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  1. <?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><rss xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:openSearch="http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/" xmlns:blogger="http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008" xmlns:georss="http://www.georss.org/georss" xmlns:gd="http://schemas.google.com/g/2005" xmlns:thr="http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0" version="2.0"><channel><atom:id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450</atom:id><lastBuildDate>Tue, 05 Mar 2024 09:31:48 +0000</lastBuildDate><title>Court&#39;s Blog</title><description></description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/</link><managingEditor>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</managingEditor><generator>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>97</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>25</openSearch:itemsPerPage><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-3066318841892541007</guid><pubDate>Sat, 06 Jan 2018 15:19:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2018-01-06T10:19:51.381-05:00</atom:updated><title>That new computer, how pretty</title><description>
  2.  
  3. &lt;br /&gt;
  4. &lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  5. &lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQRC1EHPzlXftr3JKqv0EuVCvgwkkTUiB4YZRtVNAnFvkZe1hiteTFcvCKvnLzx4CHe2DSDSPuF0bQOHH9bGhUG_7yh7cvmh81C8Nxp9Z72fT8S_ZLcv0YoS-7VedHoLI-xdJsegKzuWE/s1600/ces-2017-new-monoblock-computers-asus-zen-aio.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; data-original-height=&quot;699&quot; data-original-width=&quot;750&quot; height=&quot;298&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQRC1EHPzlXftr3JKqv0EuVCvgwkkTUiB4YZRtVNAnFvkZe1hiteTFcvCKvnLzx4CHe2DSDSPuF0bQOHH9bGhUG_7yh7cvmh81C8Nxp9Z72fT8S_ZLcv0YoS-7VedHoLI-xdJsegKzuWE/s320/ces-2017-new-monoblock-computers-asus-zen-aio.jpg&quot; width=&quot;320&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  6. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  7. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;There
  8. it sets. Santa brought a brand new binary buddy sporting the Windows 10
  9. operating system. For some, opening the box, pulling out the PC and setting it
  10. up will be child’s play. For some of us, it will seem as if Shakespeare himself
  11. screams, “cry havoc and let loose the dogs of war.” (Martha, Shakespeare in a
  12. computer column?) But let not the beast convey tribulation to a worried brow. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  13. &lt;br /&gt;
  14. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  15. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;What
  16. information should we gather prior to opening the box? Collect e-mail addresses
  17. and passwords. Make sure we have the name of our wireless network and the
  18. password if we are going to connect to the Internet wirelessly. For folks that use
  19. &lt;a href=&quot;https://my.xfinity.com/?cid=cust&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Comcast&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href=&quot;http://centurylink.net/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Centurylink&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.verizon.com/?lid=//global//residential&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Verizon&lt;/a&gt; or other wireless modem/routers the SSID (network
  20. name) and the password are usually located on a label on the modem. Those of us
  21. that have our own wireless routers will have to find that hidden piece of paper
  22. with the password written on it. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  23. &lt;br /&gt;
  24. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  25. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;If
  26. we have an e-mail address that ends in @msn.com, hotmail.com, live.com, or
  27. outlook.com then half the battle of setting up the computer is done. If we
  28. don’t have one of these don’t worry we have choices. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  29. &lt;br /&gt;
  30. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  31. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;It’s
  32. time to turn on the new computer. Windows will go through a series of questions
  33. before taking us to the desktop for the first time. It will ask us what Country,
  34. language, and keyboard&lt;span style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;layout we want to
  35. use, and to accept the Microsoft License Agreement. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  36. &lt;br /&gt;
  37. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  38. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;Note,
  39. if we don’t accept the agreement the computer won’t work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  40. &lt;br /&gt;
  41. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  42. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;Next
  43. it will ask us to sign into the PC with a Microsoft ID which would be one of
  44. the addresses ending with the extensions mentioned before. Don’t have a
  45. Microsoft e-mail address? There are three choices, create a new Microsoft
  46. account using our existing e-mail address, create a new Microsoft address or to
  47. set up the computer without a Microsoft account. Each choice suffers pros and
  48. cons. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  49. &lt;br /&gt;
  50. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  51. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;Creating
  52. a new Microsoft e-mail address ending in a Microsoft domain is my preferred
  53. method. We can also use our existing e-mail address as the user name for our
  54. new Microsoft account. The dilemma is that we can confuse one with the other.
  55. Example, our regular e-mail is abc@comcast.net with a specific password. We can
  56. use abc@comcast.com as our Microsoft username as well with the same password.
  57. Good so far. However the day will come when we change our Comcast password at
  58. Comcast for our e-mail. However this doesn’t change our Microsoft abc@comcast.net
  59. account password because that must be changed at Microsoft. So thinking that we
  60. changed our password we try to log into our computer with the new password but
  61. that isn’t the password for Microsoft&lt;span style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;
  62. &lt;/span&gt;and we can’t login. Finally we can choose to skip using a Microsoft
  63. account and log in with what is referred to as a local account. This precludes using
  64. Microsoft products, such as &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.skype.com/en/get-skype/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Skype&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href=&quot;https://onedrive.live.com/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;OneDrive&lt;/a&gt;, Mail, Cortana or others. But to
  65. use one or all of the Microsoft Products we will have to create and or use a
  66. Microsoft account.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  67. &lt;br /&gt;
  68. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  69. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;Now
  70. comes setting up our email, moving files from the old computer and installing
  71. any programs we want. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  72. &lt;br /&gt;
  73. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  74. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;My
  75. head is spinning, more next week.&lt;i&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  76. &lt;br /&gt;
  77. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  78. &lt;i&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  79. &lt;br /&gt;
  80. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  81. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  82. &lt;b&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;u&gt;&lt;/u&gt;&lt;sub&gt;&lt;/sub&gt;&lt;sup&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;strike&gt;&lt;/strike&gt;</description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2018/01/that-new-computer-how-pretty.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQRC1EHPzlXftr3JKqv0EuVCvgwkkTUiB4YZRtVNAnFvkZe1hiteTFcvCKvnLzx4CHe2DSDSPuF0bQOHH9bGhUG_7yh7cvmh81C8Nxp9Z72fT8S_ZLcv0YoS-7VedHoLI-xdJsegKzuWE/s72-c/ces-2017-new-monoblock-computers-asus-zen-aio.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-8541029518688722874</guid><pubDate>Thu, 21 Dec 2017 18:05:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2017-12-21T13:05:47.883-05:00</atom:updated><title></title><description>
  83.  
  84. &lt;br /&gt;
  85. &lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  86. &lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm1MZpEXGJhWZ62jVfE8ijjBZvB3lVC5-U84XWB-vis38VYvStMXEsVoa6T4xoJqsIF290IPz-fJ1SzeaEDvGPguNd0LitNJ31xEq1-OhSilqFvXYSDgyRICoUCGFM0vbJIXuCNuwZeUk/s1600/xmas-bike-672x372.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; data-original-height=&quot;372&quot; data-original-width=&quot;672&quot; height=&quot;177&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm1MZpEXGJhWZ62jVfE8ijjBZvB3lVC5-U84XWB-vis38VYvStMXEsVoa6T4xoJqsIF290IPz-fJ1SzeaEDvGPguNd0LitNJ31xEq1-OhSilqFvXYSDgyRICoUCGFM0vbJIXuCNuwZeUk/s320/xmas-bike-672x372.jpg&quot; width=&quot;320&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  87. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  88. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  89. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  90. Twas the night before Christmas when all through the house,&lt;/div&gt;
  91. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  92.  
  93. &lt;/div&gt;
  94. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  95. lights flashed on the tower, tablets and mouse.&lt;/div&gt;
  96. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  97. &lt;/div&gt;
  98. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  99.  
  100. &lt;/div&gt;
  101. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  102. The Webcams were ready, installed with great care. &lt;br /&gt;
  103. In hopes that grandkids would be virtually there.&lt;/div&gt;
  104. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  105. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  106. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  107.  
  108. &lt;/div&gt;
  109. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  110. The children were nestled all snug in their beds,&lt;br /&gt;
  111. While visions of computer games danced in their heads;&lt;/div&gt;
  112. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  113. &lt;br /&gt;
  114. Mamma in her rocker, a tablet on her lap.&lt;/div&gt;
  115. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  116.  
  117. &lt;/div&gt;
  118. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  119. To check Santa’s route on Norads’ tracking map.&lt;/div&gt;
  120. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  121. &lt;br /&gt;
  122. Last minute shopping, I knew it would matter,&lt;/div&gt;
  123. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  124.  
  125. &lt;/div&gt;
  126. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  127. Receipts from the printer were spit with a clatter.&lt;/div&gt;
  128. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  129. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  130. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  131.  
  132. &lt;/div&gt;
  133. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  134. The e-mails and texts began to beep and flash,&lt;/div&gt;
  135. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  136. Away to the laptop I flew in a dash,&lt;/div&gt;
  137. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  138. &lt;br /&gt;
  139. An e-mail from Santa, I pulled from the cache.&lt;/div&gt;
  140. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  141. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  142. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  143.  
  144. &lt;/div&gt;
  145. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  146. The sleigh was loaded, the springs sitting low&lt;br /&gt;
  147. Boxes of computer games, only kids know.&lt;/div&gt;
  148. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  149. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  150. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  151.  
  152. &lt;/div&gt;
  153. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  154. Mars Effect for Tommy, and SIMS 4 for Sue,&lt;/div&gt;
  155. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  156.  
  157. &lt;/div&gt;
  158. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  159. Xbox, Wii, Playstation and Nintendo too.&lt;/div&gt;
  160. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  161. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  162. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  163.  
  164. &lt;/div&gt;
  165. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  166. Neither Mamma nor I had Santa forgot,&lt;/div&gt;
  167. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  168.  
  169. &lt;/div&gt;
  170. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  171. A 4G smartphone and Alexa in the lot.&lt;/div&gt;
  172. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  173. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  174. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  175.  
  176. &lt;/div&gt;
  177. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  178. From a dronecam flying some far away place&lt;/div&gt;
  179. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  180.  
  181. &lt;/div&gt;
  182. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  183. An image so small, across the screen it did race.&lt;/div&gt;
  184. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  185. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  186. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  187.  
  188. &lt;/div&gt;
  189. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  190. What could it be I wondered, what would appear, &lt;br /&gt;
  191. But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,&lt;/div&gt;
  192. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  193. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  194. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  195.  
  196. &lt;/div&gt;
  197. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  198. With a little old driver, so lively and quick,&lt;br /&gt;
  199. I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.&lt;/div&gt;
  200. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  201. &lt;br /&gt;
  202. I toggled the volume and turned it up loud&lt;/div&gt;
  203. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  204.  
  205. &lt;/div&gt;
  206. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  207. As his digital facade flew over the clouds&lt;/div&gt;
  208. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  209. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  210. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  211.  
  212. &lt;/div&gt;
  213. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  214. At the speed of &lt;st1:place w:st=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st=&quot;on&quot;&gt;Moore&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;’s
  215. law his coursers they came,&lt;br /&gt;
  216. And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;&lt;/div&gt;
  217. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  218. &lt;br /&gt;
  219. &quot;Now, Dell! Now, Gates! Now, Jobs and Wosniak!&lt;br /&gt;
  220. On, Bezos! On Ellison! On, Hewlett and Packard!&lt;/div&gt;
  221. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  222. &lt;br /&gt;
  223. To the top of the toolbar! The top of the screen!&lt;/div&gt;
  224. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  225.  
  226. &lt;/div&gt;
  227. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  228. Now pixels are changing, amazed by it all!&lt;/div&gt;
  229. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  230. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  231. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  232.  
  233. &lt;/div&gt;
  234. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  235. The picture expanded as closer he drew&lt;/div&gt;
  236. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  237.  
  238. &lt;/div&gt;
  239. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  240. His exact location surely only he knew.&lt;/div&gt;
  241. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  242.  
  243. &lt;/div&gt;
  244. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  245. But &lt;st1:street w:st=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;st1:address w:st=&quot;on&quot;&gt;Google
  246.  Street&lt;/st1:address&gt;&lt;/st1:street&gt; view offered a hopeful clue.&lt;/div&gt;
  247. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  248. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  249. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  250.  
  251. &lt;/div&gt;
  252. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  253. Just a click of the mouse, our house was in view.&lt;/div&gt;
  254. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  255.  
  256. &lt;/div&gt;
  257. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  258. With the sleigh full of downloads, upgrades and such&lt;/div&gt;
  259. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  260.  
  261. &lt;/div&gt;
  262. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  263. St. Nicholas too, might it be just too much?&lt;/div&gt;
  264. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  265. &lt;br /&gt;
  266. The broadband was humming the router secure&lt;/div&gt;
  267. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  268.  
  269. &lt;/div&gt;
  270. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  271. A shiny new computer I’m sure will allure&lt;/div&gt;
  272. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  273. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  274. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  275.  
  276. &lt;/div&gt;
  277. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  278. Firewalls open for the jolly red elf.&lt;/div&gt;
  279. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  280.  
  281. &lt;/div&gt;
  282. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  283. Presents are coming, surely some for myself.&lt;/div&gt;
  284. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  285. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  286. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  287.  
  288. &lt;/div&gt;
  289. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  290. And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof&lt;br /&gt;
  291. The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.&lt;br /&gt;
  292. &lt;br /&gt;
  293. A mystery for sure I pondered aloud.&lt;/div&gt;
  294. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  295.  
  296. &lt;/div&gt;
  297. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  298. Could Santa be real an answer I vowed.&lt;/div&gt;
  299. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  300. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  301. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  302.  
  303. &lt;/div&gt;
  304. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  305. An Internet search for the jolly St. Nick&lt;/div&gt;
  306. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  307.  
  308. &lt;/div&gt;
  309. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  310. “Santa Claus: could he be real” should turn the trick&lt;/div&gt;
  311. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  312. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  313. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  314.  
  315. &lt;/div&gt;
  316. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  317. Pages and pages of results did appear&lt;/div&gt;
  318. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  319.  
  320. &lt;/div&gt;
  321. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  322. To read them all might take ‘til Christmas next year.&lt;/div&gt;
  323. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  324. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  325. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  326.  
  327. &lt;/div&gt;
  328. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  329. My eyelids grew heavy then started to droop,&lt;/div&gt;
  330. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  331.  
  332. &lt;/div&gt;
  333. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  334. A short nap was needed so I could regroup.&lt;/div&gt;
  335. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  336. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  337. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  338.  
  339. &lt;/div&gt;
  340. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  341. Foggy and confused from my slumber I stirred,&lt;/div&gt;
  342. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  343.  
  344. &lt;/div&gt;
  345. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  346. “You’ve got mail,” from the speakers I heard.&lt;/div&gt;
  347. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  348. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  349. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  350.  
  351. &lt;/div&gt;
  352. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  353. An e-mail from Santa’s own smartphone it said,&lt;/div&gt;
  354. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  355.  
  356. &lt;/div&gt;
  357. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  358. A tight schedule barred his waking me he pled.&lt;/div&gt;
  359. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  360.  
