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April 30, 2007
Dell Coming to a store near you?
It looks like Michael Dell is rethinking his business model:
“The direct model has been a revolution, but it is not a religion,” Mr. Dell wrote in a memorandum sent on Wednesday to 80,000 Dell employees.It is the first time that Mr. Dell or any other senior executive has publicly conceded that the business model that was crucial to the company’s success could — and should — be altered. Until now, the company responded with an adamant no when Wall Street analysts or customers asked whether the company would consider other ways of selling.
Any dynamic business needs to adapt in order to survive it looks like Michael Dell is serious about making his company outlive him.
Posted by Peter at 10:34 AM | Comments (0)
Congrats to our old pal Andy and Tara
In our early blogging days Andy was known to write an article or two over here.
My old friend is no longer with the company, but right now is in Mexico honeymooning with his brand new Bride Tara who he married on Saturday, you might remember he announced the engagement here.
We wish the best to Andy and Tara and wish them a lifetime of marital bliss, and as my Pal Roger told me when I got married.
A word of advice, when you get angry don't throw the expensive stuff.Words to live by
Posted by Peter at 08:52 AM | Comments (0)
April 29, 2007
There is nothing like a bad example to create silence
You might recall the Egyptian blogger who was imprisoned a bit ago that we wrote about. Well the net affect of this has produced the effect that I suspect the Egyptian government was looking for as other bloggers are heading for the hills:
One of the chief reasons is the fact that there has been too much heat around me lately. I no longer believe that my anonymity is kept, especially with State Security agents lurking around my street and asking questions about me since that day. I ignore that, the same way I ignored all the clicking noises that my phones started to exhibit all of a sudden, or the law suit filed by Judge Mourad on my friends, and instead grew bolder and more reckless at a time where everybody else started being more cautious. It took me a while to take note of the fear that has been gripping our little blogsphere and comprehend what it really means. The prospects for improvement, to put it slightly, look pretty grim. I was the model of caution, and believing in my invincibility by managing not to get arrested for the past 2 and a half years, I've grown reckless. (spelling errors corrected)
This is a serious thing and a disgrace that a person has to worry about his personal freedom over a blog opinion, it is yet another does of reality for those who lack perspective. Hat tip to all kinds of bloggers who are very angry at this development and worried for the safety of their compatriot.
Posted by Peter at 03:29 PM | Comments (0)
April 28, 2007
Blogs; a way to answer directly
Curt Schilling demonstrates the advantages of a personal blog:
If you haven’t figured it out by now, working in the media is a pretty nice gig. Barring outright plagiarism or committing a crime, you don’t have to be accountable if you don’t want to. You can say what you want when you want and you don’t really have to answer to anyone. You can always tell the bigger culprits by the fact you never see their faces in the clubhouse. Most of them are afraid to show themselves to the subjects they rail on everyday.
All of this is in answer to a sports writer who claimed (since retracted)the blood on Schilling's Sock game six of the 2004 ACLS (Red Sox v Yankees) was fake.
The blog allows a figure like Schilling to answer direct without filter, as usual he puts it out there:
Remember this, the surgery was voluntary. If you have the nuts, or the guts, grab an orthopedic surgeon, have them suture your ankle skin down to the tissue covering the bone in your ankle joint, then walk around for 4 hours. After that go find a mound, throw a hundred or so pitches, run over, cover first a few times. When you’re done check that ankle and see if it bleeds.
I'm surprised we don't see more stuff like this from sports figures.
Posted by Peter at 07:29 AM | Comments (0)
April 27, 2007
Vista = Profits
Microsoft Vista may have some issues but it seems to coin money:
Five years in the making, Vista’s 50 million lines of code cost an estimated $7.5 billion to assemble but ahead of its release fears circulated that the system would be beset by security and other problems.The concerns were assuaged by the latest financial figures, which showed that Microsoft’s Client, which includes Windows achieved a 67 per cent jump in sales compared with a year earlier, to $5.3 billion.
I guess there is no accounting for taste
Posted by Peter at 10:20 PM | Comments (0)
April 26, 2007
I bet they lead in spyware too:
Slashdot reports (via the Columbus Dispatch) that Ohio University is the number one illegal music download area as measured by RIAA complaints.
