The development of the new version 3.0 of the free office package OpenOffice goes on. Now is the third and final release candidate ready for testing.

Open Office is the large office package based on open source and therefore is a completely free competitor to Microsoft Office. We now have a longer working on the next major version of the program - 3.0. This is now approaching its completion.

A so-called release candidate (a nearly completed version), the third and final before the final version, is now available for download. Get this: http://download.openoffice.org/680/ (English only).

Compared to version 2.0 contains 3.0 tons of news, new functions and features. V 3 means most bug fixes for V 2.

The finished version can be expected very soon - the plan is to launch and celebrate the eight anniversary in Paris on October 8.

Some of the larger companies in the security and antivirus industry can not stand the latest Virus Bulletin 100 test.

Virus Bulletin 100 is an independent test carried out annually since 1998 by the Organization Virus Bulletin. By the way Virus Bulletin has a conference now, that Paretologic, owner of the award winning registry cleaner RegCure software, is a sponsor of. The test uses hundreds of nasty programs, real threats gathered from the network, and is evaluating how well antivirus programs can do against them. To pass the exam and receive "VB100 certification" must the product be able to detect all one hundred threats without giving false warnings of infected programs.

This year, 24 different programs tested and of these, only 16 survived. Most of the major went through, such as McAfee, Symantec, Microsoft and Sophos. However, it was more famous names that appeared on the test, for example, F-Secure, Kaspersky, Avira and Computer Associates

F-Secure and Kaspersky found both the virus, but also delivered a false alarm each. ETrust from Computer Associates missed one of the viruses. One of the major companies that are not set at all was Trend Micro.

However, there are a lot of criticism of the VB100's test, because it is considered by many old-fashioned and relies too much on signatures of known threats instead of the more modern, heuristic methods that can find even unknown viruses.

The registry changes all the time in normal operations, not only when you edit the registry, but every time you change a setting in Windows or a program, install a new program and so on. Each time the data is stored in or removed from the registry. After a time the information is out of the registry files. If you remove the keys the only left will be the remaining holes in the registry. If you save new data the holes will be filled, but eventually the registry will anyway be fragmented. That in turn leads to the system become slower because the data are spread over the hard drive and requires many harddrive data to read data when Windows or a program is started.

Just like a hard drive the registry should be defragmented from time to time, but Microsoft has not sent with any tools for it. The best thing we know is a registry cleaner program RegCure.

Registry optimized by RegCure saves the keys in the new files, which is usually less than the original fragmented files. RegCure then restart the system and replace the old fragmented files with the new and optimized.

It is recommended that you run Regcure registry cleaner once a month and after installing new or uninstall old programs to ensure that the register remains as small as possible.

Here is part 3 of our tips on how to work smarter and faster in Windows Vista. I always say work smart and not hard. And remember time is money. So if there ways or tools like a registry cleaner and other useful tools to help work smarter and faster, I'll use those right away.

22. Add Gadgets

The easiest way to add new gadgets is to click the plus sign at the top of the Sidebar. In the window that appears shows a number of gadgets you can add to the Sidebar. It is just to drag and drop desired gadget to Sidebar.

23. Built-in DVD burning

Vista includes a built-in DVD burning which makes it possible to create backup copies of documents and other fi smiling and that helps you create a video DVD.

24. Start programs in the Quick Launch toolbar with the Windows logo key

You using the Quick Launch toolbar to have quick access to programs you use often, he will certainly appreciate that you can use the Windows logo key to start the programs. It is just to keep the Windows key and press the number key 1 to start the first program, numeric keypad 2 to start the other program, and so on.

25-30. Activate handy tool from the keyboard

Vista contains a lot of facilities functions. Using the Filter button, you can ensure that Vista is ignoring short-term and repeated keystrokes and function Mustang Enter makes it possible to use the numeric keypad to control the mouse pointer. If you want to disable any of the shortcuts to the right, do it in the window Accessibility Center.

Filter Keys: Hold the right-hand Shift key for eight seconds
Mustang Enter: Press Alt + Left Shift key + Num Lock
Sluggish keys: press the Shift key five times
Lock Keys: Hold the Num Lock key for five seconds
High: Press Alt + Left Shift + Print Screen button
Universal Access Center: Windows key + U


31-48. Top tips for Windows Calendar and Windows Contacts


Share your calendar

You can share your calendar in two different ways. You can either choose to send your calendar as an e-mail message, choose Share, Send by e-mail or upload it to a folder on the network - or on the computer if you are more likely to use a computer. To do so, choose Share, Publish. In the dialog that opens, type a name on the calendar in the Calendar field name and path of the folder in the field Publishing to the following location.

Finish by clicking the Publish button and then click Send to send out an e-mail to those who will have the opportunity to subscribe to your calendar.

Working in different calendar views

In Windows Calendar, you can choose to work in different views. By default, you work in the Day, but you can easily choose to display all week or all month. Show, Ctrl + Shift + 1 Show week Ctrl + Shift + 2 View week Ctrl + Shift + 3 View month Ctrl + Shift + 4

Choose the right format for printing

When you print your calendar, you can choose between different formats that day, week and month. Under the heading Print, you can also specify the start and end dates. More options for the format, you can access by clicking on the Page Setup button.

