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Please recommend the LangaList to a friend! (And maybe win a Palm III !)
The LangaList
7-Feb-00
A Free Email Newsletter from Fred
Langa
That Helps You Get More From Your Hardware,
Software, and Time Online
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After my column on AOL woes and
the announcement of the US$8 Billion lawsuit some AOL users brought against the
media giant, literally hundreds and hundreds of you have posted replies in the
WinMag BBS area! For example, reader "Bram" writes: MAN AM I MAD! Headache
after headache.. and one day all the problems I have are described in an article
by Fred.. Praise you.. Damn AOL. But some pro-AOL readers have
written in, too. Curiously, some AOLers report
that they couldn't link to my column from within AOL; others said the AOL search
function returns zero hits on the lawsuit of the troubles with AOL5. Veeeery
interesting. Add your voice to the ongoing
discussion at http://content.techweb.com/winmag//columns/explorer/2000/03.htm
! Click to
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Turns out that we all have a
problem--- it's not a browser problem, and it's not restricted to any one brand
or type of product. Rather, it's a web-wide problem. It's been known about for a
while, but it's just now trickling into the mainstream. That's because it's not
a problem we end users really can do much about. But it's better to know what's
going on--- and there *are* a few (albeit clumsy) steps you can take, so it's
worth bringing to your attention. Although this is NOT a
Microsoft-specific problem, they've pulled together some excellent explanatory
information: Cross-Site Scripting
would potentially enable a malicious user to introduce executable code of his
choice into another user’s web session. Once the code was running, it could
take a wide range of actions, from monitoring the user’s web session and
forwarding a copy to the malicious user, to changing what’s displayed on the
user’s screen. Even more seriously, the script could make itself persistent,
so that the next time the user returned to the web site, the malicious user’s
script would start running again.
The long-term solution
to the problem requires web sites and web site developers to review their code
and verify that it adheres to secure coding practices. But there are some things you can
do to help protect yourself while the webmaster community begins to attend to
the root causes of this problem: You can, for example, disable
scripting on all untrusted or unknown web sites. (Alas, this is a draconian
measure because many, many perfectly good web sites depend on scripting to
work.) To prevent persistent malicious
scripts from reasserting themselves, you can wipe out all your Cookies--- but
this also is draconian, and may cause you to lose your passwords or other
settings for various totally benign web sites. Obviously, this is a complex
problem, and a complete discussion would fill about three of these newsletters.
Rather than stuff your mailboxes with a ton of info on one subject, let me point
you to some good sources you can follow up on your own, if you wish to: You can get a more detailed
overview here: Microsoft's in-depth tech
explanation is here: And Microsoft's step-by-step
suggestions for what you can do about the problem are here: (My thanks to frequent writer
Lanny Marcus of Cali, Columbia, who was first to send me a "heads up"
email on this problem.) Click to
email this item to a friend Ooooo, this is so cool: A FREE
product that outperforms some commercial apps costing $50 or more! If you've been reading the
LangaList for any length of time, you know that online security is a hot button
for me. In fact, it should be a hot button for us all, because the more time you
spend online, the greater the odds that someone will try to crawl back through
your internet connection to get inside your PC. The threat is real--- it happens
all the time. And with some "always on" connections such as cable
modems and DSL connections, you can be virtually certain that at least two or
three or four (or more!) bonehead miscreant hackers will try to break into your
PC *every day.* Without protection, they may get
in. Depending on how your PC is set up, these hack attacks may be anything from
an annoyance (slowing down or crashing your computer) to a major headache
(potentially reading files, stealing passwords, and worse.) I've talked about various
trustworthy sites that can sniff back along your internet connection---much like
a hacker would--- and tell you if your PC has security problems that potentially
open it to the outside world. (See http://www.langa.com/newsletters/oct-14-99.htm#gibson
