July 6th, 2008

You are currently browsing the articles from MS Windows Vista Compatible Software written on July 6th, 2008.

Upcoming Update to Windows Update

An infrastructure update has been planned for Windows Update client. The gradual roll-out of this update will begin in late July. This update will occur automatically to any system configured to either receive updates “automatically” or “notify” customers that new updates are available for download.

For enterprise customers who use Windows Server Update Services or Systems Management Server, all updating, including the WU client, is controlled by the network administrators, who have authority over the download and install experience. Windows Vista customers who select “never check for updates” in their WU settings will not receive this update until they manually install updates from Windows Update.
In this particular update, there will not make any changes to the way WU looks or feels, instead the following have been improved:
- The length of time it takes Windows Update to scan for updates
- The speed in which signature updates will be delivered..Read More at the Source.

Source : Microsoft Update Blog via Neowin

Written by ShaDow on July 6th, 2008 with no comments.
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PCTotalDefender Removal Guide

Do you know what PCTotalDefender is?

DESCRIPTION

PCTotalDefender is a rogue anti-spyware program that is known to be related to AntiSpywareMaster, AntivirusForAll and Antispywaresuite which are all fake anti-spyware applications. PCTotalDefender is sometimes downloaded and installed without a computer users permission through the Zlob or Vundo Trojan infection.

PCTotalDefender is very dangerous in that it has the potential to download other malicious files onto your computer. PCTotalDefender may attempt to scan your system displaying totally erroneous results.

In non-techie terms: PCTotalDefender is nothing more than a deceiving program just like any other rogue anti-spyware application. PCTotalDefender’s ultimate goal is to get you to spend your money on the full version of PCTotalDefender which does absolutely nothing for removal of spyware or improving the security of your system. Using PCTotalDefender is like going to a gun fight with an unloaded gun in your hand.

Do you have PCTotalDefender installed on your computer and cannot remove it? Do you get popup alerts from the PCTotalDefender program?

PCTotalDefender screen shot image:

Aliases: PCTotalDefender, PC Total Defender.

PCTotalDefender Automatic Removal Instructions

This automatic removal method is for non-techie computer users. If you’re too lazy to learn about spyware removal or how to access sensitive files in your computer, then this is the method for you.
Before you start: Print or bookmark these instructions because you’ll have to reboot into Safe Mode. Also back up your computer in case you make a mistake.

Download and save SmitFraudFix to your desktop.
Restart your computer in Safe Mode (how to do safe mode). Once the
desktop appears, double click on the SmitfraudFix.exe on your desktop.
After the credits screen, you’ll see a menu. Select the option number 2, which is ‘Clean (safe mode recommended)’, and then
press Enter to delete infect files.
SmitFraudFix will begin cleaning your computer and take a series of cleanup processes. When the process is over, it will automatically begin the Disk Cleanup program.
Once the Disk Cleanup program is complete, you will be prompted with the message ‘Registry cleaning - Do you want to clean the registry’. Answer Y (Yes) and hit Enter. Reboot your computer.
SmitFraudFix will now check if wininet.dll is infected. SmitFraudFix will ask you whether to replace the infected file (if there’s any) ‘Replace infected
file?’ Answer by typing Y (Yes) and hit Enter.
Reboot your computer to complete the cleaning process.
After reboot, a Notepad screen may appear containing a log of all the files
removed from your computer. If it doesn’t appear, a file will be created called
rapport.txt in the root of your drive, (Local Disk C:).
Restart your computer in Safe Mode (how to do safe mode).
Go to C:\Windows\Temp, click Edit, click Select All, press DELETE, and then
click Yes to confirm that you want all the items to go to the Recycle Bin.
Go to C:\Documents and Settings\[LISTED USER]\Local Settings\Temp, click Edit, click Select All, press DELETE, and then click Yes to confirm that
you want all the items to go to the Recycle Bin.
Reboot your computer back to normal mode. Go to Windows Update and download all critical updates.

