Geek 2.0

Taking the Season Off

2006-12-25T18:12:00.000-05:00

I will be taking the Holiday season off from blogging. I will spending my time with family and on vacation. If I can I will try to make a few posts, between school and the holiday season I have enough already. You can always email me at mcampbell@live.com
I look forward to blogging in latter months.

Happy Holidays,
Matt

We Moved...

2006-12-19T23:55:00.000-05:00

http://geek20.wordpress.com/

Windows Live Mail

2006-11-26T20:13:00.000-05:00

As you may know I use Windows Live Mail to access and send out mail messages. Well, tonight was the first time I saw this dialog message:

You don't know how much this ticks me off, I was actually enjoying actually being able to use a browser other than IE to access any Microsoft content on the web. It says 1.5 but everyone I know is using 2.0. I should check and see what happens if I change the user agent to IE. But come on and get with it Microsoft.

*Update* Changing the user agent does not work, I guess I will have to use IE :(

Screenshots Of Office 2007

2006-11-12T16:42:00.001-05:00

I had a chance to check out the Final version of Office 2007 and I took a few screenshots that are located over at Flickr.
I will post a review of the screenshots later but you can just check out the photos at my Flickr photo set.
By the way these are different screenshots than any found elsewhere I took these screenshots myself. These screenshots are of Office 2007 Enterprise Edition. Also, the white at the bottom of some photos is where the taskbar was cropped out.

Installed Ubuntu 6.10 Server

2006-10-28T23:20:00.000-04:00

Today I just converted my home mail server to Ubuntu 6.10 code name: "Edgy Eft". Coming from Windows Server 2003, it was quite a change. For one thing there is alot of command line scripts to enter in. The overall install was fairly easy. I configured my mail server to a max. I used Postfix,Courier IMAP,MySQL,Amavisd-new, SpamAssassin,ClamAV,SASL,TLS,SquirrelMail and Postgrey. Let me tell you that is the last time I'm going to touch that server, considering how long it took me to configure all the settings. I don't think it's a bad server option though people tend to lean to RedHat. If your considering downloading Ubuntu you might want to wait a few days if you perfer FTP and HTTP. The only way to get it fast is through Bittorrnet.

If you're looking for a good deal on customized desktops and laptops that run Ubuntu check out http://system76.com/

Exploring Linux

2006-10-26T23:06:00.000-04:00

Want to see what all the hype is about Linux? Well, then read on.
I'm sure you've seen countless articles on how Linux is great and countless manuals on how to use Linux. When you see those you probably think "That's way over my head" or ' I don't have time to learn another OS". Well, it doesn't have to be hard at all.

I can tell you when I started with computers years ago I never read a manual on how Windows works or how to use the Windows OS. The way I learned it was by exploring and clicking on things. If I would of read a book on how to use Windows and how it operates I would probably still be reading it today. I agree, there are alot of things to learn about an Operating System but to learn the basics is not that hard. I've been a Windows user all my life and I still haven't explored everything to the OS and never will.

With that said, don't be afraid to try Linux. There are alot of good distros for beginners to Linux which I will discuss below. When you download an ISO and Burn it or use it in a Virtual Machine, Just start clicking on menus and taking a look around at different programs and menus. If you want to read a manual go ahead. Most people learn by interaction and not reading. I guarantee you if you just explore and do this on a daily basis you will become fairly familiar with Linux.

Their are several good distros or Distributions for first time Linux users. Some of them are listed below.

Ubuntu
Fedora
openSUSE
Mandriva

Many other distros can be found at:
http://distrowatch.com/

If you're looking for tutorials or software the best place would be to check out the Distributions website or community forums.

Have fun exploring Linux!

Vista Kernel API?

2006-10-25T00:01:00.000-04:00

There has been or I have been having confusion on the Vista kernel situation. I've heard from many sources that the kernel will be locked down from any third party, that's why Symantec and Mcafee have gone crazy. But, Steve Gibson mentioned that Microsoft will only open up the kernel to other parties through an API and that API will only be used on the x64 Windows Vista. I would really like to know what Microsoft is going to do. I don't see why Microsoft would release an API. Microsoft is doing a very smart thing by locking the kernel down.
By the release of the API to security companies they are opening the kernel up to the hackers and other nasty rootkits and malware. It would be very smart to lock the security companies out of the kernel and to only keep the kernel open to themselves. It's a win-win situation on Microsoft's part, they are able to keep the hackers, and rootkits out and also beat other security competitors by Windows Live OneCare only having access to the kernel. It will be very interesting to see what Microsoft does here.

A (Video) Look at the Zune

2006-10-24T23:45:00.001-04:00

Robert Scoble just released a video interviewing the Product manager of the Zune team Matt Jubelirer. They explore and talk about some basics of how the Zune works and what features are available. Scoble points out one thing in the video that is very cool and that is the Subscription service that the Zune Marketplace will have. Unlike other services *cough* *cough* iTunes you will be able to purchase a subscription for 14.99 a month and will be able to download as many songs as you like from the “millions” of songs available in the Zune Marketplace. One thing funny I find in this video is that they can’t find another Zune to demonstrate sharing music between players, yet their at the Zune Headquarters. Though through some parts of the video you want to fall asleep as the Product manager goes on and on about experience and the community aspect of the Zune, overall it’s a good look at the Zune Player. Also, the Zune is to hit stores the 14th of November.

Spreading RSS

2006-10-24T20:35:00.000-04:00

I have seen many articles around the Internet saying that RSS has failed and that RSS is only for the Tech savvy geeks out there. Take this article for instance.

I agree most of the people that use RSS are the savvy “Geek” type people. But it doesn’t have to be that way. We as in people doing podcasts and blogs and the like, need to share the knowledge of what RSS is. Because RSS is one handy thing and can help many non Geek people. Also I believe that the new RSS capabilities built into IE7 will help those new to RSS. I’m so glad that Microsoft and the IE team have built these capabilities into IE7.

But most of all the people that publish this content need to share the knowledge to these people that have not discovered the magic of RSS.

