We support Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 & 1.1, all versions of Access, SQL 2000, SQL 7.0, SQL 2005 Express, SOAP, FrontPage 2002, 2003, Visual Studio 2005, Index Server, XML, UDDI, & Mobile device support. We also offer great third party tools like SmarterMail, Merak Mail, SmarterStats, PHP, Perl, MySql, DeepMetrix Livestats XSP 8.0.   We support Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 & 1.1, all versions of Access, SQL 2000, SQL 7.0, SQL 2005 Express, SOAP, FrontPage 2002, 2003, Visual Studio 2005, Index Server, XML, UDDI, & Mobile device support. We also offer great third party tools like SmarterMail, Merak Mail, SmarterStats, PHP, Perl, MySql, DeepMetrix Livestats XSP 8.0.
 Friday, November 23, 2007

The notorious Russian Business Network has suddenly picked up from its St. Petersburg digs and diversified, spreading its unwholesome activity to new chunks of IP addresses, with RBN-like activity almost immediately appearing on newly registered blocks of Chinese and Taiwanese IP addresses, according to security company Trend Micro.

The Internet presence for the RBN—a Russian ISP that's infamous for hosting shady and criminal businesses—blinked off at about 7 p.m. PST on Nov. 6, security researchers at Trend Micro reported the following day. The RBN's IP addresses can no longer be reached, since the routing for them no longer exists as of Nov. 8. In a posting, Trend Micro's Feike Hacquebord conjectured that the RBN's upstream providers may have yanked Internet connectivity services temporarily or even permanently.

Trend Micro has noticed RBN-like activity on blocks of IP addresses that were registered in China and other locations shortly before the RBN closed down the routes to its St. Petersburg addresses.

Full Article

11/23/2007 3:49:56 PM (Pacific Standard Time, UTC-08:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

Microsoft's emphasis on improvements to security features in Windows Vista may have undermined business adoption of the OS, as many business and enterprise customers are still holding off on upgrading to the OS nearly a year after its release to them.

Microsoft spent a good deal of time and money to ensure Vista's security after Windows XP and applications running on it proved susceptible to devastating worms like Blaster, Slammer and MyDoom. Though Microsoft released Windows XP Service Pack 2 to remedy some vulnerabilities, the company decided that security would be a top priority for the next major Windows release, said George Stathakopoulos, general manager of Microsoft's Response and Product Centers.

Microsoft made a crucial mistake in pushing and marketing something that many feel should be an inherent part of an operating system. Seems to be telling customers a feature of the OS was not right in a previous version and promoting that it's been improved in the new one. Full article

11/23/2007 3:35:57 PM (Pacific Standard Time, UTC-08:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

Breach Security, Inc., a leader in web application firewalls, announced today that the Breach Security WebDefend(TM) web application firewall has earned certification by ICSA Labs, an independent division of Verizon. WebDefend is one of the first web application firewall products to achieve this distinction.

On the open source end of the scale we have a project named ModSecurity. According to the Mod Security website (http://www.modsecurity.org), ModSecurity is an open source intrusion detection and prevention engine for web applications. Operating as an Apache Web server module, the purpose of ModSecurity is to increase web application security, protecting web applications from known and unknown attacks.

The current version of ModSecurity is 1.7.6 with the 1.8 release slated for April 2004. You can grab the latest copy from http://www.modsecurity.org/download/index.htmlIvan Ristic: is also involved with the Open Web Application Security Project and the Web Application Security Consortium. These are two organizations with similar goals - to increase awareness of web application security issues - but different ideas how to get there.

11/23/2007 3:23:58 PM (Pacific Standard Time, UTC-08:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

Since antivirus software must open and inspect data in hundreds, if not thousands, of file formats. One bug in the software that does this can lead to a serious security breach.The flaws found affect every major antivirus vendor, and many of them could allow attackers to run unauthorized code on a victim's system.

People think that putting one AV engine after another is somehow defense in depth. They think that if one engine doesn't catch the worm, the other will catch it! Actually you haven't decreased your attack surface; you've increased it because every AV engine has bugs.

