S/MIME E-MAIL ENCRYPTION NOT REALLY CRACKED, JUST WEAK
Despite breathless reports, Bruce Scheier, author of Applied Cryptography,
hasn't cracked the whole S/MIME encryption standard, he's just made
vulnerable those messages encoded with an algorithm called 40-bit RC2, used
by programs such as Netscape Messenger and Microsoft Outlook Express.
Bruce's program, a screen saver, lets you crack such messages. A 166-MHz
Pentium could, on average, find a message key in 35 days. Distributing the
workload over several machines on a network gets that down to only a few
days or hours. Wrote Bruce in a <sci.crypt> posting, "I wrote this
screen saver not to trash S/MIME... but to 1) illustrate that 40-bit RC2
really is insecure, and 2) try to force companies who implement S/MIME to
get DES and triple-DES to interoperate." Check his site for the program,
and the articles at CNET and Wired.
Bruce: <http://www.counterpane.com/>
CNET: <
http://www.news.com/News/Item/0,4,14653,00.html>
Wired: <http://www.wired.com/news/news/technology/story/7220.html>
THRUST NEWS: LAND SPEED RECORD SITE
What does it take to go over 714 mph on the ground? Strap two Rolls-Royce
Spey 202 jet engines to a fuel tank, buckle yourself in, and hit the gas.
With luck and great engineering, 60 seconds later you'll wind up about 12
miles down the road in one piece. The car's engineering specs and info
detailing the complex design choices the team had to make are the best
parts of this site. There are also news reports, short bios of all 31 team
members, and even shopping. Next up, a run at the sound barrier, about 750
mph at the altitude of Black Rock Desert. <http://thrustssc.digital.co.uk/>
SATELLITE IMAGES OF INDONESIAN FIRES
You're probably aware that severe fires raging across Indonesia are causing
all sorts of problems. The resulting haze is at least partly to blame for a
bad commercial jetliner crash in the region. A section of the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's special events satellite image
archive covers the evolution of the fires. You can view the disaster as it
unfolds in visual and infrared images. The site also has an archive of
other spectacular satelite images from recent hurricanes, volcanoes, fires,
and floods. <http://www.goes.noaa.gov/special.html>
ADVERTISING EFFECTIVENESS STUDY
The Internet Advertising Bureau has just released a study on the
effectiveness of online advertising. The report concludes that banner ads
enhance brand awareness. After analyzing over 16,000 users from 12 leading
Web sites, the study found that viewers tend to notice online ads more than
TV ads. You'll find details of the methodology and conclusions here.
<http://www.iab.net/advertise/adeff3source.html>
MR. BEAN SET TO INVADE NORTH AMERICAN MOVIE SCREENS
After years of appearing in only bit parts on North American movie screens
("Four Weddings and a Funeral", "The Lion King", etc.), Rowan Atkinson
finally has secured a leading role (and we'll ignore "The Tall Guy" -
everyone else did). "Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie" has already earned
$100 million outside of North America, and is set to open in Canada in
mid-October and in the US in early November. If you're unfamiliar with Mr.
Bean, or Rowan Atkinson, think of a comic armed with acerbic unkindness, a
finely honed sense of pathos, and an expressive rubber face Jim Carrey can
only dream about. The URL below leads to the official Mr. Bean site;
finding unofficial sites is an exercise left to the reader.
<http://www.mrbean.co.uk/>
THOSE CRAZY CANUCKS PLAN TO RULE THE WORLD!
The Canadian World Domination site confirms the worst fears of
Canada-watchers worldwide. Canadians enjoy an international reputation as
peacemakers, arbitrators, and just generally nice, harmless people. What
isn't generally known is that behind the passive public face lies a desire
to maintain peace by dominating the planet, and dictatorially enforcing the
rigorous intellectual, physical, and emotional standards all Canadians live
by. This Web site reveals the collective psyche of these conquerors from
the north, and illustrates how they'd like to redraw the political
boundaries of the United States and the world. To prepare for the eventual
battle, we suggest perusing this Web site. Know your enemy, and you know
yourself, or words to that effect.
