Computer Questions...

[jumpnblues]

...Can a virus get through Norton Antivirus and Firewall? The hard drive in my Dell is trashed for the second time in as many years. I run Norton automatic update once a week and the only thing I've downloaded recently was Internet Explorer 7. Last Friday I turned the computer on and it started showing blank page after blank page continuously. I shut the computer down and restarted it and I get a blue screen saying the computer was shut down to protect the hard drive and the files were corrupted. It gives instructions on how to check the hard drive but I can't get the computer to boot so I can follow the instructions. I just get the blue screen.
Now for another question...Can I download the networking driver and other software that was on the Dell on a Power Mac G-4? I have the G-4 left over after I went to a Power Mac G-5 Dual Processor for my Protools studio. Can I download all the stuff I had on the Dell to the Mac? And, do I need any antivirus protection for the Mac G-4? Lots of questions I know but I'd appreciate some answers. Thank you so much for your help.

Tom

[bassbuster33]

Yes you can get a virus even with updated anti-virus software installed.

Here is how to check you file system for problems. First you will need the MS Windows install disk. I am assuming you are using XP or 2000.

Boot up the computer from your Windows disk. Once the welcome window opens start the Recovery Console by pressing the R key. When you are prompted type in the Administrator password if you have one. If you have not set one just hit the Enter key. Once you get to a command line type in chkdsk /r. The computer will now run a check on your file system and recover any bad file sectors that it can. You may or may not be able to boot after this check.

Yes you should have anti-virus software on your Mac. Plenty of virus's out there that affect Mac's. Unless you are running some Windows emulation software on your Mac, the software on your Dell cd will not work on your Mac.

Good luck.

[voided3]

Hello, yes viruses can get past AV programs and firewalls, but what you describe sounds more like a hardware related issue. Windows is very sensitive to inaccurate CMOS time/date settings. Perhaps the CMOS battery in your computer is dead, or (as you mentioned) your hard drive could be starting to go. It possibly could be a video driver problem as well. I once had a comp with a dead CMOS battery and WinXP that wouldn't go past the blue welcome screen unless you pressed ctrl-alt-del. In case you don't know what a CMOS battery is, it is what saves your BIOS settings for your computer after you shut it down. Next time you turn on your computer, press either F1, F2, F10, F11, or the del key to get into BIOS (check Dell's site as per which key it is to enter setup). Once in the BIOS screen, check to make sure the date and time is correct. If it isn't (i.e. something like January 1, 2000), then the battery might be dead. Dell's site would most likely have more detailed instructs as per how to do it, but you basically unplug your computer, open the case, pop out the battery, and replace it; it's a standard watch battery typically.

As per using a Mac to download the files, you most certaintly can (I assume you are using either Safari or Firefox). I use WinXP, Mac OS X, and Linux and you can download any kind of file you want with any web browser, it's just a matter of whether or not the operating system can do anything with it (i.e. a Mac won't run a .exe file and Windows won't know what to with with a .dmg file). So, yes you can download the files for your dell with a G4 and transfer them over with a jump drive or by burning them to a disk. If you plan to use an external hard drive to transfer the files, bear in mind that OS X and Windows use different file systems. If your external drive is formatted in the WinXp standard NTFS, OS X can view the files on the drive, but it can't write or copy/save files to it. If it is formatted in FAT32, ext2, ext3, or HFS+ (the standard OS X file system), it should be fine for both reading files and writing them. That is why I think a usb jump drive would be the best solution since they typically are formatted in either FAT or FAT16 and therefore work on both OSes just fine. I have a Macbook Pro and several other desktops running all different kinds of operating systems and i have yet to encounter a problem with transferring files.

Macs do not need to run antivirus software since they are unix based. Program installation requires administrative priviledges (i.e. when you have to enter a password to install something, or if you are the only computer user, your user account logs you in as the admin). In windows, internet explorer opens up your computers to attacks pretty easily since it isn't separate from the operating system. A lot of it's components come on at startup, plus it uses ActiveX control plugins that are notorious for being a hole in security. For those reasons and many more, I highly recommend using a different web browser such as Mozilla Firefox, Opera, or Netscape. I use Firefox on all of my computers since it works on all operating systems and it has a lot of really nice features, and most importantly for windows especially, is more secure. There is antivirus software available for Macs, but I think it's more useful if you use a Mac as a net/file server for windows computers so you can scan incoming files. Good luck!

