Track spammers

Knowing where a suspect intruder is located, or where a malicious email originated, is key information to identify security threats to your system and confidential information. These programs cost over $60 to set up but trials are free.

VisualRoute provides city and country location of IP addresses to help you identify hackers before your system is compromised, along with worldwide domain and network contact information for abuse reporting. VisualRoute will help you to determine if a connectivity problem is due to your ISP, the Internet, or the host you are trying to reach

• See actual IP locations
  - identifies the physical city/country location of IP addresses
• Worldwide WHOIS reporting
  - get instant registration from worldwide databases
• eMailTracker
  - traces an email address to its email server

Works with emailTrackerPro:

• Determines the IP address of the system an email originated from
• Determines the country/region of the email source, showing the location on a World map
• Plug-in integration with MS Outlook (full version) provides one-click email tracking
• Identifies use of the common 'misdirection' tactic to disguise the sender

eMailTrackerPro analyzes the header of an email you have received, providing the IP address of the machine that sent you the message, which can then be used to track down the sender.

Caller IP™
Similar to Caller ID on your telephone, CallerIP identifies who is connecting to your computer. This is good to know, because your system is vulnerable to outside intruders, even with a firewall in place. Connections are shown in real time and on a global map with actual city and country locations and registration information for the IP address is shown with company name, address, and contact information. Active port scans monitor your system for backdoors and active HTTP/FTP/SNMP services that could allow harmful Trojans or unauthorized access. Try Caller IP for free here and if you think it's worth $29.95 you'll surely go for a real bargain: For a limited time, you can get it for just $19.95 here at the NNT Store.

Legitimate XP?

You say you're not sure whether that computer your neighbor sold you has a legitimate copy of Windows XP properly activated. Well, if you never did trust that guy, the easiest way to find out is by going to Start|Run and enter "oobe/msoobe /a" (without the quotes and observe the space before /a". [via Neat Net Tricks]

ALLINURL

This command, when searching with Google, is useful if you only know part of the URL. Just enter that part in the search box, preceded with "allinurl:" (without quotes and no spaces.) [via NeatNetTricks]

Mirror backup

These are two programs I've found, about the same price each, that quickly duplicate folders and files in the background so that there are copies of a folder at all times. This is a 'poor man's' way of backing things up but it is 'lighter on resources' than the big backup programs. It does not create a disk image nor a system restore, merely assures that critical data and folders are backed up all the time. Yer friends might like to know that something this simple is available.

Second Copy http://www.centered.com/products.html Once configured, Second Copy monitors the "source" folders for changes or updates and copies new or changed files to the "destination". This process is done unobtrusively in the background. What you want to be copied, to where, and when. 25% discount here: about $22 Here is a review of Second Copy.

Techsoft Pvt. Ltd. MirrorFolder is a real-time mirroring and synchronization software to backup files on local/network/removable drive/disk from local hard disk. I've been using this about a year. I synchronize my quicken files, favorites, roboform data as well as my document files and other regularly updated goodies across two drives. It's not perfect, such as an entire image restore, but it's pretty darn good.

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SmartBackup V2.0.3

SmartBackup is an inexpensive, $17, fast and easy to use backup software for Windows 9x/NT/2000/XP. Select important files for backup and it automatically keeps your backups up to date copying only files which have changed since the last backup. The directory structure is preserved.

Additionally it allows you to synchronize your backup source and destination, which makes it easy to keep your data files and documents on your PC and your laptop synchronized. SmartBackup offers detailed options to specify which files should be copied. You can also specify an FTP Server or an ZIP File as backup destination. You can mark any file for backup from the Explorer context menu so that you select files while you are opening, saving or copying them, without starting SmartBackup. SmartBackup is able to refresh a backup automatically once a day or once a week, either at a given time or on Windows startup.

