Malwarebytes Review (Anti-Adware,spyware etc.)

http://www.malwarebytes.org/

Its a very small sized program for a security program. The installation was fast and easy although i got some errors about missing dlls but it seemed to install OK.

Did a quick scan and it seemed to do the job, found a couple of Trojans sitting there, it was very quick for a scanning process, faster than any other reputable software out there and it picked up everything in the quick scan, i did a detailed scan and it returned nothing so it seems the quick scan is very effective, usually i never run the quick scans in my other software because it would usually leave something behind for the deep scans to pick up.

Did a scan in safe mode Windows Vista, seemed to find two reg entries and deleted them but then they came back, ran the program in normal Windows and it found some other entries that belonged to the same nasty. So i ran a scan twice and now the third time in normal Widnows and it seemed to have stopped it from coming back.


Overall:

Simple (< 4 minutes scan on my rig),
Faster (Than anyhting I've seen including SpyBot SD,
Small file (Good for downloading when your already in trouble),
Fair update file sizes (Not the smallest but hey other program install files are worth 15 updates),
Low memory and RAM usage


EFFECTIVE (ONLY SCANNER THAT PICKED UP ON THE NASTY I WAS HAVING)PROBLEMS WITH,


Am so curious to see if the Pro version will be super duper awesom and if its feasible to replace my other scanncer,s will comapre their results later on, i guess more scanners installed the more fine the comb will be but if it can find everything the others can, it will be such a simplistic security plan for me home network.

** Sounds like something you can run weekly without wasting time, energy or wearing computer too much.

Super Browser Hijacker Attack

Recently, My Laptop's Vista partition has been hacked at by a Virus that hijacks my browsers both FireFox and Internet Explorer.

Hijacking involves something like:

* When you hit a result in Google it opens to a new advertising related website
* You can't type in and hit enter some websites
* It is hard to download as all links in the browser are redirected to some other search engine (non-genuine) or some advert web site.


This was a scary experience for me as it showed that my usual trust applications could not find let alone attack and save me from this nasty.

My usual trust apps found some problems but none found the virus that's causing this web havoc:

* Spy Bot S&D
* Avast AV
* AVG AV +SW
* Ad-Aware
* Commodo Firewall
* Vista Windows Defender


SOME WORK AROUND:

* Use Google to find a web page say for solutions to this hijacker, and then use the cached pages, for my virus i found it was scared of google

* Use Google translator and paste in the web link and then use non-English ---> English for English websites, using Google Translator seems to proxy through somewhere avoiding the redirects

* Use a different computer and download/search problem resolutions (Most effective)




SOLUTIONS (Possible)

Download an excellent software called Malwarebytes Anti-Malware

Installed it and with only a quick scan it fixed my problem, so far (Hoping it will stay this way after a reboot)

BTW the virus that got me was called "Trojan.Agent" according to the software scan results.

I got my information from:
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6132_102-0.html?forumID=32&threadID=310254&messageID=2868932

Please upgrade to the Pro version cause this is seriously the best detection tool, its a keeper.
Will do a review on it after i see how the reboot goes.



Example hijack redirect destinations

http://go.google.com http://bridge1.admarketplace.net Myaussiesearch.com http://www.theglobalsearchengine.com http://www.clicktosee.com.au
http://analystspecies.info/search.php? http://impactmedicine.info
http://www.ozpricehunter.com http://77.91.229.143/click.php?
http://questionnaire-guardian.info http://blow-operation.info http://ranksupplement.info
http://classroom-lot.info http://festival-gaze.info
http://stimulussock.info http://77.91.229.143/click.php?
http://revenue-classification.info http://4yousauce.info
http://banfuture.info/search.php? http://condition-draft.info
http://abuseobstacle.info http://biassickness.info
http://bomberworry.info

Some More Info, Google : "trojan.agent redirects", no "" required


Registry keys
affected:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\tdssdata

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\tdss


The problem i found i had was i only knew the websites it was redirecting me to and had no idea about the name of virus so couldn't get rid of it. Please save some website addresses you've been redirected to and post them here for future reference to others (if you've been attacked by the same kind of virus, thansk).