[KYTele]

Originally Posted by jumpnblues

...Can a virus get through Norton Antivirus and Firewall? The hard drive in my Dell is trashed for the second time in as many years. I run Norton automatic update once a week and the only thing I've downloaded recently was Internet Explorer 7.

Unfortunately, viruses continue to evolve. NAV & firewall are a good start, but, nothing offers 100% protection. What you experienced may not actually be a virus, but, could be due to a corrupted file, a hardware issue, or even a non-malicious bug in the IE7 you downloaded.

After you get going again using bassbuster's advice, here are a few thoughts:

Consider running the oldest browser you can tolerate (e.g. I run IE6). Hackers get motivated to attack the latest'n'greatest stuff. You'll be a less attractive target if you run older software...they've been there, done that and you can find decent protection for the stuff they put out there to attack older browsers.

Make sure you keep your definitions file on NAV current, and consider having it run more frequently

Add'l excellent free software can be downloaded from the following:

AdAware:
http://www.download.com/Ad-Aware-SE-...bj=dl&tag=top5

Spybot
http://www.safer-networking.org/en/download/index.html

Spybot also includes an 'immunization' feature in addition to scanning your machine. Both of the above require that you keep definition files current using there own update links. They generally update definitions every 1-3 weeks. You can have them automatically check for updates if you wish.

Hope I'm not crossing any forum lines by recommending the above. They're free. I've used them for years without issue. They're not perfect, but, they're better than NAV & firewall alone IMHO.

[ibobunot]

Originally Posted by jumpnblues

do I need any antivirus protection for the Mac G-4?

Tom

Not really, there has never been a credible report of a Mac virus in the wild.

That could all change tomorrow but it hasn't happened yet.

[Mark Davis]

Norton has zero protection. Its the WORST thing you can have on your system not only doesnt work right its a huge resource hog.

When Windows still had dos access like back in 3.1-98 and ME days Norton worked fine but its never worked right under XP.

Your best bet is get rid of all Norton products and install the FREE AVG virus scanner which works great.

[StuH]

For what it's worth I've been running Norton Internet Security trouble free under Windows XP.

[Mark Davis]

Originally Posted by StuH

For what it's worth I've been running Norton Internet Security trouble free under Windows XP.

I build and repair computers and 95% of the ones I get that I have to reformat and reinstall all the software on were using Norton.

IM glad your not having any problems but for safety sake you might wanna do a backup of important data cause depending on what pages you go to or who emails you stuff its gonna fail I can guarantee you.

[tazzboy]

I'm running Norton Internet Security's and System Works and haven't had a problem with it.

You need to run need to run your Anti-Virus program about once a week or so. I have run everyday a curtain time. Plus it doesn't hurt to Scan Disk or Disk Defragmenter (Defragmenter cleans up the clutter on your hard drive like having a maid in your computer system) once in a while either.

[tazzboy]

Of course I run Mozilla Firefox as web browser

[Sleph]

if you have 2 macs, why on earth would you want the PC....get rid of it....maybe set it alight in a ceremonial goodbye and float it down the nearest river...goodbuy internet explorer.....goodbye bill gates.....

"And there was joy in his like from that moment onward..."

[KYTele]

Originally Posted by Mark Davis

install the FREE AVG virus scanner

Do tell. Where?

[Tedecaster]

Originally Posted by tazzboy

Of course I run Mozilla Firefox as web browser

These guys all know more about the nuts & bolts of computers than I do, but I have found Firefox to be leaps & bounds beyond IE. I would give Firefox much of the credit for the smooth running & minimal crap I get on my computers. There are still some sites that don't like Firefox (notably US Gov't) so I have IE installed but only use it if necessary.

I have built a few machines & reconfigured a few & have had good luck using the combination of (all free by the way):

Mozilla Firefox for a browser

AVG Anti-virus

Ad-aware Spyware removal

The AVG & Ad-aware should be updated weekly, takes 2 min. Usually there are prompts to remind you.

When I run a scan with Ad-aware, 99% of the time the spyware it's finding is from IE, even if I've only opened it once.

