MacBook Air And MacBook Pro Storage Space

Have you got a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro with one of Apple’s SSD (Solid State Drive) storage units installed? Then if so you have realised that you are probably running out of space on that drive. With only 120GB (or thereabouts) of storage space, it can get full very quickly. A few photos here, some music there and – what? Only 5GB left, then if this is you it’s time to act.

OmniDiskSweeper

One program we have found to be very good (as at the time of writing this article, mid 2020) in determining where the disk space has gone is the software OmniDiskSweeper. Get it from here: https://www.omnigroup.com/more/

Just a word of warning always go to the company who is the originator of the software you want to download. Please do not go to cnet.com or softronic.com. 

Backup, Backup, Backup

Before you begin to find where your Mac storage space has gone – and this is critical, so please do it, and that is to backup your Apple computer using Time Machine. Please do not run OmniDiskSweeper before finishing this essential task. Time Machine could take a while to complete if it has not backed up in a while. I would also strongly suggest that you use a less than two-year-old external Hard Disk Drive to use with Time Machine.

How To Run OmniDiskSweeper

However, the way to run OmniDiskSweeper is how I describe below.

• Download the version applicable to your Mac Operating System. You can choose from the following (as at April 2020):

For Macs running macOS 10.13 (High Sierra) and later, click the download button to get the latest version.

For Macs running macOS 10.12, (Sierra)  download version 1.10.

For Mac OS X 10.8 to OS X 10.11, (Mt. Lion to El Capitan)  download version 1.9.

For Mac OS X 10.6 and 10.7, (Snow Leopard and Lion)  download version 1.8.

For Mac OS X 10.4 and 10.5, (Tiger and Leopard)  download version 1.7.2.

• Install the said software and as it asks then put it in Applications.
• DO NOT run it.
• Instead, do the following exactly. Open Terminal (found under Utilities)
• Once Terminal is opened type in the following exactly: sudo /Applications/OmniDiskSweeper.app/Contents/MacOS/OmniDiskSweeper.
• Hit enter.
• Enter your computer’s password if asked.
• A window will come up and click on the button that says “Sweep “Macintosh HD” Drive “ (By default the drive is called Macintosh HD).
• This process can take a while on mechanical drives but on an SSD’s it usually takes a few minutes.
• You will be presented with a list of directories with the largest directories at the top. Now be very careful in what you delete as anything in the System or Library folders is usually essential to the booting, running and working of your computer. So be 100% sure in what you are deleting here.
• Generally speaking, it is in Applications and Users directories where the space may be taken up unwittingly. As an example under the Music directory, have a look in the following: iTunes – iTunes Media – Mobile Applications. In there you may find dozens of old apps (.ipa files). If you want to delete them you can. If you need an app again you can download it.
• Now go to Library – Application Support – Mobile Sync – Backup. Any files here are your old iPhone backups. Double click the folder icon and Finder will reveal these files and their dates. If you want to delete what you don’t need.
• There may be other areas you can explore but again be extra careful what you delete.

OmniDiskSweeper is a really good tool for Mac users to figure out where “lost” space may be, it’s a shame it’s not available for Windows.

If you are unsure of how to run any of the above we here at Affordable Computer Repairs and Service can do this for you, so please call us before a mistake is made. Thanks for reading!

FYI At Affordable Computer Repairs and Service in Brisbane, we repair Apple Macs, we also do malware removal, data recovery and hardware replacements.

Below we have provided what we believe to be the top computer virus that have occurred each year from 2015 to 2019.

2015 Top Computer Viruses

1. BASHLITE malware leads to a massive spike in Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks. This virus also had other names such as Gafgyt, Lizkebab, Qbot and Torius and Lizard Stresser and infected Linux systems in order to launch a DDoS attack. As most Desktop computers were either Microsoft Windows or Apple computers this software did not represent an immediate problem. The problem was with the Worlds servers in large business, server farms, Government servers, Telco servers etc. A large majority of these computers run some form of Linux with their being generally 3 different categories or flavours with these categories being: Security- Focused; User-Focused and Unique. However, within these three categories, there are many dozens of different versions.
2. Another Linux only virus was Linux.Wifatch. This attempted to secure devices form malware. It’s primary mode of infection was/is to log into devices using weak or default telnet credentials. Once infected Linux.Wifatch disables telnet access and gives a message to the effect that Telnet has been disabled. Not a common type virus as it’s used to actually stop more virulent malware.