I guess we should be marketing there, since I'll bet real money that it would also lead in systems infected with virus/spyware from p2p software. Note to Marketing; let's mine that PC Restoration Motherlode!
Posted by Peter at 08:49 AM | Comments (0)
What the internet really means
An interesting phenomenon was illustrated this morning when Washington Post reporter David Broder wrote a column today comparing Sen Harry Reid to Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez. As this is a tech blog we are not so much interested in the column as the phenomenon of the web based "Action Alert" and the reaction thereof.
As of 8:34 this morning there are 16 pages of comments. You wouldn't think that this many people would care, but what has actually happened is a web site called the Horse's Mouth had a Blogswarm Alert asking people to comment on this.
It is more effective than the old method of mail cards that used to be used to generate opinion since the nature of the net allows people to express varied opinions, either a quick blunt opinion or a longer entry that allows for rebuttal; and some of the rebuttals above are frankly not bad, others frankly might never have read the column but there are some interesting arguments made.
For political geeks of any stripe "alerts" and links allow us who really are not part of the political world except for perhaps as voters or contributers (I never give money, a guy can have my vote but not my cash) play the great game.
It's been suggested that this is "made opinion"; I don't think so. I think it is a a question of people who already had like minded opinions and are expressing them. This is what technology is; it allows us to hear and comment on somebody burping in Uganda and react in real time.
This is the expression of the ability of the internet to empower people at a single level, while still allowing opinion makers to nudge things in the direction desired.
I think that stuff like this is what makes the net very cool.
Posted by Peter at 08:28 AM | Comments (0)
Google: Were #1 watch out for those ads
Via WND. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that Google has now become the worlds most visited web site:
The Mountain View search engine has outstripped Microsoft on two fronts, becoming both the most visited Web site and the most valuable global brand.The events are major milestones for Google, which has grown into a business juggernaut. Torrid growth and outsized profits have quickly propelled the company past many established blue chip giants while generating a host of complaints that it has become too powerful.
"These are really significant events," said Geoffrey Bowker, executive director of the Center for Science, Technology and Society at Santa Clara University. "At the moment, everything that Google is touching turns to gold."
That however doesn't mean that everything that touches google turns to gold as (Via Slashdot) this Washington post tech blog reports:
Virus writers have been gaming Google's "sponsored links" -- the paid ads shown alongside search engine results. They are aiming to get their malicious software installed on computers whose users click onto ad links after searching for legitimate sites such as BBBonline.org, the official Web site of the Better Business Bureau.
This vulnerability seems to be a feature not a bug:
As Exploit Labs's Roger Thompson notes in his blog, the bad guys behind the attack appeared to capitalize on an odd feature of Google's sponsored links. Normally, when a viewer hovers over a hyperlink, the name of the site that the computer user is about to access appears in the bottom left corner of the browser window. But hovering over Google's sponsored links shows nothing in that area. That blank space potentially gives bad guys another way to hide where visitors will be taken first.
Its another Willie Sutton moment.
Posted by Peter at 08:17 AM | Comments (0)
April 25, 2007
Taking it to the Max, Office Max that is
At HiWired we are very proud of the service that we provide to our customers. Now it looks like the number of people we will be helping will be growing thanks to some big news here at HiWired:
HiWired Inc. formed a strategic alliance with OfficeMax Inc. to power a new technology support center for customers of OfficeMax's office-products retail chain.
That would be control center:
According to Illinois-based OfficeMax, its new remote-access technology support service, called "ctrlcenter," enables customers to remotely connect with US-based technical advisors to obtain technology services and solutions via a secure broadband Internet connection.
We are very happy to be working with Office Max and look forward to solving many problems for our shared customers while providing the same great service that our longtime customers have come to expect.
And on that note I want to say a big thank you to all our loyal customers whose business has allowed us to reach this point. We couldn't have done it without you!
Posted by Peter at 12:09 PM | Comments (0)
April 23, 2007
Blackberry on the road unhealthy?
