4.02.2004
When Your PC has that "Not So Fresh Feeling"
To an extent, I have been an IT professional for more than 10 years. I remember the frustrations of dialing up with less-than a 28.8 modem, let alone a 33.6 or 56k. Yet besides those unfortunate souls who cannot find cable or DSL where they live, I cannot fathom why anyone would still be using dialup to connect to the net.
I have had cable now since 1997. My wife is a notorious penny-pincher (she can squeeze 'em until they scream) and even she sees the value in being able to "click-and-go." No waiting for the modems to dial up (2 of our 4 PC's don't even have a telephone modem), just BOOM; site is up faster than it takes for you to read this.
I've got solid defenses. I'm certain if someone wanted to spend the time, they could eventually crack them, but most of the time, it is far easier to look for that person who doesn't know any better. I have a four-port cable/DSL router on my system. It allows me to split my line to all four of our computers (two desktops and two laptops), and yes, all four of them can be online at the same time without any noticeable speed problems, and it doesn't cost me anything extra per month.
There is only one group of people who leave me with less enthusiasm then dial-up folk. AOL users. No self-respecting IT person I've ever known would let AOL NEAR his or her PC. It is the same old story over and over again. Every time they release a new version, people race to update to it, and then the problems begin. AOL "takes over" the system and makes changes to it, it conflicts with certain types of hardware, it doesn't like some feature of this program or that, or the virus protection thinks its a virus...yadda yadda yadda. I could make a living off of solving AOL version update issues. Half the time, AOL users call up their own tech support and they don't even know what the problems are or how to fix them!
The first thing to do if you really want to stop having problems with AOL- uninstall it and call your local cable or phone provider and get broadband. All those "pretty tools" AOL includes bloat the operating system beyond belief and drag down system performance until it's at a standstill. Windows is bad enough to put up with when it's working correctly. Adding AOL to Windows is like simultaneously pouring gasoline and gunpowder onto a raging forest fire.
Most people don't realize what it is that causes their systems to become slow, unstable, and unreliable. They run Windows for years, installing programs, downloading files, reinstalling programs, never once considering how much wear and tear this actually puts on the Windows Registry. Sooner or later, even if the user runs regular maintenance, Windows will become so unstable that it will crash more than it runs. Then it's time to totally reformat the hard drive and reinstall Windows from scratch. I generally do this 2 to 3 times a year, just to clean off the "clutter." You'd be amazed at how much faster my system runs just after I've done a clean reformat-reinstall. Just like anything else, a computer can accumulate waxy build-up. Sooner or later, it'll be time to clean house.
When it comes to E-mail, a surprising number of people have used Outlook Express or Outlook, simply because either one or the other (or both) came bundled with their PC's. I would venture to say that 75-85% of all computer viruses written today are transmitted via Outlook Express or Outlook, simply because so many people use it. This is exactly why I don't. I always had a thing for Netscape, but even I had to run away from it screaming when 6.0 came out. That's why I was so happy to find Mozilla. Mozilla is a free browser based upon the old Netscape Communicator 4.5 I used to love. Communicator had a browser, e-mail program, and Web page composer, address book, all in one. It was the greatest thing since sliced bread and the unbreakable plastic comb.
With everyone optimizing websites for Internet Explorer, it became too problematic to use Netscape for browsing, but I continued to use it's E-mail program until I found Mozilla. Mozilla is part of the Open Source movement. Anyone who wants to can learn how it works and create tools and plug-ins that enhance what it can do. There are all sorts of neat add-ins and plug-ins for Mozilla. It pretty much had all the things that made Netscape Communicator 4.5 such a great and powerful tool. But of course, this is not where my story ends.
The Mozilla team has been hard at work on a new browser and E-mail program. They call their new browser Firefox and their E-mail program is Thunderbird. I recently downloaded and installed these programs and I can honestly say that they are 10 times better than anything Microsoft could ever hope to produce. They are very easy to use and set up. I was up and running with them in minutes. I followed instructions on their site to create a simple file that allowed me to link my old bookmarks right into Firefox. Thunderbird is a full feature E-mail program that kicks the crap out of Spam, and provides all sorts of great tools for working with messages. The best part about it is I am NOT using Outlook Express or Outlook, which makes me less vulnerable to viruses written specifically to exploit Microsoft products.
Recently, I was given an old IBM Aptiva that needs a new hard drive. I plan to purchase a bigger one for my current PC and put one of my old ones into the Aptiva. I'm going to try running the Linux operating system on it.
Linux has many advantages over Windows; first and foremost, it's completely FREE (yes, it doesn't cost you anything but time). The other neat thing about Linux is that it is part of the Open Source project, meaning the source code for Linux is available for anyone who wants to figure it out and write programs for it (try that with Windows). This has produced an operating system that is surprisingly robust and free of bugs.
A vast majority of the people who use Linux also make improvements to it and share them regularly, there is no waiting for the mega conglomerate to release it's next service pack to fix why something won't work, as is the case with Windows. Linux is also popular because not too many people write viruses that affect it, in fact, I've yet to hear of a single virus. Linux used to be clunky looking, but today, it looks very much like the Windows environment. Many people would barely notice the difference, except maybe for no "blue screens of death." Of course Linux is based upon one of the most stable operating systems ever created by man: UNIX.
So what have we learned today? Dialup sucks, Broadband Rocks, AOL isn't worth the hassle, Outlook Express and Outlook are easy targets for viruses, Mozilla, Firefox, and Thunderbird are much better products, and Linux is quickly looking like a better choice over Windows.
