Windows 7

[McPhee]

Good plan until one of your "trusted" sites gets hacked and spread viruses around.

 

NoScript and AdBlock -> Any AV software out there.

 

Having said that i'm currently running MS Security Essentials to test it out (and because i'm currently running Chrome, no NoScript/AdBlock). I don't even know it's there tbh, not had it pop up once since set-up. I like

[Jimbob]

People seem to forget that Norton IS a virus.

 

Do you wish to tell this to the people at PC World???. You tell them this, and they will go into some sort of spasm. I've left, so i don't know if they explode or not.

 

PC World are always hell-bent on near enough giving Norton away with EVERY PC they sell. Even with PC repairs (they always set the O/S back to default, causing more hassle for you) you can put a safe bet on that Norton will be on once you get the PC back.

 

Jeez, do PC World bum the people at Norton. It is only those who know about PC's who don't buy Norton i've noticed, and it's probably most of the ones who buy Norton use Internet Explorer as well.

[The Lillster]

Do you wish to tell this to the people at PC World???. You tell them this, and they will go into some sort of spasm. I've left, so i don't know if they explode or not.

 

PC World are always hell-bent on near enough giving Norton away with EVERY PC they sell. Even with PC repairs (they always set the O/S back to default, causing more hassle for you) you can put a safe bet on that Norton will be on once you get the PC back.

 

Jeez, do PC World bum the people at Norton. It is only those who know about PC's who don't buy Norton i've noticed, and it's probably most of the ones who buy Norton use Internet Explorer as well.

 

I wish my mom would stop using Internet Exlorer. Makes my life difficult.

[Cube]

(and because i'm currently running Chrome, no NoScript/AdBlock)

 

Did you know that the development version of Chrome has extensions, including a couple of Ad Blockers.

[Jimbob]

I wish my mom would stop using Internet Exlorer. Makes my life difficult.

 

I'm guessing Internet Explorer is all you use. I feel sorry for you, it seems you know what a bad browser looks like.

[The Lillster]

I'm guessing Internet Explorer is all you use. I feel sorry for you, it seems you know what a bad browser looks like.

 

Well, on my username, I use Firefox.

 

I'm scared of virus's through Internet Exporer though.

 

If I set my Mom's user name to a power user, would that eliminate the possibility of virus scripts being run through IE?

Edited November 6, 2009 by The Lillster

[Jimbob]

Well, on my username, I use Firefox.

 

I'm scared of virus's through Internet Exporer though.

 

If I set my Mom's user name to a power user, would that eliminate the possibility of virus scripts being run through IE?

 

Nope. Internet Explorer is all over bug-filled. As long as you have a decent Anti-Virus/Internet Security package you should be fine.

[McPhee]

I've used IE8 in the past (before other browsers supported Jump Lists). Not a bad browser at all really. Not as fast as Chrome or as customisable as Firefox but it's pretty solid and has some nice features. Chrome's speed is the thing that's pulled me away from it (And it suggesting URLs based on Google searches, which I like. Makes visiting new websites a lot simpler).

 

IE6 is the real problem, and sadly until XP dies it will remain a problem. Full of security holes on top of it being really very rubbish (it doesn't even have tabbed browsing!).

Edited November 6, 2009 by McPhee

[The Lillster]

Nope. Internet Explorer is all over bug-filled. As long as you have a decent Anti-Virus/Internet Security package you should be fine.

 

I'm currently using Avira (free edition), but have no firewall software.

 

Do you know a good (free) Firewall I could use?

[Ten10]

IE6 is the real problem, and sadly until XP dies it will remain a problem. Full of security holes on top of it being really very rubbish (it doesn't even have tabbed browsing!).

 

That and it makes grown men cry. You've spend ages sorting out your web design it looks beautiful. You do your cross browser testing and it rocks in all of them. Then IE sends your menu off to the right your content has broken out of its box and all your javascript and png's are fubar'd

 

Good times

[McPhee]

That and it makes grown men cry. You've spend ages sorting out your web design it looks beautiful. You do your cross browser testing and it rocks in all of them. Then IE sends your menu off to the right your content has broken out of its box and all your javascript and png's are fubar'd

 

Good times

 

Don't remind me. It's been 4 years since I last did any web programming and some nights I still wake up screaming "Why IE?!!?!?? WHHHHHHHY!"

[Charlie]

Good plan until one of your "trusted" sites gets hacked and spread viruses around.

 

I'm no expert in this field but I'm running Chrome and I don't think it will download anything suspicious to my computer without asking me first?

 

Anyway, I've never had a virus problem on my own computer. I haven't ran an antivirus programme in ages now and its still fine.

