Posts Tagged: windows xp

Computing — 4 Comments
12
Dec 06

Debian, at long last

Around a month ago, I attempted setting up Debian on my computer again. Because of trouble getting X to run, though, and school work starting to pile up again, I eventually went back to using Ubuntu. Mistakes, attempts, and then there was this day I installed Windows XP on a whim because I was dying to continue experiencing the seventh final fantasy (It is my first time.) and had zero patience to try to get a PlayStation emulator to work well on my system. Weeks went by.

Last night, again on a whim, I decided to back up my data, clear my hard disk (just the partition table, actually), partition my hard disk exactly the way I realized I wanted it, and then install Debian again. It was either “do” or “die for a while”, just decide what to do afterwards if I still could not get X to work. Surprisingly though, last night, it was so easy – I just did whatever made sense and, before I knew it, X was up. Now, I have Debian, and I am no longer with the haunting thought that my system might be doing things that I really do not want it to do. And since I am on that, here is a bit that I wrote some weeks ago:

I am not against Ubuntu, I think it is a great desktop system. In fact, I still recommend it to a lot of people who are interested in open source software and/or GNU/Linux. However, for myself, I still prefer Debian. I itch not knowing my system, and I am more comfortable with more direct control of it: I want to know what software I have running, what packages I have installed, and the actual configuration of the services I run.

I think it boils down to what is user-friendly for the specific user. Ubuntu may be user-friendly for the regular users, but Debian is for the developers, the (computer) geeks, systems administrators, and the paranoid. I find that hitting that aspect of the Ubuntu vs. Debian issue is pointless.

Then, of course, window manager galore. I now understand why Paolo spends weeks tweaking window manager after window manager just to get the environment that he wants. I am on a Debian high.

Computing — 2 Comments
9
Feb 06

Viruses on Windows XP

My dormmates ask me from time to time about unusual things that happen with their Microsoft Windows XP systems. Because I am usually short on time, I seldom bother to search the Internet to find out what specific virus has infected a computer, and to look for specific fixes from Microsoft itself or from respectable anti-virus companies. In most cases, I just do the following, and oftentimes, the problem is fixed.

  1. Run Task Manager.
  2. Terminate the Explorer process. Explorer is the manager of the graphical interface of Windows. A large number of viruses inject instructions into this to recreate them if they are deleted, or to start the processes needed by the viruses again if the processes are terminated.
  3. Terminate suspicious and non-critical processes.
  4. Run msconfig.
  5. Make sure that Selective Startup is selected. In the Processes tab, a list of processes run upon boot up is shown. Only processes wished to be run upon boot up should be ticked.
  6. Reboot.

Some cases I’ve encountered required manual deletion of certain files after these are done. Others required uninstallation of malware. There were also a couple that required the restoration of one or two original Windows system files. Also, there are times when the Windows systems seem too corrupted that I just end up recommending reinstallation of the operating system.

Of course, I never forget to remind people to install security patches from Microsoft whenever new ones become available, and although I hated having an anti-virus software running on my Windows system before, I always tell my dormmates to install one if they don’t have any installed yet, and to update their virus definitions regularly. Preventive measures ought to help.