Use a Different Password for Insecure Websites
We all do it: we have a single username and password that we use for our every account we have on the Internet. The only problem is, all websites are not created equal. When you log into your bank the connection is probably encrypted, whereas the connection to a gaming site, blog or forum probably isn't.
The Problem
No big deal, right? Wrong! Hackers can easily sniff unencrypted passwords out of Internet traffic. You may think that if a hacker steals your username and password for a forum or chat site it's trivial, but if that password is identical or similar to the one you use to log in to your online banking, that's can be a problem!
What if a hacker steals your email account? Again, you may not consider that a big deal. But all most services require to change your password is your email address. They will send a password reset link to that address, which the hacker can then use to reset your password.
The Solution
The following tips will help you keep your online accounts safe from hackers and password sniffers.
- Familiarize yourself with your browser, and know how to determine if you are logging into a secure or insecure website.
- Use a different username and password combination when registering for secure and insecure websites. That way if a hacker does get the password to your blog, at least it can't be used to log into your bank accounts and other critical online services.
Got a tip related to website usernames and passwords? Leave a comment and I'll add them to the article!
Uninstalling Programs on Windows 7
This demonstration video shows you how to uninstall applications on Windows 7. For this video I intentionally sabotaged my computer with a bunch of applications which I don't recommend anyone actually download, just to show viewers the various tricks that some programs play to prevent you from removing them.
This is the third video in a series developed for my Home PC Maintenance course. Enjoy!
Check Your Hard Drive Space Using Windows 7
The following video shows you how to check your available hard drive space using Windows 7. It also explains how to use the Disk Cleanup Wizard, Compress, and Index options under the Windows 7 Drive Properties window. This is the second video in a new series I've developed for my Home PC Maintenance course.
Defragmenting Your Hard Drive on Windows 7
This video I made tonight will teach you how to defragment your hard drives on Windows 7. This is the first video in a new series I am creating for an upcoming Basic PC Maintenance Course.
Removing FakeSecScan (Fake Antivirus)
The FakeSecScan virus. You may know it as another name, such as Windows Antivirus 2010 or some other generic-but-legitimate sounding name. It pretends to be an anti-virus application that scans and finds viruses on your computer. The problem is, the program itself is the virus and it is lying about the other infections that is has "found."
I've blogged about this all the way back in 2008 but since FakeSecScan continues to be one of the most prevalent virus infections out in the wild (and thus a big source of income for tech support professionals like me) I decided to revisit it.
How do you get rid of FakeSecScan? Let me save you some time and money. Download the free version of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware. Boot into safe-mode, install and run it.
7 System Building Tips
I've built hundreds of PC's in my day. That includes dozens of one-off systems that I've configured and assembled for my own use as well as for friends, family, and customers. It also includes batches of new systems that I build during the summer at my full-time job. Below are just a couple of tips that I've picked up along the way that make the system-building process as painless as possible.
1. Plan Ahead
Many retailers provide reviews, which are invaluable when choosing hardware.
Building a desktop computer isn't rocket science, but it's not work you could assign to a team of chimps, either (with all due respect to the intelligent and majestic chimpanzee, of course). Planning ahead ahead before you go full-force into system building will pay off later by saving you time, money, and frustration.
Research your components. Read blogs, forums and industry sites like Tom's Hardware to find out more about your hardware and whether or not your components will "play nice together." Google is your friend at this stage of the game. Verify that each component has drivers available for the OS you intend to install before you make a purchase. Make sure your power supply provides enough power to support the rest of your hardware. Make sure your motherboard provides the correct ports for any other hardware and adapters you intend to install.
I also recommend reading user reviews for each component on sites like New Egg, Amazon, or MWave. Users tend to write a review when they have a really good or a really bad experience with a product, so they can be a wealth of information and have saved me from countless bad purchasing decisions. Bottom line: Plan, plan, plan!
2. Plan Some More
Once your components arrive gather everything you need and plan the order in which you will install them. Have a trash can handy to immediately discard packaging so it isn't taking up space in your work area. This is the order in which I generally proceed (though your preferences may vary).
- Open and clear the case. Manufacturers will generally pack any extras inside the case, including wires and a bag of hardware. Sit all these items to the side, and position all cables (power supply cables, front panel header wiring, etc). so they are hanging over the outside of the case. You should have a clear view of the chassis where the motherboard will be installed.
- Prepare your case to accept the motherboard by installing the brass risers in the appropriate configuration. Replace the metal panel in the back of the case with the one that matches the built-in components on your motherboard.
- Install the motherboard.