PCTotalDefender Manual Removal Instructions

This manual removal method is for techie computer users. PCTotalDefender manual removal may be difficult and time consuming to remove. There’s no guarantee that PCTotalDefender will be removed completely. So read the PCTotalDefender removal steps carefully and good luck.
Before you start: Close all programs and Internet browsers. Also back up your computer in case you make a mistake and your computer stops working.

Uninstall PCTotalDefender Program
Click on Start > Settings > Control Panel > Double-click on Add/Remove Programs. Search for and uninstall PCTotalDefender if found.
If your homepage has been changed, go to Start > Control Panel > Internet Options > click on the General > click Use Default under Home Page. Add the your desired default homepage, then click Apply > click OK. Open a new web browser to check that you have your desired default homepage.
Remove PCTotalDefender Directories.
To find PCTotalDefender directories, go to Start > My Computer > Local Disk (C:) > Program Files > Show the contents of this folder.
Search and delete the following PCTotalDefender directories:
C:\ProgramFiles\PCTotalDefender
C:\ProgramFiles\PC Total Defender

Right-click on the PCTotalDefender folder and select Delete.
A message will appear saying ‘Are you sure you want to remove the folder PCTotalDefender and move all its contents to the Recycle Bin?’, click Yes.
Another message will appear saying ‘Renaming, moving or deleting PCTotalDefender could make some programs not work. Are you sure you want to do this?’, click Yes.
To remove PCTotalDefender icons on your Desktop, drag and drop them to the Recycle Bin.

You’ve completed the PCTotalDefender manual removal instructions!
I hope this article has helped you solve your PCTotalDefender problems. If you want to contribute to this article, post your comment below.

Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes. By using this information you agree to be bound by the disclaimer. There’s no guarantee that PCTotalDefender will be completely removed from your computer. Seek professional help if your computer continues to experience problems.

Written by Valentino on July 6th, 2008 with no comments.
Read more articles on Spyware Help and otherSoftware.

PCAntispy Removal Guide

Do you know what PCAntispy is?

DESCRIPTION

PCAntispy is a corrupt anti-spyware program created by hackers with the intent to extort money from and mislead computer users. PCAntispy may come from a Trojan such as Zlob or Vundo Trojan which can be downloaded through a fake video codec or security hole. If your computer has PCAntispy installed on it then you will know it from the multiple popups and system alerts that you get.

PCAntispy may perform scans on your system displaying fake results of parasites being present on your system. Do not trust PCAntispy scans or purchase the PCAntispy program under any circumstances.

In non-techie terms: PCAntispy or PC-Antispy, is nothing but a waste of time and money. PCAntispy should not be taken lightly because it is just as bad as giving your credit card number to a thief. Would you rather spend $50 at the gas pump or spend $50 on a bet that you are guaranteed to lose?

Aliases: PCAntispy, PC Antispy, PC Anti Spy.

PCAntispy Automatic Removal Instructions

Download and save SmitFraudFix to your desktop.
Restart your computer in Safe Mode (how to do safe mode). Once the
desktop appears, double click on the SmitfraudFix.exe on your desktop.
After the credits screen, you’ll see a menu. Select the option number 2, which is ‘Clean (safe mode recommended)’, and then
press Enter to delete infect files.
SmitFraudFix will begin cleaning your computer and take a series of cleanup processes. When the process is over, it will automatically begin the Disk Cleanup program.
Once the Disk Cleanup program is complete, you will be prompted with the message ‘Registry cleaning - Do you want to clean the registry’. Answer Y (Yes) and hit Enter. Reboot your computer.
SmitFraudFix will now check if wininet.dll is infected. SmitFraudFix will ask you whether to replace the infected file (if there’s any) ‘Replace infected
file?’ Answer by typing Y (Yes) and hit Enter.
Reboot your computer to complete the cleaning process.
After reboot, a Notepad screen may appear containing a log of all the files
removed from your computer. If it doesn’t appear, a file will be created called
rapport.txt in the root of your drive, (Local Disk C:).
Restart your computer in Safe Mode (how to do safe mode).
Go to C:\Windows\Temp, click Edit, click Select All, press DELETE, and then
click Yes to confirm that you want all the items to go to the Recycle Bin.
Go to C:\Documents and Settings\[LISTED USER]\Local Settings\Temp, click Edit, click Select All, press DELETE, and then click Yes to confirm that
you want all the items to go to the Recycle Bin.
Reboot your computer back to normal mode. Go to Windows Update and download all critical updates.

