There are many ways that shareware developers and content providers can show disrespect and contempt for their customers. Some are the result of paranoia on the part of the developers while others are the result of laziness and/or blatant greed on their part.

One example of this I frequently encounter is the unrealistic installation limitation.

Once upon a time a family could barely afford a single computer. It wasn’t unreasonable for a shareware distributor to limit the number of computers you could install a single copy of their application on. They fairly reasoned that in the vast majority of cases the only time you would need to install multiple times was if you were letting all your friends install your copy, robbing the developers and distributors of earned income. Thus were born limits on the number of times you could install a copy of software you purchased. The most draconian of these licenses would only allow you to install one time on one computer. Less extreme licenses allowed you to create a backup copy, and family licenses, usually more expensive, allowed you to install the software on two or three other computers on a home local area network (LAN).

I would argue that software manufacturers/distributors these days need to rethink their licensing restrictions with an eye to the current reality.  In the 21st century, despite the economy, families frequently have several computers. More importantly, we are far more likely to update the operating system of our computers at least once in their lifetime. Recently we’ve seen major updates from all the big players, Microsoft with Windows 7, Macintosh with OS X Snow Leopard and several distros of Linux. For many of us these updates required a fresh installation of the OS and a re-installation of all our applications and software, at least those programs that allowed us to reinstall. No one should have to face the loss of a favorite application simply because they’ve updated their computer from XP to Vista and now to 7. “Oh sorry, you’ve exceeded the number of installations allowed under the terms of use”. Users shouldn’t be penalized for trying to keep their systems current. Personally I’ve encountered these limitations with (former) favorites like RoboForm and DFX Pro. I’m sure you can think of a few examples yourself. I don’t mind having to call and explain that I’m reinstalling on the same computer after an OS upgrade. But I resent encountering the presumption that I’m pirating software and being told I have to re-purchase the software with no other option offered.

Here’s a thought; Make your software able to read the machine address (MAC address) of the computer at installation. With every re-installation it reads the MAC address and if it’s the same (machine addresses aren’t based on the operating system) it re-installs without a fuss.

Developers need to do a better job to accommodate  their customers in the legal and reasonable use of their software. They need to quit assuming their customers are out to do nothing but take advantage of them. Every day there are more and more updated and often no-cost alternatives to pricey applications. If you want to retain your customers and encourage their loyalty treat them with respect and construct your licenses in accordance with the current realities of computer ownership. Alternatively, keep your pricing low so that I can afford to purchase a license for my desktop, laptop and netbook.

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There are several small utilities that do a single job and do it extremely well. I’ve recommended a few of these and will post about more in the future.

Have you ever been typing away and accidently hit the CapsLock key with your left little finger, not noticing until you’ve typed out several paragraphs? Frustrating, right?

Well, reader Jeadly of the very popular blog Lifehacker has written a small app that disables the CapsLock key once you click it, and keeps it disabled until you click the Handicapslock icon again. It doesn’t affect the Shift key, just CapsLock.

All you have to do is download the application. There’s no unzipping to be done, the executable file is all there is. If like me this is something you’ll be using on a regular basis, either drag the handicapslock.exe application to your desktop or right-click on it and pin it to the Start menu.

I’ve been using this app for over a year now and find it indispensable. No longer do I have to worry about what my left little finger is doing over there.

Grab yourself a copy at Lifehacker and enjoy. This application works only in Windows.

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Microsoft has introduced a new way to analyze your system for issues and offer advice for correcting them.

With one click, Microsoft Automated Troubleshooting Services will detect problems on your machine and automatically fix any common problems that are found. Check back often as we are adding new Fix it diagnostic solutions all the time!

New diagnose and repair solutions

• Windows Vista Aero Glass visual effects are not working
  Automatically diagnose and repair problems when the visual Aero Glass effects, themes, and transparencies are not working on your computer.
• Printing problems and printing errors
  Automatically diagnose and repair when you cannot print, or for problems installing a printer, connecting to a network printer and related errors.
• Your CD or DVD drive cannot read or write media
  Automatically diagnose and repair problems with your CD or DVD drive when trying to read or burn media in Windows Vista.
• Hardware devices not detected or not working
  Automatically diagnose and repair problems when the device manager does not detect your hardware, audio, USB and other devices, or when your devices are disabled or not working.
• Problems with sound and audio or no sound
  Automatically diagnose and repair problems with sound and audio on your computer or when your computer does not play sound.

(Note: You can only run this using Internet Explorer 7 or 8. It does not support Firefox or other non-MS browser.)

