Leo's Answers
A Weekly Newsletter From
Ask Leo!
Leo Notenboom
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*** Contents
*** This Week's New Articles on Ask Leo!
How do I block Windows XP Service Pack 3?
My machine can't handle Windows XP SP3. How do I prevent Windows
Update from continually trying to install it?
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Window XP SP3 has had a fairly reasonable success rate, but it
definitely causes some people problems. While I don't think it's a long
term solution, you can indeed prevent Windows Update from trying to
install SP3.
Continue reading: "How
do I block Windows XP Service Pack 3?"
http://ask-leo.com/how_do_i_block_windows_xp_service_pack_3.html
* * *
How do I fix errors on my hard disk?
Hi, I have a Computer running Windows XP SP2 that keeps returning a
G:|$mft corrupt error. I have looked everywhere to try and find a fix
for this, but to no avail. It would appear to not effect anything
except for the error message popping up and the system wanting to check
disk on boot every time. Any clues?
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I don't have anything specific to that error, but what I'll do
instead is outline the various steps I take when attempting to diagnose
and repair a problem of this nature.
Depending on the underlying cause, this could be a simple fix, or a
disaster waiting to happen.
Continue reading: "How do I
fix errors on my hard disk?"
http://ask-leo.com/how_do_i_fix_errors_on_my_hard_disk.html
* * *
How do I reduce the amount of computer maintenance I'm
supposed to do?
Sitting again at my PC, doing maintenance...... it seems that doing
maintenance takes more time than actually using the PC for surfing or
e-mailing. I have by now 9 cleaning-.. virus-... spyware-...
backup-....adaware-.... etc.-programs accumulated which I am now trying
to run only once a week. Before, I was spending an inordinate amount of
time just doing maintenance. There is something very wrong with this
picture and the amount of garbage floating around the internet is
insane and against which one has to protect oneself. If you have a
suggestion on how this can be handled more efficiently, please, let us
all know. And I do not want to run my PC at night to do this
maintenance automatically.
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Leaving your computer running overnight is one common and easy way
to deal with this issue. It's certainly what I do.
But it doesn't have to be the only solution.
But I also have to ask: NINE MAINTENANCE PROGRAMS? For
starters, it sounds to me like you're doing more maintenance than you
need to.
Continue reading:
"How do I reduce the amount of computer maintenance I'm supposed to
do?"
http://ask-leo.com/how_do_i_reduce_the_amount_of_computer_maintenance_im_supposed_to_do.html
* * *
How do I remove a pesky message in Windows
Mail?
I now have 5 "Message cannot be displayed" "Windows Mail encountered
an unexpected problem while displaying this message" and these messages
cannot be deleted. The 3 in my "Drafts" and 1 in my "Inbox" do not stop
functioning but the 1 in my "Outbox" stops me from sending mail. Can
you help me?
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Perhaps.
Long time readers will know that my opinion of Outlook Express, and
its Vista equivalent, Windows Mail, is not very high. That's based
mostly on problem reports I see every day.
The two programs are nearly identical, but in this case there's a
difference that, if you're lucky, might serve you very well.
Continue reading:
"How do I remove a pesky message in Windows Mail?"
http://ask-leo.com/how_do_i_remove_a_pesky_message_in_windows_mail.html
* * *
How should I save files before reformatting my
computer?
My husband wants to reformat his computer, because of a virus. He
wants to save certain files, and wants to know the best way to save
those files.
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First, I want to commend you on realizing that a reformat of
your machine erases everything. Sadly, many people don't realize
or overlook this aspect.
There are two approaches that I recommend, and the choice boils down
to understanding exactly how confident you are that you won't miss
anything.
And for the record, I'm never that confident, myself.
Continue reading:
"How should I save files before reformatting my computer?"
http://ask-leo.com/how_should_i_save_files_before_reformatting_my_computer.html
* * *
Why am I being told I'm connected when I'm not?
Every once in a while the notification balloon saying that "magnesia
is now connected, speed 44.0 bps...." comes up while I am definitely
not connected. I am suspecting a software glitch but can not, of course
identify it since I am just an ordinary user of a PC. I have run all
kinds of cleaning programs to no avail. If you have some idea what
could cause this, I would be grateful if you would let me know. Running
Windows XP, Home and SP3 installed.
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"definitely not connected."?
I beg to differ. That's exactly what that little balloon means.
