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LangaList 2006-02-23 Please visit our sponsors and help keep the LangaList S.E. free!
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )------------- 1) New To "Always-On" Connection
Well, there are a couple things to consider. First, security tools that run as "services" and that are installed system-wide (for all users on a PC, not just tied to one account) load with the OS and so do provide at least basic protection even when no one's logged in. Many of the major antivirus tools operate this way, for example. When you log in, the stuff you see load then is the front end or interface that lets you access and modify these services; not the services themselves, which are already running. So your PC probably does have some level of protection even with all users logged off. Also, when a PC has all users logged off and is just sitting there twiddling its electrons, not a lot can happen anyway. For example, for viruses, worms, and such to be a challenge to your protections, they'd have to get on your PC in the first place. With nothing running on your PC to let the malicious file in, it's not a likely occurrence. There's no mail client running to pull in files, no FTP utility running to accept or send files, etc. So, there's no easy way that bad stuff can end up on your system. A malicious hacker could try to log onto your system from afar. By taking over your system he'd then have access to your files--- to everything on the system--- and could do you harm. But if you use good security on your system, such as limiting the use of "Administrator" accounts, and ensuring that all passwords are well-made and changed regularly, and that you don't leave "share my PC/share my files" or "remote desktop connections" and the like needlessly enabled (that is, when you don't actively need them) then the risks of a successful hostile login from afar are quite low. PCs used as servers (eg web servers) have additional special considerations because they are, by definition, designed to allow external access: Servers thus have a higher risk of being hacked. But it sounds like you're talking about a normal desktop PC, so those issues don't pertain. But in the same vein, even lightweight "server-like" activities such as file and printer sharing need to be carefully managed. As yours is a single PC being shared among several users, you really don't need network-oriented file and print sharing services turned on; you can marginally increase your local security by making sure those services are turned off. (I say "marginally" because if these services are set up properly on a LAN that correctly uses non-routable IP addressing, local print and file shares aren't visible to or accessible from the internet anyway.) In short, I don't think yours is a high-risk situation. But if you want more security, than yes, by blocking the connection via software, or simply by disconnecting the physical DSL plug, you can ensure that nothing bad gets in. (Some DSL and cable "modems" have a convenient connection switch or toggle on them for exactly this purpose.) And an external hardware firewall also can help--- not in place of your existing defenses, but in addition to them. Lots more info: The article "5 Essential Steps To PC Security" ( http://www.informationweek.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=177100010 ) rounded up a ton of info and links for making a PC about as safe as it can be. (And BTW, the good folks at CMP also have gone back and dug out many of my older articles and columns--- some dating back to 1998--- and listed them all in one convenient place: http://www.informationweek.com/authors/showAuthor.jhtml?authorID=1111 If you're looking for easy access to a *huge* amount of material going all the way to WinMag days (!) you'll probably find it there.) This general search also has some good info in the topmost listed sites: http://www.google.com/search?q=xp+security Click to email this item to a
friend --- ( Your Clicks On Ad Links Help Keep The LangaList S.E. Free! ) --- "I just thought I would drop a line and let you
know that this is Thanks, Joseph! --------------( the above is an advertisement )-------------- 2) Free "Windows Defender"Microsoft Antispyware is slowly evolving. At long last, beta 1 is finally ending for real, and some users already are being phased over to beta 2 via the autoupdate process. But you don't have to wait; you can grab the newer version right now. Microsoft Antispyware has been renamed "Windows Defender"
and the interface has changed. It's still pretty much the same software at its
core, but cleaned up, streamlined, and improved. You can read about the changes
here: Microsoft also has laid out its larger plans for Windows Defender and several related products, such as "Live Safety Center," One Care Live," and so on, at: http://tinyurl.com/ahfh4 . Interestingly, two of the five listed services appear to be heading towards fee-based operation. But Windows Defender, Windows Live Safety Center and the Malicious Software Removal Tool will remain free; a good thing. If you're still running beta 1, I suggest you uninstall it and then install beta 2. It's not the only security tool you'll need, but it's pretty good at what it does; and the price sure is right! <g> Click to email this item to a
friend 3) IE7 Beta Report (And An XP Tip)
Thanks, Rick, both for the beta report and for the reminder about Taskkill. That and its sibling, Tskill, are two powerful little tools built into XP that every user ought to know about--- just in case! We covered them here: http://langa.com/newsletters/2004/2004-03-15.htm#2 Click to email this item to a
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )------------- 4) UPS Power Consumption
"Standby" or "parasitic" losses can really add up: Every "instant on" device or device that can be turned by something other than a plain old power switch (turned on by, say, a mouse, a keyboard, an infrared controller... ) is always consuming at least a bit of power. And sometimes, even when nominally fully "off," devices *still* draw a bit of electricity to keep internal memory and settings alive. I remember reading somewhere that as much as 5-10% of a mythical average home's power consumption can be from these mostly unnoticed power uses. But an uninterruptible power supply is a little different: It contains a battery that's "trickle charged" when not in use; a necessary technique to keep the battery in good condition. As most UPS batteries are made with lead, the environmental benefits of keeping them healthy and out of the waste stream probably outweigh the environmental costs of the trickle charge. (Lead is nasty stuff.) So, I wouldn't begrudge your UPS a few watts of standby power. <g> But yes, it makes sense to "right size" your UPS. I've also found it useful sometimes to use two smaller UPSes--- say, one for the monitor and one for the PC--- rather than one big, honking UPS. The smaller ones can be lighter and cheaper than one large one, and can let you custom-tailor the UPS size to the device being protected. Click to email this item to a
friend 5) What Kind Of Video Card?
