Hotlinking Protection Messes With Htaccess File
Live and learn. And I usually learn the hard way, lol. Nothing like experience to aid a little lesson along.
I’ve discovered that toggling on and off the hotlinking features in my cPanel (where I host my blogs) messes with my blogs’ permalinks. This seems to be a common problem. What happens is that the hotlinking changes the coding to the .htaccess file of your blog.
For your information: “hotlinking” is the term we use for the stealing of bandwidth. Let’s say you upload a photo of your weight loss pills to your web host’s server, in your image folder. You then post the photo onto your blog. That photo is being hosted by your web host, at your expense. (Sites like Flickr and Photobucket host your photos for free). Hotlinking is when a person takes the url of your photo from your web host, and puts it on their website. The “energy draw” for the photo at your site and at the thief’s site is coming from your web host and thus using up your bandwidth– a service you are paying for. You are being robbed. You can prevent hotlinking by turning the feature on at your web host’s cPanel, but you risk changing your .htaccesss file, and ruining your permalinks. (Basically what toggling the hotlinking feature does is it deletes the line “RewriteEngine on” line from your .htaccess file. Adding this back in to your .htaccess file will restore your permalinks.
But you DO want to stop the hotlinking of your images. So I found some sites with information about it. Mind you, I am still learning about the process! But so far, preventing hotlinking is working for me for one of my blogs. I just have to get around to adding the code to the rest of my blogs’ .htaccess files.
Using .htaccess to Stop Content Theft
Protect Your Images with .htaccess
Remeber– ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS back up your files before changing them. Your .htaccess file is crucial to the functionality of your blog. Don’t mess with it unless you know what you’re doing and until you’ve backed it up.
![[del.icio.us]](http://images.del.icio.us/static/img/delicious.small.gif){kind=small}
How to Hide the Blogger NavBar
Many Blogger blogs have the Blogger NavBar– that horizontal bar at the very top of Blogger blogs. It’s not changed in many years– it’s either black, blue, silver, or tan, and gives you the ability to browse other Blogger blogs (NOT a recommended habit, by the way) or to search the current blog. I believe its usefulness has passed.
Most new blogs now have their own search feature, and I do not recommend surfing Blogger blogs (too risky for malware). And besides, the old Blogger NavBar looks soooo tacky. It’s the same old bar that’s been up there for more than five years.
If you want to hide the NavBar, it’s as easy as putting in a “do not display” command in your HTML code. Here’s a great tutorial video I found at Blogger Templates:
Remove Blogger Navbar - video powered by Metacafe
Hope this helps! Let’s make the blogosphere a prettier place! 
Comodo for the Trusted Internet
I adore Comodo Firewall. I have it installed on all five computers here and it is the best firewall I have ever used. And believe me, I’ve used them all. I highly recommend Comodo for its reliability, usability, and most importantly, its security. Comodo is proving once again it’s an excellent company with innovative ideas; Comodo has recently released their brainchild, the Trusted Internet. This is from their website:
This is where every digital interaction, every online interaction will include a new layer of security and trust enabled by an entire infrastructure designed to help us create mutual and real time trust. In a Trusted Internet, we can find what we want online without wasting our time with untrustworthy merchants. We can shop far more efficiently because we can verify the site’s credibility and business practices - immediately.
And with a Trusted Internet, we will be able to do things we can’t even try to do today. With a Trusted Internet, our PCs will automatically be able to find products or information we want from reputable, authenticated merchants and “subject matter experts”. Our computers will be able to vigorously and proactively defend our identities ensuring, in real time, that our information is safe and has not been compromised. But most fundamentally it means that we will all able to connect with each other with full confidence that we can create trust online when and where we need it.
Interesting. This news comes at a time when security breaches and theft has been in the news (again). Comodo’s idea is different than the other kinds of PC security plans we’ve seen, which rely heavily on consumers’ ability to pay for security programs, and on consumers’ knowledge of security measures. New computer users are not very knowledgeable of all the threats and how to prevent them, which accounts for the enormous spread of malicious software and the degradation of the Internet experience as a whole. Comodo intends to change this by turning the Internet security system on its head– that is, treating PC security as a right, not as a priviledge.