<http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/Lobby/2936/>
Harvard's arboretum site hosts a history of bonsai miniature trees and a
how-to page on the care and feeding of said plants. With them comes the
story of the Larz Anderson Bonsai Collection, begun in Japan by a former
American ambassador. With a bequest in 1937, his family entrusted the
collection to the school - some specimens gifts from the Emperor, some
hundreds of years old. The collection suffered almost immediately; several
plants succumbed because staff knew little about bonsai and because
Depression-era funding was scarce. Still more specimens were lost to theft.
Today, the 15 survivors receive expert care. The Hinoki Cypress page
recounts what happened when staff experimented with cuttings, propagating
bonsai trees that have been trained for decades or even centuries into
miniature and artificial shapes.
<http://www.arboretum.harvard.edu/bonsai/bonmain.htm>
OLD IRONSIDES (NOT RAYMOND BURR)
The USS Constitution, also known as Old Ironsides, has many fans and a Web
site to prove it. The oldest commissioned warship in the world makes news
by her very survival; this is the place to follow her comings and goings in
the Cape Cod area. Sailors, naval nabobs, and history buffs can read
background stories, a weekly column by one of the tall ship's former
skippers, and other musings by Marblehead residents rigged for maritime
adventure. If you've ever wondered where, for instance, the mizzen
topgallant sail is in relation to the mizzen topsail, check out the image
map of her 36 sails. Don't mizzen this cool tribute to a living piece of
the American mast - uhh, past. <http://www.townonline.com/constitution/>
DIGITAL MUSICAL CONTENT, LEADING EDGE DESIGN
For screaming neon, leading edge technology, and navigation buttons that
have to be seen to be believed, go to Futurelab. Bursting with sound,
light, and movement, incredible color schemes combine with Shockwave and
RealAudio to give taste of tomorrow's Internet today. The site concentrates
on electronic dance music and urban tech culture, and aims at
14-24-year-olds. The Canadian club scene is covered (see, they are taking
over the world), and there are interviews with leading DJs, live chat, and
totally bizarre horoscopes. The experimental zone contains anarchistic
combinations of special effects and programming which create an innovative
high-tech look. In-your-face, exciting and young, Futurelab is not just a
music site, it's a whole new experience. <http://www.futurlab.net/>
TAKE TWO "ALIENS" AND CALL ME IN THE MORNING
This cleverly designed site uses the medical world as its theme in
"prescribing" films. Dr. Daniel's Movie Emergency offers an Examining Room
(with full-length reviews), Prescriptions (recommended rentals), Time
Release Capsules ("quick flick picks"), and other antidotes to boredom.
It's well-written; for the Thanksgiving season, the doc suggests we prepare
ourselves for that "express train to Coronary County" with such "worthy
watchables" as "Eat Drink Man Woman" and "Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of
Europe?" What about "Nine 1/2 Weeks"? <http://www.stairwell.com/doc/>
"Foiled" is a low-budget B-grade alien schlock film with plenty of
everything you expect from such a venture, including a blow-by-blow Web
site to tickle your curiosity bone and provide a sneak preview of next
year's big blockbuster. Well, it's got lots of aluminum foil in it, at
least. "Foiled" is about some students who get mixed up in an alien
invasion, and it should be finished soon if the on-set dilemmas don't
spiral any further out of control. Look for it at all good cinemas or check
out the Web site - it's got everything but the popcorn.
<http://www.hideaway.demon.co.uk/foiled.html>
Bored with driving a car that looks like everyone else's? Then head to
Route 6x6 and pick out something with style - and six wheels. These
amazingly versatile vehicles were all the rage back more than 20 years ago,
and this Internet site captures the feel, look, and usage of these
pre-ATVs. Color photos show ATVs in snow, mud, and sunshine, looking for
land mines and trekking across countryside. The site provides a history of
the form, and looks at the ways 6x6 (or even 8x8) ATVs differ from the more
popular 4x4 ones. The FAQ and museum section feature older vehicles, and
after seeing the picture of the guy sailing across a small lake in a
snazzy, white, six-wheeled miniature tank, you may find yourself tempted to
turn to the classified section on the site and buy one for your very own.
