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OK - I admit I only scanned this article - but in their explanation of the honeypot, they seem to indicate that there was no form of a firewall set up in front of the machines in the honeypot.

I currently run FreeSco on my homebrew firewall, which is a simple NAT affair. It seems to run well, but sometimes I tend to wonder if it (and associated connected systems) might get rooted.

I check the logs on occasion - but I am not a grand admin - so while I can tell from the logs when a portscan for 138/139 is occurring (SMB) - other possible probes would elude me.

Or am I reading this wrong - was the honeypot protected with a cheapo (read "consumer") firewall product (like a DLink or Linksys router/firewall)?

If not, what would the statistics have looked like if it was?

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Where the heck did you manage to find a first edition (and if I may ask, how much did it cost)?

I personally love books, and I really try to seek out older books (one of my favorites is a Coynes School text book from the 30's - detailing the latest in TV systems - including Nipkow disk scanning techniques) - but have yet to find anything much over 100 years old that strikes my interest (what I mean is I have found many 100-150 year old books - but none were on subjects that I fancy). Being able to find such an edition of an encyclopedia would make my day (I think the oldest book I have is an algebra primer from the late 1800's) - provided it didn't break the bank.

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Right.

I wish I could mod this up - Britannica does stand for quality - my parents scraped enough together to get me two different sets of Britannica (one an older set for everyday reference, the other a current set for occasional reference, as well as each yearbook every year up until a few years ago) when I was younger. The quality of that encyclodpedia, compared to cheesy things like Comptons, or World Book (I think that is right) - uncomparable. Brittanica ruled.

I hope they stay in business - someday I would like to purchase a quality bound encyclopedia for my library - and I would like it to be Brittanica.

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

I hope not!!! I just listened to all the MP3s - and these things sound similar to the bugs (not sure if they are cicada's or not) we have here during the monsoons in Arizona.

Just yesterday we had a pretty humid day, and they came out in full force - I am up in an office on the fourth floor - and they were still loud!

If this is the sound it makes - aggggh!!!

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Which is one of the reasons why I suggested a web ring approach, with a central server run by the NFS - there would be the archive.

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Yes - you and the other poster have a good point, and one that I missed - the research and materials involved _do_ cost a lot, and thus the actual paper and publication is probably only a small fraction of all that.

As far as moderation by "smart geeks" and "laymen" is concerned, the way I would want it structured would be the more "insightful", etc type posts, the higher the karma (with no karma capping), and you would gain higher status for the review. Established practitioners could come in with a preset karma, while laymen/geeks would come in with zero karma, and have to work their way up. Hopefully some of those with the highest karma (ie, the scientists) would moderate those with bad ideas, suggestions, etc - down, and hopefully some of those would be meta-moderators as well.

Just because someone is considered a layman (ie, doesn't have phd tacked onto the end of their name), doesn't mean their intelligence and ability to reason is any less than someone who isn't - it just means they have gone down a different path in life. I am not saying all laymen are fit to review such papers - but I would wager a fair percentage are smarter than you would think (though having a background in the subject being considered would be much more helpful than just being book taught).

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

As I understand it, the process for a paper to appear in the journal goes something like this:

1. Individual writes paper.
2. Individual submits paper to journal.
3. Journal sends paper for review to peers.
4. Paper may be rejected or need changes, goto 1.
5. Paper is accepted.
6. Paper is printed in journal.
7. Individual buys journal to see paper.

Now, the expensive part (for the individual) lies in step 7 - that expense is to recoup the cost the publisher of the journal incurs for steps 3-6 (staff, mailing, printing, etc).

All this still has to be replicated (well, aside from the printing and buying part) for internet distribution.

Someone mentioned doing all of this via a k5 or /. style engine - which is an excellent plan, actually - but the rub with that idea is that such a site, in order to handle the number of viewers (which could get quite large - especially when /. gets wind of the URL!), you need a central server site - which costs money - which leads back to step 7.

What doesn't cost money (or at least - what only costs the money that the individual submitting the paper is willing to go through)? Personal web site for the paper! However, how do you get peer review?

What about a something akin to a webring - but with posting, moderation, peer review - basically a distributed Slashdot! Could this be done? Personally, I think it could - each individual who wants to publish would set up a node, on which papers could be reviewed, published, updated, moderated, commented upon, etc - the owner of the node would be responsible for its upkeep. These nodes would be connected to each other in groups - possibly by "area of interest" (biology, physics, etc) - all could be connected to each other, or possibly through a central node (maybe hosted by the NSF?) - and all nodes would communicate to each other ratings, etc - of the papers on the individual hosted nodes.

Now, the only ones bearing the cost are the individuals - by bringing in moderation, meta-moderation, karma (or whatever else you want to call it) - you could open it up to everyone - scientist, laymen and geeks alike - thus you would gradually get a collection of "peers" - composed not only of scientists, but of really smart laymen and geeks, giving you feedback on the papers, etc - those same laymen and geeks would also be able to set up nodes of their own, if they are so inclined - allowing the various garage scientists to collaborate as well, amongst each other, and with the more "monied" scientists (both corporate and grant-funded researchers).

Does this sound like something that would be useful? Does it sound reasonable? Does it sound like something that could work?

Comments?

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Well, if the shady spot is moving, put the connect somewhere halfway in between.

BTW - we are talking serial comms here, not ethernet. According to this FAQ:

The RS-232 specification defines the the maximum length of serial cable to be 75 feet at 9,600 bps. This is a pretty conservative figure and has been stretched as far as several thousand feet, especially at this baud rate.

