If you are attempting to run older software on Windows 7 but it does not work correctly, yet it worked perfectly fine under Windows XP, then a new feature called Windows XP Mode may be quite useful. This is an embedded version of Windows XP which runs on Windows 7 allowing older legacy applications to work. Best of all, Windows XP Mode is a free download from the Microsoft website. However, this will only work with Windows 7 Professional and Ultimate. To download, visit the Windows XP Mode website at www.microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc/default.aspx.

When I go into the “Add/Remove Programs” control panel in Windows XP SP3 most of the programs which are listed do not have a “Remove” or “Change” button when highlighted. Is this normal? If so, how do I uninstall these programs? On an unrelated topic, when scanning the computer running Kaspersky Internet Security 2009 a vulnerability is reported with the following details: “Detected: www.viruslist.com/en/advisories/23655, C:\WINDOWS\WinSxS\x86_Microsoft.MSXML2_6bd6b9abf345378f_4.20.9848.0_x-ww_1b897e9a\msxml4.dll”. The advisory site recommends installing Windows Security Update for MSXML 4.0 Service Pack 2 (KB954430). However, installing this security update does not make any difference. In any case, should I just uninstall MSXML 4.0 since I have MSXML 6.0 installed on the computer? (more…)

The CD drawer of my computer keeps opening and closing, about every 20 seconds or so. Has the computer been taken over by aliens? My 12 year old son has the theory that this is happening because we have not backed-up our files to CD and Norton 360 is alerting us to this omission on a regular basis, but we have generally been ignoring this warning. The entire computer is running fairly sluggish, so I have been considering getting someone in to “clean-up” the machine. Is this a good idea? (more…)

To users of Windows XP the relatively simple operation of copying a large number of files often seems easy, but can be fraught with potential problems. The most common issue is when one of the files in a large batch does not want to copy, for one reason or another, and it halts the entire copy process as a result. Fortunately there is a nice utility called RichCopy which alleviates such issues, and allows you much greater control over the copying process (such as the ability to skip files which will not copy for some reason). RichCopy is an extension and much more user-friendly version of the popular Microsoft utility called RoboCopy. You can download RichCopy for free at technet.microsoft.com/en-us/magazine/2009.04.utilityspotlight.aspx?pr=blog .

I am a frequent traveller and often use public computers to check emails, occasionally also making airline and/or hotel bookings using my credit card. I understand there is an inherent risk using my credit card on a public computer and accept this risk, although I never logon to my bank or share trading accounts. On the Microsoft website I noticed that one recommended precaution when using public computers is to download the “X-Cleaner anti spyware” freeware program to a floppy disk and run the program on the computer before entering any sensitive data. This seems like a sound idea but I have not been able to find this program on the web. Do you know where I can locate X-Cleaner, or a similar program, and how do you rate the effectiveness of this recommendation? (more…)