Even though it may not look like I am updating content often, in fact I am. The update is in the background, however, and not to public content. Namely, attempting to further streamline the web site for faster access. I also just implemented a change to the site that should allow for better browser printing of all pages throughout the domain.
I appreciate my dedicated readers understanding while I further work on a satisfactory experience.
Updated my slight modification to the default UI in World of Warcraft to work with the retail version released today. Get the updated information here.
Today, I will be working on getting all of my E-Mail caught up. If history repeats itself, I will only have time to reply to about 10% of them. Right now, I have over 900 in the inbox. Honestly, I really do not have the time to reply to everyone. I appreciate everyone's kind words about the domain sent my way, but I must ignore random technical support questions as they tend to use the most amount of time for an accurate reply.
My boiling point was almost reached. After purchasing Half-Life 2's retail package, I spent one hour and fourty-one minutes waiting to create a "Steam" account, unlock content and register my key. Finally after almost falling over the edge of reason, Half-Life 2 loaded up for the first time.
Now, after 3 hours of single player gameplay, I will only be able to recall the initial difficulties with the Steam network because of this text. Half-Life 2's graphics and gameplay totally wiped all Rants from my memory and I have had a smile on my face since selecting "New Game."
The game is awesome. Valve out did themslelves yet again.
If you have not purchased a copy and enjoy the FPS style of play, do so. If you already have the CD/DVD version installed, but still experiencing problems, try again in a few minutes. It is well worth the wait.
Too much time already spent on typing this text... must... get back to... Half-Life 2...
Updated my slight modification to the default UI in World of Warcraft Beta to work with the lastest patch released today. Get the updated information here.
In an article dated October 18, 2004, PC Magazine includes www.blackviper.com as one of their Top 101 Web Sites. Thanks PCMag!
Direct article link here:
The World of Warcraft Closed Beta is... well... ending soon... A cut an paste from the E-Mail I just received:
Greetings!
If you are receiving this email, you are one of the valued testers currently in World of Warcraft's closed beta test. This message is to inform you that the beta servers will be coming down at 3:00 PM PDT on Friday, October 29 and will remain offline for a few days in preparation for another stress test. Your account and characters will be active for this stress test, but a new client download will be required. After the game servers come down on Friday the 29th, you will be able to log in to the community site and download the new client.
Once the beta-server preparations are complete, we will announce the start of the stress test, and the servers will come back online. When that happens, you will be able to log back in, download a quick patch, and then continue playing. Please keep an eye on WorldofWarcraft.com for more information about the stress test in the days ahead!
We want to take this opportunity to thank you for all the hard work you've been putting in to make World of Warcraft a better game. You've done a great job, and without you, the classes would not be where they are today, places like the Barrens would not be as rich as they are today, and the changes implemented from your suggestions would never have taken place.
We hope you've been enjoying your exclusive look at World of Warcraft these past few weeks and months, and we hope you'll take some satisfaction in knowing that you've played a big part in shaping its destiny. We'll see you again online soon!
Sincerely,
Blizzard Entertainment
After a 5 day vacation in Las Vegas, I have returned home. My E-Mail stacked up the whole time I was gone, which means delays in my response will be huge.
I have updated my Windows XP Services Configurations and Windows XP Services Information pages to include additional Service Pack 2 information. I still have several more pages to place online before I can call it complete. However, I wanted to provide another update of my findings. All dependencies have been updated and are accurate.
I have updated my Windows XP Services Configurations and Windows XP Services Information pages to include additional Service Pack 2 information. In its current state, much work is still needed (like continuing to verify all dependencies located on the information page). However, I wanted to provide another update of my findings.
I have updated my Windows XP Services Configurations and Windows XP Services Information pages to include recommendations with regards to the Security Center service.
I also have formatted the Search page with the new domain look recently placed online. I appreciate your patience while I worked the issue.
With regards to World of Warcraft Beta, I modified a few UI files to make my life (and maybe yours) a bit easier. This also works with the latest Beta 6 release. The latest changes include:
- Updated for WoW Patch September 29, 2004
- Increased the size of Party HP/Mana/Rage/Energy text when moused over. It should now be easier to read.
Download the updated files here [link removed].
With regards to World of Warcraft Beta, I modified a few UI files to make my life (and maybe yours) a bit easier. The changes include:
1) Quest log is instant and shows level numbers
2) Target tool tip moved from the bottom right to top middle of screen
Mods that were taken partially from Cosmos:
3) Party HP/Mana/Rage/Energy show as text when moused over
4) Party Buffs (16)/Debuffs (8) always show
And something I conjured up myself (the code was always there, just not used):
5) The HP status display bar fades nicely from Green -> Yellow -> Orange -> Red.
Download the updated files here [link removed].
I have, yet again, modified the domain layout and fixed another IE display bug. This should be near its final (for now) version. The Windows XP Services Configurations should be viewable at 800x600 with the "default" font size. Other than my search page results and "printing" functions, if something does not look "right," please Contact BV so I can fix it.