Blackberrys are useful but there are times when they should be ignored:
New Jersey State Police are investigating an allegation that the trooper who was driving Gov. Corzine's SUV two weeks ago when it crashed going 91 m.p.h. may have been distracted by e-mails sent to his mobile phone or BlackBerry.A Berkeley Heights police sergeant was quoted in the Star-Ledger of Newark yesterday saying he sent an e-mail shortly before the crash to Trooper Robert Rasinski, confronting him over having a two-year affair with his wife, Susan. He said he enclosed a family photo as an attachment.
As the last person my age I know who doesn't use a cell phone period , its my opinion that there are times where I don't need to take a call or e-mail.
Posted by Peter at 11:18 PM | Comments (0)
April 22, 2007
Public Wifi, stress the public
The LA Times talks about the risks of public wi-fi:
Public Wi-Fi is very handy for perusing the Internet away from the office or home. Just remember that you may have company while surfing.Once hooked into the system, Cheung was able to monitor the online activity of other laptops in the shop.
Luckily for the people around him, he wasn't snooping for any reason except to make a point: As wireless hot spots proliferate, the tools for secretly monitoring these Internet connections are becoming more sophisticated.
"When people are on a public wireless connection, they have the same expectations about privacy as when they are on the Internet at home," said Cheung, 32, a computer security expert and an editor for TG Daily, a technology news website.
"But it doesn't work that way. Someone could be listening in."
Good advice, George Ou in our podcast and Hector have both talked about this here so you should already know it.
UPDATE yes I know its fixed now.
Posted by Peter at 06:18 PM | Comments (0)
April 21, 2007
A non-traditional Batchelor party
You might remember Andy who used to post here but no longer works for us.
Well yesterday (actually mostly this morning)he had his bachelor party. Unlike a traditional one this was held at Igamespot where we played an overnight game (10-8 a.m) of civilization 4.
Not only is such a party less likely to get you in trouble with your wife but it is rather less expensive.
Posted by Peter at 02:18 PM | Comments (0)
April 20, 2007
Dell rolls away the stone and XP rises from the tomb.
In the Catholic Church the Easter Season lasts 50 days. What could be a more proper story for such a season then an OS rising from the dead:
Amid significant customer demand, the computer maker said on Thursday that it has returned to offering the older Windows version (XP nio) as an option on some of its consumer PCs.
I guess there is a stronger force than Bill Gates, the free market.
"We heard you loud and clear on bringing the Windows XP option back to our Dell consumer PC offerings," Dell said on its Ideas in Action page. Users get to vote on various suggestions, and the notion of bringing back XP got 10,000 "points," making it among the most popular requests
This trickle will become a flood real fast since in my opinion after two months of using it, (not a real long time in OS years) given the choice on a OS for a new system I'd take XP too.
Via slashdot
Posted by Peter at 08:31 AM | Comments (0)
A license means it can be taken away
A Canadian MP is introducing a bill to license ISP's Michael Geist reports and is not impressed:
... this bill would not look out-of-place in countries that aggressively censor the Internet and it makes the dangerous Jennings lawful access bill look positively harmless by comparison.
Not an impressive start, the bill will likely not pass but its introduction makes it more likely that something "not as bad" will sooner or later make it. Via slashdot
BTW sorry for the lack of posting, its all your fault for giving us so much business lately. Thanks, we really appreciate it!
Posted by Peter at 08:29 AM | Comments (0)
April 18, 2007
And now to a not forgotton subject
I haven't written much about internet speech lately but luckly for you Glenn is on the subject today:
In Egypt, for instance, blogging has evolved within the past year from a narcissistic parlour sport to a shaper of the political agenda. By simply posting embarrassing video footage, small-time bloggers have blown open scandals over such issues as torture and women's harassment on the streets of Cairo.
And of course our favorite Free Speech Diva is on it every day, just click and keep scrolling.
Posted by Peter at 01:28 PM | Comments (0)
April 17, 2007
The logical consequence of not using HiWired.
On occasion we have a customer ask why they should pay money for tech support. David Progue in his blog is kind enough to provide the answer:
I struggled for five days with four 802.11n wireless routers, trying to make them work the way they were supposed to.My wife has made me swear that I will never, ever review routers again. I’m inclined to agree.
