Listen to the Internet on your Alarm Clock

At first glance Aluratek’s Internet Radio alarm clock with built in Wi-Fi looks like an ordinary alarm clock, Unlike run of the mill clock, however , it connects to your home network to aces more than 11000 channels of internet radio, and it can also connect to a library of tunes on your PC.

Sound is decent but a bit tinny-as you’d expect from an alarm clock. True audiophiles may be disappointment.

Still, this radio is fun to use. If you’re bored with the offerings on your FM radio, the Alurateck Internet Radio alarm clock can expand your musical options.

Intel Will Release New Core Chips in Late 2008

High-end Laptops and desktops could become faster and more power efficient when Intel releases CPUs that are built around its new Nehalem micro architecture late this year.

Initially the company will target the chips, to be called Core i7, at power desktops and workstations, But scaled –down versions will eventually appear for consumer desktops and laptops; thy will be upgrades from Intel’s current Core 2 chips.

Nehalem is supposed to eliminate bottlenecks found in Intel’s earlier Core Micro architecture, thereby improving system speed and per-watt performance.

“Nehalem is going to be about more performance, and people always wants more performance,”Nathan Brookwood, principal analyst at insight 64, notes.

Down the line, Intel will integrate graphics capabilities with the CPU. That strategy should bring more power efficiency, particularly to laptops, since as a result an integrated graphics chipset will no longer be necessary. However, gamers will still need discrete graphics card to achieve the best graphics performance.” If you look at what Intel is doing towards desktops and laptops chips by integrating graphics that could very well reduce power consumption.”Brookwood says.

Nehalem chips will still carry the Core brand name, but Intel will omit the numeric reference to 2 for its mainstream desktops and laptops. “The Core i7 brand is the first of several new identifiers”, says Intel spokesperson George Alfs.

Packing between two and eight processor cores, the first Nehalem chips will include Quick path interconnect (QPI) technology, which integrates a memory controller and provides a faster pipeline for the CPU to communicate with system components such as the graphics card and other chips. Each Core will able to execute two software threats at a time- so a desktop with four processor cores, for example , could run eight threads simultaneously for quicker application performance.

Calibrate Your HDTV to High-Def Perfection

You spent a lot of money on your fancy new HDTV, but the set’s picture probably isn’t as good as it could be. If you want to see exciting sports events and movies that look the way the broadcaster and filmmakers intended, you need to calibrate your HDTV.

Fine-tuning your picture with just your eyeballs and instincts is theoretically possible. But if you want to get it right, you should use a DVD based calibration tool. You likely already have THX optimizer, since it comes on every commercial DVD bearing a THX logo. But you don’t have all of it. Some of the optimizer’s tests require special blue glasses that you must buy through mail order from THX.com. The glasses cost only $2 Plus an additional $2.50 for shipping and handling.

THX offers a decent set of test patterns, although they’re not as complete and well explained as some stand alone products. Nor are the written instructions as helpful as the narrated ones on stand-alone discs.

Not surprisingly, considering THX’s background in cinematic audio, the optimizer can also assist in setting up your home theater’s surround-sound system.

Imaging Science Foundation’s $30 HDTV calibration Wizard (imagingscience.com) is a tool co-created by Imaging Science, Microsoft, and monster cable. The disc walks you through calibration without using a bunch of unnecessary tech jargon.

The Wizard uses live video instead of test patterns; the clips are easier to look at, and thy give you a better sense of what your TV’s picture will look like. For instance, to set the black level, you get a close-up of man’s black shirt and coat, and you simple adjust the setting until you can se the difference between two.

Once you get the TV right for the DVD input, jot down those video settings on a piece of paper; then reenter them for each of the other inputs, tweaking them a little as needed until the image looks as good as possible.

Unmountable Boot Volume Error Message

Computer Crashes, they seem to happen at the most inconvenient times. Always when you need the computer the most. I've run across this boot error message many times since Windows XP was released and luckily most of the time this problem can be solved with a few simple steps.

Basically the error means that Windows XP is having trouble booting from Drive C. Following the steps below, you should be able to troubleshoot this problem and get your computer back and running.

Causes of Unmountable Boot Volume

Many times this error occurs when I have swapped a hard drive and used the wrong IDE cable to connect it. If your computer uses an Ultra Direct Memory Access (UDMA) hard disk controller, and you use a standard 40-wire connector cable to connect the UDMA drive, you may experience this error. Make sure you are using the correct IDE cable.

Also, if your BIOS settings are configured to force the faster UDMA modes, this error may occur. In this situation, restart your computer and enter the BIOS and load the "fail-safe" default settings and reboot.

If neither of these issues are the cause for the Unmountable Boot Volume, then the issue most likely is caused by a damaged BOOT.INI file in the root directory of the boot drive or file system corruption.

Follow the steps below to correct these file system issues:

1) Start your computer with your Windows XP CD-ROM, or with Wnodws XP Boot Disks.
2) When the Welcome to Setup screen appears, press R to Repair the installation using the Recovery Console
3) If you have a dual-boot or multiple-boot computer, select the Windows installation you want to access
4) Type the administrator password when you are prompted, if no administrator password is set then just press Enter
5) At the command prompt, type CHKDSK /R and then press Enter
6) Once CHKDSK has finished checking and repairing the hard drive, type EXIT and press Enter to restart your computer

If this procedure does not work, repeat it and use the fixboot command in step 5 instead of the chkdsk /r command. FIXBOOT writes a new partition boot sector to the system partition. The fixboot command is only available when you are using the Recovery Console.

Dell’s Slick Studio Hybrid Pc

Dell’s new studio hybrid makes a strong impression with its stylish design, and its price will make you take notice too. A basic configuration starts at $499 without monitor; configuration with a 19 inch LCD cost $1064.

Dell bills the studio hybrid as being 80 percent smaller than a typical desktop. To achieve this feat of miniaturization, the Hybrid uses notebook-computer components. The Test configuration had a2.1 GHz core 2 Duo T8100 CPU, 2GB of memory , a 250 GB Hard drive , and Intel mobile 965 Express Chipset integrated Graphics. The system isn’t expandable, so it has no graphics option beyond the integrated Intel Graphics.

