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The LangaList
2000-Mar-23
A Free Email Newsletter from Fred
Langa
That Helps You Get More From Your Hardware,
Software, and Time Online
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It started slowly and with fringe
applications, but now is squarely in the mainstream: More and more vendors are
offering full-featured programs for free--- but with a catch: The apps display
ad banners while they're being used. Those ad banners produce revenue for the
software publisher in lieu of sales or licensing fees for the software. There are now well over 300
adware apps available, with more coming online every day. The most-recent and
perhaps highest-profile conversion of a mainstream app to a free/ad-supported
version is Qualcomm's Eudora, a venerable and popular email client. In recent years, Qualcomm offered
two versions of Eudora. There was a stripped-down freeware version called
"Eudora Light" and an industrial-strength full-featured version called
Eudora Pro. Although the Light version was fine for many users,
business/enterprise users often upgraded to the full version to gain access to
its more robust feature set. (I use Eudora Pro 4.2's powerful filtering and
auto-responder features to help handle the 800+ emails I get each day.) But Qualcomm recently made
headlines when it offered a third option: A full-featured "Pro"
version, for free, but with ad banners. Qualcomm isn't the only company
trying "adware:" there are hundreds and hundreds of other adware apps
in use today. The benefits of adware are clear:
In an enterprise setting, the attraction of obtaining useful software for free
(saving $20-$50 per copy) is undeniable, and the savings can add up impressively
fast. But the drawbacks also are
undeniable: Perhaps the highest profile problem is with the security concerns
raised recently regarding the ad-tracking (and sometimes, demographic-tracking)
DLLs installed by some adware. I'll detail more adware apps, and
lay out more "pros" and "cons" (with a special emphasis on
adware in a business setting) in my current InformationWeek Online column.
Please come check it out, and then join in the discussion: Does adware have a
place? Does its unbeatable price offset its drawbacks? Or is it just one more
intrusion into the workspace, and onto your hard drives? Do you allow adware in
your business? Why or why not? Join in the discussion! http://www.informationweek.com/langaletter (For tons of
background on adware./spyware, what it does to your system, and what you can do
about it, please see http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/mar-2-00.htm, Click to
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Reader Jim Randall spotted an
adware/spyware DLL remover on the Aureate/Radiate site, which is welcome, albeit
strange. (A little like a tobacco company offering a "stop smoking"
class.) Here's Jim's note: Fred: Well we have had
an effect at last. I found a DLL REMOVER on their site today. I've downloaded it
and tested it and find it works fairly well at removing the dll's and even the 2
Registry entrys. I could not find any hidden sections or virus codes in it
either. But, Please check for yourself... Removing the DLL codes will prevent
the infected programs from running but that's the price you pay... You can pass this URL on
to your readers if you like, I suggest they put the empty Advert.dll in their
windows/system file so they won't get reinfected. The URL is: http://www.radiate.com/privacy/remover.html Thanks for a great
product.---Jim Thank you, Jim! Of course, one might be somewhat
suspicious of software offered by Aureate/Radiate. That's why I was glad to get
this note from Steve Gibson (of "Shields-UP!" fame; http://www.grc.com): To: Fred Langa Hey Fred! Okay ... three days of
pounding and finding nothing significant to fix, only a few random cosmetic
tweaks, and I'm feeling pretty good about letting "OptOut" loose on
the world. <<grin>> The ShieldsUP! site is
about to deliver its TWO MILLIONTH "shield test" (which will probably
happen later today) so it seems only fitting to have that occasion marked by the
formal release of OptOut. I still need to spend LOTS of time on the OptOut web
site -- it's still only a single page, and I envision a multi-page site similar
to what ShieldsUP! has. But I *did* come up with a VERY cool logo, which now
heads the page. The OptOut 'site' will
always be: http://grc.com/optout.htm And ... thanks so much
for all your enduring support!!--- Steve. I tried it right away, and I have
to say OptOut is *very* cool. Like most of Steve's software, it's coded in
hand-tweaked assembler, so it's tiny (just 31K!) and runs super fast. It can
search your entire system (hard drive and registry) for any trace of the
well-known adware/spyware apps, and then remove them, if you choose to let it do
so. Best of all, it's free. I've got my copy of OptOut, and I
recommend you grab yours, too! (By the way, some LangaList
readers found out about OptOut the moment it was released. Find out how in the
"News of the Day" item, further down this newsletter.) Click to
email this item to a friend Someone up there has a sense of
humor: In a strange coincidence, just as Langa.Com was finally recovering from
the problems of its site move, we needed to move the BrowserTune.Com site, too.
