C C C C N E W S L E T T E R
CENTRAL COAST COMPUTER CLUB
Santa Maria, California
VOLUME XXII: NUMBER 9 SEPTEMBER, 2007
Meetings are held on the third Tuesday of every month at the Knollwood
Village Clubhouse 4012 S. Bradley Dr., Santa Maria.
General meeting at 7:00PM. System Special Interest Group session is at
5:45PM. Guests are welcome.
Check out our web site: http://member.apcug.org/fourseas for the latest
program schedule information.
Membership is $15 for twelve months for individuals, $20 for families.
For this you receive: Monthly newsletters, EXTRA4C E-mail Messages,
Help-line support, Monthly presentations, Valuable door prizes, Question
and answer sessions.
NEXT MEETING: September 18, 2007 KNOLLWOOD VILLAGE 4012 S. BRADLEY
PRESENTATION: The September meeting will be: Robert Korbe on The Care and
Use of Printers
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****** SEPTEMBER COOKIE PROVIDER IS HOWARD WILLIAMS *******
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| CONTENTS |
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(1) OFFICERS, HELPLINES, S.I.G.S
(2) EDITOR'S COMMENTS Dick Trissel
(3) BEGINNERS S.I.G. Spence Stimler
(4) WEB WANDERINGS
(5) SYSTEMS S.I.G. Dick Trissel
(6) GETTING RID OF MALWARE Kim Komando
(7) WINDOWS XP RESTORE CHECKPOINTS Dick Trissel
(8) FILE TYPE ASSOCIATION Dick Trissel
(9) CD/DVD DAMAGE Dick Trissel
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OFFICERS HELPLINES
President Juno
Vic McLaughlin 937-8326 Dick Trissel 937-7572
vnmclaughlin2448@msn.com rtrissel@juno.com
Secretary Hardware, Windows XP, Vista
John McCurdy 925-1825 Ray Isenson 937-6938
jmccurdy.1@verizon.net risenson@juno.com
Treasurer Custom Computer Design and Assembly
Gerry Miller 934-1396 Digital Imagery and Video
2741 Banyan Way Command Line Operations and Batch Files
Santa Maria CA 93455 Jim Tonge 937-0187
gandamiller@verizon.net jtonge1@msn.com
Publicity Help With Any Problem
Bill Corning 934-0775 Ray Isenson 937-6938
foster95@impulse.net risenson@juno.com
Newsletter Editor Visual Basic and Genealogy
Dick Trissel 937-7572 Gerald Miller 934-1396
rtrissel@juno.com gandamiller@verizon.net
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP (S.I.G.) Windows 95/98/ME/XP & VoiceControl
Beginners (6:00pm) Amy Malicki 925-5780
Spence Stimler msamym5@verizon.net
SPENCE932@msn.com
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP (S.I.G.) AOL
Systems (5:45pm) Frank Maciel 922-2318
Dick Trissel frm8198@aol.com
rtrissel@juno.com
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CCCC Page 2 September 2007
EDITOR'S COMMENTS by Dick Trissel
You may have noticed on page 1, OFFICERS that there is a new CCCC President.
Ted Tucker has resigned and Vic McLaughlin has moved up from Vice-president
to President.
Which brings up the reminder that CCCC officer elections are in November, so
nominations are in October. Therefore a nomination committee needs to be
organized in September--that's now. Be thinking about volunteering for
being on the committee and possible candidates for office.
Over the past few years, the articles in the CCCC newsletter, with the
exception of product reviews, are mostly from e-mail newsletters or written
by me. There must be members with experiences or ideas that would make
interesting articles. Don't be afraid of writing because you may make
grammatical errors. I will edit all articles. My wife (a Summa Cum Laude
English major graduate) is my advisor on syntax and punctuation, when I
bother to ask her. Just e-mail your article to:
rtrissel@juno.com
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CCCC Page 3 September 2007
BEGINNERS S.I.G. by Spence Stimler and Gerry Miller
"The computer club is way over my head. I understand very little of what is
being said."
