Brian Layman’s Weekly Twitter Update for 2009-10-25
October 25, 2009
- BTW, while we fretted 2hrs over #balloonboy 1400 children under 5 died of malnutrition http://bit.ly/4kKwMj #perspective – I'm just sayin… #
- I find it ironic that NOW I am getting support for my Bob Barr bumper sticker – http://bkite.com/227fx #
- WHHHAAAAAHHHH I wanna have access to the @twitter "Lists" beta… it's very cool but I just get white screens of death! #WSOD #Twitterlists #
- Oh no @larakulpa! You didn't tell me that you were hanging out with @zaneology… The two of you together.. Now THAT is scary… Poor Darren #
- 12 cup pot of coffee made… Time to get back to work, though my procrastination gland is working all out… #
- 2:30am Reading How to Apply Joint Tape http://bit.ly/3L1LYl Mudding walls scares me for sm irrational reason. I guess b/c I've no experience #
- Wall is nicely mudded. Will put on another layer tomorrow night. Ran out of drywall screws. Wil sleep for 2 hours and go get some mroe. #
- RT @Viper007Bond: WordPress 2.8.5 is coming soon. Changes listed here: http://wp.me/pbNCB-6k #
- lol RT @jaygoldman: Hmmm. Looks like the W3's HTML validator is down. Getting a 500 error. Awkward. #
- OK. Must Needs More Coffee #
- RT @angsuman: Yahoo's 3rd-quarter profit more than triples despite another double-digit decline in revenue http://bit.ly/29QdN2 #RightSizing #
- Used the last SOS scouring pad in the box & saw a $0.20 coupon. oo wow. But wait no barcode? The date on the box is 1984. #
- RT @justag33k: "Weird Al" Yankovic @alyankovic Totally Looks Like John the Baptist http://twlol.com/tw/?v9-12934 #
- Ceiling Installed… Still needs to be taped, mudded, painted and spackled – Photo: http://bkite.com/22elj #
- Plumbing redone. Refinished sink installed.Washer in place. No leaks so far. T-5 till inlaws arrive. – Photo: http://bkite.com/22elk #
- -@phillymac ooo Is number 5 on the way? CONGRATS! #
- RT @dlayphoto: PLEASE RT: FLORIDA AMBER ALERT: Somer Renee Thompson http://bit.ly/bojLQ #missing #amberalert #florida #
- My gosh this is the most epic commercial I've ever seen regardless of who did it http://bit.ly/3BsO2 #
- Google Wave error messages pay homage to Firefly http://bit.ly/2gGzvT I think I'm in love… #
- #GoogleWave invite warning: It doesn't use the account you login with on the invite screen, if a Calendar cookie exists. #
- I was logged in under my Docs/gmail account AND confirmed the pw for that account, but it instead activated on my old acct used for Calendar #
- YIKES! RT @KITV4: Long interview w/ the #sharkbite #survivor on Maui. He describes the bite & going for help http://tinyurl.com/yjdu9a6 #
- RT @problogger: we just hit 2000 paid members on ProBlogger.com so the $1.95/mo intro offer will end in the next week. Join to get the deal. #
- Tired. Still doing odds & ends. Also I think tomorrow I will be taking our dog into the vet and she won't be coming back. #
- RT @lorelleonwp: Facebook opening public messages to search http://is.gd/4vYfD Are you ready? Are your msgs public? #
- Not upgrading to #Windows7 because I'm proud of my fully functional Win95->98upgrade->XPupgrade machine. What's life without dblspace.bin? #
- Seriously, no upgrade path for even the techies?!?! What's up with that! If we think we can slip from the noose, hand us the rope! #windows7 #
