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Sporadic News

24th January 2012

• Happy New Year to all! It has kicked off with a bang - it seems everyone's resolution was to sort out their home computing issues.
• iertutil.dll - A few of my clients have been caught out by an unusual problem arising from last week's Microsoft Updates. It seems that Microsoft upgraded Internet Explorer 8 from recommended update to important update. XP users who have Microsoft Updates set to automatic but hadn't yet installed internet Explorer 8 turned off their PCs last week with the familiar "Install updates and shut down" and woke up the next morning with their PC booting to a desktop with no icons or taskbar and an error message saying "explorer.exe unable to locate component, iertutil.dll not found" or words to that effect. I can only guess that the installer has removed that file and then shut down the computer without replacing it. All it takes is to copy that file from the Dllcache folder back to the correct place and when the PC is restarted, IE8 finishes installing and everything is back to normal. I wonder how many people worldwide were affected?

23rd December 2011

• Just quickly before Home Computer Care goes on holidays (back on 3rd Jan) - I've just had a new lot of people contact me having received calls from call centres saying they are from Microsoft support or from a company saying that the PC is infected and who then try to gain remote control of the PC. I repeat - DON'T FALL FOR IT!!! Microsoft will definitely never ever call you and anyone who does call is a scammer. Just hang up. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

16th December 2011

• I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very happy Christmas and New Year. Hopefully there will be more time next year for less sporadic news updates.

7th October 2011

• Ok, perhaps I was a little hasty with my last post - after a month's rest it seems that the malware writers have lucked onto another vehicle for their fleecing of us poor innocents. I have had three PCs come in with fake antiviruses or similar this week. So, be wary of pop ups which appear to be windows warnings or antivirus warnings - even warnings about corrupt hard drives. If something unusual pops up, don't interact with it - not even to close the window with the red x. Save any work you were in the middle of by clicking the appropriate link on the task bar and then restart the PC. Feel free to email me via the link to the left if you need to ask any questions.
• The buzz for Windows 8 is increasing with developers having access to the new Microsoft operating system for testing purposes. It is reportedly more for touch-screen type hardware (ie tablets like the iPad) but time will tell. I'd be surprised if it didn't have some fundamental change for us traditional keyboard and mouse users as well.

13th September 2011

• Everyone can rest easy for the moment because the Russian government has shut down the credit card provider which was allowing the writers of the fake antivirus programs so prevalent a couple of months ago (see below) to collect their ill-gotten gains. The effects were felt in the computer repair community worldwide. Don't let down your guard though, make sure you have an antivirus installed and fully up to date - open it to see what it looks like so if they start again you'll know what's real and what's fake.

13th July 2011

• After the apparently very successful launch of Windows 7 in October 2009, there are rumors that it's successor - called for now Windows 8 could be out as early as April 2012. It looks like it has been designed with tablet PCs in mind because the default desktop is a tile interface (like the iPad's icon interface). There is a picture below. You'll also be able to use a more traditional desktop. There was a microsoft sneak peak video released here.

• Other interesting news you may have heard is that Google has released a competitor for facebook called Google plus which has among it's features the ability to separate your "friends" into groups very easily and then only post to specific (or all if you like) groups called 'circles'. Good for when you have both work contacts and close family and friends who may not need to see the same posts from you. Membership is being phased in - have a look here.

18th April 2011

• I downloaded and installed Internet Explorer 9 recently and I must say it is excellent. The speed is as fast as Chrome, it is a lot sleeker in its appearance than IE8 and has an easier and more useful interface. It is availabel for Vista and Windows 7 and I heartily recomment it!
• 2 warnings about security threats and scams: There are still call centres calling people saying they are from Microsoft and requesting access to your PC. It is a scam! Hang up! Microsoft will never call you. The other threat is the fake antivirus scam. When you are browsing the internet you get a box pop up saying your have many threats and to click here or OK to remove them. Do not interact with the popup, unplug the internet and restart the PC. The pop up box is designed to look a lot like the legitimate windows security centre. Get used to what your antivirus program looks like (colour of window, title at top of window etc) and only respond to your program.

