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Atari Online News, Etc. Volume 06 Issue 50
Volume 6, Issue 50 Atari Online News, Etc. December 10, 2004
Published and Copyright (c) 1999 - 2004
All Rights Reserved
Atari Online News, Etc.
A-ONE Online Magazine
Dana P. Jacobson, Publisher/Managing Editor
Joseph Mirando, Managing Editor
Rob Mahlert, Associate Editor
Atari Online News, Etc. Staff
Dana P. Jacobson -- Editor
Joe Mirando -- "People Are Talking"
Michael Burkley -- "Unabashed Atariophile"
Albert Dayes -- "CC: Classic Chips"
Rob Mahlert -- Web site
Thomas J. Andrews -- "Keeper of the Flame"
With Contributions by:
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=~=~=~=
A-ONE #0650 12/10/04
~ Creative Away Messages ~ People Are Talking! ~ Unplug Occasionally!
~ Push For More Security ~ Adware War Hits Court! ~ PSP Hits Japan!
~ Grokster Case To SJC! ~ AOL IM Users Locked Out ~ Spiritual Spam?
~ Team Up Against Phish! ~ Video Games Relax Kids! ~ China Bans Game!
-* Anti-Spyware Market To Boom! *-
-* Most Browsers Vulnerable to Pop-Ups *-
-* EU Wants To Make Internet Children Safe! *-
=~=~=~=
->From the Editor's Keyboard "Saying it like it is!"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Well, the next holiday season is upon us. The cold weather, some rain and
snow, and the holiday sales. It's been one heck of a week! Although the
calendar doesn't agree, winter is just around the corner.
Last week I mentioned that I'll likely be bringing back some articles from
yesteryear regarding some of my memorable Atari experiences. That will
still be happening. It's fun to recall some of enjoyment that I had once I
got involved with Atari computers. I still remember my first ST (I still
have that 520!). Going to my favorite Atari dealer (The Computer Cache),
and pawing over the latest software and magazines. I remember my user
group, and getting involved in its monthly newsletter. Did you ever attend
an AtariFest? I did - quite a few, in fact. Being online at GEnie, Delphi,
and CompuServe in their Atari-related forums. There was a lot of activity
in those years - mostly all good. The down sides occurred as Atari started
its downward spiral. But I think that the enjoyment, mixed with the
unbelievable faith of the userbase, kept things alive. It's still alive;
we're all a testament of that.
So, stayed tuned to our future issues. I'll be doing some digging out of
the archives, and we'll bring back some of those memories. In the meantime,
if you have some memorable experiences that you'd like to share, drop us a
line.
Until next time...
=~=~=~=
PEOPLE ARE TALKING
compiled by Joe Mirando
joe@atarinews.org
Hidi ho friends and neighbors. I'm afraid that I'm not going to be
providing much in the way of uplifting dialogue this time around. Our
family pet, a prairie dog, got sick and had to be put to sleep last
weekend. He's been a member of our family for more than eight years, and
it's hard to imagine him not being here anymore.
So let's just say that I'm getting ready for the holidays, and wishing
you a safe, happy, and healthy holiday season and hope that you'll
remember that it's not just yourself you've got to watch out for while
going out and celebrating... it's the other guy too.
This is a very special time of year. It's a holy season for at least 3 of
the world's major religions. I keep thinking that there's a reason for
that, but I'm either not smart enough or not religious enough to figure
out why.
Don't forget to drop by the local homeless shelter or soup kitchen and
make a little donation of money, food or time. If you have to think
about what you've got to be grateful for, then you could probably do
with a little bit of time in a quiet place thinking about what you've
got.
Well, let's get to the news, hints, tips and info available on the
UseNet.
From the comp.sys.atari.st NewsGroup
====================================
Sam F. asks about running games on a CT60 with MiNT:
"Just wondering, what games will I be able to play on my falcon/ct60
running Mint? Also, will Backward run on it so that I can play some ST
games?"
Greg Goodwin tells Sam:
"Don't expect too much. I got World Conquest running in 060 mode by
turning off the cache, and of course most of the GEM-based games
(those that run in a window, like Solitare, Rosemary, etc.) don't seem
to care what hardware they are running on. I haven't done a complete
survey, but the handful of games I've tested on the CT60 didn't care
much for the experience. I haven't tested Backward, but I'd be really
surprised if it worked.
However, if you wire a little on/off switch to the CT60 you will be
able to access 030 mode where the computer completely ignores the
CT60. This is a simple rank beginner's project if you use a 2 pin
connector for the CT60 instead of soldering to it.
If you use HDDriver, I'd also suggest having a small non-Mint
partition designed solely around non-compliant software like games.
Holding down the drive's letter at bootup will cause HDDriver to boot
from that drive."
Ronald Hall asks Sam:
"Wasn't Rodolphe going to put a list of CT60 compatible games up
on his website? Did he ever do that?"
