Windows Vista: Enhancing Performance

Windows Vista includes a new stylish graphical user interface with transparencies, animations, and more. This new interface is called Aero, and is system resource intensive (meaning it requires a fast: CPU, RAM, and a graphics card) to create all the 'eye candy' that you see.

Note: I know I am going to get emails about the term 'eye candy'. This term refers to extra effects on screen (such as the transparencies and animations) to make it look pretty, but are not critical to the operation of the computer.

Below are some suggestions that help increase the speed of your system by reducing the fancy graphics in Areo to free up system resources:

• Turn off transparency - Right-click the desktop, click Personalize, and click 'Windows Color and Appearance' link then uncheck 'Enable Transparency'. Press the OK button when done.
• Turn off the visual effects - Open Control Panel, click 'Performance Information and Tools', and then click 'Adjust Visual Effects' in the left task pane. In the 'Performance Options' dialog uncheck the line items for the effects that you want to disable (such as: animations, fades, etc.) or click select one of the options below:
• Let Windows choose what's best for my computer
• Adjust for best appearance
• Adjust for best performance
• Turn off the Sidebar - Right-click the Sidebar, click Properties, and uncheck 'Start Sidebar when Windows starts'. Press the OK button when done. Then, right-click the Sidebar and select 'Close Sidebar' from the menu.
• Turn off the Aero theme - Right-click the desktop, click Personalize, and click 'Windows Color and Appearance'. Towards the bottom of the dialog click the link 'Open classic appearance properties for more options' and choose a theme in the 'Color Scheme' list box (such as: Windows Classic, Windows Vista Basic, or Windows Standard theme). Press the OK button when done.

Windows Vista: Dump Files

When your computer crashes it creates what is called a 'dump file', which is a file that contains the contents of your computer's RAM. This file can be used to diagnose and troubleshoot a system failure by a trained professional who understands the contents of it.

To most people these files are a nuisance because of the amount of disk space they can consume. These files can also be a security risk because they can potentially contain sensitive information, such as passwords stored in the computer's memory.

If you want to disable the dump file option, follow the instructions below:

• Open the Start menu, and select Control Panel folder.
  
• Double-click the System control panel.
• Click the 'Advanced system settings' link in the left pane.
• Press the Settings... button in the 'Startup and Recovery' section.
• In the 'System failure' section, in the 'Write debugging information' drop-down menu select '(none)'
• Press the OK buttons when done.

Article: Buy Samsung's Hybrid Hard Drive Next Week; Preorders Taken Now

PC Magazine reports: "Samsung's first hybrid hard drives will be available for end-user purchase in a week's time, although only a limited subset of customers with the latest hardware may be able to take advantage of them. ... The new drive contains 256 Mbytes of flash memory, which is used as a "write cache" as part of Microsoft's "ReadyDrive" initiative. The drives store data to be written on the flash cache, writing it all in one fell swoop when the cache is full. Writing the data all at once allows the laptop's drive to only spin up when it needs to, instead of operating at full speed to write a few bits of data here and there."

Anyone waiting for the new 'ReadyDrive' hybrid hard drives your wait is almost over. The technology promises greater speed and improved battery life. Now we have to wait and see if it can deliver on both of these promises.

Article: AT&T quietly offers $10 DSL plan

Boston Globe reports: "AT&T Inc. has started offering a broadband Internet service for $10 a month, cheaper than any advertised plan. ... The DSL, or digital subscriber line, plan introduced Saturday is part of the concessions made by AT&T to the Federal Communications Commission to get its $86 billion acquisition of BellSouth Corp. approved last December."

Are you looking for a cheap DSL connection? AT&T will makes you jump through a few hoops to find this plan, but if you look hard enough you may be able to take advantage of it.

Make sure to read the article to find out more information. Also check out this article from Gearlog to get even more information.

Video: What is LightScribe?

Have you been seeing more and more CD/DVD drives with LightScribe technology built into it. Before you buy into this technology, I would suggest watching the following video from Chris Pirillo (of Lockergnome fame). I thought he did a decent job of explaining the technology in a recent video. Its very non-professional, maybe a little humorous (and annoying) at times but it has decent content.

Here is an excerpt from the page: "LightScribe is a technology that lets you inscribe the non-data side of your LightScribe capable media (you can’t use a regular CD-R or DVD-R). Once you burn the data to disk you flip the disk over in the drive and the LightScribe drive etches an image on the top of the disk."

Remember: In order to use this technology, you have to have a CD/DVD drive, software, and media that supports the LightScribe functionality before you can use it. Also this technology doesn't work with non-LightScribe drives or media.

Windows Vista: 32-Bit or 64-Bit Editions

Windows XP x64 was the first 64-bit edition of the consumer version of the Windows OS. Windows Vista like XP comes in two versions, the x86 (32-bit) and the x64 (64-bit) versions.

Some people might ask what's the difference between x86 and the x64 versions of Windows? I will over simplify the answer by telling you the biggest difference between the two OSes:

• x64 version of Vista can address up to 128GB of RAM (the x86 version can only address up to 4GB of RAM)
• x64 version of Vista supports Data Execution Prevention (DEP). DEP can helps protect your computer against software-based attacks by preventing code executing in memory that's marked for data only.
  

The two biggest problems with the x64 version of Windows, is that it requires 64-bit versions of all your hardware drivers (i.e.: printers, video, sound, etc.). There are also some application compatibility problems with older programs.

In Vista's defense it's worth noting newer hardware is shipping with the 32 and 64-bit versions of the drivers. Some hardware manufactures are also updating their drivers to work with the 32 and 64-bit versions of Vista. Check your hardware manufacturer's web site for more information.

Notes:

• You can't use the 32-bit drivers in the x64 version of Windows.
• All x64 drivers have to be digitally signed by the manufacture in order to be installed in the x64 version of Windows.
• The 64-bit version of Vista lacks support for older 16-bit DOS and Windows applications altogether.

So you might ask at this point should I upgrade to the x64 version of Windows Vista, and my answer is that all depends. If you need to run the x64 versions of applications, then you should upgrade. If you don't need to run these application and you don't need to access more then 4GB of RAM then you should run the x86 version of the OS.

Article: FBI tries to fight zombie hordes

BBC reports: "The FBI is contacting more than one million PC owners who have had their computers hijacked by cyber criminals. ... The initiative is part of an ongoing project to thwart the use of hijacked home computers, or zombies, as launch platforms for hi-tech crimes. "

I applaud the FBI for taking this action, and having the foresight to realize that it can also be exploited by fraudsters to steal your personal information. Here is a excerpt from the FBI press release on how they will handle the situation: "The FBI will not contact you online and request your personal information so be wary of fraud schemes that request this type of information, especially via unsolicited emails. To report fraudulent activity or financial scams, contact the nearest FBI office or police department, and file a complaint online with the Internet Crime Complaint Center, www.ic3.gov.

If you want more information about Botnets here is article from Wikipedia about it.

Software: Apple's New Safari Beta Works on Windows PCs

PC Magazine reports: "Apple today jumped into the Windows Web-browser fray by introducing Safari 3 for both the Mac and Windows platforms—and have touted significant speed advantages for the new browser. The announcement was one of many made during the WWDC conference and show."

The free beta is now available at Apple's web site. Also make sure to check out PC Magazine slideshow.

Note: There are security flaws that have already been detected within this software, so be very careful when evaluating it.

Software: Microsoft Windows Mobile Device Center 6.1 for Windows Vista

Microsoft made an update available for the Windows Mobile Device Center in Windows Vista. This update primarily contains Windows Mobile 6 support, but other features have been added.

Below is a brief list of the the enhancement made to Device Center:

• Windows Mobile 6 feature support
• Information Rights Management activation
• HTML mail support
  
• Certificate Enrollment
• Allow data connections when connected to the PC
• File synchronization for smartphones
• Automatic device authentication.

This update is fully compatible with Windows Mobile 2003 devices and later. Download the 32-bit or the 64-bit version of the Windows Mobile Device Center 6.1 for Windows Vista.

Security: Microsoft Patch Tuesday (June)

The second Tuesday of the month is about to passed again, which means that Microsoft just published a new round of security fixes for Windows and it's applications. This date is meant to be a predictable date so that individuals or companies only have to patch their desktop computers and servers once a month. This month there are new for patches that are marked as critical (for the OS, I.E., Outlook Express, and Windows Mail), one marked important (for Office), and marked as moderate (for the OS).

For the average user, if you have 'Automatic Updates' enabled your computer will download these updates for you in the background. Then when you shutdown your system these patches will be applied to your system. If you leave your computer on overnight they will automatically be installed and your system rebooted if necessary.

Warning: Before you leave your computer at night make sure you save all your work or you run the risk of losing it if your system has to be rebooted.

Enabling Automatic Updates
If you don't have 'Automatic Updates' enabled I would suggest that you turn it on as soon as possible. If you don't want to enable this feature, you can always update your computer by visiting the Windows Update site and downloading and installing the patches manually.

