I am dedicating this, to keep alive all the hard work the people of TTVs "Call For Help" have put into putting this together. As of May 28th, 2004. The Call For Help boards are no more. And so as not to lose this information. I am putting their hard work here.

This is a consolidation of the "Best of the Best" links found on the CFH boards. There's been many contributors to this post and many of them have given these links out countless times. These links have proven themselves time and time again. It's our sincere hope that these links will solve your computer problem. And if you don't have any outstanding computer issues to address, then feel free to explore the fruit of our research. All of the software found here is free. There are upgrade versions available for many of them, and better programs available, but the software commonly recommended is free.

Sincerely: All the volunteers at the Call For Help Message Board.

Startup Utilities
Never use MSConfig to disable startup programs no matter what others have recommended. MSConfig was never meant to be a startup manager. Please note the warning found on the Microsoft site concerning MSConfig. If you use it and then run a program, you may cause problems that can only be resolved with a repair install of your Operating System. Instead, use one of the following startup managers.
00.. Codestuff Starter.
01.. Pacs-Portal Startup.
02.. Greatis Startup.
03.. Mike Lin's Startup Control Panel is an easy way of controlling the startup programs.

Hardware and Software Utilities
Need to find out something about your computers hardware or software?
10.. Aida32 V. 3.93 Reports on Hardware and give links for updates. If it's not offered there, then you can find it here
11.. Belarc Advisor Reports on Software and processes.
12.. MS Windows Memory Diagnostic Tests your physical memory
13.. PCPitstop.com checks many things from disk fragmentation to Internet speed tests.
14.. Driver Detective will check your drivers and report what updates are available. This program is not free, so we generally recommend people to simply write down their results and then manually get the updated drivers.

Internet Security
Keeping your computer secure is your first line of defence against hackers, viruses, trojans, hijackers, spammers, and adware. These programs and sites will help you make the job a little bit easier. They will also educate you about the threat and your computer, and is one of the most important parts of computer maintenance you can do.
20.. Windows Update is the most important security measure you can do.
21.. Windows XP Service Pack 1a Now you can download and save SP1 on your computer or burn it to disk instead of having to download it every time you reinstall Windows XP.
22.. 826939 Update Rollup 1 for Windows XP. Microsoft has released Update Rollup 1 for Microsoft Windows XP. An update rollup is a cumulative set of hotfixes, security patches, critical updates, and updates that are packaged together for easy deployment. Update Rollup 1 for Windows XP is a single package that includes many previously released critical updates for Windows XP.
23.. Cumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer 6 SP1. This download wraps up multiple security patches from Microsoft into a single download. There are other security patches available as well. See Microsoft's Protect Your PC page for more details.
24.. Windows 98 Critical and Beneficial Updates. Get them while Microsoft still supports Windows 98. Save them to your computer and burn them to CD.
25.. Shoot the Messenger Disables windows messenger service for you.
26.. Kellys-Korner has a fix if you use shoot the messenger and Outlook Express or Hotmail slows down.
27.. DCOMbobulator Disables DCOM (a security threat)
28.. Auditmypc.com scans your firewall for security leaks
29.. Sygate Security Scan tests for open ports on your computer.
2A.. Microsoft Baseline Security Analyser
2B.. Unplug and Pray Disables the Rarely used UPnP service for you.
2C.. DirectX Buster fully uninstalls DirectX from your computer.
2D.. Cumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer sp1. Now you can download all the updates and save them to your drive or burn them to CD.
2E.. Sun Java. More secure than MS version of java and still supported.
2F.. Hacker eliminator can prevent worms and hijacking and gives recommendations on your internet browser settings.
2G.. Setting Up Security Zones in Internet Explorer shows you how to set up security zones to protect your computer.
2H.. Start Page Guard prevents your home page from being hijacked. If it gives you an alert, you should also scan for hijackers and viruses.

Free Personal Firewalls
Never have 2 or more software firewalls running on the same computer. They often conflict with each other and cause problems
30.. Sygate Personal Firewall
31.. Tiny Personal Firewall
32.. ZoneAlarm
33.. Outpost firewall

Free Web Browsers
It's generally recommended that you have more than one browser available to you even if you use one exclusively. That way, you can check to see if a problem is unique to your browser or a more generalized problem.
40.. Mozilla
41.. Firefox Extentions
42.. Opera
43.. Flashpeak SlimBrowser
44.. Avantbrowser

Web based Virus and Trojan Scanners
It's always a good idea to never rely on a single anti virus program. Especially if you have recently cleaned out a virus.
50.. Panda ActiveScan
51.. Free Online Trojan Scan
52.. CWShredder removes the CoolWebSearch Hijacker and it's variations. Here's a tip.
53.. Symantec Security Check
54.. BitDefender Free Online Virus Scan
55.. RAV Online Virus Scanner just put in an email address and click on to continue without subscribing click here"

Local computer Virus and Trojan Scanners
These free anti virus programs give you extra protection against viruses and are updated regularly.
60.. Avast, Home Editon
61.. AVG AntiVirus
62.. And if you're having trouble getting updates for AVG AntiVirus, here's the fix.
63.. Mike Lins Startup Monitor alerts you if any programs like trojans, viruses, or hijackers register to run at startup.
64.. Winpatrol also alerts you to programs that are installed on your computer without your knowledge.