(Thanks to Greg Duncan and Corrine at Security Garden for the link)

Chris Pirillo’s passion for technology has made him one of the more influential members of, for want of a better term, the techno elite. In the early days of the world wide web, Chris’ emailed newsletter was a must read for those who wanted to keep up on the latest news about this modern medium.

Several years ago he turned his Lockergnome image into a well known internet brand. Chris’ passion for tech hasn’t waned a bit over the years. Currently he sponsors blogs, hosts a forum, streams video from his home office almost continuously and writes a regular column for CPU Magazine.

Now it appears he’s decided to reinvent himself once again, this time as a developer.

Introducing Chris’ newest gift to the internet, at least the part of it that Twitters.

screenshot of the Twickie page

Sound like fun? Click on over and give it a spin. And don’t forget to Twitter @chrispirillo and let him know what you think.

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Laptop security is composed of two elements, physically securing the computer and securing its contents.

There are several solutions to each, so today I’ll be addressing the physical security of a laptop then move into securing your data in a future post.

Cable locks

Perhaps the easiest to use, the most obvious to would-be thieves and the least expensive solution to the risk of theft is to use a cable lock specifically designed for laptops. The best known dealer in these types of lock is Kensington.

Most laptops have a “Kensignton slot”, a rectangular slot usually on the side of the computer toward the back. This slot is fairly standard with all the laptop manufacturers. However, my HP Pavillion dv2000 lacks a slot, and other laptops and netbooks may as well. Check to be sure your laptop has such a slot before purchasing a lock.

These locks are handy for offices, the library, any “public” place where you might need to leave your computer unattended for a few moments. They are extremely difficult to cut, though not impossible. So while these locks offer reasonably good physical security, you should still not make a practice of leaving your laptop unattended for extended periods of time. There are cable locks that incorporate an alarm that will sound if anyone tampers with the lock. While this might save your laptop from theft, it’s also likely to cause you embarrasment if you’re using it as Starbucks or a bookstore.

Cable locks are relatively inexpensive and come in a variety of configurations. They are useless if you’re in an environment where there’s nothing to loop the cable around. You also need to be sure you don’t simply run the cable around a chair or table leg if the chair or table can be easily lifted and the cable removed from the leg.

Labels

Putting a “Return If Found” label on your laptop may help recover it if it’s stolen and later pawned or discarded, but it won’t help deter theft in the first place. Labels work best in conjunction with cable locks. Companies like www.stuffbak.com and www.trackitback.com offer an easy to use recovery system for items registered with them and carrying their label.

Of course this method depends on your stolen laptop being recovered by an honest person who calls the service to report it found. Still, considering the modest price of these labels, it’s an added layer of security that doesn’t cost a lot. It’s also safer than inscribing your social security number on your computer. No sense suffering identity theft along with the loss of the laptop.

Software Solutions

Software security is an approach taken by companies like Computrace LoJack. LoJack is “phone home” software. Once it’s installed (there are versions for Windows and Mac) and the computer connected to the internet, the LoJack software communicates with the company’s servers. If your laptop is stolen and used to connect online, this communication will help authorities trace its location. The weakness with this method is that the computer has to connect to the internet to be traced. If someone steals your laptop, removes the hard drive and pawns or sells the case, LoJack and similar software won’t be of any use. There’s another consideration with “phone home” software. It can slow your system down and is often tagged as a malicious process by anti-malware applications.

If your laptop is stolen for parts and to mine the data off the hard drive, none of the software solutions will do much good, unless you have a Dell self-encrypting laptop with Seagate encrypting drives and McAfee security software.

Another approach which actually combines hardware and software security is covered in this article on The Register,

Seagate is now shipping 5400 and 7200 rpm Momentus notebook drives with 320 and 500GB capacity and full disk encryption options. This is AES 128-bit US government-grade encryption according to Seagate.

Dell is building Seagate FDE drives into the Latitude and Precision notebook lines, self-encrypting laptops, and the OptiPlex 960 desktop. The idea is that such drives will prevent any data loss when the notebooks, or OptiPlex, is disposed of, lost, stolen or loaned to a third-party. The encryption key never leaves the drive and so is not susceptible to the cold boot attack. Encryption is carried out by a chip on the drive and takes place at drive I/O speeds.

Seagate aims to have across-the-board encryption and has Maxtor BlackArmor encrypting external drives, Momentus FDE notebook drives, Savvio FDE enterprise 2.5-inch FDE drives, and Cheetah FDE SAS and Fibre Channel data centre drives.

There is a hint that IBM and LSI will ship products using the Seagate FDE drives.

The Momentus FDE drives can be used in two modes. One is enterprise-managed with firmware that works with software such as ePO to configure and manage the drives. The other is a BIOS-managed mode in which a BIOS password is used to authenticate the system. This latter mode, Seagate says, can be used to retrofit an FDE Momentus into an existing notebook and so secure its data against loss.

