EXCEPTION: One thing "poltical"

If you came here from Facebook then you'll find Larry Elder's video here.

Thank you for your interest.

Backup - Pulling it All Together

Again I ran into into a question that I get asked quite often. I believe it is worth another one of the instances where I quote my email reply to the customer:  

Backup and Restore likely are for the non-technical home computer user the most misunderstood area of handling a computer. I have learned the hard way that discussing that over the phone usually is fruitless, mostly because a non-technical home computer user lacks basic background knowledge.

I am very reluctant to  advise about that area without the customer having a decent understanding of the terminology involved. Additionally a solid understanding of the different Pro and Cons of available technologies is requires.
If you want to read up about Backup/Restore than I can give you a few links to articles that expound on the basics.

1. TechTerms' basic explanation of Backup
2. PC Magazine's Beginner's Guide to PC-Backup
3. How-To Geek's How to Use All of Windows 10’s Backup and Recovery Tools

And here are some of my own musings from my blog related to Backup; these links are  in no particular order!

• Backup Devices from April 2012
• Why I recommend a Backup Program for $$ from June 2012
• On Line Backup - Not For Me from September 2012
• Cloud Storage - Again from July 2014  

I trust that you will find or take the time to digest all this reading. I will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.

It may happen that you run into problems with single terms or technical words; please do an internet search yourself before you ask me, I would only have to send you links to Wikipedia that you easily can find yourself...
I know, all this may sound like I try to avoid a direct answer to your suggestion but, sorry, you will have to "do your homework".

After reading through above text I have to add one more article to the first group of links:

• How-To Geek's What's the Best Way to Back Up My Computer?
  IMHO  this is one of the best articles about backups that I ever have read!
  
  My experience shows that on-line backups to remote servers are often VERY time consuming; UPload speed for data from your computer to a remote server is generally MUCH slower than download speed from the same server!
  

For the average home computer user who is not a computer geek and does not plan for his house burning down my recommendations are

• Use an external SSD for backups. See note below.
• Use Macrium Reflect Free for system images. See note below.
• Use Macrium Reflect Free for backing up your data files.

Re. SSDs:
Whether you  use an old fashioned HDD for backups or an SSD, you need a drive with USB 3 connection. USB 3 is much faster than USB 2. 

• If your current computer does not have USB 3 then your next computer will for sure.
• Laptops can generally not be upgraded from USB 2 to USB 3.
• Desktop computers generally can be upgraded to USB 3 for reasonably low cost.

Re. Macrium Reflect:
Even if you upgrade to the paid version of the program I want to remind you that I DO NOT get any kickbacks or any other hidden compensation!

Well, that was it for today. Stay safe, computer and health wise.

New Computer?

As to be expected the number 1 question I get asked most often is something in the veins of
      If I buy a new computer what should I look for?
Here is my reply, verbatim and as I have saved it as a template:

Hi xxx,
Thanks for asking.
It may be best to look for a new computer during sales events. For computers I recommend to look at Newegg.com or Amazon.com. Both definitely have a MUCH larger selection than any brick-and-mortar store can possibly offer.
Any new computer IMHO should go through my Set-Up job to be safe and protected on the Internet and to be free of unwanted, unneeded and sometimes outright malicious programs.

Here are some of the important technical details to currently look for:

• 8GB or more of RAM (main memory)
  
• Windows 10 Professional or Windows 10 Home
  (Pro is in some aspects more flexible than Home)
• Buy only a computer(s) with a SSD! SSDs are MUCH faster than HDDs!
  Storage capacity of the SSD is okay if it is about three to four times of the amount of space currently used on your C: drive.
  Classic HDDs are in many cheap offers but it's clearly an outdated technology.

Currently I have the best experiences with computers from Dell and/or HP. And here are two warnings on what NOT to do:

• Do NOT buy any additional warranties or similar!
• Do NOT buy Microsoft Office!
  MS really sells you a subscription with yearly payments; good for MS but bad for you!

Feel free to call me at xxx-yyy-zzzz with any questions you may have.

That's it.
Stay safe.