Poster printing

[via lockergnome] Certain pictures are meant to be printed at sizes bigger than 4x6 or 8x10. Consumer printing hardware doesn’t offer such luxury and few of us can afford the commercial alternatives. To get around this printing oversight, Digital Camera Poster Creator smartly adapts the printing capabilities of affordable hardware, carefully calibrating the paper edge to create perfect tiles based on the size of photo paper you select. Like a puzzle, the tiled images are reassembled at the end of the process to create a masterpiece bigger than the sum of the parts. If a 4x6 photo is worth a thousand words, imagine its value if that dimension was 4ft-by-6ft. [Win9x/2k/XP] [$29.00] [DOWNLOAD]

Password update

Most Internet users choose easy-to-guess passwords such as their pet's name, according to a survey by Visa Europe. More than three-fourths of those polled said they choose passwords relating to friends, family and memorable dates.

The favorites are nicknames (21%), birthdays and anniversaries (15%), pet names (15%), family members' names (14%) and memorable dates such as the Battle of Hastings and England's World Cup victory (7%). Two percent even reported using "password" as their password. "It is not surprising that loved ones and pet names top the most popular list as often people struggle to remember random characters or designated log-in codes and opt to choose their own. Of course, it is important that our passwords are personal and meaningful to us, but also that they are difficult to decipher and not easily guessed," says Visa Europe VP Hugo Bottelier.

When choosing a password, Visa suggests avoiding words that appear in the dictionary, as well as words relating to personal information that could be inferred or guessed. The most preferable type of password would have random letters, numbers and punctuation. And for heaven's sake, don't write it down and leave it by your credit card or PC! (Silicon.com 11 Aug 2004)

Powerpoint resources

PowerPoint Resources

[via McGee] Michael Hyatt's list of resources. "I contend that in less than two hours of surfing, you can radically improve the effectiveness of your PowerPoint presentations."

Wipe hard drive

What's BiteByBite
BiteByBite allows you to delete files quickly, without recovery from your computer, preventing breach of your privacy. Sensitive data is overwritten between 1 and 20 times (according to your selection), to make sure your computer is clean, and evidence free. It will delete binary or text files from all FAT and NTFS disk formats. BiteByBite is extremely fast even when overwriting the file 20 times. Download BiteByBite (1.82 MB)

Hide folders

AKAS HIDE FOLDERS.......... [via Shell Extension City] This program makes any folder completely invisible. Your chosen folders are always hidden, including Safe mode, MS-DOS and even when AKAS Hide Folder is not running. AKAS Hide Folder is the most safe way to hide your private folders. Your hidden folders and files can't be deleted, viewed, modified or run. You may leave your computer unattended without worrying if someone will access your private data. (NOTE -- The free version is v.2.03, listed at the very bottom of the download page).....(free).....GO THERE!

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HIDE FOLDERS.......... Advanced Hide Folders is a powerful file security program. It allows you to hide folders or hide files. Advanced Hide Folders is very useful to keep your personal data away from others. Others will not know where your personal files exist and they will not be able to accidentally view, delete or modify them either.....(free).....GO THERE!

CSS Optimizer

Optimize your CSS Style Sheets -- This tool is used to optimize CSS. Use one of the fields below, and click Go. This tool performs various operations to optimize the style sheet entered.

Automotive Power Supplies

If you need a power supply for your car, check out the all new Automotive Power Supplies from OPUS Solutions. These power supplies include everything you need to power a PC from your car. These power supplies have an integrated Power Stabilizer, DC-DC converter and Power Sequencer. The sequencer will automatically turn your computer on and off when you switch your car on and off. It even has an automatic delay and protects your battery by shutting off when the power goes below a set level. Available in 90 and 150W versions.

Speed up Photoshop

Make your Adobe Photoshop run faster!
Adobe Photoshop SpeedUp significantly decreases the time it takes to load Adobe Photoshop by disabling the plug-ins that you may not need. There are several options such as whether to load the Adobe fonts, load the presets, and set the memory usage. You may restore to the original settings at any time. Adobe Photoshop SpeedUp is freeware, works with Adobe Photoshop versions 3 through 8. Available interface languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese and Japanese.

