Carroll County Times Articles
Common Personal Computing Q & A
by Jeannine Morber – April 22, 2007
Many people seem to have the same questions regarding their computers, email and the internet. Rather than write in depth about a particular issue, I thought it'd be best to briefly address the most common concerns. Here are the top three most common questions I'm asked about computers and computer-related issues.
Q. My friends and family forward me email regarding viruses, warnings and other alerts. I've in turn passed them on to others but am often told that these are hoaxes. How can I easily determine which of these emails are legitimate and which are not?
A. The truth is that most of these emails are indeed hoaxes. Usually these emails state that it is urgent that you forward the email to everyone in your address book. This is a clue that the email is a hoax since legitimate notices of viruses rarely come via email and never state that you should forward the email to others.
The best plan of action is to first go to the website www.breakthechain.org, which is a site dedicated to "stopping junk mail and misinformation". Enter a few keywords from the email into the search utility and read what the site authors have to say about your particular email. If the email is indeed a hoax, you may want to send the 'Break the Chain' link to the sender which may prevent him or her from passing these on in the future. But then again, he or she may just forward the link to everyone in their address book!
Q. I've been satisfied with Windows XP and am reluctant to upgrade to Vista. I've heard though that Vista really is a better operating system. Should I upgrade to Vista or stick with XP?
A. This is a tough one because it depends on what software you are currently using and how critical these applications are to your business or personal computer needs. The problem is that some applications are not compatible with Vista and you might not be able to immediately use these programs once Vista is installed. Microsoft is addressing some of these issues and the rumor is that they will have Service Pack 1 available for download sometime towards the end of the year.
If you are buying a new computer, it will most likely come with Vista and you won't be disappointed; Vista is very quick, intuitive and attractive. If you want to upgrade your current machine, backup all of your important data first. Vista upgrades tend to not be as smooth as a full install. If the former fails and you must resort to the latter, all of your documents and settings will be lost. So be sure to backup any files that you simply cannot afford to lose.
Q. I've been using Mozilla Firefox for the last few years because it is a more secure web browser than Internet Explorer. I've heard that the new version of Internet Explorer is just as secure. Is this true and if so, should I switch back to IE?
A. Internet Explorer 7 is a vast improvement over version 6 especially in the area of security. IE 7 not only has improved security features, but many of these features are also the default settings so there is no need to activate these features manually. IE 7 also has a phishing filter which can be turned on or off which will notify you if a website is attempting to imitate a valid site such as a bank or credit union. Explorer also now sports a tab feature similar to Firefox, which is what got many of us hooked on Firefox in the first place.
Despite these upgrades though, I still prefer Firefox; mainly for the downloadable plug-ins and Mozilla's reputation for addressing security issues promptly. CNET has an excellent review and side by comparison of both browsers which can be found here.
About the Author
Jeannine Morber has a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science and is the Director of the Carroll Technology Council. Questions are welcome and may be addressed in future articles. Email mail@carrolltechcouncil.org or go to www.carrolltechcouncil.org to learn more.
The viewpoints expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Carroll Technology Council.
