I was pretty cranky when reading some of the reviews for the new Norton 360 product. Norton have been the by-word for bad software over the last five years. So I was less than impressed reading sycophantic press reviews and dopey user comments about the new product.
The new Norton is going to have to be a far slimmer product than anything they've recently put out to convince me. The Norton Anti-Virus 2007 certainly isn't.
It's good to see I'm not alone in this. ZD Net Australia shares my view. While all technology vendor's claims should be treated with suspicion, Symantec's press releases are least reliable source.
Friday, March 02, 2007
Fat kids in England
According to the Kimbofo blog, fat kids are the current UK tabloid fad.
Now feeding your kids twenty chocolate bars a day might be child abuse, but I'd suggest letting a Sun reporter near your children is far more damaging to their well being.
While these parents are negligent. I'm not sure naming and shaming them and holding their kids up for ridicule is actually productive. But let's not let the interests of the kids get in the way of a good tabloid story.
Now feeding your kids twenty chocolate bars a day might be child abuse, but I'd suggest letting a Sun reporter near your children is far more damaging to their well being.
While these parents are negligent. I'm not sure naming and shaming them and holding their kids up for ridicule is actually productive. But let's not let the interests of the kids get in the way of a good tabloid story.
Thursday, March 01, 2007
Vista Activation problems
It's a shame Microsoft persist with the intrusive and buggy Windows Genuine Activation program. It seems to go from bad to worse. The latest problems with Vista show this is going to be a pain for those affected.
At least Microsoft have acknowledged the problem in their knowledge base. But the real concern is that a game can cause this problem. Isn't Vista supposed to stop things accessing critical system files?
The real disappointment is that Microsoft insist on treating their customers like thieves: A critical system file changes? Well, you must be try to hack our software.
The only comforting thought about this is it will tie up a few millions of Microsoft's money in supporting users who want to reactivate.
At least Microsoft have acknowledged the problem in their knowledge base. But the real concern is that a game can cause this problem. Isn't Vista supposed to stop things accessing critical system files?
The real disappointment is that Microsoft insist on treating their customers like thieves: A critical system file changes? Well, you must be try to hack our software.
The only comforting thought about this is it will tie up a few millions of Microsoft's money in supporting users who want to reactivate.
More Vista hall of shame
Australian Personal Computer adds to the Vista hall of shame with it's list of mobile phones that don't support Vista, which is pretty well every single brand with the exception of iMate and Palm.
It really is a joke.
It really is a joke.
Wasting taxes on technology
The state government is accused of wasting $100 million on a defective email program for NSW school students. It's a shame politicians have to waste scarce funds on gimmicks like this. There's a thousand other things this money could have been spent on in our state schools.
Computers and the Internet are useful educational tools. But they are not substitutes for good teachers or well resourced schools. It's far more important for kids to be taught to read and write rather than just learning powerpoint and how to rip stuff off Wikipedia.
The real problem is that parents and voters are easily impressed by this stuff. Politicians know it wins them votes and school administrators know it allows them to get away with higher fees. We all need to question these people more on what exactly they intend to achieve with technology.
Computers and the Internet are useful educational tools. But they are not substitutes for good teachers or well resourced schools. It's far more important for kids to be taught to read and write rather than just learning powerpoint and how to rip stuff off Wikipedia.
The real problem is that parents and voters are easily impressed by this stuff. Politicians know it wins them votes and school administrators know it allows them to get away with higher fees. We all need to question these people more on what exactly they intend to achieve with technology.
It's the Active X stupid!
The US CERT advisory that common support tools have security problems is barely a surprise. Anything that uses ActiveX is a risk to the computer. It's no surprise that much of the malware that causes us so much grief uses it to infect victims.
While thinking that Firefox, Opera and other browser users are totally immune from bugs is a mistake, Internet Explorer's inbuilt support for ActiveX makes it by far the biggest and easiest target.
Why support companies have to use ActiveX based programs is beyond me. Given the known problems and prevalence of spyware you'd think they would avoid them. Instead they seem to rely on them.
The biggest joke is Symantec, where their Norton products are ActiveX dependent. When a Norton machine is infected with ActiveX based spyware, Norton crashes which in turn crashes the computer. To add insult to injury, the damaged system won't even let you uninstall Norton properly because, surprise, it requires ActiveX.
It's really time for ActiveX to get the flick, it's buggy, slow and vendor specific. Programmers and website designers who use it are lazy and letting down their users.
While thinking that Firefox, Opera and other browser users are totally immune from bugs is a mistake, Internet Explorer's inbuilt support for ActiveX makes it by far the biggest and easiest target.
Why support companies have to use ActiveX based programs is beyond me. Given the known problems and prevalence of spyware you'd think they would avoid them. Instead they seem to rely on them.
The biggest joke is Symantec, where their Norton products are ActiveX dependent. When a Norton machine is infected with ActiveX based spyware, Norton crashes which in turn crashes the computer. To add insult to injury, the damaged system won't even let you uninstall Norton properly because, surprise, it requires ActiveX.
It's really time for ActiveX to get the flick, it's buggy, slow and vendor specific. Programmers and website designers who use it are lazy and letting down their users.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Why you shouldn't inherit office computers
I've spent the last three weeks struggling with a neighbour's dead computer, what started as a simple dead hard drive has turned into a nightmare as the thing was supplied by the neighbour's ex-employer.
This means everything is based upon it being on a corporate network: Windows Updates, anti-virus, security, admin passwords and installation folders. It's turned a six hour pain in the backside into dedicated trench warfare. And I still can't get the #$%^ing Microsoft Office source location fixed.
We've always recommended not buying second hand computers. But corporate computers are even worse. It's a shame customers don't listen to us before buying these things.
This means everything is based upon it being on a corporate network: Windows Updates, anti-virus, security, admin passwords and installation folders. It's turned a six hour pain in the backside into dedicated trench warfare. And I still can't get the #$%^ing Microsoft Office source location fixed.
We've always recommended not buying second hand computers. But corporate computers are even worse. It's a shame customers don't listen to us before buying these things.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Big business and Vista
A neighbour had to buy a copy of XP to repair a computer that came without a disk. Almost every large IT outlet claims "Microsoft don't sell XP anymore". This wasn't one shop, this is a number of places, all big outlets.
He eventually got one, but was told "you were lucky, Microsoft don't sell this anymore."
What's going on here? Tech Pac seem to have plenty of copies in stock and Microsoft have made no formal announcement. Where is this line coming from?
He eventually got one, but was told "you were lucky, Microsoft don't sell this anymore."
What's going on here? Tech Pac seem to have plenty of copies in stock and Microsoft have made no formal announcement. Where is this line coming from?
Monday, February 26, 2007
Microsoft's list of Vista compatible apps
Information Week reports on Microsoft's list of software that's achieved the "Certified for Vista" or "Works with Vista" logo. In picking that all current Microsoft products qualify, they miss the point that many of their older products miss out.
This is going to be one of the biggest barriers for many users adopting Vista. Along with the cost of a new system, they will be looking at spending another $300 on a new version of Office. That's a big reason for holding back.
This is going to be one of the biggest barriers for many users adopting Vista. Along with the cost of a new system, they will be looking at spending another $300 on a new version of Office. That's a big reason for holding back.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Alexander Ponosov acquitted, but the Julie Amero gets sillier
The Russian teacher accused of software piracy is acquitted. Which is a victory for common sense. Even the Vladimir Putin described the case as utter nonsense.
The man himself announced he was off to drink champagne. Having faced a penalty of up to five years in a Russian prison, that would be the least I would do.
Things have come to a pretty low state of affairs when the Russian legal system is showing the US an example of common sense and justice. Because the Julie Amero case just gets more stupid.
PC World claims to have an email from a juror on the case where the juror says she was convicted because ""she made no effort to hide or stop the porno, not just because she loaded the porno onto the machine. Going to the history pages it was obvious that the paged were clicked on they were not the result of pop-ups."
If this is the case, that the jury felt she didn't do enough to stop the kids looking, where does this leave the school principal, the teacher who normally used that computer and the administrators of the network. These people knew the machine was compromised and did nothing to protect the students either. Surely the brave protectors of Connecticut justice should now prosecute them for the same crime.
Even more disturbing is the comment, "If a 40 year old school teacher does not have the sense to turn off or is not smart enough to figure it out, would you or any other person wanting her teaching your child or grandchild?"
So they even convicted her for being dumb and ignorant of computers. Where does that leave the jury, defense, judge, prosecution and the "expert" police prosecution witness? If stupidity is a crime, these people are looking at life.
I really hope this email to PC World is a hoax. If this really was the reasoning of the jury, then the case is an even bigger debacle. This is truly starting to look like a witch hunt.
The man himself announced he was off to drink champagne. Having faced a penalty of up to five years in a Russian prison, that would be the least I would do.
Things have come to a pretty low state of affairs when the Russian legal system is showing the US an example of common sense and justice. Because the Julie Amero case just gets more stupid.
PC World claims to have an email from a juror on the case where the juror says she was convicted because ""she made no effort to hide or stop the porno, not just because she loaded the porno onto the machine. Going to the history pages it was obvious that the paged were clicked on they were not the result of pop-ups."
If this is the case, that the jury felt she didn't do enough to stop the kids looking, where does this leave the school principal, the teacher who normally used that computer and the administrators of the network. These people knew the machine was compromised and did nothing to protect the students either. Surely the brave protectors of Connecticut justice should now prosecute them for the same crime.
Even more disturbing is the comment, "If a 40 year old school teacher does not have the sense to turn off or is not smart enough to figure it out, would you or any other person wanting her teaching your child or grandchild?"
So they even convicted her for being dumb and ignorant of computers. Where does that leave the jury, defense, judge, prosecution and the "expert" police prosecution witness? If stupidity is a crime, these people are looking at life.
I really hope this email to PC World is a hoax. If this really was the reasoning of the jury, then the case is an even bigger debacle. This is truly starting to look like a witch hunt.
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Apple join the ranks of the shamed
In checking my facts for the previous post, I stumbled on this gem.
No Mac product has been updated for Vista compatibility?
None, nada, zilch, zip?!?
According to their web page, updated on February 2, 2007 not one product is Vista compatible.
I know flogging vapourware to the ranks of adoring kool-aid drinkers is fun, but Steve, how about getting your minions to do some work making their products fit for purpose?
No Mac product has been updated for Vista compatibility?
None, nada, zilch, zip?!?
According to their web page, updated on February 2, 2007 not one product is Vista compatible.
I know flogging vapourware to the ranks of adoring kool-aid drinkers is fun, but Steve, how about getting your minions to do some work making their products fit for purpose?
Apple reseller blues
Local Apple reseller Total Recall Solutions has gone to the wall. This is a great shame as Adam ran the best Mac shop in the district. In my experience most of the Apple resellers around Sydney give service that ranges from mediocre to abysmal.
In fact, using the word "service" in the same sentence as "Apple reseller" makes me uneasy.
With the looming opening of the Sydney Apple Store many of these guys are going to find their business models under a lot of pressure. Ben Morgan, the proprietor of Sydney's biggest single Mac shop, has been less than enthusiastic about Apple's plans. Australia's biggest Apple reseller, Next Byte, is a bit more relaxed.
Next Byte will take a hit from the Apple Stores in their four Melbourne and Sydney city stores, but having stores all over Australia will cushion the overall blow. Academy's a bit more vulnerable, but their Eastern suburbs location makes them far more attractive to the cashed up locals who loathe travelling into town. I'd say both are probably pretty safe, unlike smaller stores.
The real question though, is who would be an Apple reseller? Charles Wright in his sadly defunct Melbourne Age column asked this question nearly five years ago. If anything matters have got worse since then for Apple resellers with declining margins, your main supplier opening stores to compete with you and not even being able to use the Apple name.
It's a tough industry flogging computer hardware. Apple certainly don't make it easier for their people.
In fact, using the word "service" in the same sentence as "Apple reseller" makes me uneasy.
With the looming opening of the Sydney Apple Store many of these guys are going to find their business models under a lot of pressure. Ben Morgan, the proprietor of Sydney's biggest single Mac shop, has been less than enthusiastic about Apple's plans. Australia's biggest Apple reseller, Next Byte, is a bit more relaxed.
Next Byte will take a hit from the Apple Stores in their four Melbourne and Sydney city stores, but having stores all over Australia will cushion the overall blow. Academy's a bit more vulnerable, but their Eastern suburbs location makes them far more attractive to the cashed up locals who loathe travelling into town. I'd say both are probably pretty safe, unlike smaller stores.
The real question though, is who would be an Apple reseller? Charles Wright in his sadly defunct Melbourne Age column asked this question nearly five years ago. If anything matters have got worse since then for Apple resellers with declining margins, your main supplier opening stores to compete with you and not even being able to use the Apple name.
It's a tough industry flogging computer hardware. Apple certainly don't make it easier for their people.
Monday, February 12, 2007
More disgraceful Vista support
More outlets are picking up on the disgraceful state of Vista support.
Smarthouse discover Logitech have no intention of supporting their equipment. They also mention Abode, Creative and nVidia. A good point is how empty this talk of "convergence" with home hi-fi is when the stuff doesn't work.
Over at Eastwood Hi-Fi, they've found that not only Yamaha have problems, but the Panasonic website won't even work for Vista users. I find Steve Niell's naivete about the professionalism and planning of the IT and electronic industries rather touching. He should try dealing with ISPs.
