You recently sent, or received, a message that began >> > READ THIS IMMEDIATELY! >> > > >> > Someone is sending out a very cute screen >> saver >> of the >> > > >> > Budweiser Frogs. If you download it, you >> will >> lose >> > > >> > everything! Your hard drive will crash > [snip remainder] Hi: This message has been semi-automatically generated. The recipients list has been edited to avoid creating another kind of chain letter "virus". If you are someone that I like to get real news from, as in "What is your family up to?" please do not take what follows personally. The tone comes from my receiving way too many of the kind of message that occasioned this response. For real news, I *STILL WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!!* That being said; please, in the future, do NOT forward virus alerts of any kind, shape, size, or pattern to me. I will take my chances with my frequently-updated Norton Anti-virus, and my subscription to reputable technical newsletters. In the event something gets through, I have recent tape backups of everything on my hard drive, and multiple backups of my irreplaceable data (bible study notes, genealogy, and J.R.R. Tolkien). Please go to http://www.kumite.com/myths/ and read why "Budweiser Frogs Screen Saver Virus" is just another in a long, long, long, tedious list of internet virus and chain letter hoaxes. In fact, the hoax IS a virus, because well-intentioned people cause the MESSAGE to replicate, taking up internet bandwidth, using up hard disk space, and wasting the recipients' time reading and/or researching. Not only that, but the large block of seeming garbage that your e-mail client may have displayed at the beginning of the message is the forwarding header, which is a goldmine of valid e-mail addresses for unscrupulous spammers (or worse). You will notice that it is gone from this reply. Etc., etc., etc., as the King of Siam said. There are a number of decent sites on the Web that will tell you about real viruses. Symantec's, for instance, or ZDNet's. That is where I get my virus information. Virus hoaxes, like the worst of the Y2K nonsense, are a form of fear-mongering. I am a Christian. Some of you will not share that with me, but it will help you understand where I am coming from. My response is: God has not given us a spirit of fear; but, he HAS given unto us a spirit of POWER and of LOVE and of a SOUND MIND. If you should think that "this" virus alert or chain letter is different: it isn't. If you think that I will appreciate you making an exception for "that" chain letter: I won't. Darrell A. Martin AS/400 Programmer and backup to the corporate PC Technical Support Staff The Morey Corporation, contract electronics manufacturers darrellm@sprynet.com