iSharpe Computer Solutions

How to find your network settings in Windows Vista

September 4th, 2008

1. Click on the Start button
2. Right Click on Network and choose properties
3. In the connection window choose “view Status”
4. Double Click on Internet Protocol Version 4

This will either have “obtain an IP Address Automatically” chosen or it will have IP adresses that have been
manually assigned. DNS Servers can also be assigned here.

Posted in Windows Vista, network | No Comments »

Sharing a printer on a home network

August 30th, 2008

Note: This process is for Windows XP but should be similar for Vista as well

Before you begin, make sure the computers are on the same workgroup. Right Click “My Computer”and choose the “Computer Name” tab. The workgroup name is listed here. If you need to change the workgroup name hit the “change” button and type the new name. You will have to restart to apply the change.

1. Install the printer on one of the computers on the network
2. Go to Start->Control Panel->Printers
3. Right click on the printer you want to share and choose “sharing”
4. Choose “Share this printer”
5. Assign a name to the printer in the Share name box
6. Click the “Apply” button
7. From the other computers go to Start->Control Panel->Printers
8. Go to File ->Add a Printer
9. Hit “Next” button
10. Select “A Network printer, or a printer attatched to another computer”
11. Hit “Next” button
12. Select “Browse for a printer”
13. Hit “Next” Button
14. Locate the path of the computer which the printer is attached to, and select the printer
15. Hit “Next” Button
16. Choose whether to make it your default printer and you are finished

Posted in Windows XP, Windows Vista, printers, network | No Comments »

Removing XP Antivirus 2008, XP Antivirus 2009, and XPAntiVirus, IEantivir, and other related malware

August 15th, 2008

XP Antivirus 2008 and its spinoffs have quickly become a problem for a lot of my clients. Recently I’ve seen it show up on more than 50% of the infected machines I’ve come across. None of the popular retail programs such as Norton, McAfee, etc. have been effective in removing these viruses. Luckily I stumbled upon Malwarebytes Anti-Malware after seeing some posts saying that it worked. I was skeptical about the claims but I’ve used it several times already and have seen no signs of the viruses returning on those machines. There is a free version available that will do the job of cleaning up XP Antivirus 2008, and a paid version that offers real time protection against future infections. I downloaded the free version and ran the “quick scan” , which took about 20 minutes. Since it spent a lot of time going through temporary internet files , you may want to delete those before the scan.

Posted in Windows XP, Security, Anti-Spyware, Anti-Virus, Windows Vista, malware, viruses | No Comments »

Can’t uninstall McAfee from your computer?

August 15th, 2008

I’m no fan of McAfee and it’s ever growing suite of protection tools. It rarely seems to catch the things that are really affecting people, and it feels more like your computer has been thrown in prison rather than the bad guys(viruses). What’s really a pain is when you are trying to uninstall the McAfee Suite and Add/Remove programs keeps giving errors. McAfee has at least provided a solution to this problem, although it took a bit of searching to find it. You can download the McAfee Consumer Product Removal tool here. Just download the file to your desktop, doubleclick and it will do the rest of the uninstall.

Posted in Anti-Virus, malware, viruses | No Comments »

Dead Laptop Key ?

July 15th, 2008

Desktop keyboards are easily replaceable, laptop keyboards can be a little more tricky. So, it can be very frustrating when you suddenly find a key that doesn’t work on your laptop. I’ve found a nice little program that can help you get by with your current keyboard if you are willing to deal with a slightly altered keyboard layout. The program is called Sharpkeys and works with most versions of Windows. It can be found here. It’s fairly simple to use, just specify the key that you want to change and then specify the new key to map it to. It can save you the trouble of looking for that hard to find keyboard for your old laptop and the expense of having it replaced.

Posted in computer repair, laptop | No Comments »

CMOS Checksum Error

February 8th, 2008

If you are getting a CMOS Checksum Error and cannot boot into Windows, it may be an indication of a weak CMOS battery. Replace the battery on the motherboard, and this may solve your troubles.