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Please note: Older issues may contain information that is now out of date.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.htm Please recommend the LangaList to a friend! (And maybe win $10,000 !) An easier-to
read formatted HTML version of this newsletter is available on line at The LangaList 2000-12-04 A Free Email
Newsletter from Fred
Langa --- ( Your Clicks On Ad Links Help Keep The LangaList Free! ) ---
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Sweeping generalizations are often
false. But this time I'm going to list three related generalizations that I
believe are absolutely true: First: When set up and run properly,
Windows offers satisfactory levels of stability and security. Second: The key to
system stability and security often lies in avoiding needless complexity. And
third: Few Windows setups are done properly; those that are, rarely stay that
way for long. Long-time readers know that many
past issues and columns have focused specifically on ways you can get your
system running reliably; and how to keep it that way. Once you achieve that
state -- and it's really not that hard, once you get the hang of it -- you'll
achieve a level of stability that is completely at odds with most people’s
experiences of (un-tuned, un-optimized) Windows. Properly set up, your system
will purr along day after day after day -- perhaps even for weeks and months --
and will be all but immune to hack-attacks from online sources. Why am I telling you this in a item
that's supposed to be AOL6 and MSN Explorer? It's because of that second
generality: The key to system stability and security often lies in avoiding
needless complexity. Any time you add any new software to
your system, you increase the complexity of what your operating system has to
deal with. Sometimes, it's worth it: Even if a new program is (ahem) less than
perfect, its benefits may outweigh its drawbacks. Other times, a new program adds so
much complexity and/or creates so many problems--- immediate or potential---
that the drawbacks overwhelm any possible benefit. Like any other application, when you
add either AOL6 or MSN Explorer to your system, you'll increase your overall
system complexity. But while MSN Explorer's changes are minor, AOL6 makes an
almost unbelievable number of unnecessary and even dangerous changes to your
system's networking setup--- some of them so bizarre even AOL's own support
technicians are at a loss as to explain what's going on. (I know: I called
them.). At best, AOL6's changes are likely to make your system less stable; at
worst, AOL6 may render your system wide-open to hackers, crackers, and other
online miscreants. Some of AOL6's changes can be
remedied *if* you know exactly where to look and what to do; other changes AOL6
makes cannot be undone at all without fatally breaking the AOL6
installation. I'll tell you everything I found out
about both AOL6 and MSN Explorer--- including how I tested them and exactly what
changes they both made to my test system. I'll also tell you which of the
adverse changes can be undone, and which cannot. But it's a whole article in
itself, and is way too much to cram into a newsletter. Instead, I've made these
tests the focus of the new "Explorer" column at http://content.techweb.com/winmag//columns/explorer/2000/25.htm
. If you're using AOL6, or may someday
do so, check out the column! Click to
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Reader Art Flexser, writing from
Miami (and thus having a front row seat to the fubar US Presidential election),
felt compelled to write after I described the infamous Florida butterfly
punch-card ballot as having a "modified boustrophedonic" layout (where
alternating lines are oriented left-to-right and right-to-left) instead of the
standard Western layout (left page top-to-bottom, then right page
top-to-bottom). Art stuck his tongue firmly in cheek and wrote: Is there ANYTHING the
English language doesn't have a word for? Thanks for the exposure to this one,
which I will surely try to work into conversations at every opportunity. OK, "boustrophedonic" is a
little, um, obscure. I generally agree with the statement attributed to Mark
Twain, "...Never write 'metropolis' when you can write 'city'...." But
the word "boustrophedonic" is so colorful and imagistic (it's from the
Greek for "the back-and-forth plowing of a field by an ox") it was too
good not to use. And although the word started as
Greek, it's now solidly geek, and used in printer tech-jargon: bidirectional
print heads, for example, when combined with the printer's paper-advancement
mechanism, produce output in a boustrophedonic pattern. Getting back to the Florida ballots:
I wrote back to Art, telling him that I believed the unfamiliar boustrophedonic
nature of the butterfly ballots--- a very, very nonstandard setup for
Western-language readers--- is what really caused the voter problems in Florida. Art replied: I see in today's newspaper
that there is an article forthcoming in the Dec. 7 issue of Nature describing a
study by a Canadian psychologist performed two days after US elections, using a
simulation of the Palm Beach butterfly ballot with names of Canadian candidates
substituted for the American ones. Student mock-voters made no errors in
selecting their candidates (which the researcher attributed to their practice
with multiple-choice exams), but mock-voters tested in a shopping center who
