The first thing you need to do is get rid of the spyware and adware. You're computer is virtually swimming in it. We do not recommend Ad-Aware (see our tip in this week's edition) and we are certainly not recommend Microsoft's Windows Anti-Spyware (see this week's "Rant"). We have found no better combination to remove and keep spyware and adware off your computer that SpySweeper and Spybot Search and Destroy. We'd recommend you download both of these and run them (one at a time) to remove the infestation of spyware and adware which must be, by now, overwhelming your computer.

Secondly, after removing the spyware/adware/malware and grayware from your computer, if you still have problems running Defrag, we'd suggest that you disable your screen saver temporarily. You can do this by right-clicking your desktop, clicking "Properties" and then clicking the Screen Saver tab. Choose "None". Then close all running programs (Outlook Express, Internet Explorer, and anything else you have open). After cleaning all the spyware and adware off you computer, disabling your screen saver and closing all the open programs, you should be able to run Defrag without any problems.

Linda Asks About Unsubscribe Links in Newsletters
Thank you so much for all the valuable information that you provide with your newsletter! I would like to know about "unsubscribing" to e-mails lists. Is a good idea to use the "unsubscribe " at the bottom of unwanted e-mails? Is it better just to block the sender? What is the best way to deal with unwanted lists that you never subscribed to - but somehow got on the list? I am afraid that when I unsubscribe and am asked to enter my e-mail address I am just making the problem worse. I sometimes use "block sender" but I seem to get more and more of unwanted e-mails. Thanks.

Our Answer
Thank you, Linda. Here's a good rule to follow: If it is a newsletter that you knowingly subscribed to (like InfoAve) and you no longer wish to receive it, then clicking the unsubscribe link provided in the newsletter is the proper way to remove yourself from the mailing list. However, if you receive newsletters or advertising email from places you know you didn't subscribe to and/or you've never even heard of, clicking the unsubscribe link makes matters worse:

#1. Clicking unsubscribe links in spam emails verifies that your address is valid and opens you up to more spam from the same spammer.

#2. Clicking unsubscribe links in spam emails, validates your email address, and your address will end up being sold as a valid email address to other spammers.

Additionally, trying to block spam by using Outlook Express' "Blocked Sender" feature is useless. You'll be like the Federation fighting the Borg. You know the Star Trek thing? Where the Borg say "Resistance is futile"?. Anyway, trying to block spam by using the Blocked Sender feature or creating message rules based on the sender's address is futile. This is because no successful, professional spammer would ever send from a valid email address - least of all anything that could be traced back to him. And a professional spammer may send you the same email dozens of times from dozens of different email addresses - none of them valid. So, when we see anti-spam programs like Mail Washer offering to "Bounce" mail back to the spammer, we have to laugh. Programs may indeed bounce the email, but certainly never back to the person who sent it.

In our new e-book, we go into a lot more detail about ways to fight spam, without losing any good email or making legitimate senders jump through hoops to get an email to you. While we don't have room in this newsletter to include all the details we expand upon in the new e-book, we can tell you that we use PopPeeper to control spam. It takes us less than 10 minutes of our time each day dealing with the hundreds of spam emails we get. It takes us over an hour a day dealing with the problems that spam filters cause when we, a legitimate sender, try to answer support mail and fill orders which are blocked by either ISP's spam filters or users misconfigured spam filters. The best spam filter is your brain. Use it. And you'll save yourself and your legitimate senders a lot of grief. Use a program like PopPeeper and your brain and we guarantee you'll receive all your valid email and zero spam.

Joan Asks About The Ubiquitous Active-X Warning
In your June 24th issue you had a free site of the week for PC-Pitstop. I clicked on your embedded link and was taken to the site but also had some info from Internet Explorer saying that it had blocked the site from downloading an active x from being installed. Is this normal or are some of my settings wrong? You guys are the best in the world. So refreshing to know people like you still exist in this world. Have downloaded and ready to pay for Zappit - great program. Thanks so much - Joan

Our Answer
Thanks, Joan. Many legitimate sites like http://housecall.trendmicro.com/ , http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/ and http://www.pcpitstop.com/ use Active-X controls to install a control to allow them to perform a specific function. In the case of an online anti-virus scanner that would be to scan your system for viruses, worms and the like. With PC Pitstop, you went there for a specific purpose, we assume. And that purpose was to find problems with your PC. The only way a site like PC Pitstop can do this, without you downloading and installing a heavy-duty program (which probably wouldn't be free) is to install an Active-X control and run the program from their Web server.

Normally, whenever Internet Explorer warns you of an Active-X control trying to install, you have the option to over-ride it. Usually, a yellow bar will appear at the top of your browser window. If you click that bar you are given options to allow it to install or not to allow it. You have to use good judgment to be sure. But sites like PC Pitstop and many others are providing a service you most likely want and probably the reason you went to that site in the first place .

