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Hi Affiliate.
One of the problems most frequently posed by novice computer users
must be along the lines of "I downloaded a file and now I can't
find it". We get a number of those every year when a new subscriber
"loses" their download of The Hacker's Nightmare or one of the
other downloads available to members.
Much as we'd like to be able to help, there is no way we can tell
you where your download has ended up, as the download location is
not determined by the file itself.
Although that's very much a novice error, it's a real problem
nevertheless, and even the best organized computer user has to go
Hunting for a misplaced file occasionally. Or frequently, in the
case of those who fall into the less organized category.
Of course Windows has its own built-in search facility. In Windows
Explorer right-click on a drive or folder, select Search from the
pop-up menu, and proceed from there. If you have multiple hard
drives you can search all of them at once by doing your
right-click-and-search from the My Computer "folder".
More often than not, provided you enter the correct search
criteria, Windows Search will eventually turn up the location of
the file you're looking for (emphasis on "eventually", but more on
that in a moment).
Unhappily there are two main problems with Windows Search: (1) it
can be mind-numbingly slow; (2) results are not guaranteed -- it's
not all that uncommon for Windows Search to fail to find a file
that you know exists.
If this is the way you're accustomed to searching for files, I'll
let you in on a little secret -- that's not how power users do it.
You see, the first time you use Windows Search in a computing
session, the only way it can find what you're looking for is to
start at the point you indicated (drive or folder) and iterate its
way through every single file and folder below that starting point.
If, as part of your search criteria, you also stipulated "A word or
phrase in the file", it also has to search *inside* every file
below the starting point. Any wonder it's so slow!
Now, compare that with a search engine that has previously analysed
the contents of all hard drives on your computer and created a
detailed index of every word in every file. When commanded to
conduct a search all it has to do is look up its index.
It's a bit like the difference between looking for a single topic
in a large book by reading the whole publication cover to cover, as
opposed to simply flipping to the index at the back.
There are several applications that can provide that sort of search
facility, but up until fairly recently all the decent ones were
quite expensive.
One of the "name" products in this field, and my personal
favorite, has long been an application called Copernicus, which is
now available free of charge for personal use and $59.95 per
computer in a commercial environment, with discounts for volume
purchases.
Copernicus is very simple to install so I won't waste time on that
aspect. It's also very easy to use, though obviously it needs some
time to create its indexes. By default Copernicus will commence
indexing automatically after its installed, but only while the
computer is idle.
The installation places a small icon in the system tray, and
right-clicking on that icon reveals a pop-up menu. If you select
the Indexing Status option from the menu you'll get the Index
Status window, in which you'll see a message that reads "Indexing
will resume after 10 seconds of idle time" (10 seconds is the most
common delay period, though other times do appear, depending on
certain circumstances). Just leave the mouse and keyboard alone and
after 10 seconds has elapsed you'll see the indexing process resume.
You really don't need to know anything that you can't get from a
quick study of the Copernicus interface. However, you can improve
the search experience quite a bit by referring to the Help file:
Help -> Help Contents from the Copernicus main menu. It's a well
laid out reference and you'll soon see a few options that you want
to customize.
One important customization relates to any special programs you use
that save files with their own unique extension. By default
Copernicus only indexes file types that it knows about, and that's
quite a large number. But if you use any special programs,
Copernicus might not recognize their file extension. Happily you
can add the necessary extensions to Copernicus yourself.
For example, a few newsletters back I extolled the virtues of my
very favorite vector graphics application, Xara Extreme Pro, which
files have the extension "xar". By default Copernicus will not
index xar files, but it's a very simple matter to add that
extension to the list of files that Copernicus knows about. Follow
the menu sequence: Tools -> Options -> Advanced.
Download Copernicus from here:
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1a6obQ1DdVZTAn&b=PVoYFDtJgEHWQXo_6OZ.9A
Learn about Xara Extreme Pro here:
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1a6obQ1DdVZTAn&b=I2TbXqJ9PmM9hrMUclNW4g
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It still continues to amaze me, despite all the evidence to the
contrary, just how many people still think that having their
computers controlled by some faceless miscreant "out there" belongs
to the realms of science fiction.
A 19-year-old New Zealand hacker has just been convicted with not
much more than a slap on the wrist for controlling what was
probably the numerically largest single bot army on the global
Internet. I don't yet know the full details of why he got off so
lightly, but there was nothing imaginary about the power or the
potential for mayhem and abuse that he wielded.
It is an absolutely irrefutable and demonstrable fact that an
unprotected Windows computer *WILL* be compromised within minutes
of connecting to the Internet. That's ANY unprotected computer. Not
just someone else's, but YOURS as well. There are now so many rogue
programs hitting so many millions of computers per hour that
absolutely no one escapes attention.
