Number 251 - April 2004

UPDATE
Projector Project     We have established a sinking fund to buy a new or used projector. With contributions from members present at meetings we are over halfway to our goal. If you don't or can't attend meetings, but can spare a few bucks and wish to contribute to the fund, send donations to your editor at the return address on the newsletter.    A projector will allow clear and professional presentations, demos of library offerings and dialup of active websites (such as the genealogy site done last year). SPAM Wars    Just because your editor has years of experience using computers doesn't mean he is infallible or even an expert in the field. Take everything he, or anyone else tells you with "a grain of salt". A bit of skepticism is a good thing. At the top of the Communications section are two articles, one by your editor, and in response to it (we sent her a copy), a response by a very knowledgable lady whose opinion we respect, Jean Wilcox of St. Petersburg Florida. Jean has struggled with the problem and given up on any scheme to automatically recognize and "handle" SPAM. Instead she has developed a technique which she describes in the brief article. Listen to her she knows whereof she speaks. BlackICE vs Witty Worm    If you are running BlackICE PC Protection 3.6 or BlackICE Server Protection 3.6 with file extensions cbz, ccb, ccd, or ccf, you are vulnerable to the Witty Worm and should upgrade your protection. To determine which file extension you are running invoke the screen display and click on Help/About BalckICE. If your version has one of the above extensions it is recommended that you go to the BlackICE Update Center and update your version of BlackICE PC or Server Protection.	ZoneAlarm Hole Patched    A spokesman for Zonelabs said the company ... will upgrade its free ZoneAlarm firewall to address a vulnerability found (in early March 2004) A patch was to have been issued before the end of March Do You Know This Man?    You have probably used something he wrote.    He spent five minutes writing the computer code that has bailed out the world's computer users for decades. The result was one of the most well-known computer key combinations around: what many of us know as the three finger salute--no not the Boy Scout one--we mean CtrlAltDel the universal bailout when things get so fouled up computer-wise that nothing else will help.    His name is David Bradley who, after 28.5 years with the company, recently retired from IBM. eBook Donation    We are grateful to eBook Systems for the donation of earlier versions of their Flip Album image viewing software to be raffled off. Two of our members were the happy recipients of the photoviewing probgram.
Number 251 - April 2004