To reach this state, we intend to change behavior and help people move from not using PC security because they can’t afford it to using PC security because we give away it away for free. We intend to change people’s low expectation of not being able to authenticate anything online to being able to authenticate everything online - identities, content and even a site’s legitimacy.
This is an amazing concept to me; overall I think it a good thing. However, will this be the end to Internet privacy, to Internet anonymity? Does the answer to PC security– across the board– mean a centralized Internet security hub or system?
Comodo is certainly a company to watch. I love their firewall, of course, and they have outstanding antivirus and email software. This company is known for its creativity and innovation. It will be interesting to see how this Trusted Internet develops among PC users and other software companies.
What do you think? Do like the idea of a Trusted Internet? Do you think the Internet is ready for something like this?
If it does something to decrease the massive comment spam I get on my blogs, I’m all for it!
Beware the Antivirus XP
Be very careful what you download. And be very careful with the websites you visit. Before reading this article, I’d never heard of Antivirus XP 2008. It’s not an antivirus, even though it looks, feels, and acts like one. Someone very crafty made this piece of spyware!
Antivirus XP 2008 is malware– malicious software. It is downloadable into your computer, where it gives you popups, pretends to scan, opens up Internet Explorer, and “Google” tells you that it has detected a threat. And you have to pay to remove the threat. Yikes. Symantec has a good and brief decription of this program, and the C|Net Forum has a simple tutorial on how to remove it if your computer is infected.
Be very careful about the sites you visit, keep your security software updated, and never download anything unless you are sure what it is. It’s disgusting, all the junk out there. You’d think people would have better things to do than create malware and wreck people’s computers?!
Using the Internet for Financial Help
The Internet is filled with advice on how to manage your money. Finding a reputable website can be quite the arduous task! However– it is not an impossible task. I’ll admit- my husband and I are in debt. Several years ago, he lost his job and couldn’t find another one (this has happened twice so far in the terrible New York State economy). The jobs he did find paid only half of what he was making previously. Ouch. Back then, we knew very little about debt and how to manage it. There were really no resources available to us (that we knew of). But now, thanks to websites like Bills.com, we can read about managing finances, paying off debt, and learning about how to wisely consolidate debt. Bills.com offers excellent articles, testimonials, and debt and mortgage calculators to use to manage debt and improve one’s finances.
At Bills.com, you can learn about:
Certainly, the most important thing to do when working out of debt is to create a plan and stick to it! Consolidation can help, because it can reduce your interest rates, reduce payments yet pay off the amount quicker, and it also has the effect of giving you a solid plan for paying off the debt. I have recently consolidated my own debt and am no longer frittering away, throwing money at various accounts.
Before the Internet, we were at the mercy of the banks for advice and help with financial matters. But computers and the web has changed all that, and information is now at your fingertips. So if you are in need of some good information, take a look online at Bills.com. They even have a little “Boot Camp” to consolidate debt!
Testing Your Blog’s Loading Speed
How fast does your blog load? If it takes too long, you lose readers. Things like large badges, buttons, graphics, music, autoplay video, and other gadgets drain your load time. Here’s a website I found to test your blog’s loading speed: Pingdom Tools. It’s free to use. This is how they say it works:
The Full Page Test loads a complete HTML page including all objects (images, CSS, JavaScripts, RSS, Flash and frames/iframes). It mimics the way a page is loaded in a web browser.
The load time of all objects is shown visually with time bars.
You can view the list of objects either in load order or as a hierarchy. The hierarchy view allows you to see which objects are linked to in for example a CSS file.
Every test also shows general statistics about the loaded page such as the total number of objects, total load time, and size including all objects.
Note: This version doesn’t load objects included in JavaScripts. We have also put a limit on the number and size of the objects that are loaded (to prevent the tool from downloading movies, for example).
