Podnutz Daily #140 - XBOX 360 Red Rings Of Death

Listen Here: pnd140.mp3

My first Xbox 360 came into the shop today
- Troubleshooting red rings of death

Stuck keys on a laptop due to spills?
- Just replace the keyboard
- Make sure you get the correct model number of the keyboard
-HP DV series has several different models of keyboards


Power Jack hardware replacement
- Radio Shack size N
- Model number for the size N: 274-1583
- Larger one I have used on Viaos 274-1576


Screen issue on a Dell Laptop
- Sees shadow image but no backlight
- Bad inverter (powers the bulb - easy cheap replacement)
- Or bad bulb. Replace the screen.
- Tips on troubleshooting laptop screens


Link: Steve's Updated Clean Up Routine


Manual System Restore in XP
- Replaces corrupt registry with known good copy
- Cures start up errors in Windows
- What files make up the Windows Registry
- How to manually restore using BartPE or Knoppix
- Thumbs Down on BartPE for slowness


Loud power supply fan with boot problems
- Hit it with the leaf blower to blow out dust
- Power supply fan has stopped groaning
- Boot problem was PC was going into chkdsk at start up
- Cust just had to let the process run its course.


Shop News:
How to thoroughly remove a stubborn antivirus
Still working on my Media PC VGA vs HDMI
- Blu-Ray 3rd Party software tips
- Help! Blu-Ray stand alone player ? Or Blu-Ray drive for media PC?
Considering 1/4 page ad in The Yellow Book


Email from Andrew:
Question: How to get Windows Vista OEM disk?


Email from Timster:
SeaGate Announcement attn: Seagate Barracuda 7200.11


Email from Juan:
24 pin to 20 pin Power Cable Converter used on an eMachines repair six months ago. Still good.


Email from Marv:
HP DV laptop capacitors do not fully discharge before shut down
Here is how to discharge them:
- Remove the battery
- Unplug the power brick
- Hold the Power button down for 15 seconds
- Plug everything back in. Problem solved. Boots fine
(This sneaky trick has made show notes before)


Email from Fred:
More advice on how to pass the A+ Certification test
Funny Mac Ad (video)


Live call from Nebben:
Questions about choosing a processor for his Production machine
- Tech Bargain on a Dell


Click Here to See Chat Log.

Podnutz Daily #139 - No Video, No Startup on a DV6000

Listen Here: pnd139.mp3

It's getting tougher to clean PCs because the malware is getting smarter

- Sometimes changing the name of mbam.exe still will not allow it to load.
- Malware is also preventing malwarebytes from installing
- Malware today blocked the malwarebytes.org website from loading
Tip: We ran Trojan Remover 6.7.5 to enable us to install malwarebytes.


Dell laptop running McAfee Security Suite
- Would not allow wireless internet access via IE (FF worked fine)
- IE functioned with a wired connection
- Shut down McAfee firewall (no changes)
Tip: Uninstalled McAfee to get IE to function on a wireless conncection
Customer made the switch to Norton AV 2009


Shiny HP dv6000 laptop needed the power jack repaired.
- It was dropped but ran fine on battery power until it died.
- Tips on repairing a powerjack
- Computer had no video after the repair. Drove me Crazy!


These DV6000's have known wireless card and motherboard issues
- Utilize HP's website and match up your model number on their defective list
- You can get a 2 yr warranty if you send it back to HP for repair


Vista with start up problems (Another dv6000)
- Black screen stating Windows cannot find a certain file
- Booting from the Vista disk offers option: Repair My Computer
- Features: MemTest, Start-Up Repair, System Restore, Restore From Back-Up, Restore To Factory Settings (if installed)
- Start-Up repair fixed the black screen issue
Note: This feature is also available via Safe Mode F8 boot


Chat OP rules: "Don't Kick -- BAN!"



