October iiNews

letter from the editor

Welcome to another edition of iiNews.

October is a challenging month. It's challenging for me because I know the spending spree (I mean festive season) is about to begin, but my wallet isn't yet into the spirit of sacrifice and starvation. So I'm on tenterhooks at the moment, trying to avoid my usual electronics haunts, even Bunnings have seen far too little of my eager face.

But as I face off my own financial demons, across the world budding IT fanatics face off against one another in the intriguing Google Code Jam. 55 of the world's top computer scientists will gather in New York to compete for over $US150,000 in prize money. The final has narrowed the field down from over 10,000 through a process of computer coding challenges - each more devious than the last.

In the European final, competitors were asked to come up with their own algorithm (read: problem solving sequence) winning points if their code proved to be unbreakable, and losing points if someone else managed to crack it. The countdown is on to the final face off on October 27.

In this month's iiNews we give two lucky customers the chance to catch some sun in WA for the 2006 iiNet Open Day, touch on our recent Google partnership, take a gander at the new password reminder tool, get the highlights of Symantec's latest virus threat report and go green with our feature carbon neutral.

Hope you enjoy.

Mark Welker
iiNews Editor

 

general news

win a trip to Perth for the iiNet Open Day!
This year's iiNet Open Day will be in Perth on December 5, 2006. But just because you don't live in Perth doesn't mean you can't still have the chance to come along.

We're offering two lucky customers the chance to win a trip for two people to Perth departing on 2 December 2006 and returning in the evening on 5 December 2006. The prize includes return flights from your nearest capital city, three nights accommodation and airport transfers for two people. The competition is open to all customers outside the Perth area.

To enter, just tell us in 50 words or less why we should fly you to Perth for the 2006 Open Day.

Email your entries to openday@iinet.net.au with the subject line 'Win a Trip to Perth'. Include your full name, address, contact telephone number and username. You must be available to travel on those dates and the prize is not transferable.

Entries open on 12.01am 14 October 2006 and close at 11:59pm on 30 October 2006. The winner will be announced on 1 November and be contacted by phone or email. The winners will also be featured in future editions of the iiNews. Please refer to our terms & conditions for further details.

google partnership
You may have noticed a new item on the top of the iiNet homepage: Google Search. We're happy to announce that iiNet and world leading search provider Google have partnered up to bring the popular web search tool to the iiNet homepage.

For iiNet members, the addition of the search tool enhances the features of the iiNet homepage and provides a single point of access to check webmail, manage your account, search the web and get up-to-date on the latest news and weather.

With the largest ADSL2+ network in Australia, iiNet delivers online information faster, while Google makes it easier to find what you're looking for.

We look forward to further customising our homepage with access to more Google tools and services in the future. For now, there's one more reason to make iiNet your homepage. See instructions below:

1. Open your web browser (it should really already be open if you're reading this)
2. Go to "Tools" - "Internet Options" (or "Options" if you're using Firefox)
3. Under the "General" tab go to the top dialogue box called "Homepage"
4. Copy the iiNet web address: http://www.iinet.net.au
5. Paste it into the "Homepage" dialogue box
6. Click ok.

Next time you open up your browser your homepage should be set to iiNet.

If you are using a different browser to Internet Explorer or Firefox, use the program's help menu and search for "homepage" and it should point you in the right direction.

iiNews reader survey results
Thanks to all who participated in this year's iiNews Reader Survey. It was great to see such a massive number of people taking time to participate and share their views. A few of the main observations that we have already gathered from your input are:

• 60% of iiNews readers classify themselves as confident users, only 4% classify themselves as beginners;
• more than 90% are happy with the current once a month delivery of the newsletter;
• more than 60% use Microsoft Outlook or Outlook Express to check email;
• 85% prefer HTML emails with pictures;
• the most popular sections are Support News, Tech Tips and General News;
• most iiNews readers want to read more about Consumer Technology, Entertainment, Travel and the Internet in general; and
• more than 85% of you are happy with iiNews overall.

Of course that leaves plenty of room for improvement. We're now processing all the comments and information gathered in the survey in order to build a better iiNews. Thank you all once again for participating.

The three $60 Bunnings Gift Vouchers winners were:

• Belinda Kos VIC
• Julie Knight WA
• Nathan Johns QLD

Your gift vouchers are in the mail!

support & services

customer service update
Our Customer Service team are continually working to improve the support we provide to our customers. To aid us in this goal it is important to continually gather feedback to ensure we are meeting our customers expectations.

