windows

Fri
24
Mar
Dennis Faas's picture

Explained: When to Encrypt your Hard Drive, and When not to

Infopackets Reader Scott writes: " Dear Dennis, I'm thinking of turning on disk encryption for my Windows 10 computer. I've never done this before. Is there anything to be concerned about or to be aware of? " My response: This is a good question. ... The truth of the matter is that if you encrypt your entire C drive using Windows BitLocker or a third party utility, it's going to slow your system down quite a bit. The reason for this is because every single file written to the drive must be encrypted, and then decrypted when read - including your operating system files. Constantly encrypting and ... (view more)

Mon
13
Mar
Dennis Faas's picture

How to Fix: Can't Delete 'C:\System Recovery' Folder

Infopackets Reader Barry P. writes: " Dear Dennis, I have an HP computer running Windows 10 (previously upgraded from Windows 8), and it's running very slow. I'd like to reinstall Windows - but before I do that, I want to back everything up onto ... external hard drive. I want to keep the backup as small as possible - as such, I noticed that I have a 'C:\System Recovery' folder with 'C:\System Recovery\Repair' and 'C:\System Recovery\Repair\Backup' subfolders. The 'C:\System Recovery' folder is taking up 40GB of data and I'd like to know if it's safe to delete. I have another machine here and I ... (view more)

Tue
10
Jan
John Lister's picture

More Windows 10 Changes Unveiled

Microsoft has started public testing on the next major update for Windows 10. Many of the new features are for the Edge browser, but tweaks to security and usability are also on the way. The changes are now available to members of the Windows ... Insider program that allows users to act as guinea pigs and try out new features and fixes, albeit with the risk that not everything will always work perfectly. It appears the new features will be rolled out to the general in the spring as part of a major update. Initially it appeared that update, codenamed "Creators Update" or "Creative ... (view more)

Tue
25
Oct
John Lister's picture

Microsoft Warns: Fake Blue Screen of Death with 1-800 Number is a Scam

Microsoft has warned that scammers are trying to trick users with a fake "Blue Screen of Death" error message. The idea is to fool users into calling a bogus 1-800 tech support hotline. The Blue Screen of Death is an unofficial name given to a ... particular type of error message which appears when a Windows computer suffers a serious malfunction. In most cases, once the screen appears the only option is to reboot the computer, usually by switching it off with a physical power button or by resetting the machine with a reset button (if it is available). The idea of the screen is to give ... (view more)

Fri
21
Oct
Dennis Faas's picture

How to Fix: Disable Google Analytics in Firefox, Chrome, IE

Infopackets Reader Ray F. writes: " Dear Dennis, I have a problem with Google Analytics tying up my web browser with a 'waiting for www google-analytics.com' messages every time I visit a site. It shows this message in the action box on the lower ... left of the browser as the page loads. This goes for about 20 to 40 seconds and will not let me pass it; I have to wait for it to complete before the page will fully load. How do I get rid of this? Thanks for a great website and newsletter. " My response: This is a good question. The reason why the analytics is there is so that the website operator ... (view more)

Thu
06
Oct
John Lister's picture

Is a Chromebook Right for You?

With smartphones and tablets gaining extreme popularity thanks to low-cost production and ever-increasing CPU speeds, many users are looking at alternatives to Windows when it comes to being able to compute on the go. One system in particular is the ... ChromeBook (laptop) which is based on Google's Chrome operating system. Many major manufacturers produce Chromebooks, including Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo and Samsung. As of September 2016 there were at least three dozen Chromebook models on the market. What is Chrome OS? Chrome OS is a somewhat similar, but separate operating system to Android ... (view more)

Tue
04
Oct
John Lister's picture

8 Tools that can Help Keep Your PC Secure

At Infopackets we're often asked to recommend security software and tools or give our opinion on specific products. While every product has its pros and cons, as the old saying goes, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. With that in mind, I ... thought I'd run down the actual tools I use in my day to day life rather than when we're testing out products. That means trying to find the balance of staying protected without taking up too much time and attention or computing resources. Permanent My main anti-virus software is Microsoft Security Essentials on Windows 7. It's ... (view more)

Fri
01
Jul
Dennis Faas's picture

How to: Prevent Others from Reading Your Emails or Accessing Your PC (at Work)

" Dear Dennis, I work in an office on a desktop PC. If I am away from the PC, anyone in the office can hop onto my computer and access my emails because the 'offline access' to my emails feature is enabled. I have no idea how to turn it off! How can ... I prevent others from accessing my emails while I'm away? " My response: The quick and short answer is that disabling offline access to emails depends on the application or service you're using - most likely somewhere in your user account settings if you're using something like Gmail, or possibly in the "Tools -> Options" menu if you're using ... (view more)

Wed
29
Jun
John Lister's picture

Microsoft Reverses Controversial Windows 10 Nag Screen

Microsoft says it will backtrack on one of the most controversial elements of its campaign to push users towards Windows 10. It will no longer interpret clicking a close window button (the "X") as authorizing an installation of the new operating ... system. Since launching the system last year , Microsoft has been slowly ramping up its efforts to get people installing Windows 10. It's moved from the original position of having user actively seek out the system through a "pre-registration" tool to eventually reaching the point when Windows 10 was considered a recommended ... (view more)

Thu
28
Apr
John Lister's picture

Hackers Weaponize Obscure Windows Feature

Microsoft has detailed the intricate and carefully crafted attack techniques of a longstanding group of online spies. They include taking advantage of a now-retired Windows feature for easier updates. Thankfully for home users, the attacks from the ... group Microsoft dubs "Platinum" have been highly targeted at government, defense, communications and intelligence agencies and organizations. That's promoted speculation a government may be behind the attacks. The details come in a report by Microsoft's Windows Defender Advanced Threat Hunting. It notes that while some attacks are ... (view more)

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