The Angst of Dialup
The Broadband Revolution
AOL Watch
How Computer Viruses Work
Vulnerability in Microsoft Outlook Could Allow Code Execution (828040)
Outlook and Outlook Express
Mozilla Firefox Browser
Mozilla Thunderbird Project
The Many Flavors of UNIX
If You Don't Do Windows (Try Linux)
The Open Source Initiative
© 2004, J.S.Brown
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I have had cable now since 1997. My wife is a notorious penny-pincher (she can squeeze 'em until they scream) and even she sees the value in being able to "click-and-go." No waiting for the modems to dial up (2 of our 4 PC's don't even have a telephone modem), just BOOM; site is up faster than it takes for you to read this.
I've got solid defenses. I'm certain if someone wanted to spend the time, they could eventually crack them, but most of the time, it is far easier to look for that person who doesn't know any better. I have a four-port cable/DSL router on my system. It allows me to split my line to all four of our computers (two desktops and two laptops), and yes, all four of them can be online at the same time without any noticeable speed problems, and it doesn't cost me anything extra per month.
There is only one group of people who leave me with less enthusiasm then dial-up folk. AOL users. No self-respecting IT person I've ever known would let AOL NEAR his or her PC. It is the same old story over and over again. Every time they release a new version, people race to update to it, and then the problems begin. AOL "takes over" the system and makes changes to it, it conflicts with certain types of hardware, it doesn't like some feature of this program or that, or the virus protection thinks its a virus...yadda yadda yadda. I could make a living off of solving AOL version update issues. Half the time, AOL users call up their own tech support and they don't even know what the problems are or how to fix them!
The first thing to do if you really want to stop having problems with AOL- uninstall it and call your local cable or phone provider and get broadband. All those "pretty tools" AOL includes bloat the operating system beyond belief and drag down system performance until it's at a standstill. Windows is bad enough to put up with when it's working correctly. Adding AOL to Windows is like simultaneously pouring gasoline and gunpowder onto a raging forest fire.
Most people don't realize what it is that causes their systems to become slow, unstable, and unreliable. They run Windows for years, installing programs, downloading files, reinstalling programs, never once considering how much wear and tear this actually puts on the Windows Registry. Sooner or later, even if the user runs regular maintenance, Windows will become so unstable that it will crash more than it runs. Then it's time to totally reformat the hard drive and reinstall Windows from scratch. I generally do this 2 to 3 times a year, just to clean off the "clutter." You'd be amazed at how much faster my system runs just after I've done a clean reformat-reinstall. Just like anything else, a computer can accumulate waxy build-up. Sooner or later, it'll be time to clean house.
When it comes to E-mail, a surprising number of people have used Outlook Express or Outlook, simply because either one or the other (or both) came bundled with their PC's. I would venture to say that 75-85% of all computer viruses written today are transmitted via Outlook Express or Outlook, simply because so many people use it. This is exactly why I don't. I always had a thing for Netscape, but even I had to run away from it screaming when 6.0 came out. That's why I was so happy to find Mozilla. Mozilla is a free browser based upon the old Netscape Communicator 4.5 I used to love. Communicator had a browser, e-mail program, and Web page composer, address book, all in one. It was the greatest thing since sliced bread and the unbreakable plastic comb.
With everyone optimizing websites for Internet Explorer, it became too problematic to use Netscape for browsing, but I continued to use it's E-mail program until I found Mozilla. Mozilla is part of the Open Source movement. Anyone who wants to can learn how it works and create tools and plug-ins that enhance what it can do. There are all sorts of neat add-ins and plug-ins for Mozilla. It pretty much had all the things that made Netscape Communicator 4.5 such a great and powerful tool. But of course, this is not where my story ends.
The Mozilla team has been hard at work on a new browser and E-mail program. They call their new browser Firefox and their E-mail program is Thunderbird. I recently downloaded and installed these programs and I can honestly say that they are 10 times better than anything Microsoft could ever hope to produce. They are very easy to use and set up. I was up and running with them in minutes. I followed instructions on their site to create a simple file that allowed me to link my old bookmarks right into Firefox. Thunderbird is a full feature E-mail program that kicks the crap out of Spam, and provides all sorts of great tools for working with messages. The best part about it is I am NOT using Outlook Express or Outlook, which makes me less vulnerable to viruses written specifically to exploit Microsoft products.
Recently, I was given an old IBM Aptiva that needs a new hard drive. I plan to purchase a bigger one for my current PC and put one of my old ones into the Aptiva. I'm going to try running the Linux operating system on it.
Linux has many advantages over Windows; first and foremost, it's completely FREE (yes, it doesn't cost you anything but time). The other neat thing about Linux is that it is part of the Open Source project, meaning the source code for Linux is available for anyone who wants to figure it out and write programs for it (try that with Windows). This has produced an operating system that is surprisingly robust and free of bugs.
A vast majority of the people who use Linux also make improvements to it and share them regularly, there is no waiting for the mega conglomerate to release it's next service pack to fix why something won't work, as is the case with Windows. Linux is also popular because not too many people write viruses that affect it, in fact, I've yet to hear of a single virus. Linux used to be clunky looking, but today, it looks very much like the Windows environment. Many people would barely notice the difference, except maybe for no "blue screens of death." Of course Linux is based upon one of the most stable operating systems ever created by man: UNIX.
So what have we learned today? Dialup sucks, Broadband Rocks, AOL isn't worth the hassle, Outlook Express and Outlook are easy targets for viruses, Mozilla, Firefox, and Thunderbird are much better products, and Linux is quickly looking like a better choice over Windows.
The Angst of Dialup
The Broadband Revolution
AOL Watch
How Computer Viruses Work
Vulnerability in Microsoft Outlook Could Allow Code Execution (828040)
Outlook and Outlook Express
Mozilla Firefox Browser
Mozilla Thunderbird Project
The Many Flavors of UNIX
If You Don't Do Windows (Try Linux)
The Open Source Initiative
TANSTAAFL!
© 2004, J.S.Brown
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