A few bugs seem to have popped up with Script Sentry and some international versions of Windows. I had added better error handling and Error Reporter integration into a beta version of Script Sentry to help debug the issue. While I haven’t squashed the bug, I figured that I’d release a new version of Script Sentry with the added error handling/reporting features. This should help me locate and fix bugs faster in the future. You can download the new version from the Script Sentry page.



As far as the bug with the international versions of Windows goes, this might be a hard one to debug. Whereas in the past I was able to duplicate the error on my system, I don’t have access to an international version of Windows. To faciliate debugging, I’m opening a topic on the Toolbox forums. If you’re using an international version of Windows and have a problem with Script Sentry, please reply to the post with the error details.

Well, it only took 42 days of debugging, but Script Sentry 2.7 is now out of beta. Many thanks go to R2 and Scotterpops who helped during beta testing. (Especially Scotter whose system needed a complete reinstall of Windows XP, but uncovered a bug that will save many other peoples’ systems the same fate.) If you care to read about the whole beta testing affair, drop on by the Jason’s Toolbox Forums. (Warning, this debugging discussion is not recommended for the feint of heart.)



Here is a quick rundown of the changes in SS 2.7:



- DOC/XLS ddeexec settings will be preserved and migrated properly (fixing a bug which caused either error messages when a DOC/XLS file is run or no SS protection at all).

- Dialog boxes can now be resized

- Uninstalling Script Sentry now won’t require a reboot.

- Uninstaller removes registry keys the previous version left behind.

- Multiple bugs squashed



With this version also come new upgrade instructions. Due to problems with how the previous version of Script Sentry associated file types, some Windows 2000/XP users might experience difficulties once they uninstall Script Sentry. And installing over the previous version would not fix this bug. Therefore, here are the upgrade instructions for ALL users (not just Win2K/XP users):



1. Uninstall the previous version of Script Sentry.

2. Reboot your PC.

3. If you’re running Windows 2000 or Windows XP, download, unzip and run my Win2KXPFixer app.

4. Download, unzip, and install the new version of Script Sentry.

The next version of Script Sentry is still deep in beta testing, with some issues in Windows 2000 and XP still to be ironed out. While I can’t announce a new release of Script Sentry, I do have three new features to announce. First of all, to aid subscriptions to the Toolbox Update, I’ve launched the new Toolbox Update Subscription Center. Here you can subscribe, unsubscribe, and change your e-mail address.



I’ve also beefed up the Toolbox Donations page. While the Paypal option is still there, I’ve now added the option to snail-mail a check. I’ve also posted exactly how much Paypal removes in fees. I might look at alternative donation options, so if you know of one let me know.



Finally, I’ve added the first Toolbox Software Review. While setting up my computer to install Windows XP (to debug Script Sentry), I tried BootIt Next Generation — a $30 shareware program that can take the place of $140 worth of software. I’ve typed up my impressions of it at: http://www.jasons-toolbox.com/articles/BootItNG/.

One year ago today I joined a conference call where I was told that Winmag.com no longer fit into the business plan for the rest of CMP and it would be shut down. At the time I was in complete shock. (We were posting record page views — more than any other CMP site — and were hitting our editorial stride.) However, out of that dark moment sprang Jason’s Toolbox.

I’d much rather celebrate happy occasions than sad ones. So while this might be the first anniversary of the death of Winmag.com, please join me in celebrating Jason’s Toolbox’s first birthday. As a birthday present for all of you, I’d like to unveil two new developments. The first development is what might be the first in a series of Toolbox Articles: Spring Cleaning Your PC.



The second development is the announcement of a new version of Script Sentry in the works. While it’s not ready for prime time just yet (some stubborn bugs refuse to vacate), you can follow the beta progress, and perhaps even join in on the fun, over at the Toolbox Forums.



Thanks to everyone for making the past year a great one and here’s to many, many more!

Just a quick update. Thanks to “jkitc” over at the PC911 forum, who found a minor bug in Script Sentry. Turns out that attempting to run a .REG file through Script Sentry would cause a run-time error. I’ve fixed this and uploaded a new version.

