Learning Through Words

With the new year comes a lot of new computer threats. Sure, most people have protection against computer threats such as viruses and spyware or malware, but those who design those programs can find uncomfortably tech-saavy ways to navigate around the situation. I have two computers, a Sony Vaio All-in-One computer, and an HP Pavilion laptop.

Although I have used paid anti-virus/spyware subsciptions, they conflicted with my firewall settings to the point where I just wanted something that covered the basics, and preferably was free. So, on both my laptop and computer, I have the free versions of SuperAntiSpyware and AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition, both of which I highly recommend.

So, how did I end up getting AntiVirus Soft? When I logged onto my laptop yesterday, I had a pop-up that asked me to update the latest version of Adobe Reader. I wasn’t really paying attention and just clicked, “OK”. Big mistake. AntiVirus soft was in the download files. I’m not extremely tech-saavy, so I have decided to just avoid downloading anything telling me to update Adobe Reader until I literally can’t read PDFs anymore. In which case, I will go directly to the Adobe website and download the reader there.

Common Characteristics of AntiVirus Soft

• I was barraged with fake spyware and anti-virus scanning programs. The main thing to keep in mind about this program is that it’s fake - you don’t really have viruses and spyware that the program tells you. It just does that in an attempt to get you to buy the software, which it keeps asking you to do.
• It changed the homepage on both of my browsers (Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox), to a landing page asking me to purchase AntiVirus Soft.
• It blocked me from running my anti-spyware programs, downloading anything, opening files…you name it, the malware blocked it. However, it didn’t stop me from shutting down my computer.

How I Got Rid of AntiVirus Soft

First of all, I headed over to Google and found out that this was a brand new threat, so there wasn’t much out there on it. I found that many of the search results are from people who are blogging as affiliates about their spyware software, and so you might click on a link only to be directed to an affiliate download link. Or, they might direct you to the right anti-spyware software, but the link directs you to shareware sites. These sites can require open connections, which can allow computer hackers to upload keystroke (it records everything you type, which poses a threat for passwords).

I’m not an affiliate for any of these products I’m mentioning - I get all of my antispyware/anti-virus software from Download.com, not the shareware sites that some of these sites are promoting. It took me the entire day to find the right solution. So, I thought I would try to help those of you who have found yourself in this predicament by saving you some time.

Of course, what I did might not work for every kind of computer. The blog that I found to be the most helpful was Malware Removal Tips. There’s an ongoing discussion over there, so in addition to what I learned, you can probably get more information for your specific situation. Keep in mind, that if you’re able to use System Restore, then you can probably restore your computer back to before the AntiVirus Soft ever happened. However, my laptop is older and didn’t allow this to happen. So if that’s your problem to, please read on.

1) Restart your computer in Safe Mode with Networking. It can’t just be safe mode, because then the Internet won’t work. I’m running Windows XP on the laptop that got the AntiVirus Soft Malware, so just pressing “F8″ to restart it didn’t work. If this happens to you, you can check out directions on how to restart your computer at Bleeping Computer. Make sure that you’re logged into whatever user account (if more than one person uses the same computer) you were on at the time the AntiVirus Soft Malware first occurred.

2) Once you’re in the right mode, if you have Internet Explorer, you’re going to need to adjust the connection settings. If you don’t have Internet Explorer, then you can skip this step. By the way, I’m basing some of these directions on the Malware Removal Tips blog that I mentioned earlier.

• Open Internet Explorer and click on the upper right hand side of the browser, where it says “Tools”. You’ll probably notice that initially you don’t have any Internet.
• Select “Internet Options” and select the “Connections” tab at the top.
• Go to “LAN Settings” and uncheck the box that says “Use a Poxy Server for Your LAN”, and click “OK”.
• Refresh your browser, and you should see that you have an Internet connection again.

3) One suggestion by the Malware Removal Tips blog was to then go download HijackThis to clear various AntiVirus Soft registries. There’s the risk of deleting important registries this way, so be sure to go that blog for specific examples.

