Yet more Spyware stuff (I need a cannon or vacation)

The second machine that had become infected with CoolWWWSearch was not a Windows 98SE machine. Come to find out it was an older HP Vectra (sweet) running W2K doing duty in a warehouse as the UPS shipping PC. Using CWS Shredder, Spybot 1.3, Ad/Remove Programs, and some other tools I am still reviewing, it seems to be better. The verdict is still out on both these PCs. Don't want to make any false claims and have said PCs show up re-infected. Granted, the fixes are slightly different and I admit doing this on purpose. Certainly don't expect an invoice to be released until we are sure that our efforts to overcome these horrible infections work.

Joseph C. Fratto, Jr. is a blithering idiot. Just days before Utah was about to vote out spyware, this bumbling fool granted an injunction to stop the passage of a great law. Wired News has the story. My intense dislike of all things spyware has not much room to grow. BTW, several articles have said that the maximum fine was $250.000.00 and come to find out it's $10,000.00 per invasion which is still pretty hefty. Avi Naider of WhenU is a damned disgrace to mankind too. Read this link and see our stupid officials and "citizens" at their 'best'.

When using the words -Real Player + spyware + adware- in a Google search it will produce 132,000 results. In all fairness when using -Windows Media Player + spyware + adware- the results are 63,000. DigitalMediaMinute has an interesting article about Real. You have to scroll down and find the article 'Real Bad Software' over at SpywareInfo to find more stuff about Real (be sure and read the EULA part). GeekGirls posted a really good article about spyware in general. Real and WMP are both mentioned. Hey, Google Toolbar admits to doing anonymous tracking without gleaning personal information and I am not too happy with even that. The Screensavers blew the lid on the Yahoo Toolbar/Gator/Gain association back a few weeks ago.

We are caught up in a world of machines reporting in to various entities about what we do cyberwise. This all sucks. If it shows up in a Spybot Search & Destroy scan it's immediately deleted from my machine! Especially Microsoft applications! My opinion won't change and I certainly don't want control of anyone's computer to change their browsing habits. I just eliminated KNOWN problems from a machine to make it run better and more securely. On a network in a business atmosphere absolutely NO ONE has any right to sneak in and drop this evil software on a machine. NO ONE!!

"We should be careful to get out of an experience only the wisdom that is in it - and stop there; lest we be like the cat that sits down on a hot stove-lid. She will never sit down on a hot stove-lid again - and that is well; but also she will never sit down on a cold one anymore."
-Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson's New Calendar, Following the Equator, 1897