SJONES@UMASS.BITNET.UUCP (05/31/87)
Someone recently cautioned us not to EXEC anything we happened to download
if we valued our systems. I've read discussion of these 'trojans' in, I
think, the Wall Street Journal, and a few postings here. I also spent about
a year collecting programs from BBS' across the country while back, and
several thing come to mind on this topic...
The people complaining the loudest have been MS-DOS & PC users with
big ole' hard disks that they never backed up. We Apple people usually
don't have that problem because of the formerly prohibitive proce of a hard
disk (I want a Senate investigation of claims that Apple exec's decided to
restrict HD's to the 'serious' machines - first the ///, then the Mac - and
so helped jack the price up and discouraged the development of them for a long
time), so that we don't have to worry about losing everything we've done and
sweated over for weeks unless the program tells us to insert every disk we
wouldn't want to lose! Also, "we Apple people" back up eveything we have three
time and store them in remote locations, right? (And we NEVER double-side a
disk, either...)
I would be slightly amused if someone did get a disk burned, not out of
any streak of maliciousness, but because I know I look over those files for
anything unusual before I even download them, and I never let them execute
themselves. I don't know of anything that's been posted here that was
intended to do harm. If you get nervous when you see a file that's been run
through EXECUTIONER don't be. It's an invaluable utility and if you don't
have it, get it. I'd be happy to send a copy out to anyone in need.
A while back I asked for help regarding an AppleWriter patch that eliminated the
problem with AW counting control sequences in the line count and so it would
wrap a line, but there'd be a big white space at the end of the line. Several
people have asked me to forward anything I come up with, but the only help
came from Alaska, and that person hasn't returned my call (I am greatful, tho).
I will shortly wind up calling Lancaster's business and asking for their help
so don't despair if you're holding your breath.
I'm intersted in technical info on the Cermetek AppleMate 1200 baud modem. I
called them a while back asking for anything they might have, but nothings turne
in the mail, so... I'd like to know what the modem looks like in memory. I
know it's in Cn00 to CnFF, but what is coming in where? Is it the same as for
an SSC? Dubious but possible...
One last thing in this overblown note... Is there an implementation of the game
Empire for the Apple? [Empire is a *BIG* game that runs on the VAX, existing
under both VMS and UNIX, and also a version is on the IBM PC that looked pretty
good beforean administator deleted it from the hard disk] For that matter, does
anyone in the Philadelphia area have it on their VAX? I could pick up a magtape
and, gods willing, drop by for a copy. We have the object at school, but I'd
like the source for it.
Thanks for plowing through all this...
--Steve
*****************************************************************************
Steve Jones: Student of, like, well you know!
like, of all things! Disclaimer: I don't represent
BITNET: sjones@umass !any entities, sentient, academic
CSNET: sjones%hamp@umass-cs !or Corporate, other than myself
UUCP: ...seismo!UMASS.BITNET!sjones !and "Squirrels and Chipmunks for
INTERNET:sjones%umass.bitnet@wiscvm.wisc.edu!Nuclear Conflict Now!" :-)
USnail: box 753; Hampshire College; Amherst, MA 01002
=============================================================================ernst@AFIT-AB.ARPA.UUCP (06/11/87)
I would like to take you up on your offer of a copy of EXECUTIONER. Please send via email. Thanks Tom Ernst