And depending on what you mean by "cleaning program", I'm not at all
surprised they didn't help.
Continue reading: "Why
am I being told I'm connected when I'm not?"
http://ask-leo.com/why_am_i_being_told_im_connected_when_im_not.html
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*** Featured Comments
A sampling of some of the comments that have been posted recently on
Ask Leo!
* * *
Parental Monitoring Software: My child figured out how to turn it off -
what can I do?
JL writes:
I agree - you cannot protect your children, or teens 24/7. However,
if my 18 yr old has a beer at someone else's house, I have neither
allowed it or condoned it. Our home has rules. Period.
Children are exposed to way too many things, but they have to use a
computer regularly for school, and enjoy games of all types (even
learning games). So, we protect them the best we can. Allow what we
have to. Nazi's maybe, so be it. Children are regularly mad at parents
for disallowing things. It's the way of the world.
The program "I am big brother" did wonders for me. What did I find?
That my son had a punk friend he was no longer allowed to stay over
night there, and otherwise, nothing much. The kids cussed much more
than I thought to their frineds, but basically used the computer well.
The pay-off, a sound mind that my children had a brain, even when they
didn't know I was watching (I did not block access to anything & I
was often at work after school). And, then I uninstalled it.
But, you know.. when drug dealers can hang out by our schools, when
kids are no longer safe outside alone to play, when grown adults
pretend to be kids to prey on our children, why can't parents hang out
in the computer. It's a war to protect our kids. Do what you have to do
to keep them safe and healthy.
And, the teens on here who feel oppressed, think about the kid at
school you know who's parents are doped up or drunk, and don't care
what their kid does. Your parents love you, when you were born - they
didn't get a rule book or step by step instructions, and there's no
help menu on your forehead. It's not easy deciding what to do, someday,
you'll really see that.
The program for http://www.iambigbrother.com/ hides in the
background of your computer and slows it down some. But it does not
show up anywhere after you delete the install files shortcuts, and is
password protected. (at least back when I used it)
How should I save files before reformatting my computer?
Ziggie writes:
Leo, since the reader mentioned a virus, wouldn't an image of the
hard drive also capture that virus? How would anyone be protected if
they're re-instating the virus whenever they restore from backup?
Ken B writes:
Yes, a full system backup would also back up the viruses. However,
so would just backing up a single infected file.
The idea here is to make sure that you didn't miss an important file
before the wipe-and-reinstall, because after the wipe, you're not going
to get anything that you missed.
Once the system is reinstalled, and an up-to-date antivirus and
anti-spyware program are installed, they should pick up any infected
files that you try to copy back. (In fact, if you back up to a writable
media, such as an external HD, you can scan it before restoring
anything.)
And, once you have everything that you need restored, and the system
is "clean", you can do another full system backup at that point.
Phil writes:
I'm confused - why can't a simple antivirus scan solve the problem?
- Surely if the virus can be found and healed on the external hard
drive back-up(or other media) before re-copying, then surely this can
be done on the existing machine - Can someone please explain?
Ken B writes:
Well, some people are of the opinion that "the only way to be sure
you got rid of the infection is to reformat and reinstall".
Beyond that, however, is the fact that many infections actively
target and disable the antivirus/antispyware/etc. programs. If your
system is infected, you many not be able to run the program.
The typical end-user, and many technicians, simply don't have the
tools and the experience to remove many of the really nasty programs
out there.
There are several good questions and responses above. I want to
touch briefly on the issues raised:
Zigg: you're absolutely correct, a full backup would also backup the
virus infection. Note that I'm not suggesting that the machine be
restored completely from that backup. The point is that the backup
includes all the files on the machine, and as they're needed they can
be extracted from the backup (and presumably virus scanned as
well).
Phil: no, a simple anti-virus cannot be trusted to just fix the
problem. The very definition of viruses and malware is that they go out
of their way to be undetectable. In an absolute sense, once you've been
infected by almost anything you've lost total control of your machine.
You can run an anti-malware scan, but how do you know, I mean really
know, that it caught and cleaned everything? You don't.
The closest any anti-malware scanner can ever get is: "we believe
you're clear of everything we know about and everything that we could
find". The corollary to that statement is that "you could still be
infected by malware we don't know about, or that hid from us too
well."