Sam tells Ronald:
"I checked yesterday, and I didn't see anything on games compatibility.
I hope somebody can come up with one."
Sam now asks:
"Are there any Atari Users' Groups left in the U.S.?"
Edward Baiz tells Sam:
"I belong to two. One is in my area (South Bend/Notre Dame) called
I.M.A.G.E. and the other is in Chicago that is called S.C.A.T. If you
want to join, just email me. The IMAGE price is $10/year...."
Mike Freeman adds:
"Not that we're anywhere close to either of you, but we have a nice
little group of three of us in Tucson, AZ (one of which I believe
writes an article for your IMAGE newsletter - Dave Acklam). We don't
meet very regularly or often, but from time to time we demo our
machines or chat about recent Atari news over coffee or nachos. So, if
you're ever in the Tucson area..."
Ronald Hall asks about setting up an Atari-based BBS on the internet:
"Can anyone give details or point me to a good FAQ/Howto for setting up
an Atari-based BBS over the internet?
I've got cable-modem service here. I run Mandrake Linux.
I used to sysop an Atari based BBS, via dial-up, back in the mid 90's,
called "The DarkForce! BBS". I'd love to get it up and running again."
Derryck Croker tells Ronald:
"I still remember the days of the Tavern and Fortress BBS in London, I
made some good friends through them. Best of luck with your venture."
Mark Duckworth tells Ronald:
"Well. You have two options. You could either:
A: Run the only native Atari BBS package. Octopus BBS and use an Ethernec
or some sort of internet connection to provide internet access to said
Atari.
or...
B: Run pretty much ANY Atari BBS package and use a special program that
basically converts telnet into a modem emulator, which will talk to the
serial port of your atari. I know they exist, Not sure where to find
one.
If you go the Octopus route, I'm your man as far as assistance is
concerned."
Marius Diepenhorst adds:
"Try to get a LANTRONIX UDS-10 device. It acts like a modem but it is a
LAN -> RS232 converter. So with that device you can have incoming and
outgoing 'calls' like modem ones via the internet.
I ran my Atari 8bit bbs with such a thing. The Lantronix MSS-10 or MSS-100
will do too. But in that case you have to make a custom rs232 cable (easy
job)
More info www.lantronix.com
this is the info of the UDS-10
http://www.lantronix.com/device-networking/external-device-servers/uds-10.html
It is REALLY a cool thing. Not only for you, but for more atari fans I
guess."
Ronald tells Marius:
"Wow, that sounds like just the ticket. I went to the website,
checked it out, and ordered it from a distributor.
I'm sure that once I get it I'll have a kazillion questions, but just a
couple for now:
How is the speed? Is it pretty responsive for the person using it across
the Net?
No special software, aside from your BBS package is needed, I gather? I
don't do Windows, so I hope its nothing like that."
Lonny Pursell adds:
"You might want to double check the rules regarding the use on your
account firstly. Many cable providers do not allow incoming
connections/servers and so forth running from home. That is the case in
my area. I would be forced to get a business account for that."
Ronald replies to Lonny:
"Argh. I was afraid of that. So I couldn't even let users telnet in?
Guess I'll have to call them."
Lonny tells Ronald:
"I think the term is a telnet daemon which at least in my ISP rules and
regulations is mentioned as a no-no. Depends heavily on the ISP, you
could set it up and they may never notice, or 2 days later get in
trouble.
I didn't mean to rain on the parade. Just wanted to make sure you didn't
get your account suspended by accident."
'Chris' asks for help with an EZDrive:
"I'm trying to get my EZdrive to work on my falcon and PC to transfer
files.
I can format and store files on my falcon fine, I can do the same on my
PC, but whenever I swap the drive over the PC just shows a blank disk.
If I format on the PC and store files, the Falcon wont even open up the
drive.
Should I be formatting in FAT16 or FAT32 ?? I had some limited luck with
FAT16 but I was limited to about 12MB on the disk for some odd reason and
I couldn't get more than 512 files on it, when I swapped to my PC I just
got 3 corrupt files on the disk. I've tried messing with HD8, and out
of ideas, it don't seem to want to work on both machines."
Uwe Seimet tells Chris:
"Simply create a TOS/Windows compatible media with one partition on it
(also refer to the HDDRIVER manual). This is the easiest way for
exchanging data. FAT16 is fine."
Chris tells Uwe:
"that did the job, I dunno why it wouldn't work the first few times I
tried it. It's working now, I think in FAT32 mode, I think fat16 snuffed
out at 512 files."
Well folks, that's it for this week. Tune in again next week, same time,
same station, and be ready to listen to what they are saying when...
PEOPLE ARE TALKING
=~=~=~=
->In This Week's Gaming Section - Video Games Help Hospital Kids!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" China Bans Video Game!