- I think there's a consensus with everyone I know. We're gonna call a complete "Do over" for 2009. Deal? #
- Home.. totally exhausted…. #
- "Speed could be a factor in the crash, police said." Ya think? http://bit.ly/2bJmE8 #
- very not cool. I feel myself waking up. I don't want to be "past the wall" and up for another 3 hours must gall asleep now #
- Gosh.. this is terrifying! Watch the vid!: RT @dudeman718: Wake up? Northwest Airlines Pilots Miss Airport by 150 Miles!! http://is.gd/4wG7a #
- Can't figure out why "wget http://wortpress.org/latest.zip" doesn't work. It is October after all #
- There are no overnight updates from any of my first three groups in tweetdeck? That just can't be right.. #
- RT @arieanna: Water broke last night but labor hasn't started yet. [..] Doctor confirms we will be induced today! (CONGRATS Arieanna!!! -b) #
- RT @cstricklin "Some times good things fall apart so better things can fall together" – seen on a t-shirt #
- So, I took my dog into the vet. Diagnosis: brain lesions or tumors. I pet her head as they gave her the shot. #
- As I was carrying her to the van, I had my glasses tucked in my shirt. & the lens popped out somewhere, probably in the leaf covered lawn. #
- I think I will declare tonight movie night, take all the kids to the video store and let them get snacks and all pile on the bed to watch. #
- (even if it will be blurry – hah) #
- "Up" is playing in a local theater served by @Fandango "Enter the movie name followed by #." I press "UP#"& get "You must enter 3 lettrs" um #
- Thanks for the condolences all. They've made me feel better. I like to think myself able to be unemotional but this got 2 me. Tired I guess. #
- (I mean my dog not the fandango problems) #
- Is my comfort music really 26 years old? Amazon MP3 one click purchase could be evil but I now have "Trumpet of Jesus" by Russ Taff + more #
- I also got Folkways:A Vision Shared-A Tribute to Woody Guthrie & Leadbelly w/ Dylan,Mellencamp,U2,Ltl Richard,Arlo G, Willie N,B Springsteen #
- Walking away from Amazon mp3 1clickbuy b4 I re-buy ALL of the mp3s (tapes) stolen from a computer lab at 3am back in 1991 #
- gosh.. Listening to my fav lyrics ever. I'd decided I'd never ever hear this song again. "Let the wind blow" Imperials http://bit.ly/razB8 #
- LOL The computer is plugged into speakers & there is a treefrog outside. Now everytime @Tweetdeck chirps, it chirps back! #
Brian Layman’s Weekly Twitter Update for 2009-10-18
October 18, 2009
- Brian is life castng from his phone again? What's that all about??? http://qik.ly/kNmC #qik #
- Brian is life castng from his phone again? What's that all about??? http://qik.ly/kNqm #qik #
- Brian is life castng from his phone again? What's that all about??? http://qik.ly/kNtG #qik #
- Brian is life castng from his phone again? What's that all about??? http://qik.ly/kNwF #qik #
- RT @Sorka: Dreaming of a free #Kindle? 10 Kindles in 10 days giveaway starts today! http://bit.ly/ RT to join in! #squaretrade #
- I think I may have died. "RT @jeremywright I miss @brianlayman." I miss me too! I really wish I could be hanging w/ you @blogworld but… #
- R.I.P. Capt. Lou Albano of the original wrestling tag team The Sicilians & Cyndi Lauper's dad.