I will be working on more Windows XP Service Pack 2 information in the near future. Stay tuned!
I have updated my Windows XP Services Configurations and Windows XP Services Information pages to include Service Pack 2 information. In its current state, much work is still needed (like verification of all dependencies located on the information page). However, I wanted to give my readers all of my findings to date. I still need to fix several related pages, but it will have to wait for another day.
For the most part, Microsoft took 3 years to create a "default" configuration for Windows XP Services that took me only one month to test and post on July 28, 2001. Several services that I previously recommended to be disabled are either gone or disabled by default after the installation of Service Pack 2.
Only one change to my "Safe" configuration and no changes to my "Gaming" and "Super Tweak" recommendations.
An "*" (asterisk) denotes changes from Service Pack 1a to Service Pack 2.
I have also modified the layout to have the left and the right columns slightly thinner. I also posted a workaround for an IE bug that fixes an issue while viewing the domain on a low resolution setting or small width. However, even after removing several columns of data on the Windows XP Services Configurations, the layout still breaks at 800x600, but 1024x768 with the "default" font size works fine.
I have placed the Search page back online and the index of 421 searchable pages on the domain is current. It also is formatted with the new domain look recently placed online. I appreciate your patience while I worked the issue.
On a totally unrelated matter: If you are still using Internet Explorer of any version, I highly recommend that you download, install and give FireFox a try. I have been using this browser for well over a year with no problems. Spyware? Adware? Pop-Ups? Changing of your home page? Security problems? Not an issue with FireFox. Some people have spent $20-$40 on getting rid of those same problems. FireFox is "free as in speech". I convinced my "non-technical Mother-In-Law" to make the switch and she is thrilled with the result. She was plagued with spyware and changing of her home page daily. She made the switch, you can do it, too!
Go get FireFox now. You have nothing to lose.
My goal is to have over 50% of my visitors using FireFox. Help me reach that goal. What are you doing still reading this page? Go, go now... :)
I have updated the web site with a new look. Other than my search page results and "printing" functions, if something does not look "right," please Contact BV so I can fix it.
I have updated my FAQ information with regards to Service Pack 2: So, what about Service Pack 1 and 2?
With that said, I am going to wrap it up for tonight. After about 9.5 hours of answering E-Mail and preparing my XP SP2 information, I am tired. I will continue the journey tomorrow and hopefully have something to post. I appreciate everyone's patience while I complete these massive changes to my information.
I have modified my Windows XP Home and Windows XP Pro install guides to include the following important information:
Before the install/reinstallation of Windows XP, I highly recommend that you download Service Pack 2 "for multiple computers" and burn it onto a CD. The download is approximately 272MB. If you choose not to do this step, your system could become infected with a virus or worm exploiting the vulnerabilities that Service Pack 2 fixes. I also recommend that you do NOT have your system connected to the Internet until after the installation of Service Pack 2. This means that you cannot activate your XP installation during setup, but you can accomplish that task following a reboot after Service Pack 2 is installed.
I have modified the current Windows XP Services Information to include the following:
Manual (and Automatic) updates via Windows Update Version 5 web site requires Cryptographic Services, Background Intelligent Transfer Service, and Event Log to be running. Place all three in to automatic if you do not wish to update manually.
I have added a new answer to my FAQ section: Why can't my Windows XP Home computer see my Windows XP Pro system over the network?
I have caught up on my E-Mails. My response rate was about 50%. Mainly due to the overwhelming amount of "technical support questions" that I received. Due to the great demand for such services, I cannot answer your personal technical support questions: READ WHY.
My E-Mail address is again posted on my Contact BV page.
A few answers to common questions:
I have sifted through about 370 E-Mails this morning and it is time for food. I still have around 450+ to go, but I hope to have them all looked at later on tonight. Unfortunately, the average response rate is about 40%.
I am now getting more E-Mails then I can read in one day. As such, my E-Mail address has been temporarily removed until I catch up.
I encourage all DNS server administrators and E-Mail server administrators to consider adding a SPF record to help fight spammers using your domain to send their solicitations. More information can be found at http://spf.pobox.com/.
Mr. Leo Laporte has mentioned me several times on his Radio Show "The Tech Guy" hosted by KFI AM 640. Several of the show notes are listed below. Thank you much Leo!
In other news, I am working hard on getting my Windows XP information pages updated to reflect the (many) changes in Service Pack 2. They will be posted when I finish.
I did not make my deadline mainly because I wish to catch up on my massive backlog of E-Mail before I post any new content. I still have just over 600 E-Mails waiting to be read. If I do not get back to you, I hope you understand that I cannot answer personal technical support questions. (READ WHY)
I have made minor adjustments to several Windows XP information pages. Very soon, hopefully this weekend, I will post my Windows XP Service Pack 2 findings relating to services. With around 80 pages of printed text to edit, I may not make my self imposed deadline, but I will try my best.
