Marc Mennigmann releases THE BLOCK 2.1
Iserlohn, Germany -- November 01, 1998 -- Marc Mennigmann today announced
the release of version 2.1 of THE BLOCK, a popular password security
application for Macintosh computers.
What is THE BLOCK?
==================
THE BLOCK is a powerful password protection system for Macintosh computers.
Unlike other password protection systems, it will not accept real
passwords. To log in to a computer protected by THE BLOCK you need to go
through a two-step process. First you need to type a Password Key, which is
a key combination similar to the Finder's Copy or Paste shortcuts
[command+c] or [command+v]. The second step is to click with the mouse on
the shutdown button on the on-screen dialog or, depending on the
preferences you set, to press the "esc" key on your keyboard.
A big part of THE BLOCK's security comes from the illusion that a real
password is needed. If intruders are not aware of how THE BLOCK works, they
will always choose the wrong approach. If they are aware, THE BLOCK will
still be as protective as every other password system because there are
many possible Password Keys and there is an option to disable the shift key
at startup. A Password Key can consist of any of the four modifiers
(command, alt, control or shift) and another key on your keyboard,
including the cursor keys, the F-keys and the page navigation keys.
THE BLOCK is US$10 shareware. It is available from Marc Mennigmann's web
site and all major Macintosh shareware archives and ftp sites. Version 2.1
is a free upgrade to registered users of any earlier version.
System Requirements: Any Apple Macintosh or clone with at least a 68020 CPU
running MacOS System 7.1 or later.
Features
========
* Powerful password protection without a real password.
* Disabling of the shift key at startup for 68k and PPC machines.
* Activity log to keep track of the time and date of startups, failed
login attempts and changes to the preferences.
* Sound alerts when a user tries to log in with a wrong password.
* An energy saver option can shut down the computer after two minutes
of inactivity.
* Application-wide balloon help support.
* Appearance Manager savvy.
* Support of Apple's Navigation services.
What is new in THE BLOCK 2.1?
=============================
THE BLOCK 2.1 is a bugfix for version 2.0 to provide compatibility with the
new Macintosh operating system 8.5.
Availability
============
THE BLOCK 2.1 and the Japanese version THE BLOCK 2.1J are available now,
and may be downloaded at:
(http://www.kagi.com/mennigmann/)
The file size of the full installer is about 1MB, the file size of the
updaters from v2.0 is about 100KB.
About Marc Mennigmann
=====================
Marc Mennigmann is the author of a number of well-received products,
including the reminder application "Recall" and the freeware "Navigator
Enhancer", an application to enhance Netscape's internet browser.
Marc Mennigmann distributes his products under the shareware principles:
try before you buy and minimal or no marketing costs. As a result,
shareware costs a fraction of the price of most other commercial software.
Contact Information: Marc Mennigmann (mennigmann@kagi.com) - Press Contact
(mennigmann@kagi.com) - World Wide Web (http://www.kagi.com/mennigmann/) -
Phone and FAX contact is only available at email request.
