Discount Computers

If you are running out of space on your computer or find that
programs load a little slow, or that big files take a long time
to open, it may be time for a new hard drive.

Making a more careful decision about the hard drive can mean a
much longer working life for the hard drive. Better reliability,
allowing the hard drive to run for many years without mechanical
failures or the worst of all, losing your precious data to
errors on the drive.

Obviously the main thing that people think about when getting a
new drive is size. Although a 400GB drive sounds great, there
are very few people who actually use this much space. Only if
you save DVD movies to your hard drive, or if you do serious
amounts of video editing will you need this much space. The
smallest size drives available today are about 40GB and will
suffice for all your needs. However if you want the latest
technologies, bigger sizes are inevitable.

Over the years the speed at which hard drives work has
increased. One of the main technologies to improve is the
connection between the hard drive and the rest of the computer.
It passes the information back and forth from the hard drive,
the faster it is the faster information can be passed, and so
speeding up the programs you use and the files you use.

There are 2 main varieties for this connection:

The old IDE kind, which comes in 4 flavors: ATA33, ATA66, ATA100
and ATA133, each number corresponding to the transfer rate in
MB/s, the bigger the faster. This type is pretty standard. If
your computer is older, you may only be able to use this kind,
and depending how old will determine which speed.

SATA is a newer kind. It uses a different cable and allows much
faster information transfer. The slower kind is 150MB/s and the
faster is 300MB/s, so they are much faster than IDE.

A newer technology called Native Command Queuing (NCQ) speeds up
how fast things are found and done on the hard drive. Just
briefly, it orders the read and write commands given to it in
such as way as to get the tasks done quicker and with less delay.

Drives are most often separated by their size and this is a big
factor in the pricing of a drive. The smallest drives today are
around 40GB, you can get a little smaller, but no point really.
The largest of 400GB will be enough for a really long time.

The other thing that affects pricing is the rotation speed,
which is the speed at which the big disk spins inside the disk
drive. The faster it spins the faster information gets found.
Look for rotation speeds of 7200RPM as standard and 10000 for
the fast end.

With all of this it may be hard to decide, but here are my
suggestions.

For a main drive, which has your Windows and programs on it, go
for something faster, but bear in mind that even for me my ATA66
drive is fast enough for my uses. But a faster one will speed up
how fast your programs go. It might be a good idea just to go
for one big, fast drive.

Brand name drives are often worth getting, as manufacturers like
Seagate, Maxtor and Western Digital are well known for long
lasting quality products, which will not make any difference in
the short term usually, but will pay off with long life and
reliability.

If you want or need two drives the second one can sacrifice
speed for size, as that’s what’s most often needed for a second
drive, which usually stores all your information.

You should now have enough to make a smart choice in your next
hard drive purchase. A good one can be kept for a very long time
and minimize any hassles in the future.

You can get more information at http://www.computer-b
uying-guide.com Or find reviews at http://www.computer-review
s.net

About the author:
Peter Stewart is a computer enthusiast, his interest in
computers and focus on practicle down to earth advice inspired
his two websites. http://www.computer-b
uying-guide.com – Practical buying tips http://www.computer-review
s.net – Fair and honest reviews and opinions

If you\’re a computer expert, you\’ll probably already know about
these tips (hopefully this will provide you with a little
reminder). If you\’re not an expert, don\’t worry – these tips are
simple, and don\’t require a lot of computer experience.

While an old computer will never operate at the same speed as a
newer (and bigger & faster) computer, you can help your computer
stay as \”young & healthy\” as possible.

1) Disk Cleanup

Performing a disk cleanup regularly is a good idea. Whenever you
\”surf the internet\”, open attachments, delete files, your
computer saves a record of your activity. Many of these files
are harmless, and individually are very small. But if you spend
a lot of time on your computer, before long you\’ll take up
enough space to slow your computer down a bit.

Disk Cleanup is a Windows utility that helps keep unused and
unwanted files from taking up extra storage space on your
computer. You can think of it as \”spring cleaning” for your
computer.

Basically, it removes files that may have once been useful or
used but now are just taking up extra room that could be used
for more useful programs and files.

To perform a disc cleanup, click on the Start button on the
bottom left of your computer screen, then Programs, Accessories,
System Tools, Disc Cleanup. A small box will pop up, allowing
you to select the files to delete (most files are OK to delete,
but if you are unsure, it is best to not select the file). Then
click OK, and the unused files will be removed.

