Quick introduction - I'm Trei Brundrett, I lead the product and technology team at SB Nation.

We have been working hard to resolve the virus attack that some of you here at Blazersedge have experienced. 

THANKS FOR YOUR HELP SO FAR

I want to thank all the members of this community who have experienced the recent virus attack, sent us reports on the problem and answered our follow-up questions. That has been extremely helpful in giving us more information to work with as we track down this problem. It's especially helpful since our team has been unable to recreate the attack on what appears to be the target environment - Windows and Internet Explorer. Fighting an attack that we can't see is extremely frustrating and we need your help.

WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT?

If you haven't yet experienced this virus attack, it's a particularly heinous strain of malware. Win32/FakeAV is a family of trojans disguised as legitimate anti-virus and anti-spyware software. FakeAV variants prompt the user with false warnings, popups, and fake scan results, and may also download additional malware. 

We have already tried a wide variety of methods to determine how the attack may or may not be delivered through our network including scanning the ad banners from our ad server and the code from our own pages. We have found nothing malicious. We have even tried rolling stoppages on the 3rd party ad networks. Reports of attacks have continued.

MALWARE HUNTING

Today, we are attempting to isolate the source of the attack with a test designed to rule-out (or indict) our ad server and any of the ads it serves as the culprit. We chose Blazersedge for this because as I said many of you have sent us reports and been incredibly helpful already.

What is the test?

This afternoon we suspended delivery of ALL ads on Blazersedge.

Now, we need your help.

Here is what we're asking:

1) Please send us a report if you experience the attack in the next 24 hours. The best way to do this is via our contact form:

http://www.sbnation.com/pages/contact?community_id=37

Even if you've previously sent us a report about the attack, we need to know that it's still happening after we disabled all the advertising on the site.

We need as many folks' help here as possible.

2) If you experience the attack, use IE 8 and you have software like Avast that stops the redirect to the Fake AV screen and keeps you on the Blazersedge site, we have an extra special request. Follow a few simple instructions to capture the HTML on the site and send it to us. The instructions are across the jump.

I'm happy to answer questions in the comments. And I really appreciate your assistance in eradicating this scourge.

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The UTEP Miners edged the Houston Cougars last night to take back first place in the Conference USA standings. The race is on in the C-USA.

http://www.minerrush.com/2011/2/20/2004429/back-in-the-saddle-utep-miners-holds-off-houston-cougars-1st-place-conference-usa-cusa

Luke Thomas is a leading voice and analyst in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) whose work routinely transcends media platforms. Thomas serves as the Editor-in-Chief of BloodyElbow.com, one of the leading commentary and news website within the sport.

During his tenure as Editor-in-Chief he successfully helped BloodyElbow.com partner with USA Today to create the co-branded USA Today/SB Nation Consensus MMA Rankings, the most visible and respected rankings in the sport. He is also the host of MMA Nation on CBS radio's 106.7 The Fan in Washingon, D.C., where he hosts the only radio show in the entire Washington, DC market dedicated to MMA.

Thomas does radio appearances as an expert guests in radio markets across the country including numerous Fox Sports and ESPN radio affiliates in Seattle, Dallas, Honolulu, Las Vegas, Baltimore, Orlando, New Orleans, Atlanta, New York and Los Angeles. In addition to blogging and terrestrial radio, Thomas has served as an op-ed writer for Sherdog.com as well as a features writer for Real Fighter magazine. His work has also appeared in the Washington Post, Salon.com, ESPN.com and dozens of newspapers across the country.

We love rolling out features. Today we've made it easier for Facebook users to signup for SB Nation and to participate in our fan communities. For existing SB Nation members, Connect allows you to login with your Facebook account. Keeping track of different passwords is a hassle, yes? You're a discriminating sporting connoisseur, and your time is valuable.

Connect makes it easier to share what you write on SB Nation with friends on Facebook, whether you're publishing a FanPost, a FanShot or a comment. You decide what you share. And your Facebook info stays over on Facebook.

Often your posts deserve to be seen by friends who aren't yet the sort to dive into sports blogs. Or by your grandmother, who just set up a Facebook profile, and added you. Are you going to ignore her forever? In any case, this step-by-step guide should get you Facebook Connected. It's easy.

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A key late interception and a touchdown off a blocked punt allow the Hawkeyes to defeat a Penn State team looking for revenge for a stunning last second upset last year. Final score is 21-10 and another top 5 team knocked off.