Speed up work on Windows Calendar
New agreed time: Ctrl + N
New task: Ctrl + T Print Ctrl + P
Go to date: Ctrl + G
Show / Hide Navigation Window: Ctrl + I
Show / Hide Details Pane: Ctrl + D
Copy Selection: Ctrl + C
Cut marker: Ctrl + X
Paste Selection: Ctrl + V n

Quickly to today
To quickly come to today, just click on the button in the toolbar today.

Keep track of your contacts

The program Windows Contacts makes it easy to keep track of your contacts. You import your befi at last contact list from the Address Book by clicking the Import button and check for - format Windows Address Book file (Outlook Express contacts). Do you have your address in Excel, you can choose to save the Excel file as a csv file which you can then import into Windows Contacts.

Photographs of your contacts

By default, the sad images to illustrate your contacts. You can do a little more fun by adding photos of the people. It is simply double-clicking on the contact and click on the tab name and e-mail in the dialog that opens. Click the little down arrow in the image and select the Change picture. Then scroll up to an image file, and click Apply.


49-51. Check Sidebar

You can check the Windows Sidebar from the keyboard like this:

Windows key + space: Enable all gadgets and Sidebar
Windows key + G: Switching between gadgets
Tab-key: Switch between checks in the Sidebar.

Yesterday we started to post the first part of the best collection of tips for a safer, more enjoyable and more easy to use Vista. And you don't need a registry cleaner for this things. Well here is tips 11-21.

11. Hide the list of most recently used programs

In the same way as in the tip above, you can also see that hide the list of the programs you have recently worked in. It is just uncheck the option to save and view a list of recently used programs under the heading of privacy.

12. Faster Start Menu

The new search box in the Start menu is very useful because you can quickly find programs in the Start menu and search for fi smile in your user folder, look for e-mails, and more. The disadvantage is that it takes a little extra time to search through all the different locations. If you want to speed up the search for programs in the Start menu, you can set the search feature so that it only searches for programs.

Start by right-clicking the Start button and select Properties. Click the Customize button and select the option Do not search for files that you find under the heading Find files. Then, uncheck the option to search in Favorites, and History and the Search of communication. Finish by clicking OK.

13. Back to Run

In the Start menu in Vista is missing the Run command. Although you can use the new Search field in a similar way (see tip above) but it goes a little TOUGHEN due to the search takes place in real time. Fortunately, the command continues but it is hidden by default.

To get back the Run command to your Start Menu, right-click the Start button and select the option Properties. Click the Customize button in the dialog that opens. The list of items, check Run command and click OK.

14. Run from the keyboard

Do you have a keyboard with the Windows key, you do not add to the Run command in the Start menu. Hold in place down the Windows key and press R.

15. Customize the power switch

To the right of the Search field to find the button switch, which by default is set to not turn off the computer without putting your computer in the state Vila. If you'd rather have the computer is switched off, this is easily arranged.

Start by clicking the Start button and type in energy alternatives in the search field. In the Power Options window that opens, click the option Specify how the switches to function. The list box to the right of the text when I press the power button, select Shut down and then click the Save Changes button.

So you control Desktop appearance and use the help function, maximum


16. Up with the icons on the Desktop

By default, it is only the Recycle Bin icon on the desktop in Vista. Sure, you should try to keep clean on the desktop but some icons Computer and Network makes life easier in front of the computer.

To add to the system icons on the desktop, start by right-clicking on the desktop and select Customize option. In the adaptation, which opens, click the option Change icons on the desktop, you can find under the heading Activities. Under the heading, select the Desktop icons since the icons you want shown.

17. Change the size of the Desktop Icons

Unlike the previous version of Windows Vista, you can easily change the icons on the desktop. It is just right-click the desktop and choose Show. Here you can choose Large Icons, Medium-sized icons and Classic icons.

18. Zoom in and out among the icons

As in Internet Explorer and certain other programs, you can use the mouse wheel button to zoom in and out.

By holding the Ctrl key and scroll wheel on the key, so to speak, zoom in and out of the Desktop. What happens is that you change the size of icons from the very, very small to very, very big.

19-21. Three ways to open Sidebar

Sidebar allows you to add the so-called gadget. To start Windows Sidebar.

Via the message field: Double-click the Windows Sidebar in the message field.

Via the Start menu: Click the Start button and select All Programs, Accessories, Windows Sid panel.

Start automatically: To get the Sidebar to start automatically when you start your computer, right-click the icon on the Windows Sidebar and select Properties. In the dialog that opens chips you Start Sidebar when Windows starts.

This is the year's best collection of tips for a safer, more enjoyable and more easy to use Vista that we are giving you here at RegCure registry cleaner Blog. Here is part one.

1-2. Fast Start menu

Start menu in Vista is the most natural place to go when you want to start a particular program
or access certain settings. There are two ways to open the Start menu from the keyboard.

With the Windows key: The absolute fastest way to open the new Start menu in Vista is pressing the Windows key on your keyboard. To close the Start menu, just press the key again.

With the shortcut: If you do not have a Windows key you can press Ctrl + Enter. Use the shortcut to close the Start menu.

3. Smart search feature

A novelty in the Start menu is the built-in search field. Search field is activated automatically when you open the Start menu and make it easy to find documents and programs on your hard disk.

