Is your computer slowing down?

One of the main reasons that computers may run slower than usual is a virus. We all use the computer for the internet. Opening unknown websites or unsecured websites automatically exposes your computer. You could be infected by viruses and unwanted programs without even realizing it. This can also happen by opening emails from unknown senders.

For this reason, it is important that you have an anti-virus program installed. The first thing that you should do is install a third-party firewall and an anti-virus program. After having done so, scan your entire computer. This may take a bit of time depending on how many files you have on your computer. Any viruses that are detected will automatically be removed and this should increase the speed of your computer.

You computer can run slower than usual because there may be too many unnecessary programs running during the start up. How can you overcome this problem? Start up your computer normally. After having done so, go and look in the bottom right hand corner of your computer. This is usually called the Taskbar. Check to see how many programs are running. At most you should only have four to five programs. If you have more than that number, it is advised that you change the settings of those excess programs to not start up automatically when the computer turns on.

In certain cases, your computer may be running slow due to a lack of efficient hardware. In such a case you would be required to buy a RAM (read only memory) card for your computer. This will also make your computer faster.

Photo Credits: brewbooks

Originally posted 2010-05-07 03:56:30.

Erase History

Depending on the browser you use, there are few steps that you need to take in order to erase the history on your system. If your browser is Internet Explorer, open a browser and click on the 'tools' tab. A pop up menu pops up. Select the 'internet options' from the pop up menu. Then find the

'general' tab and click on it. Go to the browser history section where you will find a button named 'delete'. Click on this button to delete all previous browsing history. You can also click on the button named 'delete all offline content' to delete all the saved content on your system. To ensure complete secrecy, you can also delete all the cookies on your system.

For a Firefox browser, click on the 'tools' menu and a pop up menu appears. Select the option 'clear private data'. A pop menu appears and gives you all the options to erase the data related to the history. Once you have chosen what all to delete, click on the button 'clear private data now'. However, Firefox users need not have to go through all the above mentioned steps, they can simply take the short cut by pressing SHIFT+CTRL+DELETE. Once you press these three keys, the 'clear data' window opens automatically, from where you can easily clear the private data.

Users who prefer using Netscape browsers can easily erase the internet history by selecting the 'edit' tab and then choosing the 'preferences' tab. Then select the 'history' tab. Click on the button named 'clear history' to erase the browser history.

If you are too busy and cannot spend time to perform the above mentioned steps, then you can always buy or download privacy protecting programs, that are programmed to erase the browsing history and some of the advanced privacy protection programs even erase the history of the applications as well. This means that all the logs related to working with any of the applications will also be erased completely. If you store highly secure data on your system, then for maximum protection, you can install specialized privacy protection programs, using which you can easily erase both the internet history and the logs related to other activities on your system.

Originally posted 2010-05-19 03:35:38.

Step up your security.

1. Use Up to Date Anti-Virus Software- Perhaps the best way to keep your computer safe from the threat of viruses is anti-virus software. It’s very important to download a noteworthy company’s software such as: Ad-aware, Spybot or Avast. These companies all offer free anti-virus that’s constantly updated. It’s important when downloading anti-virus software that you’re not downloading a virus itself, because that’s one of their most common disguises. That’s why you should always stick with a trusted company.

2. Be Safe With Email- Email is one of the easiest ways to become a victim of a large scale virus infection, and the easiest way to avoid it is to not open any suspicious email or follow any odd links and attachments. If you know the sender and the attachment still seems fishy, simply ask them by phone or in person before you open the attachment.

3. Better Passwords- This has become something that companies are enforcing, but it’s still something that needs to be emphasized, use strong passwords. Don’t simply make your password your first name or your dog’s name. You need to add numbers and special characters such as a # sign to your password. This will make it much more difficult for any potential hacker/virus program to affect you. If you can’t remember long passwords, try using phrases as they usually make the best passwords.

4. Use Anti-Spyware Programs- Although many of these programs becoming pre-packaged with anti-virus programs, it’s still important to note that spyware is much more commonly affecting your computer than a virus. It may come in the form of ads popping up on your desktop, or even just a program running in your background eating your memory. They may not be viruses, but they’re deadly and it’s important you prepare for them.