2016 Top Computer Viruses

1. MEMZ – a Trojan is released in January which basically destroys your computer and when rebooted the message reads: “Your computer has been trashed by the MEMZ Trojan. Now enjoy the Nyan cat…”
2. Locky – Ransomware with over 60 derivatives infecting millions of computers throughout Europe and further afield released in February.
3. Tiny Banker Trojan (Tinba). This Trojan infected banking computers around the World in February also, with more than two dozen major institutions in the USA affected. As any “Trojan” would do it created a “spoof page” that looked and functioned as the “real page” therefor fooling the bank’s users into providing their login information which is used to capture their credentials sending them to its host.
4. Mirai launches powerful and disruptive DDoS attacks in September by infecting the “Internet of Things”. Several high profile websites such as GitHub, Twitter, Reddit, Netflix, Airbnb are affected.

2017 Top Computer Viruses

1. Wannacry ransomware attack spreads globally from May onwards. A kill-switch was discovered shortly after the attacks started which effectively halted its spread. This relief was short lived as the next day new variants emerged which had no “kill-switch” to deactivate it.
2. Petya – malware in June of 2017 spreads globally affecting Windows computers. This virus was very similar to WannaCry.
3. In September Remote Access Trojan (RAT) – kediRAT is discovered in a Spear Phishing attack. This attack centred on Cytrix users and communicated with its control centre using Gmail.

2018 Top Computer Viruses

1. February saw the Thanatos ransomware which was the first to accept payment in Bitcoin Cash.
2. In November of that year Titanium, a very advanced and insidious backdoor malware was discovered. This was known as an APT – Advanced Persistent Threat which is a stealthy computer network threat, typically from a Nation-state which gains access to a computer network and remains undetected for an extended period. This malware was attributed to a group known as “Platinum” which is a Microsoft term for a cybercrime collective based in South/South East Asia, targeting Governments and related entities. This group has been active since 2009. In April 2016 it was reported that this group abused Microsoft Windows “hot patching system” and was then here they were detected.

2020 March Computer Viruses

1. Coronavirus fears are being used by Hackers to send you a computer virus. Researchers at IBM and Kaspersky have discovered spam emails being sent in the hopes of infecting smartphones and computers with malicious software. Once the email is opened – with titles such as “learn more about Coronavirus and its respiratory issues” the malicious software harvests personal data and can cause malware programs to gain access to your files thereby copying them. Presently the attack is centred on Japan but will no doubt spread elsewhere.
2. There is a rising tide of Mac (Apple) threats hitting computers around the World and recently Malwarebytes has found that from 2018 to 2019 there was a 400% increase on Mac attacks. An average of 11 threats per Mac versus an average of 5.8 on Windows. Conclusion: Mac attacks are increasing exponentially.

What To Be Aware Of In 2020

• Always exercise caution when opening messages or emails.
• Don’t answer suspicious telephone calls and if you do hang up immediately you realise it’s a scam. Don’t discuss, swear, argue etc, just hang up.
• Don’t download attachments that you didn’t ask for or which look suspicious.
• Install only “official updates” from Apple, Samsung, Microsoft
• Hackers will always be on the front foot so to speak and are ready to exploit the latest “thing”, NBN, Bushfires, Coronavirus etc.
• Put a virus protection software package on your Apple Mac before it’s too late.

If you do pick up a computer virus, we offer an affordable and extremely thorough malware removal service here at Affordable Computer Repairs and Service in Brisbane.

Microsoft Update Warning For Windows 10 2004 Version

Microsoft confirmed at the very end of May 2020 that their new feature update for Windows 10 version 2004 has problems, and some of them are major. A warning of problematic update issues was announced.

Do Not Accept The Update

If you are advised that there is an update by Microsoft, then do not press the “Update Now” button or you may see “Download and install now” button.

Delay The May 2020 Windows Update

To check on the status of your updates then go to the “Settings” (gear) icon found from the “Start” button and then go to “Updates” section which is at the bottom of that page. Check on “Updates” and pause them for 7 days if you have Windows 10 Home or for longer if you have Windows 10 Professional. Basically the longer the better. You may need to delay these updates with Windows 10 Home for as long as you can.

We Always Recommended Delaying Windows 10 Updates

We here at Affordable Computer Repairs and Service have always suggested to people since Windows 10 emerged that they should wait for as long as possible to update. In the past, this was nearly impossible if you had Windows 10 Home installed. For about a year now Windows 10 Home users have been able to delay for seven (7) days which in most cases is not long enough but better than nothing.

Microsoft put this option in as after nearly 5 years (August 1^st 2015) Windows 10 updates have caused serious and in some cases, catastrophic consequences, complete system failure and data loss was and still is, an all too common issue. I am sure just about anyone knows someone who has had at least one problem with Windows 10 updates.