PCAntispy Manual Removal Instructions

This manual removal method is for techie computer users. PCAntispy manual removal may be difficult and time consuming to remove. There’s no guarantee that PCAntispy will be removed completely. So read the PCAntispy removal steps carefully and good luck.
Before you start: Close all programs and Internet browsers. Also back up your computer in case you make a mistake and your computer stops working.

Uninstall PCAntispy Program
Click on Start > Settings > Control Panel > Double-click on Add/Remove Programs. Search for and uninstall PCAntispy if found.
To stop PCAntispy processes (view process removal steps)
Go to Start > Run > type taskmgr. The click the Processes tab and you’ll see a list of running processes.
Search and stop these PCAntispy processes:
PCAntispy_Installer_eng[1].exe
PC-Antispy.exe
For each unwanted process, right-click on it and then select “End task”.
To Unregister PCAntispy DLLs (view DLL removal steps)
Search and unregister these PCAntispy DLLs:
ASpyStBlk.dll
ASpyPopUpBlk.dll

To locate the PCAntispy DLL path, go to Start > Search > All Files or Folders. Type PCAntispy and in the Look in: select either My Computer or Local Hard Drives. Click the Search button.
Once you have the PCAntispy DLL path, go to Start and then click on Run. In the Run command box, type cmd, and then click on OK.
To locate the exact DLL path, type cd in order to change the current directory. To display the contents of the directory, use the dir command. To remove the DLL file type regsvr32 /u FILENAME.dll (FILENAME is the name of the file that you want to unregister).

To unregister PCAntispy registry keys (view registry keys removal steps)
Go to Start > Run > type regedit > press OK.
Edit the value (on the right pane) by right-clicking on it and selecting the Modify option. Select the Delete option.
Search and delete these PCAntispy registry keys:

MicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionExplorerMenuOrderStart Menu2ProgramsPC-Antispy
MicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionExplorerBrowser Helper Objects{60B244BE-559D-4269-B96E-CD264D828EC9}
MicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionRunPC-Antispy
{60B244BE-559D-4269-B96E-CD264D828EC9}
MicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionUninstallPC-Antispy

If your homepage has been changed, go to Start > Control Panel > Internet Options > click on the General > click Use Default under Home Page. Add the your desired default homepage, then click Apply > click OK. Open a new web browser to check that you have your desired default homepage.
Remove PCAntispy Directories.
To find PCAntispy directories, go to Start > My Computer > Local Disk (C:) > Program Files > Show the contents of this folder.
Search and delete the following PCAntispy directories:
C:\ProgramFiles\PCAntispy
C:\ProgramFiles\PC Antispy

Right-click on the PCAntispy folder and select Delete.
A message will appear saying ‘Are you sure you want to remove the folder PCAntispy and move all its contents to the Recycle Bin?’, click Yes.
Another message will appear saying ‘Renaming, moving or deleting PCAntispy could make some programs not work. Are you sure you want to do this?’, click Yes.
To remove PCAntispy icons on your Desktop, drag and drop them to the Recycle Bin.

You’ve completed the PCAntispy manual removal instructions!
I hope this article has helped you solve your PCAntispy problems. If you want to contribute to this article, post your comment below.

Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes. By using this information you agree to be bound by the disclaimer. There’s no guarantee that PCAntispy will be completely removed from your computer. Seek professional help if your computer continues to experience problems.

Written by WildStallion on July 6th, 2008 with no comments.
Read more articles on Spyware Help and otherSoftware.

