The Threat Landscape

We've all done it, clicking happily along like usual, engrossed, absently clicking the pop-up without paying much, if any, attention to what is wanted.  Usually it's no biggie, just another opportunity for distraction.  But not always.

There's an increasingly common result from those absent clicks, one that in extreme instances will lock up all your data, and in all will demand payment.  This is a new variety of infection referred to as "ransomware".  

Technically, it isn't a virus, think more like a bacteria.  Malware, computer programs written for a less than honorable purpose, is on the rise, especially the kind that directly invites you (read extorts) to send the writers money.  In the process, of course, also revealing enough information for them to take you to the cleaners.  

Chances are if you see something like this it has a name relating to computer security, suddenly popping up and announcing a host of infections that it will kindly address.  Then there are the types that will do this while locking you out of certain computer functions.  Others lock you out of nearly all computer functions, and then there are the ones that encrypt your data and hold it hostage.  Yes, your data is now locked with an encryption key that has not been shared with either you or the NSA.

Generally speaking these infections can be gotten rid of with a fairly straightforward approach without any collateral damage.  But in the last instance, collateral damage is the name of the game. They are out to get you by whatever sensitive part presents itself and hang on till you pay.  And in some form or fashion you will.  Maybe not them, maybe not anyone, but in loss of productivity and time, still a loss.  

So what to do?  First off, read the popups.  If you just went to a website and there was a permission request, deny it.  Go back to what you were doing and see if it works.  Maybe it was a fluke, maybe it wasn't.  Infections can come from any website out there if they aren't being watched for hacks so be aware of what a site is requesting.  If you came there to read but that isn't done without granting permission, go somewhere else.  If you are looking for a download, get it from a reliable source and reduce your risk.  If you have Java, check it and make sure it's up-to-date.

Second, make sure your data is being backed up regularly, and to an external or offsite location. Make multiple copies, and anything that is mission critical needs special consideration.  Maybe save it to a cloud service such as Box, Dropbox, or Google Drive as well as to your computer.  If you would be willing to pay the scammers a minimum of $300 to get it back, it needs a backup plan and needs it now.

Third, keep your security up to date.  NOTHING will protect against anything, and if you click the wrong permission it becomes rather pointless anyway as the first thing the attack will focus on will be any and all defences already in place, but between a decent set of security software and some good old fashioned Spidey sense, you can avoid the biggest pitfalls.  If those fail, you have your backups. If you didn't make those, well, you won't have much.

Windows 8

I should have been really getting my hands dirty with Windows 8 beta, but come on, they have moved everything so spelunking in it just isn't fun. I keep getting stuck, frustrated, and shutting down Parallels just to get back out to a familiar landscape. I never did get into orienteering, I don't like feeling lost. And that is just the position Windows 8 beta is putting me in by changing the navigation options. Like I read recently, it's called Windows because of the WINDOWS!! Version 8, not so much.

This harks back to the days when Micfrosoft belatedly jumped into the web browser business and thought everybody else should start playing by their HTML rules. IE is still the least compliant browser out there, Hel-lo!!  Navigation is a pretty straightforward necessity in any computing environment, and is similar across computers and even between local and internet applications, between Mac and Windows and Linux. What makes Microsoft think that should change? Who knows, but think it they do, and lots of folks beg to disagree. I read this comment, "Why do I get the persistent feeling that Microsoft is never, ever building on the good things - according to users, not MS execs - that Windows can do, and always trying to invent an oval wheel?"

Enter 3rd party apps. These developers have been getting their hands dirty, thank goodness, and have some dandy tweaks to bring back our accustomed navigation. One is called Start8 another is ViStart, and they put the start button and basic navigation back into Windows 8, allowing 8 to work and look like Windows 7. Skip all the tiles, these put back the entire Windows Vista/7 Start Menu, including access to the programs menu and Control Panel and allow booting directly to the desktop. Most helpful to folks coming from XP.  Start8 offers extra features and several skins. Or, if you prefer an earlier version of the Start Menu, give Classic Shell a try, the XP Start Menu blended with Aero graphics. Not to say that Microsoft approves of this, they have been ripping out the code that will allow these options, though the folks at Start8 are optimistic their product will continue to be viable. No word on the others as yet, though as I always say, there is always more than one way to achieve every purpose.

Okay, to be fair, I get the idea that Microsoft really would like to develop a standardized look and feel that is consistent across devices. However, dumbing down my PC to the level of my tablet is NOT the way to go about it, and the Start Menu developers get that. They have at least given me a way to conceivably install Windows 8 and still be productive by allowing me to turn the tiles "feature" off and use Windows as I prefer.

