Thor Schrock

This post is the seventh in a 10-post series about the all-new version 2 of the Maintenance Checkup Home Edition (MCHE) computer maintenance software from Schrock Innovations. You can win a FREE 2-year subscription by simply posting a comment on any of the MCHE posts. Only one free subscription will be given away, so post multiple comments or questions with your valid email address to increase your odds of winning!

A major problem with many anti-malware programs is false detections. A false detection is when a program tells you a file pr process is attacking your computer when in fact it is not. Our software engineers have invested significant effort in creating systems that prevent the MCHE from making a detection mistake. Their approach was to tackle the problem from two different angles.

First, it is incredibly helpful to have as much information in our detection database as possible. That is why the MCHE learns from every piece of malware it removes. Each time a threat is resolved on your computer that has not been encountered before , the MCHE takes a fingerprint of the file or files it removes. This fingerprint is called a hash. Rather than scanning for a particular file name, the MCHE scans for these fingerprints and therefore reduces the risk of making a detection mistake.

These new hashes are stored on your computer until you complete your next update. If you are participating in the MCHE Community, these hashes are uploaded to our update server during your update and are then disseminated to all of our subscribers within 24 hours. This gives the MCHE the unique ability to learn the “fingerprints” on the fly and get smarter over time.

The second approach is to white list files that we know are legitimate files from legitimate programs. A white list is a list of hashes derived from files known to be legitimate and harmless. To our knowledge, the MCHE is the only computer maintenance program that uses a white list as a major component of its detection engine.

This feature is important because sometimes malware attempts to masquerade as a legitimate file. Many malware programs use explorer.exe for example – the same name as a legitimate Windows file. So if the MCHE has never encountered the malware file explorer.exe, it needs a way to tell it apart from the legitimate explorer.exe that comes with Windows. This is accomplished by maintaining a hash of all files we know to be legitimate. We collect these hashes ourselves to ensure the purity of our white list.

The bottom line is that false detections are not a problem in version 2 of the MCHE, and the systems we have put into place ensure that we are constantly receiving a stream of white list hashes from the products our customers use most often.

Check back tomorrow to learn how the all-new MCHE can clean over 1 GB of file bloat off your hard drive without any fear of losing important personal files.

Senator Priester of Omaha is hoping that a new committee will help him get his E-Waste recycling bill (LB583) on the floor for debate and a vote.

The bill has been introduced several times in previous sessions, but has always been bottled up in committee. In my opinion LB583 is an unenforceable bill that will directly harm the sales tax engine of Nebraska - its small businesses. We will all be better off if this bill gets bottled up again.

First, a fair introduction. LB583 is intended to stop electronic waste from entering solid waste landfills. If the bill passes, all manufacturers both inside and outside the state of Nebraska would be required to pay a fee (a tax) to Nebraska to be listed on the State's list of compliant manufacturers. Then the manufacturer would have to pay the state another tax based on the tonnage of listed equipment that is shipped into the state. This includes computers, televisions, and just about any device with a screen that is 4" or larger.

As a consumer under this bill, when you are finished using your television or computer you would take your e-waste to a state-authorized recycler rather than throwing it in the trash. The recycler would take your waste, recycle it, and then submit a claim for payment to the state - you would not have to pay anything to recycle your equipment.

The bill's first line of enforcement would fall to the retailers (like Best Buy and Schrock Innovations). Before a retailer could sell any listed item (like a television, computer, or automotive component) that retailer would be required to check the state's list of compliant manufacturers. If the manufacturer has not paid the state's tax, then the retailer may not sell that manufacturer's goods in the state.

Why This is a BAD Bill

This bill would be a disaster for Nebraska's already-struggling manufacturing sector as well as most small businesses because:

• This bill is unenforceable
• Manufacturers outside of Nebraska (and outside the US) will not comply
• The Bill is Vague Regarding Who a Manufacturer is
• It will drive up the prices of electronic goods
• It will decrease selection of electronic goods in Nebraska
• It will result in a net loss of sales tax revenue for the state

There is a lot to hash out about why this bill is bad, so I will address each item one at a time.

1) The Bill is Unenforceable

This bill requires that manufacturers who do not have a physical presence in Nebraska register and pay a tax in order to sell their goods in Nebraska. The state has no way to directly compel these businesses to pay Nebraska a dime, so the bill relies on retailers to police the goods they sell.

