Goodies To Go! Newsletter #378

Featured this week:

 

*   Goodies Thoughts - Simply, Security
*   Q & A Goodies
*   Discussion Goodies
*   News Goodies
*   Feedback Goodies
*   Windows Tech Goodie of the Week 
*   And Remember This...

Simply, Security

 

Last week I outlined some issues that have cropped up in recent times with the ever increasing "cleverness" of Internet Security packages and the commensurate increases in the their complexity and their likelihood of malfunction (not in the sense of program failure - they seem to work pretty well from that point of view; rather, in the sense of them not doing exactly what you want them to, or them stopping you from doing what you want to.)  I also told you that this week I would outline a simple security strategy that is less intrusive yet is strong enough for most of our purposes, so here it is.

 

As a quick word of caution let me mention that this strategy is intended for personal computers used by individuals for their own purposes and is not intended as a strategy for server systems, office networks, corporate systems or any such systems, where a more comprehensive strategy is called for.

 

Start at the edge, with your Internet connection.  If you have a broadband connection such as cable or DSL or the like, use a firewall/router between your computer and the service provider's adapter.  Available in computer and office supply stores here in the US for under $50.00 (so I imagine they will be more or less similarly priced where you are.)  These devices use something called Network Address Translation that prevents others on the net from seeing the actual address of your computer.  This simple thing is enough to keep out most (not all!) hackers.  Those with the skills it takes to get past this obstruction usually have bigger fish to fry than your humble PC!  If you're not sure how to make this device work for you, talk to your local computer or office supply store assistant - they deal with them every day.

 

If you use dial-up, leave it connected only while you are actually using your PC, then, order broadband!

 

Next, get your computer up to date on security patches.  Use Windows Update, upgrade it to Microsoft Update, and run the "Express Update" until there are no more updates for you to apply.  Now turn on Automatic Updates and have the machine update itself overnight (see the Control Panel / Security Center.)  If you have dial-up, you'll have to run Microsoft Update manually every couple of days until your Broadband arrives.)

 

Next, use Windows Firewall.  You can check that it's on by looking under Control Panel / Security Center.

 

Next, install Windows Defender.  It's available from the Microsoft website, costs nothing, and is a pretty effective anti-spyware program.  It used to be called Microsoft AntiSpyware, and is currently in its second phase Beta Test under its new name.

 

Next, install a simple, effective and unobtrusive anti-spyware program from a major vendor, such as (alphabetically) Computer Associates, McAfee, Norton (Symantec), Panda or Trend.  There are other good ones too, but these are the biggest and most famous.  Get the anti-virus only, not the whole security bundle, which is what we're trying to avoid.  Personally, I'm using CA's Etrust.

 

You're done!

 

Except, of course, for your backups.  Not having RECENT backups is asking for, no, begging for, demanding, absolutely insisting upon, climbing onto the rooftop and shouting vile challenges at fate for, disaster.  On the other hand, if you have them, you probably won't need them.  It's Murphy's Law.

Thanks for reading!

- Vince Barnes

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Q & A Goodies
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Questions are taken from submissions to our Community
Mentors. You can ask a Mentor a question by going to
http://www.htmlgoodies.com/mentors/

 

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X   Please take note:    X
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We have had a number of people indicate that their email client programs are interpreting code examples in this newsletter as actual HTML code instead of text.  To overcome this problem and to enable everyone to read the newsletter, there is a period after the "<" in each tag.  If you cut and paste to try out code examples, please remember to remove the periods.  Wherever we intend you to use "<." in your code, the example will show "<..".  In this way, you will be safely able to use a global edit to change "<." to "<".  Thanks to all of you for your patience with this; if this technique creates an undue problem for you however, please let us know via our feedback address (see Feedback, below).

*** This question was submitted to our Mentor Community.
    The answer was provided by one of our Mentor Volunteers

 

Q. How do I attach the "onClick" event handler to plain text? What I am trying to do is load the Javascript function contained in the code in a new window using a text link to pop the referenced URL in a specifically-sized window with most of the bells and whistles disabled. While the code I have below works "okay", it doesn't work the way I want it to.  I think I need to use the 'onClick' handler to accomplish this, but the only references to that handler I can seem to find on HTMLGoodies uses form buttons, or regular HTML links.  I want to use plain text links.  I tried this:
<.a href="" onClick="javascript:popup("URL")">Text here<./a>
..but all I got was my local desktop in the window when I tested it.  Here is the code I am using to call my popup window on page load:
<.!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <.html>
<.head>
 <.title>BridgeMon<./title>
  <.!-- TWO STEPS TO INSTALL POPUP WINDOW:
  1.  Paste the first into the HEAD of your HTML document
  2.  Use the code to open the popup page on your site  -->
<.!-- STEP ONE: Copy this code into the HEAD of your HTML document  -->
<.SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JavaScript">
<.!-- Idea by:  Nic Wolfe (Nic@TimelapseProductions.com) -->
<.!-- Web URL:  http://fineline.xs.mw -->
<.!-- This script and many more are available free online at -->
<.!-- The JavaScript Source!! http://javascript.internet.com -->
<.!-- Begin
function popUp(URL) {
day = new Date();
id = day.getTime();
eval("page" + id + " = window.open(URL, '" + id + "',
'toolbar=0,scrollbars=0,location=0,statusbar=0,menubar=0,resizable=0,width=320,height=210');");
self.close();
}
// End -->
<./script>
<.!-- STEP TWO: Paste this onLoad event handler into the BODY tag -->
<.BODY onLoad="javascript:popUp('URL')">
<.!-- Script Size:  0.73 KB  -->
<./head>