Between 2002 and 2005, nearly half of the vulnerabilities that were discovered in antivirus software were remotely exploitable, meaning that attackers could launch their attacks from anywhere on the Internet. Today that percentage maybe closer to 80 percent.

Full Article

11/23/2007 9:16:16 AM (Pacific Standard Time, UTC-08:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Once in awhile someone will disconnect from RDT and max out the number of connections. What do you do about this reboot the machine has been the rapid answer. Here is a little trick I picked up.

cmd

mstsc.exe /v:xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx /console

Just put in the IP address of the machine you are trying to connect represented by xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx. You will then mount the machine as the console connection and be able to release or reset other connections.

11/20/2007 5:25:32 PM (Pacific Standard Time, UTC-08:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Sunday, November 18, 2007

A distributor of online video content has filed a complaint with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission, asking the agency to stop broadband providers from blocking or slowing P-to-P traffic.

The petition filed by Vuze, which uses the BitTorrent P-to-P (peer-to-peer) protocol to distribute Web content, asks the FCC to set rules for network management by ISPs (Internet service providers). Vuze's filing late Wednesday follows reports last month that cable broadband provider Comcast slows some P-to-P traffic, including BitTorrent.

Earlier this week, a Comcast customer in California filed a lawsuit against the company, saying the provider has caused several Web-based programs to suffer performance problems. In late October, Public Knowledge and other members of the Open Internet Coalition filed a complaint about the alleged Comcast blocking with the FCC.

Vuze, based in Palo Alto, California, distributes video in partnership with movie studios and television networks including the BBC, Showtime and PBS. It also distributes PC games, music videos, and audio files. Company officials say the Vuze client has been installed by customers more than 12 million times since the company, formerly called Azureus, rebranded itself in January.

11/18/2007 8:48:09 AM (Pacific Standard Time, UTC-08:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Saturday, November 17, 2007

Windows NT/2000 does not come with a command-line 'kill' utility. You can get one in the Windows NT or Win2K Resource Kit, but the kit's utility can only terminate processes on the local computer. PsKill is a kill utility that not only does what the Resource Kit's version does, but can also kill processes on remote systems. You don't even have to install a client on the target computer to use PsKill to terminate a remote process.

Running PsKill with a process ID directs it to kill the process of that ID on the local computer. If you specify a process name PsKill will kill all processes that have that name.

usage: pskill [- ] [-t] [\\computer [-u username] [-p password]] <process name | process id>

Download here

11/17/2007 6:26:32 AM (Pacific Standard Time, UTC-08:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Friday, November 09, 2007

SYMPTOMS
In Microsoft Windows Server 2003 and in Microsoft Windows XP, a program that uses the QueryPerformanceCounter function to query system time may perform poorly. For example, if you run the ping command at the command prompt, you may receive low or incorrect latency values.

Note This problem occurs on computers that are running an x64-based version of Windows or an x86-based (32-bit) version of Windows.

RESOLUTION
To resolve this problem, update the BIOS on the computer. Or, modify the Boot.ini file to use the /usepmtimer switch. To do this, follow these steps: 1. Log on to the computer by using an account that has administrative credentials.
2. Click Start, click Run, type notepad c:\boot.ini, and then click OK. 
3. In the Boot.ini file, a line that starts with "default" is located in the "[boot loader]" section. This line specifies the location of the default operating system. The line may appear as follows:
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS
In the "[operating systems]" section, locate the line for the operating system that corresponds to the "default" line. For example, if the computer is running Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Enterprise x64 Edition, the line should resemble the following:
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Windows Server 2003 Enterprise x64 Edition" /fastdetect /NoExecute=OptIn
4. At the end of the line, add a space, and then type /usepmtimer. The line should now resemble the following.
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Windows Server 2003 Enterprise x64 Edition" /fastdetect /NoExecute=OptIn /usepmtimer
5. Save the file, and then exit Notepad.
6. Restart the computer.


