Category Archives: computers

What to do with a PC.

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The PC youngest uses has been declared dead earlier. It will get to the screen that offers Safe Mode but will not complete that loading. I haven’t tried to change boot order but I can’t see that not working. So I have a 2 HD 1gb RAM PC with I know not what inside. It was good enough to run Jade Empire on release and the gfx/cpu had been upgraded. The HD’s have some data so I could pop those into an enclosure to rescue that but then I still have a machine that does actually work. I could install Ubuntu after making a bootable usb but what to do with it? I have no idea. Though I could put music in it and say goodbye to iTunes… get it working first and then decide.

NAS or not to NAS

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Been reading about NAS and with 2 computers to upgrade and daughters that have a stack of photos some of which are not backed up I wondered if this would be a solution. I have no idea if it is – colour me clueless on this one. The setup:

me: 2 mac minis that are almost the same in content. Each has a HD attached, likewise they too are almost similar. My laptop/netbook contents can be ignored.
jacq: laptop running Vista
girls: macbook each

Images/files should be shared as we exchange those by email or usb right now, music really should be shared so Jacq can access all of her music upstairs. I have yet to find the equivalent of a digital jukebox with a really clear display and easy to use controls (an ipod touch is not the answer here as good as they may otherwise be for reduced sight and hand mobility). So I understand that a NAS keeps everything together, you add drives to add redundancy and once you are set up everything goes swimmingly. Or do I not need one as it would be overkill and could be done – that is automatic backups and sharing – much more cheaply? Wifi or wires? Plug and Play?

New shiny

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I’m sitting in front of two machines, both belong to work. My laptop belongs to work. The other computers in the house – and there are a few – do not have my name on. So if I want to just browse the net, or do non-work stuff I have to do this on a work machine. And work is work, I can’t help but see that xchat is open, adium is showing incoming, twitter searches are in the dock as are 3 browsers and any other programs I might be using that day. There is no getting away from the fact that these two are Work. They are almost identical too so that should this one fail the other is there to rely on. Anyway, no computer, no personal web stuff. I couldn’t compartmentalise any online activity. That works as an excuse for a new shiny but it’s actually real.

Don’t need a desktop or a SFF machine because I don’t need what it can do. I don’t need a laptop because what I want to use it for does not warrant the size, weight or ability. So – that leaves a notebook. Checking several sites in the end I opted for a Compaq CQ10. It’s running Windows XP (and it arrived with no activated crapware) so I’m quite happy there. All the programs I want are now installed, I have a few gb of music and when the extra gb of RAM arrives (it runs well but as it’ll take 2 it can have 2) it’ll be all the smoother. OS is tweaked a little, custom theme installed. And no work programs. Pidgin will be Live and ICQ only, no Skype, irc is there but not for work. It’s a work-free machine, one I can use and see just what I have created. I do have a couple of plans for some non-work work which I can move to it which will be better. And if I am out and it is lost / stolen then unlike my laptop I don’t need to worry about work passwords/data. So all is good.

Back to BT.

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A few weeks ago the phone line went very crackly to the point of being unusable. The net connection was also almost unusable. We had the phone number with Southern Electric, internet through O2 and the physical line belonged to BT. The problem was obviously with the actual line so rang BT, put my phone number in and was promptly cut off with a “This is not a BT number” message. Rang Southern Electric but they don’t open at weekends (Massive clue to some companies – have mobile friendly pages with your numbers on. Simple linked text. Opening weekends is sort of important too) and their pages took ages to load. So I rang O2 who said to contact BT. But I need to contact SE and they really have no number for any broadband issues at the weekend. So I had nowhere to go and it was all someone else’s fault. In the end I gave up, managed how I could with the net and hoped BT-using neighbours noticed and complained. Monday rolled along and the problem was sorted out. It showed how the desire to save money by combining gas/electric/phone was actually a bad idea especially as the phone is essential to my work.
So we switched back to BT. Line is BT, net is BT, number is BT and if anything goes wrong it’s one number to call. I have no idea if we are saving money and if we are or are not the cost will be minimal but the hassle factor is going to be a lot less.