<http://www.route6x6.com/>
If you're feeling uninspired about making dinner, a good place to go for
imaginative and tasty recipes is the Armour Fresh Pork site. In addition to
the pigalicious ideas, there's nutritional information about pork, guidance
on healthy eating and how to cut the calories. For some hog-wild fun, try
the Pork Trivia Quiz and win a screen saver, or send a virtual porkcard to
a friend. The site features an exceptionally good navigation system which
makes finding the information you want simple and intuitive. Some
oinkcellent prizes wait to be won in the rotating pork recipe contests. An
interesting site, but not really suitable for Jewish vegetarians. Or Muslim
vegetarians. Or any vegetarians. <http://www.freshpork.com/>
BETTY CROCKER HELPS CLEAR YOUR FRIDGE
Betty Crocker must share some of Dick Clark's genes; she's been around for
75 years, but the smiling face on the front page of her Web site doesn't
look a day over 40. Choose meal-planners according to eating preferences
(e.g. healthy, adventurous), and get a customized shopping list for the
whole week's dinners ready for printing. Not surprisingly, nearly every
meal includes a Betty Crocker item. If shopping isn't your forte, opt for
the "What's on Hand?" section which creates customized recipes from what
you tell it is already in your refrigerator. There aren't a whole lot of
Armour fresh pork, cheese, and mold combinations, unfortunately.
<http://www.bettycrocker.com/>
You're the people of a diaspora, scattered around the world, feeling the
draw of a remote homeland. That homeland is a semiregular fixture in the
world news, largely for its intolerance and belligerence. That homeland has
traditions far more ancient than the comparatively meagre histories of most
of those aligned against it. Few people anywhere understand your homeland's
language, culture, arts, or religion, and in the country you've adopted,
few understand the nature of your origins. Where do you turn for community?
How do you learn about your homeland today? The Iranian, a weekly online
magazine, news digest and information service, claims to represent the
realities of Iran and Iranians around the world. We were fascinated by an
article about Jewish enclaves in some major Iranian centers and moved by
Absence, the diary of a woman visiting for the first time since childhood.
The Iranian is an eye-opener. <http://www.iranian.com/>
Few designers turn their introductory page into an outline of their Web
site, but the brains behind Bajacalifornia.com have done just that to
excellent effect. The first two menu choices (including a poetic
explanation of a popular Spanish obscenity) don't justify the upfront
assertion that this site has been rated the "best website (sic) south of
the border by thousands of illegal aliens", but forge on and you may well
agree that desert has never looked so beautifully beckoning. Brief but well
done slide shows - photos of the land - quickly give you a feel for Baja.
If you have a fast connection, be sure to visit "baja multiplex", a
collection of QuickTime movies that includes Space Shuttle views of the
peninsula. Other travel sites will turn green. Digital artistry is also
apparent in the treatment of Mexican culture and folklore. We want to see
what pops up in an area under construction called "news from the armpit of
cutting edge". Visually, this site rocks. Muchas gracias, amigos!
<http://bajacalifornia.com/>
Even if you never get to visit Stockholm, here's a marvelous site to help
you explore the city without leaving your chair. Rival is crammed with
reviews of the restaurants, clubs, shops, and culture of Stockholm, written
in an evocative style with a real eye for detail. The site's artistic
monochrome photos give the look and feel of Stockholm life. Check out the
descriptions of the gay clubs, or the idiosyncratic denizens of the
Operabaren - the clientele, food, and ambiance are captured perfectly in a
few well written words. This great travel guide brings Stockholm home and
lets you feel the beat of the Swedish heart of a fascinating city.
<http://www.rival.se/>
THE LATE, GREAT, CANINE OFFICIAL GREETER OF JUNEAU
This site takes a fascinating look at the legend of the official greeter of
Juneau: Patsy Ann, a bull terrier who trotted out to the docks to meet
folks arriving in Alaska in the 1930s. There's even a book, DogStar, being
written about her, the first three chapters of which you can read online.
View her statue in Juneau, and calculate your age in dog years in the store
(whose proceeds go to benefit the Gastineau Humane Society). Anybody else
smell a Disney movie waiting to happen?
<http://home.istar.ca/~bever/patsy.htm>
While this site by London's Capital FM radio station obviously leans toward
the musical (including the are-you-sick-of-it-yet "Candle in The Wind"),
the site sits in our Online Travel section for what they call "THE" London
guide. That might be pushing things, but there's enough of what you'd
expect a radio station to provide. If you need to find a club, pub,
restaurant, or movie, you'll find one in the relevant indices. This is not
THE London guide, but it is useful if you're one of the city's 425 million
inhabitants. If you're not, you might want to check out the Web cam of
Leicester Square while you listen to the streaming sounds of Capital FM.
