And do I really need a fire wall? and how do I see if my routers is on if I do not have the instructions?

it takes so long b/c you have to much porn...and your computer is worried that it might lose all of it's fleshy water bag entertainment :p

seriously though it depends on how long it's been since your last defrag..adn how much info is on the ddrive. the more info the longer it take sto organize in a nice logical efficeint manor. as fo ra router it depends if it's a hardware one it is alwasy on (as long as your ccomputer is pluged in :p ) if it's a software one then i guess it depends on what kind or who makes it.

hmm i hope some of that made sense

What he said ^^^

Its funny how slow computers automatically = porn.








..Of course for the most part it is true. :p :D

^hehehehe

oh and you can most likly download teh instructions off of the manufactorers web site. sorry missed tha tpart originaly :rollseyes:

i enable my netgear firewall using WPA encryption. make sure you use a network name(SSID) that only you would know about.

it takes so long b/c you have to much porn...and your computer is worried that it might lose all of it's fleshy water bag entertainment :p

seriously though it depends on how long it's been since your last defrag..adn how much info is on the ddrive. the more info the longer it take sto organize in a nice logical efficeint manor. as fo ra router it depends if it's a hardware one it is alwasy on (as long as your ccomputer is pluged in :p ) if it's a software one then i guess it depends on what kind or who makes it.

hmm i hope some of that made sense


It is built into the router..but I thought you could turn it on and off..or am I just a simpleton?

Its funny how slow computers automatically = porn.








..Of course for the most part it is true. :p :D

whoa. how would you know. :p

i enable my netgear firewall using WPA encryption. make sure you use a network name(SSID) that only you would know about.


Yours is wireless...mine is wired.

Yours is wireless...mine is wired.

why? lol

I do not trust those wireless do dads. I must have security to protect my clients files...all 6 of them.. :rolleyes:

you are in a bad mood tonight.

Actually, I was in a horrid mood. but I am feeling a little better. It must be the ambien putting me to sleep...finally...

whoa. how would you know. :p

Guy + post... nuff said. :p :D

And do I really need a fire wall? and how do I see if my routers is on if I do not have the instructions?
Yes you need a firewall. Most home DSL/Cable routers have a NAT firewall built in that will protect your network. It's on by default so there's no need to turn it on. Depending on what router you have you can go to the manufacturer's website and download the manual in PDF format.

Two good sites to checkout. The first is for basic info on setting up a home network:

http://www.practicallynetworked.com/

The second is a great place to go to test your firewall to see if it's doing its job (check out the rest of the site too):

Gibson Research Corp (https://www.grc.com/x/ne.dll?bh0bkyd2)

the files are in the computer...its so simple

the files are in the computer...its so simple
I got two words for you: Zip Disk. :p

Yes you need a firewall. Most home DSL/Cable routers have a NAT firewall built in that will protect your network. It's on by default so there's no need to turn it on. Depending on what router you have you can go to the manufacturer's website and download the manual in PDF format.

Two good sites to checkout. The first is for basic info on setting up a home network:

http://www.practicallynetworked.com/

The second is a great place to go to test your firewall to see if it's doing its job (check out the rest of the site too):

Gibson Research Corp (https://www.grc.com/x/ne.dll?bh0bkyd2)



Thank you ev eryone for the advice..and thank you ronin for the links.

According to the gibson site, I pass everything with perfect scores. They say That my computer is invisable to hackers, which is what I wanted to know.

I can sleep better now, My NAT firewall is doing its thing.

I get anal thoughts sometimes, my system has been slow of late, and I know that a possible cause is(are) virus's and the like

Spywarez! XD

Thank you ev eryone for the advice..and thank you ronin for the links.

According to the gibson site, I pass everything with perfect scores. They say That my computer is invisable to hackers, which is what I wanted to know.

I can sleep better now, My NAT firewall is doing its thing.

I get anal thoughts sometimes, my system has been slow of late, and I know that a possible cause is(are) virus's and the like
Rich make sure you're running an anti-spyware program like Spybot Search and Destroy (http://www.download.com/3000-2144-10122137.html?part=104443&subj=dlpage&tag=button) along with Spyware Blaster (http://www.download.com/SpywareBlaster/3000-8022-10196637.html?part=89891&subj=dlpage&tag=button). Both will go a long way to keeping your system safe. Also if you're still using IE and Outlook (Express), stop and use Firefox (http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/) and Thunderbird (http://www.mozilla.org/products/thunderbird/).

