Posts Tagged ‘computer’
Steve Jobs is gone. The founder and father figure of Apple has died, leaving us all wondering what will happen in the wake of his passing.
Steve’s impact on modern computing is incalculable. When you look at technology (MP3 players, smartphones, tablets, and laptop/desktops) in pop culture, hardly a segment of it doesn’t have Steve’s handwriting all over it.
Steve had a unique vision. It didn’t always buy him friends. He was a perfectionist in every sense of the word. “Good enough” wasn’t in his lexicon — and aren’t we glad for that! He was an uncompromising visionary, and his vision & drive brought a true marriage of form and function together in Apple products that first delighted print and design professionals, and then the rest of the world.
Each Apple Keynote with Steve was a magical event, looked forward to with great anticipation. “What new piece of technological wizardry will he unveil now?”, we’d ask, sitting on the edge of our seats. And like the master showman that he was, Steve would spin it out like a well-crafted yarn — releasing tidbits slowly, bit by bit, until — with a final flourish — he’d unveil the final bit of magic. Whether it be a new iPod, new iPad, Macbook or the like, he did it with style — and the people voted with their pocketbooks, gobbling up the new technology and cementing his impact on the world.
The loss of Steve came like a blow yesterday. Yes, we all knew it would happen eventually — and when he stepped down as CEO, I figured it would be sooner rather than later. That still didn’t lessen the impact when I heard he was gone.
Steve: you walked the land as a giant. You showed us the power of true belief, what happens when you aren’t afraid to dream, and are willing to follow thought with action. You showed that it is possible to marry form and function, creative design and excellence in performance — all with class and style. You inspired a new generation of dreamers, and left your mark upon the land.
You will be remembered.
Farewell, Steve.
So what happens when a non-Windows OS gains traction? Well, the inevitable happens – and people using such systems without malware protection face a nasty wake-up call (yes, even systems with fruit-based logos adorning the front). Today’s example? Mac Defender.
Mac Defender first appeared in May 2011 as a browser pop-up screen, stating that the computer is infected – and that Mac Defender can remove the infections. The truth? It’s actually a false antivirus application with a built-in malware payload. It demands payment to work, so once users enter their credit card number… BAM! (They’ve got you.)
Malware like this is nothing new. Malware is constantly evolving, as hackers find new ways to wreak havoc on your computer, or to obtain your confidential information. And once you’ve been infected, removal can be complicated – often requiring Geek Squad Agents (or other experts) to get it cleaned up.
To protect yourself from malware, all computer users should follow these tips to help them stay safe:
- Update your operating system often. People avoid updates because they seem like a hassle. System updates include fixes to vulnerabilities often exploited by malware. Updates are your first line of defense against infections.
- Don’t download suspicious-looking programs. If it looks suspicious, it probably is so avoid it! Only download programs and updates that you are familiar with, and then only from official (safe) resources.
- Email attachments and links: be cautious. Most people know better than to open attachments or links in email from unidentified sources. It’s common for many malware applications to harvest email address books on infected computers and send out copies of the infection on your behalf to your family and friends. Got an attachment from a friend or family member? Give them a call to verify whether they actually sent anything. When in doubt, toss it out – no matter how tempting it is to open.
- Beware of pop-ups. Like Mac Defender, these pop-ups may look like legitimate warning messages from your operating system. They try to trick you into purchasing, downloading or installing some sort of application that can infect your computer. Clicking on them often loads malware onto your computer, and can lead to all sorts of headaches. Get to know what to look for to close pop-ups (tiny “X” or red dot for closing the window in the upper corner), and NEVER click anywhere else within it.
- Avoid giving out personal or financial information. If you are prompted to provide credit card information and you are uncomfortable with where you are submitting it, walk away. (Only provide credit card information to authorized sources that you trust.)
- Install protection software. To reduce threats to your computer, purchase and install protection software. Anti-virus software is a good start, and there are programs with internet security available that can help prevent hackers from getting into your computer and stealing your personal information.
- Scan your computer for viruses or malware – especially if your computer is sluggish. Quite often, Internet slowdowns and general slow operation of the entire computer can be one of the symptoms of an infection. When in doubt, scan the computer for a malware infection to determine if this is the cause.
Malware – regardless of who’s behind it or what operating system it runs on – is a fact of life for computer users. Yesterday, it was only Windows-based PCs. Today, it’s fruit-labeled ones. Tomorrow? (Hey Linux, I’m looking at you.) By following these simple tips and making sure your operating system is up to date, you can avoid most of the headaches that come with a malware infection.
