PC Buyer Beware! is a comprehensive PC guide covering desktop and laptop/notebook PCs that provides the knowledge required to make sensible buying, building, upgrading, recovering, repairing and computer-security decisions and helps users to solve hardware and software problems via articles and questions and answers (Q&As). You can access the main sections of this website by making use of the orange navigation bar on the left or by making use of the Search This Site feature below.

WINDOWS 7

Windows 7 - The latest versions of Windows

Click the link to read the article on this website on Windows 7, the latest versions of Windows: Install, Use, Restore, Recover and Repair Windows 7 - Win7: How It Differs from Windows XP and Vista.

Fix Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 Black Screen of Death problem

December 4, 2009. - If you start up your Windows XP/Vista/7 computer and you are greeted by a black screen, this is a problem that has affected many thousands of computers. Here are the details:

Microsoft Windows 7 'Black Screen of Death' blamed on malware -

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/microsoft/6709584/...

An affected computer will work in Safe Mode, which can be accessed by pressing the F8 key repeatedly just before Windows starts to load. The best solution is to use System Restore in Safe Mode to restore a restore point that predates the problem. One of my computers went down with this problem today (4 December) and I restored a restore point created on 3 December successfully.

Visit the Security section of this website for information and measures on how to protect your computer(s) from malware and identity fraud.

Computer diagnostics: How to solve or fix common desktop and laptop PC problems

To diagnose and troubleshoot specific and general problems with Microsoft's software (Windows 95, 98, Me, XP, Vista, Windows 7, Internet Explorer, and Outlook Express) using the MS Knowledge Base, visit the Diagnostics page on this site.

Click a relevant link below to visit the information it describes on this website:

1. - Recovering and repairing Windows XP when a computer crashes or fails to boot

2. - Recovering and repairing Windows Vista when a computer crashes or fails to boot

3. - Windows Vista problems: How to fix problems with Windows Vista

4. - Recover, restore and repair Windows 7 (Win7) when a computer crashes or fails to boot

5. - Windows 7 problems: How to fix problems with Windows 7

6. - Windows XP: How to troubleshoot and fix shutdown, restart (reboot), and startup problems

7. - Typical DLL (Dynamic Link Library) device driver problems

8. - Software problems: How to fix problems with Windows, programs, and utilities

Also visit the Software pages on this site for more information on specific software-related information and problems.

9. - Motherboard and power supply problems: How to fix common problems with faulty motherboards (mainboards) and power supplies (PSUs)

10. - RAM memory problems: How to fix problems with the Random Access Memory

11. - Hard disk drive problems: How to fix computer hard disk drive (HDD) problems

12. - CD/DVD drive problems: How to fix problems with CD and DVD drives and discs

13. - Processor problems: How fix common processor (CPU) problems

14. - Video/graphics card problems: How fix common computer video and graphics problems

15. - USB and FireWire problems: - How to fix common USB and FireWire problems

16. - Network problems: How to fix common wired and wireless networking and internet problems

17. - Laptop/notebook problems: How to address or fix the most common laptop/notebook problems

How to fix problems with device drivers in Windows XP and Windows Vista

Although the information on the following page is specific to Windows XP, much of the advice is relevant to the earlier versions of Windows. Click here! to read Troubleshoot Device Driver Problems. Click here! to go to Tips for fixing common driver problems in Windows Vista. Those tips should also be applicable to Windows 7.

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Visit the Build a PC page for information on how to build a desktop PC and solve self-build problems, and visit the other pages, such as the Video/Graphics, Sound, Motherboards, and Monitors pages for more problem-solving information, all of which can be accessed via the menu items and jump menu on the orange navigation bar, or via the site search engine at the top of each of the main pages.

The Tips & Tricks pages of this site contain additional useful tips, tricks, and problem-solving advice.