The following is a sample Boot.ini file for a system that contains the /usepmtimer switch.
[boot loader]
timeout=0
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Windows Server 2003 Enterprise x64 Edition" /fastdetect /NoExecute=OptIn /usepmtimer

MS KB articles

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/833721    http://support.microsoft.com/kb/895980/

11/9/2007 5:23:43 AM (Pacific Standard Time, UTC-08:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Phoenix Technologies Ltd., the world’s leading BIOS provider, has unveiled a new head turning product called HyperSpace.  No, it is not a new warp drive to allow Han Solo to break his record setting spice run from Kessel to Corellia. It is a virtualization product that claims to provide a faster, more secure, and battery efficient alternative to Microsoft Windows. 

HyperSpace is a layer of BIOS embedded software that makes it possible to instantly run applications independently of Windows.  These “instant-on” applications will be truncated versions of open-source programs and that are available before, during, and after Windows boot up and shut down.

Phoenix is targeting the portable PC market and seeks to capitalize on what critics say are the major faults of Windows: its size, speed, inefficiency, and poor security.  HyperSpace allows users to bypass the boot up process and instantly access their favorite applications, such as internet browsers, media players, word processors, and the like. It also promises to conserve battery life since Vista is notoriously power intensive. 

HyperSpace will add value to PC vendors by allowing them to remotely trouble shoot and restore customers’ computers.  It also promises to deliver a layer of embedded security that is stronger than the current standards. 

The product is based on a form of virtualization, called a hypervisor, that allows a machine to simultaneously run multiple operating systems.   Phoenix calls this HyperCore, and it is essentially a paired down hypervisor that uses a Zoned Virtual Machine Monitor (ZVMM) to run their core applications along side Windows.  Since HyperSpace is written into the BIOS firmware, its code is essentially secret and more secure argues Woody Hobbs, Phoenix CEO, in an interview with ComputerWorld

In the same conversation, Hobbs said Phoenix Technologies is working with unnamed PC vendors to make HyperSpace enabled computers available by the second quarter of 2008.  Phoenix has partnered with both Intel and AMD to take advantage of their processors’ built-in virtualization capabilities.  HyperSpace will be compatible with Intel’s Core 2 Duo, vPro, and Centrino processors.

11/7/2007 8:39:00 AM (Pacific Standard Time, UTC-08:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Comcast Corp. acknowledged "delaying" some subscriber Internet traffic, but said any roadblocks it puts up are temporary and intended to improve surfing for other users.

The statement was a response to an Associated Press report last week that detailed how the nation's largest cable company was interfering with file sharing by some of its Internet subscribers. The AP also found that Comcast's computers masqueraded as those of its users to interrupt file-sharing connections.

Internet watchdog groups denounced Comcast's actions, calling it an example of the kind of abuse that could be curbed with so-called "Net Neutrality" legislation. It would require Internet providers to treat all traffic equally — as has largely been the case historically.

Comcast has repeatedly denied blocking any Internet application, including "peer-to-peer" file-sharing programs like BitTorrent, which the AP used in its nationwide tests.

On Tuesday, Mitch Bowling, senior vice president of Comcast Online Services, added a nuance to that statement, saying that while Comcast may block initial connection attempts between two computers, it eventually lets the traffic through if the computers keep trying.

10/24/2007 9:05:46 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Thursday, October 18, 2007

We've always been a fan of alternative operating systems. Though honestly most have simply been too clunky or difficult for the novice user. So we decided to give PC-BSD a shot and came away very pleasantly surprised.

Here are some highlights from the PC-BSD site discussing PC-BSD and its requirements. For a comprehensive look at what's in this release, see the changelog and the release notes on the PC-BSD site.

Highlights of this release:

  • Moving the FreeBSD base version to 6-STABLE
  • Xorg 7.2
  • KDE 3.5.7
  • Compiz-Fusion 0.5.2
  • Support for Flash7 in native BSD browsers. (Konq, Opera, Firefox)
  • Official NVIDIA drivers to simplify activating Hardware acceleration.

