Announcements

Norton System Works Blowout!

We had such a great response to our Norton System Works special on Friday and over the weekend that we had to wait till today to do the followup! (our shipping dept needed a breather :-)

If you missed out, we have Norton System Works 2002 for only $19.97! Of course, US shipping is free.

The suite includes:

# 1 Norton Antivirus - Protects you from all types of viruses, checks outgoing e-mail for viruses (to protect your friends), stops malicious internet code / scripts, and tons more. It really is the AV program by which all other AV programs are judged!

# 2 Norton Utilities - Here's one I really like. Look at all it can do to keep your computer running smoothly it finds and fixes problem, keeps your data safe from most hardware / software problems, keeps an eye on your hard drive, has its own scan disk and defrag programs (much more advanced than the stuff included with Windows), and can even fix most of the problems it finds - quickly and easily.

# 3 Norton Clean Sweep - Have too much junk on your hard drive? This software can help you remove unwanted programs (better than the Windows Add / Remove program thing), clean up internet temp files (cookies, excess plug-ins, temp files, etc), compress seldom used programs so they don't eat up a bunch of hard drive space, help you copy a program from one computer to another, and TONS more.

# 4 - GoBack - This one is really cool. It provides quick and easy system recovery. GoBack gives you the power to immediately undo common user errors and serious system problems on your PC. If you've ever messed up in a big way with your computer, this is for you. It lets you go back in time and retrieve lost data, unfreeze your computer when the system unexpectedly quits, or recover from a nasty computer viruses.

Each one of these components does a LOT more than described here (and sell individually for $40-$50). Take a look at the site for more info:

http://www.worldstart.com/store/nortonsystem2002-cdm.htm

Mcafee?

We also had a large (very large actually) number of e-mails asking us about Mcafee. If you would prefer that software, we have the current version for $18.97. It includes both Anti-virus and Firewall. It's a another great program, and you really can't go wrong either way. Here's the link for McAfee:

http://www.worldstart.com/store/mcafee-7.0.htm

Check 'em both out, but get yourself protected. There's a ton of viruses floating around out there, and I can't stress how important it is that you have protection. Don't wish you had protection later, get to the site today :-)

Computers 101

Q:
HELP! I lost a file and now I can't find it!

A:
So, you've misplaced a file. It's easier to find than you think.

Click the Start button and select Find or Search. A screen will open up that allows you to search for files.

To do a search, just type the name of the missing file in the "Named" box. If you're using XP, you'll need to click the "All files & folders item" and type what you're looking for into the "All or part of a file name" box.

If you're not sure what the name of the file is, you can use wildcards.

For example, say you're looking for a text file, but you aren't 100% sure of the file name. Type *.txt in the "Named" or "All or part of a file name" box. The * is a wildcard, meaning that as long as a file has an extension of .txt, it will be displayed.

Sample shot (XP screen shown)

Don't worry. You don't have to know the file extension if you already know the name of the misplaced file. If you know the name of the file, just type it in the box and it will attempt locate it. In fact, even if you only have a partial file name, that will work.

Once the file is located, just double-click it to open it up.

~Steve

Have a question for the newsletter? Submit it at the link below:
http://www.worldstart.com/submitquestion.htm

Tip of the Day

We get e-mail from people all the time telling us that their homepage has been changed without their permission (Internet Explorer). Most of the time, a quick trip to the Tools menu, Internet Options will let you reset the page.

However, sometimes it's an even bigger problem. Some folks find that each time they re-boot their computer, their homepage switches back to the unwanted one and no amount of screaming seems to help. What's going on? How did their web browser get hijacked?

There are several ways this can happen, both for a simple homepage change and the nastier, seemingly permanent change.

First, some web pages will ask you if you want to make them your homepage. If you hit Yes, then it's a done deal. After all, you can't be too surprised that your homepage was changed after you told your browser it was OK.

However...

Some will modify this question to something like "Do you like freebies?". When you hit Yes, it secretly changes your homepage on you.

Most of the time, the same dialog box that's asking you if you like freebies (or whatever) will also say something to the effect that it's going to reset your homepage. They try to distract you from that message and just get you to click "Yes". So, be careful.

Fortunately, when your homepage is switched in the ways outlined above, going to the Tools Menu, Internet Options will let you set your page back to whatever you want (of course, you'll need to know the address of your homepage). Normally, that takes care of the problem and you're back to normal again.

Another way your homepage can get switched is through a security hole in IE5 (yeah, I know, imagine that). As long as you keep your browser up to date, this shouldn't be a problem though. If it does get switched through this security hole, it's my understanding that generally a script is placed in the Startup menu (Start button, Programs, Startup) that will reset the homepage each time Windows loads. Deleting it should let you switch back your homepage permanently. Oh, and make sure you update IE if you aren't in the habit of doing it. That's one nasty little security hole!

Finally, software can even be a problem. Some programs will load automatically when you start windows and the first thing they do is to reset your homepage. You may be able to disable this though their options area (don't hold your breath though). Best bet is to disable or get rid of any program you catch doing this.

OK, but if it is a program that's switching your homepage, how do you figure out which one it is? Well, if your browser's homepage was reset to the homepage of a particular software company (who's software you just installed), you probably aren't going to expend too much mental energy figuring out who done it.

(Believe it or not, UPS had a program that reset their customer's homepage to UPS's homepage - it's not just little guys doing this. Of course, it was "on accident", which begs the question, "How do you accidentally stick a code in that manipulates the end user's homepage?").

Anyhow...

If you have no clue where the homepage in question came from, then look back on recently installed programs. Did your homepage change right after you installed a particular program? If so, you may have a place to start looking.

Seems that most of the time, these type of programs run from the Startup folder (mentioned above). So, if you see something in there that shouldn't be (or you're not sure), you may want to remove the item, reset your homepage back to one you actually want (like www.worldstart.com :-), then see if it stays.

Oh, one last thing - watch out for install programs too. Some of them have an option for resetting your homepage that's checked or selected by default (you know, for your convenience).

Whew, that's enough of that. Be careful out there—everyone wants you to use their homepage for your homepage and they'll go to just about any length to make it happen.

~Steve

Have a an original tip for the newsletter? Submit it below:
http://www.worldstart.com/writers-guidelines/index.htm

Amanda's Cool Site of the Day

The Free Site

Need a source of freebies? Well then this is definitely it. There are tons of freebies here and a little bit of something for everyone.

Webmasters—you can find freebies to make your sites neater, cleaner and better.

Music Listeners—you can find wav, midi, and mp3 files.

And that's not all. Choose the freebie section of the site you wish to view and get links to more freebie sites. You can even sign up for their freebie newsletter and get freebies sent directly to your e-mail.  Enjoy this one.

http://www.thefreesite.com/

Do you have a cool, non-commercial site that you want to share?
Send it to Amanda at amanda@worldstart.com