[RetroGrow]

Well, IE has been ancient history as far as I'm concerned for a very long time. Just terrible in every respect. Hard to imagine how they managed to make it so bad.
Have been using Firefox for many years, however that has changed, as I found a browser that allows me to post on all the political and "Discus" sites that I have been banned from...
It's called Comodo Ice Dragon. It runs on the Firefox engine, and has all the functionality of Firefox, including the use of all extensions and addons, combined with the security of Comodo, their browser based on the Chrome engine. Ice Dragon is faster than Firefox and much more secure. It has a "Siteinspector" system that integrates malware detection into the browser, scanning the site before you visit. "Once the scan is finished, you are given a full report of the site's safety, domain registration details, administration contacts and a history of all malicious scans that have been performed on the website."
The single best feature for me is the ability to go through their secure DNS servers, rather than your ISP. This allows for faster page loads, and what amounts to a free VPN (virtual private network) built in.
I am now able to post on sites that I have been banned from, namely political sites, where political correctness is more important than free speech. Think "Disqus" and the likes.
Highly recommended!

[Skip]

Originally Posted by Hemphrey Bogart

Trying out Opera for the first time after using FF pretty much exclusively...the chatroom doesn't work on Opera either.

HB.

You need to enable flash then go to the address bar. On the left is an icon. Click it and tell it to disable protection for now.

It's because the chatroom will not run under https because it has its own security (better than https with all its flaws).

[dddaver]

Jesus! I just read a story on Yahoo news about how a lot of those Internet connected home devices actually spy on people. This was mentioned:

Google Chrome
The browser is reportedly able to remotely install code that allows the software to listen to users without their knowledge. The code was originally designed to support Chrome’s new “OK, Google” hotword detection, which activates a computer response when you talk to it. However, some users claim the code was installed and activated on their computers without them giving their permission.
Google responded to these complaints on its Chromium developer boards. “While we do download the hotword module on startup, we do not activate it unless you opt in to hotwording,” the company wrote. Some developers question this claim.

[siftedunity]

Originally Posted by dddaver

Jesus! I just read a story on Yahoo news about how a lot of those Internet connected home devices actually spy on people. This was mentioned:

Google Chrome
The browser is reportedly able to remotely install code that allows the software to listen to users without their knowledge. The code was originally designed to support Chrome’s new “OK, Google” hotword detection, which activates a computer response when you talk to it. However, some users claim the code was installed and activated on their computers without them giving their permission.
Google responded to these complaints on its Chromium developer boards. “While we do download the hotword module on startup, we do not activate it unless you opt in to hotwording,” the company wrote. Some developers question this claim.

doesn't surprise me.. theres also programs/viruses that can access your webcam pretty easily so i put tape over mine.

[dociron]

Originally Posted by siftedunity

doesn't surprise me.. theres also programs/viruses that can access your webcam pretty easily so i put tape over mine.

Not me,, I surf nude, I'm gonna punish 'em! lol

[dddaver]

Originally Posted by siftedunity

doesn't surprise me.. theres also programs/viruses that can access your webcam pretty easily so i put tape over mine.

I did that electrical tape over mine too. But I also put a little square of paper under the tape where the lens actually is, so any tape residue won't mess up the lens in case I ever do want to use it. I also muted the microphone. In MS I used to just disable both of those "convenience" hardware things.

"You may be paranoid, but that does NOT mean someone isn't watching you." Very often maybe just some fat, weirdo, perv sitting in his Mom's basement whacking off. Whatevs man.

[MJPassion]

Originally Posted by dddaver

https://www.ubuntu.com/ You won't be sorry. There are other Linux OS, Mint for example, but I like Ubuntu personally. And Firefox comes preloaded too. And the price is right too, free. There is nothing that I have found that Windows did that Linux can't after running it for a few years. For some users, maybe there would be maybe. Me, nothing. But if there is something MS you just have to have, you can download the program called "wine" and that will run it.

I just got tired of all that MS bullshit. I haven't looked back. Linux rules! Apparently, Linux is designed more like Apple and not as vulnerable to virus too. Most viruses are written to work in IE, the industry leader, too, of course.

It asks you if you want to dual boot too, so you keep windows if you want, then does it for you, but you may need to partition your hard-drive to make room for it first. I did, and if I did it, anyone can. I did that partitioning stuff on another laptop that I put Mint on, and kept a Winduhs 7 copy, just in case this Ubuntu thing didn't work out. But it has.

So, on this laptop I just bought a small , cheap 160GB hard-drive from ebay for it, just to put Ubuntu on it. Dirt cheap too. Like $20 or something. Computer then ran, and still runs, like a brand new computer, fast. If you do that, just open up the back of your laptop you have now, and write down all the numbers on from the hard-drive on your machine, then order one. Then plug and play the new one. Easy peazy.

I think Linix is an open source UNIX (sp?) operating system while Windows & all of MSs programming is a DOS based.
Unix is superior in every aspect as far as I'm concerned.

My Dual Core Intel Mac has been running mostly flawlessly for over 10 years now. I've never installed any MS software on it ever. Been using Firefox as well.

Software is not my thing either. I can't stand software issues cause I don't know the language.

[Pinball Wizard]

Does it hurt anything to have multiple browsers like Firefox & Chrome loaded at the same time? I just bounce back & forth, between the two. IE is there, too....but never used.

[Skip]

Originally Posted by Pinball Wizard

Does it hurt anything to have multiple browsers like Firefox & Chrome loaded at the same time? I just bounce back & forth, between the two. IE is there, too....but never used.

No, but having two browsers open at the same time means less memory available for processing.

As far as google goes, google = NSA, FBI, DEA. Same as it always was. And yes there are MANY apps esp. on mobiles that have the ability to spy on you, listening and watching.

I put black electrical tape on my cameras and mics. However it is possible that some devices can actually use the speakers as microphones.

I'm still waiting for a big backlash against all this spyware. I mean from the general public. The way it should be done, is companies should be targeted for boycotts based upon their willingness to spy on their customers for whatever reasons.

These days multinational corporations have learned that a boycott can cost their shareholders (all that matters) billions and will do anything to avoid such a scenario. So the public should now feel empowered to act in unison against corporate malfeasance.

[Green Squall]

Firefox all the way. F Internet Explorer. But don't uninstall it if you have windows. You need it for security updates.