PSP Hits Japan!
=~=~=~=
->A-ONE's Game Console Industry News - The Latest Gaming News!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Video Games Used to Relax Kids in Hospital
Letting children play video games on a Game Boy in the operating room
before undergoing surgery can help relax them better than tranquilizers or
holding Mommy's hand, researchers say.
Doctors found that allowing children a few minutes to play the games
reduced their anxiety until the anesthesia took effect.
Dr. Anu Patel conducted the study after noticing a friend's 7-year-old son
was so absorbed with his Game Boy at a restaurant that he ignored the
adults and the food at his table.
"We find that the children are just so happy with the Game Boy that they
actually do forget where they are," said Patel, an anesthesiologist at
University Hospital in Newark who plans to present her findings Saturday
at a medical conference.
Patel said the findings could be helpful because many parents do not want
tranquilizers given to their children.
Youngsters who are traumatized before surgery run the risk of long-term
psychological problems, including nightmares, bed wetting and fear of being
alone.
In addition, strapping a restless, frightened child to an operating table
can cause a temporary blood pressure spike, make the heart race and trigger
stress hormones that can delay healing, said Patel, also an assistant
professor at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.
Other hospitals have long used teddy bears and games to distract children
before surgery, but those techniques are generally employed in patient
rooms, playrooms and waiting areas, not in the operating room. At
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, kids are encouraged to play in waiting
areas before surgery and to take a "comfort item" - occasionally a Game
Boy - into the operating room.
A Boston company, Design Continuum Inc., has begun testing a combination
anesthesia mask and headset that would allow patients to play video games
or listen to music, but distribution is years away.
Patel studied 4- to 12-year-olds in three groups of 26 children each. All
had parents with them in the operating room until they were anesthetized.
One group also got a tranquilizer, and the third group played with a Game
Boy.
On average, the Game Boy group showed no increase in anxiety before
surgery. But on a standard, 100-point scale for measuring preoperative
anxiety, the tranquilizer group jumped 7.5 points and the parents-only
group 17.5 points.
Shani Willis, whose 10-year-old daughter Nykia had a cyst removed at the
Newark hospital Tuesday, said the girl was nervous until she got a Game
Boy. She then relaxed and played with it until she was anesthetized. "It
was like she put everything out of her mind," Willis said.
The hospital is considering making Game Boy use standard before pediatric
surgery.
Dr. Erin Stucky, head of the American Academy of Pediatrics' committee on
hospital care, said Game Boys should be used more widely in hospitals if a
larger study produces the same results.
"This is great because this offers a wonderful ability to have the child's
attention immersed elsewhere," she said.
China Bans British Video Game for Political Reasons
China has banned an online sports game because it portrays Taiwan, Hong
Kong, Macau and Tibet as independent countries.
As China gains more economic clout and gets a higher profile through moves
like the recent Lenovo and IBM deal, bans on games and software highlight
the country's extreme sensitivity about political commentary and global
culture.
"China has been very focused on control, in every area of culture, and
that's always included games," Jason Della Rocca, program director for the
International Game Developers Association told NewsFactor.
Not only would game companies need to address the censorship issue, but
China's lack of copyright laws make for widespread, unauthorized
duplication.
"The market for China is huge, but most game developers aren't that
interested in trying to get into it," Della Rocca added. "There are just
too many roadblocks."
Sony Says All Systems Go for PSP Launch
Sony Computer Entertainment is ready for the long-awaited launch of its
PSP (PlayStation Portable) device on Sunday in Japan, its chief technical
officer says.
"I think everything is ready," Masa Chatani, CTO and corporate executive
of SCEI, says in an interview. "Since we made the announcement of the price
and launch date, we've gotten very positive and strong feedback from
retailers and customers. Even Sony employees have provided very positive
feedback and told us they are going to buy it. That's a very positive
sign."
SCEI aims to have 200,000 PSPs available in Japan for its launch, which
also marks Sony's entry into the handheld gaming sector. After the initial
launch, it is planning to supply 100,000 units for each of the last three
weeks of the year. The company's aim is to ship half a million units to
Japanese retailers by the end of 2004.
Chatani wouldn't comment on whether the company will meet its shipment
target for Sunday, but said it is unlikely to ship substantially fewer
units than anticipated.
"We're still not launched yet," he says. "We are still manufacturing
day-by-day. I haven't counted all the units."
All signs point towards strong demand. Many retailers are planning to open
their doors several hours earlier than normal and long lines are expected.
Queues have already been seen at retailers taking advance orders for the
device.
"So far, [the feedback] we've got is very positive from retailers. It's a
good sign of it selling well but I won't know until the first day comes,"
Chatani says. "Overall, everyone has asked us to give them more."
The PSP has a 4.3-inch, wide-screen TFT LCD that dominates the front of the
unit. To the right of the display are four control buttons for game play,
while a direction pad sits to its left.
