*** Featured
Is Microsoft shutting down Messenger?
Microsoft recently announced that Microsoft Messenger instant messaging would be migrated to Skype, which it purchased in 2011.
What that really means is very simple: Messenger is going away and Skype is replacing it.
Before you panic, that doesn't mean you'll lose anything at all. Because at the same time, Microsoft announced that you can now log in to Skype using your Microsoft Account and when you do, you'll find all of your Messenger contacts there ready for you to chat with.
Unfortunately, so much of the terminology that Microsoft has used over the years is so incredibly confusing, I need to lay out just what "Messenger" I'm talking about and what a "Microsoft Account" is.
Then, we can download the latest Skype and even merge our Skype and Microsoft accounts.
Continue reading: Is Microsoft
shutting down Messenger?
http://ask-leo.com/C6000
* * *
*** Answercast
Answercast #68 - Protecting files, browser hijacking, dead beeps, can't they stop spam! and more...
Freaked out about tracking cookies? Worried about using too much ink? Want to stop a browser hijack or bogus FBI warnings? Think you can revive an old machine with Ubuntu? All that and more in this Answercast from Ask Leo!
Continue reading:
Answercast #68 - Protecting files, browser hijacking, dead beeps, can't they
stop spam! and more...
http://ask-leo.com/C6001
How can I share files without allowing people to modify or delete
them?
I can come up with three different approaches to solving this problem. The first is
to use your website.
Continue reading:
How can I share files without allowing people to modify or delete
them?
http://ask-leo.com/C6002
How do I get YouTube videos to play using RealPlayer?
The real problem that you're trying to solve here is that you want to download some
of the videos. That may be against YouTube's terms of service.
Continue reading: How
do I get YouTube videos to play using RealPlayer?
http://ask-leo.com/C6003
How do I avoid getting bogus FBI warnings on my
computer?
Be skeptical! This is not how the FBI operates. They don't throw up big warning
screens on your computer if they suspect you of something.
Continue reading:
How do I avoid getting bogus FBI warnings on my computer?
http://ask-leo.com/C6004
Should I be concerned about the tracking cookies I'm being told
about?
I personally would be annoyed at a tool for bugging me about tracking cookies -
when I don't consider them an issue!
Continue reading:
Should I be concerned about the tracking cookies I'm being told
about?
http://ask-leo.com/C6005
I have an old machine. Can I install Ubuntu Linux on my Windows XP
OS?
What's most important is whether Ubuntu Linux will meet your needs; whether it
will have software that does the things you need it to do.
Continue reading:
I have an old machine. Can I install Ubuntu Linux on my Windows XP
OS?
http://ask-leo.com/C6006
I keep getting warnings that something is trying to change my
browser. How do I stop that?
I'd start with Malwarebytes. But then, I'd be very careful moving forward to
pay attention to what's being downloaded and what is being installed on your
machine.
Continue reading:
I keep getting warnings that something is trying to change my browser. How do I
stop that?
http://ask-leo.com/C6007
Is anyone doing anything about what could be an ever increasing
amount of spam?
As the volume of spam increases, I believe that the email industry will ramp up
their technologies to help continue to make email manageable for folks like you
and me.
Continue reading:
Is anyone doing anything about what could be an ever increasing amount of
spam?
http://ask-leo.com/C6008
Is there a way to change the font color of a document I've
downloaded?
See if your printer supports something called a "draft mode," and if you can
use that when you print.
Continue reading:
Is there a way to change the font color of a document I've
downloaded?
http://ask-leo.com/C6009
My laptop won't turn on and only beeps when I start it. Is it dead?
Or is this a simple fix?
Ultimately, when you're getting beep codes, it is indicative of a hardware
problem. But it's not necessarily terminal!
Continue reading:
My laptop won't turn on and only beeps when I start it. Is it dead? Or is this
a simple fix?
http://ask-leo.com/C6010
What's a PCL5 printer and why is Windows trying to download
it?
It's very likely that this PCL5 driver is actually required to print from the
HP printer you have installed.
Continue reading:
What's a PCL5 printer and why is Windows trying to download it?
http://ask-leo.com/C6011
*** Our Sponsor
The Best of Ask Leo!
Like what you see in this newsletter?
Subscribe to The Best of Ask Leo!
One complete, hand-picked article every week from the Ask Leo!
archives.
The Best of Ask Leo!
Advertisement. Ask Leo about advertising here.
*** Last Issue's Articles
- Ask Leo! #404 - Moving windows you can't see, dynamic IPs, defragging, freezing computers and more...