[martyb1]

Originally Posted by Tedecaster

These guys all know more about the nuts & bolts of computers than I do, but I have found Firefox to be leaps & bounds beyond IE. I would give Firefox much of the credit for the smooth running & minimal crap I get on my computers. There are still some sites that don't like Firefox (notably US Gov't) so I have IE installed but only use it if necessary.

I have built a few machines & reconfigured a few & have had good luck using the combination of (all free by the way):

Mozilla Firefox for a browser

AVG Anti-virus

Ad-aware Spyware removal

The AVG & Ad-aware should be updated weekly, takes 2 min. Usually there are prompts to remind you.

When I run a scan with Ad-aware, 99% of the time the spyware it's finding is from IE, even if I've only opened it once.

I have run Firefox for a long time,never had a virus
My wife still uses IE on hers and I have had to re-instal windows I bet 4 times in the last 2 years.Can't seem to get her to switch.I also use AVG and Adaware and Spybot.

Norton slows down a computer so bad and it is very difficult to uninstall.
The only time I use IE is when the site won't work with Firefox but that is getting few and far between

[Mark Davis]

I run a scan every Sunday night with Adaware and Xsoftspy I use IE7 and it has never found anything bad just 1 tracking cookie I always get from using Excite as my homepage thats all.

[Mark Davis]

Originally Posted by KYTele

Do tell. Where?

http://free.grisoft.com/doc/2/lng/us/tpl/v5

[johnreardon]

Originally Posted by StuH

For what it's worth I've been running Norton Internet Security trouble free under Windows XP.

Same here. Doesn't take long for people to start blaming the tools, when it is usually us humans who are at fault.

Like others, I have been running Norton for years, with NO problems

I also work in IT and the biggest problems I see are computers that have had freeware installed.

Difficult to pin down the issue jumpnblues has, but I'm also inclined to think it could be hardware related. Good luck.

[Mark Davis]

Getting stuff inside your computer you dont want trojans virus etc is really controlled by the sites you visit and programs you click on to install.

Look at it this way. Lets say you drive your car 5 miles to work everyday on a glass smooth road. Your shocks and tires are gonna last along time as your not hitting any bumps. Lets say you drive 5 miles to work on a road thats solid potholes bumps and gravel etc. Your shocks and tires arent gonna last very long.

Alot of trojans and virus's are caused by operator error something pops up says install this to protect your system as it has a virue and what you install is actually a trojan that gathers virus progams and other trojans. Most of the systems I work on are owned by women who just cant resist clicking on something cause it says its free.

Also if you visit alot of pirate sites and places that offer cracks to trial versions of programs that make them into full versions your gonna get a virus or peer to peer sites like Limewire are full of trojans and virus.

If you just go to the TDP and a few other guitar forums your chances of gerring a virus are really small.

[KYTele]

Originally Posted by Mark Davis

Most of the systems I work on are owned by women who just cant resist clicking on something cause it says its free.

You, sir, have brass kahunas.

Funny though...my better half seems to be unable to resist something that's ridiculously overpriced!!!

[getbent]

Hey Mark I can send you some stickers that say "free" on them. You could place them strategically and get clicked until bliss is achieved. just a thought.

[jumpnblues]

OK Guys,

I'm now running Mozilla Firefox. Thanks for all the tips. I'm obviously NOT a computer person. Now for the (I'm sure) bad news...I ran disk diagnostics on the hard drive and it said "Fail". I think my hard drive is toast. Hope not, but I'll bet it is. Like I said before, second time in as many years. Crap!! Sooooooo, in goes the Power Mac G-4.
Just a few more questions regarding the Mac: Can I use my Dell monitor with it? I'm using the original Power Mac G-4 lcd monitor with the Power Mac G-5. Can I use my H.P. scanner/printer with it? Will the drivers for my peripheral stuff (i.e. Soundblaster, Photoshop, various games, etc.).work with the Mac or do they need to be "Mac specific"? Any other considerations I need to be aware of? Thanks again.

Tom

[ajmikula]

Originally Posted by jumpnblues

OK Guys,

I'm now running Mozilla Firefox. Thanks for all the tips. I'm obviously NOT a computer person. Now for the (I'm sure) bad news...I ran disk diagnostics on the hard drive and it said "Fail". I think my hard drive is toast. Hope not, but I'll bet it is. Like I said before, second time in as many years. Crap!! Sooooooo, in goes the Power Mac G-4.
Just a few more questions regarding the Mac: Can I use my Dell monitor with it? I'm using the original Power Mac G-4 lcd monitor with the Power Mac G-5. Can I use my H.P. scanner/printer with it? Will the drivers for my peripheral stuff (i.e. Soundblaster, Photoshop, various games, etc.).work with the Mac or do they need to be "Mac specific"? Any other considerations I need to be aware of? Thanks again.