The search takes place in real time and it is not certain that you need to enter the full name of the document or program before it found. Once you find what you're looking for in the search results, just scroll down to the desired option with the down and press Enter. Is it just a result
which shows it is sufficient to press Enter.

4. Run without Run

The new search box can be used much the same as the Run dialog box in previous versions of Windows. It is just typing the name of the program and press Enter.

5. Change the first applications for the Web and e-mail

Top left of the Start menu appears as the default shortcuts to Internet Explorer and the new e-mail program, Windows Mail. These, you can easily replace with other programs that you use. Right-click the Start button and select Properties. Click the Customize button and make desired settings under the heading View on the Start menu.

6-8. Open Programs

All Programs menu option contains just as the previous shortcuts to any programs installed on your computer. But instead of showing a bunch of submenus displayed all the programs and folders in the left side of the Start menu. When the Start menu is open Cedefop are three ways to open All Programs.

With the arrow keys: Press the up and then right in the Start menu has been opened.

With mouse click: Click on All Programs with your mouse.

With your mouse: Let your mouse rest of the text for a short time.

9. Attach favorite programs on the Start menu

You can still get shortcuts to programs you use often to always appear at the top of the Start menu. It is just right-click the shortcut and choose the desired option Pin to Start menu.

10. Hide what documents you have used

If you do not want anyone to be able to see the photos and documents you have worked with right-click the Start button and select the option Properties. In the dialog that opens, make sure to fl iken Start menu is selected. Under the heading Privacy, uncheck the option Save and view a list of recently used files. Finish by clicking OK.

I got a question from a friend of mine yesterday by email and I thought it would be useful for everyone to post it here on the blog

Hi Mehmet,

Can you help with something man, It is very important I don't know what to do.

In the C: \ Documents and Settings \ Adam - are three files that I wonder what it is. Important or delete?

1) ntuser 14
592kB DAT file


2) s-1-5-21-1052118420-390622975-2810602771-1005.rrr 12 504kB RRR file

3) test.prx 3kB PRX file

Talk to you later.
Adam

Answer:

Do not remove them.

Ntuser.dat is one of your registry files, a part of the system registry. Without the Windows ceases to function.

S-1-5-21-1052118420-390622975-2810602771-1005.rrr I am not so sure. The file name is called a Security Identifier, and you can find it in the system registry. Are you using a registry cleaner program? In this case, this is the backup of a part of your record.

Test.prx I have no idea what it can be. Probably, it can be erased, but the other part is 3 kilobytes anything that takes up much space, so it might as well be retained.

The majority of users on the network is fooled by fake pop-up window, which is one of the most common ways to spread the virus.

Most computer programs use small boxes, so-called pop-up windows to display various messages. One of the most common ways for virus makers to spread dangerous code and spyware on the network is to build websites showing faking pop up windows, in order to trick the user to install a program. I think most of us has seen such pop-ups ans installed a bad antivirus or registry cleaner tool.

For example, it may be a box that says to the user's computer is exposed to a virus attack and are therefore invited to press the "Yes" to remove the virus, when the "Yes" actually means that the user receives a spyware installed on their computer.

A U.S. study did find out how a group of students, which still must be assumed to be relatively familiar computer users, reacted when they were exposed to various pop-up windows. With 63 percent of the students tricks of the fake pop-up windows, even though they previously been informed that some of popuppfönstrena could be faking.

- The investigation shows how easy it is to deceive people online. My general advice is to always be suspicious and never hit "OK" but instead close the boxes that show up, "says psychology professor Michael Wogalter to the BBC.

Today, most browsers various forms of pop-up blockers that warns of a Web page tries to display a pop-up windows.

Virus makers don't hesitate for anything and now attracts with fake anti-virus program to spread their malicious code.

Beware of fake viruses. Virus makers are trying to make use of all the people who are searching the web for free antivirus software. This warning comes from IT security company Sophos who recently discovered a trojan that purports to be a free version of Norton Antivirus 2008.

To the site with injury program, which by the way, looks professional and fairly credible out, you can get there through one of the ads that appear when Google search on the terms "free antivirus". Users Council, therefore, of great caution and skepticism when they visit such sites.

To help users avoid the danger Sophos has created a video which illustrates the problem.

After pornography, "free antivirus" must be to be one of the most common things people are searching for on the Internet. But dangerous ads like this makes it easy to take a bad security decisions. It is a big problem with hackers who use pay advertising services in the search engines to increase traffic to its website in order to trick users on the money. I have seen such an ad for a registry cleaner before.

Symantec, the company behind the Norton Antivirus, can hardly be amused by the fact that their trademark is being misused and abused in this way.

Many of our tips include changes to be carried out with the Registry Editor. Using this program could be sensitive in making the right to not harm Windows. Here's how.

Many of our tips include changes to be carried out with the Registry Editor. This is a built-in Windows programs that can be used to modify the system registry. Remember that this can also be done automatically with a registry cleaner. There are stored all the data that controls how Windows works and looks. Improper handling can damage the system and with bad luck make it unusable. You should be careful not to give you this if you are unsure!
Registry Editor starts easiest by clicking the Start button, select Run and type

regedit

In the left panel shows what is called the registry keys in exploring similar tree structure. There, you can then find your way to the keys you need to change or add. The values of a key contains visible in the right panel, when the key is selected.
To change a value, you only need to double click it and delete it, click and press Delete on the keyboard. A new value, create the simplest, right-click and then from the menu, choose the kind of value you need.

