Scott's Thoughts

VistaSwitcher - the upgrade to Alt - Tab

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:00:00 +0000

I think one of the very first computer tips I published was the Alt-Tab shortcut.

If you have several windows open on your computer and you are going back and forth between them, you don't have to click the button at the bottom of your screen every time. Just hold down the Alt key, and then hit the Tab key. Or hold Alt and hit Tab 2 or 3 times. You can cycle back and forth between open windows very quickly.

A new free application has now enhanced the Alt-Tab function. It's called VistaSwitcher, and you can download it free here.

In the "standard" Alt-Tab, when you are switching between windows you see a little icon representing each one. There might be one for Firefox, one for Word, one for your email program, etc. As you continue tapping the Tab key, you can see it cycling through all of them.

When VistaSwitcher is running, the process is much more visual. You don't just see an icon. You see a preview of each window, and a more detailed description of that window (click to see full size):

Also, you don't have to keep hitting the Tab key to select the window you want; once that list is displayed, you can just hover over your selection with the cursor to make your choice.

There are other features as well, which I will let you discover on the web page of the downloadable program.

I love these stories about when a father or mother in the military comes home as a surprise. Just came across this one recently.

Computer discs: CD-R or CD-RW?

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:00:00 +0000

I recently was asked, "What kind of disc should I use - CD-R or CD-RW?"

For that question, there is a simple answer and a more complex answer.

The simple answer: Just use CD-R. If it gets messed up during the process, toss it and make another one.

For some people, that's good enough. If you are interested in the logic behind that, keep reading for the more complex answer.

First of all, CD-R means "CD Recordable". CD-RW means "CD Re-Writable".

Probably my first question would be: what are you recording onto the disc?

If you are using CDs as a regular backup of your computer's data, such as the My Documents folder, you need to change your backup procedure and not use discs at all (that's a subject for another day).

If you are taking MP3 files and making an audio CD to play in your home CD player or in your car, you need to use CD-R discs for that.

If you are just making a permanent archival copy of a folder of family pictures, the CD-R is again the best choice.

The idea behind a CD-RW is that you can sort of use that disc as another drive. You can put data on it, erase that data, and put more data on it again. Since they are supposed to be re-usable over and over, CD-RW discs are more expensive. That sounds perfect, right? Nope.

If you are putting something important on the disc, such as irreplaceable family photos, you don't want to take any chance of them getting accidentally deleted. If that CD-RW somehow made its way back into your CD drive, there is a chance that you could lose those photos.

If you have the photos on a CD-R, and the disc is digitally "closed" after you put them on there, you can no longer add anything else to that disc. So there is no chance of accidentally overwriting your valuable pictures (or other data).

What if you are recording some data to a CD-R and the recording process messes up and the CD-R is ruined? Who cares - just trash it and make another one. They cost less than 20 cents (sometimes a lot less) - consider them disposable. Once you have your data recorded on there and the disc is closed, you can put it in a place for safekeeping. Or if you recorded an audio CD, you can take it to your car and listen to music on the way to work.

This week's video is a funny mascot at a basketball game:

Free antivirus download - AVG 9.0

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 07:00:00 +0000

A few weeks ago I posted my list of recommended so ftware. Two of the ones that you need to have as a priority are an antivirus program and an antispyware pr ogram.

AVG 9.0 is a free antivirus download. I have been using and recommending AVG for years, and it continues to perform well without using a lot of system resources and slowing down the computer. Earlier this month, version 9.0 was released. It is still free for personal use, and the company is claiming some more advantages with this new version:

- 50% faster speed
- improved performance
- easier to use

I did not conduct any formal speed testing, but it seems to be at least as fast as it ever was. One big improvement is that you can choose what files AVG scans. For example, if you have a folder full of pictures and the contents of that folder never changes, why should AVG scan it every day for a virus? This feature will greatly reduce the time it takes to scan your computer for viruses.

I know many of you are already using the AVG free antivirus download. Here are the steps to follow in order to upgrade to the new version 9.0 (you can click on any image to see it full size):

1. Go to http://free.avg.com and click the "Get it now" button on the free side:

2. You will see a 3-column chart comparing the free version with the 2 paid versions. Click "Download" under the free version column:

3. Look for the "Download Now" button as shown below, and click that:

4. This takes you to the CNet download page, where you will click the Download Now button:

If you are using Firefox, you will be prompted to save the free antivirus download file. Click Save, and the installation file will be saved to your desktop. Then you can double-click to run it. If you are using Explorer, just click to Run the installation file.

5. Now you are about to run the AVG setup program. When you see the screen below, choose your language if it's other than English, and click Next.

6. Be sure to check the button that says "I want to install Free Basic protection" and click Next.

7. The installation files will begin to download. This will take a minute or two, maybe longer depending how fast your internet connection is.

8. The License agreement will display, and you have to check the box that says "I have read the license agreement", then click Accept:

9. Now you get to choose to do the Standard installation or Custom installation. Choose Standard and click Next.

10. This window is where you activate your free antivirus download license. You can type your name in, or not, it doesn't matter. Just click Next.

11. This next one is a little tricky. I have to say I am a little disappointed with AVG in the way they set this up. Apparently they have made a deal with Yahoo, and Yahoo will pay them a few bucks for every user that installs AVG and makes Yahoo their default search engine. So they set up the checkboxes to trick you into doing that.

There are two checkboxes in this window. One is to install the AVG toolbar, and the other is to make Yahoo your default search engine. You want both of these UNchecked, but if you uncheck the top one first, the bottom one is ghosted and cannot be unchecked. So uncheck the bottom one first, then the other one:

12. The next window will list the programs that you currently have running that need to be closed in order for the installation to continue. You can go and close these one by one yourself if you want, or you can just click Next and AVG will close them for you. Of course, be sure you have saved any open files before doing that.