Minimum system requirements:

  • Pentium II or higher
  • 256MB Ram
  • 4GB of free Hard Drive space (Either partition, or entire disk)
  • Network card
  • Sound card

Now we know that some of you are probably very skeptical about the idea of using BSD as your desktop operating system. Maybe you've never heard of it. Maybe you have heard of it but have heard that it's not very user-friendly or that the software is hard to install or manage. Put aside whatever preconceptions you have about PC-BSD because you're in for a real treat—if you're in the market for a new operating system.

10/18/2007 6:50:32 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

ESET, the leader in proactive threat protection, has been named to Deloitte’s prestigious Technology Fast 50 Program for San Diego, a ranking of the 50 fastest growing technology, media, telecommunications and life sciences companies in the area by Deloitte & Touche USA LLP, one of the nation’s leading professional services organizations. Rankings are based on the percentage revenue growth over five years from 2002 to 2006.
   
   “We are proud to be included in Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50 for the fifth consecutive year,” said Anton Zajac, CEO of ESET. “Recent high-profile rankings have continued to showcase ESET's rapid growth and underscore the dedication of our employees and partners, who continue to produce the types of premium products that customers expect.”
   
   ESET’s increase in revenues of 3,900 percent from 2002 to 2006 resulted in a number two ranking in the Technology Fast 50 for San Diego. The average increase in revenues among companies who made the Technology Fast 50 for this region was 179.3 percent. “To rank in Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50, companies must have phenomenal revenue growth over five years. ESET has proven to be one of the fast-growth success stories in San Diego, and we applaud their dedication to making their vision a reality,” said Theresa Drew, managing partner, San Diego Practice, Deloitte & Touche LLP.

10/18/2007 6:29:56 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Monday, October 15, 2007

Place the following code into the header of any php document and it will redirect the page access to the correct site name. while preserving the script name and the query arguments.


// If the server name is not www.sitename.com we can do the redirect to www.sitename.com. // The only time we can is if the method is a GET // (no way to pass along the POST arguments) and its on port 80 (don't want to redirect the SSL). if ( strcmp( strtolower( $_SERVER['HTTP_HOST'] ) , "www.sitename.com" ) != 0 && strcmp( strtolower( $_SERVER['REQUEST_METHOD'] ) , "get" ) == 0 && $_SERVER['SERVER_PORT'] == 80 ) { header("Location: http://www.sitename.com" . $_SERVER['REQUEST_URI'] ); header("HTTP/1.0 301 Moved Permanently"); exit ; }
Dev
10/15/2007 7:10:00 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

Place the following code into the header of any asp document and it will redirect the page access to the correct site name while preserving the script name and the query arguments.

<%
  ' If the server name is not www.sitename.com we can do the redirect to www.sitename.com. 
  ' The only time we can is if the method is a GET
  ' (no way to pass along the POST arguments) and its on port 80 (don't want to redirect the SSL).
if ( strcomp( lcase( Request.ServerVariables("SERVER_NAME") ) , "www.sitename.com", 1 ) <> 0 _
    AND Request.ServerVariables("SERVER_PORT") = 80 _
    AND strcomp( lcase( Request.ServerVariables("REQUEST_METHOD") ) , "get" , 1 ) = 0 _
) then
    URL = "http://www.sitename.com" & Request.ServerVariables("SCRIPT_NAME")
    if len ( request.servervariables("QUERY_STRING" ) ) > 0 then
        URL = URL + "?" + request.servervariables("QUERY_STRING" )
    end if
    Response.Status="301 Moved Permanently"
    Response.AddHeader "Location", URL
    Response.End
end if
%>
Dev
10/15/2007 7:07:41 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

IT'S ABOUT TIME!!!

Appeal court quashes earlier e360 compensation ruling.

Anti-spam operation Spamhaus, previously ordered to pay $11 million to mass-mailing firm e360 Insight after refusing to contest a case accusing it of falsely labelling those behind e360 as spammers, has had the fine thrown out in an appeal court.

The case was first brought last autumn, and after initially challenging the charges Spamhaus withdrew from the case, as the US court in which it was brought had no jurisdiction over the organisation's UK-based operation. e360 was thus granted a default ruling in its favour, with the $11.7 million fine called for based on its own uncontested evaluation of the damage caused by Spamhaus filtering out its mails. The spam fighting organisation was also ordered to apologise publicly and to remove e360 from its 'ROKSO' list of known spammers in perpetuity - another ruling whose legality has been questioned by the appeal court.

