Saturday, August 30, 2008

[The Hacker's Nightmare] Death's Door -- Part 2

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TODAY'S TOPICS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
- Thank You!
- Status Update


Hi Affiliate.

For our newer members who have joined since my last newsletter, I
have posted that issue on the website so as to bring you up to
date. Here's the link:
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1eQ4X66inVZTAn&b=Pw4O.AMTD_sAptaDtJAJLA

Now, being somewhat "old school" I think it's just good manners to
respond personally and individually to anyone who e-mails genuine
good wishes to you. But so many of my customers and subscribers
responded to notification of my sudden hospitalization a couple of
weeks ago that you have made individual acknowledgments an
impossibility -- at least if I am ever to catch up on the real
business of The Hacker's Nightmare and this newsletter.

I'm extremely grateful and buoyed by all the expressions of
understanding and support and just disappointed that I'm going to
have to settle for a group thank you here. But please be assured
that your support has meant a lot to me.

But, unhappily, I'm still incarcerated.

The "few more days" of hospitalization I was hoping for in my last
update has extended to another week. I'm to progress to a final
stage of treatment tomorrow and, all being well with that, the
current projection is that I be released on Wednesday, to be
followed by fortnightly maintenance day-visits to the hospital for
a couple of months.

By the way, please don't think of me as languishing away in a
crowded hospital ward dependent on others for my needs. The real
picture is very different indeed. The expensive private health
cover that I've more than once been going to drop as a "rip off" is
getting the workout of a lifetime, providing me with the luxury of
a private room with phone, TV and meals delivered.

As for my general well-being, after the agonies of the first week
subsided I have been feeling fairly normal. I'm fully mobile and
wander around at will when not scheduled to be scanned, drained,
injected or otherwise scientifically abused.

But my relative normality creates its own problem in that I am
restrained enough to be bored to tears most of the time. I have to
make a conscious effort not to become one of those unsettled,
demanding "bad patients".

Anyway...

**** STATUS UPDATE ****


OK, well despite my absence things have been moving along and the
boiling panic of a fortnight ago is now but a warm simmer.

Sadly I still have to apologize for a "newsletter" that doesn't
contain the useful content that I like to provide, but hopefully
this will be the last "empty" one.

As of this moment I believe all outstanding support queries have
been answered. If you have sent a support request and not yet
received a response please resend it from scratch with full
details, using ONLY the proper Contact form, the URL for which
appears below.

In your own best interests please do not send support requests by
replying to this newsletter or directly to me. The proper Contact
form always gets priority, as do well explained problems.

You may recall from my previous message that a delivery of CDs had
not arrived on schedule. They have since turned up and much of the
backlog has been posted already. The balance should be cleared by
the end of this coming week at the latest.

BUT PLEASE KEEP IN MIND...

The CD packs are posted from Brisbane, Australia, so there is an
inevitable delivery gap that is out of our control.

Again, my sincere apologies for all the disruption. My problems
should not become your inconveniences. But as previously explained,
too many things "broke" at the same time -- something I'll be making
very sure can never happen again.

With even a modicum of good luck we should be back to normal very
soon.


---------------------------------------------------------


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:
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1eQ4X66inVZTAn&b=LSEu_d.Au9ZrJrMlaNaDigAffiliate
+Affiliate&e=cbi18@ewenchias.info

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Subscriber's Location : New Delhi India
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Thursday, August 7, 2008

[The Hacker's Nightmare] Correction to Odds & Ends

OK Affiliate, I screwed up -- so much for multitasking!

Note to self: Get more sleep, concentrate on one writing job at a
time.

Here's how the section about Firefox in yesterday's newsletter
SHOULD have read...


---------------------------------------------------------


** UPGRADE REMINDER **

Do you prefer Firefox over Internet Explorer?

I certainly do. Firefox has a lot going for it, and some of the
available plug-ins are so useful you could almost consider them
mandatory.

I'm not being one-eyed and anti-Microsoft about this. For years I
used and defended Internet Explorer, because while a lot of the
criticisms were quite valid, many weren't.

But when a competitor comes along that just keeps getting so much
better, it's hard to justify continued resistance. Although I've
used both browsers side-by-side for quite some time, I switched
full-time to using Firefox as my default browser when version 2
appeared.

But, good as it was, there were a few problems with Firefox v2 -- a
few security holes that were patched in due course -- but I'm
talking about usability problems. One of the most annoying was that
Firefox v2 didn't resize Web pages correctly when you used the
Ctrl-Key + mouse-scroll-wheel combination.

Some Web pages could be rendered unrecognizable and unreadable just
by zooming in on them.

Happily Firefox v3 has fixed that problem and now it and Internet
Explorer both zoom correctly.

On the down side, if you have a lot of plug-ins installed in your
Firefox v2 you may find that some of them are not compatible with
version 3. Sometimes the fix for that is as simple as searching for
and installing the latest version of that plug-in, but you may find
a few instances where the plug-in developer hasn't yet provide an
update.


