Maki & Brian DeLaet EduCyber founders

June 2005 EduNotes

Inside this edition of EduNotes: Firefox update, Quirky Web Sites, peer-to-peer computing and things to make using the XP operating system friendly and more personal. Send feedback or questions to edunotes@educyber.com.

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Popularity Brings Exposure

The Firefox browser that we have touted here as a good alternative to Internet Explorer is still a good choice. But as it grows in popularity, it attracts more attention from those nefarious virus writers and others of ill-intent. And so it goes.

Two critical flaws have been exposed in Firefox. Though the vulnerabilities have been exposed, it is not believed that anyone has actually exploited these vulnerabilities. If you use Firefox and haven't updated your browser yet, do it NOW. Simply go to Tools, Options, click on Advanced and scroll down to Software Update. Then click on the Check Now button and follow instructions if you don't have the latest. If you think you have the latest version, click on the Help menu and then on About Mozilla Firefox. The latest version is 1.0.4.

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Quirky Web Sites

Summer is upon us. If you find yourself with extra time on your hands, check out some of these sites. Please note that EduCyber does not endorse any of these sites, the list is provided as a means of distraction during the warm summer days. Also note that as of this writing, all links are current.

SETI: http://www.seti.org/
Are we alone? Visit this site to see if there is life beyond our world.

Ugly Dress: http://www.uglydress.com/
Getting married? Visit this site to see what NOT to ask your bridesmaids to wear.

Self-Arrest: http://www.ou.edu/oupd/selfarr2.htm
Are you a criminal? Feeling guilty? Visit this site to turn yourself in.

How it Really Happened: http://home.pacbell.net/hrwhite3/Contents.htm
Find out the horrible truth about the deaths of John F. Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley

Dead or Alive? http://www.deadoraliveinfo.com/
If you don't believe they're really dead, visit this site to find out if they or other famous people are still alive.

Your City, Left or Right? http://www.turnleft.com/places/
Follow this link to find out if the folks at Turn Left place your city in the liberal or conservative side of the political spectrum

We the People: http://www.givemeliberty.org/
Tired of paying income taxes each year? Join the folks who think Amendment 16 is illegal and your government is bilking you.

Space Station: http://www.boeing.com/defense-space/space/spacestation/flash.html
Not so much quirky as a good study for your students with too much time this summer.

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Peer to Peer Update

No, Napster was not the end of peer to peer computing. The latest and greatest is Bit Torrent. Bit Torrent allows users to share files in what is known as peer-to-peer technology. What is peer-to-peer? Some would compare it to borrowing a tool or even a favorite music CD from a neighbor. The fallacy in that comparison is that you don't return it when you're done. If your neighbor goes to the music store and buys a new CD for $25 and then you copy the music onto your computer for free – that's what most people think of regarding peer-to-peer networks. And that is what ultimately drove Napster to bankruptcy though it has returned as a legit pay-for-your-music company.

Other than the potential for new and / or obscure bands to get their music heard by others, I can think of no good reason for these peer-to-peer networks. A brief experience with Bit Torrent has only reinforced that thinking. The “official” bit torrent site lets you download lots of music for free. This music is mostly by the aforementioned new and / or obscure bands although the Grateful Dead and Phish have a lot of music available.

What did I find? All the music you could ever listen to by any just about any artist or group. All the pirated software you could ever install on your computer. And more pornography than any pervert could ever watch. So who is “moving” all of these illegal products? Well, at one point there were over 400,000 people logged on. I sincerely doubt that more than a handful were just investigating like I was.

Keep a close watch on your computer(s). If you are a parent or a boss, you could be liable for any damages or legal action aimed at those swapping files illegally.

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Making XP Yours

If you're using Windows XP, there are several things you can do to make your experience friendlier.

• Put a picture of your choosing as the background (the screen you see when your computer starts with icons on it): 1) Right click on the desktop and click on properties. Click on the desktop tab and choose a picture from there OR 2) While surfing the web, right click on the picture you like and choose Set as background.
• Add a toolbar to the taskbar (bar along the bottom of which the Start button is a part of). Right click on the taskbar, highlight toolbars and choose one that you'd like. To get rid of it, follow the steps again. I use the quick launch toolbar dozens of times a day. You can add or remove icons from the quick launch toolbar so the programs you use most are at your disposal. Others like using the address toolbar so they can surf the web even when their browser isn't open.
• Choose which system icons are on your desktop. Right click on the desktop and click on properties. Click on the desktop tab and then click on Customize Desktop. I recommend unchecking the “Run the Desktop Cleanup Wizard every 60 days” while you're here. The icons you can choose to add or remove from your desktop are: My Documents, My Computer, My Network Places and Internet Explorer.
• If you like to step back and look at the big picture, you might want to do the same thing with your screen resolution. Right click on the desktop, click on Properties and then on the Settings tab. Move the slider to the resolution you like and then click on Apply. If the screen goes dark and stays that way, don't panic, just wait 15 seconds and it will come back. Otherwise, if you like the new look, click ok and you're done.
• Move your desktop icons. If all of your icons are stuck on the left and you can't move them to other spots, right click on the desktop, highlight Arrange icons by and then click on Autoarrange to remove the check next to it. Now you can click and drag (click and hold the left mouse button) icons to wherever you want on the desktop.
• Get rid of unused icons. While I don't like the desktop cleanup wizard, you can remove all of the standard icons from your desktop yourself. For example, Adobe Acrobat Reader. Most people never click the icon on their desktop to use this program so there's no point in having it there. Either right-click the icon and click on Delete or simply click and drag it to the recycle bin.

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