13. Now AVG will continue the installation process. Not much for you to do during this time.

14. When that installation is complete, you will see the window below. You will have the option of checking the box to provide anonymous information to AVG to help them gather information about potential viruses. This takes up virtually no resources on your computer and it helps them, so I usually check this box (after all, they are providing you with a free antivirus download). Click Finish.

15. Clicking "Yes" will restart your computer. Might as well do it now and get it over with, since that is what will complete the installation.

16. In this window, click the top button (Optimize scanning). This is what will cause your scans to take less time.

17. This next step is optional, but I definitely set mine up this way. If you don't do this step, AVG will check every incoming email and put a note at the bottom of each one that states that AVG certifies that that email is free of any virus. If you do this step, AVG will still check every email, but it just won't tag every one of them with that note on the bottom. Since I don't care to see that certification, I do the following to remove it.

Click Tools - Advanced Settings.

In the "Email Scanner" category, UNcheck the box that says "Certify email" under the "incoming" side. I also uncheck the box to check or certify outgoing email, but that's up to you if you want to do that.

So there you have it - your AVG is now updated to the latest version of their free antivirus download.

Remember - just having an antivirus program is not enough. You need antispyware software as well. They are equally important in order to avoid headaches down the road.

In this week's video, a Food Makeup Artist shows us how a hamburger is made to look so juicy and delicious for an advertisement - even though they never turn out that beautiful in real life:

Shut down your computer automatically at bedtime

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 07:00:00 +0000

I prefer to go to bed at a decent hour, like 10 or 11 pm (that's a decent hour for me). But for some reason, I just can't seem to do it. I will be working on the computer, doing some research or writing for work, and I will plan to go to bed. But I don't feel like going to bed. And before you know it, it's midnight or 1 am and I finally shut off the computer.

The next morning I hate the fact that I stayed up too late, and I tell myself how stupid that was, and I vow to go to bed earlier that night. But the same thing happens. After about 11 I am not really even that productive.

Well, those days are behind me now. I have harnessed the power of the Self Imposed Deadline.

I know that if I want to be in bed by 11 pm, I have to get off the computer by about 10:45 pm. So now, every night at 10:45, a little window appears in the middle of my computer screen saying:

SHUTTING DOWN IN 60 SECONDS - GO TO BED

And the computer really does shut down. If I have any windows open or programs running, they are closed.

Actually, the computer only restarts because I leave it on overnight. But because of the fact that I know it will be shutting down everything and restarting, I am aware of the clock and how close it is getting to 10:45 pm. If I have anything that needs to get done, I make sure it is done by then. And when the warning window appears, I leave the computer and go to bed.

Just a silly mind trick? Maybe. I just know it works for me. If you want to use the program, it is available free here. You can schedule your computer to shut down restart, hibernate, etc. at a given time each day.

This week's video is some pretty cool trampoline tricks:

How to save printer ink

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 07:00:00 +0000

Here in my area (Clearwater, Florida) the price for a gallon of gas is running around $2.30 to $2.40. That's less than three dollars to be able to drive my car about 35 miles.

Now let's compare that to the cost of another expensive liquid: inkjet printer ink. An inkjet printer cartridge holds about 13 ml of ink - that's less than half an ounce. Do you realize then, that we pay about $5000 to $8000 per gallon for printer ink? Congratulations to the printer companies for making us believe printer ink is that valuable!

Given that information, we should try to conserve ink and make it last as long as possible. One way to do that is to choose to print with different settings.

(The following information applies to my printer, an HP Officejet 5610xi All in One. Yours will have similar settings, just not exactly the same perhaps.)

When you click to print something, you will get what's called the Print Dialogue box. Before clicking "OK", click the Properties button.

This will take you to a screen with some tabs. Click on the Paper/Quality tab. Somewhere in that window you will see some options for "Print Quality".

By default, it is probably set to "Normal". That's the middle setting. To save ink, you can set it to Fast Normal (better for ink saving) or Fast Draft (best for ink saving). This means the printer will use less ink to print the page. The final copy will look a little lighter but certainly still readable.

There's another ink-saving setting you can change. Click the tab that says "Color" and look for Color Options.

By default, it is probably set to print in high-quality color. You can check the box to have it print in grayscale (so you don't use up any of your color ink).

You may not want to use these economy settings every time you print. If you are turning in a paper for school, or a presentation for work, you probably want the normal quality. But if you are just printing a recipe for tonight's dinner that will just get thrown away, it's smart to use as little of that expensive ink as possible!

This week's video shows some people being polite:

Got a candle burning near your laptop?

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 00:59:00 +0000

might want to keep an eye on it.

My very own Craigslist scammer

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 07:00:00 +0000

I had an interesting experience over the last few weeks. We need to all be aware that there are people out there who want to steal your money and will do so at any given opportunity.

About once a week, I post an ad on Craigslist advertising my computer repair services. It only takes a few minutes, it's free, and it often brings me a new customer or two. I posted an ad on Sunday, September 6. The next day, Monday, I received an email from Sandra Rose (sandrarose01@gmail.com). It said:

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Hello are you capable of repairing computer in volumes? Let me know.
Regards,

Having heard of this scam before, I was immediately suspicious. But I decided to play along. I responded as I would any request such as this:

Me: It depends on what kind of volume you are talking about, and what they need to have done. I can handle several concurrently, but if you are talking about hundreds or thousands, it might take me a while. ? Let me know what the situation is and I can provide a more detailed answer. Thanks -

Later that same day, I got a response:

sandrarose01@gmail.com: I got 7 pentium IV dell laptops . Below are the things needed to be done one on each laptops.
1 Format Hard Drive
2 Install Win Xp with Service Pack 2
3 Microsoft Office Package
4 AVG Virus Software (Free Lifetime Updates)
5 Adobe Acrobat
6 Laptop Cleaning of the keyboard, screen and other case.
7 Diagnostics of the entire system after to check hard, cdrom, floppy, etc.