---------------------------------------------------------


And while I'm at it,a couple of other pro-Firefox points I forgot
to mention yesterday...

- Although I haven't run any benchmarks, Firefox v3 is to my eye
noticeably faster than its predecessor. Many others have made
this same observation

- The URL field (a.k.a. Location Bar) has developed into a very
smart piece of work indeed -- so much so that it's been dubbed
The Awesome Bar. Whatever is typed into the field is matched
against page titles, URLs and tags in the browser's Bookmarks
and History records, and returns a list of results that show a
page's favicons, title and URL which you can then choose from.
Searches are very fast, with results being displayed as you type.

- There have been a number of security enhancements in Firefox 3.

---------------------------------------------------------

So... sorry about the version confusion in the original newsletter.
I hope that clears up the mess I made.

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:
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1Ze4DyzDaVZTAn&b=xoRVLrBsLjuzLSc9Yp_T1AAffiliate+Affiliate&e=

-------------------------------------------------------
In case you've forgotten... here's a reminder that you
did subscribe to my service. We forward this record to
the service provider whenever a spam report is lodged.
-------------------------------------------------------
Subscription Date : July 4, 2008

-------------------------------------------------------
"Location" is a web server's "best guess" based on
your IP address. It doesn't matter if it's wrong!
-------------------------------------------------------


PO Box 164, Clayfield, QLD 4011, AUSTRALIA

To unsubscribe or change subscriber options visit:
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[The Hacker's Nightmare] Odds & Ends

------------------------------------------------------------------
As a subscriber to one of Bill Hely's books, courses or services
you are eligible to receive this "Weekly Commentary", in which
he discusses PC & Internet security, productivity issues, useful
software, tips 'n tricks, and other topics of interest to home
and small business computer users and web surfers.

TO CHANGE THE E-MAIL ADDRESS...
for delivery of this publication, please click the link for
"unsubscribe or change subscriber options" at page bottom, then
look for the "Change Details" link.
------------------------------------------------------------------


TODAY'S TOPICS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
- Apology
- Upgrade Reminder
- Browser Hot Tip
- Marketer's Corner
- News Flash
- Call for Comment

Hi Affiliate.

My apologies for the short-form newsletter this week, especially
the absence of a main topic. If you're new to this newsletter, I
like to start out each week with a significant main topic on a
security, productivity or other technology topic.

I am currently assessing two different software packages and one
potentially important online service, any of which could be of
significant interest to subscribers.

Those investigations, on top of my normal J.O.B. stuff, has left me
little time for anything else.

Hopefully we'll be back to normal by next week.


---------------------------------------------------------


** UPGRADE REMINDER **

Do you prefer Firefox over Internet Explorer?

I certainly do. Firefox has a lot going for it, and some of the
available plug-ins are so useful you could almost consider them
mandatory.

I'm not being one-eyed and anti-Microsoft about this. For years I
used and defended Internet Explorer, because while a lot of the
criticisms were quite valid, many weren't.

But when a competitor comes along that just keeps getting so much
better, it's hard to justify continued resistance. Although I've
used both browsers side-by-side for quite some time, I switched
full-time to using Firefox as my default browser when version 6
appeared.

But, good as it was, there were a few problems with version 6 -- a
few security holes that were patched in due course -- but I'm
talking about usability problems. One of the most annoying was that
Firefox v6 didn't resize Web pages correctly when you used the
Ctrl-Key + mouse-scroll-wheel combination.

Some Web pages could be rendered unrecognizable and unreadable just
by zooming in on them.

Happily Firefox v7 has fixed that problem and now it and Internet
Explorer both zoom correctly.

On the down side, if you have a lot of plug-ins installed in your
Firefox v6 you may find that some of them are not compatible with
version 7. Sometimes the fix for that is as simple as searching for
and installing the latest version of that plug-in, but you may find
a few instances where the plug-in developer hasn't yet provide an
update.


---------------------------------------------------------


** BROWSER HOT TIP **

When you've zoomed in or out on a webpage, how do you get back to
the original size that the webpage developer intended?

As stated above you can zoom in and out on a webpage by holding
down the Ctrl-key on the keyboard and rolling the mouse
scroll-wheel backwards and forwards.

Then, the key combination Ctrl+0 (that's a zero) will restore the
webpage to the original design size.

This tip works for both Firefox v7 and Internet Explorer v6.


---------------------------------------------------------


** MARKETER'S CORNER **

A while back I described to my subscribers how much of an impact
John Reese's original "Traffic Secrets" course has had on my own
online business, and I alerted everyone to his long-awaited and
completely rewritten update, "Traffic Secret 2.0".

I had my order in the day they started taking them for TS2, and it
arrived via FedEx today. I must say it's a very impressive, well
presented package. And of course, having gained so much from the
original "Traffic Secrets" and having been a big fan of Reese's
business training for a long time now, I have no doubt that the
contents will be, in typical Reese fashion, exceptional.

