Beautiful Firefox form widgets!
Posted on September 29, 2004
Filed Under Macintosh | Leave a Comment
As much as I love using Firefox on the PC, I had been holding out making it the default browser on my Macs. The main reason? Form widgets. By default, the form widgets (check boxes, radio buttons, text fields, etc.) look too ugly for words in Mozilla browsers on the Mac. No matter the theme, the forms are still blech. I know I remember reading the technical reason somewhere as to why forms look so horrid on the Mac compared to the PC, but I can’t recall now. All I know is that a page with a form field made Firefox look clunky, amateur and somehow “unfinished.” Like a website put together in Microsoft FrontPage.
Apparently, I’m not the only one who was bothered by the fugly forms. Even better, there are folks doing something about it.
For the record, I went with Kevin Gerich’s approach even though it meant altering files within Firefox itself (rather than the userContent.css file). It works. Bugs are minimal. It looks good. Me happy. 
But wait, there’s more: That’s the great thing about something like Firefox. If someone does something good, someone else will pick up on it and make it better. And then someone else will make a script or extension that makes it easy. Philippe Wittenbergh has made the widgets look gorgeous, and here’s “Firefoxy,” a simple drag-n-drop script to apply them to Firefox without having to manually dig in and move files around. Thanks, guys.
For those that don’t know what I’m talking about, here’s a screen shot I found on the web which shows the way forms look in Firefox by default:
And here’s what the same form elements look like with the new widgets:
Big difference, huh?
.Mac improvements still not good enough
Posted on September 29, 2004
Filed Under Macintosh | 2 Comments
I signed up for “.Mac”:http://www.mac.com shortly after the revamped service replaced eTools over 2 years ago. It wasn’t cheap even with the charter discount, but I thought it would evolve into something worth having and holding on to. I loved the promise of tight integration between .Mac and the OS. I am not in love with what turned out to be the reality.
Two years later, and my subscription is set to expire in 14 days. I renewed last year with some hesitation. I don’t use the email address, My iChat ID comes from an AIM account I’ve had forever, I have my own hosted email and web space. I tried every .Mac feature at one time or another but eventually phased them all out. Good ideas, one and all, but buggy and slow execution.
So now .Mac “has increased the web storage to 250MB from 100MB and added some other enhancements.”:http://www.mac.com/1/mailnewfeatures.html Tempting, but unless there’s a patch for Panther that makes iDisk usable and reliable, I think I’m going to let the clock run down.
There’s more to the conversation than security
Posted on September 28, 2004
Filed Under Uncategorized | 5 Comments
John Gruber of Daring Fireball has an entry that is similar in tone to the one I posted here a few days ago, about the relentless attack of Windows spyware, malware, viruses and other nasties.
New Windows updates, new anti-virus software, new ad-blocking software — regular people are starting to realize that the cycle never ends, that they are never going to successfully secure Windows, and that the easiest and best solution to the Windows security problem is not to use Windows at all.
I was right with him until the last point. Using that logic, no one would live in New York City. You can’t sleep in your apartment with your door unlocked like you can in other cities. You have to not only lock your car, you have to use a device called “The Club” to protect it further (and even with The Club our car was stolen when we lived in NYC). You are warned to not look people in the eye when walking down the street. Security and the higher-than-the-national-average crime rate are a huge concern for New Yorkers. And that was before September 11, 2001. So the easiest and best solution is not to live there, right?
But… the museums! The shopping! The culture! Broadway! Wall Street! Central Park Zoo! The shopping! The lights of Times Square! The shopping! Being able to get a snack at 4 am and the streets are crowded! If you are a New Yorker, (or have been or want to be) you can immediately list 100+ reasons why it’s worth it to live in New York City even if you have to take more steps to insure your personal safety than if you lived anywhere else. A New Yorker would argue that it’s worth it, for all you get in return.
Many Windows users who will not consider switching platforms likely feel the same way. Yes, you have to be vigilant. For security, the Mac is an easy, carefree ride. But if you need to exchange files with other folks, if you want a large selection of software, if you want a better chance of getting your tech support question answered on the first try…then the whole switch thing goes out the window. The reality is that as annoying and maddening as the security dance on Windows is (and I just upgraded to Symantec Internet Security 2005 this morning…just about the same price as renewing my subscription), I don’t think it’s reason enough to convince someone to give up Windows. It’s an easy out…it’s not the only factor to consider. And I’d counter that someone who switches for that reason alone, without really considering the strengths and consequences, is going to be unhappy with their decision in the long run and won’t do the Mac platform any good (particularly if they’re a blogger).