What’s most noteworthy about this system is that you don’t pay premium for the miniaturized design.

What’s least noteworthy is the machine’s performance. It mustered a score of only 79 on our World Bench 6 tests, tying the mark garnered by the HP Touch Smart IQ506, which likewise uses notebook components; neither of these systems is in the same league as value PCs configured desktop guts. Graphics performance was weak as well: the studio Hybrid failed to muster playable frame rates on either of gaming tests.

The studio Hybrid Blah performance limits its versatility, but the idea of having stylish, unobtrusive system to connect to my television appeals to me. Suddenly, using a PC as a digital video recorder seems plausible.

Unlock Your Mobile Phone

If you travel internationally , you can save money by buying a local, prepaid SIM card and swapping it into your phone,instead of paying high roaming rates to your U.S cellular provider. Most U.S phones, however , are locked to a single carrier and function only with SIM cards from that company. Here's how to unlock your mobile handset for use on any GSM network.
First try to find a free code online that might unlock the phone. You can visit unlockitfree.com
or bilemo.com/unlock or you can being by searching for your phone model online, using terms such as "Nokia 6820b free unlock code" You will be prompted on such sites to enter phone's unique |ME| number (usually found under the battery), the model , And your carrier. With that data, the site will generate several codes and instractions for typing them into the handset.
I recommend trying the first code returned at a few sites (since they can generate different results), instead of running though a full list of codes at one site.
If you unsuccessful, try following the same process at a paid site , such as mobilecodez.com

Toyota and Sony Develop a Personal Transporter

Toyota is developing a Segway-like personal transportation device called the Winglet, partly based on robotics technology from sony.
The Winglet looks like a slimmed-down version of the Segway.It can carry an average size person a littile over 6 miles at a speed of arround 3.7 mph. Toyota hopes to see commecialization of it in the early 2010s.
The smallest model weights about 22 pounds and has a range of just over 3miles. The medium and large versions both weight about 26 pounds and have double the range. Sll hsve a cruising speed of 3.7 mph-a brisk walking pace. In comparison, the Segway i2 Weighs 106 pounds , can travel up to 24 miles, and has a top speed of12 mph.

Flip Mino captures clear, sharp Video clips.

Pure digital has made video posting easier than ever with the $180 Flip Mino, the latest model in the Flip series of pocket camcorders. If you have used the Flip Video or the flip ultra, you will know how to operate the Mino; even its new features are easy for a first time user to master. The Mino adds touch sensitive controls, but they may be too touchy for some users. In our testing we found it easy to play back or delete clips accidentally by brushing a finger against the buttons.

Also new on the Mino is the location of the flip out USB jack on the top of the device .It makes the Mino slightly less unwieldy to plug into your computer’s USB port. When connected, the Mino can upload clips directly to AOL Video, my space, or you Tube; you also use the USB connector to charge the device battery (it has no power cord). Thanks to a new Video engine, the Mino produces great looking SVGA resolution (640 by 480) MPEG-4 AVI Clips at a frame rate of 30 frames per second. And even in indoor settings with mediocre lighting, The Mino still turns out clear, sharp clips.

The Flip Mino is more expensive than its rivals, such as the $100 creative Vado, but you get what you pay for.

The Mino offers superior Video quality (and it’s compatible with Macs, too) making it worth the extra scratch.

Why doesn’t Vista’s System Restore actually restore the system?

Poor disaster recovery is one of windows Vista’s most vexing problems. some utilities-usually big security suites that must be on at all times to protect you—interfere with system restore.

One work around is to run system restore in Safe mood. Reboot your PC and press before windows start loading (you may need a few tries to get the timing right).Select Safe mood. Once Windows is up, try system restore.

Is a long time solution available? Not really. Uninstalling your security software might help. But there’s no guarantee, and you will need to replace that software with something else. Trying to uninstall it is probably not worth the trouble unless the program is giving you a lot of other problems.

Disabling and re-enabling System Restore as a possible fix. But do that only after you have successfully restored you system or completely given up, as that action erases all of your existing restore points. If you are ready to give it try, here’s how:

v Click start, type sysdm.cpl and press

v In the resulting system properties dialog box, click the system protection tab.

v You will see the available Disks list. Uncheck all discs that are checked.

v When you attempt to uncheck C: a warning will come up asking if you really want to turn off system restore. Click Turn System Restore Off.

v Back in system properties, click Apply. Wait while windows processes that command.

v Recheck the box next to C: and then click Apply again.

v Click creates to make a new restore point. You should be set for your next emergency.

Unlock Vista’s Hidden Boot Screen

If you are sick of staring at the same old startup screen every time your Windows Vista PC churns into action, you are not alone. From now on you can unlock an alternative Vista boot screen with just a click of the mouse.

Windows Vista has a hidden boot screen that you can activate, and it’s totally different. Instead of the boring progress bar, you will see a soft aurora against a black background.

Click start, type msconfig in the search field, and press After you click through the UAC prompt, as system configuration window will open. Select the Boot Tab.

In the Boot Tab, check the box marked no GUI boot. Click Apply and then OK. Windows will prompt you to restart the PC, so click restart.

The next time your computer reboots, you will see the aurora screen with a black background and the text “Starting Windows Vista” at the bottom. If you decide to restore the original startup screen, just go back into the system configuration tool and uncheck the No GUI boot option.

Titan's Better Backup

It can't create partition images, but neobyte solution's $40 Titan backup does just about everything else;backup files (including ones you have open), compress backups to .Zip files or to excutable .zip archives, and secure them with 256-bit AES encryption.Options include the ability to run other software before and after backups and the ability to remember log-in information for backing up to prtected network locations. I had no problems backing up to network folders, flash drives, CDs, or DVDs-or via FTP.
The excellent Titan interface intuitively combines tabbed dialog boxes and step-by-step wizards. Alas, it's now competing with the feature-rich Nova Backup,which costs only $10 more.

5 Downloads to make your Wi-Fi life easier

At home, at work, and on the road, you can often connect to Wi-Fi networks and hotspots for internet access. Here are some free or cheap software tools to help you find safe Wi-Fi networks and protect yourself against snoops.

