Blog Archives

• Switching to the new Newsletter page

  Posted on September 19th, 2019 at 13:15 woody Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  As promised in this week’s AskWoody Plus Newsletter, we’re moving over to the new Newsletter subsystem.

  If you drop by, you’ll see a list of all of the Newsletters going back to 2003.

  Those who are Plus Members will be able to see the last two months’ set of Newsletters. Other folks will see links, but they won’t be active. Everybody can get to older Newsletters.

  Please kick the tires. We know the figures are missing from 2018 and earlier newsletters, and we’re working on restoring them. If you’d like to volunteer to help, let me know!

  As usual, if you have questions, problems, suggestions, you’re always welcome to write to me at CustomerSupport@AskWoody.com.

  AskWoody Plus membership, AskWoody Plus Newsletter Newsletters

• Coming soon: Windows Secrets Newsletter archives!

  Posted on September 16th, 2019 at 01:15 Tracey Capen Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  ASKWOODY.COM EVOLUTION

  By Woody Leonhard

  One more big piece of the Windows Secrets legacy is about to drop into place.

  If all goes as planned, in the next few days we’ll have the full catalog of past Windows Secrets newsletters available, right here on AskWoody. You’ll need an AskWoody Plus membership to see the most recent two months of newsletters, but all the rest will be free to one and all.

  Read the full story in AskWoody Plus Newsletter 16.33.0 (2019-09-16).

  Thanks to @TBCapen-AW and @joep157 for pulling this all together.

  AskWoody Plus membership, AskWoody Plus Newsletter AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Membership, Paid content

• We’re easing into the Plus Membership benefits

  Posted on August 23rd, 2019 at 15:37 woody Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  Several of you have written to tell me that you can’t download Susan Bradley’s Master Patch List. There’s a reason for that.

  We’re gradually enforcing the Plus Membership restrictions: In order to get onto the Master Patch List page — and, soon, in order to download the latest Plus Newsletter and Alerts — you have to be a Plus Member.

  I’ve waited more than six months to clamp down. We’re starting now.

  If you want to get to Susan’s Master Patch List, or want to see the latest AskWoody Plus Newsletter, you need to:

  1. Sign up for an AskWoody account. That’s easy and free — just click Register.
  2. Log in using your AskWoody account.
  3. Sign up for Plus Membership.

  Keep in mind that we’re still on a donation model: You get to decide how much to pay for a one year’s Plus Membership. Really.

  The new Newsletter download page should be up early next week. We’ll bring over all of the old Windows Secrets Newsletters as part of the migration. Right now, it’s my intent to limit access to just the most recent Newsletter, and keep that block in place for a week. Everyone will be able to view or download every Newsletter except the most recent one — which requires Plus Membership.

  There are no plans to change our policy on Anonymous posting, or to limit the site in any other way. The big question is whether we can bring in enough revenue to keep the whole ship moving. And that, my friends, is up to you.

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Other, Patch Watch AskWoody Plus membership

• AskWoody Plus Newsletter 16.29.0

  Posted on August 19th, 2019 at 04:33 woody Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  

  Out this morning:

  #PatchLady DejaBlue, VB and August patches
  Mixing Google Docs and Word
  #LangaList Recovering a file after a factory restore
  Using StopUpdates10
  Happening on the Lounge
  And debuting Aaron Uglum’s LABS

  For a limited time you can download the latest Plus Newsletter. Soon we’ll be moving to a more-restricted distribution, where only Plus Members get the latest newsletter. (Good news: It’s easy to sign up for AskWoody Plus Membership — and you can choose how much to donate.)

  If you’re a Plus Member and didn’t get the newsletter in the past few hours — or if you’re still logging onto this site with an email address — hit me! CustomerSupport@AskWoody.com.

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter

• How do you know if File History is really working?

  Posted on July 8th, 2019 at 01:05 Tracey Capen Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  LANGALIST

  By Fred Langa

  For that matter, how do you know if any of your backups are working?

  The best proof is a nondestructive, no-overwrite, test-restore of one or more of your backed-up files. Here’s how, using Windows’ File History as the example.

  Plus: Full and partial fixes to a recurring and seemingly patternless boot failure.

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 16.25.0 (2019-07-08).

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, LangaList AskWoody Plus Newsletter, backup, boot failures, File History, test-restores, troubleshooting

• Freeware Spotlight — CipherShed

  Posted on July 8th, 2019 at 01:00 Tracey Capen Comment on the AskWoody Lounge

  Best Utilities

  By Deanna McElveen

  In a digital world that’s becoming increasingly less safe, data encryption is one of the better tools for keeping cyber thieves at bay.

  That’s especially true if you travel with a laptop or a flash drive — just imagine the damage you might incur if your device were lost or stolen. But keeping sensitive files, folders, and/or entire disks encrypted will make your files inaccessible to the device’s “new owner.”

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 16.25.0 (2019-07-08).

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Utilities AskWoody Plus Newsletter, CipherShed, encryption, security