Tech For The Not-So-Techie: DIY Virus/Malware Removal

Oh noes is right!

So you have malware on your computer, and you just want it to go away. Problem is, you don't want to have to bring your computer to a repair shop... not if you don't have to, at least. Well, here's a little "how-to" to get you on your way. Hopefully after you follow these steps, you computer will be good to go!

First, the prep work. Lets get the computer into safe mode and build a toolkit for ourselves!

1. Boot your computer into Safe Mode with Networking. Not sure how to do this? Here are some links to directions straight from Microsoft. :
   • For Windows XP
   • For Windows Vista
   • For Windows 7
2. Open a browser, and download Rkill. Here is a link it the download site:
   RKill (Click on Rkill.exe Download Link)
3. Download and install Malwarebytes Anti-malware. Here's the download site:
   Download Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free from Download.com
4. Download and save Trend Micro HouseCall. Don't worry, this is the last thing I will ask you to download, haha. Here is the download link:
   Trend Micro HouseCall Free Online Virus Scan 

Ok, now that you have all of the tools you need, lets get to the actual malware removal part!

Be sure you are still in safe mode at this point!

1. Run Rkill.exe. Some command prompt screens will probably pop up and close on their own. Don't be scared, this is ok!
2. Close the Notepad document that opens after Rkill is finished doing it's thing.
3. Open Malwarebytes
4. Select "Perform full scan" and click the scan button. The scan may take quite a while, so I suggest finding something to keep you occupied.
5. When the scan finishes, click on the "Delete All" button, and then close Malwarebytes.
6. Run Trend Micro HouseCall. (HouseCallLauncher.exe)
   It will download some updates when you open it, don't let it worry you. Then just accept the license agreement and click next.
7. Click the little "Settings" links, underneath the giant "Scan Now" button.
8. Select "Full system scan", then click the "Ok" button.
9. Click the "Scan Now" button.
   Again, this could take a while, so find something to read, or clean your house, or something. :-)
10. If anything is found, proceed to click the "Fix Now" button. If not, just close Trend Micro HouseCall.



All better! Yay!

11. If HouseCall asks you to restart your computer, and do so. If not, restart the computer yourself.

You may be wondering why I had you scan with HouseCall after you already scanned with Malwarebytes. Well, I have a couple of reasons.

1. Malwarebytes checks primarily for malware and spyware/ HouseCall checks for some of that too, but also for nasty viruses.
2. While that may seem a little redundant, I like to use both just to be on the safe side. There have been a couple instances where one caught something the other didn't catch. Think of it like getting a second opinion from someone who is not your primary doctor. :-)

There you go! Your computer should hopefully be fine now. And you avoided a computer bill. Congratulations!

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Questions and comments are always welcome and appreciated.

Yes, I read them! And yes, I will reply to you!

And as always...

Thanks for reading! :-)

RIP Whitney Houston, 8/9/1963 – 2/11/2012

As almost everybody knows already, Whitney Houston passed away yesterday. This news saddened me for a few reasons, and I just felt the need to voice some of them here.

First off, I loved her music as a kid, so I feel like a piece of that time is just gone. I remember when I was little, I would watch The Preacher's Wife around Christmastime on Disney Channel. I always sang along with the music in that movie... :-( 

And when Prince of Egypt came out, Disney would play Mariah Carey and Whitney's duet "When You Believe" from that movie A LOT, and though I never got to see the movie, I LOVED that song. I still listen to it on YouTube every one in a while.

On top of that there is all over the other wonder music that I have grown up with that came from her. I don't even have to give you a list... even people who didn't enjoy her music know at least ONE song of hers. That kinda says something in itself...

What make this passing the saddest is watching someone as talented as Whitney go down the horrible path they did, and never have the chance to make a true comeback. In the back of my mind I was always hoping that she would someday be able to clean up, get her life back in order, and come back on top like the true diva she was meant to be. And maybe, if that happened, she could become a source of inspiration for others who have ended up on the same road she was on... to show them they CAN get better, and they CAN have their lives and dreams back.

