Monroe

My My ... people not knowing if a $2 bill is for real in the US ... but then a few weeks ago I was reading that various people were asked recently to name the President or Vice President and many seem to have no clue! I like the idea of the poll in reference to the 7.5 million dollars. I would have to pick "A" but I could also pick "C" ... I could wait two hours !

We have common ground on what you posted ... I could also use 7.5 million dollars right about now and it wouldn't have to be gold or Benjamins ... all small bills would work for me !

OK I see your post goes back to Aug 2011 ... I don't think I knew much about the Bitcoin thing till this year. I googled "bitcoin theft" and that is an eye opener. I don't see where having Bitcoins is a "safe" or "lose no sleep" type of thing and I can still see a Bitcoin web site just vanish one day. I'm with you, I'd rather have those Benjamins in my pocket or in a jar buried in the back yard and not a "flash drive" full of Bitcoins buried in the back yard. I'd be afraid when I went to dig it up one day, I'd just have a nice old "flash drive relic" and not much else. They are hacking and stealing Bitcoins everywhere doing the Google search.

Sorry, didn't see that CharlotteTheHarlot had already made mention of this on Nov 28th in Post #4649 of Windows 8 - Deeper. I don't think I can completely delete this post but perhaps a moderator can do so or just let it slowly fade away on it's own.

I really don't know too much about the Bitcoin thing ... have read about it here and there ... I don't have any. Could this someday be like the "tulip investing bubble" in Holland and Europe in the 1600's? I would think the owners of the landfill may be looking for that hard drive. Man Throws Away 7,500 Bitcoins, Now Worth $7.5 Million November 29, 2013 http://washington.cbslocal.com/2013/11/29/man-throws-away-7500-bitcoins-now-worth-7-5-million/ CARDIFF, Wales (CBS DC) – A British man says he threw out a hard drive that had 7,500 bitcoins on it, worth over $7.5 million as of Wednesday. James Howells of Wales purchased the suddenly skyrocketing Internet currency for almost nothing back in 2009. He says he likely threw out the hard drive sometime over the summer, and only recently remembered what was on it. “You know when you put something in the [trash], and in your head, say to yourself ‘that’s a bad idea’? I really did have that,” Howells, who works in IT, told the Guardian. A few months after Bitcoin’s launch, Howells created a computer program to “mine” the digital currency. He later spilled lemonade on that laptop, so he dismantled it for parts, keeping the hard drive in a drawer for three years. The drive contains the cryptographic “key” that is necessary to access and spend the Bitcoins. Without that key, the “money” cannot be spent and is lost forever. It was just this past summer that he went through his belongings and threw out the hard drive, thinking it was junk. When he realized his mistake, Howells searched all his storage devices for a backup copy but could not find one. Then he went down to the landfill with the idea of digging for it, but was told it’s not as simple as going in with a shovel. “Even for the police to find something, they need a team of 15 guys, two diggers, and all the personal protection equipment. So for me to fund that, it’s not possible without the guarantee of money at the end.” But he’s still hopeful that someone may find the hard drive, and split the take with him. “If they were to offer me a share, fair enough,” he said. “If they were to go out and find it for themselves … it’s my mistake throwing the hard drive out, at the end of the day.”

