Bug of the Month

Janu ary 1997 / Bits / Bug of the Month

HTML Stymies Netscape Navigator

Even the relatively simple Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) can be used to do bad things. Richard Smith, president of Phar Lap Software, a vendor of programming tools, discovered a way to disrupt Netscape Navigator using plain old HTML.
First, create an HTML file named BOOM.HTM wh ose contents include:
<body>

<img src="file:///com1

<img src="file:///com2

<img src="file:///com3

<img src="file:///com4

<img src="file:///aux

</body>
Compose an e-mail message that contains BOOM.HTM as an attachment and send it to someone. When the recipient reads the e-mail message with the Netscape Mail program, Navigator locks up when the mail program attempts to display BOOM.HTM.
The lockup occurs because Naviga tor is trying to read a GIF file from serial ports COM1 through COM4. Because no data is coming through those ports, Navigator hangs. And when the target device name is AUX, the computer might lock up completely.
Netscape says it fixed the bug with a recent upgrade of Navigator 3.0.
Send yours to edejesus@bix.com!

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Matthew Wilson
My approach to software engineering is far more pragmatic than it is theoretical--and no language better exemplifies this than C++.

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