UPGRADE CHECKLISTS

Visit the Upgrade Checklists pages on this site for checklists and useful information that cover upgrading the main componenents of desktop PCs of various ages. Some of the information is applicable when upgrading laptop PCs, such as upgrading Windows to Windows 7.

MEDIA CENTER PCs

It is now possible to build your own Media Center PC that is specifically designed to provide home entertainment, because the version of Windows that runs such a computer - Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 - can now be purchased on its own instead of only as part of a Media Center PC. Moreover, Windows Vista Home and Windows Vista Ultimate editions come with Media Center built into them. The Windows Media Center has been improved in Windows 7. The following page contains a video of the new features. -

Windows 7 features - Windows Media Center -

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/products/features/...

How to improve the Windows Media Center in Windows Vista and Windows 7

By improving how Windows Vista and Windows 7 interacts with Media Center and improving the video and sound quality by the addition of third party software you can enhance the experience of using Media Center considerably and make it play video formats other than videos in the WMV format.

Click here! to read an article on this website called How to improve the Windows Media Center in Windows Vista and Windows 7.

Visit the Media Center PCs page on this site for information on them.

Visit the Windows Vista and Windows 7 sections of this site for information on the current versions of Windows.

The Latest Computer-Related News...

Microsoft's Security Bulletin for March 2010

March 9, 2010. - Today is Microsoft's Patch Tuesday. This month has only two security updates, both of which are rated as Important. A Critical and an Important update often patches code that allows remote-code execution, which allows unauthorised access to a computer or network from the Internet. However, evenan update rated as Moderate can allow remote-code execution.

Microsoft Security Response Center Security Bulletin Severity Rating System (Revised, November 2002) -

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/rating.mspx

Microsoft Security Bulletin Summary for March 2010 -

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/ms10-mar.mspx

If you have Automatic Updates (Windows XP), and Windows Update (Windows Vista and Windows 7) enabled in the Control Panel to install the updates, or inform you of their availability so that you can choose when to download and install them, you need take no other action to install them. However, there might be a delay between the announcement today and when they are made available for automatic download. If that is the case and you want to install them immediately, Microsoft Update - http://update.microsoft.com/ - will examine your PC and provide you with a list of missing updates, which you can elect to install selectively or entirely. Choose the Custom install to choose which updates to install. This is useful if, say, you don't want to install a large update such as a service pack or new version of Internet Explorer. Many users cannot install Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) successfully, which is installed automatically along with other updates if the default option is enabled. All they have to do is choose the option to make Microsoft Update forget about installing that particular update.

The technical details of every released security update to date can be found on this page:

Microsoft Security Bulletin Search -

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/current.aspx

Visit the following page if an update refuses to install and keeps being announced as being available to install. You can download and install any particular update manually from there. Scroll down the page for the update links.

Windows service packs & updates for Windows 7, Windows Vista, Server 2008 and Windows XP - http://www.softwarepatch.com/windows/index.html

When run, the Belarc Advisor, under FREE DOWNLOAD on http://www.belarc.com/, tells you if your computer has all of the available updates installed. It also provides a System Security Status report that gives your computer a security rating out of 10, created by the benchmark tests of the Center for Internet Security (CIS), which is at http://www.cisecurity.org/ (available for Windows XP Professional, not Windows XP Home).

A security flaw with some encrypted flash drives made by Kingston, Verbatim and SanDisk means that they can be hacked into

March 6, 2010. - The 256-bit AES encryption software used on some USB flash drives made by Kingston, Verbatim and SanDisk sends the same character string to the drive to decrypt the data, which, in effect means that as soon as a drive from one of these manufacturers has been hacked into, all of the affected drives from the other manufacturers can be hacked into.

Each of these flash-drive manufacturers has provided patches that provide a remedy for this flaw. You should visit the appropriate page for your flash drive:

Kingston's Secure USB Drive Information Page -

"It has recently been brought to our attention that a skilled person with the proper tools and physical access to the drives may be able to gain unauthorized access to data contained on the following Kingston Secure USB drives..." -

http://www.kingston.com/driveupdate/

Verbatim - Important Security Update December 2009 -

http://www.verbatim.com/security/security-update.cfm

Security Bulletin December 2009 -

http://www.sandisk.com/business-solutions/enterprise/...

