The "Turing test" has been passed!

Sorta'. Also, it's kinda' bad in that it wants your money and tries to trick you....

Warning sounded over 'flirting robots'

Those entering online dating forums risk having more than their hearts stolen.

A program that can mimic online flirtation and then extract personal information from its unsuspecting conversation partners is making the rounds in Russian chat forums, according to security software firm PC Tools.

The artificial intelligence of CyberLover's automated chats is good enough that victims have a tough time distinguishing the "bot" from a real potential suitor, PC Tools said. The software can work quickly too, establishing up to 10 relationships in 30 minutes, PC Tools said. It compiles a report on every person it meets complete with name, contact information, and photos.

"As a tool that can be used by hackers to conduct identity fraud, CyberLover demonstrates an unprecedented level of social engineering," PC Tools senior malware analyst Sergei Shevchenko said in a statement.

Among CyberLover's creepy features is its ability to offer a range of different profiles from "romantic lover" to "sexual predator." It can also lead victims to a "personal" Web site, which could be used to deliver malware, PC Tools said.

Although the program is currently targeting Russian Web sites, PC Tools is urging people in chat rooms and social networks elsewhere to be on the alert for such attacks. Their recommendations amount to just good sense in general, such as avoiding giving out personal information and using an alias when chatting online. The software company believes that CyberLover's creators plan to make it available worldwide in February.

Just popping into this rather scary thread to ask if anyone's heard of any rumors about Microsoft releasing an improved version of Vista anytime soon? I'll be getting a new computer sometime before next summer, and I'd rather save my pennies and settle for a non-Apple laptop since I can't afford the $1300. But, I've heard so many bad things about Vista that I'd rather use my occasionally-malfunctioning Windows ME desktop than get a computer with Vista 1.0 on it.

I think you can still get laptops with XP, right?

I have a $530 laptop that runs with Vista Premium pretty well. Basic computer stuff like web, wireless, printing over the network, word processing, and streaming video over the network all work fine. It can be a bit sluggish at times, but not too bad really. If it came with XP I wouldn't upgrade to Vista, but I don't feel like I have to upgrade to XP. At least not yet.

Dell is still selling new laptops with XP. I haven't seen any others in my cruise of big box retailers.

Gud, that's with a gig of memory?

Yep a gig of memory. I may yet upgrade to 2GB, it looks like it would only be about $50.

Oh, what's that giant computer chain that's going out of business after x-mas? They're supposed to have some sales before then.

CompUSA?

Kindle review at Ars Technica.