IT Queries: Computer problems answered

Currently on my computer I have AVG Antivirus, Spybot and Adaware installed. Is it advisable to have all three on my computer at the same time? If not which should I uninstall?

It’s fine to have all three as long AVG is the only program running normally. Adaware and Spybot usually aren’t set to scan continuously.

So there’s no problem having the three programs together and it’s good practice to update and run both Adaware and Spybot ever week or so.

I’ve got a 5+year old Dell PC – everything is fine but performance is a bit slow – I expect this is due to upgrades of software (XP and Norton) without upgrading the hardware. Its a 2.4G Pentium with 384M of memory.

I think upgrading memory will improve performance. I can expand the memory to 1G. But is this much memory ineffective with a 2.4G processor speed. For example, would i cap out with 512M of memory?

If there is a limit on memory it won’t be so much the processor limiting it as the motherboard. The easiest way to check the limitations of your system is to log onto the support section of the Dell website and enter your service tag number which normally appears on a sticker on the top or back of the system.

You’ll probably find a computer of that age will probably support up to 2Gb of RAM however it will probably be an older type so it will be more expensive than the current models.

Generally it’s best to buy memory for these sort of systems from the manufacturer. While you’ll pay more, you’ll avoid strange bugs and incompatibilities.

Up-graded my PC including a new hard drive and installed Windows XP Pro and applications on it including Office.  Where should I look for the address book and how do I open it?

On Windows XP and earlier systems, Outlook Express uses the Windows Address Book. This is usually hidden deep in the user profile in a hidden folder.

First, you’ll have to change your computer settings to so you can see your hidden folders. Once you have set this, you’ll have to find the address book file which is usually hidden in c:\documents and settings\yourname\application data\microsoft\address book and finishes in the name .wab.

Keep in mind when you are importing off an old hard drive, the drive letter will not be c:

To import the old address book into the new book, open your new address book by clicking the address icon at the top of the Outlook Express screen.

In the adress book click the File menu, select import and Address Book (WAB) then navigate to the old address book locations. Highlight the address book and click Open. The wizard will then run you through the process.

Many important files are hidden in Windows XP and Vista. The reason for this is to protect critical system files from being accidentally deleted.

Unfortunately many data files such as address books are also tucked away in hidden folders, which means it can be difficult to find them.

To view these hidden files and folders, there’s a few settings to change in Windows. We recommend only doing this when you need to, such as when you are looking for Outlook Express data files or Windows Address Books. When you are finished, you should turn the settings back on.

Windows XP

Open My Computer, select the Tools menu and click Folder Options.

In the Folder Options windows select the View tab. Click the Show hidden files and folders button and below that take the tick off the Hide protected operating system files box.

A box may appear explaining what you are doing and asking if you are happy with this, click Yes.

Click the Apply button and then the OK button and shutdown My Computer.

Now your computer is configured to show all hidden files.

Windows Vista

Click on the Start button and select the Control Panel, click on the Appearance and Personalization link and click on Show Hidden Files or Folders.

In the Hidden files and folders section select the button labeled Show hidden files and folders and remove the tick  from Hide extensions for known file types below this, remove the tick from Hide protected operating system files.

Click the Apply button and then the OK button and Windows Vista is configured to show all hidden files.

Remember that it’s best practice not to be able to see these files as this reduces the risk of accidentally damaging or deleting important system components, so once you’ve found the hidden or system files turn the hide setting back on again.

Up-graded my PC including a new hard drive and installed Windows XP Pro and applications on it including Office.  The old hard drive is also in the case and while old data files on it are accessible by most applications, I can’t get the new Outlook Express to bring up my old Outlook Express files.  I can find the old email message files but can’t open them, even after copying them to the current Outlook Express folder.  I’ve not been able to find the old address book file.

Where should I look for the address book and how do I open it and my old message files?

To recover your old Outlook Express files, use the Import tool in Outlook Express, click the File menu, Import and select Messages.

Select Outlook Express 6 and click Next. In the import from OE 6 dialog box, click the Import Mail from OE 6 directory. Then select the folder containing the old Outlook Express files.

We’ll answer the Address Book question in our next IT Queries post.

I have a lenovo laptop running Windows XP that shows a blue screen when it is turned on. The message reads “STOP: c000021a {Fatal System Error} The windows Logon process system process terminated unexpectedly with a status of 0×00000000 (0×00000000 0×00000000). The system has been shut down.”

many thanks for your help.

Windows is trying to do something like rename or update a file on starting and failing. Microsoft explain the process here. As result the computer won’t start.

