Hot disks 1/03: spam protection, an alternative office suite and more

Entrepreneur, Jan, 2003 by Liane Cassavoy

Spam No More: The 2003 version of Norton Internet Security (www.symantec.com) reduces attacks on productivity by identifying spam and marking spam-generating addresses for blocking by any POP3 e-mail reader. NIS also recognizes harmful codes by signature. The $70 suite (all prices street) lets you block contact from IP addresses that attack you and report them to their ISPs.

An Office Alternative: Corel's WordPerfect Office 2002 (www.corel.com) offers another option in office suites. It features word processing, spreadsheets and e-mail--as well as compatibility with most versions of Microsoft Office. If you've had enough of Microsoft, it could be an attractive alternative, but it isn't much cheaper: The standard version costs $389 for new users, while Office XP goes for $479.

Netscape Turns 7: Netscape's improved version 7.0 (www.netscape.com), available in a free download, features more secure e-mail, enhanced IM and tabbed browsing. It also lets you view multiple pages in one browser window. Unfortunately, it comes with too many AOL ads and places them in your Internet Explorer favorites.

Speedier Surfing: Why buy broadband? Transfinity's WebJet software (www.transfinity.com) can speed up your dial-up by caching and compressing Web data before it reaches your modem, then decompressing the data when it reaches your desktop. The service, only available through ISPs for $5 to $7 per month (on top of service charges), may soon be available in a direct-to-user version.

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of today's software companies will be out of business within two years.

SOURCE: Gartner Inc.

Liane Cassavoy, a former technology reporter at PCWorld.com, freelances from her home in Brookline, Massachusetts.