Links to common virus removal instructions
70.. Symantec w32 blaster worm information
71.. Symantec w32 blaster worm removal tool
72.. Symantec qhosts worm information
73.. Symantec qhosts worm removal tool
74.. McAfee Qhosts-1 information and removal instructions
75.. Besttechie.net has instructions on how to remove the MSUpdater.exe trojan.

Adware, Spyware, and Hijacker Scanners
If your anti virus program finds nothing and you are experiencing virus like symptoms or unwanted advertisements, these programs may help.
80.. Spybot Search and Destroy removes advertising and spyware from your computer.
81.. AdAware removes advertising and spyware from your computer.
82.. Hijack This is a highly useful program for finding and removing computer hijacking.
83.. Spyware Blaster prevents some spyware from being installed in the first place.
84.. Browser Hijack Blaster prevents some browser hijacking.
85.. KazaaBeGone removes Kazaa and all of its spyware components.
86.. IE Spyad places advertisement sites in the restricted zone and disables many of the tools they use to hijack your computer.
87.. Mike Lin's Startup Monitor" monitors what runs on startup and alerts you to new additions.

PopUp Stoppers
90.. EMS Freesurfer
91.. Google Toolbar
92.. www.Popuptest.com Test your PopUp Stopper

Web Sites with Useful information
These web sites have information that can help people diagnose many common problems on their computers. They also have information that people commonly ask about.
A0.. Doxdesk.com/parasite lists information about software parasites.
A1.. SpywareGuide.com lists information about spyware.
A2.. Spywareinfo.comalso lists information about spyware
A3.. Answersthatwork.com lists common tasks that are running on your machine.
A4.. BlackViper.comgives information about windows services.
A5.. BIOS Power On Self Test (POST) Beep Codes
A6.. Fdisk Radified gives information on how to use the Fdisk utility.
A7.. Annoyances.org has a lot of information and tip on many subjects.
A8.. Password Recovery for Windows XP, 2000, NT. Make sure you read the FAQ Before you do anything
A9.. Vmyths.com is a web site with the latest news about Virus Hoaxes and Myths.
AA.. Hoaxbusters.ciac.org is an Email hoax site. Learn why you should not believe everything you read.

Microsoft Knowledge Base Articles
These articles by Microsoft resolve issues that we often see on this board.
B0.. Windows "Software Update incomplete, This Software Update Did Not Update Successfully" Error Message When You Visit the Windows Update Site
B1.. 281679 You Cannot Open New Internet Explorer Window or Nothing Happens After You Click a Link
B2.. 306615 The Computer Always Starts in Safe Mode
B3.. 308421 How To Take Ownership of a File or Folder in Windows XP
B4.. 148919 Windows Restarts Continuously
B5.. 311806 Windows Restarts When You Try to Shut Down Your Computer
B6.. 314057 NTLDR Is Missing Error Message When You Upgrade or Install Windows XP Over Windows 95, Windows 98, Or Windows Millenium
B7.. 321305 How to Log On to Windows XP If You Forget Your Password or Your PassWord Expires
B8.. 302089 How to Prevent Windows Messenger From Running on a Windows XP Based Computer

Windows Installation Helpful How To Sites
These sites offer good information on how to install and repair Microsoft Windows.
C0.. XP Clean Install
C1.. How To Repair XP
C2.. How to Install Windows 98 on a Computer With No Operating System
C3.. How to Use the Fdisk and Format Tools to Partition or Repartition a Hard Disk

Registry Cleaners, file shredders, and file recovery
Securely deleting files, recovering deleted files, and cleaning the registry are common issues many people have asked about.
D0.. Regseeker is a registry cleaner
D1.. Eraser is the most recommended file shredder
D2.. AnalogX Supershredder
D3.. Ultrawipe
D4.. Cuteeraser is more of an internet privacy utility
D5.. MRUBlaster cleans up Most Recently Used entries for privacy on public computers
D6.. Active@Killdisk hard drive eraser will wipe the entire hard drive completely
D7.. PC Inspector emaxx will wipe a hard drive well enough for the defense department.
D8.. PC Inspector File Recovery
D9.. Restoration - File Undelete Utility will recover files after they were removed from the recycle bin.
D10.. ISO Buster will allow you to recover lost data or files from CD's or DVD's.
D11.. Autoclave wipes the entire hard drive clean
D12.. Disk Cleener cleans out the temp directory and the internet temporary files. Works with Opera and IE.

Video conversion and editing
These websites give excellent information about converting video and making DVDs, VCDs, and SVCDs.
E0.. DVDRhelp.com has information on making DVDs, VCDs, and SVCDs.
E1.. DVDRhelp convert has information on converting files into DVD, VCD, and SVCD formats.
E2.. TmpGenc video conversion program.
E3.. Irfanview will display pictures and video in most formats.

Other, Uncategorized Links
F0.. www.dllfiles.com find missing dll files here.
F1.. missingfiles has many of those files that your computer may be missing.
F3.. Winzip compresses and decompresses most file formats.
F4.. What is a Troll? answers the question "why is this guy insulting, and what can I do about it".

Tweak Sites
G0.. Kelly's Korner has more information, fixes and tweaks than most people have time to read.
G1.. PurePerformance.com
G2.. Overclockers.com
G3.. PC Pitstop has a utility that test your computers performance.
G4.. Xteq Xsetup has lots of tweaks. Don't forget to get the extra plugins.
G5.. Jv16 utilities has many tweaks available for your system.
G6.. TweakUI also has many tweaks for Windows.

(Reposted for jdlech)

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