and http://www.langa.com/newsletters/oct-18-99.htm#check
and http://www.langa.com/newsletters/nov-18-99.htm#secure
.) And I'll soon have a
comprehensive column on online security and the steps you can take to help lock
down your PC and keep intruders at bay. But this is too good to wait:
ZoneLabs is making their personal firewall, ZoneAlarm, available for free. It
not only blocks unwanted access from outside, but also alerts you if a website
or Trojan app tries to send data from your PC back to the outside world. There
are many commercial products that don't do that! It's a new app and is a little
rough-edged, but when it errs, it appears to err on the side of caution, and
that's good. I like it a lot. Steve Gibson (who runs the
Shields Up testing site that can help identify your PC's online security
problems) also likes ZoneAlarm. In fact, in his usual over-the-top style, Steve
says: "It is my FIRM
belief that ZoneAlarm 2.0 has the potential to become the PERFECT FIREWALL for
the typical security conscious Internet user." For more details from Steve on
Firewalls in general, see http://grc.com/su-firewalls.htm
. In any case, you gotta check out
ZoneAlarm--- it's FREE so you have nothing to lose: Once you have it running (only
takes a minute), use Steve's site at http://grc.com/default.htm
or any of the other sites mentioned above to check your PC and see how secure it
really is. Click to
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In a recent issue, I talked about
how good and useful a solid Usenet/Newsgroup search can be for tracking down
information on almost any topic. (See http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/jan-31-00.htm#3)
I mentioned Deja News as one excellent search tool--- although it's hard to
find, amidst the clutter of the rest of Deja.Com. As usual, many readers
volunteered great alternatives. (I'm convinced that, collectively, there's
almost nothing you folks don't know about! And I'm continually amazed at how
generously you share what you know. You folks really are great!) For example, many readers told me
about a private front-end to Deja News at http://www.exit109.com/~jeremy/news/deja.html
. This front end bypasses all the other stuff that Deja has layered onto their
site and just gives you a clean, slick newsgroup search. (Richard van Ouwerkerk
was the first to send in this tip--- thanks!) Reader Dick Hamilton says: I have been using http://www.dogpile.com
to search the newsgroups. Much easier. Paul Ruppel writes: I, too, have found
deja.com to be a wonderful tool for finding answers to questions/problems I
have. I also like browsing old postings for interesting opinions. However, the
way they keep changing their display is more than a little annoying. I found a
site that front-ends deja and allows you to set the format to one of the older
(more useful) formats. I particularly like the "threaded" format that
shows the hits in context with the original threads, not just all the hits by
date. The site is located at http://extra.newsguy.com/~schramm/deja.html.
Oh, by the way, thanks for the great newsletter! Chris Barham says: I got the latest
langalist today, where you discuss the change of Deja news, which was a great
asset, to the almost unusable pile of junk; deja com.... REMARQ does what Deja
used to do before it was 'improved'. http://www.remarq.com And Arthur Barnett offers: Re DEJA NEWS, I am
attaching a page for a program that does what DEJA used to do, only better.
Shareware that is highly recommended by me from everyday use. http://www.thinksys.com.au/index.html Thanks, all! 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;
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." (The new giveaway
starts Feb 7th; full details will also be available via this link): 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 Few sites have generated as much
mail as has http://www.snarg.net.
(See http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/jan-31-00.htm#9
and http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/feb-3-00.htm#7
) I don't want to beat a dead, er,
snarg, but these letters stood out from the dozens I got on the subject: hi fred.....been a
long-time subscriber, but i've been even a longer fan of snarg........found it a
few years ago, and have been watching it evolve and change quite regularly,
always with interesting new stuff.......but, somewhere along the line, i
stumbled upon another site, from the makers of snarg....... personally, i think
it's got a lot more detailed visuals, maybe not as complex as snarg, but i
haven't had enough time to explore it to its fullest...... don't know if anyone
really has been able to "unlock the secret" to snarg as of yet.......