http://bit.ly/4tnelf http://bit.ly/227AUL # - Sigh, this 40 deg day is gonna make me turn on the heat upstairs. Though my 3 CRT monitors seem to keep the office warm enough #
- RT @rachelsegal @mashable WARNING: “98B3–″ AMBER Alert Hoax Still Spreading on Twitter, Facebook – http://bit.ly/3vJ7Jw #
- Dreamt I was having a nice conv with @rhettmc about @linklamont moving. Then we were attacked by ninjas… #
- RT @CoryBooker: "Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are." – Malcolm Forbes (Word -b) #
- RT @rhettmc: Meet me and @linklamont at Butt Drugs in Corydon IN at 5pm today. Bring your own butt. #
- New in The CodeCave: Why is AVG blocking legitimate sites? (like NYTimes, ImageShack & Yahoo) http://bit.ly/1rKgnX #
- RT @problogger: Reading: Why I joined ProBlogger.com – http://is.gd/4lbBb #
- umm wow… RT @dlayphoto: Louisiana official denies marriage license to interracial couple http://ff.im/-9TGWn #
- Waiting for the 1st Human Rights abuse case in Finland b/c some jail cell only has a dialup Internet http://bit.ly/4EE01Z #
- RT @alyankovic: http://twitvid.com/EFE89 – GRAMMAR, people!!! #
- RT @DebNg: I hear tell @emom is going to have a MAJOR MAJOR announcement to make during her keynote. Rock on, Wendy. #bwe09 #
- RT @BreakingNews: CNN shows image of a possible object falling from the balloon. http://bit.ly/3EbFXQ #balloonboy Sheriff Deputy witnessed #
- Funny to get news from twitter before CNN announces and updates banners. #balloonboy found at neighbor's house.. Which was my first thought. #
- RT @markjaquith: the Kanye vs #balloonboy gags have already started. Too soon? http://bit.ly/2ledY4 #
- Yo #Balloonboy, Imma let you finish, but John Travolta was the best #BubbleBoy of all time! #
- Only movie fanatics 'll get that one… #
- Last night, I made it up to chapter 170 of the book I am reading… Book 7 of The Saga of the Seven Suns. Can't be too many more chapters… #
- RT @dougal: New Blog Post: WordPress 2.9 Features http://bit.ly/1WOj9k #wordpress #
- Why didn't you come when we called #BalloonBoy? "You guys said, that, um, we did this for the show." http://bit.ly/22D0ck #
- He's 6. Was it a hoax or was #balloonboy talking about the balloon & how it was made for the show the Dad has? Thoughts? #
- HA! Very good point. RT @theunseen714: Yeah, mixed kids have a hard time. You mind telling our mixed president that? http://bit.ly/3Ml3KX #
- RT @mattcutts: You can submit spots to send the Google Street View trike here: http://bit.ly/atniB I say go inside local yogurt stores.
# - Mission accomplished. Done for the day with goals for the week met but oi.. is it late. Now to start I was gonna do around here tonight… #
- Not at #bwe09 Nor lookin out of the @Luxorlv Nor in the #LAX with @Sorka @jeremywright @technosailor @markjaquith @darcievany & Gab. Ah well #
- I've now decided that the fumes from the painting I did between 2:00am-2:30am actually contain caffeine and have varnished my eyes open. #
- Ugh… It's morning.. #
- RT @wordpress: Video from @WordPressTV and WordCamp Seattle: @markjaquith's introduction to #BuddyPress: http://bit.ly/3EOSUK #
- Ugh as if we don't get enough political ads in Ohio. For the last month most all ads that play during online videos have been for "Issue 3" #
- Issue 3 – You've voted down Ohio Casino in 2007 and 2008, but now we think you are really desperate… Vote for issue 3. #
- Issue 3 – If you don't vote to allow casinos in Ohio, young mothers won't have jobs. Don't let Ohio babies starve. Vote for issue 3. #
- Issue 3 – Once we have casinos, Ohioans will nvr go anywhere but Cleveland. Out of state vacations? Get real. Vote for issue #3 #
- Issue 3- Keep your $ in Ohio by helping depressed people spend it in Ohio Casinos (owned by out of state corps) rather than local stores #
- RT @maddiegrant @desabol New blog post: WordPress Easter Egg http://bit.ly/2Y6Zej (How in the world did I miss this?-b) #
- btw, yes, I confirmed that WordPress easter egg before RTing #
- Counter Installed. – Photo: http://bkite.com/223a4 #
- Forgot to rotate that last shot Counter installed and anchored – Photo: http://bkite.com/223aa #
- Next job: Install wall, mud & paint;Redo plumbing, Install sink,
faucet & old washer – Photo: http://bkite.com/223g7 #
Why is AVG blocking legitimate sites?
October 15, 2009
AVG is a “free” antivirus software package that has become fairly popular lately. The b5media tech team has been asked many times in the last 24 hours about why AVG is blocking legitimate sites. There is a FAQ on AVG’s site about this, but it is incomplete and, in my opinion, inaccurate*. People are asking the questions in the AVG forum, but responses have just been long paragraphs explaining how they’ve asked the question in the wrong forum and links to the FAQ. I’ll attempt to better address the question here.