Australian Personal Computer has a rundown on ISPs and their hardware vendors. Taking the cake are the country's two biggest Telcos: Bigpond won't connect Vista users while Optus take the cake with the comment they "already supported six operating systems but "only recently learned that Vista brings with it some elements that require us to change our systems."
Truly breathtaking. You'd think Vista suddenly appeared out of the ether and onto computers. The contempt vendors and ISPs have for their customers is disgraceful.
Smarthouse discover Logitech have no intention of supporting their equipment. They also mention Abode, Creative and nVidia. A good point is how empty this talk of "convergence" with home hi-fi is when the stuff doesn't work.
Over at Eastwood Hi-Fi, they've found that not only Yamaha have problems, but the Panasonic website won't even work for Vista users. I find Steve Niell's naivete about the professionalism and planning of the IT and electronic industries rather touching. He should try dealing with ISPs.
Australian Personal Computer has a rundown on ISPs and their hardware vendors. Taking the cake are the country's two biggest Telcos: Bigpond won't connect Vista users while Optus take the cake with the comment they "already supported six operating systems but "only recently learned that Vista brings with it some elements that require us to change our systems."
Truly breathtaking. You'd think Vista suddenly appeared out of the ether and onto computers. The contempt vendors and ISPs have for their customers is disgraceful.
Mark Curban doesn't understand spam
As a subscriber to Crikey's newsletter I enjoy their daily links to blogs that have caught their reader's attention so I visited Mark Curban's comment on Donald Trump sending him spam.
Ummm Mark, that spam is as likely to have come from your granny as it was from Donald Trump. See my previous post on compromised computers.
Ummm Mark, that spam is as likely to have come from your granny as it was from Donald Trump. See my previous post on compromised computers.
Home PCs attack the Internet
Last week's attack on the Internet root servers is being blamed on botnets of zombie computers. And why not, the number of computers being compromised by spyware is horrendous. We see a half a dozen each week.
Convergence is a buzz word in the IT industry. The worrying thing about the malware epidemic is how the bad guys are converging: Spammers, phishers , spyware, phishers and virus writers are all coming together and sharing tactics and compromised machines.
The spam epidemic is a good example. One of the best protections from spam were the black lists of compromised servers and open relays. The problem now is that we have hundreds of thousands and possibly millions of compromised home PCs.
Unsecured wireless networks are also to blame. One client of ours was getting regularly disconnected for abusing their service. It turned out their wireless router (not setup by us) had no security and someone was using it to send spam.
The lesson, as the EETimes article linked above says, is that all computer users have a responsibility to secure their computers. If they don't, they may be responsible for spam, phishing scams and attacks on the Internet DNS servers.
Convergence is a buzz word in the IT industry. The worrying thing about the malware epidemic is how the bad guys are converging: Spammers, phishers , spyware, phishers and virus writers are all coming together and sharing tactics and compromised machines.
The spam epidemic is a good example. One of the best protections from spam were the black lists of compromised servers and open relays. The problem now is that we have hundreds of thousands and possibly millions of compromised home PCs.
Unsecured wireless networks are also to blame. One client of ours was getting regularly disconnected for abusing their service. It turned out their wireless router (not setup by us) had no security and someone was using it to send spam.
The lesson, as the EETimes article linked above says, is that all computer users have a responsibility to secure their computers. If they don't, they may be responsible for spam, phishing scams and attacks on the Internet DNS servers.
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
When the rivers of gold stop flowing
"Rivers of gold" was the term to describe the profitable classified advertising businesses of the Sydney Morning Herald and Melbourne Age. There's been another river of gold in the Sensis monopoly of directory advertising. If anything, the Yellow Pages has been far more profitable for Sensis/Telstra than the classified have been for Fairfax.
The launch of Google Maps Australia is direct threat to both these rivers of gold. By linking into the News Limited classified system, it threatens Fairfax's advantages. For Sensis/Yellow Pages, their monopoly is threatened by a viable alternative directory.
Google certainly does the job better than Yellow pages. I searched "Computer Repairs" and "Neutral Bay", Our business came up first and there was only one paid ad above us, all the other listings were in the immediate area. The map was clear and concise.
The same search on Yellow Pages Online didn't take us directly to the listings. We first went to a category page. Multiple categories for the one business type is another Yellow pages tactic to get more money out of us.
Once we were in the correct category there were SEVENTEEN premium ads ahead of us. To add insult to injury, almost all the listings ahead of are the "may not be located in the area" type. Many of them are on the other side of Sydney, which makes specifying a suburb stupid and pointless.
On those results, it's difficult to see why a small IT shop would bother with anything more than the basic Yellow Pages listing. Given the price of a single Yellow Pages category listing, let alone four or five, is prohibitive and you'll always be outgunned by bigger advertisers it's barely worth it. Even more discouraging is the fact Yellow Pages own one of your competitors.
The biggest threat to Sensis though is that Google have tied up with News Limited's True Local service. Being able to combine online listings with local and metropolitan newspaper advertising is a pretty formidable selling proposition. If News and Google don't get greedy then Sensis has a serious problem.
It's ironic that the Australian Google Maps appears the same week Fred Hilmer released his tale of being the Fairfax CEO. The tie up between Google and News illustrates how badly Fred got it wrong with separating the Australian Cityseach from the Fairfax newspapers. Had Fred got it right, Google might have been partnering with a dominant Fairfax.
Fairfax and Sensis should be very worried about the Google Maps-News Limited partnership. This really has the potential to divert much of the "rivers of gold" away from the established players. It's going to be interesting to see how Fairfax and Sensis respond.
The launch of Google Maps Australia is direct threat to both these rivers of gold. By linking into the News Limited classified system, it threatens Fairfax's advantages. For Sensis/Yellow Pages, their monopoly is threatened by a viable alternative directory.
Google certainly does the job better than Yellow pages. I searched "Computer Repairs" and "Neutral Bay", Our business came up first and there was only one paid ad above us, all the other listings were in the immediate area. The map was clear and concise.
The same search on Yellow Pages Online didn't take us directly to the listings. We first went to a category page. Multiple categories for the one business type is another Yellow pages tactic to get more money out of us.
Once we were in the correct category there were SEVENTEEN premium ads ahead of us. To add insult to injury, almost all the listings ahead of are the "may not be located in the area" type. Many of them are on the other side of Sydney, which makes specifying a suburb stupid and pointless.
On those results, it's difficult to see why a small IT shop would bother with anything more than the basic Yellow Pages listing. Given the price of a single Yellow Pages category listing, let alone four or five, is prohibitive and you'll always be outgunned by bigger advertisers it's barely worth it. Even more discouraging is the fact Yellow Pages own one of your competitors.
The biggest threat to Sensis though is that Google have tied up with News Limited's True Local service. Being able to combine online listings with local and metropolitan newspaper advertising is a pretty formidable selling proposition. If News and Google don't get greedy then Sensis has a serious problem.
It's ironic that the Australian Google Maps appears the same week Fred Hilmer released his tale of being the Fairfax CEO. The tie up between Google and News illustrates how badly Fred got it wrong with separating the Australian Cityseach from the Fairfax newspapers. Had Fred got it right, Google might have been partnering with a dominant Fairfax.
Fairfax and Sensis should be very worried about the Google Maps-News Limited partnership. This really has the potential to divert much of the "rivers of gold" away from the established players. It's going to be interesting to see how Fairfax and Sensis respond.
Who'd be a teacher?
I'm not wholly convinced about the use of computers in class rooms. I don't believe any computer is a substitute for a competent teacher. As a taxpayer and someone who supports these evil things for a living, I'm not even convinced it's a good investment of my tax dollars.
Now teachers might agree. First we had the Julie Amero case where a Connecticut school temporary is facing 40 years in jail for a spyware infected computer. Now we have the Alexander Ponosov case where a Russian school teacher is facing a spell in Siberia for buying computers with pirated software.
The injustices in both of these cases is breathtaking. In the Ponosov case, the spectacle of provincial school teacher being used an example so Russia can prove it's worthy of joining the WTO is a digrace. I'd like to know what happened to the people who sold him the computers.
Julie Amero's predicament is also disgraceful. The real villains in this are the local school board who allowed filters to expire and accepted pop-up ads on classrooms computers as being normal. It really seems the charges were only a butt-covering exercise by these incompetents.
Incompetent is the best description of the prosecution's "expert" witness, Detective Mark Lounsbury who claimed Amero musts have "physically clicked" on pornographic links. The frightening thing is Detective Lounsbury recieved training from the FBI in basic network intrusion and advanced network intrusion in Unix. He admit even admits he's not an expert and relies on Computer Cop software.
It surprises me that more schools and businesses haven't fallen foul of the law because of malware infested PCs. Given it's considered sexual harrassment to have a girly calendar on an office wall, hard core porn on a computer desktop must beyond the pale. Every office and school should have proper filtering and spyware protection and policies to deal with the unexpected.
Now teachers might agree. First we had the Julie Amero case where a Connecticut school temporary is facing 40 years in jail for a spyware infected computer. Now we have the Alexander Ponosov case where a Russian school teacher is facing a spell in Siberia for buying computers with pirated software.
The injustices in both of these cases is breathtaking. In the Ponosov case, the spectacle of provincial school teacher being used an example so Russia can prove it's worthy of joining the WTO is a digrace. I'd like to know what happened to the people who sold him the computers.
Julie Amero's predicament is also disgraceful. The real villains in this are the local school board who allowed filters to expire and accepted pop-up ads on classrooms computers as being normal. It really seems the charges were only a butt-covering exercise by these incompetents.
Incompetent is the best description of the prosecution's "expert" witness, Detective Mark Lounsbury who claimed Amero musts have "physically clicked" on pornographic links. The frightening thing is Detective Lounsbury recieved training from the FBI in basic network intrusion and advanced network intrusion in Unix. He admit even admits he's not an expert and relies on Computer Cop software.
It surprises me that more schools and businesses haven't fallen foul of the law because of malware infested PCs. Given it's considered sexual harrassment to have a girly calendar on an office wall, hard core porn on a computer desktop must beyond the pale. Every office and school should have proper filtering and spyware protection and policies to deal with the unexpected.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Busted by Youtube
The SMH reports three train vandals were caught because of the clips they uploaded to youtube. Talk about stupid.
DJ's McLibel moment
The David Jones department store chain were furious when the Australia Institute cited their advertisements as examples of "corporate paedophilia". So they've decided to sue. I can't help but think this is a big mistake for DJs.
The first thing to come to mind is the parallel with the McLibel case. While DJs isn't as big as Maccas and the Australia Institute as small as a pair of penniless activists, it's still very much a David and Goliath fight. We have a tendency to side with small guy.
Another parallel to the McLibel case is the case will give the original report far more circulation than it would have otherwise had. If DJs had left it alone, it would be forgotten by now. As it is, there's currently 32 current hits in Google News and there will more as the story circulates.
To really tick those of us who have some sympathy for free speech, David Jones has decided to use the Trade Practices Act. Misusing the TPA has been tried before; The Australian Wool Industry is having trouble to using it against PETA at the moment. It strikes me, and I'm sure a lot others, as an abuse of a law designed to protect consumers.
In my view the worst mistake is the risk that the definition of "corporate paedophila" might be tested in court. While DJs might well be innocent of this, there's a lot of marketers who aren't. As a parent I'm often disturbed by marketing aimed at pubescent kids.
The topic raised is important and deserves debate. Many marketers are at the least pushing the bounds of good taste and the sexualisation of children is an issue that worries many of us. It would be terribly wrong if that debate was chilled by a case like this.
AT every turn, it appears this decision to sue is a "what were you thinking" moment. While DJs might prevail in court, they've dealt themselves a lose-lose hand. All they can hope for is the Australia institute quietly withdraws the article and settles.
The first thing to come to mind is the parallel with the McLibel case. While DJs isn't as big as Maccas and the Australia Institute as small as a pair of penniless activists, it's still very much a David and Goliath fight. We have a tendency to side with small guy.
Another parallel to the McLibel case is the case will give the original report far more circulation than it would have otherwise had. If DJs had left it alone, it would be forgotten by now. As it is, there's currently 32 current hits in Google News and there will more as the story circulates.
To really tick those of us who have some sympathy for free speech, David Jones has decided to use the Trade Practices Act. Misusing the TPA has been tried before; The Australian Wool Industry is having trouble to using it against PETA at the moment. It strikes me, and I'm sure a lot others, as an abuse of a law designed to protect consumers.
In my view the worst mistake is the risk that the definition of "corporate paedophila" might be tested in court. While DJs might well be innocent of this, there's a lot of marketers who aren't. As a parent I'm often disturbed by marketing aimed at pubescent kids.
The topic raised is important and deserves debate. Many marketers are at the least pushing the bounds of good taste and the sexualisation of children is an issue that worries many of us. It would be terribly wrong if that debate was chilled by a case like this.
AT every turn, it appears this decision to sue is a "what were you thinking" moment. While DJs might prevail in court, they've dealt themselves a lose-lose hand. All they can hope for is the Australia institute quietly withdraws the article and settles.
Monday, February 05, 2007
Telcom NZ trials Vista
When I first saw the Australian ZDNet headline TCNZ adopts Vista, I thought "oh no, they've lost the plot again".
But when I read the article it makes complete sense. Putting Vista on 500 desktops, about 7% of their fleet, allows their IT and consulting arms to get practical experience in running Vista. It certainly gives their service division an advantage over their competitors.
