Since we're getting down to the wire, I thought to add this little post about keeping your guard up. This holiday season, your joy in giving can turn into a disaster if you're not careful! TrendMicro has put together a slightly awkward, but still valuable reminder about how to beware and not fall prey to the Grinches and Blue Meanies who thrive off your naivete and desire to stretch your hard earned money. Please take a minute and check out the tips in this onli...
The Microsoft Fix It Center is a resource I knew nothing about until I started poking around with this new job of mine. This site automates repairs which many lay people are afraid to attempt and quite frankly, are ignorant of including advanced trouble shooting techniques and the Windows registry. The latter is a daunting prospect (remember to always make a backup, and change things one at a time). In later posts I'll deal with System Utility software. Now, at this MS site,...
Here's Part One if you didn't see it. Beth Jones is a senior threat researcher with Sophos. She stated to PCWorld (another of Doc's faves), "The two-week mark before Christmas is when things start to ramp up out of control. Spammers and malware authors focus on when the attention is going to be there. That's generally two weeks before a holiday." You don't need to be shopping online to get caught in one of their traps. Even checking out email or spending time on Facebook and Twit...
If you want really quick access to launch a frequently used application without putting extra icons on your desktop, you can add that application to the context menu for the desktop with a simple registry hack. Here’s how to do it for Windows 7. I don't have any other OS's to test this on. If you're afraid to edit your Windows Registry believe me, I understand. Just go to my response number 6 to get a nifty program to do this more easily. If you have problems, please pm...
Merry Christmas folks. Just a quickie present this morning to help process those holiday photos .... on Give Away of the Day. It runs on XP, Vista and Seven, however while 32 bit system support is certain, it is not clear 64 bit is. Features: ( LINK ) I haven't downloaded nor run this software, but I have reviewed the comments on Free Giveaway of the Day, and one that caught my eye was that to register, you have to fill out a...
At the request of a Community member (no, neither Jafo nor Zubaz), I'm doing a post about adding a spell checker to help while writing. Some but not all Windows apps have built-in spell checking of some sort. If you want to add spell checking to all of your apps (or a select group) let's look at tinySpell. Please note: There is a paid version of this software (tinySpell+) available as well for those who want extra functionality. The tinySpell I am posting about is the free version. T...
Apps for your W7 Phone Windows Phone 7 is the newest kid on the Smartphone block, but this kid comes highly recommended. WP7's got some great apps worth grabbing, even in its very young Market, and you can try them all free. These look to me to be solid picks. That's right—with the vast majority of apps in WP7's Market, you can click the "Try" button to give a limited version of any paid app a go before committing to a purchase. There are also apps that are straight-up free. It do...
Some Fireworks For Your Desktop From MS Happy New Year … a healthier, happier and more financially sound one for all! So, this is a shorty post…. designed to make it a prettier one for your computer. What happens today? "Fireworks", that’s what! So mosey on over to Microsoft and get the brand new Fireworks Theme! And pick up “Arctic” while you’re at it …. Both themes are loaded with absolutel...
So why is Doc telling us about a Trojan-Virus for a phone so few have? The reason is that Sydneysiders PM'd me with this story and by doing so in her usual, understated Ozzie way, dropped a bomb with a sputtering fuse right in my lap(top). The implications are quite unpleasant for us all. First some background. A virus infecting mobile phones using Google's Android operating system has emerged in China that can allow a hacker to gain access t...
First, you've undoubtedly noticed Reporter Winky . My special thanks to Xiandi for allowing me to use her art in my posts. On my last post I showed how to create a Windows 7 themepack. But what if you want to use the wallpapers of any themepack separately? Well if you are using 7-Zip as your extraction utility, it shouldn’t be a problem! Simply right click on the themepack file and select “Extract”. But if you are not using ...
Well, the holidays are over, the tinsel, decorations and trees are coming down, the wrapping paper saved or disposed of....but you have memories: The children, grandchildren, loved ones, friends, festive meals, dancing, great parties, etc. After you've processed and fixed up your images, you can burn a disk, put them on Skydrive, file them away... OR You can make your own .themepack and you can make a desktop theme with rotating wallpapers, special sounds, fa...
Everyone makes New Year's resolutions (yep, I've heard the one about 1920 x 1080p). This one should bring peace of mind to WC'ers with children aged 6–12. Bringing this to you makes me feel better about being a grandparent, and yes...talk to your children about it for your grandchildren. You might be accused of being a “helicopter grandparent”, but don't forget, helicopters are for rescue, too. Ask Kids is a search engine designed exclusively fo...
This is a “Special Request” dedicated to TheAVMan for all the folks on Stardock sites using Windows 7 phones. How to download updates link: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsphone/en-us/howto/wp7/basics/how-do-i-update-my-phone-software.aspx And a special little present - a link to the apps for your phone: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsphone/en-us/apps/default.aspx Microsoft has finally gone official on its website and declared t...
Magazines really hate it when you let your subscription lapse. The time between receiving your first issue and receiving your first renewal notice can be amazingly short. If you like the magazine that's not a problem; you can renew any time and simply extend your subscription. Not all security software subscriptions work the same way, though. In particular, if you renew your Kaspersky subscription too early you can incur a significant loss. I'm bringing this t...
How secure is your wireless network? Are your neighbors eavesdropping on your Internet connection (are you sure)? Have you ever used your laptop or netbook to connect to an unknown network in order to get on the Internet? If you've answered "Yes" to any of these questions, you are putting yourself at a huge security risk. So, what steps can you take to better protect yourself, your personal information, and your PC? Here's a list of 10 things yo...