The appeal court ruling still grants 360 the case, due to Spamhaus' refusal to contest it, but has passed the settlement award back to the lower court to be analysed more closely. Spamhaus continues to include e360 on its list of spammers, and has suggested e360 brings the case to a UK court, where its activities would fall under stricter anti-spam laws. Attempts by e360 to have Spamhaus's domain registration revoked have been ignored by US courts.

A Wired.com blogger looks into the case in more detail here, and carries a full copy of the latest ruling (in PDF format) here.

10/15/2007 6:45:11 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

Microsoft released six updates on Tuesday for at least nine security flaws, fixing critical issues in Word, Internet Explorer and the e-mail programs that the company ships with its Windows operating systems.

The most widespread vulnerability appears to be in the way Internet Explorer handles a script error, allowing an attacker to access freed memory. The flaw has been rated critical on for both IE 6 and IE 7 running on Windows XP and Vista. Because Internet Explorer runs in an enhanced security configuration on Windows Server 2003, that platform is not impacted as severely. The three other vulnerabilities fixed by the Cumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer had a maximum severity of Moderate.

Another vulnerability in the way Microsoft's e-mail programs handled news groups via NNTP (Network News Transfer Protocol) was rated Critical for Outlook Express and Important for Windows Vista's Mail application. The software giant rated a vulnerability in Microsoft Word only Critical for Office 2000 and Important for later versions of the productivity suite. A security hole in the Kodak Image Viewer also received a Critical rating by Microsoft.

Windows users should patch their systems as soon as possible. Online attacks have increasingly used flaws in Internet Explorer to redirect unwary visitors, using IFrames, from legitimate sites to malicious sites that compromise the victims computers. The MPack infection tool kit is one of the programs commonly used to automate the process. Espionage attacks emanating from servers in China, among other nations, have regularly used Office flaws to infect the victim's computer.

10/15/2007 6:37:48 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

Despite the $4.5 billion price to bid in the auction of 700-MHz spectrum, the auction represents the best opportunity for smaller businesses to participate in broadband expansion, FCC Chair Kevin Martin told a House committee Wednesday.

On Thursday, the FCC announced it would delay the auction date by eight days. It is now set for January 24. In addition, there will be a $10 billion limit on the auction bidding.

The auction will foster deployment of rural broadband, Martin said, because the rules will require licensees to serve at least 70 percent of their geographic area. The Commission has tried to ensure these areas have the same access to broadband enjoyed elsewhere in the country. The open-access provisions are a critical factor in making the spectrum accessible to small businesses.

Learn More

10/15/2007 5:44:54 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Monday, October 08, 2007

The launch of Microsoft Surface marks the beginning of a new technology category and a user-interface revolution. Surface, Microsoft’s first surface computer, provides effortless interaction with digital content through natural hand gestures, touch and physical objects. Surface computing breaks down traditional barriers between people and technology, changing the way people interact with all kinds of everyday information — from photos to maps to menus.

We will offer on this site regularly updated versions of the media kit, which includes press releases, background material and images. Please visit frequently to receive the latest news and information about Microsoft Surface.

10/8/2007 9:11:35 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
Internet Explorer 7 has been available for over a year now, and yet its marketshare continues to struggle, relative to the dominance IE 6 enjoyed. Microsoft's own IE Blog paints a rosier picture, but more importantly, it informs us about some new changes to MS's latest browser.

For starters, IE 7 will no longer require a Windows Genuine Advantage validation check for download or install. You can just download away from the Microsoft's Internet Explorer page or use Automatic Updates.

The Windows XP version of IE7 has been tweaked a bit, too. The menu bar defaults to being visible instead of hidden, the "first run" and online tours have been updated, and the MSI installer has streamlined installation for network admins and enterprise customers.

