Upgrading & Fixing Laptops DUMmIES

includes a communications manager and the Internet Explorer web

browser.

Be sure to keep your copy of the operating system current with updates

provided by Microsoft. For example, most of the latest security fea-

tures including an improved software firewall are delivered as part of

Windows XP’s Service Pack 2.

If you are installing the operating system to a blank hard drive, you can

choose a custom set of features that excludes some of these programs

and utilities. If Windows has already been put in place, you can go in and

remove some of the features. I discuss how a bit later in this chapter.

You may have installed a full-featured application or suite of programs to

augment the basics. For example, you may have added Microsoft Office

or Microsoft Works to give you more functions. Almost all installation

processes allow you to pick and choose whether you want to add some

advanced or arcane functions; you can always put them in place later if

you suddenly discover that you really do need a Swedish thesaurus.

Your system may have gained a piece of software and a device driver or

two when you added hardware to your system. Once again, you may

have had options about how much of the software or utilities you

wanted to install.

You may have given permission to a web site to download some active

content (to allow you to interact with a web page or view some special

effects). Among this sort of downloaded code are Java applications.

Someone may have pushedsome software onto your computer without

your permission or knowledge. This can be accomplished by tricking

you into opening the door over the Internet or by just going ahead and

forcing it into place.

An evildoer may have snuck something onto your computer by attach-

ing it to a piece of e-mail.

276 Part V: The Software Side of Life

Pleading the Fifth

I am not going to get into a debate about

whether Microsoft — the maker of Microsoft

Windows and many of the other market-dominant

software programs — is perfect, good, bad, or

evil. All that is needed to be said is this:

Microsoft is by far the most dominant maker of

operating systems and basic office suites. You

can use another maker’s operating system, one

of the flavors of Linux, for example, or another

brand of office software, like WordPerfect.

You’re just not going to find a lot of suggestions

at the office water cooler when you ask for

technical help. Devotees of Linux, WordPerfect,

and the like tend to gather in electronic support

groups to trade tips, tricks, and fixes.