Even if we were talking 10BaseT or 100BaseT here, you still have 100 meters as spec, and I am certain that is conservative as well - but that is over 300 feet!

As far as the garage is concerned, it should be possible to reach it in some manner - but given the situation, I would forego the access - it just doesn't sound worth it. Still, it could be done - it wouldn't be easy, and you might need to get help from neighbors (to string the cable on the outside of the building) - but it could be done (the hard part would be getting the building owner or landlord, depending on the situation, to allow you to do it, or to sneak it past them).

Your point about the ethernet outlet is taken - but that is why every self respecting geek brings along a battery powered hub before jacking in.

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

...as much as most other /.'ers - but as far as using it for open source and making money from the software, it seems to be a real difficult thing to do. What about this as a solution - while not GPL, it might allow the making of money from open source software:

Basically, when you bought the product, you would receive the source, with a license stating that you could only share the source and any modifications with other license holders of the software, as well as with the company - in fact, make it a necessity that the company gets the mods , so the new users/buyers of the software get the mods as well in their copy of the source. Maybe have some kind of CVS system set up for all of this.

The license would have to state that any sharing of the source or binaries outside the group would be prohibited. Finally, the license would have to state that in the event that the company goes under, is bought out, etc - that the source would be automatically transferred to GPL status.

Would this even work? Would it be appealing? I am looking at this and am thinking it isn't that appealing (I am a GPL zealot for the most part), but it would make money. I also have this nagging idea that this is already being done by a company, but I can't put my finger on it.

Comments?

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

This isn't too bad of an idea - disregarding the fact that computers are rarely stolen from homes, since they depreciate so quickly, by the time the thief got it to a hock shop, the damn thing is most likely obsolete...

Really, though - in theory, if one could get a "sheet" of lead - ie, about 14-15 inches on the side and 1.5-2 inches thick - well, bolt that to the side of your tower lid (on the inside of the left cover, if you are facing the front of the machine) - of course, your tower may lean and/or fall over to the left now...

:)

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

The shady spot under the tree in the backyard.

A flat blade shovel (to lift up the grass chunks carefully) and a bit of work to lay a PVC conduit would work fine for this.

My friend's apartment, one floor down and on the other side of the hallway.

Tougher, but doable given enough ingenuity (pop the cable out a window, perhaps?) - possible use unused phone lines, and rewire the junction box (just don't get caught).

The garage

Surely you can run a wire to the garage through the attic, right?

The coffee shop I live upstairs from

Tougher, but if you are a regular customer, and they aren't a Starbucks (what I mean is if they are a mom-n-pop joint), maybe you can get them to allow you to run the cable. Or perhaps set up an arrangement, get a fractional T1 and supply internet access to the coffee shop? This one would take some work...

I am not saying that a wire is right for all applications - but for most apps, it easily and inexpensively does the trick, provided you are willing to go to the effort and sweat to install the thing.

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

What is in between 300 feet that you can't string a simple cable?

If you absolutely have to have wireless, look into radio modems (also known as packet radio). Most of these are relatively inexpensive, small, and easy to use. Most require some kind of backend transmitter/receiver - a cheap hacked CB would work.

Also, look up homebrew lasercomm systems - some of these use actual lasers (here is one such project) - I have seen one (Ronja) that uses high brightness LEDs.

There are many solutions to this problem - but the cheapest (not to mention easiest, and quickest) one is a cable.

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Go out and _buy_ the ISO!

I recently bought the personal version of 7.2 - to use to update my 6.3 box. Being a relative newbie on Linux, I had my doubts and "fears" on doing the update (after all, it was a major version upgrade). I wasn't sure the update would work properly, or that something would break after reboot, or what...

I figured something would go wrong - how could it go smooth?

But you know something - it did! The update worked great - no problems at all. Reboot happened and everything was fine...

Ok, not everything was fine - everything worked and appeared OK - but I found that X4.0 hadn't replaced the old X, though KDE updated fine. The kernel didn't get updated either (that was my own fault, in a way - earlier I had patched my 2.2.13 kernal, that comes standard with SuSE 6.3, to 2.2.14, to fix a bug with the parallel port zip drive. I had placed the vmlinuz in /, and told Lilo to look there, based on the patching HOW-TO - SuSE 7.2 places the new kernel in /boot - so I had to simply repoint Lilo, and reboot to fix the issue - still have to rebuild the kernel anyhow, and customise it, cause I lost joystick support).

Even so, with all that - I am highly pleased with the results. I have updated a lot of my software, and KDE2 is a joy to use and see. I have a love/hate relationship with the NVidia drivers for my TNT card now (I was using the "reference" source drivers - or whatever they were - under X3 - but they don't work for 4) - they are faster, but I hate that damn logo - anybody know how to get rid of it (the only reference I found was something involving a hex edit patching of a binary - not something I really want to do).

I am really pleased. I loved the update so much, I really want to see how/what a virgin install is like, on a brand new system. Something tells me "simple as pie"...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Are you saying what I think you are saying?

That Dimitri was the "clean room" RE specialist for developing the software for Elcomsoft?

Under the DMCA, one is supposed to be allowed to reverse engineer, provided it is done in "clean room" fashion (ie, where there is a third party that describes how the device works to the party doing the building of the workalike device - such that those doing the developing never come into contact with the original device - thus "clean").

What the hell is going on here? Is this true - or am I reading something into this here due to the broken english (nothing against you or anyone else whose first language isn't english, mind you - I just don't know if I am reading this correctly)...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

It can be hairy at times - but I get satisfaction that I know what does what, where, and when. It may take me a bit longer to set something up, figure out its dependencies, etc - but in the end, for me, it is worth it.

