Please visit the
LangaList Home Page
Please note: Older issues may contain information that is now
out of date.
How
To Subscribe and Unsubscribe is at the end of this note.
Mailing List Trouble? See http://www.langa.com/help.txt
Want an easier-to-read formatted HTML version? See http://www.langa.com/whats_new.htm
Advertising rates and info available at http://www.langa.com/rate_card.html
Please
email the LangaList to a friend! (Use this super-fast
form !)
The
LangaList
12-Aug-99
A Free Email
Newsletter from Fred Langa About BrowserTune,
HotSpots, Columns, Tips & Tricks, and Other Activities
In This Issue:
More Windows Versions Than Fleas On a Dog
Windows’ "Short Date Format" Discussion Continues
BT2K Update
Spammer's Dream: A Security Hole In Microsoft Exchange Server
Using a Cable Modem or DSL? Planning to, Some Day?
Yes, The Palm III Giveaway Is Real
Just For Grins
More!
It started as an idle thought: I
wanted to count up the current and near-term versions of Windows. I started to
lose track at about three dozen! I bet I didn’t get them all, but here’s
what I came up with:
A nontrivial number of businesses
still run Windows 3.x (which includes 3.0, 3.1, 3.11, and Windows for Workgroups
3.1 and 3.11).
A very large number runs Windows
95 (including the original, plus the OSR1-, OSR2- or OSR2.5-modified a, b, or c
versions in retail or OEM form).
A large and growing number runs
Win98, or Win98 SP1, or Win98 “System Update” or Win98 Second Edition. There
are retail and OEM versions here, too.
NT3 and 3.51 are still out there,
as are the—what, four?---Service Pack versions of NT4 for the workstation,
server, and terminal server editions…. And yes, there are retail and OEM
flavors.
NT5, er, Windows 2000 is in beta,
and should be out in a few months. (There are Professional, Server, and Advanced
Server versions; no doubt there will be both retail and OEM version, too.)
Oops---can’t forget Windows CE
1.0, 2.0, 2.11, 2.2 and (soon) 3.0…
Next year, 'round midyear,
Microsoft will probably release a shipping version of “Millenium” and
a beta of "Neptune," the next steps in the evolution of the Win9x
desktop. On the Win2k side, we’ll almost surely also see the first Service
Packs arrive next year, along with Janus, the Data Center version of Win2K that
some are dubbing “The UNIX Killer.”
I've made all this the subject of
this week's InformationWeek column: Drop by for more information on Janus,
Neptune, and Millennium, and then join in the discussion: Are the many versions
of Windows a sign of vigor or a sign that Microsoft has lost focus? Will
Microsoft be able to pull it all back to a common codebase and if so, will that
help Windows become more stable and reliable, or will Microsoft be reducing its
product differentiation?
If you’re running Win9x, does
“Millenium” interest you, or have you either decided to stay with what you
have or jump to Win2K or Neptune? If you’re into bigger iron, do you think
Janus will cut it, or is Microsoft out of its league?
And what other versions of
Windows did I miss? Join in the week-long discussion at http://www.informationweek.com/langaletter
!
return
to top of page
--------------(
Please Visit This LangaList Sponsor!) ------------
--------------(
the above is a paid advertisement )--------------
Many of you have written about
the "Short Date Format" scare, and have wondered whether or not to use
a two or four-digit date.
If your PC is Y2K compliant (to
find out, see http://content.techweb.com/winmag//library/1999/0101/fea0061.htm
) and if you've applied all the relevant Y2K patches (see http://www.microsoft.com/y2k/
), Windows will correctly calculate dates regardless of whether you're using two
or four digits. As far as the OS itself goes, it doesn't much matter which you
choose.
But not all apps are happy with
two-digit dates. And others have trouble if you switch date formats midstream.
You may have to experiment to see what works best with your software.
Generally speaking, if you have
the option, the safest choice is to use nonambiguous, four-digit dates whenever
possible. But if you have an application that is locked into a two-digit format,
then as long as the hardware and OS are Y2K compliant, you should still be OK
with the two-digit format.
That is, if you have a choice:
Canadian reader Marc Zaritsky points out something I never knew:
Hi Fred.
Just wanted to let you
know about an interesting twist in the situation. While part of a Y2K test team
at work, I discovered that only the regional setting of "English(United
States)" actually allows Win95 and WinNT 4.0(!) users to set that sys-tray
popup to use four-digit years.. If you use "English(Canadian)" (as I
do) or any other non-US locale then the option doesn't even exist in the
settings..
Talk about the Microsoft
quest for global domination!
