News: Let your Voices be heard. Make sure you tell Congress that the Protect IP Act and SOPA ARE A BAD IDEA! (Updated 11/23/11)

(https://wfc2 NULL.wiredforchange NULL.com/o/9042/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=8173) (Banner from EFF.org (https://www NULL.eff NULL.org/))

Tech Geek and More does not usually take a political stance as that is NOT the goal of this site. With that being said, there currently is a pair of bills in Congress that are SO SCARY that TGM feels that it has to get politically involved in this case.

***Update 11/23 -

Sen. Wyden of Oregon

Senator Wyden (D – Oregon) who is a steadfast opponent of the Protect IP bill. He has agreed to try and block any vote on the bill by filibustering it if it comes up for a vote.

“Sometimes filibusters last hours – or days – leaving Senators reading out of the dictionary or cookbooks to pass the time.”

‘Sen. Wyden agreed to read censorship opponents’ names from the floor of the Senate, and to try to enter the rest into the Congressional Record.”

You can visit (LINK) Stopcensorship.org (http://stopcensorship NULL.org/?referring_akid= NULL.1521576 NULL.GByv-v&source=typ-tw) to add your name to the list.

**Nov 21st Post -

PROTECT IP Act in the Senate

“Establishes a system for taking down websites that the Justice Department determines to be “dedicated to infringing activities.” The DoJ or the copyright owner would be able to commence a legal action against the alleged infringer and the DoJ would be allowed to demand that search engines, social networking sites and domain name services block access to the targeted site. In some cases, action could be taken to block sites without first allowing the alleged infringer to defend themselves in court”. (From LINK OpenCongress.org (http://www NULL.opencongress NULL.org/bill/112-s968/show))

Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the House

“This bill would establish a system for taking down websites that the Justice Department determines to be dedicated to copyright infringement. The DoJ or the copyright owner would be able to commence a legal action against any site they deem to have “only limited purpose or use other than infringement,” and the DoJ would be allowed to demand that search engines, social networking sites and domain name services block access to the targeted site. It would also make unauthorized web streaming of copyrighted content a felony with a possible penalty up to five years in prison. This bill combines two separate Senate bills — S.968 (http://www NULL.opencongress NULL.org/bill/112-s968/show) and S.978 (http://www NULL.opencongress NULL.org/bill/112-s978/show) — into one big House bill”. (From LINK OpenCongress.org (http://www NULL.opencongress NULL.org/bill/112-h3261/show))

What’s So Scary about the bills

DoJ or the copyright owner would be allowed to demand that search engines, social networking sites and domain name services block access to the targeted site
- domain name services (DNS) record numbers. Tech Geek and More is known as 69.89.25.196 to the DNS services. Tech Geek and More is hosted on a shared service, which means that it is not the only website on that numeric sequence. As of this writing, there are more than 900 sites (of which there are only 2 other sites of the 900 that TGM has any involvement with) that are all hosted on that same numerical address. These bills do not say that they will contact the host about a site, they say that the DOJ will be “allowed to demand that search engines, social networking sites and domain name services block access to the targeted site”, which means without warning one day my site could go away simply as collateral damage without any notice. Even if my site had nothing to do with the offending site. Its not like that hasn’t happened before, (LINK) from Gizmodo (http://gizmodo NULL.com/5762161/feds-accidentally-shut-down-84000-websites-over-wrongful-kiddie-porn-accusation), a “crackdown by the Department of Homeland Security takes down 84,000 innocent websites”.
Another part of the bills, “In some cases, action could be taken to block sites without first allowing the alleged infringer to defend themselves in court”.
- Since when has it been ok to charged and NOT be allowed to defend ourselves. What happened to “Innocent until proven guilty”.
Lastly, these bills state that “The DoJ or the copyright owner would be able to commence a legal action against the alleged infringer”.
- The bills would grant private entities like the MPAA and the RIAA the right to blacklist a site.