WeFi (Free) We-Fi presents you with a map showing all nearby hotspots that you can connect to it also tells you whether the networks are encrypted or open, and notes their signal strengths. Double click any hot spot shown on the map connect. if you want to meet up with people who are connect to hotspots near you, click the people tab , and you’ll see list of folks nearby. You can then obtain more information about any of them, and contact them as well.

Plug and Browse ($40, free demo) If you regularly connect to more than one wireless or wired network-one at home and one at work, for example you know that a new connection fails if your adapter is stuck on the old settings. This exceedingly simple tool permits you to create and use predefined network settings profiles for each network that you visit

Wi-Fi Guardian (trial for 30 days ;$5 per 1 GB transferred) This program sets up a virtual private network (VPN) for you when you connect at hotspot, or when you want to protect you wireless transmissions. Run the software, log in, and choose a server(Currently in the US and UK), and everything you do will be hidden through encryption.

Xirrus Wi-Fi Monitor (Free) If you use both windows Vista and Wi-fi, Xirrus Wi-Fi monitor may be one of the most useful vista tools you can download. It automatically displays your connection’s signal strength the SSID of the network you’re connected to, and your current IP address. Visually, in radar monitor fashion, it also displays the wireless network you’re connected to, as well as any other networks nearby.

To Make Easily Logo Or Banners

In different causes we need to make LOGO and BANNER,But if we don't have sufficent knowledge about photoshop or other graphics, it is difficult to make Logo or Banner.If you have Internet you can make logo or banner to take easily from website.Doing so go to www.text2logo.com
There is varities design of logo and banner To click here you will find new pages and here you can make easily logo of banner of your choise and then save it as image of jpg form.

Internet Privacy

What's so important about Internet Privacy?
Every time you open a browser to view a web page, order something online, or read your email in a web based viewer that information is stored on your computer for later use. Whether you are viewing the weather online, reading sports, catching up on the latest world news or viewing something a little more private, all that information is stored in your computer. Windows operating systems store all this material in what are called Temporary Internet Files or cache. Web pages may store bits of information about who you are when you visit web sites in files called cookies on your computer. Your web browser will store a list of web sites you've visited and places you've gone in a history file in your computer. Even if you are not online, programs will store histories of the files you've opened, played, or viewed.

Generally there might not be any reason to worry about all these files in your computer, but what if you sell your computer and all that information is left for someone else to see. Maybe friends and relatives visit and use your computer and you dont want everyone to know what files you are running on your computer. Then you are going to want to know how to delete these files.

Even if you are not worried about privacy on your computer, you may be surprised to realize how much hard drive space all this information takes up. If you are running out of drive space, you may want to delete these files.

How can I delete these files?

For Internet Explorer 5 and above, you can follow these directions to clear out temporary files and delete cookies.

1) Open Internet Explorer and click on Tools
2) Click on Internet Options
3) On the General Tab, in the middle of the screen, click on Delete Files
4) You may also want to check the box "Delete all offline content"
5) Click on OK and wait for the hourglass icon to stop after it deletes the temporary internet files
6) You can now click on Delete Cookies and click OK to delete cookies that websites have placed on your hard drive.

To clear the Internet History in IE:

1) Open Internet Explorer and click on Tools
2) Click on Internet Options
3) On the General Tab, in the middle of the screen, click on Clear History
4) Click OK

To clean up other temporary files on your computer in Windows 98 or higher:

1) Click Start, Programs (or All Programs), Accessories, System Tools, Disk Cleanup
2) Choose the correct drive usually C:\
3) Check the boxes in the list and delete the files

How to Delete Your Windows Vista Logon Password

How to Remove Your Windows Vista Logon Password
When Windows Vista first installs, it asks you for a password for your account. Then each time you log onto the computer you have to type the password in before you can access Windows Vista.

This security feature is nice to keep your information separate and private from the other users on the computer. However if you are the only user on your PC and the password prompt is annoying, you may want to consider removing the password and bypassing the logon process altogether.

Listed below you'll find the simple and quick procedure for removing your Vista password.
) Click on Start, then Click on Control Panel

2) Click on the User Accounts and Family Safety link

NOTE: if you are in the Classic View of Control Panel, you won't see this link, continue on to step 3

3) Click on the User Accounts option

4) In the "Make changes to your user account" section, click the Remove your Password link for the user.

5) On the next screen, enter your current password

6) Click the Remove Password button to confirm that you would like to remove your account password.

7) Close the User Accounts window

8) Restart your computer and test the system.

Now that your Windows Vista user password has been removed, you will no longer need to log inot Windows Vista. Instead when your computer starts, it will now continue loading through to your desktop automatically.

Master/Slave Settings vs. Cable Select

Although I covered most of the ways to speed up Windows boot time in another article, I encountered a unique roadblock recently that made me write this article.

During the last week I was asked by a customer to upgrade one of their office computers from Windows 98SE to Windows XP. Normally this is pretty standard, however because their current hard drive was only a 20GB with a gig or so remaining I wanted to upgrade their hard drive as well.

I proceeded to ghost the drive to a larger hard drive and then installed an upgrade version of Windows XP on top of Windows 98 to preserve all of their settings and programs.

Everything went flawlessly, until I was finished...
After I completed the Windows XP upgrade, I shut down the computer completely and restarted it. The computer took FOREVER to boot into Windows XP. It was literally 2 minutes before I saw the Windows XP logo screen and another 30 seconds more before the desktop appeared. This was definitely a problem.

After checking multiple settings in the BIOS, I compared the old and new hard drives. Everything seemed to be normal, except one. The old hard drive was setup to Cable Select and as my normal routine I had set the new hard drive as a Master drive. I changed the new hard drive to Cable Select, rebooted the computer, and the Windows logo screen came on seconds after the POST screen as before. Therefore, I have to add one more item to my list of ways to make Windows boot faster. Try changing the hard drive from Master to Cable Select, check the boot up speed and switch back to Master if you don't see a change.

