Dennis Faas

Most programs I review only do one or two specialized things, and they're usually pretty good at what they do. However, today I came across a multi-purpose optimization utility program that impressed the pants off me. The utility I'm referring to is ... called WinOptimizer Platinum Suite, and it contains an incredible package of cleanup tools designed to keep Windows lean, mean, and running smoothly. WinOptimizer Platinum Suite: a New Successor Ashampoo WinOptimizer Platinum Suite is the new successor to the already hugely popular Ashampoo WinOptimizer Suite. With an all-new interface and many ... (view more)

Speaking of Windows optimization, Infopackets Reader 'Harkatcan' asked me a very interesting question the other day that dealt with the Windows Swap File. " Dear Dennis, How can I get my swap file to empty when I start my computer? When my system ... boots up, a dialogue window appears and reports that I have 572meg in my swap file. Could this be why my computer is running so slow? I use win98se. A techie friend of mine suggested that I write a simple batch file [program] so that my swap file is deleted every time I reboot the computer. That way, it will be replaced with a new swap file that ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Brad B. writes: " Dear Dennis, Many years ago, I bought a digital camera that came with the software program called 'Camedia'. Unfortunately my computer crashed last year and (worse yet) I can't find the CD to reinstall it on my ... PC! Before I lost the disc, I managed to install Camedia on the computer at work, and thankfully, it's still working fine. I have tried copying the Camedia files from the work computer to my home computer, but it won't run. Is there some sort of program I can use to transport Camedia onto my home computer without having to use the installation ... (view more)

Infopackets Readers Sid M. writes: " An icon with the word 'Matcli' appears on my task bar at every boot up. As soon as I open a program, Matcli goes away. I did a little research on Matcli and found that it is an acronym which stands for Motive ... Chorus Command Line Interface. The purpose of Matcli is to gather information about your system's identity like your name, email address, city, state, etc, and all of this gets written to a log file. One of the sites I visited told me that in order to remove Matcli, I need to 'uninstall HP instant support'. Unfortunately, I don't have any HP ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Judy P. writes: " I have been having problems loading Simply Accounting 2004 onto my computer. Apparently I need a patch to install it on my machine -- unfortunately, the patch produces a strange error message when I try to run ... it. It states: ' Setup could not Complete. Setup cannot be completed because an error was encountered during setup. Please contact your software vendor for more information. ' Any ideas? " My response: I have a number of theories. Ensure that you have downloaded the correct patch. Disable any download accelerators (if you have any installed ... (view more)

When was that last time you visited a web site that asked you for a login ID, password, or account number? With all the web sites I visit on a regular basis, it's tough to keep track of that sort of stuff. I used to use Internet Explorer's ... AutoComplete to remember my logins and passwords for me, until I got fed up losing all my important data every time the computer had to be restored or formatted. A while ago, I asked Infopackets Readers for an alternative solution to AutoComplete. Thankfully, many Readers referred me to a program which not only remembered all my form data, but also allowed ... (view more)

After publishing the article on missing pictures in Outlook Express (the Red X's), Infopackets Reader George W. asked a related question about hearing music through email. " Dear Dennis, I just got done reading your article about missing pictures in ... Outlook Express: I've got a similar problem and hope you can help me. Until a short time ago, I was able to insert background music (MIDI and .WAV files) into my emails and have the recipient listen to the music as they read the email. I did this by creating my email, then clicked Format -> Background -> Sound, and selected my music ... (view more)

Last week, Infopackets Reader Cospul warned me of a problem he had with a browser enhancement, called MyWebSearch: " I downloaded and installed [the browser plug-in] only to find out that it hijacked my Internet Explorer ... Whatever [web site I ... visit, MyWebSearch either displays their site or an error message]. ... I emailed the Mywebsearch [support many times], but they have not [provided any useful technical advice]. I even hired a certified Microsoft technician to fix the problem -- but after a week, all they could tell me was that Mywebsearch acts like a virus (no kidding!). I can't ... (view more)

When I began writing this newsletter back in 2001, there were only a small number of sites geared toward helping new and intermediate Windows users. That's why I was grateful when I stumbled across a place called Neat Net Tricks , which reviews cool ... places to visit on the 'net. Neat Net Tricks (NNT) is operated by a fellow named Jack Teems. The Neat Net Tricks web site and newsletter cater to new and intermediate Windows users who feel that computers and the Internet can still be fun without mucking around with the registry, BIOS, motherboard, and that sort of stuff. I think you'll understand ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader "Cospul" writes: " Dennis, please warn all your subscribers to avoid the browser plug-in called 'MyWebSearch'! I downloaded and installed the said browser enhancement, only to find out that it hijacked my Microsoft Internet ... Explorer every time I went on the Internet! Whatever web page or site that I go to, MyWebSearch either displays the Mywebsearch website or displays an error message which reads, 'Can't find website notice.' My Internet Explorer is completely useless and acts if possessed! I emailed the support at Mywebsearch 3 times and explained how their ... (view more)