Hope I didn't miss this if this was already mentioned in the past, I didn't spot anything. The Telegraph The Internet Mystery That Has the World Baffled By Chris Bell 25 Nov 2013 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/internet/10468112/The-internet-mystery-that-has-the-world-baffled.html For the past two years, a mysterious online organisation has been sending the world's finest code-breakers a series of seemingly unsolvable problems. But to what end? Welcome to the world of Cicada 3301. One evening in January last year, Joel Eriksson, a 34-year-old computer analyst from Uppsala in Sweden, was trawling the web, looking for distraction, when he came across a message on an internet forum. The message was in stark white type, against a black background. “Hello,” it said. “We are looking for highly intelligent individuals. To find them, we have devised a test. There is a message hidden in this image. Find it, and it will lead you on the road to finding us. We look forward to meeting the few that will make it all the way through. Good luck.” The message was signed: "3301”. A self-confessed IT security "freak” and a skilled cryptographer, Eriksson’s interest was immediately piqued. This was – he knew – an example of digital steganography: the concealment of secret information within a digital file. Most often seen in conjunction with image files, a recipient who can work out the code – for example, to alter the colour of every 100th pixel – can retrieve an entirely different image from the randomised background "noise”. It’s a technique more commonly associated with nefarious ends, such as concealing child pornography. In 2002 it was suggested that al-Qaeda operatives had planned the September 11 attacks via the auction site eBay, by encrypting messages inside digital photographs. Sleepily – it was late, and he had work in the morning – Eriksson thought he’d try his luck decoding the message from "3301”. After only a few minutes work he’d got somewhere: a reference to "Tiberius Claudius Caesar” and a line of meaningless letters. Joel deduced it might be an embedded "Caesar cipher” – an encryption technique named after Julius Caesar, who used it in private correspondence. It replaces characters by a letter a certain number of positions down the alphabet. As Claudius was the fourth emperor, it suggested "four” might be important – and lo, within minutes, Eriksson found another web address buried in the image’s code. Feeling satisfied, he clicked the link. It was a picture of a duck with the message: "Woops! Just decoys this way. Looks like you can’t guess how to get the message out.” "If something is too easy or too routine, I quickly lose interest,” says Eriksson. "But it seemed like the challenge was a bit harder than a Caesar cipher after all. I was hooked.” Eriksson didn’t realise it then, but he was embarking on one of the internet’s most enduring puzzles; a scavenger hunt that has led thousands of competitors across the web, down telephone lines, out to several physical locations around the globe, and into unchartered areas of the "darknet”. So far, the hunt has required a knowledge of number theory, philosophy and classical music. An interest in both cyberpunk literature and the Victorian occult has also come in handy as has an understanding of Mayan numerology. It has also featured a poem, a tuneless guitar ditty, a femme fatale called "Wind” who may, or may not, exist in real life, and a clue on a lamp post in Hawaii. Only one thing is certain: as it stands, no one is entirely sure what the challenge – known as Cicada 3301 – is all about or who is behind it. Depending on who you listen to, it’s either a mysterious secret society, a statement by a new political think tank, or an arcane recruitment drive by some quasi-military body. Which means, of course, everyone thinks it’s the CIA. For some, it’s just a fun game, like a more complicated Sudoku; for others, it has become an obsession. Almost two years on, Eriksson is still trying to work out what it means for him. "It is, ultimately, a battle of the brains,” he says. "And I have always had a hard time resisting a challenge.” ... article is quite long with some pictures.

Just read this article about Wickr. I don't know much about it but I thought this one small paragraph was interesting about Facebook and similar social networks and people leaving. "Nico Sell, co-founder and chief executive of Wickr, said the year-and-a-half-old company had seen an extreme spike in interest after revelations about the National Security Agency’s surveillance program were published earlier this year. “George Washington would be rolling over in his grave right now,” said Ms Sell, adding many of her friends who used to think she was paranoid about security were now leaving social networks such as Facebook." It would be interesting to know just how many Facebook and other accounts are being closed because of all these spying revelations ... probably hard to get solid numbers from the companies. November 24, 2013 US spying fuels popularity of secure messaging app Wickr By Hannah Kuchler in San Francisco http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/89f19e64-5501-11e3-a321-00144feabdc0.html Wickr, the secure messaging app that positions itself “halfway between Snapchat and Snowden”, is set to raise more funds and launch a major update on Monday after its popularity soared following revelations of a US mass surveillance programme. The Silicon Valley start-up enables encrypted peer-to-peer communications from email to instant messaging while keeping no data whatsoever. It plans to rival Skype by rolling out secure and private international video calling next year. ... more at the link.

