May 2005 Meeting Notes

Monthly Security Updates from Microsoft

• None this month for XP, Me, or 98.

• One update for Windows 2000

End of Support Update

• Support for Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition, and Windows Me will continue until June 30, 2006.

• Critical Updates will still be released until June 30, 2006.

• For more details go to http://support.microsoft.com/gp/lifean1

Security Terms

• Adware: Software bundled with free software that displays banner ads to support the cost of the free program. Purchasing the software turns off the ads.

• Spyware: Originally considered a form of adware. In order to refresh ads, and to report if the user clicked on the ad or purchased the program, well-behaved adware has to report back over the internet to its home office. Adware that reports data that the user did not allow, like what sites they visit on the internet, was considered spyware. Spyware now refers to a whole class of software that installs itself without the user's consent. Evidence of spyware is: your starting page in your browser changed without you doing anything, new tool bars or buttons appear in your browser that you didn't add yourself, pop-up ads while you are not even running any program or not even on-line.

• Phishing: Phishing attacks are fake e-mails that look like real letters from banks, credit card companies, and other financial institutions. They invite the user to go to a web site and enter private information like passwords, credit card numbers, and back accounts.

• Trojan Horses: Just like the the historical Trojan Horse, these are programs that on the surface seem harmless, but really contain harmful code that might harm your computer or open up security holes. These are usually disguised as downloads that look like real programs. In some cases, music files and picture files may also hide trojan horses.

Featured Website

• Mahoning County Geographic Information System: http://gis.mahoningcountyoh.gov/

• Click on “Map Viewer” to get started

• Draw a rectangle to zoom in

• To zoom out, click on the icon with four outward arrows, then click where you want the center to be

• To start from the beginning, click the globe icon

• Search for your address or name in the upper left-hand corner

• When looking at properties, click the “i” icon to get info on other properties

• On the layers tab, turn on different layers (eg. Ortho Photo) and then click “Refresh”

• To pan around, click on the hand icon, then click and drag the map

• Click on the “help” link for a pdf file that explains even more

HDTV on Your Computer

• Local stations are broadcasting HDTV right now: 21, 33, and 45/49.

• For as little as $150, you can watch HDTV on your computer with the ATI HDTV Wonder

• Requires: Windows XP SP1, 1.3 Ghz cpu, 256 MB of memory, a free PCI card slot, existing video card with at least 64 MB of memory and is DirectX 9.0-compatible.

• Comes with an antenna

• Also comes with a remote control and software to make your computer act like a TiVo.

• Also has a connector for another antenna or cable for regular TV

• Records HDTV and TV shows

• Also can record from VCRs or camcorders

• Gets the program schedule for free off the internet

• You can watch TV on the desktop wallpaper or in a transparent window

• You might want to get another hard disk for storing recordings: 6 GB per hour of HDTV.

• Most new primetime shows are shown in HDTV, commercials and news are not.

• For more information: http://www.ati.com/products/hdtvwonder/index.html

A new way to download on the Internet: BitTorrent

• Splits files into small pieces and distributes them among several peers

• The software downloads the pieces from different computers and assembles the whole file on your PC

• It also shares the pieces you have with other people that are downloading

• It distributes the load of downloading big files over many people to make it more efficient

• Can be used for legal downloads (podcasts, linux iso's) as well as illegal downloads

• For more info see http://www.bittorrent.com

• A popular BitTorrent client is Azureus (requires also downloading java 1.5): http://azureus.sourceforge.net/

Podcasts: radio shows on the internet

• Do-it-yourself radio shows posted as MP3 files on the internet

• Anyone can download them for free

• Special software is available to allow you to subscribe to and automatically download the ones you like

• It is also possible to automatically move the podcast to your portable audio player

• Example: Catholic Insider (http://www.catholicinsider.com) links to podcasts of Pope Benedict XVI from Vatican Radio.

• Many radio stations are embracing the technology. WGBH in Boston, Q107 in Toronto and BBC Radio are already offering regular podcasts.

• “Pod” refers to the Apple iPod, but you can use anything that can play MP3s.

• Thought up by Adam Curry, former MTV host.

• Thousands of podcasts can be found at http://www.podcast.net, or http://podcastingnews.com, or http://www.podcastalley.com, or the original http://www.ipodder.org

• Software to automatically download new podcasts: Doppler http://www.dopplerradio.net and iPodder http://www.ipodder.org