  361. &lt;/div&gt;
  362. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  363. Presents for all under the tree he had spread.&lt;/div&gt;
  364. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  365.  
  366. &lt;/div&gt;
  367. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  368. Click here for a live video feed of the sled.&lt;/div&gt;
  369. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  370. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  371. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  372.  
  373. &lt;/div&gt;
  374. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  375. The digital image danced and sparkled bright.&lt;/div&gt;
  376. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  377.  
  378. &lt;/div&gt;
  379. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  380. Santa driving his sleigh on its magical flight.&lt;/div&gt;
  381. &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  382.  
  383. &lt;/div&gt;
  384. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  385. But he posted to Facebook, ere he drove out of sight,&lt;br /&gt;
  386. &lt;i&gt;&quot;Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good-night.&quot;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  387. &lt;br /&gt;
  388. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  389. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  390. &lt;br /&gt;
  391. &lt;div style=&quot;margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  392. &lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; margin: 0px;&quot;&gt;Court Nederveld owns his
  393. own computer consulting and fixit service –Bits, Bytes &amp;amp; Chips Computer
  394. Services.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  395. &lt;b&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;u&gt;&lt;/u&gt;&lt;sub&gt;&lt;/sub&gt;&lt;sup&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;strike&gt;&lt;/strike&gt;</description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2017/12/twas-night-before-christmas-when-all.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm1MZpEXGJhWZ62jVfE8ijjBZvB3lVC5-U84XWB-vis38VYvStMXEsVoa6T4xoJqsIF290IPz-fJ1SzeaEDvGPguNd0LitNJ31xEq1-OhSilqFvXYSDgyRICoUCGFM0vbJIXuCNuwZeUk/s72-c/xmas-bike-672x372.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-8195008438404634492</guid><pubDate>Sun, 24 Sep 2017 18:47:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2017-09-24T14:47:51.392-04:00</atom:updated><title>Better living through Cell Phones</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  396. &lt;/div&gt;
  397. &lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  398. &lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmd9Plmnu37hOHeLXUKqLoftbUWZSn0L4Tkv2oDeOz7P5UCr_oBANrNfVjyJQXSDIaTp3HOBEmnF0-lRDpKs0L8x3hqWZGiCLg8HwEkRfxVOhhePbZBO90z7BD1JcUhE7T8tkZIM3ZC0o/s1600/flip+phone.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; data-original-height=&quot;348&quot; data-original-width=&quot;180&quot; height=&quot;320&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmd9Plmnu37hOHeLXUKqLoftbUWZSn0L4Tkv2oDeOz7P5UCr_oBANrNfVjyJQXSDIaTp3HOBEmnF0-lRDpKs0L8x3hqWZGiCLg8HwEkRfxVOhhePbZBO90z7BD1JcUhE7T8tkZIM3ZC0o/s320/flip+phone.jpg&quot; width=&quot;165&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  399. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  400. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt;&quot;&gt;This
  401. week a client informed me that they still had an old flip phone and used it
  402. only for emergencies. The question is what denotes an emergency? For many of
  403. us, the smart phone has complemented or replaced our desktop or laptop
  404. computers. But how many of us stretch the capabilities of our smart phones to
  405. their limits. Almost all smart phones are set up to retrieve and send e-mail,
  406. text and messaging. We can use them to shop, check reviews, even move our car
  407. in and out of parking spaces when the spot is a bit tight. But how about simple
  408. day to day tasks that in the past might require separate tools, dangerous
  409. positions, pencil, papers or rulers and tables? For example, I needed a part
  410. for a twenty year old vertical blind. The blind parts company asked for the
  411. model or serial number of the unit to determine which parts it required. Now,
  412. in the old days, I might have gotten out the step ladder, climbed up and
  413. unfastened the blind, taking it down, knocking over the lamp that I set off to
  414. the side so I wouldn’t knock it over, finding the tag and carefully &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 14.6667px;&quot;&gt;ascribed&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;the
  415. numbers and letters on a note pad. But my baby binary buddy, with the camera
  416. set for a selfie, or using the front camera, was able to be held up behind,
  417. over and under the valence while I perused the screen until I found a label.
  418. Now to record that label’s information was a simple touch on the screen and a
  419. photo was taken that could be enlarged if my eyes required it. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  420. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  421. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;Want
  422. to give up car ownership? Put an app on the smart phone for Uber and Lyft. The
  423. Uber app tells us how many Uber cars are nearby, (eight right now) gives three
  424. options ranging from everyday drives to more complex rides. The rate for the
  425. basic ride from Punta Gorda to Murdock for 4 people is $18.92, my credit card
  426. is charged, and according to the app, the car will arrive in nine minutes to
  427. pick us up. In the meantime, I can check out the driver’s customer ratings, see
  428. a picture of the driver and the car. No cash transfers between passenger and
  429. driver unless of course we receive exceptional service which might elicit a
  430. tip. As important as the passengers rating the driver, the driver can also rate
  431. the passengers as to their behavior. Now sell that old car. No insurance, no
  432. registration, go gas, the list goes on. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  433. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  434. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;The
  435. possibilities are endless; an app called Loseit will allow us to track every
  436. calorie we stuff in our mouth. Amazing how when we see the calories consumed
  437. how our hunger seems satisfied much sooner and the pounds seem to fade
  438. away.&amp;nbsp; Another app called Life360 allows
  439. our spouse or others to track our travels, which Martha likes to do when I’m
  440. out on a long bicycle ride around Charlotte County. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  441. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  442. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;What
  443. do you use your smart phone for?&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  444. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  445. &lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt;&quot;&gt;Court Nederveld owns his
  446. own computer consulting and fixit service –Bits, Bytes &amp;amp; Chips Computer
  447. Services. He makes house calls in Punta Gorda/Port Charlotte!&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  448. &lt;br /&gt;
  449. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  450. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  451. </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2017/09/better-living-through-cell-phones.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmd9Plmnu37hOHeLXUKqLoftbUWZSn0L4Tkv2oDeOz7P5UCr_oBANrNfVjyJQXSDIaTp3HOBEmnF0-lRDpKs0L8x3hqWZGiCLg8HwEkRfxVOhhePbZBO90z7BD1JcUhE7T8tkZIM3ZC0o/s72-c/flip+phone.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-4370885064825068995</guid><pubDate>Wed, 13 Sep 2017 19:27:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2017-09-13T15:27:46.744-04:00</atom:updated><title>Windows Security..Your Computer is Infected</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  452. &lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: left;&quot;&gt;
  453. &lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh84oSNtH42cFBIuTfXD-uQEa8ccsI2Mrwm2Jy9OSCQx5t98YFy53UydzMWZAbtW4KCwlYT6QX_DiIZKIAYnBQw9Fep1MVd_OzqBGQ80jryuOwEz1KNH7W_CNjb6YYCW1bQ0D2GF_JTgWk/s1600/fake+virus+report.PNG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; data-original-height=&quot;429&quot; data-original-width=&quot;286&quot; height=&quot;320&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh84oSNtH42cFBIuTfXD-uQEa8ccsI2Mrwm2Jy9OSCQx5t98YFy53UydzMWZAbtW4KCwlYT6QX_DiIZKIAYnBQw9Fep1MVd_OzqBGQ80jryuOwEz1KNH7W_CNjb6YYCW1bQ0D2GF_JTgWk/s320/fake+virus+report.PNG&quot; width=&quot;213&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  454. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt;&quot;&gt;Fake virus infection Web
  455. pages are rampant. By now almost everyone has seen the screen that screams &lt;b&gt;Virus
  456. Alert – Warning”&lt;/b&gt; text within Edge, Internet Explorer, Firefox and Google
  457. Chrome. The screen is actually a popup window and the technical mechanism behind
  458. that fake page is called the iFrame
  459. injection attack, a common kind of XSS (cross site scripting) attack.
  460. That tech jargon isn&#39;t important to us but illustrates that this is not an
  461. infection of our binary buddy, but is a bogus webpage. We can be victims of
  462. this attack by clicking on a compromised link, ad or even surfing a tricked
  463. webpage. Recently the NY Times website was affected by an ad placed by a
  464. scammer. Readers of the NYT were getting these fake webpage popups just from
  465. being on the NYT webpage. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  466. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  467. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt;&quot;&gt;Unfortunately there is little
  468. we as users can do to prevent this attack. It isn&#39;t email based or controlled
  469. by anything on our PC. There are several things we should do however if we see
  470. one of these fake warnings appear on our computer. First and foremost, repeat,
  471. first and foremost, do NOT call the phone number that it says we must call.
  472. Calling this number will lead to a carefully scripted con job, control of our
  473. machine and ultimately their possession of our credit card numbers and removing
  474. $399 from our account.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  475. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  476. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt;&quot;&gt;Now that we know it isn&#39;t
  477. real and just a webpage in our browser, the easiest thing to do is restart the
  478. computer. This causes our browser to close, removing the sham warning page.
  479. Bear in mind that if we simply put the computer to sleep rather than restarting
  480. it the hoax will still be there when the computer wakes up. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  481. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  482. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt;&quot;&gt;If we can&#39;t shut down the
  483. computer then we need to close the browser. The X in the top right corner may
  484. not be accessible so use the mouse to right button click on the time and date
  485. in the corner of our computer. This will open a menu, from the menu left button
  486. click on Task Manager and from the dialogue box highlight our browser, be it
  487. Edge, Chrome, Internet Explorer or Firefox and then click on the button labeled
  488. End Task. This will crash and close the browser. If we then open the browser it
  489. may attempt to take us back to where we were and the hoax page may appear
  490. again. Repeat process and the browser will ask us if we want to restore the
  491. previous pages or start fresh. Choose start fresh. Alternatively, if we are
  492. fast enough, we can open the browser and on the tab at the top for the
  493. counterfeit warning page, click the close X to shut down just that tab.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  494. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  495. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt;&quot;&gt;Finally if all else fails
  496. call a local tech. Not only will they remove the offending webpage, they will
  497. double check for any other issues and in my case try to educate the user on how
  498. to handle this problem the next time it appears. Because it will. Don&#39;t fall
  499. for a rip-off webpage.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  500. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  501. &lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt;&quot;&gt;Court Nederveld owns his
  502. own computer consulting and fixit service –Bits, Bytes &amp;amp; Chips Computer
  503. Services.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
  504. &lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;
  505. &lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt;&quot;&gt;Something special for my blog readers. Over on the right is the ability to purchase my book, Grumbles from the Keyboard. Chock full of tips and tricks. This book is about 4 years old now and it is interesting to see some of the stuff it covers that isn&#39;t even used anymore. But, here is the special deal. I have about 17 copies left and anyone that purchases it from this blog will also get as my gift a copy of my book, Epicuria: Adventures that Really Cook! Yes it is a cookbook and that a computer tech can write a cookbook is worth the price any day. When they&#39;re gone they&#39;re gone so order yours today. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  506. &lt;br /&gt;
  507. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  508. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  509. </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2017/09/windows-securityyour-computer-is.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh84oSNtH42cFBIuTfXD-uQEa8ccsI2Mrwm2Jy9OSCQx5t98YFy53UydzMWZAbtW4KCwlYT6QX_DiIZKIAYnBQw9Fep1MVd_OzqBGQ80jryuOwEz1KNH7W_CNjb6YYCW1bQ0D2GF_JTgWk/s72-c/fake+virus+report.PNG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>1</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-4214927395394140782</guid><pubDate>Sun, 05 Mar 2017 17:17:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2017-03-05T12:17:13.078-05:00</atom:updated><title>Go Where You Want, Not Where You Think You Are!</title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  510. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  511. &lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  512. &lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiol2rCuBYrgbDVO5qK41cWUNp0jIkVb3XDk55xB7S_P_iqFWJaaF4y3yFCCrZNScVXXqLOvEt6kJwevrsZU3jfPRBeCWpTXijv1RJWlUjdd08wd3xEfJ33YKckzYcUXirPgElrXOkuPiY/s1600/ursvssearch.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;216&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiol2rCuBYrgbDVO5qK41cWUNp0jIkVb3XDk55xB7S_P_iqFWJaaF4y3yFCCrZNScVXXqLOvEt6kJwevrsZU3jfPRBeCWpTXijv1RJWlUjdd08wd3xEfJ33YKckzYcUXirPgElrXOkuPiY/s320/ursvssearch.JPG&quot; width=&quot;320&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  513. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  514. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;The
  515. Internet is an amazing resource. It provides information, shopping,
  516. entertainment, how-to, recipes and access to software to accomplish almost any
  517. task. There is a dark side as well that we can avoid with just some simple
  518. common sense actions. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  519. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  520. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;Most
  521. folks get in trouble because they don’t differentiate between a search and a
  522. website address. The easiest way to tell if we are performing a search is after
  523. we type in what we think is the name of the site we are trying to find, a page
  524. with a list of possible results appears. If we actually typed in an address,
  525. the resulting webpage will be the company we wanted to see. Example: if we use
  526. the search field and type in hp support we see a list of websites that have the
  527. words hp and support. But only one of them is going to actually be HP.com. If
  528. we type &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.hp.com/&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;www.hp.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt; in the URL (Universal Resource Locator) usually at
  529. the very top of our web browser (not in a search field) we will see the HP
  530. website appear instead of a list of possibilities. In this exercise, the safe
  531. way to get to HP support is to type &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.hp.com/&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;www.hp.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt; in the URL and then on the
  532. HP page click on the Support tab and then find Contact Us. Now we are actually
  533. talking to HP. This holds true for any company we are trying to find. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  534. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  535. &lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMl57UG5WF96HshnqqE9hgeuzaZnrPoIB-zH6dMoUDCbqx-TtYlGbVZtltbK2K98rKRGXfkHDv5xPNuk8mMoGnRW4LjnrKtlywaW4d2TPCU6KCGBZ-m3rA5e_953izeUenfHcIrAjJ78E/s1600/ErrorMessageNumber-popu.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;144&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMl57UG5WF96HshnqqE9hgeuzaZnrPoIB-zH6dMoUDCbqx-TtYlGbVZtltbK2K98rKRGXfkHDv5xPNuk8mMoGnRW4LjnrKtlywaW4d2TPCU6KCGBZ-m3rA5e_953izeUenfHcIrAjJ78E/s200/ErrorMessageNumber-popu.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;This
  536. week I had my own little goof, I typed way to quickly outlok.com instead of
  537. outlook.com. Immediately a warning popped up and sirens went off telling me my
  538. computer had been infected by the Zeus Trojan virus and unless I called
  539. Microsoft at the number on the screen I would lose all my data and the hard
  540. drive would be burned to a crisp.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  541. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  542. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;Interestingly,
  543. the warning was a webpage from the Internet and did not originate from my
