The Queen of the Computer Geek Heroes

All Alecia Nash needs is a white horse. She has everything else that makes heroes. At least, as far as I'm concerned she does.

Alecia just rescued me from the fire-breathing dragon of Internet baddies, determined to subvert my entire computer system with evil cunning. I was but a fair maiden held in the clutches of the scaled one until Alecia showed up, bag of dragon-killing lancers, swords and computer tools in tow.

"How does this keep happening to you?" she asked, more rhetorically than as a scold.

"Because I use it," I said. "I use it a lot."

"Are you running your defensive programs, as I instructed."

"Yes, ma'am. Just ran them today. But these screaming red things kept popping up and when I'd hit the little dealie telling me to repair the problem, I got this order form to buy protection for what looked like pretty high prices."

"They are high prices," she said. "They're wipe-out-your-bank-account prices because the minute these imposters get your credit card number, they go phishing on your dollar. It all looks legitimate, even the Microsoft logos, but the minute you see one of these you need to turn off your computer and call me."

You have no idea how soothing that last part is to a guy whose computer expertise ends at the on/off switch. Alecia has a one-person consultancy called Renaissance Computers (540-793-2233) and I don't remember how I ran into her (though I think it might have been through my old pal Cabel Brand), but I give thanks occasionally--when my computer's acting up, especially--that I did. She has some nice corporate accounts, but she hasn't gotten so big that she won't make house calls. She even helps set up old people and make Internet addicts out of them. I don't think she does that because the money's so good.

She does it, I suspect, because she's a hero.