Google made an announcement in a Webmaster Central Blog post that says using encryption throughout a website is now a ranking factor. You heard that correctly. Google wants to see Secure Sockets Layer encryption used throughout a web site. Encryption is no longer something reserved for use with e-commerce sites on pages where sensitive personal information, such as credit card … [Read more...]
Tech Support Scams – We’ve Detected a Virus on Your PC
An increasing number of people are receiving phone calls from scammers who claim they detected a virus or Trojan on the user's PC and they want to help remove the threat. Sometimes they claim your Windows license is about to expire and they want to help you renew the license. I received three calls from friends and clients over the past week with questions about the calls. … [Read more...]
Netbeans Error: Invalid jdkhome specified, Cannot locate java installation in specified jdkhome
A few years ago a friend told me about Netbeans, the freebie Java-based code editor that is designed to work with Java, PHP and a range of other languages. At that point it was time to retire Homesite, my favorite editor for over 10 years that was no longer sold or supported, and was showing signs of incompatibility issues with Windows updates. I have since found Netbeans … [Read more...]
What to Expect With Internet Explorer 10
As someone who has been developing web sites for the past 15 years, I have always considered Internet Explorer to be the most broken browser on the planet. If you are going to experience a browser problem with your web site not rendering properly, the problem always seems to show up in IE, even if it displays properly with every other browser. IE has also experienced many more … [Read more...]
Shopping Cart Patents Voided in Court Case
If you own an e-commerce site that uses a shopping cart, you may not be aware that you could have been liable for paying a licensing fee to a group of attorneys who claimed the rights to three patents that literally gave them the rights to the technology used in all shopping carts. For several years this group of attorneys battled large e-commerce sites in court and managed to … [Read more...]
Chinese Spam Comment Network Hitting WordPress Sites
Tech-Evangelist was a recent victim of a comment spam attack that originated from a wide range of Chinese IP addresses. This is a malicious attack that can temporarily disable web sites and servers. Here is what we saw and what we did to fight off the attacks. The attacks started to come in waves once or twice per day for about an hour in duration. This was clearly a … [Read more...]
Is the Mozilla Rapid Release Program Destroying FireFox and Thunderbird?
I have been using Mozilla's FireFox and Thunderbird for many years and have always been a big fan; however, my patience with their rapid release program is wearing thin. The rapid release program is a new methodology that drives constant updates to their software. According to a former Mozilla developer, the Rapid Release program has killed their reputation. I have to … [Read more...]
Macintosh Flashback Botnet Infects 600,000 Macs
At one time many people bought a Macintosh computer because they believed it was immune to viruses, Trojans and other malware. That was never really true, but for a long time the Mac was not a target for hackers. Those days are long gone. PC World reports in an article titled Mac Trojan Infections Exceed Half Million, that over 600,000 Macintosh computers are infected with … [Read more...]
How to Remove Your Web History From Google
In March 1, 2012, a new unified Google privacy policy takes effect. This one policy will cover all Google web properties and allows them to combine the data and use it however they wish. If you want to continue to use Google services, such as GMail, YouTube accounts, etc., you will not be able to opt out of accepting the new … [Read more...]
Be Aware of the PROTECT IP Act of 2011
There is a bill that was introduced in the US Senate that could allow Hollywood--or any other content provider--to have a web site shut down due to an accusation of intellectual property theft. Hollywood and its cronies are pushing this legislation through based upon its need to combat piracy, which is understandable. However, the broad ramifications of Senate bill S 968, … [Read more...]