Master/Slave Settings

Now for a refresher course on hard drive connections. When connecting more than one hard drive to a computer on the same IDE controller, you generally have to assign one as the primary (master) and one as the secondary (slave). You do this by changing the jumpers on the hard drive next to the power connector. Normally, the drive will have a diagram to let you know which jumper should be set for a master drive and which to set for a slave drive. You'll notice in the picture below the jumpers are circled on the end of the drive and the top of the drive shows the diagram to follow.

Master/Slave Settings

After changing the jumpers, connect the hard drive cable from the motherboard to the hard drives. Under normal circumstances, the end of the drive cable attaches to the Master hard drive, while the inside connector on the cable connects to the Slave drive.


What About Cable Select?

Cable Select (CS) settings were designed to make it easier to connect hard drives because you didn't need to bother with setting the Master/Slave jumpers. You just connect the drives and depending on where you connected them to the cable the computer would know which is Master and which is Slave...in theory. Now comes the confusing part.

With cable select, you first needed a special 40 conductor IDE cable that would determine master/slave connections. This was different from the normal IDE cables at the time. Also, the Master connector on CS cables was the inside connector not the end connector. This made for a very confusing switch from everyday master/slave configurations.

80 conductor Ultra DMA cables WILL determine the Master/Slave settings through Cable Select however. So as technology advances, Cable Select as a concept may still catch on. With the newer Ultra DMA cables, you can set both drives to Cable Select (CS), connect them and they will work. Another change with the 80 conductor cables, the Master connector is on the end of the cable where it should be. In situations where you are using a newer Ultra DMA drive and cable, you can use Cable Select or standard Master/Slave jumper settings and the drive will boot properly.

In my scenario to start this article, the change from Master/Slave to Cable Select for this particular computer reduced the Windows boot time by more than 2 minutes.

How to Delete Undeletable Files in Windows

Many times when trying to remove an unwanted program, especially a piece of adware or spyware, you may run across a file that is undeletable by any normal method. When you try to remove it you'll receive the error message shown below telling you "access denied" and explaining the file may be in use. You may also receive one of the following messages.

Cannot delete file: Access is denied
There has been a sharing violation.
The source or destination file may be in use.
The file is in use by another program or user.
Make sure the disk is not full or write-protected and that the file is not currently in use.


So if the file is in use, how do you delete it?

I'll show you several ways of removing these types of files and even some freeware programs that help you remove these pesky undeletable files.

Windows 95/98/ME

If you are using Windows 95, 98, or Windows ME, the easiest way to remove an undeleteable file is to boot to a DOS prompt and manually delete the file. Before you do this, you'll want to make a note of the location of the file including the entire path to it. Follow the steps below to delete these types of files.

If you already know the path to the file, please skip to Step 7

1. Click on Start, Find, Files and Folders
2. Type the name of the undeletable file in the Named or Search For box
3. Make sure the Look In box shows the correct drive letter
4. Click on Find Now or Search Now and let the computer find the file
5. Once the file is located, right-click on it and choose properties, make a note of the file location. Usually this is something similar to
   
   c:\windows\system32\undeleteablefilesname.exe
   
6. Close the search box
7. Locate a boot disk for your version of Windows, if you do not have a boot disk, follow the steps on the link below to create an emergency boot disk.
   
   How to Create an Emergency Boot Disk for Windows
   
   
8. Shut down and restart your computer with the boot disk in your floppy drive.
9. The computer will boot to a DOS prompt that will look similar to
   
   c:\
   
   
10. Type the following command and press Enter to delete the filer, substituting the phrase with the actual path and file name you discovered in Step 5 above.
    
    del
    
    Example:
    
    del c:\windows\undeleteablefile.exe
    
11. Remove the boot disk in the floppy drive and restart your computer
12. The file should now be deleted.

Windows XP

In Windows XP, there are a couple ways to remove an undeleteable file, a manual way, and a couple automated ways using some freeware programs. First, I'll show you the manual way.

Manual Method

If you already know the path to the file, please skip to Step 7

1. Click on Start, Search, All Files and Folders
2. Type the name of the undeletable file in the box shown
3. Make sure the Look In box shows the correct drive letter
4. Click Search and let the computer find the file
5. Once the file is located, right-click on it and choose properties, make a note of the file location. Usually this is something similar to
   
   c:\windows\system32\undeleteablefilesname.exe
   
   
6. Close the search box
7. Click on Start, Run, and type CMD and Press Enter to open a Command Prompt window
8. Leave the Command Prompt window open, but proceed to close all other open programs
9. Click on Start, Run and type TASKMGR.EXE and press Enter to start Task Manager
10. Click on the Processes tab, click on the process named Explorer.exe and click on End Process.
11. Minimize Task Manager but leave it open
12. Go back to the Command Prompt window and change to the directory where the file is located. To do this, use the CD command. You can follow the example below.
    
    Example: to change to the Windows\System32 directory you would enter the following command and Press Enter
    
    cd \windows\system32
    
    
13. Now use the DEL command to delete the offending file. Type DEL where is the file you wish to delete.
    
    Example: del undeletable.exe
    
14. Use ALT-TAB to go back to Task Manager
15. In Task Manager, click File, New Task and enter EXPLORER.EXE to restart the Windows shell.
16. Close Task Manager
    

Programs to automatically delete a file

Remove on Reboot Shell Extension

This is a nice extension that loads into the right click menu. All you have to do is right-click on a file and choose "Remove on Next Reboot" and the file will be deleted the next time the computer restarts. Although it probably should only be used by more advanced computer users since it may be TOO easy to delete files using this program.

Pocket Killbox

A simple .exe file that you can use to delete undeleteable files, although the program will also delete temporary files, edit the HOSTS file, and more. A definite must have program when you are fighting an annoying spyware or adware program that won't remove.

Unlocker

Unlocker is another program that runs from the right click menu. Its simple and very effective. The website even has a side by side comparision of other programs that accomplish this task.

Using one of the three tools shown above, you should be able to remove those annoying undeleteable files once and for all.

How to Set Yahoo As Your Default Email Program

If you use web-based email like Yahoo or Gmail, you know the biggest drawback occurs when you click on a link on a web page to email someone and you realize the default email program on your computer is not the web based email one. Instead of opening Yahoo Mail, Outlook Express or some other client-side email program opens. Of course, if you have Yahoo Mail Plus, you could setup Outlook Express or any other default email application to use it. But is there a simple way to set your default email application to Yahoo Mail or Gmail.

