You can use something like this to monitor the total that is going in and out of each machine. It will just give you a total number, it wont break down what program is using what bandwidth. There are programs out there that can monitor what is connecting where, but they can get very confusing and the good ones are usually expensive paid programs.

Thanks for responding, Rick. I'm not really concerned about what programs are using bandwidth, but if this program can tell me what each ip address is using, its perfect.

Is the fact that my Yahoo sign-in seal has disappeared significant? It was there last night, and then just now, when I signed off one e-mail to open up another it wasn't there and the "ad" to make one was in it's place. The one that I was about to open is the one I use for bills, bank account and, work information which contains any personal information.

Actually, I just noticed that the security lock has a little red warning thing over it. When I click on it, the info shows that I've never been to that site (Yahoo sign-in) before today and that it's only partially encrypted. If I ran Superantispyware, and/or Norton anti-virus, and/or CCcleaner resolve the problem, or might it go beyond what they might uncover?


Edit: Okay, after refreshing the page...before running any of the scans...the warning over the lock has disappeared and the info now shows that the page is compltely encrypted (yet the sign-in seal is still not present).

Fuck it. I just made a new one and I'll deal with any problems if/as they come.

I wouldn't be too concerned. I don't use Yahoo so I don't know exactly what you are talking about but it could be just a certificate/cookie expired and you needed to re-authenticate that computer. No biggie. Cant hurt to run scans of Superanitspyware and Malwarebytes though.

Didn't want to start a new thread for this, but I figured that this would be a good place to start:

I'm running McAfee right now, and I have to decide whether or not I want to renew my subscription in a few weeks. Any good freeware alternatives?

Rick can speak better to its effectiveness, but if you have a PC, I'd recommend using Microsoft Security Essentials, and clearing out any other programs you have like MacAfee or Spybot. My ancient p.o.s. laptop runs a lot better since I did so. Checking for updates takes up a good chunk of the CPU, but I'd imagine that wouldn't be a problem with a better machine/Internet connection.

Sed, Mr. Mike B. is correct. I had Norton and was paying their $60-$70 a year for a machine that was slowed down considerably by their service. On the day it was expiring I uninstalled and installed the FREE!!! MS Essentials. I kept Crap Cleaner and Malwarebytes to run periodically, but my computer is running like a champ with MS Essentials.

I dunno, I haven't had any issues with Norton. All three of the computers I have it on run smoothly.

I like AVG Free though. I run that on my play box at work. Works great.

As MikeB and Burns have said, I'm currently using Microsoft Security Essentials. It actually updates through the Windows Update system. Before MSE came out I was using Avast!, which is pretty good as well. AVG is another option that is also free.

If you're looking for free use AVG. Then for a free firewall use Zonealarm and for Spyware use Spybot.

I'm just starting research on getting a laptop or netbook sometime in the near future. Right now I'm thinking of spending between $300 and $600 on one. I plan on using it mostly for Internet, some word processing, and media playback. I've heard good things about Lenovo, Toshiba and Asus computers. Right now I'm leaning towards getting a laptop over a netbook just because they seem to have a bit more power for not much more money. So my question is, does anyone have any recommendations on brand or even a specific laptop I should look into?

We switched from Lenovo's to HP laptops at work and I regret that we did. Nothing but problems with the HP's nothing but joy with the Lenovo's. Of course these are higher end business laptops but if the regular consumer versions have the same quality, I'd recommend Lenovo.

I have a question about Microsoft Security Essentials. To whit: Someone who may or may not be me may or may not be running a version of Office with a license that may or may not be sketchy. Does MSE detect and report that kind of thing to the mother ship?

It shouldn't look at Office to see if it's a valid version. It will check to see if you have a validated version of Windows though.

MS Security Essentials is by far the best one out there in my opinion.





AVG is ok. It used to be great but has become bloated and slow lately. No longer a fan of it. Firewall, the built into Windows is good enough is most cases. Spyware yes Spybot is good. Also run SuperAntiSpyware and Malwarebytes.





This is correct. As far as using an invalid copy of Office, just don't install OGA (KB949810) from Windows Updates.

My issue:

I FINALLY just put together a Vista machine I received a few months ago as a gift (yes, I'm lazy...I know).

