Stormbringer's Thunder

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  For many years, Firefox was my main browser. It has several features that I were very useful to me. After my bad breakup with it , I ended up using a fork known as Waterfox. It has been pretty good, but is not my default browser and more like a utility that I use on occasion. Something I like in FFX and forks is the download indicators. Those in Chromium-based browsers irritate me. Except... Credit: FreeDigitalPhotos / Stuart Miles As stated before, I have the perspective of a Windows 10 user, so this article is unhelpful for users with mobile devices. While I use a smartphone, it's a derringer compared to my .44-40 desktop. When I do research and obtain information, I want the downloads on the big gun, not on the little thing where they are inconvenient to obtain. Many people like to hate Microsoft. I'll allow that they rush things to market before thorough testing (one reason I don't hurry to download new software releases right away), love money t...

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen Here is the final article in the trilogy. The first part was an introduction , then the privacy and other things were discussed in the second part . Now it is time to examine a few extensions (also called add-ons) that this cowboy has found helpful for productivity and security. Credit: FreeDigitalPhotos /  dfrsce It doesn't take an architect to add extensions since other people did the construction. Finding them is not much of a challenge, but loading good ones requires discretion. They can easily be added onto the browser's structure. Sometimes, too easily. Once again, I must point out that I am writing about my experiences using a Windows 10 desktop computer. Do my experiences and learning qualify me as a "power user"? Some Extensions can be Harmful Yeah, get the caution out there before discussing what I am using. I was unable to learn how many extensions are available for Firefox, but there are quite a few . Most people use browser extensio...

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen Most recent edit: 11-16-2021 In Part 1, I gave a brief overview of things that are happening in the wild world of browsers. After I commenced my research, I learned that there is a prairie schooner-full of possibilities including several I know nothing about , so most of this discussion is based on personal experience. Remember,  I am using a Windows 10 desktop. Credit: Freeimages / Armin Hanisch In this day and age, we need to be secure from spying, hacking, and tracking. Something else that bears repeating is that most Windows browsers will get you where you want to go — right out of the box. Which browser is the "best"? Looking at reviews, there is conflicting information. Many times, reviewers use benchmarks (of which there are many, and some view them with mistrust), which should explain why reports on which is fastest are inconsistent. I have also seen conflicting information regarding privacy settings. A brief comment on browser speed is in ord...

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  This is somewhat depressing. I feel like an old friend betrayed me, having used Firefox off and on for several years, and now this. It has made many improvements in speed, reliability, and security, but the Mozilla company has taken the bit of leftist politics into its teeth and jumped the corral fence. This derivative image was further modified at PhotoFunia . Shouldn't web browser companies focus on keeping us secure from tracking, spyware, hacking, and such? The expression "stay in your lane" comes to mind. I was dismayed to learn that Mozilla, makers of Firefox, have called for deplatforming and punishment of President Trump and others. So they are in favor of censorship. We need more than deplatforming Mozilla CEO Says Deplatforming President Trump Isn't Enough WARNING: Mozilla Calls for More Censorship to ‘Build a Better Internet’ – Celebrates Trump Ban Thousands are Uninstalling Firefox after Developers Demand Total Internet Censorship T...

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen All y'all should know up front that this series of articles is based on my experiences as a Window 10 desktop computer user. Many of the things discussed will apply to laptops (are they different from notebooks?), but mobile devices will be left alone for the most part. Exploring browsers can be fun! Credit: Pixabay / Pete Linforth While many people are content to use the browser that came with their computer, they may ignore the fact that there are many browsers to choose from. Since Google (the parent company is Alphabet ) dominates teh interwebs, sojourners on their properties are inundated with, "Hey, we're the best ! Download Chrome!", which is probably why they have a huge market share (a difficult process that reminds this child of political polling) in the browser wars. The dominant browser years ago was Internet Explorer, which more experienced users loved to hate. If you want to move around the web, the major browsers will get the job...

