microsoft

I received some alarming email from my Internet Service Provider (ISP) today and thought I would pass along the word. There has been a major security threat issued for all users of Microsoft Windows NT, 2000, XP and Server 2003 (RE: Knowledge Base ... Article #824146). All of those who are affected need to download a patch immediately in order to resolve this breach. In short, "A security issue has been identified that could allow an attacker to remotely compromise a computer running Microsoft Windows and gain complete control over it. You can help protect your computer by installing an ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Stephen K. writes: " Dear Dennis, I’m running Outlook 2002 on a Windows XP-Home OS. Recently I cancelled one of my recurring appointments (a Weekly Meeting), and deleted it from my Outlook Calendar. Unfortunately, the same  ...reminder continues to show up on my Outlook Daily Reminder List. When I try to postpone or delete if from this list, I get the following messages: Error Message 1: 'Cannot turn off the reminder. You may be reminded again. The message you specified cannot be found.' Clicking OK, the only option, leads to the next error message. Error Message 2: 'There ...<a href="/news/9204/ms-outlook-reminder-stuck-loop" class="more-link">view more

Infopackets Reader Bhushan G. from India writes: " Dear Dennis, I have the Windows XP Home Edition Operating System, as well as Office 2000 Professional loaded on my PC. I would like to know the site where I can get free TTF* fonts. The fonts that I ... have at present (which come standard with Office 2000) are very old. Does Microsoft give access to their font library? I will appreciate your reply! " Side note: The acronym TTF stands for True Type Font, and is the standard font format used for Microsoft Windows and word processing applications. My response: I have always had a hard ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Frank C. asks: " I have recently upgraded to [a full install of MS Office] and [subsequently] also installed Microsoft Outlook. I have always used Outlook Express for receiving and sending emails, but now Outlook is receiving some ... of my mails ... [while] at other times, the mail comes or goes through Outlook Express. [I would like to only use Outlook Express as my default email client]. What do I do?" My Response: I have also chosen to install the "full installation" of Microsoft Office and have also noticed what Frank is referring to. By default, a full ... (view more)

Recall: Yesterday's issue of the Gazette was about a Freeware MS Office Replacement. Infopackets Reader Jim P. made his suggestion with reference to a freeware Microsoft Word .DOC file converter: " Fast, compatible and free: 602Pro PC SUITE is the ... freeware alternative to Microsoft Office, and includes a word processor, spreadsheet, photo editor and photo organizer. " http://www.software602.com/download/ Since then, I have received more new suggestions for Freeware MS Office Replacements. In fact, Tammy F. told me that she uses a freeware program called Open Office: " I use Open ... (view more)

Today, David M. sent me an email asking me how to go about Repairing Internet Explorer: " Hello Dennis! The May 20, 2003 issue of the Gazette mentioned the very useful Internet Explorer Repair Tool, accessed from Add/Remove Programs in Control ... Panel. In the past, this method has worked for me when using Win98 and IE5. However, I now run Win2K and IE6 and the IE Repair Tool isn't listed in the Add/Remove Programs, so I can't repair it. Do you or any of your learned readers have any ideas, please? " My Response: I get asked this question a lot from readers, so I've decided to provide ... (view more)

Yesterday, I wrote about a new spam problem associated with Windows Messenger. Recall: Messenger pop-ups are a new form of spam that exploit a feature of the Microsoft Windows operating system intended for use by network administrators. These ... pop-ups can appear even if you aren't surfing the web (ie: a web browser), and are not related to MSN Messenger. The remedy: Yesterday I detailed instructions I used when searched Google for a solution. Unfortunately, the instructions for Windows XP were not complete and I received a few emails from folks who were not able to complete the "fix ... (view more)

This is the third installment on a series of comments based on the following scenario: " When someone buys a new computer (either brand name or clone) that is preloaded with an Operating System (OS), is the seller obliged to give the client an ... original CD which includes the Operating System? " Last week I provided various short-but-sweet answers to the above question from various readers of the Infopackets Gazette. The gist was that retailers are required to provide Windows on a CD, whether it comes pre-packaged like Compaq, and Dell machines do -- or, if it comes with the basic ... (view more)

Similar to ICQ and Yahoo Messenger , MSN Messenger is a chat program that allows you to interact with other people around the world. If my memory serves correct, ICQ is the "Grand Daddy" of all Windows-based chat programs with a graphical user ... interface (GUI), but MSN Messenger and Yahoo Messenger are gaining in popularity. Conveniently, MSN Messenger comes bundled with the Windows XP operating system. Wait a sec -- did I say that was 'convenient'? No it's not. Since I installed Windows XP, MSN Messenger has been in my face multiple times asking me if I want to sign up for an ... (view more)