The main problem is that most people I know have a proven stable of known applications that provide the functionality they require, and have a dislike of major changes to these as it affects productivity big time. If Microsoft, as has been suggested, went all in on 8 they'd better hope their river brings them a mighty big paddle.

There are lots of "geniuses" out there that think they will determine how we will use our equipment.   Take the Windows 8 decision that productivity is no longer the most critical function of a PC, for instance.  The overwhelmingly negative reception of Windows 8 speaks much more eloquently than I can as to the accuracy of this thinking.

The Digital Landscape

I have been working with the new Microsoft releases lately, trying to decipher what I like and what I don't. Skydrive is awesome, what's not to like about 25 GB of free cloud storage? Unfortunately, there's lots more where that came from.

The most widely known of Microsoft's new exploits is Windows 8, which I have been working with, more on that another time. But in the process of looking into the way Windows 8 has been rearranged, it is very clear that Microsoft is trying hard to integrate cloud use with computer and phone use and wrap it all up in a nice little four colored ball with a Windows logo on it. Skydrive has always been accessible over the web, but Microsoft only made an access app for iPhone/iPad, and for Windows phones, and left out the Android world, Well, there's always more than one answer to a puzzle, and a third party developer produced a Skydrive Browser for Android, making those documents available pretty much anywhere with just a couple clicks.

Now Microsoft wants to provide that same experience. They have hit the phone market, light years behind Apple iOS and Google's Android.  Microsoft's desire to catch up has led them to come up with another way to streamline and integrate our online needs with our computing experience, and has now integrated Hotmail/Live username as the logon for Windows 8. Then there are "tiles" giving direct access to various areas of online existence, among those Skydrive and Mail. While they are squaring away the last mods on Windows 8, they are working on launching yet another revamp of Hotmail/Live Mail/MSN that is now called Outlook.com which is up for preview right now. The interface is very streamlined, much similar to Windows 8 look and feel. Labels and folders help the organization process, and there is even an automated cleanup option.

That is, if you can ever get into it. I signed up for a preview, and got into the account after typing in three different captchas, then changed some settings, logged out and went about other items. Went back, and after numerous captchas, a text message verification, and an email verification, it still apologized for having me prove I was human. Two more captchas and I got back in, feeling quite relieved that I didn't have anything pressing in that account. Revolutionary, whether we need it or not.

Cloud Based Storage

With life going along madly, needs have a tendency to change, as mine have recently done which has put me in the market for some cloud storage accessible to all the different devices and operating systems I use. The fact that I use Gmail automatically put Google Docs out of the running, I am hoarding my space there and don't want to use it for the docs I have in mind.

So what's left? I knew of some and went to research others. There's the ubiquitous DropBox, but with only 2 GB of free storage, I knew I could find better for the money. And for my purposes, free is the currency I seek. So on to other providers. Now I am not talking online backup, I need usable documents through any web browser, so storage is the keyword. I noticed that Amazon is offering 5 GB free storage, and thought it might suit. But what else? So I took to Google. While not being the provider for me, it could still help me find my quarry. I located and read several articles written by people who had detailed and compared the available options. While their needs differed from mine, I still found the information useful and it saved me hours poring over the options and possibly finding much later that the seemingly correct choice would not work for some key reason. I strongly considered SugarSync, again a 5 GB account free. It would surely work, but being the data hoarder that I am, I kept reading.

And where do you think the storage winner came from? Haha, surprised me, Microsoft!! And as time goes forward I see some evidence that this particular option, SkyDrive, will become even easier to use. It is being worked into Windows 8 and is already connectible through Office 2010, and therefore through Windows 7 making it accessible through Windows Explorer. How easy can it get? Well, this doesn't hold true through Mac OSX or in Android or iOS, but even there it can be accessed through a web brower, Firefox, Safari, Dolphin, take your pick. And while there isn't a clear winner across the board, I do like this option.

And then today, what do I read in my feed but that yet another even larger option exists, albeit temporarily. Box, a provider with an Android app, is offering a whopping 50 GB free for life for all who sign up before March 23. Now if you want some sort of sync capacity, this isn't your best option, but for simple cloud storage, count me in! Now I can already hear those of you who think like I do, "What about security?" Cloud services have excellent security, and for the basic information I seek to store, there is no risk to me even in the unlikely event that the files are compromised. Naturally, I don't wish it, but there's nothing personal in any of this data. I doubt seriously that I even scratch the surface of these capacities, but knowing that keeps me from scrimping. Save it, by all means!!

