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September 14, 2007
Dear CNET members,
Happy Friday! This morning, I received a pretty disturbing e-mail from a member who submitted a question about an e-mail he received about collecting a large sum of money from a British lottery prize. I've posted the e-mail thread here for your review (read it from bottom to top). And on that note, I just want to urge all you members who are tempted to respond to e-mails such as these, or to any type of e-mail promising you a large sum of money, to please disregard it and DO NOT reply. I know for many, you are rolling your eyes now, saying "No duh, Lee", but I wanted to bring this to the attention of those who are newcomers to e-mails or to the Internet, to use extreme care to not fall victims to these scams. No one in their right mind is going to give you money for free! And the only reason why these scams still circulate is because someone out there is falling for them, and I don't want any of you here to be their next victim. Anyway, spread the word and stay safe. Now, let's hit up this week's topic on how to start out on the right foot with a new computer in hopes of keep it running well in the long run.
Congrats, Maria, on your new PC! How did you survive using Windows ME for so long?! I personally thought ME was probably one of Microsoft's worst OSes ever, but hey, that's just ME. Maria, you've come to the right place to ask for advice on how start off with a new PC, because after I read the recommendations from our members, I know you will be in good hands with their answers to your question! I picked a few answers for you to get started on, but please read through all of our members' tips and recommendations. They are just awesome! In the answers you'll find a heap of software suggestions, consisting of security and performance utilities, all the way to folks providing tips on computer placement and physical maintenance of your PC. Thank you all for your invaluable contributions. Let's hope Maria's PC will last another five years or more! Have a fantastic weekend everyone!
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Member Question of the Week
I'm really excited. After years of dealing with my old
half-functioning Windows Me machine, I finally jumped and
bought myself a brand-new Dell desktop PC with Vista Home
premium loaded on it. Now the questions I have for you, is
where do I start with a new machine in order to maintain a
good running computer for the long run. I have had all sorts
of headaches with my older computer and I want to start off
this one on a clean slate. I know an antivirus utility is
critical, so I have that installed already. This might be a
tall order to ask of you, but please, I could really use some
pointers for maintenance hardware and software wise, as this
PC will be in use for a long time. I'm not computer savvy
like many of you here, but I'm a good listener and follow
instructions well. Any list of recommendations and tips will
be extremely helpful to me. I look forward to reading all of
your suggested guidance. Thank you.
Submitted by:
Maria R.
Vote for the most helpful answer
 Below are the answers we've selected for you to vote on. Click on the title to read the answer by the member.
Here are the selected submissions grouped in one post.
Time to vote! Now that you've read our members' answers, which would you consider the most helpful? Click on the button to weigh in on the decision.
(Note: Below is the section to vote, please read the individual answers above before casting your vote below.)
 Answer by waytron
Answer by bus
Answer by ucphenom82
For the member whose answer was voted the
most helpful by our community, we will send
this member some cool CNET branded gear.
 Previous week's Q&AThe votes are in! Below is the answer voted most helpful by our community to last week's question.
I have my Windows XP computer set to update automatically and
thought all was fine until I checked at the end of June. I
found that I had no updates installed since May 10, and
nothing I have done so far has helped. When I go to the site
to check for critical updates I either get no progress with
the scan or else if I get as far as seeing the 11 I need to
download I get no further once I click on the Install button.
Even trying it singly has not helped. Please help!
--Submitted by:
Clare W.
I have posted this before on CNET, perhaps you have missed it. Worth a try if you have-- so good luck as it came from a Microsoft NewsGroup when I had problems with Windows Update.
Step 1:
Verify that your computer's date and time are accurate, and that Internet Explorer language option is not empty.
To check the language setting in Internet Explorer:
1. Click "Tools" and then choose "Internet Options"
2. Click the language button
3. Make sure at least one language is listed in the "Language Options...
(read more)
--Submitted by: CNET member: tallin
Congratulations to the winner!
Community Buzz
 Each week we take a look at topics discussed in the forums.
Have fun and enjoy!
More from the forums
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Check out next week's question:
Here's my problem, I purchased an iPod from eBay some time ago; the user claimed a friend shipped them out without tracking numbers. So I listened to his song and dance, and going on the belief that all people are good, I believed he would send me an iPod. So I cancelled my resolution on PayPal and threw caution to the wind. Well, here I am 8 months later with no iPod and out $200. When I talked with PayPal, they said I could only use 1 resolution per transaction, and then said the seller had used the service before and seemed to be an alright person. So now I guess I'm screwed, because I have no way of getting him to give my money back. The only thing I have is his phone number that he gave to me in an e-mail. I have called him and talked to him about either giving me my money back or getting me the iPod I'm owed. Is there anything else I can do to get back my money? In addition, what are some eBay buying tips that you can offer, so it does not happen to me or future eBay users? And if you have had any bad experience like me on eBay, what did you do? I love to hear your stories and advice. Thanks!
--Submitted by:
Jim G.
We feature a new question every Friday, and if you have the answer for our member, you can submit it above. If your submission is picked by our members as the most helpful answer, you'll receive some cool CNET branded gear.
Have a question?
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Simple question, simple answer
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