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WITH a name like
InternetNow!, you'd want this software package to be an easy-to-configure
beast, right? Well, it is. If you've heard of Qbik's WinGate, you might
want to consider InternetNow! a Malaysian-made WinGate on steroids.
This affordable
Internet access sharing suite is a worthy consideration for all companies
big (especially stingy ones) and small (cost-cutting ones) owing to its
extensive user-management features and affordable price.
Besides, for many
Malaysian companies the whole InternetNow! package should be a real sweet
deal seeing as how expensive lease-line access costs.
Typically,
budget-conscious companies opt for dial-up POTS or ISDN (okay, DSL for
the more lucky ones) and then share access to multiple PCs within the
company.
This is fine and
dandy in theory, but without the right software, this whole exercise can
be a daunting, time-consuming process for IS managers.
Furthermore, in most
SMI companies the entire IS department consists of just one, usually
harried, individual, and this dude could certainly use some help!
With InternetNow!
taking care of multiple-access browser caching, rudimentary firewall
duties (it supports SOCKS 5.0), content filtering and UUCP mail (yep, the
older, low-cost alternative to setting up POP or SMTP mail), InternetNow!
certainly impressed me with the sheer number of features it has.
Indeed, the package
carries so many good features under its hood it's bound to surprise
organisations currently considering some of the more expensive
alternatives out there.
Under the hood
The
IntenetNow! package actually consists of two parts that help each other
out - ProxyNow! and MailNow!
The former is a proxy
server. Its job is to do what proxy servers usually do: content caching,
site filtering, user-logging, realtime Internet traffic monitoring, etc.
Setting up the proxy
server is simplicity itself. Pick a ``master PC,'' (typically, this
machine is where the access line is connected) and install InternetNow!.
After that, you'll need to configure your username and password with
admin rights and then you'll be all set to create accounts for people
within your shared Internet-access network.
Yep, unlike some
security-less Internet sharing solutions, ProxyNow! is industrial
strength enough to allow for some tight user-management. The admin can
limit what, where, when and how long users can connect. For example,
admins can bar telnet, newsgroup and FTP access (of course, they won't be
winning friends that way) on a per user basis.
Since the
username/password convention is used to access ProxyNow! services, it
easily supports remote management of the proxy console. Admin right users
can login from literally anywhere to configure the server.
ProxyNow! takes care
of dial-on-demand, auto-disconnect, and also handles your company's ``Net
Nanny'' duties. I have to say its default site and content filtering is
pretty darn good for a keyword-based filter.
Even if you feel
you've beaten it by going to, say, a porn site that doesn't have explicit
words in its URL, the minute you hit the page and the content comes
through, the censorship happens. Yup, you'll be staring at a blank screen
real quick because content filtering (and not just site filtering) is the
name of the game here.
And here's some more
good news: ProxyNow! also does advert filtering. Although it does not
really filter all adverts (they come in too many shapes and sizes), a
significant chunk of those standard size animated GIF ads are done away
with.
Mail you
The
mail portion of InternetNow!, called MailNow!, handles UUCP mail, which
is often considered the more prudent choice for dial-up Internet sharing
because of the group-mail feature it supports via just one ISP account.
Instead of POP mail
which requires a per-user dial-up action whenever someone wants to do
e-mail, UUCP mail servers dial in just once using a single ISP account
and uploads and downloads your entire company's e-mail content according
to your own preferred time intervals.
Remember the
``somebody@somewhere.po.my'' type of addresses Jaring used to offer when
it started its ISP service a couple of years back? Well, that was UUCP.
Still, MailNow! would
only perhaps make sense for companies connected to the Internet using
dial-up lines. Folks on DSL or lease-line would perhaps benefit more from
the realtime mail systems like POP.
That's not saying
UUCP is outdated, however. The MailNow! implementation has some
interesting benefits.
As the UUCP admin,
your job is to create user mail accounts for your Internet access sharing
colleagues so they can in turn login to the designated ``master PC'' to
send and receive their mail. Coupled with ProxyNow!, you can have some
users do just e-mail without any Internet access whatsoever (you
despicable admin, you).
To get your UUCP
domain, register with Jaring (it costs RM100 a year). BTW, you may want
to get a couple of those because MailNow! supports multiple domain
configs.
If you perhaps want
to save even more money for your company, you might want to couple your
existing Lotus Notes, Novell GroupWise and Microsoft Exchange mail
clients with MailNow!.
Yup, keep using those
platforms for internal mail but use MailNow! integration for external,
Internet mail.
Additionally,
MailNow! also supports automated mail replies if you feel like setting up
certain mail services for your business contacts and clients (product
updates, distribution lists, newsletters, employment).
Summary
If
you're looking for cost-effective Internet access for small companies,
schools or even techie-populated homes (where everyone's a netfreak),
this one should be right up your alley.
This ``starter''
Internet kit for SOHO and SMIs is really an outstanding, value-for-money
product. Just don't expect to push it too much by pulling such stunts
like running ``terror'' NetMeeting sessions, IRC file transfers and VPN
(PPTP) and you'll be fine.
Pros: Extensive user management
features; affordable price; UUCP mail integration for really
budget-conscious companies.
Cons: Hmm, none really. The
pricing offsets just about any drawback.
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