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Cisco Cranks Out iPhone Security App for IT Managers

Paul Lilly — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 07:04:06 -0600

Cisco set out to put defense capabilities of Cisco Security Intelligence Operations (SIO) in the hands (literally) of IT managers, and has done so with the availability of Cisco SIO To Go, an Apple iPhone app.

The software gives IT pros real-time access to various actionable global security information, while also serving up several customization options for security information that could potentially help protect a business network.

Cisco's app includes real-time alerts and threat mitigation solutions from sources that include more than 700,000 globally deployed Cisco secuirty devices. It also includes Cisco IntelliShield, a historical-threat database of 40,000 vulnerabilities and 3,300 IPS signatures, and more than 600 third-party threat intelligence sources capable of tracking more than 500 third-party data feeds and 100 security news feeds 24/7, the company said.

Image Credit: Cisco

Trillian Now Available for iPhone, iPod Touch

Paul Lilly — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:40:01 -0600

Better late than never, and while it took a long time, iPhone and iPod touch users can now download Trillian, the multiprotocol IM client, through Apple's App Store.

The $4.99 app comes with many of the same features as its desktop counterpart, including grouped and sorted contacts. Tabbed chat windows also find their way onto the iPhone and iPod touch version, and so does the ability to copy and paste, which is more a credit to Apple than Cerulean Studios, the company responsible for Trillian.

Users can also synchronize content across multiple IM clients, so that changes made on the iPhone version will appear in real-time on the Windows client.

In a nod towards cloud computing, Cerulean Studios says that all chats are stored on the company's server, which means they won't be lost if you suffer a dropped connection. The app can also be set up to send IM alerts when Trillian is shut down.

Image Credit: Cerulean Studios

Freeware Files: Auto-Installers for Your Favorite Windows 7 Apps!

David Murphy — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:45:00 -0500

I feel as if we just crossed this path the other day. But that's okay. On the grand scale of "pony-themed games" to "extremely useful freeware applications," automatic application installers--or package mangers--tend to fall toward the latter end of the spectrum.

I wouldn't be broaching this topic so close to a previous, similar roundup were it not critically important for you to check out some of the apps that I've recently found. Although a few package managers might slip into the mix, the freeware programs I'm about to profile today... aren't really programs at all. At least, they aren't installation packages in the way you're typically used to seeing them.

Unlike package managers, which require you to install a separate application that contains some fancy list of other applications to download, some of the apps I'm investigating today remove this extra step from the equation. When stumbling into the official Web site of said programs, you're given the opportunity to customize a list of programs you want to install before you have to download anything. Once you're ready, the site creates a single executable that--if all goes well--downloads and spits the applications onto your hard drive without so much as an extra mouse click of your time.

Of course, that's the best-case scenario. There are still a number of helpful "application packages" that are a wee less automated but still worth looking into. And if you need any further encouragement, one such tool cut my typical post-installation software installation time from around 30-45 minutes to a grand total of five--five hassle-free minutes, mind you.

Ninite

I won't bury the lede. Ninite--coincidentally released this past Friday--was the first program I turned to post-successful Windows 7 installation. Why's that? Because I, like you, don't enjoy wasting an hour or more hunting across the Internet for all the apps I frequently use. And after that, there's the installation process: Tedious, sequential steps of application installation routine after application installation routine. A few thousand mouse-clicks and ten computer reboots later... and I feel like I've wasted my entire day installing programs instead of actually using them.

Ninite delivers an easy solution to this mess. Go to the website and click on the apps that you ultimately want to install. When you're done, Ninite creates a customized executable that downloads and installs these apps for you. Each app is installed with its default settings to its default location--a boon for those who just want a "set it and forget it" dump of all their favorite applications, although picky purists who prefer to tweak an app's advanced installation options might find themselves slightly disappointed.

Download it here!

