Even if you aren’t interested in surfing adult websites or viewing chatrooms or needing to hide what you do from other people, it is sometimes very useful to know and understand how you can delete your Windows history, especially if you are using a shared computer and would prefer to retain your private data. While there is much software sold that will erase history for you, it’s fairly easy and reliable to do it all for free. You can erase logs kept by your internet browser and your computer such as the browsing history, tracking cookies, recently opened documents, search history, save history, and run history. This guide will cover Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox, because these two are the most often used Internet browsers.

If you use Internet Explorer, you can remove private recorded data by going to Tools in the toolbar at the top of the window, and hitting Internet Options. When there, under the General tab, you can delete cookies, temporary files, saved form data (also known as AutoComplete, this is the recorded search terms that your computer retains after you type in searches or fill in text boxes), and saved password data. Under the AutoComplete tab, click on Clear Forms and Clear Passwords to get rid of these two aspects of the logged history. It is a good idea to use the Clear Forms and Clear Passwords buttons to delete all of your private data entered when browsing, especially when on a shared computer. Browsers sometimes will automatically remember your usernames and passwords, and you certainly do not want people going into your accounts without your knowledge. On the other hand, if you use Firefox, simply go to Tools in the toolbar at the top, and then click on Clear Private Data. There is a checklist, and you can choose to delete whatever data you wish.

To delete documents regarding history and temporary data that are stored in your computer’s registry (such as your opened and saved documents history, and your search and run history), you will need to install a free spyware removing software known as Spybot Search and Destroy. Once you install it, run the program, and click on Check for Problems. The report will come up and show you all sorts of programs and files that you may remove; select the ones regarding temporary files and histories in the registry, and then select Fix All Problems at the top. Now, all the stored viewing data is gone from your registry. Deleting just about this much of your private information should nicely ensure that nobody will ever be able to track what you’ve been doing and viewing on your computer. However, if you are at work and simply trying not to let your boss see what you’ve been up to, be careful, because many companies can access your computer to view logs without actually being at your computer. Deleting your logs will not prevent your company from viewing what you have been up to.

DLL files are Dynamic Link Library files that are loaded and then executed by many different programs in the Windows operating system. Every different DLL file is used to do something different-a single, specific task; for instance, you may have seen the rundll32.exe program running in your task manager that executes the run32.dll file. However, DLL files are not specific to certain programs, unlike many other files-one type of DLL file can be used by many different programs because it performs a task, and is not application-specific in the function it serves. One of the most important DLL files is Kernel32.dll, and it takes care of memory and input output relationships. If you ever have errors with your DLL files, this is a big problem and most likely has to do with corruption or errors in your computer registry.

It’s likely that you’ll run into a couple DLL errors here and there in your history of computer usage, but if you experience DLL errors very constantly, then you’ve got a big problem on your hands. There will likely be inaccessible DLL files, corrupted or missing DLL files, incompatible or conflicting DLL files, and many other problems. This prevents you from running or completing many applications on Windows, and can indeed be extremely frustrating! However, do not panic, because there are possible ways to fix your DLL problems and get your computer to run like new again.

There are some common causes for most of your DLL file errors, and these include issues such as having overwritten an old DLL file with a new one after you installed a program. This causes some compatibility issues. Additionally, since different programs share certain DLL files, after you uninstall something the uninstallation process may have removed the shared DLL files along with the program, and so you end up with some missing DLLs. A problematic hard drive or memory can cause physical problems to your computer and result in damaged or corrupted DLL files that will no longer run. Additionally, sometimes when applications access DLL files, they will accidentally corrupt them, and so you can no longer run that DLL file on several different applications. Lastly, a virus or spyware may have deleted your DLL files, resulting in incorrect or invalid DLL file entries in your computer’s registry.

There are many different ways to fix your DLL errors, depending on the cause of the error. In general, there are the errors caused by applications, and the errors caused by malicious software. Usually, any DLL errors caused by an application can be solved by replacing the corrupted or missing DLL file; to do this, you can see if there are new versions or patches for the application; otherwise, you may have to download the DLL file on its own and then place it in the correct location. If this doesn’t solve the problem and you have Windows XP or higher, you can use System Restore to fix your registry issues. As for malware causing DLL errors, you can download a virus scan, spyware remover, or registry cleaner to get rid of malicious software and solve your problems.

You want to play that favorite computer game you haven’t touched in so long, or you’re trying to start a program that’s needed for work, and you end up with a message that says something like: “Cannot find C:\Program Files\….exe. Or maybe you’re running Internet Explorer and writing an important email, and then you end up with “iExplorer.exe has generated an error”. How frustrating! Indeed, these errors, collectively known as .exe errors because they affect executable files, can be extremely irritating to handle. If these errors keep occurring for you, then you know that something is definitely wrong with your computer and you should take action to correct the problem. There are a variety of causes for .exe errors-you may have a virus, worm, or trojan, or you might have spyware that is interfering with your registry and program applications; also, your files might be corrupted or missing, or you could have outdated or invalid registry keys.