Ode to Vacation
- Steve realizes owning his own company means no vacation
- He worked on the late-in-coming laptop repair videos
- He shopped for a 40" Samsung 6 Series
- Looking into getting a PS3 for the blueray player
- Nightmare? Blueray drive for the Media enter PC


Email from Mark:
- Show #132 was very informative
because I learned what was in the System Volume Information Folder.
- TY for the tip on Ultimate Boot CD
- Ultimate Boot CD landed in Mark's Progam List



Email from Gabriel:
Waking up a laptop requires removing battery?
There has to be a better solution.
(Software hemming up the sleep mode?)



Email from Jorge:
What Acronis version are you running?
- Acronis True Image 11 and it IS bootable!



Email from Jim:
Regulating CPU fans after replacing HD FAQ
-- symptoms/solution reveal a heat issue
-- how to troubleshoot (tips)


Email from Dave:
-- How to man-handle spywareguard 2008 in 5 steps
-- Dave is an official PND figure-outter (more)


Show Times & Major Announcement
- No longer live daily
- Mon and Wed (LIVE)
- M-F tech podcast takes a lot of work
- possible random audio podcast (no video required)


Click Here to See Chat Log.

Podnutz Daily #138 - Bad Hard Drive In DV6000

Listen Here: pnd138.mp3

HP DV6000 laptop would hang at the bios screen
This is an indication the hard drive is bad
.. because the bios is trying to communicate with the hard drive.

OEM Vista 64-bit CD worked for the reinstall on the new HD
.. using the laptop's product key, of course.


Troubleshooting the motherboard on an HP DV1000
What a nightmare! Replaced for $129 on ebay w/ bluray!
Replacing a motherboard is a tough job
.. feel free to charge more. I do.


-- Task manager issues/solutions


Email from Roger:
More malware tips
The guy from remove-malware.com tests the popular programs for efficiency.
He also has a YouTube Channel mrizos with video screen capture as he uses/grades the software.


Email from hightech9:
Is spyware hunter legit?
http://www.spywarehunter.org I never heard you mention it.
Enigma Software's YouTube Channel


Email from Dave:
Do a podnutz show on how to make custom boot cds
Use Mike Petro or Mike Smith of miketechshow
Steve says:
I know you can use nLite to slip stream preferences into your Windows install
And my favorite Driver Packs for installing drivers when downgrading Vista to XP

Email from Rob:
How can I prepare for the A+ exam in order to pass the first time?


Click Here to See Chat Log.

Podnutz Daily #137 - Love Those Junkers

Listen Here: pnd137.mp3

Encreamated = Encrypted (?)

Helping my business neighbors
The electronics shop down the street
handed me 2 junker computers to fix
(at a lower rate)
Junker = celeron 233 mhz w/ 32 mb ram (Win ME) 10g HD
For google: installing ME and you cannot write to drive C
Just format drive C via fdsk


Customer with random BSOD
Nice machine Antec case/power supply
Nice video card/1g ram ...
Reseated graphics card/ram/checked processor and heatsink
These random BSOD were due to bad memory.
Switched out memory and it was all good.

The graphics issues he had were described as
"choppy video when scrolling down a page in IE"
Check graphics/video driver.

Question:
Can Limited Windows profiles even be infected with malware?
We will be testing this by NOT cleaning the limited accounts
and going back in to see if the machine is clean.


Dell Inspiron 5100 series has warning lights.
System has led lights in the front that flash
when there is a system board problem.


Shop News:
We use Skype as our phone service at the shop.
-- runs about $7/month with Skype In&Out
-- just acquired iogear Calling Kit


Email from Jason:
Processing credit cards without PayPal Virtual Terminal
Dial Pay through your bank
RBS lynx (cannot find valid link)
Quick Books Credit Card Processing Kit


Email from Mike Petro:
Dealing with Nigerian scams getting specific and targeting


Email from Paul:
How to properly share your email address on your web site
.. while avoiding spam
http://danbenjamin.com/enkoder


Click Here to See Chat Log.

Podnutz Daily #136 - Computer Wouldn't Shut Down

Listen Here: pnd136.mp3


eMachines computers are good for giving us problems:
This one presented rebooting after holding in the power button
No shutdown .. simply rebooting.