For a follow up on IE7 and RSS check out this Channel 9 Video that interviews people from the IE7 RSS Team.

Paying to be dugg, Come On!

2006-10-08T00:29:00.000-04:00

This post just blows me away. Why in the world would you pay someone to digg one of your stories? If you are doing this you are missing the whole point of digg. No one is going to read the story unless it interests them, they are not going to read it because of how many diggs it has gotten. This is just ridiculous and just plain stupid of whoever is doing this.

Netscape 8.0

2006-10-01T19:35:00.000-04:00

I recently gave the new Netscape Browser a spin. I remember Netscape being the browser that everyone used now it's either FF, IE, or Safari. Well to be honest with you I was very surprised on the outcome I had.

First off, there are so many features included with Netscape 8.0, not to the point of bloatware though. Lot's of customizations and really easy, and good to look at interface. On setup, you have the option of using the old type interface or the new stylish interface. I choose the Stylish one.

The UI is wonderful and Easy to use.

Security Center

One of the best additions to Netscape is the Security Center. The security center is a very simple thing, it alerts and scans for phising attacks and know adware on a site a reports it to you. Either by the tab or bottom right of the browser. The security center also features a Malware, Spyware, and Adware scan that works fairly well.

Spyware Scan

Engines

Netscape allows you to pick which engine you would like to use to display webpages. Either IE or The Mozilla Engine. Which is a great feature.

You can choose which engine you would like to use by clicking on the Firefox Drop-Down menu.

Sidebar

The sidebar has some really cool features including an AIM addon.

Conclusion:

Other than the great UI, the Customizations, and which Browser engine to use the Netscape browser is not up to par. The only reason that I'm not going to be using the Netscape Browser is the aspect of AOL. As you have seen lately that AOL is not doing very well with Security and Privacy Issues, and this Netscape browser was built with AOL as it's the core foundation. But overall if your not to worried about that, it's a solid browser.

Ready to Download?

Download Here

Spam Filters: A Comparison

2006-10-01T13:01:00.001-04:00

I've talked alot about spam and spammers lately so I thought I would compare some of the best Free ones.

Spamihilator

Spamihilator works between your E-Mail client and the Internet and examines every incoming E-Mail. Useless spam mails (Junk) will be filtered out. This process runs completely in the background. Spamihilator uses Bayesian Filtering to filter out Spam. One of the great things about Spamihilator is that you can use plugins. Plugins are listed on there main page. After downloading Spamihilator it will take about two weeks for it to become fully trained.

POPFile

POPFile is an automatic mail classification tool. Once properly set up and trained, it will scan all email as it arrives and classify it based on your training. You can give it a simple job, like separating out junk e-mail, or a complicated one—like filing mail into a dozen folders.

POPFile is a spam filter that is setup using your web browser it uses a proxy to filter spam.

SpamBayes

The SpamBayes project is working on developing a statistical (commonly, although a little inaccurately, referred to as Bayesian) anti-spam filter, initially based on the work of Paul Graham.

SpamBayes also uses Bayesian Filtering and also uses a proxy. There is also a plugin for outlook avaliable.

There are many spam solutions out there.

I have found using ClarkConnect, GMail, Spamihilator, and Tinymailto has eliminated most of my spam. ClarkConnect is a great Linux Server product that I will talk about later. To find out more Information check out this podcast.

Technorati tags: Security, Spam, Spam Filter, ClarkConnect, SpamBayes

Zero-Day Flaw In Firefox

2006-10-01T12:16:00.001-04:00

ZDNET is reporting that an attacker can take control of your Windows, Apple, and Linux computer by the use of malicious JavaScript. This is a fairly new flaw, and there is not much assurance if this is true or not.

But to be safe,

The only fix at the moment would to disable JavaScript. To disable JavaScript in Firefox go to tools>>options>>content>>uncheck enable JavaScript.This will probably make alot of sites break in that case use NoScript a browser extension where you can choose what sites use JavaScript, and what sites don't use JavaScript or temporarily enabling JavaScript for a site.

By doing the steps listed above you will be protected against this Zero-Day and other unknown JavaScript exploits.

Important IE and Windows Patch

2006-09-29T19:59:00.000-04:00

Details: Buffer overflow in Vector Markup Language (VML) library file used by Microsoft Internet Explorer and Outlook.

Description:
Using IE and Visiting a website with the file will automatically download malware onto your computer without your knowledge. Even an Up to date patched machine can be infected. As of a few days ago, Microsoft released a patch available at update.microsoft.com
or http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/925568.mspx
Be sure and update your computer if you are running Windows XP.

A demo video of what the Vulnerability can do to your machine
is available at this website.

Post On Forums? Here's ATip

2006-09-29T19:19:00.000-04:00

Here is a tip on how to prevent and improve your posting on public forums.

How to prevent Email Spam
Most of us have found posting your own email address on a forum is a bad idea. For instance someones giving out GMail invites and I just don't have one yet, and I really want one, so I post my email address me@hotmail.com.
Hoping that I'll get that GMail invite, well you might just get that and a little extra spam.

I have seen this every where and this is one of the main reasons you have spam in your Inbox. Other techniques I've seen have been: "me(at)hotmail(dot)com","me--at--hotmail--dot--com", yeah that might work sometimes but spammers have caught on to that. If you want to be sure to prevent spam from showing up in your Inbox try http://tinymailto.com/
Tinymailto is a great service that turns your email address into a url, and adds a captcha to that page to prevent bots and spammers from sending you spam.

So for instance I want to post my email address on a forum so I surf over to http://tinymailto.com/ and create an account and provide my email address and them pick a url for instance "tinymailto.com/me" so then I post that link into the forum post instead of my email address. So when someone clicks on that link, it will take them to a page that has a captcha and after successful entry then your email address will be shown to that person giving out the invites.

It really has worked for me and I get very little spam now.

While I've been talking about spam and spammers recently, I'm going to put up a post soon on some free Spam solutions to help prevent that spam. Look for it! Let me here your comments on any spam software you've used by using the submission forum. Submit by clicking: "Want to submit something" on the right hand column.