4) Various sites tell you to download various kinds of antisypware software, but I have found that Spybot Search & Destroy works the best for this.

• So, download the installer, but first, according to Malware Removal Tips, rename it winlogon.exe or iexplore.exe (I chose the winlogon one). I’m not sure why the installer needs to be renamed, but I did it anyway.
• Make sure that the Spybot Search and Destroy is fully updated, and then run a full system scan.
• Once the scan is done, make sure all the spyware/malware that has been found has a check in the corresponding checkbox, and remove each one - some of which might require the computer to restart, which you’ll have to do anyway.

5) The computer will need to be restarted in Normal Mode. If your computer doesn’t restart with the Nomal Mode Selection automatically provided when pressing “F8″, then try what I did, which is to go to Start>run>type in msconfig>and make sure “Use Original BOOT.INI” is selected. Click “OK”, and then continue to restart as usual.

6) When you’ve restarted the computer in Normal Mode (again, logged into whatever user account you were on at the time the AntiVirus Soft run Spybot again to do a full computer scan. When I did this, I caught a couple of additional Antivirus Soft malware files that were present in Normal Mode but not the Safe Mode.

7) Restart the computer again and, hopefully, your computer will be free from Antivirus Soft malware

I love having plants, but I don’t like having to remember to water them. So, when Aqua Globes™ came out on the market a couple of years ago, it was inevitable that I got a couple. I have since gotten around six of them (I purchased them in packages of two). They can be purchased in packages of four on the Aqua Globes™ official website.

Prices

The prices, like with many new products, started out being rather expensive. However, their prices are pretty reasonable now, especially if you get them at a local store to avoid shipping costs (places like Bed Bath & Beyond and Target usually have them).To find out who has the best prices, I suggest first checking the official websites of your local stores, since sometimes they can let you know if they have them in stock at your local store. Regardless, if you do a mock checkout process (meaning you add the Aqua Globes™ to your shopping cart and update the cart without putting in any pay information or shipping information, the tax is usually added in to let you know how much you’d be paying at that particular store. Go to each store website and do the same process, writing down your results as you go.

If none of your local stores sell Aqua Globes™ then it’s time to check out what’s available online. In addition to their official website, there are also places like Amazon and eBay that sometimes sell them. However, be aware that lots of different vendors sell them on those sites, so the prices will vary even more. You might think that a package of Aqua Globes™ selling for only a couple of dollars is a good value, but make sure that you take the shipping amount into consideration too, since that can really heighten the overall price.

Functionality

At first, I was confused as to how to get the water into the globe. A regular stream of faucet water didn’t do it. Instead, only the smallest stream (like the stream right before the faucet is turned off completely, works for me. The instructions told me to put a hole in the soil of your houseplant’s pot with a pencil or something of that nature, but I found that doing the pre-made hole thing resulted in the globe tipping over the pot. Instead, I pressed it into the pot, so that the soil would give it more support. I notice now from watching the video that they have at the Aqua Globes™ official website that they suggest pressing the globe into the pot as well. They are also offering a smaller version of the globe now for small potted plants. However, I still prefer using my larger globes and just leaning the globe ever so gently against the window, since I keep my plants on windowsills.

Speaking of being gentle, for being blown glass Aqua Globes™ are strong, but still, their spouts can be broken if they are jammed into the soil or something like that. One thing that infomercials on these globes talk about is how plants will flourish, which is true. I have a couple of plants that have tripled their size since using these globes. However, I have yet to see any of my globes last more than a week without being refilled.

You might notice that when you take the globe out of the pot there will be soil obstructing the spout part. A suggestion would be to take a toothpick and just loosen the dirt until it falls out. Another thing to keep on the lookout for is algae, since that can have a tendency to grow on the inside of the globe. For that, I suggest gently pouring some baking soda into a dry Aqua Globes™ via a funnel and letting it sit for a little while before washing it out with hot water.