To enable Automatic Updates (Windows XP):

• From the Start menu, select the Control Panel folder.
• Double-click the System applet in the control panel folder.
• Click the 'Automatic Updates' tab.
• Check the 'Automatic (recommended)' option. (optional: if you don't like this feature, you can set it to: 'download but not install the update', 'just notify you', or 'disable this feature altogether' [not recommended])
• Press the OK button when done.

To enable Automatic Updates (Windows Vista):

• From the Start menu, select 'All Programs' then 'Windows Update'
• In the left pane, click the 'Change settings' link.
• Check the 'Install updates automatically (recommended)' option. (optional: if you don't like this feature, you can set it to: 'Download updates but let me choose whether to install them', 'Check for updates but let me choose whether to download and install them', or 'Never check for updates' [not recommended])
• Press the OK button when done.

Note: For the latest Microsoft Security Bulletins, check out this site.

Storage: Online File Backups

Computers today are the center pieces for information in our lives. They hold personal documents, photographs, videos, music, recipes, and other types of miscellaneous information. We are constantly adding more and more information to these devices, and we are having to buy larger and larger hard drives to store it all.

What happens when your hard drive fails? Do you have recent backups of your data that are good? If not and you have a system or hardware failure that takes out your data you will have no way to replace it?

There are four rules that you should follow to ensure the safety of your data:

1. Find a good backup program that you trust
   
2. Backup the data on a regular basis (daily or weekly).
   
3. Test your backup to make sure they're good (monthly or quarterly).
4. Store your backup in a alternate location, rather then leaving them next your computer. Its also good idea to have multiple sets of backup that you store off-site.
   

To protect your data you have a few options to back it up:

• CD/DVDs. Store it on a CD (700MB) or DVD (4.7GB or 9GB, for single or double layer disks). If you use this method I would recommend buying read/writable disks. Also make sure your DVD burner can burn double-layer disks before buying this media. Note: Older drives can't fully utilize these disks.
  
• External hard drive. You can get a lot of storage for not a lot of money these days, and its very fast compared to using CDs/DVDs to store the data. You can also use USB flash card or other type of removable media (i.e.: SD cards, CF cards, etc.).
  
• Online storage. The best thing about online storage is that your data is stored off-site. That way if there is a major disaster, and your data is destroyed your data will survive.

Below is a list of online storage providers that you might want to check out:

• Xdrive: 5GB for free. (requires AOL account), or $9.95 for 50GB per month.
• JungleDisk: Uses Amazon's S3 service, and cost 15 cents per gigabyte.
• Mozy: 2GB of free storage, or unlimited for $4.95 a month.

Article: 6 Free Multi-Service IM Clients

ExtremeTech reports: "Tired of all the ads on AIM? Want access to more services than just Yahoo!? There are lots of IM client choices besides the big three—AIM, Yahoo! Messenger, and Windows Live Messenger (formerly MSN Messenger). The software we examine here lets you hook into any of these three services, and usually more besides, like Jabber. Not all of these applications will offer all of the features you'll find on the big guys—video and voice chat come to mind—but most of them do a good job of unobtrusively keeping you in contact with your comrades."

Many people have a problem of keeping up with all their friends and family on multiple IM networks (such as: AOL, Yahoo, MSN, etc.). This article gives you a review of several multi-network IM clients (such as: Adium, eBuddy, meebo, Meetro, Pidgin (formerly GAIM), and Trillian).

Some of these IM clients are web based so it doesn't require you to install any additional software.

Windows XP: Reseting The IP Protocol Stack

Sometimes the Windows XP TCP/IP protocol stack gets corrupted an you need to reset it back to its original configuration. Back in the old days you use to be able to uninstall and reinstall it. That option is not available anymore.

Now you have to use the NetShell utility to reset the protocol stack. By following the instructions in the Knowledge Base Article you will return the TCP/IP protocol stack back to it's default configuration when it was first installed.

Microsoft even includes their 'Guided Help' feature to help you along the process.

Shopping: Finding Bargins Technology Online

Are you looking for ways to find a good deal online on your electronics? Several years ago when you used the Internet it was easier to find good bargains, but those days seem to be gone. Now you have to hunt for these deals, and use a few tricks to save money.

For example, there was a PDA that I wanted to buy from Dell, but before I bought it I spent a few minutes looking for a coupon code. I was able to find one, and saved a nice chunk of change on the purchase. I have to admit this is the exception to the rule, and not the rule itself.

Below are some suggestions and tips for finding the best deals and to avoid getting ripped off.

1. Rule #1, burn it into your mind: "If a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is..."
   
2. Shop from sites that you trust, or ones that you know friends or family use. There are a lot of fraudulent retailers out there. If in doubt Google the site's web address to see what others might have said about it. Other things to look for:
   
• Make sure you can find the company's contact information (physical street address, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses) just in case you have problems with your purchase.
• Read the web site's return policy and make a sure that you understand it. There are generally time limits, required documentation, and other restrictions. Some sites charge a restocking fee for returned items.
  
3. Generally the safest way to purchase items online is using a credit card, it offers the best protections against fraudulent retailers. Avoid using debit (or ATM) cards they don't offer the same protections.
   
4. When looking for the best deals, make sure to compare the cost + taxes + shipping, and not just the price of the item to find the best bargains. Some stores have really good prices but ridiculously high shipping and handling fees.
5. Print your receipts, and keep copies of them. Personally I store electronic copies of them using Microsoft XPS format (similar to a PDF document). This feature is built into Vista, all you have to do is select the 'Microsoft XPS Document Writer' from the printer dialog.
   

Product Reviews
Use these sites to find product reviews of equipment you want before you buy it.

• Shopper.com
  
• PC Magazine
  

Online Retailer
The sites below are ones that I have used or ones that I know that others have used to get good deals in the past.

• NewEgg.com
• Amazon.com
• Circuit City
• Best Buy
• Buy.com
  

Overstock/Refurbished Computers
You have to shop carefully at these sites, my suggestion is only buy brands that you trust.

• Overstock.com
• Liquidation.com

Product Auction
eBay is the only auction site that I use. Although you have to be extremely careful of what you're buying and who you're buying it from. Make sure that you carefully read the description of the item you're bidding. Read the sellers rating and other feedback, if there is a lot of complaints then buy stuff an your own risk. Also watch for exorbitant shipping costs.

• eBay
  

Price Comparison Sites
These sites can help you find good deals on computer equipment. Make sure to check the reseller ratings before purchasing from retailers that you don't know about.

• PriceWatch.com
• (If you have some price comparison sites that you would like me to add, please put them in the comments area.)
  

Rebate/Coupon Site
If you buy things on major sites like Dell, Circuit City, Best Buy, etc. check out these sites to find bargains and coupon codes.

• Ben's Bargains
• FatWallet
  

Government Auctions
The site below offers government surplus, seized and forfeited property.

• GSA Auctions

Windows XP: Disable Automatic Desktop Cleanup

Windows XP includes the 'Automatic Desktop Cleanup' feature that can remove infrequently used icons from the Windows desktop every 60 days. If you really don't care for this feature and want to disable it follow the steps below:

• Right-click an empty space on the desktop and select Properties.
• In the Display Properties dialog box, click the Desktop tab.
• Press the Customize Desktop button.
• Uncheck the 'Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard Every 60 Days' checkbox.
• Press the OK buttons to close the dialog boxes.

Software: IZArc (Archive Utility)

IZArc is one of the best free archive utilities available. It provides some of broadest support for multiple compressed and encoded file types.

IZArc supports features like drag and drop files to and from Windows Explorer to create and extract archives. Other features include creating archives that can span multiple disks, creating self-extracting archives, and the ability to repair damaged zip archives. For people who don't speak English, there is also multi-language support.

IZArc supports the following archive formats: 7-ZIP, A, ACE, ARC, ARJ, B64, BH, BIN, BZ2, BZA, C2D, CAB, CDI, CPIO, DEB, ENC, GCA, GZ, GZA, HA, IMG, ISO, JAR, LHA, LIB, LZH, MDF, MBF, MIM, NRG, PAK, PDI, PK3, RAR, RPM, TAR, TAZ, TBZ, TGZ, TZ, UUE, WAR, XXE, YZ1, Z, ZIP, ZOO.

Software: TrueCrypt (Free Disk Encryption Software)

Windows XP (Professional edition) and Vista (Enterprise and Ultimate edition) comes with a built-in file encryption technology called EFS (Encrypted File System). This technology automatically encrypts or decrypts a file when its saved or opened.

Windows Vista (Enterprise and Ultimate editions) also supports a new feature called BitLocker which can encrypt a whole disk. Although its worth noting that BitLocker can only encrypt the system volume, and cant encrypt auxiliary volumes or removable drives.

Note: These features require your hard drive to be formated with the NTFS file system.

If you're using a version of Windows that doesn't support EFS or BitLocker encryption technologies or if you want to encrypt auxiliary volumes or removable drives. TrueCrypt is a free open-source real-time automatic encryption Windows and Linux. TrueCrypt allows you to create encrypted volumes either from an entire physical drive or partition, or by turning a regular on-disk file into an encrypted virtual disk.

