I always laugh aloud when I see Web pages with right-click warnings on them. "Oh no! I can't copy your stupid image!" Now, I'm not saying that all images are stupid, nor am I saying that users don't have the right to hold all rights over their properties. However, if you put it on the Internet, it's pretty much fair game. If you don't want people to steal it, don't put it there. Simple, and very effective. The other day, someone sent me a link to a shareware utility that would allegedly put the kybosh on all Web content stealing activities. Bah. Whatever. We've discussed how you can use SHIFT+F10 or the "context menu" button on your keyboard to bypass blocking before. Here's another possible route (at least, for images): left click to select and hold it, tap Windows+D to bring up your desktop, then drop the object anywhere. Failing that, you could also try viewing the source for the Web page to find the direct URL for the image. Where there's a will, there's a way. Don't be lulled into a false sense of security when you try to "block that kick."

 

 

******** Safe Message Viewing ********
 

Paul from Barlow, Kentucky called us on the phone asking if his method for
reading emails deemed as "infected" with a virus is safe. First, I'll tell
you what Paul's talking about here. He has been receiving weird emails with
attachments that have been flagged as viruses by his anti-virus software.
So, Paul came up with an alternative way of viewing the contents of the
message (not the attachment) without opening the email.
 

In Outlook Express 6, if you right-click a message, choose Properties, then
Details, and click the Message Source button, you'll see all the header
information as well as all the spots your message traveled en route to your
Inbox. You'll also be able to read the contents of the message.
 

This is safe is because you aren't viewing the message through the normal
window or the preview pane. The preview pane may not stop messages from
auto-launching attachments. To turn it off, go to View, choose Layout, and
remove the checkmark from "Show preview pane."
 

Good call, Paul!

 

 

 

******** Daily Discovery ********

Want to find out which digital cameras take the best
pictures? Use the "Comparometer" at Imaging-Resources.com.
The tool lets you compare pictures taken on two different
cameras so that you can see which looks better.

Start using the "Comparometer" here:
http://www.imaging-resource.com/IMCOMP/COMPS01.HTM

 

Answers to live calls for May 17, 2002

1. Recover lost data
Jeff in Rochester, New York, had hard drive problems. He's able to
mount his drive, but the data has been covered to about 5,000 .chk
files. He has a term paper that he needs among those .chk files. How
can he file his term paper?

When an application program or Windows crashes, open files aren't
closed properly. When a file closes, all the file location information
is written in the proper places. Without this info, Windows can't find
all the parts of the file. When Scandisk or Chkdisk is run, all the
parts are identified as lost file fragments and converted into .chk
files.

The information is still there; the tricky part is finding the right
information. In this case, it's the term paper. There is where you can
start your search.

Try running a search in the .chk files for a phrase you know is in
your term paper. Hopefully, you can find the file this way.

You can also try using a utility called UnChk. UnChk goes through your
.chk files and finds out what file type the .chk file originally was.
Once that is figured out, UnChk creates a new file out of the data from
the .chk file, and saves it as the previous file type. It won't
necessarily find your file directly, but it can at least sort the files
into types to help you narrow your search. Download UnCHk here:
http://cgi.techtv.com/memberservices/newsletters?click=1508&release=511

 

HOAXBUSTERS
It's one of the most successful scams ever run online -- Mrs. Mobutu Sese-Seko
asking you to help her get her hands on the billions her late dictator husband
left in Swiss banks.  If you receive information that seems like bunk, investigate
it at Hoaxbusters -- http://cgi.techtv.com/memberservices/newsletters?click=2035&release=585
-- and remember: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!