Web Analytics


Detect and Remove the Conficker Worm (Virus)

Posted by Rich On March - 31 - 2009

Windows Guides reader littlelooloo asked the following:

I had a question about this worm that is supposed to wreak havoc on computers tomorrow… the news said most security programs have it taken care of.  I just wanted to get your opinion/confirmation if that’s really the case or should I download a patch from Microsoft?

If you are concerned about the Conficker (a.k.a. downandup) worm, possibly scheduled to wreak havoc tomorrow, April 1, 2009, you can download a cleanup tool from ESET. You can also apply a patch from Microsoft

From the Sophos blog:

It’s quite possible that Conficker will not do anything significant on April 1st. Certainly it won’t be “deadly” and your computers won’t melt. :-)

The fact of the matter is that Conficker is not set to activate a specific payload on that date. Rather, on April 1st Conficker will begin to attempt to contact the 50,000-a-day potential call-home web servers from which it may receive updates.

But it’s just as likely that Conficker will receive instructions to do something on March 28th, or April 2nd, or April 14th as it will on April 1st. The emphasis by some media outlets on April 1st is really unfortunate.

What we can say with certainty is that people should keep their protection up-to-date, ensure that they have firewalls and security patches in place, have a proper policy in place regarding USB usage and passwords. In addition it wouldn’t do any harm – if you suspect you may be infected by Conficker – to run a Conficker removal tool such as the free one from Sophos.

Download the ESET Cleanup Tool

Download the Patch from Microsoft

eset-conficker-removal1

Pranks You Can Play on Your Friends in Microsoft Windows

Posted by Rich On March - 31 - 2009

pranks

Are you bored and do you want to play pranks on your friends? Get a few minutes with their PC and have some fun while you watch them try to figure out what’s going on. UPDATE: I thought I would bring this up again for April Fools. Do you have any to add to the list?

Read the rest of this entry »

Want to Prank Your Friends for April Fools? Use This!

Posted by Rich On March - 31 - 2009

Here’s a quick program to help you prank your friends tomorrow: the Ultimate Virus!

What Does it Do?

I’ll let this screenshot tour I just prepared do the talking. Try to get your friend to run through the whole process and tell them that turning off their computer is not a good idea :)

Just download the file and after executing the exe, you’ll see something similar to the following:

Read the rest of this entry »

Best Windows Freebies and Guides 12 [March 2009]

Posted by Rich On March - 31 - 2009

Best Windows Freebies and Guides 12Every month we take a look around some of the most interesting windows-related web sites. We collect the best free stuff and write tips to help you get more out of Windows. Below you’ll find wallpapers, icon packs, fonts, screensavers, and freeware we’ve found over the last 30 days. We’ve also put together our most popular windows guides.

Enjoy the overview of stuff you shouldn’t have missed in March 2009

Have you joined the world’s geekiest social network yet??

Read the rest of this entry »

Cities of Earth Screensaver

Posted by Rich On March - 31 - 2009

The Cities of Earth Screensaver displays the earth rotating. As the earth rotates, it highlights cities and gives you basic information about that city–it’s a great way to learn where cities are and a little about them.

Download Cities of Earth Screensaver

Computer Boot Sounds Through the Ages

Posted by Rich On March - 30 - 2009

Computer Boot Sounds Through the Ages

I just went through a bunch of my old OS discs and extracted the boot sounds; I want to share them with you. Some of these sounds really take me back. Do you have any you want to share? Here is what I have so far:

Thanks to Hunky Dork and Harry who contributed some more audio clips.

Boot/Logon Sounds

Play Windows 3.1 boot sound Windows 3.1
Play Windows 95 boot sound Windows 95
Play Windows 98 boot sound Windows 98
Play Windows NT boot sound Windows NT
Play Windows 2000 boot sound Windows 2000 (Thanks Harry)
Play Windows XP boot sound Windows XP (Thanks Hunky Dork & Hary)
Play Windows Vista Longhorn boot sound Windows Vista (“Longhorn Beta”)
Play Windows Vista boot sound Windows Vista (Thanks Harry)
Play Sega Dreamcast boot sound Sega Dreamcast
Play Apple II C boot sound Apple II C
Play Mac II boot sound Mac II

Computer tips in your inbox
Sign up for the Windows Guides newsletter to get PC tips and access to free Windows books (More details)

Subscribe now
Popular Guides

See which sites have been visited on your PC (even if private browsing mode is used)

Create a Windows 7 System Repair Disc

Best Free Anti-malware

Hibernate vs. Sleep vs. Shut-Down

i3, i5, and i7; Dual, Quad, Hexa Core Processors. How to they Differ?

Intel's Ivy Bridge Processor: new Features

Windows Guides on Facebook