How to solve Internet Explorer 8 problems

Here are a few possible fixes for repairing a corrupted Internet Explorer 8 :

Solution 1 :

1. Open Internet Explorer
2. Select Tools and then Internet Options
3. Select the Advanced tab and then click Reset
4. In the Reset Internet Explorer Settings box, click Reset
5. Test out IE8…if that doesn’t work….proceed to Solution 2

Solution 2 :

1. Download a new IE8 and reinstall (Make sure you choose the correct version for your operating system!)
2. Test out IE8 and see if it works!

Solution 3 :

1. Now if you don’t care for Internet Explorer 8 (IE8) and would rather go back to your previous version of Internet Explorer….perhaps IE7 or IE6…you just want to uninstall IE8 and Internet Explorer will revert to the previous install version.
2. For Windows XP : Go to  Start -> Control Panel -> Add or Remove Programs -> Windows Internet Explorer 8 -> Click Remove
3. For Windows Vista :  Start -> Control Panel -> Programs (or Programs and Features…in Classic View) …->Click View Installed Updates -> Select Windows Internet Explorer 8 -> Uninstall

Change visual effects of desktop icons in Windows Xp

By default, Windows XP, can have a transparent background for desktop icons.
But if you want to change that and put "shadows" as the background for the icons, do as follows :

1.Go to Control Panel
2.Then go to Performance and Maintenance
3.Choose Adjust Visual Effects
4.Under the Visual Effects/Custom bar, disable "Use drop shadows for icon labels on the desktop"
5.Click OK

How To Check If Someone Is Stealing Your WiFi

WiFi running a bit slow lately? If your router is still using old security methods such as WEP, then there’s a very real possibility that someone has hacked in to steal your WiFi. Apart from the obvious fact that your internet will be slower, the hacker might be using your internet to do nefarious evil things – all of which could easily be traced back to you. So how you can find out if someone is using your WiFi, and perhaps more importantly – what exactly can you do about it?

Check the devices associated with your router

This method is 100% guaranteed to see any devices registered on your network, but not every router contains this valuable info. Log in to your router by typing it’s IP address directly into the browser address bar. In most setups, either http://192.168.0.1 or http://192.168.1.1 should work, or it may be written on the router itself, along with the username and password you need to log in with. If you can’t find a password anywhere, and don’t remember changing it, then check the database of default passwords here, or phone your ISP (assuming they gave you the device).
Once logged in, look around a section called Attached Devices or Device List. On DD-WRT flashed routers, this is under the Status -> Wireless screen. You will find a list of all the IP addresses currently being used.

Of course, not all your devices will have helpful names, so you’ll need to figure out the IP address of each computer and WiFi device you own in order to cross-check them against the list. Don’t forget that an iPhone or Android phone will also have it’s own IP address if it’s using your WiFi, so you’ll need to account for those too.

Track Them Down Physically

This may be taking it a little far, but running the MoocherHunter live CD tracking suite will enable you physically hunt them down by triangulating network signals. Scary stuff, indeed. You’ll a directional antenna for this to work best.

Solutions

Basic Security – Stop using WEP

Any router purchased in the last 5 years or so should be able to support a more secure authentication protocol, so log in to your router again and find the Wireless Settings screen.
Change the security options to either WPA or WPA2. WPA2 is more secure, but I find it’s incompatible with some of the devices on my network so I chose the option that allows for both. Don’t choose the Enterprise option as it is designed for companies with authentication servers. When choosing your password, make sure it is at least 15 characters long, includes upper and lower case letters, numbers, and punctuation.

There are some other methods that people will typically advise you to take, but put simply – they don’t work:
Hiding your SSID: You can hide your network name so it won’t be seen, but freely available hacking tools such as Backtrack will reveal them instantly.
IP filtering: This blocks out a specific IP, but changing IP is as simple as refreshing the connection.
MAC filtering: More secure since it blocks a device via the unique hardware address that is given out when it’s manufactured, but again, anyone trying to steal your WiFi can easily “spoof” their MAC address.

Funny – Turn their internet upside down

For anyone with a spare PC or who doesn’t mind messing with the command line, you could create an open WiFi network specifically for these freeloaders, and run everything through a Linux proxy. The proxy can setup to cut directly into their internet stream, and one interesting outcome is that you can turn all their images upside down.

Conclusion:

So your WiFi is feeling a little sluggish? The truth is that someone probably isn’t stealing your WiFi. More likely your computer is running slowly, or your router needs rebooting. You could also try boosting the WiFi signal.