There are actually two ways to accomplish this, unfortunately only one way works in both Windows XP and Windows Vista. If you follow the steps below you should be able to use the mailto links on a web page to email someone easily.

Using Yahoo Messenger

The first way to set Yahoo as your default email program is to install Yahoo Messenger. Yahoo Messenger can be download at http://messenger.yahoo.com. If its installed correctly it will set Yahoo as your default email application. You will need to install the Browser Services option to make this work properly. Without the browser services installed, you still cannot set Yahoo Mail as your default.


Once Yahoo Messenger is installed, follow these steps to set the default email program.

1) Open Control Panel
2) Double-click on Internet Options
3) Click on the Program tab
4) Select Yahoo Mail from the drop down list (as shown below)


5) Click Ok
6) Close Control Panel

Unfortunately, this procedure DOES NOT work with Windows Vista computers.

Using YAttach!

YAttach! is a free simple to install program developed by a fellow named Chris Wood. It was created to allow someone to attach files to Yahoo Mail but works great at opening Yahoo Mail with a new message window all filled out when you click a mailto link on a web page. YAttach works in Windows XP and Windows Vista.



Yattach! sets itself as the default email program in Windows and will work in Internet Explorer, Firefox, and other browsers. When you click on a mailto link you'll see a window pop up similar to the one below, then it will open Yahoo Mail and create a new message with the To: field already filled in.


Sometimes, the program will appear to hang at the screen above instead of opening Yahoo Mail. This issue can be easily resolved by logging into Yahoo Mail and choosing the option to "keep me signed in".

YAttach! is the easiest to use program to allow web based email programs the ability to send documents directly from your computer or intercept mailto links clicked on web pages.

Download YAttach!

There is also a program called GAttach! that accomplishes the same thing for Gmail. My only complaint about that version is that it creates a message in the drafts folder instead of opening a new message window. Because of that issue, I prefer the Gmail Notifier. During the installation of the Gmail Notifier be sure to check the box for "use for outgoing email".

How Can I Remove the Grum Trojan from my system?

What is the Win32.Grum.a Trojan?
An email disguised as a Internet Explorer download from admin@microsoft.com contains a Trojan downloader that infects the computer with a virus named Win32.Grum.

Hijackthis shows the trojan horse adds the following information or similar lines to the Windows registry

O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [Firewall auto setup] C:\DOCUME~1\User\LOCALS~1\Temp\winlogon.exe

The infected file is stored in the Temp directory under Local Settings for the logged in User, and is autostarted in the following registry locations:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

How Can I Remove the Grum Trojan from my system?

1) Disable System Restore

2) Restart in Safe Mode

3) Once in Safe mode, click on Start, Run

4) Type REGEDIT and press Enter

5) Navigate to the appropriate registry section by clicking on the plus signs (+) next to

• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
• Software
• Microsoft
• Windows
• CurrentVersion
• Run

6) Right-click and delete the following entry in the right-hand side

Firewall auto setup = %User Temp%\winlogon.exe"

%UserTemp% is the Temp folder usually in the following location
c:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Local Settings\Temp

7) Repeat Step 5-6 above for the following location as well

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

8) Close the Registry Editor

9) Restart the computer in Normal Mode

9) Scan your computer with online virus scanner like Housecall, BitDefender, or eTrust or download and install an antivirus program and run a complete scan. A list of online scanners is below, some however will only scan but not remove issues.

10) Open My Computer, Right-click on Drive C, click on Properties, and click Disk Cleanup to delete other temp files

11) Turn System Restore Backup on

How To Repair Damaged or Corrupted Thumbs.db Files

Thumbs.db files can sometimes become damaged or corrupted which can cause some very specific problems in Windows.

Sometimes one or more damaged or corrupted thumbs.db files can cause problems when navigating around folders with multimedia content or they could be the cause of error messages like "Explorer caused an invalid page fault in module Kernel32.dll" and similar messages.

Repairing thumbs.db files is a pretty simple task considering Windows will regenerate the file when the particular folder it's contained in is viewed in the "Thumbnails" view.

Follow these easy steps to repair thumbs.db files.

Difficulty: Easy

Time Required: Repairing thumbs.db files usually takes less than 15 minutes

Here's How:

1. Open the folder that you suspect the damaged or corrupted thumbs.db file to be contained in.

2. Locate the thumbs.db file. If you can not see the file, your computer may be configured to not show hidden files. If that is the case, change the folder options to allow the display of hidden files.

3. Once the thumbs.db file is located, right click on it and choose Delete.

   Note: If you can not delete the file, you may need to change the folder view to something other than the Thumbnail view. To do this, click on View and then choose either Tiles, Icons, List, or Details. Depending on your version of the Windows operating system, some of these options may vary slightly.

1. To recreate the file, click on View and then Thumbnails from the menu in the folder that you deleted the thumbs.db file from. This will initiate the Thumbnails view and will automatically create a new copy of the thumbs.db file.

Tips:

1. Windows Vista does not use the thumbs.db file. The thumbnail database thumbcache_xxxx.db in Windows Vista is centrally located in the \Users\[username]\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer folder.

What to Do When XP or 2000 Won't Boot

If Windows XP (or 2000) refuses to start, press F8 right after you turn on your PC but before the Windows log-on appears (it may take a few attempts to get the timing right). At the resulting menu, select Last Known Good Configuration to restore your Registry to an earlier date.

If this doesn't get your PC working, reboot and press F8 again, but this time select Safe Mode, and then choose Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools, System Restore. Follow the wizard's instructions and pick an appropriate backup.

If that approach doesn't work either, or if you can't even get to this menu, use your emergency boot floppy. If your hard drive's boot sector or Windows' basic boot files have been corrupted, this disk will circumvent the problem and boot you into Windows. If you don't have an emergency boot floppy, you may be able to use one created on another PC running Windows XP or Windows 2000, but there's no guarantee that it will boot your machine.

