The Internet Traffic Report monitors the flow of data around the world (higher indicates faster connections)

• Ccleaner is a powerful little program that will help you keep your computer hard drive cleaner
• It goes through the hard drive, looks for all the temporary files (hidden in many different places), as well as the little update files for your anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall, and other programs such as Adobe Reader, Java and more
• Download it from www.filehippo.com/download_ccleaner and install it
• Note: DO NOT use the registry cleaner! There are good reasons to clean a Windows registry, but it should only be done by a very experienced person, AFTER it has been backed in at least two ways. If you need help, please contact us. (Everyone with Windows 2000/XP/Vista should use ERUNT to back up your registry.)

• With more and more families going online to access more and more useful and fun information, it is important that we teach our kids to be safe online. There are simple measures that any family can take to ensure the safety of their children. The first is to not save Internet or email access passwords in the computer. This leads to the second, which is spending time with your children and supervising their online activities. Anyone can publish anything on the Internet. It is up to us to provide safe and appropriate ways for our children to access desirable information.
• We don't believe that filters are the answer; rather, that parents and other family members help children learn safe Internet practices, and are not left alone online. We can help you make Internet activity fun and safe for your children.
• Good resources include the Canadian www.media-awareness.ca, www.badguypatrol.ca and www.safekids.com in the US.
• A national anti-porn program is enlisting web surfers across Canada to help hunt child predators. Cybertip.ca was officially launched Jan. 24/05 to clamp down on the sexual exploitation of children. A pilot of the tipline that began in Manitoba in 2002 led to 10 charges and 400 websites shut down in a short time.

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• Disk fragmentation causes crashes, slowdowns, freeze-ups and even total system failures.
• Diskeeper from Executive Software (www.execsoft.com) is a much better defragmentation program than the standard Defrag that comes with Windows.
• Diskeeper Lite is a short version introduction to full-featured Diskeeper. Diskeeper Lite can only analyze fragmentation levels and run manual defragmentation on one disk volume at a time and can help anyone to select the right automated defragmentation software for homes and/or business sites. It is available as a courtesy download
• Run weekly by double clicking on the desktop shortcut. (Just click the red x at the top right corner to close the advertising window that pops up.) Click "Analyze", and it will tell you how many fragmented files are in your system. Then click OK to close the popup window with that information, and click "Defragment now". When finished, a report will pop up, and you can close the program. (Note, popups may appear when you start the computer telling you how many fragments are present. You can choose to run the program whenever the warnings appear, but usually once a week is enough.)

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• When open programs cover the desktop icon shortcuts to your programs, there is a quick and easy way to access them in Windows.
• To create the Desktop toolbar, just right click your mouse on any "empty" area of the taskbar at the bottom of your screen, and click on "Toolbars", then on "Desktop". The word "Desktop"' will appear on the right side of your taskbar, left of the clock and any other program icons, with a double arrow >> to the right.
• Clicking on the double arrow will bring up a menu listing all the icon shortucts and folders on your desktop, and you can click on any of them to open the program as usual.

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• A very useful little program is Dial-Up Networking Monitor, available from jongrieve.net/dunmon - and where you'll find a very good FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions). It shows the throughput on Windows 95/98 Dial-Up Networking and Windows NT RAS connections. The throughput is shown in the form of a fully configurable graph window and as detailed statistics.

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• To download software from the web, first make sure you are getting software from a reputable site. Click on the "Download" link to start the download. Save it into your computer (be sure to note which directory you saved it to). When it's finished, click on Start, then on Run and then on Browse (find where you saved it), click on the file you saved, and then on Open and finally OK. This will start the installation of the software.
• We provide some files to download from our site as a convenience for you.