Home networking remains one of the world’s most frustrating endeavors; 30 percent of home-networking gear winds up getting returned to the store.
I’m about to illustrate one reason why.
Read the whole thing and remember professional support is only a call or a chat away.
Posted by Peter at 07:40 PM | Comments (0)
April 15, 2007
This is why I do mine by hand
A lot of customers ask me why I don't use Quicken, Microsoft Money or Turbo Tax. They wonder why I don't use electronic stuff for financial items. It is because of stuff like this:
It works like this: Internet grifters send e-mails, luring taxpayers to Web pages that look like IRS-approved sites where they can file their taxes electronically."It's very easy for someone to set up a scam site," said Internet analyst Omar Wasow, "the sort of thing a teenager could do with a little bit of Web experience."
The scam artists send in the tax returns after redirecting refunds to their own bank accounts instead of those of the taxpayers.
That doesn't even count all the information from Social Security Numbers of workers and families and any other private tax info out there that is lost. The only good news is that since the returns are actually filed there is no threat of a penalty from the IRS.
Paper and Pencil may be slower but I'm covered.
Posted by Peter at 08:36 PM | Comments (0)
April 14, 2007
The dawning of NetLag
Bill Hobbs explains in raw numbers why it is stupid to try to sue a blogger:
Had JL Kirk Associates ignored Coble's blog post (or, better yet, responded positively to her criticisms), Coble's initial critical post would have been read by, statistically speaking, virtually nobody. By threatening to sue her, JL Kirk Associates assured that the post would be read by thousands, and pushed the story to the "top of the charts" on Google, where it will live on for years.
Via Glenn, check out the chart on the linked page it really says it all.
Posted by Peter at 04:12 PM | Comments (0)
April 13, 2007
A crash is a feature in Microsoft land.
There are some things that are just so silly that you can't believe that someone actually said them, money quote:
When asked to clarify that statement, she acknowledged Microsoft won't classify the flaws as security problems. Rather, the behavior of Word 2007 is a feature, not a bug. "In fact, the behavior observed in Microsoft Word 2007 in this instance is a by-design behavior that improves security and stability by exiting Microsoft Word when it has run out of options to try and reliably display a malformed Word document," the spokeswoman said.She went on to suggest that it is no big deal if Word 2007 did crash under those circumstances, a scenario that could lead to the loss of any unsaved data. "The sample code in [Aharoni's] postings cause Microsoft Word to crash, and users can restart the application to resume normal operations."
I'm been thinking of buying 2007 as a support aid tool, but this is a real disincentive. The screen shorts of the bug, oh sorry I mean FEATURE are here.
This is an I'm a MAC commercial just waiting to happen.
Posted by Peter at 09:12 AM | Comments (0)
April 12, 2007
Hey Juan e-mail me!
We interrupt our blog for some inside Baseball.
Juan you sent me a link last night by IM for a story for the blog, but I was flat out with customers and neglected to save it before a crash. If you can e-mail me the link I'll get that story up.
And now back to our regularly scheduled blogging.
Posted by Peter at 09:31 AM | Comments (2)
More than meets the IPOD
According to the Captain there may be more than meets the eye to the Michigan IPODS for students talk:
Two state lawmakers backing a controversial plan to buy iPods for every schoolchild in Michigan were among a group of politicians who made a trip to California that was paid for at least in part by Apple, the maker of iPods.
Captain Ed puts the excuses into focus:
Gillard and Dillon apparently aren't concerned with those questions. They're more concerned with the well-being of Apple than with Michigan students or the state economy. They defended their trips by claiming that Republicans have taken similar trips at Apple's expense -- but the GOP retorted that Republicans weren't dumb enough to propose this kind of pork as a quid pro quo.
My IPODless sons will be waiting for their transfer to Lansing.
Posted by Peter at 09:26 AM | Comments (0)
April 11, 2007
Oh and one thing about comments
One thing I keep meaning to mention but never seem to get around to...
As you might be aware you don't have to be registered to post comments on this blog but all comments are subject to approval before they go up. The approval process is rather loose as long as it isn't spam, evil or total nonsense it makes it up.
