Microsoft's Russian Web site today revealed details about the new Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) user interface, touting new features such as quick-release tabs and a Chrome-like search bar.

The big changes are to the top section of the browser. They have dispensed with traditional menus, put tabs at the top the browser window and combined the address and search bars, just like Google’s Chrome.

"Your browser is not overloaded with navigation elements, and compared with other browsers leaves more space for the site," a machine translation of the promotional copy read. "Now the user sees only what is necessary for navigation."

Mozilla's next major upgrade, Firefox 4, will feature tabs on top and will eliminate the traditional Windows menus above the browser's content area, two features popularized by Chrome.

One of the neatest features for us was the fact that individual tabs can be placed on the taskbar, thus if you want to bring up a site tab that you have active in IE, you just one-click it off the taskbar.

After it’s release (September 15th), we’ll have to check our stats again and see if the changes have struck a chord with users.

Each August since 1998, Beloit College has released the Beloit College Mindset List. It provides a look at the cultural touchstones that shape the lives of students entering college this fall.

If you want to feel old, you can read their entire list here. What I thought was interesting were the technological items that you wouldn’t think have taken hold as much as they have. Here are a few examples of what today’s college freshman have grown up with and known their entire lives:

Few in the class know how to write in cursive.

Email is just too slow, and they seldom if ever use snail mail.

“Caramel macchiato” and “venti half-caf vanilla latte” have always been street corner lingo.

DNA fingerprinting and maps of the human genome have always existed.

Computers have never lacked a CD-ROM disk drive.

They’ve never recognized that pointing to their wrists was a request for the time of day.

The first computer they probably touched was an Apple II; it is now in a museum.

Having hundreds of cable channels but nothing to watch has always been routine.

They first met Michelangelo when he was just a computer virus.

They have never worried about a Russian missile strike on the U.S.

I know these are a bit older, but I still have trouble explaining to kids that software used to come on huge 5.25” floppy disks and that noisy modems used to connect us to the new Internet at whopping speeds of 14.4K!

A custom program is fully customized software based on the specific requirements of your business. For example, if you need custom programming that meets various business demands such as a seamless shopping cart integration into your Web site or a Customer Relations Management (CRM) system to help you manage interactions with your customers, then eSource Development's custom programming software services may be the answer for you.

The key to successful custom programming is project definition. The project software definition defines such things as your customer base and demographics, operational business needs, computer hardware, image requirements and revenue-generating opportunities. It's a consultative process, which combines your business knowledge with our custom programming expertise to provide you with a proper business solution.

eSource Development provides web development, custom software programming and database design solution services. Our consultants work within a discipline that starts with defining your needs in detail. We prepare a firm time-line and setup a reporting process so you know where your project stands every step of the way. From the start-up companies to multinational firms, eSource has a proven record of success. Our staff has worked for companies from small businesses to Fortune 500's.

The services we provide have many different titles - application development, custom programming, web development, IT consulting, b2b development, software design, database design, html programming, web programming, c programming... the list goes on and on. Most of our clients don't know exactly what they want when they call us but they do know of a problem that needs to be solved or an opportunity that needs to be leveraged. We take the client's needs and provide an elegant business solution, turning our client's ideas into digital business reality.

We will work with your business to help you determine exactly what you need, then come up with a plan to achieve it within your time and budget requirements. Custom software programming services and development is a complex process, but we are experts at getting these types of projects completed and implemented quickly. You control the process and can count on us to get your development done in a timely and cost effective manner.

eSource Development turns your ideas into digital business reality. We work with key people within your organization to learn their unique business approach and apply our experience and technical programming expertise to provide the optimum custom technical software solution for your business needs. We build custom programming solutions tailored to your unique business model and geared to optimize the success of your organization for a fixed price.

Our custom software solutions are often cheaper than buying a packaged program. After all, your organization is successful due to its unique value proposition to your industry. Why should the system that runs your business be the same as your competition’s?

We provide support for our applications and monthly reports concerning the performance and state of your system at a fixed monthly cost. With an eSource Development support contract, your application will be periodically upgraded as new, proven programming technologies become available that can improve it.

System Troubleshooting and Performance Tuning

At eSource Development, we leverage the combined experience of our custom development staff, our partnerships, an extensive set of proven tools, and an analytical systematic approach to problem solving that will identify and resolve your computer application problems in a quick and concise manor. We are experts at solving problems with ASP, .NET, C#, C++, VBScript, J Script, Visual Basic, MySQL, Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft IIS, Bing Maps, and much more!