were for the candidate in the "Gore" position mistakenly voted for the
"Buchanan" position [6]% of the time. No errors were made when a
standard linear ballot arrangement was used. It's all somewhat academic (and
probably won't change anyone's mind about the election) but it *is* interesting
as an insight into how we process information; and to the limits of 120-year-old
punch card technology. It's also still topical enough that the editors of Nature
jumped the gun and have pre-published the research findings on the web: You can
read the abstract of the article for free at http://www.nature.com/nature/prepub/
. Lots of readers have commented on
voting technology--- and especially on the computer-driven alternatives
("e-votes" and "i-votes")--- over at Byte.Com. Click on over
to http://www.byte.com/column/BYT20001117S0010
and check it out! Click to
email this item to a friend We talked about Ad-Aware in the last
issue ( http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/2000-11-30.htm#1
): It's a free and generally excellent "spyware" remover that can
purge your system of Adware, Alexa, Aureate v1.0,2.0 and 3.0, Comet Cursor v1.0
and v2.0, Cydoor, Doubleclick, DSSAgent, Flyswat, Gator, TimeSink v1.0 and v2.0,
Web3000 and Webhancer. The folks at LavaSoft recently
incremented Ad-Aware to version 4.02, but in the process they also made a coding
error on their web site (the problem seems to be in the left frame). Some
versions of IE report a series of script errors; but you can bypass the errors
and use the site. Some versions of Netscape simply stop cold and can't process
the page at all. LavaSoft asks that people not jump
directly to their download page, which is why I gave their home page. Alas,
because the home page bombs out for many readers, those readers neither get
Ad-Award nor any of LavaSoft's other interesting tools and utilities. So, please try their home page
first: http://www.lavasoft.de/aaw/index.html But if that doesn't work, then you
can jump to the download page (which contains no HTML errors) at http://www.lavasoft.de/aaw/adload.html
. Click to
email this item to a friend --- ( Your
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To get past some brain-dead
corporate email filters that can't differentiate between a discussion of a worm
and the presence of an actual worm, I'm going to have to use a simple
letter-substitution code in discussing this item: In the next paragraphs, when
you see "*" replace it with an "a." The new, destructive email worm is
called "W32.N*vid*d. According to the folks at Symantec: W32.N*vid*d is a mass
mailing worm program. The worm replies using MAPI to all Inbox messages that
contain a single attachment. This worm is able to distribute itself via any
MAPI-compliant email client, including Microsoft Outlook. However, emails that
are infected with this worm can be received by any email client. The worm
utilizes the existing email subject line and body and attaches itself as N*VID*D.EXE.
Due to the bugs in the code, after being executed, the worm causes your system
to be unusable. You can tell if you've been infected
by using Regedit to search for this key: HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Software\N*vid*d If you have that key, you've been
infected. If the worm software works the way
its creators intended, it also installs a blue eye icon in the system tray of
your taskbar. If you place your mouse pointer over the eye, a "tool
tip" appears, stating:
It does more, depending on what your
actions are. The worm's damage can be repaired
manually, although it's a pain; the better antivirus sites tell you how. (See
link below, for example.) The December/January holidays are a
fertile time for hackers and crackers: Keep your anti-virus definitions up to
date, and be careful with any attachments you get in email. For more info on this particular
worm, visit the information pages of your anti-virus vendor, or check out: http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/w32.n*vid*d.html (but remember to change each
astertisk to an "a" in the above url) Click to
email this item to a friend I'll announce the winner of
November's drawing very soon, but starting this month, I've changed the
"thank you" prize you can win by Recommending this newsletter to a
friend. Now, you can win a no-strings $30 Gift Certificate for *any item* at
Amazon.Com--- books, software, hardware, kitchenware, toys... the works. To have a shot at winning, 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 a $30 Gift Certificate! (Full details also available via this
link): http://www.langa.com/recommend.htm#2 The more times you make a
recommendation, the greater your chances are of winning! Or, if you'd like to try to win
$10,000(really!), try this link (full details also available here): http://www.langa.com/recommend.htm#1 It's a new month and right now your
chances are the best they'll ever be! Click to
email this item to a friend On 2000-11-20, I told you of a very
unacceptable experience I had with Gateway 2000 (see http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/2000-11-20.htm#4
). I ended up canceling an order I'd placed with them for a top-of-the-line
system It would seem I'm not the only one
deciding to take my business elsewhere: Last week, the news went out:
"Gateway shares crash on earnings warning" (see http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-200-3920247.html
) Click to
email this item to a friend Do you have a home page or website?