Google Pack

It goes without saying, but this tried-and-true set of applications from Google offers a wide latitude of variety for just a single installation executable. From the Chrome Web browser, to Google Earth, to third-party applications like Skype, you'll find a lot of functionality that's easily customizable to create your own personal Google Pack. Simply head on over to Google's Web site for the software and select which elements you want to appear in your customized download executable. Double-click on the file once you've downloaded it and Google, for the most part, will take care of the rest.

Download it here!

Allmyapps

Allmyapps has the slight ring of a package manager to it, in that the application you download is mainly a resource for processing specialized links from the accompanying Web site rather than a full-fledged installation package of its own. However, the functionality this site offers is comparable to Ninite... and there are a ton more freeware and open-source apps to choose from! Like an Amazon shopping extravaganza, simply add the apps you want to download to your shopping card, er, list. Register for the site and save your list, and you'll be able to grab all the programs at once using the site's downloadable installer application.

I'd much prefer to skip the registration process entirely and just get the apps a la Ninite, but it's hard to argue in the face of the site's comprehensive list of programs to pick from.

Download it here!

BaseShield App Store

Similar to a concept I've blogged about in the past--okay, it's exactly identical--BaseShield is the equivalent of an iTunes for freeware and open-source PC software. Install the App Store application and you'll be able to browse for additional programs as if you were searching for a new application for your iPod Touch or iPhone device.

To be fair, BaseShield isn't a carbon-copy of iTunes. In fact, it's really more of just a graphical package manager. I guess I was a little thrown off by the title. The pretty treatment and abundance of available (and updated) freeware and open-source software titles does set this package manager a bit apart from its peers. And since it's made by the same people who made the ever-awesome Ninite app you read about earlier, I have the utmost faith that this program will be as delightful a treat for your PC as its brother. Or sister. Take your pick.

Download it here!

Microsoft Web Platform Installer 2.0

Every now and them, I stumble across a piece of freeware for the hardcore developer crowd. I'll never use it myself, but Microsoft's Web Platform Installer 2.0 makes for a simplified way to download and install a whole bevy of components at once, including: Internet Information Services (IIS), SQL Server 2008 Express, the .NET framework, and Visual Web Developer Express, amongst others. Microsoft has even built a community of-sorts around the various Web apps that you can integrate into your site after-the-fact, including Wordpress, SugarCRM, and Gallery, to name a few.

Like I said, this is pure, geeky developer stuff. But, hey, automated installations are automated installations, eh? If your geek-fu isn't quite at this level, maybe you can start by playing around with XAMPP?

Download it here!

David Murphy (@ Acererak) is a technology journalist and former Maximum PC editor. He writes weekly columns about the wide world of open-source as well as weekly roundups of awesome, freebie software. Befriend him on Twitter, especially if you have an awesome app or game you're dying to recommend!

Freeware Files: Five Alternative Desktop Organizers (That Rock)

David Murphy — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:30:00 -0500

The recent release of Stardock's Fences tool (version 1.0) got me thinking about desktop organization. While Fences is certainly neat--the program lets you divide your desktop real estate into individual sections, surrounded by "fences," amongst other space-saving features--this freeware app isn't the only game in town by far. In fact, some of you expressed disgust at Stardock's latest release. Be it the fact that one needs to install Stardock's Impulse client just to access Fences, or your simple dislike of an application whose functionality is mirrored by other freeware apps, Fences was hardly a shot hit out of the park.

So, here we are. I'm going to show you five different alternative desktop managers that will help you bring increased tidiness, prettier looks, and funner... er... more fun functionality to your typical workspace. Auto-arrange your icons one last time for nostalgia's sake, because I'm about to mix up your desktop crazy-style.

WinExt

This one's easy. WinExt expands the normal Windows shell to include an additional bar at the top or bottom of your screen. On this bar sits a number of additional features: menu buttons that you can theme by category to launch any number of applications (sure beats surfing around the Windows start menu!), quick-launch buttons for calling up all the apps you want, and an optional status bar that gives you a Resources Monitor-like look at your system's current CPU use, RAM use, and hard drive space, amongst other notes. You can customize the colors and alpha transparency of this new bar on your screen, making it just a tad more useful than the default Windows taskbar.