With regards to World of Warcraft Beta, I modified a few UI files to make my life (and maybe yours) a bit easier. The changes include:
1) Quest log is instant and shows level numbers
2) Target tool tip moved from the bottom right to top middle of screen
Mods that were taken partially from Cosmos:
3) Party HP/Mana/Rage/Energy show always as text
4) Party Buffs (16)/Debuffs (8) always show
And something I conjured up myself (the code was always there, just not used):
5) The HP status display bar fades nicely from Green -> Yellow -> Orange -> Red.
Download the updated files here [link removed].
Why can't I access/check my Hotmail or Yahoo account using my DSL connection?
This particular issue came about due to a family member that was unable to check their HTTP E-Mail accounts after a new installation of SBC DSL either by accessing it via a browser or Outlook Express. After over two hours of banging my head against the monitor, I figured out the solution.
Today, Black Viper and Flipper McQuack will be joined together in marriage. With over 5 years of being together already under our belt, I would like nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with her.
Four letters and a numeral: "Doom 3." Enough said. :)
I have removed the "automatic" banning feature of the domain outlined in my Abuse Rant.
I have also placed online a page describing the Web Site Layout CSS files and JavaScript file used throughout the domain.
A change in the way I publish information (pass and present) on the domain is coming. A new (but very old) philosophy is in my head and I hope to follow through with it. However, due to my "knee-jerking" behavior in the past, I am going to wait 48 hours to ensure that I am doing "the right thing" until it is "active."
The web site color switching feature has returned. Enjoy!
I have temporarily disabled the web site color switching feature while I focus on the latest version.
A new site layout/design will be published soon. Stay tuned.
I am working hard on Window XP Service Pack 2 information. A few things I am doing include:
Stay tuned! I will post the latest information when I finish it in the next few days.
I discovered that my E-Mail server started having issues with DNS lookups. This does not sound as though it is a bad thing. However, it turned out to be a big issue. A reboot fixed all problems, but I now am faced with hundreds of E-Mail messages because of the DNS lookup failures (since I configure my E-Mail server to use a DNS Black Hole list). Unfortunately, the only solution is to sift through the junk. This, of course, will take time.
Today, I made the change from the "old" SETI client to the new one based on BONIC. Information about this particular transition is here:
http://setiweb.ssl.berkeley.edu/transition.php [link removed]
After I test my systems with the new client, I will post additional details.
I am currently caught up on my E-mail and wish to thank everyone that sent kind words my way. If I did not respond to your question, forgive me, but please understand that with the volume of traffic that I receive daily, it would be impossible for me to reply to everyone.
With regards to World of Warcraft Beta, I modified a few UI files to make my life a bit easier. The changes include:
1) Quest log is instant and shows level numbers
2) Target tool tip moved from above the combat log to top middle of screen
Mods that were taken partially from Cosmos:
3) Party HP/Mana/Rage/Energy show always as text
4) Party Buffs (16)/Debuffs (8) always show
And something that Cosmos never had:
5) The HP status display bar fades nicely from Green -> Yellow -> Orange -> Red.
Download the updated files here [link removed].
Many people have asked "What about Service Pack 2 for Windows XP?"
I will post the information when it is done.
I am about 250 E-Mails behind and, looking at some of them, the most popular question is:
"If you have the time, could you answer..."
The answer is... no. (Read WHY?)
I did a slight modification to the default UI in World of Warcraft Beta. Get the information here [link removed].
Because I could not sleep tonight, I took this "not so normal" opportunity to catch up on my E-Mail backlog. I have now caught up and I appreciate everyone feedback. Even though I cannot possibly reply to everyone, I tried to address as many concerns as I could.
Several people reported that the domain did not quite look correct. They were right.
I use Mozilla as my browser and sometimes, working around IE's strange behaviors slips by me.
All pages should render in both browsers as I had originally intended them. The issue made some text much larger than I wanted, mostly in regards to my guides that include thumbnails, and only in IE.
If ever something just does not seem "right" with the domain, please Contact me and report the problem. More than likely, you are not the only one with the issue.
My SBC DSL is having issues. High latency and dropped packets in the Southern California area. However, the problem is not "local" to me, but routing issues in the LA area. How did I discover this? Check this thread and see that I am not the only one:
http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.aspx?FN=wow-general&T=58313&P=1
As a result, the web site may be a little slow, depending on where you are connecting from. I am sure the issue will be resolved soon because of the amount of SBC DSL World of Warcraft players experiencing latency of 2000ms to 3000ms.
:)
Ok, maybe not, but I do hope the problem is fixed soon.
After originally posting my AMD and Intel Rant on July 30, 2002, many items touched on have become extremely out of date. I decided to take a "second look" at what both AMD and Intel has accomplished recently and hopefully provide a vision for the future. So here it is: AMD vs. Intel Rant Take 2.
Latest Internet Threat:
LSASS.exe Information: ~ A Microsoft Security Bulletin MS04-011 was posted about the latest vulnerability and includes details on where to get the patch to fix it:
A slight modification to the text font has been implemented. Hopefully, this will allow better compatibility throughout the different browsers available.