  544. binary buddy. The Zeus Trojan virus is a 2003 virus, resurrected in 2013 and
  545. doesn’t warn the user that it is on the PC. Any antivirus program is familiar
  546. with and easily removes the virus. &amp;nbsp;It
  547. certainly doesn’t infect a computer and then tell us that we should call
  548. Microsoft to have them remove it. The bogus webpage does prevent us from
  549. closing our browser or more accurately it compels us to force the browser
  550. closed. Our browsers try to be helpful and bring us right back to the same
  551. website we were at when the browser was closed which means we come right back
  552. to the goofy warning page. Probably the easiest way to close the browser is to
  553. restart the computer. We can also hit the CTRL+ALT+Delete keys on our keyboard,
  554. open up Task Manager, then find and End Task any browser windows open. Finally,
  555. run a full antivirus scan or use Malwarebytes to scan the computer. we can also
  556. type in the address bar &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://support.kaspersky.com/viruses/utility&quot;&gt;http://support.kaspersky.com/viruses/utility#&lt;/a&gt;
  557. (not the search bar) and follow the instructions to download TDSSkiller from
  558. Kaspersky. If we have a Trojan virus this will find it. &lt;/div&gt;
  559. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  560. Finally, given a choice between Rashid (pardon me Mark) from
  561. Pakistan or a local tech, choose local.&lt;/div&gt;
  562. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  563. &lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt;&quot;&gt;Court Nederveld owns his
  564. own computer consulting and fixit service –Bits, Bytes &amp;amp; Chips Computer
  565. Services. He makes house calls in Punta Gorda/Port Charlotte, FL! You can reach him
  566. at &lt;st1:personname w:st=&quot;on&quot;&gt;adakeep@hotmail.com&lt;/st1:personname&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  567. &lt;br /&gt;
  568. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  569. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  570. </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2017/03/go-where-you-want-not-where-you-think.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiol2rCuBYrgbDVO5qK41cWUNp0jIkVb3XDk55xB7S_P_iqFWJaaF4y3yFCCrZNScVXXqLOvEt6kJwevrsZU3jfPRBeCWpTXijv1RJWlUjdd08wd3xEfJ33YKckzYcUXirPgElrXOkuPiY/s72-c/ursvssearch.JPG" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-5025875911394137434</guid><pubDate>Mon, 25 Jul 2016 10:46:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2016-07-25T06:46:35.871-04:00</atom:updated><title></title><description>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  571. &lt;a href=&quot;https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5wKKoyw00ME/UUsLT95wjZI/AAAAAAAABn0/7otS0yaa2Zw-6tqzNGTLt3KHNUsWEHiRACKgB/s1600/clip_image002_thumb&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5wKKoyw00ME/UUsLT95wjZI/AAAAAAAABn0/7otS0yaa2Zw-6tqzNGTLt3KHNUsWEHiRACKgB/s1600/clip_image002_thumb&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  572. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  573. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;The
  574. old e-mail bag ripped open again this week so let’s open a few letters of
  575. general interest and see if there is a solution to the problems.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  576. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  577. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;Long
  578. time reader Mike pens, “Skype is offering a free upgrade. They opened a window
  579. (which I have seen other times) that asks, &quot;do you want this program to
  580. change my computer&quot;? Yes or No. I always say No, which doesn&#39;t allow the
  581. upgrade, but concerned that if I say Yes I will be messing up my computer and
  582. won&#39;t know how to correct it. Is this a valid concern?” &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  583. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  584. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;This
  585. question actually has two components. First there is the upgrade, and the
  586. upgrade or update can be from any program currently on our binary buddy or even
  587. one that is attempting to install for the first time. Legitimate programs do
  588. offer updates from time to time, sometimes to fix a problem or to add features
  589. that the program didn’t previously have. Other examples are iTunes, Adobe
  590. Reader and more. The second component is our operating system. Every time a
  591. program is updated or changed or even installed for the first time, the
  592. computer’s operating system, Windows, is going to be changed. New entries will
  593. be written to the registry; programs added and uninstall executables added to
  594. Programs and Features.&amp;nbsp; The OS then asks,
  595. “Do you want this program to make these changes to the computer?” If we know
  596. what the program is, for example Skype, then answer yes and the changes are
  597. made. If we say no, then the update, install or upgrade is not completed and we
  598. will be asked the same question the next time the program tries to update. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  599. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  600. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;Another
  601. e-mail received this week was from Carbonite. This is a company that I use to
  602. back up all the files and pictures on my digital domestiques. It can be
  603. downloaded and installed from www.bitsandbytesonline.com, just look for the
  604. Carbonite logo, click on it and follow the instructions. The e-mail indicated
  605. that Carbonite was resetting all the users’ passwords and that we must log in
  606. and set a new password. This was not due to a computer hack of Carbonite but a
  607. hack of Linkedin a social networking site. Apparently, passwords and user id’s
  608. were stolen from Linkedin and as many of us do, some of those credentials were
  609. also used as the login information for many other sites as well. Two things to
  610. do here, if we use the same password and user id for multiple sites, think
  611. about changing them. Also if we receive an e-mail claiming a security issue
  612. with one of the companies we do business with telling us to login and reset our
  613. password, remember to never ever click on a link in the e-mail to initiate the
  614. reset. Go to the site from a browser’s URL. Example: surf to www.mybank.com and
  615. reset from there. The e-mail could very likely be a phishing attempt using
  616. current news to trick us into clicking on the link and giving up our login
  617. credentials.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  618. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  619. &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;Keep
  620. those cards and letter coming. &lt;i&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  621. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  622. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  623. &lt;br /&gt;
  624. &lt;div class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;
  625. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  626. </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2016/07/theold-e-mail-bag-ripped-open-again_25.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5wKKoyw00ME/UUsLT95wjZI/AAAAAAAABn0/7otS0yaa2Zw-6tqzNGTLt3KHNUsWEHiRACKgB/s72-c/clip_image002_thumb" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-3094804296489807039</guid><pubDate>Sun, 14 Jun 2015 16:31:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2015-06-14T12:31:25.168-04:00</atom:updated><title>Tip Toe through the Tool Tips with Me</title><description>&lt;img align=&quot;left&quot; src=&quot;https://i-msdn.sec.s-msft.com/dynimg/IC510746.png&quot; style=&quot;display: inline; float: left; margin: 0px 6px 0px 0px;&quot; /&gt;Sometimes our
  627. computers can seem overwhelming when trying to figure out what button on the
  628. screen does what. Time and experience make selection of the correct button fast
  629. and easy. When working on a PC a client will comment that I click buttons and
  630. open and close windows faster than they can figure out what each one was. That
  631. is experience. But for the novice there is a very simple tool built into the
  632. Windows operating system to help us navigate around. That same tool is an
  633. industry standard and is used by nearly every software company when they write
  634. new programs such as a word processor or even a game. This tool is called a
  635. ToolTip.
  636. &lt;br /&gt;
  637. The ToolTip is a common GUI (graphical user interface) element. It activates
  638. by hovering the mouse pointer over a button on a tool bar or over a link or
  639. picture on a web page. When activated, a small box appears displaying
  640. supplementary information regarding the item being hovered over. Let’s try it
  641. out. Hold the mouse pointer over the time in the system tray. See the box that
  642. pops up with the day, date and year? That is a tooltip. Open Internet Explorer
  643. move the mouse over one of the in the toolbar. After a moment or so, a little
  644. box appears telling us what that button does. For example: Move the cursor over
  645. the reverse arrow icon and a box pops up that telling us that if we click on
  646. this button we will reply to an e-mail. Now open your favorite word processor
  647. program and move the mouse pointer over one of the many icons on the toolbars.
  648. After a moment a box pops up and tells you what it does. That is a ToolTip.
  649. Check Spelling, Copy or Paste are just a few of the ToolTips that we can find in
  650. MS Word.
  651. &lt;br /&gt;
  652. Another valuable tool that many people don’t utilize is the ability to open
  653. multiple windows and programs at the same time. Right now Word is open as I
  654. write this column; Internet Explorer open to research different topics. Windows
  655. Live Mail is open so I can read and send mail and Notepad is open for a place to
  656. hold partial thoughts and sentences that need polish. But how can I see the
  657. windows that are open behind the one I am working in?
  658. &lt;br /&gt;
  659. If using Windows versions prior to Windows 8 or using the desktop mode in
  660. Windows 8.1 we can hold down the ALT key and then tap the TAB key. Every tap of
  661. the TAB key will switch screens and allow us to rotate quickly from open program
  662. to open program. The window for the program that disappears from our screen, is
  663. represented by an icon visible on our taskbar. Now hold the mouse pointer over
  664. the icon on the taskbar and a ToolTip appears telling us what program the button
  665. represents. To open the window again, click on the taskbar icon. Remember that
  666. minimizing the window doesn’t close the program. The program is still running,
  667. using system resources and available for immediate use if we need it.
  668. &lt;br /&gt;
  669. With apologies to Tiny Tim, let’s Tip Toe through the ToolTips. &lt;br /&gt;
  670.  
  671.  
  672. &lt;div class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:eb8e0e3a-c781-43f6-9272-c606e86db44a&quot; style=&quot;display: inline; float: none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  673. &lt;table border=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; style=&quot;width: 400px;&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;
  674. &lt;tbody&gt;
  675. &lt;tr&gt;
  676. &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;
  677. &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00EHI14GU/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot; title=&quot;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer eBook: Courtland Nederveld, Valerie  Heisey: Kindle Store&quot;&gt;&lt;img align=&quot;left&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00EHI14GU.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; style=&quot;float: left;&quot; /&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love
  678. My Computer eBook: Courtland Nederveld, Valerie Heisey: Kindle
  679. Store&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;b&gt;ASIN&lt;/b&gt;: B00EHI14GU&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;
  680. &lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;
  681. &lt;/div&gt;
  682. &lt;div class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:28b4abd3-6c3f-43a9-9307-9d24c5756752&quot; style=&quot;display: inline; float: none; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;&quot;&gt;
  683. &lt;table border=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; style=&quot;width: 400px;&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;
  684. &lt;tbody&gt;
  685. &lt;tr&gt;
  686. &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;
  687. &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1456561731/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot; title=&quot;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&quot;&gt;&lt;img align=&quot;left&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1456561731.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; style=&quot;float: left;&quot; /&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld:
  688. 9781456561734: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1456561731&lt;br /&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;:
  689. 9781456561734&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;
  690. &lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;
  691. &lt;/div&gt;
  692. </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2015/06/tip-toe-through-tool-tips-with-me.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-6158063014416191050</guid><pubDate>Tue, 03 Feb 2015 16:07:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2015-02-03T11:07:36.825-05:00</atom:updated><title>I know what you did last summer!</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;img style=&quot;float: left; display: inline&quot; src=&quot;https://baneofyourresistance.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/tracking-canstockphoto5507892-2.jpg&quot; width=&quot;120&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; height=&quot;120&quot;&gt;Creatures of habit. We go to the same restaurants, the same doctor, ditto our auto mechanic. We sleep on the same side of the bed every night, even visit the same websites over and over. Because we do our Internet browser, that’s Internet Explorer for most of us, Firefox, Chrome or Safari for some, remembers where we have gone before. Notice when we start to type an address in the URL address bar a list of sites previously visited is displayed below where we type. This is referred to as our Address and Toolbar History. Most of the time it is a convenient and fast way to get the site we want to go to without having to type the entire address.  &lt;p&gt;But sometimes we want to eliminate some of the addresses in that list. There are several ways to manage the list either individually or remove the list entirely. If using Internet Explorer, open the browser, click on the small down arrow at the end of the address bar. A list of previous addresses will appear. If we hover our mouse over the item we want to delete a small X appears on the line of the address. Click the X and that entry disappears. Want to delete our entire browsing history? Click on the Gear icon and then click on Internet Options. In the dialogue box that opens make sure the General tab is selected and look for an area labeled Browsing History. Now click on Delete. A new box opens. Make sure the check box for History is selected and click on the delete button at the bottom of the window.  &lt;p&gt;If using a public computer or a work computer it might be prudent to click on the Gear icon, Internet Options and in the Browsing History area put a check mark in the box labeled Delete Browsing History on Exit. Now when we finish a session on the Internet and close our browser the history of where we have been is deleted automatically. (Martha, shopping at work?) Or we can choose to open a browser in InPrivate, (Internet Explorer) Incognito, (Chrome) or new private window. (Firefox) These windows retain browsing history only so long as the browser is open.  &lt;p&gt;Firefox, Chrome and Safari have similar processes and if they are not readily apparent, click on help or search for “how do I delete browser history in” which ever browser currently in use &lt;p&gt;Some readers have asked, “Is a way to print the browser history?” This is of particular use to System Administrators that are tasked with policing Internet use by employees. There is a very simple and useful program called BrowsingHistoryView or BrowsingHistoryView 64-bit for machines using virtually any browser.&lt;b&gt; &lt;/b&gt;They&lt;b&gt; &lt;/b&gt;can be downloaded for free from http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/browsing_history_view.html. Extract the files to a flash drive or the computer itself and run the program. Set the criteria such as how many days back to look. This will generate a list of all the sites the browser has been to and held in Browser History. To print it out, select all entries and save to a .txt file. Open the .txt file and print all or part of the displayed document.  &lt;p&gt;Where have you been surfing? &lt;p&gt;For some additional reading material check out:&lt;/p&gt; &lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt; &lt;tbody&gt; &lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51tKV6tC9mL._SL160_.jpg&quot;&gt; &lt;/td&gt; &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Grumbles-From-The-Keyboard-Worrying/dp/1467985899%3FSubscriptionId%3D0JTCV5ZMHMF7ZYTXGFR2%26tag%3Dbrdicr-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D1467985899&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt; &lt;tbody&gt; &lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51yfUuIbEkL._SL160_.jpg&quot;&gt; &lt;/td&gt; &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Epicuria-Adventure-That-Really-Cooks/dp/1456561731%3FSubscriptionId%3D0JTCV5ZMHMF7ZYTXGFR2%26tag%3Dbrdicr-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D1456561731&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2015/02/i-know-what-you-did-last-summer.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-7654760698530153376</guid><pubDate>Mon, 05 Jan 2015 12:12:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2015-01-05T07:13:49.560-05:00</atom:updated><title></title><description>&lt;div abp=&quot;636&quot;&gt;
  693.  
