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Sunday the 14th of September 2008

Welcome to the Helpforce Daily Briefing, on Sunday the 14th of September 2008

1. Virus Warnings
2. Daily Technology News
3. Latest Shareware and Freeware
4. FAQ for the day
5. Advice of the day

This is a free service provided by Helpforce.com, to unsubscribe please visit http://www.helpforce.com
For free technical support, visit us at http://www.helpforce.com

1. Latest Virus Alerts From Sophos
---------------------------------------
Troj/Agent-HQR on 14 September 2008 06:23:17 Z
http://www.sophos.com/security/analyses/viruses-and-spyware/trojagenthqr.html?_log_from=rss
Troj/DwnLdr-HHT on 14 September 2008 06:23:17 Z
http://www.sophos.com/security/analyses/viruses-and-spyware/trojdwnldrhht.html?_log_from=rss
Troj/PhpShell-O on 13 September 2008 20:22:00 Z
http://www.sophos.com/security/analyses/viruses-and-spyware/trojphpshello.html?_log_from=rss
Troj/Tibs-UW on 13 September 2008 20:22:00 Z
http://www.sophos.com/security/analyses/viruses-and-spyware/trojtibsuw.html?_log_from=rss
Troj/Agent-HQQ on 13 September 2008 12:55:55 Z
http://www.sophos.com/security/analyses/viruses-and-spyware/trojagenthqq.html?_log_from=rss
Troj/Bckdr-QPB on 13 September 2008 12:55:55 Z
http://www.sophos.com/security/analyses/viruses-and-spyware/trojbckdrqpb.html?_log_from=rss
Troj/Dloadr-BSY on 13 September 2008 12:55:55 Z
http://www.sophos.com/security/analyses/viruses-and-spyware/trojdloadrbsy.html?_log_from=rss
Troj/DwnLdr-HHS on 13 September 2008 12:55:55 Z
http://www.sophos.com/security/analyses/viruses-and-spyware/trojdwnldrhhs.html?_log_from=rss
Troj/Lineag-FV on 13 September 2008 12:55:55 Z
http://www.sophos.com/security/analyses/viruses-and-spyware/trojlineagfv.html?_log_from=rss
Troj/Lineag-FW on 13 September 2008 12:55:55 Z
http://www.sophos.com/security/analyses/viruses-and-spyware/trojlineagfw.html?_log_from=rss

