Date: May 9th, 2008

Author: John Sheesley

It has taken Microsoft four years to ship another service pack for Windows XP. After all that time, you might think that they’d get it right. However, even as what is viagra used for SP3 went to RTM, problems cropped up with SP3, including problems that it caused with Microsoft’s own Dynamics line of software.

With the practically unlimited hardware and software combinations that are out there, you can’t necessarily blame Microsoft if things break when they ship something as significant as a service pack. Even simple patches and fixes can sometimes break things. That’s why it’s often a good idea not to configure Automatic Updates on Windows software. You need to have a strategy in place to deal with updates and to test them in advance.

Where to begin?

Of course, in some cases users can receive updates automatically and you don’t have to worry about them. For lower-level users doing noncritical work, you may think you can save yourself some time by just enabling Automatic Updates. Usually the places where updates and service packs cause the most damage is where you’re using custom applications or rely a lot on non-Microsoft solutions. So for those users, you may want to have a testing regiment in place before you allow them to receive updates. The main difficulty with such a strategy is that you can spend a lot of time doing triage.

It’s often easier to have a blanket policy in place. Either allow Automatic Updates for everyone, hope for the best, and deal with the fallout, or block updates for all users and distribute them on an as-needed basis once you’re sure they work properly.

Do-it-yourself distribution

It’s a gamble which is the better strategy. In the short term, certainly the most labor-intensive option is to block automatic updates and distribute them yourself. If you’ve standardized the workstations in your organization, you should keep back a representative machine with typically installed software. Apply the patches and do some testing yourself. If everything seems to be fine, then you can push the patches and service packs out.

Microsoft helps with the blocking of XP SP3 and Vista SP1 with the Windows Service Pack Blocker Tool Kit. Even if you have Automatic Updates installed, this tool will prevent them from loading the target service packs for up to a year. This gives you the flexibility of allowing Automatic Updates without having to worry about dealing with bad results from the service packs.

Another alternative is to set up your own update server and redirect workstation updates to it. Microsoft’s Windows Server Update Services will help you get that job done. Third parties create update services as well, such as PatchLink, PatchQuest, and Patch Authority.

Finally, you can also just create individual MSI files for each patch or update and then push them out via Group Policy. This takes a little more effort than the other solutions, but it gives you the maximum flexibility about who gets what and when. If you don’t like Active Directory and Group Policy, you can use things like ZENworks and LANDesk to do essentially the same thing.

Avoid fixes that break things

Service packs and updates have the ability to introduce as many problems as they fix. As an IT leader, you need to have a strategy in place before you deploy them. You may get lucky and not encounter any problems. However, it’s just as likely that when the updates fix one thing they break something else along the way. Do some testing in advance, and you can save yourself time in the long run.

Date: May 21st, 2008

Author: Greg Shultz

Computer users consistently use very simplistic logic when creating passwords. For example, many of us choose meaningful words, personal dates, or a word commonly found in the dictionary because it makes the password easy to remember. These common practices cause us to sacrifice the security that passwords are intended to provide.

If you’re really at a loss when it comes to thinking of a strong password, you can let Windows XP create and assign a random password to your account. To let Windows XP generate your password, follow these steps. (Warning: Before you follow these steps, please be sure that you are paying careful attention and are ready to actually use a password that might not be as memorable as you’re accustomed to! Also, you cannot use this tip on a Windows Server domain.)

At your discretion, you may want to create a Password Reset Disk at this point. what does viagra do to men This disk will allow you to gain access to your computer in the event you forget your password. Here’s how to create the disk:

1. Open the Control Panel and double-click the User Accounts tool.
2. Click your account icon.
3. Select Prevent A Forgotten Password under Related Tasks.
4. Follow the instructions provided by the wizard.

Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional systems in either a standalone or peer-to-peer workgroup configuration.

Are your file extensions hiding from you? Do you see file names but secretly wish you could see the extension too?

Maybe you have no clue what file extensions are or why in the world you would want to look at them. Well, take a gander at the link below for help:

http://www.worldstart.com/tips/computer-terms/termfileextensions.htm

OK, now how to set your computer so you can see your extensions (and join the rest of us geeks).

1. First, open Windows Explorer by right-clicking the Start button, Explore .

2. Click the Tools menu, viagra super force Folder Options .

3. From the resulting screen, click the View tab. Now, look for the option to " Hide extensions for known file types ". You need to uncheck it in order to see the extensions (it's checked by default).

That's it, nothin' to it. Enjoy those extensions 🙂

Okay, so I know we've gone over this one before, but a lot of you have been asking about it recently and it seems like many of you are still having trouble with it, so I thought I'd go over it again today. What am I talking about? Well, you may or may not know that the Control Panel on your computer has two different views. That's right, it has a Classic View and a Category View. They're both very different and either one of them can be used for all sorts of things. It's also very easy to switch back and forth between them. Read on!

Let's start with the Classic View. If you choose this particular option, you will see a box that's filled with different icons. They include everything from Accessibility Options to Date and Time to Printers and Faxes to User Accounts and so on. It contains quite a bit more than the Category View does, but it's also an older version of the Control Panel. On the other hand, the Category View is a more condensed version, but it still has everything you could possibly need from the Control Panel.

Now, certain computer techniques require you to be in a particular view and if you're not in the right one, you may run into some trouble. But, like I said earlier, it's very easy to switch between them, so you're never too far from where you need to be. To see how you can do that, go to Start, Control Panel and look in the top left hand corner. There you will see a link that either viagra sales says "Switch to Category View" or "Switch to Classic View." Once you click on that, you will be taken to the Control Panel you need and you can get your work done. It's as easy as pie!

If you’re one who likes to organize your computer files, I have the perfect tip for you today! I will show you a very easy way to arrange your files and folders in Windows XP. By following the steps below, you can change the way your individual files and folders are sorted by using the Arrange Icons option under your My Documents folder. With that, you can sort your files by name, size, file type or date. Then after you sort them, you can arrange them by groups, according to the sorted view. We have a lot to cover, so let’s get started!

1.) First, go to Start, My Documents.

2.) Once you're there, single click on the folder you want to arrange.

3.) Next, go to the toolbar at the top of the page and click View.

4.) Point to Arrange Icons By.

5.) You will then see two groups of options come up, but let's focus on the first one for now. Go ahead and choose the option of your liking: Name, Size, Type or Date Modified.

6.) Now, repeat the process by clicking on the View menu again and pointing to Arrange Icons By. Then choose an arrangement option from the second group of choices you see: Show in Groups, Auto Arrange or Align to Grid.

If you’re confused about which option you should pick, here's a quick rundown of each one:

Name – Alphabetically.

Size – By size, with the largest folder or file listed first.

Type – By type, such as all documents created using Microsoft Word.

Modified – Chronologically in order by the last modification date, with the latest modification date listed last.

Show in Groups – In letter groups by alphabetical order.

Auto Arrange – Automatically viagra prescription uk in orderly rows and columns.

Align to Grid – Automatically in orderly rows and columns by invisible grid points.

7.) Once you choose your two options, your files and folders will be arranged automatically.

That’s all there is to it. Your files and folders are now as organized as can be!