  694. URL vs Search in the ring tonight!&lt;/div&gt;
  695. &lt;div abp=&quot;735&quot; class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  696. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  697. &lt;div abp=&quot;23&quot; class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  698. &lt;a abp=&quot;24&quot; href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRpHErICUVpVTVwK0RtazahkFoiqLfVGeYozUasxttrC3PTFqetkFslJiIi2WbVxHJ-xsYm1MxfV8h75_SxgH-KDD15RV7ykVszrV47zgpGJO47f_STCKnQh7y7DEg2E3pR2fXdriVD38/s1600/rssurl.gif&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img abp=&quot;25&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRpHErICUVpVTVwK0RtazahkFoiqLfVGeYozUasxttrC3PTFqetkFslJiIi2WbVxHJ-xsYm1MxfV8h75_SxgH-KDD15RV7ykVszrV47zgpGJO47f_STCKnQh7y7DEg2E3pR2fXdriVD38/s1600/rssurl.gif&quot; height=&quot;88&quot; width=&quot;320&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  699. &lt;div abp=&quot;650&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;margin: 0in 0in 0pt;&quot;&gt;
  700. A recent column offered a website to download a malicious
  701. software removal tool from Microsoft. A few folks commented that they were
  702. unable to download the tool for a variety of reasons. The primary reason was
  703. inaccurate typing of the &lt;/div&gt;
  704. &lt;div abp=&quot;48&quot; class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
  705. &lt;a abp=&quot;49&quot; href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvjOnn9XCvjIid4Yo0gGvS_Te5qsz5n0F7V2qUcnJpqNThakhWRcH_UyW-JNUhX9IFbrdqrX8OhgGuUP1AlbvY0oOC2mf-Uq7Tqzx9QzUSl_8LWWCNwp1GaP9YMTLB-kjEnLZ4V75BKh4/s1600/googlesearch.JPG&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img abp=&quot;50&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvjOnn9XCvjIid4Yo0gGvS_Te5qsz5n0F7V2qUcnJpqNThakhWRcH_UyW-JNUhX9IFbrdqrX8OhgGuUP1AlbvY0oOC2mf-Uq7Tqzx9QzUSl_8LWWCNwp1GaP9YMTLB-kjEnLZ4V75BKh4/s1600/googlesearch.JPG&quot; height=&quot;87&quot; width=&quot;320&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  706. &lt;div abp=&quot;51&quot;&gt;
  707. URL. (Universal Resource Locator or the www.abcde.com.)
  708. Still another problem was that folks mistook search fields for address bars.
  709. This poses all types of problems especially if our binary buddy is compromised.
  710. &lt;/div&gt;
  711. &lt;div abp=&quot;636&quot;&gt;
  712.  
  713. &lt;/div&gt;
  714. &lt;div abp=&quot;653&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;margin: 0in 0in 0pt;&quot;&gt;
  715. What is the difference between the URL bar and a search
  716. field? Open our favorite browser, doesn’t matter if it is Internet Explorer,
  717. Chrome, Firefox or any other of the myriad of browsers available. For those
  718. that swear they don’t have any of these, please open the program used to surf
  719. the web. Look carefully at the top of the window, or if using the modern
  720. version of Internet Explorer in Windows 8.1 the bottom of the window and find
  721. the line that starts with http://. That is the URL and it resides in the Address
  722. Bar. This line by default on most browsers performs two functions. If we type
  723. in a correct and valid address such as courtnederveld.blogspot.com the
  724. Universal Resource Locater will take us directly to that webpage. Miss type the
  725. address and the browser will use our default search engine to display possible
  726. websites that might be what we are looking for. If our browser has been
  727. hijacked by malware, we might even raise an eyebrow over what appears on the
  728. screen. &lt;/div&gt;
  729. &lt;div abp=&quot;636&quot;&gt;
  730.  
  731. &lt;/div&gt;
  732. &lt;div abp=&quot;654&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;margin: 0in 0in 0pt;&quot;&gt;
  733. Many of us by choice or subterfuge have a toolbar that has a
  734. search field just under the URL address bar or use a home page with a search
  735. field built into it. Search means exactly that. We can type a correct website
  736. address into a search field and it will not go to the site requested but will bring
  737. up a list of sites that might be what we are looking for. In the column
  738. referenced folks were typing the website address into a search field and not
  739. the URL address bar resulting in a list of possible sites instead of going to
  740. the site directly. To compound the problem, not all search engines return the
  741. same results. &lt;/div&gt;
  742. &lt;div abp=&quot;636&quot;&gt;
  743.  
  744. &lt;/div&gt;
  745. &lt;div abp=&quot;655&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;margin: 0in 0in 0pt;&quot;&gt;
  746. Example, the Xfinity homepage has a search field “Enhanced
  747. by Google,” perform a search with that, then open a second tab go to google.com
  748. and repeat the same search in the Google Search field to find that the Xfinity
  749. search result differs from the Google results.&lt;/div&gt;
  750. &lt;div abp=&quot;636&quot;&gt;
  751.  
  752. &lt;/div&gt;
  753. &lt;div abp=&quot;656&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;margin: 0in 0in 0pt;&quot;&gt;
  754. To ensure less biased search results, look at the default
  755. search engine in our browsers. Internet Explorer-Options- Manage Add-ons then
  756. click on search providers. Stick with the major ones such as Bing, Google,
  757. Yahoo for example and eliminate any others. Chrome: go to Settings, Search –
  758. Manage Search Engines and again stay with the major players. Other browsers
  759. will have similar settings available. &lt;/div&gt;
  760. &lt;div abp=&quot;636&quot;&gt;
  761.  
  762. &lt;/div&gt;
  763. &lt;div abp=&quot;657&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;margin: 0in 0in 0pt;&quot;&gt;
  764. Remember: URL it’s where I want to go, search means show me
  765. all the possibilities. &lt;/div&gt;
  766. &lt;div abp=&quot;657&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;margin: 0in 0in 0pt;&quot;&gt;
  767. &lt;a abp=&quot;127&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Grumbles-Keyboard-Learned-Worrying-Computer/dp/1467985899/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;qid=1420459755&amp;amp;sr=8-1&amp;amp;keywords=grumbles+from+the+keyboard&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Grumbles from the Keyboard&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  768. &lt;div abp=&quot;657&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;margin: 0in 0in 0pt;&quot;&gt;
  769. &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Epicuria-Adventure-That-Really-Cooks/dp/1456561731/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;qid=1420459860&amp;amp;sr=8-1&amp;amp;keywords=epicuria+adventures+that&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Epicuria Adventures that Really Cook!&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  770. &lt;div abp=&quot;636&quot;&gt;
  771.  
  772. &lt;/div&gt;
  773. </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2015/01/url-vs-search-in-ring-tonight-recent.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRpHErICUVpVTVwK0RtazahkFoiqLfVGeYozUasxttrC3PTFqetkFslJiIi2WbVxHJ-xsYm1MxfV8h75_SxgH-KDD15RV7ykVszrV47zgpGJO47f_STCKnQh7y7DEg2E3pR2fXdriVD38/s72-c/rssurl.gif" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-4786923863967575028</guid><pubDate>Thu, 18 Dec 2014 11:37:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2014-12-18T06:37:52.942-05:00</atom:updated><title>Twas’ the Night Before Christmas</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://lh5.ggpht.com/-AOR8YcNrzw8/VJK8jenpj3I/AAAAAAAABvQ/3DuLoap1gf4/s1600-h/clip_image002%25255B3%25255D.jpg&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;clip_image002&quot; style=&quot;border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: left; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; hspace=&quot;12&quot; alt=&quot;clip_image002&quot; src=&quot;http://lh6.ggpht.com/-M4TgD-TX9II/VJK8j5kcZOI/AAAAAAAABvY/-IQ7h6ePsQo/clip_image002_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800&quot; width=&quot;159&quot; height=&quot;242&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;Twas the night before Christmas when all through the house,&lt;br&gt;lights flashed on the tower and even the mouse. &lt;br&gt;The Webcams were ready, installed with great care. &lt;br&gt;In hopes that grandkids would be virtually there.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;The children were nestled all snug in their beds,&lt;br&gt;While visions of computer games danced in their heads;&lt;br&gt;Mamma in her rocker, a tablet on her lap.&lt;br&gt;To check Santa’s route on Norads’ tracking map.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;Last minute shopping, I knew it would matter,&lt;br&gt;Receipts from the printer were spit with a clatter.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;The e-mails and texts began to beep and flash,&lt;br&gt;Away to the laptop I flew in a dash,&lt;br&gt;An e-mail from Santa, I pulled from the cache.&lt;br&gt;The sleigh was loaded, the springs sitting low&lt;br&gt;Boxes of computer games, only kids know.&lt;br&gt;Zombie Tycoon 2 for Tommy, Angry Birds for Sue,&lt;br&gt;Xbox, Wii, Playstation and Nintendo too.&lt;br&gt;Neither Mamma nor I had Santa forgot,&lt;br&gt;A wireless keyboard and mouse in the lot.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;From a webcam mounted some far away place&lt;br&gt;An image so small, across the screen it did race.&lt;br&gt;What could it be I wondered, what would appear, &lt;br&gt;But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;With a little old driver, so lively and quick,&lt;br&gt;I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.&lt;br&gt;I toggled the volume and turned it up loud&lt;br&gt;As his digital facade flew over the clouds&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;At the speed of Moore’s law his coursers they came,&lt;br&gt;And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;&lt;br&gt;&quot;Now, Dell! Now, Gates! Now, Jobs and Wosniak!&lt;br&gt;On, Bezos! On Ellison! On, Hewlett and Packard!&lt;br&gt;To the top of the toolbar! The top of the screen!&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;Now pixels are changing, amazed by it all!&lt;br&gt;The picture expanded as closer he drew&lt;br&gt;His exact location surely only he knew.&lt;br&gt;But Google Street view offered a hopeful clue.&lt;br&gt;Just a click of the mouse, our house was in view.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;With the sleigh full of downloads, upgrades and such&lt;br&gt;St. Nicholas too, might it be just too much?&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;The broadband was humming the router secure&lt;br&gt;A shiny new computer I’m sure will allure&lt;br&gt;Firewalls open for the jolly red elf.&lt;br&gt;Presents are coming, surely some for myself.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof&lt;br&gt;The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.&lt;br&gt;A mystery for sure I pondered aloud.&lt;br&gt;Could Santa be real an answer I vowed.&lt;br&gt;An Internet search for the jolly St. Nick&lt;br&gt;“Santa Claus: could he be real” should turn the trick&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;Pages and pages of results did appear&lt;br&gt;To read them all might take ‘til Christmas next year.&lt;br&gt;My eyelids grew heavy then started to droop,&lt;br&gt;A short nap was needed so I could regroup.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;Foggy and confused from my slumber I stirred,&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;“You’ve got mail,” from the speakers I heard.&lt;br&gt;An e-mail from Santa’s own smartphone it said,&lt;br&gt;A tight schedule barred his waking me he pled.&lt;br&gt;Presents for all under the tree he had spread.&lt;br&gt;Click here for a live video feed of the sled.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;The digital image danced and sparkled bright.&lt;br&gt;Santa driving his sleigh on its magical flight.&lt;br&gt;But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,&lt;br&gt;&quot;Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good-night.&quot;&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;p&gt;Need a Christmas present for that computer challenged friend? &lt;p&gt;Available from Amazon.com or &lt;a href=&quot;http://grumblesfromthekeyboard.com/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Grumblesfromthekeyboard.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt; &lt;tbody&gt; &lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51tKV6tC9mL._SL160_.jpg&quot;&gt; &lt;/td&gt; &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Grumbles-From-The-Keyboard-Worrying/dp/1467985899%3FSubscriptionId%3D0JTCV5ZMHMF7ZYTXGFR2%26tag%3Dbrdicr-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D1467985899&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Or just looking for a different kind of cookbook?&lt;/p&gt; &lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt; &lt;tbody&gt; &lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51yfUuIbEkL._SL160_.jpg&quot;&gt; &lt;/td&gt; &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Epicuria-Adventure-That-Really-Cooks/dp/1456561731%3FSubscriptionId%3D0JTCV5ZMHMF7ZYTXGFR2%26tag%3Dbrdicr-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D1456561731&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2014/12/twas-night-before-christmas.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-M4TgD-TX9II/VJK8j5kcZOI/AAAAAAAABvY/-IQ7h6ePsQo/s72-c/clip_image002_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-1589166245601294348</guid><pubDate>Fri, 12 Sep 2014 00:15:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2014-09-11T20:15:39.729-04:00</atom:updated><title>Who’s the Manager of this Task?</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://lh6.ggpht.com/-kulYMm7VXn0/VBI7KCE7u4I/AAAAAAAABuw/h5HjzC7eF0k/s1600-h/task%252520manager%25255B2%25255D.jpg&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;task manager&quot; style=&quot;border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: left; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px 6px 0px 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; alt=&quot;task manager&quot; src=&quot;http://lh4.ggpht.com/-wpWbaX-qBdA/VBI7Ku1_DhI/AAAAAAAABu0/NojRta7j2bs/task%252520manager_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800&quot; width=&quot;244&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; height=&quot;181&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Windows 8.1 (and 8.0 if it hasn’t been updated) combines two familiar functions into one easy to use program. Task Manager has been a friend of ours since we learned CTRL - ALT – Delete. In addition to the three finger salute we can access Task manager by right clicking on the task bar on the Desktop and choosing Task Manager from the menu or bring out the Charms bar and type task manager in the search field.  &lt;p&gt;The new Task Manager incorporates the Startup display which used to be found in an odd named program called MSCONFIG.  &lt;p&gt;Task Manager is a useful diagnostic tool for troubleshooting slow startups, sluggish PCs or even assisting in maleware removal. There is a large amount of information displayed and organized for easy usage. Let’s look at some features of Task Manager and what we can use them for.  &lt;p&gt;Upon opening Task Manager observe the seven tabs across the top. Click on the Startup tab to display a table of programs that are configured to start when Windows starts. We see the name of the program, the publisher, status and the impact the program has on our computer’s startup. Highlight a program and at the bottom a button becomes active allowing us to enable or disable the program from the Startup. Enable/disable does not mean the program is uninstalled or installed, it tells the program whether it can start when Windows starts or if it has to wait until we click on the icon for the program. Example: We look at the Startup and notice that our Garmin or TomTom updating software starts each time we turn on the computer. But we only update our maps twice a year. It makes sense to disable the software from starting with Windows in order to improve startup time and to free up resources used by a program we need twice a year. If we don’t know what a program on the list is, use a search engine to learn what it is and decide if it needs to start every time or is it something we can start when we need it.  &lt;p&gt;Click on the tab labeled Processes. The list of processes tells us what Apps (programs) are running, which background processes are running and how many Windows processes are in play. Additionally, it displays what percentage of the CPU is being used by each process and the amount of ram memory utilized for each process. If we highlight one of the processes a button at the bottom activates and permits us to end that particular task.  &lt;p&gt;If our digital domestique happens to get extremely slow we can check the processes to see if one program is consuming large amounts of CPU or Memory. If it is we can highlight it and end its misery.  &lt;p&gt;Likewise in order to uninstall software it must be stopped if it is running. We can stop it from Task Manager.  &lt;p&gt;Task Manager, put it in the computer toolbox. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt; &lt;tbody&gt; &lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51tKV6tC9mL._SL160_.jpg&quot;&gt; &lt;/td&gt; &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Grumbles-From-The-Keyboard-Worrying/dp/1467985899%3FSubscriptionId%3D0JTCV5ZMHMF7ZYTXGFR2%26tag%3Dbrdicr-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D1467985899&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;  &lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt; &lt;tbody&gt; &lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51yfUuIbEkL._SL160_.jpg&quot;&gt; &lt;/td&gt; &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Epicuria-Adventure-That-Really-Cooks/dp/1456561731%3FSubscriptionId%3D0JTCV5ZMHMF7ZYTXGFR2%26tag%3Dbrdicr-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D1456561731&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2014/09/whos-manager-of-this-task.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-wpWbaX-qBdA/VBI7Ku1_DhI/AAAAAAAABu0/NojRta7j2bs/s72-c/task%252520manager_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-2128445080576600455</guid><pubDate>Sun, 24 Aug 2014 13:22:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2014-08-24T09:22:13.685-04:00</atom:updated><title>Still Using Windows XP?