Thankfully, there are many different solutions to various .exe errors, depending on the cause of the error. I would recommend that you try many or all of the solutions until you stop getting errors, as you definitely want to weed out all of the diverse possible causes of .exe errors. The first step is to get an anti-virus program if you don’t have one, and do a scan as soon as possible to prevent any possible further damage to your computer. Virus removal programs can dig out viruses from your registry and quickly help you to be able to execute those .exe files again. Also, try to get a spyware scanner as soon as you can, especially if your computer has recently been running fairly slowly. This will help prevent possible spyware from stealing your confidential information in the future, and may also fix the .exe errors you are experiencing if spyware is the cause for the errors.

One of the first steps to actively fixing .exe errors is to delete all the temporary files on your computer. Start by going to your folder labeled Documents and Settings, and delete everything from the Local Settings/Temp folder. Then, remove the files from the Cookies and history folders. Then, there should be a Local Settings/Temporary Internet Files/Content.IES folder; delete everything from that one, also. Next, from the Start Menu, go to Run, and type cleanmgr in the little box that pops up. Hit okay, pick your operating system drive (likely drive C), and then select by checking Downloaded Program Files, Recycle Bin, Temporary Internet Files, Temporary Offline Files, and Temporary Files. Click okay, and this should erase the temporary files off of your computer.

If that does not solve your .exe errors, then you may want to consider getting a registry cleaner for your problems. Registry cleaners will generally fix the corrupted, broken, or empty files in your registry and clean it out; I would not recommend doing this manually, because making a mistake in your registry could be disastrous for your computer. A registry cleaner can very much be used if nothing else works to fix your .exe files.

Backing up your computer files is always a good idea. Now that information is mostly stored digitally, it’s hard to say when a power surge or accidental damage will cause your hard drive to die and lose all of its data. So be sure to keep a copy of your important (and useful, and possibly unimportant) files in a place that is not connected to your computer. That means that when you are backing up your files, you do not want to back them up onto another folder on your computer that is still on the same hard drive. Because the computer hard drive is what stores your information, if it breaks, then nothing can be retrieved, no matter where the folder is.

So how do you back up files? To where do you back up files? Well, the method varies depending on where you’re backing up the file to. There are several options in the modern day that are feasible. If you’d like, you can back up smaller files onto a universal serial bus (USB) flash drive. These small flash drives cost about 10 dollars for a more basic, 1 or 2 GB one, though there are small finger-length USB drives that can hold up to about 32 GB. Those, however, are significantly more expensive. A universal serial bus flash drive is useful when you want a portable backup system; USBs are the smallest of all backup items, and can be slipped easily into a pocket or purse. They’re also very sturdy, so you generally don’t have to worry about them traitorously cracking in half.

Another method for backing up your computer data is the normal recordable CD or the slightly more advanced rewritable CD. CDs (compact discs) are helpful for backing up your data because most computers and laptops these days come with a built-in CD burner, and software. If you are looking to burn data onto the CD, select “data CD” using your CD-burning software, and simply drag all of the files you want backed up into the folder of the CD. The advantage of using a CD to back up your hard drive is that it’s still portable (though a little larger than a USB flash drive), and it tends to have more space than a USB drive-CDs can usually hold about 7 or 8 gigabytes.

The final efficient storage method is the separate hard drive, which you can usually buy at any electronics company. Separate hard drives can be anywhere from 20 gigabytes to 400 gigabytes, or even higher. A separate hard drive tends to cost a bit more, but can hold a ton of data-if you have lots of digital photos, software programs, music, and the like on your computer that you don’t want to lose, then I would recommend the separate hard drive. Although this hard drive is not very portable, as it’s about the size of a thick textbook, it holds a lot of information.

Using one of these three methods, you should be able to find a suitable way to back up your hard drive. Do it soon to avoid risking all of your hard-earned data.

In these days, as computers are becoming more and more prevalent, there have been increased numbers of people trying to take advantage of the huge amount of personal information and data stored on individual computers. They are given this chance because of the Internet and the enormous world of information and technological innovations that it contains. Other people, for reasons of their own, create malware and viruses to glean our personal data or destroy our computer systems, resulting in the loss of tons of hard work and much information. With such risks at hand, what should we do to protect our computers? And how might we go about that?

Well, there are certainly many built-in features in computers that help to protect the system, but you will have to add some programs, such as virus scanners, to keep away all the junk and malicious software that travels across the Internet. Since viruses are self-replicating and therefore extremely difficult to remove on your own, having a virus scanner can help you both isolate and quarantine, and eventually delete, those viruses. In this way, you can keep your computer protected from at least some of the malicious content that can be found online and destroy your computer. Moreover, on public wireless networks, you should use a firewall and check the network’s privacy statement and encryption (if there is no privacy statement, avoid the network). Do not log into anything or use passwords or type in credit card information while on wireless networks.