Download it here!

RocketDock

I've talked about RocketDock before, so I'm somewhat loathe to mention it again in a freeware update. However, a number of commenters have insisted that RocketDock is a stronger enhancement for one's desktop than Stardock's Fences, so I don't mind profiling it again just in case you missed it last time. Explanation aside, RocketDock is an application launcher that's analogous to what you'd find on Apple's OSX platform. A little, auto-hiding, transparent launcher hosts icons representing the program shortcuts that you want easier access to. Moving your mouse over said icons expands them into a larger size (again, OSX anyone?), and you can even see a live preview of your app (if it's running) similar to Windows Vista's default action.

Download it here!

ObjectDock

You got your ObjectDock in my RocketDock! You got your RocketDock in my ObjectDock! Despite the similarities of the names, RocketDock and ObjectDock--also a Stardock app, for those keeping score at home--are... almost every bit the same. ObjectDock offers a different style, same treatment for adding an additional, icon-themed shortcut launching bar into your operating system. It's a bit beefier of a resource-user than RocketDock. If you can afford the hit, you'll get a kick out of the unique icons and "docklets," tiny applications like a brand-new weather feed utility that you can launch straight out of your ObjectDock bar itself!

Download it here!

BumpTop

Tired of staring at the boring ol' two-dimensional space of a normal computer desktop? All the application-launching utilities in the world can't break through your workspace's flat plane... hence BumpTop's usefulness. This app transforms your dull desktop into a three-dimensional, navigable space. Rotate this environment as if it were a Sims-like model of your bedroom, then attach your icons to the wall like a teenager's collection of rock posters. As you grow and shrink icons to reflect their importance, you can drag them around and nudge smaller, less-important icons out of the way. Clicking, dragging, and creating three-dimensional piles of icons has never been as intuitive as it is in BumpTop and--dare I say it--never as much fun, either.

Now if only there was a way to create additional themed "rooms" and pathways through your desktop a la an old-school Doom map...

Download it here!

KDE

Eschew the Windows environment entirely and play around with a LiveCD that incorporates KDE, or the K Desktop Environment. To be honest, a number of the fancier tricks and desktop management tools that you have to build into Windows with third-party programs are likely to already exist in KDE. It's the inspiration for many an aspiring Windows desktop enhancer--if not Windows itself. A number of the flashier features you'll find on Windows 7 desktops worldwide have already been known to KDE users for some time now. Get ahead of the desktop management curve; get KDE.

Download it here!

Murphy's Law: The Web Opens Wide

David Murphy — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 13:15:00 -0500

Ahh, TechCrunch50 time. For those outside of the Valley, otherwise known as "The Know," this is the time of year when legions of startups (47) descend onto a common stage under the TechCrunch banner, all eager to pitch their next, greatest idea to a field of hungry judges and enthusiastic audience members.

Every time this happens--or every time any show similar to the TechCrunch50 goes down--I always look forward to the new batch of oddly named Web applications that I'll probably never hear about again, let alone actually use. For this, I have but one source to blame: open data. Just because there's an API or the free-flow of information outward from a single popular source doesn't mean that one always has to make a spin-off project. But if you build it, they will indeed come. The developers, that is, and they're always looking to cash in on the next big variation to an already successful idea.

I'm not exactly sure why this is the case with Web applications and why it's not always mirrored in open-source or freeware software development. What is it about a Web platform that makes it such an intriguing breeding ground for rip-offery? Is it really that easy to create a Web mashup of two social networks instead of pouring the same amount of effort into, say, a new instant messaging application?