Main features:

• Creates an encrypted virtual disk within a file and allows you to mounts it as a real disk.
• Can encrypt an entire hard disk partition or a device (such as USB flash drive).
• Support Encryption algorithms: AES-256, Blowfish (448-bit key), CAST5, Serpent, Triple DES, and Twofish.
• Keyfiles supoort, which allows you to specify a file (such as a: text file, mp3, bmp, etc.) that is combined with your password to decrypt your information.

Software: AVS DVD Player (Free)

Are you looking for a free DVD player software for your computer. Well I have tried most of them, and the only one that has worked for me so far is AVS DVD Player. It has been able to play my commercial DVDs without any problem.

Most new computer that are equipped with a DVD player installed, generally come with a limited version of CyberLink PowerDVD or InterVideo WinDVD. You can also use Windows Media Player, but it requires you to install a 3rd party MPEG2 codec to view the disks.

AVS DVD Player supports the following formats: regular DVD (PAL, NTSC, VCD, SVCD), MPEG4 (including DivX, XviD, etc.), MPEG1, MPEG2, AVI, Real Media video, Quick Time files, WMV files (including WMV-HD), H.263, H.264, mobile video formats (3GP, 3GP2, MP4).

The software is not perfect, it has its flaws (and bugs), but overall it works. My biggest complaint it that it takes a long time to start a DVD.

Software: Keeping Adobe Flash Player Updated

Keeping your OS, applications, browsers, and browser plug-ins up-to-date is very important to prevent your computer from getting infected. Recently I had to make sure that Adobe Flash Player was updated, and I found it a little cumbersome.

So I wanted to post a few tips, tricks, and links on how to do this, follow the links below:

• Check the version of your Flash Player (at the time of this article it is v9.0.124.0, but this number will change depending on when you read this article)
• Check or change your Adobe Flash Player settings.
• Manually download the latest version of the Flash Player
  

Video: Drobo The Storage Robot

Do you need a storage solution that can grow with your storage needs and offers fault-tolerance (help prevents data lost)? I was impressed with the functionality of the Drobo (Data Robotics). Here is a demo of the product in action.

Also for my readers in the U.S., happy Memorial Day...

Article: Shootout at the Antivirus Corral

PC Magazine reports: "AV-Test.org, an independent testing group at the Otto-von-Guericke-University (Magdeburg, Germany), tested 29 anti-malware products with a very large set of files (606,901 to be specific). The goal was to test detection capabilities only, not cleaning. Products were set with their most aggressive detection options, such as using all heuristics and testing inside archives."

Want to know which is the best and worst virus scanner, the results are very interesting....

Firefox: Keyword Bookmarks

Want to get to your favorite web sites faster in Firefox? You can use bookmark keywords to quickly get to your favorite web sites by typing specific words or abbreviations in the address bar that you select. For example, you could create on for 'http://www.google.com' by typing "g" or "gg" in the address bar and pressing enter.

To setup keyword bookmarks:

• Open Firefox, and navigate to a web page that you want to bookmark.
• Create a bookmark by pressing CTRL+D, or select the Bookmarks menu and select 'Bookmark This Page...'
• From the Bookmarks menu, right-click the bookmark you just added and select Properties.
• In the bookmark properties dialog box, type a word or letter in the Keyword field. Then press the OK button when done.

Now all you have to do is type your keyword in the address field, and you will be taken to that page.

Preview: Microsoft Malware Protection Center

Microsoft has made available a preview version of its new 'Malware Protection Center' web portal to provide consumers with information about viruses, spyware and other malicious software. The site is schedule to go live in July.

The main features of the site are:

• Top Desktop Threats
• Most Active Email Threats
• Top MSRT Detections
• Top Adware/Spyware Removed
• Windows Defender Definitions
• Forefront Security Client
• Malware Encyclopedia

Software: Sandboxie

Have you wanted a way to surf the Internet safely? There is a program called Sandboxie that creates an virtual storage area in your computer's memory that applications can write too. This area is known as a 'sandbox' because once you close the program all the changes that were made go away, so no information is written to your local hard drive.

So in theory, if you can go to a web site and a rogue program makes it passed all your computer's defenses, it shouldn't be able to infect your computer. Also if your applications get compromised all you have to do is kill the sandbox, and all the changes are lost.

Note: Be aware when you download files with a program running within Sandboxie all the files will automatically be deleted when you close the application.

The program is free, but the creator ask you to register the program if you use it and to pay a license fee ($25 for lifetime registration).

Internet Explorer: Stupid Link Tricks...

In any browser, everyone knows that when you click on a link it opens a new page in the current tab. Also, a great deal of people know that if you right-click a link you can open the selected page in a new tab or window.

Although, did you know that you can :

• Open a link in a new tab by pressing the Ctrl key + clicking the link.
• Open a link in a new window press the Shift key + clicking the link.

Note: This trick also works in Firefox.

Other related article:

• Internet Explorer 7: Keyboard Shortcut Tricks
• Internet Explorer 7: Keyboard Shortcuts
• Keyboard Shortcuts for Internet Explorer
• Windows Logo Key Shortcuts

Windows Vista: ISO Recorder v3

Do you have Widnows Vista and .ISO files (file image of a CD or DVD) that want to burn to a disk and don't have any software that can do that for you? ISO Recorder could be the answer to your problems, and best of all its free.

Below is a list of the new features in this program:

• Windows Vista (32-bit and 64-bit versions).
• Supports DVD recording, including bootable images.
• DVD image creation.

Article: Security Super Guide

PC Magazine wrote a good article about some of the latest security applications that are available to protect your PC. The article gives recommendations on anti-malware products (such as: virus, spyware, rootkits, etc.), parental control software, and security suites.

Read the article for all the information.

Security: Microsoft Patch Tuesday (May)

The second Tuesday of the month is just about to passed again, which means that Microsoft just published a new round of security fixes for Windows and it's applications. This date is meant to be a predictable date so that individuals or companies only have to patch their desktop computers and servers once a month. This month there are new seven patches that are marked as critical, 3 of them patch MS Office, another 3 are for the OS or server based application, and 1 is for Internet Explorer.

For the average user, if you have 'Automatic Updates' enabled your computer will download these updates for you in the background. Then when you shutdown your system these patches will be applied to your system. If you leave your computer on overnight they will automatically be installed and your system rebooted if necessary.

Warning: Before you leave your computer at night make sure you save all your work or you run the risk of losing it if your system has to be rebooted.

Enabling Automatic Updates
If you don't have 'Automatic Updates' enabled I would suggest that you turn it on as soon as possible. If you don't want to enable this feature, you can always update your computer by visiting the Windows Update site and downloading and installing the patches manually.

To enable Automatic Updates:

• From the Start menu, select the Control Panel folder.
• Double-click the System applet in the control panel folder.
• Click the 'Automatic Updates' tab.
• Check the 'Automatic (recommended)' option. (optional: if you don't like this feature, you can set it to: 'download but not install the update', 'just notify you', or 'disable this feature altogether' [not recommended])
• Press the OK button when done.

Note: For the latest Microsoft Security Bulletins, check out this site.

Software: XML Notepad 2007 (Programming)

If you're a programmer or web developer that deals with XML files, then you might want to check out XML Notepad 2007. This program provides a simple user interface for browsing and editing XML documents.

Features:

• Tree View synchronized with Node Text View for quick editing of node names and values.
• Incremental search (Ctrl+I) in both tree and text views, so as you type it navigates to matching nodes.
• Cut/copy/paste with full namespace support.
• Drag/drop support for easy manipulation of the tree, even across different instances of XML Notepad and from the file system.
• Infinite undo/redo for all edit operations.
• In place popup multi-line editing of large text node values.
• Configurable fonts and colors via the options dialog.
• Full find/replace dialog with support for regex and XPath.
• Good performance on large XML documents, loading a 3mb document in about one second.
• Instant XML schema validation while you edit with errors and warnings shown in the task list window.
• Intellisense based on expected elements and attributes and enumerated simple type values.
• Support for custom editors for date, dateTime and time datatypes and other types like color.
• Handy nudge tool bar buttons for quick movement of nodes up and down the tree.
• Inplace HTML viewer for processing xml-stylesheet processing instructions.
• Built-in XML Diff tool.
• Support for XInclude
• Dynamic help from XSD annotations.
• Goto definition to navigate includes and XSD schema information.

Windows Vista: Re-enable the Administrator

The Administrator account doesn't show up in the User Accounts control panel, this is because its disabled by default. For the average user I would not recommend re-enabling this account because it can expose your system to different types of attacks.

For those people who need access to this account, follow the instructions below to re-enable it.

• Click Start, type "cmd" in the search field.
  
• Right-click the cmd.exe item at top of the Start menu, and select 'Run as administrator'.
• In the MS-DOS command prompt type "net user administrator /active:yes".

Article: 5 Free Online Video Editing Sites Reviewed at ExtremeTech

ExtremeTech reports: "Some people would be surprised that you can edit photos online without locally installed software, but surely video editing is too resource-intensive to be done over the web, right? Wrong! We review five online services that let you do things like scene transitions, cuts, splices, loops, audio overlays—and they're all free."