There is a time lag based on how fast I see it. Since I do the approvals in between taking care of customers the speed at which your comment gets approved is directly related on how often I check it or have time to check it.
Thanks to your support (and we've seen a LOT of that lately) I haven't had a chance during the day to post as much as I've liked. We've been so busy I haven't even gotten on anyone else's case about posting like I usually do since the customer comes before the blog.
Lately its been checking just before my shift start and just as my shift ends, so if you see a lag on the approval of your comment, its not the system, its me and all those customers kind enough to give us their business.
Thanks again for all the business, we'll do our best to continue to be worthy of it.
Posted by Peter at 07:32 PM | Comments (0)
He'd get the votes of a ton of our customers.
If this regulator decides to run for public office he would get a ton of votes from our customer for his opinion on spyware makers and distributors:
Steep fines are nice, but one of the best weapons against spyware purveyors is locking them up, a federal regulator told senators on Tuesday.At a morning Senate Commerce Committee hearing here, Federal Trade Commissioner William Kovacic said most wrongdoers in the spyware arena "can only be described as vicious organized criminals."
"Many of most serious wrongdoers we observed in this area, I believe, are only going to be deterred if their freedom is withdrawn,"
If I was a presidential candidate I'd jump in front of this parade in a heartbeat. (Via Glenn and Slashdot)
Posted by Peter at 05:02 PM | Comments (1)
April 10, 2007
A passing thought
Posted by Peter at 11:54 PM | Comments (0)
April 09, 2007
Three months with Office 2007
Well I just read Peter's post about using Vista, and I have been thinking in my head about how to bash....err I mean review Office 2007.
Prior to Office 2007, the layout and functionality of Microsoft's Office suites have worked just about the same. Sure a few new bells and whistles got thrown in here and there, but since at least version 4.3 circa 1994 those good 'ol menus were all in the same place.
But now, Microsoft has implemented a "New Look and Feel" and the "Results-oriented user interface makes it easier for you to find and use product features" - how can Microsoft honestly say this is easier to use after 15 years of using Office the exact same way, every day, every year and every version it all was the same. I relate the change in the UI of Office 2007..
to that of Ford changing the layout of the inside of your car. We have only been driving since the turn of the 20th century but let’s move the ignition, radio, gas pedal and just about everything else you use every time you get in the car.
I suspect Microsoft's book division saw a slip in profits from training manuals so they had to go find a way to confuse us all!
Posted by Jonathan at 10:35 PM | Comments (0)
Apple sells 100 Millionth iPod
Apple hits a milestone today with 100 million iPods sold since the launched 5 1/2 years ago.
Apple announced via a press release today that it has sold its 100 millionth iPod. The first iPod was sold five and a half years ago, in November 2001, and since then Apple has introduced more than 10 new iPod models, including five generations of iPod, two generations of iPod mini, two generations of iPod nano and two generations of iPod shuffle.
“At this historic milestone, we want to thank music lovers everywhere for making iPod such an incredible success,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “iPod has helped millions of people around the world rekindle their passion for music, and we’re thrilled to be a part of that.”
The iPod has also sparked an unprecedented ecosystem of over 4,000 accessories made specifically for the iPod that range from fashionable cases to speaker systems, and more than 70 percent of 2007-model US automobiles currently offer iPod connectivity.
Thanks to Macrumors for this info
Posted by Chrisk at 09:15 AM | Comments (0)
Vista after three months
Well I've had three months to play with Vista now and here are the issues I've noticed on the Dual Core Dell Laptop:
1. Since the install my system has gone from Incredibly fast to pretty quick. It's still the fastest machine in the house but doesn't blow my socks off anymore.
2. I get a DLL error at boot time. It doesn't seem to affect anything and I've just closed it out regularly. Haven't found a download that makes the difference yet.
3. A key application from work forces my display from the fancy Vista stuff (which I really don't care about) to windows normal
4. Whenever I disconnect my power supply and run on battery I seem to lose my wireless connection after a short period of time
5. I'll double check the Dell site for vista updates for the system but I just haven't had time as we've been flat out.
Bottom line, if I didn't want the update for my job I would have held off, buy Vista new
Posted by Peter at 04:39 AM | Comments (0)
April 08, 2007
Could this trend jobs back here?
