Your Printer is Spying on You!

There are several printer companies that are encoding the serial number and the manufacturing code of their color laser printers and color copiers on every document they produce. These markings are used by government, the U.S. included, to track counterfeiters. Xerox, for example, prints the serial number of each machine coded in little yellow dots on every printout. Most companies use the same combination of tiny yellow dots on white paper - so it’s invisible to the naked eye. If you want to see if your printer is using this tracking process, then shine a blue LED light (like a keychain laser) on your page and use a magnifying glass.

Lexmark takes printer tracking a step further. Some of their printers’ software monitors your printer usage, creates a log file at c:\program_files\lexmark500, and then sends that information off to Lexmark. Lexmark claims that printer output and cartridge usage for "survey purposes"…whatever that means.

We really do live in a "big brother" world now, don’t we. Everyone is being tracked, tagged, and monitored online these days. From tracking cookies, to adware, to spyware, and even possibly having your printer telling on you, there is no anonymity online. Your IP address flags your location. Your email is scanned by the NSA for keywords like "terrorist" or "assassination." Your company may be tracking your web usage. Your domain listing has your contact name and phone listed. Data recovery tools can retrieve files from hard drives wiped clean. People need to realize that just because you are on the net, it does not mean that you are anonymous. Seriously…even your printer knows what you’re up to!

Sources: PCWorld, Broadband Reports

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Google Moon is the latest from Google which adds NASA imagery to Google Maps so you can visit lunar landing sites. Very cool. What will they think of next? I’m guessing it will be Google Mars. Then later, Google Milky Way. Maybe then they will combine everything into Google Universe. Eventually, we will Google Everything. I see it coming.

I just made an MP3 from an .avi file and it was a lot easier than I thought. It’s really just a matter of finding the right tools. What prompted me to start making MP3s at 11:30 PM on a Tuesday, you ask? See, there is this show called Rock Star: INXS, which I have become somewhat addicted to. One of my favorite performers, Jordis, did a song on the first night, "Baba O’Reilly," but it is not one of the songs available to download at rockstar.msn.com. So I googled it. Hmmm. It appears that the world wide web doesn’t include as many Rock Star fans as I thought.

However, I did, ahem, find an .avi file of the show. The problem was that I didn’t want an MP3 of the whole show of course, just the one song. The first step was to find a program that could isolate the part of the .avi file I wanted. I used Open Video Converter because it was a free download…and near the top of my search results. Unfortunately, the free trial version only allowed a one-minute clip to be extracted. Bummer…but I was just playing around, so I figured I’d go ahead and see how it turned out. The next step was to find a program that could extract the audio from my now much smaller .avi file. For this, I used Audio Extractor from One Stop Software. Again, a free trial version was available.

Both programs are pretty basic and easy to use. In the end, I did wind up with a decent MP3…well, except for the fact that it’s only a minute long. If I’m willing to cough up $25 for the full version of the Video Converter software, I could make the whole MP3. Perhaps someone knows of a freebie program that will do the same? Or should I just take donations from the other Rock Star fans? (I’m kidding!) I have a feeling I could get good use out of this program if I was willing to buy it, but I haven’t given up my hunt for a full-featured trial yet.

Microsoft just launched a beta version of their new mapping software, called Virtual Earth. Clearly designed to complete with Google Earth, their software combines yellow pages data, satellite imagery, and maps. Virtual Earth isn’t a download like Google Earth, just a website. However, Microsoft does offer a download called "Locate Me" which will, well, locate you, based on either Wi-Fi access points or your IP address.

The first thing I noticed about the website is that it comes up displaying just a basic map of the U.S. with no aerial imagery. It’s a far cry from the awing Google Earth software, that spins the globe then zooms in the U.S., satellite images all the way. I decided to download the "Locate Me" software…after clicking "Locate Me" in the toolbar several times and not realizing that the annoying pop-up box was actually giving me instructions on how to download the software. Oops. I finished the download and Firefox promptly crashed. I restarted Firefox and revisited the website. A bit later, I got the Locate Me feature working. It was close, but it didn’t zoom in on my exact address…or county. That’s okay - at least I was seeing satellite photos instead of just the boring start-up map. There is this other feature called the "scratchpad", whose purpose is to store favorite addresses, I guess. Funny, because I think Google Earth just remembered the addresses I had keyed in. (Clicking Scratchpad in the Toolbar, of course, brings up another pop-up box with instructions on how to use that feature.)