About Trackers

General information about Trackers and Tracking Cookies:

The Guardian has some interesting reading about trackers and tracking cookies.

Yes, the Guardian article is from 2012 and these technologies have evolved and become more sinister and secretive.

HowToGeek.com is a very reliable web site with all sorts of good how-to advice. Their article from 2016 The Many Ways Websites Track You Online is worth your time.

But if you want a shortcut without the background knowledge then go and install in your Firefox web browser the extension named DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials.

Here are four more articles from well reputed sources about this extension:

TechCrunch

engadget

PC Magazine

Quora

Stay safe!

Windows 7 - RIP

As you surely can imagine recently I have quite often gotten the question  

What should I get if I buy a new computer?

Here is verbatim the reply that I sent to all such requests if the question came via email:

Thanks for asking.

It may be best to look for a new computer during special sales events.

For computers I recommend to look at Newegg.com or Amazon.com. Both definitely have a MUCH larger selection than any brick-and-mortar store can possibly offer.

Any new computer IMHO should go through my Set-Up job to be safe and protected on the Internet and to be free of unwanted, unneeded and sometimes outright malicious programs.

Here are some of the IMHO important technical details to currently look for:

• 8GB or more of RAM (main memory)
  
  
• Windows 10 Professional or Windows 10 Home
  (Pro is in some technical settings more flexible than Home)
  
• Buy only a computer(s) with a SSD! SSDs are MUCH faster than HDDs!
  Storage capacity of the SSD is okay if it is about three to four times of the amount of space currently used on your C: drive or larger.
  
  Classic HDDs are in many cheap offers but it's clearly an outdated technology.

Currently I have the best experiences with computers from Dell and/or HP. And here are two warnings on what NOT to do:

• If you are looking at new machines do NOT buy any additional warranties or similar!
  
• Do NOT buy Microsoft Office!
  MS sells you a subscription with yearly payments; good for MS but bad for you!

Feel free to contact me directly with any questions you may have.

The UGLY underbelly of the End User License Agreement

All of us - well, almost all of us have been conditioned to accept the so called "End User License Agreement" (EULA) for next to everything. Sometimes we agree unknowingly just by turning a new gadget ON; my classical example for that is Windows 10 with it's 12,000 words long EULA.

EVERY app on our phones,
EVERY program ever installed on our computers,
EVERY so called "smart" or "connected" TV in our living rooms,
EVERY supposedly "intelligent" device that recognizes "Google Hello" or is "Alexa enabled",
EVERY of the many useful things that require an Internet connection and an app on a smart phone
and many more things too numerous to list here can be used to spy on us.

Hard to believe? Please listen to this 12 minutes long TED talk, maybe it will change your view.

Stay safe!

URGENT ALERT - Please read!

Updated 2018-12-17 to include ALL current versions of MS Windows!

Users of ALL versions of Windows:

Please DO NOT manually check for Updates any more, now and in the future!
Insufficiently or untested updates have very recently caused many home computer systems to break and/or show erratic behavior or they have led to file loss!

Microsoft has quietly modified the technology hidden behind Windows Update. The gist of it is that when you check manually for Updates your Windows operating system will be given all available but eventually insufficiently tested updates! 

As a way of avoiding that to occur Microsoft has begun to check much more thoroughly if every given update is fully compatible with the individual computer's hardware. They give that update to a given computer only when the previously mentioned checks and tests end positively.

But all this happens only in the course of the regular, automatic update process! 

If you manually 'check for updates' your computer will get ALL available updates without these compatibility tests!

You can find an interesting article about this general problem here at HowToGeek.com. This article talks about all major operating systems including iOS and Android for cell phones. But you will find Windows 10 and Microsoft mentioned many times. Just overlook everything that does not pertain to Windows. Windows 8 and 7 are now treated the same way!

So again and to summarize:

Please DO NOT manually check for Updates any more,  now and in the future!

Stay safe!

Happy 2018!

A happy and healthy New Year yo all my customers and - actually- - to everybody else who happens to  read this.

Stay Safe.
Eike Heinze

It's Amazon vs. Google. Did You Know?