Get back to me with your total cost for the services of 7 units.
I await your urgent response.

One thing that is almost always a clue in identifying these morons is their poor spelling and grammar. I know their success rate would go up if they would just use a spelling/grammar checker. Anyway, I responded with a price.

Then I got the email that was additional proof that "Sandra" was a thief. She was not local to me:

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Thanks for the reply. i am okay with the price i have all the necessary software needed for the service installations.... I will instruct my secretary to prepare a Certified check for you on your name and address . Do send me your full name and address and your phone # so as to prepare the check and shipping of the laptops to your address. i have a reliable shipper that will pickup the laptops when you are done with it.I am looking forward to hear from you,so we can have payment and shipping asap.

Obviously if you have a bunch of laptops that need to be repaired, and you are looking on Craigslist, you would look for a repair shop close by. Why ship them all out of town? I replied with my address and phone, and asked where the laptops were being shipped from. Her reply:

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Thanks for getting back to me with the Information needed to make the payment. I will update you with the tracking number for the payment as soon as its been issue and mail out to you Asap. Thanks. Hope you perform a perfect and great work on my Units.

No mention of location, of course. But I ignored that - didn't want to sound too suspicious.

Me: Thanks – I am sure you will be very happy with the work that is done.
Look forward to getting started.

The above exchanges all happened on the same day. Then, 5 days went by without any word from Sandra. What was wrong? Was there a problem? Then I got this:

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Hello We have been having a problem with our financial institution, thats why you havent recieved any payment from myside.It has been rectified now and the laptops are still needed to to be serviced and i am wrting to you now to know if you will still be available to do this computers for us. Reply and let me know so that i can contact some other technician or i can forward your info so payment can be made out to you and i will include the shipping fees in the payment you will get, you will help me handle the shipping of the laptops to your.
PS BEAR WITH ME.

I assured her I was still waiting anxiously to get started working on her computers and that all was fine on my end. Then another SIX days goes by with nothing heard, until this:

sandrarose01@gmail.com: hello how are you doing today..?hope all is well with you and the family i just what to say hi,and i will get you updated as soon as the payment is been mail out you. thank you for your understanding and have a great weekend.

I responded:

Me: Why is it taking so long to mail payment?

But I got no response for FIVE more days. Then she emailed:

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Hello there i will like to put to your notice that the paymentwill be mail to you befor friday and thank you so much for you understanding and hope we do this in good faith...

After a couple more days, she finally told me that the check had been sent and that the tracking number showed that it had arrived. She also gave me detailed instructions about how to proceed.

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Hello Scott ,
i am very sorry for the late in response and i will like you to know that the check has been mailed to you and it has been delivered to you this morning AM.here is the shipment tracking number for it (A3782248865) so the check you recieve today is for the amount of $2,650 so what you will do is that you will have to get the check cashed at your bank or any cashing point and deduct your funds from it and you will be sending the rest through western union to the shipper so that they can ship out the laptops to you immediately tomorrow.here is the shipper information where you will be sending the rest funds to.

Name: Edward R Webster
City : Amarillo
State : Texas
Zipcode : 79110

(Thats is the shipper's information required to send the money via western union) Once the money's sent, YOU should send me the following infomation via email A. Your full names and address exactly how you wrote it on the western union slip.
B. The receiver's name exactly how you penned it down on the western union slip.
C . The total amount sent.
D . MTCN number (This is the 10 digit number for receiving funds,it is not the receipt number)I will be waiting on your email,complete with the details,please get to it as soon as you can,the transaction has to be fully completed as soon as possible and hope reading back from you soonest.Thanks

When I got home later that day, sure enough, there was a large UPS delivery envelope waiting for me. Inside the envelope was this check (click to see it full size):

So do you get the scam now? The plan is for me to deposit the check at my bank, keep my few hundred dollars for my services, and send money from my account on to the "shipper" to cover the cost of shipping the laptops to me and back to him.

The only thing is, the check will bounce, and I will have to cover that $2000+ that I sent on by Western Union. Here's a tip: you don't get money back from Western Union. It's the same as sending cash (which is why all the scammers use that method only).

I looked up the company name on the check (Rancho Electronics) and found that it was a real company in California. I called them and told them what was happening, and they confirmed that some other people had received checks just like I had. The scammer had somehow gotten their checking account number and routing number and was using that information to print these bogus checks. Of course, that bank account was now closed so none of them would ever clear.

So here is where I decided to play along a little more and cause the scammer some stress.

Me: I deposited the check this afternoon at my bank. My fee is only going to be a few hundred dollars - I hate to be holding so much of your money. Why don't you just give me Mr. Webster's address and I will overnight him my personal check. It seems like that would be so much easier.

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Hello,Thanks for the quick response,Mr Webster is a very busy person and he wont be able to receive checks,,,,all you need to do now is just deduct your fee from the funds and send the rest funds on the payment after deducting your fee to Mr Webster cos he is highly waiting for funds so that he can ship out the units to you unfailingly tomorrow....you need to go and have the funds sent to him through western union unfailingly today and get back to me with the western union details so that i can forward it to the shipper for immediate pickup of funds and i will get back to you with the shipping tracking number of the units immediately you send the rest funds to him so that you can update the shipment and know when the units is gonna get delivered to you and hope you gonna work greatly on the units.....its really nice doing business with you and hope doing more in the nearest future

Me: Well, here's the problem - I am going out of town tomorrow and through most of next week. I will have to go to the bank to get the cash to send by Western Union and I won't be able to do that until I get back on Friday (Oct 2). If I mailed a check he would have the funds sooner, but if he doesn't mind waiting until next weekend I can do it then. Sorry for the confusion.

