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My MSN account, which I’ve had for 10 years was closed and I was denied access. I have a professional band that has a large fan base and I email a newsletter out to everyone when we play, but I’ve been doing it for over 10 years so I’m not sure if this is the problem. Help?

Contact the Microsoft Abuse Department

Microsoft might have closed your MSN account due to a violation of their Terms of Use. In order to find out more about this, you will need to get in touch with them directly. In cases like this users are asked to contact the Microsoft Abuse Team, which you can email at abuse@hotmail.com. You will, of course, need to send this email from an alternate account, so you can create a new or temporary Hotmail account to deal with this problem, or use a different email client, if you already have one set up.

MSN Terms of Use

If you have violated the Terms of Use, you will need to negotiate with the support department and see if you can be reinstated. The Terms of Use includes anti-spam clauses, so the mass emails you are sending to your band’s fan base might be the source of the problem. In your email to the Abuse department, you should provide this information and try to explain that you were not sending spam. This might take a while to sort out, but is the only option.

Anti-Spam Policy

Here is a link to the Microsoft Terms of Use Anti-Spam Policy. You might want to review it before you write to the Abuse department so that you are familiar with the terms and can explain your violation as a mistake, not an intentional spamming. In brief, this document outlines that users are prohibited from using their MSN accounts to send unsolicited bulk or commercial email, most commonly called spam.

You should explain your newsletter situation to the customer service people in your email and see if there is a way to overcome this issue. You might be able to illustrate that your fan base signed up for your newsletter and that it is not unsolicited. Or, you might be able to send your newsletter in smaller batches, or you might need to send it from another email client. All of this you will need to talk about with the MSN Abuse department. It is most likely that you account was closed automatically, in response to a perceived violation, rather than deliberately closed by an agent. State your case and hope for the best, good luck!

I have a PC game that won’t play. There are three CDs for the game but when I put them in nothing happens. Help?

Troubleshoot the CD/DVD Drive and the Disk

The very first thing to do is make sure that the disk drive can read other CDs. Try another disk in the drive, first just an audio disk, and make sure that your system can read and play it. If this works, next try a different game CD or a movie DVD to make sure that the drive can read and play that. If you aren’t able to play even an audio CD, things aren’t looking good. Your drive isn’t working at all and you should probably see about having it repaired.

If the game won’t play, you should try it in another computer to make sure that it isn’t a faulty copy, although that is less likely since the problem is the same on all three disks. If you are able to play a CD but aren’t able to read and play other games, it is possible that your drive needs to be repaired, but there are some troubleshooting tips to try first.

Troubleshoot with Device Manager

A good place to start is in Device Manager, which will tell you if there are any problems with your graphics card or other devices needed to play your game. To open Device Manager:

• Click Start, then Control Panel
• Choose System, then Device Manager
• Find the listings you are interested in and click the + marks to expand the sections
• Look for yellow ! marks that indicate problems

Update your Drivers

You should also update your drivers to try to resolve any errors. Drivers are small software programs that allow your computer’s operating system to communicate properly with hardware devices you are using, especially if your operating system is older than your devices. To update your drivers go to the website of the company that manufactured your computer and look for a page called Downloads and Drivers or something similar. Then enter your operating system information and find the appropriate drivers.

PC Game Encryption

There are also some PC games that are very encrypted. Some users report that downloading special encryption cracker software can help with this.

I just got a Dell Optiplex gx270 and I cannot get my wireless g to get on the Internet. Am I missing something?

Wireless Network Cards

Well, unless you have added a wireless network card or adapter to your Dell Optiplex, you might be missing wireless capability. The Dell Optiplex, like most PCs, isn’t necessarily equipped with a wireless card from the factory but you can add one, or you can run a wire from your PC to your modem or router. If you decide to add one, make sure that you take your computer’s specifications with you to the store and check that the computer can support the card.

Check your System with Device Manager

If you aren’t sure whether or not there is a wireless adapter built into your system, you can check using Device Manager. Click Start, then Control Panel, then System and then Device Manager. Here you can scroll and look for a wireless card listing. If there isn’t one, then you will need to add it before you can get online wirelessly. If there is one, you can check for a yellow ! mark beside the listing, which would indicate a problem with the card or the connectivity.

