Howdy everyone! This week the Geek addresses Academic Software, A faulty program in Windows XP, and a defective CD-ROM drive.

Q: What is the difference between the educational versions and the "normal" versions of Adobe and Macromedia programs?
A: The differences are price, the program startup banner, and the user license. That's it. Want more details? Read on. Academic Software from most companies is simply the full version of their product, with a license agreement that restricts you from doing commercial work with an Academic product. This has not stopped many, but is worth knowing. The real difference that matters is the often much lower price.

Q: How can I get these educational versions on campus and download them to my computer?
A: RU's bookstore has really failed students when it comes to academic software. Not only do they carry very, very little of what's offered, but if you want what they don't have, you must call a third party company. I suggest you visit www.adobe.com and www.macromedia.com, and enter their online stores, and search for the academic section. You will have to provide some information, and possibly even fax your student ID to them, but the pricing is well worth it.

Q: My computer is showing two CD-ROM drives, when I only own one. In addition, neither will work. What gives?
A: Usually the cause of this problem is something called a "Virtual CD-ROM" has been installed on your system. Once popular for pirating software that must be ran from CD, they are now near obsolete since most people can get software burned by a friend. The solution is to find the Virtual CD-ROM in your Add/Remove Programs, and uninstall it.

Q: My Windows keeps reporting that msbb.exe must be closed due to an error. What's wrong? This happens all the time!
A: There is a lot of small "programs" out on the web that install themselves along with other, more useful, programs. These programs spy on your computer activities, and report them to advertisers. In addition, these programs may "pop-up" ads while you surf. These programs are called Ad-ware or Spy-ware. Some examples are: Gator, New.net domains, SaveNow, and Bonzai Buddy to name a few. Your first step is to uninstall them, if possible, using the Add/Remove Programs Control Panel in Windows. Next, download from www.download.com a program called Ad-Aware. This utility when ran will search for advertising junk on your drive, and delete it with the push of a button. Be sure you restart your computer after cleaning the Ad-ware off of your computer, and enjoy "reduced ads" surfing.