[Observer & Eccentric][Tech Savvy #190][For 2/7/08 edition][By Rick Broida]Hed: Get answers to virus, Vista, remote control, and iPod movie questions

Question:

I just received a suspicious e-mail attachment and want to make sure it doesn’thave a virus. How can I scan it without opening it first?

Answer:

Forward the e-mail to scan@virustotal.com. In a few minutes, you’ll get back areport telling you what infections were found, if any.This free service employs a whopping 32 different virus scanners, making it far moreeffective than the single anti-virus utility that’s installed on your PC. (You do have one,right?)You can also visit the VirusTotal.com site and manually upload any file for on-the-flyscanning. The service won’t remove any viruses it discovers, but at least you’ll know if you’ve got a problem file.

Question:

I’m trying to help a friend or family member solve a computer problem, butit’s really difficult to troubleshoot over the phone. How can I set up a remote connectionto the other PC?

Answer:

Professional tech-support departments increasingly rely on remote-controlsoftware, which lets them temporarily take control of the user’s PC to diagnose and fix problems.You can do likewise with CrossLoop (crossloop.com), a free utility that couldn’t be mucheasier to use.Just download and run the program, and instruct the other user to do likewise. He/shethen clicks the program’s Share tab and reads you the access code presented there. Youtype it into CrossLoop at your end, then click Connect.Presto: You’ve got full (but temporary) control over the other PC. Now you can work your tech-savvy magic.

Question:

I’m in the market for a new PC, but I’ve heard bad things about WindowsVista. Should I try to find a system that comes with Windows XP?

Answer:

For all its shortcomings and annoyances, Windows Vista really isn’t a badoperating system. It’s more secure than XP, and it offers some worthwhile advantages,including Windows Media Center and improved search and networking capabilities.