Wireless networking is a significant advancement in networking technologies, especially for home users allowing computers in different rooms to access the internet and a home LAN without the need for difficult and time consuming cabling. However, wireless networking also brings many security risks. Most people setup their wireless routers with minimal (or without any) security, meaning anyone with a laptop and some spare time could logon and gain access to the wireless network. An article at the Wi-Fi Alliance www.wi-fi.org/OpenSection/secure_the_network_setup.asp provides an excellent guide on securing wireless networks. If you find your wireless router does not support some of the features (e.g. WPA) then check the manufacturer’s website of your wireless router, as many manufacturer’s release firmware updates for routers which include new functionality (e.g. WPA) and other fixes. And remember: don’t just rely on one security measure to protect your wireless network - incorporating many different measures (e.g. WPA, disabling broadcast of SSID, using MAC tables) will greatly increase the security of your wireless network! (more…)

A quick question, but one that is driving me crazy. I have a Microsoft Multimedia Keyboard, and was wondering if there is a way to lock-on the ‘F Lock’ key, so it is on by default when the computer is started? The computer is running Windows XP Professional. (more…)

My computer regularly freezes, usually when scrolling down a web page. CTRL-ALT-DEL does not work, so my only alternative is to shut down the computer using the power button. On restarting and attempting to access the internet a page appears with the message ‘This page cannot be displayed … etc’. I then do a proper Shutdown and restart in order to successfully access the internet. This is a very annoying and time consuming process. What can I do to resolve this issue? The computer is an HP Pavilion 8624 running Windows 98 SE. (more…)

I have lost the Standby option from the shutdown box. How do I reinstall this option? The computer is running Windows 98 SE. (more…)

Since moving from dial-up to ADSL the Disk Defragmenter utility will no longer run to completion. Disk Defragmenter starts but continually starts again because the drive contents have changed. My guess is the problem is related to ADSL modem hanging off the USB port. The computer is running Windows 98. (more…)