PC tips

***Corey*** · 11-06-2004, 09:10 AM

Share your PC tips here in this thread.
Whether hardware or software related.

We have a lot of people on this forum in the software and hardware side of business, and I am sure a lot of us appreciate tips on resolving PC headaches.
I build my own computers, so I have quite an extensive knowledge on problem solving glitches that may pop up.

And before the Mac enthusiasts jump in and say "what headaches" I beat ya to the punch

I am sure Mac owners on here will also appreciate any tips, and Mac tips are encouraged in this thread too.

Here is my first one from another post recently.
Updating video card drivers:

Whenever updating either NVIDIA or ATI's Catalyst drivers, you need to wipe the old ones off your hard drive before installing new ones.

I update my Catalyst ones every time ATI releases new ones, which is about every 5 weeks.

Here is the proper way.
1. Go to the add/remove area in the Control Panel, and select the drivers and uninstall.
Then remove the cat control panel software.

2. Go to Program Files in the Explorer and delete the ATI folder.
Same info for NVIDIA drivers too.

3. Reboot the PC.
Hit cancel when the "Found new hardware" message appears.

4. Run the program Nasty File Remover and let it search for anything ATI or NVIDIA.
By default it is setup to save the files as a batch file.
Do not do that, but drop down the drop list and select delete instead.

5. Reboot the PC after using NFR, and then hit cancel once again when the "Found new hardware" message appears.

6. Go to your drivers you downloaded from either ATI or from NVIDIA, and execute them.

If using an ATI card, you may run into trouble getting the Catalyst ones with the Control Center.
Go for the smaller download of the Control Panels ones.
I have seen the bigger package fubar a few PCs, and the smaller file is much more stable.

Always do the above when updating your vid or sound card drivers.
Simply executing the new drivers over the old ones is not a good idea.

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BT17R · 11-06-2004, 09:25 AM

The 46 Best-Ever Freeware Utilities

***Corey*** · 11-06-2004, 03:37 PM

A very good article with many steps and links on how to format your PC.
http://www.cyberwalker.net/faqs/rein...nxp/index.html

Dr. Zhivago · 11-07-2004, 10:15 AM

To show ALL devices in Device Manager in Windows 2000/XP/2003, do the following:

1. Right click My Computer, select Properties

2. Click the Advanced tab

3. Press the Environment variables button at the bottom

4. Select any item in the System variables section at the bottom

5. Press the New button and do the following:

In the Variable name field, type: DEVMGR_SHOW_NONPRESENT_DEVICES

In the Variable value field, type: 1

6. Click Ok a few times.

7. Go to Device Manager and click View\Show hidden devices

You will notice a few new categories and you can also see all the hardware that was once installed in your system and that still may have entries hanging around in the registry. They will be "greyed out" and fainter in appearance. We call them "Ghosts". This is a useful switch when troubleshooting hardware errors.

Hope you found this interesting.
G

Dr. Zhivago · 11-07-2004, 10:25 AM

To vastly improve the performance and stability on Windows 98/98SE/ME if you are still using one of those operating systems, do the following.

This is called the "System Performance Hack"

1. Right-click My Computer.

2. Click the Device Manager Tab.

3. Open the Disk Drives Category and check the properties pages of all the HDD's. Make sure that the HDD's are using DMA. Put a check in the DMA checkbox if it's empty. It's on the Settings tab. Okay your way out.

4. Do the same for the CDROM/DVD/CDRW drives.

5. Ignore the warnings that enabling DMA will cause major flooding and erectile dysfunction.

5. Open the System Devices Category and open the Direct Memory Access Controller properties. Set the DMA Buffer size to 64. That's the largest value supported.

6. Ok your way out of all the dialogs. Cancel ALL prompts to reboot.

7. Go to the Performance tab.

8. Click the File System button.

9. Set the typical role to Network Server.

10. Make sure Read Ahead Optimization is set to Full. Ok your way out.

11. Click the Virtual Memory button.

12. Select "Let me choose" and set the Minimum size to a value equal to 1.5 x Physical RAM. (See below for relative values.) Leave the Maximum value alone. If they have more than one HDD, put the Swapfile on the second disk.

13. Ok your way out.

14. Ignore the warning about Windows eating your first born...

16. Close System Properties. Cancel all prompts to reboot.

17. Start\Run\msconfig

18. Click the System.ini tab.

19. Click the [386Enh] folder, not the + sign next to it.

20. Click the New button.

21. Type: ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1

22. Press [Enter]

It will look like this:

[386Enh]
ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1

23. Click "Ok"

24. Reboot.

25. Done

Swapfile Sizes:

64MB RAM = 96 Swapfile Size
128MB RAM = 192 Swapfile Size
256MB RAM = 384 Swapfile Size
384MB RAM = 512 Swapfile Size
512MB RAM = 768 Swapfile Size
768MB RAM = 1024 Swapfile Size
1024MB RAM = 1024 Swapfile Size

Windows 98/ME does not support more than 1GB of RAM nor can it access more than 2GB of Memory Space, which is why the last entry is equal to the RAM value. Any larger values are simply ignored.

We used to do this all the time when I was a Dell Support Technician and I also trained all my new and existing Techs to do this. This resolved about 90% of our support calls as out of the box, Windows 9x doesn't use memory or system resources very efficiently.

