, Digital cameras– which one’s for you?

Today's free download: (repeat) One of the best free programs for working with your digital images-- resizing, cropping, eliminating red-eye, color-adjusting, etc.-- is Paint.NET.
You can also find helpful tutorials here.

Copyright 2007-8 ©: Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

SEND THIS E-MAIL TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW!

"Warning--Worst Virus Ever!"

"Bin Laden Hanged!--See Video!"

"Warn Your Friends!"

Have you ever had a friend or family member forward you a "warning" about a particular "scam" e-mail? Or a new virus?

And you look at the Cc, and see that they've also sent the e-mail to every friend and family member in their address book.

Next time this happens, don't open it. Just delete it. And, maybe, send the helpful person in question a copy of this article.

You see, this is just a way for the scammers to gather valid e-mail addresses. (The message contains hidden 'traps' which they can follow.) Which they use to send you spam and more spam, and poisoned spam so they can control your machine.. And when they're done, they sell the list of valid e-mail addresses to the next scammer/spammer.

Please. Stop the cycle. Don't forward. Don't open. Delete.
They're easy to spot: they come from someone you know, and have "FW: URGENT" in the Subject line.

Don't open attachments sent from unknown Senders (and be leery of ones from known).

Don't click the link.

Simple one today... just put the word "DON'T" at the beginning of the title.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

"Windows Firewall Is Off"-- Reader Question

Q: About 5 times during every startup in WinXP I get the balloon that says my firewall is off.  Usually I just turn it back on.  Now when I go to control panel I'm unable to turn it on via the Firewall icon (asks me if I want to activate ICS, I say yes and it won't load it) or via Security Center.  Any ideas?

A: It is not terribly alarming to see the balloon message once, briefly, during the XP startup-- but it should resolve itself quickly  and automatically (it has to do with the order in which things load). You should not have to go in and turn it on each time. You set XP to use the firewall (or not) one time.

Without looking at your machine, I can only give you general answers: firewall behavior such as you described is typically caused by two things-- a malware infection which is disabling the firewall so that it can accomplish its nefarious goals; and/or corrupted Windows system files.
(If your machine is taking a really long time to start, this can also be a clue that you are infected and/or it can also mean you have too many programs loading at boot. You might want to read, http://techpaul.wordpress.com/2007/10/26/speed-up-your-startup-a-repost/)

You want try to make certain you're free of infection, and I have written many articles on removing malware, http://techpaul.wordpress.com/2008/09/02/malware-removal-techniques/.  Modern malware is nasty stuff, and there's no guarantees (short of reinstalling Windows), but here are some generic tips:
* Start by surfing to Trend Micro's Housecall  and run an online scan of your machine (I suggest using the "try the new version" link).
* Make sure your antivirus hasn't "expired" and is updated with the latest definitions.
* Download and install the free version of Spyware Doctor from the Google Pack and run it twice-- a Full/Deep, and then a "quick/Intelligent.

Once you have all clean scans-- if you still have the same problem, it is probably corrupted files. You may need an XP Install disc (you may be able to use the disc that came with your computer, even if it isn't an official Microsoft disc) for this next:
* Open a command prompt and launch the System File Checker by typing in sfc /scannow. Insert the disc when/if prompted (and close any windows that open.. you don't want to run Setup, or launch a recovery).

* XP's firewall is not all that great. Please look at http://techpaul.wordpress.com/2008/04/22/about-firewalls/

* Since this behavior can be indicative of real problems, it is not a bad idea to have a qualified PC repair technician have a look at your system.

Today's free download: (from site) "With DataCD you will be able to print simple CD jewel case labels (Back & Front Cover, Slim CD Front Cover, Pocket Slim CD Front Cover, SuperDisk 120mb, NeatO [68646] NeatO [68645]). This is the ideal software if you decide to create personalized labels for your CDs."

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

View Multiple Mail Identities in One Browser

It has become quite common to have more than one e-mail account -- you might use one that came with your ISP service, and you might also have a Webmail account (Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo! Mail), for example.