Long time readers will notice a few changes that I have made. The major one is that I no longer have my Current News content on the front page. Instead, I changed the front page to provide a quick overview of what the domain has to offer.
Another change is that I have removed all "acronym" tags from all pages. No longer will you see underlined information with tool tip pop-ups and descriptions. Why? Mainly because I have had the tags for several months and no one ever told me they liked them. Some even did not like them at all. On a few pages, it reduces my outbound bandwidth that had many tags associated to the content. I will see how it goes.
Soon, I will make a few more modifications to the layout to provide better accessibility for content preferences.
It seems that things are running smoothly. It may still be 48 more hours before the new site information is sent around the world, but most people are able to access the domain at this time.
I am still way behind on E-Mail, but will get caught up as soon as I can.
To avoid a lengthy downtime period, I brought one of my old DNS servers back online. This should reduce the amount of failed connection attempts to the domain until all internet DNS servers receive the updated information.
Everything is operational locally. I will just have to wait and see in the next 24-72 hours if my efforts are successful.
Thank you for your patience.
I have finished transferring my domain over to a different, hopefully more reliable, internet connection. It may take 48 hours for the domain to be fully online.
I appreciate my readers patience during this transition.
I have finished round three of my web server modifications. This basically was only the removal of my "test" domain "www.bvunlimited.com." Since I have not messed with it for over 8 months, I feel it is better to take it off of the web and have the server concentrate on more important matters: this web site.
I also completed reconfiguring my E-Mail server to ban "lots" of virus/worm propagating systems. For those geeks out there, here is a quick rundown:
Upon observing SMTP connection information, I have noticed that "lots" of viruses, worms and spammers tend to use the domain they are sending an E-Mail to as the "greeting." More specifically, the "HELO" and "EHLO" fields. This field is generally used to "identify" the sending mail server. I have, just today, banned all E-Mail from specific IP's that "claim" they are from my domain! Each IP is only banned for 30 minutes to ensure that valid content is not dropped, or at least minimized. So far, it is working perfectly. Maybe, someday, I will get the time to outline exactly my configuration for my E-Mail server to assist other domain admins on this very real problem.
Updates to content may be sparse, but I have been working hard on, not only my server modifications, but reviewing Windows XP Service Pack 2. Plenty of additions are included that I like, some that I do not.
Completely redoing all of my Services recommendations will take time. However, since Microsoft is usually slow out of the gate with regards to Service Packs, I should have all the time that I need. Rest assured, upon final release, Service Pack 2 information will be here... in full force.
I have finished round two of my web server modification. If anything just does not seem "right," please feel free to Contact Me and report the issue.
I have made several changes to, not only the web server, but the connection control and caching in general. The web site (hopefully) will be much faster for you than it has been in the past. If anything just does not seem "right," please feel free to Contact Me and report the issue. Every time I do some massive changes, things break. Please understand, though, that I am currently "way" behind on E-Mail (like over a week). Mainly, due to the recent "behind the scenes geeking" I have been doing.
Unfortunately, I can never leave anything alone. It could always be faster, better, more efficient, etc. Usually, my obsession with computer performance gets me into trouble by breaking something and then taking "tons" of time to figure out a workaround or different implementation.
Maybe this time will be different, but I doubt it.
:)
With the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2 right around the corner, I will be testing the Release Candidate 1 and post my findings by updating the Services Configurations, Descriptions, Custom Registry Tool and Registry patches.
This will take some time to ensure accuracy of the information. Stay tuned!
At long last, World of Warcraft has been released in Beta form and I can finally post my experiences about the Alpha.
Many people have asked me why the updates in the last few months have been "few and far between." World of Warcraft was the answer that I could not tell anyone about due to a legal and binding agreement to not disclose that the game even existed.
I have been been enjoying the game since December 24, 2003.
More information can be discovered on the World of Warcraft official web site, but here is what I have been working on secretly in the background. Not much, but I must explain that the game is so much fun, I had no time to write!
Current Pages:
The download for the Beta client is 2.0 GB's. This also will explain why the web site was "slow" the last few hours. I was downloading the new client, myself.
If any of my readers were lucky enough to get into the first round of the public Beta, send me off a message in game:
Currently activated characters (only Alliance is available in the current push):
Currently disabled characters (but will return in the near future):
Please understand:
More to come in the future!
After scratching my head for awhile, I finally found the cause of why the domain has not been accessible all day. Everything should be up and running again.
I appreciate your patience.
Due to my overly aggressive banning of certain web site tools from connecting to my web server, I mistakenly blocked access to W3's validation service. I reference this service on my Browser Compatibility Page. Since I recommend adhering to web standards and the use of standard compliant browsers, I feel this service is much more valuable to my readers in helping them understand the reason for web standards. Once again, the link is valid and the service is no longer forbidden access. Even though no reader brought this to my attention, I am glad that I caught the error.
The domain has been down for 10.5 hours due to one of my ISP's routers biting the dust.