A close-to-final production version shown by the company on Friday had a
bright, sharp picture. The device appeared well made, with a satisfying,
solid feel. The game pads were easy to use and firm and there were no
visible glitches or problems, either in the game play or the construction
of the unit itself.
The PSP also features built-in support for IEEE802.11b wireless LAN,
allowing them to connect to the Internet through an access point for online
gaming and to download new games. Users can also use the LAN support to
create an ad-hoc network of up to 16 PSP terminals, SCEI says. Other
networking support includes a USB 2.0 port, MemoryStick Pro Duo slot, and
IrDA port.
Sony plans to launch the PSP in the U.S. and Europe during the first
quarter of 2005. Chatani offered no update on that schedule.
=~=~=~=
A-ONE's Headline News
The Latest in Computer Technology News
Compiled by: Dana P. Jacobson
Anti-Spyware Market Set To Boom
The deluge of spyware festering on consumer and corporate PCs will help to
spark a boom in spending on security software, a new report from
Framingham, Massachusetts-based IDC predicts.
Anti-spyware software revenues will rise from US$12 million in 2003 to $305
million in 2008, with traditional antivirus software vendors, such as
Norton and McAfee, competing with dedicated anti-spyware companies for
leadership of the market, according to the study.
Spyware, also known as adware or malware, is infecting millions of
computers with multiple purposes: stealing personal information, enabling
identity theft, tracking users' online activity, and selling the
information back to anyone willing to pay.
IDC estimates that 67 percent of all computers - mostly consumer PCs - have
some form of spyware.
At the moment, key players in the spyware detection market include
specialist vendors, such as Webroot and Computer Associates-owned
PestPatrol. However, the IDC report argues that anti-spyware will
increasingly become part of antivirus vendors' offerings.
"Currently, some antivirus software vendors are more focused on spyware
than others," said IDC analyst Brian Burke. "For example, Norton has not
been as focused on spyware as its rivals, such as McAfee, but it is rapidly
catching up and will be bringing out a product.
Spyware is very different from viruses, he noted, and is much more
difficult to eliminate because it establishes itself in a computer's
registry. And different anti-spyware programs will not all find the same
spyware when they do a scan of a computer hard drive.
"What I think will happen is that the antivirus vendors will take the lead
in tackling spyware because, in the corporate market, I.T. managers have
an established relationship with firms such as Norton and McAfee. They will
not want anyone but a trusted vendor getting into the registry of
spyware-infected machines."
The IDC report argues that the biggest threat from spyware is in the
enterprise environment.
"I see a massive business opportunity for anti-spyware vendors," Burke
said. "Spyware is not just a nuisance for consumers, but an I.T.
management nightmare for corporates."
This is particularly the case in small to mid-size companies, which don't
have sufficient I.T. staffing resources, he said. "In some cases, infected
PCs can become very slow, prompting users to keep making calls to I.T. help
desks."
On the consumer side, people don't want anyone stealing their personal data
through spyware that carries out keystroke logging, he said.
"But for a business, there may well be legal requirements for privacy,
particularly in the financial services industry. Organized crime is now
taking an interest in spyware, seeing it as a way to steal information."
Adware War Heading to Federal Court
Is all fair in love, war and adware? A federal court may help decide - as
far as adware goes, at least - in a case involving software from one
company uninstalling a rival's computer code.
Avenue Media, based in the Dutch Caribbean island of Curacao, is suing New
York-based DirectRevenue in U.S. District Court in Seattle.
According to court documents, Avenue Media noticed in mid-November a
considerable drop in the use of its product, the so-called Internet
Optimizer. Avenue Media, which says it has lost millions of users and
thousands of dollars in advertising as a result, blames DirectRevenue's
software, which included a tool to delete Avenue Media's.
In a response this week, DirectRevenue said that Avenue Media had signed
a distribution agreement with one of its subsidiaries to distribute
DirectRevenue's technology. DirectRevenue claims that agreement inferred
the right to uninstall rival products.
Both companies make technology, commonly known as adware, that directs
users to advertisements based on their Web-surfing habits. Such software
usually piggybacks onto users' machines when they download free programs,
such as online games.
Many people consider adware to be a major annoyance because it can skew
search results toward paid listings and blast pop-up ads.
Experts Push for More U.S. Computer Security Efforts
Computer-security experts, including former government officials, urged the
George W. Bush administration on Tuesday to devote more effort to
strengthening defenses against viruses, hackers and other online threats.
The Bush administration should spend more on computer-security research,
share threat information with private-sector security vendors, and set up
an emergency computer network that would remain functional during Internet
blackouts, the Cyber Security Industry Alliance said.
The Homeland Security Department should also give more authority to the
official who oversees cyber security, members of the computer-security
trade group said. The Homeland Security Department opposes the move.