The trouble is that most manufactured goods are not directly sold to retailers - the goods typically pass through a wholesaler first. Many of the electronic goods Schrock Innovations sells do not have a U.S. brand name (i.e. the brand name is written in Chinese on a microchip). In many cases it is simply impossible to know if a specific device was manufactured by a company in compliance with the proposed state registry.

If the retailers can not find that information, then the state probably can not find it either without significant effort. This means than many electronic items could go unidentified and therefore a purchase by a Nebraska retailer could not be identified as allowed or disallowed, and therefore can not be consistently enforced.

2) Manufacturers Outside Nebraska Will Not Comply

As much as I love my home state of Nebraska, we all have to admit that when it comes to manufacturing electronic goods we are not a "high demand" state. So for example, a manufacturer of computer memory in China could really care less how much of their memory ends up in Nebraska as compared to a "high-demand" state like California. They do not have the means or desire to track that information in a cost-effective way.

Manufacturers outside Nebraska and outside the United States for that matter will continue making their goods and shipping them to wholesale houses just as they have always done in the past.

Senator Priester's bill depends on Nebraska retailers to once again save the day. The argument goes that if a retailer can not sell a popular good because the manufacturer is not listed in the state's registry the retailer will pressure the manufacturer to register and pay the tax. Perhaps the manufacturer will comply and perhaps not.

But I can say with near certainty that a manufacturer of a commodity like computer memory that is based overseas could give a rat's rear about how many Nebraskans buy from them. They might care if we consumed their products on a level like California or New York State, but lets face it - we don't.

3) The Bill is Vague About its Definition of a Manufacturer

The bill defines a manufacturer as:

Manufacturer means any person who or which, regardless of the selling technique used, including remote sale, manufactures covered electronic devices, supplies them to any person or persons within a distribution network that includes wholesalers or retailers in this state, and benefits from the sale in this state of those covered electronic devices through that distribution network.

OK, so lets apply some Nebraska common sense here. I think we could all agree that Dell manufacturers computers. Some of their computers are sold through an affiliate marketing program (that's when a business buys a Dell computer from a third party company) and some are sold direct to the consumer from the Dell website.

I don't think it would be the bill's intention to only recycle the computers that Dell sells through its affiliate network (a distribution network), so we would have to assume that Dell's direct sale of computer systems to consumers would also be classified as a distribution network.

But Dell also meets the bill's definition of a retailer. The bill defines a retailer as:

Retailer means a person who owns or operates a business that sells at retail new covered electronic devices in this state by any means to a consumer

So based on these definitions, Dell is a manufacturer and a retailer, and therefore Dell is responsible to check the State's list of compliant manufacturers to ensure that it is operating in compliance.

But more importantly, where does a local company like Schrock Innovations fit into this picture? We custom build computers by ordering components from wholesalers and assembling them into unique designs. It is pretty obvious under the bill that we are a retailer, but are we also the manufacturer?

The definition of a manufacturer states that to be considered a manufacturer we must supply goods to a distribution network, but Dell is considered a manufacturer and the majority of their computers are directly sold to consumers. Since we directly sell to consumers, are we required to register as a manufacturer as well? Do we need to register and pay tax or not?

This single item alone could spark significant debate and legal challenges if not clarified.

The Bill Will Drive up the Prices of Electronics in Nebraska

This one is just common sense. The bill requires manufacturers who comply to pay a tax. This tax will be passed on to wholesalers who will in turn mark up that price and sell the items to retailers. Retailers must make a profit, so they will increase the price of their electronic goods to their customers.

Before you know it, a $3,000 plasma television will cost $50 more in Omaha's Best Buy than it would in the Best Buy in Iowa. Raise your hand if you would drive 15 minutes to save $50?

This Bill Will Decrease Competition and Result in Fewer Selections for the Consumer

Again, this is some simple logic. Manufacturers who compete on a low-cost platform will simply not comply because they do not want to spend the time, money, or effort to break down how much of their product is sold in Nebraska versus other states (especially since almost ALL electronics wholesale houses are on the coasts).

Because manufacturers will not comply, Wal-Mart for example, may not be able to carry as many portable DVD players (yes they are covered by the bill too). The least expensive choices would be artificially removed from Nebraska's marketplace and as a consequence there will be fewer brands and features for Nebraska consumers to select from.