These changes makes a HUGE difference in the way Windows handles memory, the swapfile and greatly accelerates the opening of programs, allows you to actually multitask and run modern 3D games without pauses, hitches and various other problems as long as you have enough memory to hold all the programs and not have to use the swapfile.

By default, Windows will use the swapfile, even if you have plenty of RAM to store the data that's in use and that causes slow downs and instability. Plus, you spend a lot of time "waiting" for your computer while it moves data to and from the harddrive while it's opening or switching programs.

Peace.
G

data · 11-10-2004, 02:03 PM

Here are a couple of tips for you wireless users to make your connection a "little" more secure....

1. Change the SSID of your access point.

2. Turn off SSID broadcasting

3. Enable some form of WEP. I would recommend at least 128bit with a couple of keys at the least.

4. Turn on MAC filtering. By enabling that, it will only let what MAC's you specify on the access point.

5. Turn off DHCP. I always have used statics on my wireless networks.

6. If needed you can always crank down the wattage the access point pumps out so that you'll only be able to pick it up in the room you are in.

MvCrash · 11-10-2004, 07:03 PM

Greetings,
In line with Data's post, Limit the amount of PC's allowed on your network to the amount of PC's you own. This way if you allow three static addresses and a fourth tries to get on, it won 't work.

Also, here is a quick to the point security test that was posted on CNN.
1. My computer has anti-virus software installed.
True
False
I'm not sure
Explanation: If you answered false, you're ignoring one of the most basic ways to protect your computer. If you're not sure you have anti-virus software, search your computer for programs from Norton AntiVirus or McAfee.
2. My computer has a firewall program installed.
True
False
I'm not sure

Explanation: If you answered False, put down what you're doing and go get one installed right now. You can get free firewall software for basic protection or pay for better, more complex firewall programs. (See more.)
3.3. I always read the "terms of agreement" before I download free software.
True
False
Most of the time, but definitely not all of the time.

Explanation: Reading terms of agreement is the best way to make sure you're not agreeing to let a third party install spyware on your system. Because you've agreed to it, a firewall can't keep it out. Search for words like "third-party" and names of companies you don't recognize.

4. I always click "yes" when I'm prompted by my software vendors (like Microsoft) to update my security.
True
False
I'm not sure

Explanation: New viruses are written every day, so the longer you go between updates, the greater the number of viruses your out-of-date protections might let in. Check with your vendors, like Microsoft Critical Updates, to see how your system is doing.

5. I only open e-mail attachments if I am expecting them.
True
False
I'm not sure
1. Explanation: Never open attachments you aren't expecting -- even ones with return addresses from friends. Many viruses go right for the e-mail addressbook to make it seem as though the victim is sending legitimate mail.

6. My e-mail is configured to allow for only text-only messages.
True
False
I'm not sure

Explanation: The majority of e-mail viruses use html and otherwise enhanced e-mail to gain access to your system. Text-only messages (so retro!) can't launch themselves automatically, and are one more solid defense between you and a virus.

7. I always turn my computer off when I'm not using it because I have continuous Internet access.
True
False
True some of the time, but not always
0 pts Doesn't apply to me

1. Explanation: This certainly will deny any outsiders access to your system. It's not necessary, however, if you have a good firewall. It also depends on your usage. Set the energy saver preferences properly and there's no need to shutdown/reboot every night

8. I saved my passwords in a file on my hard drive.
True
False
True some of the time, but not always

Explanation: If someone does get into your system, you're allowing them access that they don't even have to work for. Keep passwords offline -- perhaps on a piece of paper -- or better yet, in your head.

Churnd · 11-11-2004, 07:36 AM

If you don't know where to get a good antivirus program from and don't want to pay for one:

AVG Free Edition

Also, 2 good free firewall programs:

ZoneAlarm Firewall

Sygate Personal Firewall

If you want to pony up the dough for a program, I recommend Symantec Corporate Antivirus and Firewall, NOT "Norton". The Symantec Corporate stuff has very little overhead, taking up a very small amount of computer resources, as opposed to the Norton badged stuff, which can cause a noticable lack of speed. You can find their stuff at www.symantec.com.

The free stuff is not any better or worse than the stuff you pay for. You just get more customizability and more features with the paid for stuff. I recommend trying the free stuff out first and if you're happy, use it. I used Sygate and AVG for a long time before getting a copy of Symantec Corporate, and I had absolutely no problems.

Dr. Zhivago · 11-11-2004, 08:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Churnd

If you don't know where to get a good antivirus program from and don't want to pay for one:

AVG Free Edition

Also, 2 good free firewall programs:

ZoneAlarm Firewall

Sygate Personal Firewall

If you want to pony up the dough for a program, I recommend Symantec Corporate Antivirus and Firewall, NOT "Norton". The Symantec Corporate stuff has very little overhead, taking up a very small amount of computer resources, as opposed to the Norton badged stuff, which can cause a noticable lack of speed. You can find their stuff at www.symantec.com.

The free stuff is not any better or worse than the stuff you pay for. You just get more customizability and more features with the paid for stuff. I recommend trying the free stuff out first and if you're happy, use it. I used Sygate and AVG for a long time before getting a copy of Symantec Corporate, and I had absolutely no problems.

