Notes from the November 14, 2002 meeting of the Rochester Genealogical Society, Computer Interest Group. There were 48 members and 1 visitor in attendance.
The meeting was chaired by Roy Thurston, Rochester Genealogical Society Vice President/Computer Interest Group. One visitor was introduced. His interest in Family Tree Maker was directed to viewing the most current versions of FTM video tapes, version 9 and 10.
Jim Hall, speaking for the Membership Secretary, Pat Mims, noted that a reminder letter for late payment of dues has been sent to those concerned. The updated Membership List is being prepared, and if dues have been paid, Pat Mims should be notified immediately.
The December Computer Interest Group meeting was announced as a presentation on the Family Search Website of the Latter Day Saints Church. Larry Naukam will be the presenter.
TECH TALK:
Acronyms: Some acronyms were presented: Windows NT, UNIX and GUI. (Answers are at the end of these notes.)
CURRENT PROBLEMS/SOLUTIONS:
(Dave Enright had arrived at this time and began answering some of the questions.) He noted that there are several solutions to problems in the Add-Remove section of the desktop, with WINSRVS at the end of the list of programs.
Dave stated that cookies are generally able to be removed without harm. Internet Explorer, Version 6 has a cookie removal section.
Problems with connectors, especially in lap tops, were recommended to be handled by a service company. Also, the old serial and parallel connections are being replaced by USB and USB2 connectors. These can be expanded easier with USB hubs and routers.
Discussing operating system updates, Dave highly cautioned to not install XP Service Pack #1. There are about 20-25 patches available. He also recommended removal of cookies from Internet Explorer, and also the history list. There are several recommendations on the Soundbytes website. Scroll down on right side to get the XP Security Patch.
A question on saving e-mail messages, using Internet Explorer, was responded to look for .WAD files. This will also work using cut and paste into a word processor.
Another problem with margins on e-mail was responded to check the settings on the printer or program.
In separating data from a program, he recommends collecting data on a different hard drive, than the program drive, for ease of preserving data in a backup.
A question on the apparent excessive time (10-12 hours) needed to do a Scandisk operation was responded that this is not unusual for a thorough scan. Defrag is much simpler and uses less time, but only reorders the clusters on the hard drive.
Dave discussed the KLEZ virus. There are about 18,000 varieties of viruses in the world. The need to be up-to-date is very important to have any reliable virus protection.
He also noted the problems of hackers of young age putting new viruses into the Internet. McAfee lists many iterations of an original virus like KLEZ, as hackers modify the original code. Sircam is another very broadly spread virus, mostly attacking the computer registry. If anyone tells you that you have a virus and you must wipe out your hard drive, they are very mistaken. Most viruses can be removed, in a couple or few hours. Many Tech Support persons are not properly trained to solve problems, only reading off a script from a Customer Support Operation Manual. Avoid using a recovery disk as it will wipe out all info on a hard drive.
Version 5 of McAfee is no longer supported. Only Versions 6 and 7 are supported due to major changes in the search engines. Automatic downloads continue in McAfee, even after your subscription expires. Norton stops support immediately after expiration of the annual subscription.
MAIN PROGRAM:
Up to now, Dave has been acting in the Tech Talk part of the program. After a short break, he returned to the Main Program, a discussion of Windows XP, and of course, other questions:
Any Internet Access without virus protection is very risky.
Dave recommended visiting the SOUNDBYTES website for a McAfee boot problem fix, in lower right hand side. To correct the boot problem of version 6 and 7, the autoexec.bat, at scan.exe, delete and replace with scanpm.exe.
He mentioned briefly his genealogy research into the Enright Family where a grandfather had 18 siblings. He also noted that he had to change disks for a friend, from 5¼ to 3½, and a large stack of 5¼ was reduced to one 3½, since there were few files on each 5¼ disk.
Discussion of Windows XP:
He had high praise for XP, both Home and Professional. The network features of XP-PRO are very stable. Updates are readily available for drivers for XP and Internet Explorer, and for other devices are also automatically searched for on the Net. Minimum requirements/recommended: Memory, 128 vs. 256; (Memory upgrades are cheap now, along with hard drives). He recommended storing as many files as possible on the Internet Server.
Dave reviewed the current state of the art equipment (hard drives, video cards and memory, scanners, and their speeds). He put in a plug for SOUNDBYTES.ORG, radio station WHAM, Saturday P.M., 12:20-2:00 (unless there is a Syracuse football or basketball at home). Archives need about 24 Megabytes per show, AM quality.
Dave next described the set-up of a router hub for a network. He recommended that all names in a workgroup be the same. Although Plug and Pray has some problems, it is much more reliable under Windows XP. Starting with a DSL or Road Runner modem, he showed how several systems can be connected, and be on the Internet at one time. Each computer gets an independent address, and can share other devices. He also recommends using a hardware firewall as the best way to protect against hackers. Use a custom install; uncheck Safe & Sound, in McAfee, an unnecessary operation.
In backing up, do not do the whole Operating System. Make sure that all documents and data files are backed-up. The cost of CD-R's is so low that the back-ups should be done often.
He noted that there are many bugs in setting up wireless systems. Each arrangement seems to have its own problems. If possible, a wired system is more reliable, although more difficult to install in walls.
A serious problem with wireless systems is the unauthorized eavesdropping by unscrupulous monitors. Encryption is mandatory. Choosing between DSL and Road Runner is a matter of personal requirements as both seem to give good performance. If either system is normally always turned on, you are a good target for hackers. A shut-down system cannot be invaded, until it returns to service. Again, Dave emphasized the need for a firewall and anti-virus software. Dial-up can get away with anti-virus software only.
Dave was given a well-deserved round of applause.
Acronyms:
Windows NT= "Windows New Technology" = A 32-bit operating system from Microsoft for Intel x86 and Alpha CPUs. It is also the core technology in Windows 2000 and Windows XP. NT comes in separate client and server versions, the latter including Microsoft's Web server (IIS).
UNIX = "UNo of multIX " = The name was coined for a single-user version (UNo) of multIX. It became very popular in scientific and academic environments. UNIX is a multi-user, multitasking operating system that is widely used as the master control program in workstations and especially servers. A myriad of commercial applications run on UNIX servers, and most Web sites run under UNIX.
GUI= "Graphical User Interface" = A graphics-based user interface that incorporates icons, pull-down menus and a mouse. The GUI has become the standard way users interact with a computer. The major GUIs are the Windows and Macintosh interfaces, the Motif interface for UNIX and the GNOME and KDE interfaces for Linux.
wishes
to thank Gloria Church for keyboarding these hand-scribbled notes; and Dick Halsey for
preparing the keyboarded notes for display on the Rochester Genealogical Society Website.
