Ask Leo! #420 - 2012 Wrap-up, more answers, and an Ask Leo! announcement for 2013. - Confident Computing

The Ask Leo! Newsletter

*** Featured

2012 Most Popular Articles

Yep, it's time for yet another year-end round up.

This year's summary actually threw me a couple of surprises as I compiled the numbers. A last minute entry made a huge showing.

Rather than just look at how often a page was visited this year, I'll also take a look at 2012's top 10 most commented-on articles. That's where things get interesting.

Continue reading: 2012 Most Popular Articles
http://ask-leo.com/C6190

* * *

*** Answercast

Answercast #83 - Controlling spam, open WiFi, protected directories, comparing computers and more...

Ever wonder how desktop computers compare to laptops or how in-flight WiFi works? Running too many malware programs or wanting to write files to protected directories? Think you can control spam or get rid of Facebook? All that and more in this Answercast from Ask Leo!

Continue reading: Answercast #83 - Controlling spam, open WiFi, protected directories, comparing computers and more...
http://ask-leo.com/C6188

How do I get senders that I've marked as spam to end up in the Spam folder thereafter?
Getting spam into the Spam folder is tricky because spammers constantly change their names and email addresses. The best you can do is train your filters.
Continue reading: How do I get senders that I've marked as spam to end up in the Spam folder thereafter?
http://ask-leo.com/C6189

Can the owner of an open WiFi hotspot see what files I'm downloading?
Open WiFi hotspot downloads are available for the internet cafe owner to see. Whether or not they take the time to do it is another story!
Continue reading: Can the owner of an open WiFi hotspot see what files I'm downloading?
http://ask-leo.com/C6191

Will a desktop and a laptop of the same specification have the same performance?
Desktop vs. laptop performance is hard to compare because laptops generally have special power-saving hardware installed.
Continue reading: Will a desktop and a laptop of the same specification have the same performance?
http://ask-leo.com/C6192

Can I change what page Hotmail returns me to when I log out?
Hotmail's home page will always be the page that Hotmail sets for you when you log out. It's the price of their free service.
Continue reading: Can I change what page Hotmail returns me to when I log out?
http://ask-leo.com/C6193

Can I retrieve the old emails I sent and received from my email provider?
Retrieving old emails is only possible if your ISP keeps backups of files from that time. It's unlikely.
Continue reading: Can I retrieve the old emails I sent and received from my email provider?
http://ask-leo.com/C6194

How do I block any trace of Facebook from my computer?
Blocking Facebook from your computer is ultimately not possible. There are a few steps you can take to manage how it affects your life, including not letting it bug you.
Continue reading: How do I block any trace of Facebook from my computer?
http://ask-leo.com/C6195

A technician resolved a bluescreen I was having by removing several anti-malware programs. Why?
Several anti-malware programs can cause conflicts if they are all trying to run real-time scans together.
Continue reading: A technician resolved a bluescreen I was having by removing several anti-malware programs. Why?
http://ask-leo.com/C6196

How do I make links in documents attached to email clickable?
If links in attached documents aren't clickable, it's because the program you are opening them in is not making them clickable. It's not your email program.
Continue reading: How do I make links in documents attached to email clickable?
http://ask-leo.com/C6197

How does in-flight WiFi work?
In-flight WiFi works much like an internet cafe and should be used with the same cautions.
Continue reading: How does in-flight WiFi work?
http://ask-leo.com/C6198

Why can't I write any files to my C: drive?
Writing files to C: drive could be hitting up against two problems... both of which are there for your protection.
Continue reading: Why can't I write any files to my C: drive?
http://ask-leo.com/C6199

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*** Last Issue's Articles

*** Word o' the Week

spam

Spam refers to unsolicited email that you don't want. The most obvious examples of spam are unsolicited commercial emails, such as ads for porn, drugs, or body enhancement products.

There are two significant qualifications to spam:

You didn't ask for it. An email that offers college degrees or cheaper mortgages from a person or a business that you've never communicated with would probably qualify as spam.
You don't want it. When you receive it, you're likely to delete it unread based on the subject line.

Spam is tricky. Some email programs and services will automatically filter spam based on common key words, the number of people the message is being sent to, or the sender's reputation. Some also allow you to flag messages as spam.

Unfortunately, any email that people don't want runs the risk of being marked as spam. If an email newsletter that you signed up for that changes its focus into something you don't want, it might legitimately be considered spam.

Word o' the Week features a computer term or acronym taken from the Ask Leo! Glossary. If there's a word you're not sure of and would like to see defined, click here to let me know.

*** Thoughts and Comments

Miss Friday's Newsletter?

You may still get it. In a "these things always happen over the holidays" moment, the email provider I use to send these newsletters appeared to have a problem on Friday and sent them out at what can only be described as a "crawl". As of Saturday afternoon I'd not received my own copy, though at least one of my assistants had received theirs.

This is a fine time to remind you that all newsletters are archived on the Ask Leo! web site. New issues are published at 8AM PT (11AM ET) and the latest is always available via http://ask-leo.com/currentnewsletter.html.

Full back-issues of all 419 (so far) newsletters can be found at http://ask-leo.com/newsletter.html, with links to each year's collection.

Welcome to 2013!

We start the year with a little announcement...

Leo's Sabbatical

2013 happens to be Ask Leo!'s 10th anniversary - it started in August of 2003. It's hard to believe it's been that long, but in that time there have been quite literally tens of thousands of questions submitted, read, processed and - as often as I can - answered.

That's a lot of questions.

And, aside from some canned answers to common questions, I've read every question and comment, written every response, and written every article you see on Ask Leo!.

While I do have (and deeply appreciate) a lot of help from my able-bodied assistants, Ask Leo! is really designed around one guy, and that one guy is me.

And it's time for that one guy to take a break.

With the exception of a three week vacation for my 30th wedding anniversary in 2010, Ask Leo! is almost a 7 day a week enterprise. (One of the benefits of being self employed and working at home is that you can work any 7 days of the week you want. Smile )

This time, I'm taking the entire months of February and March off.

What that means for Ask Leo!:

The newsletter will continue, but beginning in February will be published once a week, on Tuesdays.
A selection of "Best of Ask Leo!" articles will be featured in the newsletter and on the site.
New Answercasts I'll have pre-recorded will continue to be published.
The ability to ask a question will be disabled. (Since I'm not going to be around, you wouldn't get an answer, and I'd be overwhelmed by the backlog on my return.)
Comments on articles on the web site will continue to be accepted as usual, but I won't be seeing them or responding to them.

My goal is to come back recharged, re-focused and re-energized to take Ask Leo! through its tenth anniversary year.

So normal operations through January, and then a two month vacation. Yep, I'm looking forward to it.

As always, I thank you deeply for your continued support, it really does mean a lot to me and is part of what keeps me going.

Leo
Leo A. Notenboom
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*** Administration

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