Sponsor's Message

While we all dream of lazy days on hot beaches soaking up some rays (yes, the sun *will* come out eventually), it's worth remembering that some things will continue as usual, despite the holiday break.

Unfortunately, one of those things is spam.

If you're going to be taking a bit of time away from your computer, it might pay to make sure you've got enough mailbox capacity to cope with the inevitable flood of junk email that will fill it in your absence.

Spammers almost certainly know that the effects of a little too much lubrication and the eager anticipation of a little time-off will likely dull the reflexes of many system admins, so there's probably no better time to pitch your fake Viagra, useless pyramid schemes or other dross.

Now have your say Got something to say about today's column, or want to see what others think?  Visit The Forums While you're here, why not visit the Aardvark Hall of Shame and perhaps make your own nomination.

ISPs too ought to be making sure that their mailservers have plenty of headroom as huge numbers of Kiwis forsake their PCs for their holiday batches and mailboxes go weeks without being emptied.

As usual, Aardvark will continue to be published on most days (except the statutory holidays) over the break -- although I suspect there will be an absolute dearth of news stories so it may just be a bit of commentary rather than the full edition.

I'd like to thank all those who have supported this site over the past year -- and indeed -- over the past decade because March of 2005 sees the 10th anniversary of what has become one of the Net's longest-running IT news and commentary sites.

It's been a shite of a year and, from a financial perspective, this won't be the best of Christmases, but (despite the unseasonal weather) the kind comments and odd donation from readers means it'll be one of the warmest I've experienced in some time.

I hope all my readers have a great time over the next week or two and take the opportunity to relax, put their feet up and remember that there's more to life than computers and the internet.

Lighten Up
Well here's the Christmas edition of Aardvark's look at the funny, unusual and downright stupid side of the Net. Many thanks to all those who contributed a link or two.

Looking for a cool tattoo with an oriental flavour? Well just be careful, next time you visit Japan wearing those eastern symbols.

I wonder if you've just missed a chance to attend this year's version of last year's Annual Nigerian EMail Conference. What a shame!

For some reason I can't seem to get this to work but if you can it could be a useful way to waste a lot of time this summer.

Please don't leave your computer on when you go on holiday. Not only is it a waste of power but you never know what your icons will get up to.

What ever you do, don't try to clear the paper-path on your office printer using a pen to dig around inside. If you do, that pen may get stuck. And, if the pen does get stuck, do not leave a note like this on the printer to let others know.

Well, that's enough for now -- get back to work, it's not 5pm yet!

And don't forget --- 7:30pm on Prime TV tonight :-)

Aardvark Forums
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