Securing your PC

1. Windows Defender


2. Windows Firewall


3.  CCleaner


4. AVG Anti-virus Free Edition


5. MVPS HOSTS File


6. Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware


7.  SuperAntiSpyware Free Edition


8. Spybot Search & Destroy

These are all free products. I strongly recommend and use them all. Use them and keep your system up and running smoothly and without security issues. Each of these products is covered in earlier blog posts.

5 Great Technology Bargains

This is an interesting and timely PC World article. If you are in the market for a new desktop, I really like their number 1 item, a Dell desktop. Note that my Netbook is the number 2 item of their 5. As noted in other posts, do get the 6 hour battery if this lightweight machine appeals to you. This version costs $399 and also includes a larger hard drive of 160GB. I bought mine on Amazon.

The other 3 items making up this list of 5 are a printer, camera, and TV.

5 Great Technology Bargains

Happy Anniversary to ME!

I just realized that I missed my anniversary (typical male thing, right?). I am talking about the first anniversary of this blog. I began it on February 12, 2008.

I had thought I'd try to post something every weekday, but that has proven to be an impossible task. I'll keep trying, however.

I just browsed through all of my posts to the beginning and realize that this is a real treasure trove of good stuff for your average PC user. I have never tried to include stuff that is too technical, but rather that which applies to most of my customers and the people I know.

I hope you get the chance to look in now and again and to browse the posts that you have missed.

Yet another repository for Chittenden County folks for old computers

Looks like those of us who live in Chittenden County have another option when it comes to ridding ourselves of our computer junk! I have already posted below about Goodwill. Now the CSWD is involved. Someone must have found a less expensive way to extract the gold from the old clunkers and with gold at such a high price, .........? Tongue in cheek, but maybe not.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FREE computer & electronics round up coming to Williston Sat., March 7!  If your TV is kaput and your computer no longer boots up, you can give them both the boot -- literally -- at the FREE CSWD ELECTRONICS ROUND UP on Saturday, March 7, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Williston Drop-Off Center (off Mountain View, at the end of Redmond Road). The same goes for your old printer, that stereo that you lost your hearing to in college, and any other electronics that you need to dispose of. Among items accepted are computers, printers, modems, and other peripherals, TVs, stereos, phones, CD/DVD/MP3/Tape players, typewriters, and media for electronics, such as tapes, CDs, DVDs, etc. Click here for a complete list. No appliances will be accepted at this round up. NOTE: This round up is open to all households, including those outside of Chittenden County; business electronics will not be accepted. This free round up is sponsored by Samsung and CRT Processing. Usually, the Chittenden Solid Waste District charges fees to accept electronics at its Drop-Off Centers, due to the cost of recycling them. For example, a TV would normally cost $5-$15; a computer, monitor, keyboard, and mouse costs $8.50. But for one day only--and only at the Williston Drop-Off Center--it's free! CSWD collects about 600,000 pounds of electronics from Chittenden County businesses and residents each year. The fees we charge don't cover the entire $100,000 that it costs for us to handle them. Samsung, CRT Processing, and CSWD are partnering to shoulder the cost of this round up. Electronics can contain a host of hazardous materials that are banned from the landfill. For example, TVs and CRT computer monitors alone can contain mercury, cadmium, barium, dioxins, and several pounds of lead. The good news is that these toxins, as well as more benign recyclable materials, can be harvested and either disposed of in an environmentally sound fashion or reused to make new products. Many people are getting new TVs due to the analog-to-digital switcheroo that occurred earlier this month. With a digital converter box, your working TV will most likely still be able to pick up a clear signal (click here for info on how to go about getting a converter box). For more information, visit www.cswd.net; call 872-8111; e-mail info@cswd.net.

Netbooks: All About the New Ultraportables

I am happy to see that my Acer Aspire One Netbook that I bought quite some time ago is still among the leaders in this field. My wife is the primary user. She has excellent eyesight and has little trouble with the small screen. She loves the light weight which makes it easy to carry when traveling. I bought the 6 hour battery right out of the gate, and it really does give a full 6 hours. This normally equates to a full day's use if it is set to go into Standby when the cover is closed, as I have done.