***Corey*** · 11-14-2004, 06:22 AM

Do not fall victim to those pop up ads saying you may have spyware on your computer.
They scam you into scanning your PC for you, and often put on spyware themselves.

This article was linked from Spybot's home page.
http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/...62,pg,1,00.asp

I run Spybot Search & Destroy because it is good and free, and I also run a paid version of Spysweeper which is very good.

Also I have Ad-Aware another free one, but I prefer the first two mentioned ones over it.

I get my new definition files every Thursday, and scan that night.
Once a week scanning is good, or more often, and I never have spyware on any of my PCs.

CynicX · 11-14-2004, 02:26 PM

If you do alot of web surfing esp. if you look alot on hacker sites or porno (hate to say it), I'd recommend scanning for trojans every other day, schedule it to scan while your asleep or at work for your convinence. Also a good anti-trojan software will work better then normal anti-virus software, when it comes to looking for trojan's picked up by simply surfing the web

Churnd · 11-19-2004, 06:32 PM

(Probably) Everything you ever wanted to know about using your PC...

PCStats.com Articles

***Corey*** · 11-22-2004, 02:58 PM

I formatted a few months back, and shortly afterwards the PC would crash for no reason in a few of my games:
Unreal Tournament 2004 (but not the older UT)
Starwars Battlefront
And yesterday the new Half Life 2.

Very frustrating, and also the PC would reboot sometimes while surfing the 'Net.
Not normal.
I was suspecting my power supply, as it is only a 300 watt one, and a gaming rig should have between 400 and 550 watts, especially with the extra lights and fans I have in my case.

Member Drew came over yesterday, and we DL'd a program called MemTest86.
His new AMD super gaming rig he just built was crashing in games too, and not normal, as we both always run the latest updates for our cards, BIOS, and game patches.

He found out about a program that will test your memory that is called MemTest86.
http://www.memtest86.com/

You exeecute the program, and it makes a boot floppy for you that you test one RAM module at a time with it.
He had found that one of his 512 sticks was faulty, and replaced both and his PC stopped crashing entirely.

We ran the test on mine yesterday, and both of my sticks were good.
Still I thought of one more reason, and Andy thought it might be the same thing too.

When I built the PC, I put in a 56 speed A-Open CD ROM drive.
Afterwards I put in a Sony DVD/CD burner, and set it up as the slave to the other one.

Shortly within a month the 56x CD ROM was not reading discs all the time, and eventually quit altogether, so I have just been using the burner to read discs with.
We pulled out the 56x one, and then made my burner the master drive on the secondary channel.

Guess what, my youngest son played Half Life for about an hour last night and no crashing.
The games before were crashing after about 5 to 10 minutes into them.

So it was the 56x CD ROM that was causing all of this crashing, even though I was not using it.
So hopefully if anyone else has a bad CD ROM unit in their PC and you are crashing once in awhile hopefully this tip will be of value to you.

Still going to replace my power supply down the road though, but it is nice now that the PC no longer crashes.
Who would have thought it could be a dead CD ROM drive that was causing this?
The CD ROM unit though always showed up in MY Computer, although you could not get it to read a disc.

Jay · 11-22-2004, 06:34 PM

Short and sweet.

Download Mozilla. Install norton Antivirus.

For those that use ATI Cards in laptops, download the Omega drivers. http://www.omegadrivers.net/

Since ATI doesnt release mobility drivers, your stuck using the aftermarkets. But I am completely happy with the current set.

Dr. Zhivago · 11-23-2004, 07:21 AM

What does a grease monkey know about computers? Pffft...

G

data · 11-23-2004, 06:25 PM

Below are a couple of links with some good info. Overall security-forums.com is a pretty good security site.

How to create a secure password
http://www.security-forums.com/forum...ic.php?t=18842

Beginners Guides: Firewalls and Internet Security
http://www.security-forums.com/forum...pic.php?t=7791

Places that viruses and trojans hide on start up
http://www.security-forums.com/forum...pic.php?t=3752

Wireless Security & Hacking
http://www.security-forums.com/forum...pic.php?t=1139

Home Network Security
http://www.security-forums.com/forum...opic.php?t=839

***Corey*** · 12-11-2004, 09:48 AM

This link was in another thread here.
http://www.anandtech.com/

Good place for tech info via forums, and also great tech articles on gear with reviews such as this transparent case.

RED 85 · 12-13-2004, 08:10 PM

data · 12-13-2004, 10:10 PM

***Corey*** · 01-01-2005, 07:39 AM

Here is a cool site to see how big of a power supply you should be running.
http://www.jscustompcs.com/power_supply/

amusement · 01-03-2005, 04:28 PM

http://methlabs.org/methlabs.htm

Churnd · 01-06-2005, 04:46 PM

Trying to decide what kind of network gear you want? Check this link out...

http://www.wi-fiplanet.com/reviews/C...le.php/1585191

***Corey*** · 01-09-2005, 02:12 PM

When you install Halflife 2 for it and Counterstrike Source, it uses an app called Steam that runs in the background with an icon by your clock.
This is the client that auto updates your games and the app itself.

Whenever I install a new game and hit the Internet to play some online action, the Windows SP2 firewall appears behind the game and I see it after I shut the game down.

It asks me if I want to block the game or allow it, and I tell it to allow it.
It doe snot open up any ports, it just lets the exe file of the game run.