Have you ever or are you sometimes watching a YouTube video or two?

Have you ever or are you sometimes looking at something or even buying something on Amazon?

If you can answer any of above questions with Yes then you should read this article.

It shows very clearly why I always say that, no matter what companies say, we, the paying customer, are a voiceless, powerless "necessary evil". They just don't give a hoot about us.

Their talk of "how important" their customers are and how they care for us and how important it is for them "to serve the customer" is nothing but marketing hullabaloo and all too often they just plainly lie to us.

Never the less, I will stick with my Amazon Prime account and I will keep using Google's services.

For now at least.

Stay safe.

This is where I stand...

Despite being "only" a guest in the USA there have been quite a few times when I have been asked about my opinion of the so called "flag protest issue" in the NFL.

Here is a short video that gives my answer better than I ever could.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Why Me?

One time too many I have been asked by a caller why he should hire me rather than take his computer to Best Buy; here is my complete reply. I apologize for the bad style (way too many paragraphs begin with "I"!) but I am not a native English speaker.

In general

• my main interest is cleaning your computer of all viruses and malware and securing it and your web browser against getting infected again in the future
  
  
• I have over 25 years of experience with Windows PCs plus over 23 years of experience as a computer programmer and database dministrator
  
  
• I do not mince words but rather say it as I see it
  
  
• I can explain technically complex concepts in layman's terms
  
  
• I prefer real-life usability and experience over personal opinions and commercial “tests”
  
  
• I abhor industry shenanigans and trickery and warn my customers
  
  
• I work on Windows PCs only and do only house calls up to 30 miles from my residence. There is no extra charge to appear at your door and I charge no mileage fees.

I neither sell material goods nor any software;
I sell only my experience, my know-how and my time.

I do not charge sales tax.

I have NO contractual ties to any product;
I do not get any kickbacks from any manufacturer, wholesaler or dealer, no matter where and what you eventually buy.

I have absolutely no hidden financial interest or other commercial bias; there is no added or hidden cost for the home user.

With two rare exceptions I use and install only freely available and functionally proven programs.
Even a proven alternative to Microsoft Office^® is officially available free of charge.

I have worked professionally as a programmer and database administrator

• with computers since July 1^st 1964
• with Microsoft software on CP/M computers since 1977
• with PCs since February 1982
• with Microsoft Windows since version 3.1 in 1992

For 11 years I was once every month the “computer guru” on a call-in talk show on WTKM radio out of Hartford, WI.

If you are interested please send an email to ejhprivate*AT*gmail*DOT*com

I will reply and send you my brochure with more information as a .pdf file;
if you rather want a paper copy please give me in your email your name and address and I will send you a letter.

The information in the brochure should enable you to decide whether you want to hire me to repair and secure your computer.

Thank you for your interest.

How to Protect Yourself and Your Computer on the Internet

Sometimes I am still amazed by the degree of how clueless  some people are as far as the most basic ways are concerned to stay safe on the Internet.

I don't want to repeat myself here and I don't want to sound like a broken record either. Oops, many younger readers would not even know what that means...

Anyway, here is a good and easy to read but admittedly fairly long article titled 

Basic Computer Security: How to Protect Yourself from Viruses, Hackers, and Thieves

My regular readers will recognize that I quite often link to articles on How-To Geek. At least the articles about computers are an easy read and correct on top of it.

Stay safe.

WOT and the darned Purists at Mozilla

WOT vanished from many of my customers Firefox web browsers. I got some questions about that so here is my diatribe.

Mozilla, the maker of the Firefox web browser, is a European organization and over there they have a MUCH more narrow view of privacy issues. That is a double-edged sword.

WOT has a few month ago modified their end user license agreement to conform more closely to what the add-on all can do. No surprise to me that they collect some information on the things you search for and where you then click on. Google does that for years and nobody gives a hoot.

WOT finally made it public and Google and Mozilla went ballistic pulling the WOT extension (add-on) from their web sites. I am pretty livid but they don't listen to you or me.

WOT in the meantime has changed the wording of their end user license agreement and you again can get and run WOT in Goggle Chrome.