:)

Rich make sure you're running an anti-spyware program like Spybot Search and Destroy (http://www.download.com/3000-2144-10122137.html?part=104443&subj=dlpage&tag=button) along with Spyware Blaster (http://www.download.com/SpywareBlaster/3000-8022-10196637.html?part=89891&subj=dlpage&tag=button). Both will go a long way to keeping your system safe. Also if you're still using IE and Outlook (Express), stop and use Firefox (http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/) and Thunderbird (http://www.mozilla.org/products/thunderbird/).

:)


I try to use fire fox as much as possible...and I do not use outlook.

I run spybot:search and destroy at least every two days, and adaware also.

I was using grisoft avg, but the current build is corrupt, and will not reinstall on my system(this started a few days ago..and increased my worry...I deleted the program, but when I down load it it says the files are corrupt.

So on the advice of Maximum PC, I started using AVAST!. It is not very intuitive, but it is updated a lot. I run that about twice a week...and I ususally have it in backround mode, unless I am playing a game.

I guess with everything I do online now, and m client files being mostly electronic, I get a little worried. SOme of the files are pretty confidential. I should move them all to a CD or DVD. that is the smart thing.

I guess with everything I do online now, and m client files being mostly electronic, I get a little worried. SOme of the files are pretty confidential. I should move them all to a CD or DVD. that is the smart thing.
If it's only a few files, i.e. less than 1GB get one of these:

Lexar JumpDrive Lightning (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820191142&ATT=Memory+Flash+Memory+&CMP=OTC-d3alt1me)

Encryption goooood! :D

If it's a lot more than that you can use a DVD, but a portable HD would be better. Only connect it when you need it. Much faster than a CD or DVD. ;)

To answer your original question, I think it takes so long because it is actually moving files and programs all over the place inside your computer's memory. The reason WHY it needs to do this is basically because you reuse the computer memory over and over again.
For instance, let's say you are writing an essay in NotePad (because you are too cheap to buy Word). "The implications of owning an RX-8..." Now you hit save.
It's possible that it gets stored into broken up memory addresses:
mem. address
1000: T
1001: h
1002: e
1003:
1004: i
1005: m
1006: p
(1007-1200): [some other file]
1201: l
1202: i
1203: c
1204: a

etc.

So, I think defragmenting helps put these all in consecutive locations again so it doesn't need to jump around to find all the info.

Interestingly, when you delete a bunch of files, they don't actually get deleted. They just get MARKED "safe" to be overwritten. So if you accidentally delete something, even after you empty trash, it is likely still on your computer. As time goes on, that memory gets reused and eventually that file really has been deleted.

Essentially, yes. But it's locations on the drive, not on the memory. :p

Yes..the Gov't has a program and you can buy them, that overwrites a file like 6-10 times to make sure it is gone. I think this months maximum PC has a freeware program that does that also.


Now, why does the built in xp defragmenter take so long, while third party stuff is so much faster...and WTF happened to the little blue blocks in xp? now it is a line grid thing...I want my blue blocks back!!! :mad:

By the way..thank you everyone for the help and info again. I am good at building the damn things..my wife is good at programming them, but the "how things work" and "security" side is not my forte'

Yes..the Gov't has a program and you can buy them, that overwrites a file like 6-10 times to make sure it is gone. I think this months maximum PC has a freeware program that does that also. There are many data removal programs out there but I like Eraser (http://www.heidi.ie/eraser/download.php) the best. ;)

edit - The government standard is 35 passes not 6 to 10. That's still no guarantee that your data is unrecoverable, though. ;)

I miss those little blue blocks too...

If you really want to clean the drive of data, disassemble it, take out the platters, shatter them, then either melt them down in a furnace or disolve them in acid. That should take care of it. :D

Personally I like Norton's Speed Disk from their Norton Utilities suite.

I always schedule it to defrag my harddrives twice a week during the hours when I'm not going to be using my computer.

That way, your harddrives are always in tip-top condition whenever you use it.