How To Know Which Windows Updates Cause Which Issues

The best option if you don’t want your Windows 10 computer to suffer an issue is to check out the Microsoft website.  The website provides gives you all the known issues with Windows 10 since the release of version 1507. The “Previous versions” relates to Windows 8 and 7 so not applicable for many people. Resolved issues are also documented. As of writing the “Current Status as of May 27, 2020” is the latest, so our understanding is that Microsoft has either stopped detailing issues problematic or resolved or there are no new ones. We tend to err on the side of caution, due to Microsoft’s history and state that they have this web page is not always up to date.

If you click on “Windows 10 release information” you can see at a glance what version you are running on your computer. Sometimes this too has not been updated…

Conclusion

If you are one of the lucky ones who have already updated to 2004 and have no issues, then you have dodged that bullet but for anyone else we would definitely advise that you do not update for the present, let things settle down.

As always if you need advice then please do not hesitate to call us here at Affordable Computer Repairs and Service for assistance.

Written by David, Affordable Computer Repairs Technician

Dangerous Scams Created By Technology

Dangerous Scams In 2020

Already we have seen dangerous scams concerning the Bushfires and now Coronavirus (Covid-19) and we are only in the fourth month of the year. Scamwatch (scamwatch.gov.au) report on increasing numbers of scammers contacting people playing on people’s fears and selling products to prevent or cure the virus. The numbers, 94 since January 1^st are starting to climb for the Coronavirus. Contact is usually via phishing emails or text messages but could be telephone calls as well. These scammers are also after your personal data so providing them with information to then execute identity theft.

Scammers are impersonating official organisations such as the World Health Organisation, Australian Department of Health, legitimate businesses such as travel agents and telco companies.

The same can be said for Bushfire victims (and any other natural disaster scenarios) with the scammers pretend to be associated with well-known charities, large businesses and Government departments making them seem legitimate. These scams are dangerous as they are after your money and or your personal details. Again the contact can be telephone calls, emails, texts/messages and even door to door charity canvassers. If you are unsure of a charity and their validity then you can check here: https://www.acnc.gov.au/charity

If you believe you have been scammed by the above, or anyone else then report to your bank the details immediately, report the scam to: https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/report-a-scam and/or find more information here: https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/get-help

Dangerous Scams In 2019

As of 9^th February 2020, Romance and dating scammers are still one of the top areas for dangerous scams where Australians get taken for money and personal data. Australians reported almost 4,000 of these scams in 2019 with losses of more than A$28.6 million and these numbers are estimated to be the tip of the iceberg due to embarrassment being a major factor for people not reporting them.

Facts About Scams

Some of the new 2019 platforms that scammers are using include Google Hangouts and online games such as Words with Friends and Scrabble to con their victims. Some important facts with these dangerous scams are:

• 4% of dating and romance scams occur via social media and online forums
• The highest losses reported occurred via social media (over 33% or A$9.1 million)
• Facebook, unsurprisingly was the social media site of choice for scammers with the highest losses totalling 7.3% of all losses.
• People aged 45 to 64 were most affected with 1470 reports totalling over A$18 million, or 63% of total losses.
• Women reported 54.9% totalling 2165 reports on the dating/romance scams with 43.3% for men and 1.8% not specifying.
• Women reported the highest losses of A$21.5 million (75.3%). Men reported A$& million or 24.6%.
• The majority of losses occurred via bank transfer totalling A$9.7 million (33.8%) other payment methods were iTunes, Steam, Google Play gift cards totalling A$8.8 million (30.8%)
• For more detailed information we suggest accessing this site: https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/news/romance-scammers-move-to-new-apps-costing-aussies-more-than-286-million
• Dating and Romance scams take advantage of people looking for love or companionship playing on emotional triggers to get you to provide money, gifts and/or personal details such as banking or credit card details.
• Some more sophisticated scammers send items for you to “post on” such as electronic equipment using some excuse or for you to buy goods and send to somewhere. This activity and others like it could be construed as “money laundering” which is a criminal offence.
• Other scammers ask you to travel overseas, therefore, putting you into a potentially dangerous situation or buy meeting you overseas and asking you to take a “present” back to Australia for them. Either way, this could lead to tragic consequences.

Generation Z And Dangerous Scams

As a final note as of March 10^th 2020 Generation Z (people born from 1997 to 2012) is the fastest growing victims of these types of dangerous scams. In 2019 alone they lost over A$5 million and reports from this age group are increasing faster than any other age category. We are talking here of 12,000 people reporting a scam in this age category with an increase of 11% over 2018. The newer platforms such as TikTok and Snapchat are increasingly hot sites for scammers with online shopping scams the most common.