The changes implemented will enter into force when you close the Registry Editor. Sometimes need it affected the program shut and sometimes even Windows must be restarted for a change to be visible.

Microsoft has decided not to include programs for e-mail, photo editing and movie making in Windows 7. One of the reasons is that they want to get a cleaner operating system. That means we will be working less on our registry cleaner :).

Windows Vista includes programs like Windows Photo Gallery, Windows Mail and Windows Movie Maker, but all these functions will be gone in Windows 7. Instead, Microsoft will invest more in Windows Live, where users themselves can choose which services they want.

There are several reasons for this decision. The removal of such functions from the operating system so it can quickly get new versions of Windows in the future, and the system becomes easier and cleaner. Microsoft may also be a greater opportunity to cooperate with other software companies.

During last week launched for other "Wave 3" of Windows Live, which means that the service now also includes Windows Live Movie Maker. Since the former can offer the Windows Live Photo Gallery, Windows Live Mail, Windows Live Writer and Windows Live Messenger.

The Control Panel is a key part of Windows and most users have to go there quite often. Espesially in our case when editing the registry without the use of a registry cleaner. Then it is little wonder that the standard in both Windows XP and Vista is an awkward interface that it takes time and many clicks to reach the desired location.

Anyone who has ever put on to reach the Control Panel directly from the start menu never want to work in any other way. And it's not complicated.

Right-click the Start button and select Properties. On the Start menu, click Customize. In Windows XP, then change to the Advanced tab. Scroll down to the Control Panel and the letter for "Show as a menu." Close by OK.

Now you have instant access to every part of the Control Panel directly from the Start menu. It can't be better.

We spoke about some sneaky features in Firefox 3 yesterday here at our registry cleaner blog. Well here is a new feature Mozilla is working on.

A new Firefox extension allows you soon not needing separate programs for instant messaging and speech in web forums.

Mozilla has many ideas for its Firefox browser and one of these ideas are now in the form of a prototype called Snowl who will give Firefox better ability to handle messages. It is not a new feature, but it is more about a way for Mozilla to determine whether Firefox will be able to function as a communication center in the future.

With Snowl you no longer need to have separate clients to get your instant messages, posts in the web forums and the like, but everything would be integrated into the browser and maybe end up in a separate tab instead. A search function would be included so that it can search through all sorts of messages from a central location.

The whole case that is said is an experiment so far, but anyone who wants to can download Snowl and see if it can be something that would improve Firefox or if it just adds unnecessary features.

More information is available on the Mozilla Labs.

Do you think you have already seen all the news in Firefox 3? Here are seven quick and cool hack that you have not heard of before.

Firefox 3 offers some interesting news we have written about before. However, there is news which might not be as clear and as it is not sentence you to know. RegCure Registry Cleaner Blog gives you seven quick little hack that you were not aware of Firefox 3.

Some of these hacks require you to go into a secret setting menu. By entering about: config in the address bar in Firefox and you get up the secret settings. You will first meet with a joke and the message saying that the guarantee will be repealed if you make changes in this menu.

However, please be careful that you do not change things that should not be changed. It may end up with Firefox ceases to function or will behave strangely. The only solution is to uninstall and then reinstall your browser.

1. Easter Egg

Many Windows programs have a so-called Easter eggs hidden somewhere. An "easter egg" is usually a jocular presentation of the people who created the program. In Firefox case is as a matter Easter egg about the browser's own mascot in the form of a robot. To find the Easter egg, enter the following into the address bar: about: robots

2. Valuable information about sites

One of the coolest innovations in Firefox 3 is a button that we can call the site identification. It is the key you see to the left of the address bar. Click on it and you get up a lot of interesting information on the Web site you visit. Among other things, you can see how many times you visited the site, on the use of cookies, and if you have any password associated with the site.

You can also choose to list all the photos or other media available on the current page and then select whether you want to save any of the images. Smart little finesse.

3. Shrink the back button

A new feature in Firefox 3 is the back button the top of the page looks like it goes on steroids. The reason for this is that most use the back button more frequently than the forward button so that it will be easier to discern.

Would you like to have back after all the same buttons as in previous versions of Firefox, so it is easily fixed. Take your cursor to an empty spot on the toolbar and right click. Then select Customize. Then click on option and use small icons.

4. Find all your passwords

You have probably like most people with a variety of user name and password for different web sites. Probably you have forgotten most of these passwords, too.

Do you want to find out what the password is to a certain Web site that is easily arranged. Do as follows:

1. Select Tools, then Options.
2. Click Security
3. In the section named password, click on saved passwords. Then click the View password and you see all the passwords you use on different sites.

5. The number of address proposals

The address bar in Firefox has been given a whole new look that is much nicer and more convenient. When you type the first letter of a site you visited before so it will pop out 12 proposals for sites containing the word you started to write.

If you want you can change the number of proposals listed from 12 to any number. Do as follows:

1. Write about: config in the address bar.
2. In the filter line type the following: browser.urlbar.maxRichResults
3. Then double-click the result and you can change from 12 results to what you want, more or less.