- Connect front panel header wires. This includes the power button, reset button, LED lights, and front USB and audio ports. It is easier to deal with these small wires now than trying to fat-finger them around a bunch of other components later.
- Install memory.
- Install CPU and CPU fan.
- Install drives.
- Install PCI/PCI-X/AGP adapters (video, audio, etc.)
- Connect all power cables.
- Cable Management (see below).
- Plug-in and test. If you need to make adjustments, your case is still open and components are easily-accessible.
- Close the case.
3. Pick a Quality Case
This is how your case should look prior to installing the motherboard.
A good case doesn't necessarily contain 10 fans and light up like the aurora borealis when you hit the power button. Ventilation is incredibly important, but from a system builder's perspective so is ease of assembly. Make sure your case provides plenty of working room. It's not hard to damage a motherboard and other components when you have to angle them awkwardly to get them into the case.
The following outlines the "no-frills" criteria that I have for cases. These are just choices that I have found to be ideal and they may not fit your situation.
- Front USB and audio ports. (If you don't get it now, its not so simple to add later)
- Front ports should be located high on the case. When placed on the floor, devices plugged into USB ports low on the case will get kicked and possibly destroyed.
- No hinged doors unless you have a very good reason for having them. Plastic doors will break quickly.
- No ventilation shafts. Feel free to disagree but I remain unconvinced that plastic ventilation shafts above the CPU do anything other than take up space and slow you down.
- Simple drive access. There are many ways that manufacturers can accomplish this (rails , lock-in drive trays), but if I have to unscrew and remove an additional piece of metal to get to my drives and swap them, I'll look for another case. You should be able to swap drives without disconnecting other wires or hardware.
Note: You can solve a lot of overheating and ventilation problems in your case by cleaning out your fans, adding new fans, or simply moving your tower to a location where it can breath.
4. Use a Magnetic, Manual Phillips Screwdriver
The Magnetic Phillips Head Screwdriver: One tool to rule them all...
In most scenarios a Phillips head screwdriver is the only tool you will need to build a system. I say magnetic because you will drop screws and they will find their way to the most inconvenient crevice in your new case that they can! Don't worry about the magnetism affecting your hardware. It's simply not strong enough to harm your hardware, and I don't know any other system builders who don't use one.
I say use a good, old-fashioned manual screwdriver instead of an electronic screwdriver or drill because most electronic devices are simply too bulky to use effortlessly inside a computer case. Besides: if you're not careful you risk stripping out or severely over-tightening your screws, both of which will make adjustments a pain in the future.
Note: You may also need a flat-head screwdriver for installing and adjusting certain types of CPU fans.
5. Take Anti-Static Measurements
Whether you ground yourself with an anti-static bracelet or an intricate alligator-clip and wire system, make sure you are properly grounded to avoid shocking your new components with static electricity. Damage caused by static is difficult to diagnose but very simply to avoid.
6. Don't Force Anything
Yoda Cat says, "force components you will not!"
If screw doesn't seem to fit or if a component doesn't seem to snap into location easily, do not force it. Step back from the situation and analyze it for a moment. There are usually at least two different sized screws used when assembling a computer, and you may be using the wrong one. If your memory doesn't seem to snap in, it may be backward or you may be trying to install DDR 1 memory into a DDR 2 slot. If an IDE cable doesn't want to push into a port with ease, try flipping it in the other direction.
Though occasionally you may encounter a screw hole bored slightly too narrow you should always think twice about forcing it through. You could strip out the hole or the screw, making removal of the hardware difficult later.
Forcing components and connection wires can easily damage pins and leads and ruin expensive hardware. Think about the situation before you manhandle components or use other tools to force a solid connection.
7. Practice Good Wire Management
Practicing wire management prevents mistakes and make maintenance tasks simpler.
In my opinion there are no hard and fast rules as to how you should effectively manage the cabling inside a computer case. When building systems I inevitably find that I have several twisty-ties left over from the component's packaging, and I save them for tying up and organizing wires. Most cases will provide holes along the edges where a tie can easily be inserted to wrap up and tighten wires. Make sure that all wires and cables can reach from their origin to their destination, but keep the slack far away from CPU and case fans. It's best to handle this before you put the case back together, otherwise you will waste your time later reopening the case to make adjustments.
Note: Though the plastic fan blades in a PC probably won't damage wires if they strike them, stray wires can cause fans to stop working and thus overheat and possible damage your CPU.
Summary
With a little bit of planning and some common sense it is easy to configure and build a stable desktop computer. Plan ahead of time so you know you are buying reliable components that work well together and support the operating system that you intend to run. Keep organized from start to finish: lay out all of the components and tools you will need, keep your work area clean by throwing out packaging and other garbage as it accumulates, and manage the wires and connections inside your tower by tying them off as you build. Use the right tools for the job, avoid static discharge, and don't force connections. Using this simple advice you can fully assemble a stable desktop PC within 25 minutes of receiving the components.
