Bergesch Computer Services, Inc.
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Windows 7Thinking of moving to Windows 7 next month? Microsoft has this extensive article on things you should do, and things you can do. But before you install it, review
these recommendations from Microsoft. BlackberryOur six-year-old cell-phone finally died so we decided it was time to join the 21st century and purchased a Blackberry device. Because we needed Nextel/Sprint Direct Connect, our choices were limited. Wow, those are small keys... We installed the Blackberry Desktop Manager to synchronize our calendar, notes, etc. Upon the first sync the Desktop Manager apparently did not like our reoccurring appointments as they all disappeared from Outlook and only one ended up on the Blackberry device. Fortunately they were all easy enough to recreate, so just a word of warning...
This gives us all contacts who at least have a phone number in one of those two fields... Spelling in Outlook ExpressIf you use Outlook Express and install Microsoft Office '07, you will find OE no longer does spell checking correctly and in fact, you may find that OE's default spelling dictionary is French and cannot be changed! Various articles we have read indicate that problem will never be fixed by Microsoft, leaving you with only the below options (we think the last option is best):
Roxio issues?If you use Roxio to burn CDs then prepare them for use on another computer and regularly get this error:
There are a couple of (very hard to find) fixes from Roxio.
We found the first patch (PX Engine update) resolved all of the problems on one particular machine... Thanks, Kurt Are your ports open?
"Ports" are connections used by all computers. There are physical (hardware) ports and virtual (software) ports. In theory, there are 65,535 (software) ports available on a computer, but most computers use only a few. Port 80, for example, is the Internet connection and 443 is the secure websites connection. Here is a list of commonly used (and known) ports. The issue with ports is not only do they allow your computer to connect to the Internet and other devices, they allow the other devices AND THE INTERNET to connect to your computer. An open port allows for communications between your computer and a device or application. Perhaps without your knowledge... Hardware and software firewalls will block (or close) communications over most ports, sometimes even those that need to be open.
If you scan for shared folders (the NetBrute) tab, you will likely find Admin$ and C$. Those are common for Windows and (apparently) should not be of concern...
At a command prompt use the netstat command, e.g., netstat -a -b If you want a text file with the results: netstat -a -b > c:\ports.txt For the various netstat options, type netstat /?
The scan results were all recognized devices on our network... Gmail issuesHaving a customer bring this to our attention, we decided to do a Google search ;-) on "Gmail not receiving" email and wow, there seems to be a lot of complaints out there. We found no real answers to the problem, so just be aware the problem may exist... Related article. But this is not just a Google issue, messages are simply disappearing without any notification. With increasing spam and too many poorly designed spam filters, there appears no resolution in the near future.
Downloaded programsIf you download programs from the Internet,
purchased or free, be sure to save that installer file. Save any email associated with that download, especially those that contain product keys. Also retain the purchase date and installation date, even if you have to make a word processing file for that information. Because many installers have somewhat cryptic names, we further suggest placing each downloaded application installer and information in its own folder. Note: Many installers and product keys are date sensitive. If you ever need to reinstall it, you may find it easier to simply reset your computer's date to the original install date rather than contacting the company for another key... Thanks, April Adobe scam?
Symantec errorA very small number of Symantec users may receive an error message like this: Error: "Symantec Service Framework has encountered a problem and needs to close..." after you install the latest updates for a Norton 2009 product or Norton 360 Version 3.0. The fix is apparently to run LiveUpdate as many times as needed until there are no more updates available. If that does not resolve the problem, see "What if this didn't work?" here. IE8According to this article Internet Explorer 8 has been rated better at stopping malware than earlier versions of itself, but also better than Firefox, Safari and Chrome... But none of these browsers are stopping things like Personal Antivirus (PAV) and the like. With some 55,000 websites infected, there is good cause not to play in unknown territory... Surf wisely, Grasshopper... Skype TrojanEven well-known and trusted sites like Skype are having security problems. According to this article a Trojan horse in the Skype process can convert voice data into an encrypted MP3, making it available to an attacker. Unfortunately the article has no specifics on detecting or protecting against this Trojan... Phone scamIt's an old scam and mostly under control these days, but a recent email warning brought it to life again. The email indicates calling an 809, 284 or 876 area code could cost you hundreds or thousands of dollars, but that is highly exaggerated according to this AT&T article. But the warning about those area codes is still valid. Mac reminderJust a quick reminder for you Mac users, Macs are not exempt from viruses and hackers. Be sure to get the security updates released last month. The article. Quick Links...Are you a Lakedale customer? Here's their new (and much improved) webmail utility. How much do suspension bridges move? Watch this. Want to try and guess someone's password?
Here is the 500 worst passwords list... Want to take a ride in the world's highest flying aircraft? Here's a video clip from within a U2. If you are one to tinker with Window settings, here is a list of services that should never be shut off.
Did you know:
Homeland Security Still Plans To Search Laptops At Borders With No
Probable Cause. If God had wanted us to vote, he would have given us candidates. - Jay Leno. I just want an honest week's pay, for an honest day's work - Steve Martin. We will leave you with this from Al Lowe If you receive an email from the Health Department telling you not to eat canned pork because of swine flu, ignore it. It's just Spam! The scoutmaster was teaching his scouts about desert survival. "What are the three most important things you should carry in case you get lost in the desert?" Little Johnny's hand shot up. "Yes, John." Little Johnny replied, "A compass, a canteen of water, and a deck of playing cards." "Why, John?" Little Johnny said, "The compass helps you find your way and the water prevents dehydration." "Very good, John. But what about the cards?" asked the scoutmaster. "Well, sir, as soon as you start playing solitaire, someone always walks up behind you and says, 'You could play that red nine on that black ten!' "
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