In August, our Virtual Contact Centre stepped up a notch by implementing an automated customer feedback system. All customers who interact with us via email or telephone are now sent a feedback survey in order to capture their experience with us. This process gives all customers the opportunity to provide feedback immeadiately after they have contacted us for assistance. The feedback is collated and reviewed to ensure that we are meeting both your expectations and our own targets.

tech tip - forgotten your password?
Have you tried to log into your toolbox lately and thought: "Oh no! I have a weird password saved in my email but I don't know what it is!"

Well now you can retrieve your password online. You can access this feature by going to the "forgotten your password?" links below the login boxes on our website home page and from our toolbox home page. You can also go there directly by clicking this link.

The tool allows you to enter your account email address, an invoice number or credit card details and then have your password emailed to your iiNet account email address. This site uses 128-bit encryption so your details are safe.

Also, as your password is emailed only to your account email, it never actually leaves our network, so it won't travel through the Internet to get to you.

But don't I need to know my password to check my email? Well yes and no - most email programs (such as Outlook and Outlook Express) automatically save your password when you first setup your email.

So as long as you are able to check your email through your mail client, you'll be able to retrieve your password. Don't forget to check out the FAQ's about this tool before giving it a go.

customer feedback
"This was a very nice newsletter - personal, sincere and not too pushy. It was also good to find books being recommended. Remember when people said computers would take the place of books? Never! The suggested sites were useful but you have overlooked a very good Sydney shop - Abbeys Bookshop in York Street. They are famous for Crime Fiction as well as for History and have a huge range of scientific and mathematical books."

- Edna, NSW

"Good to see some focus on books as well as the usual TV/DVD/Games stuff. And nice to see Martin Livings profiled, too."

- Simon, WA

The books online theme was one very close to my own heart and I was thrilled to get so much feedback from people who enjoyed it. Thanks to everyone who took the time to email me.

"Just another reminder from a user about the tremendous service that iinet provides. Keep up the good work."

- Peter, NSW

"I had occasion to use your Customer service 3 times today as my VOIP phone and my ADSL line keeps dropping out. As always your customer service is exemplary and second to none. I have been with iiNet for a long time and never have I had to complain about services provided. In fact I am surprised that I have had to call so many times today. Thank you iinet for the wonderful service you provide and I never hesitate to promote you guys."

- Alf, WA

Thanks Peter and Alf, your feedback has been passed on to our support team.

virus alert

top 5 viruses reported to sophos in september

1. W32/Netsky-P
2. W32/Mytob-AS
3. W32/Bagle-Zip
4. W32/Nyxem-D
5. W32/Netsky-D

List provided by Sophos. Remember, all iiNet plans come with industry leading Sophos Brightmail email anti-virus and anti-spam protection that is automatically kept up-to-date with the latest virus threats. However, to fully protect your system, we recommended that you use our email anti-virus in conjunction with a personal anti-virus product such as those listed on this page.

latest virus research
A new threat report from security firm Symantec suggests that home users are increasingly becoming targeted by attackers for identity theft and fraud due to insufficient home computer security measures.

The report, which is published twice a year, provides an overview of current Internet virus and scam threats across the world. The report states that home users account for 86% of all targeted attacks in the period January to July 2006 as the number of large widespread Internet "worms" gives way to smaller, more targeted attacks focusing on financial fraud.

According to the report, attackers "see end users (aka your average home user) as the weakest link in the security chain."

More Internet "attackers" are exposing vulnerabilities in web browsers, e-mail clients and other desktop applications in order to obtain financially sensitive information.

"47 vulnerabilities were documented in Mozilla browsers (up from 17 last year), 38 in Microsoft browsers (up from 25) and 12 in Apple's Safari browser (up from six)."

And while spam is up on last year with 54% of all monitored emails classified as spam, most spammers are taking the malicious code out of the email in an attempt to bypass spam filters, and directing users instead to an external website which hosts the malicious code.

The Symantec report also identified three of the top 10 new security risks as being misleading applications that give false or exaggerated reports of security threats on a user's system. You might have already seen some of these: pop up windows claiming that your computer is infected with an urgent message "to upgrade immediately or risk infection!".

You can read the full Symantec Internet Security Threat Report, listen to the key findings as a podcast or watch it as a flash demonstration at: www.symantec.com/threatreport/

ii people

staff profile

Name: Ben Jolly
Title: Network Administrator

What does your current role involve?
I am the Team Leader for one of two teams that are rostered around the clock in the NOC, looking after the iiNet network and our customers.

