url

DownTester is a portable app that tests download speeds from HTTP and FTP URLs. It's unobtrusive and gets the job done, but also comes with some useful features that make it worth downloading.

The Advanced Options menu is reasonably robust. You can configure the tests to conclude and move on to the next URL based on time or bytes downloaded. Both of these are user configurable, giving the test broad powers to judge how fast data is flowing to you. You can also set the program to retry upon failure and configure the number of times that repetition should … Read more

Net Viewer describes itself as an opportunity for users to expand their ability to surf the Web. This program gives users a wealth of options for customizing their Internet experience, but many of these may hinder and not help Web surfing.

Net Viewer instantly tries to help users get familiar with the program. Two windows immediately open up, one being Net Viewer, and another providing helpful tips to getting started. Net Viewer has a basic interface that looks a little dull, since it lacks sleek graphics. It includes a large empty area for showcasing saved Web sites and a short … Read more

Free Internet Window Washer is yet another contender in the browsing-privacy category, but its spotty performance and lack of navigational flow left a lot to be desired.

The user interface is bland in appearance, but simple enough to understand. However, the commands along the left side of the small window aren't in the most logical order. The result is an interface that lacks any kind of flow, making it difficult to know where to go next. Regardless, using the Wash Settings menu, we were able to check off the cleaning options we wanted to include in the wipe process. … Read more

Web Site Zapper claims to block questionable Web sites from view, but it worked a little too well and blocked us from sites we indicated were acceptable.

Once activated, the program appears in your taskbar, but we found a lag time whenever we tried to access it. A tiny window appeared with very vague instructions such as Learn Bad Sites and Learn Good Sites. The Configuration menu lets you add sites you wish to block and sites you wish to allow. We entered URLs into each category, but when we tried to surf the Web, we were blocked from any … Read more

Like many other Download.com staffers, I use a customized version of Mozilla Firefox. I run the Littlefox theme to maximize real estate, Tab Mix Plus to manage my myriad tabs, and a few other essential add-ons like CustomizeGoogle and Greasemonkey for specific functionality.

The most noticeable tweak in my version of Firefox is the lack of a search-engine box in the upper-right corner of the browser. Back in summer 2007, I explained how and why I killed it. In essence, I replaced the functionality of the Firefox search engines--annoying to manage--with keyword-activated bookmark searches--simple to manage--that I could run … Read more

John Gruber of the blog Daring Fireball doesn't like what Digg's doing with its DiggBar, and has come up with a relatively simple way to block it on his own site. By making a small change to his site's PHP files, any shortened DiggURL created for one of his pages will automatically take users to a separate page Gruber has created that chides the company.

In Gruber's opinion, the service, which automatically shortens a site's URL and adds some of Digg's features to the top of the source content, is bad for both users … Read more

As its name suggests, SitePopularity is a program that allows users to check a specific Web site's ranking using top ranking systems. It comes with two trial restrictions, but we found that it still managed to perform well during our tests.

The user interface is extremely easy to navigate. Large, self-explanatory command buttons reside at the top of the window, and URLs are listed in the main window, along with their ranking among such ranking sites as Google Pagerank, Alexa Traffic Rank, and Altavista. Novices will especially appreciate the wizard that walks you through the process of entering the … Read more

With social bookmarking and archiving site Magnolia down until a re-launch later this year, some users might be looking for an alternate way to capture snapshots of Web sites as they appeared at specific times. Besides Iterasi, which we've covered previously, there's a new service called BackupURL that can save what a page looked like, and make it available for reading later--even when the site is temporarily down, or long gone.

To do it for any page, you simply drop in its URL, and BackupURL will capture links, images, and any page formatting. What's nice is that … Read more

Few people would characterize the popular and influential microblogging service Twitter as "secure." Hack attacks on Twitter, and Twitter users, appear to be increasing (latest: Twitter hit with "Don't Click" clickjacking attack).

There are two potential security issues currently plaguing the popular social network: the popular use of link shorteners like TinyURL that lead users to unknown destinations, and a single login system that some hope will be fixed with the arrival of OAuth.

Don't click on that link! Whenever I see an interesting tweet followed by a TinyURL link, I click it. I'll admit it. I don't even consider the ramifications of my actions and often, I'm surprised by where I go.

But I don't think I'm alone. TinyURL is the most common link you'll see on Twitter, but it's also one of the easiest ways for a malicious user to expose you to issues ranging from phishing scams to malware installs.

Luckily, Twitter is aware of this issue, and according to its co-founder, Biz Stone, the company is working on ways to make linking safer on the site.

"User security is absolutely a concern and we're working to make the interface safer in that regard," Stone told ZDNet blogger Jennifer Leggio. "We are looking into other ways to display shared links, for example noting whether a link goes to a picture or a video or some other media element. While more a feature, this could help in addressing some of the risk with the URL redirection."

Ginx, a new third-party service (which ironically requires your Twitter login credential to function; see next section), automatically expands shortened URLs before you click on them.

But what about stopping the use of TinyURL, Bit.ly, and other link-shortening services altogether? So far, Twitter has not indicated that it wants to do that and, as some security experts claim, it shouldn't consider that option.

Peter Gregory, a professional security expert and blogger at the Securitas Operandi blog, said he believes TinyURL use "basically comes down to trust: do you trust the source of the link, or is the creator of the link luring you into visiting a malicious Web site that will attempt to implant malware on your computer?"

Both TinyURL and Bit.ly seem poised to answer that call.

Last year, TinyURL introduced a major improvement to the service that anyone using Twitter should use: a preview feature.

TinyURL's preview feature doesn't require registration and instead asks to place a cookie on your machine. Once you surf to the company's preview page, it asks if you want to enable a TinyURL preview. If so, you only need to click the link on the site and from that moment forward, any TinyURL link you click in Twitter or elsewhere across the Web won't immediately send you to the destination site. Instead, you will be redirected to a TinyURL preview page that allows you to examine the link and decide if you want to go to the respective page.

Bit.ly, another URL-shortening service, provides a Firefox plug-in that allows you to preview links. With both solutions running, the risk of being redirected to a malicious site should be cut down considerably, though not eliminated--nothing in link security is a sure thing.

But that's just one security issue Twitter and its users are forced to confront each day.… Read more