The folder icons showed an image that I had in one of my old website publication folders – it was a picture of a cat and every single folder icon inside windows explorer showed this cat. Other than the fact it was annoying seeing this cute little cat everywhere I roamed in explorer, I wanted my computer back!

I tried for hours to fix it and could not seem to find a solution. Then I opened process explorer and recognized the process explorer.exe had a bunch of database files in the folder called C:\Users\Chris\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer hooked.

I killed explorer.exe, opened the command prompt, went to the C:\Users\Chris\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer folder and renamed all the files by typing in ren *.db *.db-old.

I restarted explorer.exe and VOILA! All my folder icons in vista went back to default and new db files were created in my folder.

Thought I might share that. And if anyone reads this and has the same problem, comment and I will post more complete instructions.

Calgary Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.cg.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.cg.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.cg.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.cg.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: cg.shawcable.net

West Kootenays Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.wk.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.wk.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.wk.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.wk.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: wk.shawcable.net

East Kootenays Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.ek.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.ek.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.ek.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.ek.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: ek.shawcable.net

Edmonton Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.ed.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.ed.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.ed.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.ed.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: ed.shawcable.net

Fot McMurray Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.fm.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.fm.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.fm.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.fm.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: fm.shawcable.net

Nanaimo Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.no.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.no.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.no.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.no.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: no.shawcable.net

Northern BC Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.nb.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.nb.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.nb.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.nb.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: nb.shawcable.net

Okanagan Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.ok.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.ok.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.ok.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.ok.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: ok.shawcable.net

Prince George Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.ca.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.ca.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.ca.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.ca.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: ca.shawcable.net

Red Deer Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.rd.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.rd.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.rd.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.rd.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: rd.shawcable.net

Vancouver (Abbotsford) Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.va.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.va.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.va.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.va.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: va.shawcable.net

Vancouver Central Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.vc.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.vc.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.vc.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.vc.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: vc.shawcable.net

Vancouver Central Valley Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.vf.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.vf.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.vf.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.vf.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: vf.shawcable.net

Vancouver North Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.vn.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.vn.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.vn.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.vn.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: vn.shawcable.net

Vancouver Surrey Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.vs.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.vs.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.vs.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.vs.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: vs.shawcable.net

Vancouver White Rock Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.vw.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.vw.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.vw.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.vw.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: vw.shawcable.net

Victoria Shaw Cable mail servers:

• Incoming mail server (POP3): shawmail.gv.shawcable.net
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP): shawmail.gv.shawcable.net
• News server (NNTP): shawnews.gv.shawcable.net
• Proxy server: proxy.gv.shawcable.net
• Domain suffix: gv.shawcable.net

Facts about Spyware and Malware

• Spyware and Malware can easily be installed on a system without the user’s knowledge. In some cases one infection can propagate many more infections by downloading and installing malicious software stealthily in the background.
  Reinforcements:
  It only takes one piece of software specifically designed to download and install other pieces of software to infect your system, after all, the beauty of a computer is that the only limit is the imagination.
  
• There is no software available that can remove all spyware or malware because of the techniques that are used to release new variants and new strains of infections into the wild.
  Reinforcements:
  In a recent study by PCworld (http://www.pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,119572,00.asp) analysts compared 9 of the top spyware scanning applications against each other. Each application was tested on a system infected with common spyware threats, and then compared against each other to see what product detected and removed the most. The top three applications detected 65% to 85% of the spyware on the test system, while all the other application detection rates were well below 56%, and as low as 5%.
  
