Too good to be true?

A 27-year-old man described as one of the world's most prolific spammers was arrested Wednesday, and federal authorities said computer users across the Web could notice a decrease in the amount of junk e-mail.

Robert Alan Soloway is accused of using networks of compromised "zombie" computers to send out millions upon millions of spam e-mails.

"He's one of the top 10 spammers in the world," said Tim Cranton, a Microsoft Corp. lawyer who is senior director of the company's Worldwide Internet Safety Programs. "He's a huge problem for our customers. This is a very good day."

Read the story here.

You've been Tagged...and that's not a good thing

If (like us), you've received an invitation to join Tagged.com, a new networking site, don't fall for the bait.

Tagged, like some other sites, gets into your address book and then spams everybody you've ever been in touch with.

Don't believe me? Read this post.

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Update : May 13 - I've deleted our Tagged accounts. If anybody on my address book is reading this, and if you have received an invitation from me, please don't sign-up!

Reincarnation of Unkymoods

Remember Unkymoods?

I was (very) sad when the website disappeared sometime last year, without a trace. Without those lovable pencil drawn faces, I felt at a loss to describe what I was feeling at any given moment. Unkymoods saved me the trouble of writing down every little thing. And it was sad to not have it around.

Well, it's back! In a new avataar, Unkymoods is now - Punkymoods! Ta da!

*Happiness all around*

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Tuesdays are busy days - the worst of the week is now behind us. The 3 mile run is over. It's late and I'm exhausted, but not sleepy. I'm all Wired. I could write all night.

(But I won't)

The link to Punkymoods is http://www.punkymoods.com/. Enjoy!

'Outlook' not so good

As the title suggests, I'm having trouble with my outlook. No, not that one (although Mr R may disagree), but the one that is supplied by Gates and co.

If you have a clue (and don't refer me to Microsoft's knowledge base - been there, done that), let me know.

The Problem : For the past three days (since Monday), I've had the 'Enter Network Password' popup box come up repeatedly every few minutes, even though the password has been saved. Since then, I have tried every trick in the book (and then some) to get it to go away.

A quick search on Google shows that zillions of people have had this problem ever since Outlook was invented, but there's no one solution - not even MS can recommend one that works.

So I've tried
a) changing passwords
b) deleting sub-accounts
c) editing the Registry (dangerous, but done)
d) having just one email being checked
e) Slapping the CPU
f) Restarting the wireless router
g) changing the send/receive options as recommended elsewhere
f) Deleting and adding the accounts again

I've now resorted to forwarding mail from one account to another, so I now log on to Explorer and just check one account instead of logging in and out. It's not an easy life.

If you can help, please do!

And yes, I'm on Win XP with Outlook 2002 accessing the net on btinternet through broadband on LAN.

Whew.

PS: I tried the settings on the home laptop and had the same trouble. Could be a problem with btinternet, but the same settings work on a colleague's PC at work...

Hmmm.

Dell UK - comments please.

Can anybody recommend buying a laptop from Dell UK?

I've been looking at their range and one can get a laptop for about £400 cheaper than from the high street - which is a sizeable difference for the same configuration.

The only problem is that I have not seen too many good reviews recommending Dell's services. There are more negative comments than positive ones, so would appreciate if anybody has any comments to help me make up my mind!

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Later note (Aug 15): Dell's recalling millions of its PC's because the batteries have been overheating and catching fire. That's made up my mind for me. No Dell!

Time on your hands? Try this...

They say, if you can write, you can draw. If you believe that, try drawing a portrait and submit it here. This exhibition aims to have the largest presentation of faces in the world.

If you are feeling too lazy to type your emails, try Springdoo and send a talking email. Our friend H successfully tested this and we were able to listen to him speak. A great way to treasure a loved one's voice for posterity. If you have a microphone, start recording!

H also introduced us to Limewire, a fantastic open source software that allows you to browse and download anything under the sun. If you have something to share with the world, this is an easy way to do it. You can download music, movies, even software. It's easy to work with and the search tools/Browse host option lets you find more than you bargained for.

Our phonecalls to H&F are relegated to the PC. Now that we've discovered Skype,we use the laptop to have conversations. This morning, we had a conference call between us, H in Shropshire and F, who is visiting her parents in Spain. What fun.

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H&F spent last night with us before F's flight from Luton. We drove into London and spent time in Chappell's and in the fantasticly-buzzing-with-energy Apple store on Bond Street.

Back home, we were treated to tango lessons from H&F who have been going to classes themselves. Mr R and F entertained us with violin-piano duets and we ended the night with a yummy prawn curry.






Picture of Selfridges all lit up. I loved the colors and the play of light. Courtesy Mr R.

First there was Email...

...Now it's Gmail

Anybody have a bad experience with Gmail yet? I'm considering switching my rediffmail accounts (half my mails don't turn up!) to gmail.

Anything negative to say?