| Web Trends
No more free rides! Web companies need to derive actual revenues not just millions of hits to their site. The Internet used to be filled with free offers for this and that and all other things under the rainbow. Granted, there are still free offers to be gotten (see below), but with the burst of the technology bubble, dot.com companies that provided the gazillions of freebies to bring hordes of "consumers" to the site disappeared into cyberspace, never to be found even by the likes of Yahoo. The concept of ownership is rapidly changing. Shrink-wrap software that you can buy off the store shelf (from either the traditional brick and mortal store or a cyber storefront) is being transformed to a subscription service whereby you pay a monthly service fee to use the software. A similar arrangement is being done with music and video. The industry is trying to get everything online and this can happen when broadband is widely available and entrenched in the realworld user landscape. The Internet Everywhere will be the catch phrase and driving force. High-speed Internet connection at work and at home via T1, DSL, Cable, and Satellite, coupled with wireless LAN access will allow you to surf the Web from the comfort of your plush recliner. Such high-speed connections will allow streaming video and CD-quality audio along with your favorite software application or game. This driving force, however, will bring with it a host of problems. Privacy concerns will be prominent among them, followed closely by security issues and actually getting the broadband access.. With privacy concerns and security issues in mind, the following topics should assist most Web users. |
| Web Access
Finding an Internet Service Provider www.thelist.com
provides a searchable database of ISP’s by area code, country code, application
service providers, among others.
I-MODE from Japan is coming to America The world's most popular wireless Internet service (with 30 million users) will be available in the US sometime during the next year. NTT DoCoMo along with AT&T Wireless Group is planning to launch the wireless Internet service in the U.S. Trial service will likely be started in Seattle, Washington. Pricing for the service is still under discussion, but it probably won’t be cheap. For the full report see article at http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,44461,00.asp
Cable vs. DSL vs ? What speed do you want your Internet connection to be?
The faster the better, right? Below is a table depicting some of the salient
attributes that you should know.
|
| Web Security and Privacy
Antivirus Software You need a certain amount of virus protection on your
computer – but you don’t have to pay for the software. Just like the major
antivirus companies (notably Norton Antivirus and McAfee Antivirus)
Firewall Log Analyzer If you use a personal firewall you may know that their
logs can sometimes be difficult to decipher. Some entries in the logs may
be friendly or innocent, while others could be truly nefarious. Making
sense of these confusing logs is often times frustrating if not impossible.
For users of ZoneAlarm, there is some help to be found at http://www.zonelog.co.uk/
Keep tabs on Spyware Do you know what Spyware is? Or what programs contain Spyware? In general, spyware is any technology that aids in gathering information about a person or organization without their knowledge. On the Internet, spyware is programming that is put in someone's computer to secretly gather information about the user and relay it to advertisers or other interested parties. For those of us who are concerned about this practice,
there is an organization on the web that actively maintains a database
of spyware carrying applications. Check out this website before purchasing
a program or downloading a free program: http://www.spychecker.com
Firewall Utilities Protect your PC from suspicious activity on your network or the Internet. PCWorld has compiled the best five firewall utilities. Try them out; some of them are even free for personal use. Tiny Personal Firewall: This handy application
gives you some control in determining how your applications transmit and
receive data from the Web. It has three security levels that offer high,
medium, and low security. If you're not sure which to choose, you don't
have to worry: the program can also operate in learning mode, letting you
decide to deny or accept data in each situation. You can then establish
rules to determine how you want to deal with similar situations in the
future. The program can also check for digital signatures and it can restrict
applications to certain ports or destination IP addresses. You can also
create reports of all intrusion attempts.
ZoneAlarm: If you have an "always-on"
connection with a permanent IP address, your PC is especially vulnerable
to hacker attacks. This free utility offers you some protection. You can
block uninitiated and unwanted traffic, even while your PC is unattended
or while you're not using your connection. You can also limit your exposure
by specifying which applications can access the Internet. This update lets
you stop e-mail-borne Visual Basic Script worms, such as the "I Love You"
virus.
NetWatcher 2000: This utility runs
in the background during your Internet connection, monitoring queries for
information. If it detects one, it alerts you and gives you the option
of immediately closing the connection. The program also logs the intruder's
IP address, port number, and host, letting you report the intruder to their
ISP.
ConSeal PC Firewall: This personal
firewall lets you create rulesets that dictate what data can access your
PC. It protects you from Internet threats, as well as from applications
on your network. The firewall lives beneath your OS, and any offending
packet or data is automatically dismissed. You can define what type of
data you want to avoid or you can put the firewall in learning mode, which
will create a ruleset based on your actions. If an unknown packet tries
to access your PC, the program lets you know of this and waits for your
permission. The program also includes a Whois link for retrieving remote
host information.
Sygate Personal Firewall: If you're
concerned about unauthorized users accessing data on your PC, this program
can give you an added line of defense. The program features a number of
security levels that alert you of possible intrusion. You can configure
it to alert you of unauthorized activity but still ignore inbound packets
that you specifically request, such as Web pages or file downloads. You
can also use the program in tandem with another firewall, to add an extra
level of security. The program can create reports of all Internet activity.
You can run it automatically when Windows loads or you can launch it from
its icon in the system.
|
| Website Presence
HTML Editors & Tutorials If you have the inclination, patience, and make the time, you can learn the fine art of Web site construction and HTML coding. Here’s list of free HTML editors and tutorials to help you get your site off the ground and running. http://one.digital.cnet.com/cgi-bin1/flo?y=eBmV0B5PED0XH0faeB And here’s a list of the latest Web authoring tools:
Website Monitor You have a website that you spent countless hours building and revamping. Want to know the minute your web site goes down? EasyMonitor watches your site and alerts you when it's offline. Best of all, its free. Check it out at http://lists.easymonitor.com/cgi-bin/t.pl?U=1143&M=421149&MS=18665 |
| "Ultimate PC Troubleshooting Guide"
Experts from PCWorld.com offer 36 tips to help you fix common hardware, software, and Web snafus that can bring your work to a stop. http://www.pcworld.com/resource/printable/article/0,aid,41661,00.asp |