Download Squad http://www.downloadsquad.com Download Squad http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/%SiteURL%/media/feedlogo.gif Download Squad http://www.downloadsquad.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Symantec's Hall says free antivirus is for chumps]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/07/04/symantecs-hall-says-free-antivirus-is-for-chumps/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/07/04/symantecs-hall-says-free-antivirus-is-for-chumps/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/07/04/symantecs-hall-says-free-antivirus-is-for-chumps/#commentsFiled under: , ,

In a discussion with tech.blorge.com, David Hall, who is Symantec's Product Manager for Asia-Pacific Consumer Products and Solutions, voices his concerns over the popularity of free antivirus programs.

"People tell me, 'oh well look I use free antivirus because it is free and it protects me from everything in those areas,' but when you compare that with what's really going on in the threat landscape, there is a very, very big gap between what antivirus does and the threats that are being delivered today."

He later continues, "[...] attackers are not necessarily only targeting the web browser. Think about all the plug-ins you have installed on your machine - RealPlayer, Flash, QuickTime - all of these have vulnerabilities too."

Yes, the threats we face on the Internet have changed over the years and In some respects, Hall is correct.

Like many of you, I no longer rely only on AV software. It's a starting point in keeping my systems protected. I also use a firewall, OpenDNS or a hosts file blocker, and browser addons like NoScript and NoFlash. For added protection, I'll use Sandboxie (and sometimes Windows SteadyState). All of these tools are totally free, and they've been doing the job quite nicely on my home systems.

Hall's quotes do help explain why I've seen several machines on my workbench running only Symantec's own Norton Antivirus that have fallen victim to drive-by attacks. Yes, Symantec, even users running your AV protection aren't totally safe. And it's not free. They paid for it.

In fact, they're still paying for it.

See what I did there?

Symantec's Hall says free antivirus is for chumps originally appeared on Download Squad on Sat, 04 Jul 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>free-antivirusnorton-antivirussymantecSat, 04 Jul 2009 11:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Gdgt launches: A community site for gadgets and gadget users]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/07/01/gdgt-launches-a-community-site-for-gadgets-and-gadget-users/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/07/01/gdgt-launches-a-community-site-for-gadgets-and-gadget-users/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/07/01/gdgt-launches-a-community-site-for-gadgets-and-gadget-users/#commentsFiled under: ,

gdgt widgetEngadget founder Peter Rojas and former editor Ryan Block are launching a new project today called gdgt. The web site isn't a gadget blog, but rather a portal for gadget specs, reviews, and other information as well as a social networking site that lets users create profiles with lists of the gadgets they have, want, or had.

If you're not interested in creating a profile and sharing your gadget lust with the world, the site still serves a few purposes. It has a decent list of existing gadgets with detailed specifications and some pretty nifty comparison charts. You can also read professional reviews from other web pages as well as user reviews and comments about each gadget.

If you do create a profile, you can submit your own gadgets, which means that the site's already decent catalog of gadgets will continue to grow over time. Users can also add items to your have, want, and had list, and embed a personalized gdgt widget on your web page or social networking profiles.

Continue reading Gdgt launches: A community site for gadgets and gadget users

Gdgt launches: A community site for gadgets and gadget users originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>engadgetgdgtpeter-rojasryan-blockWed, 01 Jul 2009 14:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Joost is dead, long live... no, Joost is pretty much dead]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/30/joost-is-dead-long-live-no-joost-is-pretty-much-dead/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/30/joost-is-dead-long-live-no-joost-is-pretty-much-dead/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/30/joost-is-dead-long-live-no-joost-is-pretty-much-dead/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Joost
One upon a time, Joost was supposed to be the future of online video. The project was founded by the makers of Skype as a way to deliver high quality video over a peer to peer network using a standalone application because, let's face it, web browsers weren't really made for video.

But over the past few years, YouTube has continued to grow in popularity, and a little site called Hulu came along and showed that people were pretty gosh darned happy to watch full length TV episodes in a browser if they could access the content they wanted.

