Articles in Category: Administration
Items related to Leo, Ask Leo! and overall website and related operations and administrivia.
How do I download my Windows Live Hotmail to my machine?
Windows Live Hotmail has no POP3 or SMTP settings with which to download your mail. However if you use certain mail programs, you can still download.
Do email tracking services work?
Tracking services exist which claim to be able to tell you whether or not someone has opened your email. They’re only half right.
Introducing the iBrick!
If Apple doesn’t approve of what you’ve done to your iPhone, watch out!
How do I make my own secret question with MSN Hotmail or Windows Live Hotmail?
Windows Live Hotmail uses a fixed set of secret questions. You can’t change which you’ll be asked but you can fake it by changing which one you answer.
Why am I getting some "Passport" login screen when I click on a "contact us" link?
Web page mail links start the default mail program. If that’s Hotmail you’ll need to login. If you don’t use Hotmail, you’ll need to do something else.
Is it normal for an IP address to change from time to time?
If you connect to the internet as most users do your machine will be assigned a dynamic IP address that can change without notice, or any real effect.
How do I prevent my blog posts from being copied?
Internet content theft is rampant. Prevention is nearly impossible, but there are steps to control it, and perhaps even turn it to your advantage.
What does "leaving a secure internet connection" mean?
One of the ways that hackers gain access to valuable information is to eavesdrop on internet connections. It’s important to know if you’re secure.
Why is there more than one "RECYCLER" folder on my machine, and why don't they all empty when I empty the Recycle Bin?
Windows tries to help protect you from accidentally deleting files with the Recycle Bin. How the Recycle Bin appears on disk can be a little confusing.
Web Advertising: good or evil?
Advertising powers the web. Is that a good thing, a bad thing, or just an annoyance?
MUST I upgrade MSN Messenger to Windows Live Messenger?
MSN Messenger and Windows Live Messenger users are being told they must upgrade. We’ll look at why, and what some alternatives might be.
How do I get rid of this infection that keeps coming back on my machine?
It’s frustrating to go through the steps of cleaning your machine of malware only to have it return almost instantly. We’ll look at possible causes.
How should I keep my hard drive clean and working at its best?
Hard drives can last a long time if properly cared for. More often than not issues result not from hardware, but from easily managed data and software.
Why am I getting instant messages from people I don't know?
IM users often deal with IM spam similar to email. At least one solution that’s cumbersome in email works well in IM, and should be your default.
Did Microsoft go too far this time?
Windows Update Automatic will update itself, even if you’ve turned automatic updates off. How bad a thing is that?
How do I stop someone from using or voting from my IP address?
Many online polls and voting tools use your IP address to keep track of the number of votes you’ve made. Unfortunately that technique is flawed.
Which takes more disk space: backing up, or copying files? And how much?
Backing up properly can take up a fair amount of space. Exactly how much space a backup will take depends on several factors.
Is Office 2003 compatible with Windows Vista?
Various issues are leading people to wonder if Office 2003 will work on Windows Vista. Yes, it will. We’ll look at some of the possible problems.
What are all these other pictures when I view emailed photos?
When viewing photos emailed as attachments your image viewer may also show you lots of other images as well. It’s all about where things are on disk.
Are forced upgrades a bad thing?
Like Hotmail users, sometimes you have no choice but to upgrade. Sometimes that’s ok, sometimes not. But you should expect it.
How do I UNinstall a program that's not in the add/remove list?
Any program of even moderate complexity should include an uninstaller. If one does not, uninstalling can range from trivial to downright scary.
How do I install programs if I'm not the administrator of the computer?
Many programs require that you be administrator in order to install. If you’re not, you have few options. Most boil down to: be the administrator.
Can I save programs I download from the Internet?
When purchasing software in a store you get a box and a CD or DVD. If you download your software you should take extra steps to save your purchase.
How do I know which program is used to open a particular type of file?
It’s not always obvious what program should be used to open certain types of files. There are clues if you know where to look and what to look for.