I thought this was an interesting article about a new type of service that is available on the Internet. Manipulating video using just your browser without locally installing software on your computer seems pretty impressive. The computing resources (i.e.: CPU, RAM, storage, and now add network bandwidth) required for editing video are really intensive.

Although the best news of all is that these services are FREE. Read the article for more information.

Windows Vista: Windows Mobile Device Center

If you have Windows Vista installed on your computer, and own a Windows Mobile device here is a quick premier to get you started. First thing that you have to learn about Windows Vista syncing with a Windows Mobile device is that ActiveSync doesn't exist any more. The second thing that you have to learn is that the Windows Mobile Device Center (WMDC) is your new best friend.

You use the WMDC to sync your computer to your Windows Mobile device. Make sure to download the latest version of the software from the Download Center (x86 and x64). After you download and install the software you will need to set up a partnership with your device.

Note: If you're an existing ActiveSync user, and are having problems getting Windows Mobile Device Center to sync with your mobile device. Delete your existing setting in ActiveSync on your device and setup a new partnership.

Firefox: Improve Firefoxing Networking

By making a few modifications to your Firefox browser you can reduce page load times by using a technique known as Pipelining. Pipelining is a feature of your browser that allows it to make multiple download requests for objects on a web page from a site.

Note: This technique requires modifying low-level application preferences, you need to be careful when modifying this area. By changing the wrong value you can prevent your browser from functioning properly. For more information about this subject see the following article.

• Open Firefox
  
• In the in the address type "about:config"
• Find the following preferences, change their value:
  
• Change: network.http.pipelining to True (default = False)
• Change: network.http.pipelining.maxrequests to 10 (default = 4)

Other related Firefox articles:

• Make Firefox Run Better
• Firefox: Open Multiple Home Pages

Firefox: The Unoffical Firefox Keyboard Shortcuts Quick Reference Guide

Everyone loves keyboard shortcuts. Those little keyboard tricks that you can use to perform program operations quickly (such as: opening or closing tabs, finding text, etc.). The only problem with these shortcuts is memorizing them.

Below is my: Unofficial Firefox Keyboard Shortcuts Quick Reference Guide. I have tried to group the shortcuts into logical groups so that you can easily find them.

Page/Tab Navigation:

• [Alt]+[Home]: Opens the Home page in the current tab
• [Alt]+[Right Arrow]: Moves one page forward in cache
• [Alt]+[Left Arrow]: Moves one page back in cache
• [Backspace]: Moves one page back in cache
• [Shift]+[Backspace]: Moves one page forward in cache
• [Alt]+F4: Closes the active window
• [Ctrl]+F4: Closes the active tab
• [Ctrl]+1: Opens the first tab
• [Ctrl]+2: Opens the second tab
• [Ctrl]+3: Opens the third tab
• [Ctrl]+4: Opens the forth tab
• [Ctrl]+5: Opens the fifth tab
• [Ctrl]+6: Opens the sixth tab
• [Ctrl]+7: Opens the seventh tab
• [Ctrl]+8: Opens the eigth tab
• [Ctrl]+9: Opens the nineth tab
• [Ctrl]+N: Opens a new window
• [Ctrl]+T: Opens a new tab in the current window
• [Ctrl]+W: Closes the active tab in the current window
• [Ctrl]+[Tab] ([Ctrl]+[Page Down]): Selects the next tab within the current window
• [Ctrl]+[Shift]+Tab ([Ctrl]+[Page Up]): Selects the previous tab within the current window

Page Shortcuts

• Esc: Stops loading the current page
• [Ctrl]+0 (zero): Restore normal text size
• [Ctrl]+[+] (plus sign): Increases the font size
• [Ctrl]+[-] (minus sign): Decreases the font size
• [End]: Moves to the bottom of a page
• [Home]: Moves to the top of a page
• [Ctrl]+F: Find
• [Ctrl]+G (or [F3]): Find again
• [Shift]+[F3]: Find previous
• [F5]: Refresh
• [Ctrl]+[F5] ([Ctrl]+[Shift]+R): Refresh (overrides page cache)
• [Ctrl]+A: Selects all object on the page
• [Ctrl]+B: Opens/closes the Bookmarks pane
• [Ctrl]+H: Opens/closes the History pane
• [Ctrl]+I: Opens/closes the Bookmarks pane
• [Ctrl]+J: Opens/closes the Downloads dialog box
• [F6]: Selects the current Location bar text Move or moves to the next frame
• [Shift]+[F6]: Moves to the previous frame

Miscellaneous Shortcuts

• [Alt]+[Enter]: Opens a URL in a new tab
• [Ctrl]+[Enter]: Adds "www." to the beginning and ".com" to the end of a domain name in the Location bar
• [Ctrl]+[Shift]+[Enter]: Adds "www." to the beginning and ".org" to the end of a domain name in the Location bar
• [Shift]+[Enter]: Adds "www." to the beginning and ".net" to the end of a domain name in the Location bar
• [Ctrl]+D: Adds a bookmark
• [Ctrl]+E (or [Ctrl]+K): Activates Web Search bar
• [Ctrl]+Down Arrow: Selects the next search engine
• [Ctrl]+Up Arrow: Selects the previous search engine
• [Ctrl]+L: Select the current Location bar text
• [Ctrl]+U: View source code for the current page
• [F7]: Toggle on/off Caret Browsing
• [F11]: Toggle full-screen/normal view

Common Shortcuts

• [Ctrl]+C: Copy
• [Ctrl]+O: Open a file
• [Ctrl]+P: Print
• [Ctrl]+R: Refresh
• [Ctrl]+S: Save As
• [Ctrl]+V: Paste
• [Ctrl]+Y: Redo
• [Ctrl]+X: Cut
• [Ctrl]+Z: Undo
• [F1]: Opens Help

Other keyboard shortcuts:

• Internet Explorer 7: Keyboard Shortcut Tricks
• Internet Explorer 7: Keyboard Shortcuts
• Keyboard Shortcuts for Internet Explorer
• Windows Logo Key Shortcuts

Software: Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer

If you run anti-malware scanners, a firewall and keep your OS and applications updated, you're going to be able to protect yourself from most types of infections that can attack your system. To help make your system more secure, consider running the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer (MBSA).

The MBSA is a free standalone vulnerability assessment tool that can scan your Windows systems to identify common security mis-configurations and missing security updates. The MBSA also includes a graphical and command line interface that can perform scans on local or remote systems.

This version of MBSA works on Windows Server 2003, 2000, and XP systems. It also supports the following Microsoft technologies: Internet Information Server (IIS) (v4.0-6.0), SQL Server (v7.0, 2000), Internet Explorer (IE) (5.01 and later), and Office (v2000, 2002 and 2003).

Software: Shortcuts to Web Browsing

A site called OpenDNS allows people to surf their favorite web sites by typing keywords that they create. For example, lets say you bank at 'Bank of America', you can create a shortcut called 'BOA' that would take you to their web site when you typed it.

To use this service, you have to do a few things:

1. Log in to your account on the OpenDNS web site, if you don't have an account there then you can create one.
   
2. Setup your computer to use the OpenDNS servers for DNS lookups.
   
• See the site for detailed instructions.
3. After you're logged in to your account you can start creating your keyword shortcuts.

Security: Does a program contain malware?

Downloading programs off the Internet is a pretty scary thing to do these days, you never know if it contains malware (i.e.: spyware, virus, etc.). Even if you used a program in the pass and it was perfectly safe to run, tomorrow it can be full of malware.

The only way to protect yourself is to use good judgment, and make sure you have good real-time anti-virus and anti-spyware scanners installed with up-to-date signature. I also helps to make sure that your computers OS is up-to-date, and you're running a good two-way firewall.

Before you download anything, you should always question the source of the program. If it comes from a seedy looking web site then I would think twice before running it. Even after I download the executable to my local computer, it and passes through my anti-malware scanners I still question if the program can contain viruses or spyware.

As an extra step, you can run a Google search on the executable's name ( i.e.: programname.exe), or the name of the program in quotes. Then I add the following words to the end of the query: spyware OR virus OR malware. For example, programname.exe spyware OR virus OR malware.

For those who want more information about computer viruses, worms, and botnets, check out the following video. They make it really easy to understand these topics for those who might need some help with this topic. There is also my free ebook that I released few months ago called "Defending Yourself in the Information Age".

Video: How To Install Computer Memory

Operating systems like Windows XP or Vista run best on computers that have a lot of available RAM. Windows XP runs well with about 1GB of RAM, while Windows Vista I recommend 2GB.

Upgrading the RAM in your computer is pretty easy. By doing it yourself, you can save $50-100, or whatever a computer repair service will charge you for this procedure.

• The first thing that you need to do before you buy the RAM is open your computer and find out how many of your DIMM slots are used and how many are available. The DIMM slots are where you add the RAM to your computer's motherboard. Depending on how many you have will determine if you can use your old memory or just replace it with new memory.
  

