QL for the 'average' computer user

2005-10-29T08:01:00.000-07:00

Delete IE's temporary files automatically............

You can have Internet Explorer delete all those old unnecessary files by following these steps:

click on 'tools' in the browser toolbar
click on 'internet options' in the drop down menu
click on 'advanced'
scroll down to 'security'
check the box beside "Empty Temporary Internet Files Folder When Browser is Closed"

2005-10-29T07:56:00.000-07:00

We have all recieved those emails that tell you about something terribly awful that is happening or that you can win a prize just by forwarding it to all your friends. You can check if these things are true. Go to About.coms Urban Legends and Folktales page. Then don't forget to email the page back to whomever sent it to you!

2005-10-23T10:15:00.000-07:00

Looking for Trashable Email?
For free trashable email that is reportably similar to Mailinator that is recieve only and lasts a longer 7 days try dodgeit.com

2005-10-21T10:17:00.000-07:00

It has been a long hiatus... But, I am back. The main site of Quantum-Links.com is under reconstruction at the moment and is undergoing a transformation.

2004-04-15T10:32:00.000-07:00

Want Different sounds for opening and closing programs on Windows XP?
Go to 'Start' menu on your browser bar
Open the Control Panel
Double click on Sounds and Audio Devices.
Click the Sound tab
Under Program Events, highlight the task that you wish to assign a sound to like opening or closing a program
Under Sounds, click the down arrow and select the sound
Test it by clicking the play arrow key.
You can also use a sound you've downloaded onto your computer by clicking the Browse button to retrieve it off your system

2004-04-15T10:07:00.000-07:00

As always, protecting your computer while out on the web is a must in this day and age. The more you have, the better you are. I was looking at some software and found one that I liked. It blocked hackers & intrusions as well as reporting them. It offers an intrusion detection system plus a firewall. Prevents worms & Trojans. It works right out of the box and as well as with dial up, DSL or cable modem. What I like is that it is all in one and works on email, instant messaging and through the web browser. Pretty much makes life alot easier and less worrisome. Check it out for yourself at "BlackICE PC Protection"

2004-04-14T08:04:00.000-07:00

Critical WINDOWS Patches have been released mid-April. There are 20 vulnerabilities that they cover of which 8 are considered critical. This is one of their largest releases of patches and their report card gets marked with 'needs improvement'. Check what systems need the updates at MS Security Bulletins or you get them right off at Windows Update. For another point of view, the Dept of Homeland Security's Computer Emergency Readiness Team will give you information on this without all the corporate hype (albeit in tech talk) at Technical Cyber Alert. MS has named security their number one priority. To read their corporate take on this check out MS Executive Email for an 'interesting' read.

2004-04-14T06:50:00.000-07:00

Everyone loves to scan and email photos. Have you ever wanted to scan a 3D object to send? Smaller objects can be scanned. Set your scanner to >high resolution > use a plain opposite color cloth to cover the object so you can leave the cover open (dark object = light cloth & vica versa) > scan<. You can use the preview option to make adjustments if the auto doesn't cut it. Don't forget to clean the scanner first as that dust will show up!!!

2004-04-14T06:35:00.000-07:00

Looking for sensitive government documents or hard to get studies? You can access hard to find documents on 9/11 and more at The Memory Hole". They deliver alot more than the local newspaper ever will. Take a read, get informed & make up your own mind.

2004-04-11T07:42:00.000-07:00

Have Kids using the internet?
A friend of mine showed me a site with a contract for kids using the internet. It does a great job spelling out what is their responsibilty, what they can and cannot do. As a teacher, I think it's a great tool to keep kids safe and secure out on the net. Check it out at kids internet contract

2004-04-11T06:47:00.000-07:00

Best Places to Live in 2004
Money Magazine allows you to search 1200 cities on criteria like housing, weather, safety and more. See what their top picks are for cities to live in at Best Places To Live. Use the internet to your advantage as a consumer

2004-04-10T08:14:00.000-07:00

Tired of information being gathered about you without your knowldge out on the internet via spyware, adware and more? These nefarious practices compromise the security of your computer! You can complain to the FTC. They are holding hearings April 19th, 2004 on this subject. They are accepting comments until May 21, 2004.
Get more information and email your thoughts at Federal Trade Commision Workshop

2004-04-10T07:09:00.000-07:00

I am always up for a good laugh.... Check out the welcome from this site....
"Welcome. Primate Programming Inc. is dedicated to the advancement and gainful employment of non-human great apes within the United States information technology sector."
My only question is where do they get the time to do something as complex as this?