 

A. Part of your problem is that you left the "href" blank.  This causes problems with the link.  There are some different ways that you can accomplish what you want.  The first one is to use the "#" pound sign to void the link so that only the onClick event works.  For example: <.a href="#" onClick="popup('somepage.html')">Text here<./a>
(You also do not need to specify "javascript" in the onClick event)
You can also call the function by placing the function call in the "href" like this.
<.a href="javascript:popup('somepage.html')">Text here<./a>
This does away with the onClick event.  I also noticed that you surounded the URL with double quotes and at the same time surounded the function call with double quotes.  When you are doing a function call like your example it should be single quotes within double quotes or double quotes within single quotes.

*** This question was submitted to our Mentor Community.
    The answer was provided by one of our Mentor Volunteers
    
Q. I have developed a website for a consulting business.  What steps do you need to take to make sure that copyrights are not infringed by using photos and graphics from other sites?

 

A. Website items are like any other property. If you use any images or any content for that matter from another website, you should get permission from the owner first, before you use them for your site.

*** This question was submitted to our Mentor Community.
    The answer was provided by one of our Mentor Volunteers

 

Q. Could you please tell me how to link one page to a specific point on another page? Also, how do I link the top of one page to the bottom of the same page?
 
A. If you want to link to a spot on a particular page you can use the NAME ANCHOR. For instance if you had a long page and wanted to give the user an easy way to get back to the top after reading the article you would place this in the HTML near the top after the <.BODY> tag:
<.a name="top">
At the end of the article you would place this code:
<.a href="#top">TOP<./a>
That creates a link to the top of the page. If you want a link to a certain area on another page it is done in a similar way. On the page you want to link to you place the NAME ANCHOR in the spot on the page you want to jump to:
<.a href="jump">Jump Here<./a>
On the page you are coming from, the link would look like this:
<.a href="#jump">Click here to Jump<./a>
Here is the tutorial from the HTMLGoodies site:
http://www.htmlgoodies.com/tutors/pagejump.html

*** This question was submitted to our Mentor Community.
    The answer was provided by one of our Mentor Volunteers
    
Q. I've just started experimenting with frames for a redesign to my website (hand coded and I'm self taught with HTML!)  I want to use an image behind links for the side frame on my page.  I just don't know how to code a background image so that it will remain "fixed" (I think that's the right word) instead of tiling itself across the page. 

 

A. I think you're looking for this CSS property:
background { url(image.gif) no-repeat; }
You could also add "fixed" as another property, which will hold the background in place (no scrolling). The "no-repeat" will add the image just one time.

*** This question was submitted to our Mentor Community.
    The answer was provided by one of our Mentor Volunteers

 

Q.  I made a small "form" type page with 3 boxes in which to type data.  I am trying to figure out how to make that page open with the cursor already located in box #1, instead of having to hit Tab 2 or 3 times.  The form is written in HTML, but I'm assuming that I will need to use Javascript to accomplish this.

 

A. You could use the onLoad event in the body tag to place focus on the first
box this way:
<.body onLoad="document.form_name.field_name.focus()">
"form_name" would be the name you gave your form in the form tag and "field_name" would be the name you gave the first box in your "<,input>" tag.
If your form and field do not have a name associated with them then you can use this format: document.forms[0].elements[0].focus()
The above refers to the first form and the first element in that form.

Discussion Goodies
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Have you seen the discussion forums on the HTML Goodies website?  It's a great place to get help from others who, just like you, are developing web pages.  Many different topics appear in the forum, and a new one will appear if you create it!  Here's a sample of recent topics:

 

Can a browse for file html button be done with javascript?:
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=93998

 

Background music:
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=94391

 

Using IE for FTP:
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=96962

 

Form E-mail issues! ATT file extension??????:
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=65845

 

Mozilla Firefox - Front Page clash:
http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=96764

News Goodies
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Feds Bust $50M Online Ponzi Scheme
[February 28, 2006] SEC claims scheme owner went beyond the 'autosurf' business model.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3588171

 

AOL Takes Phishers to Court
[February 28, 2006] The ISP is seeking $18 million in damages on the strength of a new Virginia law.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3588166

 

Protest Over AOL's Pay-to-Send E-mail Plan
[February 28, 2006] Advocacy groups from across the political spectrum to rally against AOL's plan to monetize e-mail.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/xSP/article.php/3587921

 

Intel to Craft Chips in Vietnam
[February 28, 2006] The No. 1 chipmaker pumps $300 million into Vietnam's first chip plant. 
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/ent-news/article.php/3588126

 

