Uncheck "Start with Windows"

As a computer repair guy, I often get called out to do what most people call a "tune up" on their computer.  Typically they will say their machine has become very slow lately.  It takes a long time to boot up and shut down, and/or they see the little spinning wheel going round and round while waiting for the thing they just clicked on to come up.

 

There are lots of things that can slow down your computer and one of the first things I have learned to look for is Skype running in the systray down by the clock.  One of the last screens of the setup of Skype (pictured here) comes with a checkbox that is already checked for you (I unchecked it before I took this screenshot) that says, "Run Skype when the computer starts."

 

It is important to realize that your computer has limited resources of CPU, RAM, video, etc., and when you have tons of stuff running in the background it is cutting into those resources.  Now mind you, today's machine are far richer in resources than the ones of 15 years ago, but still, if you know what to look for you can really "trim the fat" off resource use so you can focus your machine's resources on what you want, and your machine will run better.

 

Unless you plan to use your machine for Skype most of the time, it really doesn't need to be running constantly in the background.  If you use Skype as your machine communications program all the time then, sure, run it all the time and have it load when the computer starts up.  But otherwise, you really only need to start Skype when you need it, and shut the program off when you are finished.

 

While I can understand from Skype's point of view why they would want to have that box checked by default.  They want people to use their software all the time, of course.  So would you if you had created a popular piece of software.  I'm sure I would.  But from my point of view as a computer user, I do not want Skype running all the time if I only use it once in a while.  I only want it to run when I want it to run and the rest of the time it can stay off.

 

Bottom line: read before you click.  Don't let programs dictate to you what should be running on your machine.  For the most part, you don't want anything but your anti-virus program to start with Windows.  So if you have 10 icons in your systray, have a look at what they are and see if you really need them.

 

For more information, please feel free to call Big Mike Computer Services in Nanaimo, BC at 250-740-1812.

 

Happy Computing!

Big Mike

 

Computer Slow or Dying?

A computer repair person is often called on to "speed up" a slow machine.  Typically the problem is software related where there is a virus, trojan, malware, or spyware which is slowing things down.  Other problems could include something called a "rootkit" which is a tiny program that runs before Windows gets up and running, and it has a certain amount of control of things that can allow any or all of the above problems come into the machine.

a dusty computer will lead to failure of components on the motherboard

Sometimes however, the problem could be hardware related.  RAM, for example, is susceptible to static electricity.  Actually, all the hardware in a computer is susceptible to static.  But besides static electricity, HEAT is also an enemy of computers.  Cleaning the dust from the motherboard, CPU and power supply often can extend the life of the unit.  Dust build-up can hold heat in and around the electronic components, causing them to overheat.  There are usually large capacitors around the CPU which will appear "popped" on the top where it would normally be flat.  This indicates the capacitor has overheated and means the motherboard will most likely need to be replaced eventually, and more likely to be sooner than later.

 So if a person’s machine is slow, take the side cover off the desktop machine and see if there's lots of dust in there.  If there is, blow it out with an air compressor.  If there is no available air compressor, one could perhaps be borrowed from a friend or neighbour.  One may also purchase a can of air from a computer store like BestBuy or FutureShop.  A good can of compressed air will probably cost about $10 - $12.  A trip to Costco could yield a six pack of compressed air for $20, it is too cheap and probably not the best stuff. 

Ways to Make Money With Your Computer

 

There are plenty of ways to spend money online.  What may surprise you sometimes is that there seems no end to the Get-Rich-Quick schemes one can find either.  But even if you don't want to get rich "quick" there are still lots of ways to just "make money" online.

 

If you do a StartPage search of "ways to make money online" you'll discover a whole host of ways and means to make money with promises of everything from making a decent second income to allusions of possible 6 or 7 figure yearly incomes. 

I'm going to go over just a few of them here today, along with my personal comments.

Perhaps like many of you I have tried a few schemes in my life to make money besides the traditional working-for-someone-else plan that many do today.

Now that we have entered the "Information Age" it is so easy to find ways to make money online in ways you probably never dreamed of.  And all you need is a recent vintage of computer, an internet connection, and some imagination and some effort, and you can make a lot of money.

 

In no particular order, here are three ways I have personally seen people make money from the Internet...

 

Send-Out-Cards - I personally know a lady in the town where I live (Nanaimo, BC) who has affirmed she and her husband make well over $100,000 per year sending out greeting cards.  She has been doing it since 2004 and has paid off her mortgage, her car, and pays for most things with cash.  I'm not sure what her initial start-up cost was, but I know it wasn't much compared to what she earns today.  Greeting cards are always nice to get; they usually bring a smile to my face before I even open them, no matter who they are from.  This lady loves the way she earns a living, and it shows.