All that being said, a warning: Some pretty bad spyware and adware is installed using Active-X controls. If you're not sure about the site you're visiting, play it safe and don't allow the Active-X control until you've had time to research the site. You can do this easily by performing a search (preferably Google) about the site and including the search term "+ spyware". So, if you were on Claria's site (don't go there) and were not sure if you should it to install Active-X controls, let Internet Explorer block the Active-X control(s) and do a search in Google for "Claria + Spyware". See what turns up. If you find nothing about it being malware, adware, spyware, or worse, make an informed decision to allow the Active-X control or not. But, never jump in with both feet if you're not sure. Once a mess is made it can very difficult to clean it up. So, think before you swim.

Firefox is considered "safe" because it does not recognize or allow the installation of Active-X. While this is true, what they don't tell you is that Firefox does allow the installation of scriptlets and JavaScript. They call these (euphemistically) "Browser Extensions". But, when all is said and done, its purpose is the almost the same as Active-X. That is, to add functionality to the browser. Firefox extension can be and are being abused right now. And we're just seeing the tip of the iceberg. FunWebProducts already makes "extensions" for Firefox. More and more questionable things will be available as "extensions". Spyware, adware and worse will find a new life as extensions for Firefox.

No software program and no browser will keep you completely safe. Using good common sense and caution should be your guiding force on the Internet. Common sense combined with the right software and knowledge will keep you a lot safer.

Finally, we would never send our readers to a site that had dangerous or nefarious content. We do check these things out pretty good you know :)

Jan Asks if AVG is As Good As Norton
I'm not sure if this is appropriate but I would like to know about the quality of security and the differences of that for Norton Antivirus and AVG free version of antivirus. I was told that AVG was "better" than Norton but my granddaughter just got a virus using that and was told that it wasn't as good as Norton. I have Norton on my desktop and just purchased a new laptop (built for me) and it has AVG and now I don't know whether to get Norton for the laptop, or not. Thanks, Jan

Our Answer
We don't think a statement like one being better than the other can be made. The question is are both equally effective? And if they are, then we'll choose AVG or AVAST over Norton every time. Why? Because we simply don't think you need to drain your system resources to protect it from viruses and worms. We have never seen any official, independent studies, which showed that Norton protected a computer any better than AVAST or AVG.

Our guess is that your granddaughter's problems stemmed from lack of keeping her AVG updated. And, it may not have been her fault. One of the only problems we've found with AVG isn't that it doesn't protect systems well, but that its update feature (auto-update) is not entirely reliable. We can only guess that so many are using the free version of AVG that their servers sometimes cannot handle the volume, leaving some users without updated definitions. This can cause problems in detecting viruses and worms. That's why we recommend that anyone using AVG not only set auto-updates frequently but also check for updates manually every day.

In fact, one of the biggest reasons why we now favor AVAST over AVG isn't because AVG doesn't protect a computer well, but because of the many reported problems with its update servers and its intermittent failure to automatically update. We've never experienced this problem with AVAST.

Facts: We've never seen a study showing Norton any more effective than a litany of other AV programs. Norton uses more system resources than any other AV we've ever tested, puts more tentacles into far reaches of your computer than any other AV program we've tested, and costs more than any other AV (except McAfee).

Thundercloud & Eightball's Rant

What's Up With Microsoft?

We've always been supportive of Microsoft. This irks some people because the cool thing to do is be anti-Microsoft. If you don't believe this, look at similar newsletters and you'll see a decidedly anti-Microsoft bent running through them. It is not our mission to be "cool" but to be honest. Our honest opinion has been that Microsoft doesn't deserve all the bad press and attacks it receives from many techno-writers and the press in general. However, it has become popular to take an anti-Microsoft stance and because it (they think) increases readership (and makes them more money). It's almost a certainty that anti-Microsoftism will continue to be popular horse to ride. After all most of us learn in life, it's easier to criticize than to praise.  It's easier to find fault than solutions. And, it's human nature to be negative. I guess we all become cynics if we live long enough. But some seem born to be cynical.

Microsoft is the company who brought computing to the masses. Arguably, Windows is a "borrowed" idea. Apple came out with a graphical user interface before Microsoft. Bill Gates and associates took Apple's idea of a GUI and made it run on IBM and IBM compatible computers - and the rest is history. We think, and many agree, that Windows XP is a great advancement over any other consumer version of Windows thus far. We supported Service Packs 1 and 2, in spite of the many doomsayers warning users not to install these service packs. Today, you'd be hard pressed to find anyone with any credibility not recommending installing Windows XP Service Pack 2. But, in the beginning we stood as one of few who advised our readers to install it.

Almost unanimously, until now, we have always supported Microsoft.. But today we're wondering exactly where Microsoft is headed. The things going on at Microsoft today are not things we would have seen a few years ago. And we don't much care for the things we think we see.

Let's take their Microsoft AntiSpyware Program and their rumored buyout of Claria  (makers of such wonderful things as Gator, WeatherScope, and Dashbar - spyware/adware all) for example. Please click here to read the rest of today's Rant.