(It doesn't matter what size.) Please click over to http://www.langa.com/code.htm
, and maybe you can join the hundreds and hundreds of LangaList readers who have
"Loaded the Code!" (If you've already "Loaded The Code" and
are wondering if your site will appear here or on the Langa.Com web site, please
see http://www.langa.com/link.txt
) Speaking of which: Here's another
eclectic sample of reader sites--- some professional, some very personal: View A Randomly-Chosen
Reader Site Manually Browse All
Posted-to-Date Sites Starting At A Year On A Remote Pacific
Island Free Resources for the
WebMaster, And More George's & Melanie's
Tech and More Page Photography by Karen
Larson; and Kayak Links An Elvis Christmas (Yes,
*that* Elvis) Curt's Corner in Cyberspace "FUBAR News
Corporation" Hamp's Place The 100 Best Web Sites American Project Management Harry's Web A Turbocharger Gas Turbine College Of Nursing (South
Carolina) Click to
email this item to a friend --- ( Your
Clicks On Ad Links Help Keep The LangaList Free! ) --- The Best
Value In E-Newsletter Advertising? <a
href="http://www.langa.com/ratecard.htm">AOL
Users: Click here!</a> --------------(
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All versions of Internet Explorer
5.x have a pair of newly-uncovered security holes in their "Browser Print
Template," "File Upload via Form," “Scriptlet Rendering” and
“Frame Domain Verification” subsystems. All these problems potentially can
allow malicious hackers access to your system or files in one way or another. You can download a single patch for
all four problems at: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/download/critical/279328.htm The patch requires IE 5.5 or IE 5.01
SP1 to install. Microsoft says, "Customers who install this patch on other
versions may receive a message reading 'This update does not need to be
installed on this system'. This message is incorrect. More information is
available in KB article Q279328." If you do need more info, you can
find it at Click to
email this item to a friend Brian Holmes had an amazing
tech-support experience with NEC. He wrote to them asking about the two
horizontal lines that appear on his "Trinitron" style (aperture grill)
monitor. (Although these lines are standard on this type of monitors, they are
disconcerting the first time you see them.) The reply he got was absolutely
wonderful in its clarity, informality, and attitude: Dear Customer, Regarding the lines on your
screen Horizontal lines On every aperture grille CRT that is manufactured there
are 2 horizontal lines. One is about 3 or 4 inches form the top and the other is
3 or 4 inches from the bottom. This is caused by the stabilization wires that
hold the grille in place. Almost all high-quality monitors currently
manufactured in this industry use the aperture grill technology. If you do not
want these lines on your screen, it will be necessary for you to purchase a
lower quality monitor that utilizes shadow mask technology to display your
image. This will result in a lower quality picture although the two horizontal
lines will not be visible. You also have the option of
using an LCD monitor but the color and resolution will not be as high as that
which can be attained with the aperture grille CRT. Vertical lines:
Occasionally the wires that make up your Aperture Grille can get crossed. This
is almost always caused by shipping or moving the monitor and appears on the
screen as very thin vertical lines and can be fixed by either of the following
procedures 1. Open a white window with
a white background and maximize it. Turn the Brightness and Contrast settings on
your monitor to maximum. Leave the monitor for 10 or 15 minutes. This will often
cause the grille wires to relax enough from the heat to snap back into their
appropriate places. 2. Smack the monitor firmly
on the side with your hand when the monitor is warm (while the settings in step
one are still turned up is the best). DO NOT SMACK THE MONITOR HARD ENOUGH TO
DAMAGE IT. The shock of this should cause the wires to snap back into place. If these do not resolve
your issue please contact our telephone support agents to arrange for warranty
service on your monitor.... My hat's off to the NEC techs. Man,
if all tech support information was that clear and plainly-spoken, computing
would be a lot easier--- and more fun, too. 8-) Click to
email this item to a friend --- ( Your
Clicks On Ad Links Help Keep The LangaList Free! ) --- Holiday
shopping's never been Electronics,
Software, --------------(
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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:
(Please see full disclaimer here: http://www.langa.com/legal.htm.)
Abbreviated version: 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
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