Website Update and Situation

2006-09-29T19:02:00.000-04:00

As I posted a few days ago that I opened a new website which included a Linux and Security blog, photos, forum, and security news. Well, come to find out that the host that I was using was a known spam company. So never use 555mb.com,122mb.com, or lxhost.org as they are spammers. I also wasn't able to login and my SQL Database became corrupt mysteriously. So now I'm going to have a tag for all security content and that tag will be "Security", so you can find those post's easier. I'm working on hosting through Godaddy and setting up a site and will let you know when I launch that site. So, In the meantime I will be only posting here no more at my old blog. Thanks!

New Security Fix Website

2006-09-25T01:13:00.000-04:00

I will now be putting most of my time and effort into a daily and weekly website that is aimed at Home and Average computer users on what patches and what they need to due that week, to keep there computer safe. I will look at what patches and other tweaks to keep there information secure. Look for it real soon!

Take advantage of all Web 2.0 Content

2006-09-22T19:43:00.000-04:00

Here are a few sites that list the most popular content form very popular and well know sites. One more thing to check in the morning along with your email:

THE WEBLIST .NET
Link
"What People are Clicking on Today"

Popurls.com
Link
"Popular urls to the latest web buzz"

Original Signal-Technology
Link
"Transmitting Tech"

Original Signal
Link
"Transmitting Web 2.0"

Ubuntu Suprised Me

2006-09-20T23:21:00.000-04:00

I recently installed Ubuntu Linux on an older Intel Celeron machine and I got Automatix up and installed codecs, apps, and so forth. I've got to say that it is wonderful. It could be a bit faster if I ran in on my main machine, but works faster than Windows. I used a very, very simple Autmatix install.
One of the easiest I've found only three Terminal Lines. I'm really thinking about switching from Windows XP on the Main machine I'm using now and goto Ubuntu. The main reasons I'm not is: 1. I've customized every thing on the computer now and to start over, I just see no point. 2. My ATI card is having problems with Ubuntu. 3. There are so many apps that work on Windows and not Ubuntu. 4. I'm also waiting to see what Vista is going to be like. I guess I should read this article again.

Daily Update

2006-09-20T23:15:00.000-04:00

School has now gotten to be very busy, now that I'm the Cross Country manager. Being Cross Country manager con sits of helping with scoring, setting stuff up, cleaning up and writing down times. Usually on days of CC meets I won't get home till around 8 o'clock. It was really quite funny how I got to be the Cross Country manager. I was just walking down the hallway and our Coach hollered to me and asked me to be the manager and I said sure. So, now I will be traveling with them on the road, Helping out.

Office 2007 Technical Refresh Now Avaliable

2006-09-14T17:41:00.000-04:00

Microsoft Office 2007 Technical Refresh build is now available for download from here . This is an update build to Beta 2 so you will need to already have Beta 2 installed to use it. As, I've heard there is only minor bug fixes and other minor UI changes and the ability to run on Vista RC1. I have not looked at it yet. I will post my results after I take a look at it. I'm not expecting much more than from the Original Build (Beta 2).
Check it out:
Download Link

Apple: Shame On You

2006-09-14T16:49:00.000-04:00

Apple just announced there new addon to there product line called yep you guessed it iTv. iTV is a small box that can contain media that hooks in with iTunes, Your iPod, and your TV. Basically like Windows MCE but in a portable box. The cost of iTv was announced at $299. But the thing about it is that it looks exactly like Windows Media Center Edition. Take a look at the screenshots below and tell me what you think.

Apple iTV

Windows Media Center Edition (MCE)

So don't tell me that Microsoft Copies everything Apple, that is complete BS.

Watch the Presentation of iTV by Steve Jobs here

Open Source Software: Why To Use

2006-09-12T01:15:00.000-04:00

I've metioned this before but haven't really talked about it in detail. Open Source software is the thing now. Why? It's Free, It works, Works better than lots of other apps that you have to pay for, and it's more secure. I believe that we will see a big boost in popularity with Open Source Software in the next few years. People are fed up with buying these expensive, bloated software applications.

Here are some reasons to use Open Source software:
(Feel free to add any into the comments)

1.Lots of times it's more secure than other closed source applications.
2.It's Free-The best part
3. We trust it because it's open source and anyone can view the source code
4.Reliable

I've mainly switched to Open Source software because software has gotten to be bloated with Junk and Crap I don't need. I recently downloaded Real Player to watch a real player file. It was just miserable the default settings were to change the file associations with all media files, wanted to install weather bug. That's why I enjoy freeware such as RealPlayer Alternative and Quicktime Alternative available at filehippo.

Look at this chart and tell me how many Open Source apps you find:
http://www.thepcspy.com/articles/other/what_slows_windows_down/2

Another page to check out if you can't find an alternative to that paid application that you love check out this list. Your bound to find something useful.

Second Life Database Hacked

2006-09-09T00:07:00.000-04:00

I just received and email in my inbox regarding that the Second Life Database was "Breached" with an "Zero-Day Exploit" through third-party software.

The Email Reads:

Hello Second Lifers,

As announced on our website at http://secondlife.com/corporate/bulletin.php and corporate blog at http://blog.secondlife.com/?tag=security, Second Life discovered an attack on our servers on September 6, 2006. The full security bulletin is reprinted below, followed by a FAQ that includes important security advice for our community.

===================
SECURITY BULLETIN

*SAN FRANCISCO, CA. (September 8, 2006)* - Linden Lab reported today that it is notifying its community of a database breach, which potentially exposed customer data including the unencrypted names and addresses, and the encrypted passwords and encrypted payment information of all Second Life users. Unencrypted credit card information, which is stored on a separate database, was not compromised.

The breach was discovered on September 6, 2006 and promptly repaired. The company then launched a detailed investigation that revealed an intruder was able to access the Second Life databases utilizing a "Zero-Day Exploit" through third-party software utilized on Second Life servers. Due to the nature of the attack, the company cannot determine which individual data were exposed. The company's technical investigation is ongoing.