Motherboard has a 24 pin power connector
but customer had a 20 pin power supply
.. I have issues with this and using a 24 pin PS got us further.


--Using VGA mode via F8 to change display properties
--Best Buy selling a 42" plasma TV for $550?


Dirtiest computer hit the shop had no video:
Dust was bulging from the floppy slot on the computer
and all kinds of stains all over this desktop
I found myself deciding I did not need the job that bad.
Afraid to even open it after breakfast.

Motherboard replacement x 3
Tiny Sony Viao (those viaos!) that BSOD upon movement.
If you let it sit, it was fine. You just couldn't move it.
15 hours spent on this machine. Taken apart. All that.
No loose wires. Total enigma.
Decided to run MemTest and it failed.
This PC has ON BOARD memory integrated into the motherboard.
Replaced motherboard and all is well. Turning away Viaos for now.


--PayPal BUY NOW vs Virtual Terminal


Live Call from Gomem:
Ugly case pikchur of a new Acer ASM5201
... and his impressions of Windows 7 Beta
Netbooks and solid state convo ensue...

Click Here to See Chat Log.

Podnutz Daily #135 - XP Antivirus 2010 Rears It's Head

Listen Here: pnd135.mp3

XP Antivirus 2010
would not allow upgrades/updates of Norton
Cheezy program with a fake Windows Security Center
Fake Blue Screen
Fake Windows rebooting screen
... asking you to register XP Antivirus 2010
Solution:
To remove it from the registry we did a system restore
back to a date before the program installation
Then we were able to run our clean up procedure


Shop News:
A cheap Trendnet ethernet switch had a bad port
that would connect and disconnect on a loop.


Voice mail from a listener:
More on where those wireles annteneas go
when you are installing one for the first time



Voice mail from a listener:
This is the partition software you were forgetting: EASUS


Norton Removal Tool
The Norton Removal Tool uninstalls all Norton 2009/2008/2007/2006/2005/2004/2003 products, Norton 360 and Norton SystemWorks 12.0 from your computer.


msconfig tip:
Those random character files names found in starup or services are malware.
Remove them by uncheking the box.



Email from techandlife:
How to Delete, Modify or Disable an Incorrect or Duplicate Entry on the XP Boot Menu
Also mentions the delicious podnutz thread for further links on computer repair.



Email from Bobby:
Help with the differences in dvi connectors via hometheaterhifi.com



Email from Ben:
How do you remove those laptop DC jacks? I tried everything!
I just carefully rip them off to expose the leads I need for replacement.



Email from M:
USB 1.1 and 2.0 have the same cables but different data speeds
USB 3.0 will have a different connector. More wires.



Live call from Gomem:
Great partition tool GParted is GUI interface and not command line


Live call from Ben:
Caught playing Empire Earth
Free crash dumper analyzer telling you what driver crashed your computer
who crashed?


Click Here to See Chat Log.

Podnutz Daily #134 - Bad Capacitors in GX270

Listen Here: pnd134.mp3

Dell Optiplex GX270 are famous for fried motherboards
Customer had issues with crashing and virtual memory errors.
We upgraded both the processor and the memory
.. and it started blue screening
Rechecked the MB and some capacitors were blown
.. motherboard replacement.


Gateway laptop just out of warranty (one month)
(Teenage girls & girls in college have the worst condition PCs)
This particular laptop I think encountered ventilation problems.
Another fried motherboard due to heat.


(Hey Dad) LetMeGoogleThatForYou.com
--- put in the search criteria
--- grab the tinyurl to send
--- the tinyurl link takes you to a full-featured animated google search
that asks, "How hard was that?"


Customer that ask: How did you fix it??
(and how to rid yourself of annoying customers)


Email from Ray:
More on locked routers and securing your wifi connection


Email from Mitch:
Repairing Vista via F11 and other avenues
Troubleshoot and repair startup issues in Windows Vista using
bootrec.exe tool


Email from Bobby:
(For Jorjey)
The Windows Key cannot be extracted from the install disk
FAQ on Windows Product Activation
More on Windows Activation


Email from Steve:
Recap on Expert-Exchange advice and how to get it FREE (trick)


Email from Andrew:
Where can I find your most recent shows?