The Firefox 3.6 browser is now available - Mozilla touts it as the 'best browser in the world'

January 21, 2010. - Mozilla released Firefox 3.6 today - the first update to the browser since June 2009 - touting it as the "World's best browser" on its website. Firefox 3.6 provides a new security feature that checks browser plug-ins, such as the Adobe Flash Player or the Apple QuickTime media player, to ensure that they are the latest versions. Vulnerable plug-ins are prevented from loading. Mozilla says that it has improved the browser's overall performance and reduced its startup time.

You have to download it as a file from http://www.mozilla.com/ and then install it by clicking on the file.

Intel introduces dual-core processors with integrated graphics

January 9, 2010. - In September 2009, Intel released the first Socket LGA1156 Core i5 processor - the Core i5 750. The first Intel Core i3 processors were launched on 7 January, 2010.

Intel Core [processors] - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Core

With its new range of Core processors, Intel has moved integrated graphics from the motherboard to the processor. The new Core i3 and Core i5 processors have integrated graphics chips (graphics chips that are built into the processor). This means that for the first time a computer no longer needs to have either a motherboard with a built-in graphics chip or a separate graphics card to provide its graphics to its monitor(s).

The Core i3-530 is Intel's new entry-level dual-core processor with integrated graphics. The first dual-core Core i5 processor with integrated graphics is the Core i5-661 model. The new processors with integrated graphics currently require a motherboard that uses the H57 Express chipset. An example of such a motherboard is the Asus P7H57D-V EVO.

AMD, Intel's only major competitor, owns the ATI graphics chip manufacturer and it is known that AMD has been working on integrating graphics into its processors for some time. Since ATI graphics chips are currently the best (certainly superior to Intel's graphics solutions), it will be very interesting to see how AMD's processors with integrated graphics perform compared to Intel's.

The New 2010 Intel Core i3 Processor -

http://www.intel.com/en_UK/consumer/products/processors/...

Intel Core i5-600 Desktop Processor Series -

http://ark.intel.com/ProductCollection.aspx?series=43131

Intel Core i3-530 review - http://www.expertreviews.co.uk/processors/274900/...

Intel Core i5-661 review - http://www.expertreviews.co.uk/processors/274897/...

Asus P7H57D-V EVO [motherboard] review -

http://www.expertreviews.co.uk/motherboards/274894/...

McAfee unathorised subscription renewal scam

December 15, 2009. - The Zygote column in Computer Shopper says that McAfee, one of the major security software comanies, was forced to pay back £233,000 in refunds for unauthorised charges to credit cards.

Get your refund here - http://service.mcafee.com/default.aspx

Articles on the scam:

BEWARE -- McAFEE AUTO RENEWAL SCAM - http://tinyurl.com/yay2bwp

McAfee BUYER BEWARE!!! Credit Card Scam -

http://discuss.pcmag.com/forums/thread/1004326268.aspx

How to remove web-tracking flash cookies created by the Adobe Flash Player

November 24, 2009. - The Adobe Flash Player, used by most browsers to display web content such as video, can record 100Kb (kilobytes) of data, much more than the 4Kb that standard cookies use.

The flash cookies are stored silently on our computers by more than half of the top 100 websites, and are not always mentioned explicitly in privacy policies. The flash cookies track online activity and therefore are a threat to your privacy. Online sources state that these cookies are used to target users with adverts, and to capture private data that can then be sold. Flash cookies are capable of re-creating regular web cookies after they have been deleted, so even after you have deleted regular cookies, they will reappear. They are shared between browsers and can't be managed via or deleted by your browser. Flash cookies can't usually be managed or deleted using a program on your computer. CCleaner removes many of them but not all.

