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Computer Security
- Virus
Protection is a Top Priority for students and/or faculty.
- Don't
wait to be hit by a virus, get a virus protection program.
Do this FIRST!
-
Be sure you have an up-to-dated virus protection program.
Norton Anti virus is the one of the best programs. It
is inexpensive and can be
obtained for about $15 to $39 from many stores including the
following sites.
e.
g. (WalMart
or many
other stores
have
these
programs for about $29 - 39.)
- Do
the live, online, update of virus definitions at least one
time each week to
protect yourself and others you email from new viruses.
- If
you bought a new computer recently, it may have had a TEMPORARY
virus program.
Before it expires, get your own copy of virus protection as
described above. Don't wait!
- For
more information on viruses:
- Backup
your computer data files each week on a floppy or zip disks.
- Files
can easily become corrupted or deleted by mistake or your hard drive
may crash.
- In
other words, keep other copies of your important files stored in
another place
place other than your computer hard drive. Don't forget
to do this!!!!!
- These
might be all the files you have created with other programs such
as
word processing, spreadsheet, email files, Internet bookmarks or
favorites,
databases, other assignments, etc.
- This
is especially important if you do not have your own computer and
you use
one that belongs to someone else or in a lab. Make more than
one backup copy.
- Carefully
store your backup copies in a safe place
- Away
from telephones (watch your cell phone that it is not stored
with backup diskettes)
- Avoid
excessive heat (Don't leave them in your car in the summer or
lying in the sunshine)
- Protect
against liquids such as beverages and rain
- Put
in a place they will not be lost or stolen
Computer
Maintenance you should periodically perform.
- Scan
Disk and Defrag your computer hard drive
to detect and repair disk errors.
- This
increases speed and performance.
- If
you are using Microsoft Windows Operating system
- open
"My Computer"
- Click
once on the local disk you want to check (usually drive
C)
- Click
on the "File" menu in the upper left corner of the
screen
- Select
"Properties."
- Click
the "Tools" tab.
- Under Error-checking, click "Check
Now."
-
Under Check disk options select the Scan for and attempt recovery of
bad
sectors check box.
This process will check for errors or bad sectors on your computer.
-
All files should be closed for this process to run properly.
- Under Defragmentation,
click "Defragment Now." Click "Defragment"
This may take a while. "Disk
Defragmenter rearranges files, programs, and
unused space on your computer's hard disk,
so that programs run faster
and files open more quickly.
-
Disk
Defragmenter will not hurt any of you files
or programs.
Reference
Microsoft Corporation 2000
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- If
you are using Windows operating system, do the Updates
occasionally.
- Check
the Microsoft
Web site (http://microsoft.com)site
for free, recent updates and security
patches.
- At
the top of the screen, open the "Edit" menu and
choose Preferences
- In
the window that opens, Cache.
- Click
the Memory Cache button and click
OK and then the
- Clear
Disk Cache button and OK.
- Click
OK again.
Internet
Explorer:
To
create more space for temporary Internet pages
- On
the Tools menu in Internet Explorer, click Internet Options.
- On
the General tab, go down to the "Temporary Internet Files"
section in the middle of the window.
- Click
on Delete Files.
- To
create more space to store pages, click in the middle on Settings.
- Move
the slider to the right.
- Click
on Apply, and then on OK to activate the changes and exit
Older
Browser Versions:
- Webnovice
has instructions for clearing older
versions of both browsers.
- Check
with your technical support line or the Help Desk
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Troubleshooting
your Computer
- If
your computer will not start up
- Is
all of the equipment still plugged in securely?
- Is
your power surge protector turned on?
- If
your computer is running slow or freezes up
- Rebooting
(restarting) your computer some times corrects problems.
Make sure you have saved all the files you are working on before
rebooting.
- If
you are having problems accessing the Internet or a particular Web
site
- Try
a different kind of browser than you have been using to see if
the problem stops.
- Does the site
you are trying to access require a special free driver or plugin?
Some examples are
- Do
you have "Cookies" enabled in your Internet browser?
- Some Web
sites store information in a small text file on your computer.
- This file
is called a cookie.
- There
are several types of cookies, and you can choose whether to
allow
- some,
none, or all of them to be saved on your computer.
- If you
do not allow cookies at all, you may not be able to view some
Web sites or take advantage of customization features (such
as local news and weather, or stock quotes).
Reference
Microsoft Corporation 2000
- You
can change your "Cookie" settings
- In
Netscape Browsers
-
Go to "Edit,"
-
"Preferences,"
- Double click "Privacy and Security,"
- Select "Cookies," and choose your settings.
- In
Internet Explorer Browsers
-
Go to "Tools,"
-
"Internet Options ,"
- Choose the "Privacy" tab
-
Click the "Advanced" button
- Choose your settings.
- Are
you using a "Pop Up Blocker" or "Fire Wall"?
- This kind
of program can sometimes interfere with programs like WebCT.
- On a Pop
Up Blocker, pressing the "CTRL" key for each screen
sometimes disables it.
- You might
temporarily disable one or both of these to see if it solves
the problem.
- Try accessing
the Web site from a different computer to see if it performs the
same way.
- Call
a Help Desk Technician
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