Opening each Inbox, so you can monitor them, is a simple matter of opening a new tab (see, Browser tab quick tips for more) and logging in-- as long as we're talking about different services.

If you have more than one "Identity" at a Webmail provider, (two different Gmail accounts, say) you typically are automatically 'logged out' of one when you log in to the other from the same computer. This is annoying. Here's how to fix that behavior.

Tip of the day: Change IE's settings to allow separate log ins.
As strange it may seem, you need to close Internet Explorer, and then make a change in Folder Options.. this will affect IE as Microsoft consider it to be a part of the operating system.

1) Start >Control Panel >Folder Options (XP user: Start >Settings >)

2) Click on the "View" tab.
3) Scroll down until you see "Launch folder windows in a separate process" and place a check in the checkbox.
4) Click "Apply", and then "OK".

That's it. You're done. Now you can launch IE and you will be able to log in to each of your Identities/Inboxes, and one will no longer 'log out' the other.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

The Future Is Now

Folks, I like to make my articles a little more fun on Fridays, and so my article on the recent report that shows more people than ever are being fooled by phishing e-mails will just have to wait for another day. If you really want to learn more about ID Theft and phishing, you can click this link and read more.

Today I'm mostly going to talk about a book I was lucky enough to find in my local library's Free Bin; Scott Adam's The Dilbert Future-- Thriving on Stupidity in the 21st Century™ which was published a little over a decade ago (in 1997). In this book,  he dared to predict the future, which strangely enough, is our "now".

Before I proceed, I probably should take a moment to explain that Scott Adams is the creator of the immensely popular Dilbert™ comic strip. As popular as Dilbert™ is with the general public, it is my understanding that Dilbert™ is ginormously popular amongst the "tech crowd" (aka "Geeks").
This must be true, because I'm a geek and I am a huge fan.

I thought it might be kind of fun to look at a few of the predictions Scott made, and see how they compare to today's reality. (And please remember, he made these years before the Y2K  Bug.)

• In the future, life definitely won't be like Star Trek.
• There will be a huge market for technological products  which help workers goof off and still get paid.
• Your clothes will be smarter than you.
• Computer-using men will be the sexiest males.

Not bad! He scored a 3 out of 4 in that sample. Our clothes are not smarter than us.. at least, not yet. But who knows? In 10 years they probably will be.

A very interesting article on HowStuffWorks.com says the following, "In the next few years, we might be filling our closets with smart shirts that can read our heart rate and breathing, and musical jackets with built in all-fabric keypads. Thin light-emitting diode (LED) monitors could even be integrated into this apparel to display text and images. Computerized clothes will be the next step in making computers and devices portable without having to strap electronics to our bodies or fill our pockets with a plethora of gadgets. These new digital clothes aren't necessarily designed to replace your PC, but they will be able to perform some of the same functions."

Yes.. an "e-wardrobe". Nanotechnology is really just beginning to be explored, but some "smart clothing" is already here-- as this article on CNN.com/technology tells us, "smart clothes that can repel insects and mask nasty odors such as cigarette smoke have proved successful and are already being marketed.
Last year, a design student at Cornell University designed a garment that can prevent colds and flu and, crucially, never needs washing.
We can expect to see, in the not-too-distant future, fabrics that have in-built cooling, deodorant, moisturizer and even vitamins."
And, underwear that can detect cancer in its earliest stages.

I have to admit, that's pretty smart.  Maybe I should give Mr. Adams more credit, and mark him a perfect 4/4.

I have run out of space to talk more about The Dilbert Future, but I will say it still an excellent and enjoyable read.. and it's still available online.

Today's free download: Did you ever drop a quarter in to play a game of video poker? (If you're like me, it was more than one quarter..) Put a video poker game on you PC with Draw Poker for Windows.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix.

How To Use System Restore To Fix Windows

Have you ever wished you could go back in time...and un-do something you did? Windows' built-in recovery tool, System Restore allows your computer to do what you and I cannot do, jump back in history to a time when everything was working properly, and that's a pretty neat trick!