Remember if you have been scammed then report this to your bank(s) straight away, have your computer of device professionally checked and report this to scamwatch.gov.au, the flatform involved (Facebook) and/or to https://www.esafety.gov.au/

If you need assistance in terms of malware removal, then please do not hesitate to contact us here at Affordable Computer Repairs.

Explanation Of Common Computer File Systems

There are many different File Systems which are used on today’s modern computers, but which one should you use? Here at Affordable Computer Repairs and Service, we will be looking at some old and more mostly new File Systems and explaining which and why.

A File System holds all your files on a computer’s Hard Disk Drive (mechanical) or its SSD (Solid State Drive) or Flash Drive (Thumb/USB/Stick) or SD card. Not only your files are held on there but the Operating System’s files as well. These are the different “storage” options on computers, tablets, iPads, iPhones and Android phones. So really we are talking about “storage” and how that is “formatted” on different device’s.

File Systems & Storage Space

When a storage device is “formatted” it divides up the area (usually in Gigabytes today) into virtual compartments known as “clusters” with an index where different files or parts thereof are located. Also, any available free space is also listed in this index (think filing cabinet with a card index stating which “file” is where). So when a new file is ready to be written to disk (or saved) the File System knows where to put it without deleting something else. The same applies when a file is deleted, it’s “space” then becomes “freely” available for another file to be written to it. What actually happens is the file is left where it is “for now” but the index of the storage is updated therefor making that “space” now available to be written to. This is how your “lost or deleted data” can be retrieved, but that’s for another article.

Allocation Unit Size or Block Size

Now I used “cluster” above but it is known as “allocation unit size” in the Windows Operating System or “block size” in UNIX (Linux, macOS/OSX). These are the smallest size that can normally be accessed by the Operating System to store data. So for Windows computers since Windows NT the default maximum cluster size for NTFS (New Technology File System) is 4 kilobytes (KB) – 4096 bytes. However, on something like a large 16TB storage drive the cluster size changes to 8 KB for more efficiency.

Types of File Systems

Pre-2015 Apple computers will generally have a block size of 512 bytes (OSX Operating System) and after 2017 Apple computers (macOS Operating System) have a block size of 4096 bytes. The former is known as HFS+ = Hierarchical File System Plus and the latter as APFS = Apple File System.

1. FAT32 is an old format for a File System introduced in 1996 with Windows 95 and it comes from the days of MSDOS whereby FAT is File Allocation Table and 32 is for 32GB of drive size or storage space. Now it started life as just FAT then FAT12 onto FAT16 then FAT32 as the disk drives became larger and larger over time. The maximum file size for FAT32 is 4GB, which means there is a limitation of a file that can be copied to a FAT32 storage device of 4GB. Usually, at the moment we see small Flash Drives under 32GB with FAT32 format. FAT32 is supported by almost all file systems – Windows, Apple and Linux’s main distributions known as distros. So it is a very “universal” format and is handy to use between various computers new and old mostly using Flash Drives and memory cards e.g. SD cards.
2. NTFS as described above is the norm for all Windows Operating Systems and was introduced in July 1993 and has a file size limitation of 16 exabytes (EB) which is 1 million TB (Terabytes). In addition to the file size NTFS also supports Journaling to avoid corruption, supports file permissions and encryption and any modern Windows OS needs to be installed on an NTFS drive. Apple computers can read NTFS drives but cannot write to them and the same is true for older Linux computers.
3. exFAT is a newer format which is extensible File Allocation Table and introduced by Microsoft in 2006 for use with large capacity USB Flash Drives and memory cards (anything over 32GB basically). In a Windows environment, the maximum file size is 16EB and has been adopted by SD Card Association (SDXC) as their default format. Apple computers and newer Android devices can read and write to exFAT. Linux computers may need extra drivers installed to access exFAT devices.
4. Ext4 and associated previous versions (ext, ext2 and ext3) are Linux based file systems and was first launched in 1992. In 2008 ext4 was released which as in the previous ext3 included journaling (see NTFS above) and is still the default Linux format for computer drives. File sizes of up to 16TB and volume size of 1EB are available. The ext4 is not supported by Windows computers nor by Apple computers natively.
5. HFS+ (OSX) and APFS (macOS) as mentioned above are the default for Apple computers. In 1998 HFS+ (or Extended) was released which included journaling with files and volumes up to 8EB from OSX 10.4 onwards. In 2017 Apple introduced APFS which is optimised for SSD drives. Both of these File Systems are not supported natively by Windows or Linux computers.
6. ZFS or Zed File System introduced in 2005 by Sun Microsystems and now developed by the OpenSolaris Project. This new File System integrates a volume manager to control storage hardware which provides increased data protection. Currently, OpenZFS is available for Linux, FreeBSD and other UNIX systems and maybe available in Windows and macOS in the future.