6. No bookmarks in the address proposals

If you don't want your bookmarks to be displayed in the address of publishers which we described above, it is easy to do.

1. Write about: config in the address bar.
2. Enter the following test of filters row: browser.urlbar.matchOnlyTyped
3. Double-click the line that appears, and it will change the value to "true". Now your bookmarks will not appear in the address proposals.

7. Rushing older plugins

Have you upgraded from Firefox 2 to Firefox 3 so you may have noticed that some plug or plugins are no longer active. This is because Firefox disable them if they are not suited for Firefox 3.

Some of these programs are not compatible with the new version and you should first check if the author behind the plugin is an update tailored for Firefox 3.

After all if you want to live dangerously and force the plugin to work in Firefox 3 you can perform the following trick:

1. Write about: config in the address bar.
2. On the filter line, enter: extensions.checkCompatibility
3. Double-click the line to change the value to "true".
4. On the filter line, type now in: extensions.checkUpdateSecurity
5. Double-click the line to change the value to "true".
6. Now, your old plug-activated, but be aware that they may not function as they should.

To optimize Windows for best game performance, AMD is now releasing a tool where you can turn off unnecessary functions with a click.

The Internet is full of tips and guides on how to optimize Windows for best performance. This usually involves the closing of unnecessary programs and services that are working in the background. In the best case you can free up memory and save a little CPU power, but if you are not sure what, the closing of this can cause stability problems. There are also registry cleaner softwares out there to help you optimize Windows.

AMD is trying to remedy that and has released a tool for the optimization of Windows, but has the function to turn off all unnecessary functions with a click, but also just as easy to launch them again.

The program is primarily intended to increase gaming performance, and is said to be careful not to shut down major programs that can make the computer unstable or insecure.

Besides this, the program provides several other functions, such as the possibility of over-the graphics card, processor and also speed up your hard disk.

The tool can be downloaded and is completely free, but it should be stressed that you must have an AMD processor for the tool to operate. Intel processors will not work with the program.

I gave some important tips yesterday like cleaning the registry with a registry cleaner and defragmenting the harddrive and so on. Well here are some more tips on how to speed up your computer.

Faster boot

You can radically improve the time it takes for Windows to boot with free software that lets you remove programs you do not want to load up on boot. My favorite is called StartUp.

Removal of spyware and adware

My favorite free tool for the elimination of advertising (adware), which slows down your computer is AdAware. It is no coincidence that this program has over 292 million downloads at Download.com. It is simply good, and you can also use it to scan your RAM and external hard drives.

Update drivers

On the Version Tracker, you can make a free scan of your computer to see if your drivers are not outdated, and get help to upgrade. You can also get updated drivers for your video card at The Guru of 3D.

Accelerate your Downloads

You can radically improve the time it takes to download software and updates with Download Accelerator Plus. It is also good to download multiple programs at the same time.

Finally, if you have an older computer or a computer with 512 MB RAM memory or less, I recommend that you upgrade. While memory doesn't cost as much as before, and RAM upgrade makes a huge difference in the performance. If you follow these steps you will notice a difference and save you a lot of headaches.

We all know how it tends to be. The computer you bought not long ago was fast as a rocket and had almost never an issue. Now it is slow, behave with strange and bizarre inexplicable routines that you do not know what the cause is. In such a situation, you need a little fix.
In this post, I will go through seven easy steps, that you Windows users, can benefit from and a few free downloads you can use and that will transform your PC into a speedy demon within an hour.

Clean The Registry

Not only is it important to clean your computer registry, but it is important to do it regularly. The register will be littered with time when you install and uninstall programs, new and old drivers, and collect on spyware and adware. Windows users can clear their records with a registry cleaner in less than 10 minutes. You can get a free registry cleaner software like Ccleaner or Eusing or you can buy one like our RegCure. I ran the RegCure package at a friend's computer the other day and found and repaired 129 index problems.

Search and remove the so-called "Malware"

First, an explanation: "Malware" is a program that is designed to infiltrate and harm your computer without your approval, according to Wikipedia. If you are not running and regularly update your anti-virus software, you should definitely start to do it. Still, there are many busy people who are either not running or updating it. Among the free programs that you can find and remove "malware" from your computer, the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool. You can also run PC Tools Anti-Virus.

Delete temporary files and optimize the hard drive

With your registry cleaner you can also delete temporary files that lowers the performance and optimize your hard drive. If you really want to improve the speed of your hard drive, defragmenting is a good way (Windows has a tool to do this) but it takes a long time and this post is about quick solutions. The temporary file removing tool and Quick Scan option to clean up the hard drive in RegCure is both fast and effective.

Note: There will be more tips on how to speed up your computer in the next post. So stay tuned.

Windows operating system is vulnerable to malicious code. The amount of hackers, who over the years built virus and had a profound impact of their actions at the global level, speaks volumes. The number of companies engaged in the security of the Windows system is another indication, many problems, high profitability! You as the user can do a lot to make your computer more secure. Microsoft offers you a programme, "Baseline Security Analysis", which controls that you have the latest updates installed, and thus a more secure computer.