If these are your sentiments, you are probably not alone. We are going to
try something different by having a Special Interest Group designed and led
by us non-nerds. It will begin at 6:00 pm on meeting night and take place
in the pool room using the club's laptop.
Topics will be determined by the group. To get it off the ground we have
chosen to discuss a topic in which many of us want to become more
proficient; Photos, Email receiving and sending of same, file storage and
management of photos and etc. Please come and let us know what we can do to
make the club more appealing to you. The sessions will be led initially by
Spence Stimler and Gerry Miller. We welcome your suggestions. Please feel
free to contact either Gerry or Spence.
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CCCC Page 4 September 2007
WEB WANDERINGS
COMPARE DRUG COSTS
Are you struggling with the costs of prescription drugs? If so, you’re not
alone.
Fortunately, the Internet can help you save some money.
Just visit DestinationRx. Type in the name of a drug. Verify the name and
select the quantity you need.
You’ll get a list of reputable pharmacies that sell the drug. You’ll see the
price for refills, along with the cost of shipping.
But DestinationRx can offer even more help. It lists lower-cost alternatives
to brand-name drugs.
You may need to register to access some features.
www.drx.com
GET SOME PERSPECTIVE
“Big” and “small” are such subjective terms. For example, you might think
that the Earth is large.
In reality, it isn’t the largest planet in the galaxy. And there are
countless planets and stars outside of our galaxy.
Well, Nikon’s Universcale will help you put things in context. You can see
how the Earth measures up against other planets. Or you can see how a carbon
nanotube compares to a blood cell.
You can start at the universal end of the scale, or you can start by
exploring the microworld. Either way, you’ll appreciate the new perspective
this site gives you.
This site is also great for children. It will open their eyes to things that
can’t be seen and are difficult to compare.
www.nikon.co.jp
THE JOURNEY OF MAN
You probably know that modern man originated in Africa thousands of years
ago. Well, it was over 160,000 years ago, to be exact.
But chances are, you don’t know how Homo sapiens came to inhabit the entire
globe. And you probably don’t realize the role climate played.
You can trace the migration of modern man. It follows man from the cradle of
civilization to the far corners of the world.
Along the way, you can read about supporting archaeological evidence. You
can also see how changes in climate influenced migratory paths.
But you might be wondering how the journey of man can be tracked. After all,
160,000 years is a long time. And, theoretically, archaeological artifacts
could have been left by different groups. Scientists have done DNA research.
The free Flash Player is required to view this site.
www.bradshawfoundation.com
A NOMADIC MUSEUM
When you think of museums, you probably envision large buildings. Or you
might think of virtual museums on the Internet.
But you wouldn’t immediately think of Gregory Colbert's museum. It is a
traveling museum constructed from shipping containers. It has been on the
road for several years.
The museum structure is amazing. And so is the work inside. There are large
photographs of people and animals together. Think elephants and cheetahs and
falcons.
The photographs have a mystical quality that is difficult to describe. You
should visit Ashes and Snow and see for yourself. You can see many of the
photographs and watch parts of Colbert’s film.
You need the free Flash Player to view the enhanced site. It can be a little
difficult to navigate at first. But be sure to explore all the site has to
offer.
www.ashesandsnow.org
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CCCC Page 5 September 2007
SYSTEMS S.I.G. by Dick Trissel
One topic covered in the S.I.G. was what happens when you turn on your PC
computer. The procedure has been around since the first IBM PC computer.
And, unfortunately, it hasn't changed much. However, with the new flash
memory developments, we may soon see the startup and operating system all in
a single chip, like it was in the early micro-computers (Commodore,
Sinclair, TRS80, etc.) where startup took all of five seconds. But until
then, here's what we've got.
