Re: Am considering this on xp
Thanks for the extended info. Very informative. And yes, I do try things on
a 'test' machine just to see how they react. And yes, I am sure I, just like
others "may" trade torrents and the like for 'legite' purposes. In any
event, is/was a curiosity. Thanks for your lengthy insight on the subject.
While some points I considered, others came from your own first hand
knowledge and that is appreciated.
"VanguardLH" <V@nguard.LH> wrote in message
news:%231uN%239TKJHA.1012@TK2MSFTNGP04.phx.gbl...
> Mark G. wrote:
>
>> So I am thinking of installing and using a program that will hide
>> and/or make my IP anonymous. With theft and whatnot these days, I am
>> thinking I may be better of with this.
>
> Someone - a friend or thief - that uses your computer at their current
> location won't be getting your old IP address, anyway. Unless you PAID
> for a static IP address (which won't be available elsewhere), you get a
> dynamic IP address. Eventually it expires (in a couple days) and
> becomes eligible for reassignment to you or someone else. You don't go
> anonymous for your IP address because you're worried about theft of
> your computer. Your real worry is something that you decided wouldn't
> be beneficial for responses to your post.
>
>> Plus, I don't necessarily like all websites tracking my moves and
>> whatnot.
>
> Oh, so you don't trust your ISP and the web sites but you'll trust an
> unknown party with your web traffic. Yeah, like that increases
> security ... not! With Javascript and cookies (which often are
> required for a web site to function), they'll know your host's IP
> address or track your web surfing without it (they often don't care
> about your IP address).
>
>> No, I am not paranoid by default, but just cautious.
>
> Hiding your IP address is not just being cautious. There's a reason
> behind it, like wanting to troll a forum, bypass being banned from
> there, or fear of an oppressive government in your area. It's not done
> because of just curiosity. No one goes to the trouble of setting up and
> using proxies because they were merely cautious. They want to hide for
> a reason.
>
>> Anyhow, I am a very heavy PC user and do quite the variety of things
>> on my PC. Will using this type of software mess with anything that I
>> may be used to?
>
> It will slow your web traffic. Why? Because a host had to process the
> incoming traffic and separately generate the output traffic to
> disconnect the link between the endpoints. It also means a less
> reliable Internet connection. Why? Because if that anonymizing proxy
> goes down then you no longer have a path to receive that web traffic.
>
>> What I mean is, some sites that I do sign into and use frequently, I
>> want them to store my login.
>
> They can't "store" you login unless you enable cookies. Cookies reside
> on your host, not on the intermediate proxy. That means any site that
> uses cookies can track you despite using a proxy unless you purge their
> cookie after your web session with the target site is over; however,
> some sites won't function unless you save their cookie (which is on
> your host) so you can't get rid of it until you close the last instance
> of the web browser and then purge cookies.
>
>> Also, what about XP ftp settings and the like?
>
> If you're using an anonymous FTP server (allows anyone to login), why
> do you care if they know your IP address? Most anonymizing proxies
> only handle certain protocols, like HTTP. They don't support FTP. If
> the FTP site isn't anonymous, you'll have to login using your
> credentials for your account so some proxy between you and them is
> worthless.
>
>> Anybody use these types of programs? Your thoughts?
>
> Yes, I've trialed several to see how they worked. You move your trust
> regarding your web traffic from your ISP to an unknown owner of an
> unregulated proxy host. Web traffic is slowed. Reliability is
> diminished.
>
>> Will they interfere with online game play?
>
> Definitely because of the slowdown in delivering traffic. While you're
> still trying to move, someone else with a faster connect which includes
> not using proxies has already splattered your innards on the wall.
