Newsletter Archives

• Beware of Google’s .ZIP domain and password-embedded URLs

  Posted on May 29, 2023 at 02:45 CDT by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 20.22 • 2023-05-29

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  The security community is up in arms, because Google this month started selling domain names with deceptive endings such as .zip and .mov.

  Even worse, some browsers are allowing usernames and passwords to be embedded into URLs. This means following a link can expose users to viruses without any explicit action (such as clicking “OK”).

  Internet-standards bodies years ago prohibited usernames and passwords in URLs — but hackers still do it.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.22.0, 2023-05-29).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Public Defender Domain names, Google, Internet, Newsletters, security

• Longstanding feature requests, and their status

  Posted on May 29, 2023 at 02:44 CDT by Mary Branscombe • Comment in the Forums

  ONENOTE

  

  By Mary Branscombe

  We’ve been waiting a long time for the OneNote features promised in 2019.

  I asked Microsoft to tell us what’s coming when.

  The very first time I heard about OneNote, at a press briefing for Office 2003, I saw how useful it would be — but there were also some things that I thought wouldn’t work. I went over to talk to Microsoft’s Chris Pratley and spent the next 20 minutes trapping him in a corner between the wall and the lunch table, making suggestions and asking for changes, before a PR person tactfully extracted him.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.22.0, 2023-05-29).

  OneNote Features, Newsletters, OneNote, Status, updates

• Three typing tutors — no more “hunt and peck”

  Posted on May 29, 2023 at 02:43 CDT by Deanna McElveen • Comment in the Forums

  FREEWARE SPOTLIGHT

  

  By Deanna McElveen

  Let’s face it, life is too short to be taking 30 minutes to type out an email or a witty Facebook rebuttal.

  Today, I’m going to show you three best-of-the-best — and absolutely free — typing tutors. Each one is a bit different, and each one has some pretty nifty features. So sorry, Mavis Beacon. You’ve always been a nice lady, but you are getting expensive! There is always a free alternative.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.22.0, 2023-05-29).

  Freeware Spotlight Deanna's Freeware Spotlight, Newsletters, Training, Typing Tutors

• Is online banking secure?

  Posted on May 29, 2023 at 02:42 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  ON SECURITY

  

  By Susan Bradley

  Over the past few years, banks have been increasing their online footprint.

  From mobile banking with cell phones to remote depositing with check scanners, banking has drastically changed. Some of the changes are forced on us due to the changing hours of operation at our local banks, but some of the changes enhance our ability to get our funds where we want them to be.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.22.0, 2023-05-29).

  On Security Banking, Credit cards, Debit cards, Newsletters, Online Banking, Patch Lady Posts, Payment Processing

• Getting started with winget

  Posted on May 22, 2023 at 02:45 CDT by Simon Bisson • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 20.21 • 2023-05-22

  WINDOWS

  

  By Simon Bisson

  If you’ve used Linux, you’ll be familiar with package managers such as Debian’s apt and Red Hat’s yum.

  They keep track of what’s installed on your computer — downloading updates and installing new software, managing dependencies so you always have the right libraries for your code. Drop into your command line, type a few keystrokes, and you’re automatically up to date.

  Windows hasn’t really had the same design philosophy.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.21.0, 2023-05-22).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Windows 10 App Management, Deployment, Newsletters, Windows, winget

• No NumLock key? Problem solved! Here’s the fix.

  Posted on May 22, 2023 at 02:44 CDT by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  Most laptop makers are now leaving the NumLock key out of their smaller notebooks.

  That’s a disaster for people who’ve been getting symbols that aren’t on their keyboard by entering Alt+number — for instance, typing Alt+0169 on the numeric keypad to get the copyright sign (©).

  Some laptops have a function key for a “hidden” numeric keypad. But I’ll show you much easier ways. Read this today, and you’ll be writing documents faster — mañana!

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.21.0, 2023-05-22).

  Public Defender Keyboard remapping, Keyboards, Newsletters, NumLock, TenKeyLess, Windows

• Windows Storage Spaces

  Posted on May 22, 2023 at 02:43 CDT by Will Fastie • Comment in the Forums

  HARDWARE DIY

  

  By Will Fastie

  I decided to try Storage Spaces on Opal, just to see what it would be like.

  It’s a mixed bag. On the one hand, it’s less technically challenging than the Intel Rapid Storage Technology (RST) solution that lives partly in UEFI and partly in a Windows driver. On the other hand, it’s a work in progress, with some confusing configuration steps.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.21.0, 2023-05-22).

  Hardware DIY, Newsletters, RAID, RAID 1, Storage Spaces, Windows

• Is Secure Boot important for security?

  Posted on May 22, 2023 at 02:42 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  ON SECURITY

  

  By Susan Bradley

  During the last few months, some chinks have appeared in Secure Boot’s armor as the result of various attacks and vulnerabilities.

  Let’s go back in history and understand how we got here.

  When a computer boots up, and before the operating system is launched, other code runs. For many years, that was the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) pioneered by IBM in the original IBM PC. Unfortunately, inventive attackers found ways to permanently install malicious code as part of this launch sequence.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.21.0, 2023-05-22).

  On Security IPSec, Microsoft Outlook, Newsletters, Patch Lady Posts, Secure Boot, VPN

• All in on AI

  Posted on May 15, 2023 at 02:45 CDT by Will Fastie • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 20.20 • 2023-05-15

  MICROSOFT NEWS

  

  By Will Fastie

  On May 4, Microsoft announced the “next wave of AI innovation.”

  Well, we’ll see about that.

  There was no parade, nor any hoopla associated with this announcement. The entirety of the presentation was in a single blog post, which might have gone unnoticed had I not received an email from a Microsoft spokesperson telling me about it. That was unusual.

  But that’s not the news.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.20.0, 2023-05-15).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Microsoft News AI, Bing, Bing AI, Copilot, Microsoft Edge, Newsletters

• Browser security and privacy — with the right extensions

  Posted on May 15, 2023 at 02:44 CDT by Lance Whitney • Comment in the Forums

  INTERNET

  

  By Lance Whitney

  Each browser offers its own settings for security and privacy, but you can often control these options better via third-party extensions.

  Managing your online privacy and security is always a challenge, especially as you browse different websites where you shop, bank, invest, and sign in to accounts personal or professional.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.20.0, 2023-05-15).

  Internet Browser Extensions, Internet tracking, Newsletters, privacy, security, Web Browsers

• Upscayl — Killer robots are good at other things

  Posted on May 15, 2023 at 02:43 CDT by Deanna McElveen • Comment in the Forums

  FREEWARE SPOTLIGHT

  

  By Deanna McElveen

  All you hear about these days is the lightning-fast advancements of artificial intelligence. It’s as if no one had watched a single science-fiction movie in the past 30 years.

  Luckily, until our toasters take us out in our sleep, AI can be pretty useful. When you lack the skills to complete a necessary task, many free software programs that use AI are ready to help.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.20.0, 2023-05-15).

  Freeware Spotlight Deanna's Freeware Spotlight, Image manipulation, Newsletters

• May’s messy updates

  Posted on May 15, 2023 at 02:42 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  PATCH WATCH

  

  By Susan Bradley

  Although the May releases for both Windows and Apple have not introduced side effects or hiccups so far, they haven’t been as problem-free as they should have been.

  Apple released the first of its “rapid response” updates, announced last June and supposedly allowing the company to deploy important security-only software updates without demanding a reboot.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.20.0, 2023-05-15).

  Patch Watch Apple, Exchange Server, Newsletters, Patch Lady Posts, Rapid Security Responses, Secure Boot, Windows 10
• « Older Entries