Dell hasn’t released pricing information yet, but I suspect this technology won’t come cheap and will mostly appeal to businesses for whom data encryption is almost mandatory.

Next post we’ll discuss securing the data on your computer so that even if it’s stolen and never returned you can be reasonably sure the data is secure.

I have found my favorite OS/browser combo for doing what I usually do on the web, Ubuntu Linux and the Opera web browser.

My fight with Vista has gone on for over a year now and at best the struggle has been  a draw. Every time I get Vista configured to work the way I like, it finds another way to slow down, freeze and generally piss me off. Just booting into Windows is a lesson in patience. I have maybe 8 programs that run at startup, nearly all of them security oriented (sadly, a necessity with Windows). To use today as a typical example, it was 12 minutes before Windows was ready to go to work. Compare and contrast with Ubuntu, ready to go 20 seconds after starting its boot.

I installed Ubuntu in a dual-boot configuration planning on reviewing it then installing a real Linux OS for daily use, SUSE or maybe PclOS. In the past I’ve preferred KDE over Gnome, so I was prepared to dislike the basic version of Ubuntu. Well color me surprised. I not only liked Ubuntu with Gnome, but have decided to keep it and make it my default OS.

Much of the complaining I encouter in discussions about Linux center around useability. “I can’t do what I want to do in Linux” is a common refrain. That’s no doubt true for gamers, Photoshoppers and those addicted to their Windows-only applications.  That doesn’t describe me.

The primary uses I have for an operating system involve writing for the web, creating and maintaining websites and blogs, a limited amount of shopping at sites like Amazon for MP3s and keeping up with email and forums. There isn’t one of those activities that Linux can’t handle just as well, if not better, than Windows. Add the stability and security inherent in Linux and you can understand why I dread those times I have to boot back into Vista.

Lately Firefox has been a disappointment. Perhaps it’s because it seems to be approaching the level of bloat and sluggish response found in Internet Explorer with each new version. Granted, Firefox in Linux is vastly superior to its Windows countetrpart. Still, it’s just not the same browsing experience it was back with Firebird and Firefox 1.0.

Since Linux offers a host of browser types, I figured I’d do a comparison test. The clear winner was the browser I’ve long had installed in Windows but used infrequently, Opera. Since it renders web pages strictly according to web standards, pages that aren’t coded well look like crap. Firefox is more forgiving and I.E. doesn’t even pay attention to standards. Opera is fast, can import Firefox/I.E. bookmarks and has the usual options for type styles and security. The biggest obsticle to using Opera for everything are sites that are “best viewed” in Firefox or I.E. Some banking sites won’t accept Opera as a browser. So it’s still worthwhile to have the latest version of Firefox installed and on standby.

But for pure speed and ease of browsing and general web work, I don’t see how you can beat Opera in Ubuntu (unless maybe it’s Safari in OS X).

StreamDesk is an application that allows you to watch streaming video like Ustream and podcasts without having to open a browser.

The application, which offers versions for both the Mac and Windows, consists of a viewing window and a left-side menu. Nothing fancy or complicated. StreamDesk comes prepopulated with quite a few feeds and you can easily add others. Think of it as an RSS reader for video broadcasts.

I’ve been using it for a couple of days now and consider it a keeper. I watched the space shuttle docking today on SpaceVidCast, which you’ll find on the default menu under “Ustream.tv.Streams”. Not once did the app freeze up or stutter.

If you enjoy watching podcasts I’d highly recommend StreamDesk.

From their site:

StreamDesk has its orgins in the early days of Chris Pirillo’s live stream and it all started as a Opera widget. Later versions were adapted for Vista Sidebar and eventually I discovered HTML Applications (HTAs) since they are html and javascript capable i was able to expand to the first revsions of the standalone version.

Eventually I opened it up to accepting requests and called the released product “KComputer Zone Widget Pack” with standalone installers for each streamer. The per streamer installer eventually got overwhelming and I made a bundle installer for them all but I made one vital mistake… I didn’t comment the code resulting in impossible to edit installer. The said isssues with the 1.0 bundle led me to starting from scatch (the standalone installers to the rescue) and version 2.0 of the bundle was born. I kept going on that path for a while but eventualy I made contact with Windows and Mac software developers.

I worked with both of the developers to get true standalone apps developed. The mac version was the first to be developed and released then later on the windows version was released.

Now back to current time…. the next generation version for windows is in development and the next gen mac version is in the works.
Developers:
Windows: David Kellaway
Mac: GranitW