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Thanks for the mail,i will like you to go and send the cash unfailingly tomorrow by western union before leaving the town cos he can't even wait for next week to receive funds and i will like you to have the cash sent to Mr Webster unfailingly tomorrow morning before leaving town so that we can proceed fast on this transaction.....you don't to mail out check to him at all and.....all you need to do now is and withdraw out cash from you account and send it to the shipper so he can ship out the units to you by tomorrow....please make sure you get this done before leaving town tomorrow and get back to me with western union details so that i can forward it to him for immediate pickup.....Thanks

Me: Sandra, I just thought of something. My flight leaves at 8:15 am from Tampa so I will be flying before the bank opens. However - I will be in Oklahoma City all week next week, which is only about 100 miles from Amarillo where Mr. Webster is. Maybe we can meet somewhere?

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Hello Scott,but you can western union the funds online then....He can't come 100miles to meet you cos i told you earlier that he is a very busy being...you can get this done online with your credit card or just make sure you send the money out before leaving for your travel...ok,...please i want you to make this possible and i will compensate you with another $50 for all the inconveniences cos i want you to get the funds out to Mr Webster unfailingly tomorrow....pls get this done

Me: Okay, I am going to bed now but I just checked on the Western Union website and see where I can transfer the money by "Direct to bank". That way he won't have to go pick it up. I just need Mr. Webster's bank name, account number and routing number. I will do that tomorrow afternoon when I land in Oklahoma. Thanks -

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Why can't you just follow instructions has instructed....i think this will be more easier for you now....go and have the money sent out to him as soon as you landed in Oaklahoma....you can western union the funds to him there...i think that will be more convenient for you and me....so get the funds out to him as asap in the noon as soon s you get there...ok...i'll be here waiting for details and hope this is okay by you....Thanks

Me: Hi Sandra -
Landed this afternoon and gotten settled in at the hotel. I have come up with a solution to the problem. I have rearranged my schedule so that I have Monday free all day, so I can drive to Amarillo. I will get cash from the bank Monday morning and I can meet Mr. Webster later that morning (it's about a 2-hour drive, so I can be there around 11:30 am). I just need to know where to meet Mr. Webster. Can you have him contact me, or I can call him tonight or Sunday to make arrangements? Whatever you think is best. Thanks -

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Thanks for the mail,you dont need to drive to Edward before you can send him money....but i guess you taking this too hard for me....just do western union to him and all he is concerned about this transaction is to ship out units to you (been the shipper) and you dont need to have any contact with him cos you are dealing with me....so all you need to do now is go and get the cash and send the funds through western union to Mr Edward so he can ship out te units immediately and i want you to do as instructed now........you said i your last mail that whatever i think is the best,so my best now is for you to send the funds to the shipper through western union to his information i sent you and hope you are not trying to play pranks on my money.....Dont forget i have your full residential details......Hope you get the money sent out soonest and hope working geatly on my units....Thanks

Me: What do you mean, you have my full residential details? Is that a threat? I went to all the trouble to arrange my schedule for Monday to make it easy on Mr. Edwards. I am not sure I want to do the repair work on your computers now. I will have to think about it.

sandrarose01@gmail.com: Hello Scott,i am very very sorry,It's just that i want both parties to be understandable so dont be mad at me now and i will be highly elated seeing you work on my units....so i will like you to bear with me....all you need to do now so that we can proceed fast on this transaction is to get the funds out and have it sent to the shipper through western union......please i am very sorry for all this inconveniencies but i will also like you to do as instructed and have the money sent out now.....once again Mr Scott,i am very sorry and hope reading back from you with western union details and how you have it penned down...its really nice doing business with you now and hoipe doing kore in the nearest future.....Thanks

Me: Okay, this is starting to get boring now and I don't want to waste any more time with it.
People here in America know about your stupid scam, and you aren't even very good at it.

It was interesting that you could accuse me of "playing pranks with your money", when the whole point of this was to steal money from me. Your mother must be so proud.

Since I won't hear from you again after this, I would encourage you strongly to get a real job and stop stealing from people who work for their money.

Not surprisingly, I never heard from her again even though I was still willing to unfailingly work on her computers. Always be watching out for the bad guys!

Great video this week - You have to watch these in order. The first one is a scene from the 2004 movie Miracle, about the US Olympic hockey team that pulled off an amazing upset victory from the Soviets. This scene is Coach Brooks (Kurt Russell) giving the pre-game pep talk to his team. The second video is the same scene, but performed by someone else.

Adam's computer story

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 00:04:00 +0000

My 11-year old nephew was assigned to write a monologue for Drama class. This is what he wrote. Good job, Adam!

The Computer’s Woes

Computer: The computer is a wealth of knowledge if you care to know. But sometimes you use me for other purposes which my hard drive hates very much. You can use me for information, yet you use me for games. Why must you not heed my knowledge? There’s other things on here other than pinball, pal! I mean, if you just searched arcade games, you’d save time, gas, and money instead of going to the arcade. You want to see what something’s like? USE ME!

“But do you want to know what hurts me the most, user? When p, p, p… when people mistake me for a monitor! We’re two different things, you see. I’m the big “useless” block on the bottom shelf that has the information. The monitor is the one who displays my knowledge. But who gets the credit for my work? The monitor, of course! It hurts, man! It hurts right there. In my hard drive.

“So what I’m trying to say, user, is could you spend more time with me? Don’t mistake me for the monitor. Don’t waste gas and buy stuff you haven’t researched on me. Don’t call me the big, useless block on the bottom shelf. I want to be more. I want to work to my full potential. Use me! Use me to the best of your ability! Use me to learn! Use me to help you, ‘cause that helps me. Thank you, user. Thank you for understanding my feelings.”