"We're taking a very conservative approach and assuming passwords were compromised and therefore we're requiring users to change their Second Life passwords immediately," said Cory Ondrejka, CTO of Linden Lab. "While we realize this is an inconvenience for residents, we believe it's the safest course of action. We place the highest priority on protecting customer data and will continue to take aggressive measures to protect the privacy and security of the community."

Linden Lab advises all users to take appropriate precautions against misuse of personal information. To reduce the risk of fraud, Linden Lab will not contact individuals by phone or any other method asking for private information unless it is in response to an inquiry from the individual user.

===================
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: I can't log in to Second Life. How can I regain login access?

A: As a security precaution, all Second Life account passwords have been invalidated. You need to establish a new password in order to log in. You can receive instructions for changing your password by visiting http://secondlife.com/password. Please note that we are updating the password request process - if you have recently tried that page and could not change your password, please try again.

Q: Was my account information compromised?

A: We discovered that a database was accessed by the intruder, and we are able to determine the aggregate size of the data that was downloaded through the intrusion. The database accessed includes customer account information, including Second Life account names, real-life name and contact information in unencrypted form. Account passwords and payment information (consisting of credit card numbers and Paypal transaction IDs) are stored in this same database in encrypted form. However, there is no way to identify which data were accessed at the level of individual users, only the aggregate size of the downloads returned from the intruding database queries. We are conducting further investigation to try to determine the class of data exposed.

Q. Is my information still at risk from another attacker?

A: The compromised system was rebuilt and made more secure. We will be announcing additional plans for security improvements in a post to come on our blog, at http://blog.secondlife.com/?tag=security.

Q: Should I be concerned that encrypted password and encrypted payment information may have been exposed? Is the encryption unbreakable?

A: We use an MD-5 hash (scramble function) and salt (additional data) to encode passwords and payment information, an industry standard technique that is commonly regarded as difficult to defeat. However, no hash or encryption is unbreakable, given enough time and computing power. If you believe that you may be the victim of credit card fraud, you should contact your credit card company. If you use your Second Life password on other websites, online services, or any other services, you should change the password on that service as well. You can find additional tips for protection of your identity online at http://www.privacy.ca.gov/sheets/cis1english.htm.

Q: What kind of attack was used to gain access to the Second Life databases? Has the identity of the attacker been established?

A: We have gathered a significant amount of information regarding the attack and the attacker. However, because the investigation is ongoing, we cannot provide very detailed information regarding the type of attack or identity of the attacker. We can disclose that the intrusion path took advantage of a "zero-day exploit" in third-party web software.

Q: What was the timing of the attack and Linden Lab's investigation?

A: Our forensic investigation began on September 6, 2006. Based on this investigation, the intrusion attempts may have started as early as September 3, 2006. However, we have not found evidence of successful database access occurring before September 5, 2006. On September 6, 2006, unusual activity in our database logs revealed the attack to Linden Lab, and we investigated, found and closed the intrusion on the same day. At that point, there was no evidence that databases containing customer identity information had been compromised. For the following two days, the focus of our investigation was to determine the extent of the database access and the nature of the data downloaded from our system. On September 8, 2006, we concluded that there was a substantial likelihood that customer account information could have been accessed. The investigation is ongoing and we will report further results as they become available at http://blog.secondlife.com/?tag=security.

Sincerely,

Linden Lab and the Second Life team

Links Regarding The Matter (Not Very Many since this was just released like eight minutes ago)

http://blog.secondlife.com/?tag=security
http://secondlife.com/corporate/bulletin.php

Slowing down on the posting

2006-08-23T00:20:00.000-04:00

I'm not going to be posting as much now that I'm back in school.I will try and do my best to post as much as I can but I can tell you it's
not going to be alot. If you have any questions email or Im me to the right.
I added spam and bot protection to my email address so you will have touse a
captcha to get my email address. If you have any stories to submit to me please use the link to the right to do so. Thanks.

Ultimate List of Free Windows Software

2006-08-21T18:33:00.000-04:00

This is a great list compiled together lots of software I didn't even now existed.

Link

5 Ways to Keep Your Computer Safe for Free

2006-08-20T17:07:00.000-04:00

So here are 5 things you need to do to make your computer safe. There is no way to make your computer absolutely safe but this how-to will make your computer as safe as it can be for free, no shareware, bloatware or any of that stuff.

First off What You'll Need :

Windows XP (Either Pro or Home Doesn't Matter)
Knowledge on how to install .exe's (that's it)

1. A Firewall (Very Important)

Any one of the Firewall's I list here are fine no one is superior than the other just maybe a few different features but basically the same

A firewall is an essential to make sure your allowing only traffic to and from your computer that is safe. Some say that you don't need a Software Firewall if you have a Hardware Firewall(Linksys Basestation or something similar) but I suggest for extra security you get one. To see what a hardware firewall see here. Don't Use More Than One Software Firewall.

ZoneAlarm Free Firewall

This is a great Firewall I suggest this and all of the other one's I list but it does seem to be a memory hog sometimes. Great Choice though.

Kerio Personal Firewall

A great unobtrusive firewall I use this one and I suggest It

2. Antivirus Program (Very Important)

An Anti-Virus program is one of the most important pieces of software your computer has or needs. There is no doubt that you need a Anti-Virus Program. Anyone of these I list are just fine to use don't use more than one though.

AVG Free Edition

This one of the best Free Anti-Virus Program I use this program and it works great one thing you will not get is Priority Updates.

Avast! Home Edition

This is also a good antivirus program great detection rate the layout is a little less to be desired but is a solid Anti-Virus Program.

3. Updates & Patches (Very Important)

This is the most important thing and the most secure thing to do to a computer is to patch holes and update it. This is not just one single program you run and it updates all of the software, but you need to do this yourself. Usually in any Anti-Virus or Firewall and even in Windows There Will Be a way to update.

Very easy to do just look around on the program that you have and you should either find update in some menu or preferences. Zonealarm, AVG, Avast! and Kerio all have this.

