The laptop in question is one of the oldest Pentium 4 laptops. A very slow 4200rpm hard drive and a challenged ram situation (512mb) made Windows run very slow on this piece. A majorly hosed up Windows installation to boot, another tech pun, made it just freeze in place and get choppy even moving the cursor or playing an mp3. Who knows who the original owner was, any chance of getting the driver CDs or original Windows installation disc are very slim.

Driver and Operating System reinstall discs can be acquired for a laptop like this. The older the computer, the harder it is to do. In the case of the old Toshiba, it is probably circling the drain anyway, so I would never spend the time.

The Snowball’s Chance

Download Ubuntu Linux

I’m naming the old Toshiba, you guessed it, Snowball!

I’m writing this blog post from it right now. The savior? Ubuntu Linux.

Ubuntu is a distribution, or one organizations particluar flavor, of the free, open-source operating system Linux. One of the major innovations that all distributions have been working towards lately is ease of use. For a long time, Linux was only for the more technical user. Even simple tasks like installing software required research, reading and sometimes a lot of forum thread conversations to get through. Ubuntu has made it a quick solution, installation will involve more mouse clicks than keystrokes.

Use It

I downloaded the installation CD, burned it to a disc, booted and began the OS install. Less than an hour later I was booting into Ubuntu for the first time. After setting up e-mail, chat and flash for the web browser, I began being productive. I took a desktop screenshot and a picture with my iPhone, edited the pictures with Gimp, then uploaded them and wrote this WordPress using Firefox and the quickly installed Flash plugin.

Ubuntu runs on almost any computer, is more efficient with resources than Windows, and is vastly less susceptible to viruses. It is a great way to do the basics, e-mail, chat and web browsing, costs nothing, and is easy to install.

Throughout these endeavors we see all too often: massive virus infection. People often ask me what the cause is. Spouses suspect that their mates have been browsing web content that they shouldn’t have. Parents wonder if their children have been illegally downloading music and software on LimeWire. Conspiracy theorists think the virus software itself is spreading numerous viruses to keep the need up for yearly maintenance fees. Since we are asked this question so often, here is the most common way our ill-fated computers are being infected with unwanted, malicious software.

Malicious Internet Advertising

Just because Facebook is reputable and does not intentionally allow advertisements that seek to hijack your computer doesn’t mean they could not be fooled. This article from CNET describes a rogue ad which ended up on the New York Times web site. The paper was duped into posting the ad by someone posing to be a legitimate business. This is not an isolated incident, it happens all the time. Popular sites that sell large amount of advertising are constantly battling to keep the ads clean. Sometimes a malignant ad gets posted for a while, and one click can hijack your machine.

The lesson to learn from the New York Times example is simple. If an ad you find on a web site intrigues you, Google the subject matter first. If the advertisement in question is legitimate, it won’t be hard to relocate the company or product through a safer means… just Google it.

The PPC advertisers won’t like that I am advising this. Don’t blame me. Blame the spammers that are ruining Internet advertising for the rest of us.

Ads Posing As System Messages

A common trick up the villain’s sleeve to watch out for commonly used in advertising fraud is creating the ad itself to look like a system message (see image below). In the case of the New York Times’ infected ad, the post warned the user that their computer had an infection and clicking this link would direct them to some anti-virus software installation that would cure the problem. The jerks that create this malware actually post as the solution to the problem that they are creating.

The lesson is to learn what your anti-virus software is and stick to it. Be very wary of installing anything, or clicking a link on any web site unless you are completely sure what you are clicking on.

Posing As A Virus Scanner

Another common trick is to pose as a virus scanner. So often the worst virus infections we see are malware programs like Anti-Virus 2009. Programs that by general definition, are a virus themselves, that are wolves in sheep’s clothing.

The lesson here is to know the name of the virus scanner you are using. Make sure you are familiar with its pop-ups and functions, so when any alerts or dialogs pop up on your screen you can quickly and clearly identify them as genuine.

There Are Many More Ways

This is not to say that advertisements are the only way a virus can find its way to you. I do assert that it is the most common. Virus scanner technology now actively scans your e-mail and discs you put in your computer. I use AVG on most of my PCs that I manage, and even when someone downloads a virus on LimeWire or sharing software, AVG’s active scanner usually catches it.

AVG has taken steps towards curing this epidemic but integrating a system that shows web browser’s if a site is verified before they visit. The advancements however, have not stopped malicious ads from doing their job.

By being vigilant about what you click on, keeping a mainstream virus scanner up-to-date, and using a filtered e-mail service like Google or properly hosted Exchange, you will find yourself wasting less time with your computer on the fritz.

Sources

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1009_3-10351460-83.html
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10356174-56.html
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080_3-10353402-245.html
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/05/30/mass_web_infection/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/06/02/beladen_mass_website_infection/

Building web sites really is one of my favorite things to do, and I hold firm to the belief that because I enjoy my work I do not fall under many of the downfalls and burdens life can place upon a person. I also take a lot of pride in my work, and doing a good job adds to my happiness.

So I am off my soapbox now. If you have time, take a moment to look at TechStudio. I would love suggestions on how to improve the clarity of the message, and if anyone has any questions about the company I can address those here as well.

Keep an eye out, I am redesigning my personal blog here as well, and will be integrating it into the main site and linking back and forth a lot more.