Netbooks: All About the New Ultraportables

Bank account hacking is on the rise

Let this UPI article serve as a reminder that we need to be very careful. Protect your PC with a quality security software suite and run malware checkers and a full antivirus scan at least once a week.

Bank account hacking is on the rise

Hackers jump on newest IE7 bug

Once again users of Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE) web browser are exposed to hackers. Most hackers target IE because of its widespread use. This article is from ComputerWorld today and can be found at this link.

I have IE7 installed on only one machine, and that is because I need to have a machine for understanding what you folks are up against. I have IE6 installed on my other machines, and have long recommended against all of you installing IE7. I have even included a post somewhere below this one that instructs on how to remove IE7 and return to IE6.

Still, I recommend against any of you using IE at all, whether IE7 or IE6, except in those cases where it may be required.

I recommend the Firefox browser, but there is nothing wrong with Netscape or Safari. All three are fine browsers and are a lot safer than any version of Internet Explorer.

Lavasoft AdAware

I have rarely run AdAware in the past few months, but thought I'd give it a try the other day just to see if it might find something the others didn't.  In the process of updating the definitions file (I thought), Lavasoft downloaded a new version of the program which was, as I recall, The Anniversary Edition, or something like that. It was still free, but I found the user interface to be even more complex than AdAware had been, and it never was the best. I ran it and it found several very trivial files it recommended I not bother deleting. Strange. I interpreted this to mean that they found nothing, but felt  they had to say something after taking up so much of my time. Ridiculous.

Bottom line, I have uninstalled Lavasoft AdAware and will not use it again. There is simply no need to use this superfluous product when my top three spyware products are all free and do a better job.  Actually, a far better job.

Good news for VT computer users

Goodwill in Williston offers FREE computer recycling


Is your dead computer collection crowding out your Foosball table? Wish you had room in your closet for clothing rather than CPUs gone kaput? Load it all up and bring it to Goodwill (329 Harvest Lane, Williston, 879-0088; Mon-Sat 9-5; Sun 10-5), which will accept any brand of computer for free! Here's what you can bring:

CPUs, monitors, laptops, cords, keyboards, mice, scanners, printers, fax machines, and computer parts.

This is an on-going program developed in partnership with Dell.

FileHippo.com Update Checker

This is a slick (and free) small application that once installed does its job quickly & thoroughly. I like it a lot and have used the information it provides to update some of the pograms on my laptop.

If you decide to try it, remember that you don't have to upgrade every program identified. As one example, I would not upgrade my copy of Internet Explorer 6.

The contents of the web page is displayed below, or you can simply click here to see it on the FileHippo web site, where you will be certain to see the latest information.

 FileHippo.com Update Checker

 

Welcome to the new FileHippo.com Update Checker!
We're currently beta testing this exciting new addition to our website and have released it as a public beta for everyone to download.

Update Checker v1.030 FHSetup.exe (153kb) Download nowNote: If you wish to download the standalone version without an installer then click here.

What is it?
The Update Checker will scan your computer for installed software, check the versions and then send this information to FileHippo.com to see if there are any newer releases. These are then neatly displayed in your browser for you to download.

But it gets better...
The client is FREE, just over 100kb to download and only takes seconds to run! In fact on our test machines the process is complete in under 2 seconds!

What are the requirements?
The Update Checker works on any Windows PC running Vista, XP, 2003, 2000, ME or 98.
It requires that the Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 is installed, which you may download directly from here, or the installer will prompt and download it automatically.

Changes
Version 1.030
Compatibility fixes and better proxy support.
Version 1.029
Minor bug fixes and Google Chrome support.
Version 1.028
Fixes for non-English systems and permissions changes.
Version 1.025
Various bug fixes and performance improvements. Plus new internal scanning features.
Version 1.023
Fixed bugs in ignore list and improved speed. Plus many internal improvements.
Version 1.022
Adds better Internet connection support, advanced options and bug fixes.
Version 1.021
Adds system tray icon checking in the background. (Simply run the new installer or use the "/background" command-line parameter.)
Additionally you can now ignore updates and programs that you don't want to be informed about!