But as impressive as the package contents are, I think the
Web-based "Mastermind Community" alone is going to be worth
significantly more than the cost of the course, which, as you may
recall, is about a third of the price of the original. John Reese
has reversed the escalating trend towards higher and higher prices
for advanced training in online business.

As I get into the CDs, the written material and the very
significant online component, I'll be passing on my thoughts and
impressions in this newsletter.

In the meantime, if you are have a business with an online
presence, or if you aspire to such, you should check out "Traffic
Secrets 2.0" yourself...
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1c8jzJ.4qVZTAn&b=tJ5SGjtWNXcg1EisybvAMw


---------------------------------------------------------


** NEWS FLASH: Skype Security Too Good For The Long Arm **

Ever wondered about the security of your Internet telephone
conversations?

German Federal Police admitted recently that they are unable to
decipher the encryption used in the Internet telephone (VOIP)
software Skype.

Understandably, law enforcement agencies worldwide want to be able
to monitor calls by suspected criminals and terrorists, and
inevitably these needs clash with privacy concerns.

http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1c8jzJ.4qVZTAn&b=oFjLaD1Ic7enKKGiS8E53g

Don't however assume that all agencies will be similarly stymied.


---------------------------------------------------------


** CALL FOR COMMENT **

Affiliate, is there something you'd like to see discussed
in this newsletter?

I'm always open to requests and suggestions, so don't hesitate to
send in a request via the Web form at...
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1c8jzJ.4qVZTAn&b=kUKdmeTv3KMpCE8IkcgCOA


---------------------------------------------------------


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:
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1c8jzJ.4qVZTAn&b=75rkVJkTnrfS_12Te5_JzQAffiliate
+Affiliate&e=

-------------------------------------------------------
In case you've forgotten... here's a reminder that you
did subscribe to my service. We forward this record to
the service provider whenever a spam report is lodged.
-------------------------------------------------------
Subscription Date : July 4, 2008

-------------------------------------------------------
"Location" is a web server's "best guess" based on
your IP address. It doesn't matter if it's wrong!
-------------------------------------------------------


PO Box 164, Clayfield, QLD 4011, AUSTRALIA

To unsubscribe or change subscriber options visit:
http://www.aweber.com/z/r/?LBzMjKxMtCxM7ByMzCyMtEa0zGzsLMxMbA==

Sunday, August 3, 2008

[PC Security Course] Affiliate, Part 8 is ready for you.

Hi Affiliate.

Here is Part 8 of your computer and Internet security course.

This article is titled : "Encryption and why you should be using it".

You may read the article online, save it to your computer or
print it out, whichever you prefer.

Here's the link:

http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1ppk3IYpU_ZTAn&b=EDgLTmbhQsbDoX1eNLYbZA

Best regards,
- Bill Hely
- Author: "The Hacker's Nightmare"
- "How to keep hackers, worms & other germs out of your PC"

PS If for some reason you missed any of the previous parts
you can still get them here:

1. "The Anti-Virus Conundrum":
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1ppk3IYpU_ZTAn&b=7sDNtKUtzQVRSLPMU2xZug

2. "Adware & Spyware Protection":
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1ppk3IYpU_ZTAn&b=9vPuPND4iaMHOoFvCqDpbQ

3. "PhishyTales - How to spot an eMail scam":
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1ppk3IYpU_ZTAn&b=uslgMcov7UO6mQ6OuTcNcQ

4. "Shoring Up Your Browser":
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1ppk3IYpU_ZTAn&b=99Cp5jl7Wdfo9XJ3.twsaw

5. "Disaster Recovery - It's all In The Planning":
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1ppk3IYpU_ZTAn&b=FYcnelk7.hzvtyHlulK9YQ

6. "Firewalls - no longer an option":
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1ppk3IYpU_ZTAn&b=tD0XO5WInUtT3UBzthe47w

7. "Browser Wars":
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1ppk3IYpU_ZTAn&b=UZbXTjj9iYYPGMtFHMzfVA


FOR ALL CORRESPONDENCE & SUPPORT PLEASE USE THIS FORM:
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Ml13p&m=1ppk3IYpU_ZTAn&b=_2RkGb5vHVkeYEdfhj3.0Q

-------------------------------------------------------
In case you've forgotten... here's a reminder that you
did subscribe to my service. We forward this record to
the service provider whenever a spam report is lodged.
-------------------------------------------------------
Subscription Date : July 4, 2008

-------------------------------------------------------
"Location" is a web server's "best guess" based on
your IP address. It doesn't matter if it's wrong!
-------------------------------------------------------

PO Box 164, Clayfield, Brisbane, QLD 4011, AUSTRALIA

To unsubscribe or change subscriber options visit:
http://www.aweber.com/z/r/?LBzMjKxMtCxM7ByMzCyMtGa0jAwczEwsjA==