3rd March 2011

• The big news this week is that Windows 7 Service Pack 1 is being offered as a windows update. A service pack is a big package of windows updates which usually addresses a lot of niggling problems users have encountered with their operating system. In this case, and it is because of the quality of the first release version, the service pack is a bit of a yawn - no big changes. It is still worth installing though, it doesn't take long and not many people worldwide have experienced any trouble.
• While we are on the supject of updates, I still am getting calls from people being hit by the fake antiviruses which have proliferated in the last few months. Make sure you always accept any windows updates, adobe flash and reader updates, java updates and if your browser (Firefox, Chrome, Safari etc) prompts you to install the latest version, do so at your earliest convenience. To have an up to date antivirus program installed goes without saying.
• In the very near future, Internet Explorer 9 will be released and apparently it is an improvement and brings it up to speed with the other 2 main browsers. It remains to be seen.

17th January 2011

• After about a year of succesful operation, Microsoft Security Essentials is being upgraded to version 2 which is even better. It is considered by some to be the best free antivirus around at the moment. One reason is that it integrates so well with Windows operating systems and so uses less resources than even the leanest non-Microsoft Antivirus. If you have version 1 already installed then version 2 will be offered as a Windows Update. It is a very simple process which uninstalls the old and installs the new. If you want to replace your existing Antivirus you need to completely uninstall it first then download MSE from the link on the left of this page.

6th December 2010

• Our PCs can sometimes be temporarily affected by programs which under normal circumstances are there to protect us. In the last week or so I've had a case where CA antivirus suddenly caused Outlook to stop closing properly; Norton 360 caused Internet Explorer 8 to stop closing properly; and AVG antivirus has been reported to have caused a STOP error (blue screen of death) in 64-bit Windows 7. These sort of problems are caused by these companies releasing an update which has these unfortunate results. They are usually fixed with the next update but it is hard for us PC users to know this and wait for the fix. Sometimes Googling the problem will provide information but feel free to email me for any of your computer questions.
• We wish everyone a happy and safe festive season.

4th September 2010

• A number of my clients have been hit with a fake antivirus virus lately, mainly from innocent web surfing from restaurants to family tree searches. If you have a link scanner with your antivirus it should pick up dodgy sites and warn you but if you happen upon one a popup which looks like a real antivirus warning will start 'scanning' your system and 'find' a list of trojans and worms and invite you to "click here" to remove them. Doing that will download the virus. A couple of people report not even getting as far as clicking before the virus downloads. My advice is to familiarise yourself with how your real antivirus looks (Colour of the window, wording etc) and if anything else shows up, terminate your browsing session immediately.

16th July 2010

• Microsoft ceased support for Windows XP Service Pack 2 yesterday so if you haven't updated to Service Pack 3, now is the time to do it. To find out whether you have click Start -> Control Panel -> System. To upgrade, go to Windows Update via Start -> All Programs and keep accepting the critical and important updates until you are offered Windows XP Service Pack 3. Make sure to do a full scan with your antivirus first. It takes about 40 minutes, close all other programs. Email me from the link on the left if you need help.

3rd July 2010

• Well the new financial year is upon us and so is a new round of scams. Beware of fake emails which look like they are from the ATO and ask you to update your banking details etc. They even have links to real ATO pages but don't trust them. If in doubt, contact the ATO using normal means (not via the email) and check your details there.
• Microsoft Office 2010 has been released and includes access to web storage and applications and has some features from Office 2003 returned which were missing from Office 2007. The most obvious one is that the File Edit View etc toolbar is back in full view up the top of the window where it belongs.
• Support for Windows XP Service Pack 2 ends this month so I recommend going to Windows update and downloading and installing Service Pack 3. Drop me a line if you need help.

27th April 2010

• If you have a windows XP machine with McAfee antivirus installed which has mysteriously stopped working it is because of a faulty update from McAfee. They have announced they will pay the cost of any reasonable repairs to get the system back up. Contact me via the "send me an email" link if you think you are affected.
• If you still have Windows 2000 - from July onwards your operating system will no longer be supported by Microsoft. It is time to move onwards and upwards.
• It seems that just about everything you write on a social networking site is now visible to everyone you've ever contacted electronically so just be aware - microsoft messenger, hotmail, livemail, outlook, spaces etc. If you are interested in controlling your online privacy have a look at this: http://windowssecrets.com/2010/04/22/01-Hotmails-social-networking-busts-your-privacy/#story1

5th March 2010

• There are malicious sites at the moment which you might browse to accidentally or be directed to via HTML email or an email attachment where you are prompted to hit F1 for help. Don't do it - shut down internet explorer using ctrl alt delete buttons to get to task manager.