Eventually Joost gave up on the standalone media browser idea and relaunched as a web-based video portal. The only problem is that while Joost had a handful of videos you might want to watch, it's content library always paled in comparison to Hulu and other sites.

Today Joost announced a plan to relaunch as a white-label video provider. In other words, Joost will offer up its technology to other companies looking for a way to other companies looking to start their own video portals.

Joost's web portal will continue to exist... for now. But the company is reducing its staff, closing offices, and I'd be shocked if Joost signs any new content deals anytime soon. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to see some of the existing premium partners start to disappear from the site.

Joost is dead, long live... no, Joost is pretty much dead originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 30 Jun 2009 12:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>joostwhite-labelTue, 30 Jun 2009 12:35:00 EST<![CDATA[It's no lie: Pirate Bay purchased by gaming giant, closing tracker]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/30/its-no-lie-pirate-bay-purchased-by-gaming-giant-closing-track/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/30/its-no-lie-pirate-bay-purchased-by-gaming-giant-closing-track/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/30/its-no-lie-pirate-bay-purchased-by-gaming-giant-closing-track/#commentsFiled under: , ,

As I sat down this morning to begin working on a few small news items, Torrent Freak had dropped a bomb on my RSS: the Pirate Bay has been sold for just under $8 million US.

Swedish gaming giant Global Gaming Factory X will become the new owners, and The Pirate Bay as you and I know it will change forever. A necessary evolutionary step, according to Peter Sunde (brokep).
"We've been working on this project for many years. It's time to invite more people into the project, in a way that is secure and safe for everybody. We need that, or the site will die. And letting TPB die is the last thing that is allowed to happen!"
Why would a legitimate company want to purchase TPB? For starters, it's one of the top 100 most visited sites on the internet. While I'm not in the habit of referring to $8 million purchases as a bargain, it's hard to imagine being able to pick up any of the other 99 sites on the list for that kind of money.

Continue reading It's no lie: Pirate Bay purchased by gaming giant, closing tracker

It's no lie: Pirate Bay purchased by gaming giant, closing tracker originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 30 Jun 2009 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>p2ppirate-baypiratebaytorrentTue, 30 Jun 2009 08:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Wax MP3 is a web-based music player for Creative Commons licensed tracks]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/29/wax-mp3-is-a-web-based-music-player-for-creative-commons-license/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/29/wax-mp3-is-a-web-based-music-player-for-creative-commons-license/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/29/wax-mp3-is-a-web-based-music-player-for-creative-commons-license/#commentsFiled under: , ,

WaxMP3
Wax MP3 is a web based music player for that plays songs from Magnatune's catalog of Creative Commons-licensed tracks from independent musicians.

When you launch the website, you're greeted with a basic music player that gives you information about the song that's currently playing, download links, and the ability to skip to the next track. You can also choose a genre from a drop-down menu in the top left corner if you'd rather hear classical, folk, ambient, or another style of music. There's a pretty eclectic mix of genres, including medieval, Middle Eastern, and metal. And that's just in the M section.

You can also grab URL links that will take you directly to a song if you want to share tracks with friends. Overall, Wax MP3 provides a pretty nifty interface for finding music you might not otherwise have known about.

[via Boing Boing]

Wax MP3 is a web-based music player for Creative Commons licensed tracks originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 29 Jun 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>creative-commonsmagnatunemusicwax-mp3Mon, 29 Jun 2009 16:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Map FTP servers to Windows drives with NetDrive]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/28/map-ftp-servers-to-windows-drives-with-netdrive/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/28/map-ftp-servers-to-windows-drives-with-netdrive/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/28/map-ftp-servers-to-windows-drives-with-netdrive/#commentsFiled under: ,

NetDrive
NetDrive is a Windows utility that lets you treat remote FTP sites as if they were local drives. The first time you connect to an FTP site, you have to create a profile. But once you're connected you can copy files to and from the FTP site using Windows Explorer or any other file explorer of your choosing. No FTP client required. To disconnect from the FTP server, just bring up the NetDrive window again and hit the disconnect button.