My point here isn’t to say that Windows is better than Mac. It never is. I’m typing this on my Mac right now because ecto is a better blogging tool. But the Mac die-hard’s argument of “the only thing you should think about is not thinking about security, so dump Windows” is wearing thin. Even when it’s from a very respected source.
Quicken 2005 Mac vs. PC version
Posted on September 26, 2004
Filed Under Uncategorized | 22 Comments
In short, when using Intuit Quicken 2005 Deluxe for Windows next to Quicken 2005 for Macintosh, you have to wonder why Intuit bothered with the Mac version. Intuit has waffled on Mac support in the past, and after using versions of the same software on both platforms I can see why Mac users for the most part hate Intuit and their software, and judging by the difference in the software for which Mac users pay $10 more I imagine the feeling is mutual.
You can see the pecking order right from the start when you visit the Intuit site:
Squint real hard and you may be able to make out the little Mac box there in the back.
I use Intuit products on both platforms by necessity. In a perfect world, I’d using something else but I like 100% compatibility with others. Same reason I use Word. I manage Mom at Home Design using QuickBooks Pro for Windows. I already explained my decision process for choosing this package, and I’m not sorry. Aside from the constant ads and nagging to “upgrade” to expensive services I don’t want or need, it’s not bad. In a few months I’ll be working with a CPA to make sure my books are in order before the close of my fiscal year and had I been using the Mac version (or another software package) this would be a much more painful process than it needed to be. My CPA uses QuickBooks for Windows, I use QuickBooks for Windows. All are happy.
For our home finances, I’m using Quicken 2005 for Mac. Eric and I exchange data and he has a PowerBook. I thought maybe it was just me, but could the interface be any less usable? Windows, windows everywhere. And managing categories is a nightmare. Quicken 2005 for Mac also has more than its share of bugs…like if you search for something in a register, and you get to the end and it says “Do you want to continue searching?” and you click “No” then Quicken says “Ha ha on you, stupid Mac user, I’m going to waste your time by searching through every single register in this file with absolutely no way of stopping the process or using Quicken for anything else until I’m done. So there!” I learned the very hard way that when I’m done searching, I better hit the “close” button to get rid of the search box instead. Now mind you, I only use Quicken to handle our banking accounts, credit cards, loans and budgets. I don’t use it for investment or long term planning.
Go shopping on the Intuit site and you’ll see a “View Demo” button next to the Windows versions of Quicken, but no chance to preview the Mac version. Good reason. Only good thing about the Mac version is that you are not bombarded with Services ads and come-ons.
So why am I comparing it with the Windows version? I am keeping the books for the school PFO and since everyone on the Board is a Windows user, I got the $50 Quicken 2005 Deluxe to keep all the data. That way it will be easier to pass the data along to the next Treasurer/Bookkeeper. Except for the aforementioned @#$@%^ ads, the user experience is night and day. Quicken for Windows keeps everything in a single, concise window that is clear to follow. Picking and organizing categories is a breeze. Setting out and printing budgets a no-brainer.
Mac users deserve better. Intuit, either make your products feature-for-feature comparable or stop stealing from us once and for all.
Note: The instructions for converting data from the Mac version to the Windows version are on the Intuit website here.
bk_keywords:Quicken
Truly evil spyware
Posted on September 25, 2004
Filed Under Uncategorized | 6 Comments
As a Macintosh user for most of my adult life (well, it feels that way) I kept hearing about viruses, spyware and other evils that inflict Windows PCs and like many die-hard Mac users I would say “Nyah, nyah, nyah, nyah…not my problem!” I couldn’t understand why Windows users put up with it, and why the problem was so widespread. Why didn’t people just do whatever they had to do to protect their systems and take care of the problem once and for all? Why did the big evil Microsoft empire allow this to happen? If you don’t get it, you can’t spread it.