Shop Until You Bop
[February 28, 2006] Amazon acquires online clothing retailer.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/ec-news/article.php/3587981

 

Sun Shines With $400M Workstation Deal
[February 28, 2006] Education Ministry of Mexico orders more than 29,000 Sun Workstations running Windows !
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/ent-news/article.php/3587991

 

This Oracle Database Wants to Be Free
[February 28, 2006] It's not SleepyCat, but XE, a version of Database 10 with fewer bells and whistles.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/dev-news/article.php/3588006

 

More Power to Gentoo Linux
[February 28, 2006] Is new Gentoo 2006.0 the first to support IBM Power 5 out of the box? 
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/dev-news/article.php/3588011

 

SSL-VPNs Certified For Government Work
[February 27, 2006] Juniper claims it's the first to get common criteria certification. Competitors aren't far behind.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/security/article.php/3587931

 

DoJ: Google Search Request Not a Privacy Threat
[February 27, 2006] UPDATED: The Justice Department claims its subpeona does not pose a privacy threat to Google users.
Read the article:
http://www.internetnews.com/xSP/article.php/3587851

 
 
 
Feedback Goodies
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Did you ever wish your newsletter was an easy two way communications medium?  Ploof! It now is!
If you would like to comment on the newsletter or expand/improve on something you have seen in here, you can now send your input to:

 

mailto:nlfeedback@htmlgoodies.com

 

We already receive a lot of email every day.  This address helps us sort out those relating specifically to this newsletter from all the rest.  When you send email to this address it may wind up being included in this section of the newsletter, to be shared with your fellow readers.  Please don't send your questions to this address.  They should be sent to our mentors: see http://www.htmlgoodies.com/mentors/

Thanks for all your feedback!

Windows Tech Goodie of the Week 
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Accessing and Updating Data in ASP.NET 2.0:

 

Accessing Database Data ASP.NET 2.0 introduced a number of new Web controls designed for accessing and modifying data. In this article we'll be examining how to access data from databases with the SqlDataSource and AccessDataSource controls.

 

 

*** AND ***

 

Storing Data from Dynamic Controls Using ASP.NET 2.0 Callback

 

So you've run across a situation where dynamically creating web form controls would be helpful. Luckily this is quite easy in ASP.NET. Now comes the part where we need to retrieve the values from those controls...

 

 

*** AND ***

 

How to Make SQL Dependency Work Where It Doesn't

 

One of the most anticipated new features in ASP.NET 2.0 and SQL Server 2005 is SQL Dependency. This article will show you how to set up surrogate procedures so that you can use SQL Dependency to its fullest and bypass its limitations.

 

And Remember This ...
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1903 Henry Ford Hired John and Horace Dodge

 

John F. and Horace E. Dodge started a manufacturing business in 1897 to build bicycles.  In 1901 they started to manufacture automobile parts, and on this day in 1903 Henry Ford hired them to provide the chassis and running gear for his cars.  They went on to produce car bodies for both Ford and Ransom Olds and in 1914 founded the Dodge Brothers Motor Car Company.  By 1919 they were among the richest men in America, but didn't get to enjoy their fortunes for long, as they both died from influenza in 1920.  After being held for a while by a bank, their company was sold to the Chrysler Corporation in 1928.

Today was also the day that in: 1066 Westminster Abbey in London was opened; 1692 the Salem witch hunt began; 1784 John Wesley chartered the Methodist Church; 1827 the first commercial railroad in the US, the Baltimore & Ohio, was chartered; 1954 the US performed an atmospheric nuclear bomb test at Bikini atoll; 1956 Jay Forrester received a patent for core computer memory (which he invented in 1949, and which was the primary form of main memory until the mid-70s); 1961 JFK named Henry Kissinger as special advisor; 1966 the Cavern Club in Liverpool, England (where the Beatles used to play) closed; 1970 bicycles were permitted to cross the Golden Gate bridge in San Francisco; 1975 40 people were killed in the London Underground railway system as a train sped past its final stop; 1983 125 million watched the final episode of the comedy TV series "MASH"; 1990 Dutch police seized 3,000 Kilos of cocaine; 1993 a gun battle erupted between the FBI and Branch Davidians at Waco, Texas; 1994 in the US, the Brady Law went into effect, imposing a wait period for the purchase of a handgun;

 

Born today were: in 1820 Illustrator (Alice in Wonderland) John Tenniel; 1910 movie director Vincente Minelli (husband to Judy Garland, father to Liza); 1915 actor Zero (Samual Joel) Mastel; 1923 actor Charles Durning; 1925 English actor (born in Rangoon, Burma) Harry H. Corbett; 1931 actor Gavin McCleod; 1940 race car driver Mario Andretti; 1942 musician Brian Jones; 1942 actor Frank Bonner; 1944 actress Kelly Bishop; 1945 actress Mimsy Farmer; 1948 actress Bernardette Peters (Lazarro); 1948 actress Mercedes Ruehl; 1950 actress Ilene Graff; 1955 actor/comedian Gilbert Gottfried; 1955 musician Randy Jackson; 1957 actor John Torturro; 1969 actor Robert Sean Leonard; 1971 actor John Buchanan;