We trust that the above information regarding file systems has been of some assistance to you, remember if you live in Brisbane or surrounds and have a problem with your Mac, Desktop or Laptop we are open 6 days a week and always willing to help.

Author David
Technician
Affordable Computer Repairs and Service

What is an SSD – Solid State Drive And Why Need It

There are many reasons why you need a SSD aka solid state drive, but some background on computer drives.

Computer Drives

Mechanical drives have been used in computers for many years and were first introduced in 1956 by IBM (International Business Machines). Mechanical drives or electro-mechanical data storage device uses magnetic storage to store and retrieve digital data using rapidly rotating platters coated with magnetic material. Magnetic heads located on a moving actuator arm reads or writes data to the platter surfaces. Data is accessed in a random access manner which means unlike a tape drive data can be accessed randomly depending on the data block location. With a tape drive access is sequential or linear. This storage is unlike RAM (Random Access Memory) whereby the data is non- volatile. RAM data is lost when power is stopped.

Today many computer manufacturers and system builders will include an SSD and possibly a mechanical in their computers. The SSD is generally smaller and is the boot drive which includes the Operating System and the mechanical which is larger is intended for data storage.

SSD’s Are Faster And More Reliable

There are several SSD manufacturers as the technology has been available for many years with the first one commercially available and shipped by SunDisk in 1991. In 1998 SanDisk introduced SSD’s in 2.5” and 3.5” form factors with PATA (Parallel Advanced Technology Attachment). One reason why you need an SSD is that today’s SSDs are reliable and becoming cheaper each year. They are faster than mechanical drives by a factor of approximately 5.

Modern SSDs store data in NAND flash memory cells (NAND = Not AND logic gate) and flash is non-volatile solid state memory (non-volatile meaning it won’t disappear when the power is turned off). The problem with Flash memory is that it has a limited number of program or erase cycles – known as P/E cycles. These cycles vary between different SSD drives and manufacturers being between 500 and 100,00 cycles. Modern SSDs, such Samsung use V-NAND technology developed by them using 48 layers of memory cells

Over Provisioning

SSD’s use Wear-levelling which evens out the P/E cycle flash cell use, this evens out the wear as flash memory cells need to be erased in blocks which means data has to be constantly moved around. So SSDs wear out faster the less free memory they have available. Therefore leaving at least 10% free space on an SSD will increase its life, this is known as “over provisioning” and is done in hardware by some SSDs.

Most SSD manufacturers provide a rating of endurance by giving the amount of data which can be written before a drive fails. This can be expressed as TBW = Terabytes written or PBW = petabytes written or DWPD = Drive Writes Per Day. The larger the drive the greater the values.

Higher Life Expectancy

SSDs are getting better and better as well as cheaper. Their life expectancy is getting higher and now they are more than likely to outlast the computer system they are installed in. Mechanical drives will sooner rather than later be extinct like the dinosaurs as more computer manufacturers install them as the default storage item.

Backup, Backup, Backup!

As with all of your data we recommend frequent backups to another backup medium be it a mechanical device, an SSD device or “the cloud”.

If you have any data issues, then please contact us here at Affordable Computer Repairs and Service and we can assist you.

FHI If you have not backed up and your hard drive has failed we offer an affordable data recovery service.

Top 10 Free Utilities Suggestions From Affordable Computer Repairs and Service

There are many free software programs (apps) available from the Internet today which aren’t included in the standard Windows, Apple or Linux distributions (distos). Here at Affordable Computer Repairs and Service we share with you our Top 10 Free Utilities which we hope you find useful.

