Microsoft’s free consumer antivirus is now available. So far, I like it. It’s lightweight and does not seem to change any performance with my computer.
You can find it at http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials/
Since the cost of sending email is pretty much free, especially when bots do it for you on compromised machines, spam email will continue to be a nuisance. According to MAAWG, the Messaging Anti-Aubuse Working Group, in a study they did called "A Look at Consumers’ Awareness of Email Security and Practices or "Of Course, I Never Reply to Spam – Except Sometimes," 1 in 6 people are interested in the offers they receive from spam.
1 in 6 is more than enough people keep the spam coming. Spam is here to stay!
For the full report go here: http://www.maawg.org/about/publishedDocuments/2009_MAAWG-Consumer_Survey-Part1.pdf
Many people don’t realize how easy it is to block porn and other negative things from the Internet on your computer. A little service called Open DNS will do this not only for free but also with amazing functionality. I am not going to take the time to explain how to set it up because it is well documented on opendns.org but I would like people to know what you can do.
First, this system is a group system where thousands of people can vote or request certain web sites to be banned or put in a particular category. When you pay for a service that actively blocks all porn web sites, they are bound to miss a few but with a community, it makes it much harder. Porn, nudity, file sharing, movie downloading, instant messaging, and many more are all categories of sites you can automatically block by the click of a button. If you need to get to a certain web site in a category, you can enable that site instead of allowing that category of sites through or you can just block sites you want.
Second, you set it up in your router so it makes it pretty hard for your kids to figure it out. Don’t give them the password!
Third, you can look at stats and see where people try to go. This is a really nice function but you are unable to tell what computer did it. Also when you go to a site that is blocked, you get a web page that says the site is blocked and tells you why.
Finally, a really cool shortcut feature allows you to program web site shortcuts. For example, if you go to a web site with a really long URL frequently, you can make it be a name or even letter! Whatever you want. So if you go to areallylongurl.com you can make it so you type "a" in the address bar hit enter and it will take you to that site.
I really recommend Open DNS. Given the recent dns spoofing flaw, I decided to try it. I am really amazed. I would even pay for a service like this. Open DNS says they get their money by adds on searches or on the page that says you are being blocked from a restricted site. The adds are not annoying and I only notice them when testing bad web sites. Open DNS is used by many big businesses to keep their employees off of numerous types of web sites.
It is not your fault and it is easy to do, but getting you identity stolen via a fake email is a serious issue. Unfortunately, we live in a world where their people are evil and prey upon the good and unsuspecting. Most people may know by now but if you have not heard, you can get fake or spoofed emails from a spammer that leads to a fake financial institution or some other scheme in an attempt to steal your personal information or gain access to your bank account. To help prevent yourself from getting your identity stolen, I have compiled a simple list of rules to follow.
On another note, you should turn off the html preview in email so you don’t get a virus but that is a story for another day.
If you receive an email from you bank or financial institution, it could be real but there is a good chance it is fake. Usually, they will say your account is about to be canceled and to click a link to fix or update your information. The email will look just like it was from you bank and the link will take you to a site that looks just like you bank but it is not. when you log in, they phishing is done. You just gave your username and password to your bank and now they are free to drain your account. Some really bad and obvious links will ask you to update your information while asking for your name, address, drivers license number, birthday, and social. Sadly, do not trust anything of this nature from your email. If there is a problem with your bank, go directly to their web site by typing the web address in your browser. Obviously, if there is a problem, your financial institution will tell you.
If you think you are a victim of identity theft, here are some steps as they are found on the ftc.gov website.
Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; www.equifax.com; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742); www.experian.com; P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013
TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289; www.transunion.com; Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790
Again the steps and more details are from the ftc.gov web site found here
If you need at a minimum, weekly dose of tech news and commentary, please tune in to KFI am 640 talk radio on the weekends from 11 am to 2 pm for Leo Laporte The Tech Guy. If you cant tune in your radio, you get the stream from KFI at KFI640.com, or twit.tv/live which will soon be twitlive.tv.
Leo is amazing at helping people learn and solve everyday technical problems an average user might have. The show may sometimes get geeky, but is made for an audience that may or may not know anything about tech. Leo has been a source of inspiration for me and I hope for you too.
Leo also creates too many to count, podcasts that release just about every day. Check out twit.tv for getting any of his shows delivered to you via RSS or iTunes.
