One cute hack for MacOS X (... or nice internet protocol helper hacks...)

[Chipp Walters]

I've thought about this for sometime now.

The way to do this is take a basic player, (like Ken Ray's StackRunner) 
let's call it WebRev and tie it to a server database which validates 
"good stacks" using a checksum. Then anyone who clicks a link on a 
webpage and downloads the .rev file (or other extension?) would get a 
notice (after comparing the stack name and checksum):

This stack IS/IS NOT registered with the WebRev database. Continue at 
your own risk! Basically a poor man's certificate system. IMO, without 
such a system, either 1) products built using secureMode would be of 
little use; or 2) there would be too great a security danger.

I'm just not a fan of securemode, especially if one is trying to create 
a real application which runs from the web. I believe certification is 
the best way to go, and I've stated that since the early days of Java 
and ActiveX. That's one thing MS got right.

Then by adding auto-update capabilites to WebRev, one could keep it 
auto-updtaed easily. Then AJAX like apps could easily be run by just 
clicking a link on a webpage. Key point: WebRev should not be any kind 
of adware/spyware type of product. That would KILL it.

-Chipp