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The LangaList
Standard Edition

2002-05-16

A Free Email Newsletter from Fred Langa
That Helps You Get More From Your Hardware, 
Software, and Time Online

Please visit our sponsors and help keep the LangaList S.E. free!

1) KVM Fans Emerge From the Shadows

"KVM" is one of the least-known three-letter-abbreviations (TLAs), but the people who use these "Keyboard/Video/Mouse" switches--- I'm one of 'em!--- swear by them.

A KVM switch is a small device that lets one person control several or even many different PCs using just one keyboard, monitor and mouse. The user can instantly switch between and among all the connected PCs. No special software is needed: The KVM switch’s hardware fools each of the connected PCs into thinking that it exclusively owns the keyboard, monitor and mouse.

A KVM switch can greatly streamline any operation that requires you to use more than one system. For example, I often use a 4-input KVM switch when I'm working. I’ll have four PC systems running--- one running Win98, another running Win2K, another running ME, and my main system running XP. I then can use the KVM switch to hot key from system to system to verify that some tip or technique I'm writing about works on all the OSes. It's very nice not to have to find room for four separate keyboards, mice--- and especially monitors!

In use, jumping from system to system is a snap: The KVM switch I use "listens" for two rapid strikes of either the right or left CTRL key. If I double-tap the right CRTL key, the KVM toggles to the next higher PC (say, from PC #1 to #2); a double tap on the left CTRL key switches the KVM to the next lower unit (say, from PC #2 to #1.) I can hop from system to system, or cycle serially through all the systems, at will; the PCs never notice anything unusual, and each thinks it's always connected to the keyboard, monitor and mouse.

If you need to work on or monitor more than one PC, "KVM" just may become your favorite TLA, just as it's become mine! (More info: http://www.informationweek.com/story/IWK20020509S0005 )

I'm not alone in liking KVMs. Other users have been adding to the discussion on the InformationWeek site, and including good shopping advice, too:

A KVM switch is a wonderful device which saves a bundle in hardware costs and space saving. I have had one switch handle 8 servers. A hidden cost is the cable that you have to run from the switch to the PC. They are more frequently not a standard mouse, video or keyboard cable. A cable extended will often not work either. Most of the cables are M/M or F/F not the typical M/F configuration. You can easily spend as much on cables as you did on the switch. Stay away from the mechanical switches. The "not-currently connected" PCs can easily lose the fact that a keyboard or mouse is present and not recognize it when you switch back to them. Rebooting the PCs connected to a mechanical switch is a problem as those not connected will miss the presence of a keyboard and a mouse and tell you so. You have to boot each PC in turn to see the mouse and keyboard. ---Andrew M Shnayer

Thanks, Andrew!

I ran into the "cables are extra" issue with my first KVM--- a Belkin--- years ago. Not only were the basic cables extra, they were lousy: poorly shielded things that messed up video at high resolutions and refresh rates. When I upgraded to heavily-shielded cables, they cost a fortune. (Note in electrically quiet environments, cheap cables may be fine. But in "noisy" places with lots of PCs or other electrical gear running, shielding is essential.)

But the "IOGear" KVM I now have came complete with cables that were well shielded and that didn't cost a dime extra. More KVM info: http://www.informationweek.com/story/IWK20020509S0005

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2) Other TLAs Draw Comment, Too

I have been using the Patriot 425 UPS [UPS is a TLA meaning "Uninterruptible Power Supply] from Best Power for a couple of years. It is available through http://www.lorengreen.com/lo01000.htm . I can not tell you how many times my UPS has saved me. I have been on the system countless times when there has been a power glitch, but if it were not for the audible beep from the UPS, I would not know about it. In fact, there have been a couple of times when it provided our only communication because I have my phone connected to the UPS. I am the guy who doesn't have a cell phone, so when all the power in the house went out, it was the only way we could call. That alone was probably worth the price of the UPS. --- Randy Giese

I agree completely. It's amazing how often my UPSes chirp to let me know they've absorbed a spike or filled in a sag or dropout--- saving my PCs and other electrical gear from having to deal with these power irregularities. If your PC and its contents are valuable, a UPS is a must-have addition. More info:
http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2001/2001-06-18.htm#
http://www.informationweek.com/story/IWK20020509S0005

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3) Linux, "Just Like Mom Used To Burn"

Hi Fred, I came across this site the other day and did not find it mentioned doing a search of your site. http://www.linuxiso.org . This is what you might call 'Linux out the wazoo'. Here you will find the ISO's for 35 different flavors of Linux. Best regards, Tim

Holy cow--- what a time saver! Thanks Tim!