Looks like the worms are slowing down. I have only received 30 in the last 10 hours.
I found, mostly, large numbers of W32.Netsky.D@mm and (the now published information of) W32.Beagle.J@mm. The Beagle is the worm I discovered last night crawling around and posted information about in the previous news update.
More information can be found here:
Even though I touched on the thought of dumping my E-Mail address in my latest Rant, I have not done so. This should not be much of a surprise since I posted My E-Mail Address Rant only a few hours ago. However, just a couple of those hours ago, I started to get, yet again, a virus that no information is posted about (that I have found).
The techniques to try and get people to "open that attachment" and infect systems really makes me laugh! I touched on several in my Free Beer Rant, but the following E-Mail(s) look like a new strain as sarc.com has nothing about it (yet). I am going to say it here and again at the end of this news post:
Everyone, I beg of you, STOP OPENING E-MAIL ATTACHMENTS!!!
Here is a cut and paste from the source of the header, with minor modifications to protect the innocent as well as the guilty:
From - Tue Mar 02 22:49:35 2004
X-UIDL: UOSVJKZ.CNM306272A5
X-Mozilla-Status: 0001
X-Mozilla-Status2: 10000000
Received: from spooler by mail.blackviper.com (Mercury/32 v4.01a); 2 Mar 2004 20:24:13 -0800
X-Envelope-To: <BVEDIT: REMOVED MY ADDRESS>
Return-path: <BVEDIT: REMOVED SPOOFED ADDRESS>
Received: from BASEMENTDELL (<BVEDIT: REMOVED ACTUAL IP ADDRESS>) by BVEDIT: REMOVED MY EMAIL SERVERS NAME (Mercury/32 v4.01a) ID MG000340; 2 Mar 2004 20:24:02 -0800
Date: Tue, 02 Mar 2004 22:23:26 -0600
To: BVEDIT: REMOVED MY ADDRESS
Subject: Email account utilization warning.
From: management@blkviper.com
Message-ID: <uxiyxiekwqaljwgovss@blkviper.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="--------ijrpvnyimxgnxhemlxek"
----------ijrpvnyimxgnxhemlxek
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Now the actual readable text:
Dear user, the management of Blkviper.com mailing system wants to let you know that,
We warn you about some attacks on your e-mail account. Your computer may contain viruses, in order to keep your computer and e-mail account safe, please, follow the instructions.
Further details can be obtained from attached file.
Kind regards, The Blkviper.com team
http://www.blkviper.com
The following is just a small snapshot of the attachment information:
Content-Type: application/octet-stream; name="Readme.pif"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: base64
Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="Readme.pif"<BVEDIT: REMOVED BASE64 ENCODED VIRUS>
----------ijrpvnyimxgnxhemlxek--
Now, a few point to notice here:
An E-Mail I received only six minutes later had exactly the same subject line "Email account utilization warning." and many similar qualities like the first sentence:
Dear user, the management of Blkviper.com mailing system wants to let you know that,
Your e-mail account has been temporary disabled because of unauthorized access. For further details see the attach.
For security reasons attached file is password protected. The password is "55885".
Have a good day,The Blkviper.com team
http://www.blkviper.com
An attachment, named "Document.zip" was there. Also, again, the "from" address it seems to be originating is not valid, but instead of "management@" it is "support@." The second one originates from a different IP address, however.
Pathetic. Absolutely pathetic. Everyone, I beg of you: STOP OPENING E-MAIL ATTACHMENTS!!!
In this news update, I wanted to touch on several things that have been bouncing around in my head the last several days. Even though I would like more than anything for the information to be short, it did not turn out that way. This news update turned into an expanded Rant topic and I pretty much ran out of time to post information about my other issues. So, a short take on only one of them is included here and the next update will include additional issues. Here we go:
My current E-Mail address listed on the Contact BV page has served me well. It has been in use for over 5 years. However, in the last 10 hours, I have received 3 times more virus infected E-Mail's than I have received legitimate correspondence. Not to mention the spam that my server automatically blocks. READ MORE...
In the last several days, I have done much to try and figure out how to increase the performance of, not only the domain, but the network in general. After plenty of testing, I have been leaning in the direction that the domain is not being slowed down by the available bandwidth, but the firewall's filtering performance. In the next few days, I will do even more testing to ensure that is the case. If it is, I will modify the networks configuration for a much higher capacity of packet filtering. This will ultimately provide faster content download.
Another point to make is I am now running monitoring software to ensure that the domain is online 24/7. In recent past, not including the planned outages, I have strived to have 100% access to legitimate traffic. It looks as though, several times, the outages were due to the firewall's refusal to transfer any additional traffic. That is totally unacceptable. Even though several outages in the past year have been caused by my ISP, once by a kitty unplugging a server, and a long 18 hour stretch caused by a local power outage, I feel I have been rather successful in keeping the domain as accessible as one person can. However, until 100% and maximum performance is reached, I will not rest easy. An impossible task? Yep, but I enjoy striving for the impossible goal.
