Keefer Madness

HTTPS Everywhere 3.0 Secures the Web for Firefox, Chrome Users

// October 21st, 2012 // No Comments » // Internet / Web

I’ve been meaning to post this for a couple weeks. Just now getting around to it though. I read about this the day the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) released their third version. If you use Chrome and Firefox, you should use this, securing a lot more of the web by forcing the HTTPS protocal. Since installing it a few weeks ago, I’ve seen no hiccups, nor performance issues. I just feel a little bit more secure thanks to the EFF’s little web browser utility.

HTTPS Everywhere 3.0 Secures the Web for Firefox, Chrome Users

How Your Passwords Are Stored on the Internet (and When Your Password Strength Doesn’t Matter)

// June 20th, 2012 // 1 Comment » // Internet / Web

I tweeted this earlier, but I’m a big fan of strong (and different) passwords for all things computer related. I felt it was worthy of posting to Keefer Madness on top of the earlier tweet.

Lifehacker did a wonderful job breaking down the different ways passwords are stored. The best part of the article though are the ways to prevent, or at least minimize your risk.

How Your Passwords Are Stored on the Internet (and When Your Password Strength Doesn’t Matter)

18 Helpful Tools For Better Gmail Experience

// December 16th, 2011 // No Comments » // Computers, Internet / Web

I’m a Gmail fanatic, and have been using Gmail for over a decade now, seeing it constantly tweaked and improved. We’re now using it for work as well.

I’ve been meaning to pour over this list, as well as post it for over a week now:

18 Helpful Tools For Better Gmail Experience

Adding a Little Civility to the Internet

// June 16th, 2011 // No Comments » // Internet / Web

Apologies for another cross-posting and bit of self promotion, but I wanted to share another blog post I wrote for the Centerline Digital blog. This one deals with a pet peeve I’ve had with the online communities since I first started using Usenet groups and bulletin board systems way back when.

I wrote a bit on this back in the earliest of days of Keefer Madness (Argg! & There are a Lot of Jerks on the Internet more recently), but have expanded on the topic in this latest Centerline blog entry. Over the past year or so, more sites have found ways to combat the etiquette problems of the Internet and have been able to redirect it into a more positive direction.

Adding a Little Civility to the Internet

Down For Everyone or Just Me?

// June 3rd, 2011 // No Comments » // Internet / Web

I don’t remember where I first heard about this site, but it’s come in handy a couple times. It is an easy way to confirm whether a problem accessing a given web site is a problem with your ISP or an issue with the web site. I just wish it worked for Internet services as well—such as Netflix streaming (rather than netflix.com), iTunes Store, etc.

Down For Everyone or Just Me?

Mozy Raising Online Backup Prices, Eliminating Unlimited Plan

// February 2nd, 2011 // 5 Comments » // Computers, Internet / Web, Software

Mozy’s been our offsite backup of choice — cheap at $5 a month. But this is just lame. I read about this on Lifehacker. It was nice of them to email customers for a heads up.

mozy.com/home/newplans

Plans are as follows:

$5.99/mo – 50 GB (1 computer)
$9.99/mo – 125GB (up to 3 computers)

An additional 20GB of storage is $2.00/mo.

We’ve currently got about 140GB backed up on there, meaning we’re looking at going from $5 a month, to about $12 a month.

Might be a good catalyst to go through iPhoto and get rid of a lot of unneeded/crappy photos. It might also be time to be more selective about what we’re actually backing up offsite. We’ll see how much we can cull. If that doesn’t get us enough, might be time to look for a new offsite backup solution. Thoughts?

Verizon Picks Triangle for 4G Launch

// January 6th, 2011 // No Comments » // Local (Raleigh Durham), Tech

With so many high tech companies in the Triangle here in North Carolina, it’s not really surprising that Verizon picked our area to launch their 4G service here in 2011. It’s their successor to the fairly prevalent 3G networks all the newest smart phones utilize. Speeds are reported to be in the range of 5 and 12 megabits per second down, and 2 to 5 Mbps up. Sprint and Clearwire have already released their fourth generation network versions in Central North Carolina.

Now if some providers of home Internet would pick this area so there would be some competition for Time Warner and Verizon’s Cable Internet and DSL respectively.

Verizon Picks Triangle for 4G Launch

www.HelpaBikeShop.com Connects Shops, Customers

// February 10th, 2010 // No Comments » // Cycling, Internet / Web

Here’s a pretty interesting concept to help connect cyclists and bike shops, though most cyclists I know, unless they’re brand new to the area, already have allegiance to a local bike shop.

www.HelpaBikeShop.com Connects Shops, Customers

How Bandwidth Caps Hurt Your Computer & What Apple Can Do About It

// June 29th, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Apple, Computers, Internet / Web

The article linked below is actually titled, “How Bandwidth Caps Hurt Your Mac & What Apple Can Do About It,” but I don’t see how this isn’t as much of a threat to any computer user, regardless of computer brand or operating system. Bandwidth caps, especially really really low caps that some of these Internet Service Providers are forcing and enforcing (3GB/month?!?!? I’ve got thumb drives that filling them up would hit that cap!)

I am not in that industry whatsover, so I don’t know what real costs are involved in delivering bandwidth to the end user once the network is up and running, but from the outside, it really seems to be price gouging and cable companies protecting their own content, rather than trying to recoup costs of maintenance and delivery of bandwidth to users. In this day and age of 720p and 1080p streaming, video podcasts, high resolution photo sharing, video conferencing, VOIP and hundreds of other applications and data streams, such low (or really any) caps on your broadband connections seem ludicrous and bordering on price gouging.

I do understand the author saying Apple should be at the forefront of battling these caps, but in no way, shape or form, think cause you’re on a Dell, that this isn’t just as much of an issue.

How Bandwidth Caps Hurt Your Mac & What Apple Can Do About It

Keefer Madness is Back Fully After Word Press 2.8 Hiccup

// June 15th, 2009 // No Comments » // Internet / Web, Keefer Madness, Personal Crap

So like my friend, John I too tried the upgrade to 2.8 and had an incomplete/successful install of WordPress 2.8 today. I should have learned from his hardship with the new version.

All day today, I was unable to get into the admin tool, and all of the plugins sat disabled, giving me a glimpse of how important those plugins are for rounding out the display of the site, but more importantly, filtering out all the comment spam.

Anyway, for about 12 hours today, this site was limping along, but it’s now back to full strength, with its plugins all working fine with 2.8. It took my web host intervening to get me back up and running. He found a solution on a forum, overwriting some files with new versions for 2.8. Anyway, upgrade is working fine.. now.