What is Protect IP and SOPA Interview from Lockergnome (http://www NULL.youtube NULL.com/watch?v=VxPQ320jBLc&feature=youtu NULL.be&a)

The following video comes from Chris Pirillo of Lockergnome explaining how Protect IP and SOPA can affect everyone.

Brian Rowe and Marcus Barnes-Cannon w/Chris Pirillo discussing IP issues.

Where can you get more information about these 2 bills (LINKS)

100 Law Professors oppose Protect IP Act (http://freedomforip NULL.org/2011/07/06/100-law-professors-oppose-protect-ip-act/) – From Freedom for IP (Freedomforip.org)
Act Now : This Bill Seriously Screws with the Internet (http://www NULL.publicknowledge NULL.org/e-parasite-stop-online-piracy-act) (SOPA) – From Public Knowledge (Publicknowledge.org)
H.R.3261 – Stop Online Piracy Act (http://www NULL.opencongress NULL.org/bill/112-h3261/show) – From Open Congress (OpenCongress.org)
S.968 – PROTECT IP Act of 2011 (http://www NULL.opencongress NULL.org/bill/112-s968/show) – From Open Congress (OpenCongress.org)
Stop the Internet Blacklist Legislation (https://wfc2 NULL.wiredforchange NULL.com/o/9042/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=8173) – From the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF.org)
What is Protect IP and SOPA (http://www NULL.youtube NULL.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=VxPQ320jBLc) (Video) – From Lockergnome (On YouTube)

Getting in touch with your Representatives in Congress

If you visit a site like (LINK) Project VoteSmart (http://votesmart NULL.org/) and enter your address on the top right,

you can get a list of information from the President to your local ballot measures.

If you click on the + next to Congressional (or whichever area interests you), you will get information like Office, First Election, Next Election, and Most Importantly Contact Information.

If you disagree with these bills and want to protect your freedom of speech, please contact your local Representatives in Congress and let them know that they need to vote against these bills if they want your vote in the next election.

Software: What you should think about when choosing a password, plus DON’T WRITE YOUR PASSWORD ON A STICKY ON YOUR MONITOR.

When my friend, Alex, asked if I’d consider writing blog pieces, I thought I was pretty content sticking to the 140-character limit. After a few days, I considered the possibilities of building on those short spurts of ideas and thoughts… but then came up with just a few 4-letter word phrases.

Last night, I couldn’t sleep so as I lay in bed, my brain decided to come up with some blog topics. I came up with a long list of great ideas but could only remember a handful by the time the alarm went off. So a topic which is quite familiar and near to my heart…

PASSWORD MANAGEMENT

There’s a great article from PCMag titled (LINK) “The 25 Worst Passwords of 2011 (http://www NULL.pcmag NULL.com/article2/0,2817,2383890,00 NULL.asp#fbid=NbjVjDnCX9F)”. For at least half of the passwords on the list, I can match at least one of my users (people I work with) to that password. Probably even worse is that I know how many of them “manage” their passwords: 1) in a notebook stored in a drawer, 2) on a sheet of paper under their keyboard, 3) on their desk calendar in plain view (it’s true, people still use paper calendars), and 4) (the winner) on a sticky note posted to their monitor or somewhere in their workspace, also in plain view.

I’ve given up proselytizing – they are people who begrudge change – and because mostly, I feel sorry for them. There is absolutely no possibility of embarking on a single-sign-on project in this environment. The systems they access are a mixture of internal, external, law enforcement agencies, private security companies, and each system requires its own set of security credentials and password policies. They have too many user names and too many passwords to remember.

For those who are more open to change, these are some of the recommendations I’ve made over the years:

1. Use the Notes function of Outlook to store user names & passwords.

2. Use a smartphone or special app designed to manage passwords.

3. Use (LINK) LastPass (https://lastpass NULL.com/). File this one under “Must Have Products (FREE)”.

4. Use a pass-phrase, like a complete sentence. Better yet, use a phrase in a foreign language!

Notes Function of Outlook

This is probably the simplest solution to use in an organization that uses Microsoft Office. You can use a single “sticky” for all of your passwords or use different stickies for each account. The stickies can also be color-coded. For those who don’t use Microsoft, (LINK) Google docs or other similar cloud-based solutions would have something similar in the form of documents or spreadsheets to manually manage accounts.