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• Computers connected to the Internet are at risk of attack from unscrupulous hackers, especially those connected via high speed connections (cable or DSL). Hackers may attempt to take control of your computer for their own use. In the worst case, this could include the placing of child porn on your computer for distribution without your knowledge.
• We recommend the use of the free ZoneAlarm firewall program, available at www.zonelabs.com - choose the item that says "Get Basic PC Protection" to get the free version.
• During installation, it can pre-configure your computer for Internet access, but you will have to give permission for each program outside the standard connection. If it is a program you know (your email program or web browser or antivirus/security programs), click on "Remember this setting" so you won't be asked again for that program. You can change settings program by program at any time by clicking on Program Control, then Programs. Click under Access to set "Allow, Block or Ask" status for each program.
• Please note that you can review the tutorial at any time by double clicking on the tray icon (ZA or red/green traffic bars) then on Overview, Status and finally Tutorial. Clicking on Preferences will allow you to check for updates to the program.
• If you have given permission for a program you don't want, or denied access to a program you do want, double click on the ZA in the task bar, then when it opens ZoneAlarm, click on Program Control on the left, then on Programs - it will show you a list of those allowed (green check mark) and denied (red x). Blue question marks mean the program asks each time. To change a setting, just click on either the check mark, x or question mark, then change to what you want.

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• It seems we all want to share jokes or information we receive in emails with others. So often these messages come to us forwarded from yet another source, full of email addresses and ">" symbols.
• There are two reasons you should "clean" the messages before passing them on. The first is just courtesy to your readers not to have to wade through all the forwarding symbols ">". The second is that you really shouldn't be passing on all those email addresses - you don't know who might read your email in the future, and passing on others' email addresses can leave them open to receiving more "spam".
• A good tool exists to easily clean up text. Called "eCleaner", it is a small program that is quick to download, and easy to install and use. To clean text, simply highlight the part of the message you want to pass on, copy it to eCleaner, click on "Clean" then on "Clean text". Then just copy the cleaned text into a new email message and send it on to your friends and/or family.
• You can download eCleaner from our website

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• Please NEVER pass on stories about seriously ill children and adults, missing persons, petitions, etc. without checking the source. Most are internet hoaxes and are listed as such. When you receive word of an ill person, consider if you know the originating source (not just the person who sent it to you). Be very leery of items sent asking that they be passed on, that happen to people you do not know. Only if it is from a friend who has personally experienced the event, or is personally acquainted with the situation, should it be believed. (And the news people get these wrong at times too! Several such stories have been reported in the media, then found to be false.)
• Some wonderful sites to check out hoaxes are:
  antivirus.about.com/library/blenhoax.htm
  www.snopes2.com
  www.TruthOrFiction.com
  urbanlegends.about.com/library/blxatoz.htm
  These list both "urban legends" (stories about people or events) and virus hoaxes (stories about viruses that don't exist). Passing these on "to everyone you know" (as some ask you to do) only overload the mail servers around the world, and can be more damaging than a genuine virus!

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• Various image viewers are on computers these days, but one great program for most people is Irfanview. The latest version is available at www.irfanview.com
• An extra tip: to capture screen images (web pages, photos, anything that shows on your computer screen) just get it onscreen, then hit the [Print Screen] key once, open Irfanview, and click on Edit and Paste. Then save the image with the filename of your choice. The default format I recommend is .jpg which is the best compression format for images. (Holding down the [Alt] key before hitting the [Print Screen] key will copy only the current window.)
• You can also use Irfanview to add text to images, crop, rotate, resize and other functions.

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• A "mailing list" is a special form of Internet communication. Generally, mailing lists link a group of people with a common interest.
• Unlike individual email messages, a message to "the list" will be sent to everyone subscribed to that list. This causes confusion at times for people who are new to mailing lists, as it can appear that they are receiving messages that seem to be meant for someone else (or many other people).
• Mailing lists can have options on how a member receives the messages, depending on how the list is set up, and the software that runs it. These options can include a "digest" of multiple messages all in one email, or a web-based "archive" or storage area where the messages can be read.
• Providers of mailing lists include Yahoo Groups
• If you have inadvertently gotten subscribed to a mailing list, or just want off one you're on, you'll generally find instructions on how to unsubscribe from the list at the bottom of each message.

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• A good alternative web browser to Internet Explorer is Mozilla Firefox, encypted for safe internet banking available from www.mozilla.com and is not only safer to use but faster as well.
• Internet Explorer is not safe to use in its standard format - experts advise either turn off some Internet Explorer features by setting all security zones to "high" or switch to another browser as the best immediate fix.