You can also configure NetDrive to automatically map an FTP site as a Windows drive every time your computer boots up. This could come in handy if you want to use a file backup utility to automatically back up files to an FTP server, or if you constantly need to copy files to and from your web hosting server.

NetDrive includes profiles for a few anonymous FTP servers including the KDE, GNOME, and FreeBSD projects as well as Adobe, Apple, HP, and Microsoft servers. You can also create your own profiles.

[via Inspect My Gadget]

Map FTP servers to Windows drives with NetDrive originally appeared on Download Squad on Sun, 28 Jun 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ftpnetdriveSun, 28 Jun 2009 10:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Cooliris adds support for browser tabs]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/26/cooliris-adds-support-for-browser-tabs/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/26/cooliris-adds-support-for-browser-tabs/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/26/cooliris-adds-support-for-browser-tabs/#commentsFiled under: ,

Cooliris tabs
Cooliris is a browser plugin that lets you search for and view pictures and videos from sites including YouTube, Flickr, and Google Images. It works with Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari, and Flock, all of which support tabbed browsing. But up until recent, Cooliris didn't support tabs at all. When you launched the plugin, it would automatically show you a full screen media browser. The only way to search for multiple items would be to launch separate instances of the browser and flip between them.

But the latest version of Cooliris lets you find and view media within a normal browser tab. And that means you can also open up multiple instances of Cooliris within a single browser session. You can look for pictures of kitties in one tab while watching the latest updates on YouTube from Iran in another.

One thing to beware of though, is that Cooliris can be a bit of a RAM hog. If you thought Firefox used a lot of memory under normal conditions, try launching 5 or 6 Cooliris tabs and see what happens. OK, I'll tell you. The browser locks up and you get a warning notice telling you to close Cooliris tabs or other "3-D graphical applications."

[via WebWare]

Cooliris adds support for browser tabs originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 26 Jun 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>browser-tabscoolirisFri, 26 Jun 2009 17:00:00 EST<![CDATA[MetaGlossary finds concise definitions for terms you search]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/25/metaglossary-finds-concise-definitions-for-terms-you-search/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/25/metaglossary-finds-concise-definitions-for-terms-you-search/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/25/metaglossary-finds-concise-definitions-for-terms-you-search/#commentsFiled under: ,


There are plenty of places to go looking for definitions on the Internet. One I like to refer to is MetaGlossary, which tries to extract matching definitions from other web pages.

Enter a term and MetaGlossary returns a list of URLs that provide insight and a definition from the page's text. It's usually quite accurate and provides a great way to look up acronyms, annoying IM abbreviations, or anything else that requires a little clarification. It even does a good job with chemical formulas.

MetaGlossary also provides a Firefox search plugin for quick access to the engine (or you can always just bookmark the search field).

MetaGlossary finds concise definitions for terms you search originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 25 Jun 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>acronymsdefinedefinitionglossarysearchThu, 25 Jun 2009 12:00:00 EST<![CDATA[File sharing service RapidShare ordered to filter content]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/24/file-sharing-service-rapidshare-ordered-to-filter-content/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/24/file-sharing-service-rapidshare-ordered-to-filter-content/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/24/file-sharing-service-rapidshare-ordered-to-filter-content/#commentsFiled under: ,

Rapidshare
Rapidshare is a service that makes it easy for users to upload and share files with a large number of people. It can come in handy whether you want to send a large file to a friend who has an email service with file attachment size limits or you want to share files with visitors to your website without paying a hefty web hosting bill.

But Rapidshare has never gained the respect that sites like YouSendIt have. YouSendIt provided a similar service, but it's aimed at sending files to just a handful of users. RapidShare, on the other hand, has become popular with users who upload copyrighted software, music, and movies. And today the company could be paying the price of allowing users to get away with those activities.