Smartphones

Most smartphones or PDA devices now come with a password management application built-in. If not, many apps are easily downloadable and installed. Most organizations that use Microsoft would also use an Exchange server which synchronizes Outlook data to the smartphone. In my case, almost all of my Outlook data, including my sticky notes, are accessible on my Blackberry. I learned recently that the iPhone does not natively sync the sticky notes data so my buddies who have gone to the dark side have had to get creative with accessing their notes. However, no matter which device you use – this is important – the smartphone should also be password-protected to prevent any unauthorized viewing of your data.

LastPass

One of my favorite things since the creation of the World Wide Web, LastPass is a web-based password management application that’s designed to work with any web browser and any operating system, and is easily downloaded from (LINK) lastpass.com (http://www NULL.lastpass NULL.com). Like many geeks I know, I’m way too cheap to pay $1 per month for the Premium version so I can only discuss the free version.

This little gem is a browser add-on and works beautifully with web-based authentication, i.e. web banking, Outlook Web Access, and other secured applications you access on the internet. You remember one super-secret password to access your master vault. Once you get there, it will automatically log in to a website you access or prompt you, whichever settings you chose when you added the website to your vault. If you access a new website, it will prompt if you want to save the site to your vault.

I also use it to remember passwords to non-internet-based applications. I just access my vault and click the “show password” link. In addition, I use LastPass as a convenient bookmarks organizer since it saves the URLs of the websites I visit.

Passphrase

Finally, in the past decade, many security experts have recommended using longer passwords or pass-phrases which are harder to crack by would-be hackers. Obviously, you want to avoid words you can’t spell, like supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. One of my colleagues thought it would be funny to reset my password to that word but I used it for a while till I finally got tired of it.

For example, the sentence “my husband’s football team is the 49ers” could be used as “Myhusband$footballteamisthe49ers” – this passphrase has a good combination of: length, upper case, lower case, numeral, special character and it’s easy to remember.

One of my favorite practices is using a phrase in a foreign language. “Si, va bene, lo prendo” is Italian for “yes, that’s good, I’ll take it.” My husband was fearful when I learned that one while we were in Italy. The passphrase could be “S1vabeneloprend0” (easier) or “S1v@b3n3l0pr3nd0” (tougher).

A good password or passphrase doesn’t have to be completely obscure, but just enough to keep you and your data SECURE.

Auction: Tech Geek and More on eBay – 5 Piece Wii Accessories Bundle / 5 in 1 Sports Kit

Another Tech Geek and More sale. This time we have the Wii Accessories Bundle / 5 in 1 Sports Kit listed on (LINK) eBay (http://cgi NULL.ebay NULL.com/ws/eBayISAPI NULL.dll?ViewItem&item=300623601360)

The item is new, but missing its exterior box. Wii Accessories Bundle 5 IN 1 Sports Kit includes the following items

Tennis Racket
Steering Wheel
Golf Club
Baseball Bat
Controller Handle

(Wii controller not included.)

Starting bid is $8, with the Buy It Now price set at $10. Bids will be taken until Nov. 18th or until someone uses the “Buy It Now”

You can find the item listing (link) here (http://cgi NULL.ebay NULL.com/ws/eBayISAPI NULL.dll?ViewItem&item=300623601360)

Facebook: Charge to format. Now able to select Sort type

Facebook has start rolling out another change to the layout. For once, Facebook is listening to complaints and bring back the option of being able to sort your FB posts by “Recent Stories First”. Ever since the last change in layout that took away that feature for the “Highlighted Stories” format (where FB shows you what it thinks you want to see on top), the number 1 grip has been wanting to get the sort back.