Contact eSource Development if you have a custom programming assignment, question, or bid request. We look forward to hearing from you!

MIGUEL HELFT: SAN FRANCISCO — Computer security researchers are raising alarms about vulnerabilities in some of the Web’s most secure corners: the banking, e-commerce and other sites that use encryption to communicate with their users.

Those sites, which are typically identified by a closed lock displayed somewhere in the Web browser, rely on a third-party organization to issue a certificate that guarantees to a user’s Web browser that the sites are authentic. But as the number of such third-party “certificate authorities” has proliferated into hundreds spread across the world, it has become increasingly difficult to trust that those who issue the certificates are not misusing them to eavesdrop on the activities of Internet users, the security experts say.

The power to appoint certificate authorities has been delegated by browser makers like Microsoft, Mozilla, Google and Apple to various companies, including Verizon. Those entities, in turn, have certified others, creating a proliferation of trusted “certificate authorities,” according to Internet security researchers.

 
According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, more than 650 organizations can issue certificates that will be accepted by Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and Mozilla’s Firefox, the two most popular Web browsers. Some of these organizations are in countries like Russia and China, which are suspected to engage in widespread surveillance of their citizens.

It’s a disturbing trend, especially when bringing in China or Russia. In some cases, like GoDaddy, they seem to simply be a reseller for Verisign, as opposed to being their own issuing authority. A reseller situation is different than outsourcing. Reseller’s are given restricted access to only the art of selling the product. The distribution and overall ownership of that certificate remains with the owning company, like Verisign. Outsourcing on the other hand gives the contracted entity full access to manage, distribute, and record the public and private keys of all applicants.

It’s probably nothing to worry about in regards you using big name sites like BofA, American Express, or any other Fortune 500 company’s who take that security extremely seriously. Plus, these sites are likely housed in the US, so even the transmission and storage of that information is at east on the home court.

I came across this on Ars Technica and found it interesting, but not for what you think.

I had been under the opinion over the last year or so that IE usage was way down, especially with Google’s push of Chrome and Firefox’s constant surge.

It wasn’t that long ago when Firefox version 1.0 was but a laughable newcomer, since IE had 90 percent of the Internet users? As of April, fewer than 6 out of 10 people now use Internet Explorer.

“The browser trends that we've noted over the past several months are continuing with no sign of alteration: IE continues to slip, Firefox and Opera are fairly static, Safari is very slowly moving forward, and Chrome is pushing ahead at breakneck speeds.”

During April, only Internet Explorer and Opera failed to show positive growth.

“Between March and April, Internet Explorer dropped a significant 0.70 percentage points (from 60.65 percent to 59.95 percent) and Firefox increased 0.07 percentage points (from 24.52 percent to 24.59 percent). Chrome jumped a sizeable 0.60 percentage points (from 6.13 percent to 6.73 percent), Safari gained 0.07 percentage points (from 4.65 percent to 4.72 percent), and Opera dipped 0.07 percentage points (from 2.37 percent to 2.30 percent).”

One reason I started to pay attention to this was when I went to the Apple store to buy my iPad and I noticed that our very own eSource Development didn’t show up correctly in Safari. When I got back to the office, I looked at our stats to see what percentage of users were actually using what. Here’s what we found:

Our data (tracked over a 1 week period) shows the opposite relation between IE and Firefox. 52% of our visitors use Firefox while only 30% use IE. The logging does not count connections from within our offices so these are actual external random customers hitting our website, which to me makes a pretty good representative sample.

Now if you’ll excuse me I have to get our web page working under Safari!

And more! Our signature software not only was approved for download from Windows7download.com, but we won some dubious distinctions!

5 stars Award on Windows 7 Download

Editor's pick on Windows 7 Download

Our latest version, 1.4, was released earlier in July and has addressed some small technical issues (nice way of saying ‘bugs’) as well as added enhancements. If you are using an earlier version of eMail Scraper, you can download the new version here. Your key will work and the install will update your existing version with the latest and greatest.

Download our FREE trial version!

In case you forgot, Internet marketing companies and professionals have been using this tool for years. Now, it has been re-engineered, updated, and released to the public. This 'insider only' software was a closely guarded industry secret until recently.

Because the tool is so specific in it's results, there is no danger of two people duplicating the exact list elements and entries. You use the tool for your specific needs and target audiences... And so does everyone else. Picking your markets and products and running them through the easy to use interface makes unique list generation possible for everyone.