Tip of the day: I should caution you that System Restore is not a panacea-- there are some things it copies and restores and some things it doesn't.
* It does not recover data once the Recycle bin has been emptied -- you need to use Shadow Copy or an undelete utility for that.
* It doesn't recover lost or corrupted User passwords.

It is, however, "user friendly" and simple to use. It does, automatically, take "snapshots" of the Registry and some dynamic system files, and is a good way to get an unstable and/or non-booting system back on its feet again without losing your files and user settings.

To get started, you need to make sure that System Restore is turned on, and that it has at least 200 megabytes of free hard-drive space to store snapshots on.

Turn on System Restore by clicking Start and right-click My Computer >Properties >System Restore tab and make sure there's no check in the box next to "Turn off System Restore on all drives."

While you're there, select the drive, or partition, where you want to store the snapshots and click the Settings button. Now you can use the slider to denote the amount of memory you want to devote to System Restore. I set mine to about 500 MB's, which gives me a good selection of Restore Points (snapshots) without losing too much storage. And now you are set: Windows will start taking snapshots whenever you make a 'major' change, like installing a program or device driver.

There are a couple of different ways to use System Restore to go back in time. In the first scenario, Windows still functions, and boots, but is unstable and crashes or freezes frequently.

1) Use System Restore by clicking Start >Programs >Accessories >Sytem Tools >System Restore. This will launch the System Restore Wizard. By default, the radio button "Restore my computer to an earlier time" is already selected so hit the Next button.

Now you will see a calendar, which has the available snapshots/times in bold.

2) Start with the most recent one first, and click Next, and then OK. Your system will reboot, take a while to load, and then a message saying "Your system has been successfully restored to date selected" will appear.

If this doesn't happen, you will see an error message-- retry using the next most recent Restore Point. You may have to try several.

The next scenario is when you're in a bad situation where Windows just BSOD's ("blue screens"), or won't even boot. Boot your machine and hit, repeatedly, the F8 key as if you were trying to get into Safe Mode.

When the white-on-black Advanced Start Up screen appears do not hit any key(s) just yet. Before too long a dialogue will open asking whether you want to continue on into Safe Mode...Y/N? Type an "N" for "no". This will launch the System Restore Wizard and you follow the steps as outlined above.

Should this dialogue not open after a suitable wait, use your up/down arrow keys to highlight (select) "Safe Mode" and hit Enter. You will now be in the funny-looking, petite version of Windows called, you guessed it, "Safe Mode". It's easy to know that you are, because it clearly says Safe Mode in all four corners of your desktop. Now you can access System Restore through the Start >Programs menu. Again, follow the steps as outlined above.

Occasionally System Restore cannot undo all the damage and it doesn't work as we'd hoped. If the damage was done by malware such as a virus that also infected your snapshots, it may not work at all. But it is a powerful tool and has saved me many times over the years. It is quick, simple, and usually very effective-- and it's free!

[For more answers on System Restore, see my two follow-up posts; "A quick System Restore addenda", and "questions answered".]

Today's free link: I mentioned undelete utilities, and there are many out there for you to try. Try to recover files by starting with a scan using Softperfect File Recovery. "...a free and useful tool to restore accidentally deleted files from hard and floppy disks, USB flash drives, CF and SD cards and other storage media. It supports the popular file systems such as FAT12, FAT16, FAT32, NTFS and NTFS5 with compression and encryption. If your important files disappeared and you can’t find them in the recycle bin, try this software product and get the files back to life. Easy to use, no installation is required."

Copyright 2007-8 ©  Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

Add Firewire 800 To Your PC-- Fast Video Transfer

Adding new capability to your PC is called "upgrading", and today I am going to tell you how easy it is to upgrade your machine to include Firewire capability.

Firewire "transfer technology" is faster than USB and can be a real benefit to those of you who own digital camcorders, or are thinking of transferring your VHS video tapes onto DVDs, or are otherwise working with digital video.

