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Editorial

A timely reminder to get your data backed up, especially when you roll into July. You don't want to loose all that end of financial year data (including all the sweat and tears).

We were once told to keep our powder dry, a phrase attributed to Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658), and the powder being gunpowder. For us today, a more fitting statement could be 'keep your computer clean and your data safe', meaning of course clear of viruses and ad ware & spy ware and your data backed up.

Keep warm... Bruce Beresford, Manager & Editor

In this Issue:

• Featured Site - All Seasons Campervans
• Virus Watch
• Gates stepping down from full-time Microsoft role
• Call Laws in Parliament
• Regulator confused on net TV
• Anti-spam Advocate Succumbs to Spammer
• Quotes of the day

Featured Site  

All Seasons Campervans

If you are looking to travel Australia, your Australian campervan hire with All Seasons is the best way to go! We have a range of campervans and motorhomes that are economical and easy to use.

Our rental vehicles give you the flexibility to travel from city to city exploring the hidden beaches or the stunning outback of Australia.

We have a Campervan or Motor home to suit most needs starting with our 2 berth Mini camper for a more budget adventure right up to the well-equipped Mercedes Motorhome. All our vehicles are late models with no large advertising names or phone numbers, so you won't stand out as a tourist.

All Seasons Campervans have been achieving extremely high hit rates with their website, in fact they have recently passed 1Gig per month bandwidth usage and are steadily growing in popularity.

Visit the All Seasons Campervans website...

Virus Watch  

Latest Threats - from Symantec

20-06-06 W32.Sixem.A@mm

20-06-06 MSIL.Kolilo

Gates stepping down from full-time Microsoft role  

Gates announced on Thursday that he will gradually relinquish his current role, ceding the chief software architect title immediately, while remaining a full-time employee for the next two years. In July 2008, he will remain as a part-time employee and chairman.

Gates' announcement comes as his company battles pressures on all fronts: a sagging stock price, competition from Google and nagging delays in the Vista operating system.

In a press conference held Thursday after the stock markets had closed for regular trading, Gates announced that over the next two years he will gradually step away from his daily responsibilities at the company he co-founded some 30 years ago.

Microsoft's Chief Technical Officer Ray Ozzie will immediately assume the title of chief software architect, Gates said. In addition, Craig Mundie, CTO for advanced strategies and policy, will immediately take the new title of chief research and strategy officer and will assume Gates' responsibilities for the company's research and incubation efforts. TechRepublic >>> more

Call Laws in Parliament  

AUSTRALIANS will soon be able to join a do not call register under legislation introduced to parliament today, 25 may 2006.

Frontbencher Peter McGauran said the bill would allow people who do not want to receive telemarketing calls to register their fixed and mobile numbers on the register for up to three years.

"The scheme will apply to telemarketing calls made to an Australian number, whether the call is made from Australia or overseas," he told parliament.

He said Australians were tired of having telemarketers intrude on their home life.

"The number of unsolicited calls in Australia has grown significantly in recent years and has led to rising community concerns about the inconvenience and intrusiveness of telemarketing," he said.

"Telemarketing can intrude on everyday activities, from getting the kids ready for school, to making the evening meal.

"For many these calls are disruptive and cause frustration."

He said similar systems have been adopted in the United States and United Kingdom. Canada was also considering introducing a do not call register. AustraliaIT >>> more

Regulator confused on net TV  

WATCHING television over the internet is taking off, but the regulator is being left behind. In fact, the regulator is struggling with how to define the internet.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority admitted on Tuesday it could not decide how broadcast laws applied to the internet, leaving online content firms unsure whether they needed licences.

ACMA told a Senate estimates hearing that Telstra was not breaking the law by providing TV-like services over the internet without a broadcast licence, but conceded it had not yet defined internet.

"I'm not sure that ACMA has a settled view on the interpretation of the word [internet]," ACMA general manager Marcus Bezzi said.

Labor communications spokesman Stephen Conroy questioned why Telstra had been allowed to broadcast V8 Supercar races and Commonwealth Games events over the internet using streaming video feeds.

Under present laws any company that wants to broadcast in a TV-like way needs a licence. While exemptions let companies broadcast video on the internet, a new service called IPTV -- which uses the internet to carry video to TV sets -- does need a broadcast licence.

Senator Conroy said confusion about how broadcasting laws applied to the internet was stifling the development of new media services.

Communications Minister Helen Coonan said while video services over the internet should not be regulated, the definitions could blur over time. The Australian 25 may 2006.

Anti-spam Advocate Succumbs to Spammer  

So here is some disturbing news, just how powerful are the spammers out there?

A prominent crusader against unsolicited e-mail ads withdrew from an escalating cyberwar with spammers on Wednesday after his Web site and numerous others came under a massive retaliatory attack.

Blue Security, a company that provided anti-spam software and was widely praised for orchestrating a kind of do-it-yourself campaign to spam spammers, has "ceased all anti-spam operations," said Sandra Fathi, a spokeswoman for the company.

The surrender comes after the company's Web site, along with those of many of its partners, were hobbled by a denial-of-service attack earlier this month. The DoS attack, which used thousands of commandeered computers to overload the sites' servers with traffic, is believed to have originated with one Russia-based spammer, Fathi said.

The brazen show of power by the spammer is reflective of the defiant nature of these kinds of rogue advertisers. Almost as old as the Internet, unsolicited e-mail continues to swamp e-mail in-boxes and to clog servers, even as law enforcement agencies and regulatory bodies have tried to stop the practice.

ZDNet Australia >>> more

Quotes of the Day  

The report of my death was an exaggeration. Mark Twain (1835 - 1910), New York Journal, June 2, 1897

If at first you don't succeed, find out if the loser gets anything. Bill Lyon.

The greatest of faults, I should say, is to be conscious of none. Thomas Carlyle (1795 - 1881)

There is a great deal of difference between an eager man who wants to read a book and the tired man who wants a book to read. G. K. Chesterton (1874 - 1936)

Brought to you by The Quotations Page

Have any questions relating to the internet or your computer? Let me know and I will research an answer and use this for future entries in our newsletter. Pass on your questions via the Enquiry Form on our Web-Site or send me an email.

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