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In this issue:
Opening comments.
AOL 8.0 Parental Controls review
New tricks for New.net.
Scam alert.
Computer virus watch.
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Opening comments.
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Welcome to 2003! Happy New Year to all.
This month we are delighted to begin cross promotion of services with safetysurf.com,
a fabulous collection of links to online safety resources provided by InfoMedia,
creators of WorldVillage.com.
Theirs is the first of what we hope to be many family friendly services to be
promoted here in this newsletter, not because we stand to gain from it monetarily
but because it marks the first time that we felt their services added real value
for our readers. We've been approached many times by others seeking to advertise
here and we've turned them all away. You can rest assured, if it does not bring
enough value to our readers you will never see it here.
Also this month we begin composing our newsletter in html format. There are three
reasons for this. First, by far the greatest majority of email clients support
reading html. Second, it gives us greater flexibility with text formatting. Lastly,
it helped us to correct a problem AOL users once had trying to subscribe and unsubscribe
to our newsletter. Many thanks to the AOL user who reported this bug to us. We
are very grateful.
Back to top.
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AOL 8.0 Parental Controls review
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I've been exploring 8.0 for a couple of months now paying special attention to
the parental controls. These are some of my observations.
General comments.
First, I would like to compliment AOL for not completely taking over my computer
when I installed 8.0. In the past, installing their software meant they planted
themselves in every corner of your computer. Shortcuts on the desktop, in the
start menu, on your Internet Explorer address bar, replacing the IE icon in your
browser with an AOL icon, adding entire menus of AOL links to your favorites folders,
the list goes on and on. With this release, AOL had finally shown some restraint.
Bravo! Now I need not fear that installing their software will irreversibly alter
my computer. The additions they do make are tasteful and well thought out. They
are also removable if I don't want them.
The first thing that struck me about the new graphics is their decidedly XP-ish
look. Obviously, to help with navigation AOL is attempting to keep the look and
feel of their software consistant with the operating system they see as being
the most common in the marketplace. I've always found AOL's graphics to be somewhat
childish. Whether or not it actually helps navigation is debatable. What I can
say is it's pretty.
Some of the enhancements AOL has made to their email handling are actually pretty
useful. Mail sort priority and filtering works very well. They have also created
the equivallent of a recycle bin allowing you to recover accidentally deleted
email for up to 24 hours after it was deleted.
I also like the "AOL call waiting" feature that allows users to online without
missing voice calls. There is a surcharge of $3.95/month from AOL plus you need
to sign up for "Call forward busy" from your telephone company, also at additional
cost. Your total will likely be around seven or eight dollars. Hmmm. Maybe a second
line wasn't such a bad idea after all?
Getting punted offline during heavy usage periods is still a very big problem
for AOL. As I write this review, I have already been punted offline three times!
It's a real nuisance. It's also why I will not hold onto my account once the trial
period has expired. It's just not worth my aggravation.
One thing that continues to bug me is the inability to resize the display windows
on the AOL desktop or control how they appear on top of one another. Because many
are the same size, all aligned with one another, I often found myself buried in
a stack of open windows that I had no idea were there. It can get very confusing.
And can someone please explain to my why they would want AOL companion on their
desktop? If you ask me it's just one more needless application competing for space
on my already overcrowded desktop. Thanks AOL but no thanks. I already have a
taskbar.
Privacy and security.
I won't comment on their chat rooms because I refuse to enter them. Nor are my
children allowed to enter chat. The reason is simple. Spammers have software that
monitors every screen name entering almost every chat room. There's nothing AOL
can do about it because being able to see who enters is a "feature." Any time
someone enters a chat room, their screen name is added to a list being compiled
by the spammers. Their software then adds @aol.com to the end of each one, et
voila! A fresh list of guaranteed valid email addresses to send spam to. Even
if you create a disposable screen name to use for entering chat rooms, that address
is still valid for as long as you keep it active. It is an effective way to use
chat rooms without the spam but who wants to bother? The whole concept of anonymous
online chat is a nuisance at best, deadly at worst. My advice regarding chat -
Stay away.
Does this mean that instant messaging is dangerous too? Not necessarily but there
are precautions that should be followed here as well. You and your children should
be able to put a name and a face to every screen name on their buddy list. If
a friend who they do know introduces another "friend" they met online but do not
know, now that second unknown friend is part of the "inner circle" and has direct
access to your child. Don't be afraid to ask who they're associating with online.