Email from Jeff:
Problem:
Computer turns on but doesn't POST
Solution:
The 4-pin power lead to the motherboard was not fully seated.

Problem:
DVI port found with 3 rows of 10 pins
when the standard connector has 3 rows of 8 pins
Have you ever seen this?
Solution:
It may be a dual monitor DVI port

More on my Media Center PC
The case is a PowerSpec MCE 410
And I go into the specifications of the hardware I am using.
Still looking for a good digital cable tv tuner card.


Click Here to See Chat Log.

Podnutz Daily #132 - Registry Corruption

Listen Here: pnd132.mp3

Corruption error in the registry path:
windows/system32/config/system
A Windows Restore will bring your registry back to health.
Or you can repair (As I have in the past) via
chkdsk /r
fixboot

If that does not work you have to do a manual system restore
by finding the restore points found on the computer
in the System Volume Information Folder
that is BEYOND hidden and you are looking for
5 specific files that compile the registry:
System+Security+Sam+Default+Software
..and replace the existing windows/system32/config/system file
(don't forget to remove the prefix)


Vaio partitions to a C and a D
(not a good idea)
.. and I will tell you why
And teach you how to utilize the space.


More on the new ePC
All is fine but the solid state HD runs slow.
Meet RunCore to move the solid faster

.. still waiting on MyDigitalDiscount to send me my RunCore
(Can I get a refund?)


How I use System Restore to get a clean registry
..and clean from there.
Try to think like a medical doctor. It makes sense.


Fallbacks: Vista upgraded to XP
XP lacks the drivers for SATA drives
Ideas on utilizing Vista disk to get those drivers.


Email from Jorjay (I need help with this name, obvs)
How to I get the Windows key?
Use Magical Jelly Bean Keyfinder to find the product key
BTW: Love Philly Tech Guys it is superb!
Try GoTo Assist by Citrix for remote support


Email from Bates:
More questions on using Google Ads for strumming up business.
I give more advice on how it worked for me.
(Keywords enroute to the shownote girl .. right?)


Email from Neil:
How to clone a small hardrive and transition to a larger HD
(no kits allowed)


Live Call from Miles:
Miles has green screen questions
I use green felt from Jo-Ann fabrics and camtwist w/ Mac
ManyCam can do it on the PC


PodNutzDaily Listener/Contributor
Nebben's (Ben's) Tech Show


Click Here to See Chat Log.

Podnutz Daily #131 - Voicemails and Emails Today

Listen Here: pnd131.mp3

Voice Mail from Andrew in Upstate NY:
Follow up on new spyware with thin red icon: Rapid AntiVirus
A windows startup screen as a screensaver
ComboFix removed the problem.


Voice Mail from Bob from MA:
Data Recovery software suggestions
Nerds on Site service.


Email from Mitch in IA:
More on killing Spyware Guard 2008 from the virus-removal KING


Email from Ray:
Installing a wireless card on a laptop that never had wireless
.. and where to put the antennas


Email from William:
Fixing Dell Recovery partitions when F11 doesnt start the process
www.goodells.net/dellrestore/files/dsrfix.zip


Email from Peter *ahem* Wall aka "Fella"
He likes being employed by the Geek Squad
..but wants to start his own business
Where does he get the software (and OS OEMs) to get the job done?


Email from Jason:
Its a bad idea to use graphics to disply your email address
Solve your email spamming problem via javascript 5 links --

Cut & Paste Anti-spam email displayer
Use JavaScript To Protect Your Email Address
Anti SPAM Form to Email CGI Script
WS-Anti spam (ASP) script
http://www.hotscripts.com/Detailed/27206.html


Email from Mark:
Advertising your service on the back of grocery store receipts
Advice --
Keep it short
Company name, phone number and an offer
Front page (in computer section) Yellow Page Ad brought more money.


Click Here to See Chat Log.