Privacy Policy
The Update Checker will not send any personal information back to FileHippo.com. The only information collected is a list of programs and their versions, along with the operating system details to help with processing. Additionally none of this is linked to your IP address and the logs are deleted after processing.

Windows XP SP3

I have finally gotten around to installing Windows XP SP3. I just installed it on my Acer TravelMate 4220 laptop. It installed without any hitches, and the system seems to be running fine. I imagine this will be the last service pack for XP, support for which will end in 2014. While I expect XP to last just fine until then, the real trick will most likely be keeping the hardware going that long!

I have not heard of any problems installing XP SP3 since its early days when there was a problem on HP PCs that had AMD microprocessors. If I had one of those machines now, I'd check the HP web site to make sure there are no remaining issues before I installed SP3.

I still see no reason for installing Internet Explorer 7 or subsequent releases. I am happy with Mozilla's Firefox for now.

HOSTS File - Post # 5

Register for HOSTS File Update Notices

The author of the HOSTS file you just installed maintains the file and updates it with current information. I get every new updated HOSTS file and install it immediately. The reason is simple: to protect my system against the latest threats, and I know of no better tool than this one.

When updates are made available you will get an e-mail informing you of the latest. The e-mail will contain a link to download the latest guess what?, hosts.zip file!

To register to get the update e-mails, simply send an e-mail to:

winhelp2002 at comcast.net (you should use the @ sign with no spaces)

In the subject field simply put mailing list and click on Send.

That is it. You are now protected by the latest HOSTS file and will be notified when the next update is released.

Please write me with any questions you may have at pcdoc at brpcdoc.com

HOSTS File - Post # 4

There are a couple of more steps to go. In this post we will do only one of them to keep things simple. When you read post # 1 and read the web site linked to, you saw the section about disabling DNS Services. Here is how to do that in XP:

1) Click on START, then RUN, then key in services.msc and click on OK.

2) In the Services window that comes up as a result of 1 above, scroll down until you see  DNS Client. Highlight it by clicking on it just once.

3) Now right click on it and select Properties. In the resulting window, change the Startup Type to DISABLED.

4) Click on APPLY and then OK.

5) Restart your system.

HOSTS File - Post # 3

If you have already followed steps 1 and 2 below, than you now have an icon on your desktop that looks something like this:

 

Next I want you to right click on that icon on your desktop and select "Open With". Then select "Compressed (zipped) Folders". You will then see a window appear that looks like this:

Okay, getting close! What you are looking at is the contents of the zipped (or compressed) folder. The files within it, all 5, are also zipped (compressed). Here is what I want you to do. Click on two of these files, one at a time, and drag them to your desktop. The two files are HOSTS and mvps.bat.

The dragging process will take longer than you'd think because the files will be unzipped in the process. Be patient. Once you click and drag the HOSTS file to your desktop it might take a minute before the HOSTS file, uncompressed (unzipped) will appear on your desktop.

Now you have these 2 files, HOSTS and mvps.bat unzipped and sitting on your desktop. You can close the hosts.zip folder window now.

Double-click on the mvps.bat icon on your desktop. In just a second you will see a window looking like this:

Simply hit your Enter key and the window will close. You now have a new HOSTS file and you are protected.

Stay tuned for the next, and last post in this process.

There are a couple of other things to do before you are finished, but do breathe a sigh of relief because you have the HOSTS file in place and it is working for you right now!

While waiting for the next post do a little cleanup. Delete the 3 icons on your desktop: hosts.zip, HOSTS, and mvps.bat. You no longer need them.

FileHippo.com Update Checker

I frequently use FileHippo.com as a download site, especially when I want an older version of a program, and not the most current one. Yesterday I was on their site and noticed that they have a FREE utility program called FileHippo.com Update Checker. I read a little about it and decided to try it. Once downloaded you can run it at will and it will scan your system and let you know of any programs you have installed that may be out of date. I ran the program and learned that my versions of CCleaner, SuperAntispyware, Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware, and Spybot were all out of date, i.e., there was a newer version available. The program will let you downoad the latest version, and for these 4 that is just what I did.

