I was expecting somthing like this...

[jecook]

This is what I was talking about with the whole Lycos screensaver thing...

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/12/07/fake_lycos_screensaver_trojan/

Fake Lycos screensaver harbours Trojan

By John Leyden
Published Tuesday 7th December 2004 13:49 GMT

Virus writers have begun distributing their wares in emails that pose as Lycos's abandoned "Make love not spam" screensaver.

The fake screensaver emails contain an attachment with a RAR SFX archive that has embedded key logger Trojan inside, antivirus firm Sophos warns. Infected emails come in emails with subject lines such as "Be the first to fight spam with Lycos screen" and an attachment called "Lycos screensaver to fight spam.zip".

Upon successful installation, the key logging Trojan (Mdropper-IT) sends a message to an Indonesian email address confirming its status. The screensaver file, rather than displaying the Lycos screensaver, displays a blank screen.

(rest of article)

Thunderbird 1.0 is out!

[microchip.livejournal.com]

Thunderbird 1.0 has landed, the mail client companion to Firefox. [Get it here.]

(That's a Windows link, head to [here] for the mac / unix versions etc.)

ever hear the one about..

[zig-mover.livejournal.com]

I got stuck with a sales call, which I despise.

me: Alright, can I get your phone number, starting with the area code?
cust: Well I just moved here, so my phone isn't set up for another week.
me: Okay no problem. Do you know what area code you're going to have? (sometimes I need one to put the address through)
cust: No, I have no clue. I just moved here from California, and I'm not familiar with the east coast, so I don't know.


When I got to the part where I asked for his city and state.. I found out he lives in ..drumroll.. ILLINOIS.

Since when is IL the east coast?


Also, today our office "server" crashed. It was an emachines, running Windows 98. And barely any backups.

(no subject)

[jecook]

IBM sells PC biz to China
By Andrew Orlowski in San Francisco (andrew.orlowski at theregister.co.uk)
Published Wednesday 8th December 2004 04:10 GMT

So, it's true. IBM, creator of the original PC in 1981, has sold its computer business to Chinese assembler Lenovo, formerly the Legend Group. Lenovo will pay Big Blue $1.25 billion, with $650 million in cash, and IBM will retain an 18.9 per cent stake in the joint venture. Lenovo will be IBM's preferred supplier and retains the right to use the brand for five years. The deal excludes IBM's eServer x86 PC servers.

IBM's chief executive Sam Palmisano cited economies of scale, explaining in a release that the consumer PC market was increasingly resembling the consumer electronics business, and that the deal would help maintain IBM's focus on business computing.

The deal has huge symbolic significance, far greater than IBM's 5 per cent market share suggests. IBM's stake in the largest Chinese PC OEM could prove to be one of its better investments, as the domestic market in the PRC has the most promising potential for growth: the government has vowed to urbanize a billion citizens over the next decade.

(Full Article)
Straight from the horse's mouth

This also includes the Thinkpads, which IMHO are probably one of the few IBM products left that are worth buying. Having worked on their desktops, and some of their older servers, I would usually recommend a different vendor for theose lines, but Thinkpads were always my top recommendation for people looking to spend money on a quality laptop.

Time will tell if things go downhill.

Xposted to infojunkies and techsupport

Computers and Childbirth

[prozacnation.livejournal.com]

Do you see the connection between computers and childbirth?

Neither do I until I received a tech call from a wife of a doctor. They were both passing the phone back and forth to each other trying to answer my simple questions.


Me: What Operating System are you running on your computer? Windows 98? Windows XP?

Wife: [muffled phone] BERNerd...what type of windows are we running? XP? [to me] XP.

Me: Okay...and how is your modem hooked up to the computer? Ethernet or USB?

Wife: [muffled voice] Do you know if we use ethernet or USB...here you talk to her! [sound of a freaked out wife because of USB and ethernet]

Husband: [Arrogant sonofabitch who took the phone] Look, asking me about ethernet or USB would be like me telling you how to deliver a baby. It is a long complicated process and you wouldn't understand it.

O.o

And that has to do with high speed internet in what way?

Nice bedside manner from a baby doctor. The sad thing is, when I looked at the address, that call happened to be from my area. How many of his pregnant patients dumped him because of his arrogant attitude?