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Newsletter for March 25th - Codename "Attack of the Antivirus"
mouser:
Newsletter for March 25th, 2008Codename "Attack of the Antivirus"
"If you read nothing else on our site, read our BLOG"
(new rss feed with images)
1. Newsletter Editorial
March was a busy and stressful month for DonationCoder. On March 2nd the site was hacked by someone who actually tried to put a link to a virus up on our homepage. The intrusion was detected within 2 hours but we decided that we would take the opportunity to rebuild a new server from scratch with tighter security. The move took us almost a week to do, but everything is back and working smoothly now.
Ironically, soon after the server came back up, McAfee antivirus decided this would be a good time to give a *false* positive alert on some of our programs. Even though McAfee confirmed right away that it was a false alarm and that none of our programs contained a virus, it was an unpleasant coincidence. You can read more about these events in the threads below. In March we also learned the importance of a supportive community -- everyone was incredibly nice and encouraging during the troubles (see the first thread in section 3).
* Thread about the DonationCoder.com server Shutdown on March 2nd, 2008
* False Positive on Software (Generic.Dx) by McAfee Today: McAfee Response and Fix
* DC March Caption Contest Announcement: Caption this Comic Strip
* DC Get-together: Scandinavia / Denmark
* Forum section now for Company Compliments as well as complaints
2. March 2008 Discounts and Giveaway
This month's giveaway and discount is only open for a tiny window of time, so you'll have to act fast. While the DonationCoder.com website was offline for a week in March, many of us stayed in touch using the IRC chat network. So we thought it would be appropriate to bring members a discount on one of the best irc clients around: mIRC.
* mIRC - the IRC chat client - March 2008 Discounts and Shareware Giveaway
3. Your Input Requested
A warm welcome to all the members who have joined over the last six weeks. If you're a new member, or have never posted before, here are some great places to make your Donationcoder debut!
* The site is now back online (March 6th, 2008) - Come Say Hello!
* Idea: "DC Member Book X - Volume 1" - Request For Volunteers
* The lazy user's guilt?
* Has the browser become more important than the OS?
4. Software (and other) Releases by DonationCoder.com Members
Some fun new releases by members on our site in the recent weeks:
* Taskbar Displayed Only On <Win> Keypress
* DetachVideo - Give embedded videos their own window!
* Timns' ShowVolume
* DonationCoder map - Sauerbraten FPS fun
* Monkey Dash: Play test my game!
* Ninjawords plugin for FARR
5. Mini-Reviews by Members
Mini-reviews are a great resource for people researching software solutions and may be found on a dedicated Mini-Review Board. Please remember to acknowledge the efforts of the reviewers with a few donationcredits if you find their reviews interesting and/or helpful.
* MiniReview of Linkman URL Organizer and Search Tool
* MiniReview of Sebran's ABC for Children
* Wovel Non-software review
6. Living Room
The Living Room section of the forum is where we discuss general issues that don't belong anywhere else. It's always hard to select ten or so posts to highlight here because it, along with the General Software Discussion board, is very active. Here is a small sampling of the discussions that have been started since the last newsletter.
* Sleep is killing my mouse
* Bluescreens and then reboots too quickly for me to read what it says
* USB Flash Drives: What to look for or avoid?
* How They Hack Your Website: Overview of Common Techniques
* What Are Your Favorite Science Blogs?
* History of DonationCoder.com
* My Taskbar Notification Area Competition
* Find the forum post you're looking for with TWING
* Is This Site Really Down Web Service?
* Martian Headsets and the upcoming Browser War
* Creative Commons Music Sites - List Your Favorites
* XP boot-up problem
* When a Brain Scientist Suffers a Stroke
7. Fun and Leisure
Everyone needs a break from work now and then.
* Game: Traveler IQ Challenge
* Game: The Impossible Quiz
* Your Favorite TV Episode?
* Theblog Weemade: A kids artwork sharing site
* Small World: Check out these Images of the Microscopic World
* JayIsGames.com: Casual Gameplay Design Competition #5
* Cool site alert: Encyclopedia of Life (eol.org)
* Monster Cables- The World should know!
8. General Software Discussion
Once again the General Software Discussion board has seen an enormous amount of activity over the past six weeks. As noted above (see the Living Room section of the newsletter), these are just a few highlights of the new threads from the past few weeks.
* Timeline Software
* Disable Start Menu
* Version control on dual-boot system? (XP/Linux)
* Minimize any window to tray on *nix
* Check server to see if its up?
* I'm looking for a Pink Noise Generator for Windows
* Easiest replacement for windows system restore?
* Crazy helpful software recent file views (free)
* Calculate number of CD/DVD needed to burn files?
* The quiet disappearance of the top two mp3 cataloging software.
* IDEA: Mood diary/graph
* Small Apps
* Animated Drawing?
9. Specific Software Discussions
Postings made to the General Software Discussion board often relate to specific applications. Here are some highlights.
* JabRef: Nice Open Source Bibliography Tool (like EndNote)
* KMPlayer going commercial?
* Disabling Acrobat 8 IE integration?
* PhotoMesa: gratis zoomable image browser
* USBDeview - Guaranteed eject of your USB drive
* Direct Folders 3.3 Released : Now FREE for HOME use
* Good idea if you watch TV programs online: Zorro
10. Developer's Corner
The Developer's Corner section of the forum is not just for developers -- it's also where we talk about entrepreneurial issues.
* "1000 True Fans" - HOWTO Earn an artist's living in the 21st century
* Free Software Magazine Article on Community Funding of Large Software Projects
* How Do You Like to Approach Database Design?
* 7 Day Roguelike Game Coding Challenge
* Dr. Dobb's Challenge, Game Coding Competition, Win from prize pool of $10,000
* Super simple language?
* The new freeconomy (how to work on a world where free is the norm)
* books/blogs on database design?
* Could wall colour help or hinder your work?
* Wide Open License
* Questions for programmers
11. Member Site Spotlight
Nick Pearson, the artist who created DonationCoder's beloved mascot, "Cody", has created a new website documenting a mysterious book he found..
* Mysterious Codex Transportica book found - i have the website to prove it.
tomos:
thanks as ever mouser :Thmbsup:
highlight for me has to be -
11. Member Site Spotlight
Nick Pearson, the artist who created DonationCoder's beloved mascot, "Cody", has created a new website documenting a mysterious book he found..
* Mysterious Codex Transportica book found - i have the website to prove it. -mouser (March 25, 2008, 09:58 AM)
--- End quote ---
timns:
Nick's site is really interesting. Someone should hire him to design the next big-budget sci-fi spectacular...
... and I want a Go-Rilla for my very own :Thmbsup:
timns
40hz:
Way to go Nick! :Thmbsup: There can never be enough weirdness in the world. If you get a chance, scope out Abney Park http://www.abneypark.com/ They might be the people that lost that book you "found" <*grin*>
Here's a flashvid of them in action at the Steampunk Workshop site. I especially love the belly dancer with the Red Baron helmet and goggles! http://steampunkworkshop.com/index.shtml#AbneyPark Check out the rest of the site too. Very cool stuff.
zridling:
I try to keep up with the site, but I always find a lot of cool posts and links among these newsletters. Thanks for taking the time to put these together every month!
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