Tom

Tom! Give Dell a call; if your computer is still under warranty they should be able to replace the hard drive for you. If it's been two years, there's a chance.

As far as the Mac goes...your Windows versions of those programs will not work. The printer should. Good luck!

[Mark Davis]

Originally Posted by getbent

Hey Mark I can send you some stickers that say "free" on them. You could place them strategically and get clicked until bliss is achieved. just a thought.

hahahahahahahahaha

[jlrich]

YES....do the AVG thing. Thanks to the folks here, mainly Mark Davis, I did the trial for 30 days and was very happy with so I downloaded a 2 year subscription.

It works very well and hardly chokes your system at all. And, it automatically runs a scan every day.

[jjkurtz]

Originally Posted by jumpnblues

Just a few more questions regarding the Mac: Can I use my Dell monitor with it? I'm using the original Power Mac G-4 lcd monitor with the Power Mac G-5. Can I use my H.P. scanner/printer with it? Will the drivers for my peripheral stuff (i.e. Soundblaster, Photoshop, various games, etc.).work with the Mac or do they need to be "Mac specific"? Any other considerations I need to be aware of? Thanks again.

Tom

You should have no problem at all using the Dell monitor and the H.P. scanner/printer. OS X may have the drivers already but if you can't print or scan once you plug it up check the disc it came with as it may have a Mac driver on it. If not, go to HP's website and download the Mac driver as I'm sure they'll have one. It may take some digging but it shouldn't be too hard to find.

Is your Soundblaster internal or external? Either way, you may be able to get it to work but I wouldn't bet on it.

Forget about any software working on the Mac (like games and Photoshop). It was made for Windows and it isn't compatible with the Macintosh. They make Mac versions of most Windows programs. The only hassle with this is that you have to pay for all new programs and that can be expensive when you're buying Photoshop again.

As far as antivirus software for the Mac goes, others have already said it: there's no need.

My $.02 on the Norton vs. AVG debate is that Mark Davis is right on the money. Norton is a hog that gets in the way of everything.

Myself, I use Kubuntu Linux on an HP nc6000 notebook and I couldn't be happier (unless it had iLife). Anyone who's halfway computer savvy, is sick of viruses, spyware, and defrags and who also doesn't want to pay the Apple premium should check out Kubuntu. Don't get me wrong, Mac's are great and IMHO probably the best choice if you have the money but Linux is the workingman's alternative.

[jumpnblues]

With AVG should I keep Norton Firewall (on my Dell)? Can you run AVG antivirus with Norton Firewall? Their website says free AVG doesn't include firewall.

Tom

[Mark Davis]

Originally Posted by jumpnblues

With AVG should I keep Norton Firewall (on my Dell)? Can you run AVG antivirus with Norton Firewall? Their website says free AVG doesn't include firewall.

Tom

I just use the stock windows xp firewall.

Go to start click control panel then security center and turn everything on.

Windows updates are the most important thing to keep your system safe be sure you have it all updated and auto updates are on.

[jlrich]

AVG 7.5 has an "all-in-one" package. It has anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-spam, and a firewall. Two years for $69.95.

[voided3]

Myself, I use Kubuntu Linux on an HP nc6000 notebook and I couldn't be happier (unless it had iLife). Anyone who's halfway computer savvy, is sick of viruses, spyware, and defrags and who also doesn't want to pay the Apple premium should check out Kubuntu. Don't get me wrong, Mac's are great and IMHO probably the best choice if you have the money but Linux is the workingman's alternative.

AMEN! I use Ubuntu and Xubuntu and have had a very good experience with it on a wide variety of hardware. One more thing about security, Firefox has an extension called AdBlock Pro that really helps cut down on spyware in Windows and annoyances for all; it blocks those stupid flash banners you see on various web pages. As for the monitor, I use a 15" HP lcd with my macbook pro, sometimes a 19" Dell crt and even a 50" Sony projection tv via HDMI without problems. Macs are great with auto detecting monitors. A little tip though, go into system prefs and then displays and set it to show the the display prefs in the taskbar up top; very handy when using multiple monitors. Also, if Dell won't support your comp, hard drive replacement is very simple to do, but if you aren't familiar with how to do it, you might want to ask for help with setting up Windows again.

