# New laptop security query



## AE35Unit (Jun 21, 2008)

Just got a free Acer lappy from  T-Mobile/Carphone Warehouse and having first booted it up it does all the Vista setting up(bleh,vista!) and asked for a user passsword. I never thought and just entered one, now every time it boots up I have to enter the flipping password. Any way I can disable that?
Cheers
Larry


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## Lenny (Jun 21, 2008)

Open the start menu and click the picture in the square at the top right. That will bring up the User Account window. The second option in the main window will be "Remove your Password". Click it, and it will ask you to type in your password. Do so, OK it, et voila.


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## Erin99 (Jun 22, 2008)

I'm sorry.... _FREE_???




How on Earth...?

You lucky man, you!


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## Overread (Jun 22, 2008)

its on the telly loopy = you sign up for a certain internet provider and get a free laptop!

I think its AOL too,,,,,,,,,,,,


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## Erin99 (Jun 22, 2008)

WHAT??? I need to sign me up! When I hear about offers like that, I always assume it's a scam of some sort...


Cynical, me?


Blimey. But they must make their money somehow. Maybe their internet fees are phenomenal, or something...


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## The Ace (Jun 22, 2008)

The price of the monthly rental and the length of the contract add up to a sight more than the cost of the laptop.  And far more than it's worth.


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## Erin99 (Jun 22, 2008)

Heh, well, it _is_ an Acer... 

But I suppose with some offers you're actually getting quite a good deal. I mean, how much does my family pay a month for internet access, and how long have they been paying??? Would add up to a fair amount, I reckon.


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## AE35Unit (Jun 22, 2008)

Well we wanted a laptop for ages and thought we'd never afford one so we had a look in carphone warehouse for some answers. We couldn't go with AOL even if we wanted to because we can't get BT down our line,even tho the house has a BT line! Can't pass broadband down it,even tho the neighbours have it! Anyway we discovered we could use TMobile as we already have contracts with them. Now we just need to ditch Virgin Media for the digital TV and get sky,maybe!


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## Lenny (Jun 22, 2008)

Think yourself incredibly lucky that you can't get AOL. It's worse than crabs, apparently.

Did you manage to turn the password off, by the way?


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## Erin99 (Jun 23, 2008)

Yes, do tell. It doesn't sound like a Vista problem; it sounds like some sort of automatic block on ISP/Carphone's end.

Others have had the same problem: 2 pounds (refunded) to prove you are over 18 | bitful



And I know someone who has AOL. They love it. However, they're not the most technically advanced human to roam this side of... um... Cumbria...


Personally, I just found it annoying, with their constant popups and "advice".


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## AE35Unit (Jun 24, 2008)

Lenny said:


> Think yourself incredibly lucky that you can't get AOL. It's worse than crabs, apparently.
> 
> Did you manage to turn the password off, by the way?


 
Nope, i aint paying to watch my own flippin video!

Used to have AOL ages ago, wasnt bad!


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## Commonmind (Jun 24, 2008)

It took me a total of three months and roughly a dozen phone calls to cancel my AOL subscription. Even then, AOL took another three months to stop charging me for the supposed "free" BYOB service that they assured me was hassle-free. When I finally threatened legal action against them, the individual I was discussing this with over the phone became wildly belligerent and actually began threatening me bodily. After sending several reports of this to AOL, including a very detailed description of the offending phone calls (there were several which ended with the AOL employee screaming at me or hanging up for no reason save avoiding actually having to cancel my subscription) and the names of the individuals whom I dealt with, their only response was, "We apologize for the inconvenience. May we offer you a discount on your next 90 days of service?"


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## Overread (Jun 24, 2008)

knowing full well that you would probably not follow legal lines to follow up this as the cost to you would be too high = plus they could either lock you in court or just say "we responded as best as we could and the offending indeviduals have been disiplined/fired and we have put in place new initiatives to prevent this sort of thing ever happening again"

bah - where has customer service gone?


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## AE35Unit (Jun 24, 2008)

Well when i was briefly with them around 2000 it was on dial up and sometimes wouldn't connect. I ditched them and went back to BT. Now we're on ntl world,or as its now known Virgin media, which i hear is now up for sale.