The Web's Copycats

How many Twitter variants are out there right now? I can't even begin to fathom just how many sites call into the Twitter API for some unique delivery of one's messages: sites like Twitterfall, Friendfeed, all those Twitter directories that promise to boost your follower count like a big, cross-linked Yellow Pages, et cetera. The list gets thicker still if you count all the direct rip-offs of Twitter itself, including the business-themed Yammer and open-source StatusNet. It's application overload, and that's just a single Web property.

A similar situation occurs with open-source and freeware software development, but it's not nearly as extreme. For example, there are a number of different instant messaging applications that seek to replicate the functions found in more official chat programs like AOL Instant Messenger or Yahoo! Messenger. That's nothing new.

A number of these applications, while similar, still tend to offer enough of a variance in features, interaction, or design to warrant existence. For example, I use Pidgin. I like Pidgin. But I can just as easily see how someone could use Digsby, or Adium, or Trillian to fulfill their conversational needs. Yet, the degree of instant messenger spin-offs isn't nearly as crazy as the number of dead or dying Web applications that launch on a yearly basis. Developers are fine making just one more derivative in a thousand based off a preexisting (and successful) Web platform, yet fail to apply this diverse eye to the software world in such a grand scale.

Toes in the Pool

Is it the payoff that's the problem? I can envision a lot more testing and development involved with getting a stable application off the ground versus one that's designed to work solely via your Web browser. But wouldn't it be easier to attract eyeballs in the software world, where potential competitors can number in the tens, not thousands? And what about the open-source world where the source code is already written for you? You're practically encouraged to create a unique modification on an original concept--tweaking successful software couldn't be any worse than crafting up a new Web app from scratch.

Is it the monetization? Digsby has taken a lot of flak for its unique approaches toward helping the program's development stay afloat. That said, it's not like downloadable software exists in a bubble. Open-source and freeware applications would still depend on the very same advertising methods that any ol' Web site would need to survive--at least, I don't see many Twitter Web apps resorting to subscription fees nowadays.

Is it the culture? Are we slowly reaching the point where the most useful forms of communication and accessibility occur in the Cloud instead of the desktop? I've long since abandoned using installable programs to interact with my personal email accounts. That said, I sure don't see myself transitioning over to a Meebo in place of Pidgin. I'm not going to waste the browser resources, nor do I want the added hassle of instant messages interfering with my normal surfing habits. Some programs just work as Web apps; some don't.

It would be stupid to say that third-party software development is somehow stunted as a result of Web applications. That's not my point. I just can't bear to see the buzz and hype of emerging Web platforms that are so obviously dead in the water before they've even floundered. Why not drop this development into unique freeware or open-source software that has a slightly better chance of making it in the real world? Do we really need this much Web 2.0 waste?

Freeware Files: Five July Upgrades Worth Downloading!

David Murphy — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 13:00:00 -0500

As we close up yet another month of freeware goodies, it's important to look back and reflect on some of the awesome programs that received a version bump in the past 30 days. It was tough to nail down five free applications that not only upgraded themselves to a new iteration, but ones that successfully packed new and interesting features into their latest builds. There's no overarching theme this week save for that; it's a grab-bag of awesome new software to install. If this lack of a unifying concept horrifies you, don't worry. I'll list out all of this month's freeware roundups below, which you can use as a guide of-sorts to travel back to safer downloading waters.

Audacity

What it does: One of the best open-source audio editors out there has jumped up from version 1.3.7 to 1.3.8--both beta. What's included in the new batch of features? Support for more than 16 channels of audio recording, provided your hardware can handle it. The performance of the app's single-file editing and multi-track editing modes have been improved as well, as has the speed of the app's included equalization and noise removal options. A new interface mode--the "mixer board" view, offers volume-unit meters (VU meters) for each track.

For a full list of updates, click here! To grab the app, click here!

MyDefrag

What it does: Remember JkDefrag? It's gone. The latest iteration of the program, version four, has transformed this previously open-source defragging tool into a closed-source freeware application. And MyDefrag, after sitting in beta for nearly five months, finally launched its official release in early July. The program boasts an improved interface and performance over its open-source predecessor, as well as lower memory use and more helpful documentation. Is it better than the standard Windows defragmentation tool? Run some benchmarks and report back!