A German court is ordering Rapidshare to remove about 5,000 songs from its servers. The lawsuit was brought by GEMA, a group representing copyright holders. The court has ruled that Rapidshare must begin filtering content to prevent users from sharing any songs from artists covered by GEMA. The court estimates the value of those songs at about 24 million Euros (roughly $34 million).

Of course, it's pretty difficult to filter content on a site like Rapidshare, where users can easily ZIP files, change file names, or make other small changes to trick any filtering software that's put in place. I guess we'll have to see if Rapidshare ties to take any steps toward implementing content filters, and if the court decides that a good faith effort is good enough. Or maybe Rapidshare will just appeal the ruling.

[via TechCrunch]

File sharing service RapidShare ordered to filter content originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 24 Jun 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>copyrightgemagermanylawsuitrapidshareWed, 24 Jun 2009 16:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Digsby chat client updated, CPU use reduced by 50%]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/24/digsby-chat-client-updated-cpu-use-reduced-by-50/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/24/digsby-chat-client-updated-cpu-use-reduced-by-50/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/24/digsby-chat-client-updated-cpu-use-reduced-by-50/#commentsFiled under: ,

Digsby searchMulti-protocol chat client Digsby received a major update today, with over 100 bug fixes and new features. At the top of the list, the new version should use about 50% less CPU cycles than previous builds.

Digsby is a chat client that lets you chat with contacts whether they're using AIM, ICQ, Google Talk, Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, or Facebook Chat. It also lets you read and write updates for social networking sites including Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn.

Here are a few other new features:
  • Search your buddy list by hitting Ctrl+F
  • Improved file transfer reliability for AIM, ICQ, and MSN
  • Support for entering your status on MySpace
  • Added support for invisible mode on Gtalk
  • New infobox based on WebKit
Some of these features have been available to Alpha testers for a while now, but the new build will allow all Digsby users to access them.

Digsby chat client updated, CPU use reduced by 50% originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>buddy-listdigsbyfile-transferWed, 24 Jun 2009 14:57:00 EST<![CDATA[Boxee media center now available for Windows, adds live MLB games]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/24/boxee-media-center-now-available-for-windows-adds-live-mlb-game/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/24/boxee-media-center-now-available-for-windows-adds-live-mlb-game/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/24/boxee-media-center-now-available-for-windows-adds-live-mlb-game/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Boxee Alpha for Windows
After months of private Alpha testing, the Boxee team has finally released a public alpha of the Boxee media center application for Windows. That means you can now run Boxee on Mac, Windows or Ubuntu Linux. The public alpha for Windows does seem to be a bit more stable and responsive than the earlier private alpha version.

Boxee provides you with a full screen browser designed for managing and accessing internet media as well as audio and video stored on your hard drive. Over the past few weeks, Boxee has gained a ton of features through a new "App Store" which allows third party developers to create plugins for the media center.

In addition to launching a public Windows Alpha, Boxee also announced last night a new partnership with MLB.com to offer live and recorded Major League Baseball games through Boxee. Boxee has also added support for Digg, Current.tv and Tumblr.

Boxee media center now available for Windows, adds live MLB games originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 24 Jun 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>boxeeboxee-alpha-for-windowsmedia-centerWed, 24 Jun 2009 09:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Wikipedia to get better video support]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/19/wikipedia-to-get-better-video-support/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/19/wikipedia-to-get-better-video-support/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/19/wikipedia-to-get-better-video-support/#commentsFiled under: ,

Fortunately, Wikipedia's video options won't end up like this

When I first read the headline that Wikipedia, the popular online encyclopedia, is preparing to offer editors lots of new video tools and support, I was immediately filled with dread. I instantly started imagining the types of videos that overly pedantic Wikipedia editors would create, on such scintillating topics like the "Mary Sue" archetype in fan fiction (and 3200 words on that, really?) or that really awesome episode of Battlestar Galactica (don't flame me BSG fans, Cylons rule and whatnot). Fortunately, the new video features that are going to be coming to Wikipedia aren't about content creation, at least not yet.

