Reverse Engineering. Windows is rife with ways to install viruses but probably the easiest way is to trick the gullible into installing it themselves. For example, over the weekend, my inbox was filled with e-mails supposedly sent from Admin, Security Support, Network Security, Security Division, and Security Department. Of course, none of these we sent from any such organization. Of course, all of them had payloads packed waiting for me to click on them to unleash their viruses.
For your information, some of the subjects of these e-mails are: :Undelivered Message: User unknown, Bug Announcement, Current Net Update, Last Microsoft Security Patch, Latest Pack, New Upgrade, and new internet critical update.
I'm sure the regular readers (all 12 of you - Ed.) of this page are not fooled by these people but maybe you can spread the word and help the less fortunate help themselves by not falling for these e-mails.
Engage. Most 'net savvy folks realize by now that the guy who played Ensign Crusher on the TV show Star Trek: The Next Generation bears no resemblance to the character he played. I mean, he's an actor. Actors play parts that are not necessarily similar to themselves. So it should not come as a surprise that columnist Dan Gilmore has a nice write-up (see it here) on now author/actor Wil Wheaton (see the Wheaton site here).
InstallShield Bug. A bug that I had heretofore not seen cropped up yesterday. It seems there is a problem with the InstallShield program and MS Outlook/Outlook Express. When you install a program with InstallShield, the progress bar may proceed until it reaches 99% and then seem to hang.
Letting it sit there for a couple of minutes may have the install start up again but another work around is to shut down Outlook/Outlook Express (and any mail proxies you may be running). I don't know why this occurs, only that yesterday was the first time I've seen it.
In any case, keep this in the back of your mind if you should have problems with InstallShield.
And Finally. For those of you in California, it's election day. As always, get out there and vote early and often. If nothing else good comes out of this, it does hold politicians accountable and responsive to the people. So make yourself be heard.
Aloha!