Speed up your Firefox

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 07:00:00 +0000

Even though Internet Explorer has improved greatly with version 8, I still much prefer Firefox because it is so customizable. However, it can be slow to open sometimes.

Here's a free program to speed up Firefox - it's called Speedyfox. Get it here.

All you have to do is download the file, then click to run it - it doesn't even install anything on your computer. It just optimizes your Firefox profile.

You do have to close any open Firefox windows when you run this program. I ran it on my computer, and Firefox does open more quickly now. Give it a shot, and let us know what you think in the Comments.

This week's video is a good example of a politician who is more than a little wacko. Glad I don't live in that town! (Update to this video story is here.)

My current software recommendations

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 07:00:00 +0000

I get asked fairly often about what is the best antivirus program to use, what antispyware program should be used, etc. Today I am going to summarize what my current recommendations are. Keep in mind, these recommendations change from time to time.

Whenever these things do change, I will do another blog post like this. As long as you are subscribed and read my blog on Mondays, you will be kept up to date.

Antivirus: AVG Free (free)
About a year ago I was recommending the paid version of AVG in order to get the full-time spyware protection (I actually got a two-year subscription myself). You can now get that less expensively (and just as effectively) with another product. If you have the fully paid version of AVG, that's fine. But when combined with the next item in this list, the free version should be all you need. Get it here.

Antispyware: Malwarebytes full version ($24.95)
This is the other important component to protect your computer from malicious software, also known as spyware. Many people have spyware on their computer and they don't even know it. Malwarebytes detects several types of spyware that AVG does not cover, such as several browser hijackers. The full version costs $24.95 (one time, not a subscription) and runs all the time in the background, stopping the junk from getting in. It's a lot cheaper than hiring someone to remove it for you. Get it here.

Automatic backup: Karen's Replicator (free)
I have been using this program and installing it on customer's computers for years. Once everything is configured properly, it just copies your important files from your computer to an external drive on a regular schedule. It is important that you don't have to remember to do it - that's what makes it virtually foolproof. The trick is deciding what needs to be backed up, and putting it all in the right place to start with. Get it here.

Web browser: Firefox (free)
This is another program that I have been recommending for a long time. If you are using Internet Explorer version 7 or 8, you might like to try Firefox. If you are still using Internet Explorer 6, you need to either upgrade IE, or switch to Firefox (for security purposes). You can check your version by clicking Help - About. I love Firefox because it is so customizable. I have it set so that I don't see any ads on any of the websites I visit, and I don't see any Flash content unless I choose to. I can also group bunches of websites together and have them come up in a group, each in its own tab. All of these configurations are done through "add-ons" - there are thousands of them and they are all free. Get it here.

MS Office alternative: Google Docs (free)
If you are sick of paying Microsoft hundreds of dollars each time you want to upgrade to the latest version of Word or Excel, consider using Google Docs. You just need a free Google account (if you have a Gmail account, you have a Google account). This free service from Google allows you to create documents and spreadsheets with the .doc and .xls extension, just as if they were created with Word and Excel. When you email one of these to someone, it will open in MS Office just like any other document. An added bonus is that the files can be stored "in the cloud" (actually on Google's servers), so that you can allow others to read or even edit those documents (with varying levels of access). Get it here.

Screen shot software: Gadwin's (free)
I started using this program over a year ago, and now I use it almost every day. It makes it quick and easy for you to take part of your screen and paste it into an email or a document. If you are trying to describe an error message, it's much easier to just show the other person than to try to tell what it looks like or what it says. I did a full review of Gadwin's on my blog a while back, and the people that use it now seem to love it as much as I do! Make sure you get Print Screen, which is free (not Print Screen Professional). Get it here.

PDF file reader: Foxit Reader (free)
If you have not changed anything on your computer, you are still opening PDF files with Adobe Reader. It is free too, but it is severely bloated and it hogs memory. Plus Adobe is constantly sending out updates to it which are annoying and they interrupt my work. Foxit Reader is a simple little program, and all it does is read PDF documents. That's all I want it to do, so it's perfect. When you download and install it, watch out for check boxes that are checked by default to add toolbars and other junk to your computer. I have made this my default PDF reader and it does fine. Get it here.

Do you have other programs that you like? Tell us about them in the comments.

This week's video: How does this guy do this?

Note to AVG antivirus users

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 07:00:00 +0000

I have received a few emails from people asking about an email they received from AVG. The email says that their AVG antivirus subscription has expired (or is about to expire), and it offers them a chance to purchase another year of updates.

I received this notification myself, even though my AVG was not expired, or even close to expiring.

It seems that a lot of these emails are being sent out in error. To make sure yours is not about to expire, open the AVG User Interface and look in the lower left corner:

This coming Monday, I will be outlining my current recommendations for antivirus, antispyware and other programs that you should be running on your computer. These recommendations change from time to time, but as long as you are subscribed to my newsletter and/or this blog, you will be kept informed.

Update: one day after this post, I received the following email:

Hello Scott,

I'm involved in social media for AVG through their primary PR firm (Rocket Science), and I just saw this post that you wrote about AVG: http://www.computertutorflorida.com/blog/2009/09/note-to-avg-antivirus-users.html

I want you to know that AVG is paying attention to what you're saying and they're very focused on improving the experience for their users.
I've notified them about this issue that you brought up so that they can look into it.

I appreciate your feedback, and please don't hesitate to contact me directly if you have comments, questions, or concerns that you'd like to pass along at any time. We'd love to hear more about what you'd like to see AVG improve on.

Thanks!

Brandon Watts
Rocket Science ®

So at least AVG is aware of the issue and should be taking care of it.