2004-04-10T06:30:00.000-07:00

Watch your Internet Explorer Tool Bar

There are three important reasons why you should watch your toolbar:

1. It lets you see exactly where a link leads. By putting your mouse over a link, the toolbar will tell you
to what site the link leads to. I check as sometimes the link will say one thing and the site has
nothing to do with it.
2. It will show the little gold “lock” symbol that shows it is a secure site. In this day and age, it is important
to see that symbol before doing a transaction for your own security.
3. Lastly, it will tell you the status of a download. Face it, why sit there if the download isn’t going
anywhere. Also, it will tell you if you have time to go grab that cup of coffee.

If your toolbar ever changes without your doing it, you can lock it to your preferred settings:
1. Close all your browser windows except for one.
2. Go to view & click status bar to make sure it’s the settings you want.
3. Place the cursor over one the blank spots on the toolbar. Right click and a menu should pop up &
check the “lock toolbars” option.
4. Close the window to set your selection.
5. If you ever want to change your selection, repeat the process and uncheck the “lock toolbars”. Make
your changes and lock it again.

2004-04-07T11:57:00.000-07:00

Surf Faster on Internet Explorer:
Have you set your internet settings in your IE browser? If not: Go to tools. Internet Options. Advanced. There you'll find your options on what comes to your computer via the net. You can turn off music and videos from ever loading automatically. If you don't care for pictures, you can also turn off graphics. Less stuff loading means you get the page faster and can move on faster as well......

2004-04-07T11:14:00.000-07:00

Better Web Surfing!!!!
Download the Alexa toolbar to enhance your internet experience whether your experienced or novice. Features include: Google search, dictionary, thesaurus, news, stock & more. Get links to similar sites and related info. You can tell a friend about the site without going back to your email. Find out about the site's contact info, get reviews on it & more of it's history. Plus it has the "Way Back Machine", the largest library of websites in the world for all you information hounds. Get the quick and easy download at Alexa Toolbar.

2004-04-07T10:53:00.000-07:00

Have you invested in high definition television? Wondering what programming there is? Where to get it?
Even though I don't have it and being the information hound that I am...... I followed up on some info I heard for future use.... You can find out what programs are being distributed nationally. If you've got the equipment or planning on getting it, check out HDTV Magazine. For $35 a year it will put all the hdtv programming sources in your email inbox daily.

2004-04-03T09:50:00.000-08:00

Traveling with your laptop?

Take some stress out of traveling by being prepared. First arrive with a full charge. Put it into sleep mode before arriving at security. It will save you time in having to boot up if security asks you to. Last of all, have it accessable when you get to security check points. You'll have to have it x-rayed seperately and from all reports this will not harm your laptop.

2004-04-03T09:35:00.000-08:00

New to digital photography?
If your new to digital photgraphy and feel a little lost..... There is a good starting point and it's free!!! Adobe Photoshop Album 2.0 Starter Edition It contains the basic functions of the regular product and is not time limited. You'll be able to retrieve photos from all over your computer and organize them as well as create files to keep organized in the future. It will help you create slide shows and email your pics to family and friends. Plus do some photo fixes like auto color, auto contrast, fix red eye and more. Of course, they will be pushing the upgrade to the regular version and thats $50.

2004-04-03T09:12:00.000-08:00

The economy is one of those topics that stays in the forefront. You keep hearing buy American. There is a site that specializes in just that. Look at American made goods on Buy American.com.

2004-04-02T11:40:00.000-08:00

One Door Closes & Another Door Opens:

Gateway announced it will be closing all it's retail outlets (and letting all the employees go)
However, Sony announced that it is opening more retail outlets. They have 3 in California, 1 in New York, 1 in Chicago and 1opening in Boston in May. Their plans are to open stores in the top 10 metropolitan markets.

2004-04-02T07:21:00.000-08:00

Missed the joke day of the year..... Saw alot of pretty good April fools out there!! I saw a site that can forearm you against them and provide some good laughs. The Museum of Hoaxes is a must see site for classic April fools jokes, tall tales, hoax websites to name a few.

2004-03-31T15:05:00.000-08:00

Do you have broadband or are looking into it? Broadband Reports can give you a good look at services based on price, quality of service and more.

2004-03-31T14:51:00.000-08:00

Educate Yourself
Computer magazines are a great way to educate yourself about your computer. They will keep you up to date on how to tips, security measures and more. QL just added a section of popular computer magazines like PC Today, Smart Computing & E-Gear that come to you for prices up to 80% off the cover price.

2004-03-28T10:28:00.000-08:00

Still Runnining Around Out There!

The JDBGMBR hoax is still out there. To refresh, it tells you a Microsoft Debugger Registrar is a virus and to delete it. The icon for it is a teddy bear. It sometimes tells you it will fix the W32/Bugbear-A virus. The program is no more susceptable to virus' than any other program. If your set with an anti-virus program no worries.......