I suppose it’s handy to have this functionality via the web, but if you have the CPU power to run Google Earth, it’s worth it to get the download. In the end, I uninstalled the "Locate Me" software. There was something a little creepy about a tool called "Microsoft Location Finder" on my PC that looks up my IP address and zooms in on my town.

In a related story, there is much buzz on the net about how Virtual Earth shows an empty field where Apple’s headquarters are supposed to be. I guess Virtual Earth really is Bill’s world.

A company called Blue Security asks if you are sick of spam and the passive methods being used to fight it. "Enough with the spam filters, let’s fight back!" could be the rallying cry at Blue Security. They have created a new technique to fight spam; according to Wired News, here’s how it works: When users add e-mail addresses to a "do-not-spam" list, Blue Security creates additional addresses, known as honeypots, designed to do nothing but attract spam. If a honeypot receives spam, Blue Security tries to warn the spammer. Then it triggers the Blue Frog software on a user’s computer to send a complaint automatically. Thousands complaining at once will knock out a website and thus encourage spammers to stop sending e-mail to the "do-not-spam" list.

But what they’re doing is a DDoS attack! Via Computerwire, the details of this new technique are explained even further: The
Blue Frog software does not send an email complaint. It automatically
visits the spam web site and fills out any HTML form it finds with a
complaint along the lines of “Your site was advertised in spam” with a
link to the Blue Security site. Each user complains once for each spam
they get. Collectively, that could amount to a distributed
denial-of-service effect on the offending web site.

A leading anti-spam advocate, John Levine, a board member with the Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial E-mail, made a statement about this technique, saying "It’s the worst kind of vigilante approach," and "deliberate attacks against people’s websites are illegal." Blue Security’s chief executive, Eran Reshef, responds to him and other critics by saying: “It’s not a DDoS, people are exercising their right to complain about spam they get,” he said. “We’re not trying to do anything illegal or unethical. We’re only doing ethical things, but we are being active.”

But is it right? Is it ethical to fight illegal spam with these possibly illegal methods? I’m thinking that it is not. A DDoS is a DDoS no matter what high-principled reasons you have for the attack. It’s an unlawful action. With technology like that at Blue Security, spam is tracked back to originating website, so doesn’t that mean that we know where spam is coming from? It would be more ethical to focus on prosecuting the spammers, instead of trying to shut them down like a bunch of little script kiddie hackers.

Since it’s true that many spammers sites are registered outside of the U.S., then international laws would need to be created. It’s a difficult, but needed task as the online population continues to grow. (Today, it’s 1.07 billion; by 2007, it’s projected to be 1.35 billion.) Spammers (and hackers, and phishers, and identity thieves) cannot be ignored forever by law-enforcement agencies. Though the CAN-SPAM law has been somewhat useless, it’s a good first step in criminalizing the activities of spammers. It’s the "law" part of law enforcement. I’m waiting on the "enforcement" part, too, but I’m not going to jump the gun and participate in a big ol’ DDoS with the other folks at Blue Security.

Rumor has it that the next version of Windows, which is code-named "Longhorn", will be going by the "official" name Windows Vista. Hmmm…Vista…I know I’m supposed to hate the name because that would be the "cool" thing to do, but I kind of like it! Maybe I’m alone here on this. The name makes me think of wide open fields and fresh air. However, I don’t know where I got that from because the real definition of vista is: 1: a distant view through or along an avenue or opening : PROSPECT; 2: an extensive mental view (as over a stretch of time or a series of events). But seriously, the name kind of grew on me…it’s not that bad once I got used to it.

Despite some setbacks, Longhorn, ahem, Windows Vista, looks to be an exciting version of Windows with a lot of potential. Vista brings WinFX APIs (application programming interfaces), code descended from Windows Server 2003 sp1, a 64-bit version of the OS released at the same time, and Aero, the new user interface, that will have high-end 3D graphics using transparency, drop shadows, zooms, and pixel shaders for visual effects.