Every once in awhile the app would give me an error upon boot up or rebooting saying the app could not connect to the Internet, and I could choose a few buttons to OK it or ignore.

This started to happen every time now upon booting since I installed the Linksys router the other day.
I was getting tired of this and I already had the router configured to open up port 1200 via UDP.

I checked the Windows firewall too, and Steam was in there, but only for the exe file.
I clicked on add port from the firewalls menu and gave it a name of "Steam at Win startup" and entered port 1200 via UDP in there also, and this cured it.
Opening the port

Six reboots already, and the error message window has gone away.
Hope this helps someone who may be thinking about buying this game.

Ya gotta buy it, all the mags and reviews say it will take the Game Of The Year awards.

***Corey*** · 01-29-2005, 12:07 PM

On an old Creative Labs Ge Force video card I ran years ago, the fan started to go out on me, and became very noisy.
I would take off the sticker on it and put a few drops of sewing machine oil in there and that would cure it for awhile.

Just ran across this link from a hardware forum I use on how to oil a noisy fan.

http://www.dansdata.com/fanmaint.htm

***Corey*** · 01-29-2005, 04:58 PM

My ATI 9600 Pro card came with a 6' cable that has S video on one end for the vid card, and a RCA plug on the other end that goes into the TV sets aux. input so I can view anything on the PC on the TV.

I also have a Monster Cable 40' extension cable for it with two male plugs and a small female adaptor to join the two cable together.
Needless to say, I lost the 6' cable somewhere.

I ran across a cool site the other day that sells all kinds of cables.
I had called up Radio Shack earlier today, and he told me that type of 6' cable goes for $50.
Typical Radio Shack rip off.
Here it is for under $14.
http://www.svideo.com/svideorca.html

I was looking on their site and came across a better cable which I will get later.
It is the same type of cable, but also with the left & right audio channel cabling so you can plug one end into your soundcards output, and the other two ends into the left & right input on the TV set.
This way you can see and hear your PC on your big screen TV set or whatever size TV you have.
http://www.svideo.com/prosvideo24.html
There is a Flash video at the above URL.

This would be pretty cool, especially if I had a wireless keyboard to go along with my wireless mouse.
I could sit in my easy chair and play a game on the PC and view it on my TV in the living room.

Hope this site is of value for anyone looking for good cabling for even better prices.

11-06-2004, 09:25 AM	#2 (permalink)
BT17R Contributing Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Da Gorge, Oregon Posts: 5,673	The 46 Best-Ever Freeware Utilities __________________ '07 FJ Cruiser TRD SE 6M/T

11-06-2004, 03:37 PM	#3 (permalink)
*Corey* Co-Founder/Administrator Staff Join Date: May 2002 Location: Auburn, Washington Posts: 26,071	How to format A very good article with many steps and links on how to format your PC. http://www.cyberwalker.net/faqs/rein...nxp/index.html __________________ Corey 2007 FJ Cruiser Built for 4wheelin', expedition, camping, and overlanding use PNW FJ Cruisers ☺ Detailing 101 ☺ Join Topsites ☺ Muffler Comparisons ☺ Maggiolinas In The Wild FJ Cruiser Buildup ☺ New Roof Top Tent ☺ Video Of My Penthouse Part II ☺ Rehinge Your ARB/Engel Fridge Blog About Roof Top Tents ☺ FJC Magazines Online Review Of My Tent ☺ 2009 Specialized Rockhopper Pro

11-07-2004, 10:25 AM	#5 (permalink)
Dr. Zhivago Away Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Beaverton, OR Posts: 1,589	To vastly improve the performance and stability on Windows 98/98SE/ME if you are still using one of those operating systems, do the following. This is called the "System Performance Hack" 1. Right-click My Computer. 2. Click the Device Manager Tab. 3. Open the Disk Drives Category and check the properties pages of all the HDD's. Make sure that the HDD's are using DMA. Put a check in the DMA checkbox if it's empty. It's on the Settings tab. Okay your way out. 4. Do the same for the CDROM/DVD/CDRW drives. 5. Ignore the warnings that enabling DMA will cause major flooding and erectile dysfunction. 5. Open the System Devices Category and open the Direct Memory Access Controller properties. Set the DMA Buffer size to 64. That's the largest value supported. 6. Ok your way out of all the dialogs. Cancel ALL prompts to reboot. 7. Go to the Performance tab. 8. Click the File System button. 9. Set the typical role to Network Server. 10. Make sure Read Ahead Optimization is set to Full. Ok your way out. 11. Click the Virtual Memory button. 12. Select "Let me choose" and set the Minimum size to a value equal to 1.5 x Physical RAM. (See below for relative values.) Leave the Maximum value alone. If they have more than one HDD, put the Swapfile on the second disk. 13. Ok your way out. 14. Ignore the warning about Windows eating your first born... 16. Close System Properties. Cancel all prompts to reboot. 17. Start\Run\msconfig 18. Click the System.ini tab. 19. Click the [386Enh] folder, not the + sign next to it. 20. Click the New button. 21. Type: ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1 22. Press [Enter] It will look like this: [386Enh] ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1 23. Click "Ok" 24. Reboot. 25. Done Swapfile Sizes: 64MB RAM = 96 Swapfile Size 128MB RAM = 192 Swapfile Size 256MB RAM = 384 Swapfile Size 384MB RAM = 512 Swapfile Size 512MB RAM = 768 Swapfile Size 768MB RAM = 1024 Swapfile Size 1024MB RAM = 1024 Swapfile Size Windows 98/ME does not support more than 1GB of RAM nor can it access more than 2GB of Memory Space, which is why the last entry is equal to the RAM value. Any larger values are simply ignored. We used to do this all the time when I was a Dell Support Technician and I also trained all my new and existing Techs to do this. This resolved about 90% of our support calls as out of the box, Windows 9x doesn't use memory or system resources very efficiently. These changes makes a HUGE difference in the way Windows handles memory, the swapfile and greatly accelerates the opening of programs, allows you to actually multitask and run modern 3D games without pauses, hitches and various other problems as long as you have enough memory to hold all the programs and not have to use the swapfile. By default, Windows will use the swapfile, even if you have plenty of RAM to store the data that's in use and that causes slow downs and instability. Plus, you spend a lot of time "waiting" for your computer while it moves data to and from the harddrive while it's opening or switching programs. Peace. G Last edited by Dr. Zhivago; 11-07-2004 at 02:11 PM.

