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Jul 25

Microsoft: Firefox/Chrome are Insecure, Difficult to Use, and Unreliable

Posted in: Firefox 3, Internet Explorer, Software, Today's Chili, Web Sites

This article was written on June 25, 2009 by CyberNet.

I’m sure you guys will get a kick out of this one. Microsoft has posted a “Get the Facts” page that has a chart comparing some general areas of IE8 versus Firefox and Chrome. Naturally IE8 comes out on top… way on top!

If you quickly just glance through the chart your initial impressions would be that Firefox and Chrome are insecure, can’t manage your privacy, difficult to use, unreliable, not compatible with websites, and not easy to manage. In fact there are only three areas that the three browsers “tie” in: web standards, customizability, and performance. Although they just couldn’t pass up commenting about Firefox’s extensibility:

Sure, Firefox may win in sheer number of add-ons, but many of the customizations you’d want to download for Firefox are already a part of Internet Explorer 8 – right out of the box.

Now I’m not trying to say that Internet Explorer 8 is an awful browser. In fact I use it several hours everyday at work because there are a lot of older internal sites I deal with that don’t play nice with other browsers. I just hate that they are trying to send a message like this. Take the “Security” section for example. This is their reasoning behind why Firefox and Chrome didn’t get a checkmark:

Internet Explorer 8 takes the cake with better phishing and malware protection, as well as protection from emerging threats.

Huh, both Firefox and Chrome have phishing/malware protection in them. So they are going off the fact that theirs is “better?” Oh well. Hopefully their aren’t too many people that will see this chart.

Still want some more of this good stuff? Jump over to their “mythbusting” page.

Microsoft’s “Get the Facts” Page [via Google Blogoscoped]

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Jul 18

A Man Who’s Never Used a Computer in His Life Tries Internet Explorer

Posted in: Chrome, Internet Explorer, Today's Chili, top

Jennifer Boriss, a Firefox dev, went to the mall seeking test subjects to help improve the browser. She expected to meet people with a range of tech savvy, but she was’t expecting a man who’d never before touched a mouse. More »

Jun 16

Microsoft decides to pass on WebGL over security concerns (Update: iOS 5 supports WebGL, sort of))

Posted in: GraphicsCard, hack, hacking, Internet Explorer, Microsoft, Online, security, Today's Chili

Well, it looks like Microsoft is taking those warnings about WebGL pretty seriously. The company has decided not to support the web-based 3D standard because it wouldn’t be able to pass security muster. Highest on the list of concerns is that WebGL opens up a direct line from the internet to a system’s GPU. To make matters worse, holes and bugs may crop up that are platform or video card specific, turning attempts to plug holes in its defense into a game of whack-a-mole — with many players of varying reliability. Lastly Microsoft, like security firm Context, has found current solutions for protecting against DoS attacks rather unsatisfying. Lack of support in Internet Explorer won’t necessarily kill WebGL and, as it matures, Microsoft may change its tune — but it’s still a pretty big blow for all us of hoping the next edition of Crysis would be browser-based.

Update: As is usually the case Apple and the Windows folks are on opposite sides of this one. In fact, the Cupertino crew plans to bring WebGL to iOS 5 with one very strange restriction — it will only be available to iAd developers. Now, chances are it will eventually be opened up in mobile Safari for everyone, but for the moment it seems browser-based 3D graphics will be limited to advertisements on the iPhone. Still, that’s another big name throwing its support behind the burgeoning standard.

[Thanks, Greg]

Microsoft decides to pass on WebGL over security concerns (Update: iOS 5 supports WebGL, sort of)) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Jun 2011 01:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink WinRumors, The Register | Microsoft, WebGL Mailing List | Email this | Comments

Jun 08

Free Secunia PSI: Monitor for Software Updates

Posted in: Freeware, Internet Explorer, Opera, Pre-Release, Software, Today's Chili

This article was written on July 27, 2007 by CyberNet.

Secunia We’ve talked about Secunia’s online software inspector before. It doesn’t require that you download any application, and it operates completely through your browser. The purpose of using it is to find out-dated software on your computer. You may not see much of a threat in running an older version of an application, but your computer can be left vulnerable to attacks when it comes to things like web browsers or instant messengers.

A report by Secunia back in May stated that 28% of the applications being used are out-dated. With more than 33% of users running an old version of QuickTime, Secunia said "all it takes is one unpatched Quicktime vulnerability and a provocative video title to compromise a lot of visitors."