That site includes all versions of BrowserTune (including the very hot, free,
BrowserTune 2000) and the free daily "Web HotSpots" page. Because of an internal delay at
CMP in changing their "name servers," some of you may find the sites
temporarily inaccessible via their English names. They are, however, still
online and accessible via their numeric IP addresses. Eventually, the names will
catch up with the IP addresses, and everything will work normally again. Meanwhile here are the addresses: BrowserTune: (And, some LangaList readers
found out about these addresses almost instantly. Find out how in the next item:
"News of the Day.") Click to
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I've added a new feature to the
home page at http://www.langa.com:
a "News Of The Day" message that can carry useful or interesting
information that didn't make it into a LangaList newsletter, or that is too
important to wait for the next issue. This week, for example, News of
the Day carried instantly-updated news about Steve Gibson's OptOut applet and
also provided updated URLs for BrowserTune and HotSpots. People who visited
Langa.Com got this information as soon as it became available; people who only
read the text newsletter are just finding out about these things now. If you want to catch information
like this as soon as it becomes available, you may wish to add Langa.Com to your
daily web-sweep! 8-) Click to
email this item to a friend Microsoft has released
"Office 2000 Service Release 1 (SR-1): It's a beast--- you first download a
small (133 kb) installer file, but when that file connects you back to the
download site, you're in for a 26-40MB download. Yikes! Fortunately, there's
also a CD version you can order. The CD is FREE in many areas, but you should
check the web site to see exactly what's available in your region. Microsoft says SR-1 includes: "...Updates for the
various Office 2000 programs, including Microsoft Word, Outlook, Access, Excel,
PowerPoint, FrontPage, and Publisher Security updates, including the Excel 2000
SYLK file security updates and the Worm.Explore.Zip (Pack) Virus Alert Office
2000 system-level components that are updated to Windows 2000 system levels For important
information on deployment, including SR-1 white papers and a detailed list of
product updates in SR-1, organizations and network administrators should first
visit Office 2000 Service Release 1: Information for Organizations. Office 2000 users can
install the Office 2000 SR-1 Update or order the Office 2000 SR-1 CD." You can get additional
information on the components, on the downloads, or the CD here: This page has additional detailed
instructions you might find useful, too: Click to
email this item to a friend The Recommend-it
site used to give away Palm III organizers as an incentive to use their service;
but now they've upped the ante--- way, way up! If you think the
LangaList is a worthwhile read, just 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 $10,000 or
other prizes from the folks at "Recommend-It:" http://www.langa.com/recommend.htm#1 Or, win a copy of
"Poor Richard's E-Mail Publishing: Creating Newsletters, Bulletins,
Discussion Groups and Other Powerful Communications Tools." This book has
been described as "An excellent, straightforward manual on email
publishing, banner ads, driving traffic and especially ethics." (Full
details also available via this link): http://www.langa.com/recommend.htm#2 Either way, thank
you, and good luck! Click to
email this item to a friend Reader Don Arrowsmith thinks so: I cannot believe that
you published the IE4/5 speedup tip in the 3/20/2000 LangaList. (See http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/2000-mar-20.htm#5)
Sure, maybe some people knew about it or could find it at the MS site but you've
just (implicitly) encouraged a heck of a lot more people to become discourteous!
What ever happened to netiquette? How many people do you think are going to
tweak their registry just for testing or troubleshooting? Shame on you. You've
gone down a notch in my book! My reply: Well, Netscape and Opera
both offer the same tweak as a menu option--- no hacking needed. And if you read the
item, I did *not* encourage discourtesy; quite the contrary. But withholding public
information---and information available by a single click on competing
browsers--- seems a little silly, don't you think? 8-) I'd rather not act as a cop or a
parent; I'd much prefer to present you with information, lay out the pros and
cons, and let you make your own informed, responsible decision. But maybe I'm
wrong. In any case, this isn't an
"angels on the head of a pin" thing: I have other tweaks like the
above that fall into a gray area. they *can* be useful, and they also *can* be
misused. So, what do you think? Should I
publish of withhold this kind of tweak? Please vote by sending a note to: Vote YES, to say you want me
include tweaks like these in the future, leaving it up to you to decide whether
or not to use the information: send email to yestweak@langa.com Vote NO, to say you don't want me
to discuss tweaks that can potentially be used by (ahem) ethically-challenged
people for potentially harmful purposes: send email to notweak@langa.com I'll let you know how the voting
goes! Click to
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Reader Tony Bellitto sends this
along: HoW To KeEp A hEaLtHy
LeVeL Of InSaNiTy aT woRk AnD dRiVe OtHeR PeOpLe iNsAnE ... 1. At lunch time, sit in
your parked car and point a hair dryer at passing cars to see if they slow down. (Er, that last item is a
joke, BTW... 8-) ) Click to
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LangaList Sponsor!) ------------
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See you next issue! Best, (Please recommend
the LangaList to a friend! (And maybe win $10,000!) An easier-to read formatted HTML version is
available in the "what's new" section of http://www.langa.com.