I'm trying to do two things:

1)Hook up my Linksys Wireless router box WRT54GL V.1.1 to the Vista desktop - But, when I do, I'm unable to connect to the internet on the desktop (yet, the internet works fine when I run the modem cable straight into the computer tower). The router is there so that I can connect my laptop wirelessly, which leads me to...

2) How can I connect this new desktop to the existing network? Originally, the network consisted of my old desktop (an XP machine) and my laptop (also XP), hooked together via the Linksys. I've now changed the former to the aformentiond Vista machine. I imagine that I need to download a Vista driver, but the Linksys site has no such thing available, as far as I can see (unless I overlooked it).

Any ideas?

Andy,

Sorry for the delay in the response. Busy as hell with work doing shitty hours so I wont be around much except on weekends until the hours change.

You should not need any linksys drivers to get the computer online. As a matter of fact, don't install any linksys software of any kind ever. It is just useless bloat. Now to start off, is the vista machine connected wired or wireless? If wireless, you may need to enter a WEP or WPA code in order to connect to the network. If wired, it is possible the linksys is not configured for DHCP or is MAC filtered. Have you tried simply rebooting the router and the modem? First unplug both devices, then plug in the modem and wait about 2 minutes. Then plug in the linksys and wait another 2 minutes. Then turn on your computer and test the connection.

This would all depend on how it was setup initially. Did someone configure it for you? The more details you can give me the easier it is to help. If all else fails, you may be best off resetting the linksys to factory settings and starting over from scratch(this is easy and can be done and setup within 15 minutes).

Don't worry about it. I'm just greatful you're willing to answer our dumb-ass questions. Everyone here owes you a beer or dinner by this point.



Um....NOW I know. I managed to get the old drivers installed. Should I take them out? I have 400+ Gb of space...




Wired. It's the desktop (computer #1 in my network). The laptop is XP and wireless (computer #2)




Good news - I rehooked everything up from scratch (meaning I literally first had everything disconnected and unplugged) I have net on both machines. Granted, I think this is a bit strange, since the EXACT same connections before were troublesome, but whatever, I suppose. However...



...my old network no longer exists, per se. On the Vista machine (desktop, computer #1), the network map sees (what I believe to be) the laptop (Gateway XP machine, wireless, computer #2). HOWEVER...on my laptop's wireless connection page, my Linksys connection doesn't have any sort of password and appears open. Obviously, I want to encrypt it/lock it.

So - as I put this whole thing together myself:

Should I remake the network from scratch? How do I do that?

How do I assign the wireless signal a password?

I apologize if any of this sounds confusing...I'm not versed on a lot of the "lingo!"

If you set it up and did not change anything then everything should be at the default. To encrypt the wireless network, go to the wired machine. Open up IE or firefox whichever your preference and in the address bare where you would normally type in a website, type in 192.168.1.1 and hit enter. This should bring you to the login page for your router. For the username, leave it blank. For the password type admin and then login. Once you are in you want to look for the section for wireless. Each router is slightly different so I can't tell you exactly where to look, but it should be pretty easy to spot.

Once you find the wireless setup section, there are two fields we are most interested in right now. The first will be the SSID. The default is linksys but you should change it to something else. Anything you desire. This will be what you see on the computer when you are choosing a network to connect to.

Next we want to change the security(also called encryption). Typically WEP is good enough. It will give you the option of 64bit or 128 bit, choose the 128. Now you need to come up with a WEP code. This will be 26 characters long containing hex digits (0-9 and A-F). I typically do something that is easy to remember like all 5s or a two digit number that I repeat 13 times.

Now you should find the section of the router called administration. Here you will find a section to change the default password of the router. Change it to something you can remember.

Now write down the SSID, WEP code and password and keep it somewhere you wont lose it as you will need the info if you ever connect another wireless device.

Now back to the laptop, go to wireless connections and look for the new network name you created. Double click to connect to it and when it pops up asking for the WEP code type it in and that should be all there is to it.

It wants a username for some reason...should I just put something generic?

EDIT: ok, I figured out the user name thing - no problem. I don't see the other stuff you're pointing out with the SSID, though (unless it's there under a term I'm unfamiliar with). I'll PM you a screen shot...

Answered your PM with more details.

Thanks a ton! I finally have everything networked...

Hi Rick! I am looking into getting something to channel all the music from my computer to the speakers from my stereo receiver. What should I be looking for? The cpu is in the basement, and the receivers are upstairs. Will that be a problem? Will I need any additional equipment? I'm not looking for any music subscriptions, just the easiest way to play music from the cpu through those receiver speakers.