Looks like India is not churning out techs fast enough to meet their own demand:
From the outside, this nation of 1.03 billion, with its immense English-speaking population, may appear to have a bottomless supply of cheap workers with enough education to claim more outsourced Western jobs.But things look far different in India, where technology companies are spending hundreds of millions of dollars in a frantic attempt to ensure their profit-making machine keeps producing.
"This is really the Achilles heel of the industry," said James Friedman, an analyst with Susquehanna Financial Group, an investment firm based in Bala Cynwyd, Pa., who has studied the issue.
"When we first started covering the industry, in 2000, there were maybe 50,000 jobs and 500,000 applicants," he said. Now there are perhaps 180,000 annual openings, but only between 100,000 and 200,000 qualified candidates.
Perhaps India will end up outsourcing to here.
Via Glenn who seems to never sleep.
Posted by Peter at 09:47 AM | Comments (0)
April 07, 2007
Eat your veggis and develop word and you too can go to space!
The one of the inventors of Microsoft Word is off to space:
A Russian rocket carrying the American billionaire who helped develop Microsoft Word roared into the night skies over Kazakhstan Saturday, sending Charles Simonyi and two cosmonauts soaring into orbit on a two-day journey to the international space station.
He will also be blogging from there:
In a posting on the blog he intends to maintain while in orbit, Simonyi said he spent his final day getting a haircut and a therapeutic massage and watched a traditional showing of a classic Soviet-era war film.
You think if he is bright enough to develop word and become a billionaire he could prevent stuff like this:
Posted by Peter at 05:41 PM | Comments (0)
April 06, 2007
This is why you keep the OLD IPOD
Via Glenn GizModo has this story about the best use of an IPOD:
Kevin Garrad of the 3rd Infantry Division is an iPod user for life—which incidentally got extended thanks to Apple's little music player. He was on patrol in Iraq when he met an armed insurgent carrying an AK-47. Both opened fire, and the bullet heading toward Kevin hit his chest right where his iPod was, which was enough to slow down the bullet to not pierce entirely through the body armor.
This wouldn't work with the new shuffle but it would work with the Zune for sure.
Posted by Peter at 08:38 AM | Comments (0)
April 05, 2007
Happy Belated Birthday to us and one Angry man
How Busy has it been around here? So Busy that we didn't even have time to make notes of the Blog's 2nd Birthday on March 24th.
Our First actual post was on the 25th and like yesterday's post and many others we have put up, it concerned the dangers of P2P software:
Just remember when you see the internet the internet sees you. If you are putting key files on your computer make sure they are NOT in a shared folder. You never know who might be watching.
This came to mind last night when a returning customer came in complaining about some phishing issues and some popup issues. I noticed. Since we had worked on the system about a month ago I was surprised to see Limewire on the desktop. I checked the notes of his PC Restoration and sure enough, the notes showed that Mike had asked for permission to remove Limewire and was denied that permission.
I informed the customer that we would be happy to re-clean the system, uninstall LimeWire and install IE7 to get a phishing filter in. When he was informed that he would have to PAY for that he was beside himself, why was that system getting infected after we had already worked on it? I informed him that since he choose to keep Limewire on his system we certainly couldn't be responsible for any stuff that came in via P2P and its misuse and reminded him he denied us permission to remove it at the time. He disconnected in a huff saying what a poor service we are. He apparently never read this post.
There is nothing more basic than the right to take a risk. If the customer decides to take a risk with his own machine, well it's his machine and his risk to take.And if the machine tanks we'll be here.
I was very surprised at how annoyed and insulted I was over this. I'm rather protective of the company since I've been here since opening day, but what really got me was there is no subject that I have written more about than losing the P2P. My first blog post (not counting the "hi here is our blog" post ) was on the subject and the post I had put up that morning was on the same subject. We have warned and warned and warned about this. It's not a secret. He keeps the stuff and complains when the system has issues? If you break your leg skiing and a doctor sets it, is it his fault if you ski again and break it?