First of all, what is Firewire (aka 1394)? Firewire is, in essence, a wire (cable, actually). It looks and feels and acts very much like your quite familiar USB cabling-- it is so similar looking that they changed the shape of the plug so you can tell them apart. The USB is rectangular, and the Firewire has an angular extension on one end.

The main difference between the two data transfer technologies is speed: the original USB speed is 12 Mbps and the original Firewire is 400 Mbps, the newer "2.0" standards (which you really should have by now) is 480 and 800 million bits per second, respectively. So, if you have large data blocks to transfer -- such as video -- from one device to another, Firewire 800 is the way to go.

Tip of the day:If your machine did not come with a Firewire port, or if it did but it is the older Firewire 400 type, upgrade your system by adding a PCI expansion card to your PC. The photo above shows a two-port Firewire PCI card. These expansion cards come in a variety of flavors; some offer more ports, or "combo" ports like 2 USB + 2 Firewire. They are very affordable: the simple 2 port shown above can be found for $18.

Installing an expansion card is not difficult but if you're not inclined to try it yourself, a Tech Support and/or Repair person (like myself) will not charge you much to put it in for you. It is a simple matter of inserting it into a white slot on the motherboard.
1) Load the device drivers: It may seem counter-intuitive to run the Install CD before the device is actually in the PC, but this is the usual method. Insert the CD that came with your card and follow the wizard. This will install the Plug-and-Play device drivers for your new device.
2) Prepare your PC: The next step is to completely power-down, and unplug your computer from the wall outlet. Now open your computer's case; typically there's two small screws holding your side panel in place. Lay your PC on its side so that the motherboard is down at the bottom, and you can see all the slots and components.
[Attention: Do not reach inside the case unless you are wearing an antistatic wristband, or until you have touched a bare metal section of the case's frame. A very, very small dose of static electricity can ruin electrical components inside a computer.]

Find an open (white) PCI slot, and remove the corresponding metal tab from the back of the case. This will open up an outlet for the faceplate of the expansion card.
3) Install the card: Gently, but firmly, insert the card into the open slot. You want to use enough force to fully "seat" the card into the slot. 4) Validate your install: Plug your PC back into the electrical outlet and power up your machine. Windows will launch, and it will detect your new hardware. A small dialogue window will open down by your clock that tells you that Windows is installing your New Hardware. Unless there is some glitch, you are done. You can start using your new device.
* If Windows does NOT detect the new card, insert the Install CD and go through the wizard again. If this still fails to install your new card, it is likely that the card itself is not fully inserted into the slot -- power-down and really push it in this time. Repeat step 4.
If this fails (and this is unlikely), read my troubleshooting article here.

Laptop owners: For those of you who want to add this capability to your notebook PCs, the steps are very similar -- except you won't be using a PCI expansion card. You will want to purchase a Firewire PCMCIA card, such as the one shown here.

Today's free link: Teen Chat Decoder. From site: "This free Teen Chat Acronym Decoder lets you 'Crack The Secret Code' your teen uses online, in Chat Rooms, online chats, Instant Messages, & Text Messages. This is an awesome software for parents because it gives you an inside look into your teenagers online life."

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

Malware Removal Advice

What do you do when your PC is displaying all the signs of having been infected and/or hacked but your antivirus and anti-spyware scan reports come back clean?

This was the case for a fella who called me for advice recently. He had done things 'right' -- and by that I mean he has a firewall, he keeps his antivirus definitions up to date, and he runs a couple of anti-spyware applications -- but suspected his machine had been hacked anyway.

He couldn't do things he was used to doing (like deleting a file) and his machine was "really slow."
But according to his scanners, his machine is in perfect shape.

Tip of the day: If you should find yourself in a similar situation there are several steps you can take to help resolve your questions and (hopefully) fix your machine without taking the drastic step of wiping your hard drive, formatting, and reinstalling Windows.

The first step is to use a scanner that isn't installed on your machine. Here's two ways to do that: one, if your antivirus allows it (and most of them do these days), follow its instructions and make an antivirus recovery disk. This is a bootable disk that scans your system before Windows loads.