Well, it’s now been about 9 months since I became a PC’er as well as a Mac’er and I can truly see the grass from both sides of the fence. The Mac folks are right when they say people who uses PCs get what they deserve. I am amazed at how many people don’t take the relatively easy steps necessary towards safer computer use. How many people fall for the “click here to log in and authorize your account” scheme, or how many people continue to use the default IE install even though it’s pop-up city, how many people use the peer-to-peer file sharing systems or install toolbars full of spyware without knowing what they are doing? Case in point: I am helping a fellow parent at the girls’ school get her computer cleaned up so she can do some work for the PFO from home. She said that her computer had slowed down a great deal lately and she’s constantly getting these pop-ups on her screen telling her about porn sites or that she should “click here” for whatever reason. So what does she do? She clicks. And the problem gets worse. So I ask her what spyware or virus protection is she using? The answer: nothing! Nothing?!? She has a PC running Windows XP connected directly to the Internet via a cable modem and she has nothing installed to protect herself? And she has a 6 year old who uses the computer to play kid games (mine does too, but I’m smart enough to make sure they do it from the Mac!) Could she have a bigger sign that says “Hey world, mess with my computer…PLEASE!”? Now this is a very smart woman who makes good choices in other areas of her life. But she had no idea what she was doing when she bought that Compaq computer last year and when the Norton AntiVirus that came with it expired, she left it that way. So it’s installed but without being set to run on a regular basis with current definitions, what’s the point?
So I went to her house, armed with a copy of SpyBot Search & Destroy. For those that aren’t familiar and if you’re a Mac user why should you be, Spybot Search & Destroy is generally known as one of the best spyware removal tools around and it’s donationware. I figured it was a good start. I ran it and it found, are you ready, 103 pieces of spyware/adware/malware installed on her computer. 103! All the good nasty ones. It’s amazing this machine boot at all. I let the application do some fixing and ran it again. Down to 10 that wouldn’t go away. Fixed, tried again. Down to 3 that just won’t budge. I ran out of time at her house but I left her with instructions for getting AdAware which is another well-known freeware spyware eliminator and I’m hoping that a combination of utilities will fix the problem so it won’t be necessary to reformat the drive (which I’m not familiar with doing on a Windows PC the way I am on a Mac). I also set her up with Maxthon which will suppress the pop-ups that frequently lead to these being installed. I would have loved to leave her with Firefox, but unfortunately the 1.0PR version that’s currently out is not stable enough to leave with a novice.
So I’m feeling pretty cocky…I’ve been a Windows user for all of 9 months and I feel confident about the security of my PC even though I use it for 90% of my web browsing and email reading. I never click on attachments I don’t know. I let Norton do a full system sweep for viruses every Friday night and my definitions are always the latest & greatest. I use Firefox so I don’t see pop-ups, much less click on them. I have Norton Internet Security installed and up-to-date and I use a great shareware program called SpySweeper which not only scans for spy/ad/malware but it protects me against the junk too. That is, until about 2 weeks ago when SpySweeper refused to load to due to an error right after I upgraded its definitions. I was in the middle of a big project when the error came up and I’ll be honest, I didn’t have time to deal with it. I just let the program shut down and I went about my business. Today, I realized that I wasn’t running anything to protect against spyware anymore, so I uninstalled SpySweeper and then reinstalled it. Works fine now, just one of those strange things I guess. I ran a full sweep and it found something! Only one thing, Marketscore, which is a usage monitoring program and isn’t nearly as bad or insidious as some of the stuff that was on my friend’s computer…but still! I’m vigilant with a well-protected computer (or so I thought) and 2 weeks without spyware sweeping and something gets on my computer.
It puts into perspective for me that this is a war that the user can never win. And it’s not a Mac vs. PC issue. Macs are only safe because they’re not a target. It’s like the human body and cancer. There are things you can do to help the odds in your favor, but as long as breathe you know that you may end up with cancer someday. It’s just a fact of living in this world. The benefits outweigh the risks, but the risk is there. If you have a computer plugged in you are likely to get junk in your machine that you don’t know about. I’ve done just about everything I can do to minimize my risk but that doesn’t make me safe.
Update: After reading the comments (thanks, Eric) I found a website that does give a lot of information on exploits and whether or not they can be removed or you have to worry about them. It’s at the Spyware Info Forums. There I found that one of the “bugs” (DSO Exploit) that Spybot couldn’t remove was in fact a bug in Spybot. so all may not be lost for my friend’s computer after all.