Download the app--click here!

Opera

What it does: The semi-popular Opera browser has jumped up to its second version of the Opera 10.0 beta. Aside from widget version support and multi-server updates, a majority of the differences between 10.0 beta 2 and 10.0 beta 1 come in the form of tweaks and improvements to a laundry list of specific items. I'll back the train up even more--what separates the Opera 10 beta program from the current Opera 9 browser? Gosh. Visual tabs, increased configuration options for the browser's "Speed Dial" feature--a Safari-like list of the Web pages you most frequent--as well as automatic updates, crash logging, an inline spell checker, and perfection on the much-dreaded Acid3 rendering test.

For a full list of updates, click here! To grab the app, click here!

VLC Media Player

What it does: This open-source alternative to Windows Media Player is the kitchen sink of features and formats. New to the 1.0.0 "Goldeneye" release of the app includes support for even more HD codecs: Dolby Digital Plus, TrueHD, and Blu-ray Linear PCM, to name a few. The app also brings instant pausing and frame-by-frame advancement to the table, perfect for those trying to catch every little detail in their favorite sci-fi series of choice. You can live record video in VLC Media Player 1.0.0, and even stream the audio of what you're watching via AirTunes

For a full list of updates, click here! To grab the app, click here!

VirtualBox

What it does: To be fair, the update of VirtualBox from 3.0.0 to 3.0.2 is more a maintenance release than anything else. But what's less important than increasing the performance of a virtual PC application? You can use this open-source app to launch new versions of operating systems inside your primary OS. It's a great time-saver when you want to fiddle with some component of an alternate OS, but don't have the time, space, or desire to split your drive into partitions and install a separate version of said OS in addition to what you normally run. This version of VirtualBox fixes 28 annoying bugs across Windows and Linux platforms, including a nasty one that sucked up your CPU resources when attempting to load a virtual OS from a hibernated state.

For a full list of updates, click here! To grab the app, click here!

July's Mega-Freeware roundup!

Miss any of the freeware roundups this month? Check out this list of 14 other programs that are worth your bandwidth, time, and love:

Freeware Files: Five Instant Messaging Apps (that are better than AIM)

Including: Pidgin, Digsby, Trillian Astra, Miranda IM, VoxOX

Freeware Files: Five Free Distributed Computing Projects for your Idle PC!

Including: Folding@home, Climateprediction.net, GIMPS, SETI@home, Muon1

Freeware Files: Five Portable Software Suites for your USB Key

Including: PortableApps, Lupo PenSuite, MyApps, Mojopac

As always, if you have any freeware or open-source programs that you think rock harder than a reunion of your favorite band (Jonas Brothers excluded), leave me a message in the comments or via Twitter @acererak. You could be featured in a future freeware roundup!

Murphy's Law: Building an Open Source America with Open Source Data

David Murphy — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 11:00:00 -0500

A coalition of some of the biggest names in the OSS world have banded together to create Open Source for America, a brand-new advocacy group that's going to try and highlight the advantages of open-source software to help achieve the goals set out in President Barack Obama's push for an open-data government. But as we pause to "ooh" and "ahh" at the list of companies and open-source celebrities contributing to the new group--Novell, the Mozilla Foundation, the EFF, Tim O'Reilly, and Mark Shuttleworth, amongst many others--let us not forget the uphill battle that the concept of "openness" tends to face in the government sector.

I'm not suggesting that the OSA's cause is anything but noble: Instead of pitching open-source as a replacement to proprietary code, the group wants to level the playing field and allow both to equally compete for governmental contracts. That does have practical implications for the common person. Increased savings and reliability will allow resources spent for upkeep to be shifted to additional needy sources, and open-source software should--in theory--be easier and quicker to deploy than proprietary code given the larger user base that could feasibly assess and contribute to such a project. When it comes to efforts like standardizing a way to share a patient's health records across a wide swath of federal, state, local, and private organizations, multi-tiered cooperation and speedy results are a good thing.