The Hotmail and Yahoo hoaxes are also still making the rounds..... You will not lose your account if you don't forward it to ten other members........... It's a chain letter!!!! Like a chain letters, it serves absolutely no purpose........

2004-03-28T10:18:00.000-08:00

New Hoax this Month:

Wells Fargo Customers are receiving emails asking them to verify information for security purposes. As always, don't respond to these things. Any company you do business with will never ask for that type of information by email. If you do business with them, you'll have their phone number. Call em and verify!!!

2004-03-28T10:09:00.000-08:00

Windows 98 Defrag Take Forever?
There are alot of Windows 98 users still out there. Myself included..... Most of us don't defrag as often as we should. It takes so long....... Why?? It's all those programs still running behind the scenes. A little trick I picked up is to turn them off. I hit control - alt - delete to bring up the close program window. I shut them all down except systray and explorer. It takes a bit to do it. But, it saves me from defrag constantly restarting as those programs do stuff behind the scenes. A bit of prep & maintanence makes the whole thing go alot better.

2004-03-28T10:02:00.000-08:00

Always the virus'to watch out for..... You still need to be on the watch for all the Bagel versions: Q, U & HTML. There's the Agobot EX & EF as well as Lovgate-X & Troj/Ranckbot-A. Make sure your virus settings are up to date. If your lacking in the anti-virus arena, hit the EZ software link to get started.

2004-03-28T09:39:00.000-08:00

Are you a Gadget Freak?
I like all those little things that do stuff, make noises etc... Find all those gadgets that will amaze your friends at home, work parties...... Or it's just a fun site to surf and think to yourself, "what were they thinking? Don't let the name fool you because you don't have to be a geek at ThinkGeek Gadgets. Or if your a curmudgeon like me, go straight to find out what's on Clearance at ThinkGeek!

2004-03-25T14:27:00.000-08:00

Admittedly, this one isn't exactly for the 'average' user unless they are really curious...... But, if you have ever wanted to find out a little more information on your favorite websites. At Sam Spade you can find out who registered your favorite site and a little more about them. The simplest way is to put in their url (include http://) next to the "do stuff " and click. Plus there are more options.......

2004-03-25T14:08:00.000-08:00

Want to surf the net anonymously? There are services out there that let you mask your identity. This leaves you secure in knowing that you haven't left a trail of personal information behind. The service is an encrypted application that retrieves web pages for you without telling the site it's final destination. It is pretty much like having a post office box - nobody mailing you knows your actual home address. You can try MegaProxy as a start. Last time I checked, they had a limited free service & it was about $11.95 for 6 months for the full service.

2004-03-25T13:51:00.000-08:00

Want to know your IP address? You know the numbers that identify you out on the web? These are the numbers that they catch the illegal file swappers (read: song downloaders) with. You can go to IP Chicken to find out.

2004-03-25T11:28:00.000-08:00

With all the controversy surrounding copying DVD's, is it legal or illegal? As long as your software does not contain the ripper it is presently legal according to most internet sources. Legal software takes the ripper off the net from the software provider. For more info & sources see: Spending Big Bucks on Ruined CD's?

2004-03-23T12:45:00.000-08:00

Bagle Q virus - Unfortunately a New and Improved Virus
The new Bagle Q doesn't need to be in attachment to infect you. No download neccessary..... It runs itself just by opening the email. Get the patch for it: MS03-040

2004-03-23T12:37:00.000-08:00

Don't Pay Twice

If you have software that you have a maintenance aggreement on - watch how you get your upgrades. These are sometimes also packaged as new products. Take a minute and do your homework so you don't end up paying twice.

2004-03-21T22:26:00.000-08:00

Thought it might be fun to start with a laugh. We all know about buzz words (and how annoying they can be). Buzzosity is the density of buzz words. You can check any web page with this tool to get a general, suit & geek score for it. It's worth a laugh and doesn't take long. Buzz Word O' Meter

2004-03-21T15:52:00.000-08:00

Warning: if you have received an email promising that you have won a MicroSoft X-box - DELETE IT !! There have been many complaints about fradulent spam regarding this. Victims have never received the X-Box and sometimes have had additional charges put on their cards.
If you have been a victim of this or any other internet scam, you can contact IC3 to report it. IC3 is a partnership between the FBI & National White Collar Crime Center.
Note: It is important that you have the original email & any following when reporting scams.

2004-03-21T15:47:00.000-08:00

For information that is more than blog sized, you can go to Quantum Links main. There you'll find topics covered more in depth.

2004-03-21T15:31:00.000-08:00

Creation of this blog is in response to the many questions I hear about basic use of the computer. This isn't for power users or even talented amateurs. Here will be the basics from using notepad to maintenance issues such as defrag. You'll find tips, news, information, product information to keep the average user and their computer running secure and current. And sometimes just fun stuff.......