SB Nation Texas Tech blog Double T Nation predicted this game would be a bigger defensive battle than most people expected and even after a few quick touchdowns that looked prophetic. Then the Red Raiders started running the ball and put some real points on the board wearing the Cougars down. However, Houston kicked a field goal in the final seconds of the first half and gained a bit of momentum before they ran into the locker room.

Iowa DE Adrian Clayborn blocked a punt and ran it in for a touchdown, but the Hawkeyes failed on a two point conversion. It’s still good enough for the lead in the fourth quarter at Happy Valley.

There are plenty of questions to answer about Florida's season -- and why it was placed in danger to begin with -- even after we find out if Tim Tebow's injury is serious.

In what will likely prove to be a high-scoring affair from two offensive-oriented teams, both Texas Tech and 17th ranked Houston quickly put 7 points on the board in the first quarter.

Joe Paterno and the Nittany Lions jumped out to a quick lead over the Hawkeyes in a game where they seek revenge for last year’s stunning last second loss.

This morning we released some new features, all of them designed to help you share what you have to say about your favorite sport and team. Here is the rundown:

Share on Twitter

When you publish a FanPost or FanShot let your friends (or followers as they're called) know via Twitter. We've built an easy tool into the FanPost and FanShot editors that automatically creates a short URL back to your post and lets you send that to your Twitter stream along with a quick message. You can set this all up from your account settings screen, or right within the FanPost and FanShot editors. See more detailed instructions below.

Redesigned FanPost Editor

We've made a few changes to the layout and features of the FanPost editor:

1) Bigger textarea - more space to explain why ranking systems can't be objective or your GM should be fired immediately

2) Spellchecker - this isn't a spelling bee, it's a sports blog network

3) Draggable jump bar - we combined the intro and extended entry sections of a post and made it easy to decide where to split them

4) Sidebar inserts palette - tools to insert images, videos and quick, relevant, timely links in your post

5) Easy status + save - we made the auto-save message more obvious, combined it with the post status and made the whole thing a big button you can click to save as often as you want (without reloading the whole page)

6) Autotagger - adding player, team and game tags to your post helps everyone find your opinion on those subjects; we just made it super easy: write your post, click that 'run autotagger' button and we'll tag your post the most relevant players and teams + link them up as well. if you don't feel like clicking that button, we'll run that process for you when you publish.

A help box that explains all of this in more detail will open up the first time you try out the new FanPost editor. Now go fire it up on your favorite blog and try it out!

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Continue reading this post »

It's that time of year that every bored baseball fan loves as they wait for spring training. The infamous Winter Meetings are coming and the rumor mill has fired up full speed. Big moves (and even the small ones) can shake up your favorite team and change the upcoming baseball season. Follow along on the SB Nation baseball blogs to get the latest news and analysis during the hot stove season. And then jump in and tell us what you think. We have launched a site that makes it easy to find everything you need to know in one place:

The season is almost over, but the BCS race has just heated up with multiple teams jockeying for positions to make the big bowl games and ultimately to play for the national championship. Yesterday we launched a hub that brings together NCAA football scores, the BCS rankings and all the posts from our college league blogs who cover the games. It's a great one-stop shop to hear the details and opinions from the fans of all those teams. Check it out and let us know what you think. BTW, you'll also find BCS related stories in the sidebar of your favorite college blog.

Hey everyone, welcome to the new and improved CelticsBlog!  I will turn things over to the SB Nation tech team now, so they can guide you through logging in and any questions or concerns you may have.  Please read the directions below and show them every courtesy.  Take a look around, get set up, and enjoy the new CelticsBlog.

Thanks - Jeff Clark

---------------------------------

Hey CelticsBlog,

Today is the big day. We've switched your community over to the SB Nation sports blog platform. My name is Trei (clockwerks), and I'm here to help you get adjusted to the new home we've built for you. If you have questions or trouble with the new system, post a comment in this thread and myself or one of the team (lovitt, sixfoot6 or odacrem) will try to point you in the right direction. Or you can contact us directly through email at support@sbnation.com.

GETTING STARTED

We’ve worked hard to make sure that members of both CelticsBlog and Green Bandwagon can make an easy transition to the new combined CelticsBlog. In both cases you will be able to to keep all your blog comments and posts. There are a few easy steps that are the same for members of both communities – it just depends on where you do or don’t already have accounts registered.

Pick your situation and follow the instructions to get started:

IF YOU DON’T HAVE AN SB NATION ACCOUNT

1. Login here with your CelticsBlog username and password
2. The system will check to see if your username is still available on SB Nation. Unfortunately, not all usernames will be available. Choose a new one if necessary. This WILL NOT impact your forums username.
   