[jumpnblues]

OK, I installed AVG and disabled all my Norton AV and other stuff and I can't receive email in my Outlook Express, and can't open email in my Hotmail account. Now what do I do?

Tom

[jjkurtz]

Try uninstalling Norton from Control Panel >> Add/Remove Programs. If you haven't restarted your computer yet do that first since it seems to solve a lot of problems.

[Mark Davis]

Originally Posted by jumpnblues

OK, I installed AVG and disabled all my Norton AV and other stuff and I can't receive email in my Outlook Express, and can't open email in my Hotmail account. Now what do I do?

Tom

Norton takes over your system so much its hard to get all of it out of there.

YOu cant just disable Norton you have to completly uninstall it.

You need to remove all entries of Norton from your startup squence.

Go to start click run then type in msconfig then click the startup tab and remove all the Norton stuff reboot and try again.

I have worked on systems where I could never get all of Norton out of there so had to format and re-install everything.

[bassbuster33]

I would not recommend just running the XP firewall. Firewalls serve two purposes, the more commonly known reason is to keep your computer from being 'visible' on the internet. The other, and in a lot of ways it is more important, is to keep in check what applications on your computer are accessing the internet. If you have malware on your computer that is calling out you will not know it with the XP firewall, it does not monitor that.

There are some free alternatives out there that will monitor outgoing activity. ZoneAlarm is one of them.

[tazzboy]

Zone Alarm is good Fire wall protection
AVG is a good Anti Virus
Lava soft is good Spy ware remover

But like all states there is no 100% protection. Expect for Common Sense

[eryque]

Originally Posted by ibobunot

Not really, there has never been a credible report of a Mac virus in the wild.

That could all change tomorrow but it hasn't happened yet.

This is abosulutely not true. Having worked in technical support for a company that released software for Macs with a virus on the CD, I can attest to this. Fortunately for me, the program sucked and very few people bought it, so the headaches for me were minor.

While viruses in the Mac world are relatively rare, there are a few and you shouldn't be careless about it.

[stratology]

Originally Posted by eryque

This is abosulutely not true. Having worked in technical support for a company that released software for Macs with a virus on the CD, I can attest to this. Fortunately for me, the program sucked and very few people bought it, so the headaches for me were minor.

While viruses in the Mac world are relatively rare, there are a few and you shouldn't be careless about it.

You are probably referring to the days of Mac OS 9. There were a few viruses back then. There are no viruses out in the wild for Mac OS X.

[eryque]

Originally Posted by stratology

You are probably referring to the days of Mac OS 9. There were a few viruses back then. There are no viruses out in the wild for Mac OS X.

Actually, I think 8.6 might have still been current. But there are a few viruses for OSX as well, though some would split hairs and say that they're trojans or worms instead of viruses per se.

Are they big threat? No. Are they a threat? Yes.

[stratology]

Originally Posted by eryque

...
But there are a few viruses for OSX as well, though some would split hairs and say that they're trojans or worms instead of viruses per se.

Link, please?

[ibobunot]

Originally Posted by stratology

Link, please?

OSX/Leap-A

You cannot be infected by this unless you do all of the following:

1) Are somehow sent (via email, iChat, etc.) or download the "latestpics.tgz" file

2) Double-click on the file to decompress it

3) Double-click on the resulting file to "open" it

...and then for non-Admin users, it fails to infect most applications.

You cannot simply "catch" the virus. Even if someone does send you the "latestpics.tgz" file, you cannot be infected unless you unarchive the file, and then open it.

[jumpnblues]

OK guys, I uninstalled all Norton stuff and installed AVG and Mozilla Firefox. No problems with Outlook Express but I can't open the email in my MSN Hotmail account. I can receive it, I just can't open it. It was opening for a short time about 1/2 hr ago and now I can't open it again. Strange deal. I did get a message just once that Mozilla had lost contact with the server, that's when I went to my hotmail account and the mail opens! Go figure. Any ideas? Thanks again.

Tom