To be honest, this update from SuSE 6.3 to 7.2 has been less painful than I thought it would be. I can't say painless - but not the huge bear I was imagining. I was half expecting to end up moving my home area to another partition, then reformating the root, boot and swap partitions, and reinstalling (then moving the home area back), but so far, it has worked out great. Even the stuff I compiled under 6.3 still works (AFAIK - but I am going to recompile it in the end).

No - Linux definitely doesn't hold your hand for that kind of an update.

One thing I wonder though, and I hope to be able to try it someday soon - if I can gather the hardware together. I wonder how a "virgin" install of SuSE 7.2 would go - the update went smooth, with the installer and everything being very, very slick - better than what I remember from the Win95 or 98 installer. I just wonder how easy it would be with a fresh machine. It looks like it would be super simple, from what I can gather...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Just wait until you have to recompile your kernel, not once, but twice! This happened to me some time ago - I first recompiled it because my ZIP drive wasn't working properly (had to migrate from 2.2.13 to 2.2.14) - after I did that, my sound card died (because the OSS driver was for the old kernel). So, I had to go through the process again to set up ALSA (as a loadable module). Recently I had to do it again for my joystick.

The first time I did it - I forgot to run LILO (very important) - system refused to go past the load stage - break out a boot disk, go to root - vi lilo.conf, run lilo this time, reboot - everything fine.

This happened to me again recently (not scary this time - immediately recognized my mistake) - I upgraded my system from SuSE 6.3 to SuSE 7.2 - and when I rebooted, while I had KDE2 (well, I had to create a symlink because X kept choking on loading the accelerated X driver), I was still running the old kernel. Seems that SuSE 7.2 put it in /boot, but I had been running the vmlinuz in /, not /boot (probably due to the instructions I had used to make the patch previously) - so I moved it, but forgot to run lilo - blammo! - once I got over that, I just left it in /boot, cleaned up /, and reset lilo.conf to look at the right spot, ran lilo (important!!!) and went from there.

Then, of course, I found I was only running the old X - and not X 4.0 as I thought - finding out that the base upgrade only installed portions of X4 - so I had to add that, and run the config to move to X4 (can't remember the name) - then YAST2 wasn't setup, and I needed to get the drivers for 3D acceleration - ARGHHHHHHH!

Let's just say it has been an interesting few days (and I am still fighting to get the Samba server set up - will probably have to recompile the kernel to get my joystick set up - it "went away" after I did the update, so since the kernel was the only big thing that changed, it must be the issue - I think. I am also unsure whether Java, Perl, or my other custom compiled apps all work properly - fun, fun, fun!) - but I sure do like the new KDE2...

BTW - damn - that NVidia driver for 3D acceleration is much faster than what I had before - I don't like the splash screen every time I log off/log on to the system through KDM (anyone know if there is a way to turn this off - or know of a recompiled version of the driver - it comes with source, I am thinking about stripping that code out and recompiling?)...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Hmmm - seems like there may be OpenAL support though? I know very little about all of this. I suppose that if it doesn't, you could just use ALSA directly for the audio backend, and SDL for everything else...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Unfortunately, no - but I imagine you already knew that - but doesn't ALSA emulate OSS - so that calls to OSS would go through ALSA anyhow? Not as good as the real thing, admittedly...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Actually, it is rapidly becoming "Just use SDL" - from the FAQ:

Q: Does SDL support 3D acceleration?

A: Yes, as of version 1.1.0, SDL has full support for the OpenGL API.

Given that it also has support for joysticks, sound, video playback, CD playback, and a host of other things - there isn't much reason to use anything else. Plus, there are a ton of libraries and such that use SDL as the underlying base, allowing you that much more freedom and flexibility...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

One of my next projects is going to involve SDL and possibly OpenGL - and never having touched either, I went to the SDL site first. Great info! I had one of the demo programs (load a bmp) up and going in a few minutes. Once I get my SuSE box back in shape (updated it last night to 7.2 from 6.3, and I am having some issues that need ironing out - like, oh, 3D Acceleration) - I plan to try modding that demo (my C is rustier than a 50 year old nail), and going from there.

I saw the NeHe tutorials - those have to be the BEST 3D tutorials I have EVER laid eyes on - covers everything - I dare say you could damn near create a damn good 3D game using that site.

There are a ton of places to find code for gaming - you outlined the best of them - hats off to you!

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

The reasoning behind needing polling booths is a simple one:

It blocks vote/voter coercion!!!

That is, by having booths in a central, guarded, public area - such that one, and only one, person may enter the booth - no one can put a gun to your head (literally or figuratively) and tell you how to vote, to further their (or the group they represent) agenda.

This is the current problem with absentee ballots - there is no real way of knowing that the vote on an absentee ballot wasn't coerced in some manner. Currently, we have a low percentage of absentee ballots, so we just shrug our shoulders and move on. However, with internet voting from the home or elsewhere, we would have, in effect, a HUGE percentage of "absentee ballots" that could be coerced ("Want your check/job this week, Johnson? Go into that room and vote - ahem - properly...").

It isn't about security, it is about voter coercion.

However, I do believe that the kiosks should contain computers running voting software - such software could show the candidate, a synopsis of what they are about (maybe with links to outside info - allowing the user to come up to speed on the candidate), and other info - with a set of buttons on the side (like an ATM) that say "Vote", "Next Candidate", "Previous Candidate" - maybe some arrow keys. Have synthesized audio with headphones (or make the booth soundproof) to aid the blind (along with braille on the buttons).

