#102316
March 7th, 2004 at 05:27 AM
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Member
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OP
Member
Joined: Sep 2003
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Your computer's/internet security
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#102317
March 7th, 2004 at 05:34 AM
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Member
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OP
Member
Joined: Sep 2003
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Oops - fingers not working today. Lately I've been bombarded by viruses, spam - you name it. I have come across a couple of interesting web sites that I would like to pass on to you in hopes that you can all protect your privacy while using the inernet. www.grc.com - a very useful site that details freeware programs useful for us all and explains alot of things that we all find confusing! (at least me) www.lavasoft.com - again very useful - provides info as well as downloads. www.zonealarm.com - this site provides a free firewall available for the common user - if you don't have one, I would suggest you take a look at it! Anyway - as I have been bombarded by computer problems as of late - I am passing this info along in hopes that it can help anyone out there from spyware, viruses, malware, and the like! Good luck -
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#102318
March 25th, 2004 at 02:20 AM
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Official Problem Child
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Official Problem Child
Joined: Mar 2004
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I have a great program "Ad-Aware". It's free, and very good. Also posts updates to download when "they" find new ways of installing spyware in your computer. Spyblaster is another good one. I will post the links here for free download.
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#102319
March 25th, 2004 at 03:04 PM
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Official Problem Child
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Official Problem Child
Joined: Mar 2004
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Was gonna put a link to a great one I have, then realized it wasn't free after all!!! Oops.
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#102320
April 6th, 2004 at 07:31 AM
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Member
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Member
Joined: Jan 2003
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Jake, Those are good programs. How long zone Alarm will remain good has yet to be seen. The company has been sold. You mentioned Lavasoft, the makers of Ad-Aware. Have you been to their forum? There's no better computer support site, regardless of the problem. In addition to the ones you mentioned, there is more. Good anti-virus programs are available for free. They are equal to or better than Norton and McAffee. These include: AntiVir , a german company with an excellent product. AVG , another with many happy users. Other good free firewalls include: Kerio 2.1.5. is excellent. They have a newer version, but it doesn't have the basic strength of this version. Download it here . This is a rule based firewall, not application based. It's not as easy to set up as ones with "automatic rule creation" but is much more secure. Sygate. May happy users. Info and download here . GRC is a great site for testing your firewall with their Shields Up port scanner. Hackers hate that guy. Another excellent site with info on the latest adware/spyware threats is Webhelper . I don't think this guy ever sleeps. At the present, the internet is one place where you can still get something for nothing or very little. Just be very careful what you choose. Rick
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#102321
April 6th, 2004 at 02:14 PM
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Official Problem Child
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Official Problem Child
Joined: Mar 2004
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Rick,
I love your web pages at freewebs. You have no idea how much I need that info! I have ME, and it is getting more and more unstable. I get the BSOD at least two times a day. I may set a record today...BSOD was there first thing when I turned my computer on this morning! Very aggravating. (But, it IS a purdy color!)
Thanks!
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#102322
April 6th, 2004 at 06:04 PM
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Compost Queen!
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Compost Queen!
Joined: Apr 2003
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Cindy, What's BSOD??  Weezie
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#102323
April 6th, 2004 at 09:34 PM
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Member
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Member
Joined: Jun 2003
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Originally posted by weezie13: Cindy,
What's BSOD??
Weezie Cindy, I'm with Weezie....I'm basically puter illiterate! <img border="0" alt="[perplexed]" title="" src="graemlins/confused.gif" /> Raven
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#102324
April 7th, 2004 at 01:08 AM
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Official Problem Child
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Official Problem Child
Joined: Mar 2004
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 The dreaded... the horrible...  BLUE SCREEN OF DEATH!!!!! Am I the only one blessed with this?
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#102325
April 7th, 2004 at 05:18 AM
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Compost Queen!
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Compost Queen!
Joined: Apr 2003
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Cindy,
How much memory do you have???
or I should say the computer have???
Weezie
Also, what do you do for maintainence???
Do you do dis~defrag's, do you have ad~ware program's that get the bugs out from the sites that they put tracker thingie's in.......
