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If you do own a laptop or a desktop computer, at some point of time or the other, you will have to install or reinstall your drivers. Perhaps this is the first time when you come across these programs that will continue to play an important part in the smooth functioning of your computer.

Very simply, a driver works as a ‘translator’ between a hardware device and the applications that are considered higher level computer programs or the operating system that is intends to use the program for a particular function. Now each hardware device requires their own specialized set of commands in order to function properly, and thus require their own device drivers.

Device drivers are normally used for hardware such as scanners, printers, digital cameras, sound cards, network cards, graphics cards and computer storage devices such as floppy, CD-ROM and hard disks.

Most experts recommend that it is a good idea to update your drivers that will help improve the performance of the device being used, as the code used to write the driver is continuously being fine-tuned for improvements. So, if you want your computer and the hardware being used to work at an optimum level and especially being free from bugs, it is important to constantly update your drivers.

Some of these drivers, when installed, are set to be updated automatically whereas some drivers require the computer user to manually download the latest version of the device driver from the manufacturer’s website. Another method is by going to Device Manager in Windows (Right click on ‘My Computer’) and updating each driver from there as well.

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Let’s say that you wanted to access both your home and office PCs. The easiest way to do this would be by using remote pc access software. Also known as remote administration, this concept exists in both its legal and illegal forms and simply means that one can gain access to any PC from a remote location without having to be physically located at that particular computer. And in layman’s terms, a remote location could be anywhere from being in the next room to the other side of the world.

Some of the common tasks that are possible through this software are such as shutting it down, accessing peripherals, viewing and modifying information and applications that are on that particular computer.

Depending on whether this is for personal (which just requires access to basic information such as files and data) or corporate use (whose functions can allow an employee to access sensitive company while on the road or from home), a Virtual Private Network or an Online Remote Access service can be deployed to enable remote administration.

Microsoft’s Remote Desktop Client is an option that comes bundled with operating systems such as Windows XP, Server 2003/ 2008 and Vista. Windows NT and 7 which have remote administration tools such as Active Directory and Remote Server Administration Tools also enable IT administrators to perform complex tasks on a network.

Some popular options of third-party remote desktop software are Anyplace Control, Apple Remote Desktop 3, BeAnywhere, GoToMyPC, LogMeIn, RealVNC, ShowMyPC, SkyFex, TeamViewer and UltraVNC.

Apart from these options, remote administration can also be executed using wireless devices such as Palm, Pocket PC and Blackberry devices as well as some mobile phones.

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Prior to its release in 2004, being ‘bundled’ with Microsoft Windows XP SP 2, Windows Firewall has come under fire due to compatibility issues with several applications on Internet sites (which led to most corporates opting out of the XP SP 2 upgrade) though being a positive shift from the accusation that Microsoft was not protecting its customers from viruses and worms, thanks to the ineffectiveness of its predecessor, the Internet Connection Firewall.
However, with Windows Vista, a significant number of concerns (especially raised by corporate) were addressed putting to rest the negative publicity (but publicity all the same) that its earliest versions raked up.

Now if you have any Microsoft operating system after XP, you can easily configure Windows Firewall to protect your system, and here’s how:

Although in some cases, the firewall is turned on by default in any of Microsoft’s operating systems, most customers are given the option to try other firewalls before using Windows Firewall. But in doing so, one must remember to turn OFF Windows Firewall before running any other firewall software.

Now, in order to check whether it is turned on or not, Click ‘Start’ and stop your mouse pointer at the ‘Settings’ tab, after which you can select the option ‘Control Panel’. Find ‘Windows Firewall’ from the list and then look for the tabs named ‘General’, ‘Exceptions’ and ‘Advanced’.
In the General tab, you will see two options such as ‘On (recommended)’ with a green shield bearing a tick mark and ‘Off (not recommended)’ with a red shield bearing a crossed mark.
From here on, all you have to do is select ‘On’, if you would like to use Windows Firewall, and then hit ‘Ok’.
And we’re done!

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Let’s say you work on a document in Microsoft Word 2007 (with the docx format) and would like to share it with someone who has Windows 2003 operating system on their PC or laptop. Do you think they will be able to see it?

As much as you’d like for them to be able to see it, the answer to that question is no.