The network modifications are mostly complete. Connectivity to the domain will still be intermittent for the next 36 hours while my new DNS information is sent around the internet. I appreciate all of my readers patience while this transition is taking place.
Traffic is starting to roll into the new IP addressing. I appreciate all of my readers patience while this transition is taking place.
My ISP has completed transferring me over to a different network connection. As a result, connectivity to the domain will be sporadic, at best, for the next 24 - 72 hours while the DNS server information is sent throughout the internet.
My ISP is in the progress of transferring me over to a different network connection. As a result, connectivity to the domain will be sporadic, at best, for the next 72 hours. However, during this transition, I will also take the opportunity to reconfigure my internal network. I am not exactly sure what I am going to do with it, but I have several plans of attack. I will have to wait and see what works best after I get a few more details from my ISP. Maybe even an increase in my available bandwidth (for a price, of course). I can only hope.
Originally drafted July 27, 2003, I have refrained from posting this particular web page because of the title I picked: Free Beer! However, I feel this information needs to get out to those people that need it.
Now, obviously, I am not offering free beer or ever going to on this web site or any other. However, I have placed this web page here for educational purposes to guide my readers in understanding the various Social Engineering techniques that are out today, and attempt to get you to do something you would normally not do. Please, read on: Free Beer Rant: Home of Black Viper's Opinion.
With the recommendation for the Mozilla v1.6 client on these news pages on February 7, 2004, I have learned much since then. For one, just two days later, the Mozilla project released Firefox v0.8. I was not very fond of the Phoenix line of browsers, nor the most resent release of Firebird v0.7. However, the project has matured greatly since that point and I have been using Firefox v0.8 since February 9, 2004 with great success.
As another point, people have also mentioned Thunderbird v0.5 as an alternative to the Mozilla E-Mail client. Since I made the great leap from Outlook Express recently, I felt it would not be that painful to jump into trying Thunderbird as an alternative to Mozilla's current E-Mail client. I am completely satisfied with the result.
So, if you are one of those that enjoy trying out the "latest and greatest," please give Firefox v0.8 and Thunderbird v0.5 a try. You will not be disappointed. They are both very light weight and efficient at what they do.
Welcome to all the listeners of KVTA AM 1520 "A Computer Show." I wish to thank G. J. for inviting me onto the program to address his questions. Here is some pages relevant to topics touched on during the program:
Welcome to all the listeners of KVTA AM 1520 "A Computer Show."
If you wish to listen to the show live, I will be on at 2:15 PM today.
Today, I found in my E-Mail a large number of W32.Netsky.B@mm viruses. Currently, every 3 to 7 seconds, a zombie system across the internet is attempting to infect my network. In order to reduce bandwidth consumption from this attack, I am taking the following actions:
More information can be found here:
To ensure no confusion exists: I did NOT catch anything! I am being sent this latest attack from OTHER INFECTED COMPUTERS! As many viruses do, it spoofs the "from" address to mask where it "really" came from.
I have Ranted about viruses before and this is no exception. If anything "funny" is happening with your system, ensure your scanner is completely up to date and read all of the recent attacks located on Symantec.com or your favorite security site.
I have said it before and I will say it again: I will never send you or anyone else a file attachment out of the blue. If you did receive such a thing seemingly from "me," delete it immediately.
A warm welcome goes out to all the listeners of KDNK Radio's "Geekspeak." I wish to thank Neal for inviting me onto the program to address his questions. Here is some pages relevant to topics touched on during the program:
Today marks the 5th year of this web sites life. I wish to thank all of my readers for the encouragement to continue and hope many more years serving the internet community is in the future.
As several readers have pointed out: I do not like change. This fact is most obvious in the Jack in the Box Rant. However, after using Outlook Express for over 5 years, I feel it is time to cut the cord and move on.
My current choice of weapon to fight the E-Mail battle is the Mozilla E-Mail client. I have been using the Mozilla browser for well over 2 years and even though I was extremely against any other browser up to that point (I had a bad experience with early versions of Netscape), Mozilla won me over after only the first day. At that time, I never looked back. I cannot say enough about the quality and speed of this browser. The current version is Mozilla 1.6. The price is right: free.
I have been kicking around the idea of dumping Outlook Express for a long time. I have a large amount of customizations with regards to E-Mail filtering and it seemed like a daunting task to transition to anything but the next version of Outlook Express. I was wrong. The Mozilla E-Mail client now has "trainable" junk mail filtering (which makes my previous technique obsolete), custom message filtering and actions, plus much more. Not to mention the fact that it will "never" be affected by the large amount of E-Mail viruses that automatically execute of which Microsoft products are famous for, options of getting rid of "external" images spammers use for tracking purposes (making the "preview pane" a security issue), and the ability to disable Java from running inside of E-mails. It is fast, powerful, and easy to use. Enough said.