Such software would need to be simple and robust, so as not to crash - don't use touch screens, because they aren't as intuitive, and are useless (or near useless, I would suppose) to the blind. The software could report the votes back to a tabulating center for final count, etc via the internet - using a highly secure encrypted system - or maybe they should just all go back to the center over a leased line system, or maybe back to an armoured truck that uplinks the data via satellite.

Finally, allow a week or so for voting - so everyone can vote, and have the voting booth hours be flexible - heck, make the voting booths mobile or something, like they have mobile ATMS, etc.

All of this could be done today, and relatively cheaply. It isn't that hard...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Should be k and not K (I only wish)...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

I was pulling down a Flash animation at over 100K off my @Home connection - of course, where I live (northern outskirts of Phoenix, AZ) I can't get DSL, but then again, no one in my "neighborhood" has a computer besides me, so no one else is ever on, it seems.

Generally, I get well over 70K most days...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Make that with a capital "E"!

Cheap galvs are going set you back at least $100.00 per channel (last time I checked) - and those aren't high speed, either (lotsa bucks for those). Pro laser show equipment is pricey - but it doesn't have to be this way for your next party.

In an old back issue of Scientific American (in the late 70's-early 80's, I believe) there was an Amatuer Scientist article on building your own laser show cheaply - where the "galvs" were right angle/ortho mounted speakers with mirrors glued to the cone - the trick is using two mirror/speaker combos, each acting on the X or Y axis. The laser bounces between them, and the speakers control the deflection in the X and Y axis - tone generators control the speakers.

The article also showed how to use two motors, each with a mirror glued to the shaft at an angle - using this arrangement, bouncing the laser between the mirrors, you can create lissajous patterns (fun to watch - I actually put an entry into the AOL CD contest that did this, but used the CDs as the mirrors). Add a motor spinning a "shutter" wheel (prior to the laser hitting the first mirror) for other effects. All the motors are controlled with rheostats.

Other possibilities:

Cut away the speaker cone to reduce its mass to get higher speed. It might also be possible to extend the shaft of a regular analogue voltmeter and superglue a small mirror onto it (might have to beef up the spring a bit). Use a solenoid to activate a shutter "digitally" (pro rigs use some kind of electro-optical shutter that works similarly to an LCD). I have given thought to using headphone style speakers, or gluing the mirror to a piezo speaker for higher speeds - haven't followed through on it yet, though.

Use a PC (and accompaning sound card) to control the speaker "galvs" - the parallel port could control a solenoid shutter. Multiple shutters could be controlled serially. Mirrors could be mounted on servos for simple "sweep" effects.

Buy the small mirrors at a craft store - they make them pretty small and lightweight. Another possibility for even lighterweight mirrors is to use a small piece of highly polished blank semiconductor wafer.

Pen lasers (ie, LED lasers) can be used for small informal gatherings, but if you want to do a better, larger show, get an HeNe tube laser - output and brightness tends to be higher. Unfortunately you won't be able to get other colors without spending a lot of bucks (I think there is a blue or green laser pen out there, but it is expensive - other colored lasers are of the gas variety, and tend to be expensive). But other light effects could be used instead (maybe focused high-brightness LEDs?)...

Have phun!

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

I have thought about this as well - but if you are in Mesa, the chance that me and you could get together and connect is pretty well nil. I live up around the 101 and Cave Creek Rd - so, there is Squaw Peak as well as possibly the South Mountain range in the way (depending on where you are at, possibly) - "A" mountain might also be in the way, though unlikely - basically, SP and Camelback mountains would be the big hurdles, unless we could find someone out in Scottsdale (to the west of me, about half a mile - litterally in my back-yard - is a mountain, so nothing to the west)...

But yeah, here is someone else who has thought about setting up a 2.4 GHz or laser link of some sort in Arizona - mainly the Phoenix area - surely there are others?

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

It also seems like they are using this with whatever is their latest ASCII cluster (Red? White?) to display data off it (I just noticed one of the projects name had ASCII in it - so I am making an assumption here - probably a wrong one).

What I still tend to wonder is - why do those damn projectors still cost so much? I mean, sure - prices have come way down, with higher resolution - but why don't they offer "low-res" consumer models - ie, a 640x480 projector for $500-800? The panels should be dirt cheap to make - and I would bet there is a market for higher-res TV projection systems (people still buy normal - ie, non-HDTV - rear-projection systems), right?

It just irritates me that one can't go out and get a new projection system cheaply (actually, I have yet to even see the high-end projectors being sold at a place like Best Buy or Fry's).

I recently set up a cheesy Fujix P401 video projector, coupled to an Avermedia VGA->TV converter. Good enough to watch VCDs, anyways - and it was inexpensive ($250)...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Doh!

So much for previewing my post...

:)

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

I went to the Phoenix show (1996?), and recently (October 2001) helped Mark Pauline and David Therrien set up for a demo here in Phoenix (at X.E.R.O/ChemLab) to show off one of the pulsejets that was to be used on their new hovercraft (which was supposed to make an appearance at the Ultraviolence show in Phoenix - but it got cancelled thanks to a lovely interaction between the SF Fire Marshal and the Phoenix Fire Marshal - thanks a lot, guys! Bastards!), and also a video showing of various prior shows.

The demo went off without a hitch - though every time I saw the pulsejet running - glowing white hot and screaming like a banshee on speed, being manipulated by Mark and company using asbetos gloves, next to the 50 gallon tank of propane that powered it - I wondered if we weren't all going to end up crispy critters.

If you haven't seen an SRL show - you don't have any idea what you are missing - picture being in the middle of a war zone, along with a crash-up derby, and a lot of fire, heat, and smoke - plus a ton of noise that manages to rattle every tooth and bone in your body, while deafening you despite wearing ear protection, incidentally making your ears ring for hours after the show - and you might have some idea about what happens during one.