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• Online music downloads are available in Canada, and a much safer alternative to file sharing software.
• Apple Computer launched the iTunes Music Store in Canada on Dec 2/04. The site offers a list of more than 700,000 downloadable songs for 99 cents each, cheaper than the 99 U.S. cents charged on the company's U.S. site. Music videos and more than 9,000 audio books are also on sale, and the downloads can be played on Macs or Windows computers. See all the details at www.itunes.com
• Call it Canada's answer to Limewire - www.puretracks.com is Canada's first digital music download service and launched in October, 2003. Unlike Limewire, it's not free. But it is legal, and much safer to use.
• We recommend you do NOT use "file sharing" programs on your computers. Many people don't see anything harmful or wrong with downloading music from the internet, but the real harm in using programs such as the former Napster, Kazaa or other similar programs, is that they allow others to access your computer. We have also seen much damage done to computers with Limewire (or Azureus, or BitTorrent, etc) loaded, as the computer owner has no idea what files may be put on the computer without their knowledge or consent. Be safe - don't let these programs into your computer at all. It's like locking the front door, but leaving the windows and back door wide open!

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• For those who don't have, or don't want to pay for, Microsoft Office, there is a very good alternative available
• OpenOffice.org has as its mission statement "To create, as a community, the leading international office suite that will run on all major platforms and provide access to all functionality and data...". Created by Sun Microsystems in collaboration with the community, OpenOffice.org is free to use, and is being constantly updated by contributors worldwide.
• It provides all the features found in Microsoft Office, with the abililty to open and save documents in the MS Word, Excel and Powerpoint formats.
• In addition, it can write PDF (Adobe's Portable Document Format) documents with only a click or two.
• Download your free copy at www.openoffice.org

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• Outlook Express is usually the default email program on computers with Windows. However, Microsoft Outlook & Outlook Express tend to leave users vulnerable to viruses. We recommend the use of the free Thunderbird email program
• Click here for our special page of information on using Outlook

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• Please be cautious about clicking on links that are in messages which appear to be from your Internet Service Provider or bank, saying there is a problem with your account or your email. Many messages sent "from" financial institutions are an attempt to get your login and password. DO NOT click on links in these emails. Instead, type the email address of your bank's website into your browser. These messages are often referred to as "phishing".
• A client, an intelligent and aware individual, received an email from PayPal recently, (a service to safely make payments online), saying there was a problem with a payment through her account. Unfortunately, she clicked on the link in the message before contacting us, but got suspicious and got in touch with us within minutes. On checking the link/webpage address in the browser, she discovered it was not a legitimate PayPal address. (That would _start_ with "paypal.com" ... this one was something completely different, with "paypal" appearing later in the address.) We advised her to close that window, go to the real PayPal website and change her password immediately, then contact PayPal through their legitimate website to advise them her account was at risk, as she'd used her real PayPal login and password to "login" at the fake website, thereby giving away her information.
• This type of message "from" ISPs, banks, or other "trusted" institution arrives in our email several times a week. Being cautious is the best way to protect yourself. If you think the message might be real, pick up the phone and verify it with your bank, etc. Very few of these messages are real, and it's better to delete and ignore, and be safe, rather than sorry.

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• PowerPoint presentations are a popular way to share information, and especially at the holiday season, people send them by email, without knowing whether the recipient's computer can open them.
• If your computer isn't equipped with either Microsoft Office or OpenOffice, just download the free, legal PowerPoint viewer - we've made it available for you from our courtesy download area.

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• Windows NT4, 2000 (NT5) and XP (NT6) all have a flaw - they do not back up the registry, and can become corrupted and unable to boot properly
• We recommend the use of ERUNT (Emergency Repair Utility for NT) which is available from www.snapfiles.com/get/erunt.html
• Download, install, and run, then reboot your computer - each day you start it up from then on, a new backup of the registry is made during startup for your safety. If you need to restore the registry, you can boot into safe mode and run the tool. Details are available from the author at www.larshederer.homepage.t-online.de/erunt/

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• "Search engines" are those websites that allow you to enter text into a box to search the internet for specific information.
• An excellent search engine is Google, at www.google.ca, which allows you to search the whole web, or just Canadian sites.
• To get more meaningful results, enter multiple words to describe your subject. For example, just entering "storm" will result in thousands upon thousands of results; entering a string of information such as "storm+warning+Canada" willl give you much more precise information, and fewer links to check to find the information you want. By putting the plus signs in the text instead of spaces, you ensure the results have all those words, not just one of them.
• If you click the right mouse button on a link, you can open that link in a new web browser window, and still have the search result page open behind it to check other resulting links.