When power is first applied to the computer, it performs a self-diagnostic
routine known as the Power On Self Test (POST). The power supply does a
self test, sends a "power good" signal to the timer chip which turns on the
Central Processing Unit (CPU). If there is a failure, an error message will
be displayed. If the monitor cannot be accessed, there will be a series of
audio beeps (the number of beeps is an error code) from the computer's
speaker.
This CPU starts the Basic Input Output System (BIOS) a Read Only Memory
(ROM) which gets setup data from the CompliMentary Oxide Semiconductor
(CMOS) which is a small memory chip that is kept powered by a small battery
even when the main power is removed. The CMOS data can be altered by the
user through the BIOS setup function. The BIOS scans for other ROMs, video
cards, hard drive controllers, etc. which are actually processing units.
The CPU then searches for a bootable operating system (OS) using a sequence
setup in the BIOS, usually the CD player, the floppy drive, and then the
hard drive (C:\ partition). If no bootable OS is found, an error message is
displayed describing the problem. If all is good, the CPU loads the OS into
Rapid Access Memory (RAM) and starts the OS. The CPU also controls access
to the peripherals using the BIOS information. This is sometimes bypassed
using Direct Memory Access (DMA) for peripherals that support DMA. The
peripheral processor accesses the RAM directly which is faster than waiting
for the CPU.
And you wonder why computers fail!
One of the discussion items was how to handle long Web addresses (URLs) that
are in e-mail messages and newsletters--the addresses that are more than one
line long and when they fold, the second line is not underlined (blue) so it
gets lost when you click on the URL.
My suggestion is to select both lines, copy and paste them into a text
editor, join them properly (making sure there are no extraneous characters).
Start the browser, select the corrected line in the text editor, and copy
and paste into the browser address window.
Another suggestion was to simply do the first step described above and paste
directly into the browser window. That's fine if the browser is running.
But, in some situations (Juno, Outlook Express, etc.) the message is being
read without the browser running.
A problem was presented where the user was having a problem with Microsoft
automatic updates. The automatic update option can be changed two ways.
Here's the easy procedure:
Go to the Control Panel, click System (or System Performance), click the
Automatic Updates tab, check the option you want, click Apply and OK out.
Here's the more complicated but more interesting procedure:
Right click My Computer. Click Manage. Click the plus sign on Services and
Applications. Click on Services. Right click Automatic Updates. Click
Properties. Set the Startup type to Manual. Click Stop. Click Apply, and
OK.
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CCCC Page 6 September 2007
GETTING RID OF MALWARE
from Komando newsletter
Q. I recently had to install a new hard drive in my computer. After I
reinstalled XP, I began to update Windows. It required more than 70 updates.
During the updates, someone installed malware. The only site I visited was
Microsoft; I didn’t even set up e-mail. I’m getting pop-up advertisements. I
installed antivirus software, anti-spyware programs and ZoneAlarm firewall.
The software removed several Trojans and viruses. I still get pop-ups. Do I
need to reinstall Windows?
A. I feel your pain. There are many things I’d rather do than reinstall
Windows. You might be able to get rid of the malware without formatting the
drive.
Before I talk about removing the malware, let me explain how it got there.
This will help make sure you don’t inadvertently re-infect your system.
Simply put, your security software wasn’t configured correctly before you
went online. I know what you’re thinking – you only went to Microsoft’s
site. But it doesn’t matter where you go online. The bad guys can still find
you no matter what site you’re visiting.
How do they do it? They use automated programs to search the Internet for
unprotected computers. They find a computer with open ports. These can be
used to install malware. They can also be used to take over a machine.
When you buy a computer, you should first install security software. Then,
you need to update the security software. Then you need to update Windows.
Of course, you must go online to download security software. You could use
another computer to download security software. But that really isn't
necessary.
Just turn on the Windows Firewall. This will hide your computer online. XP's
open ports will not be available. You can then download antivirus software
and anti-spyware programs. Then, you should update Windows. The Windows
updates will take care of the open ports. To activate the Windows Firewall,
click Start>>Control Panel. (If Control Panel says "Pick a category," click
Switch to Classic View on the left.) Double-click Windows Firewall.
