Jim Rapoza

For the most part, administrators of the open-source Apache Web server prefer that all server management be done through configuration files, which makes it more secure and less likely that something unwanted is running in the background. However, some businesses prefer an intuitive GUI to manage Web servers. On Windows and Unix platforms, businesses can […]

The word “security” is used a lot by Microsoft officials when they discuss the companys plan for Next-Generation Secure Computing Base, formerly code-named Palladium. However, if you think NGSCB has anything to do with keeping your future Windows systems more secure from viruses, worms and other security problems, think again. What Microsoft people really mean […]

During the last few years, the Mozilla Organization created the blueprint for taking a commercial product and making it open source, converting the old Netscape browser—which had been vanquished by Microsoft Corp. and Internet Explorer—into the open-source Mozilla (arguably the best browser on the market today). With this mission accomplished, The Mozilla Organization earlier this […]

For many companies, surveys are the best way to learn what customers and potential customers are thinking. Catapult Systems Inquisite 5.0 provides powerful, intuitive survey creation and management but at a high price. Using Inquisites WYSIWYG Windows-based client, I easily built complex surveys from scratch or by using one of the products many samples and […]

Its not science fiction. Giant networks of zombie computers are poised to unleash massive destruction on the Internet. Youve read about it right here in eWeek (see “Thwarting the zombies” by Dennis Fisher, from the March 31 issue). There are other causes for concern: In this space last week, my colleague Timothy Dyck detailed a […]

Electronic marketing company DoubleClick Inc. is in the business of providing customers with the information they need to plan and manage marketing programs, campaigns and advertisements. However, when it came to support, DoubleClicks customers couldnt always find the help they needed without picking up a phone to talk to someone. Because of this, the New […]

What is RSS, and why should you be interested in it? You should care about RSS if a) youre interested in regularly updated newsfeeds from around the Web a la the old PointCast; b) youd like to add syndicated content from news sites and blogs to your Web site; or c) you want to make […]

Probably a vast majority of the visits to company Web sites are to find the answer to a question. For the most basic questions, often a standard FAQ will work fine. But when the questions move from the common variety to complex queries about specific issues (such as technical support or integration issues), most FAQs […]

If your main concern is providing a customer self-service application, it stands to reason that you would want very good usability on the customer side. And this is the area where eWeek Labs found the main strength of RightNow Technologies Inc.s eService Center, which provides a customer self-service interface that not only makes it easy […]

As of this moment, the security level of the Internet has taken a big hit. And its not because of a new worm or some nefarious hacker collective; its because of a set of badly conceived laws that have been passed by several states. These measures, referred to as Super DMCA laws (see Freedom-to-Tinkers Super […]

Intellidimension Inc.s RDF Gateway 1.0 is one of the first applications to address the use of the Resource Description Framework standard, which makes it possible to have metadata interoperate across Web sites and enable everything from powerful search agents to extensive cross-site agent applications. RDF is also the core technology behind the World Wide Web […]

For many offices and company departments, document overload can be a serious problem. Important files and information can be scattered across PCs, network shares and mail folders, making it all but impossible to find all the information in specific areas. While document and knowledge management systems provide a solution for large enterprises, PX Technologies Wintility […]