Plastic Nev

Hi Bob, I don't know this software, but it looks just like the rest, and personally don't use any of them Mailwasher included. There is quite a decline in the use of these programs now and mainly because both web based mail such as MSN Hotmail and others, are getting good at filtering out the rubbish, as also are the ISP based. Couple that with Windows Live mail which I am now using, there is little point in another mail filter of any description. Just my two penceworth Bob, others will have their views of course. Nev.

Well, on the face of it it is about time the ISP's did something, however they are going to try and work that to their advantage and find a way to get you to pay extra. Common business practice anyway. Have a look at our recommendations for security software here- http://extremetechsupport.com/forum/security-questions-av-firewalls-etc/3597-free-pc-help-recommended-security-products.html Just my personal opinion, but I stick with free software and individual rather than security suits, so bearing that in mind, first off you need a good firewall. Comodo, offer an independent firewall only but is hard to find on their site now as they want you to install their full security suit. However I regard it as the best. Agnitum do a good one also, called "Outpost" Windows own "Windows defender" is getting better though I haven't tried it. Do not install more than one firewall, and if Windows defender is on the system, disable it if installing another. Antivirus is the next and also should only have one on your system, again if installing another, Windows Defender should be disabled. I favour Avast, though Avira is also very good. then we come to general malware protection, these are security software programs that are only active while actually scanning your system so you can have as many as you feel the need for, so long as you only scan with them one at a time, never two scanning at once. My preference is for Malwarebytes, but I have found Superantispyware catches a few odd tracking cookies and other spyware that malwarebytes misses, so I have both. Also a good real time blocker can be a good idea, and the one I use is Spywareblaster, this works from a database of known malware and blocks it from getting in. All of the above should be updated regularly to keep them up to speed and on top of all the newer threats as they come out. Once a week is the average recommendation, though Avast does update its database at least daily and lets you know it has done so. A good idea is also to protect your browser and yourself by installing McAfee site advisor, and or WOT, the Web Of Trust. All the above are only my recommendations and feelings regarding security, no doubt others will have different views. Nev.

Hi Jayden, the lack of an internet connection is a possibility, but also the new battery may not have been as new as it should be, it won't be the first time I have seen a so called new battery that in reality had been sat on a shelf in the shop for a few years, and had little life left in it. If possible, buy another from somewhere else and try again. Also, if a tester is available, a new battery should show a voltage of about 3.1 volts, anything less than 2.7 volts and the battery is on its way out. if still a problem, it may be some odd fault in the main motherboard or BIOS, but I would expect other problems if that was the case. Nev.

Hi and welcome to Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help, If this is only on some song or music files but others play perfectly correctly, and it is always the same files, it is most likely that individual files may have become corrupted. There is no way to rescue a corrupted file, it is simpler to delete it and re load from the source if possible. I have had similar problems when trying to move files in a complete batch, rather than individually, and I was forced to delete the bad ones and reload them. Nev.

Hi Mrs D, virus' or indeed all malware can get on to a computer from many sources, which does of course include websites, but at the moment the one single source that seems to be the worst, is what is known as peer to peer websites and the programs that need to be installed to use those sites. It is not so much the site itself or the program, it is the so called free data downloaded from these places. Those wishing to get at your cash by whichever scam they pull, through forcing an install of malware onto your computer love peer to peer. All they do is put up a file, it could be a supposedly free to all video, music, or even a game or program. In reality it is any one of the malwares that are around. One of the most popular peer to peer sites is called "Limewire" but there are many others. If your son has been using that or similar, it is odds on that is where the virus or malware came from. There are of course many other sources, and the next most popular way to be stung is by E Mail and links to be clicked or attachments to be opened, being the way the malware gets in. Have a look at our recommended security software for ideas of what to install to help protect the computer, but above all else, sensible browsing is the best way to avoid problems. to learn more do have a look here- How did I get infected? Once your son has seen and I hope learned from this, the safest bet is to again reinstall the operating system to start from a clean slate again. Nev.

