by Arie Slob

Dear Windows-Help.NET Subscriber, Microsoft released a test beta of several privacy-enhancing cookie management features for the Internet Explorer technologies in the Microsoft® Windows® operating system. The new features will provide consumers with a clearer understanding of the different types of cookies used and where they originate. The features will also provide more selective prompts, or alerts, when cookies arrive, as well as an easier way to manage and delete cookies. The new update is being released to more than 2000 Windows beta testers. Following feedback from these testers, Microsoft plans to release a public beta within four weeks. Cookies are small pieces of information that can be placed onto the hard drive of a Web site visitor. Cookies are often used to capture data about online behavior for personalizing a site according to a consumer's preferences, and they can also be placed on a machine by Web advertisers to determine when that machine is used to view a particular advertisement. Cookies can also be placed by a third-party advertiser for the purpose of better targeting consumers based on their online profiles. The new functions will build on the cookie management features already in Internet Explorer browser software. The new tools include the following: Consumer notification for cookies. The new enhancements to Internet Explorer present a balanced discussion of cookies and help consumers to differentiate between first- and third-party cookies. Additionally, the cookie notification default setting will prompt consumers any time a third-party persistent cookie -- a cookie that remains on the consumer's hard drive for a specified period of time -- is being served to the consumer's machine. The default response for all cookie confirmation prompts is for the cookie to be accepted. Cookie control. A "delete all cookies" button has been added on the primary Internet Options page. This provides a mechanism for easily deleting all cookies from all locations on a consumer's hard drive in the event that the consumer does not want to receive any of the customization that cookies provide. Help. New help topics are added that more specifically address cookies and cookie management. Also, new top-level items are added to the help menu to allow users quicker access to security and privacy information. Microsoft Releases Windows Media Player 7 Microsoft has built the first fully integrated, all-in-one player that lets you copy a CD, listen to Internet radio, watch videos, and download music to a portable device. Other cool features include customizable skins and visualizations. The latest release adds even more functionality to the fastest growing and only complete all-in-one media player, integrating new audio-CD-creation technology from Adaptec Inc. and a wide array of new skins and visualizations, including a new "Digital DJ" skin that automates and customizes playback of digital audio and video based on user preferences. Windows Media Player 7 brings digital media to the mainstream for millions of users around the world by offering the easiest-to-use application for their digital media needs. The Windows Media Player 7 is available for download at the Microsoft Windows Media site. Note I: Windows Media Player 7 should NOT be installed on computers running Windows 95 or Windows NT 4! Note II: If you are running Adaptec programs on your machine and you install the Adaptec plugin as part of the WMP install, Direct CD will no longer work. Adaptec's recommendation is to uninstall the Adaptec plugin from WMP, then uninstall and reinstall all Adaptec programs. S   P   O   N   S   O   R Pagoo Call Catcher Surf the web worry free. With Pagoo Call Catcher: Get instant notification right on your desktop of incoming phone calls. Get a personal Internet Voice Mailbox. Play back your voice messages on your PC without disconnecting from the Internet. Save unlimited voice messages, organize them just like email. Download it today FREE.

Speed - The more you pay the faster you can go

Comparing High Speed Internet access options.

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IE 5.5 Mshtml.dll errors & Gator

Gator (the software used to automatically fill in Web forms & passwords) has acknowledged that their software was causing errors with the Mshtml.dll file in the new IE 5.5, and issued a new build (v. 1.5.2.5). You can get the new build by downloading from Gator. You can install the new build right over the old one.

ShieldsUP! Test Your Security

I have featured the ShieldsUP! Web site before, but because of advances being made to both detection & intrusion methods, I'll recommend that you visit this site again, if you haven't been there recently!

ShieldsUP!

After visiting the ShieldsUP! Web site, you can continue to the Fortify Web site to test your browser's SSL Encryption level. Don't let the title fool you (Fortify for Netscape), it works perfectly for Microsoft browsers as well.

Enable 128-bit Encryption in IE 5.5

The new IE 5.5 ships with strong encryption (128-bit) for everyone. If you checked with Fortify and your browser indicates it is using 56-bit, check the folder where you downloaded IE 5.5 (by default C:\Windows Update Setup Files\) and see if you find the file Ie501dom.exe. If you find it, run it, it will upgrade you to 128-bit encryption.

Cleaning up your Hard Drive

Over time, your Hard Disk fills up with all kind of stuff, and before you know it, that drive you bought just a year or so ago, and which capacity looked great back then, is already alarmingly full. You need a certain amount of "headroom" or empty space on your hard drive for Windows 95/98 to function properly.

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Tweaking Toolbox for Windows

A utility that helps you to customize your Windows 95/98 interface, by configuring and personalizing its look and feel.

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