Anybody find this NSA article interesting and revealing ... "‘Sleeper cells’ can be activated with a single push of a button ... The malware can be controlled remotely and be turned on and off at will. The ‘implants’ act as digital ‘sleeper cells’ that can be activated with a single push of a button. According to the Washington Post, the NSA has been carrying out this type of cyber operation since 1998. NSA Infected 50,000 Computer Networks with Malicious software 23 November 2013 http://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2013/11/23/nsa-infected-50000-computer-networks-with-malicious-software/ The American intelligence service - NSA - infected more than 50,000 computer networks worldwide with malicious software designed to steal sensitive information. Documents provided by former NSA-employee Edward Snowden and seen by this newspaper, prove this. A management presentation dating from 2012 explains how the NSA collects information worldwide. In addition, the presentation shows that the intelligence service uses ‘Computer Network Exploitation’ (CNE) in more than 50,000 locations. CNE is the secret infiltration of computer systems achieved by installing malware, malicious software. One example of this type of hacking was discovered in September 2013 at the Belgium telecom provider Belgacom. For a number of years the British intelligence service - GCHQ – has been installing this malicious software in the Belgacom network in order to tap their customers’ telephone and data traffic. The Belgacom network was infiltrated by GCHQ through a process of luring employees to a false Linkedin page. NSA special department employs more than a thousand hackers The NSA computer attacks are performed by a special department called TAO (Tailored Access Operations). Public sources show that this department employs more than a thousand hackers. As recently as August 2013, the Washington Post published articles about these NSA-TAO cyber operations. In these articles The Washington Post reported that the NSA installed an estimated 20,000 ‘implants’ as early as 2008. These articles were based on a secret budget report of the American intelligence services. By mid-2012 this number had more than doubled to 50,000, as is shown in the presentation NRC Handelsblad laid eyes on. Cyber operations are increasingly important for the NSA. Computer hacks are relatively inexpensive and provide the NSA with opportunities to obtain information that they otherwise would not have access to. The NSA-presentation shows their CNE-operations in countries such as Venezuela and Brazil. The malware installed in these countries can remain active for years without being detected. ‘Sleeper cells’ can be activated with a single push of a button The malware can be controlled remotely and be turned on and off at will. The ‘implants’ act as digital ‘sleeper cells’ that can be activated with a single push of a button. According to the Washington Post, the NSA has been carrying out this type of cyber operation since 1998. The Dutch intelligence services - AIVD and MIVD – have displayed interest in hacking. The Joint Sigint Cyber Unit – JSCU – was created early in 2013. The JSCU is an inter-agency unit drawing on experts with a range of IT skills. This new unit is prohibited by law from performing the type of operations carried out by the NSA as Dutch law does not allow this type of internet searches. The NSA declined to comment and referred to the US Government. A government spokesperson states that any disclosure of classified material is harmful to our national security.

I have KB folders in my $hf_mig$ folder so maybe someone else can shed some light on your situation. I don't know about installing anymore updates till 2014. I'm getting nervous about the closing days of XP. I have the November updates installed and all is working OK plus I made an image backup of everything. I have and will continue to run XP update checks through November until the December updates are released ... to see if any fixes or new updates show up.

I like the Qt Web browser ... haven't used it as much as I would like. K-Meleon works OK most of the time but I just spent the last hour using the QT Web browser ... it's really a good browser ... very fast.

Actually I was having a little fun with the whole idea ... I actually enjoy many SyFy films. Some of the Zombie films are not bad ... Dead Season (2011) : Elvis and Tweeter flee to an island after a zombie outbreak and must join a community that lives by its own rules. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1650042/ and Zombie Apocalypse (2011) : Survivors seek refuge on an island when zombies take over the world. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1876547/ Also a must see is "Infestation" (2009) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1020543/ and one more funnish zombie film ... kind of a comedy (unless your arms and legs are being chewed off!) but entertaining just the same. It plays on AMC not the SySy channel, at least in October it did. Flight of the Living Dead (2007) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0780583/ ... these films are not bad but many SyFy films suck in the digital effects area ... poorly done but with a small budget I guess that can be expected.