23rd February 2010

• I can't believe how fast the last two months have gone! I'll be christmas again before we know it.
• Big news this month is that anyone who has installed the Windows 7 Release Candidate will soon be annoyed into either buying the real version or going back to what they had before. From 1st March the operating system will shut down without notice every 2 hours. If you are going to buy the real version you will have to do a clean install - the upgrade path has been made very difficult.

21st December 2009

• I would like to firstly wish everyone a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year.
• Be careful of E-cards this season - if you recieve an email saying you've received a Hallmark E-card and to click on a link to see it, it looks like a hallmark domain but you get redirected. It will ask if you want to open christmas.exe. Don't!

30th November 2009

• Microsoft released the public beta of Office Home and Business last weekend. This gives you an opportunity to try Word, Outlook and Excel before they come out in the first half of next year. No prices have been set yet.
• Hackers are targeting iPhones now that they represent the largest and most high profile device on the market. There are 3 known worms doing the rounds at the moment, all of which have cures, so if your iPhone is exhibiting strange behaviour act sooner rather than later.
• Twilight fans beware: any website that offers to let you "Watch New Moon full movie" will ask you to download a viewer/streaming program - don't do it, it's malware.

15th October 2009

• When you are browsing, be careful of the sponsored links which appear when you use Google or Bing or any or the major search engines because it has been discovered that some have been purchased by criminals hoping to lure you into their malware-ridden websites. Make sure the URL in the link is actually from the company you are trying to find. They especially target computer security sites.
• The release of Microsoft's FREE AntiVirus software Security Essentials has generated a lot of interest this week. For those of you using other free AVs it might be worth a try. Pros: its free, it is the full program - there is not a better version you have to pay for, you can use it on any number of home machines and home office machines. Cons: it automatically sends information about your computer to Microsoft, you need to install Windows Genuine Advantage for it to run.

25th September 2009

• At the risk of sounding like an ad for Intel, there are two exciting developments in the world of PCs: They released on Wednesday their fastest laptop processor to date - the new Core i7 processors are Intel's first laptop chips based on the Nehalem microarchitecture, and include many enhancements that allow the processors to outperform existing Core 2 laptop processors. The Nehalem architecture cuts bottlenecks to improve overall system speed and performance.
• Also on Wednesday Intel announced they were working on a new optical connection that could possibly link mobile devices to displays and storage up to 100 metres away, called Light Peak. Light is faster than electricity so data transfer speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second are possible. This technology could be here as soon as next year.
• If you have QuickTime on your PC you need to upgrade it to version 7.6.4, which fixes problems that can occur when you view infected movies and MPEG4 content on Web sites.

8th September 2009

• On 1st Sept Microsoft announced it was expanding an anti-piracy program for Office that will identify pirated copies and nag users with on-screen messages into the US, UK and 11 other countries. It will show up as a Windows update but you'll be asked to agree to a EULA before it will install. Once it is installed it cannot be uninstalled.
• Mozilla Firefox users will soon be warned about out of date plugins which they may be running. Plugins such as Adobe Flash, QuickTime, Reader, Silverlight and Java are updated regularly to counteract hackers who work out ways to penetrate systems using weaknesses in these plugins so it is important to keep them up to date. You can check your whole system for vulnerablilites by using this site here.
• Today is patch Tuesday (when Microsoft releases its latest lot of updates - every second Tuesday of the month) and five security updates, considered to be critical will be released. They patch remote code execution vulnerabilities. There will also be an updated version of the Microsoft Windows Malicious software Removal Tool.

13th August 2009

• Recently there have been more reports of fake antivirus programs which try to entice you to spend money on buying them. The perpetrators hijack a legitimate website's URL and redirect you to a page that has popups saying your PC has all sorts of trojans and other malware and a window opens, looking like an antivirus program is scanning your system. It will come up with a number of threats and say the only way to get rid of them is to download their "antivirus" program. What it does when it gets in is too scary to think about. Be aware of what antivirus is on your system and only believe alerts from it.
• If you're still using Outlook Express or Windows Mail (vista) it might be time to start looking into alternatives. Microsoft has stopped supporting them and I recently had a client who was using Windows Mail and found that Internet Explorer 8 caused problems with opening attachments which Microsoft doesn't plan to fix. It may be only a matter of time before some conflict affects your version. If you already have Microsoft office Outlook on your system it is quite simple to switch over and keep all your emails and contacts. If you switch to a web-based email program such as yahoo or gmail it is a bit trickier. Email me from the link on the left if you need more info.
• As always, when you're downloading or installing software or updates, even from trusted sites, make sure you read what you're saying OK to. The latest Java update has a box already ticked to install a trial version of some 3rd party online backup program. Many of you will already have extra toolbars you don't know how you got I'm sure.