Free Software Picks

Top 10 lists are sooo subjective, but still, I read them just to see what other people are interested in, and I recently read one from InfoWorld that is so terribly lame I can't imagine the dude that wrote it. Well, that's not quite true, I can, and there's the rub. His list is supposed to be about 10 top free windows apps, and it's a joke. I mean come on, ClamWin? Sure, if there's a problem it might serve in a pinch but only till you can get something else. If you want free and useful, grab AVG and put it to work for you. People ask me if it's any good, and my answer is that I have used it to clean systems infected while running both Norton and McAfee, so what's not to like? The only time I have ever seen anything that should have been caught get past was a zero-day attack that came through Weather Bug. That was a particularly nasty little infection and the folks at Weather Bug were quite responsive, and sure enough next day it was on the news. But ALL security programs are vulnerable to zero-day issues, that's just the nature of the beast. And by zero-day, that's the day it first strikes the first victim. Like the first case of plague. Yuck. http://free.avg.com/us-en/free-antivirus-download

So that's number one. Number two, and this is an amazing little utility that I use in addition to Acrobat Pro because it renders tables better, is PrimoPDF. It's a piece of software that installs as a printer. When you have something you want to keep like web receipts or documents for email, click print and select PrimoPDF as the printer. Bam, you've got a free little PDF file. http://www.primopdf.com/

Number three, and this isn't even something you have to install, but it's the best group of productivity utilities out there. Google. Simple. But more than just search, I'm talking Gmail, documents, calendar, contacts, the whole nine. It's tailor made for groups to collaborate or for people to keep things running no matter where they are. You can give other people access to your accounts, or you can simply all share the same login when managing group accounts. It doesn't require an Exchange server, and works like a charm with any phone. And yes, I mean any email capable phone. I was accessing gmail from my ancient clamshell phone, just slowly. http://www.google.com

So you don't want to edit documents online? Here I have two answers. If all you really want to do is write an occasional letter, then AbiWord is it. It is available both as a full install and also as a USB portable application, which will let you run it on any computer where you can hook up the drive and it doesn't leave trails behind it. http://www.abisource.com If you want the whole enchilada, time for OpenOffice. Looks and acts like its namesake, but way cheaper! http://www.openoffice.org/

Graphics, and by this I mean like photo manipulation, there's the old standby from way back when out of the Linux world, and that's Gimp. What a name, right? But the Gimp is the bomb! http://www.gimp.org/downloads/ Unfortunately it's a little nerdy, so there's some folks out there that tweaked it to make it act more like PhotoShop, which means you can look up a tutorial on Google using Photoshop and with not a lot of alteration come up with the means of making Gimpshop do the job. http://www.gimpshop.com/, http://download.cnet.com/GIMPshop/3000-2192_4-1065 0582.html

Okay, so that's the top 5. Productivity focused, the bare bones you can use to get yourself up and running with nothing more than a computer and an internet connection. But all work and no play, right? So here's the top toys, for the whopping price of, NOTHING?

Music is first on most people's list and for free listening there's more than one way to go. Pandora is my favorite. It is based on musical preferences, and you can set up channels that play particular types of music. For instance, I have a bluesy channel that I tweak that plays Clapton, Skynyrd, Muddy Waters, Stevie Ray, and others that I hear for the first time by groups I don't know. But Pandora finds those and pops them in for me so I don't need to know. Bonus! Then once you're set up, you can stream it with your phone using their app. http://www.pandora.com/

Another music option when you want to choose your own music is Rdio. They recently launched a free version, restrictions but no ads, that will get you going. There are paid plans, too, depending on what you want. http://www.rdio.com/

I usually listen to books, though, when I listen to anything. Keeps the brain focused, sometimes it wanders off into some strange places when left unattended. And books for free! Count me in! Through the library, there are several sources to download and listen to audiobooks, both MP3 and WMA format. My favorite is EbscoHost, used to be NetLibrary. There's a mobile app or I can load it onto my MP3 player. Download and go! http://www.poudrelibraries.org/catalog/download.html

Some folks would rather read than listen, and you don't need a Kindle to do that! Get the apps for the computer and the phone, and access loads of free classic titles through Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docI%20d=1000426311&tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=7893047648&ref =pd_sl_3ies3d4yuc_b

So for number 10, playing around or not, gotta be Firefox. And this is not number 10 on the priority list, I saved the best for last. For everything that you just read about, the best way to access it and use it is Firefox, hands down. It's been out there doing its thing the longest, and has extensions and add-ons galore to tweak it to work however suits you best. There is never a one size fits all, ever, and this application allows for people anywhere to build add-ons that create the functionality that they want. Then those folks share those tidbits with the rest of us and we, too, can customize our browsers till they are molded to our forms. And again, like the majority of these, it comes portable, too! http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/