I put in that time to help on the show - all volunteer, mind you - hoping to help out later for the real show - and then it doesn't happen! Gah!

Anyhow - yeah - SRL makes Battlebots look weak, weak, weak - of course, SRL does beaucoup planning to keep accidents, etc from happening - while Battlebots is more "anachistic" in that fashion, in a way. I tend to think of Battlebots as a tamed down SRL real battle (whereas the destruction of SRL's machines, while real - doesn't tend to utterly destroy them, as sometimes happens with Battlebots), and a different form of entertainment (plus, without all the smoke, flames, heat, and falling ash - it is easier to see what is happening)...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Actually, the limiting factor on the VB cube is the fact that I was only using the GDI SDK calls for everything - the bottleneck is basically the low-level 2D Win32 SDK GDI interface. I am certain that it is more than possible to do great stuff in VB if one goes the DirectX route - DirectX and the video card then would be doing all the heavy lifting.

But hey, that is the way it should be - why should someone have to learn arcane graphics secrets to create a game - they should be able to concentrate on the design and gameplay of the game, and not the underlying low-level stuff. Considering that hardly anyone does low-level graphics engines anymore (what I mean by this is creating engines translating x/y/z coordinates in proper 2D screen coords and doing lighting, etc) - most concentrate on the higher level stuff. That doesn't mean one shouldn't learn the low-level stuff - it is useful knowledge. Just don't expect to use it a lot (though there are a lot of instances of it being useful, just to understand what DirectX or OpenGL are doing, for example).

You are right about 486's and C - I remember several good cube demos done on such equipment. And most certainly, things are going on in the background of that VB program - at minimum, it has to keep checking for messages from the OS, just for the event driven stuff.

So, I am not saying VB is the be-all/end-all of things. But it can be damn good at some things (and actually, if you drop the texture mapping, and rely on straight GDI drawing primitives - line, filled poly, etc - you can get mongo speed - I know of one dude, Jerry Chen, who created an awesome 3D library called Dex3D - I may have a link off the site - ultra-high speed with that). It really excells in the RAD area for business apps - which is something Linux needs.

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

In other words, you are not going to write something that is CPU intensive in VB like Quake or mr. mega encryption program.

Actually, it is possible - to a certain extent.

Both VB 5 and VB 6 are different from previous version of VB - the VB code is first translated into C++ code, then compiled and linked using the regular Visual C compilation tools. In fact, sometimes if you look into a larger project directory in VB - where the EXE is generated - you may find .o files lingering around. You can almost watch the compilation process happenning, if you point Explorer to the directory as you compile.

Unfortunately, it appears that the conversion to C++ is done in memory, and not to disk - so there is no way (at least that I know of currently) to get to the C++ code to tweak it further, prior to sending it on the the linker and compiler.

As far as speed is concerned - it is possible to get it - to an extent. My own personal example is a perspective correct texture mapping spinning cube engine - please don't email me about it - I don't support it anymore (nor do I use VB anymore at home - work is a different story, unfortunately - but I am doing more Java work here now anyway). But it does show what is possible.

Also, at one time (heck, it may be included in the ZIP) I had a custom scanline renderer (ie, the inner loop of the texture mapping routine) done as a C DLL that I called from the VB program, that dramatically speeded everything up - it was my intent to make the whole triangle texture rasterizer a C DLL, but I never got around to it.

So - it is possible to do fast things in VB - since the time I wrote that app - many other people have done even better things - many involving DirectX or custom routines. I have seen some amazing stuff - too bad it is M$ - I have since long ago moved on to Linux...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

...through the GRAPEvine?

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

I ask this because if it is only the need for a browser that is keeping you on Windows (and I am not naive enough to think this is the only reason, I am sure there are others, but hear me out), then go ahead and switch now.

Pick a good distro (I personally use SuSE - currently on 6.3, but moving to 7.2 soon - Mandrake seems cool - but I haven't tried it) - or, choose a BSD or something. Install it, then set up Netscape 4.72.

This is anecdotal - but I have used 4.72 for a long while, and while it does have its faults - ie, it will crash, forcing you to do a "kill" to stop it - plus the annoying address book bug - it works pretty well. Mozilla is almost there - jump ship from Windows now, if you are that "tempted" - get familiar right now with everything. Once Mozilla is there (and I have to admit, it is so damn close - I am tempted to give it a shot as it is now), go for it.

Whatever else is holding you back, there are alternatives and replacements. Good luck!

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Check out the three and four "legged" robot section:

Biomemetic Walking Machines

The three legged robot uses simple solenoids to achieve directional and rotational control (talk about a cheap actuator), while the four legged "bug" uses a simple mechanical system and open loop design (ie, you could build one of these devices from Lego with zero sensors, and it would work) - makes me want to break out the Mindstorms set...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

No!

This has to be the one IJ adventure that was most like old-Hollywood serials from the 30's and 40's - it even had the "look" (albeit in color) and the "campiness" reminiscent of that time.

Of course, I also liked "The Mummy" (haven't seen "Returns" yet)...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Seeing as your "script" is not likely from a typical game, what you might see is:

>Look
You are in the living room of the house. To the east is a closed, locked door. Next to the door is a painting. To the north is a hallway leading to the kitchen. A mouse runs across the floor by your foot.
>Look floor
You watch the mouse. He scurries away into a hole in the baseboard next to the locked door.
>Look hole
You put your finger into the hole, and are bit by the mouse - OUCH!