• Spyware and malware infections can make things like identity just a few mouse clicks away for criminals because of the ability of infections to gather and report personal information about you.
  Reinforcements:
  http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft/stats.html
  As if the increase in offline Identity theft in the past year was not enough, Spyware and Malware have helped criminals mine information in the blink of an eye with one single click of a mouse. Online Identity theft and Fraud now leads the way as the method of choice to rip people off. The most upsetting fact of this trend is that while techniques and education are improving to catch and prevent fraud and identity theft, so is the turn around time for criminals to use the information. Most individuals that discover they have been a victim of stolen personal information realize this well after they have already been victimized.
  The Identity Theft Resource Center, a nonprofit organization, shares these chilling facts about identity theft:
  - 13.3 people become victims of identity theft every minute.
  - It takes an average of 600 hours to fix your credit history after ID theft.
  - Victims face higher interest rates on all types of loans, increased credit card fees, higher insurance premiums, battles with collection agencies, and difficulties finding a job.
  - It can take more than 10 years to clean up your credit after ID theft
  
• Spyware and Malware can slow down your internet connection speed dramatically
  Reinforcements:
  Every piece of information that leaves your computer has to use some of your bandwidth. Heavily infected system can send so much information out at any given time that the availability of your bandwidth for legitimate uses suffers a dramatic loss of maximum data transfer. In some cases, malware and spyware can turn your computer into a zombie that relay things like spam and viruses which uses even more system and bandwidth resources. Take a look at some of the major companies advertising campaigns and you will see how important it is to them that users prevent their systems from becoming infected. A surge in network traffic for an ISP can lose them MILLIONS.
  
• Spyware and Malware take away precious system resources in your computer, making boot times longer and over all performance sluggish.
  Reinforcements:
  This topic is self explanatory. You only have so many resources in your computer to complete tasks. Every time you add another piece of software that requires attention, you are taking away resources from legitimate computer uses.

• A spy Audit survey in 2004 suggests that over 90% of computers are infected with some type of spyware!
  Reinforcements:
  Remember, this is a piece of software that generates these statistics. If you think 90% is a lot, imagine all of the other stuff it is missing! It has been suggested that EVERY online computer has some type of spyware on it. This is particularly true when a computer is used to surf the internet and view websites. The amount of information that can be gathered from cookies alone allow companies to gain valuable information about your surfing habits at your leisurely expense

• Spyware and Malware can infect you when you install certain software on your computer without your knowledge. Screen savers, online games, PC performance applications and even some spyware removal programs can “bundle” spyware and malware into their software.
  Reinforcements:
  Here is a list of bogus spyware apps: http://www.spywarewarrior.com/rogue_anti-spyware.htm
  
• Many computer users resort to “reformatting” their computer to rid their system of spyware, resulting in complete data loss and hours of valuable time lost to working on their computers
  Reinforcements:
  Time to reformat a system ranges from 1 to 4 hours depending on the method used
  Up to several hours to reinstall applications
  Risking re-infections if not done properly, making worse than before
  In most cases users lose ALL their data
  
• Some variants of spyware and malware can install backdoors to allow hackers complete control over a system
  Reinforcements:
  http://spamlinks.net/stats.htm – This is a HUGE resource showing statistics on the amount of spam floating around on the internet

• Businesses and individuals can spend thousands of dollars in a year on tech support, losing hours, days and even sometimes weeks and STILL have the same problems from the start!
  Reinforcements:
  http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,17240,00.asp – In this article there are facts like this:
  “Of 31 total problems posed to 18 stores, 18 were misdiagnosed or left unresolved. That percentage of wrong responses is slightly higher than in our 1998 results.”

This may not seem like a big deal, but if I know M$, this wouldn’t be happening if this wasn’t a big deal. Read on…

Microsoft’s urgent security update: What it means | News – Security – CNET News

Earlier today, Microsoft did something unusual. The company made an exception to its normal security processes and issued an “out-of-band” urgent update. The update applied is classified as critical for Windows XP and older versions and is considered important for Windows Vista.

After speaking with Microsoft earlier today, I strongly suggest that users understand the importance of this update and begin emergency patching procedures immediately. While exploits around this Windows vulnerability have been limited thus far, Microsoft concedes that it could be exploited by old-school Internet-based worms a la 2004 and do massive amounts of damage. In addition to patching Windows systems, I also encourage users to install the latest security signatures from endpoint and network security vendors.