If you have a very early edition of XP, you may not have Windows Firewall in
the Control Panel. In that case, click Start>>Control Panel. Double-click
Network and Internet Connections. Click "Setup or change your home or small
office network." The firewall is enabled when you choose a configuration
that connects your computer to the Internet.
The Windows Firewall in XP isn’t adequate. It doesn’t block outbound
transmissions. But it will protect you until you can download another
firewall, such as ZoneAlarm.
So let's see if we can fix your problem. Are you using Internet Explorer? If
so, click Tools>>Internet Options. Select the Security tab and click Trusted
Sites. Click the Sites button. Look in the Websites box. Highlight anything
you don't recognize as secure. Click Remove. Click Close>>OK.
Also, I would run several anti-spyware programs. It sounds like your problem
is with spyware, not a virus. I have some good anti-spyware programs on my
site: SpywareBlaster, Spybot-Search & Destroy, Windows Defender and Ad-
Aware. I have had good success using Ad-Aware, which is solely a scanner.
The others can block programs that are being downloaded.
If none of the above works, try System Restore. Choose the very first
restore point after you installed Windows. This should be before you went
online and before you started updating Windows. This will remove much of the
software you installed. It will hurt. But it may also cripple the spyware
causing the pop-ups.
And if that doesn't work? It's time to reformat, I'm afraid.
Copyright 2007, WestStar TalkRadio Network. All rights reserved.
Kim Komando hosts the nation's largest talk radio show about computers and
the Internet. To get the podcast or find the station nearest you, visit:
http://www.komando.com/listen . To subscribe to Kim's free e-mail
newsletters, sign-up at: http://www.komando.com/newsletters.
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CCCC Page 7 September 2007
WINDOWS XP RESTORE CHECKPOINTS by Dick Trissel
In Windows XP the time interval between each restore checkpoint creation is
adjustable. That's the good news. The bad news is the change has to be
done in the registry. The default value is 24 hours.
The following instructions involve modifying the system registry, a
dangerous activity if you aren't familiar with registry keys (called Hives
in XP). The safe thing to do is save the key before modifying.
To save the TIME ADJUSTMENT key, go to Start / Run / regedit, go to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion
\SystemRestore
Click File, Export, choose a folder and file name (i.e. My Computer, Time).
The file saved will be Time.reg.
If you need to restore the key, just double click the file Time.reg. Answer
Yes, OK.
To save the KEYS AND FILES NOT SAVED key, go to Start / Run / regedit, go to
HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\BackupRestore
Click File, Export, choose a folder and file name (i.e. My Computer,
Notsaved). The file saved will be Notsaved.reg.
If you need to restore the key, just double click the file Notsaved.reg.
Answer Yes, OK.
RESTORE CHECKPOINTS TIME ADJUSTMENTS
In Windows XP the time interval between each restore checkpoint is set by
the registry value called RPGlobalInterval in the following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\
Windows NT\CurrentVersion\SystemRestore
The default value is 86400 (24 hours in seconds)
In the same registry key the value for the number of days a checkpoint
restore is kept is called RPLifeInterval
The default value of 7776000 (90 days in seconds)
These values can be changed by going to Start / Run / regedit. Go to the
key, double click the value, choose base decimal and type in a new value in
units of seconds.
RESTORE CHECKPOINTS FILES AND KEYS NOT SAVED
In Windows XP the files and registry keys that are NOT saved in each restore
checkpoint are listed and editable in the following registry key:
HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\BackupRestore
The four lists are found in the following keys:
AsrKeysNotToRestore (Automatic System Restore registry keys)
DllPaths (Dynamic Link Libraries)
FilesNotToRestore (Individual files)
KeysNotToRestore (Registry Keys)
To remove an item in one of the four keys (allow it to be saved), go to
Start / Run / regedit. Go to:
HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\BackupRestore
Select the item, use Edit, Delete.