I found this elsewhere in my many trawls of the web. Thanks to the guy responsible for flagging it up. Apple have released a new version of their app, Quick Time Player, this fixes a critical security flaw, more here- Critical Apple QuickTime flaw dings Windows OS | ZDNet To get the new version it is a simple matter of using the applications updater function. Nev.

I will add, for legitimate software it is always best to buy the license direct from the originator, in this case Microsoft. The cheaper versions sold by third parties have little guarantee they are legitimate and the fakers know this. Nev.

Hi Kev, again relevant but only slightly ha ha, I recently bought a new machine with Windows7 home premium pre installed, but wanted the benefits of Pro, I bought in store at the same time the upgrade key, this allows you to download and install the upgrade to Pro from the Microsoft website. In other words, you pays your money, and get a fancy box with nothing more than a piece of paper in it. However it is the numbers and letters code printed on said paper that matters. Hope that helps. Nev.

Hello and welcome. Nev.

Hi Bob, PDF is a portable document file, commonly associated with Adobe and originally created by them I think. (I could be wrong?) However they do provide a free reader downloadable from here- Adobe - Adobe Reader download - All versions Which will read all PDF documents. There is also a free reader available called Foxit reader available free from here- Foxit Software - Foxit Reader 4.1 for Windows Foxit is a much lighter weight program taking up less room and resources. I also see via Google quite a few other PDF readers available now, so you takes your pick. Nev.

Hi to add to RandyL, if you wish to join that team, we will need to know your qualifications in that area. If you notice, most have that in their signature line any way. providing you can show us you are up to that level, no doubt we can welcome you. Nev.

Hi, there are no pictures showing so I guess you may not have used the attachment facilities or not done it correctly. If you click on the add new post button rather than using the quick reply box, then scroll down you will see the Attach files box, click on the "Manage attachments", then browse for the picture. Then click the upload button. However, back to the problem in hand, like Dalo I suspect something has been damaged on the motherboard when you fitted the new processor. Considering the pressure needed to push them home fully, if the board was not supported directly underneath, a circuit track, one or more, could have cracked. I am afraid that it is near impossible to see a crack with ordinary eyesight and even more difficult to repair if there is one that can be seen. Just my thoughts. Nev.

These devices are actually a wired system so unlikely to be radiating a strong enough signal to be picked up by a wireless device in a car parked outside. The idea of the next house being able to either join or at least read the data from the power system will only work in a rural area where say four or five houses are fed from one single phase line. Most city dwellings are shared across the three phases of power, so next door will likely be on one of the other two. This means the most likely receiver will be three houses away. I have in the past come across mains wired baby alarms transferring signal this way. In this case the baby in one house crying was alerting not only its own parents via the alarm, but the couple three houses away also had the same system, so they were going up to their baby to find it fast asleep, but could still hear the other one crying from their downstairs speakers. That was a, dare I say, nightmare to sort out. The usual ferrite HF filters didn't work when only fitted in the one house, it meant filters in both and also in line passive filtering to stop it. What is more I was getting the blame for it because I was, and still am, the licensed radio amateur. They thought it was my radio transmissions doing it. I don't think the signal would be strong enough for a direct connection so IP addresses might not come into it, however if the data is not encrypted the data could be picked up using a high sensitivity amplifier and then read by any interested party. OK it may take someone technically skilled to be able to do it and also having the right equipment. But do you know your neighbour three houses away, well enough to know he or she isn't that type? Hackers with the skills have to live somewhere. Nev.

Just to follow on from DSTM, these units transmit your data via the mains power network in your home, but can also send it off out down the street to the next house on the same power phase, probably even further. If you don't use the encryption, any one who knows what to do can see every part of your in house network, and if that type, steal all your personal data for their own use or profit. They do seem a good idea in principle but look at your security, or lack of it without the encryption. Edit to add, I hadn't seen your post Synapse, but these days and with a suitable signal amplifier, I reckon the data could be read some distance away if on the same phase. Nev.