11-10-2004, 02:03 PM	#6 (permalink)
data Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Arkansas Posts: 1,915	Here are a couple of tips for you wireless users to make your connection a "little" more secure.... 1. Change the SSID of your access point. 2. Turn off SSID broadcasting 3. Enable some form of WEP. I would recommend at least 128bit with a couple of keys at the least. 4. Turn on MAC filtering. By enabling that, it will only let what MAC's you specify on the access point. 5. Turn off DHCP. I always have used statics on my wireless networks. 6. If needed you can always crank down the wattage the access point pumps out so that you'll only be able to pick it up in the room you are in. __________________ 98 Limited 4x4, Rockstomper skid, Rockware Front bumper, Warn HS9500i, 1" RB BL, Tundra coils front & OME HD rear, Nuke quick discos, diff drop'd, 305/70/16 Baja Claws, Electric Locker, couple of battle scars, but nothing major :)

11-10-2004, 07:03 PM	#7 (permalink)
MvCrash Contributing Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Northern NJ Posts: 342	Greetings, In line with Data's post, Limit the amount of PC's allowed on your network to the amount of PC's you own. This way if you allow three static addresses and a fourth tries to get on, it won 't work. Also, here is a quick to the point security test that was posted on CNN. 1. My computer has anti-virus software installed. True False I'm not sure Explanation: If you answered false, you're ignoring one of the most basic ways to protect your computer. If you're not sure you have anti-virus software, search your computer for programs from Norton AntiVirus or McAfee. 2. My computer has a firewall program installed. True False I'm not sure Explanation: If you answered False, put down what you're doing and go get one installed right now. You can get free firewall software for basic protection or pay for better, more complex firewall programs. (See more.) 3.3. I always read the "terms of agreement" before I download free software. True False Most of the time, but definitely not all of the time. Explanation: Reading terms of agreement is the best way to make sure you're not agreeing to let a third party install spyware on your system. Because you've agreed to it, a firewall can't keep it out. Search for words like "third-party" and names of companies you don't recognize. 4. I always click "yes" when I'm prompted by my software vendors (like Microsoft) to update my security. True False I'm not sure Explanation: New viruses are written every day, so the longer you go between updates, the greater the number of viruses your out-of-date protections might let in. Check with your vendors, like Microsoft Critical Updates, to see how your system is doing. 5. I only open e-mail attachments if I am expecting them. True False I'm not sure 1. Explanation: Never open attachments you aren't expecting -- even ones with return addresses from friends. Many viruses go right for the e-mail addressbook to make it seem as though the victim is sending legitimate mail. 6. My e-mail is configured to allow for only text-only messages. True False I'm not sure Explanation: The majority of e-mail viruses use html and otherwise enhanced e-mail to gain access to your system. Text-only messages (so retro!) can't launch themselves automatically, and are one more solid defense between you and a virus. 7. I always turn my computer off when I'm not using it because I have continuous Internet access. True False True some of the time, but not always 0 pts Doesn't apply to me 1. Explanation: This certainly will deny any outsiders access to your system. It's not necessary, however, if you have a good firewall. It also depends on your usage. Set the energy saver preferences properly and there's no need to shutdown/reboot every night 8. I saved my passwords in a file on my hard drive. True False True some of the time, but not always Explanation: If someone does get into your system, you're allowing them access that they don't even have to work for. Keep passwords offline -- perhaps on a piece of paper -- or better yet, in your head. __________________ MvCrash 2005 Rav4L Stock for now 2003 Mustang Mach 1, 4.6 DOHC V8. Cold air intake,magnaflow cross over and cat back, Custom tune by Predator SOLD:2001 Tacoma XCab, Michelin LTX, AmeraGuard Spray in Liner, Access Roll-Up Tonneau Cover, Synthetic Oils