If you look on the top right, just above your News Feed posts, you will see a (small) message that says “SORT: HIGHLIGHTED STORIES FIRST”. If you click there you will see a choice for either recent stores or highlighted stories. So those who like the new sort format, you aren’t loosing your choice. (This is what FB should have done from the start).

So what do the choices really mean?

Highlighted Stories First:

Highlighted stories you haven’t seen yet will appear at the top of your News Feed. (If you don’t see highlighted stories, it’s because there aren’t any new highlighted stories since your last visit.)

If you have the choice on your page yet, keep checking as it seems this is being rolled out in parts to users.

Apple: If you have an iPod Nano (1st Generation) you may qualify for a replacement from Apple. (Due to exploding battery issue)

Over the years there has been numerous reports of iPod’s unexpectedly exploding (Not that one should ever expect their iPod to explode). Here are just a few of the online stories about the iPod exploding issue (LINKS)

2007 – iPod sets mans pants on fire (From WSB-TV / Atlanta) (http://www NULL.wsbtv NULL.com/news/news/ipod-sets-mans-pants-on-fire/nFDP9/)

2009 – Apple tries to silence man and his daughter over exploding iPod (From Daily Telegraph / UK) (http://www NULL.telegraph NULL.co NULL.uk/technology/apple/5963015/Apple-tries-to-silence-man-and-his-daughter-over-exploding-iPod NULL.html)

2009 – Exploded iPod video (From YouTube) (http://www NULL.youtube NULL.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=gqTDUjbHueE)

2009 – Exploding iPod sets kids pants on fire (From Engadget) (http://www NULL.engadget NULL.com/2009/03/13/exploding-ipod-touch-sets-kids-pants-on-fire-melts-his-underwe/)

In some countries, Apple has acknowledged that there is an issue with the iPods battery. Apple started offering replacements in Japan last year, as well as in South Korea over two years ago. Apple has finally made the replacement program global. In an announcement on the (LINK) Apple support site (http://www NULL.apple NULL.com/support/ipodnano_replacement/),

Per Apple, “Apple has determined that, in very rare cases, the battery in the iPod nano (1st generation) may overheat and pose a safety risk. Affected iPod nanos were sold between September 2005 and December 2006.”

“This issue has been traced to a single battery supplier that produced batteries with a manufacturing defect. While the possibility of an incident is rare, the likelihood increases as the battery ages.”

“Apple recommends that you stop using your iPod nano (1st gen) and follow the process noted below to order a replacement unit, free of charge.

Note: This battery issue is specific to the iPod nano (1st gen) and does not affect any other iPod.”

Some key notes

You may order a replacement unit via the web. Click here (https://supportform NULL.apple NULL.com/201110/) to begin.
Your iPod Nano serial number will be checked to verify that it is eligible for this program. You will receive a replacement unit approximately 6 weeks after we receive your current iPod nano (1st gen).
If you have a personalized iPod nano, you will receive a non-personalized replacement. Make sure to use iTunes to back up any data on your current iPod nano before sending it in for a replacement unit. \
Your replacement iPod product is warranted to be free from defects for 90 days from the date of service.

You can see the complete iPod Message on the (LINK) Apple site (http://www NULL.apple NULL.com/support/ipodnano_replacement/)

Alert: Adobe issues a critical update for its Shockwave player. You really need to update your system if you have Shockwave installed.

Adobe has issues a “Critical” update for its Shockwave player. By Critical, they mean that a bad guy could potentially run software on your machine that could expose you to malware or viruses without you knowing. In the past, you got viruses because you downloaded a file or clicked on an email attachment, so you knew you were “safe” as long as you followed basic common sense. Now a days, instead of trying to trick you, they just look for issues in software and then use those issues to get past you and any security you may have on your pc.