1. Recuva which allows you to “recover your deleted files quickly and easily” – from their website. There may be some “options” when installing Recuva so please check that you want or don’t want these “extras”. I personally use Recuva Portable which I have on a USB stick because installing Recuva on your Hard Disk Drive is problematic as if you have deleted a file or files then the act of installing a program on the same drive where the files are deleted then compromises those files, basically they can be overwritten by the new software. Download from www.ccleaner.com/recuva
2. VLC media player is a free utility which allows you to play all kinds of media formats. Download this from www.videolan.org/vlc Applicable for Windows, Apple and Linux.
3. Angry IP Scanner which finds all the devices on your network. This can be very advantageous if you attach a printer, NAS device or anything else where you don’t know it’s IP (Internet Protocol) address. Available for Windows, Mac or Linux. Download here
4. Macrium Reflect Free Edition downloaded from www.macrium.com/reflectfree This software allows you to “clone” or migrate you old Hard Disk to a new Hard Disk. This is essential software for someone who’s old computer needs upgrading to an SSD (Solid State Drive) when their old mechanical Hard Disk Drive (HDD) is starting to fail and slow down noticeably. This generally happens when the computer is 4 or more years old. It “clones” or copies exactly what is on your old HDD to the new SSD, thereby you don’t have to spend hours reinstalling your Windows Operating System, your programs and your data.
5. SD card formatter available from www.sdcard.org.  This free utility allows you to format your SD card. This program allows you to format a SD card when Windows won’t do that for you so it has better control over SD cards. Corrupted of malfunctioning cards are best formatted using this software and many can be recovered whereas Windows may not be able to do this.
6. The Etcher program allows you to create USB bootable drives when needed. Available from www.balena.io/etcher and once installed you can download an image file and use that to create a bootable USB drive of your new Operating System. This can be Windows, Apple Mac or Linux. It is a very handy tool to have especially for an emergency situation where an install needs to be performed after a crashed computer which won’t boot. Even if the “image file” is compressed e.g xz files.
7. When it comes to free utilities, IO bit Uninstaller is very handy.  It is a program on Windows computers that allows you to totally un-install software programs you no longer require. Windows un-installer (found in Control Panel – Programs and Features) often leaves “residue” files when un-installing which can turn out to be troublesome later on. Also sometimes Windows un-installer will not un-install a program, then it’s time to use IObit Uninstaller. Available from: www.iobit.com/en/advanceduninstaller
8. Adobe Reader DC – not really a Utility program as such but much more preferable to Windows 10 Edge as a PDF file reader. Download from www.get.adobe.com/reader/ Just be careful to untick any of the “Optional Offers” such as McAfee or Chrome Extension if you don’t require them.
9. Adwcleaner available from www.Malwarebytes.com/adwcleaner This software cleaners viruses and unwanted attachments from your Browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Internet Explorer. As their webpage suggests “The World’s most popular adware cleaner finds and removes unwanted programs and junkware so your online experience stays optimal and hassle-free. The usual anti-virus programs will NOT do this generally for you. Download and place the file on the Desktop (it’s not an installable program – it just runs from the icon) and run it to see what it finds. With this type of program always make a backup of your data before running it.
10. Bluescreenview from www.niresoft.net/utils/blue_screen_view allows you to find out why and what gave you the now famous BSOD (Blue Screen Of Death) which many a Windows computer wants to show you. After getting the computer up and running again (if possible) this software once installed will scan all your minidump files (created after a BSOD episode) and displays the information about why the computer crashed and the likely suspect file with filename, date/time and basic crash information. A very handy utility to try and “fix” your BSOD nightmares.

Please note: when installing software from the Internet we would always advise you to go directly to the source of that software (e.g. google, adobe, Malwarebytes etc) as there are many dodgy websites that “look” that they are the correct ones but aren’t and the likelihood of downloading a virus is ever-present.

We hope that you find a couple of the free utilities that we have listed for you useful, if not, let us know which free utilities you believe are better!

If you are at any point not sure of what to do next with your problematic computer or need help and advice then please do not hesitate to call us here at Affordable Computer Repairs and Service.

Windows 10 S – Why Have Microsoft Brought This Out?

Windows 10 S is a relatively new version of that Operating System and was released in mid 2017.  Microsoft quote: “Windows 10 S is a specific configuration of Windows 10 Pro (Professional) that offers a familiar, productive Windows experience that’s streamlined for security and performance”. Also interestingly Microsoft doesn’t know (or won’t say) what the S stands for, they do use words in their advertising such as: streamlined; simplicity; security; speed.

After that grandiose statement, you would be no doubt correct in thinking that this is far superior to any Windows 10 version that has come before, it’s faster, its more secure and it scratches your back in the bath. Unfortunately, you would be wrong. Windows 10 S brings restrictions rather than anything else, so below I will list the “new” features.