Another article in ZDNet though should worry TCNZ; AAPT continues to lose customers. The investment in AAPT has to be one of Telecom NZ's great failures. The fact they are considering taking over Powertel only shows they haven't learned many lessons.
As someone who's had to deal with AAPT on a business level, I'm amazed anyone's still with them. Their account management and record keeping has been terrible. The only thing going for them has been the reliability of the old Connect network.
It baffles me how telco executives get the Internet so wrong. We all think the two industries should be complimentary, but the TCNZ debacle and the poor management of Bigpond and Optus' Internet services show just how wrong they can get it. We sold our TCNZ shares years ago, TCNZ should consider selling off a few shares of their own.
But when I read the article it makes complete sense. Putting Vista on 500 desktops, about 7% of their fleet, allows their IT and consulting arms to get practical experience in running Vista. It certainly gives their service division an advantage over their competitors.
Another article in ZDNet though should worry TCNZ; AAPT continues to lose customers. The investment in AAPT has to be one of Telecom NZ's great failures. The fact they are considering taking over Powertel only shows they haven't learned many lessons.
As someone who's had to deal with AAPT on a business level, I'm amazed anyone's still with them. Their account management and record keeping has been terrible. The only thing going for them has been the reliability of the old Connect network.
It baffles me how telco executives get the Internet so wrong. We all think the two industries should be complimentary, but the TCNZ debacle and the poor management of Bigpond and Optus' Internet services show just how wrong they can get it. We sold our TCNZ shares years ago, TCNZ should consider selling off a few shares of their own.
iTunes doesn't run on Vista
Another reason for not upgrading to Vista. iTunes doesn't work. This joins a long list of vendors who aren't quite there yet.
While we expected quite a few difficulties with Vista, you have to wonder what these vendors have been doing for the last five years. It beggars belief so many have aren't Vista ready.
I've been very critical of Microsoft and their failure to introduce Limited Users as the default in Windows XP. But the scale of compatibility problems shows why they didn't. Is it really that hard to design programs that can run in Windows restricted profiles?
While we expected quite a few difficulties with Vista, you have to wonder what these vendors have been doing for the last five years. It beggars belief so many have aren't Vista ready.
I've been very critical of Microsoft and their failure to introduce Limited Users as the default in Windows XP. But the scale of compatibility problems shows why they didn't. Is it really that hard to design programs that can run in Windows restricted profiles?
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Vendor disgrace
Windows Vista's now out, yet some vendors still don't have drivers available.
To say this is a disgrace is an understatement. The final version has been around for months. We've been playing with betas for years.
You have to ask what these lazy idiots have been doing for the last two years.
Any mainstream vendor that isn't Vista ready has lost the plot.
To say this is a disgrace is an understatement. The final version has been around for months. We've been playing with betas for years.
You have to ask what these lazy idiots have been doing for the last two years.
Any mainstream vendor that isn't Vista ready has lost the plot.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Symantec does it again
Symantec have taken over another company, this time Altiris who supply asset management software.
Our first reaction is "fix your existing problems before buying more". Symantec's core products, notably Norton Anti Virus are failing badly and losing market share. It appears Wall Street agrees with us according to Australian IT.
One has to wonder what parallel universe these executives live in. It seems inconceivable they can be ignorant of how badly their brand is being damaged in the market place. Yet, instead of fixing the problems, they just blindly continue.
Our first reaction is "fix your existing problems before buying more". Symantec's core products, notably Norton Anti Virus are failing badly and losing market share. It appears Wall Street agrees with us according to Australian IT.
One has to wonder what parallel universe these executives live in. It seems inconceivable they can be ignorant of how badly their brand is being damaged in the market place. Yet, instead of fixing the problems, they just blindly continue.
Friday, January 26, 2007
Maintaining computers
Google's VP of Enterprises, Dave Girouard, claims the "complexity" of IT is stunting innovation. He reckons 75% of IT budgets are spent on simply maintaining the systems. If everyone outsourced their apps to Google, all would be better.
While I have a degree of self interest in this, I think this is a load of bull. Computers are machines and machines need to be maintained. Of the cost of a running a car, at least 75% is keeping it running.
The idea that IT should be like electricity is stupid. Sure, in the developed world you normally don't worry about your electricity supply. But electricity is more than just running a cable into your house where it lies on the floor giving passing pets and toddlers the odd shock.
Once you've got electricity, it has to be metered, protected and cabled through the house. Once you've installed the pretty outlets, you then plug stuff into those outlets. That stuff; toasters, fridges, washing machines and hi-fi's need maintenance as well.
Then you've got the cost of electricity. My guess is the average business or home electricity bill dwarfs their annual IT bills.
The people at Google are some of the brightest people on the planet. But it doesn't mean they can't come up with stupid ideas.
While I have a degree of self interest in this, I think this is a load of bull. Computers are machines and machines need to be maintained. Of the cost of a running a car, at least 75% is keeping it running.
The idea that IT should be like electricity is stupid. Sure, in the developed world you normally don't worry about your electricity supply. But electricity is more than just running a cable into your house where it lies on the floor giving passing pets and toddlers the odd shock.
Once you've got electricity, it has to be metered, protected and cabled through the house. Once you've installed the pretty outlets, you then plug stuff into those outlets. That stuff; toasters, fridges, washing machines and hi-fi's need maintenance as well.
Then you've got the cost of electricity. My guess is the average business or home electricity bill dwarfs their annual IT bills.
The people at Google are some of the brightest people on the planet. But it doesn't mean they can't come up with stupid ideas.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Losing the spyware war
Reading the PC Doctor's blog about reinstalling Windows rather than bothering with spyware makes me reflect on how we've lost the spyware war.
A year ago, I would seriously doubt the competence of any tech who zapped and reinstalled more than three machines a year. But midway through last year, we realised we were losing. The infections were getting harder to remove.
Spyware's a frustrating, soul destroying part of the business. Now we're finding our tools and procedures aren't working. The spyware guys have won.
We're now in the reformat camp. If you have spyware on a machine we visit and we can't wipe it in the first hour, we recommend reformatting. So you better have your passwords, system disks and data backup.
A year ago, I would seriously doubt the competence of any tech who zapped and reinstalled more than three machines a year. But midway through last year, we realised we were losing. The infections were getting harder to remove.
Spyware's a frustrating, soul destroying part of the business. Now we're finding our tools and procedures aren't working. The spyware guys have won.
We're now in the reformat camp. If you have spyware on a machine we visit and we can't wipe it in the first hour, we recommend reformatting. So you better have your passwords, system disks and data backup.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Vista Service Pack already?
Well, this is a great vote of confidence in a new operating system.
It makes sense to plan for service packs. All software needs patching and the complexity of computer operating systems mean service packs and major upgrades and inevitable. But publicly planning this early for a service pack is pretty ordinary.
To run insult into injury, the next XP service pack is not scheduled for another year and even that date is preliminary. As Brian Krebs points out, we're currently looking at over a hundred patches to an XP system. It may well be 150 by early next year.
This is another example of Microsoft losing it: Both XP Service Pack three and Vista are way overdue. The fact MS has to look at an SP so early only indicates Vista is being rushed to market without all it's features or with known bugs.
What I find bizarre is the world's biggest software company has found itself in such a hole. Perhaps it's time for a change in management.
It makes sense to plan for service packs. All software needs patching and the complexity of computer operating systems mean service packs and major upgrades and inevitable. But publicly planning this early for a service pack is pretty ordinary.
To run insult into injury, the next XP service pack is not scheduled for another year and even that date is preliminary. As Brian Krebs points out, we're currently looking at over a hundred patches to an XP system. It may well be 150 by early next year.
This is another example of Microsoft losing it: Both XP Service Pack three and Vista are way overdue. The fact MS has to look at an SP so early only indicates Vista is being rushed to market without all it's features or with known bugs.
What I find bizarre is the world's biggest software company has found itself in such a hole. Perhaps it's time for a change in management.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
mis-typing Google
You Tube has a chilling video of what happens when you get the letters wrong in the word "google". The resulting spyware infection isn't pretty. While teenagers looking for music are the prime target for these scammers, anybody can mis-type a word.
Once infected, not only is a computer alive with advertising and spyware, it can be used to send spam and all the passwords, banking details and passwords can be stolen. These problems are causing banks and their customers all manner of damages. This is why we recommend surfing the net only in a limited user profile.
Who comes up with these numbers?
So IDC and Microsoft reckon Vista will generate $9.5 billion for the New York and New Jersey IT industries in 2007?!?
Yeah, right.
The study itself is available on the Microsoft website.What I find intriguing is they claim every dollar spent on Vista will customers will also spend $9.75 in hardware, 4.60 in software and 3.65 in services. These numbers are right on for a new PC.
Looking at our cost breakdown for a new system, these proportions are about right. If you throw in monitors, printers and other peripherals then the proportion of hardware increases. So really all IDC are saying is they expect 9.5 billion to be spent on new systems this year in those two states.
I've got no idea how many systems are sold each year in New York and New Jersey so maybe they are right. But the figures are misleading as most of these systems would have been sold anyway. The real question is how many new systems will Vista sell, and my guess is it won't make much difference.
A big problem I have with triumphant press releases like this is it confirms in many people's minds that the IT industry just tries to perpetuate business for itself. If I were the cynical type, that's what this story would make me think. It certainly won't encourage business owners to buy Vista.
There's no doubt about the fact we'll get a boost in turnover from Vista. The early adopters are going to bleed badly as they do with every new operating system, but it's not going to be a massive part of our turnover. We recommend our customers steer clear of Vista until late in the year.
Yeah, right.
The study itself is available on the Microsoft website.What I find intriguing is they claim every dollar spent on Vista will customers will also spend $9.75 in hardware, 4.60 in software and 3.65 in services. These numbers are right on for a new PC.
Looking at our cost breakdown for a new system, these proportions are about right. If you throw in monitors, printers and other peripherals then the proportion of hardware increases. So really all IDC are saying is they expect 9.5 billion to be spent on new systems this year in those two states.
I've got no idea how many systems are sold each year in New York and New Jersey so maybe they are right. But the figures are misleading as most of these systems would have been sold anyway. The real question is how many new systems will Vista sell, and my guess is it won't make much difference.
A big problem I have with triumphant press releases like this is it confirms in many people's minds that the IT industry just tries to perpetuate business for itself. If I were the cynical type, that's what this story would make me think. It certainly won't encourage business owners to buy Vista.
There's no doubt about the fact we'll get a boost in turnover from Vista. The early adopters are going to bleed badly as they do with every new operating system, but it's not going to be a massive part of our turnover. We recommend our customers steer clear of Vista until late in the year.
Saturday, January 13, 2007
The iPhone hysteria
One of the big differences between Windows users and Mac fans is the willingness to fall for hype.
Imagine if Microsoft released a phone. Most Windows users would shrug and get on with things. Even hard core Microsoft fanbois would take any claims until they actually saw and used the things.
On planet Mac, you'd think the iPhone was the greatest piece of technology ever. Reading the blogs and the press reports you wouldn't know this phone hasn't been released. In fact it hasn't got regulatory approval and even it's name isn't certain.
Reading Steve Job's comments at the Macworld keynote, it seems to me the iPhone is purely designed for the US market. A lot of it's features are old hat compared to other phones and what foreign networks offer. Not to mention the corporate features Microsoft offer smartphone users.
I still find it funny that the Macolytes seem to have buried Nokia, Motorola and all the other mobile phone manufacturers on the strength of a prototype.
Imagine if Microsoft released a phone. Most Windows users would shrug and get on with things. Even hard core Microsoft fanbois would take any claims until they actually saw and used the things.
On planet Mac, you'd think the iPhone was the greatest piece of technology ever. Reading the blogs and the press reports you wouldn't know this phone hasn't been released. In fact it hasn't got regulatory approval and even it's name isn't certain.
Reading Steve Job's comments at the Macworld keynote, it seems to me the iPhone is purely designed for the US market. A lot of it's features are old hat compared to other phones and what foreign networks offer. Not to mention the corporate features Microsoft offer smartphone users.
I still find it funny that the Macolytes seem to have buried Nokia, Motorola and all the other mobile phone manufacturers on the strength of a prototype.
Friday, January 12, 2007
The reality distortion field
If you ever wanted an example of Steve Jobs' reality distortion field, the iPhone lawsuit is a classic. The number of Mac fanbois in denial about the fact Cisco has the US trademark for "iPhone" is remarkable. Some of the posts and blogs are terrific, the comments on this article are typical.
It's amazing just how far some people will go into denial. I'm wondering though if some of the Macolytes seriously don't know who Cisco are or believe that Motorola's only product is the Razr.
More serious is Apple's attitude. They've been in negotiations to use the iPhone trademark but instead of concluding their negotiations in a timely manner, they just ignore the problem and go ahead anyway. Now they call Cisco's claim silly.
All this from a company that sets it's lawyers onto bloggers when it thinks it's intellectual property or marketing plans are threatened.
It's amazing just how far some people will go into denial. I'm wondering though if some of the Macolytes seriously don't know who Cisco are or believe that Motorola's only product is the Razr.
More serious is Apple's attitude. They've been in negotiations to use the iPhone trademark but instead of concluding their negotiations in a timely manner, they just ignore the problem and go ahead anyway. Now they call Cisco's claim silly.
All this from a company that sets it's lawyers onto bloggers when it thinks it's intellectual property or marketing plans are threatened.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Active X is a security risk
Brian Krebs makes a comment about Acer's use of Active X being a security risk in today's Security Risk column.