<http://www.capitalfm.co.uk/>
Combine two of the most popular concepts on the Web - "travel" and "free" -
and you have the foundation for the Travel Free Forum. Right up front, the
home page presents its pork and potatoes: information about free stuff from
folks who want to publicize their own travel destinations. Through a nice
frames interface, you can quickly add all kinds of stuff to your order
basket: brochures and catalogues; two weeks of Investor's Business Daily
(why not, since you can carry it, and you need money to travel?); CDs and
cassettes; two nights at a resort; even a few software titles. (You always
travel with your subnotebook, nicht wahr?) With an interface this slick and
easy to use, the grab bag is likely to grow. <http://www.travelersforum.com/>
The Honeycomb Hideout "tribute to pop culture and offbeat ephemera"
features 1970s pop culture such as a neato keen Evel Knievel lunchbox. The
site also offers jokes, scans of Wacky Packs, and links to other equally
amusing sites. <http://members.aol.com/girasole9/Honeycombs.html>
Everyone seems to love burritos - fresh, frozen, or falling apart on your
frock. This site gives cooking tips (put salt with your frying oil to stop
sticking) and a place to chat ("If I'm constipated and really need a crap,
then I prefer refried bean burritos"). <http://www.burrito.com/>
The Ultimate Chatlist lists lots of good clean fun chat rooms with topics
from recreation to house and garden to sales. If you like type-talking, go
crazy. <http://www.chatlist.com/>
The Health and Fitness Free Forum has a variety of freebies that - no
surprise - are related to health and fitness. There are also links to news
and advice Web pages. (Freebies are available, according to the site, only
for US and Canadian residents.) <http://www.healthyforum.com/>
THEY HAVEN'T YET GOT STREAMING REALHAIR, BUT IT'S COMING
If you can't bring your music to work because your coworkers would snigger
at your Ozzy CDs, HardRadio has the solution for you. It's a RealAudio hard
rock feed of all those guys your mom warned you about, from Alice Cooper to
the derivative Marilyn Manson. <http://www.hardradio.com/>
EUDORA LIGHT'S ASTOUNDING PUREVOICE
Eudora Light's latest 3.X incarnations come bundled with a feature that
just blows our socks off and paints our toenails pink. PureVoice is a
built-in voice recorder (for Windows machines with sound cards and for
Power Macs) which creates files that can be sent as attachments. Like
Eudora Light, it's freeware. The amazing aspect of these files is their
size. A 20-second message without pauses results in a file roughly 45 kB
large, about 10 times smaller than other sound formats, and feasible to
send via e-mail. Be sure to download version 1.1 of PureVoice separately as
only version 1.0 comes with Eudora Light. <http://www.eudora.com/>
GET THE LATEST NEWS ON THE STREET TECH
Gareth Branwyn, one of Wired Magazine's contributing editors, has launched
Street Tech, a hardware review site. In much the same vein as our own
esteemed Mr. Bebak, Branwyn has gathered a group of technologists and
coaxed out of them reviews and articles on the latest and greatest
electronic toys available, as well as how-to tips designed to save the
unnecessary expenses associated with routine computer maintenance. His gang
covers PDAs, various consumer electronics, and even computing-related
health care inventions, such as a pair of typing gloves specifically
designed to cut down on the ill effects of repetitive strain injury. This
is definitely a site for anyone wanting to keep up with all the new toys
that keep our instant gratification society going, and the list of
contributors and the no-nonsense approach to the products reviewed is
certain to hold the interest of most netsurfers. Another high point is the
message boards. <http://www.streettech.com/>
DON'T KNOW WHAT TO BUY THE KIDS FOR SCHOOL?
If you aren't buying software for a child, don't bother. But if you are,
the Mining Company's Educational Software section might be one of the best
consolidators of what's out there. Along with weekly thought-provoking
articles about things like buying software geared to girls, the Net Finds
section includes links to Web sites of interest and to free items. The
resource list includes other places to find software reviews, as well as
pointers to reviews of online game sites. What's next from the Mining
Company? A Guide to Fresh Pork? <http://edsoftware.miningco.com/>
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