Viruses, worms and adware are collectively called malware.  They are purposefully written programs, program parts or loadable objects that do damage to the computer and data held within the computer, or excert certain other unwanted actions. In addition they have the ability to copy themselves and spread within the computer and through the network. The damage they do can be of various kinds:

- They may disturbe or shut down functions of in the computer

- They may seriously slow down the functions of your computer.

- They may saturate the net or a part of the net with junk messages.

- They may fill your har-disk with junk.

- They may change data held within your computer

- They may change programs so that the programs do not give the expected output.

- They may present unwanted messages or aderts.

- They may spy on your activities on the computer and in the net, and may send reports of your activities to some instance. An example is picking up bank account numbers, credit card numbers, passwords or pincodes to use these to rob money from you.

- They may copy data from your computer in bulk and this way steal your intellectual properties.

- They may blackmail you to buy some protection software in order to lock up functions shut down. Such kinds of malware often present themselves falsly as protective software.

Viruses

A virus is a program part that have been introduced into some legal program. If you copy that legal program into your computer, the virus follows with it.

When you execute the program, also the virus will execute. In the first place, the virus will copy itself into new programs in your computer.

In the next face the virus and the copies will begin to do their damage.

A worm is a program that spread itself actively through the net. The worm searches the net for computers open to spread into. Then it makes a copy of itself and sends that copy to the new computer.

There are many ways a worm cans pread. One way is by sending copies of itself as attached objects in emails. If you click to open the attached object, the worm will install itself on the computer.

The worm will change between the activities dealing with spreading themselvs and the damaging activities.

The execution of a worm usually starts automatically. The computer has a so-called registry that tells which programs it shall start automatically or to certain times. The worm will put in statements in the registry that tells the computer to start the worm automatically.

Malware spread through web-pages

Much malwares are spread by executable objects loaded by websites. When you click at such a website, the webpage is loaded. With the webpage there also comes an executable object that fetches one or many malvolent programs and install these in your computer.

The installed programs can then fetch even more malvolent programs from the net and install themselves .

At some time the programs begin to act out their malvolent purpose.

Any malware that is made in order to spread messages, to solicit products or to blackmail you, are called adware. Malware intended to spy upon you, is commonly called spyware. Adware and spyware capabilities are often integreated into the same program. The malware sends reports of your activities. From these reports, the resceiver can deduse something about your interests. Then they send adverts back to you conforming to these intersets. The adverts can appear as enails or as popups on your screen.

Malware integrated in programs you purchase or loads up

Many types of programs that you purchase have integrated malware modules, usaually of the type spyware or adware. Free programs are nearly allways associated with some malware of one kind or another. Sometimes you can avoid the most annoying malwaare by purchasing a paid version. But do not think that those are alltogether free from malware. Usually also these have some integrated descrete spyware and adware.

How to tweak WINMX settings. in  High Speed connections

Click on bandwidth button.

Set download bandwidth to 10000000 bytes per second

Set upload bandwidth to 50000000 bytes per second

Ensure ticks are in the boxes.

Then set your throttle cycle to 50m/s, this should be good if you have a good  PC with big memory, if not or you have problems reset it back to 250m/s

Throttle controls how much of the computers resources it will use. If you want to do something else while using WinMx, then set your throttle higher and if you are going to leaveit over night then set it lower.

Use the settings and watch your speed increase dramaticaly especially if  the other user has set them the same.

I have gone from an average of 4.5k/s to 30k/s using these settings when other users have them also.

Some people seem to think our network is a kind of a store a they just pick what they want without sharing anything!

(and other considere our net as a schoolyard where one "trade"... Childish!)

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You can help everybody getting rid of them by boycotting them that way:

You "browse" each uploading user.

** If he/she shares more than, say, a hundred files (and NOT in the WinMx directory only,

putting them elsewhere and unshared when entirely downloaded !!!), OK.

NB: a hundred is not a lot but 1- we don't all have a large HDD and some files are big 2- when you begin...!

** If not:

You can send a message to him/her to ask why there is no real share,

or not at all, for they can have forgotten to do so: give them a chance!

The first time, I didn't understand that I had to choose the shared files types,

so I shared nothing, unwillingly. Somebody told it to me in a message.

If no answer and/or still no shared file, you can exclude the selfish beast:

(Thanks to dwhite who gave the modus operandi on the WinMx net)

To block somebody from downloading, add the name to your HOTLIST

(right-click the name then "Add to hotlist") then to your IGNORE list.

You won't receive any messages nor will they enter your queue, during that session at least.

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On the contrary, you can help people who share a lot by starting the tranfer when they are in your queue,

or give a higher bandwith