The FAQ says:
There are several possibilities how a clean and legitimate website may become infected:
- Website was exploited by some hacktoolkit which searches for vulnerable websites, and automatically infects them.
- Infection was inserted on the machine that is used to create/upload websites, which means that the author’s/administrator’s computer is infected.
- An attacker gained direct access to the website administration thanks to a weak or stolen access password.
We recommend to contact the administrator of such website.
This may have largely been true 5 years ago, but it isn’t now. Yes, breaches in security happen and always will. However, the most common vector for malware to get on today’s sites is through ads. These ads aren’t even ever seen by the webserver you are visiting**.
The FAQ would be accurate if they added:
- The website is currently displaying an ad/image hosted on a site that AVG has deemed dangerous.
The unprinted bullet point is:
- We mess up. We are humans. We are not perfect and neither are the tools we use. Sometimes we will say a site is infected when it isn’t. Sometimes we will say something is malware, that really is, but it is so common place that blocking it will make so many sites unusable that we will have to back down. When this happens, we will try to “fix” the issue as quickly as possible.
This ad vector is something that all websites are fighting right now. It’s difficult because servers can be spotless and tight, but tools like AVG and the Google toolbar will see one of these ads (that we have nothing to do with) and will list that site as infected. If a bad ad is served when Google scans for infection, then the site is completely dropped from the Google index. NOT GOOD. Then the admin has to go and figure out which ad is bad and from that which ad manager let something slip through that they should have blocked.***
So, what is the current issue? Well, on October 14, 2009 AVG reclassified an ad/cookie used on a large majority of websites out there as dangerous. That’s why AVG is blocking familiar sites such as http://nytimes.com, http://imageshack.us, http://yahoo.co.uk, http://babelfish.yahoo.com, http://problogger.com as well as other b5media entities like http://everyjoe.com http://splendicity.com and http://blisstree.com
Everything seems to point to ads.YieldManager.com as what is being blocked. Yieldmanager.com has an Alexa rating of 198. Think what you want of Alexa, 198 means they are BIG. You probably know the name as they have been on most sites you’ve visit for years. YieldManager is run by Right Media, which, since 2007, has been controlled by Yahoo. This is why the ip addresses, that come up in the AVG LinkScanner alerts, all point to Yahoo.
In short, AVG will either change this decision or lose market share. It won’t take long for them to make up their mind.
UPDATE: Around 9am the forum included a post stating “UPDATE…. It’s now been ascertained that it was actually a false positive. Please update the AVG on your system.”
Forum users report that AVG has changed their statement from:
Let us inform you that this is not a false detection. Our LinkScanner
technology detects a real threat, which is Geo-IP and also browser
specific targeted, therefore it is detected only at www.yahoo.co.uk
(IP: ) in Mozilla Firefox web browser only.
Over to:
Unfortunately, the previous AVG Link scanner database might have
detected the mentioned web page as threat. However, after thorough
analysis we can confirm that it was a false alarm. We have released a
new Link scanner update that removes the false positive detection on
this web page. Please update your AVG and check if your are able to
open the web page properly.
As you can also see from that thread, some people received an update this morning, but still are having problems on popular sites. My only suggestion is that you update AVG a few more times and hope that they allow you to surf your favorite sites.
* Yes, I’ve submitted feedback about this.
** The way most ads work is a webpage will include instructions for your computer to say “Hey, you big sexy ad server, give me an ad to display.” when the page is loaded. At that point, the big sexy ad server says “Very well then. Go to ads.example.com and get the ad.”. Your computer then visits ads.example.com which can return any number of different ads. Some will be perfect nice ads. Some may be nasty infectious ads. Others will work on one browser, and throw errors on another. The site has no control over this. Really, neither does the big, sexy ad server (though it should run its own periodic checks) since the ad that appears at ads.example.com was probably legit when the ad was purchased. The ads that appear are only as reliably legit as the checks in place at that third party ad server.
*** That said, it is kinda interesting to look at all the sites out there listed as infected. For example go here to see an infected site and then bounce up from there into any of the 3 networks that site is hosted on. That will lead you to thousands of other infected listings.
