Youngstown Computer Show notes for August 8, 2009

Segment 1

Live today from the Youngstown Air show.

Joe D talks about last week a call about Windows Vista that was marked as not genuine. If you do call in to microsoft, as long as you can prove that you have a true certificate sticker on your PC (make sure that it is for the same version of Windows you have installed) you should be able to get it activated somehow. You will likely have to activate it over the phone, where they read you a long string of numbers and you type them into windows activation wizard.

Caller 1
Q: Vista, allows me to open AOL, but I can't get to a website. I tried to reinstall IE, but it said it was already installed.
A: could be a malware infestation. Run system file checker to repair. See if that helps.

Joe D talks about the Denial of Service attack on Twitter and Facebook this week. It seems to be an attack on a single person. A network of infected computers (a botnet) can be used to all send requests to a single place, that is what is a Denial of Service attack.

Caller 2
Q: got a message "mode not supported". The system starts up, I see a Windows 98 screen, then that message shows up.
A: that message is from the monitor, it sounds like the computer is trying to set a mode that the monitor cannot be displayed. You can try and go into safe mode to reset the video mode. it sounds like the video card is going bad and needs replaced.

Caller 3
Q: my blackberry cannot play videos or send emails. it says "wrong format".
A: how are playing video attachments?
Q: as a email attachment, but I can't send any emails
A: blackberries can only play certain formats of videos. you'll have to call in the shop to do more checking.


Segment 2

Caller 4
Q: I seem to have "personal antivirus" but I can't get rid of it
A: yes, we have seen this a lot this week. It is tough to get rid of.
Q: I have a handycam with a disk, but I need to get it on a dvd
A: if you bring it in with your computer and we will set you up

Caller 5
Q: problem with adobe flash. I installed the latest version, but the computer does not recognize that it is installed
A: seems like a busted install, you will need to do a more complete uninstall to get rid of settings that might be messed up. you can either look for tools, or bring it into the shop

Caller 6
Q: it takes 15-20 seconds to launch IE8
A: you computer might not be powerful enough to launch it quicker
Q: I can't take it off
A: if you go to add/remove programs in control panel, uninstall it there

Joe D talks about the "personal antivirus" company, it has collected $80,000 a week for not doing anything. Adam talks about all the rogue antivirus programs that are out there.

Caller 7
Q: got a pop up says I can't find Macromedia Flash. It just comes up all the time.
A: you just need to go to adobe.com and download the flash player.

Caller 8
Q: got a dell 2010 desktop, it had a bad motherboard and I replaced it, I was trying to install XP but it was loading, but then it stopped now it does not work
A: could be any of the CPU, motherboard, power supply, any of those could have gone bad. I'm suspicious of the motherboard since you just replaced it.


Segment 3

Caller 9
could not hear because of the airplanes

Joe D talks about the release to manufacturing of Windows 7. It is available right now to MSDN and technet subscribers. It is going to be available on Oct 22 to the public. Adam mentions the family pack -- 3 licenses for $150. {Joe M: beware, you cannot do an in-place upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7, you will have to back up your settings and do a clean install going from XP to 7.}

Caller 9 again
still having sound problems, sounds like he is having problems installing the flash program
Try to make sure that there is nothing else running in the background. Try to turn off your antivirus temporarily to install.

Joe D talks about building computers. They really don't like to build computers, it is usually cheaper to buy off-the-shelf. We focus on the service side. We can advise them on the type of computer to buy, and we can clean up a new computer too.

Caller 10
Q: whenever I get a forwarded email with attachments, and I forward it on, the recipients don't get the attachments
A: you have to set the options in your email program (AOL, hotmail, outlook, etc.) to explicitly include attachments when you forward messages

Caller 11
Q: can I run a simple program called QuickPay on a netbook?
A: yes
Q: i can't find a printer HP 1012 laser drivers for vista or windows 7
A: you will have to find some compatible drivers that are for some other printer model
{ Joe M: here is the driver, right on HP's web site, all vista drivers work in windows 7}

Caller 12
Q: problem with XP, none of the restore points will restore, my computer freezes up
A: Joe D does not like to depend on restore points. Joe D also does not believe in registry cleaners.
Q: I have tried lots of different anti-virus programs but they don't seem to help
A: something got corrupted, you will likely have to bring it in to have us look at it


Segment 4

Joe D talks about the poll for charging for content, Murdoch is talking about charging for their content. Adam says that if everyone does it, then we will have to. It can't be outrageous. Now, there are so many places that offer stuff for free. Joe D wants more for paying, so they better have more features than the free sites.

Caller 13
Q: trying to hookup my computer, I moved it to another place in the house, I just get a blank screen, keyboard beeps
A: sounds like something came loose during moving, check the connections, if you are comfortable, open it up and check inside too for loose cables or chips

Caller 14
Q: on windows mail, I can't send any pictures, it says to provide a server name
A: you will have to get server settings from your internet provider, usually your DSL provider, and you put those server settings into your windows mail program. you can usually find those names on their support web site

Caller 15
Q: on my laptop, I get a generic host 32 error message popping up several times when I shut down
A: sounds like there was a virus infestation, but some things got removed but other things got left behind, use msconfig to turn off un-needed things

Go to Startup Application Knowledgebase to see what things are good and which are bad.

Joe D talks about some common messages: "you are out of virtual memory" - you are exceeding your RAM and the amount set aside on disk, switch your virtual memory settings to "system managed" instead of "custom".