I see a lot of blogs everyday. Waaaay too many of them take up to 2 minutes to load! I know you love those buttons and twinkles and music, but to be honest– not many other people do. Of course, you should blog for yourself. After all, it’s your blog! But it also helps to be considerate to your visitors. If your blog takes longer than 30 seconds to load, that’s far too long. Consider removing the resouce-eating hogs on your blog. 
This Blog Got an Award
I was very surprised to get a message from Mom on the Rise, saying she had nominated me for an award here. I don’t market or promote this blog at all. It’s more like my little scratchpad or scrapbook of geeky and tecchy things I’ve learned along the way, and a place to share cool programs I’ve found. So to get an award here, and a reader as well, I’m surprised! Thank you so much, Mom!
And so I get to pass this along. I wish I had some page rank for this blog, to give you gooogle juice, but page rank for me is about as scarce as Halloween invitations (which is fine with me). You’ll just have to get the honor of knowing you have a cool blog! Here goes:
1. The Foundation Forum. Truly an excellent blog
2. Fida Abbott. A sweet lady with a lovely blog.
3. Northview Diary. A terrific blog and one of my favorites.
4. The Apple Doesn’t Fall Far. Always readable and interesting.
5. Yeah, Right. A great blog, with insightful and meaningful posts.
The rules of this award are:
1. The winner can put the logo on his/her blog.
2. Link the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs of the people you’ve nominated
I chose 5 because I like 5. 
Congrats, winners!
Hide Your Plugins Files
It’s becoming more common so perhaps you’ve heard of it happening: someone’s Wordpress blog was hacked. Usually it is by a spammer, who inserts malicious images and coding. There are weaknesses in Wordpress, because it’s open source software, and because users often don’t know all the security holes.
Here’s one quick and easy tip to help secure your Wordpress site: hide your plugins files. Plugins are so convenient but they can be a security risk. I recommend using only plugins you really, really need, and hiding what you have.
If you were to type in an unprotected blog’s address, like this:
http://BLOGNAME.com/wp-content/plugins
you’d see something like this:
This is basically an open invitation to a hacker, advertising what plugins you have and what possible versions (non-updated). The hacker can exploit any open doors that the plugins may have, and therefore he can gain access to your blog/site through them. You want to block anyone from seeing your list of plugins. Here’s what you do.
Open up Notepad. Save the document as index.html. You can leave it blank if you want. You can type in “Hello” or “Don’t hack me” or your blog address, whatever. I use a blank file.
Open up your FTP program and upload this index.html file in your plugins folder. So after it is uploaded, you’ll see all the folders for your plugins and this little file named “index.html.”
That’s it! Your plugins folders will not be seen.
How does this work? Wordpress is programmed to access index.html files first thing. So when your Wordpress plugins are accessed, it will go to this blank index.html file and move on to your plugins afterward. The index.html file is like a blanket, covering all your plugin goodies. Your plugins will still work just fine, they will just be concealed to everyone.
I hope this helps protect you. Happy blogging!
Windows Vista is Superb
After test-driving Windows Vista for a few months, I think I can accurately and adequately give the operating system a 5-star rating. Vista has proved to be exceptional in performance, usability, and style. I have found it to be much more reliable and intuitive than XP. I’ve gone back to XP on my husband’s computer, and it’s like the difference between a Ford and a Corvette. As much as I really liked XP, I am a convert to Vista!
Vista is much more stable. I was accustomed to getting the BSOD (Blue Screen of Death) with XP, ME, and my 98SE. I have had only two system crashes with Vista in almost a year. That is phenomenal, in my opinion.
Vista is more intuitive. It has a terrific Search feature as part of the Start Menu. This is a terrific time-saver for me. As hard drives get larger and as we gather more information, I think Vista really did well with this feature.
I love the Windows Mail and calendar. Very convenient and easy to use. Vista comes with Windows Defender and a new-and-imporved Security Center.