[Shorty]

Please, don't talk about IE6. It's my weekend. I don't want to think about it.

[Jimbob]

Please, don't talk about IE6. It's my weekend. I don't want to think about it.

 

I hate IE all-together, this version in particular pains me the most. God bless alternatives like Firefox and Opera!!!!

[The Lillster]

Good plan until one of your "trusted" sites gets hacked and spread viruses around.

 

Here's the solution to that problem:

 

Why you should not run your computer as an administrator

 

Running your computer as a member of the Administrators group makes the system vulnerable to Trojan horses and other security risks. The simple act of visiting an Internet site or opening an e-mail attachment can be damaging to the system. An unfamiliar Internet site or e-mail attachment may have Trojan horse code that can be downloaded to the system and executed.

 

If you are logged on as an administrator of a local computer, a Trojan horse could reformat your hard drive, delete your files, and create a new user account with administrative access.

 

On a local computer, it is recommended that you add your domain user account only to the Users group (and not to the Administrators group) to perform routine tasks, including running programs and visiting Internet sites. When it becomes necessary to perform administrative tasks on the local computer, use Run as Administrator to start a program using administrative credentials.

 

You can use Run as Administrator to accomplish administrative tasks without exposing your computer to unnecessary risk. For more information, see Using Run as (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=28314).

 

For more information about how to use Run as Administrator, see Run a program with administrative credentials.

 

If you need to perform other administrative tasks, such as upgrading the operating system or configuring system parameters, log off and then log back on as an administrator.

[Jimbob]

^

 

Basically, Microsoft telling us what to do as such. I wouldn't have thought having the main account as an Admin account would even make the system vulnerable. It's funny really, if Microsoft want us to use a Standard User Account then why set the account as Admin upon Windows Installation???

[The Lillster]

^

 

Basically, Microsoft telling us what to do as such. I wouldn't have thought having the main account as an Admin account would even make the system vulnerable. It's funny really, if Microsoft want us to use a Standard User Account then why set the account as Admin upon Windows Installation???

 

I think it's because, it would get a bit confusing for the average user.

[Wesley]

It's funny really, if Microsoft want us to use a Standard User Account then why set the account as Admin upon Windows Installation???

 

Because that was just a piece of advice from Microsoft.

 

If they did that as default then it'd be treating the user as a dummy and "telling them what to do".

[Raining_again]

You have to have the initial account as an admin...

 

If MS made the initial (and only) account a standard account, pray tell, how would the user install software and do other adminy things? And you have to do time setups n shiz under an admin account. So that really makes no sense.

[Jimbob]

I made a tad mistake. I changed my account to standard after setting up a new account as an Admin. As soon as i did that, the whole PC stopped working near enough. It wouldn't let me access the Admin account or anything. I just had to repair Windows, and lost all my programs. At least the back-up i made Friday is restoring all settings and files as i speak.

[The Lillster]

I made a tad mistake. I changed my account to standard after setting up a new account as an Admin. As soon as i did that, the whole PC stopped working near enough. It wouldn't let me access the Admin account or anything. I just had to repair Windows, and lost all my programs. At least the back-up i made Friday is restoring all settings and files as i speak.

 

What Windows have you got?

 

Total control of what you can do (Administrator wise), is a bit limited on Home premium versions.

 

You need to create a new account and give that account Administrator status.

 

Login to the new Administrator account and change your normal account to a standard user.

 

And whatever you do, don't hide or lock the new Administrator account.

 

It's also a good idea to rename your default Administrator account.

[Konfucius]

I thought in Win 7 the default user had limited rights anyways which would explain why I have to click "run as administrator" from time to time.

 

Can someone clear this up please?

[The Lillster]

I thought in Win 7 the default user had limited rights anyways which would explain why I have to click "run as administrator" from time to time.

 

Can someone clear this up please?

 

Don't know, but you still start off in the Administrator group.

[Jimbob]

What Windows have you got?

 

Total control of what you can do (Administrator wise), is a bit limited on Home premium versions.

 

You need to create a new account and give that account Administrator status.

 

Login to the new Administrator account and change your normal account to a standard user.

 

And whatever you do, don't hide or lock the new Administrator account.

 

It's also a good idea to rename your default Administrator account.

 

There is a default Admin account, but Windows wouldn't allow me to activate this account for some bizarre reason. I'm using the Premium version of Windows. I've just about got everything back the way it was before the mess-up as such.

[The Lillster]

There is a default Admin account, but Windows wouldn't allow me to activate this account for some bizarre reason. I'm using the Premium version of Windows. I've just about got everything back the way it was before the mess-up as such.

 

It's best that you leave the default Admin account, as disabled.