11-07-2004, 10:15 AM	#4 (permalink)
Dr. Zhivago Away Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Beaverton, OR Posts: 1,589	To show ALL devices in Device Manager in Windows 2000/XP/2003, do the following: 1. Right click My Computer, select Properties 2. Click the Advanced tab 3. Press the Environment variables button at the bottom 4. Select any item in the System variables section at the bottom 5. Press the New button and do the following: In the Variable name field, type: DEVMGR_SHOW_NONPRESENT_DEVICES In the Variable value field, type: 1 6. Click Ok a few times. 7. Go to Device Manager and click View\Show hidden devices You will notice a few new categories and you can also see all the hardware that was once installed in your system and that still may have entries hanging around in the registry. They will be "greyed out" and fainter in appearance. We call them "Ghosts". This is a useful switch when troubleshooting hardware errors. Hope you found this interesting. G

11-11-2004, 07:36 AM	#8 (permalink)
Churnd Registered User Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Hattiesburg, MS Posts: 4,093	If you don't know where to get a good antivirus program from and don't want to pay for one: AVG Free Edition Also, 2 good free firewall programs: ZoneAlarm Firewall Sygate Personal Firewall If you want to pony up the dough for a program, I recommend Symantec Corporate Antivirus and Firewall, NOT "Norton". The Symantec Corporate stuff has very little overhead, taking up a very small amount of computer resources, as opposed to the Norton badged stuff, which can cause a noticable lack of speed. You can find their stuff at www.symantec.com. The free stuff is not any better or worse than the stuff you pay for. You just get more customizability and more features with the paid for stuff. I recommend trying the free stuff out first and if you're happy, use it. I used Sygate and AVG for a long time before getting a copy of Symantec Corporate, and I had absolutely no problems. __________________ -Chris If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough. Click here to search! My Website

11-14-2004, 06:22 AM	#10 (permalink)
*Corey* Co-Founder/Administrator Staff Join Date: May 2002 Location: Auburn, Washington Posts: 26,071	Spyware scams Do not fall victim to those pop up ads saying you may have spyware on your computer. They scam you into scanning your PC for you, and often put on spyware themselves. This article was linked from Spybot's home page. http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/...62,pg,1,00.asp I run Spybot Search & Destroy because it is good and free, and I also run a paid version of Spysweeper which is very good. Also I have Ad-Aware another free one, but I prefer the first two mentioned ones over it. I get my new definition files every Thursday, and scan that night. Once a week scanning is good, or more often, and I never have spyware on any of my PCs. __________________ Corey 2007 FJ Cruiser Built for 4wheelin', expedition, camping, and overlanding use PNW FJ Cruisers ☺ Detailing 101 ☺ Join Topsites ☺ Muffler Comparisons ☺ Maggiolinas In The Wild FJ Cruiser Buildup ☺ New Roof Top Tent ☺ Video Of My Penthouse Part II ☺ Rehinge Your ARB/Engel Fridge Blog About Roof Top Tents ☺ FJC Magazines Online Review Of My Tent ☺ 2009 Specialized Rockhopper Pro

11-14-2004, 02:26 PM	#11 (permalink)
CynicX Contributing Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Maryland Posts: 2,371	If you do alot of web surfing esp. if you look alot on hacker sites or porno (hate to say it), I'd recommend scanning for trojans every other day, schedule it to scan while your asleep or at work for your convinence. Also a good anti-trojan software will work better then normal anti-virus software, when it comes to looking for trojan's picked up by simply surfing the web __________________ 06 Subaru WRX

11-19-2004, 06:32 PM	#12 (permalink)
Churnd Registered User Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Hattiesburg, MS Posts: 4,093	(Probably) Everything you ever wanted to know about using your PC... PCStats.com Articles __________________ -Chris If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough. Click here to search! My Website Last edited by Churnd; 11-19-2004 at 06:40 PM.

11-22-2004, 02:58 PM	#13 (permalink)
*Corey* Co-Founder/Administrator Staff Join Date: May 2002 Location: Auburn, Washington Posts: 26,071	Does your PC crash for no reason? I formatted a few months back, and shortly afterwards the PC would crash for no reason in a few of my games: Unreal Tournament 2004 (but not the older UT) Starwars Battlefront And yesterday the new Half Life 2. Very frustrating, and also the PC would reboot sometimes while surfing the 'Net. Not normal. I was suspecting my power supply, as it is only a 300 watt one, and a gaming rig should have between 400 and 550 watts, especially with the extra lights and fans I have in my case. Member Drew came over yesterday, and we DL'd a program called MemTest86. His new AMD super gaming rig he just built was crashing in games too, and not normal, as we both always run the latest updates for our cards, BIOS, and game patches. He found out about a program that will test your memory that is called MemTest86. http://www.memtest86.com/ You exeecute the program, and it makes a boot floppy for you that you test one RAM module at a time with it. He had found that one of his 512 sticks was faulty, and replaced both and his PC stopped crashing entirely. We ran the test on mine yesterday, and both of my sticks were good. Still I thought of one more reason, and Andy thought it might be the same thing too. When I built the PC, I put in a 56 speed A-Open CD ROM drive. Afterwards I put in a Sony DVD/CD burner, and set it up as the slave to the other one. Shortly within a month the 56x CD ROM was not reading discs all the time, and eventually quit altogether, so I have just been using the burner to read discs with. We pulled out the 56x one, and then made my burner the master drive on the secondary channel. Guess what, my youngest son played Half Life for about an hour last night and no crashing. The games before were crashing after about 5 to 10 minutes into them. So it was the 56x CD ROM that was causing all of this crashing, even though I was not using it. So hopefully if anyone else has a bad CD ROM unit in their PC and you are crashing once in awhile hopefully this tip will be of value to you. Still going to replace my power supply down the road though, but it is nice now that the PC no longer crashes. Who would have thought it could be a dead CD ROM drive that was causing this? The CD ROM unit though always showed up in MY Computer, although you could not get it to read a disc. __________________ Corey 2007 FJ Cruiser Built for 4wheelin', expedition, camping, and overlanding use PNW FJ Cruisers ☺ Detailing 101 ☺ Join Topsites ☺ Muffler Comparisons ☺ Maggiolinas In The Wild FJ Cruiser Buildup ☺ New Roof Top Tent ☺ Video Of My Penthouse Part II ☺ Rehinge Your ARB/Engel Fridge Blog About Roof Top Tents ☺ FJC Magazines Online Review Of My Tent ☺ 2009 Specialized Rockhopper Pro