"There's certainty across the cyber-security community that we are still
vulnerable and we need to do more," said Amit Yoran, who served as Homeland
Security's point man on cyber security until he abruptly resigned in
October amid reports he was frustrated with his lack of authority.
An official with the Homeland Security Department's National Cyber Security
Division said the 120-person office has been able to limit the harmful
effects of at least one virus and has helped to track down online criminals
in 28 countries.
"We've made good progress over the past year-plus, and continue to drive
forward," said Lawrence Hale, a deputy director in the cyber-security
division.
After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, experts warned that power plants and
other vital parts of the nation's infrastructure could be compromised
through online hacking.
Business and home computer users, meanwhile, have struggled with a flood of
viruses, spam and other plagues that have evolved in the past year into
coordinated criminal attempts to steal bank account numbers and other
sensitive information.
The Bush administration developed a plan to improve security that relies
heavily on industry cooperation and charged the Homeland Security
Department with implementing it.
Over the past 18 months, Yoran and other Homeland Security officials have
worked to increase coordination between law-enforcement officials and
security vendors like Symantec Corp. and RSA Security Inc.
The government has also struggled to upgrade the security of its own
systems, which consistently get failing grades from congressional
investigators.
Security experts said the government's efforts haven't been enough.
"I think we've raised the profile, but I don't think we got the support
within the administration that we should have," said Art Coviello, the
chief executive at RSA Security.
The government should try to estimate the damages caused by online attacks,
secure online control systems for water-treatment plants and other critical
infrastructure, and urge the Senate to ratify an international cyber-crime
treaty, Coviello and other security experts said at a press conference.
One especially important move, they said, would be to elevate Yoran's
successor to the assistant-secretary level within the Homeland Security
Department.
House of Representatives lawmakers had included that provision within the
massive intelligence reorganization bill, but Homeland Security officials
convinced the Senate to leave it out.
Tech Firms, FBI to Fight 'Phishing' Scams Together
Internet companies and law-enforcement agencies said on Wednesday they will
work together to track down online scam artists who pose as banks and other
legitimate businesses, a practice known as "phishing."
Businesses will be able to notify the FBI and other authorities instantly
when they see a new phishing attack - a necessary move when pursuing
fly-by-night scam artists who close up shop quickly, participants in the
Digital PhishNet project said.
"Speed is everything. Immediate action is key to not only shutting it down
but to getting any information while something is still operating," said
Les Seagraves, chief privacy officer of Internet service provider
EarthLink Inc.
Phishing has emerged as a potent online threat over the past two years,
combining "spam" e-mail with slick Web sites that trick consumers into
giving out bank-account numbers, passwords and other sensitive information.
Phishing e-mails often come cloaked in the corporate logos of legitimate
businesses like eBay Inc. or Citibank, bearing messages like "account
update needed."
Internet users who click on a link in the message are directed to a Web
site asking for their account numbers. Scam artists then resell that
information to identity thieves or use it themselves.
Other members of Digital PhishNet include Microsoft Corp., America Online
Inc., Lycos Inc., Digital River Inc., VeriSign Inc. and Network Solutions.
Nearly 1,200 phishing sites and 7,000 unique phishing e-mail messages were
reported in October to the Anti-Phishing Working Group, a consortium of
banks, online retailers and other businesses formed earlier this year to
fight the problem.
Phishing sites were online for an average of 6.4 days before they were
taken down, the group said.
Though the phishing attacks are growing more sophisticated since they first
appeared in early 2003, consumers are becoming more sophisticated as well,
EarthLink's Seagraves said.
EarthLink received 20,000 phone calls from confused customers when the
company was first spoofed in a phishing attack a year ago, he said.
"Now we get maybe less than 300 calls, and almost all of those are, 'Hey
you have another phishing attack,"' Seagraves said.
Participating law-enforcement agencies include the FBI, the Federal Trade
Commission, the U.S. Secret Service and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Supreme Court Will Hear Grokster Case
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear a case focusing on whether
peer-to-peer software vendors should be penalized for unauthorized file
trading when their software is used.
The Supreme Court decision follows rulings by lower courts that P-to-P
vendors aren't liable for copyright violations committed by users of their
services. In August, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled
unanimously to uphold a lower court ruling that P-to-P companies Grokster,
StreamCast Networks, and MusicCity.com were not liable for users' copyright
violations.
The Recording Industry Association of America and the Motion Picture
Association of America applauded the Supreme Court's decision. The two
trade groups, along with the National Music Publisher's Association of
America, brought the original lawsuit against P-to-P services, but a
district court judge dismissed the case in April 2003.
By allowing P-to-P services to continue operating, the courts disadvantaged
so-called legitimate services, Mitch Bainwol, RIAA chairman and chief
executive officer, says in a statement. P-to-P vendors should be able to
filter copyrighted material on their networks, just as most P-to-P vendors
now filter out viruses, he adds.
