Dennis Faas

Today's issue of the Gazette marks the end of the special promotion for my Service Pack 2 Fail-Safe install guide . Reminder: you can save up to 54% off the guide if you purchase before midnight tonight. Before we move onto other topics of interest ... featured in our newsletter, I've decided to end this special promotion with a lightening round of SP2-related questions from our Readers. Answers are short-but-sweet and will address the most frequently asked questions I've received via email / from the newsletter over the last 2.5 months. Ready? Round 1 ... Begin! Q: " I have installed ... (view more)

XP SP2 Frequently Asked Questions: Continued from Part 1 ... Q: " I already have Norton Internet Security installed and running. Does it make sense to use the Service Pack 2 Firewall or should I stick with Norton? Should I use both at the same time? ... " A: It is not recommended that you run two firewalls at once, as this can cause problems with programs which rely on your Internet connection. I don't have any experience with Norton Firewall, but I personally recommend using Zone Alarm (free), as it is widely accepted among the Internet community as a very strong and secure firewall ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Lee C. writes: " Ever since I installed XP Service Pack 2 on my system, all I get is blank boxes where pictures used to be in emails, every time I launch Outlook Express. Do you know why this is happening? I installed Service Pack ... 2 onto a clean system. Please help! " My Response: This is another frequently asked question. With Windows XP Service Pack 2, a new security measure has been put into place that -- by default -- will now block pictures that are embedded into emails. The reason for this is because some spammers use picture files as 'web beacons' to verify ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Denise D. writes: " Dear Dennis, I have Windows XP and currently subscribe to the Road Runner high-speed Internet service (offered by Time Warner). I have tried to install Windows XP Service Pack 2, but after installing it, I ... could no longer access the Internet. I kept receiving a message 'cannot find server' on all sites through Internet Explorer. Subsequently, I had to uninstall the Service Pack in order to regain access to the web. What do I need to do in order to install the service pack and have access to the Internet? " My response: This has been a ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Deanna K. writes: " Dear Dennis, Thank you for your wonderful newsletter and relentless dedication and support for computer newbies (like myself)! I have been carefully following your recent discussions concerning SP2; however, I ... have a question that I cannot seem to find the answer to. I understand that I can get Windows XP Service Pack 2 CD for free from Microsoft. Subsequently, a number of tech articles that I've read recommend that I get the Service Pack 2 CD instead of downloading SP2 from the Internet. Can you explain why this is so? " My response: I've ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader James T. writes: " Dear Dennis, I read and enjoy your newsletter everyday that it's published -- yet, I can't understand why (as of late) you've giving so much hype to Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2)? I agree that SP2 is a ... critical and necessary update ; nonetheless, Microsoft's Service Pack releases almost always coincide with incompatibility issues. As with any Service Pack, I feel, there is no guarantee that it will install successfully -- nor is there a guarantee for anything, when dealing with computers. ... My reason for writing you today, in fact, is with ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Polly B. writes: " Dear Dennis, I've downloaded and successfully installed Service Pack 2 onto my computer. The only complaint I have so far is that Outlook Express is so security tight, that a lot of the email messages I have put ... aside (with file attachments) now cannot be opened. I went in and took off the Outlook Express Security 'do not allow me to open potentially dangerous attachments' option, and now everything is OK. I felt safe in choosing to disable this 'security features' because I use Norton Security which blocks potentially malicious email attachments. My ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Suzie B. writes: " Dear Dennis, I've been keeping up with the buzz in your newsletter about Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2). Although I haven't downloaded your SP2 Fail-Safe Install Guide , I would like to make a comment on my ... nightmare-ish experience with Service Pack 2. When I heard about the extensive features and benefits of Service Pack 2, I thought it sounded great -- and so decided to install it onto my machine. And that's when my nightmare began. The first time I tried to install Service Pack 2, it took a few hours to complete the install. When it was all said ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Glenda 'LadyInRed' writes: " Dear Dennis, Since I am not that tech-savvy when it comes to making changes on a computer system, I have decided to ask this question. I hope that you can give me an answer to it, then I can stop ... trying to figure it out on my own. I have a son that is 27 years old and he is very intelligent when it comes to the computer. He likes to get on my computer since I have a fast Internet connection (DSL), and downloads music using Kazaa. The problem is that every time that Kazaa is installed onto my computer it causes a lot of problems. I have ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Glenda 'LadyInRed' writes: " Dear Dennis, Thanks for your response . Unfortunately I don't have Windows XP on my computer (I'm still using Windows 98). So, my question to you now is: other than security, what is better about ... Windows XP? And if I can't use Windows XP, would you recommend that I upgrade to Windows ME? " My response: I can't provide you with an exhaustive / comparative list of differences between Windows 98 and XP, but there are a number of obvious differences that I can highlight: With respect to Windows 98: an announcement was made in December 2003 ... (view more)