Let’s say those infamous
words once again BACKUP! BACKUP! BACKUP!
There now I have said it for
the first time in this New Year. I still
receive messages and phone calls from people who ask whether their data can be
saved from a crashed system. Many times it is possible but it requires a bit of
a techi ability. Many times the data can be recovered by
removing your existing hard disk from your computer and attaching it to another
computer as a secondary hard disk. It is pretty easy to do for a techi but, not for the faint of heart. This way, the data can be copied to the 2nd
computer and/or a cdrom copy of your data can be
created and you are back in business.
Remembering
that many times your data is saved in a deep sub directory of your username
directory in the “My Documents” directory. Under windows XP and Windows
2000, you can many times boot the cdrom that came
with your system and execute a repair of your system. This is a fatal error with some Dell and
other computers as their solution is to reformat your hard disk and re-install
the complete system, just as you purchased it. Including all
the trial software junk that they install. If you have copied all your data then you
should be fine but I always recommend purchasing a new hard disk and then
re-installing the operating system. Of
course, if you purchased your system a couple of years ago, it is really behind
the times in security updates and you will need to update your windows with the
latest security updates.
If your computer is over 2-3
years old, Many times it is best to make sure that you are not throwing good
money after bad. Memory, Processor/speed
and hard disk space are the options you will need to look at. Sometimes it is better to byte the bullet and
get a newer system.
They are really getting pretty cheap with more memory and larger hard
disks. The techi’s
will of course disagree but I write for both techi’s
and the average user who just wants their system to work.
On-Line banking warning.
I know several people who do
on-line banking, which is great and makes paying your bill pretty simple. Most banks try to get you to participate as
it makes their operation much cheaper.
They don’t have to mail out statements and that is a lot of postage. One caution is that if your spouse or SO
(Significant Other) is not a computer person and something happens to you. They
will be in a real pickle trying to sort out your financial affairs. One, they won’t have your userid
and password and the bank probably will not allow them to access your accounts
without the correct userid and password. After all, there are privacy laws that they
have to follow the rules. (This applies
to your E-Mail and website userid and passwords) Even though their name is on the account,
your userid and password are private.
My Recommendations:
You need to write down the
URL of the bank accounts, Your UserID and
password. You should share this
information with your spouse or SO. This
way they can take care of your financial affairs with a minimum of
aggravation. If you want to insure your
privacy, Write all this down and put it in a sealed envelope in a safe
place. Make sure that they know where it is located and keep it
up to date as you change your userid or password.
It is a very trying time
when someone dies and an inability to straighten out their financial affairs
can make it much harder.
I would recommend that you
not opt for email only statements, this way at least your survivors can figure
out where everything is located.
Wireless Router warning.
I guess that some of you
have received some computer goodies for the holiday season and one of them
happens to be a new wireless router for your Cable, Fios
or DSL line.
I digress, I have a couple of
friends who live in Leasure World and some of them
have either Cable or DSL high speed internet access. I was visiting one of them in the past couple
of weeks so I took my Toshiba portable that has a wireless Ethernet card
installed. I thought it would be
interesting to see what some of her neighbors were using for their internet
access. I booted up the Toshiba in the
parking lot in front of their building and immediately I had 7 or 8 local
wireless networks available. 3 of them
were free and open to anyone to use and I was able to actually see the
computers on one of them. I did not try
to access their hard disk but I might have been able to. I was able to get on
the Internet via their wireless networks..
A caution. Please setup at least the simple security of only allowing
specified Network Interface Card
address’s to use your wireless network.
There are several other security features that you can turn on and
enforce. Do it now and you probably
will be pretty safe and secure. Ask a techi if you don’t feel comfortable in mucking around in
the router configuration. Also while
your at it. Change the password and
System ID for your router.
You do have a router on your High Speed
Internet access, Don’t you?
If the cable or DSL person
hooked the Cable or DSL modem directly to your computer, you are living on the
edge of disaster and unless you have an up to date security firewall, you could be open
to being hijacked by a computer Trojan horse or virus.
A router gives you some
protection for your computer from the idiots on the internet who scan internet addresses
for unprotected computers. The router
provides what is called IP translation. In a normal setup. Your Internet Service Provider gives your
computer a internet address which allows you to access
the internet. Installing a router will
protect you from those afore mentioned idiots.
The IP address assigned by your Cable/DSL modem is given to your
router and then your router assigns a separate IP to your computer. The router keeps this all
straight and only allows incoming information to your computer if you have
requested it. In other words it protects
you by translating the Internet information to your PC, allowing only what
information you requested.
Routers are available at
local computer stores. CompUSA has
advertisements each Sunday which almost always includes routers. I buy mine
from the computer place in
Rich Schinnell is getting
closer to his 70th birthday which means he should be slowing down
but for some strange reason, he keeps learning and exploring new things. Rich has been a CPCUG volunteer for over 20
years and enjoyed every one of them. A few
small business’s keep him on retainer to make sure
that their office systems keep working properly. He can be reached via email at schinnel@cpcug.org and he has a crummy web
site at www.schinnell.org where he has most of his past Ramblings
columns available. He can be reached by
telephone at (301) 949-9292