Often as a user you feel like you are in the hand of the security companies. It is also in the belief that one's antivirus protection is complete. Only the name indicates the above, that we do not need to bother. There are complex systems that habit users have to use, which paves the way for problems related to the habit of users. The fact that you have the right bad eye on these complex systems which means that it misses to do the right thing or do not do it at all.

One should not rely only on its anti-virus, firewall or registry cleaner. There are a lot of problems that can be avoided by involving yourself a little.

Here, you have a tip on a way to make your computer a little more secure. Microsoft offers its customers a free analysis software. The program does not check for malicious diseases, but it checks through your system so that all updates are in place for Windows Vista. This means that with these updates the security holes closes as we know them, and if you are not up to date, there are potential holes in your protection against computer viruses and other absurd.

Baseline Security Analyzer that the program is called check not only for missing updates to your operating system, it also check your other Microsoft program like Office. The program also works for XP users. You can download the application from Microsoft's website.

Sometimes it's really a shame that the software and hardware goes hand in hand so that they do. I'm talking about the performance. As soon as someone invents a faster processor, a better video card or update any other component, someone do a game, a program or an operating system that exploits this.

Or is it the other way around? Is it the software companies that drives hardware development? "Give us these resources, so that we can create this", perhaps it sounds at the meetings. No, of course, it is neither. Instead the the development follows of a common line and the law that all available resources always exploited follows automatically, in the same way you adjust expenditure after salaries, but if possible you would be happy to adjust the salary after expenses. Any way the demand goes up.

The reason I philosophizing about this is that the other day by some reason I needed to install Windows 98 on a relatively new computer - it had no more than a year or two in the neck. Of course, this meant some problems with drivers, my registry cleaner and so on, but once it was up and running it run so smoothly that it was absolutely unbelievable...

I have never seen such a speed monster. The old Windows 98 was like a turtle in a 3 gigahertz CPU (or whatever it was) that I was very blessed. It went so blazing fast that the operations were carried out almost before I clicked on them.

And, of course, I hoped that it would be the same in Windows XP or Vista, as it is unfortunately not. In normal mode, without errors and problems, it works quite OK, the games are moving on OK and the operating system jogs along at its own pace - but it doesn't flash.

Well not many people want to go back to DOS or Windows 98, but give us instead five times faster CPU and memories now! And forbid further development of programmes...

Many people is un-installing a program from Windows and deletes the files belonging to that program but not the information found in the registry. After a time, the registry is filled up all the more, and your computer is becoming increasingly "slower." If not the windows registry is "cleaned" regularly it can cause problems to your computer.

A registry cleaner scan through your system and find data that has expired or incorrect information stored in it. The program fixes the wrong information and your computer will then become much faster. There are many benefits of a registry cleaner. Your computer will have a clean registry and no information will be wrong.

You can use the empty disk space to install new programs. A registry cleaner will also block the installation of spyware and adware on your computer. If your computer has some software problems, then you should see that it becomes low after you have cleaned your registry. The system will work as good as it originally did.

The program uses a technology very quickly identify incorrect references in your windows registry. Following the identification of the problem using the program for their advanced technology will be easy to remove errors that exist in your record. After that, your computer will start up and operate as a new PC. After installing the program, you can decide exactly how it should function.

Believe me you will also have greater knowledge of how your computer works. To maintain your PC is very important if you want your system to work and your computer to be quick. Be aware also that a registry cleaner will repair programs that previously did not work on your computer.

What exactly is a computer network? Well it's were you are connected to several computers at once. There are several different kinds of computer networks out there, such as Local area network or LAN, Personal area network or PAN, Campus Area Network or CAN, Metropolitan are network or MAN, and a Wide area network or WAN. You can see there are several types of networks that are available in several different areas of the world.

They have different capabilities depending on what type of networking system they are. The PAN, which as the name states is a personal network, meaning it's used by one person. It's when you have a computer, scanner, fax, phone, etc, hooked up to your computer at home. The range of a PAN is quit small usually ranging in distances of 6 to 8 feet.

A LAN is usually in reference to a network that covers a small location or a house. Most LANs use Ethernet as the connection. A LAN and WAN are close in what they do, but a LAN can be distinguished by the higher level of data transfer rates.

Next is the CAN, Campus area network, as it name applies is a network connection of two or more LANs on a college or other campus, military bases, or other industrial complex. A CAN may actually be considered a MAN, but is most of the time in a much smaller area than a MAN.

A MAN or Metropolitan area network is where two or more LANs or even CANs are connected together. A MAN however will not go beyond the boundaries of the local city or town.

A WAN which remember is a Wide area network, it covers a broader geographic area than a city, and perhaps two or more counties would be connected this way.

Another network that we failed to list earlier is a Global area network or GAN, this is actually something that is being worked on by several different groups at present and has yet to be fully defined. What the basic idea of a GAN is, it will support mobile communication across LANs, such as wireless coverage or even satellite coverage.

Networks are an amazing thing that if you think about it really haven't been around for a long amount of time. At least not with the tremendous abilities that are now available to people who have computers in the World. It wasn't long ago when the only way to get on the internet was by dial-up services. Can you remember how slow that was? Wow a friend of mine is still using dial-up and I make sure to tease him every chance I get about it and also about him not getting a registry cleaner when editing the windows registry. Someday he'll finally change it. Granted when cable connections and DSL both came out they were a bit pricy, but now it's really cheaper to pay a bit of money and get a fast connection. It's a lot less frustrating now that LANs and all these other networks are around!