Don't pay hundreds of dollars a month on some generic opt-in mailing list whose members haven’t been categorized by niche and have absolutely no interest in your blind email blast. Generic lists don’t contain people that specifically have anything to do with your product or service. You might as well throw darts at a phone book! Why not create specific and detailed emailing lists that cater directly to your niche market? eMail Scraper is the definitive automatic email address generator! Get detailed email lists covering any and all combinations. The only real limitation is your imagination. Give eMail Scraper a try to fully assess its capabilities and we’re sure you’ll agree eMail Scraper is everyone’s pick!

Not long ago, I used to run an entertainment review site that commented on television, movies, and PC games. That site was a lot of fun but has been retired just about a year now. Maybe someday the site will be resurrected as it was very popular due tot he subject matter. Anyway, I was watching a movie the other night that had such bad hacking ‘skills’ displayed that it was laughable. I thought that it would be a great idea for a post on my now defunct movie site but then I remembered that I could just post it here! So with that said I present to you my list of the best and worst hacking films of all time!

Best

Wargames (1983): The top of the list! What can you say about this movie other than marvel at it’s greatness. What’s that you say? You’re not convinced it’s the best… well then your probably under 40. For those of us that were around during that time, the accuracy of the equipment and methods used were 100% spot on. It completely represented the aura of the time. If you buy the DVD that has the director’s comments, you’ll find that they purposely used a hodgepodge of older computer equipment so it would accurately represent what a teenager would be able to afford or scrounge up during that time. Incredible accuracy, especially the part showing how to jack a pay telephone with a soda can pull tab. What’s a pull tab? Go away kid, ya bother me!

Tron (1982): Even though this film came out in the 80’s, it feels like a late 70’s film. I don’t know why. Basically it’s about a hacker that is transported into the digital universe inside a computer, and must survive combat as a cyber gladiator in order to stop the villainous Master Control. It wanes a little in places, but make no mistake this was a groundbreaking adventure at the time. The graphics, while dated now, were extremely cutting edge at the time and wowed movie audiences lucky enough to see it on the big screen.

Pirates of Silicon Valley (1999): Not so much a hacking film as a corporate espionage film… involving computer companies. Fantastic tale from start to finish. My only gripe is that it does leave out some key information. For instance, the only reason Bill Gates got in to see the higher up’s at IBM was that his mother served on the same board of directors for a charity that the IBM chairman served on. She got the wheels rolling on the meeting. It also makes Bill Gates out to be some rebellious drop out who risked everything to start his company. Truth is, Bill was a multi millionaire by the time he went to college thanks to a generous trust fund from his grandparents and parents, who were also very wealthy. So was Paul Allen, who knew Bill from their grade school days at one the most exclusive and expensive private schools in Seattle. They weren’t hurting for anything… unlike Jobs and Wozniak. Still the historical bend of this movie makes it one of the best biopic films for computer nostalgia nerds.

Worst

Sneakers (1992): Some of the hacking was OK, but the social commentary peppered throughout by Robert Redford made this film unwatchable. If you want to blame Republicans for everything, watch a Michael Moore movie. If you want to make a hacking movie, leave your left wing garbage out and just make a damn hacking film. Is that too much to ask there, Bobby? The story revolves around two college buddies who take different paths in life. One becomes an “ethical” hacker, and the other...well, he is not quite so noble, although rich. The underlying message is that capitalist greed is bad but being broke, running from the FBI, and working in a run down, abandoned warehouse is morally superior. Some great plot twists and comic scenes ruined by over the top political grandstanding make this a movie I would only watch if it were free… and beer was free.

The Net (1995): Ugh. The only saving grace of this movie is Sandra Bullock. Technology at that time was emerging at a great pace. This thing called ‘Internet’ was finally taking off and the filmmakers and writers took a lot of poetic justice to portray what they thought computers might be able to do in the 2 months between shooting the movie and releasing it. It had it’s moments but the whininess of Bullock and the whole portrayal of the security software hack made it almost unwatchable. A good MST3K candidate.

Swordfish (2001): This movie’s tagline should tell you just how unrealistic the hacking is: "Log on. Hack in. Go anywhere. Steal everything." Yeah, it’s that easy. If you watch the movie, you'll realize that's exactly what the filmmakers believe. John Travolta is a villain who’s grand scheme is to steal billions from the U.S. government through, you guessed it… hacking. The entire premise of the plot is that in the vast, computerized world of modern finance, $9.5 billion could slip through the cracks so that a clever hacker could, with hacking, transfer it to his own account unnoticed. Heck, I could use a new car… I’m gonna hack a few grand right now using my Hollywood generated CGI screens with 3d hacking tools where the mouse moves even though your hands are busy typing! It might have fooled the unwashed masses, but we know better.

