I'm afraid a bad week just got worse. The hard drive on my computers finally quit on me. I am current at the library for 30 minutes. My only other access is at work, where I did not go today. Plus, I can now only go in during lunch and after hours. I will try to keep current on my editing, but I will be limited to nighttime  computer activity for the boards. I apologize to everyone, and will try to get a new computer or have the old one fixed soon. 

Here you go.... just for you....  ;D

http://rob.com/ann/garfield_computer.jpg

Indy Gent, I just had the same thing happen to my laptop two days ago, Dell is sending me a replacement hard drive but all my old files are gone. Fortunately I will be using my brother's imac until it gets replaced.

Sorry to hear that, Indy. Hope you have yours fixed soon! ;)

We should probably have our puter at home upgraded; it seems kinda slow lately.

That's rough. I thought I lost my computer a few weeks ago but it actually just needed to be reset from the outside.  And my laptop was actually ruined a few months ago.

OMG Indy....I hope you can either get it fixed or get a newer one....

This is an email I just recieved today. I've been hearing the words "computer crash" A LOT in the last few days.

Here it is:

This is REAL! This has been confirmed by www.snopes.com

PLEASE take this warning seriously!!!!                     
                                                                         
                                                                         
Emails with pictures of Osama Bin-Laden hanged are being sent and the moment that you open these emails your computer will crash and you will not be able to fix it!!! This e-mail is being distributed through countries around the globe, but mainly in the US and Israel.                                             
                                                                         
Don't be inconsiderate; send this warning to whomever you know.         
                                                                         
Confirmed at: http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/osama.asp             
                                                                         
Origins: There are few headlines that would grab the attention of more   
computer users around the world than "Osama bin Laden Captured," and     
that's exactly what whoever created this lure was counting on to snare   
unsuspecting victims who use Microsoft platforms. "Osama bin Laden Captured" isn't a virus in itself; it's the text of a message that includes a link to a file called EXPLOIT.EXE. When a message recipient clicks on this link to view what he thinks are pictures of Osama bin Laden's capture, he can end up downloading an executable Trojan
known as Backdoor-AZU, BKDR_LARSLP.A, Download.Trojan,TrojanProxy.Win32.Small.b,or Win32.Slarp.  Clicking the embedded link in the "Osama bin Laden Captured" message auto-executes a file called "EXPLOIT.EXE," which exploits a known security hole to download the Trojan. According to McAfee Security:                                     
The Trojan opens a random port on the victim's machine. It sends the Port information to a webpage at IP address 66.139.77.145. The Trojan listens on the open port for instructions and redirects traffic to other IP addresses. Spammers and hackers can take advantage of compromised systems by using the infected computer as a middleman, allowing them to pass information through it and remain anonymous. Microsoft has made available updates that close the hole exploited by this Trojan     

This is an email I just recieved today. I've been hearing the words "computer crash" A LOT in the last few days.

Here it is:

This is REAL! This has been confirmed by www.snopes.com

PLEASE take this warning seriously!!!!                     
                                                                           
                                                                           
Emails with pictures of Osama Bin-Laden hanged are being sent and the moment that you open these emails your computer will crash and you will not be able to fix it!!! This e-mail is being distributed through countries around the globe, but mainly in the US and Israel.                                             
                                                                           
Don't be inconsiderate; send this warning to whomever you know.           
                                                                           
Confirmed at: http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/osama.asp             
                                                                           
Origins: There are few headlines that would grab the attention of more   
computer users around the world than "Osama bin Laden Captured," and     
that's exactly what whoever created this lure was counting on to snare   
unsuspecting victims who use Microsoft platforms. "Osama bin Laden Captured" isn't a virus in itself; it's the text of a message that includes a link to a file called EXPLOIT.EXE. When a message recipient clicks on this link to view what he thinks are pictures of Osama bin Laden's capture, he can end up downloading an executable Trojan
known as Backdoor-AZU, BKDR_LARSLP.A, Download.Trojan,TrojanProxy.Win32.Small.b,or Win32.Slarp.  Clicking the embedded link in the "Osama bin Laden Captured" message auto-executes a file called "EXPLOIT.EXE," which exploits a known security hole to download the Trojan. According to McAfee Security:                                     
The Trojan opens a random port on the victim's machine. It sends the Port information to a webpage at IP address 66.139.77.145. The Trojan listens on the open port for instructions and redirects traffic to other IP addresses. Spammers and hackers can take advantage of compromised systems by using the infected computer as a middleman, allowing them to pass information through it and remain anonymous. Microsoft has made available updates that close the hole exploited by this Trojan     


Thanks for the heads up! It's appricated....  :) :)

Im sorry to hear that Jonathon!
Is it just that you need to repartition the hard drive and re-load your OS?
Or is it just an older model that was about to kick the bucket anyway?