Creative Soundblaster Live 5.1 Driver for Windows Vista Download

Ok, some news on the Vista sound card, I've managed after months, got Vista to produce sound but only stereo of my 5.1. I not sure what i really done but the last thing that i did before it worked was disable all on board sound devices and then uninstalled the creative drivers. Then got my CD that came with it and install the driver off that.

Then it just suddenly worked after a restart. Well actually i went into properties and clicked the Test button that tests the left and right speakers. Then it worked on from there. Sorry there isn't much details but I am still confused how i did it.

But i think if you really wanted it to work you could always use the on board plugs to connect your speakers to.


Backtrack:

I tied these websites before but their suggested application driver installs couldn't find my sound card.

http://fileforum.betanews.com/detail/Sound_Blaster_Audigy_Driver_for_Windows_Vista/1011672251/2

http://www.aeonity.com/david/creative-soundblaster-live-51-driver-windows-vista-download

http://www.softwarepatch.com/utilities/creative-live-driver-vista.html

Some Desktop News

Still haven't been able to install my HP Deskjet 3325 printer on Vista although the net suggested that the Deskjet 3500 drivers will make it work, still yet to find out, let me know if it worked for you.

I had my old windows 95 scanner working on my old XP partition, that is before i delete it and did a fresh install, all the drivers were only windows 95 compatible so i had no idea how i did it before, anyways, so to fix it I searched for my Epson Perfection 610 drivers for windows xp online and found it, did a virus check and then install into XP and it works now! yay! Still doesn't work in Vista but for a windows 95 age hardware its done great.

I've also found out why my Vista partition has been so slow on my desktop but decent on my laptop, it turns out that the power options were default set on power saver, which makes no sense and that means the desktop will only use a max of 50% of my CPU. Now i flicked it back into Max Performance and it seems to be much better, now to install SP1 and see if it makes things more equal to XP's performance ;) Its suppose to be fair good, my desktop is only lacking graphics else it should be suffice for Vista so lets hope the SP1 will make things fly a bit more.

That's one thing about durable hardware from good manufacturers, you have to make sure they support you when you upgrade software and not their hardware. but Still cheers on HP and Epson's durability (with the exclusion of my Epson printer which seemed to have to no probs but the printer software that Epson gave assured me i should go out to shops and buy a new one, which i did only it was a HP)

How do I send to taskbar, programs that load on start up?

Start programs minimised:


Go to your StartUp folder from the Start Menu > Right-Click on shortcut icon > Properties > Edit the value for Run from "Normal" to "Minimised"

Done!

Obvious but sometimes forgetten procedure ;)

Send To: Backup folder

You've read my Send To post before, now think about placing a folder shortcut in the Send To menu, now you can send any file you need to back up to a backup folder!

For example you can set the backup folder in the other hard drive.

Back up uses for a 2.5" external hard drive

Google some answers, think of some using your logic, there are many benefits that are simple and obvious such as back ups that can be stored in a remote location, extend your disk space in your computer by storing less used data on the external dirve etc.

But a random thought today was what the hell would happen if my homework/project was trapped on a broken or disabled laptop? and you didn't have a back up on another disk or it was not updated? that's where the external hard drive comes in, most if not all laptops use the 2.5" hard drives and then can be unplugged from the laptop and connected into the external hard drive holder, if you brought a already made external hard drive you may not be able to disconnect your hard drive but if you brought the hard drive and the external case seperate then you are pretty much able to rescue your data from the laptop hard drive,

Now for the software part, some laptop hard drives are locked into the hard drive via serial codes and pins numbers? maybe not sure but IBM hard drives are rendered useless if you just unplugged them from a laptop and tried to steal data (which is good for anti-theft purposes but for that major project deadline? dam)

Anyone got any advice for this? would be very appreciated as I am doing all my work on a laptop, my current solution is to back up recent work on a thumb drive and back up the whole data drive onto an external hard drive.

Problems using Upek Protector Suite QL

Getting this message?

The windows could not be registered because of following reasons:

Internet Explorer module: This is not an Internet Explorer window.
Firefox browser module: This is not a supported browser window.
Dialogue module: Window does not contain controls suitable for registration.