5. Watch Where You Download from- Where you download files from plays one of the biggest roles in whether you’re likely to get a virus or not. Avoid using P2P networks as much as possible as they’re probably the most unsafe downloading environments there are. If you visit a website and a message box comes up asking you to install (yes or no) always ctl-alt-delete exit the website immediately. This is one of the easiest ways to allow your computer to be infected.

Photo Credits: amelungc

Originally posted 2009-11-13 03:40:56.

Windows XP

Locking computer with the Windows button:

Probably the easiest way of locking of computer in Windows XP is simply pressing the Windows button and the ‘L’ button simultaneously. You need to have a keyboard that has the Windows button to do this, but chances are you have one if your computer (and keyboard) is less than a decade old. If you don't have a Windows button go to method two.

Locking through the task manager:

This is one of the most effective ways of locking your computer. If your computer is password protected then all you need to do is to press ctrl+del+alt together and the task manager will appear. Simply click the ‘lock workstation’ tab and your computer would be locked. Before you opt for this method make sure you have switched on password protection.

Switching on password protection is easy. All you need to do is go into the control panel and get into users accounts. If there are no user accounts so simply click on ‘apply password’ and the password would be applied.

Logging off:

Logging off your account is another way of locking your computer. If the PC is used by multiple users, you can simply go into the shut down menu and opt for log off. In this way your account would stop all activity and the computer will be on the welcome screen. Another user can login through his account or you can log into your account again.

Switch users:

Switching between users is like logging off. The only difference is that if you go for the switch user option your user account would be active and the applications you were using will be as you left them. This method is useful if you want to lock off your computer for a while but you don’t want to stop the work you are doing.

Other software:

There are various other software that you can download for Windows XP and use them to lock your computer. Most of them are not burdensome applications. They will allow you to lock your computer with a password. When your computer is off, a screen saver or welcome screen will appear. You can find such software online for free. They are small files and can be downloaded easily.

Photo Credits: re-ality

Originally posted 2010-04-21 09:29:22.

Password Change

Technology has allowed us to protect files and the like through the help of passwords. If you are using Windows as an operating software platform, whatever version it may be, you have the option of creating different passwords for different users on the computer. One password each for every individual user. In other words, logging in with a password opens all the files and programs related to that particular user only. Other people’s files and folders are hidden from you and yours from them.

When leaving your desk always log off. This means if somebody else uses the computer after you they can do so without “touching” your important files and data. Do this whenever you leave the computer unattended. When you return to your desk, simply enter your name and password to access your personal files and folders. All of this can be set up from the control panel of the Windows program. The control panel is readily accessible from the Start button of Windows.

What if you prefer to simply protect certain files from your profile? A secret MS Word file perhaps or a confidential document? No problem! To keep peering eyes away from that MS Word document, you can choose to hide the file from normal view. To do this, simply click Options from the Tools Menu and then choose the Security tab. Key in the password of preference. Press Enter or choose Ok. You will be prompted to retype your chosen password for verification. Simply retype it on the box. Complete by clicking OK. That document can only be opened and read if the user knows the password. Otherwise, he or she will not be able to open it.

If you prefer to protect a whole folder, the security options are also accessible in the same way as mentioned above. This way, nobody can access your folder, along with all the files inside it, without the password.

These are easy and simple ways of providing your much-needed peace of mind. Maximize your operating software’s nifty features. After all, you paid for it!

Photo Credits: akeg

Originally posted 2010-04-21 03:34:09.

Computer crash!!!

Overheating

One of the most common causes of computer crashes is overheating. If your video card or processor is getting too hot your computer will automatically shut your computer down which could result in a loss of data or even damage the hardware if it happens enough. To fix this problem you need to either install a new fan or another cooling method and test to make sure that the part is cooling down. If you have no luck with adding cooling solutions you should consult a professional or completely replace the part at fault.

Viruses/Spyware

If your computer is infected by a virus or by spyware then that malware could possibly be causing your computer to crash. This problem can be fixed almost an infinite amount of ways but the most common way to fix this issue is by running a virus scan. If all else fails, however, then don’t count of the options of running a system restore or completely wiping your hard drive with a reformat depending on the severity of the virus.

Incompatible or Broken Hardware

This is probably the easiest of the problems to identify because it will be noticeable very quickly. If you have broken hardware when Windows tries to locate where a certain piece is and it gets nothing back it will instantly be ready to crash itself. The only solution to this probably is to unfortunately, replace the hardware which could be expensive based on which piece is broken.