Free Photoshop Tweak Utility for Adobe Photoshop version 4 through 8
Enable or disable the plug-ins as needed
Do not load Adobe fonts CMap and Base
Do not load Photoshop Presets
Optimize and reset Maximum Memory Usage
Restore to original settings with a click of the Restore button at any time
Click to download

Data Execution Prevention

XP SP2 alert: Cancel all non-AMD system buys
Leading up to the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2, Microsoft has cited an SP2 feature called Data Execution Prevention (DEP) as a key sentry in the fight against viruses and worms responsible for "buffer overruns." Unfortunately, users of AMD-based systems are virtually the only ones who can take advantage of this important technology. Intel-based notebook and desktop systems that support DEP will not start shipping until the end of 2004. My advice: Postpone your planned systems purchases--or go with AMD.
READ FULL STORY

MP3 car radio

Just another digital radio for your car you might say, unless you read more carefully and saw that this radio also has an SD/MMC slot! This means the MMC card full of MP3's you keep loaded in your N-Gage or Treo 600 can easily be popped out of your handheld and put into your car stereo for playback!

(We were only sent the link for the previous model, the DAB53, but we'll update with the newer model once we get the newer product info.)

Blaupunkt DAB54 Digital Radio with MMC/SD slot

[via Gadget Madness]

Tougher security

[via Shell Extension City] SECUREPOINT PERSONAL FIREWALL AND VPN CLIENT .......... Personal Firewall & VPN Client for your PC. Why do you need a Personal Firewall and VPN Client? The job of your Securepoint Personal Firewall & VPN Client is to protect your PC from unwelcome access from the outside and to protect your personal data thereby. Protecting the PC from attacks from the Internet is the most important field of application today. The Securepoint Personal Firewall & VPN Client represents the intersection between your local PC and the Internet. It also supervises all transfer of data. The Personal Firewall automatically hides your PC. That means it makes the PC invisible for possible attackers and catches suspicious connections. Unnoticed passing-on of personal data will become impossible. The integrated Securepoint VPN Client is an easy-to-use remote working software based on the latest VPN technology. The software provides smooth integration with a remote network and may be used with the most popular IPSec-compliant gateway - like Securepoint Firewall & VPN server. Securepoint Personal Firewall & VPN Client software provides strong and transparent authentication and encryption to your network traffic. It supports Preshared Key authentication and X509 certificates.....(free).....GO THERE!

XP2 pre-Installation Tips

Before you install the Windows XP2 upgrade,
please follow these steps:

1. Back up your personal data.

2. Check with your system manufacturer. Specific models of PCs may be more prone to issues with SP2 than others. If possible, check with your system manufacturer to see if that's known to be the case before you install SP2.

Or check the Scot's Newsletter Forums' Windows forum for the latest word on issues and known problems.

3. Either disable or uninstall software firewall and antivirus software. I can't tell you how many times people have come to me with Windows upgrade problems who have not followed this step. If you neglect to do this, it doesn't mean an automatic melt down of your PC, but the incidence of woes is very high if you don't -- higher than many experienced PC users realize.

4. Check your hard drives for disk errors. In XP, that means running chkdsk /f from a command line. You'll need to reboot your machine to carry out the full process.

5. Make a named System Restore point beforehand. Here are some basic instructions on how to work with System Restore.

6. Shut down all unnecessary applications. This comes under the heading "don't tempt fate."

Rename digital pics

SetNameToTime is a program designed to rename digital camera jpg and tiff files. A file renaming program you may think, that is hardly a new concept - so why use this one?

Almost all jpg and tiff files produced by modern digital cameras contain information like the date and time the picture was shot, if a flash was used, the shutter speed, the f-stop and a lot of other information. SetNameToTime can extract this information and use it to rename the file.