If your using Protector Suite QL and Firefox, then do this:

• Scan your finger to make Protector Suite QL window pop up or open it from the program files folder.
• Control Center > Applications > Password Bank > (bottom line of text "Firefox:") click hyperlink to "Install Extension"

If Internet Explorer opens up and you get a message to tell you to set Firefox as default then do this:

• Open Firefox > Tools > Options > (At botton section named "System Defaults") Click [Check Now]
• It will ask if you want to set as default, have a guess at what you should answer!
• Repeat step above to install extension.
  

How to unzip a Zip file for people who think they know how to

You think you know how to unzip a file yes? Problems with unzipping files? Unzipped software/program not working/installing?

Well have you had any software/program/zip files with more than one file inside the zip file that didn't unzip properly?

You wouldn't have noticed as some of the files are unzipped but not all. Its a problem many have but because there is error message people don't seem to know why their zipped files don't work.

As there is no formal error messages, I am hoping that you can still find this post and solve your unzipped errors.


The common problem is people open the winzip and extract the files, sometimes not checking the "extract all" box. A better practice is to right-click the zip file and select the unzip to /folder

Where can i get an update for Protector Suite QL?

Here:

http://www.upek.com/support/downloads/

Stuck/stubborn lcd/monitor/crt cable screws

You know what I am talking about, stuck cables, the VGa or DVI type where there are screws, you screw them on tightly and then when you need to remove them, dam its stick and your fingers are just too weak to unscrew the dam thing.

The solution? its the same solution to many previous posts, use a screwdriver, did you actually know that there is a gap on the bottom of the plastic screw? you place a flat head screwdriver in there and turn, its very easy to turn but if you want you can unscrew a bit and then use your fingers to do the rest, so to show your man powers!!!

^ A photo to prove I am not randomly typing letters on the keyboard, lol.

Its on the bottom end, the part you can't see, dam what a stupid photo choice.

Edit the "Send To" destinations in Vista

How cool is the "Send To" function when you right-click but too bad you can't add your own destinations to Send To, oh wait you can!!

Open a Windows Explorer file and type this in:
%AppData%\Microsoft\Windows\SendTo

Press enter, now paste the shortcut files in this folder, shortcut files, not the actual file else it will send it to the actual file, unless you wanted to send it to an application such as Photoshop.

The website i got this from is: http://www.mydigitallife.info/2008/01/04/use-vista-sendto-folder-to-add-or-delete-send-to-menu-items-or-shortcuts/

Fixing blunt pencil sharpeners

Do you got a very annoying pencil sharpener that won't actually sharpen your pencils, it barely rubs against the wood?

Well, As i mentioned before, its very handy to have one of those jeweller's screwdriver kits of computers and technology, it turns out its good for fixing pencil sharpeners too!

All I had to do was tighten the screw on the blade and now the sharpener cuts nicer or at all now. Still not as sharp as brand new but really can't do anything about that without sharpening the blade which sounds very dangerous.



And yes if you just noticed this is the first post of the labels of non-tech posts, which will be on random fixes that aren't inside the circle of high tech.

Yucky Premium SMS experience

Well it would start from when i decided to switch from company X and decided to change to Vodafone. I brought a sim cad for $2, came home and activated it. I sent sms to all my friends to tell them about my new number. On the first Sunday after activating it, i got a premium sms and was angry at my account balance being robbed. It was a new number so i couldn't have given it over the internet, I didn't sign up for anything and only my friends being idiots with my number could be the only reason. I continued to get these sms every Sunday and knew it wasn't mine because the star sign it talked about wasn't even my star sign. I contacted Vodafone and they gave me contact details to premium sms company. I had to deal with them for ages and then deal back with Vodafone and threated to leave the service, return my sim card or even take it up with gov agencies. Then they gave up and contacted the sms service who elevated my case and i was contacted by them to work out a cheque which came to me a few weeks later with the wrong name! I then contacted Vodafone and then they finally gave up and credited my $12.50 to my account.
The sms stopped and a few weeks later I got an sms from Fernwood Parramatta (I am a male student) and it was then that i realised that maybe my number is owned by someone else and I am coping their subscriptions. I then started to use my phone more and regularly receive calls from friends of the ex-owner of my mobile number.