OK ... earlier this year there was "Sharknado" with mankind under attack from sharks, now this Saturday it will be Boston under attack with "Stonados" ... the city of Boston pummelled with boulders ... so you have your warning, you have 36 to 48 hours to pack the car and go! Where is it safe anymore? You can't "ride this one" out with just a "hardhat". Stonados http://www.syfy.com/movies/stonados The film will tell the story of a paranormal weather phenomenon involving a deadly rain of giant rocks. ... I just found a small article that this film was originally scheduled for April 27 but was pulled from the schedule. Also just found out it was really a "part of Canada" that was destroyed with the rocks ... The Canadians take the hit again but earn a good income from all the films made there. Syfy reschedules Boston-set disaster movie “Stonados” http://www.channelguidemagblog.com/index.php/2013/04/17/syfy-stonados/ Although filmed in Canada, the disaster movie Stonados does take place in Boston. According to a plot synopsis from Syfy, Stonados stars Paul Johanssen, William B. Davis and Thea Gill, and is about a freak weather system that hurls deadly boulders onto the city of Boston, with destructive results.

buyerninety ... I guess with the Season One Lost World set around $100 ... give or take ... that's one way for someone to see what they missed. I was lucky to get Season One and Two but missed out on Season Three. Amazon quietly canceled my ordered ... had it locked in for under $24, it just "went away".

If anyone needs blank DVDs then Amazon has marked them down to a decent price ... I noticed yesterday the price on Verbatim blank disc (100 stack) is now at $20.95 with "free shipping" ... these are the +R DVDs ... the -R DVDs are even cheaper at $19.99. I only use +R discs myself and the Verbatim discs are "usually" in the $26 to $28 range. These are the AZO dye discs ... not their cheaper "Life Series" brand. Verbatim DVD+R offers the optimal "Advanced Azo" recording dye, which provides the highest level of read/write performance, reliability, and archival life. Also, the Amazon brand as of today (now) is down to $18.86 for a 100 +R stack ... I have used them also for good recordings ... been reliable so far but I prefer the Verbatim brand when the price is right. I am not a DVD expert, just getting information from the internet on what might be a good blank DVD. I have burned many Verbatim dvds ... these prices are still at Amazon as I write this but could change at any time ... also Amazon used to have free shipping with a $25 order but in the last 2 or 3 weeks the free shipping is now with a $35 order ... two DVD packs will get the free shipping if you can use that many. Amazon Various http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss/182-4053383-0419748?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=blank+dvds Verbatim +R http://www.amazon.com/Verbatim-97459-to16x-Branded-Recordable/dp/B003ZDNZSS/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1384966362&sr=8-16&keywords=blank+dvds Amazon brand http://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-4-7-GB-16x-DVD/dp/B001TOD7MO/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1384966362&sr=8-5&keywords=blank+dvds

Here we go again ! ... I bought this DVD from an Amazon seller on Jan 31, 2013 ... The Deadly Look of Love ... there were not many available and my cost was $2.46 + shipping. It was new and sealed. I was just now checking some prior DVD purchases and now see the price of this DVD listed as $31,200.70 ... there are no longer any "new" ones listed for sale just this one used DVD. It's crazy ... The Deadly Look of Love (2000) Meg Hogarth (Actor), Phil Jarrett (Actor), Sollace Mitchell 1 used from $31,200.70 http://www.amazon.com/Deadly-Look-Love-Meg-Hogarth/dp/B000JMKJPU/ref=sr_1_3?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1384875535&sr=1-3&keywords=the+deadly+look+of+love There are some later editions but I have the 2000 release. Check them old DVDs and don't be using them as a "Frisbee" ! ... update, I see the $31,200.70 priced DVD is gone or whatever but there are now two used ones for sale, each going for $100.

