How could they do this to me?

As of March 15th internet access from my work will require us to use Internet Explorer. NO!! Details are really unclear but all I know is we will have to use a network username and password to login before we can access the internet. It’s really confusing because we already login to the network when you start the computer, and do they just block port 80 and make us go through a proxy (Is that the correct terminology). I guess this is a way for them to track our little asses. Other then work productivity losses through web design and such, I am pissed because I hate IE. I really do, I only use it to log into my exchange server. Browsing the web is just so difficult in IE for me. Hopefully when they go live with this I will find a
work around, or maybe it will just work.

Blog

February 23

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About the Author, Dan Cameron:

I'm the owner and solution engineer , a web solutions company that specializes in web development including WordPress.

I started my first blog in 2003 and transitioned to WordPress in 2004. Since moving to WordPress I've written a few plugins and themes for public consumption. Lately I'm busy engineering/building/coding and have only been able to share a few code snippets.

If you're in need of some web development, web design or custom WordPress plugins and/or themes contact me, I'll be happy to discuss it with you.

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  • http://nstryker.blogspot.com/ nstryker

    that’s just insanity. we’re considering installing firefox as the default browser in all our systems, but will wait for at least the 1.1 version. what’s with it guys that think their facists?

  • http://www.freepressblog.org JaredB

    Dan, you will figure out a way around it, I’m sure. As long as there is even one port open to the outside (it can be anything: FTP, or even a non-standard high port; whatever) you can have access to the outside world due to the magic of SSH tunneling.

    For example, you will notice that the IP address for this comment is my home IP, but I am sitting at my desk at work right now.

  • http://scatteredthoughts.us Dan

    Yes, I will find a way. I already have a semi-solution to the email blocking, Exchange.

    How do you use the ip from home? Tunnel? Remote desktop? I use RD all the time.

  • http://www.freepressblog.org JaredB

    Maybe I will write up an article about it someday; until then it might be a fun “educational” experiment to try on your own.
    P.S. – If you check the IP on this comment, you will see that I am in Amsterdam right now.

  • http://scatteredthoughts.us Dan

    Then your using a proxy.

  • http://www.freepressblog.org JaredB

    Although I do occasionally use proxy servers, that time I didn’t. This will be a fun game – if you want to keep guessing.

  • http://www.freepressblog.org JaredB

    Dan, you will figure out a way around it, I’m sure. As long as there is even one port open to the outside (it can be anything: FTP, or even a non-standard high port; whatever) you can have access to the outside world due to the magic of SSH tunneling.

    For example, you will notice that the IP address for this comment is my home IP, but I am sitting at my desk at work right now.

  • http://scatteredthoughts.us Dan

    Yes, I will find a way. I already have a semi-solution to the email blocking, Exchange.

    How do you use the ip from home? Tunnel? Remote desktop? I use RD all the time.

  • http://scatteredthoughts.us Dan

    ssh?

  • http://www.freepressblog.org JaredB

    Maybe I will write up an article about it someday; until then it might be a fun “educational” experiment to try on your own.
    P.S. – If you check the IP on this comment, you will see that I am in Amsterdam right now.

  • http://scatteredthoughts.us Dan

    Do i just keep guessing untill I get it right?

  • http://www.freepressblog.org JaredB

    Sorry, I just didn’t have a chance to reply back again yet. Yes, I was using Lynx (in an SSH session) on a Linux server in Amsterdam.

  • http://nstryker.blogspot.com/ nstryker

    you keep guessing and jared never tells you and laughs at his own geeky superiority.

  • http://www.boschmans.net alex

    Um, as someone who works in telecom, I can (sorta) understand the reasoning behind them wanting you all to use IE to access the internet. It probably is not so much to use IE as to have all of you follow ‘the standards’. However, you should be able to find a solution…

    I work in a bank with 10.000 users – all of them using IE to go onto the net. This is because :
    - several inhouse apps were designed only with IE in mind (a big mistake if you ask me)
    - it’s more integrated with windows, can be configured remotely via a proxy.pac
    - they can re-use your network login from your pc to authenticate you to the proxy (with IE this is usually done via NTLM authentication), so you only have to type your pasword once when you login, and it is then re-used.
    - it’s easier to support one browser instead of 5 different ones.

    Probably, if this didn’t happen before, they also want you to pass via the proxy they setup – this can substantially lower data throughput on the line as the proxies cache data from websites that are visited by more than one person. Also, you can pipe all the data through an antivirus/antispyware scanner for webpages. This also protects you better.

    However, you should not worry overmuch. Unless you have particularly vicious sysadmins (which happens) you can usually find out the proxy settings set in IE and plug those into Firefox. Recent versions of Firefox all can do NTLM authentication just fine. You just have to enter your network id and password once you go to the internet.

    We also have IE as a standard, and the only thing I use it for is the corporate intranet – anything else is Firefox.

  • http://scatteredthoughts.us Dan

    That is so awesome. I have no idea who Alex is or were he came from but what a great comment. This has to go done as the most serious comment from a new reader ever.

  • http://scatteredthoughts.us Dan

    Well now I know who Alex is, he originally came for the Gallery integration. Hope you stay, thanks Alex.

  • http://www.boschmans.net alex

    Um, as someone who works in telecom, I can (sorta) understand the reasoning behind them wanting you all to use IE to access the internet. It probably is not so much to use IE as to have all of you follow ‘the standards’. However, you should be able to find a solution…

    I work in a bank with 10.000 users – all of them using IE to go onto the net. This is because :
    - several inhouse apps were designed only with IE in mind (a big mistake if you ask me)
    - it’s more integrated with windows, can be configured remotely via a proxy.pac
    - they can re-use your network login from your pc to authenticate you to the proxy (with IE this is usually done via NTLM authentication), so you only have to type your pasword once when you login, and it is then re-used.
    - it’s easier to support one browser instead of 5 different ones.

    Probably, if this didn’t happen before, they also want you to pass via the proxy they setup – this can substantially lower data throughput on the line as the proxies cache data from websites that are visited by more than one person. Also, you can pipe all the data through an antivirus/antispyware scanner for webpages. This also protects you better.

    However, you should not worry overmuch. Unless you have particularly vicious sysadmins (which happens) you can usually find out the proxy settings set in IE and plug those into Firefox. Recent versions of Firefox all can do NTLM authentication just fine. You just have to enter your network id and password once you go to the internet.

    We also have IE as a standard, and the only thing I use it for is the corporate intranet – anything else is Firefox.

  • http://www.boschmans.net alex

    Hey, you’re welcome. Let me know how it turns out.

  • http://www.boschmans.net alex

    Hey, you're welcome. Let me know how it turns out.