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#102326
April 7th, 2004 at 07:50 PM
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Official Problem Child
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Official Problem Child
Joined: Mar 2004
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I have no memory, and the computer has not much more than me!  When I bought it 3 years ago it came with a 15GB hard drive (what a joke! ), and a measley 64mb of ram . Andy put more memory in it about a year ago, but I've about used it all up, not to mention just plain ole worn the computer out! So, for my birthday a few weeks ago he comes home with a killer new computer... 160gb hard drive and 512mb ram, not to mention all the other cool stuff (combo DVD-R/CD-RW burner, all the USB and firewire ports you could ever use, etc.). It has XP, which I am not crazy about, but they say you get used to it. But, I just haven't had time to get it all hooked up! It's still sitting in the floor, still in the box! It's taking me forever to get all my programs, etc. off this one to transfer to the new one, not to mention almost 1,000 mp3's on this one I have been burning to disk (approx. 20 at a time) for my library! By the time I get it hooked up it will probably be obsolete, too! I am really attached to this old one, so there might be a little bit of psychosis involved in replacing it. We have a "relationship", and even though I cuss at it when I get the "BSOD", a always apologize immediately. As for the Ad-aware, etc. I do all that, and defrag religiously. I don't see how anyone keeps a computer running without Ad-Aware.
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#102327
April 8th, 2004 at 05:51 PM
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Compost Queen!
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Compost Queen!
Joined: Apr 2003
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I have no memory, and the computer has not much more than me! Boy can I relate to the first one, Brain~Drain I call it!! Anyhow, when you get all that stuff put on you shouldn't get any more BSOD!! My husband and his buddy call it the "The Dreaded Blue Screen of Death" They don't get that too often and it bugged them when they did get it!!! Weezie
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#102328
April 10th, 2004 at 03:39 AM
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Member
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OP
Member
Joined: Sep 2003
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Rick: I have used those free anti-virus products you mentioned and found them to be quite good. I also have used something called "SpyBlaster" which is also good thus far. I have found through my travels that "www.protonic.com" is a forum whereby one can ask people who are much better than I how to solve any computer problems they may encounter! So far they have helped me from taking my completely crashed computer back from nothing into a functioning machine again, to the simplest of virus questions! As you say - there is alot of help out there - but we need to be careful of what we choose.
Good luck to all!
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#102329
April 10th, 2004 at 03:52 PM
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Member
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Member
Joined: Apr 2004
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This is a great thread. I have had to reformat my pc twice in the last year due to my PAID anti-virus software not catching stuff that it should have.
I then installed the following freeware/adware programs & I haven't had a problem since.
ViRobot Expert V4.0
Spyware Blaster Seek & Destroy
AVG Anti-Virus V6.0
TrojanHunter
I am now a firm believer that just because you shell out bucks for something, doesn't neccessarily make it better:)
Chrissy
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#102330
April 13th, 2004 at 02:59 AM
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Member
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OP
Member
Joined: Sep 2003
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Chrissy - I subscribe to a website newsletter called www.tudogs.com - they have many, (many) free software things for use. I frequently use the two listed anti-virus on-line checkers to catch things that my "paid" for anti-virus software misses. (Amazing - isn't it??) I have also used a few of the items on your list, and will certainly check out the others - thanks a bunch! Ellen
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#102331
April 13th, 2004 at 03:02 AM
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Member
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OP
Member
Joined: Sep 2003
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Chrissy - PS - this ViRobot and TrojanHunter - which websites did they come from - do you recall??
And also - free or paid subscription??
Thx - Ellen
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#102334
May 3rd, 2004 at 10:18 AM
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Member
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Member
Joined: Apr 2004
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I found another free trial for an anti-virus program that found 2 viruses on my system that none of my other programs had found. Kaspersky Anti-Virus
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#102335
May 4th, 2004 at 01:42 AM
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Greenhouse Pixie
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Greenhouse Pixie
Joined: May 2004
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I like Spybot Search and Destroy (you can get it from www.download.com) Annnnnnnnnd Antivir. My friends here at college got me zone alarm ^.^
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