The reason that most people simply rely on anti-malware scanners to
do the job is that most, but not all of the time even though there's no
guarantee, it's enough. And it's generally impractical and very painful
to reformat after every infection.
That's why prevention is so much less painful than the cure.
Thanks Ken B for your comments above as well; right on target.
-Leo
*** This Week's Most Popular
The ten most popular articles in the last 7 days on Ask Leo!
-
How do I delete history items from my Google tool bar?
- How
do I make a new MSN Hotmail account?
-
How do I put a picture in a comment on myspace.com?
-
How do I put a picture into the caption of a picture on
myspace.com?
-
What are MSN HotMail's POP3 and SMTP settings for Outlook
Express?
- How
do I change my MSN Hotmail password?
-
My desktop Recycle Bin has disappeared - why, and how do I get it
back?
-
What are the POP3 and SMTP settings for Hotmail?
- How do I
hack into someone's account?
- How do I
delete my Hotmail account?
*** Leo Recommends
Acronis TrueImage Home
Backup Software
As long time readers know I frequently mention backing up as one of
the biggest and most important missed opportunities that too many
people are overlooking to protect themselves. And I get reports
every day of people who've lost important data, sometimes
everything, that a simple backup solution would have protected them
against.
If you're still without a backup solution I recommend Acronis True Image
Home as an easy to use solution for anyone who should be backing up
but isn't. Acronis is easy to set up, can back up files and folders, or
your entire machine, and can similarly restore individual files and
folders, or your an entire machine image, quickly and easily.
When used with an external hard drive Acronis True Image can be a
nearly "set it and forget it" backup solution.
In fact, it's what's running on the very machine I'm using as I
write this.
Continue reading my recommendation: "Acronis
TrueImage Home - Backup Software", or just order Acronis True Image
Home now.
I recommend it.
•
Each week I recommend a specific product or resource that
I've found valuable and that I think you may as well.
What does my recommendation mean?
*** Popular Articles from the Archives
Here's one thing you should all be doing
to avoid asking for more spam.
Why shouldn't I post my email address in a public
forum?
|
So many
discussion forums and technical assistance sites, including yours, ask
for an email address to post comments, and yet friends tell me never to
put my real address in. Sometimes I need to include my email address as
part of my comment or question, but I'm told that's even worse! Why is
that, and what should I do?
|
The why is easy.
The what to do? Not so much.
Why is it a bad idea? In a word, spam.
Continue reading...
Why shouldn't I post my email address in a public forum?
http://ask-leo.com/why_shouldnt_i_post_my_email_address_in_a_public_forum.html
*** Thoughts and Comments
As I mentioned briefly last week, Sunday marked the 5th anniversary
of Ask Leo!. It's hard to believe that I've been doing it that long.
And aside from a virtual assistant helping me filter some of the
comments and questions, it's still a one-man show. Just me: Leo
Notenboom.
If you follow me on Twitter you'll already know that I posted
this years collection of goofy questions out on my personal blog, as
I do every year around this time. Once again this year saw no shortage
of odd, strange and other questions in my inbox. (And yes, within
moments of publishing that, the collection for next year has already
started.)
And those following me on following me on Twitter also found out that I
"celebrated" my anniversary by coming down with a head cold. As I write
this (Monday morning), it still feels like I'm only on half power.
World of Warcraft seems to be a good diversion though. 
Thank you for reading, subscribing and commenting. Without
you Ask Leo! wouldn't be here, and I appreciate it more than I can
say.
Onward into year six we go...
*
As always, thanks for subscribing, for reading, and for your
feedback. If you appreciate this newsletter or the site, one of the
best ways you can say "Thank You!" is to link to Ask Leo! or
simply to tell a friend or colleague. Just send folks to askleo.net.
'till next time...
Leo A. Notenboom
* * *
A selection of Leo's articles are available for free re-use at
http://articlesbyleo.com.
Some of Leo's other sites: The Ask Leo! Store, Leo's Online Business Card, Forwarded
Funnies, Taming Email,
MovableType Tips, Leo's Blog, Buy Leo a Latte (or a Beer), A Letter To Myself, Dolls and Friends, Corgwn.com
*** Newsletter Administration
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Newsletter contents
Copyright © 2008, Leo A. Notenboom & Puget Sound Software,
LLC.
Continue reading
Leo's Answers #140 - August 12, 2008
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Source: Leo's Answers #140 - August 12, 2008