2. Latest Technology News From Slashdot
-----------------------------------------------

-- Users Report Faulty WPA In 2nd-Gen IPod Touch
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/xKlqXKjgx1E/article.pl)
jesuscash writes "It seems early adopters of the new iPod Touch are out of luck when they bring it home and attempt to connect it to their WPA/WPA2 secured network. Reading this Apple forum thread shows that many tests with different configurations show a no go on WPA. Some of the last entries give the best clue, revealing a 'received deauthentication' error in their router logs. Apple has yet to respond."Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- The Tech Behind a Nine Inch Nails Show
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/xD1BGxGBJD4/article.pl)
inetstorm, who has "been a NIN fan for ages," sends along a Wired profile giving a look behind the scenes at the tech underlying the current NIN concert tour. "...this time around, NIN has pulled out all the stops, creating a groundbreaking, fully interactive visual display that is as much a part of the show as the band's instruments... The core of the show is a sophisticated trio of transparent 'stealth' screens, which are raised and lowered during the performance... For the interactive portions of the show, all the onscreen video is rendered by Moment Factory's custom rig, a trio of Linux-based devices collectively known as 'the brain.'"Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Apple Declares DRM War On Sneaker Hackers
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/619mzOwE8Rg/article.pl)
theodp writes "Nicholas Carr is not pleased that Apple has applied for a patent to extend DRM to tennis shoes and other articles of clothing. Apple apparently views tennis-shoe DRM as a way to head off a potential plague of sneaker hacking. 'Some people,' the patent application observes, 'have taken it upon themselves to remove the sensor from the special pocket of the [iPod-linked] Nike+ shoe and place it at inappropriate locations (shoelaces, for example) or place it on non-Nike+ model shoes.'"Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Phoenix Lander Photographs Martian Whirlwinds
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/UKy5qDvuCeg/article.pl)
Toren Altair recommends a story up on the Space Fellowship site that begins "NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has photographed several dust devils dancing across the arctic plain this week and sensed a dip in air pressure as one passed near the lander. The Surface Stereo Imager... caught a dust devil in action west of the lander in four frames shot about 50 seconds apart from each other. 'It was a surprise to have a dust devil so visible that it stood [out] with just the normal processing we do,' said Mark Lemmon of Texas A&M University, College Station, lead scientist for the stereo camera. 'Once we saw a couple that way, we did some additional processing and found there are dust devils in 12 of the images.'"Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Fire Your IT Boss
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/cEhSnZCVHMk/article.pl)
theodp writes "Instead of laying off techies who directly help users, Robert X. Cringely argues that the best place to cut IT organizations is at the top. One of the great problems in IT management, Cringely says, is that the big bosses typically haven't a clue what is happening, what needs to happen, and what it all should cost. He issues the following challenge: 'If you are managing an IT shop and can't write the code to render "hello world" in C, HTML, PHP, and pull "hello world" from a MySQL database using a perl script, then you are in the wrong job.' Even with help from Google, Cringely believes many technical managers would fail this test and should get the boot as a result — you can't manage what you don't understand."Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Inexpensive USB LCD With Linux Drivers For LCDproc
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/rPxqfWF9Hsk/article.pl)
An anonymous reader writes "The Windows Vista SideShow technology shows some promise. But what about Linux devices that can present snippets of information independent of the main display? Here's a review of the picoLCD-4x20, a relatively inexpensive USB device ($50) that supports both SideShow on Vista and LCDproc on Linux."Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Apple Rejects iPhone App As Competitive To iTunes
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/orI3s_5xufM/article.pl)
DaveyJJ sends news of yet another rejection of an iPhone app by Apple, with perhaps a chilling twist for potential developers of productivity or utility apps. John Gruber of Daring Fireball writes: "Let's be clear: forbidding 'duplication of functionality' is forbidding competition. The point of competition is to do the same thing, but better." Paul Kafasis (co-founder of Rogue Amoeba Software) makes the point that this action by Apple will scare talented developers away from the iPhone platform. And Dave Weiner argues that the iPhone isn't a "platform" at all: "The idea that it's a platform should mean no individual or company has the power to turn you off."Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Server Optimization For Newbies?
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/VZs01auENT0/article.pl)
supaneko writes "I recently took a new job as a network and server administration for a small IT company. I am absolutely shocked at how much is taking place within this company that I have little to no experience with. To help bolster my experience, I purchased a used server to use for hands-on training and practice. My ultimate goal is to have a complete, secure LAMP server available to the public running CentOS. I have been browsing the Net for various guides and tips on setup, optimization, security, and maintenance, but nothing I've found really gives me a hands-on approach to the topics I want to learn about. When you all started out, what route did you take to pick up the server setup and maintenance skills you have now? Is there anything in particular that you would recommend to someone who has excellent skills with consumer PCs and servers but is a total newbie to corporate and enterprise networking and servers?"Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Judge Rules Defense Can Get DUI Machine Source Code
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/UDV_6btdCO0/article.pl)
pfleming alerts us to developments in Arizona on a subject we have frequently discussed (e.g. FL, MN, NJ): efforts in DUI cases to obtain source code to devices that analyze blood alcohol levels. On Friday a Pima County Superior Court judge ruled that the software that powers the Intoxilyzer 8000 must be revealed to defense lawyers. "Defense attorneys representing more than 20 people arrested on felony DUI charges agreed to consolidate their cases into one and to argue it before [Judge] Bernini... The source codes are crucial because the Intoxilyzer 8000 sometimes gives 'weird' or inexplicable results... Six other states have been battling CMI [maker of the Intoxilyzer] over the source code — Minnesota, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Tennessee and New Jersey... CMI has currently racked up over $1.2 million in fines in a civil contempt order for not disclosing the source code in Florida."Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Stuck In Google's Doghouse
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/SuGAu_QkPCQ/article.pl)
hansoloaf writes "The NY Times is running an article about a business, Sourcetool.com that seem to be in a sort of a doghouse with Google. Initially Sourcetool uses AdWords to help build up its business. The business centers around providing links for business that sell industrial products. The owner, Dan Savage, explains in detail how Google over time used its AdWords bidding system to limit or reduce Sourcetool's ranking and revenue because the site's landing page is not 'googly' enough. Savage wrote a letter to the Justice Department as they are reportedly looking into Google and Yahoo's proposed deal." The article is nuanced in its observations about the complexity and ambiguity of anti-trust law. Even if Sourcetool and similar businesses aren't "Googly" — which is a Google proxy for "what the customer wants to see in search results" — should Google be able to pick winners and losers among industries and business models?Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Most Companies Admit Their Data Is At Risk
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/idwalY7USuA/article.pl)
Weblver1 writes "A recent survey of IT professionals published by web security firm Finjan shows that data-theft should be a good reason for concern. Based on answers from 1,387 professionals, 25% acknowledged that their organization has been breached. What's worse, 42% did not know and could not exclude a breach, reflecting on the number of organizations that could potentially be breached without anyone knowing after the fact. Other findings we should be concerned about include 82% of Healthcare IT respondents admitting that medical records are at risk of data-theft, and 68% of all sectors admitting sensitive corporate information can be compromised by cyber-criminals. Finjan's report is available here (PDF, registration required). This survey comes a week after Forrester Research found in their survey that IT security spending is expected to rise (or at least remain the same) — with the current level of data breaches and sensitive data that is not protected well enough, there is a good reason for it.Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Researchers Test Drive Bus With Automated Steering
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/1x5Q809KQIc/article.pl)
An anonymous reader tips us to news that researchers at University of California, Berkeley, have successfully test driven a 60-foot bus that controlled its own steering. Sensors on the bus detected magnets that had been embedded in a San Leandro road, and it was able to reach stops within one centimeter of its desired position. Acceleration and braking during the test were controlled by a human operator, but the system is capable of handling those as well, and has done so on test courses. "... sensors mounted under the bus measured the magnetic fields created from the roadway magnets, which were placed beneath the pavement surface 1 meter apart along the center of the lane. The information was translated into the bus's lateral and longitudinal position by an on-board computer, which then directed the vehicle to move accordingly. For a vehicle traveling 60 miles per hour, data from 27 meters (88 feet) of roadway can be read and processed in 1 second. Zhang added that the system is robust enough to withstand a wide range of operating conditions, including rain or snow, a significant improvement to other vehicle guidance systems based upon optics."Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- RIAA and MPAA Developing Domain-Based DRM
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/xAGZy8EXayQ/article.pl)
An anonymous reader points out news that the music and movie studios are attempting to develop a new type of DRM that would allow customers more flexibility in playing content on multiple devices. The Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem (DECE) would establish a list of devices in your personal "domain" (unrelated to web domains), and minimizes or removes restrictions within that domain. TechCrunch summarizes DECE and notes that many of the big corporations have decided to support it. "The ecosystem envisioned by Singer et al revolves around a common set of formats, interfaces and other standards. Devices built to the DECE specifications would be able to play any DECE-branded content and work with any DECE-certified service. The goal is to create for downloads the same kind of interoperability that's been true for physical products, such as CDs and DVDs. Where it gets really interesting, though, is the group's stated intention to make digital files as flexible and permissive as CDs, at least within the confines of someone's personal domain. Once you've acquired a file, you could play it on any of your devices -- if it couldn't be passed directly from one DECE-ready device to another, you'd be allowed to download additional copies. And when you're away from home, you could stream the file to any device with a DECE-compatible Web browser."Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Scientists Test World's Fastest Wireless Network
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/iVo1yWFyghE/article.pl)
MojoKid writes "Scientists in Pisa, Italy claim to have set a new world record for the fastest wireless data transmission. They report that they were able to achieve throughput speeds above 1.2 Terabits per second, which they say beats the previous wireless data transmission speed record of 160 Gigabits per second by Korean scientists. The technology that the Pisa scientists utilized actually shares a significant similarity with fiber optics. Unlike Wi-Fi or microwave communications, which use radio-based transmissions, the Pisa scientists used a technology called free-space optical communications. In free space optics, an energy beam is collimated and transmitted through space rather than being guided through an optical cable."Read more of this story at Slashdot.

