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Archive for March, 2009

Earth Hour Is This Saturday

This Saturday at 8:30 pm (your local time) marks Earth Hour. For those not in the know, Earth Hour is a World Wildlife Foundation event that originated in Sydney in 2007, promoting energy conservation. People, cities and organizations come together to power off as many electronics as possible for one whole hour. If you want to learn more about Earth Hour, you can visit their official Web site here.

Keep in mind, you don’t have to limit your conservation to just Earth Hour. There are numerous ways to conserve energy daily by making a few minor adjustments to your current technology.

Dancing with the Stars – Judges vs Twitter

If you’ve been following Dancing with the Stars, you already know that our geek hero, Steve Wozniak, survived another week of eliminations. The real news is that Woz did so with the lowest judge’s score (10) on the show since season 2.

How can Wozniak and his partner Karina Smirnoff not only make it another week, but also end up in the top three? Fortunately for Woz, the competition counts phone, text and web votes from viewers in addition to the judge’s scores.

Online Support – The Future is Now

At our top secret Geek Squad research labs, located deep inside the cone of a dormant volcano in Minneapolis (whoops, I just let the secret out), we’ve been working on new ways to better serve our clients. One ongoing project involves the combination of teleportation devices and time machines, so our on-site Agents can not only be anywhere there’s a computer emergency, they can be there BEFORE you need them.

March Madness – Infecting Your Computer?

Geeks and sports don’t normally mix together. However, according to a recent USA Today’s Technology Live blog, sports fans and geeks alike are being targeted in a new SEO/malware scheme. Sports fans searching Google for “March Madness” related sites could have troubles ahead.

Dancing with the Stars: I vote Woz

Tonight’s the night. The first Dancing with the Stars results show of the season. Geeks everywhere are holding their breath to see if Steve Wozniak and dance partner Karina Smirnoff will be the first couple sent home.

It’s been a tough competition for the Woz, the geek celebrity who’s been working his way through dance training despite suffering a fractured foot and some rather harsh comments from the show’s judges on his performances.

Yet, Woz’s enthusiasm has remained high. Heck, he has managed to get an offer to walk fellow Dancing star Maksim Chmerkovskiy down the isle (according to CNET).

Now we’re not counting Woz out, but are giving him credit for turning lemons into lemonade. That’s why we started our Twitter account, GeeksforWoz. We feel it’s our duty to help him through the competition. Hopefully even to victory.

I can’t wait. Only eight hours to go.

New “Scareware” Malware Computer Infections on the Rise

For the past few weeks, there has been a marked increase of scareware-malware (virus and spyware) infections. After speaking with multiple clients recently infected, it seems the latest infection is quite easy to fall for.

Here’s how it works: an ad for a Web site pops up as a window on a user’s computer, falsely indicating the PC is infected with a “virus.” The user clicks on the ad that links to the Web site. This downloads and installs a program. Depending on your security settings or software this can even happen automatically!

Once the program is on your computer, it automatically downloads other infections and also changes some inner Windows-workings that regulate how your PC browses the Internet. 

Here’s the real kicker. If after the infection is on your computer and you attempt to visit legitimate software review sites, you are redirected to fake Web sites set up to look exactly like the originals. For example, you might try to look up “antivirus” on a Web site. But instead of going to the actual site, you will go to a mirror image that will ask you to download the software: “Antivirus1,” “Antivirus 2010,” “Antivirus XP” or “Antivirus360/AV-360.”

DON’T DO IT!! These programs, as legitimate as they may look, are viruses set up to get your credit card info out of you.

Of the last 10 virus removals I performed where one of these viruses were involved, 7 people indicated they thought it was some sort of Windows Update, clicked the ad and installed the software. 6 of those people had been using computers for 5+ years.

To protect yourself keep a few things in mind:

• Stick with name-brand software. If you are unsure if it is a real product, try searching for it on a name-brand brick-and-mortar store’s Web site for the name. If you don’t get an exact match of name and picture, be wary.
• If your computer has directed you to a Web site that says “Antivirus 1,” “AntivirusXP,” “Antivirus 2010,” or “Antivirus 360” is an awesome product, you may have already been infected with the original redirecting program. This program is what directed you to the false Web site in the first place. 
• If your computer is suddenly “Blue Screening” and looking like it is rebooting, giving you a warning about some sort of unregistered program during the boot screen, you are infected. Shut off your PC and get it fixed immediately. Change PIN numbers and passwords AFTER the repair is complete if you bank/buy things online.
• If you have already given your credit card number to one of those software programs above, alert your credit card company immediately.
• Make sure your computer is up to date and has antivirus AND anti-spyware protection.
• Be extra cautious of ”adult” Web sites.

The “Big 3” things to remember that I always make sure to tell my clients:

1. The goal of “scareware” is to scare you into thinking something is horribly wrong. Once you are convinced, you will probably download the bad software. This usually ends with providing financial information to a bad third-party. All the protection in the world may not help if all users of the computer don’t know that what is “popping up” is fake.
2. Microsoft currently does not advertise anything “non-Microsoft” to fix problems with your computer. For instance, Microsoft does not recommend via pop-up to install “Joe’s Antivirus” program because you have a problem. Currently the viruses do not use the phrase “Microsoft” in their advertising. They do use the phrase “XP” however. 
3. Finally, if you suspect at all that anything is wrong, turn off the PC and get it looked at. Viruses cannot spread if the computer is turned off. They can spread if the computer is on and connected to broadband (even if you do not open your web browser).

If you have any questions, or think you may have been infected, give us a call or stop in to one of our local Geek Squad precinct at any Best Buy store.