11-22-2004, 06:34 PM	#14 (permalink)
Jay Registered User Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Beaverton, OR Posts: 569	Short and sweet. Download Mozilla. Install norton Antivirus. For those that use ATI Cards in laptops, download the Omega drivers. http://www.omegadrivers.net/ Since ATI doesnt release mobility drivers, your stuck using the aftermarkets. But I am completely happy with the current set. __________________ Jay 98 X-Cab Tacoma 3.4L Manual Trans. \| TRD Fender Flares \| Weld Wheels w/ 31 x 10.5's Jason Larsen Master Diagnostic Technician - Beaverton Toyota (Portland, Oregon) Wendsday - Saturday by appointment only. (503)626-7200 (ask for me by name)

11-23-2004, 07:21 AM	#15 (permalink)
Dr. Zhivago Away Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Beaverton, OR Posts: 1,589	What does a grease monkey know about computers? Pffft... G

11-23-2004, 06:25 PM	#16 (permalink)
data Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Arkansas Posts: 1,915	Below are a couple of links with some good info. Overall security-forums.com is a pretty good security site. How to create a secure password http://www.security-forums.com/forum...ic.php?t=18842 Beginners Guides: Firewalls and Internet Security http://www.security-forums.com/forum...pic.php?t=7791 Places that viruses and trojans hide on start up http://www.security-forums.com/forum...pic.php?t=3752 Wireless Security & Hacking http://www.security-forums.com/forum...pic.php?t=1139 Home Network Security http://www.security-forums.com/forum...opic.php?t=839 __________________ 98 Limited 4x4, Rockstomper skid, Rockware Front bumper, Warn HS9500i, 1" RB BL, Tundra coils front & OME HD rear, Nuke quick discos, diff drop'd, 305/70/16 Baja Claws, Electric Locker, couple of battle scars, but nothing major :)

12-11-2004, 09:48 AM	#17 (permalink)
*Corey* Co-Founder/Administrator Staff Join Date: May 2002 Location: Auburn, Washington Posts: 26,071	Forum This link was in another thread here. http://www.anandtech.com/ Good place for tech info via forums, and also great tech articles on gear with reviews such as this transparent case. __________________ Corey 2007 FJ Cruiser Built for 4wheelin', expedition, camping, and overlanding use PNW FJ Cruisers ☺ Detailing 101 ☺ Join Topsites ☺ Muffler Comparisons ☺ Maggiolinas In The Wild FJ Cruiser Buildup ☺ New Roof Top Tent ☺ Video Of My Penthouse Part II ☺ Rehinge Your ARB/Engel Fridge Blog About Roof Top Tents ☺ FJC Magazines Online Review Of My Tent ☺ 2009 Specialized Rockhopper Pro

12-13-2004, 08:10 PM	#18 (permalink)
RED 85 Contributing Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Parker, CO Posts: 958	Someone's gotta __________________ Brandi You heard of the boy named Sue, Well I'm a man named Brandi! '85 extra cab pick-up, Up on blocks waiting for time and money. '85 4-runner with 3" lift, 33's, 4.88's, rear ARB (still trying to get air to it), Downey intake with K&N filter, some type of header, Camo Int.

12-13-2004, 10:10 PM	#19 (permalink)
data Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Arkansas Posts: 1,915	__________________ 98 Limited 4x4, Rockstomper skid, Rockware Front bumper, Warn HS9500i, 1" RB BL, Tundra coils front & OME HD rear, Nuke quick discos, diff drop'd, 305/70/16 Baja Claws, Electric Locker, couple of battle scars, but nothing major :)

01-01-2005, 07:39 AM	#20 (permalink)
*Corey* Co-Founder/Administrator Staff Join Date: May 2002 Location: Auburn, Washington Posts: 26,071	How much wattage do you need? Here is a cool site to see how big of a power supply you should be running. http://www.jscustompcs.com/power_supply/ __________________ Corey 2007 FJ Cruiser Built for 4wheelin', expedition, camping, and overlanding use PNW FJ Cruisers ☺ Detailing 101 ☺ Join Topsites ☺ Muffler Comparisons ☺ Maggiolinas In The Wild FJ Cruiser Buildup ☺ New Roof Top Tent ☺ Video Of My Penthouse Part II ☺ Rehinge Your ARB/Engel Fridge Blog About Roof Top Tents ☺ FJC Magazines Online Review Of My Tent ☺ 2009 Specialized Rockhopper Pro