If you have a fast connection, you can go to this site and download--- for free---  a file containing a CD disk image of a standard Linux distribution: That's an exact copy of a complete, ready-to install Linux distribution, just as it ships on a CD.

The site describes these copies this way:

Think of it as the equivalent of a screen capture, but instead of capturing the information on a screen, this image captures all of the information on a particular Linux distribution's cdrom. When burned as a disk image, the .iso file is turned into a duplicate cd of the original cd.

If you're not familiar with the shorthand jargon, ISO refers to the "International Organization for Standardization," and in this context is short for "ISO 9660," an international format standard for CD-ROM adopted by the ISO. An ISO 9660 (or "ISO" for short) CD should be readable on any standard CD drive.

So, you download these files, and then burn them as a disk image (not just as a plain file) to a CD, and presto--- you have a duplicate of the setup CD for whichever Linux flavor you chose to download.

This has got to be about the easiest way to experiment with many flavors of Linux. Very handy!

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4) Better Than "CrazyBrowser?"

Fred: Just read Howie's comments about Crazy Browser in the LangaList ( http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2002/2002-05-09.htm#2 ). Crazy Browser still needs a two-step process before it blocks an ad. You have to add the ad URL (pardon the inadvertent pun) before you can block it. This behaviour is similar to that of NetCaptor. I think Crazy Browser is a NetCaptor-clone.

My candidate is the 100% free MyIE that lets you block pop-up windows. It uses MDI and I've managed 25 windows before it became a bit hard to navigate ) MyIE is available in two builds -- using the IE DLLs or including the relevant DLLs; ideal for users with IE v5.0 or older. MyIE also lets you clean up your cache, cookies, history, addresses, forma data. Displays your IP address, memory available, connect speed and windows open. Tabs can be displayed at screen top or bottom, and you can close tabs with a Shift+Right-click.

I've recently use/used Crazy Browser, MyIE, IE6, Mozilla 1 RC1, NetCaptor, Opera 6.x plus all other browser variants in the past decade plus. So far the two best browsers I find are MyIE and Opera 6. MyIE for supporting MDI, not being a resource hog, supporting ActiveX and Java (using MS JVM), and blocking ads. Opera for having a stable speedy rendering engine, supporting MDI, and blocking popups. Opera still has issues with ActiveX and Java (esp. if the Sun JRE isn't installed).

System resource usage is critical with MDI browsers. Of the available ones -- Crazy Browser, Opera, NetCaptor, MyIE -- the last uses them the best. I typically have at least 5 browser sessions (tabs) open. Crazy and Opera only minimize to the Task bar and their memory allocation remains the same. MyIE and NetCaptor minimize to the System Tray. The resource use drops ... MyIE drops to [just] 8 kb!

Howie needs to upgrade Opera to at least 6.01 or 6.02 Beta Build 1090. Opera 6.0 has a serious resource leak (subsequently fixed). Also the Sun JRE is a resource hog. And the 2 in tandem spell doom for the power user. Suggest you give MyIE a whirl. Govind Menon

Interesting, Govind, thanks. The main MyIE page is in Chinese, but you'll find an English-language download page at http://www.webattack.com/get/myiebrowser.shtml

The site's description of MyIE is, if anything, even more enthusiastic than Govind's <g>. Check it out!

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5) Setting Mistakes In Stone?

Fred: In the past, I've taken your advice regarding backing up my computer with Drive Image. I considered this one of the most important steps in learning how to control and maintain my computer. Drive Image has saved my bacon a few times, and it's probably added years to my life.