Imagine your home, every time you leave, you check all your windows and doors and make sure they are locked (at least I hope you do). Now imagine that the lock to the front door breaks and falls off, and instead of getting a new lock, you just shut the door and hope no one notices. Guess what, you may get away with it for a while, but eventually your luck may run out and a bad guy will use the broken lock to get in and steal from you. These critical updates are the computer equivalent of that lock on your door. By updating, you are going out and getting a newer / better lock.

For those Geeks out there, here is some basic information on the alert. The complete alert can be found at (LINK) Adobe (http://www NULL.adobe NULL.com/support/security/bulletins/apsb11-27 NULL.html)

Security update available for Adobe Shockwave Player

Release date: November 8, 2011

Vulnerability identifier: APSB11-27

CVE number: CVE-2011-2446, CVE-2011-2447, CVE-2011-2448, CVE-2011-2449

Platform: Windows and Macintosh

Summary

Critical (http://www NULL.adobe NULL.com/devnet/security/security_zone/severity_ratings NULL.html) vulnerabilities have been identified in Adobe Shockwave Player 11.6.1.629 and earlier versions on the Windows and Macintosh operating systems. These vulnerabilities could allow an attacker, who successfully exploits these vulnerabilities, to run malicious code on the affected system. Adobe recommends users of Adobe Shockwave Player 11.6.1.629 and earlier versions update to Adobe Shockwave Player 11.6.3.633 using the instructions provided below.

Affected software versions

Shockwave Player 11.6.1.629 and earlier versions for Windows and Macintosh

So how do you know if your computer has Adobe Shockwave installed. PC users, you can go to Start –> settings –> Control Panel –> Add/Remove programs (XP and earlier) or Programs and Features (Vista and Win 7). Then look at the list of installed programs, if you see Adobe Shockwave installed, then you have it. (It doesn’t matter if it is used or not, it just matters that its installed on your pc).

So you ask “What is the Shockwave program, and more importantly, why do I have it?” or “I don’t remember downloading that?”. The answer is that you didn’t, at least most likely not directly downloaded. From (LINK) Wikipedia (http://en NULL.wikipedia NULL.org/wiki/Adobe_Shockwave)

“Adobe Shockwave (formerly Macromedia Shockwave) is a multimedia platform used to add animation and interactivity to web pages”

Which means that if you play 1 of 1000’s of various online games, you probably saw a pop up that said something along the lines of “This program requires Adobe Shockwave, Do you wish to download it” (That’s NOT the exact wording), and since the majority of people never read those pop up’s, you just clicked run and went along playing your game.

So now what do you do if you find that you have it. Here is the solution directly from Adobe

Solution

Adobe recommends users of Adobe Shockwave Player 11.6.1.629 and earlier versions upgrade to the newest version 11.6.3.633 available here: http://get.adobe.com/shockwave/ (http://get NULL.adobe NULL.com/shockwave/).

When you click on the link from Adobe, you will arrive at the following page.

Click on Agree and Install now. This will bring up one of the following pop ups where you will click on Install (Yes I know again)

**Be aware of a pop up that you may see after you click install. (This pop up really gets me !@#!@$!%%^!&!*&)

If you see a pop up for the Google Toolbar or Any other Toolbar make sure to uncheck the box before clicking next. (Commentary: If this is a critical update, as noted, Why Adobe, WHY! are you trying to sneak in software that should stand on its own. If people want a toolbar let them go and get it, don’t try to get paid or whatever other benefit you are getting for tricking people who either don’t know or don’t read messages to end up with something else they probably DON’T NEED! That’s the end of my soapbox)

Once you see your browser show the following message

You have completed the update for this browser. I know your saying WHAT! Unfortunately Shockwave comes in 2 versions. One version is for Internet Explorer and One version is for all other web browsers (that’s the program you use to surf the web). The instructions above were based on Internet Explorer, if you have a 2nd (or more) browser installed like Firefox, Chrome, Opera, etc. then you need to do this again using one of those browsers. Remember it doesn’t matter if you don’t use them, if they are installed on your pc, then you MUST do the upgrade. Just follow the exact same steps with the other browser to complete the upgrade.