What exactly is the NOC?
N.O.C stands for Network Operations Centre. We are a customer- focused service to identify and resolves issues within the iiNet network. The NOC is staffed 24/7 so that there is always someone on the pulse of what is happening.

If something doesn't work as expected or the network has a hiccup, we will know about it first. We then resolve the issue as quickly as possible, whether it involves something as simple as power cycling a device, organising a hardware replacement, or sending out our team of engineers to conduct an in-depth investigation of the issue.

We also provide all updates to the Public Network Status page, and keep in regular contact with all our Contact Centres (Perth, Sydney, Auckland) with the status of faults that may impact customers.

What is the biggest challenge of working in the NOC?
Keeping up to date with what the latest hardware on the network is, how it works and how it might affect our customers.

customer of the month

Name: Simon Haynes
Location: Willetton WA
Account type: broadband2+ with phone
Customer Since: February 1999

What are your main uses of the Internet?
It would be quicker to ask what I don't use it for. I run my business on the net, I deal with my publisher and agent over email, I run half a dozen websites (including spacejock.com.au ), I do customer support for the users of my software, I respond to people who write about my books, receive cover proofs, obsessively check for reviews and Amazon rankings, maintain three blogs, run my own web & mail server with four mailing lists and a customer forum ... the list is endless.

It took me twelve years to see my books in print, and I made every possible mistake along the way. My articles on spacejock.com.au are a way of sharing what I learned, and will hopefully help others avoid the same pitfalls.

What are the best aspects of your broadband2+ connection?
Speed, reliability, price, excellent technical support. I was an early broadband adopter, signing on with iiNet the minute it was available in my suburb. My first plan cost $125 a month for a 1.5mbit connection with a 500 meg download limit, and now I pay a third of that for ten times the speed and forty times the downloads.

iiNet also hosts all my web domains for me. I'm one of those people who doesn't mind paying for good service, and it's more important to me that the sites be online and fast to access. A website is the first impression potential customers are going to get. If it takes ages to load they'll already have my competitor's site open in another window, and that's fatal.

Why did you decide to bundle with iiNet's phone service and how do you find the service?
Double the downloads and one less bill to pay ;-) We don't use the phone much, and my wife and I still regard mobiles as a kind of emergency device. It was painless to switch over and I've had no trouble with our iiNet phone service. In fact, when my mum changed to broadband I encouraged her to get her phone switched to iiNet at the same time.

Can you remember your first interaction with the Internet?
Oh yes. I had a pay-as-you-go account which cost 1c per minute online plus 1c per kb downloaded. (Yes, that's kilobyte, not megabyte. 1 meg cost $10.00, but would take about eight hours to download.)

Before the internet I ran a Fidonet point off the Gamma Istari BBS here in Perth, using an Atari ST with a 60mb hard drive. I belonged to the WA Atari club for several years, while everyone else was busy with Amigas, and before that I was a die-hard ZX Spectrum user ... while everyone else had a Commodore 64.

Interested in being our next customer of the month? Send your details to iinewsfeedback@iinet.net.au.

go neutral

This month we take a look at the issue of global warming, what info you can get online and ways you can make a difference. The Internet presents a unique opportunity for raising awareness of environmental issues, and it's amazing the depth of information available in just a few clicks.

is it so inconvenient?
For many years being "environmentally aware" has been thought of as a kind of "alternative" life philosophy. That perception is changing. Being an "environmentalist" is becoming less about the slogan on your t-shirt and more about taking responsibility for our future.

According to scientific consensus , the steady rise of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) levels in our atmosphere is caused by greenhouse gas emissions. These emissions cause a general rise in world-wide temperature: called "global warming". It's only recently that people have been starting to make a link between this warming and extreme weather events such as cyclones, droughts and rising sea levels.

While the link between "global warming" and these events will always be debated, the rise in CO2 is very real and is already having negative effects on our world. So what can one person really do about it? Well there are two main ways to tackle green house gas emissions: reducing emissions and going carbon neutral . We'll look at carbon neutral first.

carbon neutral
You'll be hearing this term a lot more over the next few years. The idea of going "carbon neutral" is a way to take responsibility for the greenhouse gas emissions we create every time we drive our cars, take a plane, or use electrcity generated from fossil fuels. Most people realise that making a substantial shift to your everyday lives to reduce emissions is difficult and uncomfortable. Carbon neutral takes some of that pain away.