Pros:

• Attractive design
• No windowsill moisture stains from over watering
• Plants thrive via this watering method
• Price is affordable

Cons:

• Only last a week at most for many kinds of plants
• Algae can grow inside them
• Can be messy to clean dirt and algae out of

Bottom line, as long as you remember to check your globes every few days and refill as necessary, yes, Aqua Globes™ really work.

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, so via MLK Online, I thought I would share some of my favorite Martin Luther King, Jr. quotes. Let’s honor his memory by keeping his words alive:

• “A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.”

- Martin Luther King, Jr., Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?, 1967.

• “Nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time: the need for man to overcome oppression and violence without resorting to oppression and violence. Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.”

- Martin Luther King, Jr., Nobel Prize acceptance speech, Stockholm, Sweden, December 11, 1964.

• “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction….The chain reaction of evil–hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars–must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation.”

- Martin Luther King, Jr., Strength To Love, 1963.

• “We must combine the toughness of the serpent and the softness of the dove, a tough mind and a tender heart.”

- Martin Luther King, Jr., Strength to Love, 1963.

• “Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice. Justice at its best is love correcting everything that stands against love.”

- Martin Luther King, Jr., Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?, 1967.

It’s a new year (and a new decade!) and something that a lot of high school seniors are thinking about is college. Actually, anyone interested in continuing their education and getting a degree could be thinking about it. However, college applications for undergraduates are due soon, and I thought I would talk about the college I graduated from a couple of years ago, Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. For historical information on the college, you can check out an article I wrote for Suite101: The Uniqueness of Emerson College. Emerson’s website also has an historical outline.

One thing about Emerson is that it’s been in continuously changing. When I started there, the Tufte Performance and Production Center had just been opened. Emerson maintained two dorms and a Student Union on Beacon Street, as well as a dorm/convenience store/diner on Marlborough Street. Then, ground was broken on Boylston Street for a new dorm, the Piano Row Building. That building was completed and opened the last year I was there, and the Beacon Street buildings were sold. The college bookstore was also relocated from inside 80 Boylston Street to its own separate place further down Boylston, where it became one of the Barnes & Noble college bookstores. In the years since I graduated, the Paramount Center and the Colonial Building have also been added. You can take a virtual tour of Emerson’s current buildings here.

Past Emerson

Although these places aren’t owned by Emerson anymore, they were a significant part of my time there, and I think they’ve influenced Emerson’s relocation to almost entirely Tremont and Boylston Streets.

• 132/34 Beacon Street: I actually only went into the lobby there to help post a flyer for something. This dorm was the farthest away from the main academic buildings, and it was separated from 100 Beacon by Fisher College buildings and residential brownstone apartments. What struck me the most about this building was the fact that it looked like it was stuck in time - namely the 1920’s and 1930’s. Only a small amount of people lived there.  Some people who had lived in this dorm often talked about the old elevator, which was often not working, but was fascinating because of its age.
• 100 Beacon Street: I lived in this dorm my freshman year at Emerson. It was very much like living in little apartment areas, since each floor was typically split in half and each side had their own common room. Also, there were beautiful views of the Charles River and the Esplanade. I remember there being a Third Eye Blind concert at the Esplanade once, and I could see the entire thing from my desk while writing a paper. However, it was an old brownstone that was showing its age, complete with mold and mice. It has since been renovated into multimillion dollar condos.
• 6 Arlington Street/0 Marlborough Street: This dorm/c-store/diner building was located on a corner, hence the strange address. I never actually saw what the dorms looked like, but I used to go to the c-store (convenience store) and the diner a lot when I lived at 100 Beacon Street as a freshman. It was fun to stop in there for a snack, and then just a short distance away to Boston’s famous Newbury Street.
• 96 Beacon Street/Student Union Building: I actually only went in there a couple of times for the housing selection process and when there were spontaneous fire drills at 100 Beacon, but oh, it was lovely. It was like being transported back to the Victorian era, with a sweeping staircase and large rooms.

