These are tough times for people who like to download things from the internet. People like you and me, there’s no point in denying that. Wether the content you download is legal or illegal is a different question. Fact is, the RIAA is gaining ground in it’s non-stop attack against the makers of file sharing programs. Last week, the WinMX network was halted, today Edonkey announced that it will stop it’s services, and LimeWire is preparing a DRM filter on it’s network. All this makes me sad. Because the downloading isn’t, wasn’t and never will be the cause of the so called major losses with the record companies. If I hear a song on the radio that I like, I try to remember the title, and when I’m home, I download it through one of the many file sharing programs available. Most of the time, when I really dig the song / band / artist I’ll eventually go out and by the cd / vinyl. When I don’t like it, I’ll delete the file. I don’t care if it’s right or wrong to do so. I don’t need SABAM or IFPI or RIAA telling me this or that. I like music, and I want to listen to it. Message to all major record companies: STOP SUPPORTING CRAPPY ARTISTS !!! It will save you lots of $$$$$. Message to all the artists crying about not making enough money: If you’re in it for the money, you’re in it for the wrong reasons.
Leave us, music lovers, alone! (I really wanted to write this down …)
Besides being my favourite mail program, Mozilla Thunderbird is totally free of charge, and has a nifty junkmail filter built in!
* Automated update to streamline product upgrades. Notification of an update is more prominent, and updates to Thunderbird may now be half a megabyte or smaller. Updating extensions has also improved.
* Spell check as you type.
* Built in phishing detector to help protect users against email scams.
* Podcasting and other RSS Improvements.
* Deleting attachments from messages.
* Integration with server side spam filtering.
* Reply and forward actions for message filters.
* Kerberos Authentication.
* Auto save as draft for mail composition.
* Improvements to product usability including redesigned options UI, and SMTP server management.
* Many security enhancements
>> Download Mozilla Thunderbird 1.5 beta 1
If you’re a heavy Msn Messenger user, you’ll probably know the Messenger Plus! addon. Besides some handy functions, like logging and boss protection, the new 3.60.144 version now has tabbed conversation windows! You can group all your conversations into one single window, clearing up a lot of space from your system bar. Messenger Plus! is fully compatible with Msn Messenger 7.5, but keep in mind that for slower computers both Msn Messenger and Messenger Plus! eat a lot of resources. And DONT install the sponsor!
>> Download Messenger Plus! 3.60.144
* Fix for a potential buffer overflow vulnerability when loading a hostname with all soft-hyphens
* Fix to prevent URLs passed from external programs from being parsed by the shell (Linux only)
* Fix to prevent a crash when loading a Proxy Auto-Config (PAC) script that uses an “eval” statement
* Fix to restore InstallTrigger.getVersion() for Extension authors
* Other stability and security fixes
>> Download Mozilla Firefox 1.0.7 (all languages / os)
In what could be considered a very surprising move, and one that easily could shake the browser market, Opera has made it’s award winning browser available to the masses for free, void of it’s built in Advertisement Banner, giving people the choice of one of the most powerful, flexible and a very secure web browser. Opera Software today permanently removed the ad banner and licensing fee from its award-winning Web browser. The ad-free, full-featured Opera browser is now available for download - completely free of charge – at http://www.opera.com.
“Today we invite the entire Internet community to use Opera and experience Web browsing as it should be,” said Jon S. von Tetzchner, CEO, Opera Software. “Removing the ad banner and licensing fee will encourage many new users to discover the speed, security and unmatched usability of the Opera browser.”
Opera was previously available free of charge with an ad banner. Users had the option of paying a licensing fee to remove the ad banner and receive premium support.
>> Download Opera 8.50
Slyck.com is reporting that it appears the WinMX network has shut down its operations in response to the RIAA’s letters threating legal action. Although the WinMX network is currently down, this may only be temporary as developers seem to have relocated from Canada to Port Villa, Vanuatu. Guess we’ll have to wait and see …
Macromedia Flash Player is free software that lets you view web content created by Macromedia Flash. This content may be interactive content such as menus that slide, or may be complex programs like games and movies. Some web browsers install Macromedia Flash Player automatically, but you may need to upgrade it from time to time as Macromedia makes improvements and as websites you visit update their content.
NOTE: If you don’t want it, make sure you don’t install Yahoo! Messenger along with Flash Player 
>> Download Macromedia Flash Player 8
I rarely post mixes on here lately, but when I do, it’s because I like them very much. Mike Barell is a Swiss dj who surprised me in the past with his superb “Remember Trance” and “Transition Detroit” mixes. I have absolutely no other info on him, and I doubt it he ever played here in Belgium, and that’s a shame. Currently on his site is another fine detroit techno mix called “Thoughts of Spring” and labelled by Barell as “soulful detroit techno”. The kind of techno music we almost never hear in Belgium. I prefer listening to this kind of music at home, in one piece, doing other things while the soundscapes make a perfect atmosphere …
>> Download “Thoughts of Spring” by Mike Barell
>> www.mikebarell.ch
* The tracklisting is included in the .zip file
Firefox 1.5 beta1 is out! It includes many new features including a new automatic update system, reworked options dialogs, faster browsing, new error pages, memory and stability updates. Get your beta at Mozilla.org!
New error pages … sounds like fun
Good news for those of you who are into music synthesizers: Propellerheads has opened its Rebirth Museum and gives away the ‘revolutionary’ software simulation of the classic Roland TB-303.
>> Download Rebirth 303 ISO (with bittorrent), 220 mb