The State Will Collect LESS Tax Revenue if This Bill is Enacted

If one looks at all of the ill effects of LB583 on the Nebraska economy, it is pretty obvious that this bill will result in fewer electronic goods being purchased from within the state. Consumers will buy the less expensive non-compliant goods in Iowa, Colorado, or via mail-order or through the Internet. Presently Nebraska has no way to reliably recoup those sales tax dollars, and would therefore see sales tax revenue from high-ticket electronics erode over time. This will only get worse as consumers in Nebraska become more and more willing to shop online rather than locally.

In addition, Senator Priester forgets that most Nebraskans have at least one old computer stored in their home right now. If this bill passes and consumers are required to dispose of these computers with a recycler, there will most likely be a strong surge in consumer recycling overnight.

This is a GOOD thing for the ecology, but no one has said anything about where the funds will be appropriated to pay the recyclers to dispose of these computers. Since they were sold before the manufacturers were taxed on their shipments, there is no money earmarked to recycle them.

The fist year this bill is in place would strain the state budget as it is forced to pay recyclers to dispose of these ancient computers.

Conclusion

In summary, The whole point of this bill is to shift the responsibility of E-waste recycling from the shoulders of the consumers back onto the shoulders of the manufacturers. The unfortunate truth is that any government imposed tax on industry eventually works its way down to the consumers in the form of higher prices. While industry is certainly not a saint when it comes to recycling, there have been significant moves to take further responsibility for E-waste in the computer industry. The problem of E-waste IS solved through recycling, however the answer is not to have government presume they know best how to run an electronics business.

Last Tuesday was patch Tuesday - the monthly event that rolls around the second Tuesday of each month where Microsoft releases security fixes for its products. If you are running windows XP and have not already done so, you should check out target="blank">Windows Update and get the 12 critical update you need for your computer.

But if you are running Windows Vista, you will be pleased to know that there were no critical updates for your operating system at all. In fact, a new toy is available for Vista Ultimate Users who update!

There is some debate as to whether the vulnerability addressed in MS07-010 actually affects Vista or not.

That article deals with a security flaw in Windows Defender, the anti-malware program that comes standard with Windows Vista. Some are arguing that the Defender hole is a hole in Vista, while others believe Defender is a stand alone product that should not fall on Vista's shoulders.

In my opinion, either way you look at it 1 security update instead of 12 is a big step in securing the Windows operating system. No wonder some attackers are looking to pick on less policed programs like Adobe Acrobat!

If you use µTorrent (from BitTorrent, Inc.) to obtain files and media from the Internet, you may be missing an important update that could leave your computer open to a hijacking.

For a little over a week now, "dirty" .torrent files have been circulating on the Internet, secretly worming their way into µTorrent user's hard drives and exposing their PCs to hijacking attempts. BitTorrent has released an update (to version 1.6.1) but failed to notify any of its users that the update was even available.

µTorrent does not have an automatic updating system, so users must manually upgrade their µTorrent software to protect their computers. This particular vulnerability will circumvent most anti-virus software, making a µTorrent attack a very attractive target for would-be bot network builders.

Don't miss Compute This Saturday morning at 10:00 on Lincoln's KFOR 1240 AM. We will be talking at length about the all-new Maintenance Checkup Home Edition Version 2. You can win a FREE 2-year subscription to the all new version, so be sure you are listening so you know how to win! If you have a question about the new MCHE version 2, feel free to call on the air at 489-1240.

The Lovely Kimberly will tell you how you can win a free professional photography session and 11x14 wall print just by visiting her blog at www.kimberlyschrock.com.

I will also be talking about the latest security loophole that is leaving thousands of computers wide open to online attacks - even if they have anti-virus software installed. This is definitely a show you don't want to miss! As usual, if you can't listen to the show or live in Omaha or somewhere other than Lincoln, you can always catch the archived show for free at www.schrockinnovations.com/radio.php. I should have the program up within a couple hours of the end of the program.

This post is the third in a 10-post series about the all-new version 2 of the Maintenance Checkup Home Edition (MCHE) computer maintenance software from Schrock Innovations. You can win a FREE 2-year subscription by simply posting a comment on any of the MCHE posts. Only one free subscription will be given away, so post multiple comments or questions with your valid email address to increase your odds of winning!

The most critical component of any security software is an accurate and up-to-date malware detection database. Even the best security program is worthless if it does not stay current with the latest threats to your security and privacy.

