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Newsletter Archive    Reviews Archive    

Welcome to Clif Notes Newsletter

April 29, 2007

Hi Everyone. Thanks for reading my newsletter. Each week, I will have freeware reviews, tips, tricks, news, and lots of cool websites for you to check out. I hope you enjoy this week's letter. Be sure to write me for advice or yell at me for messing up. Email me Click here to chat while visiting this newsletter! _Online?

Welcome to Clif Notes Newsletter REVIEWS Sieklus - an adventure puzzle for the whole family IrfanView - my favorite image viewer XPL0 Games - the tiniest games PassPack - your secure online password keeper Infra Recorder - simply creating your CD Galaxiga - free game similar to Galaxians CyberDefender - how can they defend themselves? Old Newsletter TIPS AND FEEDBACK Internet Fixes Weekend Windup Check in the mail Saving Internet Radio Are Cookies Safe? Comments last week COOL WEBSITES CoolSites Newsletter this week Websites I've visited recently Nintendo Mii editor - what do you look like? OldApps.com - find your old favorites here NEW NEWS SnapFiles.com - new and updated freeware News from Sarah in Tampa Security news from Malware Advisor A view from CyberNirvana OTHER STUFF Chatting at FreewareWiki Frapper - you people live all over the world! Write your own review What do you have to say?

REVIEWS

Sieklus - an adventure puzzle for the whole family

review from Tony at TopFreeware, Apr 2007, permalink Game

From Tony at Topfreeware.net:

http://www.autofish.net/clysm/art/video_games/seiklus/

IrfanView - my favorite image viewer

review from ClifNotes, Apr 2007, permalink Image Viewers

I think having a good fast image viewer is a must. Some people like and recommend XnView for this, but I've been using IrfanView since the days of Windows 95. I have even used IrfanView to listen to MP3s or to view Flash movies. It can also create screen savers from your images if you want it to.

Quote from the website
IrfanView is a very fast, small, compact and innovative FREEWARE (for non-commercial use) graphic viewer for Windows 9x/ME/NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista.

Some IrfanView features:

• Many supported file formats (click here the list of formats)
• Multi language support
• Thumbnail/preview option
• Toolbar skins option
• Slideshow (save slideshow as EXE/SCR or burn it to CD)
• Show EXIF/IPTC/Comment text in Slideshow/Fullscreen etc.
• Support for Adobe Photoshop Filters
• Fast directory view (moving through directory)
• Batch conversion (with image processing)
• Multipage TIF editing
• File search
• Email option
• Multimedia player
• Print option
• Change color depth
• Scan (batch scan) support
• Cut/crop
• IPTC editing
• Effects (Sharpen, Blur, Adobe 8BF, Filter Factory, Filters Unlimited, etc.)
• Capturing
• Extract icons from EXE/DLL/ICLs
• Lossless JPG rotation
• Many hotkeys
• Many command line options
• Many PlugIns
• Only one EXE-File, no DLLs, no Shareware messages like "I Agree" or "Evaluation expired"
• No registry changes without user action/permission!
• and much much more
  

XPL0 Games - the tiniest games

review from ClifNotes, Apr 2007, permalink Games

Several years ago I found "The XPL0 Programming Language" website. The website tells about this programming language and hosts several games and utilities made using XPL0. My favorite version of Mahjongg is hosted there as well as several other of the tiniest games you may ever find.

I'm hoping you will find these tiny games as amazing as I do. Most games today are measured in megabytes. These games are 1,000 times smaller and are still quite good. They should run on most Windows machines except for the new Vista which does not support a DOS full screen mode.

Here below are a few of the games.

Challenge Matey to a game of chess

A game very similar to Centipede

A 3D Sokoban game

A solitaire game

Dangerously addicting Columns game

Mah Jongg Solitaire

Quote from the website
XPL0 is similar to Pascal. It was created in the mid 70s by Peter J. R. Boyle and the 6502 Group.

Although XPL0 is not mainstream, over the years it has proven to be immensely useful. It has been used to write everything from operating systems to embedded controllers. Since its 6502 days, it has been steadily upgraded and spread to other processors like the 8080, 6800, PDP-10, IBM-360, a couple homebrew machines, 65802, 680x0, PIC, Ubicom, and the 80x86 family used by the IBM-PC. The PC versions can be downloaded from this webpage.

http://www.idcomm.com/personal/lorenblaney/

PassPack - your secure online password keeper

review from The Privacy Guy, Apr 2007, permalink Password Manager

From Clif:
One of the readers here mentioned this service in a comment. I was curious and looked into it. It sounds absolutely terrific for the person who is always on the move and needs to access their passwords from any computer with internet access.