Nevertheless, I just can't find myself getting that excited over open-source software when we still have fundamental issues of transparency and openness in governmental data. There's a wealth of information out there that's free and easily accessible to the public. But that doesn't mean that legislators, agencies, and departments are going out of their way to make this information as useful as it could be. In fact, it was only as recently as two months ago that the U.S. Senate opened up its own voting records for third-party applications and mashups.

Open Data's in the House

The House of Representatives and Senate have both used XML to exchange legislative documents since 2000. It's pretty easy to find XML feeds for the bills passing between the two legislatures via The Library of Congress's THOMAS database--the central information repository for all legislative activity in Congress. Pulling up an XML listing of how the votes fell out in the House is also simple, although you'll have to jump to the Office of the Clerk for that information. The Senate, not-so-much. Up until May, when a formal request by South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint was finally accepted by the Senate Rules Committee, this information was restricted to straight-up HTML feeds.

Why is any of this important? Because third parties wishing the use the data to track things like voting records and attendance, filibustering, and comparisons between legislators would have to input this information manually in order to get an accurate database for external applications or data mashups. These amalgams, in turn, offer increased access to the legislative record for your average, everyday American who has no time to scan over arcane THOMAS listings to discern the status of a piece of legislation or, come election time, a Congressperson's legislative activity.

Representative Melissa Bean, Democrat of Illinois, put it best in an interview with Politico. “Coming out of the business world, I think results matter. How can people really track results if they don’t even know how their representatives are voting?” she said. Bean, in turn, has introduced legislation that would compel the Office of the Clerk to create an electronic list of all votes taken in the house organized by member. This feature, currently lacking in the XML feeds for roll call votes, would allow visitors to quickly and easily discern exactly how and when a particular member has voted throughout the congressperson's tenure.

Free Data Federalism

And this is just the situation in the U.S. Congress. Check out Data.gov, the brainchild of the Obama administration's first-ever CTO, Vivek Kundra. Specifically, head on over to the "state/local" portion of the site to see just how many states in the union have begun to offer up official archives with machine-readable datasets (like XML) for public consumption. I'll spoil the answer for you. Not counting the District of Columbia, there are two: California and Utah. To be fair, there's a varying degree of open information accessibility in the individual state legislatures--New York, for example, has pushed past RSS-feed-like XML feeds and offers full APIs for data access. It's a move that many wish to see enacted at the federal level.

In a perfect world, the results of our representative democracy would be available for perusal by any member of the public. But when I say available, I don't just mean locked away in some complicated, searchable database. Let the third-party world of application developers, information enthusiasts, and political junkies sift through the deliverables and create their own compelling derivatives for public consumption. Based on the impressive results that have come from the laborious combination of automatic and manual data entry, I can only imagine the kinds of benefits that an average citizen could acquire as a result of a truly "open" government. Open-source software is a great discussion point. Let's throw a bigger bone to open-source data, too.

A few data-crunching sites worth surveying:

Govtrack.us

Fillibusted

e-PaperTrail

OpenCongress

Maplight

Google Believes Mobile Web Browsers Will Supplant App Stores

Pulkit Chandna — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 20:21:04 -0500

The Apple App Store for the iPhone/iPod Touch has proved to be a huge hit and forced the introduction of similar services on rival mobile platforms. However, Vic Gundotra, vp of engineering at Google, believes such app stores will not have much of an impact in the future. He expects mobile web browsers to be more than equipped to deliver all kinds of content in the future.

“Many, many applications can be delivered through the browser and what that does for our costs is stunning,” Gundotra said at the Mobilebeat Conference in San Francisco. Palm’s Michael Abbot seconded his opinion and cited the introduction of HTML5 standards, which has made it easier for web apps to make use of a phone’s hardware, as a portent of things to follow.

Image Credit:GoogleDiscovery