While Acer should be criticised for the sloppy use of this tool, Active X threats are the most common problem for Windows users. Unfortunately, many programmers and web site designers use Active X. Norton products are probably the worst for this.
Like Symantec, spyware writers have been the most enthusiastic users of Active X controls. This is why spyware is such a problem for Internet Explorer users and why a spyware infected machine running a Norton product will be reduced to a quivering heap. Active X is the number one path for infecting a computer.
To avoid all of this, we recommend surfing the net with Firefox, which doesn't use Active X, and in a limited user account, which prevents system changes.
Once again, this is an example of Microsoft's cavalier attitude to security. Windows users should assume their systems are not secure and be very careful about what they do on the net and the profile they do it in.
While Acer should be criticised for the sloppy use of this tool, Active X threats are the most common problem for Windows users. Unfortunately, many programmers and web site designers use Active X. Norton products are probably the worst for this.
Like Symantec, spyware writers have been the most enthusiastic users of Active X controls. This is why spyware is such a problem for Internet Explorer users and why a spyware infected machine running a Norton product will be reduced to a quivering heap. Active X is the number one path for infecting a computer.
To avoid all of this, we recommend surfing the net with Firefox, which doesn't use Active X, and in a limited user account, which prevents system changes.
Once again, this is an example of Microsoft's cavalier attitude to security. Windows users should assume their systems are not secure and be very careful about what they do on the net and the profile they do it in.
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
The dumbest article ever written
Is this the dumbest article ever written?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/08/AR2007010801352.html
For years, rumours have been around that the NSA has a back door into Windows, this only encourages the tin foil hat brigade.
But what I really like is the idea that the NSA has a clue. This is the agency that's got everything from the Bay of Pigs to Iraq's weapons of mass destruction wrong. They totally missed the collapse of the Soviet Union and the September 11 attacks.
The kicker is this paragraph.
Microsoft said this is not the first time it has sought help from the NSA. For about four years, Microsoft has tapped the spy agency for security expertise in reviewing its operating systems, including the Windows XP consumer version and the Windows Server 2003 for corporate customers.
Gee, they did a good job on Windows XP.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/08/AR2007010801352.html
For years, rumours have been around that the NSA has a back door into Windows, this only encourages the tin foil hat brigade.
But what I really like is the idea that the NSA has a clue. This is the agency that's got everything from the Bay of Pigs to Iraq's weapons of mass destruction wrong. They totally missed the collapse of the Soviet Union and the September 11 attacks.
The kicker is this paragraph.
Microsoft said this is not the first time it has sought help from the NSA. For about four years, Microsoft has tapped the spy agency for security expertise in reviewing its operating systems, including the Windows XP consumer version and the Windows Server 2003 for corporate customers.
Gee, they did a good job on Windows XP.
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
The Sydney property shortage
The Sydney Morning Herald today repeats the claim by the real estate industry that Sydney rents are about to soar. It's interesting the forces behind this claim. I can't help but think this is a self serving beat up by the real estate agents in the run up to the state election.
Sydney's problem is simply that property, in relation to income, is way overpriced. This is a combination of Sydney's geographic and economic advantages, Australian's historical preference to invest in property and an income tax system that favours property (and other passive) investments. To make matters worse, we have interest rates at the lowest in a generation and a Federal government that happily ramps the property market for it's short term gains.
The result of these factors is that the cost to buy is outrageous. It also means that more and more Sydneysiders can only afford to rent. As the demand side of rents is a function of wages, rents have stayed comparatively low as wages haven't grown the same way property prices have.
Fifteen years ago, the rule of thumb for Sydney rents was to knock three zeros off the market value to get the weekly rent. That 5% yield is now less than 3 and dropping fast. Compared to other investments, that's a lousy return and super now has better tax advantages.
I suspect the real estate agents are trying to encourage landlords to stay in the market with the promise of better returns. The problem is a 20% increase would still only leave yields around the 3% mark. Their other motive is to panic the state government into releasing more land and easing zoning rules.
But let's say the agents and their pet economists are right. A 20% hike in rents will be a disaster for Sydney. We'll either the Sydney economy go into a nose dive, or see inflation break out.
As an employer, I already have serious trouble finding techs who live East of Strathfield. Put another 20% on their costs and I'm going to have to pay more to cover either their higher cost of living or their increased travelling costs. A spike in inflation means higher interest rates.
The alternative is my view more likely; a 20% increase in rents will kill the Sydney economy stone dead. In many inner suburbs more than 50% of the residents are renters. Take a fifth of their after tax income away and suddenly they can't afford lattes, plasmas or nice cars.
Either scenario means the same thing: Sydney property prices drop. Sydney's real estate agents and their tame economists should be careful what they wish for.
Sydney's problem is simply that property, in relation to income, is way overpriced. This is a combination of Sydney's geographic and economic advantages, Australian's historical preference to invest in property and an income tax system that favours property (and other passive) investments. To make matters worse, we have interest rates at the lowest in a generation and a Federal government that happily ramps the property market for it's short term gains.
The result of these factors is that the cost to buy is outrageous. It also means that more and more Sydneysiders can only afford to rent. As the demand side of rents is a function of wages, rents have stayed comparatively low as wages haven't grown the same way property prices have.
Fifteen years ago, the rule of thumb for Sydney rents was to knock three zeros off the market value to get the weekly rent. That 5% yield is now less than 3 and dropping fast. Compared to other investments, that's a lousy return and super now has better tax advantages.
I suspect the real estate agents are trying to encourage landlords to stay in the market with the promise of better returns. The problem is a 20% increase would still only leave yields around the 3% mark. Their other motive is to panic the state government into releasing more land and easing zoning rules.
But let's say the agents and their pet economists are right. A 20% hike in rents will be a disaster for Sydney. We'll either the Sydney economy go into a nose dive, or see inflation break out.
As an employer, I already have serious trouble finding techs who live East of Strathfield. Put another 20% on their costs and I'm going to have to pay more to cover either their higher cost of living or their increased travelling costs. A spike in inflation means higher interest rates.
The alternative is my view more likely; a 20% increase in rents will kill the Sydney economy stone dead. In many inner suburbs more than 50% of the residents are renters. Take a fifth of their after tax income away and suddenly they can't afford lattes, plasmas or nice cars.
Either scenario means the same thing: Sydney property prices drop. Sydney's real estate agents and their tame economists should be careful what they wish for.
Monday, January 08, 2007
Does Microsoft have corporate ADD?
After watching Bill Gates' CES keynote, I'm convinced Microsoft has ADD.
They have too many products for a start. But another thing that makes me think they have Attention Deficit Disorder is the way they let products rot. Windows Defender is an example.
Giant AntiSpyware was a good product when MS bought it. Over time, Microsoft fiddled and tinkered with it until it had a totally different interface, although one that still didn't mesh with the rest of Windows. Then it stopped working.
In the last few months we've seen a lot of spyware slip past Defender. To add insult to injury, our friends at 180 Solutions seem to have done a deal that their spyware is marked as not to be deleted. It appears they weren't the only ones.
This month, we're telling our subscribers not to uninstall Windows Defender, the AVG free spyware product is better. It's this failure of Microsoft to stick with a product that makes me wonder if they do have ADD. That would also explain why products are so late to market.
They have too many products for a start. But another thing that makes me think they have Attention Deficit Disorder is the way they let products rot. Windows Defender is an example.
Giant AntiSpyware was a good product when MS bought it. Over time, Microsoft fiddled and tinkered with it until it had a totally different interface, although one that still didn't mesh with the rest of Windows. Then it stopped working.
In the last few months we've seen a lot of spyware slip past Defender. To add insult to injury, our friends at 180 Solutions seem to have done a deal that their spyware is marked as not to be deleted. It appears they weren't the only ones.
This month, we're telling our subscribers not to uninstall Windows Defender, the AVG free spyware product is better. It's this failure of Microsoft to stick with a product that makes me wonder if they do have ADD. That would also explain why products are so late to market.
The new Windows Home Server
Well, the rumours were right, Bill Gates announced Microsoft's Windows Home Server.
The whole thing raises some serious questions: Will it be restricted to HPs running AMD chips or will there be more products? Will it's advanced features such as automatic backup work on Vista or will it be XP compatible? Will it really ship at the end of the year?
It's also a concern on if it will distract from the launch of the domestic versions of Vista.
As a tech, another concern is there are too many versions of Windows kicking around. These are the Windows domestic and small business systems that will be in common use later this year.
Windows Server 2003
Windows Small Business Server 2003 Standard
Windows Small Business Server Premium
XP Home
XP Pro
XP Media Centre
Windows Home Server
Vista Home Basic
Vista Home Premium
Vista Business
Vista Ultimate
All of the Vista versions may or may not have the Aero interface and other features enabled.
And then there's Windows 2007, should it be released on time.
Really, this is a support nightmare.
The whole thing raises some serious questions: Will it be restricted to HPs running AMD chips or will there be more products? Will it's advanced features such as automatic backup work on Vista or will it be XP compatible? Will it really ship at the end of the year?
It's also a concern on if it will distract from the launch of the domestic versions of Vista.
As a tech, another concern is there are too many versions of Windows kicking around. These are the Windows domestic and small business systems that will be in common use later this year.
Windows Server 2003
Windows Small Business Server 2003 Standard
Windows Small Business Server Premium
XP Home
XP Pro
XP Media Centre
Windows Home Server
Vista Home Basic
Vista Home Premium
Vista Business
Vista Ultimate
All of the Vista versions may or may not have the Aero interface and other features enabled.
And then there's Windows 2007, should it be released on time.
Really, this is a support nightmare.
Thursday, January 04, 2007
The Taiwan Earthquake and the Internet
The disruption to East assess Internet connections because of an earthquake in Taiwan is disturbing. This is a network originally designed to survive a nuclear war, and yet a single point of failure is causing massive disruption. It appears that the East Asian telecoms companies will have to seriously review their infrastructure.
An important lesson from this is that relying on one technology is dangerous. While relying on the net is risky, a far more risky proposition is relying on the mobile phone network. As we see here every bushfire season, the mobile phone network is quickly swamped in an emergency.
The worst example is the September 11 atrocity in New York. Taking out the World Trade Centre towers crippled New York's mobile phone and Internet networks as well as taking a number of TV stations off air. Even before the collapse, the web had pretty well choked.
We really have to remember that in an emergency too much reliance on mobiles and the net could well make a disaster much worse. Probably the best emergency communication technology is still radio. Don't throw away that transistor radio yet.
An important lesson from this is that relying on one technology is dangerous. While relying on the net is risky, a far more risky proposition is relying on the mobile phone network. As we see here every bushfire season, the mobile phone network is quickly swamped in an emergency.
The worst example is the September 11 atrocity in New York. Taking out the World Trade Centre towers crippled New York's mobile phone and Internet networks as well as taking a number of TV stations off air. Even before the collapse, the web had pretty well choked.
We really have to remember that in an emergency too much reliance on mobiles and the net could well make a disaster much worse. Probably the best emergency communication technology is still radio. Don't throw away that transistor radio yet.
Tech reviews
As we deal on a regular basis with computers that have been messed up by poorly designed and over-bloated security packages, I read with interest the Sydney Morning Herald's review of the more popular ones.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/reviews/net-nasties-face-onestop-blocks/2007/01/02/1167500118494.html
One of my criticisms of newspaper, and many magazine, reviews is the reviewers often seem to have only read the press pack rather than actually try the products. In this case, it appears Adam Turner did at least try McAfee, and it irritated him. If he did try Norton then he either had a clean machine with 2Gb RAM.
Norton 2007 is awful. Thankfully I've only seen it once and that system was reduced to a crawl. Uninstalling it was a nightmare as it refused to run the wizard while Live Update was running, and Live Update didn't want to stop. Is it really that hard to stop a service when you want to uninstall the product.
Given the sheer weight of problems Norton products have created for users over the last five years, it would be nice for reviewers to at least acknowledge the problems. Reviews like this only encourage customers to continue making the wrong decisions. It also lets these companies get away with selling poor products.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/reviews/net-nasties-face-onestop-blocks/2007/01/02/1167500118494.html
One of my criticisms of newspaper, and many magazine, reviews is the reviewers often seem to have only read the press pack rather than actually try the products. In this case, it appears Adam Turner did at least try McAfee, and it irritated him. If he did try Norton then he either had a clean machine with 2Gb RAM.
Norton 2007 is awful. Thankfully I've only seen it once and that system was reduced to a crawl. Uninstalling it was a nightmare as it refused to run the wizard while Live Update was running, and Live Update didn't want to stop. Is it really that hard to stop a service when you want to uninstall the product.
Given the sheer weight of problems Norton products have created for users over the last five years, it would be nice for reviewers to at least acknowledge the problems. Reviews like this only encourage customers to continue making the wrong decisions. It also lets these companies get away with selling poor products.
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Free Wi-Fi
Why am I cynical about the NSW government promising free wireless broadband?
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/Iemma_NSW_CBDs_will_get_free_Wi_Fi/0,130061791,339272442,00.htm
Advertising supported?
Decision in the second quarter of next year?
Hmmm, just after the March election. I guess by then we'll have all forgotten about this.
What's disappointing about stunts like this is that it shows the politicians know this stuff is important. But rather than put in place sensible policies that encourage the development, use and growth of new technologies, they just engage in pointless gesture and stupid promises.
They say we get the politicians we deserve. What did we do to deserve the current crop?