I am also "confused" ... I (as apparently others are at the Neowin forum) thought the earlier problem had been fixed with the October updates but as I said in an earlier post ... up until "update Tuesday" last Tuesday Nov 12 ... Windows update was working just fine for me ... I was able to check in a 2 to 3 minute time frame with the computer running normal for any additional October updates. I like to do that just before the "new" updates are released. That's how it was for me until after Nov 12th when I could no longer get into the Windows update site. Why, ... what changed from Nov 11 to the 12th ... couldn't tell you but at the Neowin forum when I found the solution today, then I was able to see there were other people also having my problem. At this site (MSFN) people do not seem to be having this windows update problem but if you read the post by raynerph, he described my problem exactly. Posted 12 November 2013 - 23:52 I've just had the same problem with the November 2013 updates, and svchost at 99%. And wasted several hours. Having read the fix ideas, I looked to see if the November updates contain an update for Internet Explorer 8. There is an update: http://www.microsoft...s.aspx?id=41074 I installed the update. Rebooted. Then ran Microsoft Update ... this time the search for updates completed with only a few brief moments of svchost hitting 99%, and then the updates installed OK. It seems crazy that you have to manually install the November Internet Explorer 8 update, before the update system will automatically find and install the other updates. I had a lot of difficulty with the September updates too (same problem), but eventually the PC got there. Whereas the October updates were no problem at all. ------------------- .... I also had no problems with the October updates and had no problems at all till "after" Nov 12th. Like I said earlier, I am apparently the only one at the MSFN forum having any problems with the November XP update cycle but I posted a solution from the Neowin forum ... in case someone tomorrow or next week runs into this situation. This from raynerph's post is a "crazy" solution and I agree 100% with him: "It seems crazy that you have to manually install the November Internet Explorer 8 update, before the update system will automatically find and install the other updates."

In relation to my last post ... I found this additional news with MS saying a permanent fix is on the way ... we can only hope. Microsoft Promises to Fix Windows XP SVCHOST Bug November 15th, 2013 http://news.softpedia.com/news/Microsoft-Promises-to-Fix-Windows-XP-SVCHOST-Bug-400634.shtml ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://marc.info/?l=patchmanagement&m=138447194406363&w=2 List: patchmanagement Subject: Re: [patchmanagement] Windows Update on XP not usable any more From: "Rose, Derek" <DRose () iso-ne ! com> Date: 2013-11-14 23:28:33 Message-ID: 2A9636CA-A7D1-4721-B256-E512FCBD868D () iso-ne ! com [Download message RAW] Thanks for the great explanation Doug. My understanding around IE updates is that the \ most recent security update is cumulative. If this is the case, even only most of the \ time, is there a reason why retirement of superseded updates can't be more \ aggressive, IE version wide? I guess the only reason I can think of is if the latest \ update causes a problem for some, they'd want the previous to be available in order \ to reduce the vulnerability footprint. Outside if that though, not sure. Derek Sent from my iPhone > On Nov 14, 2013, at 15:23, "Doug Neal" <dugn@microsoft.com> wrote: > > Thanks to those who have sent their logs. Thanks to your logs, we found the \ > backend changes that were supposed to be made to fix this weren't made. > In short, this isn't a bug fix (at least not in the near term). The problem is \ > caused by the Windows Update client evaluating an exceptionally long supersedence \ > chain - something IE6 and IE7 have more than any other version of IE due to their \ > time in market. Each 'link' in the chain doubles the CPU resources needed to \ > evaluate it over the previous version. The chain is so long that the design \ > stymies the WUA client. > We're working to expire these exceptionally old, dated, unnecessary updates in the \ > chain. The expirations for these didn't happen as planned. > While I can't provide a date for when this will be done, we know it's an issue \ > affecting customer PCs and we're working to get it out as soon as possible to halt \ > the impact. > Thanks - and I hope that helps... > > doug neal > Microsoft Update (MU) ...

