Dennis Faas

Recall -- A few weeks back, Infopackets Reader Ian B. asked if there was a way to make his Windows 98 computer shut down and power off: " I have a win 98 computer that used to shut off the power after a Start -> Shutdown command was clicked, but ... now it just stops at that the 'It is now safe to shut down your computer' screen. Can you advise if this is a hardware or software fault, please?" I responded to this question by writing 2 articles. In part 1, I commented on a number of reasons why Windows 98 might not shut down (I.E.: BIOS, device drivers, Power Management, and APM) and ... (view more)

With respect to our recent discussion on MsgTag and tracking whether or not a recipient has received an email, quite a few Readers emailed me over the weekend with some questions. Infopackets Reader Frank R. had some security concerns about MsgTag. ... He writes: " I was curious about MsgTag, so I went to download it. I was immediately notified that my security settings would not allow that to happen. I use Spyware Blaster and IE-spyad for protection against the 'bad guys', as well as the usual anti-hacker firewall / anti-virus stuff ... so now I'm second guessing the whole MsgTag operation ... (view more)

Another hot topic in the Gazette is our discussion regarding Windows XP, and whether or not it can be installed on more than 1 PC using the same activation key. Infopackets Reader Steve S. writes: " In response to your recent discussion concerning ... re-activating WinXP after substantial hardware changes, I just wish to add that the process is done pretty simply in terms of 'setting things right' with Microsoft. When Microsoft detects that your computer's hardware components have substantially changed -- (as in my case: I had simultaneously added more RAM [memory] and installed a faster ... (view more)

Recall -- Infopackets Reader Marie 'ChameleonsGirl' asked if it was possible to use the same copy of Windows XP that came with her new computer and install it onto her second computer. My response was that Microsoft has designed Windows XP so that ... it can only be activated on 1 computer (per copy). This is a form of copy protection and is aimed at stopping software piracy, and works something like this: You buy Windows XP on CD (or it comes with your computer) and includes a registration number. The Windows XP activation program looks at each hardware component inside your computer, gathers ... (view more)

Have you ever sent an email to someone and wondered if your message was opened by the recipient? Yesterday, Infopackets Reader Brian 'BigJohn2' asked if I knew of a program which could do just that. After some prodding and poking around Google, I ... came across a program called MsgTag [Message Tag]. In a nutshell, MsgTag works by injecting a traceable object into outgoing emails. When the message is opened by the recipient, MsgTag alerts the sender with an email receipt that the message has been read. As I discussed briefly in yesterday's article, there are 3 different flavors of Message Tag. I ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Brian 'BigJohn2' writes: " A year ago (maybe longer), I downloaded a freeware program from the web that allowed me to know when my emails were received by the recipient. I have since run into some complications with my computer ... system, had to reformat my entire hard drive, and wasn't able to save any of my downloaded utility programs. The real bummer is that I've completely forgotten the name of this tracking program and am unable to reference it on the web. Are you aware of such a program? " My response: After fumbling through Google for an answer, I came across ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Marie 'ChameleonsGirl' asks: " I have a new computer that came with Windows XP. I would like to know if it is possible to register the same copy of Windows XP on my other computer, or do I have to go buy another XP disc? " My ... response: Microsoft has designed Windows XP so that it works only on 1 computer. This is a form of copy protection and is aimed at stopping software piracy. As far as I understand, the Windows XP activation works something like this: You buy Windows XP on CD (or it comes with your computer) and includes a registration number. The Windows XP ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader 'Ppeltscott' writes: " Hello! I have an HP pavillion model number 743g and it has 512mb of DDR memory [RAM]. I was just on Hewlett Packard's web site to see how much RAM I could put in my machine, and it said that my particular ... model uses 3 different RAM types: 200mts, 266mts, and 333mts. Does this mean that I can use the 333mts [PC2700 DDR] instead of the 266mts [PC2100 DDR]? Thanks for any input. " My response: The short answer is that you need to match the existing type of RAM inside your machine. A very simple way to find out the speed rating of your current ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Terry from PlanetSave.com writes: " Dear Dennis, I am running XP Professional. I have a large amount of background images listed in my Display Properties -> Desktop tab. Do you know how I can shorten this list? Happy Holidays. ... You have great newsletter! " My Response: I searched google.com for a utility that could modify / remove the list of entries found in Display Properties -> Desktop, but wasn't able to come up with anything. However, I do happen to know that a Windows will list .BMP picture files in the Backgrounds menu if there are .BMP picture files ... (view more)

All is not well in the land of infopackets.com. During the last newsletter announcement, the infopackets web server crashed. My laptop was connected to the infopackets server at the time that it happened and I was able to see that server's virtual ... memory (swap file) was almost completely depleted. In techy terms, this situation is referred to as a memory leak. How a Memory Leak causes an Operating System to crash An operating system is reserved a specific set of system memory (RAM) to perform critical system operations. By definition, it is the job of the operating system to ensure that a ... (view more)