| 29th September 2003 |
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29th September 2003 - May there be no rest for the Wanker
You may already have your own opinions on this halfwit but for mine.. Read on.. 13th August 2003 - MSBLASTER worm infects over 100,000 Windows XP/2000 machines worldwide..
Given this nation's remarkable appetite for tacky reality TV shows featuring emotionally retarded people with an almost astonishing lack of any discernable, what better way to fill the airwaves for more than 6 weeks than one idiot in a box.
30 year old American illusionist David Blaine, who has previously kept us entertained by encasing himself in a six tonne block of ice and standing aloft an 80ft tower for 34 hours. His latest escapade (in case you haven't watched any TV over the past 3 weeks) involves him being encased in a perspex box and suspended over the River Thames for 44 days, supposedly without food, only water. After Big Brother, I'm a Celebrity.., Pop Idol, Fame Academy, Popstars and the rest of the reality TV back catalogue, this makes for thrilling viewing. One idiot, alone in a box for 6 weeks, 24 hour coverage online and on Sky Interactive.. It's like Big Brother but on a much smaller scale, but no less boring.
3 shots for £1, bring your own rifle?
Blaine's publicity people have been hailing this as "The ultimate test in human physical endurance" but what needs to be kept in mind is that Blaine is an illusionist, not a superhero.
A lot of people claim that he really isn't in the box, which is rather silly.. Of course he's in there, that's not the illusion. His illusion is to make people believe that he's having a harder time coping than infact he is. He is supposedly surviving on 'water only'. This is being piped to him through a tube, conveniently encased in steel so nobody can see what he is being fed. Secondly, the sides of his box are made from bulletproof glass, the same glass used to protect VIPs. This can stop a high velocity rifle round travelling at over 4,000 feet per second, strong stuff. Isn't it strange that for some reason, the bottom of the box is made of steel instead of glass? For all anyone knows, he could have a secret supply of glucose/salt sustenance hidden underneath his duvet. One small pill per day would keep his blood sugar at safe levels for as long as is neccesary
But whether he is cheating or not is irrelevant. Despite what Blaine's PR people would have us believe, this is no great feat. The IRA political prisoners hunger strikes lasted up to 60 days. This isn't a man with superior physical endurance or nerves of steel, it's simply an over-rated street magician with a God Complex.
wakedavid.co.uk, the website dedicated to keeping David awake for 44 days and nights already have quite an extensive fan base devoted to giving this idiot the hard time he deserves.
..Therefore, I've decided to put together this guide to remove it. It doesn't require a great deal of technical knowledge, just the ability to read and understand English..
On Sunday 16th August, all machines infected with the new MSBLAST worm will launch a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack at "windowsupdate.com". Unfortunately, the correct domain used by Windows systems is "windowsupdate.microsoft.com". Therefore, Microsoft can semi-counter this problem by changing the IP address of "windowsupdate.com" to "127.0.0.1". This is not a functional IP address but a non-routable alias for a system's own network interface. Therefore the attack will go nowhere, it's only backlash effect will be that it will slow internet traffic to a possible standstill.
This worm exploits a vulnerability in Windows XP/2000 systems by utilizing the (normally dormant) DCOM/RPC service port, designated number 135. Unfortunately, unfirewalled Windows systems leave this port fully open to attack.
You'll begin to notice if your system has been infected. A small box will appear, telling you that your system will be shut down in 60 seconds. If this is the case, you have been infected. You can take the following steps to clear this worm from your system..
You need to do 4 things to clear it from your system;
1. Halt the system process
2. Delete the worm itself
3. Remove the registry entry
4. Patch your vulnerable port to avoid re-infection
Since removing this worm from your system will invite a fresh version to be downloaded and installed instantaneously, it is common sense to follow this guide while offline to ensure the worm doesn't re-integrate itself.
Firstly, as soon as your system boots up, press Ctrl+Alt+Delete, on the processes tab, find "msblast.exe", right click and "End Process"
Next, double click on My Computer, then the C: drive, then the WINDOWS folder, then the SYSTEM32 folder, search around until you find "msblast.exe" and remove it. If it doesn't let you remove, saying the file is in use or something similar, repeat step 1 quickly.
Once the file is deleted, empty the recycle bin straightaway.
Now this is the tricky bit. The worm will have made it's own entry in the Windows System registry. Press Start > Run. In the run box type "regedit". Now then.. Click Edit (at the top) then Find. In this box type "msblast". The search should come up with one entry on the left, "msblast.exe". Right click on this and select Delete.
And you're done. Next thing is to patch your vulnerable port 135 before the worm reinfects your computer. Microsoft have released a patch which deactivates the DCOM/RPC service and closes the port. Instructions and patches for Windows NT, Windows 2000 and Windows XP are available here.
15th July 2003 - Save Our Sport
As with anything I express an interest in, it isn't long before bad press seems to curse it and eventually outlaw it (I don't know why but I seem to have that effect on things). My newest hobby is Airsoft. It's a shooting sport similar to Paintball, with the objective being to eliminate the opposing team.. Instead of firing marble sized paint capsules, players fire 6mm plastic BB's (ball bearings), I can't emphasise PLASTIC enough because if you say "Ball Bearings", people automatically think metal.
Now it seems that Mr Ken Livingstone (Mayor of London for all you non-brits out there) wants to issue a ban on all replica guns (including airsoft models). Unfortunately he doesn't seem to realise that (another) ban on guns will have no effect on gun crime figures, as the aftermath banning of all handguns after the Dunblane shootings in 1996 proved, the only people who were affected by the ban were the genuine enthusiasts who owned and used guns safely as a hobby. The way to fight gun crime is to stop imposing such absurd restrictions on the police, basically to let them get on with their job of removing the dangerous people from our streets and destroying the dangerous guns that are capable of doing harm to others.
At this point I feel as if I should point out that a BB gun / Airsoft gun is almost harmless. At close range, a powerful BB gun will cause a nasty welt on the skin followed by a rather angry looking bruise that will last maybe a week or so. The only way a BB gun can permanently cause damage is if shot into the eye at close range. The problem however, is that Airsoft guns are VERY realistic looking. I recently spent £200 on a Marui MP5-A4. From a distance and to the untrained eye, this can easily be seen as a dangerous weapon and as such, dangerous situations with armed police have been known to arise. All that is required however, is a certain level of discretion and common sense. For instance: Having spent £200 on this gun, I wouldn't dream of taking it out in public and running the risk of having it confiscated.
Unfortunately, someone who just spent £15 on a low quality (but very realistic looking) pistol will not be so concerned whether the police confiscate it or not. In situations involving armed police vs an armed suspect, however once the situation is resolved, the police will not be at all concerned whether the gun used was dangerous or not, the point was, the suspect was in posession of what LOOKED like a live weapon in a public place.
Sadly, the antics of a few stupid individuals are enough to see an obscure but fun and safe sport enjoyed by thousands across the country wiped out. There is something that can be done however, sign the UKAN SOS Petition and help save this fine sport. If you live in the South Wales area, come join us at Dragon Valley
19th June 2003 - The Stagnant Stagnight
Yes folks! The moment you've all been waiting for..
Warning.. These pictures are NOT recommended for people with a nervous disposition or severe heart problems.
16th June 2003 - Guestbook is down
Over the last few weeks, I've noticed an alarming rise in the number of spam entries in the guestbook. Until I have the time to locate and set up a spam-free alternative, you'll have to resort to the email link at the bottom if you want to contact. On the other hand, if you ARE interested in tax free viagra, no questions asked.. or Sexy Mandi's Sexy Webcam page, I suggest you look elsewhere..
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