How to trace an email

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 07:00:00 +0000

There may be some situations in which you want to trace the origins of an email you received. In most cases, the reason is to track down a spammer in order to report him/her to the proper authorities. Right now I am in the middle of playing along with an amateur scammer who is trying to con me out of some money (when it is all played out I will do a complete blog post with that story). Tracing an email would come in handy in a case like that.

There is a website that makes it easy for you to trace an email. Here it is.

Before going to that site, you need to get the email header information from the email itself. The header is where all the details are about that email - sender, receiver, date, IP address of the sender, etc. (If you are not sure how to get the header of an email, here are the instructions.)

When you have found the email header info, highlight all of it and hit Ctrl + C on your keyboard. Then, go to the website I linked to above and click once inside the big text box labeled "". Once it is all in there, click the button that says "Trace email sender".

The next screen will show you an analysis of the email, including a map showing the geographical location where it originated. It won't give you the name and address of the sender, but at least the information provided may guide you in the right direction.

Of course, this is not foolproof. Professional spammers have software that creates "spoof" header information in order to remain anonymous.

This week's video is a commercial for a product I have not heard of before. Have any of you used a snot bottle? Interesting idea anyway.

Remove spyware from your computer

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 11:33:00 +0000

How to get rid of spam

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 07:00:00 +0000

I received this question from my friend Paul recently:

Scott,

My Spam Filter subscription for my earthlink.net email address and Outlook Express recently expired. Spam Filters could be a possible topic for your Blog and it would give me your present recommendation for a good spam filter. I would prefer an inexpensive, easy, efficient and not hoggish piece of software. Free would be nice but not necessary.

Spam is something that most people hate. I say "most" people, because there is a small percentage of people that actually get one of those detestable emails, click on it, and end up sending the spammer money. That is the only reason spam continues. If no one bought, there would be no incentive to keep sending out millions of emails each day advertising pharmaceuticals that make your body parts bigger (or smaller), chances to play the European lottery, or offers from a Nigerian prince to help him with his "inheritance".

Personally, I almost never see a single piece of spam in my email inbox. My secret? I use Gmail, the free email service from Google. I have written before about why you should use Gmail instead of the email account that comes with your internet provider. One of those reasons is that Gmail has a great spam filter.

But let's get back to Paul's question. Does the Gmail email account meet his 4 criteria for solving his spam problem?

1. Inexpensive - that's easy, since Gmail is completely free. If you use it with Thunderbird, Outlook or Outlook Express, you won't even see any ads.

2. Easy - all you do is sign up for your free account, then go to Gmail.com to check your email. You can check your email from any computer, anywhere, as long as it has an internet connection.

3. Efficient - Gmail's spam filter is extremely efficient. I would say the accuracy rate is greater than 99%.

4. Not a hoggish piece of software - another easy one - there is no software at all to install. It is all web-based.

So there you have it, the solution to spam. What will Google think of next?

Do you have a different spam solution? Click the Comments link below and tell us!

This week's video - what 2 little kids do while Mommy's away and Daddy's on the computer (probably playing Farmtown or something). I like how he says, "Look what you guys did" - as if he is not the one responsible.

Computer repair in Clearwater, Florida

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 02:56:00 +0000

I just created this 3-minute video to promote my computer repair service:

Make an adjustment to Office 2007

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 07:00:00 +0000

Many people have now upgraded to Microsoft Office 2007. It takes a little getting used to, because Microsoft moved things around a bit. But you will get used to it, don't worry.

There is one thing that is different about the 2007 version that you really need to change. If you create a Word document and save it, by default it will give it a .docx extension. So for example, instead of your file name being resume.doc, it will be resume.docx instead.

If you are the only one viewing this file, it's no problem. However - if you email that Word file to someone that is using an earlier version of Office, they won't be able to open it. Earlier versions can only open .doc files. So, you have to "Save As" and choose to save it as a Word 97-2003 file. That way, anyone you send it to will be able to open it.

But it becomes a real pain having to do that with every file you save. Instead, you can tell Word to save your files by default that way. Here's how:

1. Open Word
2. Click the Office logo in the upper left corner, and click on "Word options"
3. Click the Save tab
4. Under "Save files in this format" choose "Word 97-2003 document (*.doc)
5. Click OK

If you don't do this, you will get email back from people saying, "I can't open that file!" Now you know how to avoid that problem. If you use Excel, go through the same procedure as outlined above to fix it as well.

This week's video is about an uninvited guest who helps himself to some wedding cake:

Access another computer remotely - for free

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 07:00:00 +0000

Some of you will already be somewhat familiar with this week's topic. When I first started doing computer repair and instruction by remote access, the program I used was LogMeIn (www.logmein.com). I use a different program now for when I access a customer's computer remotely, but I do still use LogMeIn when I need to access my office computer from home (or vice versa).

When you first set up your account for the free version, you will automatically get a 30-day trial of the paid version - that has some extra features that you probably don't really need (such as remote sound and remote printing). After 30 days, you will just automatically revert to the free version.

Let's say you want to be able to access your work computer from your home. You would need to set up an account for your work computer, and download the software. It's an easy installation, just like installing a game or any other simple program.

When the installation is completed, restart your computer and look in the system tray (lower right corner of the screen). You should see the Log Me In icon there. It looks like a gray box with little blue circles in it:

Now, all you have to do is go home and get on your home computer. Go to www.logmein.com and log in to your account with the user name and password you created. You should see your computer listed there as a clickable link with the name you assigned to it (I call mine "Scottworkpc"). Click that link and enter the computer code that you created in the installation process, and then click "Remote Control", and you will see your work computer's desktop screen just like you were sitting there at your desk.