These aren't big changes, to be sure. The biggest deal is clearly the removal of the WGA check. It certainly begs the question: Where is the next Internet Explorer? When is it coming, and what features should we expect? Microsoft has been especially quiet on the subject.

10/8/2007 8:00:17 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

France is hoping to shut down spammers more quickly through a system that makes it easier for users to notify ISPs (Internet service providers) when unsolicited e-mails are coming from their network.

The French government funded the development of an open-source toolbar for Microsoft Corp.'s Outlook and Mozilla Corp.'s Thunderbird e-mail programs that people can use to report suspected spam, said John Graham-Cumming, an Englishman who built the software for the project, called Signal Spam. See article.

While it is a novel idea it as other solutions lacks understanding of two of the root problems. One of the biggest problems with this approach is it assumes that end users have any idea at all what they are doing. We are a web host and commonly see our users forward all the mail from their domain to their ISP email account. When they mark something as spam using an approach like this they typically end up reporting their own email server.

The last issue is with regard to spoofing the source email address. Until someone comes up with a viable solution to truly determine a source to determine if it is valid all these approaches are flawed from the start.

10/8/2007 6:26:49 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Thursday, October 04, 2007

When eBay (EBAY) bought Skype Technologies for $2.6 billion in late 2005, few could fathom why the online auction company saw so much in a money-losing Internet phone service. Two years later, eBay is admitting it made a mistake.

On Oct. 1, eBay confirmed that it overpaid for Skype—by nearly $1 billion—and that the popular Web-calling business has not performed up to the rosy forecasts set back in 2005. In announcing a $1.43 billion charge against profits, eBay also revealed a broad management reshuffle in which Skype co-founders Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis will be leaving their posts.

About a half-billion dollars of the charge is for a payment to Zennström, Friis, and other early Skype investors. Although it might sound like a plump farewell present, that payout is well short of the $1.7 billion those shareholders stood to receive from eBay if Skype had met the targets for users, revenue, and profits set in the 2005 buyout agreement.

Considering Skype's rapid growth since the acquisition, it can't be an encouraging sign that its founders and early investors are cashing out well before the clock has run out on the original performance goals. When eBay bought Skype, it agreed to pay Skype shareholders as much as $1.7 billion extra if Skype met certain user growth and financial targets in 2008 and 2009. In accepting $530 million, those investors agreed to forgo any future payments, suggesting that none were likely. eBay plans to record that payment, plus $900 million more, as an impairment charge recorded in the third quarter.

10/4/2007 11:51:39 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Wednesday, October 03, 2007

The Internet Explorer Developer Toolbar provides several features for exploring and understanding Web pages. These features enable you to:

Explore and modify the document object model (DOM) of a Web page.
Locate and select specific elements on a Web page through a variety of techniques.
Selectively disable Internet Explorer settings.
View HTML object class names, ID's, and details such as link paths, tab index values, and access keys.
Outline tables, table cells, images, or selected tags.
Validate HTML, CSS, WAI, and RSS web feed links.
Display image dimensions, file sizes, path information, and alternate (ALT) text.
Immediately resize the browser window to a new resolution.
Selectively clear the browser cache and saved cookies.
Choose from all objects or those associated with a given domain.
Display a fully featured design ruler to help accurately align and measure objects on your pages.
Find the style rules used to set specific style values on an element.
View the formatted and syntax colored source of HTML and CSS.

The Developer Toolbar can be pinned to the Internet Explorer browser window or floated separately. Get it here!

Dev
10/3/2007 9:47:12 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Thursday, September 27, 2007

There have been many questions about timing issues with AMD dual core. It seems that AMD is certainly working to address many of them with XP and 2003 server with these tools offered at the AMD site. Learn More

9/27/2007 8:49:16 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

SYMPTOMS

After you upgrade a Microsoft Windows Server 2003-based computer to Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2 (SP2), Help and Support is missing when you click Start. Additionally, the Help menu is missing in programs that are running on the Windows Server 2003 SP2-based computer.