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/Iemma_NSW_CBDs_will_get_free_Wi_Fi/0,130061791,339272442,00.htm
Advertising supported?
Decision in the second quarter of next year?
Hmmm, just after the March election. I guess by then we'll have all forgotten about this.
What's disappointing about stunts like this is that it shows the politicians know this stuff is important. But rather than put in place sensible policies that encourage the development, use and growth of new technologies, they just engage in pointless gesture and stupid promises.
They say we get the politicians we deserve. What did we do to deserve the current crop?
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Beating the MS Drum.
Who says Apple has all the fanbois?
http://www.arnnet.com.au/index.php?id=684413783&eid=-4152
The simple fact is customers don't need Vista. Right now, there is little compelling reason for consumers to run out and buy Vista. Businesses have even fewer reasons.
Vista will be a success. But only because every new machine from mid year onwards will come with it preinstalled. The simple replacement cycle will make sure Vista sells.
The funny thing is the analyst, David Mitchell, actually admits this when saying why Office 2007 won't have the same take up rate: "You don't get the OEM drag effect. If you buy a new PC, you get a copy of Vista. You don't necessarily get a copy of Office."
The funny thing is that he's probably wrong there too.
http://www.arnnet.com.au/index.php?id=684413783&eid=-4152
The simple fact is customers don't need Vista. Right now, there is little compelling reason for consumers to run out and buy Vista. Businesses have even fewer reasons.
Vista will be a success. But only because every new machine from mid year onwards will come with it preinstalled. The simple replacement cycle will make sure Vista sells.
The funny thing is the analyst, David Mitchell, actually admits this when saying why Office 2007 won't have the same take up rate: "You don't get the OEM drag effect. If you buy a new PC, you get a copy of Vista. You don't necessarily get a copy of Office."
The funny thing is that he's probably wrong there too.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Thinking before you send (again)
It's a shame Katrina Jorgensen lives in New Zealand. I'd like to hire her as my accounts payable manager. Unfortunately her all too direct email got her sacked by her own husband.
Again we see why it's important to think before you send. The line "Why don't you stay within your class level and buy something from payless plastics instead." is priceless but it really isn't something you'd like to see sent around the world. Again, don't send something you would like to see next to your photo on the six o'clock news, or the NZ Herald in this case.
A greater sin of the Great Marquee company is the use of sound on their website. Now that's a hanging offence. Incidentally, $NZ30,000 is a bloody cheap wedding so maybe Katrina does have a point.
Another offence is the shameless pinching of the story by the Sydney Daily Telegraph, right down to the photos. It's surprising the Tele couldn't find a story today given the circus that our state politicians are performing in.
The morals of this story are, spend more on weddings if you don't want to be insulted, don't read the Tele, don't imbed boring music in your website and never send an email you've written in anger.
Again we see why it's important to think before you send. The line "Why don't you stay within your class level and buy something from payless plastics instead." is priceless but it really isn't something you'd like to see sent around the world. Again, don't send something you would like to see next to your photo on the six o'clock news, or the NZ Herald in this case.
A greater sin of the Great Marquee company is the use of sound on their website. Now that's a hanging offence. Incidentally, $NZ30,000 is a bloody cheap wedding so maybe Katrina does have a point.
Another offence is the shameless pinching of the story by the Sydney Daily Telegraph, right down to the photos. It's surprising the Tele couldn't find a story today given the circus that our state politicians are performing in.
The morals of this story are, spend more on weddings if you don't want to be insulted, don't read the Tele, don't imbed boring music in your website and never send an email you've written in anger.
Saturday, November 11, 2006
Vista won't need anti-virus?
Microsoft suggest Windows Vista won't need an antivirus. Who are they kidding?
Co-President of Microsoft, Jim Allchin, is reported to have claimed Vista won't need an anti-virus. His seven year old surfs the net all the time and using the parental controls feature, Jim doesn't have to worry about AV. If he believes that, he's kidding himself.
My kids surf the net all the time using an XP computer. It never gets viruses because they use Firefox and they run as restricted users. When they go to virus or spyware infected sites, the malware simple cannot run.
That's not to say the malware sites don't try. AVG constantly picks up trojan attempts in the cache file. But they simply don't get on the system.
Vista almost certainly will be more secure than XP, just as XP was more secure than 98 and ME. However XP could have been as secure as the Mac had Microsoft not decided to make all users Administrators by default. Make the users limited and the bulk of the problems go away, thankfully Vista appears to do this, although in practice it might be different.
We'll see how secure Vista is in the next few months. But right now it's sounding like we have a lot of complex kludges like parental controls and Address Space Layout Randomization. All these seem nice ideas, but they are just adding to the complexity of an already complex system.
The real solutions to Windows' security problems are for normal users not to have administrator rights and to deny access to the registry and system 32 folder. There is no reason why any program should have to write to either for normal usage. Until this is done, then Windows will continue to have problems.
It's a shame someone like Jim Allchin would make such a silly statement. Of course Vista will still need an anti-virus. I doubt even the stock brokers and analysts are fooled by this sort of talk.
Co-President of Microsoft, Jim Allchin, is reported to have claimed Vista won't need an anti-virus. His seven year old surfs the net all the time and using the parental controls feature, Jim doesn't have to worry about AV. If he believes that, he's kidding himself.
My kids surf the net all the time using an XP computer. It never gets viruses because they use Firefox and they run as restricted users. When they go to virus or spyware infected sites, the malware simple cannot run.
That's not to say the malware sites don't try. AVG constantly picks up trojan attempts in the cache file. But they simply don't get on the system.
Vista almost certainly will be more secure than XP, just as XP was more secure than 98 and ME. However XP could have been as secure as the Mac had Microsoft not decided to make all users Administrators by default. Make the users limited and the bulk of the problems go away, thankfully Vista appears to do this, although in practice it might be different.
We'll see how secure Vista is in the next few months. But right now it's sounding like we have a lot of complex kludges like parental controls and Address Space Layout Randomization. All these seem nice ideas, but they are just adding to the complexity of an already complex system.
The real solutions to Windows' security problems are for normal users not to have administrator rights and to deny access to the registry and system 32 folder. There is no reason why any program should have to write to either for normal usage. Until this is done, then Windows will continue to have problems.
It's a shame someone like Jim Allchin would make such a silly statement. Of course Vista will still need an anti-virus. I doubt even the stock brokers and analysts are fooled by this sort of talk.
Friday, November 10, 2006
Telstra's ADSL2 pricing
Telstra has finally released it's ADSL 2 service, but it continues to offer poor value compared to the competition.
ADSL 2 has been available from many ISPs for the last year and Telstra has been installing this equipment without making it available to customers. Now they have finally released their ADSL2 service. The shame is that it is lousy value.
Australian Personal Computer has a good comparison of the various ADSL2 offerings. Telstra doesn't compare well. To add insult to injury, APC also points out that Telstra has decided to use different equipment to most of the competition, which means more compatibility problems.
Once again, we see good reasons why consumers need to shop around. What's more, it's another example of why Telstra should be split into a wholesale and retail providers. Sadly, we won't see this under the current government or opposition.
ADSL 2 has been available from many ISPs for the last year and Telstra has been installing this equipment without making it available to customers. Now they have finally released their ADSL2 service. The shame is that it is lousy value.
Australian Personal Computer has a good comparison of the various ADSL2 offerings. Telstra doesn't compare well. To add insult to injury, APC also points out that Telstra has decided to use different equipment to most of the competition, which means more compatibility problems.
Once again, we see good reasons why consumers need to shop around. What's more, it's another example of why Telstra should be split into a wholesale and retail providers. Sadly, we won't see this under the current government or opposition.
The spam explosion
Spam is increasing again. Is it all worthwhile
The last couple of months have seen a massive increase in spam. We're increasingly being asked how to control it and we're having trouble with the answers. The problem is the spammers have become smarter.
A spam message traditionally had content along the lines of "get rich quick" or "grow your hair" and it was comparatively easy for spam checking programs to find most of these messages. The new breed just jumbles together commonly used words or phrases. This is why so much spam looks like gobblygook.
To get their message across the spammers have started putting their messages in an image file. So we have a picture of the spam message. The spam detector can't read the image.
The final nail in the spam checker is that they traditionally used blacklists of known spammers or compromised servers to check where the spam was coming from. A larger proportion of spam now comes from infected computers or unsecured wireless networks so blacklists are harder to maintain.
While the spam checkers are getting better, this is a curse we are going to have to put up with until we see fewer compromised computers and networks.
The last couple of months have seen a massive increase in spam. We're increasingly being asked how to control it and we're having trouble with the answers. The problem is the spammers have become smarter.
A spam message traditionally had content along the lines of "get rich quick" or "grow your hair" and it was comparatively easy for spam checking programs to find most of these messages. The new breed just jumbles together commonly used words or phrases. This is why so much spam looks like gobblygook.
To get their message across the spammers have started putting their messages in an image file. So we have a picture of the spam message. The spam detector can't read the image.
The final nail in the spam checker is that they traditionally used blacklists of known spammers or compromised servers to check where the spam was coming from. A larger proportion of spam now comes from infected computers or unsecured wireless networks so blacklists are harder to maintain.
While the spam checkers are getting better, this is a curse we are going to have to put up with until we see fewer compromised computers and networks.
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
The porn case
What are the lessons from the Budlong porn case?
On the face of it, the NSW Industrial Relation Commission's ruling that being sacked for possessing porn is unreasonable is worrying. But like all these things a reading of the judgment reveals there's a lot more to the case. It appears NCR were inconsistent and made a number of mistakes.
The biggest mistake NCR made was inconsistency. Another staff member had been counseled for inappropriate email usage, she was sacked after continuing the behaviour. Budlong wasn't given counselling before being sacked.
A more striking problem for NCR was their Acceptable Usage Policy. The "air of automation" comment by the commission was my biggest worry, but it turns out the policy was FIFTY pages long. It clearly wasn't readable, the commission also hints that not all staff had signed it.
The third and, in my view, most dubious point against NCR was the lack of a firewall. While I'm surprised a company like this didn't have one, the commission took it as indicating the company didn't seriously enforce it's policies. It shows a business has to take positive steps to prevent this happenning.
This case has presented a few lessons for businesses and IT departments. While the specific case is only applicable to New South Wales, the lessons can be taken on board by most companies. Those lessons are.
1. Have a clear and concise policy on inappropriate usage.
2. Act decisively, fairly and consistently when it is breached.
3. Do not rely on an AUP, install filtering and monitoring equipment to stop these things coming into the network.
From a purely mercenary point of view, this is an excellent opportunity for IT businesses to push filtering and AUP policies.
On the face of it, the NSW Industrial Relation Commission's ruling that being sacked for possessing porn is unreasonable is worrying. But like all these things a reading of the judgment reveals there's a lot more to the case. It appears NCR were inconsistent and made a number of mistakes.
The biggest mistake NCR made was inconsistency. Another staff member had been counseled for inappropriate email usage, she was sacked after continuing the behaviour. Budlong wasn't given counselling before being sacked.
A more striking problem for NCR was their Acceptable Usage Policy. The "air of automation" comment by the commission was my biggest worry, but it turns out the policy was FIFTY pages long. It clearly wasn't readable, the commission also hints that not all staff had signed it.
The third and, in my view, most dubious point against NCR was the lack of a firewall. While I'm surprised a company like this didn't have one, the commission took it as indicating the company didn't seriously enforce it's policies. It shows a business has to take positive steps to prevent this happenning.
This case has presented a few lessons for businesses and IT departments. While the specific case is only applicable to New South Wales, the lessons can be taken on board by most companies. Those lessons are.
1. Have a clear and concise policy on inappropriate usage.
2. Act decisively, fairly and consistently when it is breached.
3. Do not rely on an AUP, install filtering and monitoring equipment to stop these things coming into the network.
From a purely mercenary point of view, this is an excellent opportunity for IT businesses to push filtering and AUP policies.
Monday, November 06, 2006
Office 2007 pricing.
MS have announced their office pricing. Will people bother?
The Office 2007 pricing has been released and it's a clear indicator of where Microsoft want to sell. The OEM and family markets are the focus. With an interesting offer for business customers.
The home edition doesn't include Outlook while the OEM edition does. This clearly fits into the strategy of selling Windows into the home and small business markets. Coupled with the OEM prices for Small Business Service it becomes a pretty compelling sell to small businesses.
MS need a hook for people to buy. Most users are happy with Office 97 and, with the exception of improvements to Outlook, there's little difference to most Office users.
The Office 2007 pricing has been released and it's a clear indicator of where Microsoft want to sell. The OEM and family markets are the focus. With an interesting offer for business customers.
The home edition doesn't include Outlook while the OEM edition does. This clearly fits into the strategy of selling Windows into the home and small business markets. Coupled with the OEM prices for Small Business Service it becomes a pretty compelling sell to small businesses.
MS need a hook for people to buy. Most users are happy with Office 97 and, with the exception of improvements to Outlook, there's little difference to most Office users.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Reseller motivations
Are resellers solely motivated by margins?
Webroot Software sees an opportunity pitching to resellers who find themselves cut out of vendor's renewal programs. Basically what they are saying is we can make more money out of their renewals than, say, the nothing we get from Norton or McAfee.
To me, this misunderstands why we recommend products. The money we can make is a factor, but a much more important factor is how good the product is. We don't want to foist crook products on our customers, they pay us for good advice.