A new tool by Secunia called the Personal Software Inspector (PSI) hopes to make it easier for Windows users to know when there are new versions of their applications available. PSI is currently in a Beta state, but it is a free downloadable application that a user installs instead of being web-based like before. It examines the files on your computer (mostly EXE, DLL, and OCX files), and collects version information from them to be sent to Secunia’s File Signatures engine to make a comparison.

The great thing about this tool is that it sits in your System Tray constantly monitoring for more insecure software installations. If one is found it will give you the instructions needed so that you can upgrade to the latest version.

It’s important to know that this does not check for malicious software or whether your computer has already been compromised…it is just checking to see if you’re running the latest version of more than 4,200 applications.

Here are the benefits of using Secunia PSI:

The Secunia PSI will be available free of charge
Calculates your unique Secunia System Score
Automatically scans your computer
Enables you to update Insecure/End-of-Life software
Provides Direct Download Links to security updates & patches
Detects and advises on more than 4,200 applications
Direct correlation between thousands of Secunia Advisories and your specific system and software
Secure SSL encrypted connection to Secunia

I decided to try this out for myself on a computer I knew was running an out-dated version of Firefox (it’s my server which I don’t use for anything other than backups). I wanted to see what it would do, and what upgrade option it would offer me. It actually found that Internet Explorer 7 was out-dated as well as the version of the .NET Framework I was running. Firefox was the only one that offered a direct download link (clicking on it pulled up my default browser and initiated the download immediately), but the .NET Framework offered a link where I could receive more information:

Secunia PSI

Overall, I’m really impressed with this application and I think it has earned its place on all of my computers. It’s nice that Secunia is developing such an extensive application that is capable of monitoring more than 4,000 different programs for updates. I believe that it is the first of its kind to do this on such a large scale, and hopefully people will begin using it.

Download Secunia Personal Software Inspector
Thanks for the tip ’s’!

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Jun 04

OS & Browser Market Share History

Posted in: Internet Explorer, iPhone, Linux, Mac, Opera, Software, Today's Chili, Windows

This article was written on January 10, 2008 by CyberNet.

The December 2007 market share stats for operating systems and web browsers are in. I wouldn’t say any of the numbers are that shocking because patterns have emerged for many of them, but looking back one year ago shows some pretty impressive results.

For the stats that we’ve posted below we’re using the data provided by Net Applications. Generally this has been looked at as a fairly accurate representation of the market share for browsers, but when it comes to operating systems it’s not quite what you would expect. That’s because it is only able to analyze the computers that are browsing the Internet, which eliminates nearly all of the servers out there that are never used for that purpose.

–Browsers–

The general trend with browsers is exactly what you would expect it to be. The standards compliant browsers are reaping the benefits of their hard work. Browsers like Firefox, Safari, and Opera have all increased their market share over the past year, while Internet Explorer is looking at a nearly 4% drop.

–Operating Systems–

There is a new operating system that wasn’t available last year, and it has already been able to make its way onto the charts. What is it? The iPhone! It only has a small market share right now, but for only being around 7 months I would say that it’s doing pretty darn good. Aside from that the Windows market share has dropped over 2%, with Mac and Linux coming in to scoop it up. Linux’s market share is still a little weak, but it did almost double which is pretty significant.

Note: As I mentioned above this would not include stats from servers and such which are not used for browsing the Internet.

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May 24

Windows Phone ‘Mango’ search offers location-specific results, app integration (video)

Posted in: cellphone, Internet Explorer, mango, Microsoft, os, phone, smartphone, Today's Chili, update, video, Windows, windows phone, windows phone 7, WindowsPhone, WindowsPhone7, Wp7

Windows Phone’s latest iteration (codename Mango) is all about keeping it in the hood. We had a chance to sit down with a Windows Phone rep before today’s big reveal, and they let us in on a couple of new features that will most definitely set the OS apart — at least when it comes to navigating the tangled web that is the internet. We did get a quick glimpse at IE9, but the new browser isn’t much of a game changer — it supports HTML5, but still won’t deliver Flash or Silverlight compatibility. The real news here is in the Bing-powered search function, which lets users surf the vast expanses of the web four different ways, with a focus on the local.

Clicking the dedicated search button from the Windows Phone home screen takes you to a familiar Bing page, offering the visual, audio, and voice options we heard rumored earlier this month, along with a city scape icon. That skyline represents Local Scout, a function that focuses your queries on the neighborhood you’re in, providing location-specific results that highlight important information about establishments and events in your immediate area. Clicking through on any link brings up general information as well as reviews gleaned from popular user-generated sites. That’s not all that’s new, however, as Mango also offers some nifty tricks in its visual search. Instead of just snapping a barcode, you can actually use a shot of the product itself to bring up information about pricing, availability, and relevant apps.