The 2005 version of the Maintenance Checkup Home Edition (MCHE) did this by prompting you to update if new updates were available. Each time you updated with the 2005 version, it downloaded all detections for all infections, every time.

While the all-new version 2 of the MCHE is also heavily dependent on updates to keep you protected, it considers an update to be just that – an update to its existing database of malware infections. The MCHE now only downloads the information it does not already know from our update server. This means your updates are smaller and consequently they complete faster.

Version 2 of the MCHE also looks at the update process in a slightly different way than its predecessor. If you elect to participate, your copy of the new MCHE version 2 can teach our update server about each malware infection you remove. If the MCHE program on your computer learns something we did not already have in our update database, that knowledge is sent to our update server and then shared with all other subscribers within 24 hours. In essence, the MCHE will now teach itself to better detect malware threats as time goes on. Of course, no personally identifiable information is included with the malware information, and your privacy is completely protected at all times.

Even though there is a lot of talking going on between the MCHE and our update server during the update process, our talented software engineers have left enough room in the pipeline to allow the MCHE to backup your personal usage statistics and settings as well. This helps you install the MCHE on a new computer should you replace your current PC. All you have to do is install the MCHE on the new PC and enter your receipt ID to instantly have all of your previous settings, exclusions, and subscription information set up on your new computer.

The greatest drawback of the 2005 version of the MCHE was that you had to remember to download the updates yourself. That issue has been resolved in version 2 of the MCHE and now the program will automatically update itself every 24 hours with the latest new program files, detections, and late-breaking knowledge from other MCHE users. Of course you can still run a manual update, but in case you forget to do so, this version of the MCHE has that base covered.

Check back tomorrow to learn how the unique subscription concept behind version 2 of the MCHE ensures that you are always running the latest edition of our software, no matter when you purchased your copy.

Schrock Innovations has assumed hosting and maintenance duties related to the Lincoln Independent Business Association Website after winning a juried bidding process by unanimous decision.

The bidding process to assume hosting and maintenance duties related to the association’s website, www.liba.org, was somewhat unique. There were three companies who were competing to provide free services to LIBA, just as Sterling Communications had done for many years.

Schrock Innovations submitted a web page design mock-up as well as a complete website plan that stressed the ability to update the website with ease as well as introducing many automated technologies to free LIBA’s administrators and staff to focus on more important matters within the association.

The jury of LIBA officials were not informed which design was submitted by which competing company. Each bidder’s submissions were inspected by each panelist before a vote was cast on the best proposal. Schrock Innovations’ proposal won a unanimous decision from the panelists. Aside from Schrock Innovations’ winning bid, City Gold (www.citygold.com) and another smaller design company submitted proposals to LIBA.

“Of course we were hoping we would win the job, but to find out that we were picked unanimously was an honor indeed,” Schrock said. “It stresses the importance that we exceed LIBA’s expectations and show that their faith in our abilities was deserved.”

At this moment, Schrock Innovations is hosting the current LIBA website while the design work is under way on their new website. The redesigned site should be online within a few weeks, with additional phased updates scheduled to occur throughout the coming months.

Microsoft has announced that they will be providing five years of "extended support" to consumer users of Windows XP. Previous to this announcement, all consumer support for Windows XP would have ended in 2009 - two years after the release of Microsoft's new operating system, Windows Vista.

But before you give your Windows XP box a hug and a kiss for Valentine's Day, "extended support" is different from the normal support that will be available until 2009.

"Extended Support" for Windows XP is already available to businesses and network administrators through 2014. For consumers this means that Microsoft will continue issuing security patches and updates for Windows XP through 2014. However, if you have problems with your retail-purchased copy of Windows XP, you will have to pay Microsoft for that support call to India.

for the great many consumers who got an OEM copy of Windows XP preinstalled on a new computer, expect your manufacturers (HP, Dell, Toshiba, Gateway, etc...) to also discontinue free support as scheduled in 2014 and dish all users with problems to Microsoft's pay-per-call "extended support" lines, or a similar support system run by the manufacturer its self.

Last week David Cisar closed a deal with Schrock Innovations to host and maintain his website about Coaching Youth Football.

David is a respected national authority on football for young children, and his website offers information to help other coaches make their young players' experiences as educational and exciting as possible. His latest book is endorsed by former University of Nebraska Football Coach Tom Osborne, as well as other college and professional coaches nation wide.

