The busy browsers
Some days I pine for the tranquil period in web development when Lynx was sufficient to allow a surfer to enjoy the full range of content available via our 14.4 dialup access. Those times are long since past. As we plunge headlong towards a 2.0 environment, it’s worth examining briefly the virtual world.
What brought this reflection about was a warning that MY browser might have a security flaw that would allow a “miscreant” to alter stored cookies on my machine. Now, what does this mean in real terms? Well, if i was stupid, I could visit the site of a Russian mafia guy who might then be able, another time, to reset the little marker file left by my bank site, and then convince me to give him all my money, or some such thing. So, in real terms, it means that i shouldn’t always trust what I read. Now that’s good advice.
Ever cautious, I’ve installed an interim “fix” that disallows scripting. I am not going to explain the what or the how; my intention is to comment on the observed. And I have observed that the web has become a very busy place.
Forget simple HTML, with static tags and in a worst situation, flashing text in vibrant colour combinations. The web is full of javascript. Full, I tell you. It doesn’t matter where I go. Now that I have my NoScript plugin turned on, I am spending most of the time “giving permission” for scripts to run. Innocuous stuff. Such as a webcam I monitor, where there were no images coming through. Thought I’d broken something, and then I “allowed scripting”. Hurrah; the images are back.
Went to CBC. No news. Wait, that’s normal. On to a few of the torrential sites I verify… dozens of scripts to be allowed or refused. I am in control. The short of it is that all browsers have their issues. Even MY browser. For those that don’t think about Internet security, it doesn’t matter. Someone will soon pOwn U, and all your money will be theirs. Welcome to the party, luserz.
