Q: While searching for holiday sales using Internet Explorer, a Web site sent me pop-ups saying my computer needed to be scanned for viruses, then began scanning it. What’s going on? Is my computer safe? A: You’re seeing the result of a Web site that’s been “hacked” or compromised. Web sites, just like computers, can [...]

Q: I use Windows Live Mail for e-mail. When people using Outlook Express (and perhaps other programs as well) try to reply to my messages they see the following error message: “You cannot send digitally signed messages because you do not have a digital ID for this account.” I can turn off the digital signatures [...]

Q: I can’t find the tabs along the bottom of my Microsoft Works spreadsheet for switching between different spreadsheets. How do I turn them on? A: It sounds like you’re confusing Microsoft Works’ spreadsheet with its more powerful cousin, Microsoft Excel. Although both spreadsheets look similar on the surface, Microsoft Works’ spreadsheet has a major [...]

Most people hate their antivirus program for many reasons. Once you buy an antivirus program, for example, you’re stuck paying an annual fee. If you ever stop, the program stops working. And when most antivirus programs do their job, they often slow down your PC by overloading it with an overblown security “suite,” which duplicates [...]

Q: Do all Internet radio stations broadcast using MP3 format at 128 Kbps bit rate? And how do I record Internet radio stations onto my computer’s hard drive? A: Internet radio stations can broadcast (commonly known as “stream”) at any rate or file format they prefer. But many choose 128 Kbps because it strikes a [...]