How Safe is Your Computer?

YOUR Computer (really, now)?

At 26, Aidan Lucid has overcome the effects of Moebius Syndrome (a facial paralysis that prohibits smiling or moving his eyes) to obtain diplomas of distinction in creative writing and freelance journalism from Kilroy’s College in Dublin. His studies have included proofreading and editing. He began writing five years ago, served two years as editor of the disability newsletter, Friends of Able, and has since had a variety of articles and short stories published in both English and Irish magazines.

Some of his more recent publications include articles in the June 2006 Writers’ Forum, a popular British writers’ magazine, and Writer Within E-zine (August 2006). Another article has been approved for publication this year in the American Writer’s Journal.

Of particular interest to writers is Aidan's new service, The Lucid Review, in which he offers both established and new authors a chance to be noticed and reviewed.

No! Noooooooooo!

It’s the nightmare writers dread that can become reality. You’re sitting at your computer, putting the finishing touches to an article or that elusive first novel and then the screen suddenly goes blank. You try to restart the computer but to no avail. Your files--all your files--are completely lost and the neighbours down the road hear your loud cry of despair.

The above scenario is one writers tend to be a bit cavalier about, thinking it will never happen to them. It most certainly will, however, if appropriate care is not taken.

Our writing is like our baby. We mind a baby, nourish it and watch it grow. We protect a child from the harms of the world. The data on our computers, just like an infant without a parent, can fall prey to the worst influences of a malevolent world.

Einstein once said that the more we progress in the advancements of technology, the more it will lead to the downfall of man. It looks like that Swiss genius was right because, even though the Internet is a great resource for writers, it can also be the enemy and destroyer of your labour.

Certainly, there are many dangers when surfing the net. One can hack into your files or simply send a virus to your computer to destroy it. The danger is ever present.

So what happens if you are unlucky enough to get a virus into your computer? First of all, don’t panic. Your anti-virus system (you do have one, don’t you?) will pick it up and give you a list of options on how to deal with it. If you’ve been sloppy, the worst-case scenario is having to reformat your disk. Always be ready for the worst. Back up all your data using either a floppy disk, inserting a memory stick into a USB (Universal Serial Bus) port, or a burning it onto a CD using a CD/DVD burner (which now comes with most computers/laptops).

With all these dangers lurking about, what can one do to prevent such horrid things from occurring? The first step to prevention is knowing how to notice a virus.

1. Never open an email if you don’t know whom it’s from. This sounds so basic as to insult the intelligence, but you would be amazed how many people do open such mail. If you get an email from someone that you do know, but there is something like this in the subject line: BiG CASh PriZe DRAw or asbfshggs, then don’t open it! You’ll be embarrassed—or should be—when it accesses all the names in your address book and starts spamming them thanks to you.

2. If you suddenly become the winner of a cash prize or lotto draw, simply click on the box beside it and delete the email. Yes, you want to be a “winner.” But click on it and you’ll be an instant “loser.” It is either another form of virus or a scam. Any competition that you do enter, make a note of it somewhere so you know if it is a valid email or not.

3. Always update your anti-virus software (once again, you do have anti-virus software, right?) and it will detect all the latest viruses and bugs.

4. Sometimes an option might appear on the screen saying something similar to the following, “Your system contains 56 errors. Run System Doctor (or some other program) to detect any more errors on your computer”. Click on “No” unless you know for certain that it is from your own anti-virus software. Ensure your anti-virus software is on the “firewall” setting because this prevents cheeky hackers from getting in. And they are cheeky, indeed.

5. Some people even elect to have two computers, one solely for writing use and the other just for browsing the Internet. At least this way your work will have a far less chance of being damaged.

As the old saying goes “prevention is the best cure of all” and in this case, it is very true. If you update your virus detector regularly and back up your data at the end of every week or at least twice a month, then you should be fine.

Old lessons? Heard them before? You'd be amazed how many people fall prey to these fatal errors every day.

And after all, we wouldn’t want it to be your neighbours hearing your shrieks of despair.