Don't feel that it's not your business. Your child's welfare IS your business.
Show them you take it seriously. Even if they disagree with it, they will respect
you for it. It literally could be the difference between life and death. It's
that important.
If you do find that a total stranger has managed to get into the same circle of
online friends as your child, add their screen name to the list of blocked screen
names under Settings, Preferences, Privacy.. Additionally, contact the
parents of your childs other friends and encourage them to do the same. If the
stranger resurfaces or will not go away, notify AOL member services right away.
Any threats report to your local police. This is serious business.
As with previous versions, there are default settings in the software that you
DEFINITELY do not want to leave in their default states. All of them can be accessed
under Settings, Preferences.
1) The first is Pop-ups. Make certain to select no pop-up offers. Some
of the "offers" can be quite alarming. My mother-in-law called me one evening
frightened her computer had contracted a virus. What really happened was she saw
an ominous pop-up that warned her she MIGHT have a virus. It was an ad for antivirus
software. Dell customer service wasted several hours with her attempting to diagnose
the problem. The real problem is the way the antivirus product was being marketed
to AOL members.
2) Next is Marketing. Most of these settings default to Yes. Unless you
enjoy being interrupted by telephone during dinner and having your mailbox stuffed
with junk mail, turn them all off. 3) Most other preferences simply affect the
way AOL looks and operates.
Another feature I'm not too fond of is the Guest log-in. Sure, it's nice to be
able to visit someone else and check your email on their computer but there is
still no way to password protect guest access in case your children have visitors
you don't want using your computer. Besides, you can still check your email if
your host logs on with his account and lets you access your mail from the web
at webmail.aol.com.
A loophole I had criticized AOL for once before has only been half closed. I refer
to the sharing of screen names for logging onto AOL to gain higher privilages.
The only thing AOL has done is to prevent simultaneous log-on under the
same screen name. I tried it and it definitely works. If I log on with one computer,
leave the connection open, then log on again with a laptop under the same screen
name, I get a message that tells me "someone else is logged on with the same name.
Do I want to kick them off? If I suspect foul play notify customer service immediately."
I guess this will have to do.
The AOL browser is really Microsoft Internet Explorer with a different skin on
the AOL desktop. All of the MSIE Internet options apply while using AOL to browse
the web. Therefore, you can launch MSIE serarately and set the options which will
also apply while using AOL. This feature has several benefits. First is the built
in PICS filters can still be used very well in connection with the SurfSafely.com
web directory. Second, because the two are so tightly integrated, it's almost
impossible to circumvent the AOL parental controls by launching MSIE separately.
This part of it was very well thought out.
AOL parental controls also allow you to limit how long other screen names can
be logged on for, even during specific time periods. This was a feature of CyberPatrol
that I found very useful. Now AOL has added it to their arsenal. Very nice.
Closing comments.
Is there a benefit to upgrade to 8.0? Probably. There are indeed a great many
new features added. Is it worth waiting 3-4 hours to download the upgrade over
a 56K modem? Probably not. You're better off asking member services to send you
a new CD by mail or picking one up at your local post office. That's where I got
mine.
All in all, AOL is still a great place to start. But as always, it's also something
that most people will eventually graduate from. And when they do, there's always
SurfSafely.net.
Back to top.
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~-~-~-~ PROTECT YOUR FAMILY ONLINE! ~-~-~-~
SafetySurf.com is the oldest and leading source
of software for parents. Read reviews and
recommendations of parental control and Internet
Monitoring software. Download and install
immediately with complete confidence!
~-~-~-~ Http://www.safetysurf.com
~-~-~-~
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New tricks for new.net.
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ICANN (Internet Certification Authority for Names and Numbers) is the governing
body that regulates the deployment of TLDs (top level domains on the internet
(.com, .net, .org, .edu, .mil, .gov, etc). Without such a body the naming system
would fall into khaos. However, ICANN has also been criticized for their conservative
nature and failure to address requests for new TLDs in a timely manner. Hence
was born New.net.
