I was surprised to hear you had problems after running Dial-a-fix. Try posting a much more detailed account of what's been happening with your system (including the changes you made before running Dia ...

...and here's why: Dial-a-fix automates recognized command-line routines and scripts used for years to fix problems. Hover your mouse over a Dial-a-fix option (as shown in the article I linked to) ...

It's a great tool for fixing problems with Windows Update. I wrote about it in September: http://www.maximumpc.com/article/broken_windows_fixed_quick_with_dial_a_fix Give it a try: it's free, easy ...

...but when in that window is hard to say (speculation suggests late February, because Windows Server 2008 ships then, and Vista and WS2008 have common code). Microsoft, I think, is trying extra har ...

...Patch Tuesday updates. You should see them in a day or two via WU. If you don't want to wait until the updates show up in Windows Update, follow the link in the article (http://www.microsoft.com/ ...

'Sears Has Everything'* *including spyware! ----------------------------------------------- It's amazing how illogical a business built on binary logic can be. ...

...and worth adding to your SOP (standard operating procedure) for dealing with a balky browser. We rely on these A/V players so much it's easy to forget they can cause mucho problems as well. ------ ...

at http://www.seamonkey-project.org/ SeaMonkey is designed to provide "Web-browser, advanced e-mail and newsgroup client, IRC chat client, and HTML editing made simple -- all your Internet needs i ...

...the article's now been updated. Update to SP3 RC from any Windows XP release, old or recent. ------------------------------------------------- It's amazing how illogical a business built on b ...

...the link to number 10 is now working. Happy New Year! =========================================== It's amazing how illogical a business built on binary logic can be. ...

Not only did VisiCalc sell a cool 700K in 1979, but it enabled Apple IIs to become useful business PCs years before the first IBM PC rolled off the lines in Boca Raton, FL. And, for that matter, VisiC ...

Take a look at the messages and replies on this forum after you look up your error message: http://forums.microsoft.com/TechNet/ShowForum.aspx?ForumID=1992&SiteID=17 You'll find solutions for some ...

Are you short of disk space on drive C: If you're down to your last few GB, try freeing up some space before you try the reinstall. Also, run CHKDSK on C: drive and make sure it's OK before you ...

Don't worry about the 'evaluation copy' desktop notification. It's a reminder to you that you're running a pre-release copy of SP1. When SP1 reaches production, uninstall the RC version and install th ...

Reboot and login to Vista, a dialog window will come up. In that window, click the option "Access computer with reduced functionality". Once you do that, Internet Explorer or Firefox browser will open ...

According to Computerworld: http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9051238&intsrc=news_ts_head, Microsoft's been hearing back from clients who are unhappy ab ...

Gordon, Great job in arming MaxPC readers against the bad guys while finding the good buys. One suggestion I'd add is to use the 'click-and-brick' or 'click-and-mortar' online/retail store inte ...

Sorry, guys, but if any word processor deserves to be in the top-100 list, it's WordPerfect. Its clear menu system, use of function keys (and a mouse in later versions) and reveal codes features rescu ...

Thanks for pointing out that USB 1.1 hubs still have a place on some PCs. In this article, I was referring specifically to the "Black Friday" mini-hub offerings that lack AC adapters, but I appreciate ...

This is a very good article that really puts the pieces together for Windows XP users. --------------------------------------------- It's amazing how illogical a business built on binary logic ...

I updated the artwork and the article to clarify file format support in the new Compatibility Pack. Happy Thanksgiving and thanks for reading. ------------------------------------------------- It ...

I've updated the article to reflect the correction at eWeek. ------------------------------------------------ It's amazing how illogical a business built on binary logic can be. ...

External hard disks are plug and play - they're preformatted using the FAT32 file system, so they're ready to work as soon as you plug them in. Unfortunately, that also means that an infected drive ca ...

The Alibaba.com website's a useful place to start finding out where some computer products (mostly 'white box' components, it appears) come from: http://www.alibaba.com/catalogs/7/Computer_Hardware_So ...

Upgrading to an IBM clone so you can play a game? Not so crazy, really. It's just proof that for you, the "killer app" was a game, instead of a spreadsheet program (which is what got a lot of folks on ...