The demo we saw used the cover of The Girl Who Played With Fire, and supplied among the search results a link to the title in the Kindle app. This isn’t exactly groundbreaking technology — Google Goggles does much the same thing — but what’s truly different here is the tight integration of such functions in the operating system, as well as links to outside applications. Thus, the experience is a bit unlike any other in the OS atmosphere, upending our idea of what it means to search the internets without resorting to standalone programs. Whether it’s something users will take to is anybody’s guess, but we’re certain it’s enough to get folks talking. For a deeper (and very vertical) look at Local Scout, hop on past the break.

Continue reading Windows Phone ‘Mango’ search offers location-specific results, app integration (video)

Windows Phone ‘Mango’ search offers location-specific results, app integration (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 May 2011 10:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

Apr 23

Internet Explorer 8 Download (IE8 Beta 1)

Posted in: Features, Internet Explorer, Software, Today's Chili, Windows

This article was written on March 05, 2008 by CyberNet.

So far all that we’ve known about Internet Explorer 8 was that they finally decided to push for web standards, and for that I’m extremely grateful. Microsoft has, however, posted an IE 8 Readiness Toolkit likely in preparation for MIX08 which starts today and runs until March 7th. In the toolkit they have download links (which we’ve posted at the end of this article) as well as a feature guide.

UPDATE: The downloads are now available.

We’ve taken the liberty of outlining all of the features below, but you won’t be able to get your hands on the browser quite yet. While the links to the IE8 Beta 1 downloads are available they have yet to be activated… you’ll get an error page if you try to download it at this time. Be patient though because I would expect them to be available shortly.

Okay, lets move on to the good stuff…

–Internet Explorer 8 Features–

As part of the readiness toolkit Microsoft has assembled a new features page which outlines what appears to be the big new things in Internet Explorer 8. I have to admit that some of them are actually really nice additions.

Activities – Activities typically involve two types of scenarios: “look up” information within a webpage or “send” web content to a web application. For example, a user is interested in a restaurant and wants to see the location of it. This is the form of a “look up” Activity where the user selects the address and views an in-place view of the map using his favorite map service. [Learn how to develop Activities]
WebSlices – WebSlices is a new feature for websites to connect to their users by subscribing to content directly within a webpage. WebSlices behave just like feeds where clients can subscribe to get updates and notify the user of changes. These sound a lot like Firefox’s Microsummaries, except IE’s are way better in my opinion. [Learn how to develop WebSlices]
Favorites Bar – The Links bar has undergone a complete makeover for Internet Explorer 8. It has been renamed the Favorites bar to enable users to associate this bar as a place to put and easily access all their favorite web content such as links, feeds, WebSlices and even Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents.
Automatic Crash Recovery – Automatic Crash Recovery (ACR) is a feature of Windows Internet Explorer 8 that can help to prevent the loss of work and productivity in the unlikely event of the browser crashing or hanging. The ACR feature takes advantage of the Loosely-Coupled Internet Explorer feature to provide new crash recovery capabilities, such as tab recovery, which will minimize interruptions to users’ browsing sessions.
Improved Phishing Filter – The Safety Filter continues to block known Phishing sites and now blocks sites known to contain malicious software that could harm users’ computer or steal their information. Beyond this improved protection, the Safety Filter operates more quickly than ever before to ensure that users can browse both safely and quickly.

–Download Internet Explorer 8 Beta 1 (IE8 Beta 1)–

Here are the links you need to download Internet Explorer 8:

[via ActiveWin]
Thanks a ton to Oliver for the tip!

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Apr 21

Helpful Tip: “Open in New Tab” Keyboard Shortcuts

Posted in: Internet Explorer, Opera, Software, Tips and Tricks, Today's Chili

This article was written on January 15, 2008 by CyberNet.

Keyboard Bag When using your web browser there are a lot of things that you can do to speed up your efficiency and productivity, particularly when it comes to keyboard shortcuts. Thanks to a comment by Inferno_str1ke it struck me that some people may not realize the different ways you can make their browser open websites in a new tab. His comment sparked some “thank you’s” from other readers, and here’s what he had to say:

For about four months I was using the Google Toolbar search box exclusively, but now I’ve even dropped that in favour of keyword searches. I just hit Alt+D to jump to the URL box, type g,w,v,i,f for Google, Wikipedia, Google Video, Google Images and Facebook respectively, type a query and hit Enter or Alt+Enter if I want it in a new tab.