Notes:

• Watch the video first to get an idea on how to properly open your computer, and ground yourself.
• Make sure that you unplug your computer's power supply before you start this upgrade.

• Find the brand name and model of your computer/motherboard.
  
• Check a site like Kingston to find and buy the memory for your computer/motherboard
  
• Watch the video below to see how its done.

Note: This video only provides basic instructions for performing this procedure. The actual process will vary from computer to computer. Refer to your computer/motherboard's manual for specific instructions. And as always, proceed at your own risk.

Software: Mozilla Thunderbird 2

Mozilla recently released Thunderbird v2, a free open source e-mail client. Some of the new features of the program include: message tagging, refined folder controls, searching and customization (such as: designing message template). Thunderbird also has hundreds of plug-ins available for it to enhance its features and functionality.

TechRepublic has posted several screen shots of this new e-mail client and its new features so that you can see what it looks like before installing it.

Article: Make Your Own Font

PC Magazine has a great article on how to create your own fonts for your computer. Two warning don't expect it to be easy or free (the software is $80).

Although if you're motivate to do this kind of work, the article it provides a step-by-step overview of the process.

Software: Microsoft Silverlight

Microsoft just release Silverlight, which is basically a interactive media technology that is similar in functionality to Adobe's Flash. Here is a excerpt from the site: "Silverlight is a cross-browser, cross-platform plug-in for delivering the next generation of media experiences and rich interactive applications (RIAs) for the Web."

Silverlight is a browser plug-in for Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Safari. The plug-in will run on Windows XP SP2 & Vista (on IE and Firefox) or the Mac OS X (on Firefox and Safari). You can download the plug from this page.

Article: New DOE Energy-Assessment Software is Vital for Home Repair

AppScout: "The U.S. Department of Energy on Friday announced the release of EnergyPlus 2.0, the second generation of its free software tool to help homeowners and home builders 'model their energy flows' as the summer approaches."

This is very interesting software for home builders interested in modeling heating, cooling, lighting, ventilating, and more. For more information read the article.

Windows Vista: Advanced Disk Performance

Warning: This tip is only for computers that have a UPS (Uninterrupted Power Supply) attached to it. Use this tip at your own risk.

If your computer has a SATA (Serial-ATA) hard drive, then Windows Vista includes a feature that utilizes aggressive write caching. This is where data is written to a RAM cache first before it's written to the hard drive. This speeds up your data write operations, although it can cause data lost if your power goes before all the data can be written to your hard drive.

• From the Start menu, right-click on Computer, and select Manage.
• Click on Device Manager
• Expand the Disk Drives entry.
• Right-click on your SATA hard drive and select Properties.
• Click the Policies tab.
• Check 'Enable Advanced Performance'.

Security: Microsoft Patch Tuesday (April)

The second Tuesday of the month has passed again, which means that Microsoft just published new round of security fixes for Windows and it's applications. This date is meant to be a predictable date so that companies only have to patch their computers and servers once a month. This month there are five patches that are marked as critical, and one patch that is marked as important.

For the average user, if you have Automatic Updates enabled your computer will download these updates for you in the background. Then when you shutdown your system these patches will be applied to your system. If you leave your computer on overnight they will automatically be installed and your system rebooted if necessary.

Warning: Before you leave your computer at night make sure you save all your work or it will be lost if your system has to be rebooted.

Enabling Automatic Update
If you don't have 'Automatic Updates' enabled I would suggest that you turn it on as soon as possible. If you don't want to enable Automatic Updates, you can always update your computer by visiting the Windows Update site and downloading and installing the patches manually.

To enable Automatic Updates:

• From the Start menu, select the Control Panel folder.
• Double-click the System applet in the control panel folder.
• Click the 'Automatic Updates' tab.
• Check the 'Automatic (recommended)' option. (optional: if you don't like this feature, you can set it to: 'download but not install the update', 'just notify you', or 'disable this feature altogether' [not recommended])
• Press the OK button when done.

Note: For the latest Microsoft Security Bulletins, check out this site.

Windows XP: Putting Your Files into Groups

Windows XP allows you to organize your files and folders in to groups (such as: Name, Size, Type, or Modified). For example, you can arrange all the files by Type, which means that all the files of a particular type will be grouped together.

Follow the instructions below to organize your files by group:

• Open the Windows Explorer, then open a folder (i.e.: My Documents, My Music, or My Pictures.) or drive that contains several types of folders and files.
• Right-click an empty area of the window, select 'Arrange Icons By', and then select 'Show in Groups'.
• Right-click an empty area of the window again, then select 'Arrange Icons By', and select: Name, Size, Type, or Modified.
  

Internet Explorer 7: Keyboard Shortcut Tricks

In a previous article I talked about some basic Internet Explorer 7 (IE7) keyboard shortcuts. What I didn't include in that article were some really lesser known keyboard shortcuts, that you might really like to use.

IE Tab Tricks

• CTRL+T: Opens new tab in foreground.
• CTRL+Q: Toggles the Quick Tabs view.
• CTRL+SHIFT+Q: Displays list of tabs.
  
• CTRL+TAB or CTRL+SHIFT+TAB (to reverse): Cycles between different tabs.
• CTRL+W or CTRL+F4: Closes the current tab.
• CTRL+ALT+F4: Closes all but the current tab.
• CTRL+[1-8]: Jumps to specific tab (number 1 through 8).
• CTRL+9: Jumps to the last tab.
• CTRL+[Mouse Click]: Opens a link in tab in the background.
• CTRL+SHIFT+[Mouse Click]: Opens a link in tab in the foreground.

URL Trick

• CTRL+ENTER: Adds WWW and .COM to the domain name in to the Address bar.
• SHIFT+ENTER: Adds WWW and .NET to the domain name in to the Address bar.
• CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER: Adds WWW and .ORG to the domain name in to the Address bar.
• ALT+ENTER: Opens a new tab from the Address bar or Search box.
  

Page Zoom

• CTRL+[=]: Zooms in.
  
• CTRL+[-]: Zooms out.
• CTRL+0 (zero): Resets zoom to 100%.

Software: Yod'm 3D (Desktop Manager)

Yod'm 3D is a cool desktop manager with a great twist, literally. The name of this application stands for 'Yet anOther Desktop Manager 3D'.

Desktop managers are programs designed to allow you to organize your applications by assigning them to different virtual desktops and quickly switch between them. Desktop managers were popular in the days of single monitor computers and have since fallen out of favor. although some people still like them.

Yod'm 3D is different, it displays a rotating cube with images of your current desktop on it when you switch between desktops. Its a very cool effect the first time you see it. This is also a very cool way to impress your friends.

This programs runs on Windows 2000/XP/Vista, and requires DirectX 9 to be installed.

Windows Vista: Creating Virtual Folders

Windows Vista has a great new feature called 'Virtual Folders' that allows you to find documents that match a specific search pattern that you defined. Basically virtual folders are nothing more then a file that contains a saved search. When you open the file it opens like a folder and displays the files that match the results of your original search.

To create a virtual folder:

• Press the WinKey+F, this brings up a search window.
• In the Search field type the words that you want to search for.
• When you have your search just the way you like it press the 'Save Search' button.
• Give your saved search a name (such as: "Personal Receipts")

Your saved search will be placed in to the Search folder by default. Although you can save it anywhere you like. Personally I like to save them on the Desktop because they're easier to access.

Now all you have to do is open up the saved search and you have yourself a virtual folder. The file in this folder gets updated dynamically whenever it is open, which means any files that match your search get displayed.

Article: Inside Firefox 3.0, Alpha 3: Gran Paradiso

PC Magazine reports: "This past Monday, Mozilla unveiled the third alpha of Gran Paradiso, the code name for Firefox 3.0. If development goes according to plan, this will be the first version of Firefox—or of any browser, for that matter—to have the three key components needed to support offline Web applications: DOM Storage; an offline execution model; and synchronization. That critical foundation will let free or low-cost Web suites compete with Microsoft software and possibly break the company's decades-long domination in office productivity apps."

Firefox just shot the next volley in the new browser war between Internet Explorer and Firefox. In the last browser war I.E. won, but the Netscape Navigator was a pretty crappy browser towards the end.

Article: Microsoft Jumps Schedule to Patch ANI

eWeek reports: "Microsoft is jumping its regular monthly patch schedule to release a patch this Tuesday for the animated cursor attack that's been roughhousing Windows users since it was discovered last week."

The MS07-017 patch will correct the vulnerability in Windows Animated Cursor Handling system. As soon as this patch is available you should patch your system using WindowsUpdate.

CNET tax guide 2007

It use to be that the only way you could submit your taxes was via paper forms that a tax preparer or yourself filed. As you know that has changed, in fact last year 73 million Americans filed their taxes online with the IRS.

Today you can still do your taxes yourself, or you can hire someone to do it for you. Although the main difference is the software that you have access to, and your ability to file it online.

So if you're looking for some advice for doing your taxes, check out CNet's '2007 Tax Guide'. Learn about the different features of the popular financial and tax software that is available today.