3. Complete your SB Nation account registration

a) Click your screenname in the network bar at the top of the page
b) Click ‘Edit Account’
c) Select ‘Claim old blog account’
d) Find CelticsBlog in the list of blogs
e) Enter your CelticsBlog username and password, then click ‘add’
f) Click 'Update'

Please follow all CelticsBlog rules, including the following in particular:

1.) No cussing allowed.
2.) No disrespect to fellow chatters.
3.) Chat should be about Celtic basketball, NBA basketball, or basketball relating to the Celtics in some manner.
4.) Do not dominate the conversation - give other people a chance to chat and discuss their perspective.
5.) Do not enter the chat disguised as another person. Keep chat names consistent, short and clean.
6.) No solicitation.

Java Chat Software

I found this story over at Gaslamp Ball quoting Jake Peavy's agent:

Axelrod made one concrete stipulation to any trade scenarios: “Jake would only approve a trade to a team with a solid chance of winning and a winning tradition. Those teams in the National League may be in locations that are more acceptable, or would be.”

He said “the ability or opportunity to win is very important to Jake, and hopefully some sort of coincidence with his and his family's lifestyle.”

Among the cities Axelrod mentioned were Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and St. Louis.

I know I shouldn't get excited with all of Drayton's downer comments and our lack of prospects to send in return, but I can't help it. If we're going to pick a friend of Oswalt to join him in the rotation, I'd rather have Peavy than Sheets. Let's all dream together. I mean we should at least be flattered that they think we have a solid chance of winning AND a winning tradition.

SB Nation (Sports Blogs Nation), the leading network of owned and operated sports-focused web communities, offering the highest quality content, conversations and applications to an audience of over 2.3 million (and growing) passionate sports fans around the world, is seeking an outstanding developer.

You'll join our small product team and participate in every phase of the development cycle, from feature design, prototyping, and technical architecture to development, deployment, and maintenance. Primarily, you'll be coding a Ruby on Rails application backed by a MySQL database and running on Linux servers.

You're a friendly, creative, and pragmatic problem-solver who's passionate about developing elegant solutions and awesome user experiences. You also:

• Have extensive experience building high-traffic web applications, writing complex and efficient SQL queries, profiling and optimizing code, and devising and implementing caching strategies
• Love writing unit tests and using source control & bug tracking systems
• Know your way around *nix operating systems
• Communicate well
• Have a solid grounding in object-oriented programming and fundamental computer science concepts such as concurrency, complexity theory, and algorithms & data structures

Ideally, you also have:

• Built and deployed into production a non-trivial Rails application
• Worked on small development teams and with remote team members
• Experience building Ajax/DHTML interfaces using the Prototype framework
• Experience using a variety of programming languages and frameworks

Other bonuses:

• Experience managing MySQL servers (maintenance, replication, tuning, etc.)
• Experience managing web or application servers (configuring and tuning any of these: Apache, Mongrel, Nginx, Lighttpd)
• Experience in sports media, passionate fan of sports or actively play sports yourself

This is a permanent position with full benefits based in our Washington, DC office (currently a sweet loft space in Chinatown), but we're also considering remote candidates (part of the existing team is remote). Remote candidates must be able to travel to DC from time to time for meetings, product design session, etc. Salary commensurate with experience.

To apply, please send your resume to jobs@sbnation.com.

When we first released the new SB Nation platform and transitioned all your communities back in March-May this year, early feedback included many ideas on how we could make the active community conversations in FanPosts easier to follow. We kept notes and for the past few months our team kept talking about different ways to improve on what you find behind the 'FanPosts' tab in the top menu bar.

Today, we launched a new view of FanPosts: the List View. The key features are:

• Just the facts - scan the list quickly instead of reading through full posts
• Where is the party at? - the most recently active FanPosts, as determined by recent comments, are sorted to the top of the list by default
  
• Forever popular - since FanPosts sometimes get pushed off the recommended list quickly, we added the ability to look at what was popular in different time frames - the last day, the last week, of all time (hall of fame)
• Flexibility - there are now six different ways to look at FanPosts including the ability to switch back to the classic 'Full View' where we show the body of the post old-school style
  

As always, this is just a first step on a continued evolution. We figure you'll have some great feedback and we can work together to make sure FanPosts continue to be the best place to have in-depth conversations about your favorite team and sport. Please jump into the comments here and let us know what you think!