According to MIT's Technology Review, in the next two or three months, Wikipedia editors will have access to an "add media" button that allows them to find, annotate, choose the relevant portions of a video and then embed the resulting clip into any article. The whole thing will be web-based and will rely on open video standards. Three sources will be available in the beginning, the Internet Archive, Wikimedia Commons and Metavid, but eventually Wikipedia hopes to allow users to scour the web for content.

Despite my early skepticism, the idea is actually pretty interesting. When I think about the first-wave of "book encyclopedia" killers, the CD and then DVD-ROM based multimedia offerings (like the late Encarta), the video content always sticks out as one of the biggest high points. Having quality video or audio content add context or augmentation to a text article can really make a subject more clear.

Of course, having to rely on copyright-free video or public domain works might make it difficult for Wikipedia to achieve those same goals.

[via Mashable]

Wikipedia to get better video support originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 19 Jun 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>encyclopediavideowikipediaFri, 19 Jun 2009 17:00:00 EST<![CDATA[In Europe? Bing-powered Water Watch shows you where it's safe to swim]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/19/in-europe-bing-powered-water-watch-shows-you-where-its-safe-to/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/19/in-europe-bing-powered-water-watch-shows-you-where-its-safe-to/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/19/in-europe-bing-powered-water-watch-shows-you-where-its-safe-to/#commentsFiled under: , , ,


There are plenty of good reasons to use web-based mapping tools besides simply finding directions from point a to point b. For example, let's say you're taking a holiday to Cork and you want to know where the good swimming spots are.

Fortunately for you, Microsoft and the European Environment Agency have just the thing for you. The Eye on Earth Water Watch does exactly that for countless spots across the continent.

Find a suitable spot, click the water quality icon, and the Bing-powered map displays an overlay containing a Virtual Earth image as well as live webcams and user submitted photos (if available, of course).

There's more to it than finding a place to have a relaxing dip, of course. As Microsoft's Rob Bernard puts it, "Eye on Earth is a great example of how technology has the power to help governments, business and individuals understand what is happening to our environment. Eye on Earth provides people with information which has historically been difficult to find."

[via Softpedia]

In Europe? Bing-powered Water Watch shows you where it's safe to swim originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 19 Jun 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>bing-mapsEEAenvironmenteuropeswimmingvacationFri, 19 Jun 2009 10:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Microsoft offers a *cough* totally unbiased comparison of the Big 3 browsers]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/18/microsoft-offers-a-cough-totally-unbiased-comparison-of-the-bi/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/18/microsoft-offers-a-cough-totally-unbiased-comparison-of-the-bi/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/18/microsoft-offers-a-cough-totally-unbiased-comparison-of-the-bi/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,


Oh Microsoft, you and your wacky propoganda!

Yes, we know that Internet Explorer 8 isn't the same steaming pile of dung that past versions have been. Yes, we know it has some neat features like accelerators and InPrivate filtering. But we really had no idea that you had such a great sense of humor!

If you haven't seen the now infamous chart (and you likely have, thanks to Reddit), it's well worth a look. Don't go looking for any real world data to back things up though. There are no screenshots, nothing on the chart is linked to anything else, and the "mythbusting" page points only to two malware studies and the IE8 add-ons gallery.

There are, of course, some valid points - other browsers lacking enterprise tools, for example. The rest of it, well, you tell me. What do you think of the points they make?

My personal favorite: the Firefox add-ons I'd want to download are already built in to IE8. You know, like my three must haves - LastPass, Weave, and Greasemonkey. Oh wait, no...No, none of that functionality is built in.

I do like the little green checkmarks, Microsoft. They suuuuure are purty!

Microsoft offers a *cough* totally unbiased comparison of the Big 3 browsers originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 18 Jun 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>browsershumorinternet-explorerpropogandaThu, 18 Jun 2009 16:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Fever offers a hot new approach to reading feeds]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/18/fever-offers-a-hot-new-approach-to-reading-feeds/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/18/fever-offers-a-hot-new-approach-to-reading-feeds/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/18/fever-offers-a-hot-new-approach-to-reading-feeds/#commentsFiled under: , ,


Fever is a new feed reader that calculates the "temperature" of your feeds by asking you to group them into essential and occasional categories, and looking at how they relate to one another to create a "hot" category. It's like your own personalized, automated Digg. It's the brainchild of Shaun Inman, one of the most respected designers around, and the UI looks great and seems intuitive.