Features of Windows 10 S

1. In Windows 10 S you can only install applications from the Windows Store. Not heard of the Windows Store? Well neither have most people. The Apple Store – yes, Google Store – yes, but Windows? Microsoft has actually rebranded it as the Microsoft Store in 2017. Just as an aside, as of January 2020 www.statista.com put the number of apps in Google Play @ 2,570,000; Apple @ 1,840,000; Windows @ 669,000 and Amazon @ 489,000.
2. You also cannot install boxed software with CDs or DVDs on Windows 10 S.
3. You cannot install Google Chrome and many other programs/apps that you no doubt regularly use on Windows 10 S.
4. You cannot install software downloaded to your computer from the Internet or from a USB drive on Windows 10 S.
5. The above is because installing anything other than software from the Windows 10 store is considered dangerous to your computer, by Microsoft.
6. Microsoft also earns money from paid products in the Microsoft Store and for free apps, they can advertise greatly any of their products or their “sponsors”, so it’s a big money earner for Microsoft.
7. Therefore no Firefox or other browser either, so you are forced into using Microsoft Edge and their Search Engine Bing, which is not everyone’s “cup of tea”.
8. Microsoft announced Windows 10 S at an education event therefore presumably targeting Educational institutions. Some of these institutions, particularly overseas use Chromebooks which are as popular here in Australia as getting the flu.
9. Strangely Windows 10 S is not available to buy it only comes with new computers.
10. The Guardian newspaper ran an interesting article back when Windows 10 S was released so you can read it here: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/may/03/windows-10-s-microsoft-faster-pc-comparison

Good News Regarding Windows 10 S

There is good news however, you can convert Windows 10 S on your computer to Windows 10 Home at no cost. Download Chrome (or anything else from the Internet) try and run the downloaded file and Windows 10 S states this is not possible, but, if you follow their screen prompts you can go to the Microsoft Store and after logging in (yes, you have to have a Microsoft account here, so maybe another series of steps and a lot more time involved for some people) then you can download a file and run it, therefore turning Windows 10 S into Windows 10 Home whereby you can do what you want with YOUR computer.

Please note: Once the above file is run you cannot go back to Windows 10 S, please understand this point.

One last point I would like to make is Grandma or Grandad will not be calling you so often if you would just buy them a Windows 10 S computer. Problem Solved.

As always, these are articles are purely based on our experiences and contain our opinions and should not be read as facts.

If you need computer advice of assistance then please contact us here at Affordable Computer Repairs – we are open during the Coronavirus pandemic and practising social distancing.

Zoom Misleading Claims

Zoom is the latest IT company in the news for “misleading” their clients.

Well, with nearly everyone jumping on the “work at home” opportunity and making all those vital Skype, Zoom or FaceTime conferencing calls every day that help keep the World spinning, it would appear that Zoom has not actually been factual with us.  Zoom purported that their platform was encrypted from end-to-end.  However, a new report has revealed it isn’t. At the time of writing 04/04/2020 this is a page from Zoom’s websiteh says and I quote: Heading – “Meet Securely” it goes on to say and I again quote: “End-to-end encryption for all meetings, role-based user security, password protection, waiting rooms and place attendee on hold”.  Apparently there is a White Paper on this “end-to- end” security with encryption as well when using Zoom.

Conferencing Calls – Work From Home

With Zoom enjoying massive growth in popularity due to the “stay at home” orders from many Governments around the World the thought that your “private” conversations aren’t actually “private” when using Zoom is rather disconcerting.  If the conversations were “private” then they would not be able to be accessed by Zoom the company at all. But a new report from “The Intercept” webpage suggests otherwise. Paraphrasing what they said, Zoom’s definition of “end-to-end encryption” seems to differ from what most ordinary people would define as “end-to-end encryption”.

Statement From Zoom

In a statement from Zoom, they said that it does not directly access, mine or sell user data, that’s nice to know but I have heard that one before. Oh that’s right! Facebook! They never sold your data! They just gave it away! Now I remember! As a reminder please refresh your memory on that fiasco here: https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2018/12/facebooks-failures-and-also-its-problems-leaking-data/578599/

Encryption and Privacy

Without “end-to-end” encryption, Zoom has the technical ability, whether it does so or not, to spy on your private video meetings and may be forced to hand over that data to Government agencies (read here USA agencies – CIA, FBI, Homeland Security, NSA etc etc etc) in response to legal requests from those agencies. Other well-known IT companies who have been working with USA agencies for years such as Microsoft, Facebook, Google to name a few, publish “transparency reports” that describe exactly how many Government requests they get for the data and how they comply to them. Not so with Zoom, as it does not, as yet, publish its own “transparency report”.

It could be argued that Zoom’s marketing department, and therefor Zoom the company itself have failed to properly describe what Zoom is. This would be considered in the US of A as an “unfair or deceptive trade practice” that would run into trouble with the US Federal Trade Commission or should do. Claiming that my product “scratches your back in the bath” and when that said product then fails to do so is deceptive advertising, as you would agree. Anyone wanting to make private or business contact communications with another person or persons would, as an average person would, read “encrypted end-to-end communications” and how “secure Zoom was” as stated above, would then assume correctly in most cases, that Zoom would deliver that promise. It plainly does not.

I would like to thank “The Intercept” for the information for this article and any inconsistencies or faults are mine, not theirs. This information is not “fake news” and as “The Intercept” says on their website “how likely would the above information be published by a different news outlet?”

