Still hanging around on
Windows XP? Perfectly acceptable. Still using Internet Explorer to browse the world wide web? Just a wee bit less forgivable, but we understand that some of you simply can't get around it. If we just rung your bell, you might want to rip the F1 key right off of your keyboard (at least temporarily), as a recently discovered vulnerability in VBScript -- which can only bother Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 -- could allow malicious code to weasel its way right into your life with a single keystroke. As the story goes, some ill-willed web sites are encouraging users to smash the F1 key in order to access a Microsoft Help file, and when said key is depressed, "arbitrary code could be executed in the security context of the currently logged-on user."
Microsoft has promised to fully investigate and resolve the issue in due time, but 'til then, we'd highly suggest
avoiding your F1 key like the plague switching to Firefox.
posted March 2nd 2010 4:49PM
Who are these people that come up with the stuff? lol.
@One Love
My IE's upgraded to 8 but, I use Firefox and Chrome...
@PlatinumSkeet
firefox sucks. goddamn 800MB of memory usage last night. wtf
@sinai If you are seeing memory spikes like that, it is probably caused by a poorly written add-on. Firefox (without any extensions installed) actually is the best performing modern browser in terms of memory management.
http://dotnetperls.com/browser-memory
@drumist Yeah. It's called Flash. There are only two times when Firefox 3.6 eats up memory like that on any of my computers: when Flash is running, and when I have had long Private Browsing sessions (everything there is stored in memory, rather than written to the hard drive). Other than that, I've never had any problems with it. I've got several add-ons installed in Firefox, but it runs fine every time (with the two exceptions listed above).
You can all blame Flash, but since I switched from Firefox to Chrome, my system has been much more stable. I was a Firefox faithful for years, but I finally got fed up and I will never go back.
@sinai LOL... Try reducing the amount of addon's you have and that might help...
I want to push it so bad now! Don't tell me what I can't do!!
@flextopia Sorry, John Locke ^^.
@N900
You MUST push the button every 108 minutes or the world ends. the counter will then reset and start again.
@N900
This post reminded me that Lost is on tonight. I am now in a much better mood than I was 5 minutes ago.
@Delta Holy crap, even though I thought of Lost when I wrote my comment, I didn't remember it was on tonight...as long as Apple isn't suing them for using the numbers 4,8,15,16,23,42 in the show--more than likely Apple has all those numbers patented.
@Delta That happened to me earlier today. It honestly improved my day significantly.
@flextopia Thats what she said!!!!
...You mean Chrome..not firefox...Chrome.
@Sonicjet
No he meant Firefox, the best web browser
@Drybones5 You're misspelling "Opera."
@Kira Netscape! Are those guys still around?
@Kira
Gee, that's a funny way to spell "Firefox is superior to all."
What language is that where you can say that entire sentence with that one word?
@Sonicjet
Until Chrome has an option to move the tabs bar below the url bar, I'm sticking with Firefox.
@OGM I said the same thing till I switched and got used to it...it is better because it gives you about 25 pixels more space,as it is integrated into the titlebar.
@OGM
And until Firefox can pass the Acid3 test with a perfect score, I'm sticking with Chrome.
@Sonicjet
When chrome puts in a pulldown address bar I'll think about it. Thats been in every web browser since forever, I'm not giving it up now
@Sonicjet Faithful Chrome user sense it came out.
love the fact that i can search in the address bar and that IE fails to have that.
@Sonicjet
I think he means Safari.
@Sonicjet
You're all wrong. He means Chromefox Explorer!
@Alex R used it since safari 3 came out...loved it....til...chrome...it is rally better,you have to get used to it to see haw great it is,a lot of people say it's bad because it is different.
They are right though, it has a lot of bad things....being the world's fastest browser is a real negative for it..or the fact that I have 25 more vert. pixel space is bad..and the evil omnibar...oh wait...those are not negatives..
@Sonicjet
I will switch to chrome when I get one thing - A proper noscript clone. I know they added in a javascript blocker in chrome recently, the problem is if you authorize a page, you authorize every single script running on that page. Id rather choose what I am and am not authorizing.
Until then, I'll be using firefox.
@Sonicjet Chromefox Explorer, that sounds like a new TV show.
@Sonicjet I switched from Firefox to Chrome when it was first available. I still haven't gone back.
@Valicore
it's because it's a reality show. You know, people switch from IE to firefox and then their lives are changed forever.
They should mean Chrome. Sorry, guys, I was a Firefox faithful for years, but I got fed up and switched to Chrome and I wouldn't go back. Maybe they have (or will) fix whatever issues causes the browser to crash once every other day or thereabouts, but until then (and even after that), screw'em.
You can blame Adobe or whatever you like, but Chrome crashed on me for the first time today after weeks of use, which only served to illustrate how stable it's been compared to Firefox. And I'm convinced that Firefox has continued to "leak" memory at least as recently as when I finally tossed in the towel and switched.
@Alex R Safari is a horrible mess. Sorry, but it's true.
@Drybones5
actually, according to the hacker who won the Pwn2Own browser security contest these last two years, the most secure browsers are IE8 and Google chrome on Windows 7.
http://www.oneitsecurity.it/01/03/2010/interview-with-charlie-miller-pwn2own/
firefox is way more unsecure, as it doesn't run inside a sandbox.
Chrome run inside a sandbox, but not its plugins.
IE on vista/7 is the only browser that runs with its plugins inside a sandbox, which makes it almost unvulnerable to flaws in flash player or adobe reader, as opposite to other browsers.
@Kira
Ah, Opera. The Meg Griffin of browsers.
I'm glad most of the people are still using IE, that way, hackers are less interested in exploits on firefox.
@loginatnine
good point haha xD
its mainly non tech savy people that use IE more than any other browser so they are really going for the largest audience and also the most vulnerable people... at least that what i assume xD
@loginatnine
And IE users can't vote on your post, and 66% of them can't even post a comment.
It is obvious Engadget doesn't know how to fix it. Better to blame the browser than to learn to do it right.
@Ordeith2
Hahahaha I didn't know that, you're right I just tried!
@loginatnine Same with all you PC users. :)
@Ordeith2 how can internet explorer users not comment or rate, im commenting right now....
@Ordeith2
It's really sad that Engadget just totally ignores people who want to use IE 8 to access their site. I'm not quite sure what we did, but if we say we're really sorry, will you fix it?
@flett
Congrats, you are one of the 33% who can.
@Delta : It's indeed sad. They won't even comment about it!
Theres a reason you don't need a help key on a Mac...
@JustThatNerdyGuy
They tell you that your problem is really a feature?
@JustThatNerdyGuy
So you can't report that Macs have problems, thus enabling Apple to cover up all its failures without the public getting wind of it? Like just admitting in the last few weeks they used inferior hard drives on their server products over 5 years ago?
Oh wait, you're just an idiot, and a troll. Nevermind.
@JustThatNerdyGuy
well obviously! those guys at the genius bar need something to do . . . who doesn't like having to deal with them?
@JustThatNerdyGuy
Yeah it's because Steve Jobs Said SO!!!
@elijahblake LOOOl i knew this would happen, it's actually cos it's in the OS software :P