Announcements

New Virus

That's right - there's another one on the lose - and it's really annoying.

It's called the "W32.Badtrans.B@MM" virus. I think this is going to be a really high infection rate, judging by the number of infected computers that have been sending it to us (we saw over 100 different computers infected yesterday).

Anyhow, here's how it works. You get an e-mail with an attachment. When you click / open the e-mail, a dialog box opens and asks you if you want to run the attachment. When this happens, click Cancel and delete the e-mail.

If you get infected, it will e-mail itself to the e-mail addresses stored in your default e-mail program. It looks like it also compromises your security settings and logs keystrokes - probably looking for private info (ss#, credit cards, etc). For more info - click here.

I've said it before and I'm gonna say it again. You need good anti-virus protection on your computer. Everyone asks me what I recommend. Long time readers already know - Norton Anti-Virus. I think it's about the best protection you can get (so does PC Magazine, BTW).

It scans your e-mail, makes sure your downloads are virus free, and can scan your hard drive for viruses. If it should find a virus, it takes care of it - automatically. It's easy to use and keeps you safe.

You've spent hundreds of dollars on your computer, shouldn't you spend a few bucks and get a good Anti-Virus program?

We have Norton Anti-Virus 2001 on sale now for just $14.97, free US shipping (runs on Win 95/98/ME/2000/NT). Here's the link for more info:

http://www.worldstart.com/store/nortonav.htm

Computers 101

Q:
I have a 3.5 floppy disk that I can't put any data on. The computer says
it's "write protected". What does that mean?

A:
3.5 floppies can be write protected by sliding a little tab so it exposes a small hole in the upper right-hand corner of the disk (the slider is on the back side of the disk).

If the hole is open, the disk can't be written to. If the hole is closed, it can. Just slide the tab to your preference.

Note that some disks, especially the kind you get from a software company, may be read-only.

Tip of the Day

Saving Your E-mail
(outlook express)

Web Link - http://www.worldstart.com/tips/savingemail.htm

Does your e-mail program hold valuable e-mail messages? You know, the kind of stuff you hang onto and don't want to lose?

I personally use Outlook Express more than any other program on my computer. The messages I receive are the lifeblood of my small business. So what do I do when I re-format my hard drive, change computers, or need to do a backup? I save all those little e-mails of course!

(Before we go on, I want to mention that the example below is for Outlook Express, since that's what the majority of you use. However, you should be able to back up your e-mail from just about any e-mail client using a similar procedure. Web based e-mail is another matter though - the ability to save / backup varies from service to service.)

The biggest trick (problem) is figuring out where your particular e-mail
program keeps all your messages. Outlook Express uses small databases to store your information. Once you figure out where those databases are, you can copy them, back them up, or do whatever else to it your little heart desires.

If you are running a newer version of Outlook Express, it's fairly easy to figure out where your e-mail databases are. Just hit the Tools menu, Options. On the screen that pops up, click the Maintenance tab, then click the Store Folder button. Outlook Express will show you where it's keeping your e-mail databases.

Note that you can also change this location should you want it to be easier to find. I keep mine in a folder named "outlook express" in the "My Documents" folder. That way, all I have to do it back up my "My Documents" folder and I automatically have my e-mail backed up.

If you don't have that option, don't worry. Outlook Express usually keeps your e-mail database(s) in the following location:

C:\Windows\Application data\Microsoft\Outlook Express

If you have your computer set up for multiple users, your Outlook Express mail is probably in:

C:\Windows\Application data\Identities\ID NUMBER\Microsoft\Outlook Express

Not that the ID NUMBER folder above will probably be a folder that uses an alphanumeric code for it's name.

If for some reason you don't see the Outlook Express folder in the above location, right-click your Start button, select Find (or Search), and enter "*.dbx" in the "Named" field (make sure you select your C drive from the "look in" drop down box). This will bring up these "dbx" files, which live in the folder you're looking for. Note that on some older versions of Outlook Express, I think these may have been "mbx" files, so if you can't find "dbx" files, try "mbx".

Here's a screen shot of a Win XP search:

Once you've located these files, keep in mind that all of this information may not fit onto a floppy. You may need either a zip disk or CD-R for storage. My e-mail files are 246 meg in size!

As for getting the e-mail restored, just copy and paste it back into whatever directory it's stored in on the new (or newly formatted) computer. If for some reason your information doesn't seem to transfer despite being in the folder, delete your Local Folders folder (on the new machine / install) and re-start Outlook Express. That should do it.

Bonus Tip!
If you are wondering how much space all this e-mail is taking up, right click the folder that contains the e-mail database files and select "Properties" from the menu that pops up.

And my e-mail takes up:

Cool Site of the Day

Earthlights

Have you ever wondered what the world looks like from the sky? All the lights sparkling at you from the city…well if you're curious as to what the continents look like from above, check this out…

http://huntingsociety.org/earthlights_dmsp_big.jpg