Buon giorno. Yours truly is a bit wired today. I've made it clear in the past that I'm a proponent of freeware and Open Source software. (No, I'm not ready to tackle Linux without a tutor.) Although both are technically free, freeware is often the product of one developer being generous and giving away his or her work (sometimes as a way to attract attention to other products that are for sale), and Open Source is available to anyone with the necessary skills to develop; a group effort, if you will. Click on the above link for more information about Open Source. Much of my favorite software is Open Source. I like the guiding principles behind it, and that it seems to be a labor of love. Firefox , Open Office (replacements for Excel, Word, PowerPoint and others), 7-Zip file compression and others . I found a couple that are new to me. Sort of. Couple, that is. You'll see. For someone that wants to do Bible study on their computer, with multiple versions to com...

Buon giorno. I'm getting irritated. Not only do I get a marked increase in spam, but I'm getting people sending me viruses and phishing attempts. I learned long ago (and I think most of my readers know this by now) that your online company will not ask for your account number, social security number, bank account number, password or other personal information. (Also note that you should not give that kind of information over the telephone to someone who calls you and asks for it.) But at least I can share my experiences with the world and, hopefully, save someone from grief. When you get hit with something, you can contact the company yourself if you think there may be a legitimate question on their part. More likely, it's a spoof (phishing) attempt. Report them. Go to the site of the company itself, find the address that most of those companies give you, and then turn in the scumbags. Here is a cute thing that I got from "PayPal". Or so it claims: They...

Buona sera. I haven't been thundering here much lately, and now it's time to make up for it. Pay attention, willya? This is important, and I don't care what your political leanings are, we can sort that out later. I was sent a virus today. A virus will stop all of your uncluttering and productivity efforts right in their tracks. This one arrived at one of my throw-away accounts. That got my attention because I do not use that account for anything serious. My main indication that this was something to be on guard against was that Thunderbird 3 told me, "Hey, this looks like spam!" Click on the picture to see it enlarged ( better yet, use Firefox, right-click, open link in new tab ). Also, it had a Zipped file attachment (bottom left). Alarm bells are going off in my head. Now, I understand that most of my readers are careful, but some things are worth saying over and over anyway: Never open an attachment from a stranger! The attachment is the virus. That's wha...

Edited content for clarity on Tuesday, November 24, 2009. Buon giorno. Yes, I think my title is funny. This past weekend was an emotional, mental and physical roller coaster. It was time to reformat my hard drive. Dump the scraps of leftover software and things I really do not need, reload it with stuff that I know is better and go at it with my increased knowledge. Reformatting has been a source of bad news for me for a long time, mainly from trying to get the computer to resemble what I had before. I have no problem helping someone else with it, but for me, I get anxiety attacks based on experiences with my first Windows computer (HP does this to people). It happened again. First, I could not get anything to show up on my monitor. After checking some things on Nicky's computer, I decided to reformat it again. Still nothing, just a flashing cursor in the upper left corner. I looked up some more "solutions" online and tried them. No dice. I connected with a Hewle...

Buon giorno. You're traveling through a realm of annoyance. It is a realm that lies at the summit of man's irritation or the pit of his tolerance. It is a journey through a land of both ego and pride, of stupidity and ignorance. Arrogance is paramount. Introspection is rare. There's a signpost up ahead. Your next stop: The Obnoxious Zone. OK, enough of the bad Twilight Zone introduction re-write. But I had to blow off some steam. Very rough weekend, especially with the brutal heatwave. Tommy the Knocker has put dry ice in front of his fan, it's so bad. Maybe if it didn't hit six weeks before the usual time, it would be easier to tolerate. Yours truly has had to do some self-examination. Do I trash something that I like because of the people associated with it? That's what it comes down to. You see, I'm more than fed up with the "Spread Firefox" community. Basically, it's full of virgin geeks doing their "Yeah! Firefox rocks, dude!...