Questions or comments about this article? Or better yet, do you have your own system building tips to share? Leave a comment below! We'd love to hear from you.
9 Reasons to Switch from Windows to Linux, Revisited
After stumbling upon this article listing 9 Reasons to Switch from Windows to Linux, I felt more than a little compelled to respond critically to some of it's claims. That response became a bit long-winded to post as a comment, and so I decided to post a full rebuttle here on my blog.
Comparing Modern Linux to Old Windows
Although I agree with some of the claims in the original article, it seems as though it was written from the perspective of someone who switched to Linux in 1998 and never looked back.
The article was comparing fresh apples to rotten oranges. If one's goal is to compare Windows and Linux and list the ways in which one outperforms the other, it's only fair that we compare the versions with the closest release dates. In other words, it's unfair to compare the feature set of Windows 98 (released in June of 1998) to that of Ubuntu 9.04, code named Jaunty Jackalope (released in April of 2009).
1. Your Computer is Getting Slower!
First off: my computer isn't getting slower. I've run Windows XP on dozens of systems for years without a reinstall or even a reboot for months at a time, and unless I installed new software the performance never really changed.
I've worked on the sort of computer the author is referring to (I affectionately call them "thrashers"), and it seem to me that the tendancy for a computer to get slower over time has more to do with junk hardware and irresponsible usage patterns than about the operating system.
Think about this logically for just a second: people who use Linux tend to be highly technical individuals who might understand that there could be repercussions to downloading dozens of pieces of software from unknown sources on the Internet. If they use their heads, the sort of behavior that leads to a slow PC never happens. In addition Linux comes with a large collection of programs and utilities which negates some of that need to constantly download and install programs from the Internet. Why not list that as one of your reasons to switch?
Admittedly file system fragmentation is still a problem on Windows that can degrade your performance over time, regardless of how responsibly you use your computer. You should defregment on Windows occassionally to keep things zippy, but Linux's Ext2, Ext3, and all-new Ext4 filesystems aren't completely immune to fragmentation, and fragmentation on a modern Windows system using NTFS isn't the crippling disease it was on FAT and FAT32-based Windows 98 systems, either.
2. You are fed up with viruses and spyware and you heard Linux does not have any!
Windows is a victim of it's own popularity. If you were a hacker looking to cause damage to the greatest number of computers or a spyware developer looking to profit off the largest number of possible infections, would you target Windows or Linux? After taking into account the fact that Windows has an 87.9% share of the desktop operating system market, versus a 1.02% share for Linux. It's a fact that there are fewer viruses written for Linux than Windows, but to say there are no Linux viruses is a fallacy.
This begs the questions: is Linux more secure than Windows? Or is the disparity between the amount of malware on Windows versus Linux simply a function of security through obscurity? This debate has raged for years and lack the energy to rehash it, so read this comprehensive discussion on Windows and Linux Securiyty at The Register instead (spoiler: Windows loses).
In Microsoft's defense, some of the most sever virus outbreaks have been 100% preventable. The Conficker virus spread through unpatched systems (computers that aren't installing their OS updates). Microsoft released a patch to the bad code months before a virus was found lose in the wild that exploited it. In my opinion this is even more anecdotal evidence of the disparity in usage patterns between Windows users versus Linux users. Would users automatically become more responsible and install patches if they switched to Linux? Probably not.
3. Your old printer or scanner don't work with the latest version of Windows!
A few weeks ago I attended a CPLUG meeting where for the first time I was able to participate in face-to-face discussions with real Linux power users. In one of my conversations, I told a CPLUG member that I simply didn't have much use for Linux because I can do everything I need to do very effectively in Windows. His response that was that I could install Linux on an old 486 and turn it into a router and firewall for my home network. My response was that that would be a waste of my time, since I can already by a powerful home router for $50.00 that consume a heck of a lot less electricity than a full desktop system.
Linux has fantastic support for old hardware, and if supporting your printer from the 1980's is a priority but supporting your modern Windows software is not, then by all means, look up your device on the official Linux Hardware Compatibility site and go to town, my friend.
In my experience the Linux community has been so focused on support of legacy device compatibility that they neglect the fact that some of the most common off-the-shelf components don't function on Linux out of the box.