01-03-2005, 04:28 PM	#21 (permalink)
amusement Contributing Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Portland, Oregon Posts: 1,509	Peer Guardian http://methlabs.org/methlabs.htm

01-06-2005, 04:46 PM	#22 (permalink)
Churnd Registered User Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Hattiesburg, MS Posts: 4,093	Trying to decide what kind of network gear you want? Check this link out... http://www.wi-fiplanet.com/reviews/C...le.php/1585191 __________________ -Chris If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough. Click here to search! My Website

01-09-2005, 02:12 PM	#23 (permalink)
*Corey* Co-Founder/Administrator Staff Join Date: May 2002 Location: Auburn, Washington Posts: 26,071	Steam, the Halflife & Counterstrike client When you install Halflife 2 for it and Counterstrike Source, it uses an app called Steam that runs in the background with an icon by your clock. This is the client that auto updates your games and the app itself. Whenever I install a new game and hit the Internet to play some online action, the Windows SP2 firewall appears behind the game and I see it after I shut the game down. It asks me if I want to block the game or allow it, and I tell it to allow it. It doe snot open up any ports, it just lets the exe file of the game run. Every once in awhile the app would give me an error upon boot up or rebooting saying the app could not connect to the Internet, and I could choose a few buttons to OK it or ignore. This started to happen every time now upon booting since I installed the Linksys router the other day. I was getting tired of this and I already had the router configured to open up port 1200 via UDP. I checked the Windows firewall too, and Steam was in there, but only for the exe file. I clicked on add port from the firewalls menu and gave it a name of "Steam at Win startup" and entered port 1200 via UDP in there also, and this cured it. Opening the port Six reboots already, and the error message window has gone away. Hope this helps someone who may be thinking about buying this game. Ya gotta buy it, all the mags and reviews say it will take the Game Of The Year awards. __________________ Corey 2007 FJ Cruiser Built for 4wheelin', expedition, camping, and overlanding use PNW FJ Cruisers ☺ Detailing 101 ☺ Join Topsites ☺ Muffler Comparisons ☺ Maggiolinas In The Wild FJ Cruiser Buildup ☺ New Roof Top Tent ☺ Video Of My Penthouse Part II ☺ Rehinge Your ARB/Engel Fridge Blog About Roof Top Tents ☺ FJC Magazines Online Review Of My Tent ☺ 2009 Specialized Rockhopper Pro

01-29-2005, 12:07 PM	#24 (permalink)
*Corey* Co-Founder/Administrator Staff Join Date: May 2002 Location: Auburn, Washington Posts: 26,071	Oiling noisy fans On an old Creative Labs Ge Force video card I ran years ago, the fan started to go out on me, and became very noisy. I would take off the sticker on it and put a few drops of sewing machine oil in there and that would cure it for awhile. Just ran across this link from a hardware forum I use on how to oil a noisy fan. http://www.dansdata.com/fanmaint.htm __________________ Corey 2007 FJ Cruiser Built for 4wheelin', expedition, camping, and overlanding use PNW FJ Cruisers ☺ Detailing 101 ☺ Join Topsites ☺ Muffler Comparisons ☺ Maggiolinas In The Wild FJ Cruiser Buildup ☺ New Roof Top Tent ☺ Video Of My Penthouse Part II ☺ Rehinge Your ARB/Engel Fridge Blog About Roof Top Tents ☺ FJC Magazines Online Review Of My Tent ☺ 2009 Specialized Rockhopper Pro

01-29-2005, 04:58 PM	#25 (permalink)
*Corey* Co-Founder/Administrator Staff Join Date: May 2002 Location: Auburn, Washington Posts: 26,071	TV/sound out from PC to TV My ATI 9600 Pro card came with a 6' cable that has S video on one end for the vid card, and a RCA plug on the other end that goes into the TV sets aux. input so I can view anything on the PC on the TV. I also have a Monster Cable 40' extension cable for it with two male plugs and a small female adaptor to join the two cable together. Needless to say, I lost the 6' cable somewhere. I ran across a cool site the other day that sells all kinds of cables. I had called up Radio Shack earlier today, and he told me that type of 6' cable goes for $50. Typical Radio Shack rip off. Here it is for under $14. http://www.svideo.com/svideorca.html I was looking on their site and came across a better cable which I will get later. It is the same type of cable, but also with the left & right audio channel cabling so you can plug one end into your soundcards output, and the other two ends into the left & right input on the TV set. This way you can see and hear your PC on your big screen TV set or whatever size TV you have. http://www.svideo.com/prosvideo24.html There is a Flash video at the above URL. This would be pretty cool, especially if I had a wireless keyboard to go along with my wireless mouse. I could sit in my easy chair and play a game on the PC and view it on my TV in the living room. Hope this site is of value for anyone looking for good cabling for even better prices. __________________ Corey 2007 FJ Cruiser Built for 4wheelin', expedition, camping, and overlanding use PNW FJ Cruisers ☺ Detailing 101 ☺ Join Topsites ☺ Muffler Comparisons ☺ Maggiolinas In The Wild FJ Cruiser Buildup ☺ New Roof Top Tent ☺ Video Of My Penthouse Part II ☺ Rehinge Your ARB/Engel Fridge Blog About Roof Top Tents ☺ FJC Magazines Online Review Of My Tent ☺ 2009 Specialized Rockhopper Pro

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