The harem

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If I can I name machines. Partly because you get the option when setting up a network and partly because working out what the problem is can be easier when referring to a name. Has been for me anyway. You know if you are using Jabber and you get the user info? Check the Resource tab – you can usually find the name of someone’s machine (at least I can with our work jabbers). It’s boring to see some sort or serial or “mark’s laptop” so I thought I’d name all mine. And to give me as wide a range as possible I decided on names of ladies I like. ‘Like’ is also spelled ‘Lust after’ (except for 1) :). So here they are:

Mini1 – Claire (character in Hollyoaks)
Mini2 – Natalie (Portman)
HD1 – Rachel (Weisz)
HD2 – Carrie (Gracie – BBC News Presenter)
iPod Touch – Uma (Thurman)
PSP1 – Reiko (Nagase – Ridge Racer)
PSP2 – Angelina (Jolie)
Router – Amanda (Redman + a girl I used to work with)
PC – Sigourney (Weaver)
Mac Laptop – TP-T (Tara Palmer-Tomkinson)
PC Laptop – Helen (Mirren)

Next names in the queue: Emily (Maitlis – BBC News Presenter), Samantha. I’ve forgotten which one right now. And no, they were not named so that when they crashed I could say something like “Claire has gone down on me”. Such teenage humour..

A new router

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I’m looking for a new modem/router and rather than ask on twitter…

Current: Netgear DG834PN
Problem: If the PS3 is on the wireless network practically dies. I can sit with the laptop and router within a couple of feet and I get dialup speed. It’s a known issue with this model.

Desired: I really don’t want to get into setting WPA/WPA2 passwords. Too many machines and I’m too lazy. So restricting access by mac addressing is the way to go. Wifi table should hold around 20 devices. I know mac addresses can be spoofed but given where I live I’ll take the chance.
Cost: not hugely bothered.

I know the Airport base station exists but otherwise it depends which forum you ask, which website etc. I’m going to hunt around but do you have one that you think would definitely the better buy?

Computer held to ransom

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Earlier today Jacq’s sister rings and says she cannot connect to the internet and can I help. As I am upstairs working Jacq says she’ll ask later. When she does ask I say there is little I can do from here and would need to go over. Jacq calls her sister to say this.
Since the last call her sister received a call from a woman who in bad english asked for the supervisor but then passed the phone to a man. He asked for Jane’s daughter and then said in broken english that for a one off payment he could fix the computer.
She did say that last week the antivirus warned of a virus but that it was moved to the vault / quarantine (I think she has avast).
Her daughter is a user on the computer (runs XP) so that is how the name was obtained.

I have read of such ransomware before but in this case the computer can still be used. Without opening all directories it is not possible to see just what has happened / what has been encrypted.

So my advice so far has been to burn everything to dvd. Once everything has been safely backed up then we can look at dealing with whatever the actual problem is. In the end it could be the restore from the original image or even a new OS install.

I shall post more when I know.

The Dell monitor button

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One day and because the monitor button is to my right I must have pressed it in at a slight angle. The button slipped around and the next day I could not switch it on. Because it is smooth I had to use something sharp to carefully drag it back into place.

bad Dell button

Apparently Dell made a wacky design decision with this model. You would expect the area under the button to be a membrane that was central and large in comparison to the button. Not here. The actual membrane is small and off center. The part of the actual plastic button that depresses that membrane is also small and off center. So because I did not use direct pressure at the right angle it slipped – and has done ever since.
The button cannot be removed. The button cannot be glued into place. I could have fitted an inline switch but that’s just hassle which should not be needed. It annoys when it needs dragging back but it does not otherwise harm the monitor except aesthetically. But given that the complaints in the Dell forums have gone back well over 2 years, and that the cost to change the design must be fractional it is strange that Dell continue to produce this inherently flawed model.

Which ssh setup?

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D is back from Uni this weekend and one of the things I’m going to set her up with is secure browsing. Tunnelrx is installed on the macbook she has so it’s a question of a connection. I see 2 ways: (1) create another user on a domain of mine and let her use that or (2) set another unused domain as almost zero space but with the bandwidth and let her use that. Is there an advantage to either or a better way? (I know this only covers browsing but that’s okay).

Update in case anyone wonders: D has an unused domain hosted on my reseller anyway. That now has the grand total of 5mb disk space and for now 10gb of bandwidth. She will SSH through that.

Read the words

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Found:

Q: hello all i’m new here and really not computer literate. i do have a question for the pro’s though

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A: just for testing, run a linux live CD or an XP live CD (BART PE) and see

src.

I’d say telling the OP to pull the screws out of the computer would lead to less confusion.