Read more about Longhorn here.

Is indie podcasting on a downward trend? A recent article on MarketWatch says it is - "ABC, ESPN, the BBC, CNN and Air America account for 16 of the most popular shows. Public radio programs took another 16 slots. Only four of the top 20 were created by "amateurs."  (These figures were based on iTunes’ popularity lists.) As these industry giants move in, will the "little guy" still be a podcast favorite? It’s hard to say, and possibly to soon to tell. Indie podcasts were what got the podcast movement started, but they are being edged out by the big competition as podcasts become more commercialized and accessible. As it stands right now, podcasting is still an indie "thing." (If you don’t believe me, just say the word "podcast" to your average AOL surfer and observe their dumbfounded expression.) However, with the popularity of iTunes and its ability to download podcasts, the reign of the indies could be coming to an end.

Do you have a favorite podcast? Is it an indie? Let’s take a poll! De-lurk now and comment!

P.S. A bug-me-not login to MarketWatch:
jumbo@phila.net
krakon

Via Cnet:

Firefox increased its market share to 8.71 percent, up from 8 percent in May, while IE’s share shrank to 86.56 percent from 87.23 percent, NetApplications.com, an Aliso Viejo, California, maker of applications for monitoring and measuring Web site usage, said this week in a statement.

Yes! I love to hear this. At Microsoft, they are still scrambling to get IE 7 ready to go, as their market share continues to drop. According to the IE BLog, there will be a beta of IE 7 available this summer. Interestingly enough, the same post goes on to say, more or less, that there’s a possibility that IE 7 will not be supported on Windows 2000 or below…or at least that’s what I got out of it: "Right now, we’re focused on XP SP2. We’re actively listening to our major Windows 2000 customers about what they want and comparing that to the engineering and logistical complexity of that work. That’s all I can say on that topic."

So, basically, in their rush to get this out, they don’t have time to make versions of IE 7 compatible with older versions of Windows. Score another point for Firefox!

I just spent all day yesterday reading the 6th Harry Potter book, and now I’m trying to recover. I cannot believe what just happened. In deference to those of you who don’t read as fast, I won’t say what it was, but I am horrified and devastated. To say these books have become darker is quite the understatement now. The Harry Potter books have taken that final step out of the realm of children’s literature with Book 6; they are literature, and great literature at that. I’m terribly saddened by the latest twist in the story, but I’m aching for the saga to continue and for Harry Potter to prevail once and for all.

For anyone using the free Microsoft Anti-Spyware program (beta), you may have recently  heard some loud complaints from those in the security community regarding Microsoft’s downgrading of a known adware software, Claria. Claria’s former name was Gator and was bundled with the infamous file-sharing app, Kazaa. The Claria adware monitors surfers’ habits and displays ads as they traverse the Web. Interestingly enough, the downgrade (from recommended action: "delete" to "quarantine") came just as Microsoft was in the process of acquisitioning the company. Coincidence? I think not.

The barrage of criticism did not fall on deaf ears at Microsoft. They recently posted a letter online to respond to the complaints. An exerpt:

Dear Customer,

Microsoft offers all software companies the opportunity to request a review of how Microsoft classifies their products through our vendor dispute process. In January, Claria filed a request for Microsoft to reevaluate some of its products. Upon review of their software against our criteria, we determined that continued detection of Claria’s products was indeed appropriate. We also decided that adjustments should be made to the classification of Claria software in order to be fair and consistent with how Windows AntiSpyware (Beta) handles similar software from other vendors. At the end of March, we communicated to Claria the result of our analysis through our standard process.

However,  reading between the lines, this looks like an effort to explain the downgrade, as opposed to correcting it. Additionally, it seems to imply that other similar adware will also be downgraded in the same way. If that’s the case, the Microsoft Anti-Spyware program becomes useless to protect users against the real damage done by these programs: slowing the system down, tracking them online, and popping up unwanted ads. Can we say another one bites the dust?