Thanks

Hi Rick, can I use a second wireless router as an access point on my home network to connect some av components to the Internet? One is a Belkin a/b/g/n, the other is a netgear a/b/g. I know you're busy, so thank you for taking the time out.

If you just need it to get the devices onto the internet then yes it should work. If you need devices on the netgear to talk to ones on the belkin then that would be a hell of a lot trickier since they will act as two different networks. Unless one of the devices has an option to act as an access point only or a repeater, but most do not have that option without installing third party firmware.

No, it's just to get a bunch of components online. Is it just a plug and play thing?

EDIT: Problem solved.

Pretty much. I would setup a WEP code just so you don't have a wide open wireless network though. Be sure to name (SSID) the secondary network different from the first one.

Guess I got to this too late to know what the problem was. But glad you figured it out!

Thanks anyway. Nah, what happened was that my computer takes too long at startup. I get to my desktop, but then the network takes 20 minutes to connect.

I did the whole MSCONFIG thing and removed some programs at startup. I also got rid of the Norton AV that came with the computer and downloaded Microsoft security essentials.

Now, my computer STILL takes a while to connect to the network and allow me to work, but I think it's because of the cheestastic HP photosmart and Totalcare Advisor functions. I'm debating whether to remove these at startup as well, but I do like having some of their functions handy. At least the startup doesn't take 20+ minutes though.

Any advice?

Do you have Service Pack 2 installed for Vista? That solved a few networking issues.

As for the software at startup, if you dont use it often just remove it. If you want to get some information from it you could always manually launch the program from the start menu.

I think so. Because I just recently put this thing together after having it for nearly a year, I've downloaded a crap ton of updates.




Thing is, some of the stuff looks a little ominous. I wouldn't want to take out something that is essential for the computer, you know? Some of the names are kinda cryptic.

Anything in MSCONFIG startup tab can safely be unchecked without harming the computer. The only things that should be checked are things you want to run at startup like your antivirus. If you find that something you use isn't working properly after unchecking things all you need to do is go back into MSCONFIG and re-check the box for that particular item you want and then reboot.

This isn't a terribly important problem - just wanted to see if anyone has thoughts on how to resolve it:

So for some reason, Rangerland (and a couple of other sites) no longer display properly on Firefox. What should look like this:

Click to view attachment

instead looks like this:

Click to view attachment

I've tried uninstalling and reinstalling Firefox, but no joy. This isn't a problem on any other computer - just the desktop in my office.

Interesting. After the latest update in Firefox, I can't use the quote function on Rangerland anymore.

Disable ad-block and try to refesh the page. I've seen similar things when adblock gets a bit over-aggressive. Also clear out your cookies and cache.

More details. What happens?

It's on my computer at home, not at work. I can view Rangerland perfectly but let's say I go to quote your last post, it appears to work but then if I try and type under the quote tags, I can't. And if I try and highlight the entire section to delete it, it will highlight but I can't perform any action. So, I just wind up replying instead of quoting.

Ah. Simple fix. There is a bug in FF with IPB boards. Click on the reply button to quote and then in the reply window look to the upper right hand corner of it. You will see a symbol with two arrows forming a circle. Click that. That will switch you from the rich text editor to a simple one. Now you should be able to reply. This should keep your setting so you will not have to do it every time.

Well look at that! I'll do that when I get home. Thanks, Rick! You sure are swell.

Glad to help.

Thanks Rick - that did it. Funny, because I'm pretty sure that I tried doing that a few days ago. I guess I didn't wipe the cache & cookies far enough back.

No problem. Sometimes things just get corrupt and you need to wipe it out and start fresh.

That wouldn't surprise me - we had a network-wide viral infection last week (PE_POLIP.A) that I'm certain didn't help matters.

Tell them to lay off the P2P and naughty websites.

I know - I can't figure out how the hell we got it.

Most likely someone opening an attachment in an email from someone they don't know.

I was trying to load some fonts into my system and I hit a wrong key somewhere. Almost everything is in bold. Web addresses in the address section of the screen, in Excel, everything up along the top of the screen is in bold.
As I'm typing this it is not bold but it is in italics. This is happening in all browsers. So, where in the control panel do I go to change everything back?

What version of Windows?