Tag: computers

Tech

Before Black & Orange

Write about your first computer.

Before black & orange, we were rolling dices to loading screens.

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couple sat at computer smiling.
Kim: What site is that?
Eric: Scriptingthewhy
Kim: You know Z-Daddy too!?
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio, please support by following @pexel.com

DSL of Yesterday

Do you remember the wonder years of venturing to the library to use a computer if you didn’t have one at home? For me, it wasn’t a long walk but nevertheless, it wasn’t worth the effort for a half-hour use time.

You see, this was back in the days before the internet became a seedy place to distribute false information, perform criminal activities, and hide the fact that you might be discovering puberty at a young age from your parents. Remember kids, with great power comes great responsibility.

To give you some insight into the reason why we didn’t have a computer, it wasn’t attributed to discovering puberty. My family was more like the Jackson Five minus the record deal and singing “ooh, child things are going to get easier”, in short, we couldn’t afford to buy a computer. And yes, I know that’s not one of their songs, but it fits the tone of this story, so hush.

Since my parents attended school in the era of “make love, not war”, having something in the house that our parents couldn’t understand how to use was considered witchcraft. However, years later, I hopped into the working force and landed a job that paid slave wages. I manage to save up enough coins to make a purchase on eBay and snag my very first computer. Was I proud of this event? Well…I had to sell my body and time to corporate overlords, so you tell me.

To be technical, I had a computer before, but I don’t count it since it was a hand-me-down, and let’s be frank, no one enjoys using hand-me-downs. It was the bane of a nerd’s existence, all the reasons not to have a computer back in the day, using the phone jack, waiting for a page to load, hearing that god-awful loading sound, and if someone in your house just so happened to pick up the phone, you could call it a day, game over man.

The laptop I purchased was a 2010 MacBook Pro, got it for a decent price, and I waited because technology changes every three years. So it was only a matter of time before the internet horrors of yesteryear became a distant memory. I also made some upgrades to my MacBook and still use it to this day.

Made it this far and found this to be entertaining? Then a big thanks to you and please show your support by cracking a like, scripting a comment, or plug-in to follow.

Do you remember your first computer? Script a comment about it below.

Security, Tech

Read Before Deleting, Here’s Why…

It’s a new browser I’m trying out. I think it’s Jangoram or something like that.
Photo by Mikhail Nilov, please support by following @pexel.com

Would You Look at That?

You know since the internet has been around, the threats we come across or face daily are unreal. We run the risk of catching all types of viruses, worms, malware, feelings…. well, not that last one. Feelings are dependent on what site you frequently visit, and if you pay attention to your downloads. If you don’t, you might not be alone tonight.

Now, while we are knowledgeable about some of the risks on the internet, there comes a time when we have to say “Uh, I don’t know. I’ve never seen that before, but we’ll look into it.” This is followed by someone being an adult and saying, “That’s what she said.” Real mature Eric, grow up—the joyful world of having coworkers.

However, back to the point, recently someone reached out to us to help get their computer back to normal. When they showed what was on their computer we said “Uh…holy smokes Batman, we don’t know that malware, to the Bat cave.” So, today we’re going look at what this malware is, what some of its functionalities are, and how you can remove it off your system should you be so unlucky to cross it.  

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We’ve never seen this before. What would Batman and Robin do?
Photo by Mikhail Nilov, please support by following @pexel.com

In today’s script, look no further than the malware called “Jangoram.” Jangoram is a browser-based malware that hijacks the current browser and replaces it with what seems to be a search engine. This malware does not come alone, once it’s downloaded, it then brings onboard other free software from the internet.

If your browser looks like this, don’t use it.
Photo credit by pcrisk.com

Hijacking browsers, how are they a problem? Well, that’s a good question reader, glad you asked. They’re a problem because while you’re using them instead of your actual browser, you run the risk of having what are called “Pups” installed onto your machine. No, you’re not installing puppies, PUPs are “Possibly Unwanted Programs”. If you look at your list of applications and see one you’re not familiar with, then you may have a PUP.

How do you get them removed you ask? Simple, by moving them to the trash and deleting them forever. If it’s on Windows, then you may have to uninstall them. Other issues that could arise are but are not limited to; adware, drive-by downloads, and in some cases being redirected to other sites.

A good way to picture this headache, try walking to your kitchen for a sandwich only to find yourself in a hedge maze with salesmen.

Don’t panic, there’s a fix to this kid.
Photo by Keira Burton, please support by following @pexel.com

You have this on your computer, and you’re panicked, what should you do? Well, calm down, we have good news. Now, while this is malware, and has been known to be tough to remove sometimes. This would not be one of them.

A simple way, and the one with less amount of steps, is to have updated anti-virus software in place to perform scanning and removal. Since other methods can be lengthy and involve you diving into files and applications, we’re going to leave a link, click here.

Another bit of good news is this malware threat level isn’t high and someone less tech-savvy can resolve this issue. So, if you think of it, it’s so easy a caveman could do it.

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