When computers first came out you didn't have a choice on what kind of monitor you got. You got that bulky CRT that was huge and cumbersome to move if you wanted to switch around your computer desk.

This isn't true anymore; with all the technological advances you have choices now. So let's look at the differences. Of course you have the CRT, but now you have the LCD Monitors available to you. There are huge differences between the LCD and a CRT. LCD's have become quite advanced, and the technology offers you pretty much the same quality of picture as a CRT, but still many people still want the CRT monitor. CRT's of course are bigger and bulkier than an LCD monitor, they also consume more power and you get that annoying screen flicker. But LCD's are more expensive than a CRT. They also have the problem of viewing from angles, and they usually have less accurate color replication.

Like a registry cleaner and other stuff, each monitor as you can see above has its advantages and disadvantages. We are going to do a closer comparison of the CRT monitor and LCD monitor to hopefully help you out with your purchase.

CRT monitors were the only choice that people had for many years, the CRT stands for Cathode Ray Tube, and it's been in use for over 100 years. It's what is found in most TV's and computer monitors. How it works is it moves an electron beam back and forth across the back of the TV screen or Monitor screen. When it moves across the screen it lights up dots on the inside of the tube, thus it illuminates the active parts of the screen. By doing this several times it will complete the screen image.

LCD monitors stand for Liquid crystal display. This type of technology can also be found in those digital watches and of course computer monitors. LCD's use two sheets of polarizing material with liquid crystal between them, when an electronic current passes through the liquid the crystals will align so that light will not pass through them. With several passes the screen image will be complete.

Pro's and Con's of each monitor. Resolution or how sharp your picture will look is very flexible on a CRT. In fact the newer models offer up to 1600 x 1200 displays. The LCD's resolution is fixed, it can be changed, but if you do so you will notice the performance will drop.

Both of the newer models of both monitors will give you a bright color display that is vibrant. LCD's though fall short in the color range. As far as sharpness of the image, if you are running your LCD at it's normal setting the picture will be perfectly sharp, while the CRT you will notice flaws in.

When viewing a CRT monitor you can look at it from any angle with no problem, however your LCD monitors you will notice the picture will fade or disappear.

As stated before with the CRT you may have that screen flicker, but with today's graphic cards that may be fixed almost completely. LCD's do not have this problem so a screen flickers!

Screen size of a CRT you will find most people buying 17" displays. With this you get around 16.1 inches of true display image. While with a LCD monitor if you buy a 17" screen you will have 17" of true viewing. The physical size of the two monitors is in no way even close. A CRT is heavier and bulky, while a LCD is much less weight and flat.

The big difference though is going to be the price, where the LCD wins in size it will cost you much more in price. CRT's although bulky will be much cheaper to purchase. Here are a few examples. An Acer 15" LCD will run you $195, which is a very good price, now a 17" CRT from Acer is $169. Not much of a difference but a little choice. Another example is Samsung 17" CRT for $125 compared to a Samsung 17" LCD at $480. Now that choice you see a huge difference in the price.

What you need to keep in mind is how much you want to spend and what kind of monitor you like the best. Just use this as a guide for some answers.

When most people hear computer hardware, they get a blank look to their eyes and almost a scared look on their face. That's what computer hardware talk does to most, but let's make that less likely. Computer hardware put simply is the physical part of your computer, this includes the circuitry and all. Hardware does not include the software though.

The hardware of a computer will rarely need changing, while people are changing or adding software, like a registry cleaner, all the time to their computers. There is also a thing called frimware, it's a special software that will rarely need changed, it is stored on your hardware devices.

Most of the time you as a normal computer user will not even see your hardware, unless you want to start learning to repair your own computer that is! A normal computer will consist of a case or chasis, which is better known as the down, and the following parts, power supply, CPU cooled computer fan, Graphics card, PCI buses, Motherboard, CD and or DVD drives, and hard disk.

Motherboard is inside of your tower, and it is the "body" of your computer, it is where all the other components interface through.

The CPU or Central processing unit will perform the calculations which make the computer able to function, this is usually called the "brain" of the computer.

Computer fan, this will keep the temperature of your computer low. If it gets too hot you may ruin some of the hardware.

Internal buses, which are connections to various components, there are several including the PCI, PCI-E, USB, HyperTransport, CSI, AGP (which won't be around much longer), and the VLB (outdated now).

There are also External bus controllers, these are used to connect such things as printers. Here's a list of the different external buses, parallel port, serial port, USB, FireWire, SCSI, PS/2, ISA, EISA, and MCA. Of course you can't talk about computers and not talk about the power supply. Usually it will be run by a case control, a cooling fan, and it will supply power to run the computer.

You also have your mouse and keyboard which are considered hardware, and if you have any other attachments that all those computer savvy people out there will know exactly what I'm talking about. But really to learn about hardware and all you have to go very in depth and learn a bit about the workings and all.

It's amazing that all these things are so foreign to so many of us. At least now you will know what is in your computer. Perhaps at a later time we'll go more in depth to the workings of the hardware. But at this time let's just feel a bit accomplished at knowing a bit more of the computer parts that we don't see very often. And the parts that we hope don't go bad on us, making a trip to the computer store a must. No in fact let's just get that blank look again on our faces and sit back and relax!