OK ... problem solved with help from another forum ... I found this solution at the Neowin site ... you have to be able to get the "new" IE 8 update (Nov 2013) downloaded and installed on your computer FIRST ... then you can get into the MS update site to get the other November updates. I just did the fix and the November updates appeared in less that two minutes ... computer running cool and fast with the update check. http://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/1176387-xp-windows-automatic-updates-svchostexe-100-cpu-ms-did-something/page-9 ... go down to the post by raynerph (Post #123): Posted 12 November 2013 - 23:52 I've just had the same problem with the November 2013 updates, and svchost at 99%. And wasted several hours. Having read the fix ideas, I looked to see if the November updates contain an update for Internet Explorer 8. There is an update: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=41074 I installed the update. Rebooted. Then ran Microsoft Update (I have updates turned "off", but with wuauclt.exe running as a service in the background). This time the search for updates completed with only a few brief moments of svchost hitting 99%, and then the updates installed OK. It seems crazy that you have to manually install the November Internet Explorer 8 update, before the update system will automatically find and install the other updates. I had a lot of difficulty with the September updates too (same problem), but eventually the PC got there. Whereas the October updates were no problem at all. I am also running an old XP installation, on a slow (1.6GHz) single core, low memory (1024MB) PC; it's over 8 years old, and has never been re-installed. ----------------------------- Cumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer 8 for Windows XP (KB2888505) http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=41074 that should work for anyone having this problem ... it did for me.

Thanks dencorso for tidying up my earlier post ... looks and reads much better, I don't know how to make a post look like that ... a moderator to the rescue. HarryTri ... thanks for the reply. I am still having no luck with the November update check, computer is still running crazy and hot. After installing the September and October updates on my XP setup everything was working OK and I would go to the MS update site and in less than three minutes the update check was completed. After what happened in late August at the MS update site, which I posted about earlier, I now always run update checks right up to the next "update Tuesday" release. For a quick refresh on the August thing, there was a bad July update, which I was not aware of and instead of MS waiting till "update Tuesday" in September to release the fix, they released the fix early, around Aug 28th or that time frame. I posted about it to give everyone a "heads up" that a new update had suddenly appeared. Anyway, because of that happening, I now run update checks a few times a week, till the new "update Tuesday" releases. My last update checks before November 12th were under the three minute mark but after last Tuesday's update release it's the Twilight Zone for me. Since you were able to get the updates and no one else has said they were having update problems then I am figuring it must be an isolated case for a computer here or there and me being one of the lucky ones. Probably a good reason to just forget about any future XP updates till May of next year on my part. ...

NB: The original title of this thread was: Anyone Able To Get or Check MS November 2013 Updates? I have not been able to have the November MS updates finish, been doing this for several days, on and off ... computer is running Fast and HOT and never finishes. I wanted just to check what updates were released for XP. I just found this article a few minutes ago about an XP update problem for November. Windows XP update locks machines with SVCHOST redlined at 100%: Fix it with KB 2879017. Bug returns with recent patches in Windows XP's Windows Update processing, as SVCHOST pegs 100% CPU utilization. By Woody Leonhard @InfoWorld on Nov 13, 2013 so there, so much for MS and the November updates ... anyone else notice this? additional ... I only do manual updating, I get the list of updates needed and then download them to keep in a folder to burn to a CD, I install them myself, nothing actually installed by M$ ... I put the IE 8 update from October back on (as mentioned in the article) and nothing is fixed ... computer is still running very HOT and going nowhere. Thanks again to M$ for a great product, like they care! I have the updates installed through Oct 2013 and things are working good so no more crap updates for me till April / May of next year. I have been putting them on every 2 or 3 months and then doing an image backup for that stage. It's just not worth it, possibly destroying a good working XP setup in these "final days". Does M$ care, probably not at this point but I will attempt to put all final updates on in May of next year ... this frustration is too much !!!