CNET.com reports: "We've reviewed desktop and online applications that walk you through calculating and submitting a return without having to crunch numbers on confusing IRS forms. Each service helps with the latest credits for long-distance telephone tax, buying a hybrid car, and making a home more energy-efficient. Keep in mind that if you gross less than $52,000 or serve in the military, you can file electronically for free. The IRS has extended the deadline for submitting 2006 returns to April 17, but if that's too soon, tax applications also help you file for an extension."

Internet Explorer 7: Keyboard Shortcuts

Do you like using keyboard shortcuts? Here is a list of shortcuts for Internet Explorer 7:

• ALT+LEFT: Go backward a page
  
• ALT+RIGHT: Go forward a page
• ALT+HOME: Got to the home page
• F5: Refresh the current page
• CTRL+F5: Forces the page to reload
  
• CTRL+B: Organize Favorites
  
• CTRL+D: Adds the current page to the Favorites
• CTRL+E: Takes you to the quick search field.
• CTRL+Down Arrow: Shows the search providers.
  
• CTRL+F: Find a word or phrase on the page
• CTRL+N: Opens the current Web page in a new window
• CTRL+O: Open a dialog to open a web page.
  
• CTRL+P: Print the current page
• CTRL+T: Opens a new tab.
• CTRL+Q: Displays Quick Tabs
  
• CTRL+W: Close the current window or tab.
  
• F4: Displays a list of addresses you typed in the URL field.
  
• F11: Full screen mode
• CTRL+Shift+I: Opens the Favorites toolbar
• CTRL+I: Temporarily opens the Favorites toolbar
• CTRL+Shift+H: Opens the History toolbar
• CTRL+H: Temporarily opens the History toolbar
• CTRL+Shift+J: Opens the Feeds toolbar
• CTRL+J: Temporarily opens the Feeds toolbar

Firefox: Make Firefox Run Better

Firefox is a great browser, but its a memory hog. Here are a few tips to help you make Firefox use less memory and run more efficiently.

• Uninstall any extensions that you're not using.
  
• Disable the 'Page Saving' feature. This feature saves a copy of every page you visit in memory. It help the browser to load pages that you already visited faster, but it can use a lot of memory.
• In the URL field type "about:config"
• In the filter field type, "browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers"
• Change the value to "0"
• If you have several downloads listed in the Download area clear them out.
• From the Tool menu, select Downloads
• Press the 'Clean Up' button
• If you're having problems with Firefox starting correctly, try starting it in 'Safe Mode'. This mode prevents any extensions or themes from loading.
  
• From the Run... command, type "firefox.exe -safe-mode"
  

Firefox: ABOUT:CONFIG (Advanced)

Note: This is an advanced tip for the Firefox browser, and should only be performed by people who understand what they're doing. My modifying the wrong value you can prevent your browser from working until you restore it to the proper value.

If you really want to customize Firefox then you need to learn about its low-level configuration area known as ABOUT:CONFIG. This configuration area is the equivalent of the Windows Registry, it can be used for changing or fine-tuning different areas of the browser (such as the: user interface, network setting, or other aspects of the browser's behavior).

To access the ABOUT:CONFIG area:

• Open the Firefox browser.
  
• In the URL field, type "ABOUT:CONFIG" and press the Enter key.

Firefox will display a long list of preference settings sorted alphabetically. Each setting controls a different aspect of the browser's behavior. To change a setting's value double-click on it. If it's a boolean value then it will be toggled, otherwise a dialog will pop-up asking you to enter the appropriate information. Each setting can contain a value type of: integer, string, or boolean.

There is a great reference for all these preference settings, see the ABOUT:CONFIG FAQ.

Note: ABOUT:CONFIG uses data from the PREFS.JS file in your Firefox profile folder. You should backup this file before making any changes to the ABOUT:CONFIG area.

Windows XP: Clear Your Paging File at Shutdown

Note: This is an advanced tip, and should only be preformed by those familiar with the process of modifying the Windows registry. Remember to backup your registry database and your data before performing any registry modification. Also as always perform this modification as your own risk.

Did you know that the contents of your computers RAM is constantly being written to the hard drive. This is because the Windows Virtual Memory feature (VM) uses a file called PAGEFILE.SYS to hold the contents of RAM.

The reason for this is that all operating systems that have a VM feature use the hard drive as a temporary storage medium for the contents of the RAM. This allows the OS make your applications think they have more physical RAM then they really do.

If you're concerned about people reading the contents of the PAGEFILE.SYS file on your computer, for privacy or security reasons you can have Windows delete this file when your computer shuts down. This will prevent someone from being able to easily access its contents.

Note: By having the PAGEFILE.SYS file cleared when turning off your computer will significantly slowdown the shutdown and boot-up process. The reason is file has to be deleted and created during each of these processes.

To enable this feature:

• Open the Registry Editor
• Navigate to the following location: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management
• Change the value of ClearPageFileAtShutdown to 1.
• Close the Registry Editor and restart your computer.

Internet Explorer 7: Security Zones

Internet Explorer 7 allows you to adjust its security settings so that you can make the browser more or less secure. If you enforce more restrictive settings then the default configuration you can could break the functionality of certain web sites. Although, if you reduce the security settings you can make your browser less secure and vulnerable to attack.

By default, the security levels in Internet Explorer are okay for most types of browsing, they should not break most web site but it's possible that it can. There are four zones (Internet, Local intranet, Trusted sites, and Restricted sites), each zone has it own security level that you can assign to it. For example, the Internet zone has a security level of Medium-High, which prompts you for download and blocks unsigned ActiveX controls.

To adjust IE's security levels, follow the instruction below:

• Launch Internet Explorer.
• From the Tools menu select 'Internet Options'
• Click the Security tab.
• Select the zone you want to change.
• Then adjust the security level by moving the slider up (for more restrictive) or down (for less restrictive) .
• Press the OK button

If you have certain web site that you trust on the Internet, you can grant them access to the "Trusted sites" zone, which allows you give them more privileges.

• Click on the 'Trusted sites' zone icon, and then press the Sites button.
• Type the domain name (such as example.com) of the trusted site then press the Add button. (Note: You may need to uncheck the box the 'Require server verification (https:) for all sites in this zone' checkbox).
• Press the OK button.

Windows Vista: Snipping Tool

Its amazing how sometimes the littlest features of an operating system, can be very useful. The Snipping Tool is an incredibly useful tool if you only need to capture part of the image on your computer's screen instead of the whole thing.

Most of the time if you want to capture part of the image on your computer's screen you have to use the 'PRT SCN' key, or the Alt+'PRT SCN' key to capture the active window. Then you have to paste the picture in to an image editor to extract the part of the image that you want to use.

When you launch the Snipping Tool the screen will become partially white, with a red cross-hair. All you have to do is click and drag the red square over the area that you want to capture.

The image will then be transfered in to the Snipping Tool application window automatically. Where the image can be copied, marked up, or sent via email to someone. You can also save the image in one of the following image formats: JPG, GIF, PNG or MHT (single HTML file).

To access the Snipping Tool, from the Start menu go under 'All Programs' then Accessories'. From there you should see program in the menu.

Windows Vista: Adding the Run... command to the Start Menu

By default Windows Vista does not include the Run... command in the Start menu. If this was a favorite (or commonly used) feature for you of Windows XP, follow the steps below to re-enable it in the Start Menu:

• Right-click the Taskbar in an empty area, and select Properties.
• Click the 'Start Menu' tab
• Press the Customize... button.
• In the list box scroll down until you find the 'Run command' checkbox and then check it.
• Press the OK button when done.
  

The Run command should now appear on the Start menu.

Windows Vista: Restoring the Recycle Bin Icon on the Desktop

Have you deleted the Recycle Bin icon off your desktop in Windows Vista (on accident or purpose)? There is a way to put the icon back on your desktop, just follow the steps below:

• Right-click an empty area on the desktop and select Personalize.
• In the left pane of the Personalization window, click 'Change desktop icons'.
• In the dialog box that display, check 'Recycle Bin' icon checkbox.
• Press the OK button.
  

Maintenance: Cleaning Your Computer (Video)

With Spring coming, its that time of the year where you have to clean things up. Most people know how to clean their house's, but do you know who to clean the different parts of your computer?

In fact modern computers can be adversely effected by the dust that can build up in them. Dust can prevent fans from working properly, block air vents or air flow. The dirtier the environment where the computer is located, the more important it is to clean it on a regular basis.

Yesterday I posted a video on how to clean your keyboard from all the crude that can build up in it. Today I am posting a video on how to clean your computer.

Maintenance: How to Clean Your Keyboard

Over the last few years I have read a few articles that talked about how keyboard have become so dirty that they're just breeding grounds for germs. After reading a few of these articles you may wonder how to clean your keyboard and the keys. This video demonstrates the basic techniques required to take apart your keyboard and clean it.

Note/Warning: The techniques demonstrated in this video only provide a general reference, the actual methods to take your keyboard apart will vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. Use this information at your own risk.

Windows Vista: Understanding the Windows Experience Index

When I first install Windows Vista on a computer one of the first things that I like to check is the 'Windows Experience Index' (WEI) score. This feature gives me a good idea of how well the computer will perform with the new operating system.