check this out..... H i Fred. Thanks for the
great tip on Snarg! I explored it for awhile, and thought perhaps some of your
readers (who didn't get quite as far) might enjoy the following links: Fred, I read in your
most recent LangaList about how the Snarg author(s) had put your comments into
the site. However, I seriously doubt they put that in because I wrote the
comment: "I just don't get it and neither does Fred Langa and some other
guy," and I have nothing to do with the site. The Snarg page that has
"@snarg" as the title actually contains some sort of chat function. To
use it all you have to do is click on the little yellow/green dot in the bottom
left hand corner of the main picture. The green bar at the bottom of the page
will be replaced with a black one containing a little text box on the right
side. Simply type your message in the box and hit enter. The green bar with the
text will once again show up, but now it will have whatever you typed at the top
left. I believe this bar will be updated whenever someone submits a message. I
hope this helps.---Jacob Kornegay Hi Fred, First let me
say how much I like your newsletter. I can't begin to tell you how useful so
many of the topics have been to me. Now about that weird site, http://www.snarg.net
, offered by Peter Casson. Out of curiosity I tried typing in some of the web
addresses shown on that site. Wow, there are more! I tried both www.redsmoke.com
and www.superbad.com
and spent quite some time just looking around. What fun this thing the internet
is. Thanks for putting out your newsletter, Nancy Allen OK, OK, enough <g>. For the
for-real, no-kidding, final word on Snarg.Net, see this issues "Just for
Grins, below. Click to
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In the first 24 hours after
opening my "Load the Code" site, over 50 of your fellow readers who
also have their own web sites signed up. Do you have a home page or website? (It
doesn't matter what size.) Maybe we can help each other out. Please click on
over to http://www.langa.com/code.htm
to see what I'm talking about! Click to
email this item to a friend Grin #1) In several recent
issues, we've discussed free online translation services (see http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/jan-27-00.htm#4
) and a free text-to-speech site that will say aloud whatever you type in. (See http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/jan-27-00.htm#5
) Reader Martinsen found an
interesting translation engine that gave some unexpected, er, output: Hi Fred, If you go to the
Internet Translator ( http://www.tranexp.com:2000/InterTran
) page and type in "windows" and select the translating to go from
Dutch to English (not English to Dutch) it will translate it to
"fart". Are the people at InterTran trying to tell us something??? :)
Thanks for a great newsletter! Grin #2) A "Just for
Grins" item in http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/jan-27-00.htm#8
listed some silly hypothetical mergers, such as "Polygram Records, Warner
Brothers, and Keebler Crackers merge to become Polly-Warner-Cracker." Reader Ian Leers wrote to suggest
"the actual merger of Novell, WordPerfect and SoftSolutions which became No
Perfect Solution." Grin #3) After all the
"Snarg.Net" brouhaha, I was surprised to receive an email from "Jef@snarg.net."
I thought it might be a nastygram because so many LangaList readers visited his
site, it appeared to crash or have to be taken offline at least twice.<g>
But instead, it was an elliptical reference to my statement that I didn't know
exactly what the snarg site was all about; and (perhaps) gently chiding me for
not digging deeper. Jef wrote: fred, the way something seems there is much more to an
ocean I couldn't resist--- so I wrote
back: to continue your
metaphor: there is much more to an
ocean and when time is
infinite but a hurried traveler 8-) Click to
email this item to a friend See you next issue! Best, (Please recommend
the LangaList to a friend! (And maybe win a Palm III) 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!): Send email 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)
AOL Slug-fest Continues!
I have been keeping up to date on Fred's articles and have decided to post a
message today after reading the latest. We have 2 computers in our office, a
laptop and Desktop, that both have the identical symptoms as described in the
intial article. Luckily my machine, which until 5 minutes ago also had AOL5 on
it, is OK. Those 2 computers, since Installing AOL5, no longer have access to
our NT machine. No matter what I do, they cannot login to its shared folders nor
can they print to its printer. The only thing they can do is access the internet
via SyGate and our ADSL connection. Even uninstalling and restoring original
files does not fix this.
I am incredibly pissed off and utterly disgusted with what AOL has done...
http://www.langa.com/sendit.htm
return to top of page2)
Warning! "Cross-Scripting" Security Problem
http://news.excite.com/news/ap/000203/02/internet-warning
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/crssite.asp
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/crsstQS.asp
http://www.langa.com/sendit.htm
return to top of page3)
FREE Personal Firewall Software!
http://www.langa.com/sendit.htm
return to top of page4)
Better Usenet/Newsgroup Front Ends
http://www.langa.com/sendit.htm
return to top of page5)
Win $10,000! (Really!)
http://www.langa.com/sendit.htm
return to top of page6)
OK, OK: The Last Words On The "Snarg" Site (Almost)
http://www.snarg.net/justbecause/
long time fan, dawn
http://www.snarg.net/posi-web/
http://www.snarg.net/jng/life.html
http://www.snarg.net/technobaroque/
http://www.snarg.net/jng/writing.html
Dana
http://www.langa.com/sendit.htm
return to top of page7)
Link Exchange Open
http://www.langa.com/sendit.htm
return to top of page8)
Just For Grins: Three Follow-Ups
is not always what it is
or appears to be
than the reflection of the sky
than the reflection of the sky
one can explore it all
can only snorkel near the beach.
http://www.langa.com/sendit.htm
return to top of page
Fred
(fred@langa.com)
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