Most Common Windows 7 Problems

Windows 7 is a fairly cool operating system, but like most operating systems it’s not perfect. Some Windows 7 problems are bugs others happen to be features. Either way, they are annoying and all we care for is a quick fix.
Some of the most commonly reported problems with Windows 7 include compatibility with older programs, slow performance on low-end hardware, and trouble with the Aero theme and its features. In this article, I’ll show you how to fix these annoyances. For those that prefer an automatic fix, scroll down to the bottom for suggested software solutions.

1. Windows 7 Seems Slow

Windows 7 is hungry for resources. It features many visual effects that draw heavy on your graphics card and system memory. If your system was slow out of the box, chances are you can easily fix that by turning off superfluous effects.

Go to > Start and type ‘performance‘ in the search field. Select > ‘Adjust the appearance and performance of Windows‘ from the results. The > Performance Options window will open. Under > Visual Effects select > Adjust for best performance. If you would like to retain a nice interface, select > Custom and check > ‘Use visual styles on windows and buttons‘.

2. Windows Aero Not Working

You should always make sure that your graphics card supports Aero and that graphics driver is up to date. However, if your computer came with Windows 7 this should not be an issue.
Finally, Aero could be disabled in your registry. Before I proceed to explain how to check and edit your registry, I must warn you! Editing the registry can cause permanent damage to your Windows installation. Please backup your registry and know what you’re doing.


Go to > Start and type > ‘regedit‘ into the > search option. Launch regedit and browse to > KEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\DWM. The value of the entry > ‘EnableAeroPeek‘ should be set to 1, rather than 0.

3. Older Programs Not Compatible

Before upgrading to Windows 7, it is advisable to check which of your programs will be compatible. The Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor checks the most common programs. You may have to do a manual check at the Windows 7 Compatibility Center for many other programs. Now, if you have already upgraded and if it turns out that a dear program of yours is not compatible, there is a way out: Windows 7 Compatibility Mode.

To install a program in Compatibility Mode, right-click its > installation file and select > Properties. In its > Properties windows switch to the > Compatibility tab, check > ‘Run this program in compatibility mode for:‘ and from the > pull-down menu choose the latest version of Windows of which you know that the program was running on.

You may have to repeat this step with the program itself once it is installed.

Right-click the > program icon, select > Properties, switch to > Compatibility tab, check > ‘Run this program in compatibility mode for:‘, and choose the respective Windows operating system.

Furthermore, you can change the settings for the respective program and you should explore these, depending on the issue you’re facing.

Finally, if you went with Windows 7 Professional or up, you can use Windows 7′s XP Mode. It runs Windows XP as a virtual machine and you can install all programs that worked on Windows XP in this environment. Ars Technica has a very decent article on Windows 7′s XP Mode.

4. DVD Drive Not Found

Windows 7 can not find your optical drive? This is another issue that involves editing the registry. The warning from point 2 applies!

Click > Start, search for > ‘regedit‘ and launch it from the > results. Navigate to > ‘HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class‘. In the > right-hand panel delete > ‘UpperFilters‘ and > ‘LowerFilters‘, restart Windows and see if the problem was resolved.

If not, click > Start, type > Disk Management, and select > ‘Create and format hard disk partitions‘. In the > Disk Management window right-click on the > optical drive icon and select ‘Change Drive Letter and Paths‘. In the > Change Drive Letter and Paths window click the > Change… button and choose a new drive letter. Restart Windows and hope the issue was fixed.

5. New Themes Change Custom Icons

So you switched themes and found that some of your custom icons where changed? That’s quite annoying, but it’s easy to prevent.

Right-click > desktop, select > Personalize, in the control panel windows that opens switch to > Change Desktop Icons, and in the > Desktop Icon Settings window uncheck > ‘Allow themes to change desktop icons‘.

Another common issue, which only seems to occur in older laptops, is that Windows 7 falsely reports an empty battery and subsequently shuts down. ITExpertVoice provides a workaround, preventing Windows 7 from shutting down when it thinks the battery is empty. Unfortunately, this may leave you with a sudden laptop death when the battery really runs out.

Finally, many Windows 7 problems can be fixed in an instant using handy tools. Another option is QuickFix, which contains 21 common Windows 7 fixes. Since it is a portable app, it could one day help you out of a virus attack or restore default Windows 7 behavior.