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• When you receive unwelcome email, we recommend that you delete it. If you reply, you risk becoming the target of even more. You may be confused by where the unwanted message appears to originate, as some messages by spammers are forged to _appear_ as if they came from you or your Internet Service Provider, but careful inspection reveals another address as the originating site.
• Using your provider's web email option, which many have these days, allows you to delete unwanted email before downloading it into your computer.
• "Spamming is the scourge of electronic-mail and newsgroups on the Internet. It can seriously interfere with the operation of public services, to say nothing of the effect it may have on any individual's e-mail mail system. ... Spammers are, in effect, taking resources away from users and service suppliers without compensation and without authorization." -- Vint Cerf, Senior Vice President, MCI and acknowleged "Father of the Internet"
• Of course a child's account is just as vulnerable to this sort of attack as an adult's, so work with your children, and be sure you know what email they are receiving and replying to.

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• Many people don't realize all the extra "stuff" that ends up on their computers just by visiting websites. In addition to the Temporary Internet Files (which should be cleaned out regularly), many websites place "cookies" on the computer, _most_ of which are harmless, and they also can put "spyware" programs into your computer as well.
• You can remove the Temporary Internet Files in Internet Explorer by going to "Tools", then "Internet Options", then on "Delete Files" to clear what is stored already. Then click on the "Advanced" tab at the top, and scroll down to the "Security" section at the bottom of the popup window. Click to put a check mark beside "Empty Temporary Internet Files folder when browser is closed".
• Beware emails promoting programs that will "clean" your spyware - these are often programs that remove other companies' spyware, replacing it with their own!
• We recommend The use of a free spyware detection program "Spybot Search and Destroy". It not only cleans the "spyware" on computers, but "immunizes" them against almost 2,000 programs, to prevent websites from putting their programs on your computers without your consent. "Spybot" is available at www.spybot.info - or from our courtesy download area at www.computertamers.ca/download
  Install the program, be sure to "immunize" the computer, then check for problems, finally clicking on “Fix selected problems”. There is a tutorial available by clicking on Help on the top menu.
• Check for problems weekly by double clicking on the desktop shortcut, first checking for updates - if found, click to select them all, download and install. Then to go "Immunize" (click on the green cross at the top of the Immunize screen), and go to "Search and Destroy" to check for problems. Then "Fix selected problems" (making sure they are all selected if not done automatically); then go to "Recovery", select any/all and click "Purge" to finish cleaning.
• We also recommend the use of AdAware in additon to Spybot for better protection. It is also free, and available from - but if you only want to use one program, we recommend Spybot. You can get it from www.filehippo.com/download_ad-aware

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• Be sure to check at least monthly for new “Windows Updates” from Microsoft, usually on the Tuesdays near the start of the month. These are NEVER sent by email. If you receive email that says it contains a “patch” for Windows, delete it immediately!
• To check for updates, click on Start, (in XP/2000 you must also click on Control Panel) then on “Windows Update”. Follow the instructions on screen to download and install them; it often requires restarting the computer.
• Select "Custom Install" and review the updates before downloading them, and for now, we are recommending avoiding Internet Explorer 7 if you can.
• Microsoft has now started the release of Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3). We are advising the avoidance of Service Pack 3 (SP3), due to the risk to computers when upgrading. If you have an HP computer, DO NOT do the SP3 install until HP releases a patch, or your computer could go into a "blue screen of death" and continual reboot. To ensure a good install, the registry (the "card catalogue" of Windows) must be pristine, there can be no spyware on the computer, and no pirate programs. This is a huge install, requiring many hours to download on dialup.

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