"We appreciate that the Supreme Court has agreed to review this case," he
adds. "There are seminal issues before the court - the future of the
creative industries and legitimate Internet commerce. These are questions
not about a particular technology, but the abuse of that technology by
practitioners of a parasitical business model. Bad actors who have hijacked
a legitimate technology for illegitimate means must be held accountable."
P-to-P vendors have argued that the music industry refuses to license its
products to them and instead has focused on suing P-to-P users. Since
September 2003, the RIAA has filed more than 7000 lawsuits against alleged
file traders.
Public Knowledge, an intellectual property advocacy group, called on the
Supreme Court to act consistently with its ruling in the 1984 Sony vs.
Universal City Studios case. In that case, involving VCR technology, the
court decided that makers of technologies that have significant
noninfringing uses could not be held liable for copyright violations
committed by their customers.
"The Sony case is at the heart of the technological growth for the last 20
years," says Gigi B. Sohn, president of Public Knowledge. "Now is not the
time to hamper it or crimp it in any way."
It's understandable why the Supreme Court would want to hear the Grokster
case because it's interesting, Sohn says. "I do hope the court confirms
what the district court said - that is, technologies are disruptive, and
[entertainment] companies always manage to respond to them," she adds.
Sohn and Adam Eisgrau, executive director of trade group P2P United, says
the Supreme Court's decision to take the case doesn't mean it's likely that
the court will overturn the lower courts' decisions. Grokster and
StreamCast, distributor of the Morpheus P-to-P software, are both members
of P2P United. MusicCity.com was a site operated by StreamCast. Eisgrau
expressed optimism based on the Ninth Circuit's legal reasoning and the
precedence of the Sony case.
"We are confident the court will find a path that will not stymie
innovation in the interest of parochial entertainment groups," Eisgrau
says.
Most Browsers Vulnerable to Pop-Up Attack
Security firm Secunia has issued a series of advisories, warning that most
Web browsers are vulnerable to an attack that launches pop-up window next
to legitimate Web sites.
"This is a serious concern," Secunia chief technology officer Thomas
Kristensen told NewsFactor. "It could be a very effective way to do
phishing attacks."
The Danish company has published five advisories, singling out Internet
Explorer, Firefox, Opera, Konqueror and Safari. But Kristensen noted that
the vulnerability affects almost all browsers.
The vulnerability can occur because of the way most browsers allow pop-up
windows to launch. Browsers do not check whether the content in such a
window is connected to the legitimate site.
This means a trusted site and a malicious site can be opened at the same
time, and users will be led to believe that they are connected with one
another.
The technique is common in phishing attacks, Kristensen said, which makes
it particularly dangerous in terms of identity theft. "People could
definitely be tricked by this," he said.
Browser vendors were contacted before the advisories were published,
according to Secunia, but so far none have issued patches or discussed an
estimated patch date.
Kristensen is hopeful that vendors will act quickly to reduce the risk. "We
think they should be paying attention to this," he said. "We're hoping to
see some patches soon."
Until patches are available, Secunia is directing individuals to the firm's
site, which has a demonstration that allows users to test their browsers.
Some users have switched from flaw-plagued Internet Explorer to other
browsers like Firefox and Opera because they desired better security.
But Kristensen warned that every browser is a large and complex piece of
software, making it difficult to prevent attacks completely.
Because of this, Secunia is focused on browser vulnerabilities because the
firm believes that browser developers have a responsibility to provide
secure products.
"Everyone who's online uses a browser, so these flaws affect many people,"
said Kristensen. "Browser vendors need to do everything they can to limit
these vulnerabilities."
EU Wants to Make Internet Safe for Children
The European Union has launched a 45 million euro ($60 million) plan to
protect children from pornography and racist sites when they surf the
Internet.
"Children are using the Internet more and more and can come across
dangerous content. It's essential to inform parents what tools they can
use," Viviane Reding, the European Information Society and Media
Commissioner, told a news conference.
Around 60 percent of children regularly surf the Internet in Scandinavia
and countries such as Britain, the Netherlands, Estonia and the Czech
Republic, data issued by the European Commission on Thursday showed.
But most parents are not aware of the potential risks or do not know who to
contact when they come across harmful content, Reding said.
The four-year EU program follows up a 38 million euro project that led to
the creation of "hotlines" where parents could report illegal content found
on the Internet.
It will increase the number of hotlines, finance technology to filter out
pornography and raise awareness among parents and children, though it was
not clear if the funds will be distributed to member states or used at the
European level.
As an example of the project's value, Reding said existing hotlines, active
in 18 EU states and Iceland, had helped the police to crack down on
pedophile networks.
"Last month a tip from the hotline in Spain led to the arrest of 90 people,
the largest operation against a pedophile network in the country," she
said.