My questions were why didn't Vodafone give me my credit back in step one and take it up with the premium sms service. The other is how does the number system work and how long does a number have to be inactive before its re-sold as a new number.

My Article

I hate wasting electricity but I hate bumping my head against the keyboard holder even more. In the past when trying to unplug devices I don’t need I’d shift backwards and bump my head due to the position of the electrical plugs and keyboard holder. Not any more, to save electricity from devices such as printers, modems, wi-fi routers and external hard drives I use a surge board with individual switches for each plug, that way I can prevent wasting standby energy overnight (or day them if I am not using them) without the hassle of unplugging at all, just turn off the device and flick the switch off on the surge board. It’s a really simple solution and has saved me the stress of dealing with stubborn tight plugs as well as letting my power packs rest.

Switching between windows

Did you know?

To switch between windows open you can use a keyboard shortcut:

ALT + TAB


To switch between files opened in the same program:


CTRL + TAB



(For some Vista versions) to switch between windows opened with a nicer interface:

WINDOWS + TAB

Can't receive "unsafe" files over MSN,

Read the message properly, geez, it says how to fix it. Actually I took 3 times before i actually read it, LOl

Fine, you can be lazy too, just go into MSN > Tools > Options > File transfer > Add a virus scanner.

Need drivers for HP Deskjet 3325 for Vista

I've installed Vista like i mentioned before and am yet to get my printer and scanner working.
I am developing a solution but haven't yet seen it working.

Don't install the CD like you do in Windows XP for this printer, instead make Vista detect the device and ask you for drivers, get it to search for drivers and then insert the CD and make Vista search around for it, it should find a Deskjet 3320 driver and install that instead of the 3325 one but its meant to be compatible (fingers crossed)

So far I haven't been able to the printer to respond to the computer. And I am not even going to bother with my scanner cause its so old.

My best solution for you is to dual boot with Windows XP and use it when you need to print, that's what I am doing as Vista provided better graphics card performance (doesn't make sense yes? well its not better performance but in XP i get graphics glitches)

I will see if I can get it working with the 3320 driver as you can imagine its very annoying to switch and restart OSes in order to print.

Post your comments if you've followed my instructions and got it to work some how.

Clean up networking record

Do you have some wi-fi connections/networks that you don't use any more and would like to get clean off from your computer?

Say you connected to a wi-fi in an airport and will never be there for ages and want to get rid of the airport connection in your list of wi-fi networks.

Do this then:

Start > Network > Network and sharing centre (button at the top part of window) > Manage wireless networks (from side menu)

Select network you want to remove > Click Remove button at top of window)

Vista on my desktop

Just got a spankin copy of Windows Vista Business =D I've been avoiding installing it on my desktop:

AMD Athlon 3500+ (2.25Ghz)
1.2GB of ddr400 Ram
200Gb of HDD space
128 MB nVidia GeForce 6600gt+

Due to the forecast of knowing thign s just won't work. But due to a glitch I've been having with y grpahics card in Windows XP i decided to give it ago to see what happens, on another partition of course to avoid harsh recovery methods.


Heres what i found:

PLUSes:

• Windows Vista has seemed to be able to help me skip finding my 10 or odd CDs for drivers, which I have to do in XP
• Windows Vista's driver for ym graphics card has made my display nicer and clearer and best of all prevented my graphics glitch of freezing up when scrolling too fast or switching windows too often
• The Internet seemed to work straight away, no set up, no account setting, This may have been due to my router having all the settings? Not sure and hoping to not have to re-install XP to find out
• The computer seems to perform faster, what the heck? Vista is suspoe to not work and be slower, but... I am confussed
• Most of my old software seems to work ok, feeew
• Installing MS software seems to take forever but other software seems to zip right through, maybe its visualisations of the transfer / progress bars but it makes me feel like the hard drives are faster and performing better but this could also be due to comparison of a fresh Vista and year old XP install.
  

