Time is running out for *you* to write your diary!

We are planning a diary for the first week of the New Year that is exclusively a "Reader's Diary". This will be a diary of inputs from you, our readers, to the rest of the world. We are looking for inputs that pertain to ISC, the Internet, New Year Predictions, suggestions, 'thank you' notes, almost anything (within reason). We will try to get all of the inputs posted, and they will be available for reading on January 2nd/3rd. Please include your name and valid email address. Names will be posted, however email addresses will be kept private.

Please submit entries to newyear@isc.sans.org by Jan. 2nd 1200hrs GMT to be added to the diary. Yes, that is only a few more hours away.

Update of Windows XP: Surviving the First Day

It has been over a year since Johannes Ullrich and the ISC wrote XP Survival Guide. During that time XP Service Pack 2 has been released, along with a number of other critical patches. Additionally, there has been comments through out the year of things that could be improved in the document for end users. As such the ISC is in the process of updating the document to include SP2 considerations and hopefully release the new and improved Guide shortly. (Okay, I had planned to release something this week except I had the fun of extended time at home on a dial-up link for my family's white Christmas, and then was sick most of this week.) As I have not finished the rewrite, and there was very limited amount of new security issues to mention, I am going to ask our readers if there is any particular things that you would like to include in the document. Keep in mind this document was highly oriented toward those that are home users or are small office/home office in which Windows Update is the primary method of securing new systems.

So, if you have any ideas, suggestions, criticisms on the current document, please let the ISC know. It is my hope that the document will be ready for version 2 within a week (or 2 if there are more major overhauls suggested by the readers then I am guessing).

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Scott Fendley

University of Arkansas

sfendley _at_ isc.sans.org