Archive for January, 2009
One billion plus are online
Over a billion people are now using the Internet. TechCrunch reports:
The number of people on the Internet surpassed one billion in December, according to comScore. The actual number is probably higher than that (Internet World Stats counted nearly 1.5 billion Web surfers worldwide as of June 30, 2008).
I repeat my question– how many of these [...]
Freeware for 64-bit Vista
Speaking of 64-bit systems, here’s a link to a selection of freeware for 64-bit Vista that Tech Support Alert has put together. It is a selection of what the author considers best in a number of categories. Where no 64-bit version exists in a category, the article suggests a 32-bit application that works in a [...]
QuickTime security update (again)
Once more, security holes require the QuickTime player to be patched. Details at this link.
It’s getting harder to try out a PC
In her blog at ZDNet, Mary Jo Foley makes a good point. As the big box computer stores keep disappearing, where can you go for a hands-on tryout of PCs? With the demise of CompUSA and now Circuit City, the choices are getting narrower. BestBuy, Staples, Office Depot, etc. have only so much shelf space [...]
Anniversary of the Apple Mac
The Macintosh computer is 25 years old and Macworld has an article giving us a little of the history of the Mac:
In 1977, Apple made a splash on the world stage by introducing the Apple II, one of the world’s first personal computers. In the time between the Apple II’s release and IBM’s introduction of [...]
Microsoft advice on plugging security hole is flawed
Recently, I posted about the “Downadup” worm as well as about the general security problem with the Windows Autorun function. Related to this problem was a post where I gave procedures recommended by Microsoft for disabling the Autorun feature and the related Autoplay.
Now the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) is reporting that the [...]
The plot to kill Google
That’s the title of a piece at Wired Magazine. Its thesis is that Google has enemies (primarily Microsoft) working to attack Google on a number of fronts by using anti-trust arguments. The article relates how Microsoft helped to force Google to withdraw from a proposed joint search effort with Yahoo:
Google’s capitulation marked a rare defeat [...]
Another credit card security breach
Once more a major processor of credit cards has been hacked. The Washington Post reports:
A data breach last year at Princeton, N.J., payment processor Heartland Payment Systems may have led to the compromise of more than 100 million credit and debit card transactions, the company said today.
If accurate, such figures may make the Heartland incident [...]
List of freeware
Every year PC Magazine lists its selections for the best freeware. This year’s list is now out:
The best things in life often actually are free. Here, a list of 173 of the best things in life—free software, for launching apps, networking, backup, synchronization, entertainment, and more.
There’s a lot of free applications out there and this [...]
Brand new American presidential Web site
Proving once again that he is no slouch at understanding how to use the Internet, Barack Obama was no sooner inaugurated President of the US when the site whitehouse.gov underwent a total transformation. It’s obviously been prepared by real Web professionals.
Ars Technica comments on the site:
As Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President [...]
Fixing a stuck print job
Just about a year ago, I gave a tip on what to do if you get a print job that hangs up. This problem seems to be fairly common since I have recently seen posts at several blogs about it. So I am revisiting the problem. The tip I gave involved the command line. For [...]
