This article is from the April 2004 issue of Update.
I think my PC has been 'infected' by an annoying bug. It has taken over my internet settings, and has stolen my default home page, so that I automatically get taken to a rubbishy shopping-type home page, and all my attempts to reset the default come to nothing next time I log on. Is there an easy remedy?
I suspect that this might have been caused by downloading some software that had hi-jack software contained within it. The first thing that I'd do is see if you can recall what you've downloaded in the recent past. Then go to Google Groups and run a search, and see if other people have reported the same thing, and they may have suggestions for getting rid of it. Alternatively, do a search on the name of the page that your browser is now defaulting to in order to see if anyone else has reported the same thing. It's also worth getting a copy of Ad Aware (free) from LavaSoft (www.lavasoftusa.com/) and running that. It should tell you if you've got spyware and so on installed and should help you get rid of it; it's very simple to use and doesn't require any technical know-how. Alternatively, try Spybot (www.safer-networking.org/).
I have been set an assignment to create a website in HTML. The criteria specify that we have to test the website on different systems and using different browsers. Do you know of a website that tests websites under different conditions?
It's always important to check to see if your pages work correctly under different conditions, since you want to make the browsing experience as easy as possible for your visitors. Fortunately, there are a few utilities you could try:
www.delorie.com/web/wpbcv.html
watson.addy.com/
www2.imagiware.com/RxHTML/
http://validator.w3.org/
www.anybrowser.com/
http://hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/reference/
browser_chart/
www.netmechanic.com/browser-photo/tutorial.htm
Could you recommend any websites that list new and useful information?
Well, there are literally hundreds of these, and some of the ones that I use on a regular basis are: Librarians' Index to the Internet (http://lii.org/search/ntw), Neat New Stuff on the Internet (http://marylaine.com/neatnew.html), USAToday (www.usatoday.com/tech/webguide/front.htm) and Et Cetera (www.libraryweblog.com/).
Site of the month
My website of the month is FURL (www.furl.net) - your online filing cabinet for useful webpages. It's a lovely (and free!) utility that allows you to store useful webpages on their server, allowing you to search the pages that you've saved at some future time. It's excellent if, like me, you remember a useful titbit but can't remember the URL - 'Favourites' are only good for listing the URLs, not the content of the pages. You can share your FURLed pages with others, and see what other people find useful. By the way, my site of the month last time around, Mixmaster (www.topfx.com), seems to have died I'm afraid to say. I've been unable to find out why, so I think we'll have to consign that one to the bit bucket.
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Phil Bradley is an internet consultant, trainer, web designer and author. Visit www.philb.com for free information on internet introductions, search engine articles, web design tips and a host of other free information. Recently published: Getting and Staying Noticed on the Web. New: visit Phil's Weblog (www.philb.com/blog/blogger.html)! If you have any questions about the internet send an email to philb@philb.com with the subject header 'column query'.