</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;img style=&quot;float: left; margin: 0px 6px 0px 0px; display: inline&quot; src=&quot;http://www.agdigital.com.br/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Windows-Xp1.jpg&quot; width=&quot;261&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; height=&quot;196&quot;&gt;Support by Microsoft for Windows XP ended April 8&lt;sup&gt;th&lt;/sup&gt;. Since then the old e-mail bag has been groaning at the seams with all the questions being asked about what that means. Let’s answer a few of them and perhaps shed some light on this end of an era.  &lt;p&gt;Column maven Irene writes; “I want to keep my old XP for letters, cards, etc. I have a wireless printer. I would like to take the XP off the internet. 1. How do I print if I take it off line? 2. How do I take it off the internet?”  &lt;p&gt;Remove the XP from the Internet by unplugging the Ethernet cord from the wireless router to the computer. If using a wireless card, either unplug it or disable it in Device Manager. The easiest way to print from a computer that is off the network is via USB cable. Many printers can be set up to use USB and Wireless at the same time or purchase a printer just for the XP machine. If really ambitious, leave the XP on the network, close all TCP/IP ports except port 9100 which is used to communicate with printers. (Martha, what did he just say?) &lt;p&gt;Frequent reader Harry pens; “What happens if I just continue to use my computer as I always have. I have Norton for virus protection.” &lt;p&gt;From a user’s perspective, as time goes by, less functionality will occur. Software companies will no longer support their software on XP platforms. Reduced functionality of programs like antivirus, media players, web browsers etc., no more windows updates and sadly these machines if connected to the Internet will become targets for hackers to use for not only harvesting password and valuable information but they will use them as platforms for sending out malware to other machines. Recommendations if the XP is going to stay. If the XP machine hasn’t been updated regularly, surf over to Microsoft.com and manually download missing XP updates. As of this date they are still available on the Microsoft Download site. Uninstall or Update Java from www.java.com. Don’t run as Administrator, all XP user accounts are set as Administrator accounts, create another account and set it to Administrator rights, then change the current account to a limited user account. Now download an alternate browser such as Chrome or Firefox. Internet Explorer 8, the last version available for XP is a security sieve. Remove any old software no longer being used. Finally begin planning to replace the XP with a new binary buddy. &lt;p&gt;Thom inquires; “I want to recycle my old PC (with XP) and get it to the Recycle Center. I do not want any of my personal info to go out there, what do you suggest I do to ensure that? Wipe the hard drive? Best way?” Easiest way is to perform a system recovery and set the computer back to the way it was at purchase. A bit more complicated is to download and use drive sanitation software such as DBAN. (www.dban.org) Or to make the drive unreadable by removing it from the computer and either keeping it with you or get a hammer and release all your frustrations on the drive until it is nothing more than a lump of metal and parts. It can be cathartic.  &lt;p&gt;Need something interesting to read? If you’re looking for general computer advice, Grumbles from the Keyboard is a collection of newspaper articles filled with useful and helpful computer tips and tricks. It is available at Amazon or &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.grumblesfromthekeyboard.com&quot;&gt;www.grumblesfromthekeyboard.com&lt;/a&gt;.  &lt;p&gt;Or, if you like to cook and want to read a very different style of cookbook, Epicuria: An Adventure that Really Cooks will delight both your senses and your palate. It is also available at Amazon or &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.myepicuria.com&quot;&gt;www.myepicuria.com&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt; &lt;tbody&gt; &lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51tKV6tC9mL._SL160_.jpg&quot;&gt; &lt;/td&gt; &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Grumbles-From-The-Keyboard-Worrying/dp/1467985899%3FSubscriptionId%3D0JTCV5ZMHMF7ZYTXGFR2%26tag%3Dbrdicr-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D1467985899&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt; &lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt; &lt;tbody&gt; &lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51yfUuIbEkL._SL160_.jpg&quot;&gt; &lt;/td&gt; &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Epicuria-Adventure-That-Really-Cooks/dp/1456561731%3FSubscriptionId%3D0JTCV5ZMHMF7ZYTXGFR2%26tag%3Dbrdicr-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D1456561731&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2014/08/still-using-windows-xp.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-3310223591612220512</guid><pubDate>Thu, 24 Apr 2014 03:10:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2014-04-23T23:10:07.076-04:00</atom:updated><title>The Old Tech from Microsoft gag!</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://lh4.ggpht.com/-kzM-Q5KTHTQ/U1iAic7qdWI/AAAAAAAABtw/SrVkKgUFOo0/s1600-h/microsoftindiatechsupport_963%25255B2%25255D.png&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;microsoftindiatechsupport_963&quot; style=&quot;border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: left; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px 6px 0px 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; alt=&quot;microsoftindiatechsupport_963&quot; src=&quot;http://lh4.ggpht.com/-14_zl-p_mmc/U1iAjSBS9tI/AAAAAAAABt0/mk-X5ERnqPo/microsoftindiatechsupport_963_thumb.png?imgmax=800&quot; width=&quot;166&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; height=&quot;244&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;“Good morning, this column is coming to you from Microsoft support. Your computer has been sending error reports and I am here to help resolve these issues. Please click on the Start Button and type the following into the space just above the bar. www.ammyy.xxx and when the window opens click on the green box that says run now. Thank you I have control of your PC. Look at all the errors. “Yes I am from Microsoft support and my name is Rashid, I’m sorry, I was reading my name tag upside down, my name is Mark.” Oh goodness, your computer is about to crash and all your valuable files gone, and gracious it appears that the computer has been hacked and all financial data has been stolen. I can fix everything and offer a one year service contract for only $299. Please read the numbers from your credit card. You’re American and you don’t have a credit card? Please read the routing numbers from your checking account so I can debit the account for the $299. What do you mean you won’t pay? I’ll make sure when you restart the computer it won’t start. Please sir/mam I work for Microsoft and you are using our operating system and if you don’t pay I will be forced to notify the police that you are using our product without our support. This is a world crime. So there!”  &lt;p&gt;As ridiculous as the preceding paragraph sounds, folks are receiving phone calls that follow this scenario. Please print out this column and tape it to the monitor. Microsoft WILL NEVER CALL regarding the error messages that our binary buddy sends to them. They will use that information to determine if the problem is Windows based or not. If lots of computers report the same problem, Microsoft may create an update and send it out to every computer connected to the Internet to resolve the issue. If we receive a call from Microsoft hang up, or if bored, lead them on, tell them to repeat what they said, say the keyboard doesn’t work, or any other ridiculous thing we can think up but do not let them have control of the PC.  &lt;p&gt;On the other hand, if there really is a problem, consider a local, as in your City not Manila, tech to help with a resolution. If having the work done remotely is important, it’s just as simple to fix a computer remotely from Punta Gorda, FL as it is from Bombay. Like and Share this column with everyone that might be gullible enough to fall for the “tech from Microsoft call.” Have them send it to everyone they know. Shop local.  &lt;p&gt;For those wondering what will happen to their Windows XP machine now that April 8&lt;sup&gt;th&lt;/sup&gt; has passed and support for XP ended, nothing will happen except there will be no more Windows Updates. Microsoft will not expend anymore programming efforts to patch, plug or upgrade any part of Windows XP. XP will fade away as the older PCs move to the digital dump. However, because there will be no more updates, these older machines will become ever more susceptible to hackers and viruses. If still using XP change to a different browser than Internet Explorer 8 such as Chrome or Firefox.  &lt;p&gt;Those of us that have recently purchased new PCs are probably being nagged to create recovery disks or USB recovery drives. Not a bad idea as a new set of recovery disks from the manufacturer is now running approximately $50 plus shipping.  &lt;p&gt;&lt;i&gt;Court Nederveld owns his own computer consulting and fixit service –Bits, Bytes &amp;amp; Chips Computer Services. &lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;My Books:&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epicuria.com&quot;&gt;www.epicuria.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.grumblesfromthekeyboard.com&quot;&gt;www.grumblesfromthekeyboard.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt; Blogger Labels: &lt;a href=&quot;http://Bits and Bites.blogspot.com/search/label/Tech&quot; rel=&quot;Tag&quot;&gt;Tech&lt;/a&gt;,&lt;a href=&quot;http://Bits and Bites.blogspot.com/search/label/Microsoft&quot; rel=&quot;Tag&quot;&gt;Microsoft&lt;/a&gt;,&lt;a href=&quot;http://Bits and Bites.blogspot.com/search/label/column&quot; rel=&quot;Tag&quot;&gt;column&lt;/a&gt;,&lt;a href=&quot;http://Bits and Bites.blogspot.com/search/label/computer&quot; 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rel=&quot;Tag&quot;&gt;Nederveld&lt;/a&gt;,&lt;a href=&quot;http://Bits and Bites.blogspot.com/search/label/Bytes&quot; rel=&quot;Tag&quot;&gt;Bytes&lt;/a&gt;,&lt;a href=&quot;http://Bits and Bites.blogspot.com/search/label/Services&quot; rel=&quot;Tag&quot;&gt;Services&lt;/a&gt;,&lt;a href=&quot;http://Bits and Bites.blogspot.com/search/label/errors&quot; rel=&quot;Tag&quot;&gt;errors&lt;/a&gt;,&lt;a href=&quot;http://Bits and Bites.blogspot.com/search/label/computers&quot; rel=&quot;Tag&quot;&gt;computers&lt;/a&gt;,&lt;a href=&quot;http://Bits and Bites.blogspot.com/search/label/viruses&quot; rel=&quot;Tag&quot;&gt;viruses&lt;/a&gt;,&lt;a href=&quot;http://Bits and Bites.blogspot.com/search/label/disks&quot; rel=&quot;Tag&quot;&gt;disks&lt;/a&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-old-tech-from-microsoft-gag.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-14_zl-p_mmc/U1iAjSBS9tI/AAAAAAAABt0/mk-X5ERnqPo/s72-c/microsoftindiatechsupport_963_thumb.png?imgmax=800" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-7075094522688638790</guid><pubDate>Wed, 15 Jan 2014 23:54:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2014-01-15T18:54:48.533-05:00</atom:updated><title>Just how scary is Windows 8.1?</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;img style=&quot;float: left; margin: 0px 10px 0px 0px; display: inline&quot; src=&quot;http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2012/314/3/1/windows_8_logo_wallpapers_by_giacomo_giugiaro-d5kjw9o.png&quot; width=&quot;182&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; height=&quot;102&quot;&gt;It’s been just over a year since Windows 8 and it’s clone 8.1 made its appearance in my office and I thought I would pass along some tips and tricks for those that already have Windows 8, and for those still running the venerable Windows XP who will be facing the upgrade as these older machines click their last icon. Remember all Microsoft support ends for Windows XP on April 8&lt;sup&gt;th&lt;/sup&gt;, 2014.  &lt;p&gt;Windows 8.1 boots faster than my Windows 7 machine and even a test machine running Vista with nothing loaded on it. Getting to the Metro desktop the first time around was a bit of a shock but as I maneuvered around and discovered some of its unique features it became easier to use. Of course in the beginning a click on the tile labeled Desktop brought up a very Windows 7 style desktop to comfort me.  &lt;p&gt;For years we have clicked on an icon from the desktop or clicked on the Start button – All Programs and scrolled up and down looking for a specific program we want to use. Windows 8.1 Metro desktop doesn’t require any pointing or clicking. Just start typing the name of the program we want and the Metro desktop will display the icon for it.  &lt;p&gt;There is a quick access menu available by using a Right-click in the bottom left corner of the desktop (or hold down the Windows key and press X) A text-based menu provides easy access to lots of useful applets and features: Device Manager, Control Panel, Explorer, the Search dialog, Run and more.  &lt;p&gt;But if we liked the All Programs of operating systems past, we can approximate the same by finding a blank area of the Metro desktop, use a right mouse click and click on the tile for All Apps. This will present us a scrolling list of all the Apps we have loaded on the PC. Don’t forget, Windows 8.1 uses the word Apps in place of Programs as previous versions of Windows called them.  &lt;p&gt;Windows 8.1 Apps open without displaying the traditional toolbars and close buttons previously seen. Not to worry, Windows suspends programs that are not in use when we open another program. However, if we want to close a program, we can move our cursor to the top of the screen where it will become a hand and then pull the window down to the bottom of the screen which closes the program. If we have a touch screen simply swipe our finger down from the top of the screen to the bottom. Of course we can still use the Alt-F4 key combination to close an active window or the Ctrl-Alt-Delete to bring up the Task Manager and close the program from there.  &lt;p&gt;Windows 8 comes with Internet Explorer 10 and now is upgrading to IE11 and when launched from the Metro desktop is opened without borders or toolbars. A bit of a shock at first, but right mouse click on any blank area and options for switching tabs, Internet tools and other familiar features appear.  &lt;p&gt;Windows 8.1, it’s not that scary.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:4cc2c80f-692b-43d5-b9d3-ff7e37f282f0&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1467985899/ wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1467985899.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1467985899&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781467985895&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:c656ca56-b20b-43ac-8796-61e7b6b80cdf&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1456561731/ wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1456561731.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1456561731&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781456561734&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2014/01/just-how-scary-is-windows-81.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-5339395397442636536</guid><pubDate>Tue, 24 Dec 2013 01:26:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2013-12-23T20:26:35.384-05:00</atom:updated><title>Twas the Night Before Christmas</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://lh4.ggpht.com/-k62WS8cstt8/UrjiyFEbrlI/AAAAAAAABs4/pfOIT9Mg6UI/s1600-h/clip_image002%25255B6%25255D.jpg&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;clip_image002&quot; style=&quot;border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: left; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px 5px 0px 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; alt=&quot;clip_image002&quot; src=&quot;http://lh3.ggpht.com/-mBdnVOQongE/UrjiygXc0dI/AAAAAAAABs8/KDFAfe0Dqdo/clip_image002_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800&quot; width=&quot;159&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; height=&quot;242&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Twas the night before Christmas when all through the house, &lt;p&gt;lights flashed on the tower and even the mouse.  &lt;p&gt;The Webcams were ready, installed with great care. &lt;br&gt;In hopes that grandkids would be virtually there. &lt;p&gt;The children were nestled all snug in their beds,&lt;br&gt;While visions of computer games danced in their heads;&lt;br&gt;Mamma in her rocker, a tablet on her lap. &lt;p&gt;To check Santa’s route on Norads’ tracking map.&lt;br&gt;Last minute shopping, I knew it would matter, &lt;p&gt;Receipts from the printer were spit with a clatter. &lt;p&gt;The e-mails and texts began to beep and flash,&lt;br&gt;Away to the laptop I flew in a dash,&lt;br&gt;An e-mail from Santa, I pulled from the cache. &lt;p&gt;The sleigh was loaded, the springs sitting low&lt;br&gt;Boxes of computer games, only kids know. &lt;p&gt;Zombie Tycoon 2 for Tommy, Angry Birds for Sue, &lt;p&gt;Xbox, Wii, Playstation and Nintendo too. &lt;p&gt;Neither Mamma nor I had Santa forgot, &lt;p&gt;A wireless keyboard and mouse in the lot. &lt;p&gt;From a webcam mounted some far away place &lt;p&gt;An image so small, across the screen it did race. &lt;p&gt;What could it be I wondered, what would appear, &lt;br&gt;But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer, &lt;p&gt;With a little old driver, so lively and quick,&lt;br&gt;I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.&lt;br&gt;I toggled the volume and turned it up loud &lt;p&gt;As his digital facade flew over the clouds &lt;p&gt;At the speed of Moore’s law his coursers they came,&lt;br&gt;And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;&lt;br&gt;&quot;Now, Dell! Now, Gates! Now, Jobs and Wosniak!&lt;br&gt;On, Bezos! On Ellison! On, Hewlett and Packard!&lt;br&gt;To the top of the toolbar! The top of the screen! &lt;p&gt;Now pixels are changing, amazed by it all! &lt;p&gt;The picture expanded as closer he drew &lt;p&gt;His exact location surely only he knew. &lt;p&gt;But Google Street view offered a hopeful clue. &lt;p&gt;Just a click of the mouse, our house was in view. &lt;p&gt;With the sleigh full of downloads, upgrades and such &lt;p&gt;St. Nicholas too, might it be just too much?