AOL Locks Out IM Users
America Online Inc. has confirmed that it mistakenly deactivated a number
of AOL Instant Messenger accounts this week as part of its regular cycle of
opening unused screen names to new users.
AOL, whose instant messaging service is among the most widely used
worldwide, had begun releasing screen names that had gone unused when it
snarled the accounts of some active users in the process, an AOL
spokeswoman confirmed to eWEEK.com. The Dulles, Va., company is working to
restore the mistakenly turned-off accounts by Monday.
"This week, we released a group of AIM screen names which was
overwhelmingly comprised of just such abandoned screen names," AOL
spokeswoman Krista Thomas said in a statement.
"Unfortunately, however, a small number of active screen names was also
inadvertently included."
AOL typically only reopens screen names from accounts that have been
inactive for about 12 months or more. AOL would not say how many active
users were affected.
What about IM use at work? Click here to learn about its impact.
The mistake surprised AIM users, many of whom took to Weblogs to try to
figure out if they were alone in being cut off from IM.
Joi Ito, a well-know venture capitalist with Tokyo-based Neoteny Co. Ltd.,
wrote in his blog Thursday about receiving a message that his AIM account
had been suspended when he tried to launch the service.
"Does anyone know what this error means and how I resolve it?" he asked
his blog readers.
At least two readers responded that they, too, could not log into their
AIM accounts.
"We sincerely regret the interruption of service which some users may have
experienced as a result, and we apologize for the inconvenience this
interruption may have caused," Thomas said.
Coming Soon to an Inbox Near You: 'Spiritual Spam'
Internet users praying for salvation from junk mail face a new torment -
"Spiritual Spam."
Along with the flood of messages offering everything from mortgages to
miracle cures, they are now being asked to repent and pray.
"We are seeing more and more of it. It appears to be on the rise," said
Martin Lee of e-mail security company MessageLabs.
"The God-botherers are using the techniques of the 21st century. It's
Spiritual Spam and almost all of it is Christian," he told Reuters.
The prayers appear mostly to originate from native English speakers in the
United States.
"They are very good at hiding where they are. A lot of the stuff is relayed
through China," Lee said.
He said it is easier to act against the electronic evangelists in Europe
than it is in the U.S.
"The United States 'Can Spam' Act only applies to commercial e-mail. If you
are trying to save their souls, then it is exempt from the U.S. Act. But it
is illegal under European Union law because it is unsolicited," Lee said.
The spiritual spammers are after souls rather than cash.
"These are old-style evangelicals wanting to spread the message," Lee said.
In one typical example, recipients are warned: "Eternity is a really long
time. If you or someone close to you has not accepted God, please do so
today."
Then came the prayer: "Deliver me from all my sinful habits. Set me free!"
Neil Hammerton, managing director of computer security company Email
Systems, said: "This does not come from mass spam companies. It's people
with requests they want to put out.
He said they use a database of well known e-mail addresses and spam
software they ca$48). for as little as 25 pounds (ddres
"They sit at the end of a Broadband connection and send out thousands of
e-mails overnight," he told Reuters.
But he reckoned that spiritual spam still makes up less than one percent
of the unwanted traffic that pours onto the Internet every day.
The latest review by Email Systems showed that medical content made up 48
percent of all spam. Next came pornography with 15 percent followed by
gambling with 11 percent and mortgages with nine percent.
Experts Urge People to Unplug Occasionally
Katie Achille grew up with the Internet. She was 9 when she first tapped
into it - and quickly became an avid e-mailer, Web surfer and sender of
instant messages. But when recent computer troubles left her without
regular Web access, something unexpected happened: To her surprise, she
suddenly felt free.
"I find the break from the Internet somewhat refreshing," says Achille, now
19 and a junior at Rutgers University in New Jersey. "After spending a good
portion of my freshman and sophomore years holed up here in my dorm room
typing away to friends, I feel like I missed just sitting outside and
enjoying the weather or going for a walk, just because."
As technology's influence in the lives of young people becomes ever
greater, a few teens and twentysomethings are unplugging - getting away
from the Internet and other high-tech gadgets, at least for a while.
It's a backlash, experts say, to being hyper-accessible by e-mail, instant
message, cell phone calls and text messages. People are spending more and
more time in front of a computer screen or futzing with technological
devices. Sometimes, they just need a timeout.
"It's like being lost in space. You get lost in the world of the Internet,
games or multiple instant-message chats," says Michelle Weil, co-author of
"TechnoStress: Coping with Technology @ Work @ Home @ Play."
She and fellow psychologist Larry Rosen wrote the book after noticing that
more people were getting stressed out or fatigued by technologies that are
supposed to make life easier.
Dave Greenfield, another psychologist who specializes in high-tech issues,
knows the feeling well. He regularly carries a cell phone, a pager, an MP3
player for music, a laptop and a personal digital assistant, otherwise
known as a PDA - and says that even he often feels overwhelmed.
