OK, we’ve actually been around for a little while, but wanted to highlight our site’s shiny new theme (WP Premium).
Keeping with our philosophy of using open-source or free software wherever feasible, we chose the free version of the theme. (more…)
On August 23, 2009, In WordPress, By PreparedPC
On August 18, 2009, In Security and Privacy, By PreparedPC
Adobe Flash animations are used in many of the most popular web sites. The Adobe Flash plug-in can be used to store information in Local Shared Objects, or “Flash cookies,” which are very different from traditional browser cookies. Traditional cookie behavior can be controlled through settings in your browser, or deleted after the fact using a utility such as CCleaner. Flash cookies are browser-independent, meaning multiple browsers on the same computer can use the same Flash cookies. Flash cookies can also store a great deal more information (100 KB compared to the 4 KB browser cookie limit). (more…)
On August 14, 2009, In Utilities, By PreparedPC
If you’re like us, maintaining your laptop/notebook/netbook’s battery is about as high on your priority list as cleaning out leaves from your house’s gutters. You know it needs to be done, but…
It seems that the best utilities do one thing and do it well. BatteryCare is one of those. Basically it aims to maximize your battery’s life by tracking the discharges (i.e. letting the battery charge drop from 100% to 3%), and prompting you to recalibrate after 30 discharges. (more…)
On August 8, 2009, In Security and Privacy, By PreparedPC
This “Microsoft Patch Tuesday” (incidentally, the latest a “Patch Tuesday” can occur because August, 2009 started on a Saturday) includes 9 updates, including 5 critical updates for Windows operating systems.
Most of the critical updates are related to the ATL (ATL or Active Template Library, which allows developers to write ActiveX controls). Windows users will want to be sure to install these updates to address this serious flaw.
On August 4, 2009, In Security and Privacy, Web Browsing, By PreparedPC
The same mean folks who brought us the rogue anti-spyware product “Winweb Security 2008” have developed another bogus “product” called SystemSecurity.
Their latest attempt trick is to you is by simulating a “blue screen of death” using a browser window. They place a DOS-like red alert box over the blue screen, giving you the option to “fix” your computer’s “security issues.”
Don’t fall for it! Check the screenshot from Sunbelt Software’s blog entry below. Clearly, this fake BSOD is displayed in a browser. It could be a little harder to detect if the browser was in kiosk (full-screen) mode, but pressing Ctrl+Alt+Delete should show you whether you’re truly experiencing an operating system crash, or a cleverly-designed scam attempt.
ht: Sunbelt Blog
On August 3, 2009, In Security and Privacy, Web Browsing, By PreparedPC
From Adobe’s recent security advisory, last updated on 31 July 2009:
A critical vulnerability exists in the current versions of Flash Player (v9.0.159.0 and v10.0.22.87) for Windows, Macintosh and Linux operating systems, and the authplay.dll component that ships with Adobe Reader and Acrobat v9.x for Windows, Macintosh and UNIX operating systems. This vulnerability (CVE-2009-1862) could cause a crash and potentially allow an attacker to take control of the affected system. There are reports that this vulnerability is being actively exploited in the wild via limited, targeted attacks against Adobe Reader v9 on Windows.
Adobe is considering this a critical update, considering that an unpatched computer could be taken over.
To Patch
Check the “Solution” section of Adobe’s Security Bulletin for specific download links for updated versions Flash Player, AIR, Acrobat and Reader software.
NOTE 1: If you are using Internet Explorer AND another, plug-in based browser (such as Firefox or Opera), run the “About Flash” check for each browser.
NOTE 2: Internet Explorer users, if you upgrade the Flash Player, by default, you will be prompted to install the Google toolbar, bu you may uncheck this option.
On July 24, 2009, In Utilities, By PreparedPC
MyDefrag version 4.1 is a hard disk defragmenter and optimizer. If it looks familiar, that’s because it was previously called jkDefrag, which we covered last year. Because it uses the same API (application programmer interface) built into Windows that Microsoft’s own Disk Defragmenter uses it is safe to use. Unlike Microsoft’s utility, MyDefrag works much more quickly.
One reason for MyDefrag’s effectiveness is that it moves files to the physical “start” of a hard drive. Accessing files from this area of a hard drive is up to 200% faster than from other areas.
Using MyDefrag
To get the most of out MyDefrag: (more…)
On July 22, 2009, In Security and Privacy, By PreparedPC
There is a lot of “space junk” (parts of old spacecraft, tools, etc.) currently orbiting the earth. Since it could be dangerous if any of these were to fall to earth, NASA handles this issue by actually keeping track of each piece floating out in space.
Similarly, there are a lot of things on the internet that have been “floating around” for years: email messages, Facebook wall posts, etc. Wouldn’t it be nice if there was some way to send or post these things, but have them disappear after a limited time?
University of Washington computer scientists have created a research prototype (read “use at your own risk”) called “Vanish” that is designed to give any data posted on the web a limited lifetime (at this point, 8 to 9 hours) before it becomes inacessible to anyone (including the person who posts the data).
To use Vanish, you’ll need to install both the Vanish system and the Firefox plugin, which requires Firefox 3 or better. Follow the steps here.
Once everything is installed, in Firefox, select the text you’d like to post for a limited time, right-click and choose the “Vanish” context-menu option. The Vanish software will create a PGP-like block of text which you can then send or post. Anyone who has access to this data (for example, an email recipient) who has the Vanish Firefox plug-in installed will be able to read the Vanish-encoded data during the 8- to 9-hour lifetime of the data. After that time, no one will be able to read the data.
Again, though Vanish is a research prototype, it is an interesting concept that data that normally would “live forever” in cyberspace would, in the words of the researchers themselves, “approximate the ephemeral nature of a phone call.” Keep an eye on Vanish. If it becomes a mature application, it could change the way we handle a certain part of our communications.
There are as many utilities for bypassing Windows (and Linux) login passwords as there are legitimate reasons for doing so (you ARE only using your powers for good, right?).
Kon-Boot can help you to bypass a login password. It can be run from a boot CD, floppy, and (thanks to Irongeek), from a USB flash drive.
Need to help a friend (or yourself) to overcome a password-protected Windows or Linux computer? Check out Kon-Boot.
On March 16, 2009, In Toolkit, By PreparedPC
One of the fastest ways to become more efficient with applications you use everyday is to learn keyboard shortcuts. Most people know Ctrl-C (copy text) and Ctrl-V (paste text), but there are dozens of other keyboard combinations that will help you to work faster.
Knowing keyboard shortcuts can get you out of difficult situations, as when the input device (i.e. the mouse) isn’t working. Or if you’re working on someone else’s computer, using keyboard shortcuts can allow you to quickly get things done.
MakeUseOf.com has put together 10 Essential Cheat Sheets to Download, which cover Firefox, Internet Explorer, Gmail, Google, Linus, Mac Os X and Thunderbird.
These cheat sheets can be downloaded after a free registration at MakeUseOf.com.