At this point, one would realize "Maybe I can find some cheese" to lure the mouse out. Once you have baited the mouse (or, maybe you need the cheese, and a trap - which might be located in the shed outside! Hehe) from the hole, you can then reach in, feel for a key (or a button, or switch, or lever) to open the door (which of course leads to the basement).

A perfectly logical chain of events - one that might leave some scratching their heads (or banging them on the wall - you might even have the mouse run up a clock just for the hell of it!), but is perfectly obvious given some thought!

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Yes - many. My favorites being from Infocom and Scott Adams.

Infocom especially - I love the Zork series.

A well designed adventure is not only entertaining, but thorougly logical. If you got to such a point in an adventure, as you describe, then:

a) You missed the key somewhere, or maybe there is a different way to open the door (a lever in the basement, perhaps?) or,
b) (rarely happens) Something is wrong with the code, allowing you to get to a point without the key or whatever, and no way of going back.

I have played text adventures enough to know that when the answer appears, it is like "Duh!" - and a revelation occurs - causing me to descend deeper into the game. All adventure games should be mapped as they are explored (nothing beats making a map with pencil and paper, notes jotted down only to be smeared, etc) - sometimes you can study the map, and figure out where something may be, and why - and usually - it is there!

I enjoy adventure games because they give me situations to think in - they are more on the level of chess than other games. I think other games could come to this level, and some have, but they are rare - and for some reason, tend to bomb on the shelves...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

New and exciting games...

Ok, maybe what I have to say won't be new - but why isn't it exciting?

Have you noticed how many people read? I mean, bookstores aren't going down the tubes, most all of us read, many other individuals read - just the other day I went with my SO to a book signing for one of her favorite authors (Janet Evanovich) - it was a standing room only crowd - over 450 people showed up. This is a typical showing at her book signings, from what I understand.

I am sure for other "celebrity" authors, it is the same way - in short, a ton of people read.

So why is it text adventures are looked upon as "stale" gaming experiences?

I know all about the z-engine games that are made by adventure game designers and such - the contests, etc - that have a following. What I wonder is why there is not a clammoring from people worldwide to play these style games?

Is it too much to ask for to type commands - or to read? Have game players become too enamored with glitzy graphics? Is it too much to ask for them to actually think, and not just point and shoot?

Don't get me wrong - I like 3D games and shooters as much as anyone - in fact, there is a lot of promise in making very interactive and immersive style games with this format...

I just wonder why we don't see text adventure game authors (and I mean this in it's utmost sense - the authorship being paramount - the game should read like a book, like many of Infocom's games did) today?

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Get some low mass mirrors - go down to a craft store (like Craftmart), and purchase some small (1/2 inch) square or round mirrors.

Use epoxy or superglue, and glue them onto small speakers (buy some at rat shack, or pull some out of old radios). You will need two speaker/mirror combos.

Now, the hard part: arrange the speakers at orthogonal 45 degree angles, such that one speaker deflects the beam horizontally, and the second speaker deflects that beam vertically (note, you may need a bigger mirror on the second speaker, to make up for deflection).

A third speaker could be rigged to act as a "shutter" deflector, that would deflect the final beam into a "black box", or cut it off somehow.

Hook these speakers up to the stereo channels of your sound card, and have fun!

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

I read one of the comments about this being used for possible catching cheaters, by comparing faces to a database of known cheats...

One thing I have always wondered about, is the notion (reality?) of "card counters" - I mean, what exactly are they, and why are they bad?

From what I understand (and I am not a gambler - and I don't really like cards, outside of the mechanics of the games, etc - so I may be wrong) - is that a "card counter" is exactly that - someone who can keep track of, in their heads, of what cards may be "where" (ie, in what players) - and what the dealer may have left - through knowing what they have, as well as how many hands they have lost or won - etc. The idea of "shuffling" is to introduce some form of randomness to help alleviate (or eliminate) the ability to count cards...

If this is true (ie, if my "definition" of a card counter is correct), then I can see how it would skew the odds in their favor, and away from other players and the house. What I can't understand is why this is illegal - ie, why is it illegal to have the skill to remember cards and positions, etc - in order to make the odds more favorable - making such an ability illegal punishes those who have the brain "capacity" or "ability", and rewards (or at least protects) those with "lesser" (or nonexistant) skills in the area.

I can understand the bans against using computers to do the counting for you - what I wonder about is what happens when the time comes (if it comes), that humans are able to get "brain augmentation" devices - would these "trans-humans" be unable to gamble in casinos at that point? In other words, would they be banned? Probably...

Finally, if the cards can be actually counted, and the probability of the hands can be skewed or somewhat accurately determined by a machine or by a human card counter - are the games then not truely random? If that is so - then are the casinos really just protecting the possible fact that they may be found out as a fraudulant "business"?

Comments?

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Ok, so this is out of context...

correct me if I'm wrong

Gladly...

Regarding Babbage - first off, the concepts underlying the Difference Engine came to Babbage in 1812 (and, since Babbage was born in 1792 - that would make him 19 or 20 years old at the time!), as he was thinking on logarithms and the inacuracies that could occur during their calculation. He didn't follow up on his ideas until 1819, at which point he began building a small Difference Engine, finishing it in 1822. In 1823 he applied for and got a grant to build a larger engine (which was not completed). The Difference Engine, however, was more a calculator, and not a computer. The later Analytical Engine (began in 1833 - also not completed) was a true programmable device. More information can be found here and here...

