I recently upgraded to LiteSpeed – I hope it works well.
Dreamhost finally allowed us PS users root access to disable some startup programs like apache! So far, it seems faster, but if you notice some downtime, please let me know.
I’ll be running some tests over the next few days to check load and memory usage. litespeed is a good web server, so lets see how it performs on this PS.
I finally decided on going with mozy online backup. It’s a FREE backup service that gives you 2GB worth of online space. This computer of mine has already crashed once. It’s a good thing I was able to recover most of the pictures on it. If I didn’t, I would probably be coughing up around $900 to drive savers to get my pictures back. I highly recommend you try MOZY Online Backup.
The client download is REALLY small and convenient and the setup wizard is a breeze to understand.
I’m guessing I’ll put all of my MUST HAVES online first, then whatever else I need… May as well use all 2GB of space right? it’s free!
Same as before, you can thank me later!
I had an old scsi hard drive that was broken so I decided to take it apart and find out why the hell it was so dang heavy. Needless to say, it was acutally built very well. Here’s a pic of the two platters in it. I seriously need a new camera.
Keep your PC masks on people, I got spyware. Yep, I was in the middle of browsing a website and one of those “please take a moment to view our sponsor” ads came out. You know, the ones that adbrite likes to show you - the full page ones. Anyways, my browser immediately broke out of the iframe and redirected me to some other site. My antivirus software AVG said it detected malicious activity so I immediately closed it.
I thought nothing of it… No big deal… My antivirus caught it, so I was safe.
A minute later, I get this pop-up:
This may sound a bit dorky, but I kind of chuckled to myself because 1. My WindowsXP system and software is completely up to date. 2. My antivirus/antispyware is also up to date 3. I realize that this spyware is using some kind of 0day exploit to get into my system - which is cool. 4. I also realize how easy it is to get infected, even if you are super careful.
So what do I do? Well, I do what any technician does, I fix my own computer. Here’s what I did:
First I download all my software, install it and update it. Then, I make sure to disconnect my PC from the internet / network by unplugging the network cable. Why? Because some spyware are considered downloaders. Which means, they run in the background and start downloading more junk / spyware into your PC – I don’t want this to get out of control. Sounds like fun right?
SuperAntiSpyware
I update my superantispyware definitions and proceed to scan my PC. It takes a little while, but gets the job done.
Combofix
I downloaded the latest combofix from their website. This is by far one of my favorite pieces of software that kicks spyware/rootkits in the ass. Once I downloaded the file, I immediately renamed it to cf.exe or something other than combofix.exe – Why? Because spyware knows its enemy. Some spyware detect programs like combofix.exe and immediately kill it before it can run. After renaming the file, I run it.
It scans through and finds some stuff. Great! Scan times depends on how badly you are infected. Sometimes, if you’re computer is really jacked up, it won’t boot properly after being cleaned.
Spybot Search & Destroy
This software has been around for a while. It’s still maintained and updated often. I like it.
After running this one last software, it looks like I’m in the clear.
If I wanted to further clean my PC, I COULD use ccleaner or hijackthis. But honestly, my computer runs just fine. Many of the guys I work with are able to manually delete spyware and can easily recognize common spyware filename patterns. Truly amazing.
I hope this may have been of some use to you. =) Sorry, it’s brief, but I jammed it out during lunch.
It’s a sad day when any computer tech goes into a room with wires looking like this. =(
If you own a business, please, please have your network cleaned up by a professional. You never know, someday, you may actually have to trace one of these wires. Yeah yeah, I’m sure you can tone the line out, but still. Don’t do it!
I put in a new GPS locator! It’s kinda cool, but you’ll only be able to track me when it’s on. If it shows me somewhere in the ocean below Ghana, then it’s off. =)
if you have a phone with GPS, add me as your friend! Then we can both stalk eachother.
The software is called Ipoki and it’s currently in beta. It consists of a tiny app you install on your smart phone. In my case I have a T-Mobile Wing and an external GPS receiver(cuz I get lost ALL THE TIME!). The software supports blackberry, windows mobile 5/6, windows OS, and symbian OS. It’s rather nifty, however it’s simplicity and uncomplete look remind you that it is still in beta.
So, I figured I may as well test it out, especially because its free.
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