Present Emerson

Some of the newer buildings I really have no familiarity with, but I do know something about these:

• The Piano Row Building: This building opened at the beginning of my senior year. Some friends and I took a quick tour, but much of it was still in-progress. The design itself is, I must admit, rather different. While walking around the place, I thought to myself how it looked like a maze of staircases. However, that was just one visit. I didn’t have any need to go there for the rest of my time at Emerson, but I did like how walls of windows were incorporated into the design.
• The Little Building: It’s still there, and no doubt it’s seen some changes since I graduated, but it’s a classic. I lived there for two years in a “triple”, or room with two other people. It was a spacious room, so we didn’t actually feel crowded. Each floor is different. This might have changed, but while I was there, some floors were themed for certain groups, such as the Freshman floor. The rooms at the front of the building have really nice views of the Boston Common. Rooms elsewhere, however, can have views as basic as a brick wall, or a glimpse of Tremont Street. Before the west side of campus was sold to make room for the Piano Row Building, the “LB” was considered the most convenient place to live, since it was right near the academic buildings. It also has a c-store or convenient store, a performance area known as The Cabaret, and a dining hall. The main lobby has access to a printing shop and Dunkin’ Donuts, which I loved. Starbucks fans only have to go right across the street.
• 120 Boylston/The Walker Building: I had most of my classes in this building, which is where the library is. It’s a combination of lecture classrooms (which kind of remind me of movie theaters the way the seats look) and smaller classrooms. There is also, on the 5th floor, a hallway that leads into the Tufte Performance and Production Center.
• 10 Boylston Place/Tufte Performance and Production Center: Also known as the “Tufte”, or the “PPC”, I had my theater history classes in this building. It’s home to two theaters, production studios, and a costume workshop, among other things. It’s another one of those buildings with a very modern design.
• 180 Tremont/Ansin Building: I had some classes in this building, some large, others small. This building is most known for being the base of WERS, Emerson’s famous radio station.
• 216 Tremont: I had two classes in this building, one of which was in a classroom that had a view of Emerson’s majestic theater. The Bill Bordy Theater and Auditorium, located on the ground floor, hosts various talks and programs. It was one of the first places I visited on campus as part of freshman orientation week.
• 114 Boylston Street/College Bookstore: Originally, Emerson’s bookstore was located in the lobby of the Little Building. It moved down the street shortly before I graduated. It’s an improvement over the old one in terms of the Emerson merchandise offered, and, of course, the variety of books.

So, there you have it, my own musings about what Emerson College was, and is. I kind of wish that Emerson retained property on Beacon Street, since that was part of its charm for me - a small communications college, complete with brownstone buildings. However, with the changing times comes the need for commercial appeal. Emerson’s buildings might come and go, but I will always have my college memories

I think having a random person in the background of a photo (whether you know the person or not) is something we’ve all experienced. It’s kind of ironic that I came across Random Creepy Guy, because I had just been talking to someone about how I was once in a theater production and this random girl showed up in the majority of the pics I took at the cast party. She posed in the background of the pictures like she knew us, which I must say, made the pictures all the more memorable.

Which brings me to the topic of Random Creepy Guy. This is a site that’s set up kind of like a blog, with a couple of entries each day in which a random creepy guy or girl shows up in a photo. There’s a submission form that you can fill out if you want to submit a photo. Sure, there are some photos that are funnier than others, but regardless, if you’re on a break from work, or just looking for something to do, check out this website for some laughs

Although the new Girls Next Door (which I shall refer to as GND from now on) has just wrapped up its season with the Shannon Twins and Crystal Harris, I decided to talk about the role of GND overall in the media. This isn’t going to be about bashing anyone, as so many blogs and message boards have done. It’s going to be about the commercial appeal of the Girls Next Door as a brand, and what I think each girl brings to the Playboy brand in terms of marketability.

The thing to remember is that Playboy was started in the early ’50s  as a magazine that portrayed photos of “Girls Next Door”, wholesome, natural women. It also included articles about male etiquette, and short stories by some of the most prominent authors of the time. Now it still has those elements, but has more enhanced women and other forms of media, the topic of which is obvious.

