Subject: Steve Gibson's Feb.2000 Brief Monthly Update ...

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  This "Brief Monthly Update" is less brief than I like, since
   it's the first one ever, and there's a bit of catching up
       to be done. In the future they'll be more brief!
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Internet Security:

 What is ShieldsUP!?:

   If you don't yet know about my Internet connection security
   project, the following secure link will take you directly
   into the system. It's a system that quickly and privately
   analyzes your computer's Internet security and offers
   extensive instruction in improving your system's security:

    <a href= "https://grc.com/x/ne.dll?bh0bkyd2" >ShieldsUP!</a>

 The Birth of a *FREE* Firewall:

   I DID NOT WRITE IT, NOR IS IT READY FOR GENERAL USE, so
   I do not yet recommend that you try it ... but I have high
   hopes that ZoneAlarm v2 will soon become *THE* best personal
   firewall available for Windows PC users. And it will be
   completely FREE for individual use!! To learn more, please
   see the page I've created to monitor the birthing of this
   (hopefully) terrific new Internet security solution:

   <a href= "http://grc.com/zonealarm.htm" >ZoneAlarm v2</a>

   The moment ZoneAlarm 2 is ready and stable enough for general
   use, I will send a note to everyone who has the "Internet
   Security" topic enabled in their eMail profiles.
   (To check, edit, or delete your profile, see the link at the
   end of this mail.)

 My Current Internet Security Project:

   With the eMail system now up and running, I turn my attention
   to the creation of the FREE, comprehensive, hyper-speed port
   scanner I have promised to my ShieldsUP! visitors. I am VERY
   excited to be starting work on this project and I'll keep you
   informed of its progress through this eMail System.

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Steve's Picks:

 NetSurfer Digest: A really terrific FREE email newsletter:

   It arrives every week on Sunday, and it NEVER disappoints.
   The NetSurfer Digest is compiled by a bunch of editors who
   literally live on the web. They compile a list of really
   amazing and wonderful stuff that appeals to non-techies and
   techies alike. I urge you to check out the current issue
   which you can find on their home page, and to consider
   subscribing. I'm glad I did!

   <a href= "http://www.netsurf.com/nsd" >NetSurfer Digest</a>

 Searching the Web:

   A great many of you have thanked me for my previous
   recommendation of the Google search engine saying that you
   have made it your default engine of choice. (If "Google"
   doesn't ring any bells, the link below will take you to my
   original Google announcement.)  Google excels at finding THE
   BEST FEW links for something that's really well known. But
   there are times when we're searching for something more
   obscure which Google's "inbound link quality" ranking system
   just won't find. For those situations I once used AltaVista
   for its comprehensive web-wide index, but many months ago I
   stumbled over an alternative that I have grown to like much
   better: "http://www.alltheweb.com" has become my preferred
   search choice when "I know it's got to be out there
   somewhere." With more than 300,000,000 web pages indexed,
   and search times under half a second, this site really
   deserves your look:

   <a href= "http://www.alltheweb.com/" >All The Web</a>

   <a href= "http://grc.com/x/email/1.txt" >About Google</a>

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Loose Ends:

   Since this is the first-ever "update" I wanted to update
   everyone on the state of my other work. This will NOT be
   repeated in the future ...

   * SpinRite v5.0: No known bugs, no patches since its release.

   * TIP v2.1a: Now supports 250MB Zip and all Iomega USB drives.

   * ASPI Drivers: There's a rumor flying around that Adaptec
     will soon be releasing their ASPI drivers for Windows 9x
     and NT to the public.  I am hoping that I'll be able to
     bring back my free ASPI_ME driver installer.  I'll let you
     know when/if this happens!

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Thanks for your time. I hope this has been useful to you. Unless
you delete yourself from the system, or "uncheck" the "Brief
Monthly Updates" option, you'll receive the next update near the
beginning of March.

Steve Gibson.         <a href= "http://grc.com/" >GRC Website</a>