ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, February 6, 1997 TAG: 9702060013
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-6 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: Computer Bits
SOURCE: STAFF REPORT
VIRUS SCAN DELUXE by McAfee can take the worry out of downloading files off the Net.
We received an e-mail message from a reader last month who wanted to know how tough it is for blacks to use the Internet to trace genealogical roots. Because February is Black History Month, it's a good time to share what we found with the rest of you.
A World Wide Web search using the key phrase "African American Genealogy" turned up 32 references, some of which appear to hold promise.
We used the University of Washington's MetaCrawler search engine to conduct the search. MetaCrawler is probably our favorite searching tool because of its ability to conduct simultaneous searches.
Among the "hits" that MetaCrawler turned up were: AAGENE-L, a mailing list on African American genealogy; Christine's Genealogy Website African American Links, a listing of African American web sites; and Afrigeneas: African American Genealogy Workbook.
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"Buying and Selling on the Internet" will be the discussion topic when the Southwest Virginia Internet Society meets Tuesday at the Roanoke County Library's Hollins branch at 6624 Peters Creek Road N.W. Jack Price, a member of the society's board, will present the program. Business owners, managers and staff are invited. The business meeting begins at 6:30 p.m., the program at 7 p.m. and a social hour at 8 p.m.
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Worried about downloading a virus-infected file while surfing the Net?
Virus Scan Deluxe by McAfee on CD-ROM is a good way to keep that concern from becoming a real disaster.
Virus Scan looks through the computer for infected files and indicates their existence. Then Virus Scan either removes or disinfects the file, depending on how McAfee is configured. Virus Scan may be called on as needed or set to run automatically. Either way, this easy to use program seems to detect a wide variety of infections, including two virus-infected test files on my computer.
This program runs on Windows 3.xx, Win95, Windows NT, OS2 and DOS. Hardware requirements range from an IBM compatible computer with 512K memory for the DOS version up to a 386 with 4 MB memory for the more advanced versions. The documentation gives the user step-by-step installation instructions for each platform.
A word of warning: The technical support staff when called were less than cordial. There is a "temporary delay" of about eight minutes before you can talk to someone on the toll-free line. But you also can find support on the World Wide Web.
At one point in the installation, the program locked up on my laptop, which has an exchangeable CD-ROM and floppy drive. At installation, the program checks out the computer system for existing virus-infected programs. In the process, the floppy drive is checked, and if it has been exchanged for the CD-ROM, the program runs in a loop looking for the floppy drive. Hitting the cancel scan button and waiting a minute are all it takes to get the program up and running. No lockups were experienced when installing on a regular desktop computer.
Overall, McAfee's Virus Scan Deluxe, which retails for $49, is an efficient, easy-to-use program that will help keep you safe as you explore the world of computers.
This software was reviewed by reader Mike Rose of Roanoke.
A special note of thanks to Matt Conn, the public affairs officer at Ferrum College, for setting up VAsource-net, a free electronic service that helps reporters find expert sources at more than 50 participating public and private colleges and universities in Virginia.
Websites:
MetaCrawler searching
http://metacrawler.cs.washington.edu:8080/index.html
Christine's Genealogy
http://www.concentric.net/ccharity/aalinks.shtml
AA Genealogy Workbook
http://www.afrinet.net/hallh/afrogene/talk/0009.html
African American mailing list
http://ftp.cac.psu.edu:80/saw/aagene-faq.html
You can contribute to this column or just comment by e-mail to greg@eroanoke.com; rtimes1xc2roanoke.infi.net; or by calling 981-3393 or 981-3237 in the Roanoke Valley, or (800) 346-1234, extension 393, outside the Roanoke area. Previous Computer Bits columns can be found on line at http://www.roanoke.comut
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