To understand the WEI score, you may want to read the following article from Microsoft. Here is an excerpt: "When presenting at a user group meeting last week, someone asked me if a low Windows Experience Index (WEI) score of 1 or 2 means that he should not use Windows Vista on that computer. The answer is 'not at all.'

One of my favorite capabilities of Windows Vista is that it scales itself to fit your computer to help give you the best possible performance. For example, if your computer doesn't have the graphics capability to effectively display the new Windows Aero visual effects, Windows Vista won't enable those effects on your computer."

Internet Explorer 7: Change the Default Email Program

Do you want to change the default e-mail program that Internet Explorer launches when you click on a email link or send a web page to someone. To change the default e-mail program follow the instructions below:

• Open Internet Explorer
• From the Tools menu select 'Internet Options'.
• Click the Programs tab.
• In the E-mail drop-down menu to select the program you want Internet Explorer to use.
• Press the OK button.

Article: Security Super Guide

PC Magazine reports: "Let's face the facts here, people, the world has become a pretty scary place. In the salad days of your youth, all you had to worry about was the health and well-being of your family and locking your doors at night. Not anymore. Today, you need to worry about security in a whole different arena: your PC. Spyware, adware, viruses and Trojans are lurking online, waiting to infest your computer. All could easily cripple your PC if you're not careful. Worse yet, hackers could steal important personal information. If that's not enough to send you hiding under the covers, you also have to find a way to keeps your kids safe online. Scary? You bet. Unmanageable? Not at all. Pull the covers off you head and listen to us. Our super security guide will help you wise up and stay safe."

Its a good article and worth reading especially if you don't stay up-to-date on computer security and the associated risks.

Article: What's in your Windows Vista?

Several people have expressed concern about not knowing which version of Windows Vista to buy. Personally I run Windows Vista Ultimate edition, because I wanted to be able to use everything that the new OS had to offer (whether I use these features or not).

So if you want to know which features are included (or not included) with the different versions of Vista, check out this table on the CNET web site.

Windows XP: Make Folders Private

If you're on a computer that is shared among a few people, you may want to make your 'My Document' folder private so that others can't view its contents.

To protect your private files, follow the instructions below:

• Right-click your 'My Documents' folder and then select Properties.
• Click the Sharing tab
• Check the 'Do not share this folder' checkbox, and then press OK button.

You can also apply these permissions to individual folders if you don't want to protect your whole 'My Documents' folder. Just follow the same steps above, but select the folder that you want to protect.

Notes: In order for this to work everyone on the computer must have their own password protected accounts including yourself. Although, any user with administrator access on your computer can override this protection.

Software: Corel WordPerfect Lightning (Beta)

There recently was a lot of hype about Corel 'WordPerfect Lightning' that is currently in beta. The program is a type of hybrid word processing application that you download and install on your local computer with online features that includes collaboration.

The program includes: word processing features, document viewer, and file organizer. It also includes a free online account with 200 MB storage for documents, and other information. For more information, check out this slideshow.

Note: The download is 20MB in size and requires user registration.

Software: UDPixel (Fix Dead Pixels)

Do you have dead pixels on your LCD monitor, well they may really only be stuck. Download and run UDPixel to un-stick them.

This program has two main components. The first component that helps you to reveal the bad pixels by changing the color of the screen. The second components tries to fix the pixels by energizing them over and over again. (Hint: drag the flashing squares under the dead pixels)

Does this program really fix dead pixel? I can't say for sure. All my monitors are new, so I couldn't find any dead pixels to fix. Although, I did find lots of dust. You might notice what I am talking about after you run the program.

Article: Intuit Makes TurboTax Available for Free

PC Magazine reports: "Intuit has made a version of its TurboTax tax-preparation software free to use online for a limited time. ... In 2006, the company charged users to file their federal taxes electronically; this year, the company has also removed that fee, allowing users to file a 1040EZ federal tax return with no fees whatsoever using the TurboTax Free Edition."

There are some catches, there is a fee for filing your state return, including e-filing. It also see limited to people who can file the 1040EZ form.

Software: WinRAR (the new compression standard?)

The ZIP file format has been the unchallenged defacto standard for what seems like more then a decade. It was so popular that Microsoft put support for it in to Windows XP operating system.

Now there is a relatively new format called RAR, that is challenging the old guard. What makes RAR more popular is that it has 8 to 15% better compression then the older ZIP format. It also has multi-platform support (i.e.: Windows, Linux, Mac OS, BSD, and DOS).

WinRAR is a Windows program used for managing your RAR and other archive file types. WinRAR is a commercial program that cost $29 for a single license. Although unRAR is a free program that can be use to decompress RAR files.

Below is a list of some of WinRAR features:

• Beside the RAR archives file, it can unpack: CAB, ARJ, LZH, TAR, GZ, ACE, UUE, BZ2, JAR, ISO, 7Z, Z.
• Offers a graphical and command line interface.
• Supports 128-bits AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) encryption.
• Support files and archives up to 8,589 billion gigabytes in size.
• Supports self-extracting and multi-volume archives.
• Plus more.
  

Article: New Firefox Updates Eliminate Major Security Flaw

eEeek reports: "Mozilla on Feb. 23 released updated versions of the Firefox browser, v1.5.0.10 and v2.0.0.2, for Windows, Mac and Linux, which include the fix for a major security flaw. ... The 'location.hostname' vulnerability potentially allowed hackers to tamper with authentication cookies for third-party sites, manipulating how Web sites are displayed and how they operate, Mozilla said."

If you have not upgraded your version of the Firefox browser, I would strongly suggest that you do it now.

Windows Vista: Small Icons in the Start Menu

Depending on the size of your monitor and the your own personal preference, you may want to change the size of the icons displayed in Windows Vista's Start menu. If the icons in this menu are too large for you, you can switch to the smaller icons by following the steps listed below:

• Right click the Taskbar and click Properties.
• Click the Start Menu tab.
• Press the Customize button.
• Uncheck the 'Use large icons' checkbox.
• Press OK.

Software: Microsoft Virtual PC 2007

Do you need a test environment to try out new (or older) operating systems, and applications. Maybe you need to run an older version of the Windows OS to support a legacy application.

Microsoft is giving away Virtual PC 2007, that allows you to run multiple PC-based operating systems simultaneously on one workstation. This software runs on: Windows XP Professional or Tablet PC editions, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Vista Business/Enterprise/Ultimate editions.

Software: Microsoft Home Server (Beta)

Microsoft first announced its Home Server product at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this January. This software is based on Windows 2003 server, and is scheduled to ship this July.

So far, Hewlett-Packard will be the first hardware vendor to ship a computer with the software pre-installed on the. The new HP MediaSmart Server will be powered by a 1.8GHz AMD Sempron 64-bit CPU, and will include four hard drive bays and four USB ports.

To participate in this beta you must fill out a survey on the site, and then wait to be invited to be able to download the software.

Windows XP: Enabling Print Job Notifications

If you have a shared printer on your home or office network, and that device is in another location. You can enable Windows print job notification to alert you when your print job completes. To enable this feature follow the steps below:

• From the Start menu and click 'Printers and Faxes'.
• From the File menu, and select 'Server Properties'.
• Click the Advanced tab.
• Check the 'Show informational notifications for network printers' checkbox.
• Press the OK button when done.

Article: Secure Digital (SD) and SDHC Memory Card Performance Roundup and Review

ExtremeTech reports: "When shooting digital photographs, memory card performance can be critical, particularly if you're using the continuous shooting mode many cameras support. That's the mode where the camera keeps shooting frames as long as you have the button pressed down. Typical speeds for continuous mode range from 2 frames per second in some point-and-shoot cameras to 5 fps for higher-end digital SLRs. These are settings representing high quality or raw modes. After the internal memory buffer in the camera fills up, the camera then writes out the photos to the flash memory card."

There are several different types of removable media cards (i.e.: SD, Memory Stick, MMC, etc.) that are now available that you can use in cameras, cellphones, PDAs, and other devices. The most popular of these formats is SD.

Modern SD cards are going through a technology transformation that could make the newer higher speed higher capacity cards incompatible with your older devices. If you have a high speed digital camera that can take advantage of these new advances then you might want to learn about the technology. Read the article for more information.

Article: New Vista firewall fails on outbound security

ComputerWorld reports: "Microsoft Corp. has touted Windows Vista as providing significant security improvements over Windows XP, and it offers the Windows Firewall, with its new two-way filtering feature, as one example of that better security. ... But as shipped, the Windows Firewall offers little outbound protection, and it's not clear how outbound protection can be configured to protect against spyware, Trojan horses and bots."

The Windows Vista firewall is improved over Windows XP firewall, but comes up short when compared to other commercial firewalls. Although, the firewall that comes as part of OneCare is actually better then the one that comes with Vista.

Windows XP: Vista Transformation Pack

Want to make Windows XP look like Windows Vista, then you should check out the 'Vista Transformation Pack'. Below is a list of some of the Vista Transformation Pack includes:

• Boot screen
• Welcome Screen
• Logon Screen
• New visual styles
• New desktop and file icons
• And more...

