Jim Rapoza

Microsoft just endured one of its worst years ever when it comes to security problems, which is really saying something. And to top things off, it ended the year with a near flood of trouble—from new viruses attacking Outlook to holes in IE 6.0 to vulnerabilities in SQL Server to a serious hole in its […]

There really isnt much new in Microsofts Office XP Service Pack 1: Almost all of its fixes and updates have been available for at least a few months. In fact, SP1 probably wont change the mind of any business that wasnt sold on Office XP in the first place. SP1 includes updates to most of […]

With Opera 6.0, Opera Software now offers what is in many ways the best browser on the market. Opera 6.0 is easily the most configurable browser Ive seen, offering options for privacy, security, pop-up management, system look and feel, and even how complex the interface itself will be. Opera 6.0 offers several new features intended […]

Service packs can be a tricky thing. Sometimes they serve as a signal that a product is now stable and ready for deployment. Other times they cause more problems than they fix and can set back product deployments. Microsoft Corp.s Office XP Service Pack 1, released earlier this month, probably isnt in the second category […]

One of the most difficult parts of setting web access control is figuring out just what level of access to provide. Often, its tempting to be too broad, rather than bringing authentication to a granular level, where it can be more efficient. Camelot Information Technologies Ltd. has attempted to solve this problem by creating an […]

Traditionally, putting the words “Mac” and “server” together was a good way to get a laugh. Macintoshes made lousy file servers and even worse Web servers. But eWeek Labs tests of Apple Computer Inc.s OS X Server 10.1 showed the now-Unix-based Mac finally makes a good server. The standard Mac OS X operating system has […]

When a business is considering an access control system, Novell and Oblix are probably not the first two names that come to mind. But given the fact that Web access control relies heavily on directories, both vendors have been able to leverage their extensive backgrounds in directory technology to provide powerful, comprehensive access control platforms. […]

When Macromedia, maker of Dreamweaver, one of the most popular WYSIWYG Web authoring tools, acquired Allaire, maker of HomeSite, one of the most popular pure-code Web authoring tools, many hard-core code developers probably feared it would lead to the “WYSIWYG-ification” of HomeSite. However, HomeSite 5, the first release under Macromedias auspices, is still one of […]

Hey, did you know that the home page on your Web site says, Hacked by Chinese?” Getting an e-mail or a phone call to this effect is not how you want to find out that something has gone wrong with your Web server, but this is exactly how many site administrators were informed that their […]

Before I get into my topic, I just need to take care of a few legal matters. Reading this column may cause anger, confusion, sadness and many other unwelcome emotions. By reading further, you waive all rights, including any the author thinks of later on. If you do not accept this, stop reading now. OK, […]

Confused by the many packaged flavors of Linux? Among the BSDs, FreeBSD probably has the greatest mind share and the user-friendliest tools, OpenBSD is considered one of the most secure Internet platforms, and BSDI was one of the first to offer corporate-level support and services. So what about NetBSD, which sometimes seems like BSDs forgotten […]

Accessing files on your system over the Internet is hardly rocket science. Microsofts Web Publishing Wizard can make any folder sharable over the Web, and more experienced users can easily install free Web servers such as Apache or FTP servers such as War FTP. So just what is the value proposition for Memoras $49.95 MemDrive? […]