David came to Schrock Innovations for assistance with updating his website on a timely basis. While Cisar was not dissatisfied with his previous hosting and maintenance situation, Schrock Innovations offered a package that would allow him to focus on what he does best, while leaving much of the technical administration to professionals.

Cisar has contracted with Schrock Innovations to develop some additional marketing components on the website as well as speed up the delivery of booklets to interested coaches nation-wide. Part of these efforts will include the addition of a blog where Cisar can display the depth and breadth of his coaching knowledge and experience.

There is an adage that says you can't please all of the people all of the time, yet in business rule number one is that the customer is always right. Since opening Schrock Innovations I have seen a lot of situations where I knew that our product or service was not at fault, however the customer believed it was, so we did everything we could to make things right. We understand the value of good service at Schrock, and we work hard every day to be the best. But what should a business do when a customer "crosses the line?"

Background: A customer bought a $1500 computer from us in November. After two warranty support calls in 80 days, the customer was concerned that the system was a "lemon." Understanding their concern, we agreed that the best solution would be to replace the entire unit with a new system just to be safe. We informed the customer we would be happy to bring the new system to their home, install it for them set everything up and install their programs for them. Our customer said they wanted to think about it, and we didn't hear anything for a few days on it.

After a week, the customer's adult daughter called us about the matter and that is when things started going downhill fast.

Our customer's daughter called and said that her parents did not want a replacement system, and that they wanted a refund. Jennifer explained that our return policy (which is clearly posted and included in our computer ordering packets) was that after 30 days hardware can not be returned at all. Rightfully so, the caller recounted all of the issues the computer had and again, demanded a refund. Jennifer restated our return policy and then things got nasty.

The caller started using language that would make a sailor blush, calling Jennifer every name in the book. Jennifer was tolerant of the abuse for a while, but the caller would not stop her verbal tirade. Realizing that he call was not going anywhere, Jennifer decided to refer the caller to me, thank her for her time, and hang up. The caller immediately called back and left a voice mail filled with more language. The she said she was coming in to "discuss this further."

About 30 minutes later, the customer's daughter arrived at our Lincoln Service Center. She continued where she left off on the phone, not knowing our video surveillance cameras were recording her. Again, Jennifer tried to calm the woman who was now demanding a cash refund for a computer that was purchased with a credit card. When Jennifer told her we would never do that for anyone anytime because it violates our merchant agreement, the daughter came across the desk to "get in Jennifer's face."

Blaze was listening to this go on for nearly thirty minutes when he decided to put an end to it. He came to the front desk and asked the woman to leave. She refused. Blaze asked her again, explaining he would call the police, and she refused again. So Blaze called the police, and then the woman finally left.

At this point Jennifer was pretty shaken and needed to compose herself for the other customers who were now arriving. A few minutes later the Officer arrived and took a report. He decided to cite the daughter for disturbing the peace and trespassing, and since she refused to give Jennifer information so I could contact her that afternoon, we gave the officer the only phone number we had for her - Her work number.

The officer followed up a few days later and told us that he had issued her the citations at her place of employment, in front of her coworkers. We asked the officer to contact our original customers and reinforce the fact that we were more than willing to honor the warranty by replacing the system as we discussed. The officer agreed, and did so. About a week later, I called the original customers and left a message on their answering machine explaining that they are more than welcome in our Service Center anytime, and that we were ready and willing to replace the computer for them.

They did call back, and they requested to be removed from all of our contact lists. A few days later, a courier came to the shop with a delivery. We get many deliveries a day, so Blaze signed for the package without asking what it was. After he signed, he realized that our customer had a courier drop off their computer at our shop - effectively force returning it. We all knew what was coming next... There was only one reason to send a package signature required.

Last week, our merchant processing company notified us that the card holder had filed a chargeback stating that the original transaction was not completed face to face (which it was) and that we refused to honor the warranty on the system (which was not true). So now we have a computer that was customized for a specific customer, with an XP license that is forever tied to their name, neither of which we can sell to anyone else. On top of that, the original purchase price has been automatically deducted from our company accounts, and it is now on us to dispute the chargeback.

We have filed a dispute with the card company, but from what I read online if we provide everything they need we only have a 30% chance for a chargeback reversal. Obviously, this customer will probably never be back, and have already expressed their dissatisfaction with friends and family. So here is my question... Do we report the delinquent debt to the credit reporting agencies, and hand this matter off to a collection agency, or do we just walk away and cut our losses. What do you think?