Why I hate DirectX
DirectX has a problem, and it’s common industry wide.
Why do people make viruses?
Viruses used to be mostly just techie/nerdy accomplishments, but of late viruses have become a booming business due to spam.
Where did file associations go in Windows Vista?
Several things are slightly different in Windows Vista, and the location of the File Associations dialog is just one.
WGA phones home – and no one answers.
WGA – just another form of DRM that ends up potentially harming legitimate users.
From where can I download Outlook Express 6?
Outlook Express 6 is part of Internet Explorer 6. But if you’ve moved on to IE7, then Outlook Express 6 can be difficult to locate and download.
From where can I download Outlook Express 6? (old version)
Outlook Express 6 is part of Internet Explorer 6. But if you’ve moved on to IE7, then Outlook Express 6 can be difficult to locate and download.
I accidentally deleted my Recycle Bin in Vista – how do I get it back?
It turns out to be fairly easy to accidentally delete the desktop Recycle Bin in Vista. Getting the Recycle Bin back is easy, just not obvious.
How do I find out who's at a particular IP address?
Internet users often want to identify who someone else might be with only an IP address to go on. It’s just not something you and I can do.
How do I remove the Documents item on my Start Menu?
Documents, or my Recent Documents, is Windows trying to be helpful by making it easy to access recent work. Sometimes it’s a little too visible.
Why does Windows have a registry?
There are many potential ways to store program and system settings. Windows uses the registry. It’s very complex, but its intentions were good.
Tracking Bookmarks
How do you keep track of your bookmarks? I’m trying del.icio.us.
What is "LSA Shell" and why is it an "Export Version"?
LSA Shell is an important Windows component that unfortunately shows up in some virus related error messages. “Export Version” has a murkier history.
How do I move from web-based email to email on my desktop?
Moving from a web based free email service to downloading email to your desktop is a smart move, but often not as easy to do as we’d like.
What should I be doing to maintain my computer?
We all hear about anti-malware solutions we should be implementing, but what other things should we be doing to keep our PCs running smooth?
Why can I not find a file that Windows search tells me is there?
In an effort to avoid confusion, Windows will hide certain files and folders by default. Naturally that often leads to more confusion.
I hate to harp on backups, but
A poll of Ask Leo! readers shows some good, and some scary, results when it comes to backing up.
How do I remove a file that my anti-virus says can't be quarantined?
Anti-virus programs are good at removing more problems, but occasionally they can’t. We’ll look at approaches to manually dealing with the issue.
I have multiple winlogon.exe files on my machine, and one's taking up a lot of memory – what do I do?
It’s quite possible to have more than one winlogon.exe, but knowing which are good and which are suspect isn’t always clear.
My computer has a virus infection; how much has been compromised?
Once infected it’s often difficult to know what malware has done to a machine. What you do next depends on your concern and some legitimate paranoia.
Is a 1 gigahertz 256 megabyte Windows XP Home machine good enough for on-line use?
As machines get older and older the latest software upgrades demand more and more. There are ways to maximize an older computers abilities.
The most frustrating thing I hear…
I hear many things as people ask me questions, but there’s one thing that stands out as most frustrating because it’s so needless.
How do I tell Windows where my I386 folder has moved?
You can move the I386 folder, but in order to keep Windows File Protection happy, you’ll need to update a registry key as well.
How can I reject email from unwanted senders?
Rejecting email from specific unwanted senders turns out to be surprisingly difficult unless your mail provider or email program supports it directly.
Why does one contact keep signing in over and over to MSN Messenger?
If one contact keeps popping up as newly-connected in MSN Messenger, it’s likely that he or she has a connectivity problem.
Is there a way to refurbish an inexpensive printer?
Inexpensive printers are great, but when it comes time to repair, your choices are somewhat limited.
Disk Crash: a backup and recovery story
A hard drive died. I review the steps I took, and what finally saved me in the end.
