How to open control panel folders from the command line

This is a link to a Microsoft Knowledgebase article on how to open control panel applications from the command line. For example


control netconnections
control userpasswords
control admintools

start the respective application for setting network connections, user passwords and viewing the administrator tools folder.

More on command line tools from the LabMice website.

SPAM Filters and eMail Etiquette

I just had what turned out to be a critical message from a new acquaintence get lost in my spam filter. There were at least three possible "triggers" that caused me to miss this eMail:

1. The return address has no identifier other than a single first name
2. The subject line was a single innocuous word that was virtually impossible to decode without opening the eMail
3. The eMail was an HTML eMail.

So, in my OutLook Inbox, (if it had gotten there)...the message would have looked like:

Sender	Subject	Received	Sent
Larry	TurtleDoveExploits	2/06/2006	2/06/2006

Ok, so the spam filter put this in the spam folder, and I looked at it... and debated whether to open it. Because, if you open up an eMail that is so-called "html" eMail, you can trigger further spam, or get a trojan or virus.
The good news is that I opened it, and it was from somebody I wanted to hear from. The bad news was the message was indeed an html message. Nice background stationary, lovely fonts...logo, and everything.

Suggestions:
Here are a couple suggestions from someone who gets a couple dozen eMails a day, and sometimes many more.

1. Send mail as plain text, no background, no stationary. In OutLook this means not Rich Text, and not HTML mail.
   
2. Be sure that your eMail is properly set up with complete first and last name, or company name in the sender's name section of your eMail account properties. Send an eMail to yourself and see what it looks like, and if the eMail isn't readily identifiable from the subject line, I guarantee that a lot of your eMail is going into the bit bucket, unread.
   
3. Use subject lines that mean something. Refer to a previous communication, or to a relevant topic within the body of your eMail.

Maybe something like:

Sender	Subject	Received	Sent
U.S. Internal Revenue Service Kansas City Office	2005 Corporate 4th Quarter Tax Assessment	2/06/2006	2/06/2006

Dumb Programmers

With recent media scares about disk-eating viruses, security continues to be a pressing issue that appears to show only incremental improvement. My latest peeve:

Why are there still Windows applications written that require a local user account on a workstation that has administrator rights? I can cite three examples, at random:

1. The very popular Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing used to teach keyboarding skills. This application requires that the user account used to log into the computer be an admin account. This requires either that a separate student account be set up just to run this application...or that the student who is logged in can then create havoc on the workstation by downloading and installing all manner of spam/spyware/malware etc.

2. The Polycom PVX desktop videoconferencing software requires administrative rights for the user on the computer.

3. The AIM real-estate software from Stewart also requires admin rights.

The latter two applications are more likely to be found in a professional or corporate setting where you'd think that random html drive-bys would be less of a problem. Ahem.

We are all in this together. Dumb network administrators, dumb users, and dumb programmers. But you can't blame the dumb administrators or the dumb users if the dumb programmers are too lazy to figure out how to allow their application to run with standard user credentials.

Control your startup through MS Antispyware

We have recommended Microsoft Antispyware
and I found a hidden gem under the covers, a startup manager. Using this screen, you can determine what processes and programs begin executing when you log into your user account. You can find this under the Tools|Advanced Tools|System Explorers menu selection.



This is a great way to clean up those egregious little update programs in the system tray. Quicktime, Logitech, Java updater, you name it. You'll also find that your machine will usually start more quickly, and that you'll have a little more memory for running the programs that you want to run.

For more on the topic, see the book Degunking Windows by Jeff Dunteman and Jolli Ballew.