&lt;br&gt;The broadband was humming the router secure &lt;p&gt;A shiny new computer I’m sure will allure &lt;p&gt;Firewalls open for the jolly red elf. &lt;p&gt;Presents are coming, surely some for myself. &lt;p&gt;And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof&lt;br&gt;The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.&lt;br&gt;A mystery for sure I pondered aloud. &lt;p&gt;Could Santa be real an answer I vowed. &lt;p&gt;An Internet search for the jolly St. Nick &lt;p&gt;“Santa Claus: could he be real” should turn the trick &lt;p&gt;Pages and pages of results did appear &lt;p&gt;To read them all might take ‘til Christmas next year. &lt;p&gt;My eyelids grew heavy then started to droop, &lt;p&gt;A short nap was needed so I could regroup. &lt;p&gt;Foggy and confused from my slumber I stirred, &lt;p&gt;“You’ve got mail,” from the speakers I heard. &lt;p&gt;An e-mail from Santa’s own smartphone it said, &lt;p&gt;A tight schedule barred his waking me he pled. &lt;p&gt;Presents for all under the tree he had spread. &lt;p&gt;Click here for a live video feed of the sled. &lt;p&gt;The digital image danced and sparkled bright. &lt;p&gt;Santa driving his sleigh on its magical flight. &lt;p&gt;But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,&lt;br&gt;&quot;Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good-night.&quot; &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:83159d62-c8b9-48f1-b7f8-0d634c4a87f7&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1467985899/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1467985899.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1467985899&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781467985895&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &lt;p align=&quot;left&quot;&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:50cbf7cb-0b3d-496a-a6da-fbef5efef5cc&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1456561731/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1456561731.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1456561731&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781456561734&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2013/12/twas-night-before-christmas.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-mBdnVOQongE/UrjiygXc0dI/AAAAAAAABs8/KDFAfe0Dqdo/s72-c/clip_image002_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-1831387160197635011</guid><pubDate>Sun, 15 Dec 2013 14:12:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2013-12-15T09:12:58.304-05:00</atom:updated><title>From the Horse’s Mouth!</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://lh5.ggpht.com/-xc_dTxRaPEQ/Uq245iyZZrI/AAAAAAAABsg/tpvhLEuESKs/s1600-h/clip_image001%25255B3%25255D.gif&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;clip_image001&quot; style=&quot;border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: left; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px 9px 0px 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; alt=&quot;clip_image001&quot; src=&quot;http://lh6.ggpht.com/--BgEl_Iva6w/Uq246FrsvyI/AAAAAAAABsk/JNPrufwD7-s/clip_image001_thumb.gif?imgmax=800&quot; width=&quot;166&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; height=&quot;176&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Straight from the horse’s mouth. Go to the source. From the highest authority. We’ve all heard these sayings and know what they mean. Still we often rely on information that has no basis from which to draw valid decisions from. A good example is a client that wanted to open some Microsoft documents. Here is the result they achieved, “tried to install a program called Freely that was supposed to let me open any Microsoft Word or Works document. In doing so I have now installed a whole bunch of crap, among which was the Yahoo Toolbar and the Weather Channel. I have tried to uninstall them but to no avail. They are now not among the things I can uninstall but they still appear at start-up. How can I get rid of them now?  &lt;p&gt;There is no requirement that a software company provide an uninstaller for their software. Legitimate companies do and the uninstaller module appears in Programs and Features, Windows Vista, 7 and 8, Add and Remove Programs in Windows XP. Semi legitimate programs often put the uninstaller module in the program folder in all programs and less legitimate programs will either provide no uninstaller module or provide what looks like an uninstaller module but when run it goes through some uninstaller like actions but leaves the crapware in place. Other sneaky programs will offer an uninstaller but the steps to uninstall the components are reversed from the normal process so the user takes actions to remove software but is in fact asking to keep the software in place.  &lt;p&gt;When looking for software that does a specific function go to the source. For example, don’t have Microsoft Office or Works installed on our binary buddy? Surf over to Microsoft.com and search for a means of reading Word, Excel or PowerPoint files. In this case Microsoft provides file viewers, free of charge, for each of these types of files without crapware attached to it. Should we need to open and edit Word, Excel or PowerPoint files we can purchase Microsoft Office or download OpenOffice, a full office suite of programs, free of charge from openoffice.org or any number of open source productivity suites. Alternately, we can upload word documents to Google Docs, docs.google.com, and edit them online. This service requires we sign up for a Google account also free of charge. (Martha, he said my favorite word, three times!) &lt;p&gt;If however, we download and install a piece of software that we immediately realize was a mistake and it doesn’t offer an uninstaller module, we can perform a System Restore. This allows us to move the computer back in time to a date before the software was installed and it will be as if it never existed. Please note: System RESTORE not System Recovery. The former goes back to a date in time, the later puts the computer back to its factory condition and all is lost. Remember, the further back in time we try to go, more problems will surface with other programs requiring our attention.  &lt;p&gt;Don’t forget this Gift Giving season to send a copy of Grumbles from the Keyboard to that computer challenged friend or family member. Hundreds of topics for the average&amp;nbsp; computer user. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:4ba7f3cf-f1cc-4093-8c35-11081f919cec&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1467985899/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1467985899.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1467985899&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781467985895&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;And don’t forget that titillating read, Epicuria: Adventures that really Cook! Something different for the gourmand in the house. Makes a great Christmas gift.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:f4b9b9b8-f0a8-441f-b816-901e64c29a24&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1456561731/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1456561731.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1456561731&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781456561734&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2013/12/from-horses-mouth.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="http://lh6.ggpht.com/--BgEl_Iva6w/Uq246FrsvyI/AAAAAAAABsk/JNPrufwD7-s/s72-c/clip_image001_thumb.gif?imgmax=800" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-6171536225465673597</guid><pubDate>Thu, 07 Nov 2013 14:12:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2013-11-07T09:12:34.123-05:00</atom:updated><title>Letters, we got letters!</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://lh6.ggpht.com/-YZfzpub3cyA/UnufzkAgqzI/AAAAAAAABsI/Dpq4dkL2ZSI/s1600-h/clip_image002%25255B3%25255D.gif&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;clip_image002&quot; style=&quot;border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: left; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px 6px 0px 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; alt=&quot;clip_image002&quot; src=&quot;http://lh6.ggpht.com/-ornioeEBCdE/Unuf0MW2haI/AAAAAAAABsQ/ObGlL5B_dso/clip_image002_thumb.gif?imgmax=800&quot; width=&quot;196&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; height=&quot;196&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;That ripping sound is the old e-mail bag bursting at the seams. Let’s offer some solutions to various problems folks are having with their binary buddies.  &lt;p&gt;Reader and Grumbles from the Keyboard owner Sue asks, “Is there a simple way to get Windows 7 to remember passwords and user ids?” To clarify, Windows 7 doesn’t remember usernames and passwords. Sue is referring to Internet Explorer remembering usernames and passwords to things like Facebook and other sites that require we log in. There are two areas to check if IE isn’t remembering usernames and passwords. Open Control Panel – Internet Options and under the General tab, verify that the box under Browsing History labeled Delete Browsing History on Exit isn’t checked. Then go to the tab labeled Content and under the section called AutoComplete click on the Settings Button. If we wish to use AutoComplete check the boxes for Address Bar, Usernames and Passwords on Forms and Ask me before saving passwords. Under these boxes is a button, Manage Passwords, where we can see the passwords that Internet Explorer has saved. We can also remove any passwords remembered here or click a button to remove all remembered passwords and usernames. These instructions are for IE9 – 10. IE8 for those still using Windows XP is very similar.  &lt;p&gt;Column maven Dan scribes, “I notice on your website that you have written the book – Grumbles From The Keyboard. Rather than purchase it over the internet and mail it all the way to Canada, (Martha, it’s international!) would it be possible to pick up a copy locally in Punta Gorda?” There is a coffee shop in Punta Gorda called &quot;The Bean on 41&quot; that carries my book. They also have great coffee, sandwiches and pastries. 2705 Tamiami Trl, Punta Gorda, FL 33950 (941) 575-1212.  &lt;p&gt;Faithful column follower Jake pens, “I was trying to find a presentation on the city’s website. I was told it had been added, so I looked for it. I have the site saved as a favorite. I hit the favorite and the site came up, but no presentation. I told them about it and they said it was there. I pulled up the site and again, still no presentation. Then I refreshed the page and the presentation appeared. Interesting that my favorite pulled up an old version each time.” Internet Explorer and other browsers presume that we visit the same websites over and over. In order to make the page appear quickly, they store or “cache” a copy of the page on the hard drive which they display if we return to a particular webpage. Browsers then attempt to download any new content to the page. Sometimes it doesn’t get new content. Using “Refresh” (or pressing the F5 key) forces the browser to download all content from the website as if we had never been there before. &lt;p&gt;Christmas is just around the corner and what better way to say, “Why don’t you learn how to use a computer?” than to give a copy of Grumbles From the Keyboard. Filled with tidbits, tips and tricks to make computer life easier.&amp;nbsp; Also available for your Kindle.&amp;nbsp; And don’t forget, with nothing but food on the tables for the next few months, try my cookbook for some old fashioned home cooking and one exciting story!&lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:727361e2-a7de-476f-9f1a-a95cc84317ab&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1467985899/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1467985899.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1467985899&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781467985895&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:fa4e9097-45c8-406d-80ff-41a2d728ddc3&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1456561731/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1456561731.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1456561731&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781456561734&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2013/11/letters-we-got-letters.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-ornioeEBCdE/Unuf0MW2haI/AAAAAAAABsQ/ObGlL5B_dso/s72-c/clip_image002_thumb.gif?imgmax=800" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-2044239092992175187</guid><pubDate>Thu, 24 Oct 2013 12:46:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2013-10-24T08:46:30.259-04:00</atom:updated><title>“He’s dead, Jim” (McCoy to Capt. Kirk)</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://lh6.ggpht.com/-sfiInVR5OBo/UmkWopuy-LI/AAAAAAAABrk/T5pD5nMuh2A/s1600-h/clip_image002%25255B3%25255D.gif&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;clip_image002&quot; style=&quot;border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: left; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; alt=&quot;clip_image002&quot; src=&quot;http://lh4.ggpht.com/-yXdd_ZUFpK8/UmkWpCXupEI/AAAAAAAABrs/vm5JQYh4QGs/clip_image002_thumb.gif?imgmax=800&quot; width=&quot;192&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; height=&quot;192&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;There are inviolable laws in nature. Bad things happen to good computers. Bad things happen at the worst possible time. Recently I have seen an unusual flurry of dead hard drives, (Martha, that’s where all our pictures and stuff are stored.) Five dead drives and only one person had backed up their drive. Four of the&amp;nbsp; drives were unreadable and the data gone. We’ve all seen on TV how computer drives are recovered in minutes so how is that done?  &lt;p&gt;There are many companies that offer data recovery services. All of them start out with a diagnostic of the drive to determine if any chance exists of recovering data. If they believe they can recover data, then a quote is given for the service. Because each drive condition, number of files to recover, difficulty of getting the drive to a readable condition is different, the cost will vary in every case. For example, using one of the drives I saw recently, I emailed a leading data recovery company to inquire about recovering several hundred photos and twenty documents. The company responded with an explanation and approximate cost to attempt recovery. They wrote: &lt;p&gt;“The first step is to get it in so we can run diagnostic tests on your drive to determine what is wrong and what we have to do to recover your data. There is no charge for the diagnostics. Once we complete the diagnostics tests we will be able to provide you with a firm price for recovery. You are looking at between $499 and $1899 if it is recoverable.” They also provided an outline of the steps they will take. “Our engineers will evaluate the precise condition of your media. Once the diagnostics is complete, we will provide you with an exact price to recover your data. We will request specific files from you to verify the integrity of the data. You will receive a final price for recovery and return media options.”  &lt;p&gt;Reviewing several company’s offerings for data recovery the prices started around $300 and went up from there. That doesn’t mean a drive’s data can be recovered for $300, it means that the minimum charge will be $300 and we all known what minimum means.  &lt;p&gt;Now that we have established that non-functioning drives MIGHT be recoverable at a price. Doesn’t it make sense to copy over critical pictures and documents to a flash drive, external drive, DVD or even use some of the FREE cloud services such as seven gigabytes of storage from Skydrive or five gigs from Google Cloud, Amazon Cloud or if using a MAC, iCloud? Need more space, online storage is cheap, not so recovery. Even more important, BACKUP means there are two copies, the original and the copy. A client called me to ask how to get his files back from his backup on an external drive. The drive wasn’t functioning so I suggested he just use the original files on the computer. He had erased them because he made a backup on the external drive. Confusing? He made backups of the original, then erased the original which made his backup files the originals without a backup.  &lt;p&gt;Make a backup of this column and tape it to the monitor as a reminder. &lt;p&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;/i&gt; &lt;p&gt;This week for just for fun and giggles I have a special offer. Anyone purchasing my book Grumbles from the Keyboard (or how I learned to stop worrying and love my computer) during the week of 10/24/13 to 10/31/13 from this site &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.grumblesfromthekeyboard.com&quot;&gt;www.grumblesfromthekeyboard.com&lt;/a&gt; ONLY, will receive in addition to an autographed copy of the book, a coffee mug randomly selected from a stock of mugs collected from various sources that currently sit in my closet. These mugs have no connection to anything, not specially made, but they do hold coffee or other beverages. Of course if the mug and the autograph have no interest, the book may be purchased from Amazon.com. &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1467985899/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;camp=1789&amp;amp;creative=9325&amp;amp;creativeASIN=1467985899&amp;amp;linkCode=as2&amp;amp;tag=wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard&lt;/a&gt; &lt;p&gt;And while you’re there, pick up a copy of Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks! Find out how a geek, ties cooking and storytelling together in what may very well be a new genre.  &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1456561731/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;camp=1789&amp;amp;creative=9325&amp;amp;creativeASIN=1456561731&amp;amp;linkCode=as2&amp;amp;tag=wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure that Really Cooks!&lt;/a&gt; &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;&amp;lt;a target=&amp;quot;_blank&amp;quot; href=&amp;quot;http://www.amazon.com/gp/video/primesignup/ref=as_acph_pr_piv_71_on?