23rd July 2009

• Don't be in a hurry to install Firefox version 3.5 because it is reportedly a bit buggy and is vulnerable to zero-day exploits (zero-day means the hackers know about it before the vendor) unless you temporarily disable the javascript.options.jit.content setting in about.config.
• Microsoft has released a beta version of its new anti-malware program (to replace the failed Windows OneCare) Microsoft Security Essentials. It is a free, realtime anti-malware scanner. Be careful though because you have to have Windows Update set to automatic to receive the latest definitions (you can update manually) unlike most other AV products which do it automatically anyway, and when you install it you automatically start sending information about what's running on your system to Microsoft. Whether this changes with the release version remains to be seen.

15th July 2009

• Cloud computing is becoming ever more accessible and competitive, especially when Microsoft releases Office 2010, which can be installed on your PC as normal or as an online version which is supposedly going to be free - in direct competition with Google Docs.
• On the other hand, when the Google Chrome operating system is unleashed, it will clinch the new trend towards PCs just being a tool to get online with - for facebook and sharing photos and twitter etc. Unless you are a serious gamer or have specialist requirements and all you need to to is email and surf, a cheap netbook running Chrome (which is linux based) is all you'll need.
• Mozilla Firefox 3.5 was released on 30th June and it is a lot faster than Explorer 8. There will be a patch released in mid to late July to fix a couple of errors leading to crashes. It is a good idea to say yes to reporting crashes (in Windows too) because it helps these companies fix problems they wouldn't otherwise be aware of.

11th June 2009

• Microsoft announced last week that Windows 7 will be released to the public on 22nd October. There will be an upgrade program available for people who already own Vista so if you need to buy a new computer before EOFY don't worry - you'll be able to change straight to Windows 7 and see an instant performance boost. (Although Vista these days is pretty fast).
• There is a new infection spreading worldwide called Gumblar, JSRedir-R, Martuz and Beladin, which can be spread on seemingly legitimate websites. It is mainly Windows XP which is vulnerable. Apart from having a completely up to date anitvirus, the latest versions of Adobe reader, Acrobat and Flash you can use firefox or Google Chrome to avoid it. If you have to use Internet Explorer (or just want to use it) you must update it to IE7 or IE8. Having IE6 and XP combination is asking for trouble. You'll know you might be infected if you get taken to a site you didn't intend to go to.

1st June 2009

• Big news this week for Vista users - Service Pack 2 is now showing up in your windows updates and apart from generally addressing system performance issues and fixing nearly 700 bugs and security updates it also cleans up after itself and releases more Hard Drive space.
• Most computers these days have a few USB ports and most will be USB 2.0 which was introduced in 2001 and has a top speed of 480Mbps. NEC has just unveiled the world's first USB 3.0 host controller, supporting speeds of up to 5Gbps. This will enable home multimedia to be much more immediate with movement of video files lightning fast.
• Microsoft has been working on a search engine to rival Google and it will be called Kumo. It is being shown for the first time tomorrow at the D: All Things Digital technology conference.

21st May 2009

• My apologies for the huge gap since the last "weekly" news update but I got married and went on a honeymoon. Back to reality now...
• There have been a number of viruses lately which have used social networks to propogate. One bit of advice to come from this experience is that if ANY website you don't absolutely trust advises that you need a new version of something (for example Adobe Flash Player) then go to the website of the actual company (in this example Adobe) to get it instead of clicking the download button on the questionable website.
• The Windows 7 Release Candidate is now available. If you already have Vista installed then all you need to do if you want to try it is create a new partition of about 20GB (it needs to be at least 16GB), download the installation disk and burn it to a DVD, then install it. From then on you will have 2 choices when you boot up: Windows 7 (default) or Vista. There is quite a good tutorial here.