Be warned: when your hardware doesn't work out of the box with Linux, making the "tweaks" neccessary to get it fixed aren't as trivial as they often are on Windows. Malfunctioning video drivers sometimes require you to drop to the shell and manually edit configuration files like x11.conf, whereas in Windows you could use Safe Mode to install the right driver or change your display settings in a low resolution mode which should work on any video hardware. Oh, and take a look at the steps neccessary to make one of the popular WPC54G wireless adapters work on Ubuntu Linux. Real user friendly, huh?
It's true that Windows Vista doesn't have very good legacy hardware support, but it's out-of-box support for modern hardware is impeccable. There are two simple solutions to the legacy hardware dillema. The first is to upgrade to modern hardware, and at the cost of most home printing and scanning (and other) devices you'd be doing yourself a disservice to disregard this as an option. The second option is to simply skip Vista. Unless you have a specific reason to upgrade from Windows XP, don't. Microsoft has pledge support for Windows XP through April of 2014. No one is forcing your hand to switch operating systems any time soon, despite what the original article might lead you to believe.
If you do decide to upgrade to Vista (or Windows 7 for that matter), download Microsoft's Vista Upgrade Advisor. This free utility will check your system, analyze your hardware and software, and tell you what needs upgraded before your computer can run Windows Vista.
4. You have a computer without Windows and don't want to buy Windows
Despite the annoying grammar and the fact that the author actually had the audacity to link the words "buy Windows" to an Amazon Affiliate link, this is a good point. If you built a computer yourself or inherited a computer and not an operating system, you may find yourself in this position. I can't argue against Linux as a valid option in this scenario. However if you are buying a new PC and are considering buying it without Windows in order to save money, think twice. Many manufacturers won't sell you a computer without Windows, or at the very least won't sell it to you any cheaper.
5. You want to run a Linux application
As the author mentioned himself, some of the best software available on Linux is already available for Windows, so switching operating systems probably isn't neccesary. Much of the software I use on a daily basis is open source, and a lot of it was originally built for Linux. Some examples are PHP, Apache, NetBeans IDE, MySQL, Firefox, Gimp, FileZilla, Subversion, and VirtualBox.
Speaking of VirtualBox, even if a Linux application you want to use doesn't have a Windows-compatible version, you don't have to give up Windows in order to install Linux and run your program. Provided your computer has the neccessary power, you can install Linux in a virtual environment and run your program from there.
6. You want to (re)use an old computer.
In my opinion this is where Linux truly shines. You can install a bare-bones Linux distribution like Damn Small Linux or powerful but non-graphical distribution such as Ubuntu Server on old hardware and use it for a variety of purposes. I have personally used an old Pentium 3 workstation to host Counter-Strike: Source network game server, and used similar hardware equipped with the SAMBA package to emulate a Microsoft Active Directory domain. Other ideas are lightweight print servers, files servers, and LAMP-based web servers.
7. You had problems with Windows activation.
Admittedly Windows Genuine Advantage got off to a bad start, and like most copy protection schemes, only affected the people who legitimately paid for their software. However we're now three years out from WGA's release, and most of the compatibility issues and reports of "false positives" of pirated software have been resolved. Unless you are philosophically opposed to paying for software, Windows Genuine Advantage doesn't seem like a logical reason to completely switch your operating system.
8. You do not like the new Vista interface of Windows.
Once again, no one is forcing anyone to switch right now. Unless you buy a new computer preloaded with Windows Vista this isn't even an issue. What I've found after switching many users from Windows XP to Vista is that users convert over kicking and screaming, but within a few weeks come to appreciate many of the interface changes in Vista.
If fear of change is the issue with switching to Windows Vista, how is switching to a completely different operating system going to help anyone? Most of my customers would freak if they didn't see the "Blue E" on their desktops that has become synonymous with the Internet.
9. You are curious about Linux.
Once again, there is no reason for a full conversion from Windows to Linux. Thanks to virtualization technology, operating systems can coexist on the same system. By installing and exploring Linux within a virtual environment, you can decide for yourself wether or not it is worth a permanant switch without making any life or work-altering decisions on your physical system.
It should be noted that I'm no Linux expert, but I do have years of experience with Linux as both a casual user and as an LAMP-platform web developer. I've been using Microsoft Windows since Windows for Workgroups, I co-administer a 350-workstation Windows network, and I am a Microsoft Certified Windows Vista Technology Specialist (I'm not quite finished with the full MCITP curriculum).
Beware of the Thrasher
Anyone who has worked in the tech support field can tell you: all computers are not created equal. Even the most popular PC manufacturers happily sell hopelessly under-powered computers to cost-conscious consumers who incorrectly assume that a new computer is a fast computer. Today I'd like to focus on what I call a Thrasher: a computer so poorly configured that it can't perform the simplest of tasks.