Vista is drop-dead gorgeous. We all know how drab and dull XP was (only three colors, blue, silver, and olive?!). Vista is a work of art compared to XP and ME. The Vista Aero can sometimes use up a lot of resources, however. I shut it off when the computer is having heavy use (image and video editing).
There’s really much more to Vista than can possibly be covered here. I recommend the operating system, whether for personal or business use. And actually, if you are a small business owner and thinking about getting Vista, consider this excellent promotion going on now until September 30- get Windows Ultimate or Business version, and get compatibility assistance and free support from Microsoft to make sure everything goes smoothly. That’s a terrific deal! See here for more information.
The Essential PIM for Management
I’d downloaded Essential PIM years ago, but never really used it. It was a bigger program than what I needed at the time. That was then, this is now. Back then, I did very little organizing on the computer– I didn’t even sign on every day! Today, my laptop has become my most favored accessory. And I just can’t carry and keep track of all the differrent notebooks, sticky-notes, and other pieces of paper. So I downloaded Essential PIM again, and WOW I love it! C|Net offers the download and information here.
At first glance, it seems complicated. There are a lot of various views, and choices. It seemed overwhelming to me. But after I deleted the “sample” entries, it looked better.
This is basically a scheduling calendar, appointment notebook, to do list, contact/address book, and quick notebook, all rolled into one.
It’s FREE (my favorite price!), so there’s nothing to lose. I think whoever built this did a great job putting it together. It also saves your data automatically and will minimize to the system tray in case you need to access it quickly. I’m pretty floored by the program. It’s been working great for me. So I recommend it.
Did Your Blog Get Hacked?
Very, very rarely do any Blogger blogs get hacked. I love Blogger for this reason. However, the hacking of Wordpress blogs is well known. The coding and all the different security methods and details can be extremely confusing. Both platforms have strengths and weaknesses, so it’s hard to tell what is the best buy. But Wordpress has more security issues, just because it’s open source by nature.
I stumbled across a great blog post that tells you how to know if your Wordpress blog has been hacked, and what to do about it: Holy Shmoly!. GREAT POST! Bookmark it!
Easy Computer Backups?
Easy computer backups? IS there such a thing? I do say, computer manufacturers have not made it easy to backup your computer files. It is a loathsome and time-consuming task for me. As hard drives get bigger and bigger, it only gets harder and harder.
That’s why I decided to check out something called the “ClickFree” automatic backup device. It looks like a supercharged PC card, or a portable hard drive on a diet pill (slimmed down). You don’t need software, you don’t need to go through hoops and hurdles– you just plug it into your USB post and it starts up. Ingenious. However… a USB post means it is a flash drive? And flash drives don’t last forever. The reviews have been very good, though. Here’s one at Small Business Computing, and there are some mixed at Amazon. The ClickFree costs $150 retail but is selling for $103 at Amazon. It is a fantastic price for a hard drive backup, I know that!
The ClickFree can hold up to 350GB of stuff, whoa! But it’s still too pricey for me– an 8GB thumb drive, which is all I need these days, costs about $25. If I ever need more, I think the ClickFree would be a good deal, at $100.
So we’re running out of excuses to backup our data! If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em! LOL
WordPress: How To Make Sidebar Load Last
A big problem for me is using Wordpress templates with the sidebars on the left side. Oftentimes, the left sidebar loads before the main content of my blogs. This is extremely annoying. If, for some reason, my buttons, badges, or blogrolls in my sidebar are taking too long (which usually happens), the main content will never load!
Here’s a little tweak I have learned to force the main content of the blog to load before the sidebar. Please be aware that NOT all themes are alike, so your experience may vary. ALWAYS BACK UP YOUR BLOG before changing the coding. You should always back up your blog, anyway! But if you are going to attempt to do my fix, please back it up. Rest assured, this fix is simple and quick and painless. But you should always back up your existing information, just in case.
