No doubt you’ve heard about this “new vulnerability” that can “bring the Internet down”. The real scoop is in US-CERT’s TA04-111A. Well, first, it’s not a new vulnerability, it’s an exploit of an old one that was published back in 2001. Next, the chances of any of the major hubs NOT addressing this issue is almost nil.

So, what’s the deal? I dunno, a slow newsday and the hounds were looking for anything that’d move product, I guess. I’m not saying it’s an inconsequential flaw, just that it doesn’t foretell the end of the world or anything like that.

NetStumbler has been sitting at V0.33 for, like, a year and a half. Well, 0.4 is out along with a new MiniStumbler for WinCE/PocketPC. See the NetStumbler README and MiniStumbler README for details.

The Dropload.com site says:

“Dropload is a place for you to drop your files off and have them picked up by someone else at a later time. Recipients you specify are sent an email with instructions on how to download the file. Files are removed from the system after 48 hours, regardless if they have been picked up or not. Recipients can be anyone with an email address.”

Pretty neat. 50M filesize limitation and, of course, you shouldn’t use it for illicit purposes.

If you’re at all tuned in to tech news you know that Microsoft released 3 critical and a 4th important patch to XP last Tuesday. Here’s a quick description of the areas of each of the fixes from eWeek. Embedded in the story are links to the bulletins from Microsoft as well as a more detailed description and analysis of the issues.

PlanMaker from SoftMaker is in beta now. It’s a spreadsheet that’s compatible with Microsoft’s Excel and is available on Windows, Pocket PC, Handheld PC and Linux. Free for now.

Internet Explorer has a default of 4 maximum simultaneous connections. That’s just way too low.

Microsoft’s KnowledgeBase article on this (183110) tells you how to change this. Modify the following two keys in HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet&nbspSettings: MaxConnectionsPerServer and MaxConnectionsPer1_0Server.

PC Magazine has this mini-review of the Philips KEY019 Key Ring Camcorder. It’s got 128MB onboard and it’s a camcorder, a 2MP digital camera and an MP3 player. It’s pricey at $249 but if you’re a gadget freak you’ve gotta have it.

OSVBD.org is a free and independent repository for detailed information about security exposures and vulnerabilities.

From the “About Us” page:

OSVDB is an independent and open source database created by and for the security community. The goal of the project is to provide accurate, detailed, current, and unbiased technical information on security vulnerabilities. The project will promote greater, more open collaboration between companies and individuals, eliminate redundant works, and reduce expenses inherent with the development and maintenance of in-house vulnerability databases.

BBC News reports in this story. Here’s an excerpt:

Einstein proposed in 1916 that space and time form a structure that can be curved by the presence of a body.

Gravity Probe B will test how space and time are warped by the presence of the Earth, and how the Earth’s rotation twists and drags space-time around with it.

I found out about this site from Leo Laporte’s Weblog. It “maps” the news, grouping it by area (Tech, Business, World, Health, etc) and color codes each story section by age. You can click on any headline and get the full story.