If the computer world were a department store, it might have some interesting department names …
From the “I don’t have a clue” department:
It seems that Microsoft not only wants to stop e-mail attachments of the “Love Bug” variety from coming to your inbox, but it wants to stop 36 other types of files from getting to your inbox, too. According to Microsoft’s Office Update site, they want to limit any sort of attachment that could be even remotely executable. The list contains the usual VBScript file types that caused this sort of thing, and some obscure ones like screen savers and help files. Among the file types on the list — The PhotoCD image format (*.pcd). Now, last I checked, images aren’t executed, but are viewed. Virus-like activities can only come from files that are executed. I looked around on the ‘net to see if there’s something about this format I’m missing, but there doesn’t seem to be.

This will also cause other, non-violent attachments, to be screened, making an annoying window pop up that asks if you really want to do this. The funny thing is, Microsoft will send those files to you if you sign up for some of their mailing lists. Ironic? Yup.
What Microsoft doesn’t seem to understand is that it’s not the attachments themselves that are a bad thing, it’s the VBScript and security holes that are built into Microsoft’s products that are a bad thing. I’ve seen very few things done with VBScript that haven’t been virus-like. Solution to all this? Get rid of VBScript, or fix it so stuff like this can’t happen.
From the “one helluva fast Internet connection” department:
A startup company called Enkido is the first to provide OC-768 service. OK, I know you’re thinking “zippity do-dah, what’s that mean?” It means that, using the technology they’ve created, you could potentially get a 10 terabit connection to the ‘net. How fast is that? Well, about 100 million times faster than a 56k modem (no exaggeration), and about a zillion times more reliable (slight exaggeration). If you care to read the technical stuff, click here.
From the “who really puts the dot in .com” department:
Sun Microsystems has always made the claim that they “put the dot in .com,” but Sun’s powerful servers lost a major claim on that statement when Network Solutions decided to use IBM Servers instead of Sun’s for the Internet’s most important service, the “A” root name server. Basically, the “A” root name server provides the master list for all domain names. That’s quite a few names — 10 million or so, to be exact. Basically, when you make a request for a Web site, the domain you’re looking for (say, dailyemerald.com) looks into your local to find the correct address to send that to you. If that nameserver cannot find the Web site, the browser continues to ask other nameservers until it finally reaches the “A” root name server, which will send it to the right place. That server has to have every domain stored in there, or the Internet wouldn’t work.
From the “would you like fries with that?” department:
A group that goes by the name “Temple ov thee Lemur (TotL)” (and yes, that’s how they spell it) has developed a Web server powered entirely off potatoes. Inspired by the potato powered digital clock, TotL decided to see if they could create a computer that consumes so little power that it could run it off a dozen potatoes (they said they got it running on three, but it was a fluke). They got rid of the hard drive, floppy and the fans (which are the power hogs in most systems), and installed Linux and all the server code and Web pages onto a single microchip. The server currently only has two pages, but you can view it here. Note that the link might die now and again, because, hey, the server is running on potatoes.
Of course, this is the same group that overclocked a 25-megahertz 486 processor up to 247-megahertz using a freezer and lots of booze to keep the processor from melting. The booze probably had a couple of purposes — you be the judge.
From the “I am God
” department:
< a href=”http://www.internetnews.com” target=”_blank”>InternetNews reported awhile back that you will soon be able to purchase .GOD domains. This adds to a large list of top level domains (TLDs) already available (.COM, .EDU, .NET and .GOV are examples), and adds to a list of some other proposed TLD (.TV, .SEX, .WEB and .SHOP, for example). So, if you wanted, you could buy a domain praising yourself: jakeis.god, for example. Tacky, but cool.
From the “my computer spontaneously combusted” department:
IBM has issued a press release stating that certain IBM Thinkpad models have faulty AC adapters. Why is this a problem? Plug it in too long, and it might catch on fire. That can’t be good. It’d probably be kind of irritating, too. Maybe IBM should talk to those guys that used the booze to keep their computer cool. Just a thought.