For some time now Schrock Innovations has been working with 104.1 Pure Rock the Blaze to establish four streaming web cams in their radio studio. On Tuesday morning, the Blaze will hold the first Mayoral debate in their studios, and Schrock innovations is proud to provide the technology that will bring the debate to your computer screen.

While you listen to the candidates on 104.1 you can watch the debate live on the Schrock Innovations Blaze Cams. We have moved the camera page from Clear Channels servers to our local-Lincoln web server to ensure there is adequate bandwidth available for the event.

The three candidates will be standing behind podiums for the debate, which is scheduled to begin Tuesday morning at 8:30 AM. The Blaze is the only radio station that hosted 18 of the 20 City Council candidates. This is the first mayoral radio debate of this election cycle.

Of course, you can watch the Blaze Cams every morning as well!

Kevin Hennecke came to us about 8 months ago with a website that was designed previously by another company. His website, www.henneckehunts.com needed to be updated badly and the company that designed it had gone out of business. We captured his website for him and within a week we had it updated and working on our servers.

But suddenly Kevin started noticing that his competition was beginning to overtake him in the Google search results. Looking at the number of available seats on his Nebraska Spring Snow Goose Hunting tours he was beginning to realize something was not right. He checked into it and found that his site, which had been ranked #1 or #2 in Google, was now in 9th place.

Today Kevin came in to see what we could accomplish in three short weeks. In 4 weeks, everyone who is booking a Nebraska Goose Hunting Tour tour will have booked one already, so it would be too late for any Google results to help then. Kevin needed us to get him some website traffic that would convert into sales and he needed it fast.

What Kevin really needed was a completely redesigned website. His current website was designed to be optimized for the search engines that were around in the late 1990s. Things have gotten a lot more complicated since then as the search engines like Google and Yahoo have become smarter about how they rank websites.

The trouble was that Kevin did not have time for us to develop a new website. He needed results from his current site in a matter of days. There was not much to work with, but we developed a plan that cost him $30 that should get some short term results. We explained to him that the results from this would be fast, and temporary, but they might get the job done for a three week spurt.

The plan we put in place includes a lot of basic SEO work, the reservation of some different domains, and a lot of search engine key word research, but I will keep you posted on the results. Right now, if you enter "Nebraska Snow Goose Hunting" in Google, Kevin's website is ranked #9. We are going to attempt a short term online marketing burst that could propel his site to the number 1 or number 2 spot within days. This is a great case study for our SEO services, so stay tuned and you will see exactly what we can do!

Windows Vista will be released today at 12:00 AM (or would that be tomorrow?) and while there will actually be people waiting in line at the box stores for its release, Schrock Innovations recommends you let the pioneers take the arrows on this one and wait until March to install the new operating system on you computer.

HP is sponsoring a Microsoft launch party tonight at many of the local box stores (two location in Lincoln and three in Omaha) to celebrate the release of Microsoft's new computer operating system, Windows Vista. In all sincerity, I do not expect any major problems with Vista. With that said, I DO expect some compatibility problems that should slow down any serious computer user. Windows Vista has a few new tricks in its bag that could create some headaches for the business or serious home user who installs the new O/S on a primary computer.

Windows Vista has three big changes that some people have expressed concern over. The first is the new (and untested in the real world) networking structure contained in Vista. Windows has relied on the same base code for networking PCs since Windows 3.1 for Workgroups. Vista tosses this battle hardened technology out the window (no pun intended) entirely and replaces it with new and supposedly more secure code. While this new code may work perfectly, many network administrators are understandably nervous about pinning their careers as IT professionals on the new Vista code. Many people are holding their breath on this move.

Secondly, Windows Vista handles permissions entirely differently than Windows XP does. For example, in Windows XP being logged in as an administrator gives a user certain permissions that are universal to any actions undertaken while logged in as an administrator. For example, you can install a new program while logged in as an administrator and Windows XP grants that program global permission to do things.

In Windows Vista, programs must obtain permission levels based on the code within the program. Credentials must be requested by the program and granted by the Vista operating system based on the sensitivity of the activities undertaken by the program. This is designed to help prevent spyware and other nasty things from taking root in a system, but could also render programs that assumed they would have proper permissions obsolete when Vista rejects them as insecure (old versions of Norton Antivirus for example).