"Until technology gets 'stupid simple,' equivalent to turning on a light
or a television set, it's going to eat time and energy," Greenfield says.
Too often, he says, we're wondering: "Do I have the right adapter? Or the
right battery? Or cable?"
He concedes that young people are often much better at adopting new forms
of technology than middle-aged people like him are. They also widely
consider computers and other high-tech devices essential to their lives,
evidenced in a recent survey done by Harris Interactive for the Business
Software Alliance.
A third of young people surveyed said they "couldn't live without"
technology, while another 50 percent said it was "important."
Still, figuring out how to juggle that technology is a work in progress,
psychologists and other experts say, and the solution is often dependent
on the individual.
Amanda Lenhart, a researcher who tracks young people's Web habits, tells
the story of one teen she interviewed who created two screen names for
instant messaging - the second of which she shared with just a select few
friends to avoid having to talk to so many people.
"She felt she was too in demand," says Lenhart, who's with the Pew
Internet & American Life Project. "There are some people who love being in
the mix - and others who are saying 'Agh, it's too much! I don't want to be
part of the mix.'"
Ultimately, many people are finding that they click with some forms of
technology more than others.
Achille, the Rutgers student, prefers phone calls over having to type to
communicate. Once or twice a week, she uses her cell phone to call friends
back home in Holmdel, N.J. - or, occasionally, sends them a funny text
message.
"But that's where it ends," she says.
Mac McNeer, a 27-year-old Chicagoan, can't stand text messages, especially
the ads his cell phone company sends to him. He also dislikes the idea of
having to work out which keys on his cell phone go with which letters.
"Why would you take several minutes to punch in a message that would take
10 seconds to leave on someone's voice mail?" asks McNeer, who keeps his
text message address a secret from friends and "tries to ignore" the ones
who still manage to send them.
Meanwhile, Cobey Dietrich, a 23-year-old who works at York College of
Pennsylvania, says she'd much rather talk face to face whenever possible.
She uses the Internet at work for all day, but rarely at home.
"If I'm getting good news from someone, I'd rather hear it in person so I
could be there to be excited for them and give them a hug. Or if they're
upset or hurting, then you can comfort them," she says.
At the very least, Dietrich would rather receive a call on her cell phone.
But sometimes, she even turns that off - a move that causes friends and
relatives to complain: "Why do you have a cell phone if you don't have it
on?"
Indeed, having the ability to stay in constant contact makes some people
feel obligated to be plugged in 24/7.
"There's a message that setting boundaries isn't right - an expectation
that we shouldn't set those boundaries," says Allan Stegeman, a professor
of communications at Drexel University in Philadelphia.
Greenfield notes that some people also feel pressure to keep up with the
latest technology, whether they need it or not.
"It points to a larger theme in our culture - that new things are good and
better, and that more is better, and faster is better. And that's not
always the case," says Greenfield, who wrote the book "Virtual Addiction,"
which looks at the adverse effects of spending too much time online.
Greenfield recalls a recent fall trip with his 10-year-old son to a YMCA
camp, where they were doing trail maintenance with a group of adults and
other kids - no TVs, computers or even hand-held video games.
"These kids had no technology with them," he says. "And they were as
thoroughly entertained and alive as I've ever seen them."
Weil agrees that taking a break from high-tech gadgets is vital - a point
she often addresses on the public speaking circuit. The key, she says, is
using technology to enhance life - and taking a step back when it doesn't.
"You need to have it," Weil says, "rather than it having you."
An Online Art Form: The Away Message
As people spend more time online - and logged into instant messaging
services - it's inevitable that there are times they just can't respond.
That's why the "away message" - set up to be sent automatically from
someone's account - has become so popular.
In the early days, such messages were pretty basic: "showering," "at
class," "eating" or "brb" (be right back). But now people are getting more
creative.
Alan Danzis, a 23-year-old Web user from Hoboken, N.J., often relies on
quotes from his favorite TV characters:
_ "I know you'll never love me. I know that I'm a monster. But you treat me
like a man, and that's ..." (Spike from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer")
_ "Me fail English? That's umpossible." (Ralph from "The Simpsons")
The staff at AOL RED, America Online's service for teens, also sees
pithy one-liners, such as:
_ "What Im Lookin For Isnt On Ebay"
_ "Beware! I shout out random facts!"
_ " Life: Priceless For everything else ... 'Dad, I need your MasterCard!'"
And Jason Elsky liked the "to do" list his 22-year-old sister, Michelle,
recently used as an away message after graduating from Indiana University
and moving back home with her parents:
_ 1.Get a job
2.Get a car
3.Move out of the house
4.Get a boyfriend
5.Dump the boyfriend and get a dog
=~=~=~=
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