OK, you have a new computer and you’ve made the decision to keep your old computer, and you want your spouse and children to be able to do email and surf the web without demanding your computer.

Let’s assume you already have an existing home computer network — if you don’t, the first article in this week’s online newsletter is for you…

There are two basic ways that computers on home networks can get the IP addresses and other network data they need in order to communicate with each other: we can enter the data into the configuration screens, if we want to use static (unchanging) IP addresses, or we can set the router to assign IP addresses dynamically using DHCP.

Continue reading Adding a Computer to an Existing Home Network

I recently made some boot changes to a notebook computer that resulted in a remarkable increase in the boot speed.

It was a small, light Sony — one of the 12-inch monitor models.

Tech Humor
With notebooks, you can get small, light, fast and cheap.
Pick any two…

In this particular case, the notebook took 4.5 minutes to boot, and it’s owner wanted it to be much faster.

I referred to my favorite tool to get his boot process under control — Winpatrol Plus.

Continue reading Speeding Up the Windows Boot Process

I’ve found a great tool that examines my computer to make sure that it has the latest updates of the most common software packages — not all the updates, but the security updates for the versions I’m runninng.

It’s called Secunia Software Inspector, from the Danish security firm Secunia (www.secunia.com).

Secunia offers three versions of its software inspectors:

* Secunia Software Inspector — scan on-line (free)
* Secunia PSI — download version for personal use (free)
* Secunia Network Software Inspector — the full-featured product.

Quoting Secunia’s FAQ:

# What’s the difference between the Secunia PSI and the Secunia Software Inspector (the online version)?

The Secunia Software Inspector identifies about 40 of the most common applications, while the Secunia PSI can identify over 4,200.

Contine reading A Look Inside Secunia Software Inspector

I’ve had reasons to do some Windows Registry repairs a few times. Fortunately, I found Optimize 2.0 and bought a license.

It’s come in handy for routine maintenance and cleanup of my registry, and optimizes my computer and Internet connection, too.

Read my Optimize 2.0 Review - Five Months Later Review -
or download Optimize 2.0 now to try the trial scan!

More new articles added this week to Terry’s Computer Tips:

Longtime subscriber M.Y. Choy wrote to ask, after a recent email newsletter article “Should I Choose Vista or Windows XP?”:

Dear Terry, the above topic appeared on your 13 May Newsletter.

Unfortunately, I have already switched to Vista and have found this problem i.e. after installing Acronis Disk Director Suite V.10 successfully, I cann’t start the program. Vista “said” that:- “E000101F4: Not enough privileges. You do not have enough privileges to start Acronis Disk Director Suite”

Why Vista allowed us to install the program but denied us to start the program??. Beside this, there are other problems such as “missing” drivers. I donot think many people would start switching to Vista. I regretted doing that.

By the way, is there any way to bypass that annoying ” donot have enough privilege ….” thingy?? Best regards. M. Y Choy

The intent of the “Not enough privileges” error is to protect your computer from viruses, trojans, adware, spyware and other nasties that try to modify system files.

Continue reading Vista’s Not Enough privileges Error

I’m often asked whether a reader or a friend (or someone who is both!) should buy a new computer with Windows Vista — or buy a new computer and get Windows XP on it. At first, I would have thought this a strange question since Vista is the new system.

But, then I remembered the basic “rule” of Microsoft products — never buy version 1.0.

I’ve been thinking about a new notebook computer to replace my Dell Inspiron 8600, which has a Pentium M 1.7GHz processor and 2GB memory. It could probably do Windows Vista, but not the Aero interface (and I haven’t found anything in Vista that I particularly want in Vista other than the eye candy — and I like fast more than I like cute).

My first thought was to get a small notebook with Windows XP that I could easily carry. That thought has its own problems though. There’s a long-standing rule about notebook computers:…

Read the rest of the story.