Best Regards from
Canada,
Marc.
Very interesting, Marc, thanks!
Our Y2K discussion is still going
on at the WinMag site--- and there's a whole new look to the Dialog Box
discussions, too! Come check it out at http://content.techweb.com/winmag//columns/fred/1999/0809.htm
return
to top of page
The feedback continues, and
you've all collectively given me some great ideas on improving the operation and
navigation of BT2K. Thanks!
It's great to get mails like this
one from user Karen Herman:
Fred,
I just tried your
browser tuner test and ran into a problem. When I got to the java script test -
where the script scrolls across the screen, my browser froze up, and I was
unable to complete the test. I've noticed a lot of this while surfing, but
didn't know what was causing it - now I do.
This is great because Karen
correctly realized that the freeze wasn't caused by BT2K but was caused by a
problem within her browser, which BT2K was allowing her to isolate and identify.
Now, Karen can check her Java settings or perhaps deinstall/reinstall her
browser to try to fix things.
(In contrast, I also get letters
that usually start with something nasty like "Thanks a lot, you moron! Your
tests made my browser crash!..." Well, if your browser has a problem or
instability, BT2K will find it. If it's a bad problem, your browser may even
crash. But blaming BT2K for that is like blaming your dentist when he or she
finds a cavity. The problem is in your browser---or in your tooth---not in the
diagnostic that uncovers the problem. But I guess some users expect BT2K to
magically detect problems without actually involving the browser. Man, if I
could figure out how to test a browser without actually putting it through its
paces.... Waitaminit! I know, I'll start the BrowserTune Psychic Network. Call
this 900 number, and for just $5.99 a minute, I'll diagnose your browser by
telepathy! 8-) )
OK, back to reality: When
browsers crash they can lose their "nonpersistent" or
"per-session" cookies. As BT2K explains at the start, its cookies
self-destruct at the end of the tests so as to leave no collected data behind.
Trouble is, a browser test failure or crash also can cause the cookies to
self-destruct, and that wipes out your interim test results.
I'm trying to walk a fine line
here: I don't want BT2K to raise any concerns whatsoever about security or
privacy, but I also don't want to make BT2K hard to use. I'm rethinking BT2K's
approach to cookies, and have some ideas that might make BT2K able to resume an
interrupted test without compromising your privacy in any way. Stay, er,
tuned.
Meanwhile, I've posted several
minor updates to BT2K already, and will have a larger refresh posted Monday, Aug
16. BT2K still succeeds in >95% of cases, but I want to get the success rate
even higher.
FYI: The BT2K full beta is at http://www.browsertune.com/bt2k/
The BT2K demo (think of it as
"BT2K Lite") is still available at http://www.browsertune.com/bt2kdemo/
And the tried-and-true manual
version of BrowserTune (BT98) awaits you at http://www.browsertune.com/bt98/
return
to top of page
--------------(
Please Visit This LangaList Sponsor!) ------------
--------------(
the above is a paid advertisement )--------------
Spammers often try to find mail
servers with security holes: Once they find one, they use that server to relay
or blast out a bazillion pieces of junk mail to every address they can find.
Sometimes, you may notice what's clearly spam mail coming from the mail domain
of a seemingly-legitimate company: The mail may have no name, but simply carry
the domain in the From line (something like "From: @company.com").
When you see something like that, it means a spammer found a back door into that
company's mail server.
Turns out Microsoft's Exchange
Server 5.5 has such a back door that allows hackers to "encapsulate"
mail addresses and hijack the Server for spamming purposes.
If your or your company is using
Exchange Server 5.5, grab a patch at
ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/bussys/exchange/exchange-public/fixes/Eng/Exchg5.5/PostSP2/imc-fix
or get more information at
http://www.microsoft.com/security/bulletins/MS99-027faq.asp
return
to top of page
--------------(
Please Visit This LangaList Sponsor! )------------
--------------(
the above is an advertisement )-----------
I got a cable modem a few months
back, and not only did it save me $400 a month in ISDN fees, it boosted my
throughput to LAN-like speeds.
But sometimes, it can be even
better. Consider this:
Dear Fred.
I enjoy your newsletters
and have found some very useful tips. The BT2K demo led me to an amazing
discovery. I am using a cable modem on RoadRunner. The new system was just
installed last May. Although my performance was much better than the 56k
connection, the results from the BT2K said my throughput was much lower than the
national average.