Lastly, the focus of this post was for Windows users, but Mac users, keep in mind this affects you too. If you have a Mac you should do this update as well.

Facebook: Posts from 3rd party apps not appearing on your page? Here is one possible reason why.

Like everyone else, I have a “connected” life. One of the most common things I do on a daily basis is post from my phone apps to Facebook. What I have noticed in the past couple of days is that anything I would post from 3rd party apps (Like Foursquare, Wordbooker, Cardio Trainer, etc.) stopped appearing on my News Feed page in Facebook. If I checked my profile I would see the posts, but they would be listed as “Only Me” in the post setting.

I was baffled at 1st, as I know I hadn’t made any changes to my settings, and none of the 3rd party apps on my phone had recently been updated. So I started poking around and found the answer. It seems Facebook made a change in Account Settings –> Apps , that at least I (and a few others who have also asked about this issue) didn’t know. Surprise Facebook made changes to account settings (They wouldn’t never do that, I say with sarcasm).

To fix the setting to allow your 3rd party apps to show again in your News Feed, check / adjust the following setting

1) From the top right of Facebook select “down” arrow –> followed by Account Settings

2) Once you reach Account Settings –> select Apps (on left) –> then select edit on the app you want to fix (on right)

3) Once you get to the App Settings area –> scroll to the very bottom of the page (this is why you could miss it, as on some apps there is a lot of scrolling). At the bottom you will see a section called “App activity privacy” (On left). The change you will need is on the right –> this is where you can select who will get to see your post from that 3rd party app.

In my case the setting for all my apps was set to Custom –> Only me. Unfortunately this setting is per 3rd party app, so you will have to go through them 1 by 1. This however solves the mystery of the 3rd party apps not showing.

**Note (Reminder) – These are security settings, if you are looking at them, this would also be a good time to delete apps that shouldn’t be on your profile (either because you don’t use them anymore or don’t know what they are). In addition, you may not want all 3rd party apps to post to Facebook. Review each app carefully before changing its setting to make sure what it does.

11/7/11 UPDATE–Tracy has been found alive and safe. (From Technorati) Missing Person: Tracy Williams, Technorati Employee

Update: November 7, 2011 at 9:15am PDT – We are relieved to share that Tracy Williams is indeed alive and safe at a local hospital. We want to thank everyone who helped spread the word about Tracy’s disappearance.
Read more: http://technorati.com/women/article/missing-person-tracy-williams-technorati-employee/#ixzz1d3zKndJU (http://technorati NULL.com/women/article/missing-person-tracy-williams-technorati-employee/#ixzz1d3zKndJU)

The following information comes from Jill Asher (http://technorati NULL.com/people/svmom123/) and was originally published on the Technorati website (LINK (http://technorati NULL.com/women/article/missing-person-tracy-williams-technorati-employee/)). Tech Geek and More is posting the information in an effort to help get the word out.

If you are or were in the San Francisco area over the past couple of days, please see information below. If you have any information concerning the disappearance of Tracy Williams, please call San Francisco Police Department at 415-553-0123. Please reference case #110892541

To the family and friends of Tracy Williams, you are in our thoughts.

Technorati needs your immediate help. Our employee and friend, Tracy Williams, went missing on November 2, 2011. We are extremely concerned about her well being and reaching out to our community to spread the word and find her.

At this stage, here is information we can share:

Tracy was last seen at 7:45pm PDT on Wednesday evening at the Whitehorse Bar (http://www NULL.yelp NULL.com/biz/white-horse-tavern-and-restaurant-san-francisco) located in San Francisco. She was there with colleagues from Technorati Media. During this time, friends went outside for a “smoke”. When they returned inside the bar, Tracy was gone. They simply thought she was heading to North Beach to meet a friend and not concerned.

After leaving the bar, we believe Tracy texted a friend to let him know she was going home.