Update your Drivers from Dell

Once you have a wireless adapter installed, you will most likely need to update your drivers. Dell has several driver releases for the Optiplex gx 270 and you can find them here. The drivers should help your computer’s operating system communicate with newer hardware, such as the wireless card and router. Here is the link to the Dell Optiplex gx 270 Drivers and Downloads page. Use the drop down menus to get the right drivers for your operating system.

Check with your Internet Service Provider

Once you download and install the new drivers, you should be able to get online, at least in theory. If you are still having problems configuring a wireless router or modem with your computer, you can contact your Internet service provider. Sometimes you need to adjust your IP address to configure your system with the provider.

I hope these suggestions help. If not, you can write again with some information about what you have tried, what works and what doesn’t, and we can take it from there. PS - Don’t forget to make sure that the wireless adapter is switched on. For example, many laptops have an on/off switch for the wireless adapter. Good luck!

The Web says that Microsoft has fixed their security issue but when I go to Microsoft Update or Download Page I still get the “cannot display this page” error. Is there a fix or work round for this serious security issue? I have used McAfee’s Stinger program to check for viruses and my system came up clean. Please help. I can’t even download MS .Net Framework 3.5 to ramp up my video card software.

Cannot Display Page Error

I’m not sure about the exact security issue you are referencing. I have heard of an Internet Explorer 7 update that causes a “cannot display this page” error. This particular error involves a change in the file signatures of Internet Explorer 7 and third party security products that do not recognize these file signatures. Microsoft’s Knowledge Base Article 942818 recommends updating the third party security software.

Microsoft recently published Knowledge Base Article 956196 addressing “cannot display this page” errors in Internet Explorer 8 and below. That article is filled with troubleshooting steps that may help you.

Regardless, if you cannot display Web pages, it’s tough to get the updates and downloads from your security vendor’s Web site or Microsoft’s Web site. Instead of visiting these sites, let’s explore a few different options.

Updating Security Software

You mentioned that you use McAfee Stinger. According to McAfee, “Stinger is a stand-alone utility used to detect and remove specific viruses. It is not a substitute for full anti-virus protection . . .” This leads me to believe that Stinger may be limited in its scope. In fact, its threat list is just 16 pages long. Do you have any other security software installed? If so, I recommend that you uninstall Stinger and update the other product or invest in a complete PC security solution such as Trend Micro Internet Security or Kaspersky by buying a CD from your local computer store. You can always re-download the latest version of Stinger later.

Once you have a complete security product installed, update it by right-clicking its icon in the System Tray and choosing Update Now or by launching the software and using its Update Now button.

Using Windows Update

Again, I’m not sure which security issue we’re discussing, so I’m unable to research the specifics. But you say that Microsoft has issued a fix, so let’s see if we can’t get that fix installed on your computer somehow. Depending on how you have Windows Update set up on your computer, you may already have the update on your computer though it might not be installed. For example, I just checked my Windows Update and several “important” and “optional” updates are waiting for me to give the okay to install them - including that .Net Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1 update that you want.

To check, go to Control Panel > Windows Update. Click on View Available Updates. This will show you the updates that have been downloaded but not yet installed. If your list doesn’t show optional updates, go back and click Change Settings and make sure that you have the “Include recommended updates when downloading, installing, or notifying me about updates” enabled.

If you do have updates waiting to be installed, go ahead and install them now and then reboot. If not, click on the Check Updates link. Windows Update will then check with Microsoft for the required updates.

Downloading Updates to Disk  

A final idea is to borrow a friend’s computer and head to the Microsoft Downloads site. Find the Windows Update that addresses your problem and download it to CD, USB stick, or floppy disc. You can then install the update on your computer from the portable storage device.

I am not able to log into my account as the administrator. Recently our kids were getting pop-up messages on MSN. A friend had pre-warned us not to click on these messages. Unfortunately, another friend’s daughter received the same MSN pop-up and clicked it. It has since mucked up her mum’s access to sign in as administrator and spread to the rest of her contacts, mine included! Is this a job for a computer technician or is there something I can do?

Sounds like your friend’s computer became infected with malware from this MSN popup. From there, her infected computer took the liberty of sending this same malware via her MSN contact list or even her standard e-mail account. Nice, huh? Now, all of her contacts’ computers are infected.