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;camp=1789&amp;amp;creative=9325&amp;amp;linkCode=ur2&amp;amp;tag=wwwbitsandbyt-20&amp;quot;&amp;gt;Join Amazon Prime - Watch Over 40,000 Movies &amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;&amp;lt;img src=&amp;quot;http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=wwwbitsandbyt-20&amp;amp;l=ur2&amp;amp;o=1&amp;quot; width=&amp;quot;1&amp;quot; height=&amp;quot;1&amp;quot; border=&amp;quot;0&amp;quot; alt=&amp;quot;&amp;quot; style=&amp;quot;border:none !important; margin:0px !important;&amp;quot; /&amp;gt;&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Amazon Prime Trial Offer&lt;/a&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2013/10/hes-dead-jim-mccoy-to-capt-kirk.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-yXdd_ZUFpK8/UmkWpCXupEI/AAAAAAAABrs/vm5JQYh4QGs/s72-c/clip_image002_thumb.gif?imgmax=800" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-259789314703185385</guid><pubDate>Sun, 13 Oct 2013 17:22:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2013-10-13T13:22:00.060-04:00</atom:updated><title>Make My PC Faster! Go Baby Go…</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://lh4.ggpht.com/-RhCptn7lV7Y/UlrWtFnR19I/AAAAAAAABrA/7I1nuo510jM/s1600-h/clip_image002%25255B3%25255D.gif&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;clip_image002&quot; style=&quot;border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: left; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px 7px 0px 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; alt=&quot;clip_image002&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; src=&quot;http://lh6.ggpht.com/-LP2zX8nXQUY/UlrWtsyJXfI/AAAAAAAABrI/T3ICPx2YCWY/clip_image002_thumb.gif?imgmax=800&quot; width=&quot;240&quot; height=&quot;159&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Previously we discussed slow Internet connection speeds and how to troubleshoot before calling in a tech. This week we’ll attack a slow computer. Remember, there is no connection between the speed with which web pages load, (Internet connection) and the speed with which our computer starts up, programs open and our ability to navigate around the computer. Thinking that if we subscribe to the fastest Internet service available it will somehow speed up our computer’s functioning is doomed to failure. An easy way to prove this is to turn off the computer and disconnect the modem. Restart the computer and time it. Now shut off the computer and reconnect the modem, start the computer and time it again. No difference. &lt;p&gt;What makes our computers run slow? Hardware and software are the two culprits. Many name brand computers have a hardware diagnostic feature built in. Some are accessed before the computer starts by pressing a function key as soon as their logo appears on the screen. Others have a folder in All Programs that may have diagnostic programs in them. For example my HP machine has something called HP Support Assistant. This HP program helps you maintain peak computer performance and resolve problems through automatic updates and tune-ups, built-in diagnostics, and a variety of assistance options. HP machines shipped 2012 and later already have HP Support Assistant, and older machines may download it from &lt;a title=&quot;http://www8.hp.com/us/en/campaigns/hpsupportassistant/hpsupport.html?jumpid=reg_r1002_usen_c-001_title_r0001#.UlrTopDD-1s&quot; href=&quot;http://www8.hp.com/us/en/campaigns/hpsupportassistant/hpsupport.html?jumpid=reg_r1002_usen_c-001_title_r0001#.UlrTopDD-1s&quot;&gt;http://www8.hp.com/us/en/campaigns/hpsupportassistant/hpsupport.html?jumpid=reg_r1002_usen_c-001_title_r0001#.UlrTopDD-1s&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp; Check the website for the computer’s manufacturer for a diagnostic download if there isn’t one already on the machine. &lt;p&gt;If the hardware checks out, we can take a look at software. An easy way to determine if a specific program is causing the problem is to open system configuration. Go to Start and type in MSCONFIG. This will open a window with tabs across the top. Click on the tab labeled Startup. Windows 8 users will find this in Task Manager. By un-checking the boxes to the left (Windows 7 and older) or highlighting and clicking disable (Windows 8) we can tell that program not to start when we boot up the computer. Use a process of elimination. Uncheck half of the items and restart the computer. If nothing changes, uncheck half of the remaining items until we find the one that causes the problem.  &lt;p&gt;The issue may also be the number of programs starting up when our digital dynamo boots. Use a search engine to find out what each item is in the Startup and ask is it necessary. If it is not something we use continuously, preventing it from starting doesn’t remove it, just leaves it idle until we need it freeing up resources for other software to use.  &lt;p&gt;Remember there is no free MakeMyPC faster program for $59 that will do any of this. “Cleaning the Registry” is pretty much like putting lipstick on a pig. Pretty, useless and a waste of money.  &lt;p&gt;Don’t forget to pick up a copy of my books, Grumbles from the Keyboard for computer users and Epicuria: An Adventure that Really Cooks! for the Gourmand in the house. Remember: Santa is only a few weeks from visiting and even he recommends Grumbles from the Keyboard! See what he has to say right &lt;a href=&quot;http://youtu.be/RcSR_1DWymM&quot;&gt;here&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:90ea2474-c2e8-4b53-89f2-d10515f021bd&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1467985899/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1467985899.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1467985899&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781467985895&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:d824adc2-6a43-4e72-b4db-cca5a6ffa97a&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1456561731/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1456561731.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1456561731&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781456561734&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2013/10/make-my-pc-faster-go-baby-go.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-LP2zX8nXQUY/UlrWtsyJXfI/AAAAAAAABrI/T3ICPx2YCWY/s72-c/clip_image002_thumb.gif?imgmax=800" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-7488849104713318013</guid><pubDate>Thu, 03 Oct 2013 00:25:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2013-10-02T20:25:23.207-04:00</atom:updated><title>Fast and Furious, or Not</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;img style=&quot;float: left; margin: 0px 9px 0px 0px; display: inline&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; src=&quot;http://blog.womenshealthmag.com/whexperts/files/2012/05/AA038115.jpg&quot; width=&quot;182&quot; height=&quot;182&quot;&gt;A common complaint heard from users is, “my computer started to run slow.” There is, despite TV ads, banner ads, advertisements on the Internet no way to magically make the computer run faster. There is always a cause and the key to speeding up the computer is to find the culprit. It could be hardware related, software related or intruder related. But a step by step process of elimination can often identify the cause and suggest solutions. &lt;p&gt;First we need to identify the area of our computer that is actually slowing down. Is it the computer itself or is it the Internet connection? How do we tell the difference? If our complaint is that it takes a long time for websites to load in our browser then the problem is related to either our browser, our Internet connection, or our Internet equipment i.e. the modem or router. Let’s test our equipment first. Open a browser and go to speedtest.net. Run the test and compare the results to the rates promised by our providers. For example, Comcast promises to deliver 16 mbps or better on my plan and my test came back at 26 mbps. If the test had come in at something less than 16 mbps it may require some other diagnostic investigation. Before calling the provider take a few further steps, start by powering off the modem and powering it back on. If using one of the modems that has phone and or TV on it as well, it will have a backup battery, so find the reset button and push it. After the modem powers up check the speed again. If the problem still exists, it’s time to check the router if we have one. Power it off and on again. Do not reset a router as this will remove all the settings that were created when the router was installed. Still no improvement? Connect a computer directly to the modem and test again. Still no improvement in the speed, it may be time to call the provider. They will have the ability to check the signal from their end and determine if there is a line problem. With DSL it could be a bad phone line, surge protector, filter or modem. With cable it might be bad coax cable, splitter, lose connection or modem. &lt;p&gt;If connected directly to the modem solves the speed issue then a router may be the problem. Before tossing the router, go to the router’s control panel to look for a firmware update that the company may have issued to resolve certain issues. We can also reset the router back to factory conditions by pressing the reset button. Test the speed again to see if the problem goes away and then re-enter the previous router settings such as network name and security password.  &lt;p&gt;Remember these steps are to resolve slow Internet page display issues. None of this is related to the speed of our digital domestique.  &lt;p&gt;Don’t forget to pick up a copy of my books, Grumbles from the Keyboard for computer users and Epicuria: An Adventure that Really Cooks! for the Gourmand in the house.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:759b77d8-3c9a-4567-9137-f62c9b6731ad&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1467985899/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1467985899.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1467985899&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781467985895&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:cfc4a361-d5f6-4c93-90df-118a1d7a96eb&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1456561731/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1456561731.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1456561731&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781456561734&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2013/10/fast-and-furious-or-not.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><thr:total>1</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-3065752730410878716</guid><pubDate>Wed, 11 Sep 2013 18:29:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2013-09-11T14:29:09.927-04:00</atom:updated><title>Convert our Yugo to a Ferrari and give it away for free!</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://lh5.ggpht.com/-CEiBrT5OTx0/UjC2c64RtiI/AAAAAAAABqQ/29LjTrYMG3s/s1600-h/clip_image002%25255B3%25255D.gif&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;clip_image002&quot; style=&quot;border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: left; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; alt=&quot;clip_image002&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; src=&quot;http://lh6.ggpht.com/-M1IMTA-u7SY/UjC2dLBxN4I/AAAAAAAABqY/mV8WQ9WqUO8/clip_image002_thumb.gif?imgmax=800&quot; width=&quot;192&quot; height=&quot;79&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Faithful column reader Ben writes, “Can you recommend one of those free &quot;Speed up / Clean up&quot; software programs.” It is not uncommon to run into these types of programs as I visit with clients. There seems to be this fixation on a one button cure for slow from some company that wants to develop products that will convert our Yugo to a Ferrari and give it away for free. Users have sworn that a free $69 program made their computer run twice as fast as before. Asked how they benchmarked the computer before and after the fix, realization sets in that it was probably the placebo effect and their wallet was lighter.  &lt;p&gt;Even worse, many of the tools that will help our digital domestique maintain its perky stature are already on our computers. Others are included with software we install such as anti virus/malware programs. The key is to benchmark our computer first and to do that we can download PC-Wizard free from this link, ftp://ftp.cpuid.com/pc-wizard/pc-wizard_2012.2.11-setup.exe. (Martha, he said FREE.) Be VERY cautious as the reason the program is free is the site is littered with download buttons that will install programs but not PC-Wizard. So if the download starts and it doesn’t say PC-Wizard cancel and try again. Install the program and there are lots of different ways to look at our binary buddy’s performance. Click on Benchmark and choose Windows Performance Rating. This is a general overall rating based on all the components of the PC. Now we have a starting point.  &lt;p&gt;To speed up our calculating companion it is important to recognize that there is hardware speed, software speed and Internet speed. Hardware speed relates to spin rate of hard drives, processor speeds, RAM memory speeds and other resources. No software fix will alter these. Software speed pertains to how programs utilize ram memory and process tasks. No software fix will alter these either. Internet speed pertains to how fast our Internet provider provides data from the Internet to our PC.  &lt;p&gt;What makes our PC seem to be slowing down? We tend to load them up with more programs that try to start when we turn on the PC including Fix it/Clean it programs. They compete for computer resources and everything seems to run slower. Examine what is starting up and ask is it running all the time or can it run only when needed? We need to remove temporary files that may be causing our antivirus to scan longer than necessary. And probably the greatest culprit to slow Internet performance is the installation of Toolbars. There are thousands of them, and not a single user has been able to tell me how they got installed. Rocketrebate, Ask, Community, Recipe and Babylon toolbars just to name a few. These toolbars tend to change our home page, alter our search engines and redirect our search results.  &lt;p&gt;Stay tuned, next&amp;nbsp; some tools for tuning up our PC.  &lt;p&gt;By now you know that there is a great companion piece to this blog. Order a copy today.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:ea7ed03f-09fe-47a0-91ed-17ec428c034d&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1467985899/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1467985899.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1467985899&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781467985895&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;p&gt;Looking for something interesting to peruse that will tickle your gastric system? Pick up a copy today.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:d35f9224-df2b-484f-b44a-1542bd642662&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1456561731/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1456561731.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1456561731&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781456561734&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &lt;p&gt;And for those that live in the northern states, winter isn’t to far away. What better way to spend those frozen days and nights with a month or more stay in Southwest Florida. Take a look at this seasonal rental and ask yourself, freezing cold, biting snow, black ice, snow blowers and worse OR, Sunny skies, warm temperatures, golf, biking, swimming, boating, fishing and on and on. In case you can’t remember last winter, here is a little video to refresh your memory. &lt;a href=&quot;http://youtu.be/CYkTmdvkN6Y&quot;&gt;“Stop Your Bitchin bout the weather”&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; To view rental rates, pictures and contact information surf on over to &lt;a href=&quot;http://bitsandbytesonline.com/pegs_hideaway.html&quot;&gt;Peg’s Hideaway&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2013/09/convert-our-yugo-to-ferrari-and-give-it.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-M1IMTA-u7SY/UjC2dLBxN4I/AAAAAAAABqY/mV8WQ9WqUO8/s72-c/clip_image002_thumb.gif?imgmax=800" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-779180984314632711</guid><pubDate>Wed, 14 Aug 2013 09:27:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2013-08-14T05:27:00.382-04:00</atom:updated><title>Email through the eyes of Windows 8</title><description>&lt;p&gt;E-mail is a critical function of keeping in touch with friends, family, clubs, organizations, and bill paying. Not to mention advertisements and newsletters. Many of us have multiple e-mail addresses specifically for unique purposes. For example, I use Hotmail for business, Yahoo for family, AOL for junk mail, Gmail for clubs and organizations, NetZero for unknown reasons, and Comcast for (queue the scary music,) Quilting related stuff.&amp;nbsp; (and yes, according to my wife it is only spelled with a capital Q) &lt;p&gt;Windows 8 has a very interesting Mail function built into the Metro desktop. When setting up our new Windows 8 PC for the first time, one of the questions presented is to enter our e-mail address and password. From that point forward, when we click on the MAIL tile on the Metro desktop it will immediately open our e-mail for perusal. Another feature that we find in the MAIL function is to add additional e-mail addresses to the MAIL function that enables us to quickly review all our emails from one spot regardless of the source.  &lt;p&gt;To enable multiple e-mail accounts within the MAIL function of Metro, click on the MAIL tile to open MAIL. Once it is open move the mouse pointer to the upper right corner of the screen to activate the CHARMS bar. The Charms bar can also be accessed by pressing the Windows key + C on the keyboard. Click on SETTINGS in the CHARMS bar and then click on add account. Now fill in the e-mail address of account we wish to add and the password and Windows will add that account to the display within MAIL. For example, when I click on the MAIL tile, the mail program opens and in the navigation bar it displays Hotmail, Gmail, AOL and others. To view the mail from a specific account I click on that account name and there is the mail addressed to that account.  &lt;p&gt;The MAIL program keeps the e-mail segregated by account. Additionally, if we have set up folders or labels within each account, as we examine our mail the folders associated with that specific account are visible and ready to receive mail should we decide to move an e-mail to a specific folder. &lt;p&gt;Windows 8 also has on the Metro desktop a tile labeled Weather. During set up for the first time the computer will ask if it may use location based information. If we say yes then when clicking on the Weather tile, the screen will display the local weather, in significant depth. If we then right mouse click anywhere on the weather menus open and one is called Places. Click here to add to the Weather display the locations of kids, grandkids, friend and other places we might have an interest in. Don’t forget to move the mouse to the upper right corner for the Charms bar, type Snipping Tool in the Search field and grab a screen shot of the weather hear in SWFL and e-mail it to our friends up north. We know they will appreciate it.  &lt;p&gt;Windows 8, interesting features.  &lt;p&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;/i&gt; &lt;p&gt;For those that follow my column in the Sun-Herald newspaper,&amp;nbsp; I talked about a piece of software called Sandboxie &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.sandboxie.com&quot;&gt;(www.sandboxie.com&lt;/a&gt;) for preventing drive by download malware.&amp;nbsp; Listed below are three video tutorials by Matt from Remove-malware.com. If you decide to use Sandboxie these will help the setup and configuration. &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://youtu.be/GueXMq-Vyi8&quot;&gt;Sandboxie Review Part 1&lt;/a&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://youtu.be/2IbwhE-r8_k&quot;&gt;Sandboxie Review Part 2&lt;/a&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://youtu.be/4XBbC81bZx4&quot;&gt;Sandboxie Review Part 3&lt;/a&gt; &lt;p&gt;Now with all this information perculating in the brain cells, isn’t it time to get some light reading for the throne room? Pick up a copy of Grumbles from the Keyboard. Packed with tips and tricks to make using a computer fun and functional. You be so engrossed reading that you’ll forget to eat. But when you do, eat something from my cookbook/novel Epicuria: Adventures that really Cook! &lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:89aecb7b-f0a4-4517-8a0b-2b98247fb439&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1467985899/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1467985899.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1467985899&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781467985895&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:2d82c3a7-4c5e-47da-840a-6f0cc1bcc4ec&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1456561731/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1456561731.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1456561731&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781456561734&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2013/08/email-through-eyes-of-windows-8.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-3624652646572184567</guid><pubDate>Thu, 08 Aug 2013 15:34:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2013-08-08T11:34:11.127-04:00</atom:updated><title>One question, many answers.</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://lh5.ggpht.com/-N7OGQlB8OVg/UgO6Y_wG_bI/AAAAAAAABp0/yFKzK2Di-m0/s1600-h/clip_image002%25255B4%25255D.gif&quot;&gt;&lt;img title=&quot;clip_image002&quot; style=&quot;border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; float: left; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; alt=&quot;clip_image002&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; src=&quot;http://lh5.ggpht.com/-eLL8IN-Ek-k/UgO6cTgsKCI/AAAAAAAABp8/3J2X_jhd2TU/clip_image002_thumb%25255B1%25255D.gif?imgmax=800&quot; width=&quot;153&quot; height=&quot;153&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Received an e-mail this week from long time column follower JTB. The question, “When I turn on the machine, an Easy Solve box appears saying that IE cannot display the webpage. When I X out the box, there seems to be no other effects. Occasionally and more frequently, the page freezes for 30-60 seconds. It responds to no keystrokes, commands, or to the mouse. IE stops working. A box appears saying that the Internet connection is lost. This happens more and more frequently. I have Norton and have done total system scans to no avail. If you have any ideas on how to remedy these problems, I would appreciate your response.”  &lt;p&gt;When asking questions about a problem, always make sure all the facts are given. Let’s see if we can devise some ideas that might address these problems. “When I turn on the machine,” indicates the problem begins at start up. Easy Solve says that IE cannot display the webpage. What is Easy Solve? This is easily determined by using a search engine to find Easy Solve. We learn it is software installed on our computers by Comcast. One solution would be to go to Programs and Features and uninstall the offending program. It isn’t needed, obviously interferes with Internet Explorer and tries to display web pages on it’s own.  &lt;p&gt;The next question pertains to “the page freezes.” Without clarification as to which program is not displaying a page, let’s assume it is a page being displayed by Internet Explorer. One likelihood is that Internet Explorer is loaded with toolbars, such as the translator toolbar, Google toolbar, Bing toolbar, recipe toolbar, Iwon toolbar and on and on. Each of these alters the response of Internet Explorer when we try to go to a website or search for something. After a while, Internet Explorer doesn’t know what to do and just quits. Go to Control Panel - Programs and Features to uninstall anything with the word toolbar in it. Then go to Control Panel – Internet Options. When the dialog box opens click on the tab labeled Advanced and towards the bottom is a button labeled Reset. This will remove temporary files, history, reset the homepage, set all the security levels to the default factory settings, remove all saved passwords, usernames and reset the default search engines to Bing. This usually solves most Internet Explorer problems.  &lt;p&gt;A different alternative is to use another browser such as Google Chrome, Firefox or Safari. However, if we add toolbars and multiple search engines these will also have to be reset eventually.  &lt;p&gt;Finally, the last part of the question was, “the Internet connection is lost.” Many possibilities here, the Comcast modem may be resetting itself; the router may reset itself, a bad cable or even a bad network adaptor or corrupt driver. Each needs to be tested and eliminated in order to zero in on the cause.  &lt;p&gt;Keep pluggin’ away!  &lt;p&gt;And don’t forget to pick up a copy of these two wonderful books.   &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:31d5c8af-6b9a-4cea-a764-57f901426975&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1467985899/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1467985899.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1467985899&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781467985895&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:a537420c-f52f-456e-a37a-811db04c44b1&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1456561731/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1456561731.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1456561731&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781456561734&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2013/08/one-question-many-answers.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-eLL8IN-Ek-k/UgO6cTgsKCI/AAAAAAAABp8/3J2X_jhd2TU/s72-c/clip_image002_thumb%25255B1%25255D.gif?imgmax=800" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-4420000494432517942</guid><pubDate>Wed, 24 Jul 2013 20:34:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2013-07-24T16:34:40.699-04:00</atom:updated><title>Limit Exposure to Ripoffs</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;img style=&quot;float: left; margin: 0px 7px 0px 0px; display: inline&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; src=&quot;http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/india-call-center.jpg&quot; width=&quot;277&quot; height=&quot;183&quot;&gt;The article on computer repair scams must have hit a sore spot. Based on the number of emails I received from folks that had experienced the exact sequence of events, it wouldn’t surprise me if tens of thousands of Charlotte County, and possibly millions of citizen dollars are now doing great good in India, Pakistan or some other country not labeled U.S.A. For a great video of the exact science of ripping off computer users, surf over to &lt;a title=&quot;TG9-p98EOXg&quot; href=&quot;http://youtu.be/DLm479R4888&quot;&gt;Tag um and bag um!&lt;/a&gt; and watch another tech, tag, bag and record the rip off as it happens. Hopefully, seeing is believing. On a related note, the FBI/Reveton virus seems to be making another round, but this time harder to remove. If a screen appears to take over the computer displaying the FBI logo and stating that the computer has been locked due to attempted download of copyright movies, music or porn and to send $200 immediately via a prepaid MoneyPak card in order to unlock the computer, do NOT send money to unlock the computer. The money will be gone and the computer will still be locked. The real FBI has posted a warning here www.fbi.gov/news/podcasts/thisweek/reveton-ransomware/view that gives and overview of the virus.  &lt;p&gt;Things we can do to limit our exposure to these types of rip offs are the basics. If we receive an unsolicited phone call warning us of dire consequences about to occur to our computer unless we let the caller takeover our beloved PC, hang up. Or if in a jolly mood, tell the caller our brother is a computer crime tech for the FBI and could we have their name and number so our brother can seek their input on cybercrime. &lt;p&gt;If looking for a support phone number, go to the company’s website to find a contact number if they offer one. DO NOT, Google (company) support phone numbers. Any number we find will not be the real number for the company, but will be the number of a bogus support rip off site.  &lt;p&gt;The FBI virus, exploits older versions of Java and Adobe products so make sure these are the latest versions available. As of this date, Java 7 version 11 (available for free at www.java.com) and Adobe Flash version 11 (available for free at www.adobe.com) are current. Go to Control Panel, Programs and Features, scroll down the list of installed programs to find which versions of those programs we have. Consider PSI from Secunia, available at http://secunia.com/vulnerability_scanning/personal/, a free program that will scan our computer comparing the versions of software and updates we have against current ones available and update our computer for us. &lt;p&gt;While it is convenient to have our browser remember our passwords so we don’t have to enter them each time, remember that a password can’t be stolen by a virus if it isn’t on the PC.  &lt;p&gt;Notice that neither of the two threats mentioned occur via e-mail.  &lt;p&gt;Got a problem? Call a LOCAL tech. They need the money more than someone on the other side of the world.  &lt;p&gt;Don’t forget to buy Grumbles From the Keyboard. Lots of stuff written about the computer for the layman.  &lt;p&gt;And if you’re hungry, Epicuria will leave you entertained and enjoying a fine repast.  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt; &lt;tbody&gt; &lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51tKV6tC9mL._SL160_.jpg&quot;&gt; &lt;/td&gt; &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Grumbles-From-The-Keyboard-Worrying/dp/1467985899%3FSubscriptionId%3D0JTCV5ZMHMF7ZYTXGFR2%26tag%3Dbrdicr-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D1467985899&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt; &lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;0&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt; &lt;tbody&gt; &lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51yfUuIbEkL._SL160_.jpg&quot;&gt; &lt;/td&gt; &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/Epicuria-Adventure-That-Really-Cooks/dp/1456561731%3FSubscriptionId%3D0JTCV5ZMHMF7ZYTXGFR2%26tag%3Dbrdicr-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D1456561731&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2013/07/limit-exposure-to-ripoffs.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><thr:total>0</thr:total></item><item><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2077166867803535450.post-4184342842119139579</guid><pubDate>Mon, 24 Jun 2013 15:35:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2013-06-24T11:35:41.964-04:00</atom:updated><title>But they said they were from ….</title><description>&lt;p&gt;A worldwide epidemic is afoot. Charlotte County seems particularly vulnerable based on phone calls and emails I receive. Here are the source points, symptoms, results and methods to protect ourselves.  &lt;p&gt;Contact points appear to be an unsolicited phone call from “windows” or “Microsoft” or some other Internet technology company or our attempt to find a phone number for support.  &lt;p&gt;With unsolicited phone calls the caller informs us our computer is infected and may crash, infect our friend’s computers or is sending viruses infecting computers around the world. The caller offers to remove the virus and save our binary buddies. They then request that we visit a website that allows the caller to remotely control our computer. Sites like Logmein, or Teamviewer. Once in control, they go to Start – Control Panel – Administrative Tools – Event Viewer. Now they filter the events to show only the ERROR reports. Scrolling through recorded events they point out the red ERROR messages and tell us thousands of problems exist on our computer. Next they download a program that flashes a graphical scan screen that reports thousands of registry errors, and the caller states our computer is about to crash. While all this is occurring the caller may do one or all of the following: Infect our PC then request money to clean it up, steal our files / folders / e-mail address / passwords etc. use our computer to attack other systems. The caller may ask us to write down a series of numbers referring to them as support numbers, license keys, ticket control numbers to keep us distracted. The caller offers to resolve all the problems for some monetary sum, usually in the $199 range however the last few I have been called on have been in the $300 dollar ballpark. One client tried to pay with a credit card that was blocked from overseas transactions and the caller demanded that the client surrender the account and routing numbers to their checking account. When the user refused they hung up and sent an invoice via e-mail. &lt;p&gt;A recent twist to this scam is that now instead of taking a credit card payment for payment, they are using the credit card to fund a Western Union money transfer. One client had the money picked up in Singapore minutes after giving out the credit card and the scammers not only took $500 but charged the credit card for the Western Union fee. Once cash has left a bank, the bank will not give it back. &lt;p&gt;The same scam occurred when users, frustrated that they cannot find a phone number for Google, HP, Norton or Microsoft, type into a search engine “support phone numbers for” the company they are trying to reach. One client called a number they thought was the support line for Norton Antivirus and the person who answered the phone took over their computer and ran the same scan outlined above. Seems pretty strange that Norton would tell one of their customers that the Norton software didn’t protect them but for $179 they would remove what their software couldn’t.  &lt;p&gt;Companies do not use phones. Online Chat, e-mail, and forums are the service de jour. Receive one of these calls or recognize the scam, hang up. For fun, see how long we can keep them on the phone without payment before they hang up.  &lt;p&gt;Is it imperative that $169 be sent to someone? Please send it to me or a LOCAL tech of choice.  &lt;p&gt;Here’s an interesting idea sent in by a loyal reader. They keep a copy of Grumbles From the Keyboard on the coffee table. Each day as they settle in for a little TV, they pick up the book and read another chapter during commercials. It’s quiet time, and they can concentrate on the subject matter without interruption. Get your copy today. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:cb5b670c-6b01-40d1-a5a1-836eb7969f24&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1467985899/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1467985899.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1467985899&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781467985895&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &lt;p&gt;And don’t forget, after absorbing all that knowledge, you’ll be hungry. Find out what a computer geek likes to eat from my cookbook, Epicuria: An Adventure that Really Cooks!&lt;/p&gt; &lt;div id=&quot;scid:7dc1bd33-94bd-46fd-a20b-0131235bcd47:319c00d9-18f6-4dc8-b696-638e754772ab&quot; class=&quot;wlWriterEditableSmartContent&quot; style=&quot;float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px&quot;&gt;&lt;table cellspacing=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;2&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; unselectable=&quot;on&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;400&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a title=&quot;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&quot; href=&quot;http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1456561731/wwwbitsandbyt-20&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1456561731.01.MZZZZZZZ.jpg&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot; style=&quot;float:left&quot;&gt;Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN&lt;/b&gt;: 1456561731&lt;br&gt;&lt;b&gt;ISBN-13&lt;/b&gt;: 9781456561734&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  </description><link>http://courtnederveld.blogspot.com/2013/06/but-they-said-they-were-from.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Bits, Bytes and Chips)</author><thr:total>1</thr:total></item></channel></rss>

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