You also need to update your computer using Microsoft Update just go to the link above and Update your computer. If you have Microsoft Office installed it will update that also. But you need to do this with all programs like Java and so on. I won't get into that but just look on the programs website for help on doing updates.

4. Anti-Spyware (Very Important)

This is a program that you need also. Spyware is so easy to get on your machine, just visiting a website can give you spyware and your Anti-Virus program won't pick it up. I suggest more than one.

Ad-Aware SE Personal

Ad-Aware Personal provides advanced protection from known data-mining, aggressive advertising, Trojans, dialer's, malware, browser hijackers, and tracking components. This is a program I use also.

SpyBot Search and Destroy

Another program just like Ad-Aware but looks for different things. Great program I use it.

5. What You Do Yourself

1. Remove these programs listed below plain and simple.

Limewire

AudioGalaxy

Bearshare

Blubster

edonkey 2000

Grokster

Kazaa

Morpheus

WinMX

iMesh

ANY P2P PROGRAM OR BITORRENT PROGRAM

Meaning any program that you share files and download illegal songs, porn, movies and software git rid of it- not kidding. Read this for more Info.

2. Be Smart

Be smart in the way you surf. Don't download files from unknown sources. Don't click on banner or any type of ads. Don't visit porn sites. Basically don't do stupid things while on the Internet.

3. Optional(Use Host Files)

This is not very important but can block ads and click tracking. A host file is a file that blocks ads from appearing while visiting a site for more on Host Files visit here

4. Clean

Clean out Temp files, cookies, Temporary Internet Files and any other trace your surfing leaves. This will prevent spyware. One Program to use is CCleaner( Crap Cleaner) it cleans the things listed above and other things to make your computer free of clutter.

That's It!

-Matthew Campbell

Links For August 20, 2006

2006-08-20T14:00:00.000-04:00

Web 2.0 Logo Creator by Alex P
A nifty site of where you can make your own customized very popular web 2.0 logo. And even add the Beta sign.

Techdirt: Recording Industry Bans Musician From Charts For Supporting Free Music
What in the Hell is the RIAA thinking and Doing? Listen to this link on what I think and what the podcaster thinks Link Top Of Page

Windows XP Bootscreen
As the title says a Windows XP Bootscreen

Scrape Torrent
A clean and intuitive torrent search engine site that combines all the major torrent search sites into a single page of search results.

Macbook and Vista Thoughts

2006-08-20T13:56:00.001-04:00

Sorry for the lack of post's today I've been messing around with my Macbook. It's seems to work pretty fast, been transporting all my files over. The UI does look alot like Vista from what I've seen and previewed. Will see if they change some things, but I'm really not a fan of the UI in Vista it seems to be just all eye candy(and that only a few graphics cards could handle the Aero).I hate that in Vista they stuck the search in the Start menu, I never use the start menu. We'll see what happens when they ship It. I'm sure going to wait and Buy Vista when at least SP1 comes out. I would reccommend that every one wait till SP1 based on other OS they released. Speaking of Windows; Windows Live Mail was great there weren't many annoying ads it reminded me of Outlook just drag and drop. I'm thinking about switching but I hate the @hotmail.com alot because forums ban that e-mail address sometimes. There new @live.com will be better.

RocketDock Rocks

2006-08-19T20:08:00.000-04:00

RocetDock is a toolbar similar to ObjectDock but us totally free. What I like it's not a
memory hog and
it's very quick.
Description:
RocketDock is a smoothly animated, alpha-blended application launcher that is similar to ObjectDock. RocketDock renders quickly like MobyDock, has the visual sharpness of Y'z Dock, and the stability that neither seem to possess. It is compatible with every dock skin format.

Here's Mine:

*Click For Bigger Image

Why MySpace?

2006-08-19T18:20:00.000-04:00

Myspace is a ok place to create an account and to see friends pages. But the layout is just awful, there are to many banner ads in your face, Some profiles are unreadable because of huge gaudy background templates, the add music to your profile sucks I don't know about you but I don't want a rock song to start playing automatically. Really what draws people to this? I don't get it. I'm not for the Walmart alternative witch is just lame. But why are people into Myspace? I don't see one thing that Myspace has over any other competitors. You also got 69 million members with 500,ooo a week, what attracts people?

Geekcast Made My Week

2006-08-19T17:08:00.000-04:00

The Geekcast Podcast
made my week. What he had to say about the RIAA was the Best yet. You can hear the podcast at the link above it's a really short clip but it's great.

Annoying Ad

2006-08-19T03:12:00.000-04:00

You've seen the average ad on Google and Banner ads on different websites and various pop-ups but the picture below is just so annoying because I know that a Novice computer user or someone really concerned about their data would freak and click on the ad, and probably get a worm or some sort of Spyware or backdoor. It's not much of the ad that's annoying becasue I was using IE :) But that I know that someone will freak and click on it.

Tech Links for August 19, 2006

2006-08-18T23:51:00.000-04:00

Find Five Errors
A game where your trying to find five differences between two images with a time-limit. This is very addicting

Link

Light Side Up
Unbelievable video of a very amusing and confusing College prank. One of the coolest videos on the web by far.

Link

Kiko Online Calender
An online Ajax Calender that syncs and converts with various Applications and Platforms. The Source code is up for sale on ebay here

Link

Spamihilator
A great spam filter for various mail mail applications very customizable, and works wonderful, plugins available.

Link

Not very many tech links today

Linux Pros and Cons

2006-08-18T17:29:00.000-04:00

Heard about the ZDNET Between the Lines Article about the Pros and Cons of Linux it's a long in-depth article but makes some good points.

Article

Swift: Safari Browser For Windows

2006-08-18T15:30:00.000-04:00

A few months back I was working on developing a website, I of course had IE, FF and Opera, But I didn't know how the page rendered In Safari. I was searching around trying to find something and I found Swift.
Swift is a browser for Windows based on the Apple Webkit rendering engine. The layout of the browser is a little lacking considering it's in the alpha stage. But it got the job done. It crashed about twice on me visiting webpages with Flash, but overall it worked. So if your developing or creating a site and don't have Safari I would recommend this.