MSN Viruses

There have been several MSN viruses in the past, so it’s tough to say which specific one your computer has. Fortunately, we don’t necessarily need to know which MSN virus or worm infiltrated your system; we just need a few good tools to clean up your computer system. MSN viruses have been around for several years and new ones are continuously being introduced. The older ones can be removed using just about any reliable computer security product as defenses have already been created and implemented. In addition, computer security product developers are pretty quick at identifying and implementing new defenses for recently introduced viruses.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at your current computer defenses and see if these tools are able to combat this MSN virus. If not, I’ll recommend several good products that you can try.

Update Your Computer’s Security

First, what type of antivirus software do you have? When was the last time it was updated? When was the last complete system scan? Does it also protect against spyware? I ask these questions because even if you have antivirus protection installed, viruses can sneak in. If the product that you use does not provide real time blocking, a virus can do its damage in between system scans (after all, the virus hasn’t been detected yet.) In addition, antivirus products do not block spyware, so other malware can get on your computer and carry out all kinds of intrusive missions.

Start by updating your antivirus product so that you have the latest defenses and then run a complete system scan. If your software detects the virus, it will either remove it or quarantine, either of which should solve your problem. If not, try a different computer security product, taking care to select only a reputable product from a well-known computer security vendor.

Recommend Computer Security Products

We recommend computer security products from well-known vendors because so many fake antivirus products are out there. In addition, look for a combo antivirus/anti-spyware product with real time protection as these protect you from both dangers and actively prevent the malware from getting in. Read our reviews of the Top 2009 Antivirus Products and pick the one that best meets your needs. Several are even free for non-commercial use.

Unless this virus is brand new, I’m confident that a good computer security product will eliminate it - perhaps even the software that is already on your computer. Since many of your friends are experiencing the same thing, don’t forget to let them know what worked for you.

I tried to run a full backup this morning … backing up all C: files to my E: external hard drive. C: = 149 GB available, on E: 456 GB. C: is using the NTFS file system, E is using FAT32. The backup error tells me there wasn’t enough space. E has plenty of free space. Why am I getting this error?

Data Backup

You are correct that the external hard drive appears to have enough space to hold 149 GB of data from your C drive. After all, if you are only transferring 149 GB onto a space with 456 GB of free space, then you have sufficient room on E drive. Check and make sure that the size of data that you are backing up does not exceed the external drive’s capacity. For example, you have 149 GB of free space on the C: drive. However, you are not backing up the free space; rather you are backing up the data. In addition, there are other backup considerations to think about.

The first suggested solution is the most likely one to resolve the problem for you so start there. If that one does not work, then you can continue down the list. Most of the other suggestions are basic ones.

Insufficient Space for Data Backup on Drive Using FAT32

This type of error message is a common one whenever trying to back up more than 4GB of data onto an external drive using FAT32. The suggested solution from Microsoft is to create multiple backups.

Backing up Data to External Drive and Temporary Space

Every process that takes place on a computer uses up some of the resources that are available. When sufficient resources are not available, the situation will prompt the “not enough space” error message. If the amount of free space that you have for temporary use to transfer the files isn’t large enough, you will receive this message. What you need to do then will be to free up some space. Additionally, this message is sometimes generated when any disk on the computer is nearing 10% available space. Therefore, the wisest step is to free up some space on any additional hard drives/partitions that you might have installed.

Freeing up Temporary Space for Data Backup

In order to free up available space to complete the data backup transfer, consider completing the following steps:

• Delete unwanted programs, games, and pictures.
• Delete unwanted documents and files.
• Clear the temporary Internet cache, cookies, browsing history, etc.
• Empty the Recycle Bin.

Selecting Backup Data

It’s important to select only the data that you actually intend to backup with this transfer. For most systems, the C drive contains not only the operating system and documents, but also every game and application that you have installed onto it. This adds up to an entire wealth of data. If you are only interested in the meat of the system, you might try selecting a smaller portion to transfer rather than the entire drive. For example, transferring “My Documents and Settings” will effectively transfer your personal settings and data files. Data backup will take place more quickly if you select only the data that you need to save rather than everything that is on the computer.

Changing the Default for Data Backup

Depending on the model/make of your computer and the operating system that you have installed, the default for data backup is probably not set to an external drive. Whenever backing up data, check that the setting has been switched to the one that you intend to use, in this case, the E drive.