McLuhan Redux

[via Future Brief] "When I taught at a university, I worked with the wireless laptop programs that are replacing computer labs on campuses. Once students began carrying laptops everywhere and using them in class, an interesting dependency developed. There were times in class when I asked a question and students would glance helplessly at the machines, as if to say, 'The answer isn't in my carbon-based brain, but I know I got it right here, on silicon.' Amazingly, the late media theorist Marshall McLuhan saw this coming in the 1960s. Many things he predicted about television did not appear until the appearance of the Internet and portable computers: so-called 'ubiquitous computing.' McLuhan believed our senses become extended outside of our bodies." This fascinating essay examines the ways in which computers are becoming extensions of our physical selves. Read more in CNN.com.

http://edition.cnn.com/2004/TECH/08/02/school.internet/index.html

Virus author

So if you know where Sven lives, would you just go over and unplug his computer: Seventy percent of computer virus infections in the first half of 2004 can be traced to a single programmer, and no, it's not Bill Gates. According to anti-virus outift Sophos, it's Sven Jaschan, whose NetSky and Sasser worms accounted for much of the malware activity Sophos monitored in the first six months of this year.

Power line begins

Network Plug-ins

Part of Packard Bell’s new Digital Lounge series is a Net Plug that lets you plug in any ordinary electrical socket and carry 14 Mbps of data around the house. Rumour has it that the company is planning a 200 Mbps version. Price: Around 99.99 Pounds.

WinUpdatesList

Freeware products from NirSoft

WinUpdatesList v1.11
WinUpdatesList displays the list of all Windows updates (Service Packs and Hotfixes) installed on your local computer. For hotfix updates, this utility also displays the list of files updated with these hotfixes. In addition, it allows you to instantly open the Web link in Microsoft Web site that provides more information about the selected update, uninstall an update, copy the update information to the clipboard, or save it to text/HTML/XML file.

Volumouse - Change the sound volume in your system with your wheel mouse.

WinMessControl - Disable/Enable "Windows Messenger" application under Windows XP.

IECookiesView is a small utility that displays the details of all cookies that Internet Explorer stores on your computer.

IEHistoryView Each time that you type a URL in the address bar or click on a link in Internet Explorer browser, the URL address is automatically added to the history index file. When you type a sequence of characters in the address bar, Internet Explorer automatically suggests you all URLs that begins with characters sequence that you typed (unless AutoComplete feature for Web addresses is turned off). However, Internet Explorer doesn't allow you to view and edit the entire URL list that it stores inside the history file. This utility reads all information from the history file on your computer, and displays the list of all URLs that you have visited in the last few days. It also allows you to select one or more URL addresses, and then remove them from the history file or save them into text, HTML or XML file. In addition, you are allowed to view the visited URL list of other user profiles on your computer, and even access the visited URL list on a remote computer, as long as you have permission to access the history folder.

FavoritesView v1.00 FavoritesView displays the list of all your Favorties (of Internet Explorer browser) and bookmarks (of Netscape/Mozilla browsers) in a single page. Each line in the list specifies the title of the item, the URL address, the created/modified date of the bookmark item, and the folder name. You select one or more of these bookmarks, and then copy them to the clipboard, delete them (Only for Internet Explorer Favorites), export them to tab-delimited text file, HTML file, or XML file. FavoritesView also allows you to locate duplicate URL addresses in your Favorites/Bookmarks or find specific item by specifying the URL or the title.

CustomizeIE v1.00 Add new menu items and toolbar buttons to Internet Explorer.

IconsExtract v1.30 Extract icons & cursors from EXE, DLL, CPL, and OCX files.

IECompo v1.00 Displays the installed Internet Explorer components on your computer.

Fixed positioning

This post will hopefully be updated when I have done a little more (like explaining stuff and publishing combinations of three, maybe four columns), for now:

• Fixed header
• Fixed header and left-sidebar
• Fixed header and right-sidebar
• Fixed header and footer
• Fixed left-sidebar
• Fixed left-sidebar and header
• Fixed left-sidebar and right-sidebar
• Fixed left-sidebar and footer
• Fixed right-sidebar
• Fixed right-sidebar and header
• Fixed right-sidebar and footer
• Fixed footer