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Norton causes problems…blah,blah,blah

This is going to be a short one because I have to get to the digital photography user group soon. I just wanted everyone to know that I saw two computers with exactly the same problem today.

They were connected to the Internet, but couldn’t view the Internet. In other words, they could get windows updates and use programs like Yahoo! Messenger, but they couldn’t view web pages.

Here’s what I did to fix the problem:

1. Uninstalled Norton Antivirus

I then Installed AVG to make sure that their system was protected.

Both systems also perked up significantly after changing the antivirus.

Fact: Palm is better than Windows Mobile

I had the pleasure of setting up a new Windows Mobile powered cell phone/PDA today.

In the past, I have probably setup five similar devices and they have never gone smoothly. Today’s was the worst.

I have setup dozens of Palm powered devices and I have never had a major problem with setup that wasn’t hardware related.

As I setup the Windows Mobile device today I would go all the way through the install and then the device would attempt to sync with the computer for dates, addresses and notes. A Window would immediately pop up that said something like, "Can’t sync, reconnect the device and try again. If that doesn’t work use the ActiveSync troubleshooter."

Norton may slow computers down

ALERT!!

Today I saw a client with a slow computer. I removed Norton Antivirus and the computer instantly regained the speed of its youth.

Later in the day I saw another client with a slow computer. I removed Norton Antivirus and the computer instantly regained the speed of its youth.

There seems to be a trend here because over the past two years I have seen dozens of computers with slowness problems. After removing Norton Antivirus the computer instantly regained the speed of its youth.

Security is Paramount

I’m posting from the road today as I sit waiting for my last customer. An earlier customer made a neat comment/observation. She said, "Geesh, I didn’t realize there was so much to setting up the security on a computer."

She had an expired version of Norton that we uninstalled. Then I loaded AVG Antivirus, Zone Alarm Firewall, and Windows Defender. Security setup seems time consuming and tedious during setup, but once installed properly it can work autonomously. The little extra time spent up front pays dividends down the road with decreased support calls and repair costs.

Why we recommend the stuff we do

Our listeners and subsribers have probably heard me say, "Don't let your kids fix your computer, no matter how old they are or who they work for."

I say this because many of my appointments come as a result of a full grown son or daughter who "works for Microsoft" or  "Is a computer tech for ___________ University" coming home and "fixing" the computer.

I have no doubts that said son or daughter is great at what they do while they are at their work, but there is a big difference between working in a controlled environment like a business or school and working on dozens of computers a week in completely unassociated environments.

Read the bubbles

Computer software makers have tried to make software easier to interact with over the past ten years. The problem is us…not the software. I equate the problems with computers with the problems we have faced for ever in real life.

Doctors tell us not to smoke…it’ll kill you. What do we do? Smoking, although relegated to streets and alleys, remains insanely popular and kills millions every year. Don’t eat too much fat or sweets we are told. "Honey, where shall I pick up food tonight; Dairy Queen, McDonalds or Wendy’s?"

It’s disgusting, I know. We are creatures of habits and don’t like to be told what to do. The advice ALWAYS turns out to be helpful, but we usually find out too late how helpful it would have been. 

Nothing is by the book

There are two things that make the businesses Rick and I run different from running a computer shop or working as the IT guy in a big company.

1. We see dozens of computers each week and no two of them are the same in any way.

2. Rarely is anything done by the book.

Every person has their own preference for desktop wallpaper, word processing program, Windows version, printer, antivirus, digital camera, web browser, etc.

How to get into safe mode

We have told a number of callers today to run their utilities like scandisk, antivirus and antispyware in safe mode. Here is a quick reminder on how to do it. You can find more information on safe mode by searching for "safe mode" in our search box.

1. Turn on your computer

2. As your computer turns on press your F8 key over and over in about half second intervals until a menu of options comes up.

3. Choose Safe Mode using your arrow keys and press ENTER

Safe mode is a troubleshooting version of windows that disables unnecessary features that can get in the way of removing viruses, spyware and other problems.