Archive for December 24th, 2009
Optimize Your Network Settings
Want to further optimize your network settings? Use this little known settings in Windows. (Directions are for Windows Vista and Windows 7 – settings apply to Windows XP also).
- Open the Network and Sharing Center
- Click on Change Adapter Settings
- Hit the Alt Key
- Click Advanced
- Advanced Settings
- Under Adapters and Bindings, Move the Network you use to the top
- Under the Provider Order, Move Microsoft Windows Network to the Top
[Scheduled Post]
Website Appearance
Want to see what your website will look like once you post it? An app on Google labs shows just what it will look like.
How To Reinstall Windows – Microsoft’s New Help Site
Microsoft has posted a website to help users reinstall windows. Link
Windows 7 and Vista Boot Optimization
Windows Vista and Windows 7, together with their server variant, Windows Server 2008, have a built-in mechanism to make boot up process faster, by maximizing usage of available processors.
Windows 7 and Windows Vista users running dual-core, quad-core or other multi-core or multi-processor computers can try the following trick to make Windows boots faster.
Open the “Run” Windows dialog box or search.
Type “MSConfig” (no quotes) into the text box after “Open:”.
Go to Boot tab.
For dual-boot or multi-boot system, make sure that the operating system to make the change to is selected.
Click on the ‘Advanced Options’ button. Mark the check box for ‘Number of Processors’, and then select the maximum number count of CPU core processors value from the drop down list. Click ‘OK’ twice to exit System Configuration.
Restart your computer. Once enabled, Windows operating system will use all available (or selected number of) processor cores to run the boot up algorithms, and this will potentially make the startup speedier and faster, with less waiting time at the login screen.
This has significantly improved my boot/login time. I have a dual core processor as you can see. Imagine quad core or more!
Dawn Babian, GSAE
Find DNS Information
Need to know the DNS record information about a domain? Use DNSDataView from Nirsoft. You can find out and 
retrieve the DNS records (MX, NS, A, SOA) of the specified domains. You can also change the DNS server information to see how other DNS servers ‘see’ a domain.
[Automated Post]
Why USBs Can be Dangerous
Not only can infected USB drives infect your computer with a virus, your personal information can be stolen. Utilities such as USB Switchblade from Hak5 can steal your data.
How to Prevent Autorun and protect your computer.
- The How-To-Geek (Disable Autoplay)
- Enable USB scan on your antivirus (AVG shown below)
1. Open the AVG user Interface.
2.On the Tools menu click advanced settings. Next select scans and select removal device scan select or enable removable device scan and make sure “automatically heal/remove infections “is checked.
So how do you protect your computer from someone who has access to it? Make sure you have a complex password and make sure you practice physical security. Always lock your computer when you leave it. Lock your drive with a USB drive. See our article on Predator.
I have also wrote many articles on NirSoft software. NirSoft offers USBDeview which shows all USB devices that have been attached to your computer.
And with new USB Firewalls, these programs offer protection of your USB drive.
[Automated Post]
Can’t install Security Software Malwarebytes A-Squared
If you can’t install security software such as Malwarebytes or A-Squared, you can try this - Link
