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CyberArtisans Newsletter Vol 5, Number 6 Welcome to the June 2006 issue of the CyberArtisans monthly newsletter! Welcome to the June issue of the CyberArtisans monthly newsletter! Yes, we know it's July, but there seemed no point in sending out a newsletter just before the July 4th weekend. Our goal is to present information that will be useful to you as a website
owner and as a user of the web. If these newsletters are useful, please forward
this to a friend. To unsubscribe, follow the directions at the bottom of this
email. This Month's Topics Here's a place where Microsoft Haters and Microsoft Lovers can really mix it up! Windows Live OneCare is a new service from Microsoft. It provides antivirus, antispyware, firewall, system tune-ups, and data backup, all for $50/year for up to 3 PCs. The Microsoft Haters have already lined up, pointing out that Microsoft is charging customers $50/year to fix problems and weaknesses in its own software caused by its own poor software design. They point out that inclusion of a firewall in OneCare is an admission that the Windows XP firewall isn't very good (old news to almost any Windows guru). Hard to argue with that. But (you knew there was a but, right?)... The other side of the coin, offered by Microsoft Lovers and self-proclaimed Realists, is that the weaknesses are there and we are already paying more than $50/year to protect ourselves with firewalls, antivirus software, and antispyware software. It's a reasonable bet that Microsoft knows these weaknesses better than anyone else, has a larger support organization that deals with more Windows problems than anyone else, and can assemble more skilled resources to fix a problem faster than anyone else. It's worth noting that OneCare has just been announced. As regular readers of this newsletter know, not all antivirus/antispyware protection is created equal. We expect that the gurus who regularly test commercial protection software will jump on this and let us know fairly soon whether this is a competent protection set for a good price or marketing hype that isn't worth the money. And when we find out we'll pass it along to you. Don't feel like sending Microsoft $50 to fix problems they created? Fine. Microsoft has another solution for you. Windows Live Safety Center does many of the same things Windows Live OneCare does, but it does it for free. It doesn't run full-time on your system the way OneCare (and most antivirus/antispyware programs) do, and it doesn't provide a firewall, but Windows Live Safety Center will scan your system for problems and fix them at your request. Yes, it does install something on your system, but this scanner only runs when you tell it to. And yes, it checks with Microsoft for updates before it scans, but the website gives a detailed description of what information it sends to Microsoft when it checks for updates. So what's the catch? Well, for one thing it's a Beta product. For those who haven't seen this term before, a Beta product is one that is not finished. The manufacturer thinks it's mostly done and probably safe, but anyone who uses it agrees to be a guinea pig. There are no guarantees whatsoever. If it trashes your system you are on your own. Well, mostly. Microsoft has created a forum on the Safety Center website for users to discuss problems, and it's clear that Microsoft developers read and comment on those forums, so you will get help, but not officially. It's also brand new. Most technical gurus will tell you that Beta software that has been around for a while and works well is probably OK to install (Windows Defender -- formerly Microsoft Antispyware -- is a good example). Brand new Beta software is much riskier. The gurus who've taken a look at the Safety Center say that it looks good, it seems to work well in limited trials, and yes, it's free. But they also caution that it is Beta software with a very short track record. Right now we wouldn't advise that you bet your system on Windows Live OneCare or Windows Live Safety Center. For now, stay with the protection software you already have installed. But tests of these new products will proceed quickly so we may have a different recommendation soon. Stay tuned. This is a joke, right? Nope. First, let's confirm that by Wireless we mean 802.11(b, g) wireless computer connections -- the sort just about every laptop comes equipped for these days. Most people are happy to get a range of about 300 feet or less. Geeks are not satisfied with 300 feet. Almost from the very start of Wireless, geeks have been looking for legal ways to get more range. There are now yearly competitions. Would you believe that the current record is 124.9 miles for an unamplified signal, set at DefCon 2005 (a major geek confab)? DefCon 2006 is coming up, so that record is likely to be broken soon. Fine, but that is for folks with way too much time on their hands. How about those who have just a little too much time on their hands? These folks have discovered that with a few dollars worth of hardware, including a can of Pringles (Pringles removed, of course), you can put together a fairly decent antenna that increases the signal about 6 dB. For those of you who skipped the class on antenna theory, 6 dB is a respectable gain for a professionally designed antenna. The "yagi" TV antenna that used to adorn every roof usually had between 3 and 20 dB gain. But wait, it gets better. Not satisfied with Pringles, some enterprising (and hungry) geeks have expanded into bigger cans. They got the best results from a 40 oz Nalley's Big Chunk Beef Stew can -- fully 12-13 dB gain. If you have too much time on your hands, the instructions are here. But why, we here you ask. Because, like the mountain, it's a challenge that's there for the taking. Maybe this should be part of the "You know you're a geek if..." test. If you'd rather play with Diet Coke and Mentos, check out this site for a truly artistic rendition of that craziness. Want to see back issues of this newsletter? Go to http://www.cyberartisans.com/newsletter and select an issue. Jonathan Spencer |
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