Win 98 SE - not sure what updates have been applied - I do have all of them on CD.
No firewall -
They have Norton 98/95 ver. 5.0 - Antivrus updates Nov. 1999 (NOooooooooooooooooooooooo
("I'm crying) :)
Webhancer, Comet Cursor, Viewpoint are on it.
(Already know what those pieces of "stuff" are - already ran "HJT" - among other things -
please - don't bother to tell me how to remove them - I know)
We're not doing a reinstall or a repair - just want to get them back on the Internet - Safely!
Just looking for some "feedback"
The computer runs alright - as "alright as can be expected" -
haven't dealt with 98 for a while,
a little guidance/feedback" would be nice!
Regards!
RF
(By the way - this is not an emergency!)
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RF,
This is, IMO, the full package (and FREE):
To Home Users: Do you want free security programs that really works?
http://msmvps.com/donna/ar
Some of the suggestions, as you know, go a little beyond home users needs.
Zee
Hmmm. Last NAV Definition 1999!!!
Here's a brave admission. I still use VAV 2002 on one Win98 PC. It was a 90-day subscription renewal one, but I just run a batch file that calls a series of other bat and reg files to uninstall it. Reinstalling takes about 10 mins, and I just run another .reg file to configure it again for no live update. Not so bad every 90 days, and I just download the updates manually once a week and install them. Ssshhh, don't tell Symantec :-)
On another PC I'm very happy with AVG Free Edition, it hasn't let one past yet.
My advice is DON'T install NAV of any version after 2002, because it is notorious for being problematic in Win98. Someone will jump in here and tell me they have used version 2003 trouble-free for years, but I reckon they are probably lucky. 2004 and 2005 are definitely out for me. Despite the known and easily googled regular problems, why pay when AVG gives you good cover for zilch.
AVG is VERY easy to update, and doesn't take long over a faster connection. It schedules easily also, so even the most ignorant PC users have no excuse.
I reckon you should also restrict their activities a bit by installing a separate user profile for their regular use, and restrict access to system utilities like regedit, DOS Prompt, etc. Keep a separate profile for yourself when they return to you with further woes, and configure it the way you would want it for administrative access.
I have a couple of quite large .reg files that help me restrict things when setting up Win98 PC's for incompetent users. The best resource is:
http://www.winguides.com/r
In particular:
http://www.winguides.com/r
Maybe you could even employ the basic Win98 Policy Editor for this purpose.
Above all, update IE to IE 6 (preferably IE6 SP1). Outlook Express 6 added a new setting not present in IE 5: "Warn me when other applications try to send email as me", and there is the other setting "Do not allow attachments to be saved or opened that could potentially be a virus".
The Windows updates will patch up the security risk posed by the functionality of Windows Help and the fact that it runs in an unresticted zone. You'll no doubt recall how the troubleshooters and the Windows Help sections discussing the system tools allow a user to open the actual programs from links. Most of that functionality is patched up, and the users won't miss anything.
Get rid of "Active Desktop" and the "View as a web page" integration provided by IE by running 98Lite (free preview version) with the "Chubby" option:
http://www.litepc.com/98li
In my opinion Active Desktop can be a risk in itself with inexperienced users.
Once set up, show the users the Alt + F4 technique for closing those annoying dialogs that seemingly force a user to click on an OK button while browsing. From my experiences, users clicking these to try and close them accounts for about half the spyware or parasites dumped into systems I have looked at.
I suppose an upgrade to XP and then SP2 is out of the question? :-)
Lindows is now known as "Linspire", and the latest release (Five-0) is very stable, and have the expected resilience expected of non-Windows/Microsoft operating systems. It is pretty cheap to download or buy a Linspire CD (http://www.linspire.com/p
Mozilla Firebird and Thunderbird are exceptional applications, and can be run simultaneously with IE/OE. I installed one of the "Redmondish" skins for a new user and it certainly helped to avoid any scary new appearance while he moved over permanently to Firefox and Thunderbird.
Maybe the users would consider a change?
Thank you, Ross. Yeah, coral47 has struck the nail on the head.
One thing I have found is that users get alarmed the first time their anti-virus application intercepts a virus, and they panic. I like to let them experience it safely before it happens using the EICAR Anti-Virus Test File.
http://www.eicar.org/anti_
Don't you just hate dealing with nonchalant people who just want to get back to their surfing or chatting immediately you have eradicated spyware or viruses from their computer? When it is obvious that they don't want to listen to your advice about self-preservation on the Internet or with emails, the best way (in my opinion) is to frighten them into action by leaving a CD behind which autoruns and emulates a typical virus message or hard drive format, emailing them with an alarming (but otherwise harmless) attachment, or by leaving a file or shortcut kicking around on their computer that emulates some catastrophic event when they open it.
There are a number of ways you could do this and I found some great jokes here:
http://www.lizardworks.com
The sliding icons and the rude CD-tray ones are a scream.
When they call you up again, you can chastise them even more ferociously and hope they assimilate some of what you growl at them. Either that, or you could be a completely unscrupulous rogue and charge them to "fix" what you created to start with.
Want some more examples? :-)
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by: war1Posted on 2005-07-10 at 15:42:19ID: 14408444
Greetings, rossfingal!
I do quite see the question. If you want to update, go to http://v4.windowsupdate.mi
in Internet Explorer, and let the update site scan for needed updates.
They need a firewall, even on a dialup. ZoneAlarm is a good free firewall.
Norton is fine if definition is up to date.
If you have not already, run a couple of adware scans, like Adaware and Spybot Search and Destroy. You may want to explain that Webhancer tracts them on their usage. Maybe they will get rid of it.
What version of Internet Explorer do they have. They should have IE 6 SP1.
Outlook Express is a good email client. OE 6 comes with IE 6.
Cheers!