Here's the catch, though: Fever's not a desktop app. It's a PHP/MySQL app that you host on your own server. This offers several advantages: you can access it from anywhere, you can filter ads by blacklisting advertising domains, it updates itself automatically, and you can use cron to make your feeds automatically refresh whenever you choose. Fever is powerful, but I'm sure some people are going to balk at installing it, despite the very nice video walkthrough on the site.

If you don't mind running Fever on your server, but you're the kind of person who really needs an icon in the dock, you can run Fever on the desktop using Fluid, which turns web apps into standalone browsers. Fever also has a very, very nicely-done iPhone-optimized design, so if you're checking your feeds from an iPhone, you're in for a treat (without having to download an iPhone app, even).

Fever offers a hot new approach to reading feeds originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>feedsfeverphpreaderrssshaun-inmanThu, 18 Jun 2009 11:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Firefox, TOR, Privoxy, and Vidalia in a portable EXE to obfuscate your browsing]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/17/firefox-tor-privoxy-and-vidalia-in-a-portable-exe-to-obfuscat/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/17/firefox-tor-privoxy-and-vidalia-in-a-portable-exe-to-obfuscat/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/17/firefox-tor-privoxy-and-vidalia-in-a-portable-exe-to-obfuscat/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,


I wrote about OperaTOR a while back as a portable option for simple TOR-enabled browsing on the go.

Maybe you'd prefer a single EXE that packages Firefox, TOR, Privoxy, and Vidalia? You're in luck - Paul O'Brien has combined those ingredients into a tasty privacy-enhancing stew.

He's created the package using Xenocode (and yes, it's a licensed copy) to help users avoid bothersome Internet roadblocks which prevent users in some countries from accessing websites that have been deemed inappropriate.

Unzip the archive, double-click the EXE to launch, and click the TOR button once Firefox has loaded. Your settings are saved into the sandbox subfolder on your launch drive so no data will be left behind on the host machine.

While the original version had some trouble with x64 Windows, Paul has already uploaded a new package that should work just fine for 64-bit users. It's available for download from his site and mirrored on RapidShare as well.

Firefox, TOR, Privoxy, and Vidalia in a portable EXE to obfuscate your browsing originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>anonymousfirefoxprivacyprivoxytorvidaliaWed, 17 Jun 2009 16:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Spezify combines several media types into an impressive visual search tool]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/spezify-combines-several-media-types-into-an-impressive-visual-s/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/spezify-combines-several-media-types-into-an-impressive-visual-s/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/spezify-combines-several-media-types-into-an-impressive-visual-s/#commentsFiled under: , ,


Spezify is a kind of freeform search tool that incorporates websites, videos, images, microblog posts and more into a grid of results. It's not going to beat Google at finding some specific thing you're looking for, but it's impressive if you're looking to get an overview of a topic, especially if you're a visual person. Instead of showing text results, like Google, Spezify is more like a multimedia wall that you can scroll across vertically or horizontally to take in information at a glance.

Spezify also provides a list of related words at the top of the results screen, which can help you explore a topic further. Videos in the results are all embedded, and can be played without leaving the site, and a lot of the text results feature slightly longer previews than Google results do. All in all, I don't think Spezify is meant to replace any of the major search engines, but you might consider using it when you want a visual summary of a given topic.

