ComputingInFrance.co.uk

Support Help 4 Heroes with your old Computer

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:00:00 GMT

On the Total France forum, there is a posting asking for help to raise money for Help4Heroes. The charity helps the wounded who served in the armed forces. Seems like a worthy cause to me so I am going to ask for you to help as well.

The posting asks for old and unused computers to be given to the charity. They plan to update and sell them to help raise money. From the posting on Total France...

If you have an old machine that is just sitting there unused and unwanted or are upgrading to a newer model please do not just throw it away. If there is something on the machine that you want to keep or details that are personal, let me know and these can be transferred elsewhere or deleted beyond recovery.

If you can help, please get in touch either through this forum or Email me at "john.hill@h4hcounty.org.uk" and arrangements can be made to either collect or deliver.

More about the charity can be found on their official website.

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What does Google know about you?

Fri, 6 Nov 2009 09:00:00 GMT

Do you want to know what Google knows about you? Well now you can, the Google Dashboard will show you which Google sites you have joined and what sort of information has been recorded. The search engine collects information when you use any of it's services. It can also record all the searches you have performed.

There has been lots of comment around the Internet about the way search engines collect information about their users and what they would do with it. Google mainly uses it to enhance their advertising system, AdWords.

Does it concern you that Google and other search engines know a lot about what you do on the Internet?

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Google Chrome and Firefox, updates and market share

Wed, 4 Nov 2009 09:00:00 GMT

If you are a Google Chrome user then you may want to upgrade or install the latest version, Chrome 4 Beta. There are many new improvements such as shared bookmarks, 30% speed enhancement and better HTML 5 capabilities.

Chrome is now the 4^th most widely used browser with a world wide market share of 3.6%

Even better news is that FireFox now has a bigger market share than Internet Explorer 6. You can find more on the break down of market share for each browser with this article on Ars Technica, 'October 2009 browser stats: Firefox finally passes IE6'

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Email scams: Facebook and Outlook Express

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:00:00 GMT

There seems to be no end to the scam type emails floating around at the moment. I hate having to give out warnings but I don't want anyone falling foul of them. I received yesterday an email addressed to 'Facebook user'. For a start Facebook knows my full name, also the hyperlinked addresses go to sites that end in .eu after a lot of extra characters. Here is the text of the email so you can spot them if you get them.

facebook
Dear Facebook user, In an effort to make your online experience safer and more enjoyable, Facebook will be implementing a new login system that will affect all Facebook users. These changes will offer new features and increased account security.
Before you are able to use the new login system, you will be required to update your account.
Click [here] to update your account online now. If you have any questions, reference our New User Guide. Thanks,
The Facebook Team
This message was intended for acceptance@sizenet.com.
Facebook's offices are located at 1601 S. California Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94304.

I put in the square brackets so you can see where the link was.

Another email that is doing the rounds is about OutLook express. It claims that a security update has been performed and you need to apply it you need to click a link. The email contains an .EXE file that will infect your system and try to steal sensitive information. More information can be found from the Security Labs website.

As ever, make sure you antivirus software is up to date, firewall is running and have a good anti spyware program.

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Is Windows 7 worth upgrading? For Vista users - yes

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:00:00 GMT

As you may know, Microsoft's latest incarnation of Windows is now available. Windows 7 has been hailed as being the true successor to Windows XP and that Vista was more than a small mistake. There are two ways to install the latest and greatest depending on what you have already.

The article on the BBC website, Windows 7: How to upgrade your computer details how the writer Tim Weber got on with a clean install and an upgrade. Upgrades are only available to Vista users so Windows XP users must make sure they have made backups of all their important files.

One word of warning, from the BBC article, the upgrade may take a long long time.

So is Windows 7 worth the trouble?
The upgrade process, while much improved, is clearly still fraught with dangers. And yes, one could call it botched; something like the 62% error should not happen in a "release-to-manufacture" version of Windows 7. During the next few weeks, when thousands of users go through the upgrade process, we will find out whether their problems are as small as mine or whether we are dealing with a major problem.
So the clean install route, however, is definitely the preferred option. It has extended the life expectancy of my old computer, and improved the speed and mobile capabilities of my netbook. Microsoft seems to have worked hard with its partners to make Windows 7 compatible even with old hardware and software.

So are you planning to upgrade? Will Window XP users want to?

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So why does my computer crash?

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 09:00:00 GMT

So why does an operating system crash and you loose everything you have been working on? Windows has it's famous BSOD display, that is – Blue Screen Of Death. That blue screen with white writing that means your computer has come to a dead stop.

