Bill Detwiler

Whether you support your tech-novice family members or a corporate office, you will have to reinstall Microsoft Windows at some point. And, it’s really irritating when you realize after the install that you should have exported the client’s Favorites list or documented specific network settings. In this IT Dojo video, Bill Detwiler goes over the three things you need to do before reinstalling Windows to make the process go smoothly. Once you’ve watched this IT Dojo video, you can find a link to the original TechRepublic article and print the tip from our IT Dojo Blog.

Since launching our IT Dojo video series in April, we’ve aired more than 30 episodes. Within all those Windows, Mac, and Linux tweaks, networking tips, and IT best practices there were a few videos that really stood out. In this IT Dojo video, Bill Detwiler counts down the five most popular episodes of 2008. You’ll find links to each of IT Dojo’s top 10 video in the IT Dojo blog.

We’ve aired over 30 episodes, since launching IT Dojo. And, we’ve filmed a lot of bloopers. This holiday season, we’re celebrating with an episode that’s dedicated entirely to our host screwing up. Watch as Bill Detwiler flubs his lines, growls at the camera, and even does a few bad impressions. Enjoy.

If you’re a PC pro who needs to recover files off a Mac that won’t boot, you might think to try the old PC trick of removing the problem Mac’s hard drive and attaching it to another machine. But, there’s an easier way. In this IT Dojo video, Bill Detwiler shows you how to use Target Disk Mode to access the hard drive of a Mac that won’t boot. Once you’ve watched this IT Dojo video, you can find a link to the original TechRepublic article and print the tip from our IT Dojo Blog.

Windows Vista has additional security features, new functionality, and a lot of cool graphics. But depending on how powerful your computer is, you might not be that impressed with its performance. In this IT Dojo video, Bill Detwiler gives you several performance-enhancing tips to speed up Windows Vista. Once you’ve watched this IT Dojo video, you can find a link to the original TechRepublic article and print the tip from our IT Dojo Blog.

Windows Vista’s Check Disk utility is a good tool for detecting and potentially fixing file system errors. But sometimes, Check Disk doesn’t behave as it should. In this IT Dojo video, I offer advice on what to do when Vista’s Check Disk tool malfunctions. Once you’ve watched this IT Dojo video, you can find a link to the original TechRepublic article and print the tip from our IT Dojo Blog.

Application failures, operating system faults, Stop errors: If you see any of these while running Windows Vista, you could have defective or failing RAM. In this IT Dojo video, Bill Detwiler shows you how to investigate possible RAM problems with the Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool, included in Vista. Once you’ve watched this IT Dojo video, you can find a link to the original TechRepublic article and print the tip from our IT Dojo Blog.

Rootkits are a serious threat. Rootkit-based botnets unleash seas of spam, and the most dangerous rootkits allow attackers to steal corporate and individual financial information. In this IT Dojo video, Bill Detwiler covers five things you should know about rootkits in order to keep your network safe and malware free. Once you’ve watched this IT Dojo video, you can find a link to the original TechRepublic article and print the tip from our IT Dojo Blog.

If you administer computers running Windows (or any other OS for that matter), updating and patching your OS should part of your regular maintenance routine. Unfortunately, Windows XP sometimes gets stuck in Update mode, even after you’ve applied your patches. In this IT Dojo video, Bill Detwiler shows you how to get rid of those annoying yellow shields that Windows sticks in your system tray after an update gets stuck.

Once you’ve watched this IT Dojo video, you can find a link to the original TechRepublic article and print the tip from our IT Dojo Blog.

If you don’t really trust Vista’s built-in tools or just like to have additional copies of your really important files, Vista includes a powerful, but hidden directory replication utility, called Robocopy that makes backing up files a snap.

In this IT Dojo video, Bill Detwiler shows you how to access Robocopy and how to create a custom command-line script that backs up files to an external hard drive.

Once you’ve watched this IT Dojo video, you can find a link to the original TechRepublic article and print the tip from our IT Dojo Blog.

On the surface, choosing a UPS for your organization’s server room may seem like a simple task, but like many IT tasks, the devil is in the details. In this IT Dojo video, Bill gives you five tips to help you choose the right uninterruptible power supply for your environment.

Once you’ve watched this IT Dojo video, you can find a link to the original TechRepublic article and print the tip from our IT Dojo Blog.

Tcpdump may not have a slick frontend like other packet analyzers such as Wireshark and Ettercap, but this command line tool makes up for its lack of fancy graphics with power and flexibility. In this IT Dojo video, Bill Detwiler shows you why tcpdump is great tool for network debugging and security monitoring.

Once you’ve watched this IT Dojo video, you can find a link to the original TechRepublic article and print the tip from our IT Dojo Blog.