To make one, insert a blank floppy disk into drive A:, select Start, All Programs, Accessories, Command Prompt, type format a:, and press Enter. When asked if you want to format another disk, type n and press Enter. Type the following commands, pressing Enter after each one.

xcopy c:\boot.ini a: /h xcopy c:\ntdetect.com a: /h xcopy c:\ntldr a: /h

Now type exit and press Enter to close the window. Remove the floppy disk and label it "Windows XP boot floppy." Put this emergency disk in the floppy drive of your inoperable machine and boot up. Windows should run with no problems. You could simply keep the floppy in the drive all the time, but to truly fix the problem, launch the command prompt as described above, type xcopy a:*.* c:\ /h, and press Enter.

If the emergency boot floppy doesn't work, try the Recovery Console, a Windows utility that provides a DOS-like command line from which you can run some repair programs. It's tricky to use if you're not accustomed to command lines, and you can damage your data, so be careful.

If you have a Microsoft Windows CD-ROM, you can get to the Recovery Console by booting from that CD and pressing any key when you're told to 'Press any key to boot from CD'. At the 'Welcome to Setup' screen, press r for Repair.

If Windows XP or 2000 came with your computer and you don't have a Microsoft Windows CD-ROM, the Recovery Console might be on one of the CDs the vendor bundled with your PC. But it might not. Fortunately, the Recovery Console is hidden in a free, downloadable Microsoft program called Setup Disks for Floppy Boot Install. Visit Microsoft's site to download the setup-disk file that works with XP Professional; available too is the XP Home version, which will also work for Windows 2000, Me, and 98.

When you run the download, it puts the XP installation program, including the Recovery Console, onto a set of six floppy disks. To get to the Recovery Console, boot from the first floppy, and then swap disks as prompted until you reach the 'Welcome to Setup' screen. Press r to open the Recovery Console.

Figure 1 below shows a list of the Recovery Console's most useful commands. For detailed information on a particular command, type the command followed by a space and /?, as in chkdsk /?. (Not all the commands will be available if you don't have a Windows CD-ROM.)

Figure 1: Recovery Console Commands

Command	Function
Chkdsk1	Checks disks for errors.
Diskpart	Creates and deletes partitions.
Extract2	Extracts files from compressed.cab archives.
Fixboot	Writes a new boot sector.
Fixmbr	Writes a new master boot record.
Help	Lists the Recovery Console commands.
Footnotes: 1 If you load the Recovery Console from floppy disks, chkdsk may complain that it can't locate autochk.exe. When it asks for that file's location, point it to c:\windows\system32. 2 Extract is not available if you load the Recovery Console from floppy disks.

iPhone Review

How to Reinstall Windows Without Losing Your Data

Over time, Windows loses stability. If you keep a computer for more than two years, at some point you're going to have to bite the bullet and reinstall Windows from scratch. But contrary to popular belief, you won't have to reformat your hard drive (with one exception, discussed below). The bad stuff you need to get rid of is all in your Windows folder.

Before you begin, gather your Windows and application CD-ROMs. Back up your data files (just to be safe), and then clear two days off your calendar. If everything goes smoothly, you can reinstall Windows in a few hours. But you have to assume something will go wrong: You may not be able to find a necessary CD, or data won't be where you thought it was, or something will simply refuse to work.

There's a difference between a repair reinstall and a complete reinstall. Though a repair (also called a refresh) will let you keep your current settings, a complete reinstall will give you a truly fresh version of Windows. Repairs are fast and easy, but they don't fix anywhere near as many problems. The instructions below are for total reinstalls, except where noted.

Your Vendor's Restore CD

Most computers ship with a vendor-specific restore CD rather than with a Microsoft Windows CD-ROM. (If your PC came with a Microsoft Windows CD, or if you bought a retail copy of Windows, skip to the section for your version.)

Some restore CDs give you all the options of a full Microsoft Windows CD, but with better instructions and the convenience of having all the right hardware drivers. Others can do nothing except reformat your hard drive and restore it to the condition it was in when you bought the PC. (This case is the exception I mentioned above that requires a reformat.)

If your restore CD is reformat-only, back up your data files to a network or a removable medium before reinstalling Windows. If you use Windows 98 or Me, back up C:\My Documents, plus the folders inside C:\Windows discussed in the 98/Me section below. If you have Windows 2000 or XP, back up C:\Documents and Settings. Also back up any other folders in which you store your data files.

Windows 98 and ME CDs

These Windows versions keep some important data inside your soon-to-be-erased Windows folder, so you need to copy several of its subfolders to another location. Right-click My Computer and select Explore. Double-click the C: drive icon (in Me, you may then have to click View the entire contents of this drive). Right-click in the right pane and select New, Folder. Name the new folder oldstuff.

Go to the Windows folder (you might have to click View the entire contents of this folder), hold down Ctrl, and select the following subfolders: All Users, Application Data, Desktop, Favorites, Local Settings, Profiles, SendTo, and Start Menu. If you don't see them all, select View, Folder Options (Tools, Folder Options in Me), click the View tab, select Show all files, and click OK. (If you still don't see them all, don't worry about it.) Press Ctrl and drag the folders to C:\oldstuff (see FIGURE 1).

Restart Windows with a start-up disk in your floppy drive. (To make a start-up floppy, insert a disk, select Start, Settings, Control Panel, double-click Add/Remove Programs, click Startup Disk, Create Disk, and follow the prompts.) At the Startup Menu, select Start computer with CD-ROM support. While the drivers load, insert your Windows CD-ROM.

Unless you're doing a repair reinstall, type the command c:\windows\command\deltree /y c:\windows and press Enter. Deleting your old files could take time, but the /y switch suppresses confirmation prompts, so take a break.

When you're back at the A: prompt, type x:setup, where x is your CD drive letter (it's likely one letter past what it usually is in Windows, so if it's D: in Windows, it's probably E: here). Press Enter and follow the prompts.

Once you're back in Windows, reinstall your graphics card driver. If you have Windows set up for more than one user, you'll also have to re-create each account. Select Start, Settings, Control Panel, Users to do so. It's important that the user names match those in the old installation. If you're not sure, open Windows Explorer and navigate to C:\oldstuff\profiles. There you'll find a folder for each registered user name (see FIGURE 2). Don't worry about passwords. Log off and log back on as each user. When you're done, log off and back on one more time, but instead of choosing a user name and a password, press Esc to enter Windows without being a specific user.