FAILs:

• Creative Sound Augity sound card is fully dead on this OS
• Yet to test printer and scanner
• UAC is delayed for longer than other Vista computers
• Screen blacks out during log ins and log outs (not sure if its an effect or problem due to the controlling of the graphics' card)
• Software installs are taking longer after installing other software to the OS
• Can't get a Vista experience rating
  

OVERALL:

• If I can't get the sound to wrok at least this partition will be a high performing PC in terms of graphics card reliability and will be suffice to work for school and office.
• I could get a new sound card but me being a greenie and all, I don't think i shall waste this card yet.
• I can always use the onboard motherboard sound if needed, but it will mean no 5.1 sounds
  

Beijing Olympic 08 Tech.

Looking at the opening ceremony I was surprised at some of the technology that may well soon become general consumer technology.

I saw:

Cloths with LEDs in them, in future it is predicted that cloths will be able to have dynamic advertising and designs as well as changing colours.

Flexible and large LCD screens, the future newspaper medium?

A quick look at MS SyncToy

Ok, I installed SyncToy and tested it between two files, I get an error telling me that the folder location name is too long and has to be less than 200 characters.

I uninstaller, my opinion? you tell me

Looking for web translation

If your looking for a website that can translate English to Chinese or Chinese to English or other languages, I recommend that you use Google's translator. I have used Yahoo!'s Bablefish or AltaVista but for Chinese it gives them in simplified characters even though traditional is selected so I am quite weary of its accuracy.

You really could do without accidentally insulting someone in another language!

How to Create / Insert the Infinity Symbol in MS Word

Start Up MS Word > Insert > Symbol
Then enter in the following
Character code: 221E from: Unicode (hex)

OR you could always try to copy and paste this: ∞

You can usually Copy and Paste symbols from MS word and use them in other applications such as MSN Messenger Display Names, etc. So keep this tip in mind for when you want to use symbols that are non-keyboard assigned. You could always try to use it for graphic designs and abstracts etc.

Turn off lcd screen with one click / keyboard shortcut

How To Manually Turn Off Notebook or Laptop LCD Screen
How to turn off lcd screen with one click
How to turn off lcd screen with keyboard short cut

I've been googling for a click or one keyboard shortcut solution for turning off my lcd screen on my lapyop manually without using the power settings cause its only someitmes that i need to turn off the lcd after 1 minutes of idle but it gets annoying if it does that all daya every day.

I downloaded a software called Orandy OneClick but it ended up being a freeware that placed an icon in the system tray and requires a right-click on the icon and then left click on monitor and then a left click on turn off screen. This was quite annoying and didn't allow me to apply any keyboard short cuts but was better than nothing.

A good freeware that i found was simple and did what it was suppose to, and that is turn off the lcd screen, I really couldn't see why other alternatives had shut down and hibernate functions when all i wanted was a turn off lcd. Is Redmond Pie's Turn off LCD screen, downloadable here and belongs to here.

Its basically a icon you click and then it opens a command prompt like window for half and second and then turns off your screen, when you move the mouse or keyboard it will tun back on and the window will be gone, you basically have no interface for the software (unlike other software) so you pretty much have yourself a virtual off button that functions like a real button on lcd screens.

BTW I haven't managed to make it wok yet, but if you place a shortcut to the .exe file on the desktop and right click it and click properties and then add a keyboard shortcut it will work but the screen will only turn off for a few secs and then turn back on but I am working on it.

After that last post

I think I can say before calling technical support if your using Vista and something won't run properly (especially if it ran perfect in Windows XP) try:

* Disabling UAC
* Running as Administrator.

Installing Applocale In Windows Vista

http://www.mydigitallife.info/2007/05/26/workaround-to-install-microsoft-applocale-utility-in-windows-vista/

That is a good link to a solution but lacks some details like how to get to command prompt and how to move navigate command prompt to the location of the apploc.msi file directory.