Notice in your Wordpress php files that you have varying files, like footer.php, index.php, single.php, and etc. My own theme had the basic php files without any extras. Some more complex themes may have additional php files to do the jobs that your theme requires. You may have to play everything by ear, here. The nice thing is that my fix does not delete anything or alter anything major: all it does is tell the computer what part of the theme to load first.
OK, enough of all the preliminaries. In my theme, these are the php files that we’re going to alter. We’ll go over them individually.
index.php
page.php
single.php
The index.php is the information for the “face” (or homepage) of your blog. It tells the blog how to operate and when. Open the file now. You’ll see a lot of coding. What concerns us is the “get header,” “get sidebar,” and “get footer” stuff at the very top and the very bottom. So at the top, you’ll see this:
<?php get_header(); ?>
<?php get_sidebar(); ?>
<div id=”content”>
then you’ll see a lot of coding after that, and then at the bottom of the file, you’ll see this:
<?php endif; ?>
</div>
<?php get_footer();?>
These two sections are telling the computer to load the main homepage of your blog in this order:
1. Header
2. Sidebar
3. Content
4. Footer
We want to change that. We want to switch the “Sidebar” and “Content.” And that is what you do. Copy this section in that file, that says:
<?php get_sidebar(); ?>
and then delete it. Now, scroll down to the bottom of the file. See where the file says:
</div>
<?php get_footer();?>
Place your copied “get sidebar” code right before the “get footer” code. You may have to make a new line (by pressing ENTER on your keyboard) if there is no space. I did have to.
So now, the very top of this index.php file says:
<?php get_header(); ?>
<div id=”content”>
And the very bottom of it now says:
</div>
<?php get_sidebar(); ?>
<?php get_footer();?>
Save the document and upload it to your FTP or, if you are working within Wordpress in your browser, press SAVE.
You have to go back and do this same thing for each of the other php files I listed: the single.php, page.php. Some themes have archives.php, and different templates for different Pages on their blogs. If so, just go through those and do the same thing. This will make the loading of your blog consistent, whether people visit your homepage, a single post, an archived post, or a page post.
When you are done and everything is saved, your blog should now load in this order:
1. Header
2. Content
3. Sidebar
4. Footer
Remember, if you find that you don’t like the fix, or something goes screwy, you can always revert back to what you have as your back up. You DID back up your blog, right?
Akismet Plugin Bug Fixed
That was a speedy update! Earlier, I blogged about the problems I was having with Akismet. I had update to the latest version (2.1.7) but a bug disabled the plugin on one of my blogs, and for my other blogs, I could no longer “Delete All.”
The guys in Development rolled out a quick fix. Get your latest Akismet (updated to 2.1.8 at this writing) by going here.
In some upcoming posts, I’m going to address a way I learned to fight comment spam. Akismet is great from keeping it from my posts, but I still have to sort through hundreds– sometimes thousands– of spam comments per DAY, for deletion. I’d very much rather research my own diet pill reviews, thank you very much– not have them spammed to me by the hundreds. I’m still in the “testing” mode, but I’ve already seen excellent results. I’ll have more later.
Comcast Capping Internet Usage
Ouch. The latest news is bad news– another ISP bows down to the capping spree.
Comcast Corp., the nation’s second-largest Internet service provider, Thursday said it would set an official limit on the amount of data subscribers can download and upload each month.
On Oct. 1, the cable company will update its user agreement to say that users will be allowed 250 gigabytes of traffic per month, the company announced on its Web site.
“We’ve listened to feedback from our customers who asked that we provide a specific threshold for data usage and this would help them understand the amount of usage that would qualify as excessive,” the company said in a statement on its Web site.
Hm, I’d like to know about those customers, because I have been hearing the exact opposite, and overwhelmingly so, from the public. We want to pay for service, not time spent and especially not bandwidth used. Anything can eat up bandwidth– spam, popups, emails you get from other people… it’s hard to control.
I will say that Comcast is allowing users 250GB bandwidth per month. That’s a sizable amount, and the average computer user would be OK. But I don’t like the concept behind it, because the amount of bandwidth you personally use is not always in your control. We’ll see how this develops.