- Are streaming audio or video calls kept somewhere?
- People who send to my Hotmail address are getting a bounce from some other email address. Why?
- I can't see the top of a window, so I can't minimize, maximize, or close. What can I do?
- I plugged in an old drive via USB and Windows Explorer doesn't see it. How should I access its contents?
- My computer hangs when I stream video. Where do I begin to look?
- When is a dynamic IP address assigned?
- Why do I lose 10-15% of the right hand side of my printed documents sometimes?
- Why am I seeing these odd defragmenting results and why is it taking so long?
- How do I get multiple tracks on a CD full of audio?
- How do I get rid of this old Hotmail message that keeps coming up?
- Why has my computer started freezing, but not in Safe Mode?
- Answercast #67 - Hanging videos, defragging oddities, missing print, freezing computers, bouncing Hotmail and more...
*** Comments
How do pixels and DPI and resolution and picture size and file size all relate to each other?
graham lundebgaard writes:
The answer is not to take such huge pics to start with unless you intend to make large hi quality prints from them. 1 or 2 mp is more than enough for most purposes. So just because your camera can take 12mp doesn't mean that you have to tale 12mp pics!
Actually, I disagree. You can make a big picture smaller, but you can't make a small picture bigger. I like to get the highest resolution possible in the pictures that I take, and then I can resize or crop appropriately (often both) if I need something smaller. When you take photos at a small resolution you can't really crop or zoom effectively. Snapshots, perhaps, but almost anything I take I frequently want to crop to make a better image.
-Leo
*
Malware prevents me from booting, even in Safe Mode. What do I do?
johnpro writes:
I have spent more time trying to remove malware infestation, with no guarantees, than doing a fresh Windows reinstall. What a great feeling when you finally decide to reinstall ..you know a genuine fix is imminent. Jp
*
Why shouldn't I use the "Report Spam" or "Junk" button?
Nick Ringhof writes:
The thing is Leo, the public have become as cynical as the spammers. People are made to jump hoops to unsubscribe or discontinue a service. I've uninstalled paid software, and quite often part of the uninstall process is compulsory feedback. You don't get a choice, the page just opens. Numerous newsletters will tell you it 'has to be processed'. I really don't care anymore, and I'm not alone. Websites and internet services simply have to lift their game, and programmers should work on better algorithms to detect spam rather than designing a dozen different media players, or another fragmentation tool. If the culprits can work an insidious product into our mail, surely someone on the right side can find a way of stopping it. But they don't, because there's no money in it. Thanks for the great newsletter.
*
What is IMAP? And how can it help me manage my email?
Darlene writes:
I use Thunderbird, but I don't see how it works as a backup on my desktop computer if it syncs with Gmail. If all my emails on Gmail disappeared, then wouldn't they disappear in Thunderbird too?
Yes, if you delete all your email in Gmail, for example, eventually IMAP will sync and delete them locally. What you have, however, is the opportunity to back up the files on your computer (as you should be anyway), so that if you needed to you could restore your Thunderbird mail store as it was prior to the massive delete. That's not something you can do while the mail resides solely on Google's servers.
-Leo
*** Leo Recommends
Macrium Reflect - Powerful Windows Backup Software
I consider backing up to be one of the fundamental necessities for anyone who uses a computer.
As anyone with even a little experience will tell you, you will lose something important someday without a backup; it's not a matter of if, but a matter of when. And someone with more than a little experience will also be able to share horror stories of how and when they learned this important lesson.
In my opinion, that's why it's critical that you backup your computer and data regularly. As I've said repeatedly, if your data is in only one place, it's not backed up.
Over the years, I've developed a set of criteria - a set of features and characteristics - that I want out of a backup program before I recommend it.
Macrium Reflect makes the cut.
Continue reading: Macrium
Reflect - Powerful Windows Backup Software
http://ask-leo.com/C4996
Each week I recommend a specific product or resource that I've found valuable and that I think you may as well. What does my recommendation mean?
Share!:
*** Administration
Help Ask Leo! Just forward this message, in its entirety (but without your unsubscribe link below) to your friends. Or, just point them at http://newsletter.ask-leo.com for their own FREE subscription!
Need more help with or have questions about the newsletter? Check out the newsletter administration page.
Newsletter contents Copyright © 2012,
Leo A. Notenboom & Puget Sound Software, LLC.
Ask Leo! is a registered trademark ® of Puget Sound Software,
LLC