Link

Tech Links For August 18, 2006

2006-08-17T23:04:00.000-04:00

20 Tips on Securing Outlook In 20 Minutes

A .pdf file explaining ways to secure Microsoft Outlook

Article Page Link

Official Home Of The RSS Icon

You can find the official downloads of the RSS icon it different colors

Article Page Link

Inclue FeedReader For Microsoft Outlook

A feed reader that integrates with Microsoft Outlook

Article Page Link

digg Tools

Helps you get the most out of the digg experience

Article Page Link

Wufoo iFrame Form Builder

Build a customized form for your webpage or Blog for free
Used it and it works great

Article Page Link

Awesome Blog Widgets

A site that lists a bunch of free blog and Myspace Widgets

Article Page Link

Hackers vs. Crackers

2006-08-17T22:50:00.000-04:00

I'm sure you've wanted to know the difference between a Hacker and a Cracker. I've heard alot of things in the Media saying that Hackers are bad people. That is totally BS. Hackers are good, it's the crackers or "Script kiddies" that are bad. Hackers believe it or not, help protect you even more, and your computer. Why? Hackers can learn and find holes and then fix them. Hackers usually help you NOT hurt you. The media looks at hackers as bad people, but it's the Crackers that are. The Crackers are the people that want to break into your computer not the Hackers. See, Crackers or "Script Kiddies" are people that try to crack there way into your computer and to find exploits and then do damage. Hackers do the opposite in lots of cases. So next time you hear the media bring up that Hackers are bad, there not it's the Crackers. In fact some hackers what they call "White Hat" hackers actually do try to get into your computer but you give them permission and then they tell you what you need to do or fix, if they can get through. Usually you don't do that because well, it's too expensive. I just thought I'd bring this up since I heard this recently in the News. For More Information check out this Article

MacBook Soon

2006-08-17T18:05:00.000-04:00

I've really been wanting a MacBook for a longtime now and I think the time has come. I found a seller on Craiglist with a slightly used one. 1.83 GHz, 512mb, 60 Gig HD. It will be a good Notebook for everyday use not video editing or anything processor heavy. The reason I hadn't had one before is the Price. I admit the MacBook is in the same price range as some Dell's and Lenovo's but I didn't have the money to spend on a Brand new one. I'm hoping it works out. What are your experiences with a MacBook? I'd like to know.

Tech Links for August 17, 2006

2006-08-17T16:34:00.000-04:00

Remove Your Name From XP Start Menu

How to use Group Policy to remove your name when you're a group of one.

Article

My Feedback:
This applies only for the default start menu not the classic.

Mac Book Pro vs. Powerbook

http://www.barefeats.com/pbcd.html

Name Boy

Trying to find a domain but it's not avaliable? Try this site and enter two keywords to generate domain ideas for free. This site is great.

http://www.nameboy.com/

News Links for Today:

From MacRumor.com

Lion Gate Films to offer Full Films on iTunes? Maybe sometime later this year?

Article

My Feedback:
I think some people will like this idea. But this begs the question will the Movies have ads? Some iTunes Video content had ad's placed in. That got quite a few people mad. Will see what happens. I personally don't use iTunes but we will see the outcome of this.

Want the OSX Look For Windows Instead?

2006-08-17T03:16:00.000-04:00

Look no farther than FlyaKite OSX
FlyaKite OSX is a full featured customizable OSX Theme for windows. Be sure and check out the main site for the super sweet layout.

FlyaKite OSX Offical Page

Want to Have that Ubuntu Look For Windows?

2006-08-17T02:50:00.000-04:00

Do you like the Gnome and KDE themes in Linux? But don't want to sacrifice Windows to use it? Well, then check out these links below to some very Ubuntu'ish Looking themes for Windows.

Clearlooks Screenshot:

deviantART Link 1

deviantART Link 2

deviantART Link 3

deviantART Link 4

I've had the hardest time navigating around deviantART since there update so I thought Direct links would help.

Update: If you use Firefox you can use a great Ubuntu Human theme you can find the theme here

Google Analytics now Open

2006-08-17T02:42:00.000-04:00

Google Analytics is now Open no longer Invite only, I used this service on my old site and It was wonderful it's something you expect to pay at least a monthly fee for. The setup was rather easy and quick and It was very in-depth where traffic was coming from. If you're using a paid service I would recommend trying this out to see how you like it, then decide. Besides, the best things in life are Free. Aren't They?

Article

Podcasting? Nah

2006-08-17T02:35:00.000-04:00

I received an email from Patrick asking me if I'm ever going to do a podcast or video blog. The answer is no. I enjoy just blogging. I do enjoy podcasts and video blogging but it's just not for me. If your interested in Tech podcasts I recommend you listening to ones I suggest on this blog there all really good. I might consider Video Blogging and Podcasting later, but it's out of the question now.

And thanks for the question Patrick, I enjoy answering questions like that. Keep em' coming

Links for August 17, 2006

2006-08-17T02:22:00.000-04:00

I, Cringely . NerdTV | PBS
Zap
Zap away Crap from pages just drag link above into the Firefox Bookmarks toolbar and click on it to remove iframes and annoying stuff on webpages
Digital Craig
Surviving in the digital wasteland
ZabaSearch
Free People Search Engine
Top 100 font downloads | dafont.com
Download free and shareware fonts.
[How To] Detailed guide to installing Mac OS X x86 - InsanelyMac Forum
A howto on Installing OSX on Windows
Pricelessware - About Pricelessware
the best of the best in Windows Freeware - Brought to you by the members of alt.comp.freeware
Son Of Spy Security1
Freeware Security Software for your Windows Computer
FreewareArena �� News
News Delivering the 100% real freeware goods since 1997
CleanSoftware.org - Free software, no nasties!