Of course, a down side to this change exists: I must get accustom to the "new" way of doing things. As a result, once again the broken record turns on the platter and I am behind on E-Mail. I should be caught up over the weekend, but do not hold me to that statement as anything can happen.
Even though this news posting sounds like a sales pitch, I have nothing to do with the development of Mozilla, nor get any kick back from them. I notify people of quality products because I enjoy them and find them useful, not because I get rich from them. I do urge everyone to give Mozilla a try. If not the E-Mail client, try the browser. You may be happy with what you find.
Note: The current version of Netscape is built on "older" Mozilla code. So, if you are using Netscape, give the "latest" Mozilla a shot as you could be using a dated product and a slower/more bloated suite.
This morning I found in my E-Mail 73 W32.Novarg.A@mm viruses. In order to reduce my bandwidth consumption from this attack, I am taking the following actions:
I knew the virus outlined below was going to be big. This morning at 10:15 AM, I found in my E-Mail a CERT security warning about this latest virus issue. You can view the complete warning at this link:
I knew this virus was going to be big. Why? Due to the volume I have been getting. This morning I found in my E-Mail 57 W32.Novarg.A@mm viruses.
You may have misunderstood my previous posting, though. I am NOT sending out these viruses.
A reader asked "If I am so good, why did you catch the virus?"
I did NOT catch anything! I am being sent this latest attack from OTHER INFECTED COMPUTERS! As many viruses do, it spoofs the "from" address to mask where it "really" comes from. I only identified one such instance in the news post where the from address was fraudulent and it was also sent to me.
In the last 6 hours, I have found in my E-Mail 38 W32.Novarg.A@mm viruses. This includes "the one" that spoofed my "from" E-Mail address and sent it back to me. The IP address it was "actually" sent from is located in Canada. This does not include the 27 "bounced" messages from servers telling me the "user does not exist." It also does not include the 15 automated messages some system administrators insisting on "warning" the sender of the "virus" attachment.
I have Ranted about viruses before and this is no exception. If anything "funny" is happening with your system, ensure your scanner is completely up to date and read all of the recent attacks located on Symantec.com or your favorite security site.
I have said it before and I will say it again: I will never send you or anyone else a file attachment out of the blue. If you did receive such a thing seemingly from "me," delete it immediately.
More information on this particular threat is here:
I have (finally) completely caught up on E-Mail. If you did not get a reply, I apologize in advance, but I sifted through 300 E-Mails today and you must understand that I cannot reply to everyone.
I have sifted through another couple hundred E-mails today and made it up to January 19th. Many more to go, but I hope to be caught up soon. I apologize for the delay.
I feel it is best to offer the viewer to choose how a domain looks, not the webmaster. I had the "change color" feature enabled for many months, but I removed it to reduce my bandwidth consumption. Since that time, I have taken many steps to optimize the domain, yet attempt to make it accessible for everyone. As such, the "Change Color" feature has returned in the upper-left corner. I will see how it goes.
You can take the following steps to adjust your viewing pleasure:
Using Cookies and JavaScript:
An option for all browser users, if you accept cookies and use JavaScript, is to choose the look: Black or White now.
Without cookies and JavaScript:
If you are lucky enough to use Netscape or the open source Mozilla, you can change the Black color scheme to what ever you chose by selecting Edit --> Preferences --> Appearance --> Colors.
If you are using IE of any flavor you can choose Tools --> General Tab --> Accessibility button and check:
You can even go so far as to do the following, however, some content may be obscured due to positioning of the elements.
Change the size of the text:
You can also adjust the size of the text for you resolution and monitor size by selecting View --> Text Size, View --> Text Zoom, or View --> Zoom depending on your browser and increase / decrease as necessary.
Several months ago, I posted the UCE@FTC.GOV Rant [link removed].
Initially, I posted this page on September 17, 2003. In it's previous state, I had screen shots with "proof" and much more details and background than I currently have. However, due to the phase of the moon and other unforeseen circumstances, the "original" page was overwritten by a "blank" page. As such, I spent many hours of research writing it all up and making it perfect... just to have it all go away into the void. This frustrated me to no end and for months, I only had "need more research" in place of the "real" content that became deleted. I wish to complete this page fully in the near future.
I need to have additional information posted on the page because I do link to it from several other Guides. I wish to have the full Rant, to include screen shots to support my case, as soon as I can. It also needs to be done to tell others how "forwarding your spam to report it to the FTC is a pointless endeavor."
Another couple to add to the list after reading another hundred or so in an attempt to catch up my backlog of E-Mail:
After sifting through around a hundred or so E-Mails today in an attempt to catch up, I answer some more common questions that will be included in my Frequently Asked Questions shortly:
More "common questions" will be posted soon.
I also have a large amount of people requesting a "News Letter" of sorts. I have kicked around this idea for a few years. I even "had" one for a month... a long time ago when no one ever visited, and I received one subscription request. I would like to get something like that going and it could be arriving in the near future as a way to "answer questions via E-Mail and put them on the news letter vice sending the reply to only one person..." So, if you want your answer, you will have to subscribe... for free, of course.