Wow, has it been a month already? I was sidetracked from the next version of Script Sentry by another project (a long-overdue of my other site, URateIt.com), but the Script Sentry 2.5 is now completed. I’ve fixed the bug with Eudora. Since Eudora launches attachments based on the Open command, regardless of the default, Script Sentry will now take over the Open command. This is against my better judgement (it’s a bit more intrusive than I’d like), but it’s the only way I can think of to make Script Sentry compatible with Eudora. The normal Open command will be backed up as a “Bypass Script Sentry” command. Download the new version.

I hope everyone had a great New Year’s. I hate to start off the year on a bad note, but I wanted to alert everyone to a potential problem with Script Sentry and a popular e-mail client. After receiving multiple e-mails claiming that Script Sentry wasn’t working properly with Eudora 5.1. I looked into the situation and e-mailed Eudora to confirm my suspicions. Sure enough, Eudora would launch an attachment using the “Open” command whether or not that was set as the default. As the Eudora tech support rep put it: “Eudora only sends the Open command… and there is no way to redefine it - it is hard coded into the program.” So I’m left with two options. The first is to leave Script Sentry as is and have Eudora users vulnerable whether they’re running Script Sentry or not. The other one is to change Script Sentry to “hijack” the Open command and set up another command (perhaps “Bypass Script Sentry”) to house the normal Open command. Needless to say, I’ve chosen the latter option. Until I get this rewrite finished though, Eudora users should beware. Script Sentry might not be protecting you from malicious scripts due to how Eudora’s authors coded their program. As always, you can make sure you’re protected by Testing Your E-mail Defenses. I’ll send out another update when I have this problem fixed.

It’s been awhile since I posted an update, but I’ve got a good one today. First of all, I’ve uploaded a new version of Script Sentry. Version 2.2 contains a new feature I’ve been meaning to build in for a while. “Automatically Run DOC/XLS files if no Warnings are found.” I had Script Sentry set up here to check DOC/XLS files, but to be honest, I found myself annoyed that I had to go through the “all clear” screen just to get to my document. Adding the document to the safe files list wouldn’t help either, since any edit would cause Script Sentry to report a possible malicious modification. Now, however, you can have the benefit of checking DOC/XLS files without the pain of “all clear” screens. If Script Sentry doesn’t find anything wrong with a DOC/XLS file, it can launch the file and shut itself down automatically. Script Sentry also sports a much-improved and overhauled Error Reporter, which will hopefully aid in debugging future issues. Some minor color bugs in the Configuration dialog box have also been fixed. You can download the new version from http://www.jasons-toolbox.com/scriptsentry.asp.



In addition, I’d like to unveil a new section of Jason’s Toolbox: The Script Repository. I’ve said for a while that Windows Scripting Host can be useful. The Script Repository will be an area where Windows Scripting Host developers can post useful scripts that they come up with. To get the ball rolling, Steve Yandl of PC911 and I have posted a couple of scripts. One of these, Trust Setter, allows you to determine which web sites are allowed to use JavaScript or write cookies to your hard drive by using IE’s built-in Trusted and Restricted Security Zones. (Sorry, Netscape users, but Trust Setter will only work in IE. If there’s a way of doing the same thing within Netscape, I haven’t found it.) The Script Repository can be found at http://www.jasons-toolbox.com/ScriptRepository/.

Yet Another Minor Upgrade. Let’s hope this shakes all the bugs out. (But I should know better, shouldn’t I? ) Anyway, this update fixes a bug that froze Script Sentry when associations were reclaimed manually. It also corrects my e-mail address in the error reporter. You can download the new version from http://www.jasons-toolbox.com/scriptsentry.asp. As always, simply install the new version over your old version. No need to uninstall before updating. Hope all is well by you.

Ok, here’s another minor upgrade to Script Sentry, bringing us to version 2.1.7. This one fixes an error that would pop up if you tried to delete an entry from the Safe Files list when that file had been deleted. Also fixed is a bug in the update checking that indicated that a new version was available even when it wasn’t. It also updates the URL and e-mail address in the help file. You can download the new version from http://www.jasons-toolbox.com/scriptsentry.asp. As always, simply install the new version over your old version. No need to uninstall before updating.