Here is a portion of a review from "The Privacy Guy", an advocate in today's never ending battle for privacy.

Quote from the website
What is PassPack?

A Free Online Password Manager and Personal Vault. The only one to merge high security with ease-of-use. Too many passwords now-a-days? Use PassPack, it makes life easier.

https://www.passpack.com/

Infra Recorder - simply creating your CD

review from ClifNotes, Apr 2007, permalink CD-DVD Burning Tools

From Clif:
Here's a review from DonationCoder forums. It features a unique CD burning application that you may find useful. I was interested in it because it's an open source program hosted by SourceForge.

Excerpt of a review from Lanux128:

Quote from the Infra Recorder website
InfraRecorder is a free CD/DVD burning solution for Microsoft Windows. It offers a wide range of powerful features; all through an easy to use application interface and Windows Explorer integration.

http://infrarecorder.sourceforge.net/

Be sure to visit DonationCoder.com to find more cool programs.

Galaxiga - free game similar to Galaxians

review from ClifNotes, Apr 2007, permalink Games

I used to spend hours dropping quarters into the old Galaxians game machine back in the 70's and 80's. Now I can play it at home for free. It's not a perfect copy of Galaxians, but it's good enough.

Quote from the Caiman website
A mixture between a vertical scrolling Space Shooter and a Space Invaders game. A very nice and tense game, but definitely not an easy one! It saves highscores, has infinite levels, and a boss halfway through at level 15. Also features asteroid field levels every ten stages and 3 different weapons.
controls: arrows + space

http://www.caiman.us/scripts/fw/f1148.html

CyberDefender - how can they defend themselves?

review from StevenBurn, Apr 2007, permalink Not Recommended

From Clif:
I'll be honest with you. Sometimes I don't care if a program is AdWare, DonationWare, FreeWare or any of the other various WAREs out there. If I like it and the cost (not always money) is right, I may still use it. If the authors of the program are up front and don't lie to me about what the program is doing, then at least I know what I'm are getting. The decision is mine to make.

Trust plays a large role in this decision.

If the authors of the program lie to us, or tell us the program does one thing and it does something else, then they risk the wrath of the righteous software users out there.

Steven Burns, webmaster of it-mate, found a case of the authors who lied. Thank you Steven, you are a righteous man.

Quote from Steven Burns:

I first found out about CyberDefender due to a contest at CastleCops.

One of the first things that made me suspicious about it however, is that the "free" version contains adverts. Not suprisingly, quite a few of us began questioning the fact it was permitted as one of the prizes for the competition. Eventually, we were told the version being given away for the competition, was a full licence without adverts.

Join me for the next few minutes as we find out how this is not the case.
read the rest of the story

Old Newsletter

I like to look back and see what I was thinking about. Here's another letter from the wayback machine.

TIPS AND FEEDBACK

Internet Fixes Weekend Windup

tips from Gary at InternetFixes, Windows Tips

From Clif:
Gary at Internet Fixes continues to amaze me with hundreds and thousands of tips for your PC. Whatever your operating system, or how you use it, a visit to Gary's site will soon have you saying "So that's how you do this!".

Sign up for Gary's newsletter?

Check in the mail

review from Respect2Glory, April 24th, 2007, permalink tips

I received a check in the mail this week for $4995.24 - The check appears to be from "The TJX Companies, INC.".

As I read through this letter I realized that I did not enter this contest. I knew that I had to write about awareness of spam, scams, and the junk-mail in our street mail boxes. Even with a check enclosed to make things more tempting, I know better than to cash it. Most of the time, cashing a check in the mail means that you are agreeing to the terms that the check stands for. In this instance, the check didn't have any fine print. It does state that the check is to cover the 'fees' that are connected to this drawing, that I supposedly won. Since I've 'looked' into this, I've learned that we have laws to protect us from paying fees for any contest, and that contests and lotteries abroad are illegal.

After reading about TJX's credit card numbers being stolen, there is no way I would attempt to cash this check. This is just not a good reason to take a chance on getting a visit from someone wearing a suit.

More search words from this mailing: (typos are from the letter too)
Lottery Board Commission, mandatory surcharges, clearance fees, handling charges, Processing fees, G.S.T. and Non-Resident Taxes, Marie Benson, Promotional Manager, North American Payment Agent, Angela Madison, John Dobson, 1 604 710 0629, winning price, processing your winning.

