Gmail launched a new feature this morning designed to detect suspicious activity in your account and notify you when a suspicious login has occurred in your account.

Doesn't work too well, considering that my Gmail spammed my whole address book just this morning, and I got no warning message.

In that vein, does anyone have recommendations for good programs for a Mac (running Tiger; 10.4.11) to detect and kill spyware, etc.? I've operated on the Lazy Mac User theory of "Eh, no one writes viruses for Macs, so I don't need to worry about it." But maybe I should be a little mindful.

So, I'm finally planning on getting a TiVo. I went to the TiVo site and they're talking about TiVo Premiere. Does anyone know anything about it? I'm not really an early adopter—I mean, I'm just now looking at getting a TiVo. Does anyone know if Premiere is some wonderful leap forward?

Steph,

how did the gmail thing happen? was it a web-based intrusion? Did someone guess your password?

how did the gmail thing happen? was it a web-based intrusion? Did someone guess your password?

I have no idea. There is no record of it in my Sent mail folder, so I don't know if someone spoofed my e-mail address. But if they did, they also had access to my entire address book, plus I got all the ones that bounced due to outdated addresses, etc.

I'm befuddled.

Is your password guessable?

make sure you change your password (likely already done) and put in an address in the account info that gmail can send your password to in case you forget it.

also, if there are security questions, don't base them on actual, factual information about yourself. Create a fake persona and answer the questions as part of this fake persona.

Ah, this morning I got an alert from Gmail saying it looks like my account was accessed from China yesterday.

No shit, Gmail.

$150 Kobo eReader: The Real Kindle Killer?

The iPad is no Kindle-killer (although buying the almost $500 DX now seems a little silly). The Kindle, and any other e-reader, will continue to be great for just reading books, with the sunlight-friendly e-ink display and the long, long battery life making for a great single-purpose device. The real Kindle-killer will be a cheap e-reader, and it just arrived: The $150 Kobo eReader.

The bare-bones reader looks very similar to the Kindle, but it is just over half the price. Also like the Kindle, you get access to a store, in this case the Kobo International Store with around two million titles. And you can read these books on other devices: iPhone, BlackBerry, Palm Pre, and Android all have Kobo apps.

$150 isn't bad....

PC Diagnostic Dice

IT-support personnel have a difficult job. Constant phone calls and emails from people barely smart enough to operate their computers can grate on you after a while. Before too long, every support phone call sounds the same.

"Hello, IT... yes... have you tried turning it off and on again?"

As you get older, you realize that people don't necessarily want to know exactly what the problem is. What they really want is assurance that someone is there, listening, and is ready to come to their aid. The chances that you can actually walk them through fixing their problem is minuscule - you're going to have to take a visit anyway, so why bother putting in the effort now?

With the new PC Dice diagnostic system, give your users the reassurance they need while maintaining your sanity. Just a quick toss of the dice, and all the information you need is right there. Three dice describe the problem, the culprit, and the solution. Now, your conversation is simplified:

"Hello, IT... [rolls dice] Hmm, sounds like you've got some spyware. It's no big deal, it's a Windows problem, but we can just install some anti-spyware and take care of it. Okay? Great... You're welcome... I love you, too..."

That Kobo reader looks nice, but having spent some time with a Kindle I have a hard time imagining going back to plugging it in to get books on it, especially considering the number of books I've bought while away from computer internet connections.

Amazon is rumored to be working on a Kindle with one of these screens: [link] which will make the whole e-reader world just a tad bit more interesting.

I hope that there remains a market for reflective-screen e-readers, because I'd hate to have to switch to reading on an LCD screen. Some people really can't tell the difference, and even love reading novels on their iPhone, but the last time I tried to do that (even with a nice large font) I had a splitting headache after about 3 hours.