Windows Mail & Calendar

Windows Calendar

Internet Calendars for Windows Vista Calendar (Microsoft)
The complete guide to the Windows Calendar (3-part tutorial) (Vista4Beginners)
Windows Calendar (Microsoft)
Windows Calendar Publishing (Microsoft)

Windows Live Hotmail

Email Support Space
Windows Live Support (Submit Support Incident)

Windows Live Mail

Making Your Windows Live Contacts work with Windows Contacts (Windows Vista Blog)
Managing Your Contacts (Microsoft)
Outlook Connector
Windows Live Hotmail Mobile
Windows Live Hotmail Desktop (Outlook Express Replacement)
Windows Live Mail (Blog)
Windows Live Mail (client) Support Team Space
Windows Live Support (Submit Support Incident)

Windows Mail

Migrate from Outlook Express to Windows Mail (Vista4Beginners)
Windows Contacts (Vista4Beginners)
Windows Mail (Features & Tutorial) (Vista4Beginners)
Windows Mail keyboard shortcuts (Vista4Beginners)
Windows Mail (SimpleHelp)

Windows Mail Custom Dictionary

Custom Dictionary Editor for Windows Mail (Winhelponline)
How to add the UK English Spell Check Option in Windows Live Mail (Winhelponline)
Remove misspelled words from the custom dictionary in Windows Mail (Winhelponline)

Home

An Authoritative Listing of Microsoft Windows Vista Bookmarks, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Written by Corrine on July 6th, 2008 with no comments.
Read more articles on email and Calendar and otherSoftware and Hotmail and vista and Windows Live and Microsoft and Windows Vista.

Windows SteadyState 2.5 is out there!

This is great news - I've been writing a few articles on this baby, but now we have a brand new version available for download!!!

Go ahead and read some more:

Protect Public Computers with Windows SteadyState, Part 1

Protect Public Computers with Windows SteadyState, Part 2

Windows SteadyState 2.5 Technical FAQ

Windows SteadyState 2.5 Handbook

Download Windows SteadyState 2.5 right here!

Enjoy!

Written by Jakob H. Heidelberg on July 6th, 2008 with no comments.
Read more articles on otherSoftware.

New Round of Vista SP1 and XP SP3 Vulnerabilities

Microsoft is cooking patches for a new round of vulnerabilities impacting its Windows client and operating systems and Server software, including Windows Vista Service Pack 1 and Windows XP Service Pack 3.

The Redmond company is preparing no less than four security bulletins for release on July 8, 2008, two of them dealing with security flaws in Windows platforms and the remaining two in SQL and Exchange. However, since the release date is not until next week, Microsoft warned that its plans could change if something unexpected were to intervene, revealed Bill Sisk, Microsoft Security Response Center Communications Manager.

"As part of our regularly scheduled bulletin release, we’re currently planning to release four Microsoft Security Bulletins rated as Important. These updates may require a restart and will be detectable using the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer. As we do each month, the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool will be updated. We are also planning to release high-priority, non-security updates on Windows Update and Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) as well as high-priority, non-security updates on Microsoft Update and Windows Server Update Services (WSUS)," Sisk added.

All four security bulletins have been labeled with a maximum severity rating of Important even though some vulnerabilities allow, in the eventuality of successful exploits, for remote code execution. In addition to Vista RTM/SP1 and XP SP2/SP3, Microsoft informed that the following products are also affected: Windows 2000 SP2, Windows Server 2003 SP1/SP2, Windows Server 2008, SQL Server 7.0, SQL Server 2000, SQL Server 2005, Data Engine (MSDE) 1.0, Exchange Server 2003, and Exchange Server 2007. But given that none of the bulletins are designed to patch Critical vulnerabilities, the level of risk users are exposed to is not severe.

By the end of July, the Redmond company also plans to initiate the rollout of a refresh to the Windows Update infrastructure and client for Vista SP1 and XP SP3. However, Microsoft informed that serving the actual update would take a few months.

Source : Keznews