Did you know that in Firefox from the Address Bar or Search Box you can hit Alt+Enter to pull up the site in a new tab? We thought that this would be a good thing to share with all of our readers, and here’s a quick rundown of the various ways you can have sites open in a new tab for each of the different browsers:

–Firefox & Internet Explorer–

Ctrl+T – Open a new tab with a blank page loaded.
Alt+Enter – While in the Address Bar or Search Box this will open the requested site in a new tab.
Ctrl+Shift+Enter – When you’ve selected a link using the keyboard this shortcut will open the hyperlinked site in a new tab.
Ctrl+Enter – When you’ve selected a link using the keyboard this shortcut will open the hyperlinked site in a new tab in the background.
Ctrl+Shift+Click – When left-clicking on a link with the mouse hold down the Shift key to have the hyperlinked site open in a new tab.
Ctrl+Click – When left-clicking on a link with the mouse hold down the Ctrl+Shift keys to have the hyperlinked site open in a new tab in the background.

–Opera–

Ctrl+T – Open a new tab with Speed Dial loaded.
Shift+Enter – While in the Address Bar or Search Box this will open the requested site in a new tab.
Ctrl+Shift+Enter – While in the Address Bar or Search Box this will open the requested site in a new tab in the background.
Shift+Enter – When you’ve selected a link using the keyboard this shortcut will open the hyperlinked site in a new tab.
Ctrl+Shift+Enter – When you’ve selected a link using the keyboard this shortcut will open the hyperlinked site in a new tab in the background.
Shift+Click – When left-clicking on a link with the mouse hold down the Shift key to have the hyperlinked site open in a new tab.
Ctrl+Shift+Click – When left-clicking on a link with the mouse hold down the Ctrl+Shift keys to have the hyperlinked site open in a new tab in the background.

Hopefully we’ve saved you some time!

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Apr 14

Microsoft confirms IE10 won’t run on Vista, millions of IE9 users shrug

Posted in: Internet Explorer, Microsoft, Today's Chili, Windows, Windows Vista

If you’re part of the dwindling group still using Windows Vista, you’ll have to wait until your next upgrade to take IE10 for a spin — Microsoft has confirmed that the latest version of its browser won’t run on its last-gen operating system, either in developer preview form or when the final software ships. While it’s tempting to interpret that as an attempt on Microsoft’s part to put the widely loathed Vista in its past, there’s actually a precedent for this — remember that Microsoft cut off XP support when it unveiled IE9. As a Microsoft rep told Computerworld, the company would rather not have to develop software for a lowest-common denominator. At least, if you do have to stick with the newly minted IE9, you can be sure you’ll be in good company.

Microsoft confirms IE10 won’t run on Vista, millions of IE9 users shrug originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 13:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Computerworld | Email this | Comments

Apr 13

Microsoft Tries to Remedy Sites that don’t Work in IE8

Posted in: Internet Explorer, Microsoft, Software, Today's Chili, Windows

This article was written on February 27, 2009 by CyberNet.

ie8 compatibility view.png As you probably already know Internet Explorer 8 is going to be more standards compliant than previous versions of the web browser. While that sounds great to us geeks that understand what that means it also poses a problem for casual computer users who only care whether a site works or not. Thousands and thousands of sites will likely have some sort of visual flaw or possibly not work at all in IE8.

To get around this issue Microsoft lets users switch to a “compatibility view” so that sites are essentially rendered the same way they were in Internet Explorer 7. They can then go a step further by adding it to a list of sites they want the browser to always render using this compatibility view. In my testing this works great, but Microsoft has also decided to provide something that a user can install on their PC to populate this list automatically.

The executable (available for Vista and XP) goes as far as to add over 2,400 different sites that people have reported issues with. Mary Jo Foley has compiled a complete list of the sites that are included, and I thought I’d see how popular the sites are in that list. Using data from Alexa here are some stats you may find interesting:

657 of the sites are in the top 1,000 on Alexa (66%)
391 of the sites are in the top 500 on Alexa (78%)
209 of the sites are in the top 250 on Alexa (84%)
92 of the sites are in the top 100 on Alexa (92%)
48 of the sites are in the top 50 on Alexa (96%)
24 of the sites are in the top 25 on Alexa (96%)
10 of the sites are in the top 10 on Alexa (100%)

Crazy, huh? Microsoft is including a huge chunk of the most popular sites in this compatibiltiy list. Even their own sites like microsoft.com, live.com, and msn.com are included.

As it stands right now this list is only available for users who take the time to manually install it. If IE8 was to ship with this included I’m sure there would be more cause for concern, but I’ve been using Internet Explorer 8 RC1 for a few weeks now and I’d say the website compatibility is pretty good. At this point most sites feel like they have fixed any issues with the browser, or at the very least have inserted the necessary code to make IE8 render with the IE7 engine. Although we probably won’t know for sure until it is officially released.

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