And the worst thing of all is...
Of the millions of computers that are already infected by a bot,
and thus at the disposal of their controller (he's called a "bot
herder" in the lingo) any time he gets around to it -- in probably
something like 99% of those cases the owner of the computer has no
idea - and will never have any idea - of the situation.
Even amongst those computer users who are somewhat aware of the
threat, what do most of them do?
They do a Web search for "free anti-virus", download and install
the first one they come across, and Bob's your uncle -- "I'm
protected!". Some may even include "free anti-spyware", and even
"free firewall".
See, here's the thing:
None of that is good enough.
THEY WILL STILL GET HIT!
If you've read The Hacker's Nightmare and you didn't pick up on the
emphasis I've placed on a good firewall/router, then you have
missed a very important - PERHAPS THE MOST IMPORTANT - lesson in
self-preservation online.
Affiliate, you mightn't like this, but don't consider it
abuse -- interpret it as Tough Love.
Ready? OK, here I go...
IF YOU HAVE BEEN ALERTED TO THE DANGERS, AND IF YOU STILL DON'T
HAVE A DECENT NAT FIREWALL/ROUTER IN PLACE, YOU ARE A FOOL!
You unquestionably have a disaster on your hands that's just
waiting for the worst possible moment to blow up.
No doubt I'll get a number of people unsubscribing from this
newsletter over that accusation, but consider this:
If I know in advance that some people are going to be upset enough
to unsubscribe, and yet I still say it, just how important do you
think it must be?
On the other hand, if you can swallow your indignation and take the
hint, The Hacker's Nightmare contains everything you need to know,
from selecting the right router through to properly enabling its
security features.
Any firewall/router is better than no firewall/router, but there
are features that make some a far better choice than others.
Incidentally, there is a way I can demonstrate just how frequent,
consistent and insidious the attacks on your Internet connection
are, but:
(a) You need to have a suitable NAT router in place to be able
to see what's happening, and...
(b) It's a bit techo and I have to figure out a way to explain
in plain language how to set it up.
So basically I can't show you on your own computer just how badly
you need a suitable NAT router, unless you already have a suitable
NAT router. Catch-22 (fantastic book, by the way; if it doesn't
have you in stitches you have no funny bone.)
Even so I'm going to work towards preparing a tutorial that will
make anyone with a suitable NAT router very glad they have one.
[ How many times did I repeat the word "suitable"? That ]
[ wasn't just sloppy prose on my part -- not all such ]
[ routers have the necessary features, but the device I ]
[ discuss in detail in The Hacker's Nightmare does. ]
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And finally...
I have just uploaded my latest e-book, "Spam-Warfare: Home & Small
Business Edition", to the Bonuses section of The Hackers Nightmare
member's area.
This is a pre-release for members only -- it is not yet available
for purchase by non-members. I'm hoping to get feedback from
members before I release it for general sale.
I honestly believe this to be the most comprehensive PRACTICAL work
available anywhere on spam control and management. Whether your
computer is a stand-alone PC or you have a network to manage, this
publication will provide a solution that will allow you to convert
spam from a flood to, at worst, an easily managed trickle.
I've tried very hard to make the contents both interesting and easy
to implement.
So Affiliate, I'd REALLY REALLY REALLY like to get your
feedback! Yeah, really... <g>
Please don't hesitate to point out any negatives -- if anything
criticisms and negatives are more important than accolades. Only by
being alerted to the negatives can I make improvements, and that
applies to all my publications, including this newsletter.
Mind you, if you like it I'd really like to hear that also.
A week or so ago I mentioned that I was temporarily holding release
of the book due to doubts about the availability of one of the
solutions mentioned. There is no doubt at all as to its efficacy,
but it seems that some sort of funding or financing deal is going
on behind the scenes. The relevant section is Chapter 9, in which I
address some amazingly effective hardware solutions to spam. The
financial negotiations or whatever it is are all very hush-hush,
but I'm now fairly confident still that buyers of this equipment
will not be affected.
One other thing on this topic...
As some of you know I started this book a couple of years ago but
never ever released it for sale. When I tackled it again for this
release, thinking that I just had a small editing job ahead of me,
it soon became apparent that pretty much a complete rewrite was in
order.
I mention that because a small handful of subscribers to this
newsletter were given a copy of the original back then. I just want
to advise those people that this is a very much expanded and
extended work and bears little resemblance to that original, so
don't think you've already seen it.
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OK, that's all for today Affiliate.
Until next time, Stay safe! And remember...
The human brain is the first line of defense;
keep it engaged when online.
Best regards,
- Bill Hely
- Author: "The Hacker's Nightmare"
- "How to keep hackers, worms & other germs out of your PC"
FOR ALL CORRESPONDENCE & SUPPORT PLEASE USE THIS FORM:
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