If you want to know more about that and why it happens then take a look at this article from the Gizmodo website, Giz Explains: Why Stuff Crashes (And Why It Happens Less Often Now)...

There's all kinds of new hotness in Snow Leopard and Windows 7, but what's old and busted is when stuff crashes, even on the newest OSes. This is how that happens, and why it's thankfully happening less and less.
There are about a bajllion ways for a computer to crash, from hardware to software, so we're going to start with the little crashes and work our way towards kernel panics and BSODs.

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Fake virus warnings, avoid them and their software

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 09:00:00 GMT

Warnings are being issued with regard to fake warnings and software. They advise you that your computer is infected and their software will remove it. They sometimes appear in a new window above or below the site in your main browser window.

The warnings and software is just an attempt to get your credit card details. What makes it easy for the scammers is the low price for the software for which most people will pay. The ill informed user also gets panicked because they, like many, do not want a virus on their computer.

Just because a browser window tells you that you have a problem does not mean that you have. For a start, browser windows have limited access to your computer and would not be able to tell if you have a virus.

Best advice is if in any doubt at all, don't. Go direct to a known antivirus site and get the download direct. Many offer free trials and some have totally free versions for home use only.

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Microsoft to release big update, fixes 34 bugs

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 09:00:00 GMT

Microsoft's big update is due tomorrow (13th October 2009) with 13 bulletins that deals with 34 bugs. Some of the bugs are in use by hackers so it is very important that you apply this fixes as soon as possible. Microsoft update should take care of it but if not then check out the Update website.

The update fixes a loophole in Internet Explorer 8 on Windows 7. This latest incarnation of Windows is not available until 22nd October.

Nicolas Sarkozy is a DVD pirate

Fri, 9 Oct 2009 09:00:00 GMT

If you had made 400 unauthorised copies of a DVD and you were found out, you would think the French Government, the Hadopi guys, would take offense? Especially as the creater of that DVD has only delivered 50 copies?

Nicolas Sarkozy, the backer and foremost pusher of the 'French Internet Law' has been accused of making illegal copies of 'A visage decouvert: Nicolas Sarkozy.', a 52 minute film. In fact it's the presidential audiovisual services that has produce the unauthorised copies.

So this his 'first strike'? Nope, it appears it is his second. If he keeps this up he will lose his Internet connection!

From BoingBoing, Nicolas "Copyright" Sarkozy mass-pirates DVDs

The French satirical investigative journalism weekly "Le Canard Enchaîn�" reveals that our holier-than-thou presidency is in fact a pirate's lair. In a stunning display of hypocrisy, the presidential audiovisual services produced 400 unauthorized copies of the 52 minutes documentary "A visage d�couvert : Nicolas Sarkozy"...

It is even more appalling that we are dealing with repeat offenders : last spring, while the Hadopi law was discussed, U.S. music duo MGMT received €30,000 as a settlement for a copyright infringement by French President Nicolas Sarkozy's party who used one of its songs at a political rally without permission. Those who led the charge against Internet users are not the most respectful of copyright.

For more on Hadopi Internet Law and previous mentions take a look at Hadopi passed by French Government, soon to be made law

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Hotmail, Yahoo and Google email suffer from online attacks

Thu, 8 Oct 2009 09:00:00 GMT

Your may of heard about the recent attacks on Hotmail email accounts using phishing tactics, how they have been broken in to and that passwords have been stolen. There has been a fair bit of coverage in the last few days as more details have come to light. The BBC has a Q & A on exactly what 'phishing' is...

Phishing is a broad term for any effort to gain personal data, directly from the user - login details, passwords, bank account details, etc. - by tricking them into entering it into a website or email.

It is a form of "social engineering", where the real power lies in the manipulation of behaviour, rather than technological prowess. As such, careful consumers can often avoid falling into the phishing trap.

If you are worried about your online email accounts then take a read of the following...

BBC: Web mail scam propagates itself
BBC: 'Phishing' raids in US and Egypt
Infopackets: Hotmail Leak:Phishers Make off with Thousands of Passwords
BBC: Google targeted in e-mail scam
PC Pro: 12345 most popular stolen Hotmail password
Network World: Gmail, Yahoo Mail join Hotmail; passwords exposed

Google has forced a password reset on all accounts but it is good practice to change your password often. One trick I read is to use a word that is not in a dictionary as hackers can use one to attempt to break in to online accounts.

Always make sure your anti spyware and anti virus programs are up to date, make sure you are using a quality firewall to protect your PC.

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