Ada Lovelace, however - didn't invent the loom you refer to - that goes to Joseph Marie Jacquard, who invented the Jacquard Loom in 1802 - which utilised a series of punched cards to control warp threads on each pass of the weft thread. Ada obviously knew quite a bit about these looms (as did Babbage, who conceived of using punch cards for the control of Analytical Engine, presumably after seeing such a loom in action - indeed, the names he settled upon for what we today call the CPU (Mill) and memory (the Store), happen to be derived from terms used in the weaving industry at the time!), and so wrote in her Sketch of the Analytical Engine in 1842:

The distinctive characteristic of the Analytical Engine, and that which has rendered it possible to endow mechanism with such extensive faculties as bid fair to make this engine the executive right-hand of abstract algebra, is the introduction into it of the principle which Jacquard devised for regulating, by means of punched cards, the most complicated patterns in the fabrication of brocaded stuffs. It is in this that the distinction between the two engines lies. Nothing of the sort exists in the Difference Engine. We may say most aptly, that the Analytical Engine weaves algebraical patterns just as the Jacquard-loom weaves flowers and leaves.

Indeed - even she understood the value of the Analytical Engine over that of the Difference Engine - its programmability (weavability?)!

I could indeed go on - you neglect to mention Konrad Zuse, as well as the contribution of Atanasoff and Berry (the ABC) for the first electronic stored program computer.

But I will stop here...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

In this "robot".

In /. for posting this story.

Why?

This has to be the lamest robot "story" on the planet. Similar "security" robots have been built by companies and individuals for years. I remember several companies in the 80's doing this, when robots were the "thing" of the "future".

GPS? Why GPS? A white or black line (or even one done in a flourescent "invisible" paint or something) would be much cheaper for navigation. In a new building, a buried wire under the floor or carpet could be used. Coded tags at doors could further aid navigation (UPC or IR "active" tags).

Nomadic Technologies used to sell research robots with this kind of use in mind (sadly, I just found that they stopped production).

IRobot has a research robot that seems ideal for this as well.

Of course, nothing would beat Odetic's Odex-1 for the "scare" factor in security - too bad this 80's robot never went into production...

Now, homebrew bots - that is where the action is:

Karl Williams seems to have many projects of the type that would make interesting security platforms - or at least something to build off of (mount the vortex cannon or coil gun onto the home drone - yikes!).

This machine might even be better for security - simply because it could be smaller and faster for such a job.

The truth is that there are a lot of homebrew and commercial robots that can easily do what this robot does - probably at a fraction of the cost (actually, some of the commercial bots are quite expensive). There were many robots built in the 80's that were capable as well.

That is the article I want to see. Somehow I was hoping for a two legged chicken walker (not ED-209 sized, but something) patrolling the halls, maybe packing low powered pea shooters for "defense" (actually, one homebrewer managed to build such a robot with a "pea-shooter"-style, multi barrel "gun" - it couldn't hurt you, but it could knock over empty pop cans - I wish I had a link to it - probably do, but it is buried in my link list somewhere deep).

Oh well...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

And one I might be modded down for, if only for being "buzzword compliant":

Use a config file, of course - but use XML as the format for that config file.

The main reason is for human readability, as long as you make your node names, etc - sufficiently readable. Furthermore, you could include nodes that would allow for user defined settings (if that is the reason that environment variables were being used) - these nodes could specify where to look for the user's XML config file (say, in $HOME/appname/userconfig.xml) - which the user could edit easily - if the config file is absent (or the path doesn't exist, etc) - the parser could supply default values (perhaps picked out from the main config file - which the user couldn't edit).

Using XML might make things more difficult (especially if you have to write your own parser) - but if you are writing from the ground up anyhow, you might as well set up to use XML, because your app will probably need it (intercommunication between different app sections - especially if you are black boxing everything to make parts very reusable. Also if you are using an XML format that is well defined, you can easily create back ends for any data sharing for third party apps that might be needed).

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Perhaps - a lot of my news does come from /. - a bit from k5 (which I didn't read anything about this on, either). Sometimes I read "norm" sites (cnn, msnbc, etc), though not that often. Sometimes I even get the paper.

I wonder why we are only really hearing about it now - instead of back since 1999? Why didn't they send out these privacy statements every month for a year? Why wasn't there a big cry about it? Why are people so damn apathetic.

I should have read at least one of the statements - true. I kept them all - thinking maybe I had at least a few months - and not just two weeks - to act. I have a busy life - and mailing letters just isn't a big part, unless I am really fired up about things.

After I made this post, I called the various institutions, and talked to them about it, and opted out at all of them. I had opted out at equifax about a week ago.

Finally, I object to your name calling: I am not ignorant (though I plead the 5th on the lazy portion - let's just say I take my time) - I recognized that when I got the statement, I needed to do it, which is why I kept all of them. I guess the laziness portion got the better of me - but in the end, as I noted, I did it - under the deadline as well.

And for the record, I do write my congressman (ok, maybe I email them) when I see fit to do so (and before you moan about a letter being better than an email, which I concede at this point most likely is true - it is only because our congresscritters are so ass-backward when it comes to tech that it is like this - information, ideas, and opinions are worthy regardless of the medium of expression - I wish they could get that through their skulls - some have, most haven't)...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Re: The July Deadline

Is this the deadline for them to contact you (I later called all the financial institutions about opting out soon after I posted, and some iterated the same thing), or is it the deadline by which they have to contact you and for you to opt out of old and new information from being shared - that is, if you opt out after the first, old info is fair game...?

I don't blame you for not doing or posting anything - most likely there wasn't a forum, or if you did write an article, it probably wouldn't be posted.

What I do wonder is given the number of people at where you work that opted out, and that a likely amount did the same at other similar employers - why didn't this message get out in a huge way to everyone and thier mother - it is frustrating to see, feel, and wonder about the apathy in American society today...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Whip out your wallet or purse, pull out any credit cards, bank cards, credit union cards, etc - and look on the back - most (if not all) will have a phone number for customer service - call it!