AOL Search Information

Find the Coolest Links in The Main RSS Feed

2006-08-17T02:02:00.000-04:00

Just recently I added Daily tech links to the Main RSS Feed, so every time you read the feed you will be available to find some cool tech sites with interesting topics. So If your bored check those out. I've been trying to catch up on posting today got a lot of stuff done so I will be posting a few times a day in the next couple of days. I will now have daily news Items up in the RSS Feed and also included in the Blog. As, you can see I've added alot more ways for you to get the content from this blog. I was slacking a little bit on that over at Wordpress, but now you've got tons of options. If your unsure of what to use to subsrcibe to the RSS Feed I recommend FeedDemon
I believe there is a free trial up on the site, It's one of the best I've found. If you like it Buy it because there are a lot of great features as well as sncyhronizing your NewsGator account with FeedDemon. If you don't want to spend the money there are lots of other free alternatives just do a Google search on it our use the searchbox below if you need help with the RSS Feed, just email me or post your comment below and I will be glad to help.

Spammers Shakes Fist

2006-08-17T01:46:00.000-04:00

I've been having some problems with spammers lately not as bad as Wordpress, but a little bit of a problem so I turned on Word Verification. If It continues I will turn on moderation don't want to but I might. Sorry!

Current_TV

2006-08-16T18:16:00.000-04:00

Ever heard of the Channel Current? Well Current_ is a TV Channel that airs what they call "Pods" these "Pods" are submitted from people like you and I. Basically what you do is Film something and submit it to there website and then people vote for the "pod" to air. I believe Current_ is only available on DirecTV but check out there website, I'm not positive. It's sort of like a Podcast that you submit and viewers vote for it kind of like digg. Current_ does air some interesting stuff but some of the "Pods" I could care less for. But if you have DirecTV check it out the website is www.current.tv.

Btw, This is not an advertisement :)

Podcast's Worth Metioning

2006-08-16T15:49:00.000-04:00

Bits of Silicon Hell
Really Enjoyed this podcast lots of articles from the Tech world

Site Description:
Bits of Silicon Hell is a technology podcast. It doesn’t really matter what kind of technology: networking, PCs, servers, PDAs, gaming, the Internet. Technology puts us all in quite a unique position. It tends to change us as much as we think it’s improving our way of life. It’s supposed to make our lives easier, and it does, but it also changes how we do things. Sometimes for the better, sometimes not.

http://bitsofsiliconhell.com/

Mike Tech Show
In depth look at some Tech news and Cool Software

Site Description:
Mike's podcast is about all things technology and computer related. He discusses cool sites, software, and tips and tricks that will make you more productive at home and work. He reviews problems and solutions that he has encountered at home, work and business consulting he does in his off-hours.

http://miketechshow.com/

Geek News Central
News From the Tech world, great show.

Site Descirption:

Geek News Central is edited primarily by Todd Cochrane, who is the award winning Author of "Podcasting The Do It Yourself Guide". Geek News Central is a subsidiary of his company Podcast Connect, with this website launching in May 2002 with the goal of creating a high quality tech and informational site for people of all ages and backgrounds. In addition to Todd a small number of volunteer editors contribute content to the site. The idea of launching this site has it origins from what was in wanting to share information and opinions in a community fashion.The goal continues to be posting quality links and information along with personal commentary on sites that interest us and hopefully those visiting the site. As you can see from our content we want you to be exposed to new ideas and technologies by publicizing new and innovative software or pieces of information that effect your daily connected lives.

http://www.geeknewscentral.com/

The Steve and Johnnie Show
A weekly Live Radio show with the CyberSquad featuring Patrick Crispen

Patrick Crispen (Steve and Johnnie's Internet Mythologist) www.netsquirrel.com or www.tourbus.com or E-Mail anyname@netsquirrel.com
For information on MSConfig, send a blank e-mail to wgn@netsquirrel.com (it's an automatic response)
Mike DiMichele, Alliance Information Technology Solutions -- computer expert miked@wgnradio.com, www.savemybutt.com
Gray Rothkopf, Founder & Manager of On Deck Tech www.ondecktech.com
For additional information from Web Site Wednesday Shows: www.is.org

www.wgnradio.com

RIAA No Reply

2006-08-16T14:40:00.000-04:00

To be honest with you I wasn't expecting an Reply from the post below from the lawyer out of Michigan. I'm sure his Inbox was bombarded with Emails regarding the Suite. I'm sure they set up there spam filters to block any words such as F%*& S$#& RIAA and so on. That is one of the most sickest things I've ever heard of how greedy can you be? I really hate buying Cd's anymore due to this Crap and the Sony DRM. I really am reluctant to buy any Cd's anymore unless there used at a sale somewhere. If you missed the article you can read it here and here and here is my blog post. Think before you buy a CD from Best Buy or wherever you buy Cd's and remember where you money is going too, the Greedy Scum RIAA. How do they sleep at night?

Why IE Only?

2006-08-16T14:28:00.000-04:00

I'm no longer using IE do to Security Issues. I'm using Firefox as my main browser now and am very happy with it I will never switch back to IE unless I need updates. But still alot of people and websites insist on using IE. Why? I don't know. But I needed to get on an important page for school and noticed that it was only IE 5.5 or better compatible (Screenshot Below)

What are the people using OSX or Linux going to do? IE For OSX is long outdated so there just screwed. I really hate and don't use sites like this. NOT EVERYONE CAN USE IE. I avoided these sites if it's not important. There is a little extension for FF to open pages in IE but it still has to launch IE and then it brings FF to a crawl. So if you are designing a website make sure you use multi-platform support because users of Mac's Linux Boxes and People that use FF won't be able to use it. Remember the numbers are going up for FF and other browsers.

