I've talked about PUPs before, but if you missed the series of articles and have ever wondered what a PUP is, here it is: PUP stands for Potentially Unwanted Program, and is considered to be a form of malware. While they are not quite the same thing as standard viruses, they’re still not a good thing. PUPs are those programs that scoot in almost completely unannounced through downloads, usually as software bundles. Once installed, they will usually start harassing users pretty aggressively about one thing or another: your memory is low, you have outdated drivers that need to be fixed immediately, your system is insecure, etc. etc. (and as you might have guessed, these are all false and they want money to “fix” said problems). They may also start hijacking your browser to give you funny search engines, ads galore, and redirect you to websites you didn’t ask for. Sadly, even Macs are no longer immune from this problem. PUPs can be hard to catch before the fact, and even harder to remove after the fact, so I have a couple of recommendations to keep these things off your system. My number one recommendation is to use Chrome with Adblock exclusively. This particular combination will fend off a lot of unwanted drive-by installs. After that, I recommend fine-tuning your antivirus to actively look for PUPs in its sensitivity settings. Finally, I highly recommend installing a little program called Unchecky. This small program runs in the background, making sure that nothing tries to slip in when you’re installing something downloaded from the internet. It does a great job, and it’s free!

​If you think you might have a few PUPs on your system, and aren't sure how to get rid of them, give me a call!  My standard virus removal service will eradicate those pesky PUPs, and any other viruses or malware you may have.  And if you contact me and mention this blog entry, I'll perform the virus removal service for FREE, with the purchase of a year of my ProActive Care - Antivirus service.  The antivirus service I use includes PUP detection right out of the box.  And, you'll have peace of mind knowing that your PC Tech is constantly monitoring the system and making sure it's eliminating threats to your computer.  CLICK HERE to take advantage of this offer!  I look forward to hearing from you!

Many people have the same email address they received when they signed up with their internet service provider (usually AT&T or Charter) years ago and are surprised to learn I am not a big fan of ISP-provided email addresses. But why? It’s free and it works! Well…it has a number of potential problems. A big issue with ISP email addresses is that the lack of features makes it hard to do some things. Some ISP mail services are still POP only (a very old protocol that makes a real mess if you want to check your mail on more than one computer), and some have very limiting attachment restrictions (do you feel like sending five different emails because your ISP’s mail server only lets you attach two or three at a time?). ISP email also doesn’t give you very much room and then it just starts bouncing your mail when it’s full. Unfortunately, there isn’t much you can do about these problems. But you can get an email account where these things aren’t a problem. Check from anywhere, send huge attachments, don’t worry about cleaning out your inbox—these are just some of the advantages with email accounts like Gmail (the one I recommend!). But…what about all my contacts?? Do I really have to email each and every one of them about my new email address? Nope! A simple mail forward takes care of this problem. I can set all of your ISP email to forward to your new account so you won’t miss a thing. And over time, as people respond to your new address, they get in your contact list and your old address fades from everyone’s memory. As a bonus, Gmail is very, very good at catching spam. (http://www.wired.com/2015/07/google-says-ai-catches-99-9-percent-gmail-spam)

​Let me know if you would like assistance when setting up a Gmail account.  Contact me to schedule an appointment.

As you’ve probably heard, the big news in the tech world is the release of Windows 10. You may have seen the little icon in your system tray about it, and clicking on it brings up a box with more information. If you have done this, you may have noticed the part where Microsoft says ”free.” While this is definitely a welcome change, Microsoft has put out a lot of mixed messages about what that means and how the upgrade to Windows 10 will actually work. The best suggestion I can make is to wait for now. Here’s why:

1. Windows 10 is bound to be a tremendous improvement over Windows 8. So much so that they decided to skip the “9” in the series! But it is so new, techs have not really had a chance to test it much and discover all its idiosyncrasies. (Although there is one big one we know about that I will talk about in #7).
2. Backups are going to be very important. If there is any kind of problem with the upgrade, you’re going to need them. All your backups need to be checked and if you don’t have any at all yet, this is the perfect time to have me help you get those up and running.
3. I do not recommend upgrading to 10 the “easy” way. As a fellow tech said recently, “Windows is only as stable as the foundation it is built on. If your current Windows is not 100% clean and robust, the upgrade won’t be either.” The best bet is to have me install from scratch—that way you’re not bringing old problems with you.
4. If you still want to do the upgrade yourself, backups are going to be very, very important. In fact, I would advise a clone (image) of your hard drive be done first. That way you can revert to your old system if something goes wrong.
5. Microsoft says that once the upgrade is complete, you'll have 30 days to revert back to your previous operating system.  This is assuming you have plenty of hard drive space.  And if you're running out of space, the backup may be deleted before the 30 days is up.
6. If you don’t have any recovery discs made, now is the time! These should be done whether you upgrade or not, because well, disasters happen. I will include this service free with any Windows 10 installation.
7. It has a few bugs and some minor things that need tweaking. One of those things is a new feature Microsoft has included called “Wifi Sense.” Meant to be a convenience, it unfortunately shares your wifi password with all of your contacts by default unless you turn it off. (It is switched ON by default!). So, one of the first tweaks I would make is turning that little security hazard off.
8. Some features will be gone and/or different. A few things disappearing: Windows Media Center, desktop gadgets, and all floppy drive support. Solitaire will be gone as well but can be added back with the MS App store. New additions include the new web browser called Edge (Internet Explorer is still there, just not as the default browser), a new Start Menu, and Cortana—a digital assistant much like Apple’s Siri.
9. If you’re on the fence: if you have had any serious viruses or rootkit infections recently, and your system can handle the upgrade, I would recommend moving to Windows 10 with a reformat at some point (my preferred method, stated in #3). Not only will your system get a new lease on life with a new OS, but any hidden malware will go poof. It’s good for peace of mind.
10. Microsoft’s pricing scheme for Windows 10 is that the upgrade is available for free until July 28th of this year (one year after it's public release). The license cannot be transferred to another machine, as it is tied to the hardware in your computer.  Otherwise, the prices will likely be about what they have been for Windows 8 ($120 for the Home version). 

If you are interested in having your PC upgraded to Windows 10, contact me for scheduling.  I'll make sure everything (that can run on Windows 10) is moved over.  I can provide training, as well, for those who are still unsure about how to use Windows 10.