Another very important thing to protect yourself from is spyware, which potentially can be more dangerous than a virus. While viruses attack your computer, that’s the only thing it focuses on-the computer. However, the spyware’s purpose is not to infect your computer and delete or corrupt its files; spyware will actively seek out your personal information, some even recording login usernames and passwords that would then be delivered to a third party source, eventually resulting in terrors such as identity theft. Thus, spyware is a most important malware to remove from your computer, as soon as possible. While spyware could potentially be removed manually, I would recommend that you install a program to scan for it-after all, since the spyware is basically invisible, you never know if there would be more on your computer that you missed, and spending money on a program is better than taking the risk. However, there are some good free spyware programs out there-Adaware is constantly kept up to date and fairly thorough, though Spybot Search And Destroy tends to be my favorite, as it looks into just about everything. If you have Windows Vista, you will have Windows Defender automatically built into your computer, and can run the program and choose to search for spyware and other malicious software. In general, spyware programs will help you isolate and quarantine any infections; also, they dig into the registry to find the keys there that are connected to the program-something you will likely miss yourself if you choose to manually delete the spyware.

The Internet is full of many different-and potentially harmful-things and information these days. There is crude and vulgar language, videos and images with sexual content, and online chat rooms and social networking sites that may jeopardize a child’s safety. If you are a parent who is concerned about your child’s protection when he or she is using the internet, you should consider using parental internet controls to limit what your child can view or see what websites your child is looking at. This article will provide you with an idea of what software out there is certified, and which of those works best.

CyberPatrol 7.6 is perhaps the best parental control software out there, and costs about $40 every year. This software blocks questionable websites and records what your child does online just like other parental control software, but CyberPatrol is the most versatile of all related products and allows you to customize it completely. CyberPatrol gives you the option to limit access to chat rooms and instant messaging, file sharing, and web browsing-but it also allows you to block certain programs installed in your computer, such as games. However, when you buy Cyber Patrol, it can unfortunately only be installed on one of your computers.

If your child often uses more than one computer for his or her work or Internet browsing, then consider getting Safe Eyes 5.0. This software is rated as the best for multiple computers, because it can be installed on three or fewer operating systems. Safe Eyes costs about $50 each year and you can change its settings from a remote computer immediately; this can be very helpful if you’re at work and your child needs immediate access to a block website. Any changes will take place right away, unlike in CyberPatrol. Additionally, Safe Eyes is also designed for the Mac, and is considered the best parental control software for the Mac.

A third great parental control program is Net Nanny 5.6, which costs approximately $50 per year and is perhaps the easiest parental filter that you will ever use. Net Nanny was once known as ContentProtect, though it has been updated drastically and changed for the new version, which is rated much better than the old. The new version of Net Nanny has a very intuitive interface that allows easy access for you, the parent, but is very difficult and nearly impossible for kids to get around. Net Nanny will allow you to block peer to peer networks and also allows you to manage it from a remote computer. Filtering is very effective, as in CyberPatrol and Safe Eyes, but separate licenses must be bought for separate computers in your home, so it is more expensive than Safe Eyes if you have multiple used computers.

These three are perhaps the top three parental filtering products on the web right now, and they each have their own benefits. If you have Windows Vista, it will come with parental controls, so you need not worry about buying the software separately.

Sometimes, though we don’t realize it, it’s pretty important to back up our email files. In case something happens, such as your deleting an email that was more important than you believed, you want to be able to access the email again-but it’s gone! There are many ways to lose email and the contacts from your Address Book; however, if you’re using Microsoft Outlook, that problem may be remedied. While this step-by-step process doesn’t necessarily guarantee that you can recover everything (or anything), it’s definitely worth a shot; I’ve used it successfully a few times. However, this method only works for Outlook Express, as far as I know.

First, you want to be able to view hidden files and folders. To do so, click on My Computer (from the Start Menu or your Desktop) and then click on the Tools drop-down menu at the top of the screen. From the list, choose Folder Options, and click on the view tab; then, scroll all the way down and uncheck the “do not show hidden files and folders” and check “Show hidden files and folders”. Also, remove the check from the “Hide extensions for known file types”, and then click Apply.

After enabling the viewing of hidden files and folders, you need to go to Documents and Settings on the C drive, and click on it (this only applies to Windows XP). Find your username and double click it, and then click on Local Settings, and then Application Data. Here, you should find a listing for Identities (may be hidden file or folder, so it’s slightly transparent and grayed out). If the identities are not there for some reason, click Microsoft, and then Outlook Express, and the identities should appear.

The number of identity folders that your computer has will vary-some have only one or two, while others have much more (ten, fifteen). If you have many folders, it’ll be easier to find which identity folder will be correct. Open each Identity file and search for all the folders; if they’re not listed, then you have the wrong identity file. Click on different identity folders until you find the one with all of the folders; then, write down the numbers for that Identity. Then, close everything and open up Outlook Express and, from the drop-down file menu, select “Import”. Then, highlight messages. Choose the program that contains your lost messages. If you are using Microsoft Outlook Express 6, you will need to select Outlook Express 6 as your program, and then click Next. Now, you have to use browse to select the Identity folder with all your folders, and once you’ve found the correct folder, Outlook Express should then import all the folders and messages, and you can now read them!

However, if this doesn’t work, you can go to My Documents and create a folder, and go back to the Identity location where the missing email folders are. Select all the files, and copy and paste into the newly created folder, and try to import again, but this time select “Import mail from an OE6 store directory”. This should work, and you will have your email messages back!