Editor's Note: This is the debut column for the Geek Squad, a crack team of clean-cut tech support geeks who buzz around town in VW Beetles painted like '50s cop cars. Naturally, they'd rather be back at the lab testing out the latest gadgets, but duty calls and they're out protecting and serving the computing public's interests. These are their stories.
Q: I'm having trouble accessing my CD-ROM drive. What could it be?
A: Oftentimes a system will come in with the complaint that their CD-ROM drive in Windows 95 or 98 has "disappeared." When we get the system on the machine we discover that nothing is physically wrong with the CD-ROM drive at all, but the machine has a boot-sector virus.
What these viruses do is prevent Windows from loading the 32-bit device driver for both the hard drive and CD-ROM. Since most systems don't have DOS drivers installed for their CD-ROMs, their drives effectively are disabled. A great way to tell if you have a boot-sector virus is to go into Control Panel and then double-click on the System icon. Once you are there go to the "Performance" tab and see if you have "MS-DOS compatibility mode" listed for your Virtual Memory and File System. If they are, check the white box below it and see if "Master Boot Sector has been modified" is listed. If so, you have a boot-sector virus and cleaning it will allow your CD-ROM drive to function once again in Windows.
Q: I need to free up space on my hard drive. What is the best way to do this?
A: This may seem simple, but most people don't do it often enough. The best way to trim fat from your hard drive is to remove programs. Not only will it delete folders, but it will update the Windows Registry and slim down the Start menu. Chances are, there are several "junk" programs that either came with the computer or programs that you never use anymore.
Simply go into your Control Panels folder through the Start menu, and click Add/Remove Programs. Start removing! For you brainiacs out there that already know how to do this, let this be a reminder that it's time to do it again.
Q: My antivirus software found a virus but says it cannot remove it. I'm using the latest version of antivirus software. What do I do?
A: Sometimes we too have trouble getting McAfee to remove a certain virus. When this occurs, we run F-PROT (by DataFellows) or Norton (by Symantec). Don't ask us why, but sometimes running a second antivirus program does the trick.
Q: I've been told that I need to defrag my hard drive. What does this mean?
A: With use, your system will tend to leave scattered areas (or fragments) of data and free space on your hard drive. The disk defrag (short for defragmenting) rearranges files and unused disk space on your hard drive to make everything more compact. It is similar to taking cardboard boxes and squashing them to use less space. Having your files compacted ensures that your system runs efficiently. To run Disk Defrag, select Start/Programs/Accessories/System Tools/Disk Defragmenter. You should do this about once a month, even if the utility says it isn't necessary.
Q: I received this cryptic error message:
"Internet Explorer cannot open the Internet site (site name). An internal error occurred in the Windows Internet Extensions."
What does it mean?
A: There are several reasons why you may experience a problem like this. The best advice we can give you is to check out the Microsoft Knowledge Base (http://support.microsoft.com) and look up article Q194625. Follow the suggestions that best seem to relate to your particular situation.
Contributing writer Robert Stephens is the chief inspector of the Geek Squad, a Minneapolis-based tech support firm, and author of "The Geek Squad's Guide to solving Any Computer Glitch." (info@geeksquad.com)
