eBay Save Search

One of the more frustrating and annoying aspects of the horrid eBay change from Saved Searches to Searches You Follow (see eBay goats and sheep) is that searches can no longer be (re)named, so non-trivial searches get long, painful names.

Here's a work-around that temporarily turns off Javascript, thereby exposing the old Save (and name) Search functionality: When you have a search on eBay that you want to save, click on the URL at the top of your browser, append "&_jsoff=1" (without the quotes) to the end of the URL, and press [Enter]. That should reload your search with the old Save (and name) Search functionality.

Update: Another way to still name Searches has been to use the official eBay app for Android, but the ability to name searches was removed in version 2.7.0.142, so to retain this capability, don't upgrade beyond version 2.6.1.2 (which still works fine as of this writing).

Free VPN

Secure Wi-Fi with VPN is updated with a very good free VPN service:

• VPNBook
  Free PPTP and OpenVPN. No registration required. No bandwidth limits. Privacy protection. Easy to set up. Free Web Proxy. Commercial service available at $8 per month. Headquarters in Switzerland. Servers in USA, UK, and Romania.

Anti-Malware for Windows

Malware (adware, spyware, trojan, virus, worm) protection is now so essential for computers running Microsoft Windows that free trials of commercial anti-malware software (anti-virus, Internet security, etc) are commonly included in new computers. The catch, of course, is that they aren't free forever, and that they won't provide proper protection without regular ongoing updates. But not to worry, because excellent free protection is readily available, so uninstall those commercial products and use these free tools instead:

Microsoft Security

Microsoft now provides both good firewall (Windows Firewall) and good anti-malware (free Security Essentials for Windows Vista and 7, Windows Defender included in Windows 8). Notes:

• How to activate Windows Defender in Windows 8
• How to Add “Scan with Windows Defender” to the Context Menu in Windows 8
• Windows XP (and earlier) is not secure, should not be used. 

Supplemental

Enhanced Mitigation Experience Toolkit (EMET) is free Microsoft software that significantly enhances Windows security. Recommended for advanced users.

Since no anti-malware tool is 100% reliable, it's a good idea to supplement Microsoft security by periodically downloading and running a scan with one or preferably more (as no one tool is perfect) of the following:

1. HitmanPro
2. AdwCleaner
3. Spybot
4. Malwarebytes
5. Microsoft Safety Scanner