What you will have to do is create another document that can be viewed by MS Office 2003, and send it across to the user.
Now wouldn’t this problem be solved if we converted that MS Word 2007 document into the PDF format, and then sent it across?
Since it works seamlessly between several (often competitive!) software programs such as spreadsheet, photo-editing and organizer programs, this is one reason why PDF has become so successful since Adobe Systems introduced it in 1993. All your user will have to do is to download and install a PDF Reader from the internet. In short, PDF helps creators across the globe share their work over the internet twice as securely as any other file format available in almost no time at all.

Now, in order to change the file format to PDF from other formats that you are most comfortable working with, you will need a PDF converter. And there are several of them that are available for free over the internet (just google the keyword ‘free pdf converter’) that will convert MS Office, Lotus, Open Office documents, images and even web pages, apart from the expensive Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro software which will help you create PDF documents from a scratch.

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First there was antivirus software, and then came the wave of spyware and malware application all offering you protection from the dangers of the internet. All very necessary tools, as experts might add but what about registry cleaners?

A registry cleaner is a Windows software utility that removes configuration data from the Windows registry that are no longer in use.

When it comes to choosing Registry Cleaners, you can find authentic software (that is if you add and remove programs from your system often) however, there are several options that are associated with malware and scareware which warn you of ‘critical’ errors when there are none while some use website pop-ups to sell their product, appropriately known as rogue registry cleaners.

The latter has caused a lot of controversy and experts are skeptical not only of its requirement for optimum performance but also question the fact if authentic software is actually available or not. At the most, experts say that it frees up a few kilobytes of RAM, while on the other hand it can be dangerous in the hands of a computer novice causing system instability and loss of functionality as well.

So, in other words, there are more ‘cons’ than pros when it comes to the use of Registry Cleaners, and one should be extremely careful when choosing this kind of software for your computer. It is advisable that you take the recommendation of a computer technician before proceeding to purchase any Registry software from the internet, as some of them delete information that is still being used by the Windows operating systems.

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While budgeting for an organization, one has to list the expenses and revenues, and make informed decisions for the year ahead. Spreadsheets are used as a tool for budgeting in small organizations. In huge organizations, which have multiple departments, each department will follow different budgeting formats and spend additional time manually combining all these reports into the master budget spreadsheet. It is also difficult to generate a department wise split up as well as access previous updates of the budget from the master spreadsheet.

The solution to these problems is to purchase budgeting and planning software (B&P). This software will contain a central repository with the budget’s information.

Budgeting and planning software offers the following advantages:

1. Data integrity can be maintained as the data is stored in a central database or repository.
2. The data can be keyed in using the intranet or internet.
3. Onsite and Offsite details can be added, updated or deleted from anywhere.
4. Department wise templates can be generated.
5. Split ups by departments can be viewed.
6. Pro forma financial reports are generated easily at the click of a button.
7. Identify pending tasks across the organization with the built in Workflow.
8. One can check the status of the online inventory requirements real-time.
9. This software can be linked to Customer Relation Management systems of the organization, which are vital inputs in the budgeting process.
10. Visual and Appealing Business Status reports can be generated.

Some of the options budgeting software are Budgeting$business, BudgetingSoftware.biz, BudgetingSolutions, Budgetlogic and Businessdecisionmsft. If one wants to purchase the software, demos that give you a fuller understanding of the features of the software and what it can do for your company is made available. Companies like Hyperion Software, Cognos, Adaytum Software and Comshare produce customizable Business and Planning Software.

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The term ’scareware’ is used to define a class of scam software that either has no or limited benefits. In order to push this scam software, an unethical sales strategy is used which scares a computer user into buying their product immediately by suggesting that his or her PC has been infected with a deadly virus or has critical errors that need to be fixed. Normally, the price of this ‘fix’ is displayed using the scareware ad, and after the users pay the money, it is downloaded from the web on to their computer for installation. The catch here is that these fixes are an illusion created but will act as though it has taken care of these so-called errors or viruses. However, other fixes work as spyware that victimizes users.

Scareware ads might pop up while a user browses the Web, and will look exactly like a Microsoft window that misleads the user into believing that the message is being displayed from their Windows operating system. When the user hits OK, they will be redirected to a download site where they would need to pay and download the fix.