For every domain, there is one or more computers somewhere in the world that actually
stores it. When a user browses the internet, every time they enter or click a
named address (ie http://www.somedomain.com/) that address must be translated
by a DNS (Domain Name System) server managed by your ISP (Internet Service Provider)
into a number called an IP address. You can think of it as a telephone directory
for computers. Stored with the IP is the physical location of the server that
houses the information you requested. The DNS servers at all ISPs are updated
twice daily from master DNS servers controlled by ICANN accredited registrars.
New.net is a domain registrar that exists outside the ICANN DNS system to address
the need for quicker adoption of proposed TLDs such as .shop, .xxx, .kids, .love,
.golf, etc, which ICANN felt would just clutter the naming system. For their system
to work at all, New.net had to strike up special deals with major ISPs such as
Earthlink, Juno and Prodigy for their DNS servers to update from NEW.net as well
as ICANN DNS servers. New.net is somewhat of a TLD rebel. Their approach was to
muscle their way into the domain naming game without ICANN's approval.
However, most ISPs such as AOL, MSN, Compuserve, etc., do not update their DNS
servers from New.net. Subscribers to these ISPs looking up a .golf domain, for
instance, might be told it does not exist even if that domain owner did register
with New.net. To address this shortcoming, New.net created a downloadable plug-in
for Internet Explorer that circumvents your ISP's DNS server and goes straight
to New.net for the domain look-up. Still, in order for it to work, people actually
need to visit New.net, download and install the plug-in. And, there is also no
guarantee that it will work. They have run into incompatibility issues that they
have yet to fix.
As an added "bonus", and in keeping with their rebelious nature, the New.net plug-in
now directs users to something they call Quick. It muscles in and replaces the
MSN domain name search if you type it incorrectly and the domain is not found.
It also sends you to their own Quick directory. If you want the New.net TLD look-
up plug-in, you MUST subject yourself to their Quick directory. They don't give
you a choice and THAT is where I have a problem with New.net.
I discovered this "new trick" of theirs when one day the New.net plug-in I had
installed long ago started sending me to Quick without my permission. It's very
similar to the tactics employed by a XXX web directory that we often counsil users
how to rid themselves of, also discussed in our online forum at
http://surfsafety.com/frameset_forum.html
So great is my objection to New.net's tactics that I have completely scrubbed
any plans to deploy content under the SurfSafely.kids domain I once had registered
with them. The rebel has overstepped their bounds and lost any support I may have
once had for their business model, .kids not withstanding. If they continue down
their present path, expect to see New.net dry up and fade away. Think very carefully
about investing in a New.net TLD. You could be left high and dry if they do go
away as I predict. I, for one, will not be "left holding the bag."
Back to top.
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Scam alert.
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This is a very old scam. We've talked about this one before but it obviously bears
repeating because I have again begun to receive an average of two of these scam
email a day. The fact that is has not gone away tells me that it must still be
working. If it stopped working, scammers would stop using it. Here's how it works.
You get an email from a very official sounding person claiming to have millions
of dollars frozen in an account somewhere. In exchange for helping them funnel
it out of their country, they offer you some percentage of the total. You call
them and they send you documents to provide the "information they need" to transfer
the funds into your account for later redistribution. The only problem is, they
ask for more information than they actually need for this purpose. The information
they ask for is enough that they can call your bank and pose as you. What REALLY
happens is they call your bank and DRAIN your account. They may also use the information
you provide to steal your identity and destroy your credit rating.
And, as if that's not bad enough, by aiding a third party to circumvent international
authorities, you may violate international law and go to jail for it, even if
the scam artist had been caught before hand or was a fake! Don't overlook that
fact that it could also be a foreign government sting operation.
Either way, this is a very dangerous scam to get entangled by. Please be very
careful.
Back to top.
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Computer virus watch.
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I am very pleased to report that is has been a long time since I have received
any email containing a Klez strain computer virus. This was a particullarly troublesome
virus to me because the fact that it got around for as long as it did meant people
were still being fooled by it. Knowledge truely is power.
Microsoft
Internet Explorer 5.x patch
Mcafee updates
Norton updates
F-Secure updates
Back to top.
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That's news for now.
Be informed,
Be involved,
Be well.
Sincerely,
Mark Brasche
Founder and CEO,
SurfSafely.com
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Come visit our growing family of web sites and services
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http://surfsafely.net/ Our pre-filtered Internet service
http://surfsafety.com/ Our online safety community site
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