TJX
TJ Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods, A.J. Wright, BOBS Stores

CHECK NO: 86xxxxx

Mellon Trust of New England, N. A
Evertt, MA 02149
CHECK AMOUNT
Pay: FOUR THOUSAND NINE HUNDRED AND NINETY FIVE AND 24/100 $4995.24

To Rebecca X XXXXXXXX
The XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
Order XXXXXXX, XX XXXXX
Of USA

XXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXX

Here is an excerpt of the letter ...

OK, I'm thinking SCAM by now, so I visit the search engines and I cannot find results to confirm or deny this exact letter and the check. I finally target "TJX" and read about a security breach where thousands of customers information had been stolen.

IMPORTANT CUSTOMER ALERT: http://www.tjx.com/tjx_message.html

I found and dialed a TJX phone number, and spoke to their hot-line representative, which had me hold to speak to her manager. I told the manager about the check and letter, and then described them to him. He was certain that it was a scam and he instructed me to rip it up and toss it into the trash. I thanked him for his time and we hung up.

Um, I don't think I want to destroy this quite yet. Isn't this evidence in an ongoing FBI investigation? Time will tell.

Also see ...
http://consumerist.com/consumer/consumer-alert/

http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2007/02/fyi0716.shtm

http://www.usps.com/postalinspectors/fraud/fraudsch.htm

http://clarkhoward.com/archives/scamalert.html

Some of my search results...

INFOWORLD TECH WATCH : TJX slapped with class action suit by banks
Banks want to prove that TJX misrepresented its handling of sensitive financial information (saying it was secure, when it wasn't). The group also wants to raise the stakes of data breaches for merchants, which they argue are the source of most breaches, but bear few of the costs.

http://www.google.com/search?num=50&hl=en&q=TJX+%244995+check

http://www.google.com/search?num=50&hl=en-US%3Aofficial&q=TJX+scam

Fla., TJX differ on scam timeline - The Boston Globe
State investigators looking into the theft of more than 45 million credit and debit card numbers from TJX Cos. are trying to determine when the Framingham ...
http://www.boston.com/business/personalfinance/articles/2007/04/07/fla_tjx_differ_on_scam_timeline/

Scam may be tied to stolen TJX data - The Boston Globe
A ring of thieves arrested in Florida and charged with using stolen credit-card numbers to buy more than $8 million worth of gift cards and electronics ...
http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2007/03/24/scam_may_be_tied_to_stolen_tjx_data/

Stolen TJX data used in Florida credit card fraud ring; Arkansas
Find Stolen TJX data used in Florida credit card fraud ring; Arkansas organization sues to see firm's data protection and all latest security news, ...
http://scmagazine.com/

TJX card scam worsens: Data thefts started two years ago
TJX Cos. Inc. said yesterday that it now believes the breach of its computer system first occurred in July 2005, almost a year earlier than it previously ...
http://business.bostonherald.com/businessNews/view.bg?articleid=184302

TJX Customers: What To Do
Consumer News Recalls Complaint Form Scam Alerts ... To protect against identity theft, consumers who have shopped at the TJX Stores, including Marshalls, ...
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2007/02/tjx_whatdo.html

Saving Internet Radio

review from ClifNotes, Apr 2007, permalink

From Clif:
Over the last couple of weeks I've been receiving a few emails from Pandora Radio about a new law that was passed. I don't think it made many headlines and it sure looks like another attempt by big business (like the RIAA) to squash the little guys.

Here's a letter from the founder of Pandora.

Quote from SaveNetRadio
The future of Internet radio is in immediate danger. Royalty rates for webcasters have been drastically increased by a recent ruling and are due to go into effect on May 15 (retroactive to Jan 1, 2006!). If the increased rates remain unchanged, the majority of webcasters will go bankrupt and silent on this date.

www.savenetradio.org

Are Cookies Safe?

review from ClifNotes, Apr 2007, permalink Windows Tips

From Clif:
I don't worry about cookies on my PC. Cookies aren't going to cause me to get infected with a keylogger or a virus or adware. If some cookies are evil, they are a necessary evil. Most of the services on the internet either wouldn't work or wouldn't be free without them.

Here's what Terry at Terry's Computer Tips thinks about it. I agree with him on this one.

Quote from Terry's Computer Tips

Comments last week

Thanks to everyone who commented on the articles last week. You gave me more ideas and some good advice. If you see comments on an article, you will be missing out if you don't click on them to take a look.

If you commented last week, check to see who commented on your comment!

Here are the comments from last week.