Lastly, Windows Vista is MUCH more sensitive to faulty memory than Windows XP is. Each time Windows XP boots, all Windows components are loaded to the same place in memory. This makes XP an easy mark for viruses like network worms and spyware infections. To combat this, Windows Vista successfully implements a new security technique that Microsoft failed to successfully integrate into Windows XP Service Pack 2 despite significant efforts.

Each time Vista boots, it loads its critical processes to different RAM memory addresses. The result is transparent to the user, but creates a much more secure computing environment. The drawback is that if your perfectly functional Windows XP computer has a stick of RAM with a slight flaw in a little-used portion of memory, upgrading to Windows Vista could make that flaw painfully obvious. Further, because critical processes are loaded into random memory locations, a problem that occurs for you one time may never occur in the service center for a repair technician.

Vista certainly uses more system resources than XP does, and it may take a few months for people to get used to the new look and terminology. While the technicians at Schrock Innovatios are already loading Vista on our personal and work computers, we do have one request: Keep your heads down for now until we sound the all clear.

Last Saturday we received a call in our Lincoln Service Center from a person who was not a Schrock customer. This person was standing at a big box store's computer repair center waiting for the technicians to put her computer back together.

She was having problems getting a picture on her monitor, so she took it back to them for a repair since she had purchased the computer there a couple years ago. After waiting several hours for a diagnosis, the box store technician told her that her Norton Personal Firewall was blocking her monitor from displaying a picture.

While she did not know too much about computer troubleshooting, she thought this diagnosis sounded strange. So she called us and asked Blaze if this diagnosis could possibly be correct.

Sometimes its hard not to laugh at the ridiculous things that come out of this particular bog-box repair center. Once we even had one of their technicians bring his personal computer in to us for a repair. But this diagnosis really took the cake.

Blaze explained that there is no possible way a software firewall could block her monitor from displaying images. He told her she is most likely having problems with a video card or a monitor. She asked for directions to our service center and thanked Blaze for his help.

Who knows if we will see her in her or not, but I think it is a pretty safe bet that she will not be heading back into that big box store repair center again. People need a computer repair center they can trust to accurately diagnose a problem and provide accurate repair advice and pricing. Everyone makes a mistake now and then, but to make up answers as you go along is inexcusable - especially for a company that considers themselves a top-notch computer repair and service player.

Windows Vista is scheduled to be released in just a few days. Many of my customers have been asking if they should upgrade when it is released and if so, what they should expect.

I have installed Vista a few times in the past couple months, and I have been doing some significant reading on Vista's ups and downs. As a rule, I recommend that my customers wait until March to look at installing Vista on an existing PC. This allows Microsoft, as well as the manufacturers of various hardware components, to discover unexpected issues and release patches to resolve them before you are in the thick of the problem.

If you feel you MUST install Vista as soon as it is available, read these tips and hints to ensure you have as smooth of an experience as possible.

1. Run the Vista System Compatibility Check Before You Buy Anything

Many hardware components and software applications that run perfectly under Windows XP will not function as designed in Windows Vista. To help you test your PC's ability to run Vista, Microsoft has created a compatibility testing tool that is available from their website at no cost. You can download the windows Vista Upgrade Advisor at http://www.microsoft.com/windowsvista/getready/upgradeadvisor/default.mspx. Once installed, it will tell you if any of your equipment or applications are know to be incompatible with Vista, as well as which version of Vista would be best for your PC.

2. Before You Install Vista on a Notebook, Make Sure Your Battery Works PERFECTLY

Bloggers on the Internet have reported that Windows Vista can cut your notebook computer's battery life by as much as 50% while using it for multimedia activities like listening to music or watching a movie. Those using notebook computers or laptops that currently do not do well on battery might want to think twice before installing Vista.

3. Things You Should Know About Dual Booting Between Vista and XP

The technically minded among us may consider installing Windows XP and windows Vista on the same computer and dual booting between operating systems just in case Vista is a total disaster after installation. While this is a perfectly viable way to hedge your bet during an operating system upgrade, you need to install Vista a certain way to make the dual boot work properly. After XP is installed and working, boot the computer from the Vista DVD and install Vista. If you try to install Vista by running the installer from within Windows XP, your dual boot will not work. Also you should know that each time you boot into XP with your dual boot system your system restore points in vista will be deleted, and each time you boot into Vista your XP restore points will be zapped.