We at Affordable Computer Repairs and Service are able to maintain social distancing and still remain open for business, so if you are looking for computer repairs in Brisbane during the Coronavirus outbreak, please give us a call.

This article was written on 6 April 2020 and the opinions above, are just that opinions, we do not claim them to be fact, only opinions.

Coronavirus Scams

The criminal world has jumped on the Coronavirus pandemic and is making the most of this fantastic opportunity to scam you as quickly and efficiently as possible while your defences are down, so to speak. This, like any other unfortunate event (Bush Fires, Floods in Australia) is just too good an opportunity for the scammers to miss out on so they’re going gang-busters whilst they can.  Thus coronavirus scams dramatically include during this pandemic.

Criminals thrive on FUD – Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt and are hence exploiting this to their advantage, with old and tested tricks updated for the present situation. Some of the coronavirus scams are:

Coronavirus Phishing Emails

As everyone’s appetite for news on Coronavirus/ COVID-19 is at its peak the cyber criminals are madly sending of phishing emails to everyone on their lists. Phishing emails for anyone who has not kept up with Cyber-crime is an email that attempts to get you to reply with your information which is usually sensitive in nature and personal, items such as Passwords, Full Name, Address, Drivers Licence number, Medicare number, Date Of Birth etc all of which are then used to steal your identity or take money from your bank account or send more fake emails to your friends and contacts, the list goes on. The Cyber-criminals are “fishing” for information hence the word. They generally use “click-bait” words (as per bait on a hook) to hook you into their little scam.

Social Media Coronavirus Scams

On sites such as (and not limited to) Facebook (of course); Messenger; WhatsApp; WeChat; QZone; Tunblr; Instagram; Twitter (the presidents favourite) etc. As of June 2019 there were over 65 Social Networking sites. Due to the popularity of a topic such as the Coronavirus/COVID-19 the Cyber-criminals using the above platforms attract people’s attention and trust to lure them in to communicating, clicking a link, giving information away unknowingly or purchasing a product all linked around CORVID-19. There are scams providing free information about all sorts of things such as new drugs to combat Coronavirus – buy them here; testing kits – buy them here; CORVID-19 and people with diabetes – buy your kit here; you get the picture I’m sure.

Impersonation

Cyber-criminals impersonating Government Bodies, Charities or even World Bodies such as the World Health Organisation (WHO) asking for money to help create a vaccine or buy this product to help someone poorer than you or send money to Africa, here there or anywhere to help the animals, the poor, the street people etc by PayPal, Bitcoin, Credit Card through their fake websites, which look amazingly like the real thing, no surprise there. The Cyber-criminals will always find a way to pull at your heartstrings for their own benefit.

Telephone Calls

Coronavirus scams include telephone calls from an “organisation” claiming to represent entities as detailed above and not just limited to them, these calls could be from an organisation you have recently been in contact with, who’s database has been hacked and now your information is in the hands of the Cyber-criminals. This could be personal details, contact details and payment details.

Investment Scams

These are never that far from the next “disaster” scenario opportunity claiming that if you invest with them then when the stock market/housing market/whatever market is at the bottom they can buy buy buy with your money and you can make 1 zillion percent profit, etc. As if. We all know where the money will go and that would be the last you see of it. “If it sounds too good to be true it most likely is” attributed to Richard Carlson I believe.

Ransomware

Coronavirus scams include ransomware attacks are being reported on health organisations’ computer systems hoping to “ransom” (hence the name) the files they have encrypted so effectively stopping (the criminal’s hope) the advancement of a cure or vaccine. We cannot let the “good-times” stop too soon seems to be their message. On Android phones, the ransomware app “Corvidlock” which purports to offer statistics on CORVID-19 and a heat map of outbreak hotspots were available to be downloaded from a malicious domain coronavirusapp.site.  More information and on how to unlock code for this ransomware app.

Fake News

Somewhat covered above as always has been detrimental to our health and understanding. This has been called an “infodemic” by Dr Tedros head of WHO which is spreading more quickly and wildly than the actual virus itself. Such “fake news” once the domain of Facebook is now everywhere with reports that there is a relationship between Corona beer and Coronavirus; drinking alcohol will prevent coronavirus, gargling certain liquids such as vinegar (thanks here to Facebook) will prevent CORVID-19.

You and I (We – the general public) are never far from the Cyber-criminals thoughts (now that’s a comforting thought) and at every opportunity, they will modify their methods and polish their websites to convince us that they are here to help, so not only stay physically safe during this pandemic but stay digitally safe as well!

FYI We at Affordable Computer Repairs and Service are open during this uncertain time and are following best practices.