I just did this - it took a little time, but most of the time I didn't wait more than 5 minutes. I also called the institutions I worked with for auto loans, even the one I had paid off a couple of years back.

Suprising thing I learned while on the phone? Most of the customer service people didn't even know what I was talking about until I explained it - then they understood what I wanted - many reffered to it as another thing, or had a message stating their policy "to not share information" but that "policy could change at any time" - with these, I explicitly got a representative on the line and told them I wanted it noted in my account that I was "opting out" - and waited on the line until they did it. Out of all the institutions I called, only one knew what I wanted instantly (Retailers National Bank - Target and Mervyns cards). Even my bank was coy about it!

Many kept telling me "oh, we never share private info, blah, blah" - but I told them I wanted it noted in my account.

I also asked them, as consumers, if they had opted out as well (education, you see) - most didn't, wondering why it was a bad thing...

For the auto loans, I looked up the numbers on the web to call. I am not sure if they take these calls seriously, but it would be impossible to get letters out to all of these companies in under the deadline of July 1st (short of FedEx'ing overnight the letters, and even then, I think it is too late) - I might still send out the Nader letter - I like it!

Anyhow, that is what I did - I had or could get the phone numbers easily, and it took only a little time. I think it is near-criminal that we have to opt-out, when it should be an opt-in only, instead.

I hate what America has become - I HATE IT!

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

Today's computers are already silent! I remember my first job, they didn't have a place to put me, so I got stuck in the computer room. Taught me how to deal with real noise:

Two Genicom printers - a 4440 line printer and a 3820 open carriage (those were fun when others were running reports)
A large RS6000 box
An old Prime Minicomputer with open reel 9-track vacuum tape-drive, and power supply with large loud fans

Later, they gave me an office, but stuck the 4440 in there with me...

Everything else was silent - we used Wyse terminals for everything...

Today's machines can't be compared - in fact, I miss the drone of that power supply...


Worldcom - Generation Duh!

I am curious about something...

You knew about this several months ago. And I presume, opted out with the rest of your collegues.

Most people have learned about it today (surprise, surprise), when they can do little about it.

I started getting those "privacy opt-out" letters a couple of weeks ago - figuring I would get around to them when I had to the time to really do it. At the time I was getting them, I wondered "Why now?" - wondering what law got passed that was making them send them out, and why I didn't hear anything about it on Slashdot...?

The thing that disturbs me is that this law actually got passed years ago, and only now - when it is really too late to do anything (and today was the first I heard about that you had to opt-out before July 1st! I would gladly call everywhere I could - I have notified Equifax, though - if I had the stuff in front of me!). Why didn't we know about this long ago?

Why didn't you write up an article about what your company was doing, and the effects - and get the word out?

Why has it taken this long?

I don't mean to rant at you - this is just VERY frustrating...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

You know...

All they should have to do is mount the panel, laid back at a 30-45 degree angle (may be more or less depending on lattitude of the landing site), onto a servo motor of some sort, so that the panel can rotate around a vertical axis (like a turntable). Then instead of a light sensor, use the panel itself! The voltage will vary according to the amount of light falling on the panel. Rotate the servo until the panel registers the highest voltage - run it from stop-to-stop, 270-360 degrees (ie, you need a servo with built-in stops, so that the wiring harness doesn't get tangled/twisted - and I wouldn't use some kind of commutator system on such a critical item for an interplanetary mission). Heck, if you wanted to be real cheap, just mount the panel, and drive the robot until it is angled properly (one less moving part to break). At any rate, you would rotate it until you found the maximum light value, set it at that, determine your heading, then you would know which direction to rotate the servo as the voltage drops.

Also, even if it is a reflection or artificial light (and if it is the latter on the surface of Mars, you may have bigger problems!), as long as it is giving enough voltage - it don't matter...!

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

First off, a link:

Geopolymers

Also, look into "agglomerated stone"...

The man who (re?)discovered this technique, was one Prof. Joseph Davidovits.

Here is his book (unfortunately, it is out of print. I found my copy only a couple of years ago in the discount section of a local Bookstar, so you might check), which is available in PDF format (for the price of 9 euros, which is reasonable):

The Pyramids: An Enigma Solved

The first chapter is available for free online as well - so check that out...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!

This is talked about in the book, IIRC. I don't remember off hand what the reasoning was, but I do remember it being sound and well thought out. I will have to find the book tonight, post the details, and let you know what the reasoning behind the found quarries are...

One thing the story about the kites got right is that all attempts to build pyramids and other structures based on the currently accepted theories have tended to fail. Plus, these theories don't explain how it was possible for other societies to build extreme megalithic structures (start looking into it - you will find one account of a solid stone "foundation" stone - of several hundred tons, sitting up on the side of a mountain!)...

Here is a link - look into geopolymers and "agglomerated stone"...

OH! OH!

Here is the book - available in electronic format, out of print now (I found mine only a couple of years ago in the discount section of a local Bookstar, so you might check), but cheap: The Pyramids: An Enigma Solved - plus, the first chapter is online, as well...

Want some more fun? Look into the history and stories behind the Coral Castle - a fascinating site in Florida, that is stranger than fiction, if only because it involves megalithic proportion construction on a massive scale, built by a single man, who not only was in poor health and only weighed 100 pounds, but who also had only a fourth-grade education!!! The site was started in 1920, and completed in 1940. Yet no one knows how he did it...

This is a site I plan to visit later this year (along with Gibtown)...

Worldcom - Generation Duh!