You just got on the internet with your first computer, now you want to get another email service, but you don't want to pay for this one. Why do people get extra email programs? Because they may have several places they are going to sign up too, and they don't want those emails to go to their paid email. Depending on what you pick you can get plenty of storage, effective spam filtering, and so much more. We are going to go over the top 9 choices you have for email programs.

1. Gmail, this is Google's email and chat program. There seems to be unlimited free storage to you online. You can collect your messages easily. Gmail is simple to use and yet advanced in nature. This is a very good choice that is seen around the internet a lot now.

2. AIM Mail, which is AOL's free email service, it's a great service that offers you unlimited online storage, a close to top of the line spam protection and very easy to interface. But AIM does lack in a few other areas, like folders, message threading, and labels.

3. GMX Mail, this is a very reliable service which can filter spam very well; there is a 5 GB storage limit online. Not unlimited storage, but 5 GB is a lot of storage.

4. Yahoo! Mail, this is one of the biggest free emails out there. Most people seem to have at least one Yahoo! Mail account. It offers you unlimited storage, with RSS news feeds, the ability to send SMS text messages, and instant messaging also. Spam is caught pretty effectively for you, you can label stuff and really Yahoo seems like a very easy and effective email program.

5. Inbox.com offers you 5 GB storage; it is a highly polished program. Very fast and functional also, IMAP is not supported though. Also the organization tools could be improved.

6. Gawab.com this speedy mail service offers 2 GB of online storage; it's stable and very easy to use. Again like Inbox.com though it lacks IMAP support.

7. Zenbe will help to organize your emails and attachments with labels and searches. There is a calendar also on Zenbe, and Facebook updates are offered. Spam filtering is good, but again IMAP and POP support is not available. Zenbe is focused on elegant simplicity, and many very nice shortcuts are offered, but other things are missing.

8. FastMail is a nice free mail service, you would have a guest account that offers IMAP access, the normal other email features. This is probably one of the best free email systems offered.

9. Yahoo! Mail Classic, this isn't as up to date as Yahoo! Mail, but some people are more comfortable with the old Yahoo! Mail options. Good spam filtering and everything else Yahoo! Mail is known for.

Like registry cleaner and antispyware program, there are many more free email choices if you go and do a search. These are what are considered to be the top nine choices by many experts. Again you have to research some for your self and maybe try a few of the programs listed above. Once you find one you like though you probably won't search for another one!

Do you follow the rules when you email? You know the etiquette of email. Basically what they are is a guideline of a way of doing something, or not doing something that may upset another person. You may not mean to upset them, but misunderstandings are easy to happen, sometimes over something that is very simple to avoid. Following are simple rules or etiquette for you to follow to avoid any problems.

1. Before sending off that email message, take another look, make sure you don't have something on there you don't want to send. It's a very quick step and you'll be done in a few minutes and might be able to avoid a huge misunderstanding.

2. Avoid the "Reply All" button, there are most likely people who are on your contact list that really don't care to see every email you’ve sent out. So just reply to one person, or pick the certain people, but don't do a reply to all.

3. A lot of people hate reading long emails, so keep your emails short. You don't have to be super short, but don't ramble on and on in your message, all it does is make people delete it without reading what may well be something important.

4. Make sure that you format your replies properly, in fact be lazy when replying. Sometimes copying from an original message may seem bothersome, but if it works and makes you have to write less by all means copy that text. And add a bit of your own information, then your done.

5. Make sure that you clean up your emails before you forward them on to the next person. Basically if your forwarding something for a person to see, make sure the message is clearly there, and not hidden in a whole bunch of other crap!

6. If you're not sure send plain text not HTML. Some email programs won't allow the person to receive HMTL messages. If you're not sure what the people have who you are sending to be safe and send a text message instead.

7. Don't send or forward something that is a hoax. This is irritating to your when you receive it so why forward it to others. All it is, well it's a pain in the butt to receive something like this.

8. Scan your emails for viruses to keep it free of problems. Make sure that your not sending a virus to your friends have your antivirus software or registry cleaner scan all outgoing and incoming email.

9. Subject lines should state what you are talking about, don't think something clever will get your message read.

10. Let people know when you have received their email. It could be something they really want you to know, don't make them wait, just send off a quick message and tell them you have gotten their message.

11. Before you send an attachment that is large make sure to ask the person if it's ok. Some people may want you to break it into smaller attachments.

12. Try and stick to one subject per email. If you talk about several different subjects it may be hard for the person to follow and remember it all.

13. Use your punctuation, it matters even in emails. Try and make the message easy to read by punctuating correctly.

14. Try to avoid those cute little acronyms, they can be confusing. LOL, IDK.

15. Avoid all caps people tend to feel you are shouting when you type that way.

16. End messages with a thanks. If you're not sure what to put down at the end of an email it's best to put thanks.

Follow these rules and it will make your email less irritating then previously if you hadn't followed these simple rules. Just remember that if you're talking to a really good friend, you don't need to change the way you've been emailing, it may be normal for you to use acronyms and write long messages. These are to be followed when you're emailing a new person, or business contact.