Windows Vista: Memory Diagnostic Utility

Windows Vista includes several new and updated diagnostic utilities. Vista now includes a built-in a memory diagnostic utility, in previous versions of the OS you had to download this utility separately and create a boot disk or CD.

If Vista detects a problem with your computer's RAM, it will automatically display a notification asking if you want Vista to try to detect if there is a problem. You can also manually run this utility anytime by running "MDSCHED.EXE" (which is located in the %SystemRoot%\System32\ directory) from the command prompt, or from the Search bar under the Start menu.

Note: You will have to reboot your computer to utilize this utility.

Windows Vista: Problem Reports and Solutions Control Panel

When a problem is found with your hardware or software, Windows Vista automatically collects information about it. This information can then be sent to Microsoft anonymously to be analyzed to find out if there's an available solution that can fix the problem.

The 'Problem Reports and Solutions' control panel displays details about the problems that your computer had and possible solutions to correct the problem. To access this utility, open the 'Control Panel' from the Start menu, select 'System and Maintenance', and click 'Problem Reports and Solutions'.

From the Task pane on the right you can:

• Check for new solutions
• See problems you had
• View your problem history
• Change applications setting
• Clean the solutions and problem history.

Security: Microsoft Patch Tuesday (Feburary)

It's the second Tuesday of the month again, which means that Microsoft just published another round of security fixes for Windows and it's applications. This date is meant to be a predictable date so that companies only have to patch their computers and servers once a month. This month there are three patches that are marked critical, and four patches that are marked important.

For the average user, if you have Automatic Updates enabled your computer will download these updates for you in the background. Then when you shutdown these patches will be applied to your system. If you leave your computer on overnight they will automatically be installed and your system rebooted if necessary.

Warning: Before you leave your computer at night make sure you save all your work or it will be lost if your system has to be rebooted.

Enabling Automatic Update
If you don't have 'Automatic Updates' turned enable I would suggest that you turn it on as soon as possible. If you don't want to enable Automatic Updates, you can always update your computer by visiting the Windows Update site and downloading and installing the patches manually.

To enable Automatic Updates:

• From the Start menu, select the Control Panel folder.
• Double-click the System applet in the control panel folder.
• Click the 'Automatic Updates' tab.
• Check the 'Automatic (recommended)' option. (optional: if you don't like this feature, you can set it to: 'download but not install the update', 'just notify you', or 'disable this feature altogether' [not recommended])
• Press the OK button when done.

Note: For the latest Microsoft Security Bulletins, check out this site.

Article: The Best Free Software

PC Magazine reports: "Most software is expensive and bloated. Yet free software typically does one task and does it with precision and elegance. Among the thousands of free apps available on the Web, how do you find the best, most reliable ones for your needs? ...
To produce this story, we asked PC Magazine staffers to share their best-loved free software and were inundated with responses. Our recommendations are the apps that real people use everyday, at work and at home, for all kinds of tasks—photo editing and DVD burning, database work and intrusion detection, VoIP calling and stargazing. They're tried and tested, the best tools you can get—and they're all free."

Are you looking for free software for your computer? This article has a lot of good suggestions, although some of them are better then others. Check it out and see if you find anything you like.

Software: Foxit Reader (an Acrobat Alternative)

The Adobe Acrobat PDF reader seems to be growing a few megabytes in size in each version that is released. If you don't use most of Acrobat's features, then you might want to look to one of the most popular alternatives. This program is called Foxit Reader, and its more then 10x smaller then the Acrobat reader.

Version 2.0 of Foxit was just released with several new features:

• Interactive form filler
• Multi-language UI support
• On-demand download of add-on
• Self upgrade
• Javascript support
• Improved printing speed
• Streamlined UI and much more.

Software: VideoLAN Media Player

Looking for an free alternative multimedia player, to play your audio and video collection? The VideoLAN client (VLC) supports several audio formats (such as: MP3, Vorbis, FLAC, MACE, etc.), video formats (such as: MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, DivX), and various streaming network protocols. VLC can even play DVDs and VCDs.

If you want to know more, here is a complete list of all the features. If you want to see what the program looks like before you download it here are some screenshots.

Software: Best Free Personal Computer Firewall

Windows XP SP2 comes with a free firewall that will protect you against most attacks from the Internet. Although, most fee-based commercial personal firewalls, generally offer more advanced security features that can protect your data from being leaked out of your computer by malicious software.

So for the security conscious person, they will want to install something better then what comes with the OS. In the past, I have recommended the free version of ZoneAlarm. Although, now I have found something better. It's called the 'Comodo Firewall', and best of all its free.

Below is a list of some of the features of this firewall:

• Application Component Authentication: validates all the components of an application before allowing it internet access.
• Application Behavior Analysis: analyzes each application's behavior and detects any suspicious activity before allowing internet access.
• Defense against Trojan Protocols: advanced protocol driver level protection
• Smart Alerts: Every alert includes a Security Consideration section with advice to users.
• And several more. Check out the web site for the complete list of features.
  

Windows Vista: Business Test Drive

Want to learn more about Windows Vista without having to install it? Microsoft is offering a Vista 'test-drive' program that allows you to use the new features of the OS before loading it on to your system. The site includes videos on how to perform certain tasks in the new OS, and it also has a terminal server version of Vista that you can actually play with.

The test-drive program runs in the Internet Explorer browser, and does require that you install an ActiveX control to use the site. If you're really interested in seeing and playing with Vista before you install it on your computer this is not a bad place to start.

Windows Vista: Windows PowerShell 1.0 (Released)

Microsoft has release a more powerful command line for its operating systems called Windows PowerShell. This feature is now available for Windows XP, Server 2003, and Vista.

The Windows XP version was released before the Vista version, so the released Vista version is harder to find. Here are the download locations for the Vista versions of Windows PowerShell 1.0.

• Windows PowerShell 1.0 (X86 Edition)
• Windows PowerShell 1.0 (X64 Edition)

For more details on PowerShell, check out the web sites below:

• Windows PowerShell Web Site
  
• Knowledge Base Article
  
• Windows PowerShell Newsgroup

Software: Microsoft Photo Info

Microsoft recently released a new add-on to the Windows Vista and XP Explorer that allows you to edit the picture's metadata. Metadata is embedded text data that is included with every picture to you take with a digital camera, it stores information about the camera, lens settings, etc.

Below is a excerpt from the site: "Microsoft Photo Info is a new software add-in for Microsoft Windows that allows photographers to add, change and delete common 'metadata' properties for digital photographs from inside Windows Explorer. It also provides enhanced 'hover tips' and additional sort properties for digital photographs in Explorer (in Details view)."

To use the utility after you install it, from the Windows Explorer right-click a picture and select 'Photo Info'.

Windows Vista: Upgrading to Vista

If you decided its time to upgrade your old computer to Windows Vista, then I am going to tell you the best way to complete this install. Although, I have to warn you that is not the easiest method to accomplish this upgrade, but in the long run you should have fewer problems and your system should even run faster (initially).

Pre-Installation Checklist:

• Make sure your system can handle the hardware requirements of Windows Vista.
• Download and run the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor, this might identify known problems with your hardware or software.
• Make sure that you have Vista compatible versions of your applications and their associated license keys (if required). You also want to make sure that you have a Vista compatible version of your anti-virus software.
  
• Windows Vista comes pack full of drivers for older peripherals. If you have system with newer hardware visit the manufacturer's web site and download the latest drivers for your hardware that is Vista compatible.
• Visit your motherboard and graphics card manufacturer's web site and search for firmware update for this hardware.
  
• Backup all your data, and anything else that you know you will need. Also be aware applications like Firefox and Outlook don't store their data files in the 'My Document' subdirectory.
• Microsoft has created the 'Windows Easy Transfer' wizard that can all your files and settings to an extra hard drive (or other storage device). Then after you finish installing Windows Vista, you run the 'Windows Easy Transfer' wizard again to reload your files and settings on the upgraded PC. Go here to download versions of this software for Windows XP and 2000.
  

Installing Windows Vista

• Before you start you make sure that you have the Windows Vista installation media and product key for the version of Vista that you're going to install.
  
• The best type of installation you can do of any operating system is to perform what is called a 'clean install'. This type of install requires you to format your computer's hard drive, and then put a fresh copy of the OS on it.
• Warning: Formating your computer hard drive will destroy all your data to make sure that you have a good backup of your data before performing this operation.
  
• After you finish the install make sure that you run the 'Window Update' application and download all the latest updates and drivers for your computer.
• Open the System control panel from the Control Panel folder, then click the link for the Device Manager in the upper left corner. Check if the Device Manager is having problems identifying any of your hardware.
  
• Install your applications, and copy your data back to the computer and organize it as appropriate. There are certain advantages to putting your pictures in the Picture folder, video into the Video folder, etc.
• The first thing that you will notice is that these folders have new locations under your User directory, and not under the 'My Documents' folder like they were in Windows XP.