I hope it all works out soon and I will look for you late nights!
I'm sending some good Karma your way as well! ;) ;D

That sucks, Indy.  I hope you get back up and running soon.

This is REAL! This has been confirmed by www.snopes.com

PLEASE take this warning seriously!!!!                     
                                                                         
                                                                         
Emails with pictures of Osama Bin-Laden hanged are being sent and the moment that you open these emails your computer will crash and you will not be able to fix it!!! This e-mail is being distributed through countries around the globe, but mainly in the US and Israel.

  This is the perfect reason why you should never open any e-mails with attachments, especially if you don't recognize the sender. Many e-mail providers will automatically scan for viruses, but they can't be expected to keep up with all the new bad stuff. If in doubt, delete.

  There are also too many good, free virus scan tools, spam blockers, and spyware killers to not have one. AVG, Ad-Aware, Spyware Blaster, SpyBot search & destroy to name a few.

  IndyGent: If the HDD is under 3-5 years old it should still be under warranty. Even if the HDD failed, a reputable computer shop may be able to recover the data and install it on a new drive. I don't know what you wee using as a HDD, but a decent Western Digital 40GB will run about $40.00. Hope you can salvage the old machine. I still have operating machines from the mid 1980's. I guess they just don't build'em like they used too.

Ever since my last Windows update, my computer has been screwed up.  I contacted Microsoft and they were absolutely NO help ::)
My father has never updated his and it's still going strong. Yes, Microsoft customer service is JUST above AOL :P

  IndyGent: If the HDD is under 3-5 years old it should still be under warranty. Even if the HDD failed, a reputable computer shop may be able to recover the data and install it on a new drive. I don't know what you wee using as a HDD, but a decent Western Digital 40GB will run about $40.00. Hope you can salvage the old machine. I still have operating machines from the mid 1980's. I guess they just don't build'em like they used too.


Well, most hard drives have a lifespan of roughly 3-5 years.  And there is no reason to get a 40 gig, when it has a warranty that starts from when it was made, not sold.  Most 40 gig drives (even new) are already 1+ years old.  Right now, we sell brand new 80 gig drives for $68.  Plus if he bought his machine from a major brand (Dell, HP, Compaq, etc), then it came with an OEM hard drive.  That means no warranty from the drive manufacturer, only from the computer vendor.

And yes, they do not build them like they used to.  Technology changes much to fast now.  I was selling computers brand new in 1992 with an Intel 8088 CPU.  That is the same processor as the original IBM PC.  It was not until Windows became common that most people ever needed to upgrade to the 80386.  And even if you had a 386, there was no real reason to upgrade until Windows 95 came out.

Now, major changes in both hardware and Operating Systems come every year.  In 1992, I was able to sell a 12 year old design as new, and it would run 85% of the programs out there at the time.  I sold 20 MB hard drives from 1986 until 1993.  Until WIndows 3.1 came along, hardly anybody needed more then that.

Now, things change before they are even a year old.  The major sellers (Compaq, Dell, etc) realized that it was not cost effective to build a computer that lasted for 5-10 years, if it was functionally obsolete in less then 5 years.  I basically rebuild my computer every year (if not sooner) to keep on the forward edge of technology.  But I also do things (sound & video editing) that use a lot more power then 98% of people out there.

And are you ready for this?  It is going to get worse, not better.  In the last 5-10 years, games have been pushing the technology.  In 1998, my computer had 64 MB RAM and an 8 meg video card.  My new computer has 1,024 MB of RAM and a 256 MB video card.  And there are already 512 MB video cards out there!  In 1980, the original IBM ran at 5 MHz (4.77 to be precise).  In 1992, the fastest chip was the 80486, and it ran at 33 MHz.  That is an increase of 28 MHz in 12 years.  In the next 12 years, we jumped from 33 MHz to 3,000 MHz.

And dual CPU technology is out, being replaced by Dual-core CPU  technology.  And guess what?  In 2-4 years, we will have Quad-CPU chips out there (basically 4 CPUs on one chip).  AMD is already working on that.  So things are only gonna get worse.

This is the perfect reason why you should never open any e-mails with attachments, especially if you don't recognize the sender. Many e-mail providers will automatically scan for viruses, but they can't be expected to keep up with all the new bad stuff. If in doubt, delete.