Additionally, when you type msinfo32.exe or Helpctr.exe at a command prompt to try to start Help and Support manually, you receive the following error message:
Windows cannot open Help and Support because a system service is not running. To fix this problem, start the service named 'Help and Support'.
However, when you start the Services Microsoft Management Console (MMC) snap-in, the Help and Support service is not listed.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this problem, reinstall the Help and Support service. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Click Start, click Run, type cmd in the Open box, and then click OK.
2. At the command prompt, locate the following folder:
%windir%\PCHealth\HelpCtr\Binaries
3. At the command prompt, type the following commands, and then press ENTER after each command:
HelpSvc.exe /regserver /svchost netsvcs /RAInstall
HSCUpd.exe -i hscmui.cab
HSCUpd.exe -i hscsp_e3.cab

Note
The following commands do not apply to some language versions of Windows Server 2003:
HSCUpd.exe -i hscmui.cab
HSCUpd.exe -i hscsp_e3.cab
The reason is that the Hscmui.cab compressed file is not included in some language versions of Windows Server 2003, such as the Japanese version of Windows Server 2003.
Full Article
9/27/2007 5:11:48 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Tuesday, September 25, 2007

A vulnerability in Ask.com's toolbar for Internet Explorer could allow an attacker to take control of a person's computer, according to security advisories.

The problem concerns a buffer overflow flaw in the toolbar and involves an ActiveX control, according to an advisory posted by security vendor Secunia APS, which rated the problem as "highly critical," its second most severe rating. It affects version 4.0.2 of the toolbar and possibly others.

Proof-of-concept exploit code for the vulnerability has been publicly posted on other disclosure forums, with a person named "Joey Mengele" credited with finding the flaw. Ask.com officials contacted in London were not immediately available to comment.

The Ask.com toolbar sits below the address bar and can perform a variety of category-specific searches, such as weather information, stock quotes or search a person's desktop, as well as Web searching.

As of Tuesday afternoon local time, WabiSabi Labi Ltd., a Swiss company that specializes in selling vulnerability information, was still auctioning the Ask.com toolbar problem for a minimum of $705, although no bids were listed.

WabiSabi Labi's auctioning of security vulnerabilities has caused a stir among security analysts who believe software companies should be discreetly notified of vulnerabilities and allowed to patch the software so as to not put users in danger. The company maintains security researchers should be rewarded for their work.

9/25/2007 2:45:19 PM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

The geographical regions are as follows:

REGION 1 -- USA, Canada
REGION 2 -- Japan, Europe, South Africa, Middle East, Greenland
REGION 3 -- S.Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Parts of South East Asia
REGION 4 -- Australia, New Zealand, Latin America (including Mexico)
REGION 5 -- Eastern Europe, Russia, India, Africa
REGION 6 -- China
REGION 7 -- Reserved for Unspecified Special Use
REGION 8 -- Persevered for Cruise Ships, Airlines, etc...
REGION 0 or REGION ALL -- Discs are uncoded and can be played Worldwide, however, PAL discs must be played in a PAL-compatible unit and NTSC discs must be played in an NTSC-compatible unit.

DVDs encoded for regions other than Region 1 cannot be played on a region 1 DVD player, also, players marketed for other regions cannot play region 1-stamped DVDs

9/25/2007 8:55:29 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Sunday, September 23, 2007

Secure Notepad

Secure Notepad is a Notepad replacement that is (almost) identical to the original, but offers several additional security features. In addition to saving files with the standard .txt extension, you can choose the .etxt format, which allows you to encrypt your file with a password and additional key file. Furthermore, the program includes a handy fade-out feature that automatically fades the content of a text file to plain white if the Notepad window is not active.

Get It Here

9/23/2007 10:13:05 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 

The 8.0.2 update fixes the following two issues on both the Macintosh and Windows platforms.

SQL injections in web applications

The update updates server-side code generated by Dreamweaver to protect databases against SQL Injection.

Active content

The update fixes a problem with the code generated by Dreamweaver when it inserts active content such as a Flash file in a web page. In the latest versions of Internet Explorer, the generated code by Dreamweaver does not allow users to interact with the active content unless they click it. The update fixes the code generated by Dreamweaver so that users don’t have to click the active content. The update also provides a way to repair the code of existing pages with active content.