The Woz Waltz Watch

My mom absolutely loves the reality TV show Dancing with the Stars. So I had to call her up as soon as I heard that Steve Wozniak would be competing alongside Karina Smirnoff in the next series of competition, which starts today. Of course, her first reaction to this was, “Who?”

It’s not really a surprise to me that Steve Wozniak isn’t a household name like Steve Jobs or Bill Gates. Yet “The Woz” (as he’s known in the geek community) is every bit as important to the early history of personal computers as those two.

Off Duty: The HTPC Project

Previously, I modded an original Nintendo system to include a wireless card and hard drive, essentially making it a computer.  Recently, while I was playing with my Frankensteined Nintendo PC, I came up with a new idea. I found I had gotten so into trying to beat super Mario, that I had forgotten to watch my favorite TV shows.

Now you might be thinking, why not get a DVR or TiVo? Those are both perfectly fine solutions, but I thought, “this could be a fun, challenging experiment.” So, I went to my case modding lab and began work on my own personal DVR (with no monthly fees).

The project began by searching online for a small, desktop PC-like case. I found a great one that looked like a stereo receiver I currently have in my house. When the case arrived, I installed a 320GB hard drive (for video storage) and 1.5GB (for memory).

Next, I had to choose a special graphics card. I needed one that would be powerful enough to display my picture on my 40’ Samsung LCD TV. I went with the ATI graphics card, the X1650 Pro.

Finally, I installed Windows XP Professional so I could control everything.

Upon my initial test drive, I was impressed. I quickly I realized this machine is far more capable than just recording and playing back TV. So I decided to install a Blu-Ray drive I had bought recently, as well as an HD card and digital reader. This means I can watch high definition content from my moded DVR.

I also installed a wireless adapter, so I could use the DVR to play my iTunes library and have access to the World Wide Web on my TV.

The final touch, installing a program called Snapstream Media so I can use my phone to tell my DVR what to record – just in case I forget to manually set it, or decide last minute I need to record something. 

All in all, I am really happy with my moded DVR. It was fun building, and really lets me enjoy my technology to the max. Next up, a Sega Saturn mod. Stay tuned…

Don’t Forget, It’s Time to “Spring Forward”

The weather is getting warmer and the days longer as Spring approaches, which also means that Daylight Saving Time is nearly upon us. In fact, the DST changeover is coming this Sunday, March 8th at 2:00 am. For most people, this means a trip throughout the house, hunting down every piece of electronics with a clock.

For computer users, if you have Windows Vista (or even Windows 7), you’re all set. For Windows XP users, if your system has all its updates current, you won’t have any problems. However, if you have not updated your computer – please do that today by the way! – or you want to be sure you’re ok, you can download the update that addresses the issue here. Apple users, head here.

This Sunday also provides an excellent opportunity to do a few other bi-annual tasks, such as checking the batteries in your smoke alarms, confirming that your PC’s antivirus and antispyware programs are up to date, and making a backup of all your important data if you aren’t already doing so.

Myths in the Geek World

As a Geek Squad Agent, I get a lot of technology questions. Many stem from Internet myths. Lately, I have been getting a lot of “Can a cell phone really explode” after the report of a Chinese man allegedly being killed by an exploding cell phone battery.

So I’m here today to expose three popular Geek Myths:

Myth 1: Exploding Cell Phone

Sounds pretty outrageous right? However, as Engadget and others reported, the case of the Chinese man being killed by an exploding cell phone battery wasn’t so cut and dry. Apparently, the man’s home-made weapon went off which in turn fired a shot near his cell phone making it look like the cell phone battery exploded. So in specific reference to this particular incident, it seems like a myth.

Geek Fact: There is some truth to this myth in instances when cell phone batteries were damaged. The main root cause is usually tied to third-party batteries being used. Whenever possible, try to use a battery that the manufacturer of your phone has approved. This will limit the chances of a technological catastrophe from happening to you. However, even if your battery is damaged, it is highly unlikely it will explode.

Myth 2: Frozen Hard Drives

We’ve all been there. All of the sudden your computer’s hard drive dies before you can get your data off it. Can you really put your hard drive in the freezer and successfully retrieve your valuable data?

Geek Fact: It’s definitely possible to freeze your computer’s hard drive and have it read, but keep in mind this is a TEMPORARY solution and it’s possible (and probable) you will damage your hard drive even more. This will make it less likely for a professional recovery service to retrieve your data at all.

The magic behind this is that the metal parts in the hard drive will start to contract a very tiny amount—this small separation in parts allows for a hard drive’s platters to unstick just enough for the drive to be read by your computer. Once the drive heats up again, however, it’s back to square one. The best recommendation is to stop use of your drive immediately and bring it to the professionals. And always remember to backup your data on a regular basis regardless, so if your hard drive does die, you already have a recent backup. 

Myth 3: Keyboard in the Dishwasher

Some people have heard that you can toss your desktop computer’s keyboard in the dishwasher to help remove spills or internal debris. Is this possible?

Geek Fact: The parts in a computer keyboard make it possible to wash it in a dishwasher, but don’t make a habit out of it! As demonstrated in this old Geek Squad Commercial here, there are a few things to keep in mind if you’re going to give the dishwasher a shot: 1) Avoid using hot water as that can potentially melt the keys right off your keyboard. 2) don’t use soap and 3) let it fully air dry for at least 24 hours.

Keep in mind too, you can only wash traditional, simple keyboards and not wireless or Bluetooth models.

Remember folks, please don’t go running around spreading Geek Myths before you do your research! You might end up giving yourself more problems than you started out with. If you know of any that you think need exposing, leave them below in the comments section and maybe we’ll look into the matter for you.