As you use it, you will notice that there is a slight lag in processing time, but overall it is virtually the same as being there. Very handy when you need it. If you have heard the ads for "Go to Meeting", this is the same thing - except GoToMeeting.com is a free trial then about $45 per month. I prefer free.

This week's video is a prank on some customers in a restaurant:

A good example of bad parenting

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 07:00:00 +0000

(click image to see full size)

How to post a blog comment

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 07:00:00 +0000

I have received enough questions about this that I think it is worth posting instructions.

You may have noticed that sometimes in my blog posts I encourage you to post comments. Every blogger wants lots of comments. It makes the blog overall more effective, and it helps in establishing a presence with Google. In addition, if someone reads my post and has more information to contribute, the comments section is the perfect place to do that because then everyone can benefit (as opposed to just emailing me with the info). I would love to see lots of comments after each of my posts.

But some have mentioned that they are confused about how to post comments. Here's how to do it.

First, look just past the end of the article to the link that says "Comments". It will have a number right before it, indicating how many comments have been left so far. If there are no comments left yet, it will say "0 comments".

When you click that link, it will take you to a new page that still shows the article, but below that will be a text box where you can type in what you want to say. Type your comments there, whether a few words or a few paragraphs.

Right below the text box, there is a drop down menu that looks like this:

This is where you have the option of how you wish to identify yourself. If you have a Google (Gmail) account, you can choose that. It will then ask for your Google user ID and password, and that is how you will be identified. If you have an account at any of the other places listed, you can use that information if you wish.

The last two items on the menu will be the ones most commonly used. "Name/URL" means that you can type your name, and you can enter the URL of your website. This is useful if you have your own website that you want to promote, because it gives other readers the chance to click on that link and visit your site. And "Anonymous" just means that you won't be identified in any way at all.

After that, you can preview your comment if you wish, or just post it. If you want to be notified when someone leaves a comment after yours, you can click the link that says "Subscribe by email", and you will get an email whenever that happens (only for this specific blog post).

Hope that helps! You can practice leaving comments on this post if you want.

You've heard this from me before

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 07:00:00 +0000

Had an incident happen this week that gives me a good excuse to talk about one of my favorite subjects: setting up an automated backup procedure. (Sorry if this week's post ends on a somewhat self-promotional note, but I don't care - I know that many of you reading this are procrastinators and haven't set up any kind of backup. You need to hear this.)

I got a call from someone here local to me here in the Tampa Bay area (I'll call her Laura for this story). Laura was in a pretty desperate situation. Her laptop computer hard drive had died a few days ago. Not really knowing what to do, she took it to the local CompUSA store. They put in a new hard drive and reinstalled Windows so the computer is now running, but all of her data was on the old drive. This data is absolutely critical to her business, and it was a huge deal for her to get it back.

So CompUSA was assigned the job of recovering the data. Laura made it very clear to them that time was of the essence. She soon found out that her definition of "urgent" was very different from theirs. You have to keep in mind that these guys make about $10 an hour - maybe less - and they have no personal interest in your situation.

Complicating matters was the fact that apparently only one of their techs has any idea about how to recover data from a crashed drive. Of course, he doesn't work 7 days a week. CompUSA had the computer for 2 days and it wasn't even close to being done. Then the guy working on it was off on Saturday, so no progress was being made. Finally, Laura started looking on Google for alternatives and that's when she found me.

We met at the CompUSA store and picked up her old hard drive. I was able to transfer the data from that drive to an external hard drive, then we put it all back on her laptop. I cannot figure out how CompUSA was not able to do that. But I have written about the big box stores and their shoddy repair work before.

Here's the lesson: Set up an automated backup procedure!
Laura was lucky, because the data on her old drive was recoverable and not completely corrupted by the crash. This is not always the case. Your drive can crash at any time without warning, and your data could be permanently lost or corrupted. Don't put yourself in that position!

No matter where you are, if you are on a high-speed internet connection, I can set up your backup procedure so you never have to worry about your computer crashing and losing all of your important data and pictures. Whether it is a local backup to an external drive, or an online backup, it will all be automated so you don't have to worry about losing anything. Don't put this off any longer!

Call me and we will solve this problem together: 727-254-9078.

This week's video - Rowan Atkinson on stage with his invisible drums. Pretty clever.

Easiest way to share files

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 07:00:00 +0000

I recently discovered a wonderful free service, which I now use almost every day. It's called Dropbox. It's described as a way to "sync your files online and across computers" and that is exactly what it does. I'll tell you how it works, then give a couple of examples of how you might find it very useful.

When you go to the Dropbox website you can sign up for a free account. Then click to download and install the small application to your computer. When you do that, there is a new folder added to your My Documents folder - that new folder is called My Dropbox. This new folder acts like any other folder on your computer. You can store Word documents in that folder, pictures, whatever you want.

Here's the big advantage that folder has - you can access it from another computer. You can access those files from another computer by either logging on to the Dropbox website with your account, or you can install the Dropbox folder on the second computer and link it to your account. This might sound a little complicated - trust me, it's not.

Here are a couple of examples of how it might work.

Example #1
Let's say you have a computer at home, and a computer at work. Or you can have your computer at home, and your spouse's computer at home. Whatever the situation, you want to share a file from Computer A to Computer B or vice versa. Once Dropbox is installed on both computers, it's a piece of cake! Computer A can open the file, work on it, make changes, and save it. When Computer B opens that file from the My Dropbox folder, it shows all of the updates and changes that Computer A made. It's the same file. It doesn't matter if Computers A and B are in different rooms, or different continents.

I use this all the time for work. I have an Excel spreadsheet that I work on regularly from work, and also from home. I just store the file in the Dropbox folder on both computers, and I can access easily from either place. No more emailing files to myself. And if there are several people collaborating on one document, it makes it easy for everyone to access the same file.