The Europeans don't seem to see the value of WOT for the normal non-geek end user and remain stubbornly on their negative stance towards WOT. 

And Mozilla even tricks people into disabling or removing WOT - despite the fact that there is no even remotely similar functionality available anywhere else.

It is a shame but I have to tell my customers that they have to use Google Chrome for their web searches if they want the advantages of WOT, naturally with WOT and a good Ad-Blocker installed. These get installed from within the web browser, they are extensions.


Currently IMHO only Adblock Plus from adblockplus.org and uBlock Origin qualify as "good" ad-blockers.


Supposedly WOT and Mozilla are working on a resolution but that already takes many months.

If you have an affected computer and on the desktop is a folder named "Old Firefox Data" I may be able to resurrect WOT; but that definitely would be a trial and error thing that I can not guarantee. But at least I can do it remotely. 

Stay safe.

How to stay safe in 2017 - Short List

Here is a short list of in my experience the most important steps you can take to keep your computer and your data safe. have I have added e few remarks for clarification.

1. Update your software.
   Not only Windows but all other regularly used programs as well;
   for a Windows PC this includes (but is not limited to)
   -   Adobe Flash (beware of fake download sites!)
   -   Adobe Shockwave
   -   Web browser(s)
   -   Email client
   -   Java (if installed; mostly Java is not needed at all!)
   -   Office programs
   We always have to keep in mind that some programs still don't update automatically and quietly in the background! Checking manually hardly ever has hurt anything.
    
2. Back-up to an external hard drive.
   Done regularly and correctly this currently is the only protection against ransomware viruses!
    
3. Use a password manager.
   For single machines see Keepass, for more than one machine see LastPass and include all cell phones and tablets in the count!
      
4. Use a unique password for every account.
   Everybody has many, many accounts; you need a password manager!
    
5. Use random passwords
   Easily done only with a password manager!
    
6. Turn on two-step verification everywhere you can.
   If you have a cell phone that you really use, otherwise this is pretty useless.
    
7. Read and think(!) before you click.
   "My" first commandment for safe computing.
    
   
8. Enable full-disk encryption
   On a single home computer? Only protects your data when the machine gets stolen.
    
9. Put a six-digit PIN on your phone and set the phone to wipe it's contents if the PIN is guessed wrongly too many times.
   

Do you have questions to any of that? Please feel free to ask them in the comments, I will reply. Maybe not immediately but I will.

Stay safe.

Welcome 2017

A Happy, successful and healthy

NEW YEAR 

to all my customers 

and everybody else who might happen to read this!

How I Transfer Files From An Old To A New Computer

As long as the "old" computer is basically still working transferring all your user files (documents, pictures, music and videos) is no issue at all as long as they are stored in Windows' standard locations.

After the new computer is up and running I take the disk drive physically out of the old machine, attach it externally to the new machine and copy the files directly across to the new computer.

This way there is only one copy process which saves time compared to copying via an external drive which requires copying the same data twice.

After copying the files to the new machine I will urge you to safely keep the disk drive from the old computer for at least a year as an insurance against data loss.

Imagine you need a certain file after several months, you know the name of the file but it just is not where you thought it should be. It is on the old disk drive because that is the only place files could have gotten stored on the old machine; so that is where we have to search for it.

I hope that clears eventual confusion.

Stay safe.

Still on Yahoo? Time to RUN!

Are you still using Yahoo! ® ?

It is high time you run, fast, far and NOW!

Just read this article by Rob Schifren. He is the driving force and creator of TechSupportAlert.com, a very long running and very reliable source of information about free software and many more things about and around computers; computers used here in the widest sense of the word, that is including Apple Mac, Android devices and much more.

From the many contacts with my customers I have an idea about how many people re-use the same password on several (or all) web sites.

PLEASE heed the warning and AT LEAST establish a new STRONG password for your Yahoo account.

IMHO it would be better if you switched to a different service altogether. If you have and use a Yahoo email account I recommend to switch to Gmail.

Gmail can automatically import emails from Yahoo if you want to give your email contacts time to adapt to your new email address.