Claire is the host of Food Network’s 5 Ingredient Fix (Saturdays at 12:30pm) and Food Network Challenge (Sundays at 8pm).
Nothing is substitute for getting an expert to sit down and look at it for you, but perhaps this will bring into focus a few possible causes for your computer acting lethargically.
1) Too many programs running at the same time. Over the lifespan of a computer it is common for users to download programs, applications, and other data that is running in the background. The more things that run in the background, the less “attention span” your computer has to do other things you are asking it to do.
Try to avoid downloading too many web browser-helpers like internet-search bars, programs that claim to “speed up” your internet or your computer, or multiple anti-malware programs. One or two may be fine, but too many will result in slow performance. Uninstall programs that you do not use that you see icons for in the lower right-hand corner of your screen, down by the clock. Once this is trimmed up you may notice a speed improvement.
2) Not enough free RAM. “RAM” is what your computer uses for temporary working and thinking space. The more you have the merrier your computer can be! If you look back to reason 1 in this article and have determined you need all those programs running, perhaps your computer doesn’t have enough RAM to do so. The hard drive inside your computer may make a lot of noise, accompanied by slow operation, if you are out of RAM.
RAM is a piece of hardware that can be added to your machine. Four gigabytes or more is recommended in newer computers, but the rule of thumb is to add as much as is affordable for you.
3) Virus/Malware infection. Quite often virus or malware programs running in the background can divert your computer’s attention away from what you want it to do. Internet slowdowns and general slow operation of the entire computer can be one of the symptoms of an infection. You should have the computer scanned for a malware infection to determine if this is the cause.
4) Low hard drive space. This generally applies to older computers. Hard drives, which store all of your computer’s information, only have a finite amount of space. Once filled up the computer no longer has the ability to manipulate your files. The computer will slow down, eventually becoming unusable.
Generally windows will alert you to “low disk space” if this is the case. Moving some of your less-used files such as pictures, music, and movies to an external hard drive would be a viable solution to regaining hard drive space. You can usually install a bigger hard drive as well. Deleting temporary files and performing a disk cleanup are also good ways to reclaim wasted space.
5) Due for a restart. Computer has not been restarted in…um, I don’t know how long? Yes, every once in a while it is a good idea to restart your computer. Some updates cannot be completed until you restart. In addition, restarting your computer can free up some resources that could be getting hogged up by buggy programs.
6) Sharing a wireless network. “My internet is slow but the computer is running fast!” There are many possible reasons this can be happening. Should you have a wireless network check to see if anyone else on your wireless is streaming video, downloading music, or playing online games. You should also make sure your wireless network is secure so someone else isn’t stealing your internet bandwidth. Wireless network security should be at the top of your important things to check.
7) Too many bells and whistles. Sure, that animated pointer and super hi resolution image of your favorite supercar look nice, but unfortunately these can also slow your computer down. These animations and images must be loaded into memory every time you start your PC which leaves less memory for other more important tasks.
8 ) Scanning programs running. Check to make sure your antivirus program, anti-spyware program, or automatic backup program is not the reason for the slowdown. If it is, I suggest you wait it out. Usually this type of activity is a necessity. Manufacturers of these types of software try to make everyday operations unobtrusive to you. There are times, however, when an update must be done or scanning must take place. Your computer will be a little slow to respond to you when this is happening.
I also find it is not necessary to scan your entire computer every single day for viruses and spyware. Once per week should be fine. The same applies for data backups. A complete system backup doesn’t need to run every single day for the average home user.
9) Not meeting software requirements. Software usually has a list of requirements on the box. Things such as processor speed, operating system, memory (RAM), hard drive space, and minimum video card requirements are usually printed somewhere on the box. Please note that this says minimum “requirements.” These specifications are the absolute minimum to make the software run. Run it will, run well it may not. Try and meet or surpass the system “recommendations” of your software, not the bare “requirements.”
10) A “fragmented” hard drive. This is becoming less of an issue with newer computers, but if you have an older PC it is worth a mention. Perhaps your hard drive needs a “defrag.”
Imagine a jigsaw puzzle. Computers like to store pieces of a file together, like a completed puzzle. Over time, with normal use these pieces can get scattered all over the hard drive; Similar to when your puzzle first came out of the box. The computer has to look to find all the pieces before it can access the file. This is not a problem if only a few files are fragmented. Once multiplied over several thousand files, however, we have a cumulative slowdown of your computer. Defragmenting your hard drive organizes all these pieces and puts them back together again.
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