When I saw the subject raised again in your recent newsletter ( http://www.langa.com/backups/backups.htm ), I took the trouble to follow the links in order to refresh my memory. On page 3, on the subject of a prep work You mentioned " considered on un-installing the software you never use ". A bell went off in my head.

I am reminded of the time when I un-installed an invasive piece of software and I subsequently found that my computer was all messed up. Fortunately I had a recent drive image, and I was able to return my computer to "perfect." I still have this program on the hard drive, but discretion may be the better part of valor.

If I had uninstalled this particular software just prior to making the drive image I might have compounded the problem by institutionalizing the mistake via Drive Image.

I wonder If one shouldn’t un-install unneeded software well before making a Drive Image for safety reasons. What do you think? --- Michael Lichtenstein

Well, it depends on when your begin your backup regimen. Indeed, your "master" backup should be as clean as possible, without any known problems. But if you already have a known problem (such as bad software) on your system and have no perfect master backup to fall back on, then the safest thing is to take advantage of the fact that blank CDs are so cheap: Burn an image of the hard drive even if it has a problem file. Then correct the problem, and when it's fixed, re-clone the drive. That way, if your attempts to fix the problem go wrong, you always can at least get back to the previous step. Once things are working OK, either throw out or clearly label the CDs that contain the image with the uncorrected problem, so you won't inadvertently restore that imperfect image later.

BTW: With daily backups, most of the above issues go away because you always automatically have a recent copy, and it's easy to revert your PC to a pre-problem state. Even if a problem turns out to have deep roots--- say, some file has been on your PC for a long time but didn't cause trouble until recently--- you can restore the *user data* from your most recent backups onto the pristine *system* setup of your older, master backups.

I actually do this a lot, when I'm testing some software or hardware that trashes my system: I use an image of the *system* when it was perfect, and then lay in the new *user data* from my most-recent backup. Works great!

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6) Recommend It!

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 for your trouble (full details also available via this link):
http://www.recommend-it.com/l.z.e?s=143182

Or, win a no-strings $30 Gift Certificate for any item at Amazon.Com--- books, software, hardware, kitchenware, toys... and more. 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

Either way, thank you again, and good luck!

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7) K L E Z Gets Worse And Worse

K l e z and its cousin worms, in epidemic distribution, still are causing huge hassles for millions of users. The worms can propagate by copying snippets of valid emails and inserting valid (but stolen) email addresses into the "from" line. Thus, you can get infected emails that look legitimate, but that come from people you never heard of.

Or--- even more alarmingly--- people you never heard of may get worm-infected emails that appear to have come *from you.*  If an innocent and uninfected email from you happens to reside on someone else's infected system, the worm may use *your name* and even part of your innocent email, and send it to someone else along with an infected payload.

The risk of this happening is directly proportional to how many emails you've sent out: The more you've sent, the more likely your name and email will reside on someone else's infected computer, where it can be hijacked by the worm for its own purposes.

This affected me, big time: I send out some 160,000 copies of this newsletter, twice a week, so there are lots of mailboxes out there that contain email from me. Some of those systems are infected, and the worms are using my name and some of the newsletter content when they re-mail themselves to others. I'm now getting tons of email from people who think I've sent them an infected file, or that the email newsletter itself is being sent out infected. Some ISPs and corporate gateways have banned mail from me because they think I'm sending out infected email. Sigh.

FYI: None of the four versions of this newsletter is EVER sent with any attachment (they all are self-contained messages). ALL versions of this newsletter are assembled and manually loaded onto the server (not emailed to the server) as PLAIN TEXT; even the HTML version is assembled as a plain-text source file. This isn't a new thing--- I've always done it this way to ensure that there is *no way* I'll send you a worm or virus attachment or embedment. Manually loading the newsletters as plain text guarantees that everything you get from me starts 100% clean.

So, if you see an email or newsletter ostensibly from me that contains  K l e z  or any other virus, worm, or whatnot, you can rest assured that it was absolutely, positively NOT from me, but was hijacked by K l e z  and sent to you from someone else's infected system.