I had others that were out of date, bue elected not to upgrade them for various reasons. Those of you who follow this blog know very well why I updated the 4 programs mentioned above.

As always, when downloading and installing programs, PLEASE read each page before clicking on Next. Be sure you aren't also downloading a Yahoo Toolbar or other such worthless programs. These companies have deals whereby one will support, and try to get installed ($$), useless add-ons from the other company.

 FileHippo.com Update Checker

HOSTS File - Post # 2

Okay, by now if you are interested in following along, you have read the "assignment" in Post # 1.

About a third of the way down that page you should see the following:

To view the HOSTS file in plain text form. (610 kb) (opens in IE)
Note: The text version also makes a terrific reference for determining possible unwanted sites
Download: hosts.zip [right-click - Select: Save Target As] [Updated January-08-2009]

You are now ready to move forward. I want you to download the hosts.zip file. Download it to your desktop or at least know where it is going when you download it.  All you have to do is click on the blue hosts.zip which is just to the right of the word Download. Remember for now all I want you to do is SAVE it on your desktop (or elsewhere). Do not attempt to open it. Once you download it successfully, keep it there and look for post # 3.

HOSTS File - Post # 1

I have blogged a lot about the need for using a HOSTS file as an integral and important part of your security package protecting you from the bad guys out there. Until now I have not posted any blog entries explaining what a HOSTS file does, how to get one, and how to maintain it so that you get protection that is up-to-date.

The reason for this is that this is a pretty technical topic, and normally I just get to install a HOSTS file on your computers when you are a customer and I have access to your machine. It's probably best that you have a pro install and explain this to you and also to perform a couple of related steps.

However, for those of you out there who are technically competent and who would like to try to install your own HOSTS file, I will post a series of posts on the subject, and hence the title of this post as being # 1.

This is one thing that a HOSTS file can do for you: prevent web sites that are named in the HOSTS file from being accessed.  This is BIG, because many of the viruses and rogue programs out there are downloaded by you through your web browser. So, if there were a central clearing house for identifying those bad sites and if it would also include all of them in a HOSTS file, wouldn't that be great? Well, it turns out there is, and this is really good news for us all! Another piece of good news: it's free!

I will do two things: First, I will make a special offering to my customers to install a HOSTS file for you over a remote connection, meaning I will take control of your PC while you watch and listen (over a phone), and I will install and explain the HOSTS file to you. I will charge a flat fee of $75 for this service.

Second, for those of you who feel pretty good about your level of competency in the technical aspects of Windows XP (yes, it works in Vista too, but I plan to start with XP users), I will post this series of items explaining how to DIY.

If you wish to proceed on a DIY basis, or if you'd just like to follow along, here is your first assignment:

Read everything on this page, http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm,  and read it again!

After reading, take a look at the current HOSTS file provided on this page by displaying it in your browser. You can do this by clicking here: http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.txt

This might be an overstatement, I am just not sure, but I have come to believe that the use of this HOSTS file is the most important factor in preventing my systems from becoming infected with any of the rogue programs currently wreaking havoc on many of your systems.

Don’t Pay for It!

Alomst all of the software I recommend is free. Don't pay for it! I realize that many companies offer a "Professional" version of the recommended software, but you don't need it. Just get the FREE version, and make sure that what you are downloading either has the word FREE in the title or otherwise specifies that it is free.

If you have any questions about this, please write.

PLEASE!

Even in Test Form, Windows 7 Leaves Vista in the Dust

To me the real good news in this article is that those of us who have managed to avoid going to Vista will be able to bypass it completely. The most interesting comment to me in this Walter Mossberg article is this: "In many respects, Windows 7 isn’t a radical shift from Vista, but is more of an attempt to fix Vista’s main flaws." I guess we can't expect more than that from Microsoft, which is not known for moving fast!

Even in Test Form, Windows 7 Leaves Vista in the Dust