On Thursday, November 3, 2011, Tracy did not show up for work. Many of our employees tried to contact Tracy through email and phone without success. A close friend was alerted about the situation and went over to her apartment, in the Tenderloin section of San Francisco. There were no signs that Tracy returned to her apartment the prior evening.

Tracy is 40 years old, dark wavy hair that she usually wears back in a ponytail, prominent freckles on her face, brown eyes, light brown skin, athletic build, 5’8 inches tall, approximately 135 pounds and was wearing blue jeans, a black hoodie and carrying a small bag.

We have notified the San Francisco Police department and hospital checks are being conducted.

We are urging you to help us locate Tracy. If you have any information about Tracy, please contact the San Francisco Police Department at 415-553-0123. Please reference case #110892541 Please use all social media channels to circulate this news.

[update]

November 6, 2011 at 11:55am PDT: Employee’s from Technorati Media are passing out fliers in Union Square and the surrounding San Francisco neighborhoods. Still looking for anyone that has information on Tracy’s disappearance.

November 4, 2011 at 9:21pm PDT: A Facebook page (http://www NULL.facebook NULL.com/pages/Missing-Tracy-Williams/160644534031945?sk=wall) has been created to update and collect information about the disappearance of Tracy Williams. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Missing-Tracy-Williams/160644534031945?sk=wall (http://www NULL.facebook NULL.com/pages/Missing-Tracy-Williams/160644534031945?sk=wall)

Read more: http://technorati.com/women/article/missing-person-tracy-williams-technorati-employee/#ixzz1czOnYT5o (http://technorati NULL.com/women/article/missing-person-tracy-williams-technorati-employee/#ixzz1czOnYT5o)

Tech: Removing the In place Ad’s in Internet Explorer – Also known as Vibrant Ad’s

*This was originally posted in 2010, but recently I’ve seen this question come up a lot more than usual, so a repost for those with this Vibrant Ad issue.

One of the questions I keep getting asked involves “pop up ads” that appear as highlighted words on Webpages. What you will see when browsing on various sites is that key words will be highlights and double underlined (As shown on example below), and when you place your mouse over the key word a “related” ad to the key word will appear.

There are a couple of problems with this, 1st off the ad pops up as long as you move your mouse, so you DONT get a choice on if you want to see it or not and 2nd, allot of those “related” ads may be related to the key word itself, but may have nothing to do with the topics you are searching for. As in this post from a tech site, about a story the new i-Phone leak and when my mouse goes over the story, I get an ad for BP…..

So what do you do if you want to get rid of these ads. Here are the steps…..

1 – On the top of Internet Explorer – Go to Tools –> Internet Options\

2- Once in Internet Options, click on the “Security Tab” –> The on Restricted Sites –> The on the button that says Sites

3 – Once there in the box that says “Add this website to the zone enter the following 3 websites.

*.vibrantmedia.com
*.intellitxt.com
*.kontera.com

4 – You will need to refresh the webpage at this point by clicking on page refresh on the top of Internet Explorer.

************************************************************************************************

*NOTE – Example ads are bigger in post than normal for example purposes.

**NOTE – Sites that offer Inline ads do this as a revenue stream so that they can offer viewers services for cheap or free, while making money from the ads.

***NOTE – Tech Geek and More does NOT use any form of Inline ads and if anyone comes across any form of inline ads within the TGM site, we ask to be notified immediately. Please send a screen shot if possible with details of what you see and from which posting. (SOAPBOX) Even though TGM is looking for ways to help with the cost of running the TGM site, it is felt that inline ads ruin the browsing experience and as such does not want those type of ads for its visitors. (END SOAPBOX)

10/30/11–Changes on Tech Geek and More

Thank you for visiting Tech Geek and More. We are working on some changes to the Tech Geek and More look this weekend, so things may not be quite right around the site. Please forgive any issues you may find while we improve.

Hope to have the site back to normal by Sunday Oct 30th in the evening.

Thank you

Alex

Head Of Tech Geek and More

Tech Geek and More

Technology Explained for All