Douglas Godbey

Wed
16
Aug
Dennis Faas's picture

Backups And Images: What Are They?

I have been getting many questions lately about imaging and backup software. Since so many users have had questions about it, I decided there might be other folks that had similar questions, but were too shy to ask. OK -- so what is Imaging and what ... is Backup Software? Imaging and backup software fulfils very important roles in computer maintenance. However, the need and use for each is very different and that difference will determine which software you will need to support your system. The Backup Typically, a backup creates a 'copy' of any file that is NOT in use. If the file is 'open' and ... (view more)

Fri
11
Aug
Dennis Faas's picture

Electronic Mail: What Is It?

Just about everyone who surfs the Web has an email account any more. Most of the Internet Service Providers on the 'net have a set of mailboxes they provide their customers, but the software they provide for folk to get to their email account ... sometimes does not provide the tools needed to effectively use their email Inboxes. There are several "email Clients" available that we be presenting. Before we get to that, there is some information you need to know to be able to select the best fit for your use. First we need to define what and where a client and server are. An email client is the ... (view more)

Wed
09
Aug
Dennis Faas's picture

Printing

One area of computing that we haven't touched on yet is printing. With today's hardware prices, I suppose it would be safe to say that most home computer owners have an ink jet or bubble jet printer connected to their system. From Dot Matrix to Ink ... Jet and Bubble Jet The first, commercially available for the PC market, 'bubble jet' printer was introduced back in the early '80s by Hewlett Packard. It was small, required each sheet of paper to be hand fed, about the size of a cigar box, and consumed paper and ink to produce a fairly good result. One of the greatest features of the bubble jet ... (view more)

Thu
03
Aug
Dennis Faas's picture

The Registry: What Is It?

One of the scariest parts of Windows is the Windows Registry. You can reduce your Windows computer to a inefficient low wattage heater with a single keystroke if you start playing around in it. This thing is the one area that MUST be approached with ... care. No, I'm not kidding! The registry is important for the smooth and efficient operation of the computer. It tells Windows where, how, what, and when to run. It's cryptic and complicated. And the smallest thing can cause problems so don't mess with it without knowing what you're doing. But, sometimes you have to. If you don't fix registry ... (view more)

Thu
27
Jul
Dennis Faas's picture

Firewalls: Hardware and Software Solutions, Part 2

[Continued from Firewalls: Hardware and Software Solutions , Part 1] On the software only side of things, there are quite a few possibilities available for a software firewall. These all install directly on your PC and use the internal resources ... like any other program run on your system (such as memory, disk space, CPU cycles, and so on). Software firewalls do a good job of preventing both inbound and outbound traffic and are easy to install and configure. First up is Zone Labs Zone Alarm. The download is free as is the firewall product itself. They will try to get you to buy the Pro version ... (view more)

Wed
26
Jul
Dennis Faas's picture

Firewalls: Hardware and Software Solutions

[Continued from: Firewalls: Definition | Firewalls: A Brief Discussion ] Because of my need to test everything I share with the infopackets audience, I have spent a great deal of time evaluating various firewall packages. This kind of testing takes ... a lot of time. Installing each firewall and letting it work while I monitor it isn't hard work or anything, but it does take time -- sort of like watching grass grow, if you know what I mean. ;-) The process I followed included installation and configuration as well as some time to allow the firewall to actually do its intended job. That last part ... (view more)

Tue
25
Jul
Dennis Faas's picture

Bit Torrent: What is it?

In the world of computing -- especially home computing -- one of the things we enjoy most is gathering new and interesting programs to make a difference in our lives. I suppose it could be considered a cyber extension of the 'Hunter/Gatherer' part ... of us; we go to a download site and browse the lists looking for the one thing that will make our days a little brighter. We find it and click the file we want, and our computers are connected to the server that stores the file -- and eventually, the file is transferred to our system. From there, what goes on is a little more in depth (but it's ... (view more)

Thu
20
Jul
Dennis Faas's picture

Firewalls: A Brief Discussion

As I was sitting here at my desk, a few things came to mind that I feel should be passed on to you. I have spent the past few months reading about firewalls on web sites and industry publications. Taken together, the subject is complex and ... confusing. Yet, only one point is clear in all the noise: you need a firewall if you ever decide to connect to the Internet. Period. The arguments start when the topic of what kind of firewall is best. Therefore, I figured the thing to do is try and clear away the confusion as best I can. First off, there are three different camps when it comes down to ... (view more)

Wed
19
Jul
Dennis Faas's picture

Firewalls: Definition

A firewall is a barrier to keep destructive forces away from your computer. In fact, that's why it's called a firewall. Its job is similar to a physical firewall that keeps a fire from spreading from one area to the next. Firewalls use one or more ... of three methods to control traffic flowing in and out of the network: Packet filtering: Packets (small chunks of data) are analyzed against a set of filters. Packets that make it through the filters are sent to the requesting system and all others are discarded. Proxy service: Information from the Internet is retrieved through the firewall and then ... (view more)

Wed
05
Jul
Dennis Faas's picture

Frustration Over WGA: Exploring Other Options

Die-hard Infopackets Reader Beverly C. writes: " Dear Infopackets Team, In a recent article , Brandon Dimmel was quoted stating to the effect that " ... frustration by victims of the Windows WGA spying will only build the momentum of Microsoft's ... growing list of competition." My question is: aside from the multiple variations of the Linux Operating System, what other options are there available for home users? Here's my frustration: in each release of MS Windows, there are excessive features that the average home users never accesses and does not (and probably will not) use in the future; yet ... (view more)

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - Douglas Godbey