22nd February 2009

• Another hole was patched last week in Internet Explorer 7. This time the attackers use a file hidden in a Word document to run an Active X which accesses a website which then opens a back door in the PC to install a .dll file which then steals information. Again, if you have Windows update on you will have received the patch.
• Warning - do not go anywhere near a supposed antivirus program called Anti-virus-1. It is itself malware and will drive you nuts with pop-ups etc. It also goes under the name Antivirus2010.
• I have a couple of clients who are on the road a lot and want the convenience of having all their data in a secure location, with the ability to access their programs such as excel templates which perform specific tasks like organising quotes and demonstrations etc whilst carrying minimal equipment. The answer is just around the corner and quite a few companies are developing software and facilities to enable what is called Cloud Computing. It is where you have a minimal piece of hardware like one of those new Netbooks that are 1/4 the size of a normal laptop and cost $500 (they're in between a laptop and a Blackberry). Their job is to access the internet where all the real action takes place. You would have a secure account where you access whatever program you need on their server and operate it from your computer (like an online email service such as gmail, hotmail, yahoomail etc except it is some other program like word processing or spreadsheet or book keeping or an invoicing program etc) and store the files online on the same site. You can access it from anywhere that has an internet connection with any computer. It is all very cutting edge. I am researching this for these clients but if you would like to know more about this as information comes to hand, email me using the link on this page (just up there on the left) and I'll keep you informed.

5th February 2009

• Microsoft has announced a new website which gives you quick fixes for a lot of common windows problems. Most are in two levels - one you can download a packaged registry fix for your particular problem, and the other gives you detailed instructions to do it yourself. Have a look at the site here. It is for people who don't mind fiddling around with their system to fix things themselves.
• Still the good feedback rolls in for the new Windows 7 operating system which is in beta testing across the globe. There seems to be a huge interest in this successor to Vista. Most reports are positive. There are worries that by trying to make it less intrusive Microsoft has sacrificed a level of security (this is to do with UAC which in the beta version of Windows 7 can be adjusted to various degrees which render it useless in some reviewers opinions). All of the other aspects have garnered praise as far as I can tell. If anything it seems Vista has been one long experiment - I must say I'm rather fond of it regardless of the bad press - and Windows 7 will come through and take all the glory.
• Mozilla has just released an update for Firefox (3.0.6) so update it as soon as you can.
• And if quadcore is not enough (does anyone have it that you know?) Intel has just announced it is unveiling an 8 core processor - for servers at this stage.

 

21st January 2009

• In international computer news there is a big worm (a type of virus) infestation infecting (according to Panda, an internet security firm) 1 in 16 computers worldwide. It is called the Downadup or Conficker worm. It exploits a fault in Windows 2000, XP and Server 2003 which Microsoft patched last October so if you have Windows update regularly you should have the patch already. You can verify that the patch has been installed by bringing up Windows Update, then clicking Review your update history and looking for a security update labeled as KB958644.
• Microsoft has released a Beta version of software that will allow Vista (and presumably Windows 7) run older software that was, up until now, incompatible. This fixes one of the main complaints about Vista. The other is that it uses too many system resources but apparently Windows 7 fixes that problem.

14th January 2009

• The big news in the world of Microsoft Windows is the Beta release of Windows 7 - the successor to the much complained about Vista. The reviews have been mixed - it is similar to Vista but supposedly more streamlined (doesn't use as much of the system's resources). The screen shots I've seen indicate it is not much different to look at. It is early days yet so stay tuned for more updates on this topic. You can try it yourself if your system is up to it. That's what beta testing is all about.
• The vast majority of my clients use Windows XP and there is no reason to change to Vista now that Windows 7 is just around the corner (the official release has been brought forward from its projected 2010 arrival). If you need to upgrade to a new computer now, however, there is certainly no harm in purchasing one with Vista installed because the upgrade to Windows 7 will be fairly painless since they share the same basic architecture. I've been using Vista for about a year and now that alot of the bugs have been ironed out (with service pack 1 etc) and the hardware manufacturers have updated drivers and patched conflicts. I have grown to really like it - there are many in-built features I now take for granted but need to be added on to XP via 3rd party software. And the look is a lot more grown up.
• There have also been a couple of scares in the mainstream news with various reports of people's systems being hacked into and their personal information and finances being compromised. Microsoft has on two occasions in the last two months released a security update outside its regular updates (every 2nd Tuesday of the month). As long as you make sure you do Windows update regularly and have an up to date antivirus program you should be safe. Go to start - programs - windows update to make sure your computer is up to date.

 

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