TODAY'S TOURBUS TOPICS: FIREFOX SECURITY / NUMA NUMA!

Howdy, y'all, and greetings once again from deep behind the orange curtain in beautiful Irvine, California, now with 10% more PopoZao.

On with the show...

Fixing a Firefox "Feature"/Security Problem

If you use Mozilla Firefox--and you should--I have something interesting to show you:

1. Launch Firefox.
2. Go to Tools > Options
3. Click on the "Privacy" padlock icon
4. In older versions of Firefox, click on the + sign next to the
words "Saved Passwords." In newer versions of Firefox, just click on the "Passwords" tab. 5. Click on the "View Saved Passwords" button.
6. Click on the "Show Passwords" button.
7. When Firefox asks you if you'd really like to show your
passwords, click on the "Yes" button. 8. Wail and gnash your teeth.

While it is common knowledge that Firefox can "remember login information for web pages so that you do not need to re-enter your login details every time you visit," most people don't know that Firefox stores your web passwords in PLAIN TEXT.

Should you panic? Nah. Unless you share your computer with others, the only way someone is going to be able to view your saved web passwords is if that person has access to your computer. If you have a firewall on your computer and lock your home's front door when you leave, your saved web passwords are pretty safe.

Of course, that's just my opinion. Let me add that if you share your computer with others, or if you just want to make absolutely sure your saved web passwords are significantly safer, you have three options:

1. "Throw the baby out with the bathwater": Disable the "Remember
Passwords" feature in Firefox so that the program never remembers any of your web passwords. 2. "Lock down Firefox": Create a new, master password that
automatically locks all of your passwords from snoops. 3. "Lock down your computer": Use your computer's user accounts
feature along with a screensaver password to require everyone whose uses your computer to login.

In my humble [controversial] opinion, the last option is the best. It solves not only the Firefox saved password security problem but also a host of other security issues we don't need to go into today. How do you use the accounts feature to lock down your computer? Well, we'll get to that later.

Disable Remember Passwords

If you want to permanently disable Firefox's "Remember Passwords" Feature [which I don't recommend, but that's just me],

1. Go to Tools > Options > Privacy
2. Click on the + sign next to the words "Saved Passwords" or, in
newer versions of Firefox, click on the "Passwords" tab. 3. Click on the "View Saved Passwords" button.
4. Click on the "Remove All" button. [To the Firefox gurus out
there: Yes, you can do the same thing in "Clear Private Data." But you still have to go to the Passwords tab to disable "Remember Passwords." I just figured we'd take the direct route.] 5. Click on the "Close" button.
6. Uncheck "Remember Passwords."
7. Click on the "OK" button.

Doing this clears all of your old web passwords and prevents Firefox from remembering any new web passwords in the future.

Set a Master Password

Another way to lock down Firefox is to set a "Master" password. This is a special password Firefox asks you to key in once per session. Key in the correct master password and Firefox works just like it used to work by auto-filling your saved usernames and passwords on your favorite sign-in pages. Key in an incorrect master password, however, and Firefox automatically blocks your saved usernames and passwords from displaying. Sign in pages will still load, but the username and password boxes will be blank.

To set a master password,

1. Go to Tools > Options > Privacy
2. Click on the + sign next to the words "Saved Passwords" or, in
newer versions of Firefox, click on the "Passwords" tab. 3. Click on the "Set Master Password" button.
4. Key in a new "master" password.
5. Click on OK.

Set Up User Accounts

How do you set up user accounts on your PC or Mac? Well, we'll talk about that next time. For now, let me throw in one extra step for you:

Update Firefox

Open Firefox and go to Tools > Options. If you see a bunch of icons down the *left* side of the screen -- General, Privacy, Content, etc. -- YOU HAVE THE OLD VERSION OF FIREFOX which, unfortunately, is vulnerable to all sorts of nasty stuff! You really need to download the latest version at:

http://www.mozilla.com

Meme Review: Numa Numa

Finally, if you have ever been caught singing just a little too loudly -- and if you haven't then you are either a liar or you haven't fully drunk from the cup of life -- you will absolutely adore

http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/numa.php

This is a video of Gary Brolsma lip-synching the Romanian pop song "Dragostea Din Tei" by O-Zone. A lot of people have made fun of Gary, but he is absolutely my hero. To read more about him and the "Numa Numa" phenomena he sparked, check out

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numa_numa

Oh, and I'm not the only one who thinks Gary rocks:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ce_ElTXSk_4

Have a safe and happy week, and we'll talk again soon.

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