But that never happened  for her. So I grieve not only for her, but for the chance she never got in the end.

Rest in peace Whitney, you will be missed. :-(

Whitney Elizabeth Houston, August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012

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Comments welcome and appreciated.

Birthdays Are Awesome!

So today was my birthday (yay!), and the three things I wanted to do to celebrate were hang out with my family and Dan, watch some random stuff on Netflix with them, and have some pizza and cheese breadsticks from Pizza Hut. How did that go? Surprisingly better than I hoped!

First, my parents were totally down with just watching whatever I wanted on Netflix... they really just felt like staying home anyway. And second, Pizza Hut was just AWESOME. Why?

Well, Dan placed our order online... and when he recieved his confirmation email the order was a bit messed up. Just a few toppings missing... but at the time, not awesome. So Dan calls the Pizza Hut he placed the order at and asks if they could fix it, and they just did it, no questions asked. Problem averted, everybody is happy. Not to mention when we got the pizza, it was nomalicious!

But what kinda made my day? I happened to post this Tweet on my Twitter:

And then lo and behold...

I mean, seriously, talk about great customer relations! I know, I'm a dork, but that just made me smile. I mean, it's not like you see Netflix going and wishing me a Happy Birthday... I am a fan of Netflix and all, but yeah.

As for watching stuff, we watched the episode of The Twilight Zone with William Shatner in it... you know, the one where he's in a plane and sees some gremlin thing outside tearing the wing apart... a classic! Next we watched the movie Toys (stars Robin Williams, Joan Cusack, LL Cool J), which was kinda funny, and very weird. And last we watched the Star Trek movie from 2009. It was my second time seeing it, loved it just as much this time around, haha!

So that was my birthday!

Thanks to everyone out there who made this the best one yet... group hug! *aww*

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Comments are appreciated... and always replied to! (^_^)

And as always...

Thanks for reading!!

Update: Not So Sad About That Broken Nintendo DS Now...

So remember my last post... the one where my Nintendo DS Lite's screen fell off, and I was sad and kinda wanted to cry? Well, after that post, my boyfriend Dan finally got back home from work, and attempted to repair my poor DS. When he was finished, the screen was attatched again, but it couldn't be shut anymore... which made it far less pocketbook friendly. Unhappy with the end result, Dan, being the awesome guy that he is, decided it was time to upgrade me. So he went on eBay, and bought another birthday/Valentines gift, which I received Monday. Here it is... :

A Nintendo DSi!! Pretty sweet right? As you can see, I already have Kirby Mass Attack in it, lol. And I have to admit, it's so much more awesome than my DS Lite. I mean, it has a camera AND a web browser built in! So yeah, to say I'm excited is an understatement. Plus, who doesn't love the chance to play with a new piece of electronics? haha :-)

On another note, still waiting to hear some of your electronics fiascoes. Come on, don't be shy!

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Go ahead, leave me a comment or question. I ALWAYS reply, so expect to be hearing from me, haha!

And as always...

Thanks for reading!!

A Sad Day For My Nintendo DS

So, yeah... I'm a little upset right now. On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the highest, I'd say I'm about a 7 or 8. Why? Well, I was opening my DS Lite to play Kirby Mass Attack, when this happened:

Yup, I am none too pleased at the moment. And while I can repair computers and such, gaming consoles just are not my forte. So now I have to wait until my boyfriend get home from work to REALLY assess the damage. He's the console guy. I really hope this is fixable.

You know, I always seem to break stuff in the oddest ways. I don't always take photos though... except maybe the last time I broke something.

A few months back, I sitting on the couch using my laptop and minding my own buisness, when the box part of my AC adapter slips off the couch. Now, the seat of the couch is MAYBE a foot and a half up from the floor. And my living room floor is carpeted. So explain to me how this happened:

Seriously, I don't know about my relationship with electronics sometimes.

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Do any of you have any amusing electronics related stories to share?

If you do...
Leave them in the comments! I'll be sure to read them, and even leave a reply! I'm cool like that, haha.
 
No story?
Comment anyway!!

And as usual...
Thanks for reading!!