This isn’t simple to fix and we wouldn’t recommend Microsoft’s solution. Instead we would use a Knoppix or BartPE disk to repair the problem which may involve moving system files from a repair directory back to their correct location.

Using recovery disks such as Bart or Knoppix is not something we would recommend to inexperienced users. If you aren’t sure about any of this you should call a computer tech to do this for you.

It’s also possible your hard drive is damaged and you should get your computer tech to check this and make sure your important data is backed up.

I keep getting attachments with a .ics at the end of them. What are they and should I be worried?

An .ics attachment is an iCalendar file. Somebody is probably trying to invite you to an event so you don’t need to be worried about them.

If you are running Outlook Express or a version of Outlook older than 2ooo (Outlook 200o needs service pack 3 to read them properly) then you won’t be able to read them.

Should you want to enter these into a calendar you’ll have to look at another program. Google’s online calendar is one that handles iCal files without a problem.

I run a mailing list for my football club and I’ve started using Outlook to send invites for meetings and events. The people who don’t use Outlook are complaining they can’t read the invites. How do I fix this?

The problem is the format Microsoft Outlook uses for invites. The industry standard is  iCalendar which applications like GroupWise and Google Calendar can read, however Outlook uses its own format which most other programs can’t read.

Outlook 2003 and 2007 will allow you to change the setting so you can send the calendar invitations.

Open Outlook and click Tools, Options then select the Preference tab. Click the Calendar Options button and tick the box alongside “When sending meeting requests over the Internet, use iCalendar format”. 

Click okay and the problem should be resolved. 

Note that people using older versions of Outlook may not be able read iCalendar invites and Outlook Express doesn’t support calendars at all.

I have Vista on a computer in one state and XP on a computer in another state.  I have a large email list with many group lists.  I can export/import the address book from XP in Vista.  But when I return I cannot export/import the list from Vista to XP.  It will not allow the group lists, which I need.

Over 2000 email addresses and about 25 group lists, frequently changing.  I am in my 70\’s and send out daily messages to retirees as a volunteer.  How can I get the group lists from Vista Windows Mail to XP’s Outlook Express.

With Vista, Microsoft introduced a new address book that isn’t compatible with the older Windows Address Book (WAB) used by XP and earlier versions of Windows. 

Like many things in Vista, the new Windows Contacts added complexity without adding any worthwhile new features.

Unfortunately, we can’t find a solution to transferring groups from Vista back to a Windows Address Book. The best we can suggest is using another email program such as Mozilla Thunderbird or a third party contact manager such as the free Open Contacts.

Given you have so many contacts to manage, it may be worthwhile talking to your ISP or web host to see if they include a list management service, some will do this for free while other will charge a nominal fee for it. Either way, you may find this simplifies your life and saves you a lot of time.

I bought and installed a Norton anti-virus package when I got my computer and it has just expired.  My ISP offered me two months free trial of their security package so I downloaded and installed it, so I’m good (touch wood) for a few weeks, giving me time to investigate options.

My geeky friends tell me it’s okay to download free security packs and in fact, a couple say they have never paid for anti-virus software in years of owning a computer.

How can this be so?

I can understand that they offer this free in the hope that over time they’ll convince me to buy (with $$) some of their other products, but am I really going to get something that works as well for (decidedly non-geeky) me, as a package that I pay for?

Are these companies legit?  Is the software legit?  Am I opening myself up to problems I don’t have the skills to handle. How safe can it be to depend on free virus protection? 

I just keep asking myself:  would I give my address to someone I don’t know who’s offering to come around and install free locks!

There’s nothing wrong with free software. In fact, there’s an active group of programmers who believe all software should be free and there is no shortage of free applications available for budget conscious computer users.

The software your friends are talking about are the free antivirus packages. The most common are AVG, AntiVir and Avast. All three of them are good although we’ve had a few hiccups recently with AVG.

These are slightly different to free software, they are more like “teaser” products, where the vendors offer a free version with no support and slightly fewer features than their paid versions to encourage people to use their software.

Despite the slightly limited features and occasional hiccups, these three are as good, if not better, than the popular commercial anti-virus and security products and we’d highly recommend all three of them over the better know brand names.

One thing to watch though are some scams posing as free anti virus programs. If a message pops up on a website saying “you are infected with a virus, download our free scan” be warned that this is almost certainly a rip off that probably has spyware built into it.

Before downloading anything from the Internet, do a quick web search to make sure it is safe and it will do what it promises.