I was thinking more of the Roach Motel ads on TV years ago ... the little box with the sticky stuff inside ... used them in '80's ... "Roaches check in, but they don't check out!" Roach Motel ads 1978 - 1981 ... various vintage roach motel commercials. https://www.google.com/search?complete=0&hl=en&source=hp&q=roach+motel+ad&btnG=Google+Search&gbv=2 Black Flag "Roach Motel" Commercial (1978) "Roaches check in, but they don't check out!"

tomasz86 ... read your comment on the Qt Web browser. After you use it for awhile or test with it, I'd be interested in your comments or final verdict. Seems to be an OK browser so far for me. ...

When I moved from Windows 98SE to XP in 2012 I was also using KM 1.5.4 as my main (default) browser but since I also had KernelEx installed I was experimenting with the newer KM v1.6.0 version by JamesD. If memory serves me, I don't think KM v1.5.4 needed KernelEx installed to work but the newer JamesD version did ... I think. I continued to use KM v1.5.4 as my main browser with XP but about 5 months ago I made the JamesD version my default browser and took KM v1.5.4 off completely. There is another thread in the Software Hangout called "web browsers" started on Nov 11, 2013 and I posted what browsers I currently have installed ... there was information on a browser I had never heard of called Qt Web and I decided to try it out. http://www.msfn.org/board/topic/170291-web-browsers/ K-Meleon usually works 99% of the time for me with all web sites (so far) but I have some older versions of Opera and Firefox and now Qt Web to fall back on ... if needed. I had newer versions of FF and Opera installed but in October decided to go back to older versions on both for awhile ... the older versions don't seem to be so bloated and seem to be faster, at least to me ... I am just experimenting for now ... I also use only "portable" versions. Besides, I like that lighthouse throbber going around and can't figure out how to put it into Opera or Firefox ... KM is just so easy to configure to make it exactly to a person's liking and it's still a fast browser on my newer XP setup. ...

I see a reference to a thread I started last Nov 2012 dealing with a newer version of K-Meleon has been brought back to life. Just for some more recent information ... I started a new thread dealing with K-Meleon under the Software Hangout forum on Nov 07, 2013. Newer(Sort of) K-Meleon Browser Version Available http://www.msfn.org/board/forum/19-software-hangout/ There are several newer versions discussed by rodocop, Dorian and JamesD. There are links and information there. JamesD came out with a newer KM version last July and I think with KernelEx installed that may work with Windows 98SE ... I have moved on to XP these days, so I can't be sure ... you may find it interesting reading and may want to experiment with the various versions. The JamesD version is K-Meleon 1.6.0 Beta 2.6 which he is using with Windows 7 (32-bit) and if you stay with those K-Meleon links that I provide you will see bugs and fixes are being worked on as I type this. Things are happening fast and a new or several new and better KM versions are down the road. They are not programmers but are putting their ideas and fixes together to come up with a better version. I am very happy with the JamesD version and you have several skins to work with ... if you like the IE look then Klassic skin would be worth looking into ... easy to change under Preferences ... try all the skins ... more modern. If you like the KM throbber then you can just stick with it ... if you would like a lighthouse throbber going around, then one was made for me back 2010 by disrupted ... he did a great job. K-Meleon Lighthouse Throbber http://kmeleon.sourceforge.net/forum/read.php?10,110908 There is a great cookie manager add on called Cookie Culler Plus at ... K-Meleon Extensions Central http://kmext.sourceforge.net/ Categories: Privacy & Security enhanced privacy control Feeds, Social & Blogging news & social-networking Communication support for web services Bookmarking & Archiving bookmark management & website archiving Web Development web-developing & design Network connection & protocol related Enhancements advanced browser & site manipulation Miscellaneous educational, entertainment, fun & games Browser Plugins np plugins required by rich-content websites K-Plugins special K-Meleon plugins

Thanks for the tip on Hushmail ... might just work for me. Opened an account (free) to use for awhile. Yes, a person has to "sign in" at least once every 25 days and you only get 25 MB of storage with a free account but I can use my G-mail accounts for junk and move the important stuff to Hushmail ... for now, unless someone posts about one even better. thanks ... might add that it was a very easy signup ... no "gallon of blood" or fingerprints required!