(The HTML version of each issue normally is available by 9AM EST [GMT-5] of the
issue date.) All past LangaList issues are also available via the same link. 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!): Create and send a new
email address it to subscribe-langalist@lyris.dundee.net About
the advertisers: Langa Consulting LLC will never knowingly accept
advertising for a fraudulent product, company or service. However, Langa Consulting LLC makes no implied or explicit warranty, recommendation or endorsement
of or for the products, companies or services mentioned in the ads. Disclaimer:
The tips and other information given in the newsletter are researched and are
believed to be accurate, but we cannot and do not guarantee that all the
information here will work on all systems, for all users, all the time. All
information herein is offered as-is and without warranty of any kind. Neither
Langa Consulting LLC, nor its employees nor contributors are responsible for any
loss, injury, or damage, direct or consequential, resulting from application of
any information presented here. This newsletter is a free service of Langa Consulting LLC and is Copyright © 2000 Langa Consulting LLC. All rights reserved.1)
Are "Free" Apps Worth A Hidden Price?
http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/mar-6-00.htm,
http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/mar-9-00.htm,
and http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/mar-16-00.htm
. [whew!])
http://www.langa.com/sendit2.htm
return to top of page2)
Two New FREE Adware/Spyware Removal Tools
From: Steve Gibson
Subject: Ready for you to open the flood gates! <<grin>>
http://www.langa.com/sendit2.htm
return to top of page3)
HotSpots/BrowserTune Sites Moved
http://www.browsertune.com/bt2kfast/
http://www.langa.com/sendit2.htm
return to top of page4)
"News Of The Day"
http://www.langa.com/sendit2.htm
return to top of page5)
Office 2000 Service Release 1 Now Available (Free)
http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/
http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/2000/articles/SBSO2KSR1.htm
http://www.langa.com/sendit2.htm
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Win $10,000! (Really!)
http://www.langa.com/sendit2.htm
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Cast Your Vote: Did I Screw Up?
http://www.langa.com/sendit2.htm
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Just For Grins
2. Page yourself over the intercom. (Don't disguise your voice.)
3. Find out where your boss shops and buy exactly the same outfits. Always wear
them one day after your boss does. (This is especiallyeffective if your boss is
the opposite gender.)
4. Send e-mail to the rest of the company to tell them what you're doing
throughout the day. For example: 'If anyone needs me, I'll be in the bathroom.'
5. Put mosquito netting around your cubicle.
6. Insist that your e-mail address be xena_goddess_of_fire@company.com or
Elvis_the_King@companyname.com
7. Every time someone asks you to do something, ask if they want fries with
that.
8. Encourage your colleagues to join you in a little synchronized chair dancing.
9. Put your garbage can on your desk and label it 'IN.'
10. Develop an unnatural fear of staplers.
11. Send e-mail messages that advertise free pizza, doughnuts, etc., in the
break room. When people complain that there was nothing here, lean back, rub
your stomach, and say, "You've got to be faster than that."
12. Put decaf in the company coffee maker for 3 weeks. Once everyone has gotten
over their caffeine addictions, switch to Espresso blend.
14. Reply to everything someone says with, "That's what you think."
15. Finish all your sentences with "... in accordance with the
prophecy."
16. Adjust the controls on your monitor so that the brightness level lights up
the entire working area. Insist to others that you like it that way.
17. Don't use any punctuation OR spellcheck.
18. As often as possible, skip rather than walk.
19. Ask people what sex they are.
20. Specify that your drive through order is 'to go.'
21. Sing along at the opera.
22. Go to a poetry recital and ask why the poems don't rhyme.
23. Five days in advance, tell your friends you can't attend their party because
you're not in the mood.
24. Order a Taco Bell Grande at the Burger King drive through then ask why they
are preventing you from having it 'Your way.'
...AnD tHe FiNaL WaY tO aNnOy PeOple:
25. Send this e-mail to everyone in your address book, even if they sent it.
http://www.langa.com/sendit2.htm
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Fred
(fred@langa.com)
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