Nothing More To be Said

2006-08-16T00:21:00.002-04:00

*Click for bigger image

Linux, Windows, Bitdefender and Me

2006-08-16T00:21:00.001-04:00

Ok, as you may have know I’m a complete noob when it comes to Linux *hint-hint* title well this week was the week for me to try to deal with Linux. I’ve had a copy of XP Professional installed on my PC for a few months haven’t had a problem things were working great, programs running smoothly, booting fast- everything great. Till, the day I decided to try out Bitdefender the Anti-Virus software you may have heard of “Secure Your Every Bit” well I heard wonderful things about Bitdefender Anti-Virus software and thought I would give it a shot. Installed it, Rebooted and waited I could of sworn 15 min for my desktop to load and my other apps at startup which includes like FeedDemon, and ZoneAlarm and a few non CPU hungry apps. After my desktop loaded I could bareley do anything yet alone open a thing I managed to get the Task Manager open and in the process menu I found bsdanget.exe bdagent.exe bsagent.exe or some close to that at least 4 process used by BitDefender one of those four was hogging 80% of my CPU. After that point I couldn’t open or close a thing, manually rebooted same thing. I tried Safe-Mode couldn’t uninstall it from there either. Disabled it from starting up in MSCONFIG didn’t work either at that point I was cursing BitDefender. Well to make a long story short I really didn’t want to install XP again, I thought it would be a good time to try Fedora Core 5. So popped in the DVD loaded, had a few problems with my Graphics Cards so I ended up booting Linux in “Linux Text” worked fine followed all the prompts, it finished, ejected the CD started the Normal Linux boot then stopped me at the Login Screen that’s when my Jaw Dropped. I remember giving Fedora my password but not a Login name. So I tried a few combinations the typical admin, administrator, User, default. Didn’t work Googled for the Default name came up with nothing. So I tried the login name “root” and my password and that worked then It came up with a funky name symbol line like rootadmin~*#0) Hell, What am I supposed to do now? Tried a bunch of things no luck and Guess what I Shutteddown popped in the XP Disc and Walla XP. Working fine. BTW, it was a free night. So maybe next time Windows Fails on me I’ll try Ubuntu. I would also like to know what to do after I login as root in Fedora. If anyone knows email me I would be glad to know.

A little Security Review

2006-08-16T00:20:00.002-04:00

As In the earlier post I stated how awful Bitdefender was so I thought hey mine as well do a little review so here goes:

Clamwin:

Free open-Source virus scanner I ditched it the first day didn’t seem to pick up anything compared to NOD32 and Mcafee also just sat in the System Tray taking up precious space

NOD32 Pro:

Ah, NOD32 the best one yet. This is one of the best Anti-Virus programs I’ve used scans ever file you open, worked on every test I gave It and took up no resources at all. Get this one..No Kidding

Avast Home Ed.:

Erghh this one was awful the scans took forever and the menu was unnavigable seem to not take up much resources though.

AVG Free Edition:

Great Anti-Virus product works great with Outlook but the scans are pretty lengthy and It lets you know over and over again if you have Residential protection disabled

Mcafee Anti-Virus 2006:

Alright virus scanner the On-Access scanner found some things that NOD32 didn’t one thing bad about this product it comes with a Security Center like the Windows Security Center but pops up every time with opaque pop-ups every-time it finds something or updates itself. Very annoying at least you know it’s working though.

Thoughts on Xandros 3

2006-08-16T00:20:00.001-04:00

Wow, I was so surprised on how easy and simple is was to install Xandros. The setup was so easy and so easy to customize faster and easier setup than Windows I believe. The first run wizard was handy had the option of using the Windows layout I said no because what’s the point of changing Linux to Windows? My ATI card still dosen’t work the Display settings menu was very handy and easy to access and change. I love under the theme settings that they call the Windows Layout “Redmond” struck me as funny. By the way how the hell do you install anything in Linux I’m getting .RPM files .Bin files I know how to use a .Bin file in Windows but In Linux I got one app that was a video player installed..I think but where did it go? This is one of the easiest and practical Linux Distro’s I’ve used I suggest it if your coming from a Windows Background.

Reporter Fakes Interview With Bill Gates

2006-08-16T00:19:00.000-04:00

Microsoft Corp. says a Norwegian journalist fabricated an interview with
Bill Gates.

Then reading in the comments of the digg story…
“Someone should give this guy a job at the New York Times”
so true..so true.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060802/ap_on_hi_te/microsoft_gates_interview_2

Cool Stuff…

2006-08-16T00:18:00.002-04:00

The daily surf around the net revealed some cool things first over at grc.com the website of the Gibson Research Company and home of Security Expert Steve Gibson this might be old but there was a .pdf file of how grc.com was hit my a DoS Attack the story is quite interesting goes into full detail about a 29 page PDF I acutally read the whole thing it was that internsting. Also a cool little site found on digg

the site is where you can make a custimozied feed of the stories listed on digg there aren’t many options so far maybe soon, might as well use the Main digg RSS Feed until that happens.

digg Blogs are can you even call them blogs?

2006-08-16T00:18:00.001-04:00

I’m sure you’ve seen just a blog that has people’s digg’s on it and nothing else right? Well, if you haven’t check out digg and see who “blogged this”, but those are some of the supidest blogs or can you even call them Blogs? The whole purpose of the “digg” blog is to show people’s digg’s nothing else, no about me, or anything thing just digg’s. Who want’s that as a blog? Not me. Sure I show a little of my digg’s, but I put up more things than just what I “digged”. For instance this one http://tjr.homelinux.com/blog/ - Yeah, ya sure are a power blogger

Busy Week

2006-08-15T23:29:00.000-04:00

It sure has been a busy week in the Tech world and in my life. I have still a tons of emails to be answered. Sorry for the lack of posts been pretty busy with school starting but I will try to post more If you have any Q's or Comments post below or email me to the right. Thanks!

The comment box below is for Open Source Freeware software submission if you have any software that you would like me to cover on this blog use the Form Below. The permalink is http://mattcampbellblog.blogspot.com/2006/08/your-submissions.html

The Evil, Selfish, Arrogant, shall I go on? RIAA

2006-08-15T22:59:00.000-04:00

You can Read the story here and here.

New Blog New Way

2006-08-15T22:29:00.000-04:00

Welcome to my new blog *again* I'm going to make this blog the best yet didn't like wordpress at all so I'm starting over again. I'm going to try to be more organized than I was over at wordpress I will have categorizes this time. As I review software I will stick them in Categorizes such as Anti-Virus, Utilities and so on. Tell me what you think I also added a whole lot of ways for you to get this content.

Your Submissions

2006-08-15T21:08:00.000-04:00

Fill out my Wufoo form!