Brian Layman’s Weekly Twitter Update for 2009-10-11
October 11, 2009
- Got up b4 everyone, cared 4 dog, found kitchen, woke all up, cooked breakfast, ATE AT THE TABLE, read the bible together as family. Gd Start #
- Throw in home network repair, cleaning after bfast, a full dishwasher cycle, the older kids showering & there's been a lot done today so far #
- RT @laidbackknitter & @Sorka: The new Fall/Winter issue of Loom Knitters Circle e-zine is up!! Enjoy! http://loomknitterscircle.com/ #
- RT @angsuman: How to Get Windows 7 OEM License for Ultimate, Professional and Home Premium Editions Cheaply http://tinyurl.com/ye6azkb #
- RT @sswayze: @StaciJShelton Canadians R celebrating Thanksgiving this coming wknd it's always time 2 give thanks-there's much 2 B thankful 4 #
- RT @blisstree: 100 Worst U.S. Cities for Allergies http://bit.ly/ezRDX #
- RT @blisstree: 100 Worst U.S. Cities for Allergies http://bit.ly/ezRDX (#NEO #Akron-63 Cleveland-83 Youngstown-81 Toledo-49 + Pittsburgh-60) #
- /me eyes @pixiemonster & @thesickchick suspiciously. Their profiles say they are an ocean apart, but there's a certain weirdness goin' on #
- Disappointed that a wound on my hand is healing incredibly well.Though likely to get infected, it now looks too good to earn bragging rights #
- 4 diff "twitter users" sent me links to their profiles via twitter. they all led to the same profile, with other "local" user pics. So… #
- Admittedly 1 pic was distracting. Then I noticed all the cameras being held were pointed in the wrong direction to take their mirror picture #
- Then I noticed that the cameras were the same ones held in the shots. Then I noticed it was the same room with different items on the tables #
- After that I started noticing flaws in the CSS & html on the site. I think somewhere along the line I missed the point… Oh well… #
- Strangely absorbing.. http://bit.ly/10wWL (Language) Keyboard fanatics will find it addicting but I really wasn't expecting a chorus… #
- ughhh 2 feet of snow in Idaho? wah?? #
- How in the world can it possibly be Thursday already?!?!?!? #
- RT @everyjoe: Honda U3-X: The Future of Driving? http://b5m.cc/EG #
- You never know what Google maps will catch you doing.. http://bit.ly/MapSamurai (been meaning to short url that for ages) #
- Utoh… @brightkite is STILL down… 48hours ish? that's rough guys.. Sorry the upgrade went so bad… #
- Reading & rereading "Google Voice in Trouble Over Blocked Rural Calls" http://bit.ly/1cfhIF #
- RT @jeremywright: @davefleet – I vote for this week's random hashtag to be #ingrayscale #
- Make sure you send your tweets today #withgravy #
- RT @google RT @youtube Y,000,000,000uTube: Over 1B views/day! Message from Chad Hurley: http://bit.ly/3staDu (+ special homepage logo) #
- RT @kr8tr: What an odd day. NASA shoots the moon,Obama wins $1 million for not being Bush& @chrisbrogan jumps the shark! http://bit.ly/pmpqQ #
- RT @joetek: Exciting news for @b5media – b5media Names Former Kaboose Founder as New Vice President of Sales http://b5m.cc/IU #
- RT @rachelsegal: RT @mediabistro FTC Clarifies Blogger Guidelines: 'We've Never Brought a Case Against Somebody… http://retwt.me/ICOR #
- RT @terryjsmith: http://twitpic.com/kyv78 – Mon Dieu! Really?! On October 10th, this is what I have to wake up to? – (NOOOOO!!!-b) #
- Whoa! YouTube has hot keys?! Watching a 1×1 player, I leaned in to see it better & bumped the F key & WAH – Full screen!! #
Brian Layman’s Weekly Twitter Update for 2009-10-04
October 4, 2009
- RT @rhettandlink: @SnoopDogg Loves Puppies with @chrispirillo @ijustine @leoleporte @garyvee & more http://retwt.me/ndXS #