To use one, put it in your CD tray and restart your machine. A plain-text sentence will appear telling you to "press any key to boot from CD..." When you see it, hit your spacebar or, well, any other key, and then follow the instructions. When it's finished, remove the CD and restart your machine again.
[note: you may also use a properly prepared USB thumb drive. Click here to read my article on how to do that.]

A second method is to use an online scanner. I have a list, with links, of several good online scans on my website, here. Quite a few of the online scanning tools will try to sell you their full application, but you're under no obligation to buy. The big advantage to these two methods lies in the fact that they have not been compromised, or altered, and the files and scanners on your machine may be-- the modification being done by the virus or hacker.

Another thing to do is scroll down to my "Today's free link" and download HiJack This! Run it and dump the result into a .txt file (there's instructions for this) and then register on one of the HiJack This! forums (there's instructions for this too) and post your results there. Before too long, an expert anti-malwareologist [don't bother looking: I just now made that word up] will have looked over the intricacies, and will post his analysis and instructions. These guys (and gals) are really, really good at what they do, and you can trust their answers.

Also run CheckDisk with the "r" "f" switches (this probably will require a reboot) to make sure the problem is not your hard drive.
Click on Start >Programs >Accessories >Command prompt. In the white-on-black window type "chkdsk /r /f" (no quotes, and be sure to include the spaces). You may be told that certain files are in use, and asked if you want to "schedule this at the next reboot Y/N?" Type in a "y" and restart your machine.

Hopefully these efforts will be rewarded with a rejuvination of your machine, and you will be back in business again. If not, you have my sympathy. You may have a rootkit and then your best solution is to re-format your hard drive and reinstall everything, or enlist the aid of a professional

Today's free link: HijackThis™ is a free utility which quickly scans your Windows computer to find settings that may have been changed by spyware, malware or other unwanted programs. HijackThis does not clean infections, but creates a report, or log file, with the results of the scan. A large community of users participates in online forums, where experts help interpret the scan results to clean up infected computers.

Copyright © 2007-8 Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix

Protect Yourself With a Router

Increase the security of your Internet connection for less than $50.

For those of you using a DSL or cable connection to surf the Web, you should be aware that your connection is "always on". That means your computer is able to go online and get security updates and other useful items without your being present, or even aware of the activity.

This is a mixed blessing, as it can also do other--less wonderful--things without your knowledge. You can increase your Web security by preventing being visible to miscreants out there on the Web by hiding your computer's IP address (a set of unique numbers used to locate and identify machines on the Internet) behind a router which is capable of "NAT" (some manufactures call this "with firewall") -- as almost all current makes and models are -- such as those sold by Linksys, Netgear, and D-Link. You can research models on the Web, and then find the best prices on such shopping sites as www.buy.com and Shopzilla.
I have seen Wireless-G routers for $20.

If your router allows for MAC address filtering, turn it on! Use a browser to log onto the router's administrator's control panel as per its instruction booklet (often it's http://192.168.1.1) and click on "enable MAC filtering". This will prevent other computers from getting a free ride by accessing your network and your Internet connection.

(If you have never logged onto your router and set a password, and your manual is lost forever, instructions can be found at the manufacturer's website.)

Putting a router between your modem and computer will also allow you to share your Web connection with multiple computers. Most routers have Ethernet ports for four of your computers.

Note: If you purchase a router that includes a wireless access point, there are some measures you should take to secure the wireless transmitter/receiver as well. First, turn on and configure encryption of at least WPA as per the instruction booklet, and 2nd, disable the SSID broadcast. These two steps will prevent intruders from "seeing" your access point, and encryption will strongly discourage a snoop from capturing and reading your traffic.

To read my instruction article covering the security enabling steps (including illustrations), please click here. Doing so will put a shield between you (your computers) and the bad guys out there on the Internet, and increase your privacy and security.

* For those of you who don't already have a router/WAP, or are just thinking about getting a newer, faster, one, you may also want to look at Wireless standards and you–buying a new WAP.

Copyright 2007-8 © Tech Paul. All rights reserved. post to jaanix