Command prompt:
Start > All Programs > Accessories > Right click command prompt > Run as Administrator

Navigating to apploc.msi
I still have no idea how to navigate to another hard disk so I simple copy and pasted the installer file into the System32 folder (default place that my command prompt was at) so all I have to do was type "\apploc.msi" and press enter

Turning off UAC
Go to control panel > User Accounts > Turn on or off UAC



It installed correctly but I still can't get a program to work using Applocale. Save Me

Fix: I was running Applocale from the start menu, you have to run it as administrator (unless you followed link above and disabled UAC first) for me it was installed in C:\Windows\AppPatch\

If you want to find out you can right click on the shortcut in the start menu and click properties and the address in the "Start In" form box is the place its located in, copy and paste that into Windows Explorer address bar and hit enter.

BTW what I am trying to do is open a rar file that has files saved in Chinese and it won't extract as my Vista can't recognise the file names. So I use Applocale in XP and am trying it in Vista.

Update: It wasn't as quick and easy as XP, Using IZAC to extract Chinese files only extracted the English files but double clicking the other files extracted it into the folder with only English files that were extracted in the first go.

Vista Search

I just realised something. When your searching for files using MS Windows Vista's search toolbar, you have to search for the whole file name. You can search for half of it. I was looking for a song called something Driver.mp3 but when searched it would show up. Then I remembered my computer course I did and used a wild card (? and *) so *driver brought up all the mp3 songs with driver in the file name and found it!

? - Used for when your not sure of a certain letter in the search word
e.g. ?ing can give ping, ding, bing, sing

* - Used for when your not sure of an unlimited number of letters in search word.
e.g. *top can give rooftop, stop, bigtop, coolestbiggestcircusbigtop

? and * can be used in many search programs and they can be used in anywhere in the search words. Like it can be Toma?o or Tri*

Comments

My advice is the best I can give but there are many great people on the Internet who have invested the time and effort and have post many good suggestions to solutions and other sites you should check. So please if you have time, compare my post and comments of others, You'll often find that the material in the comments are very valuable and better than my suggestions.

Enable Hibernation in Vista

Re-enable hibernation in vista
Hibernation disappeared in Vista
Can't hibernate computer in vista
Enable hibernation in Vista
Turn on hibernation in Vista

I've been searching everywhere for a way to enable hibernation again, it was so useful for my laptop especially running with the battery and such.

Here is a good solution site:
VistaJuice

It writes:

1. Click Start, All Programs, and then right click on "Command Prompt".
2. From the context menu click on "Run as administrator".
3. If User Account Control prompts you to allow the action, click on Continue.
4. In the command prompt window, type "powercfg –h off" (or "on" without the quotes) followed by Enter button.
4. Close the Command Prompt window and you're done :)


But I'd prefer due to different "All Programs" set out:

1. Click Start, All Programs, Accessories and then right click on "Command Prompt".
2. From the context menu click on "Run as administrator".
3. If User Account Control prompts you to allow the action, click on Continue.
4. In the command prompt window, type "powercfg –h off" (or "on" without the quotes) followed by Enter button.
4. Close the Command Prompt window and you're done :)

200th Post!!! (Cheap adhesives)

Picture stolen from (hope its ok)

Thanks all to those who have read all my 200 posts (which should be almost none of you)
Anyway Yay, and i hope to get to the 500 mark with more readers : )
__________________________________________________________________

The 200th post is about an easy cheap way to sticking computer/technology together. Do you have anything that was glued but due to cheap labour it has come off? SuperGlue is a solution and can be quite cheap, blu-tack won't hold and sticky tape makes you look like an irresponsible technology consumer.

My solution can be undone unlike SuperGlue, My solution; is pineapples, WHat?? All this excitemnet about the 200th post must have made this autor crazy. Well I am not sure about in other countries but in Australia, most pineapples come with a sticker tag label which is held by glue, usually flexible sticky glue, take a bit of it and use it as blu-tack to stick things together. When you, if, want to undo this adhiesive, just pull really hard and you should be able to remove whatever you stuck together with a bit of a glue smudge that is removable but that's it, completely undo-able, but for those moments that you want to stuck things flat and never remove, use SuperGlue! enjoy, and I hope that your pineapples don't use solid hot glue or what not.