I don’t read Playboy, as I’m a straight female (although I guess some straight women do read it with hopes of becoming a Playmate or something). However, I watch GND, but more as a comedy show than anything else. Well, it used to be that, anyway. The original girls had such varied personalities, it made it fun to watch their travels and their experiences. I also watch the spinoff shows that they’ve all gotten and they’re all enjoyable to watch. So, in my opinion, here’s what the original girls bring to the table:

• Holly Madison: Looks like a Disney Princess/Barbie Doll, always has fun ideas. Attracts demographics that love old-fashioned blonde bombshell style and/or quirky comediennes.
• Bridget Marquardt: Smart, bubbly personality, organized, great party planner. Girls love her themed party ideas, while she attracts guys who like looks and brains.
• Kendra Wilkinson/Baskett: Really funny, tomboy. The girls love her random funniness and honesty, while guys are attracted to her athletic skills.

People especially liked the original girls because they knew how to seamlessly blend real life with reality television (which is, in most cases, two different things). They were honest and had no trouble answering interview questions. Plus, they were all so different that it was interesting how these three lived in the same mansion with the same guy. All three have had spinoff shows that are true to their personalities, with their respective demographics following them for popular ratings. The key with reality show stars is that no matter how different their circumstances, they have to be relatable to their audience. Holly, Bridget, and Kendra whether all together or apart, are.

The new girls were greeted with a season premiere that garnered high viewer ratings. This was probably out of curiosity after the departure of the original three. How would these girls compare to the old ones? I have seen a lot of discussion about the lack of personality that these girls have. People seem to forget that these girls, unlike the original three, had less media experience. They walked into the mansion, and walked into a reality show, whereas the original three had been around for a while before the show was started, and kind of got used to the press and whatnot. Here’s what these girls bring to the table:

• Crystal Harris: She’s a former college student, shy. Her shyness, I think, is something that endears her to some audiences, while others misunderstand it.
• The Shannon Twins: Their reputation as “America’s Party Girls”  make them identifiable to their generation demographics, in addition to those who are fans of identical twins. I must admit, it’d be more interesting if they had completely different personalities from each other. However, that route’s been taken before with twins, so instead I think their marketability has been centered around being so completely alike.

I think that the overall point of the show is that these girls aren’t your typical “Girls Next Door”, a la the reference to the early features in Playboy, yet they still are in some ways. The trend I see in this current GND is that the predictable is trying to become the marketable. Will it work? It just might with time.

I recently saw a documentary that really intrigued me. Zana Briski, a photographer, has chronicled the lives of prostitutes in the Red Light District of Calcutta with her art. Despite coming from an entirely different background, she identified with them and lived among them to photograph their daily lives. During this time, she also befriended their children, and began teaching them photography. This is where Born Into Brothels really begins.

The photography of these children was so incredibly telling. Each child was given a camera to take pictures of whatever they wanted to. Self portraits, street people, and textures were among some of the subjects. Despite their, shall we say, less than hygienic living quarters, the children all look clean and are actually in nice outfits most of the time. Some children were from lower castes, or social groups, while one family was of the Bhramin caste, and the mother was still a prostitute. Why? The movie doesn’t elaborate.

The bright colors of their clothes matched their personalities, because these children were, against all odds, hopeful for the future. However, when it came to the girls, most of them were expected to “join the line” soon. This refers to the line of prostitutes that stands around the Red Light District in Calcutta each night. One girl was asked if she saw any alternative to becoming a prostitute, and she simply answered, “No.” She did whatever her family told her to do. To this girl, prostitution as a career was something she had to accept. I should mention that there are both boys and girls profiled in this documentary. While the girls faced a future of prostitution, the boys faced one of alcoholism, drug addiction, and gambling.

The children would laugh and play, but there were completely aware of their circumstances. Their wisdom was quite astonishing to me, and it made me shed a tear at times. Zana Briski decided to do her best to get these children into boarding schools, where they would have opportunities to become educated and to have careers. The ending is one that I won’t reveal here, but suffice to say, it is poignant. This film won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2004, and it is completely deserving of that prize. This is a documentary that will make you think, and hopefully inspire you to make a difference in the lives of children who are less fortunate.