To add an item to NOT be saved, go to the key:
HKLM\system\CurrentControlSet\Control\BackupRestore
Double click Value
Enter the full path of the folder to Not be saved in the restore checkpoint.
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CCCC Page 8 September 2007
FILE TYPE ASSOCIATION by Dick Trissel
File type association (Open With) is a simple concept but hard to describe.
Many programs register the file extensions they use for their files.
Microsoft Word, for example, registers .DOC as the default file extension
for Word files. When you double-click a file with a .DOC extension, the
file automatically opens in Word.
From the file's point of view (opening with a double click), there can only
be one program associated with it. That is, it can only invoke one
particular application. For example, if you double click a .txt type file
it may be associated to open with Notepad. If it is associated with
Notepad, it can not be made to also open with Wordpad by double clicking the
file. Obviously, trying to have two options (associations) would confuse
the operating system--it wouldn't know which to use. So, you are not
allowed to have more than one application associated with a particular file
type.
However, any particular program can be made to open many different file
types (assuming they are compatible with that program). For example, if you
are running Wordpad, you can open .txt, .doc, .rtf, or .wri type files.
This doesn't involve the association concept--this is simply the capability
of the program.
Now, how do you create an association for a particular file type? If the
file type does not already have a program associated with it, and you double
click the file (in XP), a window will open allowing you to use the Web or
select a program. Or, if you right click the file you will get an Open With
option (in Windows 98 hold down the shift key). The Open With window will
pop up with a long list of some of the programs you have on your computer.
If the program you want to use isn't listed, click the Other button and type
in the path to the program you want. Be careful of the option to "Always
use this program to open this type of file". If you are sure the program
you select is the right one and you want to permanently associate it with
that file type, then click the box. Leave it unchecked until you have
experimented with different programs. Remember, you can only have one
program associated with any one program.
If you associate a file type, and then find it wasn't right, sometimes you
can force an association change. Highlight (select) the file, hold down the
shift key, and click the right mouse button. That will bring up the Open
With window from which you can make a different program association with
that file type.
There's a more complex method of setting a file type association by using
Windows Explorer, Tools (View in 98), Folder Options, File Types. But it is
confusing and complicated, and only necessary under very few instances.
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CCCC Page 9 September 2007
CD/DVD DAMAGE by Dick Trissel
By now everyone knows you shouldn't damage or tarnish the clear plastic side
of a disc. But what many don't know is that's not the vulnerable side--the
so called label side is actually the data layer. Sometime, take an old no-
good disc and peel part of the label side off. You'll end up with a clear
area--no data there--it came off with the printed label.
I find many old discs laying in the road when I'm out running. Some have
been run over. The clear side may be badly scratched and dirty. But if the
label (data) side is intact, and after a little cleanup, they play just fine
(except they are usually some horrible rap music).
My point is that yes, you should take care of the clear side, but definitely
don't do anything to the label (data) side where there is data--don't put
labels on them, don't write on them, and don't scratch them. And, oh yeh,
don't peel a label off that's already on--it will take the data with it.
Believe it or not, it's been tried.
So, how can you mark a disc? Write in the clear area around the hole. And,
since discs are written from the center toward the edge in a spiral pattern,
you can write on the label side out near the edge if there is no data in
that area, and won't ever be.
Some smart guy tried putting a small stick-on label in the area around the
hole. The disc player got very unhappy with that--it needs that area to be
physically as manufactured.
This discussion about labels and writing is not totally applicable to
commercially manufactured discs because they are made with a completely
different process than the "burnable" discs. They are not a chemically
layered disc. They are stamped with pits and peaks to represent the digital
ones and zeros, but the data layer is still thin and vulnerable. Therefore,
writing on them with a soft pen is acceptable, but don't do anything to
physically damage the data layer.
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