Spezify combines several media types into an impressive visual search tool originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 16 Jun 2009 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>mediasearchspezifyvideovisualTue, 16 Jun 2009 19:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Bing addresses porn controversy with separate domain for explicit content]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/bing-addresses-porn-controversy-with-separate-domain-for-explici/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/bing-addresses-porn-controversy-with-separate-domain-for-explici/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/bing-addresses-porn-controversy-with-separate-domain-for-explici/#commentsFiled under: , ,



The last time we talked about the uproar over Bing's live video previews including some explicit material, Lee was reporting that Microsoft had changed the default safesearch features to block porn. A week later, they've taken one further step to reassure concerned customers that they're not going to accidentally see XXX videos. Potentially explicit videos and images are now served from their own domain, explicit.bing.net.

They've also gone ahead and added the source URL into the query string. The average user's not going to look at that, but it makes things easy for corporate filters to just block anything with "explicit.bing.net" in the string. I'm not sure if this is overcorrecting for a mistake that, as Lee argued, wasn't that bad to begin with. It should definitely put to rest any remain concerns that Bing should be renamed Microsoft Live Porn, though.


Bing addresses porn controversy with separate domain for explicit content originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 16 Jun 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>bingcontroversyexplicitpornsafesearchTue, 16 Jun 2009 15:00:00 EST<![CDATA[After the Deadline polishes your writing online]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/after-the-deadline-polishes-your-writing-online/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/after-the-deadline-polishes-your-writing-online/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/after-the-deadline-polishes-your-writing-online/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

After the Deadline

While some modern browsers include built-in spell checkers, and some operating systems include built-in spelling and grammar checkers, there are people out there using operating systems and browsers that do not have these features.

If you're looking for some help with your writing and don't have access to Microsoft Word or a similarly-powered word processor, there is a solution available on the web called After the Deadline. The site (at the memorable URL polishmywriting.com) offers spelling and grammar help, and even writing style suggestions.

Continue reading After the Deadline polishes your writing online

After the Deadline polishes your writing online originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 16 Jun 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>after the deadlineafter-the-deadlineAfterTheDeadlineapidemo servicedemo-serviceDemoServicegrammar checkersgrammar-checkersGrammarCheckersmicrosoft wordmicrosoft-wordMicrosoftWordrich text editorrich-text-editorRichTextEditorspell checkersspell-checkersSpellCheckersspellingstyle suggestionsstyle-suggestionsStyleSuggestionsword processorword-processorWordProcessorTue, 16 Jun 2009 10:00:00 EST<![CDATA[With Unite, Opera 10 becomes both a browser and a content server]]>http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/opera-unite-10-private-file-cotnent-media-sharing/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/opera-unite-10-private-file-cotnent-media-sharing/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/16/opera-unite-10-private-file-cotnent-media-sharing/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

Everyone had a bit of a chuckle when Opera coyly announced that they were about to "reinvent the web," the other day. I certainly had my doubts. After all, we had nothing to go by other than a bright red background, a little cloud, and some comments buried inside HTML code.

While I'm not certain I would call what Opera has done with Unite (version 10 of its browser) a reinvention of the web, it's certainly a clever, inventive twist on the run-of-the-mill web browser.

So what is it?

Unite sits in Opera's side toolbar and adds various server features to the browser. By default it includes file, media, and photo sharing, a web server, chat room, and "fridge" for storing notes. There are no additional Unite services available yet, though it's safe to assume that community-produced options will start appearing soon (developer resources are listed here).

You configure your sharing options - choose a base directory, set access permissions - and Opera provides a URL you can provide to your friends. Sure, there are hundreds of websites we already use to share media, leave each other messages, and chat, but Opera Unite lets you do it with a single registration and without uploading any of your content to a remote server.

Unite's sharing pages render just fine in other browsers, so you friends don't have to be running Opera. As with previous Opera releases, it's available for Windows, Linux, and Mac.

The browser itself hasn't changed - it's still Opera 10, love it or hate it. The new Unite functions are very clever and do add a certain amount of cool factor. It will be interesting to see if the new features can increase the size Opera's fan base.

Take Unite for a spin and share your thoughts, or have a look at the gallery (work in progress)!

With Unite, Opera 10 becomes both a browser and a content server originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 16 Jun 2009 04:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>opera-10serveruniteweb-browserTue, 16 Jun 2009 04:30:00 EST