MacRumors.com reported, then engadget.com followed… And now I! Yes you read it correct, it seems Apple accidentally let some future plans slip out the door. 06/10/08 is the day for iTunes 8 (which was pretty obvious), an aluminum MacBook (which I cant wait for), updates to the MacBook Pro, and a 32GB iPhone (which was only a matter of time). I really hope for the the 3G in an iPhone when the next update comes around but no mention of that. I really want higher speeds for when exchange comes out with iPhone version 2.0.
Of coarse you cannot really trust any of this but I would like to see all of this happen and Apple usually delivers what their customers want.
As far as I know, the original blog to report on this was MacRumors: http://www.macrumors.com/2008/04/16/aluminum-multitouch-macbook-new-macbook-pro-and-more/
I take no credit for any of the info here… I am just repeating what I read.
I can’t believe it is here but we are seeing 1 TB hard drives sold for under $200! This price may be a limited time offer but since it is out there, I would not buy any 1 TB hard drive for any more than $200.
The link for this one is the "eco" friendly drive that has variable speeds from 5400-7200 rpm.
Some advice about high capacity drives: At first I was not sure about the investment in a drive that would operate at 5400 rpm because of slower speeds but I have heard from some people that this may actually be better for drives with really high capacities. It seems that because the densities in these drives are so compact, little movements from case fans or even the fast 7200 rpm cause the drive to error and it spends more time correcting errors than an average drive does. So although these new 1 TB drives may run slower than regular drives, a 5400 drive may be quicker than a 7200 rpm.
Psystar is a company claiming to have cloned a Mac computer but they are selling it cheaper than Apple. Called the "OpenMac," you get a 2.2 GHZ Core 2 Duo, 2 GB of memory, 250 GB Hard disk, and a DVD burner to name a few for $400. Apparently there is software they have created that will allow OSX Leopard to install right on the computer. Psystar’s web site is already down which means they are scared sick or it all was a rouse to get Apple to pay them some money.
Im torn here, competition would drive the price of Apple’s goods down however if they became more of a software company with concern to the computer world, they might sell a heck of a lot more copies of Leopard. Don’t know what is going on but I cant wait to see what happens.
I just picked up my CradlePoint PHS300 (Personal Hotspot 300) which is a very small battery operated router that works with my Sprint EVDO Novatel Wireless Ovation U727 USB Mobile Broadband card. The USB card allows me to get wireless Internet to my computer via Sprint’s cell network. Traditionally, you could only use a wireless card with one computer until mobile routers started appearing. A router’s basic function allows you to share your Internet connection with other devices. There are many other uses for routers including big security protection but most people use them to share their Internet connection with other computers.
I have had different connection cards and wireless routers before but I have to admit, this is the best I have come across. In the past, I have spent days trying to get things that don’t work with each other to work with each other but today that did not happen. Programming the Cradlepoint with my Internet card was as simple as plugging it in and creating a password. Yes of coarse I did a little more things for security of the network but someone could literally plug in their Internet card, create a password, and surf the net. The Cradlepoint PHS300 allows a wireless connection for up to 16 devices but that is not the amazing part. The router works plugged in or via a battery that boasts around 2 hours of operation. This now means I can tuck this wallet sized router with absolutely no wires in my truck and everyone with WiFi enabled phones or computers can surf the net while we a driving down the road. This means that when I go over to friends or customers houses, we can use the net if needed very easily.
I am so happy with this practically zero config device and I urge anyone with a USB compatible Internet card to look into getting this device. Be sure to make sure you have a compatible connection card!
Just got my KPC Shuttle mini PC and within 30 minutes I had it running. This PC is perfect for many purposes or when you need a small PC. I bought a barebones K45 KPC for $100, installed a P4, some ram, and some hard drive I had laying around and I was ready to go. The biggest problem anyone is going to have with this PC is the 
power supply, it is green but only has 1 sata and 1 standard 12v connector for your hard drives. There are plenty of ports on the back: VGA, Parallel, serial, Ethernet USB… You can look this up for yourself!
Here is the hidden gem I found! Everywhere I looked, there was no mention of a CD-Rom drive bay in 
the front online or in any documentation. I have amazing news to report! Inside the KPC there is two slots for standard hard drives and one slot at the top for a laptop Rom drive. Unfortunately, you will have to take off the beautiful Plexiglas bezel that houses those pretty pictures in the front but with a little DIY fun, you can make your own.
Take a look at the pics.