We can make good margins on products like Norton AntiVirus, the reason we don't recommend it is because we see too many computers screwed up by this product, the money is irrelevant.
Webroot would be much better off making sure their software is well written and effective. Pricing their product slightly cheaper than Symantec's equivalent and giving us a decent margin will help. But the most important thing is to deliver software that works and doesn't mess up the customer's system.
Webroot Software sees an opportunity pitching to resellers who find themselves cut out of vendor's renewal programs. Basically what they are saying is we can make more money out of their renewals than, say, the nothing we get from Norton or McAfee.
To me, this misunderstands why we recommend products. The money we can make is a factor, but a much more important factor is how good the product is. We don't want to foist crook products on our customers, they pay us for good advice.
We can make good margins on products like Norton AntiVirus, the reason we don't recommend it is because we see too many computers screwed up by this product, the money is irrelevant.
Webroot would be much better off making sure their software is well written and effective. Pricing their product slightly cheaper than Symantec's equivalent and giving us a decent margin will help. But the most important thing is to deliver software that works and doesn't mess up the customer's system.
Saturday, October 28, 2006
What the hell is it with lawyers?
You'd think lawyers would be the people most aware of the risks of sending dodgy emails to all and sundry, yet once again we have a story of lawyers passing on a silly email to all their mates.
The lesson, once again, is if you don't want to see the text next to your picture on the six o'clock news, then don't write it.
But I continue to wonder why I hear so many stories about lawyers and dumb Internet usage. Over the years I've heard stories of sexual harassment, dissing clients and all manner of inappropriate behaviour. Is it because they believe they are untouchable?
The lesson, once again, is if you don't want to see the text next to your picture on the six o'clock news, then don't write it.
But I continue to wonder why I hear so many stories about lawyers and dumb Internet usage. Over the years I've heard stories of sexual harassment, dissing clients and all manner of inappropriate behaviour. Is it because they believe they are untouchable?
Monday, October 23, 2006
Bigpond drop the word "unlimited"
Quietly in the last few weeks, Bigpond have renamed their "Unlimited" plan to "Liberty".
This label was always misleading. The plans were never unlimited. Once you reached the limit, you were capped to slower speeds.
While misusing the word "unlimited" is typical IT industry behaviour, it's preferable to the alternative, a massive excess use charge. The 200, 400 and 500Mb plans are designed to hit customers with excess bills. The 200Mb plan would end up costing the typical family over $70 a month.
It worries me when I hear schools bullying families to get on to the net. Too many of those families will sign up with Bigpond and opt for the cheapest possible plan. Throw a couple of kids surfing for free music on that machine and a 29.95 plan could easily become a $29,950 plan.
This label was always misleading. The plans were never unlimited. Once you reached the limit, you were capped to slower speeds.
While misusing the word "unlimited" is typical IT industry behaviour, it's preferable to the alternative, a massive excess use charge. The 200, 400 and 500Mb plans are designed to hit customers with excess bills. The 200Mb plan would end up costing the typical family over $70 a month.
It worries me when I hear schools bullying families to get on to the net. Too many of those families will sign up with Bigpond and opt for the cheapest possible plan. Throw a couple of kids surfing for free music on that machine and a 29.95 plan could easily become a $29,950 plan.
Saturday, October 21, 2006
XP Service Pack 3 delayed
It appears the next Windows XP service pack will not be released until 2008. This means it will be almost four years between service packs two and three. This is not acceptable.
Already a new machine with SP2 requires over sixty updates to get up to date, it boggles my mind how many we'll need by 2008.
Not good enough.
Already a new machine with SP2 requires over sixty updates to get up to date, it boggles my mind how many we'll need by 2008.
Not good enough.
Friday, October 20, 2006
HP overtakes Dell
Gartner and IDC are reporting HP has regained the lead over Dell in worldwide PC shipments this quarter.
The frightening thing for Dell is the fall in US market share: IDC report 6.7% and Gartner 7%. A fall like that is a serious matter.
The problem for Dell is that they are now firmly stuck in the low margin, cheapo market. It's going to take a lot of work for them to break out of that niche. If they don't, though, they are doomed.
The frightening thing for Dell is the fall in US market share: IDC report 6.7% and Gartner 7%. A fall like that is a serious matter.
The problem for Dell is that they are now firmly stuck in the low margin, cheapo market. It's going to take a lot of work for them to break out of that niche. If they don't, though, they are doomed.
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Apple defenders come out
When Choice named iPods as among the ten shonkiest products of the year, I expected the fanboys to come out snarling. In the next few days we'll see the usual sqwarking and attacks on everyone concerned. I certainly didn't expect Smarthouse News to be questioning Choice's integrity, however.
While I agree the Australian Consumers Association can be hysterical at times, and I disagree with their view that computers should be as reliable as toasters and fridges, their comments about Apple's disgraceful iPod return policy are quite right.
What I find interesting in the Smarthouse article is the quote from Harvey Norman's Rutland Smith: "The claims by Choice surprise me as we have no problems with iPod returns and we sell thousands"
It's amazing that there are two Rutley Smiths working at Harvey Norman. A month earlier another Rutley Smith told Australian Personal Computer,
Harvey Norman had repeatedly asked Apple to change its iPod return process which instructs customers to return faulty iPods directly to Apple by post.
While I agree the Australian Consumers Association can be hysterical at times, and I disagree with their view that computers should be as reliable as toasters and fridges, their comments about Apple's disgraceful iPod return policy are quite right.
What I find interesting in the Smarthouse article is the quote from Harvey Norman's Rutland Smith: "The claims by Choice surprise me as we have no problems with iPod returns and we sell thousands"
It's amazing that there are two Rutley Smiths working at Harvey Norman. A month earlier another Rutley Smith told Australian Personal Computer,
Harvey Norman had repeatedly asked Apple to change its iPod return process which instructs customers to return faulty iPods directly to Apple by post.
“We’ve instructed our stores to resolve problems in accordance with the Trade Practices Act and handle stock problems with Apple at a later date. But so far we’ve found Apple to be particularly uncooperative.”
So it seems we have two Rutley Smiths at Harvey Norman. One thinks Apple are terrific and one seems to have a similar attitude to Choice Magazine. What a strange world we live in.iPod wins shonky award
Choice Magazine has nominated Apple's iPod for their Shonky awards.
Apple's iPod has won a Shonky, the Australian Consumers Association award for "unsafe, unethical, dishonest or plain hilarious products". The main point against the iPod is Apple's disgraceful, and possibly illegal, return policy.
Then again, what more can we expect from a company that blames Microsoft when it ships a product with a virus?
I also love how Apple link their advisory to two of the buggiest antivirus products on the market.
It's way beyond time that the ACCC and various state consumer protection authorities start doing their jobs and prosecute a few vendors for breaching the Trade Practices Act and various state laws.
Perhaps if they did, these outfits would stop treating users, customers and resellers with contempt and start shipping products that did what they promised.
Apple's iPod has won a Shonky, the Australian Consumers Association award for "unsafe, unethical, dishonest or plain hilarious products". The main point against the iPod is Apple's disgraceful, and possibly illegal, return policy.
Then again, what more can we expect from a company that blames Microsoft when it ships a product with a virus?
I also love how Apple link their advisory to two of the buggiest antivirus products on the market.
It's way beyond time that the ACCC and various state consumer protection authorities start doing their jobs and prosecute a few vendors for breaching the Trade Practices Act and various state laws.
Perhaps if they did, these outfits would stop treating users, customers and resellers with contempt and start shipping products that did what they promised.
Techs pushing Vista
Are techs mad to be pushing Vista right now?
I received a competitors newsletter yesterday which was mainly an exercise in pushing Windows Vista. It's not something I would do.
Vista will eventually take over from XP, however we'll see a lot of teeth gnashing as the early adopters work they way through the many incompatibilities and bugs that we'll find. It's a brave tech that would tell their customers to upgrade three months after the release, let alone three months before. We're advising to wait until this time next year.
The notable thing about this company is they have a "no fix-no fee" policy. I suspect this advice might become very expensive in the new year.
I received a competitors newsletter yesterday which was mainly an exercise in pushing Windows Vista. It's not something I would do.
Vista will eventually take over from XP, however we'll see a lot of teeth gnashing as the early adopters work they way through the many incompatibilities and bugs that we'll find. It's a brave tech that would tell their customers to upgrade three months after the release, let alone three months before. We're advising to wait until this time next year.
The notable thing about this company is they have a "no fix-no fee" policy. I suspect this advice might become very expensive in the new year.
Germany proposes a computer tax
In countries like Germany and the UK where televisions require a license it was inevitable that applying these taxes to computers would be proposed.
I'm surprised the record companies and movie studios haven't suggested a similar levy to compensate for the billions they claim to lose to piracy.
What this really illustrates is how flawed comparisons between computers and household appliance are. A TV can only do one thing: Watch TV (although the picture can come from a VCR or satellite dish). Computers on the other hand can do untold number of things.
This is why I get cranky at the Consumer Association's constant assertion that computers should be as reliable as toasters. I don't see too many viruses written for toasters or teenagers trying to share raisin toast in return for muffins. I also don't see too many home based businesses using a domestic toaster to run a cafe.
I'm surprised the record companies and movie studios haven't suggested a similar levy to compensate for the billions they claim to lose to piracy.
What this really illustrates is how flawed comparisons between computers and household appliance are. A TV can only do one thing: Watch TV (although the picture can come from a VCR or satellite dish). Computers on the other hand can do untold number of things.
This is why I get cranky at the Consumer Association's constant assertion that computers should be as reliable as toasters. I don't see too many viruses written for toasters or teenagers trying to share raisin toast in return for muffins. I also don't see too many home based businesses using a domestic toaster to run a cafe.
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Cutting down peer-to-peer
Extel's decision to slow peer-to-peer traffic is hardly surprising.
Given that probably thirty percent of household computers we see currently have P2P software on their computers, and most of them have sharing enabled, the amount of data being pushed around by these programs is huge. The costs to ISPs must be massive.
The importance of the Internet to so many businesses and households means priortising other traffic is fair enough. Also, the market for ISPs like Exetel is largely price driven they just can't afford these sort of costs.
Users have to decide if they want cheap or capacity. They can't have both. Mind you, if some of the complaints are true, then I would be a cranky customer too.
It's industry practice to allow customers to terminate a contract without penalty if terms are changed during the term. The talcum Industry Ombudsman has a checklist for dealing with customer complaints.
Given that probably thirty percent of household computers we see currently have P2P software on their computers, and most of them have sharing enabled, the amount of data being pushed around by these programs is huge. The costs to ISPs must be massive.
The importance of the Internet to so many businesses and households means priortising other traffic is fair enough. Also, the market for ISPs like Exetel is largely price driven they just can't afford these sort of costs.
Users have to decide if they want cheap or capacity. They can't have both. Mind you, if some of the complaints are true, then I would be a cranky customer too.
It's industry practice to allow customers to terminate a contract without penalty if terms are changed during the term. The talcum Industry Ombudsman has a checklist for dealing with customer complaints.
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
McAfee complains about Vista
McAfee has joined Symantec to complain about Vista's security and lack of access to kernal.
What a laugh. Both of these products would work better WITHOUT access. All too often we see machines dragged down by them.
These programs shouldn't be allowed access to key operating files. Nothing should. The main reason for XP's diabolic security problems is the ease programs can write to the registry and system folders.
What a laugh. Both of these products would work better WITHOUT access. All too often we see machines dragged down by them.
These programs shouldn't be allowed access to key operating files. Nothing should. The main reason for XP's diabolic security problems is the ease programs can write to the registry and system folders.
Thursday, September 21, 2006
More exploding laptops
More battery problems.
On top of the exploding Lenovo laptop at Los Angeles airport, a Dell catches fire at the Yahoo! head office.
Toshiba are now recalling over 300,000 batteries. Apparently the problem is to do with corrosion, not fire risks. But the batteries are still Sony.
It seems Sony have some serious problems.
On top of the exploding Lenovo laptop at Los Angeles airport, a Dell catches fire at the Yahoo! head office.
Toshiba are now recalling over 300,000 batteries. Apparently the problem is to do with corrosion, not fire risks. But the batteries are still Sony.
It seems Sony have some serious problems.
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Is free security software worse?
Is free software worst than paid?
The SMH today looks at the pros and cons of free security software. While their conclusions are fair, that free software often requires more work from the user and sometimes lacks features, the comments from vendors are breath-taking.
I particularly like the Computer Associates spokesperson saying "They think they have something that's fully protecting them, when in reality they don't protect in a way they might need."
Priceless.
It's actually the commercial, full featured packages that leave users with a false sense of security. The number of times we discover users with damaged, disabled or out of date brand name security products is depressing.
The simple fact is the worst offenders are McAfee and Symantec.
Symantec suffers mainly because it relies on the Windows Scripting Host. This means a spyware infection will often drag a Norton product and Windows down with it. Their products is too complex and their licensing puts users at a disadvantage.
McAfee's problems start with their licensing obsession. Their registration system is so convoluted and prone to failure that many users are never properly covered. Like Symantec, their products are too complex and are even more difficult to fix when a problem arises.
While free products do have drawbacks and require more user intervention, most of them are far simpler and less prone to failure.
Software is always going to be complex, but the problem with most large software houses, including Microsoft, Symantec and McAfee, is they make their products even more complex than is necessary.
The SMH today looks at the pros and cons of free security software. While their conclusions are fair, that free software often requires more work from the user and sometimes lacks features, the comments from vendors are breath-taking.