At first I took the
"It's better than I had " attitude, until a friend received his RR
connection. He told me he had downloaded Netscape 4.61 in under a minute. I
found this hard to believe, because my downloads averaged about 2 meg per
minute. I decide to try the registry tweaks at http://www.speedguide.net/Cable_modems/cable_registry.shtml
My average throughput,
according to BT2K, had been averaging about 270kbps. After the tweaks, the
average range has been from 533kbps to over 1200kbps. The real proof was in the
download. Netscape 4.61 (15 M) downloaded in only 43 seconds. Most video files
download and run within 3 to 5 seconds or so. I can't thank you enough for a
tool that led to huge improvements.--- Thank you, Mike Romine
No, thank *you*, Mike! (The fixes
above also work for DSL setups!)
return
to top of page
In case you were wondering,
Recommend-It's Palm III giveaway apparently is entirely real: I know of one
person who did win one.
But I hope you'll use the
Recommend-It service because you think the LangaList is a worthwhile read, not
just to try to win a Palm III. 8-)
Either way, please use the
following link to recommend the LangaList to a friend. Your friend just may find
a new source of useful information; I just may gain a new subscriber; and you
just may win a Palm III organizer for your trouble (full details also available
via this link):
http://www.langa.com/recommend.htm#1
The "Recommend-It"
service is an ad-based site (you’ll see banners and such). The advantages to
you of using the Recommend-It service (above) are that you can win a Palm III
and that you can add a personal message to your LangaList recommendation.
But if you’d rather use the
tried-and-true, ad-free recommendation form, you’ll still find it at: http://www.langa.com/recommend.htm#2
. You can’t win anything there—except my thanks for helping the
LangaList to grow!
In fact, either way, thank you!
return
to top of page
Just For
Grins:
A reader who asked to remain
anonymous sent in this fictitious script of a dialog in a Microsoft restaurant:
Patron:
Waiter!
Waiter: Hi,
my name is Bill, and I'll be your Support Waiter. What seems to be the problem?
Patron:
There's a fly in my soup!
Waiter: Try
again, maybe the fly won't be there this time.
Patron: No,
it's still there.
Waiter:
Maybe it's the way you're using the soup. Try eating it with a fork instead.
Patron:
Even when I use the fork, the fly is still there.
Waiter:
Maybe the soup is incompatible with the bowl. What kind of bowl are you using?
Patron: A
SOUP bowl!
Waiter:
Hmmm, that should work. Maybe it's a configuration problem. How was the bowl set
up?
Patron: You
brought it to me on a saucer. What has that to do with the fly in my soup?!
Waiter: Can
you remember everything you did before you noticed the fly in your soup?
Patron: I
sat down and ordered the Soup of the Day!
Waiter:
Have you considered upgrading to the latest Soup of the Day?
Patron: You
have more than one Soup of the Day each day??
Waiter:
Yes, the Soup of the Day is changed every hour.
Patron:
Well, what is the Soup of the Day now?
Waiter: The
current Soup of the Day is tomato.
Patron:
Fine. Bring me the tomato soup, and the check. I'm running late
now.
[waiter leaves and returns with another bowl of soup and the check]
Waiter:
Here you are, sir. The soup and your check.
Patron:
This is potato soup.
Waiter:
Yes, the tomato soup wasn't ready yet.
Patron:
Well, I'm so hungry now, I'll eat anything. [waiter leaves.]
Patron:
Waiter! There's a gnat in my soup!
The check:
Soup of the
Day . . . . . . ..............$5.00
Upgrade to newer Soup of the Day......... $2.50
Access to support . . . . . ............. $1.00
return to top of page
See you next issue!
Best,
Fred
( fred@langa.com )
--------------(
your ad here?)------------
It costs less
than you think!
See http://www.langa.com/rate_card.html
--------------(
)--------------
(P.S. Please email the LangaList to a friend! Use
this super-fast
form !)
LangaList advertising rates and info available at
http://www.langa.com/rate_card.html
An easier-to-read formatted HTML version is
available in the "what's new" section of http://www.langa.com
. All past LangaList issues are also available via the same link.
return to top of
page
Administrivia: Why
are you getting this newsletter? There are only two ways to get on the list
(direct email request or via the WinMag mail list signup page) so if you're
getting this newsletter; your name came to me through one of those
channels.
SUBSCRIBE (it's free!): Send email to subscribe-langalist@lyris.dundee.net
UNSUBSCRIBE: Send email to unsubscribe-langalist@lyris.dundee.net
LIST TROUBLE? CHANGE OF ADDRESS? HAVE QUESTIONS?
NEED HELP?
See http://www.langa.com/help.txt
This newsletter is a free service of Langa Consulting LLC and is Copyright © 1999 Langa Consulting LLC. All rights reserved.
return to top of
page |