If you\’ve never done a disk cleanup on your computer, now is a
good time to get started. Then, depending on how much you use
your computer, you can perform a disk cleanup every few weeks to
keep your computer running smoothly!

2) Defragmenting Your Computer

Another way to improve the performance of your computer is to
defragment your hard drive. What is defragmenting, and why do
you need to do it? Here\’s a simple explanation:

Basically, defragmenting is putting files back where they
belong. With the files in the proper order, your computer will
run more efficiently.

You don\’t need to hire a computer expert to defragment your
computer. It\’s simple to do. You just need to plan ahead,
because if you have a lot of \”stuff\” on your computer, it could
take a while.

And it\’s best not to use your computer while defragmenting.

Not sure how to defragment your computer? You can either click
on your computer\’s help file (Click the \”Start\” button on the
bottom left of your computer screen, then Help), or click on
Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Defragment – for
most computers) .

Keep in mind that the actual wording is slightly different
depending on the operating system you use (Windows 95, 98, XP,
etc) so you might need to refer to your computer\’s help file.

Periodically defragmenting your computer will keep it running
smoothly!

3) Removing Spyware & Adware

If you\’ve ever had spyware or adware on your computer, you know
how frustrating it can be – strange things happening, your
homepage changing, inappropriate popups, unfamiliar icons…
What exactly is spyware or adware?

Simply, files that are often downloaded onto your computer
without your knowledge (or at least without you knowing what
they really are).

Unfortunately, many of these programs \”sneak\” their way onto
your computer, so avoiding them entirely is difficult,
especially if you spend a lot of time on your computer, surfing
the Internet and downloading new programs and files.

Fortunately, there are ways to remove these unwanted files from
your computer.

Here are 2 adware/spyware removal programs that are simple to
use (and both are free): Ad-Aware http://www.lava
softusa.com/support/download/ Spybot http:
//www.safer-networking.org/en/download/index.html

Why does adware/spyware continue to be such a problem? Because
most of these programs make money for the people creating and
spreading them, unfortunately. So, all we can do is try to avoid
them as much as possible, and to remove them when they do find
their way onto our computers.

If you do find spyware on your computer, don\’t panic. In many
cases, you just have some extra \”junk\” on your computer. But
keeping spywaer and adware off of your computer will help it run
more quickly and efficiently.

4) Uninstalling Old & Unused Programs

While uninstalling old, unused programs will help speed up your
computer, removing the wrong files can cause you some big
problems. So, please proceed carefully. And if you are not
comfortable, please ask for help from someone you know who is
more knowledgeable.

Most programs that you download simply have an \”uninstall\”
feature that comes with them. If you\’re like me and you download
a lot of free programs or free trials, after a while your
computer begins to slow down. That means it\’s time for me to
remove some of the old programs I don\’t use any more (and most I
only used once just to see how they work).

To uninstall unused programs from your computer, first click on
the Start button on the bottom left, then Programs, then click
on the name of the program and Uninstall. If there is no
uninstall option, then click on the Start button on the bottom
left, then Control Panel, Add/Remove Programs.

Again, if you are unsure whether or not to remove a program, it
is best to leave it.

If you follow these instructions, you should find your computer
working faster right away.

5) Get A High Speed Internet Connection

If you spend a lot of time on the internet, a high speed
internet connection is a must. It is more expensive, but for
most people the savings in time and effort is worth the added
expense.

There are several advantages of having a high speed internet
connection – faster surfing, web pages open more quickly, files
download faster, and if you send or receive large files, like
pictures or video, trying to open these files with a slower
dialup connection is extremely frustrating!

If you\’re already spending $20 a month or more for your dialup
connection (through your phone line) then you\’ll find DSL to be
comparable in price, and a lot faster.

A cable internet connection might cost a little more, but it is
usually the fastest type of internet connection you can get from
home.

High speed wireless connections are available for those who
travel a lot. And high speed satellite internet is available in
areas where other options are not (check your options first, as
this is the most expensive high speed connection).

That\’s all the tips for increasing your computer speed and
helping your computer run more efficiently. We hope you found
these tips helpful!

© 2005 Hi-Speed-Internet.com.

About the author:
Kris Bickell is the owner of Hi-Speed-Internet.com, a helpful
site for consumers comparing high speed internet services. For
information on high speed DSL, Cable, and Wireless Internet,
visit: http://www.Hi-Speed-Interne
t.com, and sign up for the free email course “5 Simple Ways
To Increase Your Computer Speed”.

