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Issue # 16

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Hello everyone,
I've finally done a little work on the site including a
PowerPoint presentation titled "The pros & cons of System
File Checker".  Please look at it and let me know what you
think.  Question, do PowerPoint presentations belong on the
web?  Are they a waste of bandwidth?  I'd love to hear your
views on the matter.

I finally broke down and bought an office suite...  "Office
2000".  I swore I'd never do it but with all the email
etc...  I find I can really use some of the benefits an
office suite provides, and besides, PowerPoint presentation
is really cool!  The Polls may turn out to be a flop, it's
not getting very much traffic.  I'll give it a couple more
weeks before I yank it.

Now on with the good stuff!

FROM THE LANGALIST www.langa.com

IE 4/5 Patch Available---If You Know Where To Look

Microsoft has posted a patch to the "IFRAME ExecCommand"
Vulnerability on a special security site. The patch will
eventually be available via Windows Update, but you don't
have to wait: You can get it right now, via the link below.

Microsoft says this security problem "could allow a
malicious web site operator to read files on the computer of
a user who visited the site, under certain circumstances."

Internet Explorer 4.01 users should apply IE 4.01 Service
Pack 2 at:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/download/windows.htm
Internet Explorer 5 should apply that patch for this
vulnerability at:
ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/peropsys/IE/IE-Public/Fixes/usa/IE50
/MSHTML-fix/x86/q243638.exe
More info? See
http://www.microsoft.com/security/bulletins/MS99-042faq.asp

   More FREE DOS Help

LangaList readers are great! Just look at this note from
Bill Quinn:

     Fred I read your comments about computer users not
     knowing how to use DOS or even what DOS means to a
     computer. It reminded me of several articles I
     wrote years (and years) ago for our computer club
     members. This was used by a SIG group for classes
     to help newbies. I have attached those articles in
     ASC format and placed them in a ZIP...

Thanks Bill! It's very generous of you to share these
files.

If you're new to DOS, or need a refresher, Bill's files can
be a big help! Check 'em out! Click below to download the
38K ZIP file that contains Bill's nine DOS lessons; you'll
need a ZIP-file decompressor (such as WinZip, from
http://www.winzip.com/) to decompress and read the files.
The files
are in ASC (ASCII) format; any word processor should be able
to display the files for you, once they're uncompressed.

http://www.browsertune.com/doshelp.htm


Exploring The Registry

The Windows "registry" is a mystery to many users. For
example, reader Geoffrey Mason wrote:

     Fred - If you think it appropriate would you
     please put in a few lines on changing something in
     the REGISTRY (Win 95) I have opened it with
     REGEDIT but don't know where to go from there. I
     merely need to delete a couple of lines but can
     find nothing in the manuals that tells me how to
     do it. help.

In fact, Microsoft mostly tells you NOT to edit the
registry. But with a good guide, it's not hard, and it can
let you configure, improve and repair your PC in ways you
simply can't do otherwise.

For example, sometimes, after installing IE5, you can't
uninstall it; it vanishes off your add/delete list. But with
the right registry tweak, you can root it out.

A decent guide to the registry would fill a book--- and I
know of two excellent ones by former WinMag columnist John
Woram. I have them both, and highly recommend them. Here's
how Amazon.Com describes them:

     "For all of Microsoft's warnings about editing the
     Registry, it remains the most powerful, the most
     versatile--and often, the only--way to
     troubleshoot and customize your Windows PC. Try
     it! With the expert advice of Registry guru, John
     Woram, you'll quickly gain the know-how you need
     to navigate the maze of HKEYs, subkeys, and data
     strings with complete confidence. Clearly
     organized and well illustrated, [this book] takes
     the mystery out of the Registry, giving you a
     clear, detailed roadmap and straight-forward
     directions."

You can read more or even order a copy of the books, (at a
20% discount!), here:

The Windows 98 Registry : A Survival Guide for Users
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1558285911/langacom
The Windows 95 Registry : A Survival Guide for Users
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/155828494X/langacom
You also can find more book info here:
http://www.langa.com/books.htm


Java Insecurities

Proponents of Java like to boast of how safe it is. "Java
apps
*can't* harm your system," they say, "because they run in a
'sandbox' where they're prohibited from direct system
access."

And that is indeed the way it's supposed to work. But
hackers
don't play by the rules; they do all kinds on nonstandard
stuff.
Now some are starting hand-code Java applets in a way that
makes
them look safe to run (thus bypassing your system's security
settings) but which in actuality can allow them to do just
about
anything, including nasty little items such as reformatting
your
hard drive.

There's a new patch on the Microsoft site that can shore up
Microsoft's Java "virtual machine identifier" to help detect
these bad Java apps. Here's how to tell if you need the
patch:
Open a DOS Box (Start/Programs/MS DOS Prompt) and type
JVIEW.
Look at the top line of the information that is displayed.
If
the last four digits of the Version number are 2000 through
2438, or 3000 through 3167, you are vulnerable.
Grab the 7MB(!) patch at

http://www.microsoft.com/java/vm/dl_vm32.htm, or you can
wait
for what will probably be a probably more streamlined
version of
the patch that will show up on the Windows Update site soon.

Free Cleanup App

Reader Peter Whitman writes:

     I've been following your newsletter for a while...In
     some respects its an eye opener.... It's hard for me
     to believe that there are people who don't know what
     MS-DOS is nor ever dropped down to the command line
     (been in the computer field for 28 years.) And yes I
     can see peoples confusion as to what files are safe to
     delete......

     I've enclosed a URL to a program (public domain) that
     is very very *neat*. It's called EasyCleaner, cleans
     up the registry, deletes garbage files and also finds
     duplicates. I was surprised when I first tried it
     out....*WOW*, a proggy that actually does what it
     claims to do with no bugs, no gotchas.... I've tried
     this out on both my systems here at the house as well
     as systems up at the office, Win95A/B/C versions and
     Win98.... it does what it claims to do. (and no, it's
     not just a mirror of RegClean 4.1a.......

     http://www.saunalahti.fi/~tonihele/ecleane.htm


FROM LOCKERGNOME www.lockergnome.com

Resize IE v1.0 [2k] W9x/NT FREE
http://www.dougworld.com/resizeIE.zip
http://www.dougworld.com/
"This will allow you to resize the current [Internet
Explorer] window to 640x480, 800x600, etc.." Who knew that
something so small could save me so much time and
frustration? My suggestion (for advanced users): based on
the code, create custom dimensions according to your needs.
Finally, when a new window pops up, I can resize it with a
single click. This is a MAJOR powertoy.

Office 97 Service Release 2b (SR-2b)
Unearthed by Doug Utley
http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q192/8/74.a
sp
"Microsoft Office 97 SR-2 is a collection of fixes for
Microsoft Office 97. SR-2 contains fixes for many problems,
including all Microsoft Excel 97 recalculation problems, as
well as updates to ensure Year 2000 compliance. Because it
is a service release, Microsoft Office 97 SR-2 contains no
new program features. You can download the SR-2 Patch from
the Microsoft web site (or order a CD)."

Microsoft Security Notification Service
http://www.microsoft.com/security/services/subscribe.asp
"Security is important to Microsoft's customers, and it's
important to Microsoft. The Microsoft Security Notification
Service is a free e-mail notification service that Microsoft
uses to send information to subscribers about the security
of Microsoft products. Anyone can subscribe to the service,
and you can unsubscribe at any time." Remember: e-mail is
the easiest way to get information.
That's it for now.  Till next time...

Webmaster@PuterGeek

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Last Revised: 10/23/2000

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Thanks for the help Thomas!