Here is my rather cramped and cluttered messtop sorry desktop. The keyboard is a full MIDI controller and connects via the so called games port on the sound card, a soundblaster live card, which at the moment is still in the XP rig. The qwerty keyboard is visible just below that, and though the brightness of the screen hides it, the program open is Notations 2. I am running both an XP rig and a Windows 7, with the monitor, qwerty board and mouse switched between the two with a KVM switch. The sound is wired into the hi fi unit behind to give me some real sound when I need it.

No I meant the music keyboard not the qwerty one. Do you play that much?

Hi, I doubt it is a driver issue as you say you have already reinstalled them, and the fact it works OK by direct USB cable connection. It is more likely a connectivity issue between the wireless server and the printer, this can sometimes be resolved just by moving the printer either to one side or even further away. Sometimes wireless signals can be reflected off certain surfaces, the reflection arriving milliseconds later than the direct signal, thereby confusing the system. Moving things can prevent those reflections from causing a problem. Nev.

As Synapse suggests, replacing the socket is the best option and not too difficult to do, have a look here for instructions if needed- Laptop Repair Help How to fortify damaged power jack connection in a laptop A look around the rest of the site may help in disassembly to get at the motherboard. Nev.

Another strange thing about advancing technology is that I heard about the concept of USB3 early last year, but nothing further since, however it has still been going on in the background with the release of new equipment earlier this year. have a look here for a series of interesting FAQ's about it all- SuperSpeed USB 3.0 FAQ All in all though, it is the usual thing of making something redundant as quickly as possible in order to make you buy something to replace the old. Nev.

These type of clickjackings are merely to expose more of your personal details than you wish to be seen, and therefore putting yourself at greater risk of being scammed in some other way via personal detail hijacks. I notice there is another on there today doing exactly the same by the headline on the lines of - "Most women can't look at this for more than ten seconds, but men can". Once again you are invited to click this or that to eventually get to a rather dull picture of two women but one cup of chocolate. Or so I am told by those who have. Safest thing is ignore these things as in most cases they appear on the page, but without any picture or link to whoever posted it.

Nice one Frank, and brought a grin here too. Seedy, have you got that keyboard linked in via MIDI ports and do you use it much? If so what software do you use? Nev.

You beat me too it on the add ons or plugins. Open firefox then click on tools, then add ons, select extensions, click on each and disable, do this also with plugins. Then one by one re- enable them till you get to the one causing the problem. Either totally remove it, or if needed remove then re-install and hopefully that should cure it. A bit long winded if you have a lot of add ons, but is the only sure way to find the problem one. Nev.

The problem may be that the compression may not be fully undone, compression always means throwing out odd bits of data the system deems unnecessary. Sometimes those odd bits are needed. it is similar to taking a full photograph direct from a camera, and uploading it to your computer, converting it to a JPG file, then making the picture smaller. Fine, to your eyes you cannot see anything wrong, but if then bringing the picture back up to it's original full size, it is now pixelated. That is because in converting to JPG, then making the picture smaller, (the same as compressing it) many single pixels are lost. you cannot get them back. you have to go back to the original picture to get it back to fully recognisable. The same now with your operating system. To return to full functionality you may have to use at least a system recovery disk, or if installed, the recovery partition. In most cases a system repair is required. A full recovery will send the computer back to how it was when bought and wipe all your data. you don't want that unless it has been thoroughly backed up elsewhere. Nev.

Hi as DSTM says, you will need to install some third party DVD burning software, Windows XP does not have its own, only CD burning software. If the file size is lower than 700MB, you can burn it as a video CD on a CD, to save having to install extra software, just select the VCD option in Windows movie maker. Most DVD players can read VCD disks, and certainly other computers with a CD drive can, though quality may suffer a little. Nev.

Hi, and yes you would need the fax modem as far as I know, the USB BT ADSL modem, which I think is what you mean, is for high speed broadband, which is a different type of data transmission. For a bit of info about FAX and computers, have a look here- Fax modem - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia And here- Internet fax - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia I have also found you can get a USB to FAX modem, have a look here- USB External Fax Modem - Computer Modems - Compare Prices, Reviews and Buy at NexTag - Price - Review Hope that is of help. Nev.