To go carbon neutral you offset or cancel out your own personal CO2 contributions by purchasing "carbon offsets". These offsets may come in the form of investments into renewable energy or donations to tree planting charities. As trees absorb CO2, if you work out how much CO2 you produce, you can then make a donation to plant enough trees to offset that amount.

It sounds like a strange concept, but its becoming more and more popular; the 2006 Commonwealth Games operated under a carbon neutral program, as did the AFL Grand Final.

One Australian-based charity that offers this service is www.carbonneutral.com.au. Here you can use a CO2 emission calculator (there are plenty more around the web) and make a tax deductible donation to plant enough trees to offset your emissions. It costs me $45 per year to offset my 3.39 tons of CO2 emissions. Other sites include: www.climatefriendly.com and www.easybeinggreen.net.

Some carbon neutral charities can even organise for your employer to deduct your CO2 donations week by week. A dollar a week out of your pay packet doesn't seem like much, but it can make a world of difference. You can even order carbon neutral gift packs.

reducing emissions
If carbon neutral doesn't sound like your caper, you may want to try to reduce your emissions and directly influence the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere. There are plenty of simple things you can do right away and don't cost you the moon (or the earth).

1. Change a light bulb: replacing one regular light bulb with a compact fluorescent one will save around 68kgs of carbon dioxide emissions each year. If every iiNews reader changed one light bulb we would save more than 23,664 tons of CO2 every year.
2. Drive less: A given, but each km you drive produces around 280g of CO2 emissions. So catch a bus once a week, or get some excercise by parking closer to your home and walking the rest (if you can).
3. Keep your car tyres inflated: improves mileage on your car, saves you money and reduces the number of litres of petrol you consume.
4. Wash in cold water: I'm talking your clothes here, however, by installing a low flow showerhead you not only save water, but save energy by reducing the amount of heat you generate: about 158kg each year.
5. Plant a tree: a single tree will absorb about 1 ton of carbon dioxide over its life time. Make it a family event to plant your Christmas tree this year.
6. Switch to green energy: Many power companies now offer green energy where the money from your power bill goes into putting more renewable energy into your state's power grid. It has no affect on your power supply and costs as little as 3c extra per unit.

When it comes down to it, reducing CO2 emissions is about individual participation on a world-wide scale. Regardless of what steps you take, it is the fact that you are considering your impact on the earth that is important. Being CO2 aware simply means you are looking further than two weeks into the future. How far you take it will depend on your own resources.

related links:
www.myfootprint.org - the Ecological Footprint Quiz.
www.acfonline.org.au - Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF).
www.climatecrisis.net - official site of the movie An Inconvenient Truth .
www.davidsuzuki.org - guide for converting your office to carbon neutral.

Want to comment about anything in this month's edition? You can do so via iinewsfeedback@iinet.net.au

competitions

movie tickets giveaway !
Set in New York City, The Wrong Man ( Lucky Number Slevin in the US) is the hot new crime thriller starring Bruce Willis, Josh Hartnett, Morgan Freeman and Lucy Liu. A case of mistaken identity lands Slevin (Hartnett) in the middle of a war being plotted by two of the city's most notorious rival crime bosses: The Rabbi and The Boss.

While Slevin makes many attempts to explain that he is not who they think he is, the two bosses don't seem to really care as they drag Slevin further into a complicated underworld of murder and revenge. With lavish production design and a slew of stylised camera effects, The Wrong Man is more akin to a Tarrantino-inspired Sin City than a serious exploration of the criminal underworld.

To celebrate the release of The Wrong Man on November 9, Roadshow Films have kindly passed on to us 50 double passes to giveaway to iiNews readers.

To be in the running for this prize, please email competitions with "Wrong Man Competition" in the subject line, and provide your username, full name, and address by 5pm WST, November 1, 2006, along with the answer to this question: Name one way you can reduce your CO2 emissions? ( hint: you'll find the answer in the "go neutral" feature)

Winners with the correct answer will be drawn at random and prizes sent by mail.

ii games

2 minute review - Just Cause (Xbox 360)
with Niaal Holder

Back in business and back on the 360 this month, our showcase game is Just Cause , a 3rd person action romp - and a study in how and how not to make a game for today's discerning gamer.

Here's what we're dealing with: Just Cause puts you in the leathers of a Latino secret agent, literally dropped from the sky onto a troubled island nation to stir up drama. As part of your mission, you're generally expected to pit the locals against drug cartels and revolutionaries, via the wonders of carjacking, explosives and garden variety gunplay. It's formulaic and waaaaay larger than life (leaping from a helicopter onto a passing light plane, dive bombing into a drug lord's mansion as you hurl out the side hatch and parachute onto a nearby boat to speed away...entirely within the realms of reason here).