How to Identify a Thrasher
It's not hard to identify a Thrasher simply by observing a computer's behavior:
- Can you solve world hunger in the time it takes to progress from the login screen to the point where you can actually interact with your desktop?
- Does switching between programs seem to take forever?
- Does it take minutes, rather than mere milliseconds, for your mouse clicks to register and make anything happen?
- Do windows disappear slowly, or a single line of pixels at a time rather all at once as they should?
- Do you get Out or Memory or Low Virtual Memory errors?
If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, then chances are you've got a Thrasher. I've coined these types of machines Thrashers after thrashing, a unique problem that arises when a computer is low on memory. Thrashing occurs when your computer has severely limited physical memory and has to rely on virtual memory (a special segment of hard drive space that works like physical memory) to run multiple programs.
Put simply, when your computer has to depend on virtual memory, it often works itself into a state in which it spends all of it's time and resources shuffling data between physical RAM and virtual memory and has nothing left to actually perform the tasks you want it to perform.
Here's a fun little exercise to try when you encounter such a computer. When the machine seems to be thrashing, press CTRL+ALT+DEL to bring up Task Manager. There's a good chance that it will take several minutes for Task Manager to appear, but after it does click the Performance tab and look at your memory utilization. Is your computer reporting that it is consistently using more RAM that is physically installed? This means that it is depending on Virtual Memory 100% of the time, which means you've got a Thrasher.
How to Deal With a Thrasher
If you just want the Low Virtual Memory errors to go away, you could simply increase the amount of virtual memory made available to the operating system. But this masks a symptom and really doesn't fix the underlying problem. To truly fix thrashing the amount of physical memory available for programs to utilize must be increased. Here are a few different methods for increasing your virtual memory:
- Install more memory. This is by far the easiest and most effective way to increase available physical memory. Besides: memory is cheap these days, so why not find out exactly how much physical RAM your computer can handle and max it out?
- Uninstall unused software. Many programs have components that load when windows starts and always consume a chunk of physical memory. Eliminate programs that you no longer have any use for.
- Disable Startup Programs. Using a utility like MSCONFIG or Windows Defender, disable or completely remove unneccessary startup programs. This is often useful if you want to keep a particular program installed, but don't want it to load when Windows starts.
- Run anti-virus. It's not very likely that a virus is consuming all of your physical memory, but it's good to eliminate the possibility. If your computer is so slow that you can't even open anti-virus, consider rebooting into Safe Mode to run a virus scan.
- Run anti-spyware. Spyware can consume a lot of RAM, so it's always wise to eliminate that possibility.
- Update your operating system and other software. Your software may have memory leaks that updates could potentially fix.
Video: Finding Your Network Settings in Windows Vista
A YouTube member who watched my video about Finding Your Network Settings on Windows XP requested that someone make a similar video for Windows Vista. This video is quick and dirty, but it walks users through each step of finding their network connection settings both through the Windows user interface as well as through the command prompt.
Speed Up Your Internet Connection Using Open DNS
Have you ever noticed that large downloads go quickly on your broadband Internet connection but websites still seem to load at dial-up speeds? I have a 10Mb/s DSL connection which--in theory anyway--is about 182 times more bandwidth than a 56k modem. Yet loading my Facebook profile took can take up a minute, which by todays standards feels like a lifetime. The problem was caused by slow DNS servers at my ISP and I solved the problem using Open DNS.
The Difference Between Downloading a Large File and Viewing a Website
When you download a single large file from the Internet like a music album or an episode of your favorite show, the download is a single continuous stream of information, all originating from the same location. But have you ever noticed that when you view a website, all of the sudden your web browser's status bar starts going a little crazy? That's because when you view a website, it needs to download not just the "web page" but all of the supporting images, videos, and other external resources. Each resource is downloaded individually, and they may or may not be downloaded from the same central location.
Why DNS May Become a Bottleneck
When a webpage is requested the domain name (like google.com) must be translated to a numerical address (called an IP Address) which can be understood by the computers and devices that make up the Internet. This translation is done by a special service called DNS which your Internet Provider automatically assigns to your Internet connection. DNS must be consulted each time a resource is requested, hence if a web page contains 20 supporting resources DNS could possibly be called 21 times to translate names to numerical addresses. If your Provider's DNS servers become bogged down this can increase the time it takes for resources needed by a web page to be located.
OpenDNS to the Rescue
I discovered a service tonight called OpenDNS that hosts free DNS servers that you can easily configure on your own Internet Connection. If you find that your web surfing seems sluggish, visit OpenDNS and follow their instructions for using their service on your computer. If you find that it doesn't help, it's easy to switch back to your ISP's DNS servers.
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