The Best analogy I can think of is this: You own a club, some guy comes in with his posse and trashes it, you hire security, they escort the guy and his mates out and station a bouncer at the door. When that guy shows up at the door and you order the bouncer; who stops him; to let him through don't complain that the security stinks.
Your system is your system and you do what you want with it, but I'll be grangeled if I'm going to take an insult to myself, our company and our co-workers when they don't deserve it without answering it!.....
Yes I do feel much better now that I've said it.
And Yes Grangeled is a totally made up word, I was actually going to use a different made up word but when I googled it it showed up as worse than the word I was trying to replace in the first place.
Posted by Peter at 09:25 AM | Comments (0)
What a difference a day makes
Yesterday there wasn't a flake of snow on the ground. This is my street this morning 8:45 am:
Posted by Peter at 09:19 AM | Comments (0)
April 04, 2007
P2Ps and the Golden Bird
When I was a kid my favorite fairy tale was the Tale of the Golden Bird. I always remembered this part of the story in particular:
this evening you will come to a village in which stand two inns opposite to one another. One of them is lighted up brightly, and all goes on merrily within, but do not go into it; go rather into the other, even though it seems a bad one." ...So he pursued his way, and by evening came to the village where the two inns were; in one they were singing and dancing; the other had a poor, miserable look. "I should be a fool, indeed," he thought, "if I were to go into the shabby tavern, and pass by the good one." So he went into the cheerful one, lived there in riot and revel,
In the version I read Riot and revel was replaced with among thieves. This came to mind because of the number of infected systems I've seen in the past few days with LimeWire and other P2P programs on them.
The makers of such software; LimeWire in particular; have been adamant that they no longer bundle spyware with their program (while many others do) but it isn't the bundled spyware that is the most dangerous thing. Often people are looking for cheep or free versions of popular software, or smaller size downloads for albums etc. Many that are found are actually spyware and/or virus or Trojans in disguise. Since LimeWire doesn't actually host the files they aren't responsible but people figuring on getting something for nothing almost always get burned. Since some p2p's allow other people to push your system files that is another vulnerability (and we aren't even talking about the legalities involved or the slowdowns).
The choice is still yours, you can take the easy way to get stuff downloaded or listen to our advice. If you want to give us your hard earned money to spend hours fixing and cleaning your system for a few songs; we'll take it!
Posted by Peter at 07:47 AM | Comments (2)
April 03, 2007
DRA DOA?
Looks like Digital Rights Management is taking a hit:
EMI Group, the British music giant, broke ranks with the music industry’s biggest corporations yesterday by announcing a deal to sell songs online through Apple’s music service without copy protection.The move by EMI, which ranks last among the four music companies in sales of new music in the United States, represents a significant change of course at a time when the music industry is straining to bolster digital sales as the business of selling the two-decade-old compact disc format continues to erode.
Once the floodgates open they will be hard to close.
Posted by Peter at 10:05 AM | Comments (0)
April 02, 2007
Passover, Holy Week and Opening Day
Today begins the 8 day feast of Passover which will run through the 10th.
As always we wish our Jewish Customers a happy and holy Passover.
Also this is the start of Holy Week which began yesterday with Palm Sunday culminating in Good Friday, the end of Lent and Easter Sunday.
As always we wish our Christian Customers a happy and holy Easter and Holy Week.
Here in New England a more secular holiday takes place as the Boston Red Sox Open their 107th season.
However we aren't celebrating:
In his first start since the Royals gave him a club-record five-year, $55 million contract, Meche went 7 1-3 solid innings and led his new team to a 7-1 victory over the Boston Red Sox and an ineffective Curt Schilling.
Oh well, we have 161 more chances to do better.
Posted by Peter at 09:37 PM | Comments (1)
April 01, 2007
That's one way of keeping it on the system
Very very busy today but just time for an interesting note:
Today I was uninstalling a trial version of Microsoft Office from My Vista PC.
During the process it came up Vista came up with a warning message that an unknown program was trying to run, so I shut it and the uninstall stopped.
That's one way to keep the stuff installed.
Posted by Peter at 06:34 PM | Comments (0)