The vehicular variety is what keeps Just Cause above water, desperate for attention. Armed with a grapple gun, you have the ability to commandeer literally anything moving in the local vicinity. Cars, bikes, trucks, buses, planes, boats, roflcopters. It's all there, and almost too easy to enact. Simply lock onto a passing aircraft, winch up to it in lightning speed, clamber into the hatch and 'replace' the pilot. So easy!

It's everything you could want in a game and yet so... lacking, all the same. BUT HOW NIAAL THAT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE YOU BIG STUPID. Okay listen. Imagine a cross between Oblivion , Far Cry and GTA . Imagine how good that would be, could be, should be. The open-ended gameplay of Oblivion , the downright stunning landscapes of Far Cry , the giggling violence of GTA . How could that possibly fail?

Oh it's possible. After much consideration, I've come to the conclusion that the single most lacking element to Just Cause is the absence of any sense of touch - playing it is akin to going rug shopping in a straight jacket, or buying kittens when you have no arms. Gaming lords almighty I just want to touch it .

One shouldn't be able to crash a motorbike into an oncoming truck and remain seated. One should not be able to run into a field of enemy troops and slaughter them all with nought but a pistol in hand. ONE SHOULD NOT BE ABLE TO FLY AEROPLANES UNDERWATER. Houses should blow up when you fire rockets at them, and cars don't pass through petrol stations like they're not there.

It feels so annoyingly rushed, like all the effort went into the breathtaking visuals at the cost of hiring decent game testers. As a result, there's no thrill - it's highly entertaining to watch others play, though as soon as you have the joypad in your eager little hands, you feel cheated. It's so close to being good, but in the end the lack of tangible game physics and the repetitive mission formula will see this shelved after a couple of hours.

It's the gaming equivalent of a one night stand. Beautiful and exciting to behold, terminally lacking in the brains department. You've been warned.

Buy Just Cause today for $99.95

iiNews games kindly provided by

October new releases:

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2007 (PC)
Company of Heroes: Collector's Edition (PC)
FIFA 07 (PS2)
Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (PS2)
NHL 2K7 (Xbox 360)

ii flicks

dvd review - United 93 - Rated M

5 years on from September 11, the world seems ready to return to ground zero. This year has seen three 911 movies, Oliver Stone's World Trade Centre , Flight 93 and United 93 (U93). Whilst World Trade Centre deals with the drama within the towers themselves, the two other films attempt to re-create the last few hours of United Airlines Flight 93, the plane that for whatever reason, never made its target.

Now note the difference in title: Flight 93 was a straight to DVD telemovie, U93 was a cinema release soon to be on out on DVD. The two titles deal with the exact same event, but don't confuse the two. I haven't seen Flight 93 , but a quick search on Google turned up some less than positive results. U93 is the real deal.

Directed by Paul Greengrass (director of Bloody Sunday ), U93 "fills in the gaps" of what is and isn't known about the plight of United Airlines Flight 93. Much like in Bloody Sunday , Greengrass once again uses his stripped back documentary style to tell the story, with many of the "actors" played by the real life characters involved in the event. He steps back from what could have been a very melodramatic and patriotic film, allowing no-name actors to take the roles of the everyday people caught on the plane.

The movie takes it's time to wind up - Greengrass takes us through the flight delays, the confusion in Air Traffic Control as the first of the 4 hijacked planes veers off path, and finally, the last 30 minutes of U93 as it descends to its inevitable end.

It is an unsettling sensation watching these people struggle when you know that within the hour they'll all have perished. Strangely, rather than spoiling the experience, it merely adds another layer of tension to an already nail biting experience. Watching the actions of desperate individuals trying their best to turn the situation around, knowing it actually happened and realising their end has already unfolded, makes for a very unnerving and affecting journey. You can't help but hope for these people, and as the end draws near I found myself believing that they might actually do it. Sadly, there is no twist at the end of this story.

There are plenty of true story films that end in similar ways that didn't make me feel anything. With U93, the experience feels real. Greengrass let's the enormity of the situation sink in without a heart tugging score or patriotic speech. Little physical violence is actually shown, all the emotion the film draws upon lies inside us - we have all seen the CNN news feed.

It's debatable whether this movie ever needed to be made. 911 will never be forgotten, but perhaps the families of those lost on U93 needed the closure that only a finished story can provide.

A shocking movie, not to be missed.