Macromedia.com used to develop the Flash Player before Adobe took that company over. That is why the flash cookies are stored in a folder called macromedia.com. To get rid of them, use Windows Explorer to locate the following end folders within the macromedia.com folder and delete the files in them:

In Windows XP, find C:\Documents and Settings\Username\ Application Data\Macromedia\Flash Player\ #SharedObjects\RandomFolderName and

C:\Documents and Settings\Username\Application Data\Macromedia\Flash Player\macromedia.com\.

For Windows Vista and Windows 7, use C:\users\username\AppData\roaming.

The AppData folder in Windows Vista and Windows 7 will be hidden unless you open Appearance and Personalization, open Folder Options, click on the View tab and enable Show hidden files, folders, drives. You should leave the Settings.sol file because it contains the Global Settings that you create using the Flash Settings Manager on the following webpage. You have to go to that page to set the settings of Flash Player being used by your computer, because there is no local control panel for the Flash Player. The reason for this is obvious - Adobe doesn't want users to be able to choose the settings easily from within their own computers that prevent tracking data and information capture.

Flash Settings Manager -

http://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/...

You should make sure that the amount of disk space is set to zero on the Global Setting Storage page and that a check mark is placed in the Never Ask Again box.

Note that when the Flash Player is updated, the settings are set back to the default settings, so you'll have to visit the link above to reset them manually every time you install an update. The player usually asks you if you want to install an update, but you can also check the settings by right clicking with the mouse on the player's screen.

The BBC iPlayer at http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer uses the Flash Player, so unless you change the default settings on the page provided above, it can collect data from your PC and even access its microphone and camera if it has them, which most recently-purchased laptops do.

You won't be able to view it unless you have the Flash Player installed as an add-on to your browser. To find out what its settings are on your computer, choose a programme to watch, right-click with the mouse pointer on the video screen and select Settings. The settings should be the global settings that you set on the Flash Settings Manager webpage.

Microsoft has launched Windows 7

October 22, 2009. - From today Microsoft's latest operating system, Windows 7 is available in four versions for the home user. Here are the versions and their upgrade/full version prices in the UK - Windows 7 Home Premium £80 until 31 December (£100 thereafter)/£150 - Windows 7 Family Pack (Windows 7 Home Premium on three desktop or laptop computers) £150 - Windows 7 Professional £190/£220 - Windows 7 Ultimate £200/£230.

Introducing Windows 7. Your PC, simplified. -

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/

Microsoft Windows 7 - every version reviewed [including Windows 7 Enterprise for business] - http://www.pcpro.co.uk/reviews/352642/microsoft-windows-7

About the PC Buyer Beware! website...

The comprehensive PC Buyer Beware! PC guide is devoted to providing useful and enlightening information on every aspect of personal computers, which include desktop PCs, laptop/notebook/netbook PCs, and Media Center PCs.

To get an idea of the coverage, look at the links to the main pages in the orange navigation bar on the left.

Extensive information is provided on all of the internal components of a PC - processors, motherboards, hard disk drives, CD and DVD optical drives, CRT and LCD monitors, video/graphics cards and sound cards, dial-up modems, wired and wireless networking adapters, computer cases, power supply units, and RAM memory. Information is also provided on external peripheral devices - printers, USB and FireWire devices and adapters, wireless network Access Points and routers.

The Software and Diagnostics pages provide information of the various versions of Windows used by home-computer users (including Windows Vista) and software applications, and the Linux pages are devoted to that ever-improving much cheaper alternative to Windows.

The Problems & Solutions pages are devoted to answering the most common kind of problems that desktop and laptop/notebook PC users experience. Security issues are of paramount importance. Extensive information on the subject is provided on the Security section of this site. Other pages on this site well worth reading are: Using Windows Vista, Warranties, Networking, and the Build Your Own PC pages.

