Still running XP? Bad for you...

Last month I wrote that, despite all warnings about the imminent death of Windows XP, until May 13th Windows XP could still be used in a relatively secure way. In fact, the recent off-schedule security patch by Microsoft proved my point. But I also said that from that day on XP is doomed. If you still use an XP system, chances are that the system will be a victim of an attack.

On May 13th, Microsoft publishes some security patches that will not be published publicly for Windows XP systems. Only a few organization, who pay dearly for extended extended support, will enjoy the benefit of keeping their XP systems alive. But for the rest of us, XP will be at risk.

What happens every month: if Microsoft publishes a security patch, criminal minds reverse engineer a vulnerability based on the changes in the patch. They try to figure out ways to penetrate systems that are not (yet) patched. And in many cases within a few days the first exploits are around. Since all Windows generations from NT onwards are very alike, chances are that a vulnerability in a recent Windows version exists in Windows XP too. And if a system is not patched, such an exploit will be a zero-day exploit for ever.

Can you protect XP systems that are not enjoying extended extended support? No, not unless you never connect it to the outside world directly or indirectly. Even anti-malware software may not guard an XP system against exploits.

What should you do? Migrate, migrate, migrate, to whatever more recent operating system that you can think of. If you're in a company: get your management fired asap. They are the next vulnerability that will not be patched.

Facebook game review: Mafia Wars

A smart game, quite addictive. The first levels are mastered by doing Jobs. Jobs like 'Auto Theft' or 'Recruit a Rival Crew Member'. You need enough energy to do the job. And energy just grows in time (depending on the type of the character you choose up front). A job gives you hard cash and experience points. The cash can be used to buy you weapons or property. That's a second dimension of the game: buy property and protect it form robbing by the mob.

And of course there's a third dimension: you can attack and rob others. That takes health and stamina and enough attack and defence powers to beat the enemy.

Once you join the game, you do this by accepting an invitation. That is important: you belong to the mafia of the friend who invited you, but your friend belongs to your mafia. Both players and both plays are independent, but you can interact, by giving gifts to the members in your mafia. Gifts like weapons, loot items (I received a Rembrandt painting), or energy. And you can help one another by doing jobs, thereby earning money and so on.
After you learned plaing the game in New York, you can move on to Cuba. Same kind of play, but it feels a bit different, in a different atmosphere, well done.

So far the game. And does it work?
Yes, it's addictive. The first levels are mastered quite fast. But later on you will find that choices made earlier have an effect later in the game. If you decide to buy a lot of attack power, your energy will grow slowly, enabling you to do jobs less quickly. Growing a mafia family is also very important. A large family gives a lot of power and you'll need that.
Higher levels are reached less easily, larger intervals, but also greater rewards. This game requires some strategic thinking on the part of the player. Plain luck is just a small factor.

Overall, playable, untill all levels are mastered, but I haven't got there yet...

Something different: facebook game review

If you're on Facebook, you must have noticed invitations from friends to join them in an online game. A few weeks ago I decided to take part in a few games, what use is a game if you don't play it?


So I became a member of a mafia family in the Mafia Wars game. Later I got involved in Spymaster and lately I have been running a farm in Farm World.

What they have in common is how a player can grow from easy challenges to harder challenges, that get unlocked once a level is mastered. A level is mastered after a numer of experience points is reached. The first levels are reached quite fast. You win points, buy stuff and play with or against other players, who you may not even know.

These games run on top of Facebook, so they use the facebook knowledge of your friends network. And one problem may be that in order to play harder levels, you will accept invitations from other players, that you don't know. They will join your facebook network too. Be ware of this risk!

I will post a few game reviews in the next few days.