Be sure to check out the Kids with Cameras website to learn more about the film and how its mission continues.

Earlier this week, I was invited to a webinar that introduced LeapFish to the media. LeapFish is a new search engine that, although launched in November of 2008, recently came out of beta on November 5, 2009. The speaker, Mark Kithcart, did a great walkthrough that showed exactly what this search engine is all about. Now, you might be thinking, “What, another search engine? I don’t need to use it, I already have Google.” That’s certainly what I was thinking as well, until Mark stated that this search engine was not trying to compete with Google. Rather, it was implementing Google into its search results.

However, what LeapFish does differently is pull together searching and sharing. Sure, places like iGoogle allow for things like that, but absolutely everything on the LeapFish site can be shared. I don’t know about you, but I often see pages that I like to share with people. It’s all about grabbing the link, heading over to wherever I want to share it, logging in if I haven’t already, and including a brief note with the link.

Well, that works, but what if I’m in the middle of writing an article with a deadline, or I just went on the computer for a second before heading outside? In such situations, time is of the essence. I would want to be able to share whatever I like on Facebook or Twitter all on one page, and LeapFish does that.

During the seminar, Mark said that the goal of Leapfish was to “Remove the divide between the traditional web and the social web”.  Here are some screenshots I took during the seminar to give you a better idea what he means:

Perhaps one of the main things that I like about LeapFish is that you can make a profile that can be shared with others. So, if Jane XYZ wants a LeapFish profile, people could find her at an address such as LeapFish.com/JaneXYZ.  The best thing about it is that you can include your own website links in your LeapFish profile, which creates helpful backlinks. If you like a particular news article, you can “like” it, and it gets added to a list of recommended sites. Bottom line: LeapFish is definitely an innovate website that has the potential to appeal to anyone.

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I usually don’t go to the movies, nevermind on a movie’s opening day, but I knew I had to see This Is It. I have always been a fan of Michael Jackson’s - not just for his music, but also because of his kind personality. Despite FALSE charges being brought up against him (I mean, come on people, this is a man who had professional hospital beds installed in his home movie theater so that terminally ill children could still be able to watch the movies and plays shown there) he was always an idealist. However, yes,  we all know that Michael abused his body with all of the plastic surgery, and he appears very, very thin in the movie.

Part of me wanted to see this movie to see if Michael Jackson still had the “it” that had made him a star. The other part wanted to see if this would be the circus that his funeral was. I really wanted to see if this could possibly be “the” film that shows Michael as the brilliant entertainer and truly inspirational man he was. Folks, this movie is the perfect tribute to Michael Jackson.

“This Is It” would have clearly been the most innovative concert of all time. The movie shows some of the backdrop films that would have been used in the actual concert, as well as some of the songs (all of the classics are there), choreography, and special effects. I was watching the rehearsals in awe  I could only imagine how amazing the concert itself would have been.

Something that really annoys me about entertainers who both sing and dance is that many of them lip sync. Not all of them do, of course, but still, if you can’t sing and dance at the same time, I think you should choose one of the other. Michael definitely wasn’t lip syncing in any of his rehearsals, and I’m sure he wouldn’t have during the actual concerts - a mark of a true professional. In fact, he was in excellent form, singing and dancing, in my opinion, better than ever. That all adds to the tragedy of his untimely death. I loved watching him correct little foibles in the sound and presentation along the way - he did it gently, but sternly getting his point across, in a way that wouldn’t offend anyone. This was a man who knew what it was to craft musical perfection.

This movie isn’t maudlin, but it’s heart-wrenching. From the opening sequence of the movie, right to the ending, I was really emotional. In fact, it was all I could do to stop myself from full out crying during the ending - it was so poignant. This movie isn’t at all rooted in sensationalism. This movie is about the man - a man who loved the world and the people in it more than anyone ever knew. Director Kenny Ortega made this film with the one thing that Michael valued above all else: Love.