REVIEWS
YackPack - voice chat at PBwiki.com •
XP SysPad - Editor's pick at Freeware Arena •
Wubi - the easiest way to Linux? •
KompoZer - A Freeware WYSIWYG Editor •
ZipGenius 6 - great archiving tool •
XSPF Web Music Player - more goodness from Source Forge •
Clickster - search and download MP3 files •

TIPS AND FEEDBACK
The fastest way to defragment your hard drive •
Disable Taskbar Grouping in XP and Vista •
How to backup your Gmail account •
New Music Store Allows Non-DRM Downloads •

COOL WEBSITES
Media Convert - free online converter •
Memory Alpha - enter the Star Trek universe •
Public Domain and Free Image Resources •

COOL WEBSITES

CoolSites Newsletter this week

Here are a few links from Mark's CoolSites Newsletter. Be sure to visit his site and see the rest of his links this week.

Quote from the website
COOLSITES is a list of safe, fun, useful, informative and just plain cool websites and programs that are FREE, FREE and FREE. All of the programs and websites I list are free. If I list anything that is so good but isn't free I will list the price with it.


http://www.luem42.com/coolsites.html

Websites I've visited recently

Have you seen any cool websites you want to share with us?

Nintendo Mii editor - what do you look like?

review from ClifNotes, Apr 2007, permalink Cool Website

I think I spotted this one at Digg and wondered what in the heck is a Mii editor. Here's what that Digg said:

I've never played on the Wii game console but it sure looks cool. I had fun playing with the Mii editor and I actually finished a Mii picture as you can see below. It kinda looks like me, but I wish they had more choices on mustaches. The one that looks similar to me kind of makes me look a little like Hitler. Doesn't Becky look nice? She made hers. I think she's cute.

click to expand picture

Quote from the website
What's different between this Editor and the Editor on the Wii?

What the editor at MiiEditor.com has and the Mii editor found on the Wii does not:

• The ability to modify a Mii's ID
• The ability to modify the Wii ID (MAC address) associated with a Mii (determining which Wii can edit it)
• A randomize Mii feature
• The option to load a Mii binary
• The option to save a Mii binary
• Being able to edit a Mii through XML
• Saving a Mii as XML
• Exporting a Mii to a JPEG
• A URL which can be used to dynamically load any Mii character directly within the editor

• An option to designate a Mii as being a favorite
• Creating a Mii from a look-alike
• Rotating the Mii in 3D space (MiiEditor.com uses a 2D representation)
  

If any of you create your own Mii image, send it to me and I'll post it here.

OldApps.com - find your old favorites here

review from ClifNotes, Apr 2007, permalink Cool Website

I recently found another good spot for getting older versions of the programs you can't live without. You may find that OldApps is really handy when you are setting up a PC with an older operating system.

Two other good places are OldVersion and LastFreewareVersion.

Quote from the website
The Idea behind our site, OldApps.com is to provide most of the current and old versions software online for free. We will try to keep our database up-to-date with old versions so you will get the most out of our site. Moreover we check all the software for you so you will never end up with any malware, torjan, and/or virus.

http://www.oldapps.com/

NEW NEWS

SnapFiles.com - new and updated freeware

Source - http://snapfiles.com/freeware

News from Sarah in Tampa

Source - http://sarahintampa.com

Security news from Malware Advisor

blog by TeMerc Internet Countermeasures, source
Infected? Go to http://temerc.com for help

A view from CyberNirvana

CyberNirvana: Zia's blog about the web and web technology.
http://www.ziarezvi.com

OTHER STUFF

Get Gmail! and Get Firefox!

You need a free 2.8 GB Gmail account to access many of the cool features at Google. After more than two years in beta testing Gmail is open to the public. Just go to http://gmail.com and sign up for an account.

I think Gmail works best in the awesome Firefox browser. It's free, easy to use, and it's way more secure than Internet Explorer. My favorite thing to do is to customize Firefox so that it does much more than IE ever could. You can select new button controls for your toolbars, install extensions to add new features, or change the look of your browser with themes - the way Firefox looks and works is under your control.

Get Firefox!

Chatting at FreewareWiki

permalink

Now you can chat with anyone visiting a website by using Gabbly. To see who's gabbing at this website, click here.

Find out more about Gabbly.com

Frapper - you people live all over the world!

Wow! Over 400 people and still growing! I invite all of you to record your locations on this map. You can include as little or as much information as you wish. I think you'll enjoy seeing yourself there.

Here's a small look at my frapper map.

Write your own review

I get many of the reviews in the newsletter from the readers. You don't have to be a genius or computer guru. Just answer a few questions and send me a review. I'll probably put you in the newsletter.

What do you have to say?

Just tell me what article you are talking about and leave me your comment.

Have fun and surf safely.

Clif

http://clifnotes.net & http://freewarewiki.pbwiki.com
Devoted to promoting Freeware and Free Information

Visitors to Clif Notes:

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