I particularly like the Computer Associates spokesperson saying "They think they have something that's fully protecting them, when in reality they don't protect in a way they might need."
Priceless.
It's actually the commercial, full featured packages that leave users with a false sense of security. The number of times we discover users with damaged, disabled or out of date brand name security products is depressing.
The simple fact is the worst offenders are McAfee and Symantec.
Symantec suffers mainly because it relies on the Windows Scripting Host. This means a spyware infection will often drag a Norton product and Windows down with it. Their products is too complex and their licensing puts users at a disadvantage.
McAfee's problems start with their licensing obsession. Their registration system is so convoluted and prone to failure that many users are never properly covered. Like Symantec, their products are too complex and are even more difficult to fix when a problem arises.
While free products do have drawbacks and require more user intervention, most of them are far simpler and less prone to failure.
Software is always going to be complex, but the problem with most large software houses, including Microsoft, Symantec and McAfee, is they make their products even more complex than is necessary.
Monday, September 18, 2006
Attack of the giant laptops
We thought the Toshiba Qosmio took the cake when it came to portable computers, but the Dell M2010 surely takes the cake.
With a screen sizes between 17 and 21" and weighing in over 9ks, these beasts push the definition of portable. Laptop magazine has an amusing story on one of their writers travelling around New York with it. I certainly wouldn't want to be sitting next to someone using an M2010 in economy.
In fact, it's unfair to put them in the same category as laptops and portables. These are genuine desktop replacements. Usually home based business people with restricted space or who move between two locations buy desktop replacements.
The fact these systems come with remote controls and Windows Media Centre show the intended market is not the small business owner. These are firmly aimed at the home entertainment market.
Unfortunately at over $6,000 the prices will lock them out of most home users' budgets. These are strictly aimed at the top of the market.
With a screen sizes between 17 and 21" and weighing in over 9ks, these beasts push the definition of portable. Laptop magazine has an amusing story on one of their writers travelling around New York with it. I certainly wouldn't want to be sitting next to someone using an M2010 in economy.
In fact, it's unfair to put them in the same category as laptops and portables. These are genuine desktop replacements. Usually home based business people with restricted space or who move between two locations buy desktop replacements.
The fact these systems come with remote controls and Windows Media Centre show the intended market is not the small business owner. These are firmly aimed at the home entertainment market.
Unfortunately at over $6,000 the prices will lock them out of most home users' budgets. These are strictly aimed at the top of the market.
Friday, September 15, 2006
Hackers in the system
One thing that always raises a smile from computer techs is when a user cries "there's a hacker in my computer."
While I'd never discount the real threat of hackers, the reality is usually far more mundane. Usually the "hacker" turns out to be a virus or spyware. If it is a person, that person is usually a family or staff member.
So a phone call from a client saying Bigpond had blamed her high Internet bill on hackers made us raise our eyebrows. The usual thing we ask when we get such a call is "do you have a teenager in the house?" Sure enough, one of her sons had moved home a few weeks previously.
A quick inspection of the computer found Limewire with the default file sharing settings enabled. The prodigal son denied all knowledge.
It must have been a hacker.
While I'd never discount the real threat of hackers, the reality is usually far more mundane. Usually the "hacker" turns out to be a virus or spyware. If it is a person, that person is usually a family or staff member.
So a phone call from a client saying Bigpond had blamed her high Internet bill on hackers made us raise our eyebrows. The usual thing we ask when we get such a call is "do you have a teenager in the house?" Sure enough, one of her sons had moved home a few weeks previously.
A quick inspection of the computer found Limewire with the default file sharing settings enabled. The prodigal son denied all knowledge.
It must have been a hacker.
Thursday, September 14, 2006
More battery woes
I'm wondering just how wide the Sony battery problems are.
My new Sony Ericsson M600 has been playing up since I bought it four weeks ago. Yesterday I took it back to find there is a battery recall.
I'm not sure the problem is related to the laptop recall, but it wouldn't surprise me.
Given battery problems are the most common complaint of laptop users, it seems manufacturers need to have a good look at the technology they are putting in these things.
My new Sony Ericsson M600 has been playing up since I bought it four weeks ago. Yesterday I took it back to find there is a battery recall.
I'm not sure the problem is related to the laptop recall, but it wouldn't surprise me.
Given battery problems are the most common complaint of laptop users, it seems manufacturers need to have a good look at the technology they are putting in these things.
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Norton slows computers
So what does slow a PC down?
The Spy PC Blog looked at what slows a Windows computer down. They tested a number of programs to see which would be the worst offender. Norton Internet Security won by a long shot.
While not being scientific, it certainly does match our experiences in the real world. Removing NAV is often the best boost a computer can get. It's usually the first thing we do.
In the real world, the situation is more complex. While Norton Internet Security may be the biggest single culprit, the cumulative effects of a spyware infection will slow a computer even more.
To complicate the picture even more, a spyware infection will mess up the Active Scripting functions, which in turn will bork Norton products, which in turn will reduce the whole computer to a quivering wreck.
I'm sure Symantec's spin doctors will be able to portray the Spy PC tests as being unrepresentative. The fact is Norton products have serious problems. They need to fix them.
The Spy PC Blog looked at what slows a Windows computer down. They tested a number of programs to see which would be the worst offender. Norton Internet Security won by a long shot.
While not being scientific, it certainly does match our experiences in the real world. Removing NAV is often the best boost a computer can get. It's usually the first thing we do.
In the real world, the situation is more complex. While Norton Internet Security may be the biggest single culprit, the cumulative effects of a spyware infection will slow a computer even more.
To complicate the picture even more, a spyware infection will mess up the Active Scripting functions, which in turn will bork Norton products, which in turn will reduce the whole computer to a quivering wreck.
I'm sure Symantec's spin doctors will be able to portray the Spy PC tests as being unrepresentative. The fact is Norton products have serious problems. They need to fix them.
Monday, September 11, 2006
Exploiting tragedy
I've heard a number of marketing and advertising gurus advise exploiting 9/11 to sell disaster recovery and backup services.
Personally, I think it's bad taste. I suspect many people will agree with me. So we didn't do it.
The point's valid, but to tie a terrorist atrocity into selling your wares seems to be asking for trouble.
One of the most important rules in running a small business is: If your gut says no, then don't do it.
Every time I've ignored that rule, I've regretted it.
Personally, I think it's bad taste. I suspect many people will agree with me. So we didn't do it.
The point's valid, but to tie a terrorist atrocity into selling your wares seems to be asking for trouble.
One of the most important rules in running a small business is: If your gut says no, then don't do it.
Every time I've ignored that rule, I've regretted it.
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Let's party like it's 1999
We should have known Web 2.0 would lead to Bubble 2.0
I enjoy going to the Fourth Estate Domain nights at Sydney's CBD Hotel. Sally and Mike put on an excellent and interesting night (even if the bar can be a bit slow). Their choice of guest is usually very interesting as well.
Martin Dalgleish from PBL was August's guest and it left me deeply disturbed.
He made the point that content is king in the "new" online world.
The problem I see is his idea of content seems to be restricted to reposting magazine articles and getting users to send in content ala flickr and "Australia's funniest home videos".
I'm not sure Martin gets it, changing his title to Director of New Media doesn't help. That's so 1990s.
We certainly did have a 1990s theme. A lot of the people looked like they stepped from the 98 and they were certainly talking like it.
If we needed any proof the dot com 2 bubble is on, an article in Forbes confirms it: "The Cheap Revolution is On!"
Cheap software, cheap hardware, cheap content, cheap, cheap, cheap.
The problem is that people have to make enough to live on. Make things too cheap and you'll only keep your Boxter for as long as naive investors will throw money at you.
A good indicator that things are getting silly is CNet's article about Super Cheap Computers Office Depot are going to sell an HP system for $198 US (including shipping).
The article points out the original dot com bust arguably started when manufacturers warned revenues were falling. So perhaps the seeds of the bust are already here.
I enjoy going to the Fourth Estate Domain nights at Sydney's CBD Hotel. Sally and Mike put on an excellent and interesting night (even if the bar can be a bit slow). Their choice of guest is usually very interesting as well.
Martin Dalgleish from PBL was August's guest and it left me deeply disturbed.
He made the point that content is king in the "new" online world.
The problem I see is his idea of content seems to be restricted to reposting magazine articles and getting users to send in content ala flickr and "Australia's funniest home videos".
I'm not sure Martin gets it, changing his title to Director of New Media doesn't help. That's so 1990s.
We certainly did have a 1990s theme. A lot of the people looked like they stepped from the 98 and they were certainly talking like it.
If we needed any proof the dot com 2 bubble is on, an article in Forbes confirms it: "The Cheap Revolution is On!"
Cheap software, cheap hardware, cheap content, cheap, cheap, cheap.
The problem is that people have to make enough to live on. Make things too cheap and you'll only keep your Boxter for as long as naive investors will throw money at you.
A good indicator that things are getting silly is CNet's article about Super Cheap Computers Office Depot are going to sell an HP system for $198 US (including shipping).
The article points out the original dot com bust arguably started when manufacturers warned revenues were falling. So perhaps the seeds of the bust are already here.
Friday, September 01, 2006
Smarthouse Sprays Foxtel
David Richards from Smarthouse News certainly isn't afraid of having go as his spray at Foxtel's chief executive shows.
Where I do disagree with David is that Foxtel is not going to go out of business quickly. If IPTV, or any other medium, becomes a threat to Foxtel or the FTA TV operators they will lobby the Federal government of the day to stop the threat.
On past performance, the Feds will quickly do what they are told. No Australian politician in recent memory has stood up to the moguls. In fact, Foxtel itself was born of Keating and Richardson's attempt to keep both the Packer and Murdoch camps happy.
While attempts to stifle new technology will ultimately fail, the cost will be huge to Australian consumers and industry. But that's never worried the cowards in Canberra who pretend to be the leaders of this nation.
Where I do disagree with David is that Foxtel is not going to go out of business quickly. If IPTV, or any other medium, becomes a threat to Foxtel or the FTA TV operators they will lobby the Federal government of the day to stop the threat.
On past performance, the Feds will quickly do what they are told. No Australian politician in recent memory has stood up to the moguls. In fact, Foxtel itself was born of Keating and Richardson's attempt to keep both the Packer and Murdoch camps happy.
While attempts to stifle new technology will ultimately fail, the cost will be huge to Australian consumers and industry. But that's never worried the cowards in Canberra who pretend to be the leaders of this nation.
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Melbourne IT to auction lapsed names
AustralianIT reports that our friends at MelbourneIT are planning to auction lapsed domain names.
The problem with this is that lapsed domains aren't theirs to sell. They go back into the pool for anyone to buy.
Could the cost of buying WebCentral be forcing them to become cybersquatters?
The problem with this is that lapsed domains aren't theirs to sell. They go back into the pool for anyone to buy.
Could the cost of buying WebCentral be forcing them to become cybersquatters?
Monday, August 21, 2006
Apple Ads hit Australia
Some months after they are released in the US, we get the "hi, I'm a Mac" ads appearing on Aussie TV.
I have to say they irritate me on a number of levels.
1. Trashing your competition
Stupid. It makes you look petty. Even more so when they have about 90% of the market.
2. Insulting potential customers
Given the genuine problems the competition has, you might be expected to get some to switch. So why insult them?
3. Confirming stereotypes
The stereotype Mac user is a skivvy wearing, smart arse, smug metrosexual graphic designer who's a sucker for following cults. Well done in cementing that view.
What's more, the ad's play into the hands of "the Mac's a nice toy, but I need to get some work done" crowd.
4. Misleading advertising
"It Just Works". One thing that drives us techs mad is tech companies making misleading statements. Sure the bugger will work most of the time, but I'll bet there'll be plenty of households and businesses that lose a lot of time trying to get some hardware or software combo working on their Mac.
I guess what really bugs me is that Apple has a great story to tell. The biggest problem for home PC users is Spyware and Trojan Horses. This is not a problem for Mac users.
Apple should be emphasising it's positives rather than insulting thousands of potential customers, but I guess the swarmy smart metrosexuals at their ad agency couldn't resist showing how superior they are to the grey, dumb, dull Windows users.
I have to say they irritate me on a number of levels.
1. Trashing your competition
Stupid. It makes you look petty. Even more so when they have about 90% of the market.
2. Insulting potential customers
Given the genuine problems the competition has, you might be expected to get some to switch. So why insult them?
3. Confirming stereotypes
The stereotype Mac user is a skivvy wearing, smart arse, smug metrosexual graphic designer who's a sucker for following cults. Well done in cementing that view.
What's more, the ad's play into the hands of "the Mac's a nice toy, but I need to get some work done" crowd.
4. Misleading advertising
"It Just Works". One thing that drives us techs mad is tech companies making misleading statements. Sure the bugger will work most of the time, but I'll bet there'll be plenty of households and businesses that lose a lot of time trying to get some hardware or software combo working on their Mac.
I guess what really bugs me is that Apple has a great story to tell. The biggest problem for home PC users is Spyware and Trojan Horses. This is not a problem for Mac users.
Apple should be emphasising it's positives rather than insulting thousands of potential customers, but I guess the swarmy smart metrosexuals at their ad agency couldn't resist showing how superior they are to the grey, dumb, dull Windows users.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Dell recalls batteries
Some six weeks after the Dell exploding laptop erupted into the media, Dell have finally decided to recall over four million batteries.