- RT @MysteryGuitarM: I wonder if groundhogs get sick of having tunnel vision… #
- It's that time of night when Viral Videos are funny http://bit.ly/flfmf #
- I love the smell of new sites in the morning… #
- lol… some ideas are too clever… RT @rachelsegal: Clorox "Mad Men" Ads Miss The Target (via @brandchannelhub) http://bit.ly/t5Ji5 #
- Brian is life castng from his phone again? What's that all about??? http://qik.ly/h9Iw #qik #
- Brian is life castng from his phone again? What's that all about??? http://qik.ly/h9KA #qik #
- Brian is life castng from his phone again? What's that all about??? http://qik.ly/h9M5 #qik #
- Home after a couple days assisting my sis & fam move. I 'm not too sore. I did steady 18 hour stretches instead of small herculean efforts.. #
- 17min of Franklin, PA yest morn; Pretty little town. http://qik.ly/h9M5 Check out the alley at 3 min in and the fountain w/ 5 min remaining #
- RT @JGHue: 2016 Olympics? Not in Chicago! http://bit.ly/2cLlnC Supporting news article: http://bit.ly/3Oq9Cq #
- I wonder if we can get refunds on the flight for Mr. Obama and the separate flight that took Mrs. Obama over there… #
- On a sidenote I've always thought Barack sounded like a lastname & Obama sounded like it should come first. Obama Barack just sounds natural #
- Nice. We launched problogger.com about 76hrs ago I just checked on it & we're well over 1100 members. It should be quite a resource for ppl. #
- RT @carlhancock: Chicago should blame the Cubs for losing their Olympic bid. #cubssuck #
- OK what?!?!?.. Sometimes I don't "get" art… http://bit.ly/aATac (note: pic is of nude male statue – Site may be blocked by work firewalls) #
- I like how easy Tweetdeck makes it to block ppl for dm spam like: @Stephenpreneur @Petote & @Redhawk80. #
- Now THIS is art I "get"… http://bit.ly/KjqLh #
- I love how my upside down name breaks spam bots & they dm me "hey u7". u7 is all they can read of my last name. (It's 1st when upside down.) #
- RT @Forian: But at least Stargate Universe is premiering tonight!
(Thanks for the reminder I'd have missed it! -b) # - RT @KITV4: KITV.com In Samoa: Relief Efforts Pour In: Amazing stories of survival come out of Samoa http://bit.ly/16jkld #
- RT @bnpositive: I'm curious. Does your "week" start on Sunday or Monday? (Monday I need that day of rest-B) #
- RT @joetek: Nice 1080p media player for $99! RT @everyjoe: Asus delivers Apple TV killer http://bit.ly/Arjyb (SWEETNESS-b) #
- I went to RealTek's site. They make my sound card. Who exactly is their site banner trying to reach? http://bit.ly/xZJcX It's gotta be in HD #
- RT @zachflauaus: RT @Syfy: Stargate Universe debuts TONIGHT so I'm giving away #SGU t-shirts to 5 random people who RT this note by 9pm PT! #
- #followfriday: @hklbry @ScottAllen @bnpositive @mikequad @gtvone @juulia @wptavern @JGHue @Tastelikecrazy @rachelsegal @joetek @HipCindy #
- RT @mattcutts: "Emails From Crazy People" is always good, but this one's about SEO: http://bit.ly/11JsLz #
- OK what is up with the #leafs 6-1 #Capitals?!?!? Come on #Toronto! Even the #BlueJackets are winning 1-0 tonight. Any news on the #pens? #
- RT @Retweetstakes Get a Free Wacom Bamboo Pen & Touch from @FireHost and @InspiredMag http://su.pr/29HyXz RT to enter the giveaway! #
- Les Stroud/Survivorman announces his new show via Facebook "here we go: I am in Africa working on.." http://bit.ly/fAcPM #
- exhausted. Today's wakeup music is Leadbelly's "Gwine dig a hole to put the devil in." & other classic gospel blues by the Shack of Peasants #