I doubt we’ll ever see another blaster worm incident again, but this is still a little scary nonetheless.

To get the patch, visit http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/

More online shoppers aiding identity thieves

According to statistics from Phone Busters and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Call Centre, which is operated by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Canadians have reported 8,048 cases of identity theft so far this year, totalling $7.3 million in losses.

In 2007, there were 9,971 cases of identity theft reported, totalling only $6.4 million in losses.

Amazingly enough, a lot of these identity theft problems are not just happening to “newbies” on computers – I just had a friend of mine who would be considered a high level computer user, well aware of how identity theft works have his credit card details stolen and put to use.

The sad part is that he could only trace the details back to one transaction he made at a U-haul depot.

This pretty much means that we are no longer in control of protecting our own identities. No matter what precautions you take, you may still be a vicitim if the companies you are doing business with are not careful with you personal information.

I invented this technique years ago and shamelessly named it after myself (or my nickname).

Introducing “The Botts Technique” to manually remove any virus or spyware – guaranteed to work!

Video 1 (Part 1) – How to Remove Viruses and Spyware Manually

Video 2 (Part 2) – How to Remove Viruses and Spyware Manually

Please recommend on your favorite social site, and leave comments!

In this particular instance I’m talking about software that you have installed that you no longer use. Software that you may no longer use could be games, application, utilities, tools, or out of date security products (which by the way is very bad).

How NOT to get rid of software

A lot of people make the mistake of going on a treasure hunt throughout their folders and files deleting stuff that doesn’t look like it belongs.

NEVER do this.

The second you do this you are risking breaking other working programs, and even if you do remove files that are no longer needed you probably won’t find the file and information that was installed in your computer when the file was first created.

Scenario 1 – “The Super Clean”

If you have many pop-ups, your computer runs slow, you have error messages and you have just about had it with you PC, you may want to choose this option. This option can create a lot more work for you in the end, but it almost always guarantees a very clean system when you are through

Scenario 2 – “The Selective Clean”

If your system has been running fairly well, and you do not suspect spyware, malware or viruses choose this option. It will be faster than “The Super Clean”, but may be difficult to choose what services you want to disable.

“The Super Clean”

Please read the warning about disabling services if you have chose to use the super clean method – disabling some startup items can also cause computer malfunctions.

1. Boot into Safe Mode.
2. Open the system configuration utility
3. Click on the tab called Startup .
4. Click the Disable All button, then Click Apply.
5. Configure Windows to boot into normal mode if you are finished working in Safe Mode
6. Read this warning before clicking Close.

“The Selective Clean”

If you have chosen to perform a selective clean you will only be disabling certain startup items.

Please read the warning about disabling services – disabling some startup items can also cause computer malfunctions.

1. Boot into Safe Mode.
2. Open the system configuration utility
3. Click on the tab called Startup .
4. The key to success in disabling non-essential startup items lies in the ” Command” column. You will need to expand the column (widen it) so that you can read all of the text, and look for keywords.

You may not want to disable any software that you recognize or think may be important, however, to err on the side of caution you may choose to disable it in case it is in actual fact a virus, disguised as a legitimate startup program.

EXAMPLE: You may have installed Norton AntiVirus by Symantec Corp at one point. Look for words that refer to “Norton” or “Symantec”. If you use AOL software, you will want to look for items that say “AOL”.

Once you have identified the startup items you DO NOT want to disable, proceed with un-checking the startup items in the “Startup Item” column that you DO want to disable.

1. Configure Windows to boot into normal mode if you are finished working in Safe Mode

As mentioned earlier, some types of viruses and malware monitor when they are attempted to be disabled. By booting to safe mode, you are ensuring the malware and viruses do not become active and prevent you from effectively disabling them.

• Boot into Safe Mode.
• Open the System Configuration Utility
• Click on the Startup tab. You are now ready to disable startup items.