In recent days, I was one of the unfortunate persons to receive
the \”Mydoom\” worm emails. Not just one, but at least forty
appeared in my popserver mailbox. As frustrating as it was
deleting all of these nasty little boogers, I realized that some
of these \”worm\” emails even came from persons I knew – or so I
thought I knew.

The problem with the \”Mydoom\” email worm is that it specifically
targets email addresses with the following extensions:

• .htm
• .sht
• .php
• .asp
• .dbx
• .tbb
• .adb
• .pl
• .wab
• .txt

Furthermore, it sends \”get\”
requests to target domains and uses direct connections to port
80. It will also attempt to send email messages using its own
SMTP engine. The worm is successful by using a mail server that
a recipient uses or local server as well. Some strings to
these target domain names are:

• gate.
• ns.
• relay.
• mail1.
• mxs.
• smtp.
• mail.
• mx.

The \”Mydoom\” worm will have subject headings such as:

• \”Returned Mail\”
• \”Delivery Error\”
• \”Status\”
• \”Server Report\”
• \”Mail Transaction
  Failed\”
• \”Mail Delivery System\”
• \”Hello/hello\”
• \”Hi/hi\”

What persons need to realize is that even if you \”know\” the
sender, you must make absolutely sure that any attachments are
specifically clarified from the sender before you attempt to
open these suspect emails. Most worms and viruses are spread
directly through attachments. Unless you are expecting an
attachment from a person you know, be cautious. Do NOT open
attachments unless you are absolutely positive that your known
correspondent has actually sent it to you. Another thing to
remember is that the \”Mydoom\” worm ranges from 6,144 bytes to
29,184 bytes in size and can affect Windows 2000, Windows 95,
Windows 98, Windows Me, Windows NT, Windows Server 2003, and
Windows XP. Luckily, if you have DOS, Linux, Macintosh, OS/2 or
UNIX, your systems will not be affected by the MyDoom worm.

For those of you who share files through Kazaa, there is a new
worm with aliases such as Worm.P2P.Apsiv (Kaspersky) and
W32/Apsiv.worm!p2p (McAfee) and seemingly affects Windows
systems 2000, 95, 98, Me, NT, Server 2003 and Windows XP. The
damage profile has not yet been assessed, but it would be a good
idea to steer clear of this one as well.

\”Keylogger.Stawin\” is probably one of the nastiest viruses as it
attempts to steal a user\’s online banking information. A Trojan
is distributed through email messages with the subject line, \”I
still love you,\” and has a \”message.zip\” attachment. Affecting
the same vunerable systems as mentioned above, Keylogger records
keystrokes and has the ability to steal personal, financial
information. A few systems that Keylogger monitors are window
titles such as \”PayPal,\” \”Logon,\” and numerous other window
titles associated with banking logins.

Common Hoaxes

A popular hoax circulating the Internet is an email titled,
\”FREE M &M\’s.\” Sorry guys – no M & M\’s here. More recently, you
may have received the \”Life is Beautiful\” virus … er, hoax.
The \”Life is Beautiful\” virus is not real and should be ignored.
This is only a scare tactic that causes unwarranted fears and
concerns.

In closing, the Internet is a massive electronical world filled
with infinite bits of information. When using your \”key\” to this
magnificent but vast window of versatile knowledge, it pays to
use logic when distinguishing hoaxes from real threats such as
viruses and worms.

• To learn more about current viruses and worms, visit:
  http://search.symantec.com/custom/us/query.html
• For an
  updated listing of current email hoaxes, go to:
  http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/hoax.html

Copyright 2004 – All Rights Reserved Computer Viruses, Worms and
Hoaxes by C. Bailey-Lloyd/LadyCamelot

About the Author: C. Bailey-Lloyd/LadyCamelot is the
Public Relations Director & Writer for Holistic
Junction — Your source of information for Holistic
Practitioners; -schools.html\">Naturopathic Schools, apy-schools.html\">Massage Therapy Schools, and Reflexology
Schools; Alternative Healthcare; Insightful Literature and so
much more!

NOTICE: Article may be republished free of charge as long as
Author Resource Box (above) is included, and ALL Hyperlinks
REMAIN in tact and active.

About the author:
C. Bailey-Lloyd/LadyCamelot is the Public Relations Director &
Writer for Holistic
Junction — Your source of information for Holistic
Practitioners; and -schools.html\">Naturopathic Schools