There are also too many good, free virus scan tools, spam blockers, and spyware killers to not have one. AVG, Ad-Aware, Spyware Blaster, SpyBot search & destroy to name a few.

IndyGent: If the HDD is under 3-5 years old it should still be under warranty. Even if the HDD failed, a reputable computer shop may be able to recover the data and install it on a new drive. I don't know what you wee using as a HDD, but a decent Western Digital 40GB will run about $40.00. Hope you can salvage the old machine. I still have operating machines from the mid 1980's. I guess they just don't build'em like they used too.
I have Ad-Aware SE,it's pretty darn good at getting rid of most unwanted stuff. I have McAfee VirusScan and the Windows XP Service Pack 2 firewall installed also. Better to be protected than get caught unprotected. I learned that the hard way with my second hand Packard Bell..you could say it was training for getting my current computer setup!

I have Ad-Aware SE,it's pretty darn good at getting rid of most unwanted stuff. I have McAfee VirusScan and the Windows XP Service Pack 2 firewall installed also. Better to be protected than get caught unprotected. I learned that the hard way with my second hand Packard Bell..you could say it was training for getting my current computer setup!


Well, Ad-Aware is pretty good.  When we work on any XP system, we install Ad-Aware, SpyBot, and the Microsoft Anti-Spyware.  Between the 3 of them, they keep most of the spyware under control.

We use either Norton, or AVG for anti-virus.  Far to many times I have scanned systems with McAfee current and runny, and still pulled off virus (record so far is 21).

Also make sure that you run the Windows Update at least weekly, and more often if you hear of new flaws in the system.  Microsoft is pretty good with releasing updates when they are needed.

How is the AVG free software? 

  It seems to be comparable with Noton/Symantec. The free version updates/scans daily, which may be annoying. You must be online for it to update with the free version. You can also update manually if you miss a session.
  The pay version(I think it's around $35 a year) gives more options with setup & run times. The people at Grisoft, the makers of AVG, seem to keep up on viruses pretty well.
  I remember way back that when you bought Norton Anti-Virus the subscription was a one time fee and good for life. I still have it running on an old computer, just have to click renew once a year, but it's free.

    They're all Greedy little Wankers now  :P

    They're all Greedy little Wankers now  :P


You have to be fair also.  Things have changed a lot on the last 15 years.

15 years ago, McAfee was a free download to anybody who wanted it.  But that was pre-internet, when it was almost impossible to get a virus unless you traded disks with people.

Now battling a computer virus is like fighting a war, in some cases literally.  I remember when there might be 10 new virus a month, most of them just minor changes on an older one.  Now there are somewhere around 200 new ones a month.  And instead of being simply annoying, they are actually taking over people's computers in order to either make money, or attack other computers.

If you want a free program, AVG is pretty darned good.  In fact, I place it right behind Norton for ability to detect and stop infections.  And a new update just came out today.  We include it on all computers we sell for free, and offer it to people who do not want to pay for Norton.

And just because your old version of Norton still updates, that does not mean it is protecting you.  If the "engine" is over 2 years old, it is already compromised.  There are virus out there that will infect the Norton, where it shows it is working fine even while it is infected.  As a rule of thumb, I tell people to never let the main antivirus program get over 2 years old.  Just updating the virus definitions is not enough anymore.

I couldn't agree more.  If the program is more than 2-3 yrs old can it and get somethin new.  ANother good free one is Avast, we use it where I work, our "standard 3" are Avast a/v, adaware and spybot.  THose pretty much seem to keep the customers happy, and even remove instances of spyware once it already has gotten in, if for example a new customer brings us a system to repair that did not have any protection on it.

Norton is what I personally use, and some ppl at work too, but if your looking for free Avast is a good a/v too, no firewall though.  ZoneAlarm Pro is a good firewall to use as well.  Not sure offhand of any good free firewalls other than winxp's builit in, which isn't the best but certainly better than nothing.

Jeff

ANother good free one is Avast

  I had Avast and agree it is good. However I had some compatablity issues with it and some other software so I had to dump it. I must point out that I was running the free version. Perhaps the full version doesn't have these issues.

  There's also a free program called "Easy Cleaner". It cleans your internet cache, cookies, registry, searches for duplicate files, will add/remove software. It's really geared toward the experienced user.

  There is a program called "SpiderBite" that would clean dialers and other assorted bad things from the internet from your system, but I think it was for Windows98 and older.