I'm not a big gamer, either--- at least not anymore. <g> But gaming is a good bellwether for any high-end application: Almost any "normal" use for a PC puts less strain on the system as a whole than does full-bore it's-3AM-and-I-haven't-slept-in-two-days-pass-me-another-can-of-Jolt gaming. <g> However, in your case, Tom, you're talking about one of the few "normal" tasks that might strain a system just as much as gaming: Real-time video editing is a *very* demanding app. That's all the more reason to use gaming-oriented hardware as a touchstone for your needs. Serious gamers typically push their systems *hard*, and demand high CPU speeds, fast-acting RAM, blazing video speeds, and high-resolution graphics. With all the gear in the box running flat out, gaming-specific systems also usually have extra ventilation and heat sinks to keep the system from cooking itself to death. Which is to say: any gear that will pass muster with serious gamers will almost surely meet or exceed what's required for non-gaming applications. A final wrinkle: Windows "Vista" (due out later this year) will offload much of its visuals to the graphics card, just as visually intense games do. As we said last Fall:
Put that all together, Tom, and I'd suggest you buy a high-end video card with as much video RAM as your budget will allow; and get a card that touts its suitability for high-end visually intense games. Further, make sure the card has XP-specific drivers (although almost all the major brands do). That way, you'll have a video system that should be able to handle whatever you throw at it today--- and also when Vista is in play. Click to email this item to a
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friend 7) "Locking" A Drive?
Backup (and disk imaging) software that runs while the host operating system is awake and running has to use several tricks to try to get everything included in the backup/image. For example, some system files are always open, and may be written to at any point when the OS is running. During a backup, you don't want to start to copy a file and then have the original file change while you're partway through the copy operation; that's a recipe for disaster--- you'll end up with, at best, a munged copy that's part old version, part new version. To avoid this kind of problem, some simple tools just skip any files that are open or in use; they don't even attempt to get everything on the drive. Others try to prevent changes to the drive by locking files. Others use techniques such as "shadow copying" to create a version of the file that can be backed up. But these are all attempts to work around the fact that, as long as the OS is running, some files will be in use and at least hard to copy. If you run into problems "locking" the drive, you can explore what's running to see if some software in the system is holding files open or otherwise interfering with the backup. You can close all apps and utilities, of course, and perhaps use Task Manager to see what's running that you may be unaware of. But the way to avoid all those kinds of problems is not to have the main OS running when you do your backups or drive images. If the OS is shut down, then no files will be open or in-use; no side-stepping is needed, and the backup or imaging operation can be straightforward, simple, and guaranteed thorough--- it will be able to get at everything it should, no exceptions. Backup and imaging tools that boot from their own, self-contained floppy or CD can work this way. Bootit ( http://www.google.com/search?as_q=bootit&as_sitesearch=langa.com ) works this way, and never has trouble with locking files or shadow copies. You also can use some Linux Live CDs (self-contained CD-based versions of Linux) to similar effect, using the tools on those CDs to backup or image your temporarily inactive Windows setup. Click to email this item to a
friend 8) More Reader Sites!Do you have a home page or website? (It doesn't matter
what size.) Please click over to
http://langa.com/code.htm , and maybe you can join the hundreds and hundreds
of LangaList readers who have "Loaded the Code!" (If you've already "Loaded The
Code" and are wondering if your site will appear here or on the Langa.Com web
site, please see http://langa.com/link.txt
) Manually Browse All Posted-to-Date Sites Starting
At "Turning It Around's" Home Page The Language Institute of Samarqand, Uzbekistan Crystal Caves Bob and Clara Find Me - Search for lost relatives and friends Video tech Woody's A Materia do Tempo Click to email this item to a
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )------------- 9) New Motherboard Needed?
The capacitor failure problem plagued large batches of motherboards made a while back: It's not so much an issue with newer motherboards. Still, it is possible for an in-use system to be developing this problem, especially if it's a few years old. (See the link above; the datestamp is from 2003.) Motherboard repairs often aren't practical because an entirely new motherboard can cost as little as $30 or so. Just having a repair person *look* at a failed motherboard may cost you more than that in shop time, so it's often simpler, easier, and cheaper to replace the failed motherboard with a new one. It looks scary if you've never done it, but it's actually surprisingly simple, with no special skills needed: You unplug all the cables, remove the cards, RAM, CPU, fans, and such on the original motherboard, remove the screws holding the motherboard in place, put in the new motherboard exactly the same way as the original, replace the parts and cables (they're keyed, and usually cannot be put together wrong), and that's that. If you work slowly in a clean, well-lighted workspace, and have just a little screwdriver savvy, you'll be fine. If you have a digital camera, so much the better; Take snaps of everything in the old system before you alter it, so you'll have an exact record to refer to when you're reassembling things. Some sources for motherboards include LangaList sponsor
TigerDirect: http://tinyurl.com/hsvos .
Others: Of course, it's possible to spend several hundred dollars on a motherboard, if you want to replace the old board with a top-of-the-line screamer with a new CPU that's faster than what you now have. But even at that, you might well spend less than what a repair shop would charge for labor in trying to rehab a failed or failing older motherboard. I never, ever recommend dumping older hardware "just because;" it's wasteful, costly, and environmentally harmful. But on the other hand, repairs sometimes just don't make sense. I think a major motherboard problem is one of those instances: I suggest you look at a replacement rather than a repair. Click to email this item to a
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )------------- 14) Just For Grins
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