Example #2
How about if you want to share a large file with someone - a file that is too large to email? There are a few services that will enable that, but it's kind of cumbersome. In your Dropbox folder, there is a subfolder called Public. Just store the file in there. For those files, you can right-click and get the public URL, then just paste that link into an email. When your friend gets the email, he can just click on the link and download the file. Easy!

There are definitely other uses for this services, but these are the most common. The service is free for up to 2 GB of data, which is more than enough for most people. If you have files totaling more than that, you can get their paid version.

I know that Google Docs provides a similar way to collaborate on Word and Excel files. This is just another option, and with Dropbox you aren't limited to just those 2 file types.

This week's video is for all teachers. Sometimes this is what a kid like this needs. Of course, if a teacher in a US classroom did this, the ACLU would have him fired.

Who just got arrested?

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 07:00:00 +0000

With the internet, we have more information available at our fingertips than ever before in the history of the world. Some of that is educational, some of it is thought-provoking, and some is entertaining. This week I'll let you in on a website that is all three.

Here in the Tampa Bay area, there is a website that publishes all of the mugshots of people that have been arrested within the last 24 hours, along with their personal information and what they were charged with. You can see it at mugshots.tampabay.com. My son pointed it out to me a little while ago. I must say, it can get rather addicting.

Some observations:

- These people have not been convicted, just arrested. But you know many of them are career criminals.

- Most of them look pretty "hardened", which is what happens when you live outside the law much of the time.

- When you come across one that looks like a "normal" person, like someone who would be standing in line next to you at the grocery store, the charge is usually DUI. They are not necessarily a habitual criminal (so they don't look like one), they were just stupid enough to drink and drive.

- I look at these faces and just wonder, what is the story behind that picture? What is their life really like? When a 72 year old guy gets arrested for battery/domestic violence, where did his life get so off track? And when I see the 17 year old that got arrested for carjacking, I have to wonder what is in store for him for the rest of his life.

These are some people that lead lives that are very different from yours and mine. Sometimes it's interesting to just look at them and see who they are. Most major cities publish this information online. And you never know - someday you might see someone you know!

This week's video is about the most spoiled girl in the world. And the most ignorant parents in the world. Coincidentally, they are all in the same family.

Great coupon for Borders - this weekend only

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 22:23:00 +0000

If you are near a Border's Books store, they are offering a coupon that is good for this weekend only.

Good for:

$10 off a hardcover book over $35

$10 off a computer book or one blu-ray disc

$5 off one cookbook, one history book, one CD or one DVD

$2 off one magazine, one fiction book, or one kids book

Free medium beverage when you buy a bag of coffee beans

This is only valid with your Borders Rewards membership, but that's free anyway. Gonna go get me a new computer book!

Get the coupon here

UPDATE: Went to Border's, got my $9.99 computer book at no charge (didn't even pay sales tax). Then, for joining the Borders Rewards club I got another $5 coupon good toward anything for the next 10 days.

Air France mid-air crash pictures

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 07:00:00 +0000

You may receive an email forward that claims to have pictures of the cabin of the Air France plane that crashed recently. According to the email, there was a "brave photographer" on board who continued snapping pictures even as the plane was breaking up in the air before crashing into the ocean. The pictures were recovered from the memory card of a digital camera that was found in the wreckage. Here are the pictures (click to see full size):

What an amazing find! Right? Well, not so fast.

First, if you have a bunch of friends who are in the habit of forwarding to you every crazy email they receive...you need to find some new friends. But that's another story.

Let's think about this. If you were on a plane that was breaking apart in mid-air and about to crash into the open sea, what would you do? I don't think any of us knows what we would do until we are put in that situation, but I kind of doubt that I would start looking for my digital camera to catch a few snapshots.

But what about those pictures? They sure do look real, don't they? Yes, and they should look real, because those pictures are still shots from a television video. The video was a promo for the first season of the show Lost. If you watched that show, you might recognize the girl in the front row at the left side of the photo - actress Evangeline Lilly. She was traveling under arrest - that's why she is wearing a handcuff on her right hand.

Still not convinced? Watch the first few seconds of the video from which these pictures were taken:

Remember the cardinal rule of email: if it tells you to send it to all your friends, immediately hit the Delete button.

This week's video: the people in this clip I believe are speaking German, but how can she be laughing during a parachute crash?

Any honest computer repair places?

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Johnson) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 07:31:00 +0000

I do computer repair in Clearwater, Safety Harbor, Oldsmar and Palm Harbor (or you can bring your computer to me from anywhere and I will diagnose it and fix it). I have written before about the Geek Squad. I have had so many people tell me stories about when they went there for computer repair, and three things happen consistently:

1. The computer is in the shop for several days or weeks

2. The data on the computer gets deleted

3. The prognosis for computer repair is grim - and expensive

Like any business, there are scammers in the computer repair business. It's kind of like when you take your car to a mechanic when it starts making a funny noise. You really have to trust that person to tell you the truth (fortunately I have an honest mechanic).

For most people, the computer represents a big part of your life. You have important documents and pictures on there, and you use it probably daily to do your work, communicate, and many other functions. When it stops working correctly (or stops working completely), you are in a vulnerable position because you need it back and you need it to work.

That's why my first step before doing any computer repair is to make sure that all important data is backed up separately. I strongly encourage everyone to have a regular backup system in place anyway.

My other important policy is to not keep your computer forever. I know you need it back as quickly as possible. While I have your computer, I am in regular contact with you to let you know the progress. Many of my computer repair jobs are completed within 24 hours. I can't promise that, but that's often the case.

This week's video shows what the Geek Squad is all about. The only thing wrong with this computer was a loose cable - otherwise it was working perfectly. Yet when the customer gets the computer back home, it doesn't work. I love it when scammers get exposed publicly.