The best way to avoid scareware is to enable the Pop-up blocker option that is available on most browsers today. Disabling Windows Messenger and upgrading to SP2 for XP will help, as they are key entry points for harmful script among which scareware ads are one of them. Another way to prevent these ads is by enabling the Windows Automatic Update that would inform one of any new patches from Microsoft that can be downloaded free of cost.

It is important to remember that a Windows message will only inform you of a virus infection and will not offer a fix. Anything else that does offer a fix is a part of this dubious strategy to shove useless software down and uninformed user’s throat. Another way to prevent scareware ads and offers is to scan your PC regularly with authentic anti-virus software.

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Computer viruses are nothing new; in fact, the first documented virus was found on the grandfather of the modern internet, the ARPANET, in the 1970’s. As you can see, computer users have been battling these threats for almost four decades now.

The first recorded virus, called “The Creeper”, was harmless in the sense that it only displayed an annoying message. Since then, viruses have evolved to advanced viruses, worms, Trojans, adware, spyware and malware. Confusing as it sounds, all of these can be categorized under the broad category of Malware or Malicious Software.

The answer to the title question is - YES. Scanners for all sorts of malware do exist, but the recent trend has been for scanners to be able to handle a multitude of threats. No longer do we need to have specialized scanners for separate threats.

There are many malware scanners on the market today, and in choosing one of them, the price is always an issue. If you do encounter this problem, consider one of the free scanners available. Although the word “free” might lead you to think that there are components missing or that they do not perform properly, they actually do a great job. The only catch is that the free service is only applicable if it is used on a home computer for personal use only.

When deciding on a malware scanner, be sure to read reviews and discussions on the product. This will help you make a better decision on which one to pick, especially if you are going to spend some money.

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If you are one of those people who have made the switch to Windows 7 from Vista or XP, you would be wondering how you survived working with those operating systems for so long. For most people Windows 7 is the operating system that Microsoft should have delivered a long time ago. The optimization and sheer ease of use are a joy to behold.

One of the functions that Microsoft has improved vastly is the process of managing printers and devices. In previous versions, device and printer management was a tedious task that involved several different applets like Device Manager, My Computer, Game Controller, Mouse, etc.

However, in Windows 7, everything is found in one location. Microsoft has placed the Device and Printer Management on the Windows 7 Start Menu because of its importance in daily functions.

The new applet functions in a smart way that not only displays plug and play components which users will need to play with but also determines other matters like display settings for an external monitor. These settings do not apply to a laptop display. Each device features a context menu, which makes adjusting these settings very easy. Adjusting printer settings can also be done through this applet, making it very versatile. In addition to this, the applet allows for browsing of all printers attached to the computer, installing printers, displaying relevant tasks to attached devices and displaying information related to these devices.

As you can see, Microsoft has worked hard to provide a better user experience with Windows 7 and this applet is just one example of that effort.

Posted under Software Management

Malware and Spyware are terms that often confuse the less informed computer user. Make no mistake both types of software are designed to cause no good. By definition, any software that has malicious intent is termed Malware. Spyware, as the name suggests, is software that “spies” on a system and in its worst form collects details private to that user (credit card number, bank details, etc); therefore spyware comes under the broad umbrella of malware.

Malware describes the broad spectrum of software that ranges from worms and viruses to spyware and adware. Worms and viruses are one of the worst kinds of malware in existence today. They can enter a system and cause all sorts of havoc. This can be anything from merely pop-up messages that can annoy the user or causing crashes and in extreme cases, even destroying files. Worms and viruses are inherently designed to spread quickly and with today’s increased reliance of users to be “plugged in” to the internet at all times, we are seeing infections sweep the world in a matter of hours. A good, constantly updated virus or malware scanner is essential to keep this harmful software at bay.

The threat of spyware is not perceived by many to be as great as the ones mentioned above. But in reality the harm they cause can be greater. By stealing credit card and bank details, spyware can cause immense financial loss and ruin the unsuspecting user. Again, this can be prevented with an effective malware scanner. You can further prevent this by not clicking on or opening dubious emails or advertisements.
The bottom line is, malware can cause immense harm to a user. Therefore, it is in the user’s best interests to stay as protected as possible from these threats.

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