Select Start, Programs, MS-DOS Prompt (in Windows 98) or Start, Programs, Accessories, MS-DOS Prompt (in Windows Me). Type xcopy c:\oldstuff\*.* c:\windows /s /h /r /c and press Enter (if you want to know what the xcopy switches do, enter the command xcopy /?). When xcopy asks if it should overwrite a file, press a for All.

When xcopy is through, reboot and log on (as a particular user, if necessary). Open My Documents to make sure all your personal files are where they belong, including your Internet Explorer favorites and your custom Start menu shortcuts.

Now skip ahead to "Finishing the Job."

Windows 2000 and XP CDs

Boot your computer with your Windows CD-ROM inserted. When you get the 'Press any key to boot from CD' message, do so. (If you don't see that message before Windows starts, restart Windows, press the key you're prompted to enter for your PC Setup program, and change the boot order so your CD drive is first.)

At the 'Welcome to Setup' screen, press Enter. The R (repair) option takes you to the Recovery Module, which is useful if Windows won't boot, but it's no help with a reinstallation. Soon you'll be told that there's already a Windows installation on the computer. Press r for a repair reinstall or Esc to begin a complete, destructive one. For a complete restore, select your C: partition and press Enter. When you get the warning that says an operating system is on that partition, press c. When you are asked your partition preference, select Leave the current file system intact (no changes). When you're told that a Windows folder (or Winnt folder for Windows 2000) already exists, press l ('ell') to delete it and create a new one. Follow the series of prompts. When the installation program asks for your name, enter temp.

Once the installation is complete, your system will reboot into Windows, and you'll be logged on as user Temp. If the screen is difficult to read, reinstall your graphics card driver.

If you are reinstalling Windows XP, skip to "For Both Windows XP and 2000."

If you're reinstalling Windows 2000, log off as Temp and back on as Administrator. Now log off and on again, this time as Temp. Open Windows Explorer and navigate to C:\Documents and Settings. One of the subfolders will be named Administrator. Another will be named something like Administrator.computername.

Select Start, Programs, Accessories, Command Prompt. Type cd "\documents and settings" and press Enter. Then type xcopy administrator\*.* administrator.computername /s /h /r /c, replacing computername with the last part of that folder's name (after "Administrator.") in Documents and Settings. Now press Enter, and when you're asked about overwriting files or folders, press a for All.

If you have any users on the old installation besides Administrator, continue with the "For Both Windows XP and 2000" section. Otherwise, open Windows Explorer and make sure your data files are where they belong. Then go to Control Panel's Users and Passwords applet and delete the user Temp before skipping to "Finishing the Job."

For Both Windows XP and 2000

Reopen Windows Explorer. Select your C: drive (you may have to click Show the contents of this folder). Right-click in the right pane and select New, Folder. Name the new folder oldstuff. In the left pane, choose the Documents and Settings folder. It should have subfolders for each user from the previous install, plus one for Temp and a few others. Move the folders for your previous user names to oldstuff.

Select Start, Control Panel, User Accounts (Start, Settings, Control Panel, Users and Passwords in Windows 2000). Create an account for each user who was registered before the reinstall. Be sure to use the exact names. They are the same names as the folders you just moved to oldstuff (as shown in FIGURE 2). In Windows XP, at least one user must have administrator privileges.

Log off and back on as each user, before logging back on as Temp. Make sure that you select Log Off and not Switch User at Windows XP's Log Off dialog box (this isn't an issue in Win 2000).

Log on as Temp, select Start, Programs, Accessories, Command Prompt (in XP, Start, All Programs, Accessories, Command Prompt), type xcopy c:\oldstuff\*.* "c:\documents and settings" /s /h /r /c, and press Enter. Press a when asked if you want to overwrite a file. Log off Temp and log on to each restored account to make sure everyone's documents and data are where they belong. Log on as an administrator and run Control Panel's User Accounts applet again to remove the user Temp.

Finishing the Job

Now you've got Windows going, but not much else. You may have to reinstall your printer, sound card, and so on. Luckily, if a driver for the gadget came on your Windows or vendor restore CD, it was probably reinstalled automatically.

You'll have to reinstall your applications to reintroduce them to Windows. Some of their settings will not be changed by the reinstallation, but those that were stored in the Registry were wiped out.

Once your Internet connection is running again, browse to Windows Update and download all critical updates for your version (see FIGURE 3). Then visit the sites of your hardware vendors to update your drivers.

After the reinstall, some of your data may not show up where it should. Search for it in both your Application Data and oldstuff folders, and see if you can move it to the folder in which Windows or your apps are looking for it. If you find a folder called Identities with two subfolders whose names are long and indecipherable, try moving the contents of one to the other and see if your data reappears.

You've probably guessed that the final step is deleting the c:\oldstuff folder--and the Administrator folder in Windows 2000. Make this the very last step, however. Wait a couple of days, weeks, or even months until you're confident that all of your needed files are accessible.

Computer Boot Problems

What to do?

It can be a heart-wrenching experience. You push that power button, and all hell breaks loose. Beeps, error messages, red X's, BSOD's (Blue Screen of Death) are everywhere. Or, even worse, nothing at all. Deadly silence. What's going on?

The first rule is to stay calm. Panicking, yelling, cursing and throwing things won't help - though it might make you feel better for a second. But to troubleshoot and resolve the problem, a clear head is imperative. Be systematic and approach the problem logically. The troubleshooting steps below will take a methodical approach to help you figure out why your PC is not booting correctly or not booting at all. Some of the steps might sound silly to you, but please don't ignore those steps! Every single problem and solution in this article has happened to somebody at some point. Most of them it takes only a few seconds to check, take the time to do so.