Learn More

9/23/2007 9:37:48 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Wednesday, September 19, 2007
ActiveServers, Inc. to Distribute SmarterTools Software

SPOKANE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ActiveServers, Inc. is proud to announce their new partnership with SmarterTools Inc to distribute SmarterTools software as an Authorized Reseller and Bundle Provider. This new partnership means that ActiveServers, Inc. will be able to not only offer individual SmarterTools software licenses, but also the SmarterBundle Professional, a bundle of SmarterTools products available only with qualified offers. "We are very excited about this opportunity. Our customers now have the flexibility to choose the software that is just right for them with built-in options to upgrade as their businesses grow," said Robert Handshy, President of ActiveServers, Inc.

About SmarterTools Products

SmarterMail is a full-featured Windows email server with a fully scalable infrastructure, unparalleled stability, and advanced collaboration features. SmarterStats is a detailed Web analytics package that allows you to identify Web trends and analyze statistics so you can run your online business at maximum efficiency. SmarterTicket is a complete Customer Service and Support system designed to track and help resolve incidents. SmarterTools' SmarterBundle Professional, valued at $500, includes a full production version of SmarterMail, SmarterStats, and SmarterTicket.

About ActiveServers

Established in 1997 and incorporated in 2001, ActiveServers (www.activeservers.com) is a privately owned company. The company's backbone providers include Sprint, Level 3, Savvis, and AboveNet. ActiveServers is a multihomed all fiber hosting provider in Spokane Washington and supports all versions of the .Net framework, as well as ASP, PHP, SQL 2000, SQL 2005 and MySql. ActiveServers now offers Dedicated Server clients a huge software savings with the addition of SmarterBundle.

9/19/2007 9:46:23 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  | 
 Tuesday, September 04, 2007

Markus Hahn of Coder's Lagoon offers this bit of freeware. We have put it through its paces and confirm it does a fantasic job. It makes a great free drive wipe tool as well.

One powerful file encryption and security tool for the Windows platform. As the successor of highly successful BFA97, Blowfish Advanced CS offers a bunch of new and improved features which are:

  • Blowfish, Twofish, AES, RC4, TDES, Serpent, CAST
  • Strong key support, handling and cryptography
  • Fast: encrypts megabytes of data per second
  • Data compression using LZSS, deflate and BZIP2
  • Secure wiping of files and clearing of empty disk space
  • Comfortable user interface with built-in file browser
  • Easy working with encrypted files
  • Complete integration into Windows Explorer
  • Automation of daily routines by using job files
  • Dozens of options to finetune the application
  • Small: fits on half of the space of a floppy disk!
  • Trustworthy: the complete source code is available
  • Quick language switch (German and English)
  • Runs on all Win32 versions, from 95 to Vista
  • Personal Edition without any restrictions!

Check out the FAQ page, if you have further questions. You might want to read the change notes to get information about the latest features and fixes. Or just look at a screenshot.

If you want to give it a try, please download the installer:

Blowfish Advanced CS - Installer
(908 kB)

MD5: e1 40 82 3e ec 62 34 0f 1b 5f 3c b4 0e 63 ca 1f

For users who don't need or want an installer, who like to save some download time or who face problems with the regular installer here's the compact ZIP file version. Please follow the steps in README.TXT (or LIESMICH.TXT for German users):

Blowfish Advanced CS - Files Only
(614 kB)

MD5: 65 ed 16 da b0 96 4f 9b d8 6b 62 bd 5a 00 ab d9

The complete source code of Blowfish Advanced CS is available under the Apache 2.0 License. The application itself is written in Delphi and C/C++. Please check out the included BUILDING.TXT file for details about how to built, and LICENSE.TXT for the legal aspects.

Blowfish Advanced CS - Sourcecode
(1013 kB)

MD5: fb fb 6f 7e 5f 33 c8 60 42 e8 57 4f f3 72 22 99

9/4/2007 7:33:46 AM (Pacific Daylight Time, UTC-07:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [0]  |