The big story is that the SPAUG CD is ready. Full discussion is elsewhere in this newsletter.
First of all there is a "new" technique on how to resurrect Epson printers that have not been used for a while and have become gummed up to the extent of no printing. What follows applies to many similar printers, not just Epson.
This is the approved means of resurrecting a plugged up printer rather than tossing a $200 printer as I have had reported to me. The Epson manual is quite explicit in stating that the printer should be used at least once a month. The problem arises when the rules are not followed and the ink is allowed to dry to the extent that even the vacuum pump in all Epsons cannot break the seal.
The printing plate in the Epson is a single set of very small holes attached to the tanks above, so the technique is to flush the plate with some methanol by the proper application of methanol while the effluent is being collected underneath. Then after the collecting paper towel is removed, the cartridges can be refilled and the counter reset in the cartridge so the drop counter is no longer a problem. By this procedure, one can resurrect a 'dead' printer, be a hero, and save a lot of money by refilling cartridges if you are into photo printing.
The Clinic is back but there are some changes with the user being requested to take more responsibility for coming prepared. If you cannot do the preparation for any reason, the necessary steps will be performed for you.
Computers will need to have a second drive upon which a backup has been performed, and a printed copy of BelArc Advisor result is requested.
There will be two 9:30 a.m. customer slots. Only if one of the slots comes to completion will the afternoon slot be activated.
When the computer leaves, it will have a standard set of anti virus and worm protection. If it needs it, a network interface card will be installed and left in place.
The saga of whether you can add the new large hard drives that are larger than 137 GB is an exercise in frustration unless you have certain rules explained.
The computer has to be somewhat current and must meet the Microsoft hardware standards. Further, the Windows 2000 and XP software cannot set up or format over 137 GB so one needs to employ Partition Magic 8.0 to set up and format the hard drive to the 250 GB capacity and to assure the structure is NTFS.
Some time ago, SPAUG members were given the URL of the Microsoft location to order the CD that brought Windows 98, 2000 and XP current on security patches [N.B.- see the eWeek article by Larry Seltzer "A Hands-On Look at Windows Security Update CD"; it includes links]. There is no charge for the CD. The CD has proven to be invaluable when dealing with a reload of a computer. The CD permits patching through about October 2003, without having to spend the time to download the massive security patches. If you are still on a dialup modem, this is certainly the way to go. The use of the update CD does not obviate your need to download non-security patches, but it certainly does help the overall process. Also, the patches occurring since the freezing of the status of the CD also need to be downloaded.
Elsewhere in the newsletter is a schedule of the next meeting, which will not follow the usual pattern. We have about 25 two-minute demonstrations of significant portions of the SPAUG CD in an unabashed hyping of the Club CD. Interspersed with the shift-over of five demonstrators who have rehearsed the presentation, will be the raffle of about 50 items donated by Larry Magid to Lamont Shadowens. So while we are setting up for eacg of the five speakers, we will have a drawing for ten door prizes. After jumping up for the prizes, it will be back to the show-and-tell. You will be given 20 door prize tickets to be used in any manner you wish for the 50 prizes. The usual cup will be provided for your ticket(s).
What to do when you need help is often a very thorny problem. PC Magazine April 2004, did a very good job of reviewing the subject. So that you won't lose the information, here is an excerpt:
Paid Support:
The last one above can use a remote program to let the technician look at and operate your computer - a capability I use whenever I can arrange it with the client. Because of poor performance, I have to recommend against using them. Find another vendor. Generally I use PCAnywhere as it is quite effective.
Free Support:
George Sidman of MNC gave a presentation on his new endeavor, WebLOQ.
WebLOQ is the first technology that stops malware at its source - shutting down the hijacking of email addresses and content - eliminating phishing, spam, and identity theft. WebLOQ operates seamlessly behind standard applications, such as Micosoft Office, Outlook, Netscape, etc. and allows you to work as you always have, in programs you know, while achieving robust business privacy within a private community.
The breakthrough WebLOQ solution brings to all Internet users, for the first time, complete Internet privacy for sending and recieving private emails, and exchanging secure documents of any format or size.
WebLOQ benifits anyone who has a need for end-to-end Internet privacy for;
. the integrity and accountability of a private Internet community,
. exchanging secure registered email and attachments,
. the secure and trackable exchange of multi-user documents,
. the elimination of malware, such as spam and viruses, and,
. protection from personal data hijacking and identity theft.
The early hard drives on mainframe computers were not considered very reliable. Information stored on these early devices would often not record properly or may become contaminated easily. Programmers using these drives would write the data in two separate locations on the drive. Then, when the data was needed later, it would be read from both locations and compared in memory to make sure it was still the same. If differences were detected, then the program could not continue until the data was corrected and rewritten to the hard drive.
As technology advanced, special mathematical checking codes were stored with the data that could detect if the information retrieved from a hard drive was still valid. These codes eliminated the need to record the data twice, but did nothing to clean up any errors found. It wasn't long before more sophisticated checking codes were introduced that could not only detect errors, but would also actually correct most single and double character errors. Still, the recording of information on hard drives was not considered real reliable and frequent backup copies of the drives were necessary.