Make no mistake about it, buying a personal desktop or laptop/notebook computer, or the components to build a desktop PC, can be an unnecessarily involved or costly minefield.

This PC guide has been designed to provide you - directly or indirectly in the form of links to other sites - with all of the information you need to know about PCs in order banish your ignorance and protect yourself from the spyware, adware, scams, and rip-offs of the vendors and the snoopers out on the web eager for personal marketing information, and from the hackers looking for prey.

Because of the modular design of a desktop PC, there should be no reason why anyone who can use a Philips screwdriver could not easily build one from its components. - Components that you can choose yourself to suit your computing needs instead of any need of vendors to profit from your ignorance.

The safest way to upgrade RAM memory: Use the UK and US Crucial Memory Advisors

Paul Mullen, who was the highly-respected computer guru of the Helpfile at ComputerShopper.co.uk - "I have recently been buying my memory only from Crucial Technology. I would rather pay the extra cost than waste time trying to track down the obscure program faults that bad memory can cause."

The best way to choose RAM memory for a brand-name desktop or laptop computer, or memory for a particular make/model of PC motherboard is to make use of the Crucial Memory Advisors (provided under the brief guideline on the minimum memory requirements for Windws XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7). If the Crucial memory you receive does not work, you are guaranteed a refund and standard shipping is free.

The memory requirements of the versions of Windows Vista and Windows 7

Most of the versions of Windows Vista require more RAM memory to run optimally on a computer that doesn't use memory-hungry applications than Windows XP. A video-editing application is an example of memory-intensive software. Only Windows Vista Home Basic has a recommended minimum amount of memory of 512MB, which is the same amount recommended for Windows XP. Windows Vista Home Premium, the most popular version, and Windows Vista Ultimate require a recommended minimum of 1GB (1024MB) of memory, which is twice the amount of minimum memory recommended to run Windows XP. Note that if you are using a 64-bit version of Windows, up to 4.0GB, it requires twice the amount of memory as a 32-bit version, which can only use a maximum of about 3.5GB. For more information on computer memory, read the RAM pages of this site, which includes information on the lower memory requirements of Windows 7.

UK - Crucial Memory Advisor - UK

USA - Crucial Memory Advisor - USA

How to Use the Crucial Memory Advisor

For example, if your computer has an Asus motherboard, open the menu, scroll down to ASUS, and click GO. If, say, you have a Dell computer, scroll down to DELL, and do likewise. You will be taken to the relevant information on Crucial's website.

If you don't know the make and model of the motherboard installed in your computer, here is a good free utility - Belarc Advisor - that creates an analysis of the hardware and software on a personal computer. Look under FREE DOWNLOAD - http://www.belarc.com/. Another utility that also provides detailed information on the memory itself is CPU-Z.

Desktop PCs and laptop/notebook computers

If you need to get a good idea of the components that are used in current desktop PCs and laptop/notebook computers, all you need to do is read the reviews of the latest machines on the market. Then you can read the detailed information provided about those components on this site. Here are links to review pages and pages on this site on desktop and laptop PCs to get you started:

Reviews of desktop PCs - http://www.expertreviews.co.uk/pcs

Visit the Desktop PCs page on this site for information on desktop computers.

Reviews of laptop/notebook PCs - http://www.expertreviews.co.uk/laptops

Visit the Laptop PCs section of this site for information on laptop/notebook computers.

Using Windows Vista and Windows 7

Click here! to go to the page on this site that deals with Windows Vista, Microsoft's replacement for Windows XP.

Click here! to go to the page on this site that deals with Windows 7, Microsoft's replacement for Windows Vista.

COMPUTER SECURITY

For PC security information, visit the Security section of this site, or make use of the site search engine at the top of each of the main pages to search for references to specific information on, say, viruses, firewalls, spyware, adware, etc.

DISCLAIMER

While every effort has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the information contained on this site, the author assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.

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