Nothing happens at all

Start with the power. Is the power cable plugged in correctly into a UPS, surge protector, power strip, or wall outlet? Is the wall outlet where the power comes from controlled by a wall switch that was turned off accidentally? Is the power strip turned on? Is the light on the UPS or power strip on, indicating that it has power? Is the power cable plugged into the back of the computer correctly? The socket on the back of the computer where the power cable goes in is part of the power supply in your PC. Some power supplies have a separate on/off switch, usually labeled 0/1. Is that switch turned on? Check the voltage - most power supplies have a switch to change between 115 and 230V - and make sure it is set correctly.

The power comes on but the monitor stays black

Is the power cable for the monitor plugged in correctly? Is the monitor turned on? Is the cable from the video card to the monitor plugged in correctly? Is the video card seated properly? Take the cover off of the case, remove the video card and insert it again properly, then try again.

If everything is connected and powered up correctly, push the power button again and pay close attention: do any lights on the front of the PC blink or light up? Does the fan in the power supply start whirring? This could indicate a hardware problem. Try to think what happened right before the problem started. Did you add a new piece of hardware? If so, it might be faulty or not installed right. Remove it, then try again. If everything is fine without the hardware, try to reinstall and configure the hardware again. If that does not help, try exchanging it and see if that corrects the problem. If the error persists, narrow it down systematically. Remove everything but the CPU, memory, keyboard, and video card, then boot again. Does the error still occur? If not, then add one piece of hardware and try again. Repeat until one new component causes the error and you now know who the culprit is. If yes, then reseat your CPU, memory and video card and try again. If the error still happens, try replacing the CPU, video card and memory one by one to see if one of them is the troublemaker. If that does not help, you could have a bad motherboard. Check the motherboard carefully for any signs of damage. Also check for shorts, a metallic object could have found its way onto the motherboard, or the motherboard is not installed correctly and touches the case somewhere.

Another possible cause could be incorrect CPU settings. If you replaced the CPU with a different one, be sure to choose the correct settings for multiplier and bus speed, either via jumpers on the motherboard or a menu in the BIOS. Consult the manual for the correct setup. If you can't even get into the BIOS to change the settings, use the jumper on the motherboard to clear the BIOS and load the default settings, it should allow you to boot.

Laptop SODIMM Swap - Testing Laptop Memory One Module At A Time

This set of photos of swapping SODIMM's is a web based illustration for The Laptop Repair Workbook. In many troubleshooting scenarios, it laptop memory will be tagged as a possible culprit. The only way to eliminate memory as a potential problem is to swap it out and see if the problem is fixed. Most laptop users don't have access to a pile of spare parts to play the swapping game, but in the case of memory, the spare may already be available in the laptop for you. This particular Dell running Windows 2000 was equipped with 512 MB of RAM. One screw removes the access panel so we can see what we have.

Sure enough, the laptop memory is split between two SODIMM's, 256 MB each. As the modules are facing each other in this design, you see a different side of each module in the picture to the right. Many designs have the two SODIMM's stacked over each other in a deeper bay, though the connectors are usually staggered a little so they aren't exactly in line. Many older laptops had some or all of the system memory soldered to the motherboard, which is a real drag if you're troubleshooting, or if a memory chip has indeed failed. Unless you have advanced soldering skills and decent equipment, replacing a surface mounted RAM DIMM is just not a likely repair.

aptop memory modules are held in place a little spring clip on either end. You can pretty much always spring them back so the SODIMM pops up on its own with just your fingernails for tools.Note the angle of the module to the left. That's it's unsprung, or relaxed position. You have to angle it about the same when you go to install it. If I kept raising the SODIMM until it flipped over the connector and sat on the other side, it would look just like the second module, with the label down. the two connectors are mirrored.


Top the left I'm pulling out the second memory module, you can see the two sided connector that it sits in pretty clearly. When you have two memory modules in a laptop, it may work with either memory slot filled, or one the design may require that one slot is always filled first. In this Dell, even though the slots are labeled "A" and "B", it turns out the laptop will run with either one filled. So it's a trivial matter to put one module aside and install the other. If you don't have multiple SODIMMs installed and don't know where to buy one, try the memory advisor at Crucial.

I've put aside the first SODIMM removed and I'm installing the second one from Slot A into Slot B. It turns out the laptop worked fine. So I took it out and put the other SODIMM in Slot A. Laptop still worked fine. So the problem with the video in this case had nothing to do with the memory. If I'd been troubleshooting a blue screen of death (BSOD) failure on overheating, I'd have run the laptop for a while with just one module, and if it didn't have problems, I'd have tried it for a while with the other.

The last thing you want to see when you open up your laptop to try a memory swap is permanently installed RAM. That's the deal with this older Toshiba to the left, the 256 MB of factory installed RAM is in the form of DIP chips soldered to the motherboard. There is a SODIMM memory slot in the foreground which allows you to upgrade the memory capacity, but it's usually not possible to bypass failed RAM on the motherboard. In other words, if one of those chips fails, adding a SODIMM to the system won't help unless there's some way to inform the BIOS to ignore the soldered RAM. I didn't find a jumper!

How To Disable Error Reporting in Windows XP

The error reporting feature in Windows XP is turned on by default but you may want to disable error reporting for privacy concerns, if you're not connected to the Internet all the time, or to simply stop being alerted by it.

Error reporting works by prompting you after a critical error in the operating system or in other programs and asking permission to notify Microsoft about it. This way, Microsoft can gather technical information about serious errors from millions of users, helping them develop fixes and service packs.


If you'd like to disable error reporting, follow the easy steps outlined below.

Difficulty: Easy
Time Required: Disabling error reporting in Windows XP usually takes less than 5 minutes
Here's How:
Click on Start and then Control Panel.

Click on the Performance and Maintenance link.

Note: If you're viewing the Classic View of Control Panel, double-click on the System icon and skip to Step 4.

Under the or pick a Control Panel icon section, click on the System link.

In the System Properties window, click on the Advanced tab.

Near the bottom of the window, click on the Error Reporting button.

In the Error Reporting window that appears, choose the Disable error reporting radio button and click the OK button.

Note: I would recommend leaving the But notify me when critical errors occur checkbox checked. You probably still want Windows XP to notify you about the error, just not Microsoft.

Click the OK button on the System Properties window

You can now close the Control Panel or Performance and Maintenance window