When the IBM PC was introduced with hard drives, the designers of these drives were still very concerned about loosing data on these devices. So, everything was done to make sure the data written to the drive remained on the hard drive and could not be accidentally deleted or lost. Today, it is almost impossible to permanently delete information, once it is written to a hard drive. Who would have thought that this retention of information would become a problem for computer users?
In today's world, privacy and security of information are major concerns. Identity theft is a major problem that we all face. With just a few pieces of information about us, dishonest individuals can steal large sums of money from us and ruin our credit ratings. At the same time, computers and the internet have made information much more widely available not only to us, but to these dishonest individuals. Unless we are careful, our private information can get into the hands of these dishonest individuals and they will certainly take advantage of the situation. Recent studies have shown that hard drives on PCs contain a wealth of private information that most users thought they had removed from the drive months or years earlier. What these users do not understand is that simply deleting a file from the hard drive does not permanently remove it from the drive. In fact, all that deleting a file does is to flag that file space for future reuse. It may be years before that space is reused with another file or it may never be reused. So, the deleted information remains on the hard drive, hidden from the user, but still there. Dishonest individuals using commonly available software can find and access all of these deleted files.
Users that are knowledgeable enough to know that deleted files remain on the hard drive are often surprised to learn that formatting the hard drive does not get rid of these deleted files either. All the formatting function does is to create a few tables at the beginning of the partition. The deleted information on the hard drive is not removed or changed during a format. Operations such as defragging a hard drive only cause your private information to be copied and spread across the entire hard drive. So, how can you permanently remove private information once it is written to a hard drive?
The only effective way to permanently remove information from a hard drive is to write blanks or zeros over the top of the deleted information. This obliterates the information that was written there earlier. To do this, special hard drive wiping utilities must be used. Two of the best hard drive wiping utilities were developed by WhiteCanyon Software. I have come to know and rely on these excellent products. One or both of them could make your job of keeping your hard drive clean of hidden private or personal information easy to do.
The first of these two products is called WipeDrive. This is the bulldozer of the two products. When you use it to wipe your hard drive, it starts at the beginning of the drive and writes blanks on top of everything on the drive. It continues to wipe the drive until it reaches the end of the hard drive. When it is done, the entire drive is totally clean and empty. Nothing remains on the hard drive that a dishonest person could see or use against you. Everyone should use this utility before they sell or give their old computer or hard drive away. Otherwise, you are giving away all of your private information with your old computer. WipeDrive boots from a diskette or CD and can wipe all PC type hard drives. WipeDrive sells for up to $45 in computer stores, but user group members can obtain a copy from our User Group Store for just $24.
The second of these two products is called SecureClean. This is more like a vacuum cleaner, than a bulldozer. It vacuums the dirt out of the carpet, but does not knock over the furniture or the walls. In other words, it can clean the deleted information off your hard drive, but does not disturb the actively used files on the drive. The selective ability of SecureClean to wipe your hard drive, but not disturbing your current files, makes it the ideal tool to use on your current hard drives to keep them clean of deleted information. I recommend that you run SecureClean about once a month on your computer to permanently wipe over all deleted information on the drive.
Packaged with SecureClean is a bonus utility call SecureScan. This product will scan your hard drive and show you all of the deleted information that is hidden on the drive. You will be surprised at what you'll find still on your hard drive. You may find personal files that you deleted months or years ago that are still on the drive. You may even find some files that were accidentally deleted and you thought they were forever lost. If a deleted file is still complete, SecureScan can even bring this file back to life and make it available again on your hard drive. This un-delete function of SecureScan is not the main purpose of this program, but a nice additional feature that you may want to use. SecureClean and SecureScan install on any Windows operating system. SecureClean sells for $40, but user group members can obtain a copy from our User Group Store for just $24. Buy both WipeDrive and SecureClean/Scan for just $39, a $60 value.
To order either or both of these excellent hard drive wiping utilities, go to the User Group Store at www.usergroupstore.com. (or www.ugr.com/store) You can read more about these two products in the security department of the store. Click on any of the Buy Now buttons to get to our secure web order form. Complete the form including the special code of UGWCM04. You will be given the chance to verify and correct your order before it is submitted. Once you submit it, we will receive it shortly and normally we ship all orders the following morning. You should have your products in just a few days. While you are at the User Group Store, check out the many other products we offer, all at great user group discounts.
Preventing personal and private information from building up on your hard drive is important for all of us to do. Get the tools you need to keep your drive clean today. If you have any questions about these products or this technical newsletter, please contact me at gene@ugr.com. I look forward to helping you.
Gene Barlow
User Group Relations, Email: gene@ugr.com
PO Box 275, URL www.ugr.com
Orem, UT 84059-0275
801-796-7370
This is one of a series of monthly technical articles that I plan to distribute on a regular basis in the coming months. Watch for them and learn more about your computer and its hard drive. User group newsletter editors may print this article in their monthly newsletter as long as the article is printed in its entirety and not cut or edited. Please send me a copy of the newsletter containing the article so that I can see what groups are running the articles.