While it's the biggest recall, it isn't an isolated case. In the last year we have seen Apple Mac, HP and Dell have smaller recalls.
According to Dell's blog, this is something they have thought long and hard about before acting.
Our recommendations are straightforward:
Only buy genuine batteries. As this article shows, Lithium Ion batteries are precision instruments. Badly built batteries increase the risk of failure.
Damaged LiOn batteries are a risk, if you think your phone, laptop or cordless drill's battery may have been dropeed or damaged. Buy a new one.
If you notice the battery is misbehaving by discharging quickly, getting unusually hot or becoming mis-shapen or starts bulging then stop using it and contact the manufacturer.
Some other general laptop safety hints include.
Don't use the laptop on soft or flammable surfaces.
Don't block fan or ventilation ports.
If you notice the laptop getting hot, call for support.
It's not just laptops, here's a camera battery recall and. But Lithium Ion batteries are also used in cordless power tools and many other applications.
What we need to keep this in mind is that tens, if not hundreds, of millions of these batteries have been sold. Only a handful have had a problem.
While it's the biggest recall, it isn't an isolated case. In the last year we have seen Apple Mac, HP and Dell have smaller recalls.
According to Dell's blog, this is something they have thought long and hard about before acting.
Our recommendations are straightforward:
Only buy genuine batteries. As this article shows, Lithium Ion batteries are precision instruments. Badly built batteries increase the risk of failure.
Damaged LiOn batteries are a risk, if you think your phone, laptop or cordless drill's battery may have been dropeed or damaged. Buy a new one.
If you notice the battery is misbehaving by discharging quickly, getting unusually hot or becoming mis-shapen or starts bulging then stop using it and contact the manufacturer.
Some other general laptop safety hints include.
Don't use the laptop on soft or flammable surfaces.
Don't block fan or ventilation ports.
If you notice the laptop getting hot, call for support.
It's not just laptops, here's a camera battery recall and. But Lithium Ion batteries are also used in cordless power tools and many other applications.
What we need to keep this in mind is that tens, if not hundreds, of millions of these batteries have been sold. Only a handful have had a problem.
Friday, August 11, 2006
Virus emails
It's amazing how everything old becomes new again.
A mail in my inbox this morning titled " Order Approval Notification" from Spysoft Central. Given the attachment has a .jpg.exe suffix, it's obvious that it's a virus.
A quick Google reveals this is the Bancos Trojan and this particular one has been around since mid July.
We've been seeing a lot of this sort of thing, from "e-cards" to warnings that the NAB is about to go bust. All are trying to install Trojan programs on to victim's computers.
It's another reason why we are recommending all users move to Limited User accounts. The nuisance value is less than the risk of these things.
A mail in my inbox this morning titled " Order Approval Notification" from Spysoft Central. Given the attachment has a .jpg.exe suffix, it's obvious that it's a virus.
A quick Google reveals this is the Bancos Trojan and this particular one has been around since mid July.
We've been seeing a lot of this sort of thing, from "e-cards" to warnings that the NAB is about to go bust. All are trying to install Trojan programs on to victim's computers.
It's another reason why we are recommending all users move to Limited User accounts. The nuisance value is less than the risk of these things.
Saturday, August 05, 2006
The ATO and viruses
We changed this week's ABC 702 Weekend computer spot to discuss the Haxdoor virus and the ATO admitting users have had their details compromised.
In researching for the show, I stumbled previous warnings from the ATO about Trojan problems.
What worries me is that the ATO are the only big organisation admitting to this problem. There is no doubt banks are affected in a similar way. How much fraud is going on is a serious question.
It certainly has settled in my mind that all users should be Restricted Users and bugger the inconveniences.
Microsoft stuffed up XP by not introducing Restricted Users as the default. The question is how they are going to handle user permissions in Vista.
In researching for the show, I stumbled previous warnings from the ATO about Trojan problems.
What worries me is that the ATO are the only big organisation admitting to this problem. There is no doubt banks are affected in a similar way. How much fraud is going on is a serious question.
It certainly has settled in my mind that all users should be Restricted Users and bugger the inconveniences.
Microsoft stuffed up XP by not introducing Restricted Users as the default. The question is how they are going to handle user permissions in Vista.
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Reverse charge scam
A poster on the Whirlpool forums has pointed out a nasty new scam using reverse charge calls.
The scam involves a caller asking if you will accept a reverse charge call. If you do, the caller says "hello" and hangs up.
This costs you over $8.00.
Like the dialler, SMS and 1900 scams, these involve the scammer doing a deal with a telco. You'd think the telcos would be learning how to avoid these things.
The scam involves a caller asking if you will accept a reverse charge call. If you do, the caller says "hello" and hangs up.
This costs you over $8.00.
Like the dialler, SMS and 1900 scams, these involve the scammer doing a deal with a telco. You'd think the telcos would be learning how to avoid these things.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
tech TV is back
The Age reports that tech tv shows are back with not one, but two new programs.
Australian TV hasn't been kind to computers. Most of the coverage in the past have been superficial and boring advertorials. Outside of that, computers only get a mention when viruses are going to eat your granny's computer.
The ABC effort is confined to ABC 2, so it won't draw much attention. I would imagine the gamer community will be on their machines anyway. Good luck to them.
Channel Ten are no strangers to the IT advertorial scene. Their Internet Bright Ideas program was the best example of the genre. The new program, Cybershack, appears to offer untold opportunities for taking advertorials further.
The show itself is a joint venture between Chic Media, a division of Chic Model Management and CBN Media. While Cybershack is a great improvement on Hot Dog's Up Late Show, it doesn't appear that it will be a source of critical, unbiased reviews.
One day we'll figure out an entertaining way to talk about technology. For the moment, I guess we'll just have to content ourselves with ill concealed adverts.
Australian TV hasn't been kind to computers. Most of the coverage in the past have been superficial and boring advertorials. Outside of that, computers only get a mention when viruses are going to eat your granny's computer.
The ABC effort is confined to ABC 2, so it won't draw much attention. I would imagine the gamer community will be on their machines anyway. Good luck to them.
Channel Ten are no strangers to the IT advertorial scene. Their Internet Bright Ideas program was the best example of the genre. The new program, Cybershack, appears to offer untold opportunities for taking advertorials further.
The show itself is a joint venture between Chic Media, a division of Chic Model Management and CBN Media. While Cybershack is a great improvement on Hot Dog's Up Late Show, it doesn't appear that it will be a source of critical, unbiased reviews.
One day we'll figure out an entertaining way to talk about technology. For the moment, I guess we'll just have to content ourselves with ill concealed adverts.
Thursday, July 20, 2006
It's a bug, not a feature
ZDNet have shown us another reason for avoiding Internet Explorer in their article showing how programs can be run from IE.
What is unbelievable is Microsoft's reaction. "Organisations or individual users may require or desire to automate part of the process for application connectivity with IE." Said Peter Watson, head of security at Microsoft Australia.
Again, we see how Microsoft just don't get security.
What is unbelievable is Microsoft's reaction. "Organisations or individual users may require or desire to automate part of the process for application connectivity with IE." Said Peter Watson, head of security at Microsoft Australia.
Again, we see how Microsoft just don't get security.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Price Wars
Dell and Apple dragged the US stock markets down last night. Investors are quite rightly concerned about the risk of a price war breaking out in the PC industry. The margins are so tight that no vendor is in a position to fight such a battle.
The concern was so great that Asian stocks were dragged down by Dell and Apple's suppliers. This is with good reason as any pain suffered by Dell is going to be shared with it's suppliers. It could even be that we are seeing the last of any fat, or profit, that existed in the PC industry.
It's not good for Dell in Australia either, the entry of JB Hifi into computer retail is going to put pressure on retail prices. This is going to hit Dell along with Harvey Norman and Woolworths/Dick Smith.
Another issue facing Dell is the three month warranty. Anyone who buys a computer with a three month warranty is almost as dumb as the retailer who tries to sell it. This not going to fly with the ACCC or state fair trading departments.
Personally I'm amazed Dell are continuing to cut prices. It seems to me this is a strategy doomed to failure. It would make far more sense to position the brand as offering good quality at reasonable prices rather than the cheapest.
Then again, I'm not a high paid corporate warrior.
The concern was so great that Asian stocks were dragged down by Dell and Apple's suppliers. This is with good reason as any pain suffered by Dell is going to be shared with it's suppliers. It could even be that we are seeing the last of any fat, or profit, that existed in the PC industry.
It's not good for Dell in Australia either, the entry of JB Hifi into computer retail is going to put pressure on retail prices. This is going to hit Dell along with Harvey Norman and Woolworths/Dick Smith.
Another issue facing Dell is the three month warranty. Anyone who buys a computer with a three month warranty is almost as dumb as the retailer who tries to sell it. This not going to fly with the ACCC or state fair trading departments.
Personally I'm amazed Dell are continuing to cut prices. It seems to me this is a strategy doomed to failure. It would make far more sense to position the brand as offering good quality at reasonable prices rather than the cheapest.
Then again, I'm not a high paid corporate warrior.
Monday, July 10, 2006
The profits of spyware
Another article illustrates the profits to be made from spyware. The good news at least is that this mob, Direct Revenue, not only infected their business partners, but are now facing serious legal action. We can only hope the people behind this rubbish get long jail sentences.
If anyone has any doubt about the morals and ethics of the people who write spyware, then the latest trick by our friends at 180 Solutions should settle it. They are using Myspace to con teenagers into installing their malware.
It's getting harder to remove this rubbish from people's computers, so hopefully the legal system is going to get the message through to these people.
If anyone has any doubt about the morals and ethics of the people who write spyware, then the latest trick by our friends at 180 Solutions should settle it. They are using Myspace to con teenagers into installing their malware.
It's getting harder to remove this rubbish from people's computers, so hopefully the legal system is going to get the message through to these people.
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Windows Activation Blues
There's no doubt Microsoft has done the wrong thing with the Windows Activation Notification debacle. But some of the rhetoric is getting silly.
Today's Australian IT has a ramble about this. What really caught my eye was the comment by a computer tech that "no-one had been warned." We were, the fact people with pirated systems didn't get the message (or even knew they had crook systems) isn't MS's problem.
The simple fact is that all the people getting WGAN messages are getting them because they bought computers from dodgy companies or hired a crook tech. In some cases they've been ripped off, in some cases they bought the cheapest system.
What surprises me is how few systems I'm seeing with the warnings. It probably shows just how over-stated piracy is by the software companies.
Today's Australian IT has a ramble about this. What really caught my eye was the comment by a computer tech that "no-one had been warned." We were, the fact people with pirated systems didn't get the message (or even knew they had crook systems) isn't MS's problem.
The simple fact is that all the people getting WGAN messages are getting them because they bought computers from dodgy companies or hired a crook tech. In some cases they've been ripped off, in some cases they bought the cheapest system.
What surprises me is how few systems I'm seeing with the warnings. It probably shows just how over-stated piracy is by the software companies.
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Norton update problems
We continue to see Norton Anti Virus problems.
Nearly every Norton installation we currently see encounters a live update problem. The real concern with this problem is that it stops Norton updating it's virus definitions. We've seen machines completely out of date, with the customer having no idea their system isn't updating.
Symantec have a solution to the 1875 problem at their website. It's easy, it's quick and it works. Although the subject line is slightly wrong (just to make it harder to Google) and the file path is not necessarily correct.
Once again, I'd point out this shouldn't happen and I won't be recommending Symantec products until they strip out the complexity that allows this sort of thing to happen.
Nearly every Norton installation we currently see encounters a live update problem. The real concern with this problem is that it stops Norton updating it's virus definitions. We've seen machines completely out of date, with the customer having no idea their system isn't updating.
Symantec have a solution to the 1875 problem at their website. It's easy, it's quick and it works. Although the subject line is slightly wrong (just to make it harder to Google) and the file path is not necessarily correct.
Once again, I'd point out this shouldn't happen and I won't be recommending Symantec products until they strip out the complexity that allows this sort of thing to happen.
Monday, July 03, 2006
Crook Business
Today's Smarthouse News has an article which discusses why the home automation business is broken. The conclusion: It's a cottage industry dominated by small operators.
http://www.smarthousenews.com.au/Smart_Ideas/Installers?Article=/Smart%20Ideas/Installers/T5E5K5C2
The same can be said of our industry.
http://www.smarthousenews.com.au/Smart_Ideas/Installers?Article=/Smart%20Ideas/Installers/T5E5K5C2
The same can be said of our industry.
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
The Wireless Home
"Wireless devices poised for home invasion" predicts today's Sydney Morning Herald.
Having spent the morning in an unsuccessful battle with a dodgy Linksys router. I really don't think so.
Having spent the morning in an unsuccessful battle with a dodgy Linksys router. I really don't think so.
Friday, June 16, 2006
Windows becomes spyware
Microsoft don't get it. Their Genuine Advantage notification rings home and spies on users. Brian Livingston at Windows Secrets and David Berlind at ZD Net do a much better job than me demonstrating how bad this is.
What amazes me is David Lazar, the director of the Genuine Advantage program, admits the function is there partly to turn off if the thing doesn't work.
So Microsoft launched a program which put potentially buggy software on millions of computers?
Trustworthy computing indeed.
What amazes me is David Lazar, the director of the Genuine Advantage program, admits the function is there partly to turn off if the thing doesn't work.
So Microsoft launched a program which put potentially buggy software on millions of computers?
Trustworthy computing indeed.
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