I can not tell you how many times nortons virus stuff has crashed my computers..especially my laptop. That is why I switched to AVG.

Personally I like Norton's Speed Disk from their Norton Utilities suite.

I always schedule it to defrag my harddrives twice a week during the hours when I'm not going to be using my computer.

That way, your harddrives are always in tip-top condition whenever you use it.

Norton is just as bad as a virus. For spyware I recommend Microsoft Spyware Beta. For a cheep free effective virus scanner that auto updates is fast and no invasive use AVG (www.grisoft.com)

NAT = Network Address Translation != firewall... however due to the nature of NAT it makes you pretty much invisible to everyone on the internet unless you enable portfowarding.

Defragment a harddrive basically takes longer and longer based on size of drive and how often you defrag. Pron will slow down your computer because if you download alot of it your drive is going to be hella fragmented. W00+ pr0n rules though. Another thing that will help fight fragmentation is a fixed Swap file.

WPA = Wifi Protected Access = just secures the data transfered between your wireless device and you wireless router. BTW it's not very secure, and chances are if you use something 802.11a/b/g at a starbux someone is gonna snoop your data.

I miss those little blue blocks too...

If you really want to clean the drive of data, disassemble it, take out the platters, shatter them, then either melt them down in a furnace or disolve them in acid. That should take care of it. :D

shatter the platters? HAHAHAHA

you've obviously never tried :D

a few years ago, i had a drive that died, so me being the curious person that i am, wanted to see inside the drive. so i took it apart. i was all "oooh. aaah." and then once that was over, i wanted to break stuff...i was mischievious back then :).

so i grabbed one of the platter, grabbed a hammer, went outside, threw the platter on the ground, and started beating the hell out of it with the hammer. it didn't break. sure, it was covered in dents, but it was still whole. now i was determined. so i spent about another 30 minutes wailing on the platter with the hammer. stupid thing was still in one piece :eek:

now i was angry. and continued the pummeling, while flipping the platter over ever few hits. i finally stopped and declared victory when i had actually broken through. and by broken through, i mean there was crack in one of the dents that allowed the smallest amount of light to pass through one of the deeper dents.

if you really want the drive destroyed, i recommend thermite (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermite) :D

Defragmenting takes time because for every bit of information you need to move on the disk, you are waiting for the physical drive to rotate to the desired location, and the read/write head to slew over to read, and then re-write the data in a different location. CPUs are way faster now than 10 years ago, but the physical speeds of hard drives haven't improved all that much -- the data density is way up but not the physical speed. So you may have a 3GHz processor instead of 200Mhz and a 300GB drive instead of a 2GB drive. But all that extra data on the hard-drive is still being written to a spinning platter.

In a sense, you're sorting information on the drive. And just like in sorting, there are different approaches that can speed up the process, thus different programs can be more or less efficient at the task.

But you're still ultimately limited by the physical speed of the drive. If you had all that data in memory and wanted to defragment it, it would happen WAYY fast.

Defragmenting takes time because for every bit of information you need to move on the disk, you are waiting for the physical drive to rotate to the desired location, and the read/write head to slew over to read, and then re-write the data in a different location. CPUs are way faster now than 10 years ago, but the physical speeds of hard drives haven't improved all that much -- the data density is way up but not the physical speed. So you may have a 3GHz processor instead of 200Mhz and a 300GB drive instead of a 2GB drive. But all that extra data on the hard-drive is still being written to a spinning platter.

In a sense, you're sorting information on the drive. And just like in sorting, there are different approaches that can speed up the process, thus different programs can be more or less efficient at the task.

But you're still ultimately limited by the physical speed of the drive. If you had all that data in memory and wanted to defragment it, it would happen WAYY fast.

The defragger they gave you with W98 was not limited in the least by your drive characteristics. It was limited by the stupid algorithm they gave you. Remember how many times it would restart as you would stare mindlessly at the spots being filled in?

These days, if you just get a big enough drive you never have to defrag.

I can not tell you how many times nortons virus stuff has crashed my computers..especially my laptop. That is why I switched to AVG.
I have never had a problem with Norton AV. Symantec's Internet Security product (which includes Norton AV) sucks a donkey's balls, but I've used Avast (hated it) and AVG (not bad, but not good either) and I'll take Norton AV any day.