  So, with McAfee, AVG, Spybot & Adaware, I should be okay?

  AVG is good. It updates itself when a newer version comes out. You can also go to their site and manually update/upgrade if the automatic update fails. It can continuously monitor your sytem, prevented infections in the first place. And it's FREE.

  Spybot and AdAware have to be manually updated and run(the free versions), but are still good tools. There is also SpyWareBlaster, an add-on for SpyBot that acts as a shield preventing SpyWare from getting to your system.

So, with McAfee, AVG, Spybot & Adaware, I should be okay?  I have to say that I DL'd the free version of AVG yesterday and even though it found no problems, my system is running better ???


Use either one anti-virus or the other, never use 2 anti-virus programs at the same time!

You will either get lockups, conflicts, and/or massive slowdowns.  And sometimes they interfere with each other, allowing virus to slip through.  I would recommend removing the McAfee and going with AVG if that was the choice.

Skippy, have you tried their newest version (Avast)?  I think its up to 4.6 now.  Yes you don't need 2 running at once, all you'll do us hog system resources and it'll just be innefficient.  I personally too would go with AVG as I have my pet peeves with MCafee and personally will never use them again.  Its either Norton or a free one for me.  Also AdAware does have an add in called "ad-watch" which can be d/l and added in to help prevent ads from coming in, but I've found it to be more of a pain cuz it also stops legit writes to the registry as well such as installing certain programs.  I've found its mesed them up and then they either don't work or corrpt the system and slow it down.

Jeff

Skippy, have you tried their newest version (Avast)?

  I don't remember the exact version Jeff, it was 4.someting. I tried it about 6 months ago. At first it was fine, then I started having programs locking up and eventually my desktop started locking up. I think the problems started after a certain part of it expired(I was using the free version). It was also a pain in the bootie to uninstall. I had to manually delete some elements and edit the registry to completely remove it. I'm running Windows 98se, maybe it runs better on XP or 2000?

  I don't use the Ad-Watch function in AdAware either. Is it even available in the free version? I do use SpyBot and SpyWareBlaster add-on.

  I would buy NAV if they provided updates for the life of the product, not just 1-1.5 years(they do for the corporate versions, btw). I also wonder if the machine I use has enough resources to even run the newer versions(PII 350MHz, 30gbHDD, 128mb ram). The machine I have NAV 5.0 on is only a PII 266 MHz, 6.3 gig HDD, 128mb ram, so upgrading would probably slow it to a crawl.

  I would buy NAV if they provided updates for the life of the product, not just 1-1.5 years(they do for the corporate versions, btw). I also wonder if the machine I use has enough resources to even run the newer versions(PII 350MHz, 30gbHDD, 128mb ram). The machine I have NAV 5.0 on is only a PII 266 MHz, 6.3 gig HDD, 128mb ram, so upgrading would probably slow it to a crawl.


Actually, they do not do that.  They only support the last 2-3 versions.

Just like the old home versions, you can still update the old corporate versions for free, because of the EULA at the time.  But those have been compromised by so many virus in the past several years, they are next to worthless.

Here are just a few vulnerabilities with NAV 5:

It is possible for those using version 5.x of Symantec's Norton AntiVirus software to be directed to hacker websites when attempting an update of virus definitions. Symantec rates this as a medium security risk and says that this vulnerability is not particularly specific to its products. Furthermore, the company maintains that there are few people using LiveUpdate 1.4 (specific to NAV 5.x) and that people using this version of LiveUpdate should consider upgrading to LiveUpdate 1.6 (contained in NAV 2000-2002). 

Description:
While having a virus scan of some specially crafted compressed files; NAV 5 triggers a DoS using 100% CPU for a very long time. Morover, NAV is unable to stop the scan in middle, even if the user wishes to manually stop the virus scan.  Then, in this situation the only alternate is to kill the process. 

There are a large number of JavaScript virus that target NAV versions 6 and older.  Since it is the anti-virus engine itself that is vulnerable, simply getting definitions from Norton will not protect you.

We just updated to the newest NAV Corporate at work this last month.  I think it was $795 for the server and 5 workstation licenses.  But trust me, it was well worth it.  We probably make close to $50k a year just cleaning virus from customer's systems.

With systems that old, I would remove Norton all together and go with AVG.  AVG is not as good as Norton, but it is certainly better then the antique version you are useing now.  And before you complain about the cost, think about how much money they spend on detection and prevention.  It is hardly a non-profit organization, and they have to pay the employees somehow.