 

Banners Broker - This company was introduced to me in April 2012, and I have since met several people who are making money with it online.  It involves purchasing and selling internet advertising traffic.  Google Ads is a similar business.  But those who are into it see it as like a slow-moving internet game of making money where you are actually playing with real money.  I personally know two people who signed up for BannersBroker.com in 2012 and are now withdrawing over $2500 per week into their pockets.

 

Article writing is a great way to get started making money online.  There are no startup costs other than a computer and internet connection, and you can be up and running in mere minutes.  There is a bit of a learning about things like Search Engine Optimization, aka "SEO" and keywords, and you will need to be patient. In time, this can be a pretty good source of passive income.  Here's a list of ideas you can blog about.

 

There are lots of ways to make money online and these mentioned here barely scratch the surface.  Do some research, and - if you are diligent - I'm certain you can find something that you can do if you are willing.

 

I'll write more on making money on line at a later date.  Until then...

 

Happy Computing!

 

Big Mike Nanaimo

http://bigmikecomputerservices.ca

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is Antivirus Enough Security?

Original story: Tim McGrath

The Washington Post, the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal all suffered significant security breaches during 2012.  All were running anti-virus software that failed.
It is reported by an anonymous IT worker: “They had the ability to get around to different servers and hide their tracks. They seemed to have the ability to do anything they wanted on the network.”
CNN Money reports: “During a four-month long cyberattack by Chinese hackers on the New York Times,  the company’s antivirus software missed 44 of the 45 pieces of malware installed by attackers on the network.”

If this happens to large world renowned newspapers, what is a Small Medium Business (SMB) suppose to do?

Experts say that antivirus software is still a good, basic thing to have. Owning an antivirus solution is like putting the Club in your car — it’s not going to stop a determined thief, but it’s going to make stealing your stuff more difficult.   The amazing thing is I have heard the manager of a 65 store chain insist that their 5 year old router and anti-virus software is ‘all the protection we need’ !!
When reading a report on Email based Malware in July 2012 “… focus on most this report is the atrociously low detection rate for these spammed malware samples. On average, antivirus software detected these threats about 22 percent of the time on the first day they were sent and scanned at virustotal.com. If we take the median score, the detection rate falls to just 17 percent. That’s actually down from last months’s average and median detection rates, 24.47 percent and 19 percent, respectively.”

“That’s a stunning wake-up call to people and businesses who think they are fully protected by their antivirus software. “
“Even the most modern version of antivirus software doesn’t give consumers or enterprises what they need to compete in the hacker world,” said Dave Aitel, CEO of security consultancy Immunity . “It’s just not as effective as it needs to be.”

Solution:
First thing to do, get a preliminary security assessment! The security auditor will check a lot more than just if you have anti-virus.

Story by Tim McGrath  http://its-secure.ca/blog/anti-virus-software-that-failed

For more information locally regarding your security, call Big Mike Computer Services in the north end of Nanaimo today:

240-740-1812

http://www.bigmikecomputerservices.ca

Happy Computing!

Can't Boot? Try Unplugging All USB Devices.

Today I was called to check out a computer that would not boot.

As it turned out, the problem was that he had a USB printer attached that was powered. It happened to be a Canon Pixma printer that was plugged into the wall for power and p...lugged into the laptop via USB.

Here's the deal. USB ports are powered. Not only that, but many of today's printers have card readers, which show up as drive letters on your machine. So what happened in this case was that the laptop was looking to be booted from a USB device such as a USB stick or cd-rom, OR another media drive like Compaq Flash or SD chip, etc. See how that works?

Nowadays USB sticks have all but replaced external DVD-RW as the primary or secondary bootable device. From the factory these little ACER ONEs are set to look to boot from a USB device, and if nothing is there to boot from it usually next tries to boot off the hard drive. Sometimes the next boot device might be to boot off the LAN or network.

In my case today, it hung looking to boot from a USB drive letter that had nothing to give back. As soon as we unplugged the USB printer and rebooted the machine, it booted up just fine as normal.

Check out my website: http://www.bigmikecomputerservices.ca/

Happy Computing!
Big Mike

Where Did 2012 Go?

Hard to believe it's 2013 already. I was so busy in 2012 I didn't get much chance to blog.  Happy New Year (x2), Happy Valentines Day (x2), Merry Christmas (x1) and Happy Easter (x2), etc.!

Now it's Spring, and with it comes a time of cleansing.  Bring your dusty PC to Big Mike Computer Services in Nanaimo and have the dust blown out for free.  Call 250-740-1812 to book your appointment.  While you're there, have Big Mike put your machine on the bench for a quick check up.

Big Mike Computer Services is located at 6132 Mystic Way, Nanaimo, BC.

We do hardware upgrades, virus removal, malware removal, RAM upgrades, tweaks, troubleshoots and transfers.  Need your data backed up or recovered?  Call Big Mike today.

250-740-1812