-- Advanced Surveillance Tech for Unmanned Drones Credited In Iraq
(http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/CAobtI8_ZIQ/article.pl)
mathoda writes "Investigative reporter Bob Woodward states that America has developed secret capabilities 'to locate, target and kill key individuals in groups such as al-Qaeda in Iraq, the Sunni insurgency and renegade Shia militias, or so-called special groups. The operations incorporated some of the most highly classified techniques and information in the US government.' The LA Times now reports, 'As part of an escalating offensive against extremist targets in Pakistan, the United States is deploying Predator aircraft equipped with sophisticated new surveillance systems that were instrumental in crippling the insurgency in Iraq, according to US military and intelligence officials.' Part of the capabilities appear to be that the unmanned flying drones can track targets even inside of buildings." Update by J : Bruce Schneier's readers have some thoughts.Read more of this story at Slashdot.

3. Latest Shareware from Planet-Shareware
-----------------------------------------------

4. FAQ of the day from Helpforce
-----------------------------------------------

-- Games crash with my 64mb Graphics Card
(http://www.helpforce.com)

Question: I have 64mb video card and somtimes when i play a game that recquires a 64 or 32mb video card it goes for a while and the graphics card crashes. And i have 512mb of ram running pentium 4 at 2.0 gigahertz

Answer: Dear Craig,I would recomend upgrading your graphics card drivers to the latest version.You have not supplied your graphics card make or model to us so I can not tell you where to get the latest drivers. Visit: http://www.helpforce.com/main/otherways.shtml for more information.Hope this helps. If you require any further assistance, please feel free to reply to this message.Regards,-Lawrence Stromski, Helpforce.

5. Advice of the Day from ask-leo
-----------------------------------------------

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