Too Much Running

If you have too many background applications running then it’s very easy to cause an overload leaving very little resources for your computer. This will eventually cause a crash but will not have any serious repercussions. To solve a problem involving too many applications running it’s important that you set up programs so that they don’t boot up when you start your computer.

Computer crashes can be frustrating, but there aren’t an unlimited number of reasons to why they’re happening. If you experiment and do a little research you should be able to diagnose why you computer is crashing on you.

Photo Credits: Shht!

Originally posted 2009-12-06 03:50:31.

Computer Virus

The most trusted method of keeping viruses at bay is getting a reputed antivirus software program and installing it on your computer. There are a lot of antivirus programs available online, however, make sure that you download a legitimate antivirus program. After the installation of the antivirus software, run the program, this way you can remove any existing viruses on your computer.

Always be cautious when you receive mails with attachments, from unfamiliar email addresses. If you are not sure, never open the attachment, it can be a source of harmful virus. Viruses that spread through email attachments usually spread by finding the email addresses from your address book and sending themselves to every email id. Hence, if you open an email from a familiar id, but are not sure if the content of the email sounds weird or you were not expecting any such mail, it is better not to open the attachment and immediately delete the mail.

To be absolutely sure of protecting your computer from harmful virus attacks, regularly perform a full scan. It might take hours to complete, but it is necessary, to spot any existing viruses on the computer. Antivirus programs, usually, get updated very frequently so you will need to install the updates regularly. This will keep your antivirus program efficient in identifying and removing the viruses. New viruses are created daily; hence, it is absolutely necessary to install the regular updates, in order to be secure from the ever increasing viruses.

Do not blindly rely on the antivirus program. Since, few of the viruses are very hard to remove, once they attack a computer, even the most efficient antivirus program cannot remove them completely. Always be cautious while downloading files from internet. Every time you download you are at the risk of downloading a virus onto your system. Also, always be on the lookout for links that ask you to click, since, few of these links can redirect you to sites containing viruses and simply visiting these sites, can affect your computer with the viruses.

Always scan the external USB flash drives that have already been connected to other computers before using them. Do the when using external hard disks, since they can already have potential viruses residing in them. Be extremely cautious when you receive attachments with the extensions .vbs or .js and it is better not to open them at all.

Photo Credits: ccox888

Originally posted 2010-05-17 03:29:31.

Speedy Computer

Virus and Spyware Scans

If your computer is not as fast as it used to be, you may want to consider getting it checked or scanned.  If you do not have the protection software to do so, you can buy programs such as McAfee to keep viruses and spam at bay.  But the software can not keep blocking spyware and viruses if you keep on allowing it to happen.  You should also be cautious about what is happening on your PC, such as junk emails, applications that have not been authorized, and unknown files.  For instance, if there is an email from somebody you do not know or looks strange, it is always better to simply delete the file or email right away in order to prevent a virus from infiltrating your PC and spreading.  Of course, the protective software you decide to purchase for cleaning up your computer should be a trustworthy and well-known brand that everyone uses with good results.

RAM Enhancement

Another simple way to increase your computer’s speed is to enhance your RAM.  For many dated computer models, there is a tendency for the screen to freeze up because they cannot handle too many activities at once.  If you increase the total memory on your computer by just a few gigabytes, you will soon see your PC’s performance will improve drastically.  Many computer technicians recommend to add about 2GB worth of memory in order to keep your computer functioning properly.

Closing Programs

Many people have fast computers, but are displeased with the fact that it takes a very long time for the operating systems to load before they are able to perform any functions.  When technicians checked computers with this problem, they found that users have been leaving several windows and programs open before logging off, making it much more difficult to get back on.  An easy tip to combat this would be to merely shut down a few windows before logging off.  If you do, you will discover your computer will increase its speed by a matter of minutes in the booting process.

Registry Scanners

When people run registry scans on their computer to look for problems, they sometimes find that the scanner itself is defective and because of its defect, the computer will not catch as many viruses as it can.  Many users with this issue mistakenly believe there is something else wrong with their computer, causing them to spend a great deal of time trying to find another possible answer to their problems.

Photo Credits: bsdfm

Originally posted 2010-04-20 03:26:38.