And I'm not alone there, either. Take Ositis, for example--- they make a well-regarded Internet-sharing proxy that (ironically) includes built-in antivirus protection:

Thank you for exposing the K L E Z problem. As a company that provides network connectivity and antivirus (if only everyone implemented this feature at the network gateway...), we are being bombarded with accusations that we are "spamming" viruses. Obviously, this is highly undesirable. On the bright side, we are stripping the viruses before they reach our clients, but that doesn't stop the spam itself. Many people are mistakenly led to believe that valid companies are now engaging in broadcast spamming in violation of privacy policies and that this is being endorsed by the company or that somehow the company is "leaking" their information.... It is indeed very destructive to a company's reputation. Christy James Director of Marketing Ositis Software, Inc.

K l e z and similar worms are a pain in the behind for everyone. The miscreants who concoct this malicious software are true scum.

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8) They Loaded The Code

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 thousands 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
http://www.langa.com/randomlink.htm

Manually Browse All Posted-to-Date Sites Starting At
http://www.langa.com/readersites.htm

Security Realm
http://securityrealm.netfirms.com/

Samoan Village Yacht Club
http://www.svyc.com/

Walt's Corner Of The Web
http://www.dorsai.org/~walts/

Marisa's Dandelion Patch
http://www.mydandelionpatch.com/

Stovers' Blog
http://blake.prohosting.com/~stevejs/index.htm

Commercial Website Design
http://www.bizwebpage.com/

Kenyan Missionaries
http://www.bethelfaith.com/

Dog Grooming In Paden City , West Virginia
http://www.fortunecity.com/business/ceo/441/

Niagara Buddies (Canada)
http://www.niagarabuddies.ca/

Ralph B.
http://www.ralphb.net/

Kelly's Zoo (family site)
http://www.angelfire.com/oh/KELLYSZOO/

Unofficial Dictionary for Marines (some strong language)
http://4mermarine.com/USMC/dictionary.html

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9) The Case Of The Possessed PC

Reader Kenneth Kashmarek's daughter has a PC with a mind of its own...

My daughter recently changed jobs and was provided a new laptop. Great hardware, but... It is equipped with Windows XP, Office XP, Voice Recognition, and AOL7.  If that combination isn't a nail in the coffin, I don't know what is. Her problem starts with a Corporate configured system that wasn't fully configured.... She kept getting hammered by strange behavior of Word and  Excel. Without touching the keyboard or mousepad, menus would drop down, selections would be made, windows would open and close. What would normally take minutes to get done, was taking hours due to constant interruptions to close unwanted windows. Finally, in frustration, she was able to boot and uninstall the voice recognition software. Then, everything returned to normal. Have you run across anything like this? I did not actually observer this behavior but felt her plight over a very emotional long distance call for help.

Ken later found the answer to the problem at http://www.nbnn.com/news/02/175108.html but the first place I saw this issue addressed was in an article called "'Ghost' haunting XP computers unmasked:" http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99992040

"When I run MS Word a 'ghost' takes over and toolbars, options, etc, keep popping up that I haven't even requested," reads a message posted to one newsgroup for Windows XP users. "Also, in applications where I can type text and even on the internet sometimes, letters just start typing themselves."

It's not possession--- it's just XP's built-in voice recognition running wild. <g>

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10) Just For Grins

"Steve & Deanna" send along these "GREAT BITS OF WISDOM FOR OUR TIME." (According to a Google search, they've been around the block a few times with no clear point of origin--- but some were new to me <g>.)

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11) Plus! Edition Highlights:

• Five FREE Firewalls!
• New Version of Powerful Tweak Tool
• Old And New Power Toys Online

Today's LangaList Plus! Edition contains all ten items above, plus about 30% more content including: Not just one or two, but five--- count 'em, five--- free firewalls, some of which run on the even the oldest, slowest, most obsolete PCs; a new late-beta version of "the mother of all tweaking tools;" and places to get the very latest--- and one of the very earliest--- collections of free "Power Toys" from Microsoft.

The Plus! Edition is just pennies per issue: http://www.langa.com/plus.htm 

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Due to scheduled monthly system maintenance,
there'll be no newsletter issue on Monday.

 Next issue will mail on: May 23

See you next issue!

Best,

Fred

Please recommend the LangaList to a friend! (And maybe win $10,000!I)

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