General Stuff

Rant: Norton Internet Security blocks banner images

Michael Falconer — Thu, 30 Sep 2004 13:53:00 GMT

I site I've just finished developing was launched yesterday, but there were some reports that the main banner image wasn't displaying. The image was called banner.gif, and after recreating the image (to check it wasn't corrupt) and trying a jpeg version it finally turns out this was getting blocked by Norton Internet Security.

Now, this strikes me as being incredibly stupid and pointless on the part of Norton (aka Symantec). They're trying to block banner ads, yes, but by filename?!?!?! Correct me if I'm wrong, but if you had banner ads that you suddenly found out couldn't have banner in the filename, wouldn't you just rename them?

So what's the point in blocking by filename? All they achieve is potentially breaking the look of a lot of sites, as I'm sure banner isn't an uncommon thing to call the banner image for a site, and causing poor web developers a headache until they figure it out.....

Microsoft granted patent for tabbing through web links

Michael Falconer — Fri, 17 Sep 2004 17:48:00 GMT

Now, I can appreciate why companies want to protect their property and inventions as such, but when you can patent tabbing through web links (as reported on out-law.com), there is something well wrong with the system.

I can only hope that Microsoft don't try and enforce this, unlike the BT Hyperlink case. After all, tabbing is one of the key methods for navigating sites without using a mouse...

Is anyone there?

Michael Falconer — Thu, 29 Jul 2004 13:31:00 GMT

Thought it was about time I wrote something, as it's been a while snice my last post. So what I've I been up to:

Passing my second exam (Web Applications - C# version)
Building the Camel-Jones website (coming soon!)
Continuing development of medium sized ASP.NET Application

Enough to keep me busy! I was worried about the exam, as I didn't really have much time to study, but it all went fine in the end. The Camel-Jones site has been quite interesting as I'm building it using Master Pages (thanks to Paul Wilson for his enhanced version!), and also not using tables for layout. Needless to say my CSS skills have had to be brushed up!

I hope to have a couple of articles up soon - it's about time this blog had something interesting on it!

Pressie from Microsoft!

Michael D. Falconer — Mon, 28 Jun 2004 19:10:00 GMT

It's not often you get anything for free, so I was pleasantly surprised to arrive home after work today to find a free USB memory stick from Microsoft! The sticker on the packet simply states that it's a present for participating in the Microsoft Security Mobilization Initiative. It also happens to contain the VB.NET collection of e-books!

Presents are nice...if anyone else cares to send me some freebies...!!

Microsoft Action Pack

Michael D. Falconer — Thu, 24 Jun 2004 13:26:00 GMT

If you don't already know about it, you might want to look at the Microsoft Action Pack. If you're a developer or company developing on the Microsoft platform, you get a whole bundle of software for internal use for only £199. The contents currently include:

10 licences for Windows XP Pro
10 licences for Office XP Pro
1 licence for SQL Server 2000 Developers Edition
10 CAL version of Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition
10 CAL version of Microsoft SharePoint Portal Server 2003
10 licences for Microsoft Visio 2003 Professional
and much more...!

You need to register as a Mirosoft Partner first, and it is offered as an annual licence, but you can't argue given all the software you get. As I've just bought myself a new laptop, and was going to upgrade my main pc, it's the perfect time for me to get it. Hopefully As it's already been dispatched, hopefully it'll be here in time for the weekend.

NOTE: All the links above are for the UK version.

Multiple copies of Internet Explorer on a single PC

Michael D. Falconer — Mon, 21 Jun 2004 13:35:00 GMT

I was browsing some site at lunchtime, and came across this interesting article by Joe Maddalone of Chicago Web Design and Development. It details how to install multiple copies of Internet Explorer on a single Windows PC, without the need for multiple partitions or VM's... very handy!

Gone Phishing

Michael D. Falconer — Wed, 09 Jun 2004 15:16:00 GMT

Hmmm, another cheesy title...

I received an email today from my bank (Bank of Scotland), which looked like a rather obvious scam. Given the fact that the banks and other online financial institutes are trying to make everyone aware of such scams, imagine my surprise when I sent the email to their investigations team, and they replied to say that, no, it was genuine. They are, however, 'in the process of raising the issue of the email format with our card member services, so that emails of this nature are more easily identified.'

So, why did I think it was fake? Well, here is a screenshot of the email with some details changed.

The email address the email is from is not from a Bank of Scotland domain; the TO field is all screwed up. Need I say more? Now, try and access this site, which is where the links take you.

Very dodgy. So, would you of believed this to be from a trusted source...

D-Day Anniversary

Michael D. Falconer — Sat, 05 Jun 2004 11:35:00 GMT

It was 60 years ago tomorrow that thousands of allied troops stormed the beaches of France and thus start the end of World War 2. Over 10,000 men were wounded, over 3,000 killed. It's difficult to imagine what it must of been like (except for what is shown in films like Saving Private Ryan), but the BBC has got some great coverage of the events commemorating the landings, as well as a section on the history of the war.

How to Make Your Web Site Work with Windows XP Service Pack 2

Michael D. Falconer — Tue, 01 Jun 2004 12:54:00 GMT

There's an interesting little article on the ASP.NET Developer Center that covers what you need to check for in your site(s) to ensure they continue working with Windows XP Service Pack 2...

[UPDATE] Of course, a link to the article would help.

70-229 : SQL Server 2000 Exam

Michael D. Falconer — Tue, 01 Jun 2004 12:00:00 GMT

Well, I passed my SQL Server exam (70-229) yesterday, and I'm glad it's over! I managed to score 853 (I assume out of 1000), so that's not too bad. Congratulations also to Jim, who managed to pass his VB.NET Web Applications at the same time.