As usual I welcome comments and suggestions right here in the blog. Thank you in advance.

Stay safe.

About Scams - Beware!

It saddens mw but it has to be said again and again:

Microsoft WILL NOT CALL you because your computer "has been reported" or anything similar.

Please take the few minutes to read this article from the How-To-Geek on common scamming tricks and what to do about them. This article talks about some other commonly encountered scams as well, not only the Microsoft or Tech Support based scams.

It always is good to be well informed. The time to read the HTG article is time well spent; it can help you to avoid the most common traps.

Stay safe.

The newest Scam - Beware

The newest telephone scam I heard of is the Microsoft Licensing Scam. You may get a phone call or a voice mail saying something like this (phone numbers deliberately obscured):

“This is to notify you that your Microsoft Windows license key has been expired in your computer so Microsoft Corporation has stopped the services in your computer. To renew the Windows license key, please call 866 XXX XXXX. Let me repeat. This is to notify you that your Microsoft Windows license key has been expired in your computer so Microsoft Corporation has stopped the services in your computer. To renew the Windows license key, please call 866 XXX XXXX. I will repeat 866 XXX XXXX.”

The message obviously was from a computer generated, sort of "mechanical" voice and the stilted English suggest a non-native English speaker behind the whole thing.

Any messages about licensing issues truly from Microsoft would pop up on your computer's screen only during installation or activation. And we all know, if only from experience, that a Microsoft license for the Operating System comes with the computer when you buy it and it is good for the lifetime of the machine.

In Windows services are programs running in the background; they are required for even basic functions of the computer. A computer would not work at all without the required services running in the background.

In the case I read about the recipient happened to be a very, very experienced Windows user; the gentleman called back the 866 number from the message; he said about that call:

"Because the number was toll free, I called it just to see what would happen. An answering machine invited me to leave a message and my number for a callback — I declined.

Please remember: Any and all phone calls claiming to come from Microsoft or any company associated with Microsoft are scams. Don't even talk to these people! Do not give them your phone number or ANY OTHER information.

As usual I welcome comments and suggestions right here in the blog. Thank you in advance.

Stay safe.

Using a Computer with a Visual Impairment

My recent personal experience with AMD and a close relative being cured from almost blindness due to massive cataracts have left me with greater awareness of the problems around vision loss.

And surprisingly just very recently a blind customer of mine sent me an email regarding using computers with a vision impairment; thank you Li Su. I believe this information may be very important so I will quote the relevant text of the email here.

Disclaimer: I can in no way guarantee the accuracy and/or the contents of the following information; I rely on the qualification of it's source.

Stay safe.

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Using a Computer with a Visual Impairment: A Beginner's Guide to Computer Accessibility

By Bill Holton

Computer Access for People Who Are Blind or Have Low Vision

Findings from the 2012 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) Preliminary Report established that an estimated 20.6 million adult Americans (or nearly 10% of all adult Americans) reported they either "have trouble" seeing, even when wearing glasses or contact lenses, or that they are blind or unable to see at all.

Of course if you (or a loved one) have recently experienced profound vision loss, these numbers are little more than mere statistics. We mention them here for one reason: to assure you that you are not alone. Vast resources—human, technical, medical, and rehabilitative—stand ready to assist you in regaining your independence, resuming your career or starting a new one, and, most importantly, increasing your enjoyment of life, friends, and family.

In this section we will focus on the technical resources that are available to those with visual impairments. We’ll begin by describing one of the most profound technological achievements to have benefited sight-impaired individuals: the accessible personal computer.

This guide is organized into two main sections. The first section is for those with new visual impairments who are brand new to computers. There, we talk about all of the ways in which computers are helpful and useful, along with what to consider when purchasing a computer.

The second section is for those with recent visual impairment who already own, and have some experience using, a personal computer . There we discuss the main components of accessibility and lay the groundwork for a productive and happy computing experience.

Related Links

·Reading with a Computer

·Specialty Reading Products and Services

·Helpful Products and Technology for Living with Vision Loss

·Audio Players and Talking Books

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