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## Lenny (Jun 24, 2008)

Overread said:


> bah - where has customer service gone?


 
India, I think.

---

There's also the bad point, with AOL, that it can be an absolute swine to uninstall the software they give you. When I was eight I installed one of those free discs they give out, and my Dad was furious - it took him three days and five formats to get the computer back in working order.


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## AE35Unit (Jun 24, 2008)

Nah just use regedit and hunt down all instances of AOL, Only take you a week...


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## Tansy (Jun 24, 2008)

AOL would have to give me more than a free Laptop I'm afrqaid


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## AE35Unit (Jun 24, 2008)

Tansy said:


> AOL would have to give me more than a free Laptop I'm afrqaid



Aye,thats why we went with Tmobile instead! Couldn't have AOL anyway as our line can't pass BT broadband down it. Everyone else in the street can but our house can't.


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## Tansy (Jun 24, 2008)

AOL are evil *brrr shivers*


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## ktabic (Jun 25, 2008)

Lenny said:


> There's also the bad point, with AOL, that it can be an absolute swine to uninstall the software they give you. When I was eight I installed one of those free discs they give out, and my Dad was furious - it took him three days and five formats to get the computer back in working order.


I seem to recall there was a class action against AOL because their software was so bad people where convinced it was damaging their computers. Personally, I have never used AOL. And never will.


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## AE35Unit (Jun 25, 2008)

Lol i find that quite funny,that people believe that software can harm a computer.


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## Lenny (Jun 25, 2008)

Oh it can, there's no doubt about it. Sure, there's little chance it would harm the physical components, unless the program changed fan settings and the like and thus made overheating a much bigger threat, but software can load lots of little things that can get into hard-to-find places, and cause chaoos - delete a few key files, add some malicious ones, replace key files with infected versions, and generally make the computer operate a lot slower and more sluggishly. Whilst it doesn't harm the computer per se, there's a chance it can really damage your files.


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## AE35Unit (Jun 25, 2008)

Yes software,including viruses,can harm files but not your hard drive,RAM or other hardware. Its just paranoia.


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## Lenny (Jun 25, 2008)

In themselves they can't, no, but they can change hardware settings which can lead to a damaged hard drive, or RAM, or something else.

There are programs you can download which allow you to manually change the speed of your fans and when they come on without having to go into the BIOS. A virus can be coded to do just that, except without letting you know. If it turns off all your fans, then you're in trouble, particularly if the CPU fan is shut off. Things will overheat, and if you're not quick to sort it, then components can be damaged beyond repair and you'll need new ones.


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## ktabic (Jun 25, 2008)

There was once a virus that would change CRT monitor settings, on certain CRTs it could shift the refresh rates to such that it would kill the monitor. Then there are the various BIOS trashing viruses that went around. Erase, corrupt or otherwise muck with the BIOS and that would prevent the PC from booting, and at a time that recovering BIOSes meant replacing the BIOS chip.

Software can damage hardware - but it is incredible rare now a days. Generally, most people make no distinction between the software and the hardware, so damaging a computer for most people means damaging Windows, a task that isn't particularly difficult.


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## Tansy (Jun 27, 2008)

Microsoft updates may not damage hardware but the annoy me  the last one slowed my pc to a crawl, now have auto update turned off


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## AE35Unit (Oct 22, 2008)

Someone fetch the can opener,I've found some SPAM!


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## mosaix (Oct 22, 2008)

AE35Unit said:


> Yes software,including viruses,can harm files but not your hard drive,RAM or other hardware. Its just paranoia.



I think it was on the NCR / Elliot 4100 that if you selected / deselected a tape drive continuously in a tight loop for more than a minute or two then one of the status light bulbs would blow.


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## Ursa major (Oct 23, 2008)

As it happens, The Carphone Warehouse bought AOL UK in October 2006.


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## tangaloomababe (Oct 24, 2008)

I got a new laptop this week, not free, but a gift, so free for me I guess.  I've never seen Vista in use before and I actually dont mind putting in the password each time, at least that way I know no one else can access it and stuff it up.  I had to purchase Office 2007 thought because 2003 won't run on Vista, still its nice and new but I have to hunt around for stuff I knew exactly where to locate on my old office package.  Still I am not complaining.


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