:)
I stepped away from the web site for a few days. I needed a break. I also did not check any E-Mail. Ironically enough, after I posted the previous news update, my E-Mail volume doubled. Mostly kind words, but still a large amount of "can you help me before you stop" questions.
I modified the "Contact Black Viper" page to make it a bit more clear as to the overwhelming crush I am experiencing. For the most part, my "frequent readers" check the news often and understand my current situation. The "surf on by" people do not, by including "I know you get lots of E-Mail, but... can you answer my questions?!?"
470 E-Mails currently sit unopened. From the pattern of things, a large portion of those are my "frequent readers" that have previously not dropped me a few lines and I publicly thank you if I fail to answer your comments directly and in a timely manner.
Of the rest, I must ignore all of the "can you help" questions as I plain do not have the time, desire, or motivation required to entertain all of them. Oddly enough, in most of my internet travels, few people have honestly came forward and told it how it "really is." I feel it is better to tell everyone up front than have anyone feel their E-Mail is just going into the void.
Eventually, all E-Mail will be viewed. An extremely small percent will get a reply from me. However, regardless of content, all of them are important to me.
Unfortunately, the day has finally arrived when my information has become so popular that it has stretched my resources to the limit.
Each time I add something to the domain, more E-Mail is directed to my inbox. Some is positive feedback, but most are random technical support questions that I no longer have the time to answer.
I enjoy providing this domain to the Internet community, but my time has completely been overtaken by my desire to help as many people with their own personal computer issues. This desire to help has, thus far, outweighed my common sense when responding to technical questions.
At the onset a couple of years ago, it was a welcome event. I helped those that I could and the people that had questions that was beyond the capability to troubleshoot by E-Mail, I would point them in the right direction to help them resolve the issue on their own.
Then it became apparent that taking the time to point people in the right direction took too much time. Either I was "talking over their head" and spent lots of time trying to draft an E-Mail that everyone can understand about a complicated issue, or I was "talking under them" by automatically assuming this stranger that E-Mailed me does not know the first thing about computers. I began to ignore these more complex problems, sometimes after the sender has spent much time writing very extensive information about their particular issue, because I do not have as much time as the sender does to devote to a problem.
On March 25, 2003, I drafted the following: The Rant: Impossible Questions to Answer by E-Mail. This was in response to the large volume of E-Mail I get daily involving technical issues beyond what is humanly possible to solve remotely.
It hurts me to ignore people, as I have said many times before, if you have taken the time to send kind words about the domain my way, I will happily take the time to reply and thank you for them.
Feedback and encouragement has always fueled this domain. No banner ads are (or ever will) adorn this site. I provide the information because I enjoy my geekie hobby and encourage other people not to think of their own computer system as a toaster that "just works." However, saying "Thanks for the information on your web site" and my reply of "No problem, glad I can help" takes tons less time than to read a massive E-Mail about a technical issue that, in reality, is difficult if not impossible to solve from a remote location.
As such, I have to draw the line somewhere. I have dreaded this day from coming because, in part, I feel my domain has became popular because of my personal style of presentation and my responses to as many people as I can. The lack of obnoxious advertising bombarding the reader also plays a role. This word of mouth has came down to "don't bother me, ask Black Viper! He will tell you the answer."
One person tells two friends, then those people tell other friends... before I knew it, I have 182 E-Mails waiting to be opened.
I have my own issues. Even though, on December 30, 2003, it took me relatively little time to "swap" the domain to a different computer and get it running, I spent several hours monitoring and testing to ensure everything was working.
I then got, once again, behind. I "just caught up" only the day before by spending several hours replying to E-Mail.
One day leads to more and again, I am behind. So, not only do I have to ignore and possibly make people mad by not responding or helping with their particular problem, but those that I finally get to their problem, I get a reply to my solution saying "I have already figured it out" or "you took too long." As such, I have spent time in replying for no greater good other than "seemingly wasting my already limited time."
Thus, I am going to further limit the amount of technical issues that get my personal response. I have tons of information that many people have utilized. I write it once, it is view by, not only hundreds, but thousands. A personal reply from one person, goes to that one person and is not an efficient use of my limited time.
Several times, as with the most recent Virus and Worm epidemic, I would post a page directing people on how to solve the problem. If I responded individually to each person that page helped, it would have taken more hours than what is in a day.
In closing, I thank all of my readers for visiting and utilizing what variety of information I offer to the internet community. I will still respond to those people with kind words or "specific issues" relating to my information. In the short term, that will not change. In the long run, that line may also need to be drawn.
This change of view does not mean that updates to content and additional articles will never happen. In fact, quite the opposite. Limiting the amount of one-on-one communication will free up some time to do just that. It also should not be thought of as a way for me to "leave my readers hanging." That, by far, is not the desire.
I would like to wish all of my readers a very Happy New Year.
I also would like to take this opportunity to warn everyone that I will be typing "2003" throughout the domain until around March.
:)
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Windows Service Configurations!
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