Before IIS7, the main method for allowing users to download files of a protected type (exe, zip, etc.) meant writing a function based off the Stream method and writing the file out based on individual name. Thankfully with IIS7+ there is a much easier way.

First, I would recommend that all files meant for internet user download be maintained in a separate virtual directory. For example, if your site was called www.mysite.com, the downloadable files should be in a directory like www.mysite.com/userdownloads. Once the files are in place, you need to do the following:

1)  Open the IIS 7.0 (or later) Manager on the server

2)  Select the site and click on "Handler Mappings"

3)  Select "Add Module Mapping"

4)  Enter the fields on the window:

     a)  Request Path:   where are the files to be found don't put a leading slash.  Example: "userdownloads/*.exe" to allow all files in the userdownloads directory ending in .exe to be downloaded when the request is for any executable file within the virtual path that you would have defined earlier.

     b)  Module:  StaticFileModule - this will handle requests containing your request path and return the file to you.

     c)  Executable:  don't enter anything.

     d)  Name:  whatever you want to call it:  "ClientSide Executables"

5)  Click on "Request Restrictions" and click on the checkbox and ensure that "File" option is selected.  (This will only apply to files)

6)  Click on the "Access" tab.  Ensure that "Script" is selected.

7)  Click on "OK" to close this window

8)  Click on "OK" to close the main Handler screen.

9)  Your handler should now appear in the list with the other handlers. 

10)  Test it out by opening a browser and accessing an executable file.

Well, it took a little pushing for Al to give his blessing, but Dr. Torgo’s PC System Inventory tool was finally released today! This tool is great for PC Technicians and IT Departments that need quick access to detailed system information to assist in troubleshooting, software inventory, and software licensing.

Dr. Torgo's PC System Inventory offers a full range of system query options and powerful reporting tools. This software quickly generates reports on several dozen hives of system information including disks, CPU, memory, motherboard, users, ports, services, software, and MORE.

Dr. Torgo's PC System Inventory is a detailed query tool that allows users to get information about their systems like never before. The depth of the search option trees is amazing, and the detailed listing of installed software is perfect for tracking your software license compliance. This software is so detailed, it's nearly impossible to list all of the query trees and options. High level tabs include:

It also offers an export feature that allows you to save your inventory results to a variety of formats including HTML, CSV, Plain Text, or TAB delimited. Click HERE to see a sample report

Don't pay hundreds of dollars for those "one-click" PC troubleshooters that give vague information on only the simplest of problems. Let Dr. Torgo's PC System Inventory show you information so detailed that researching things like driver version, software revisions, and BIOS revisions are a snap! We now offer a 3 day trial version which lets you try before you buy!

NOTE: Torgo is a fictional character in the movie Manos: The Hands of Fate, played by John Reynolds. The quaver-voiced, maladroit satyr servant of "The Master", Torgo is charged with looking after the lodge while the Master is away. Torgo rose to pop culture notability following the Mystery Science Theater 3000 airing of Manos on January 30, 1993, following which he was featured on the television series as a recurring character. Now, the character is immortalized in eSource Development software.

This post is in relation to a story I received from eSecurity Planet. I know Microsoft usually releases their fixes on the Tuesday schedule, but for some reason Microsoft is making a bigger deal than usual about this patch release.

Microsoft notified IT security administrators this week that it plans to release ten patches, three of them rated "critical," on Tuesday.

That will likely mean a little more work to install and test June's Patch Tuesday fixes than last month, when Microsoft released only two critical patches. Microsoft releases most of its software patches on the second Tuesday of each month -- thus the term "Patch Tuesday."

The past two months have seen fewer fixes than usual. For instance, in April, Microsoft rolled out five fixes for a total of nine critical security vulnerabilities.

In February, however, Microsoft came close to breaking its all-time record of fixes in one Patch Tuesday release when it shipped 13 patches for 26 vulnerabilities. In that mammoth release, only five of the patches were rated "critical," which is Microsoft's highest severity rating.

In order to give IT administrators some warning of how much work they face when a new batch of patches comes out, Microsoft releases an advance notification on the Thursday before Patch Tuesday.

The three critical patches for June primarily affect Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7. However, one or more of them also critically affect some server versions of Windows, including Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2 (SP2) and Windows Server 2008 SP2 for both 32-bit and 64-bit editions, according to the advance notification e-mail.

Most of the other patches, which range from "important" to "moderate" in severity, impact Microsoft Office XP, Office 2003 and Office 2007. The just-released Office 2010 is not listed as affected.