Deb Shinder, editor of Win7 News, has some really informative things to say about your email options in Windows 7.
There's Outlook(of course), but, "you have to pay for it - usually a little under $100 (You can buy Outlook 2007 from Amazon for $87.94 at the time of this writing). To me, it's well worth the price, since I depend on my email, calendar and contacts for doing business. "
She gives a little history on why there is no longer an Outlook Express, and what happened to its successor, Windows Mail:
"OE was introduced in 1997 as part of Internet Explorer 4.0 and was included in Windows 98, 2000, Me and XP. Recently, as many XP users have bought new computers that come with Windows 7, they have been unhappy to find that part of Microsoft's initiative to cut down on "operating system bloat" included leaving out some of the extra applications - such as the email client.
"Microsoft actually dropped OE when they released Vista, which included an updated mail client called Windows Mail. Unlike OE, it wasn't designed as a part of Internet Explorer, but its interface was very similar to that of OE. One big difference "under the hood" was that WM stored messages as individual files, rather than in one big database file as OE did. This was a very good change, since with OE if the single file got corrupted, you lost all of your messages. Windows Mail also added better security, including the SmartScreen filter and phishing filter. Windows Mail also blocks certain attachment types, and although you can disable this, you can't granularly allow those attachments only from specific senders.
There were some other changes that weren't so great, too. Many folks were not happy that Windows Mail didn't allow for management of multiple identities like OE did. In fact, it will consolidate your identities into a single user profile if you upgrade from OE. Another point of dissatisfaction: Windows Mail couldn't be configured to use a web-based email account such as Hotmail or Gmail"
So, besides Outlook, what can you use with Windows 7?
Thunderbird(from Mozilla, makers of Firefox); Windows Live Mail (the current successor to Outlook Express, downloadable from Microsoft); and numerous others.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Isn't it funny how...
Most computer repair people who advertise on Craigslist dont tell you who they are?
Why hide your email address if you're a legitimate business?
They dont even tell you their name.
And, I've noticed, the cheaper they are, the more they go out of their way to hide any contact information.
It's just like my customers tell me: "You get what you pay for."
Why hide your email address if you're a legitimate business?
They dont even tell you their name.
And, I've noticed, the cheaper they are, the more they go out of their way to hide any contact information.
It's just like my customers tell me: "You get what you pay for."
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Controversial National Security-level Internet treaty trimmed
ACTA, the secret police-state copyright "trade agreement" (so it doesnt have to be ratified by elected officials), has had the paragraph that would have forced your Internet Service Provider to cut off your Internet service if you did something the movie studios or record companies didnt like taken out.
This "trade agreement" is still so horrible it will turn all developed nations into police states, though.
Article here: http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/04/acta-treaty/ .
This "trade agreement" is still so horrible it will turn all developed nations into police states, though.
Article here: http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/04/acta-treaty/ .
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Another reason why you shouldnt use McAfee Antivirus
Because a poorly tested virus update file might kill Windows dead.
check out the article here: http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2010/04/broken-mcafee-dat-update-cripples-windows-workstations.ars
check out the article here: http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2010/04/broken-mcafee-dat-update-cripples-windows-workstations.ars
Monday, April 19, 2010
Craigslist phish almost catches me
Just about everyone has heard of "phishing," the emails that are supposedly from a trusted website or business that are actually from criminals and scammers.
As you know, all scams that succeed do so because they play on the essential human desire to get ahead, get something for nothing, or to gain an advantage over one's competition. So, on Saturday last, I received an email that looked like it came from Craigslist, and since I have ads on Craigslist I read the email instead of dismissing it.
But because the email promised a reasonable product (free premium ad placement on Craigslist) and because the email did not have any spelling errors or funny grammar, I clicked on the link provided, exactly like I should not have.
This shows how sophisticated some phishing can be, even when the when the message is simple.
This also shows how easy it is to fall victim to scams, even when you know what is going on.
If you are reading this, you may be wondering what the outcome of my encounter with this phishing email was. That outcome was nothing.
I clicked on the link, just like I shouldnt have, and Firefox opened up a new tab and instead of loading the scammers page, Firefox gave me a bright red page with a policeman holding a stop sign next to a warning that said "This page is known to be fraudulent, do you wish to continue?"
This warning stopped me in my tracks and made me go back to the email and examine it more closely. When I did, I saw the obvious markings of a phishing email.
This is why I use Firefox, and why you should too.
As you know, all scams that succeed do so because they play on the essential human desire to get ahead, get something for nothing, or to gain an advantage over one's competition. So, on Saturday last, I received an email that looked like it came from Craigslist, and since I have ads on Craigslist I read the email instead of dismissing it.
But because the email promised a reasonable product (free premium ad placement on Craigslist) and because the email did not have any spelling errors or funny grammar, I clicked on the link provided, exactly like I should not have.
This shows how sophisticated some phishing can be, even when the when the message is simple.
This also shows how easy it is to fall victim to scams, even when you know what is going on.
If you are reading this, you may be wondering what the outcome of my encounter with this phishing email was. That outcome was nothing.
I clicked on the link, just like I shouldnt have, and Firefox opened up a new tab and instead of loading the scammers page, Firefox gave me a bright red page with a policeman holding a stop sign next to a warning that said "This page is known to be fraudulent, do you wish to continue?"
This warning stopped me in my tracks and made me go back to the email and examine it more closely. When I did, I saw the obvious markings of a phishing email.
This is why I use Firefox, and why you should too.
Friday, April 16, 2010
The Future of Innovation Requires Ending Copyright Tyranny Now
If you dont know about the current state of copyright or think there is nothing wrong with it, check out this article on Cnet: http://news.cnet.com/8301-31322_3-20002541-256.html?tag=newsFeaturedBlogArea.0
The writer makes a great point about how America, you know, The Land of the Free, is quietly and every so subtly become a copyright police state, where Hollywood's movie studios and the record industry corporations are using Congress to demand that the police (yes, your *local* police), the FBI, and the Border Patrol stop, search and seize iPods and any other type of portable media player including iPhones and Blackberrys.
Forget terrorists, murderers, rapists, bank robbers and illegal immigrants, the RIAA and MPAA are even now demanding that every level of law enforcement stop what they are doing and make sure that every portable music or video player contains only legally purchased music or videos.
If the owner cannot produce proof of purchase at the time of search, the player must be seized and destroyed on the spot, lest the police themselves become corrupted.
The problem with having music or video on a portable player, according to the RIAA and MPAA, is that no music or video that exists on a portable player is legal, since the terms of the End User License Agreement clearly state that the music or video is not legally allowed to be transferred to any portable player.
Like the article says, this leads to a copyright police state. In America.
The writer makes a great point about how America, you know, The Land of the Free, is quietly and every so subtly become a copyright police state, where Hollywood's movie studios and the record industry corporations are using Congress to demand that the police (yes, your *local* police), the FBI, and the Border Patrol stop, search and seize iPods and any other type of portable media player including iPhones and Blackberrys.
Forget terrorists, murderers, rapists, bank robbers and illegal immigrants, the RIAA and MPAA are even now demanding that every level of law enforcement stop what they are doing and make sure that every portable music or video player contains only legally purchased music or videos.
If the owner cannot produce proof of purchase at the time of search, the player must be seized and destroyed on the spot, lest the police themselves become corrupted.
The problem with having music or video on a portable player, according to the RIAA and MPAA, is that no music or video that exists on a portable player is legal, since the terms of the End User License Agreement clearly state that the music or video is not legally allowed to be transferred to any portable player.
Like the article says, this leads to a copyright police state. In America.
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