Norton is just as bad as a virus. For spyware I recommend Microsoft Spyware Beta. For a cheep free effective virus scanner that auto updates is fast and no invasive use AVG (www.grisoft.com)

NAT = Network Address Translation != firewall... however due to the nature of NAT it makes you pretty much invisible to everyone on the internet unless you enable portfowarding.

Defragment a harddrive basically takes longer and longer based on size of drive and how often you defrag. Pron will slow down your computer because if you download alot of it your drive is going to be hella fragmented. W00+ pr0n rules though. Another thing that will help fight fragmentation is a fixed Swap file.

WPA = Wifi Protected Access = just secures the data transfered between your wireless device and you wireless router. BTW it's not very secure, and chances are if you use something 802.11a/b/g at a starbux someone is gonna snoop your data.
I hate the MS Anti-spyware. It didn't pick up SpySheriff. If it fails at one thing, it fails in general in my book. :p

shatter the platters? HAHAHAHA

you've obviously never tried :D

a few years ago, i had a drive that died, so me being the curious person that i am, wanted to see inside the drive. so i took it apart. i was all "oooh. aaah." and then once that was over, i wanted to break stuff...i was mischievious back then :).

so i grabbed one of the platter, grabbed a hammer, went outside, threw the platter on the ground, and started beating the hell out of it with the hammer. it didn't break. sure, it was covered in dents, but it was still whole. now i was determined. so i spent about another 30 minutes wailing on the platter with the hammer. stupid thing was still in one piece :eek:

now i was angry. and continued the pummeling, while flipping the platter over ever few hits. i finally stopped and declared victory when i had actually broken through. and by broken through, i mean there was crack in one of the dents that allowed the smallest amount of light to pass through one of the deeper dents.

if you really want the drive destroyed, i recommend thermite (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermite) :D
Phillistine, have you ever tried using liquid N2? :D

I hate the MS Anti-spyware. It didn't pick up SpySheriff. If it fails at one thing, it fails in general in my book. :p


Phillistine, have you ever tried using liquid N2? :D

I know for a fact that a .45 will do some nice damage, but it will take a few shots to completely ruin it. A slug from a 12 guage does very nice too.

Zuhalter's got the idea. Think outside the box! :D

Defrag analogy: Throwing all the books at a library on the floor and putting them back in dewey decimal sequence. :D

128-bit WEP encryption is fine for most wireless NATrouters if you turn off SSID broadcast. If you don't broadcast it, war-driving poachers have a harder time finding you. There's so many unsecured mom-pop-new-linksys-router hotspots they won't bother unless you are under suspicion by the Feds or they have a real reason to crack YOUR network.

Some no-lifes get off on cracking WEP (http://www.tomsnetworking.com/Sections-article118.php) for giggles or just the challenge, but you're relatively secure at 128-bit. WPA is no Fort Knox either. If still not at ease, punch holes in your walls and run cat5 ethernet cabling.

PS - I highly suggest not doing E-banking via wireless.

My freaking wireless network won't even run on any WEP encryption. I can't connect to the router whenever I enable it. I have no idea why...

I'm cheap!
I've had good luck with these freeware programs:
Eraser 5.6 (http://easynews.dl.sourceforge.net/sourceforge/eraser/Eraser56Setup.zip)
Zone Alarm (http://www.snapfiles.com/dlnow/dlnow.dll?Inc=No&ID=103984)
Cryptainer LE (http://www.cypherix.com/download/cryle.exe)
MaxCrypt (http://theplanet.tucows.com/files4/MaxCrypt_v1.09.exe)
IE Privacy Keeper (http://www.browsertools.net/downloads/IEPrivacyKeeperTA.exe)

Defrag?
I do it once a month :D

The real man's way to get rid of a hard drive is to buy a bad PSU or watercooling system :p

Phillistine, have you ever tried using liquid N2? :D

haha. not something that was readily available to me while i was in college. :p

In the basement of the Physics buidling, we had huge tanks of the stuff. :D

In the basement of the Physics buidling, we had huge tanks of the stuff. :D

yeah, my school had that, but the greedy batards would only let physics majors that needed it for class get to it. and since i didn't really know anyone that was a physics major, i couldn't get to the stuff :(