Unfortunately when vendors finally figure out that they made hardware a little too reliable, they'll start making hardware about as shitty as your average smartphone.
Of course, they'll depreciate software support as well. If the kids can't download the latest PC emojis to complete their life, they'll be forced to upgrade. It would be downright offensive if you had to send someone a smiley face that was the wrong skin tone...
Since I have had to type, over the decades my handwriting had become horrible. Compare it from when I was a child, and it's completely different.
The same with my signature. Touch screen, Pffft! Hasn't been around that long.
Uh, have you seen the handwriting skills of anyone armed with a PhD? The Dr. Chicken Scratch joke has been around for a lot longer than even keyboards. And no matter how much or little I put pencil to paper, it doesn't change my guitar playing. I think you may be reaching a bit here. One type of activity requiring manual dexterity is not synonymous with all others.
Alas, as long as people cater to quaint historical customs like making books out of paper, not much will change in the big picture....
You would prefer that all books be virtual, which will mean they will likely be served up by a handful of vendors in the proverbial "cloud". Unfortunately, much like many Netflix fans can attest, content can be added and erased on a whim, based on popularity. And that's before we even start addressing the other obvious issues attacking free speech.
Sorry, but I prefer a hell of a lot more effort in between free speech and censorship. The one good thing about book burnings is it takes real effort to police and eradicate every printed copy. In fact, one can easily call that task impossible. That won't be the case in your future. It will only take a few clicks from those In Control to exert censorship or eradicate history when it's all virtual.
TL; DR - We have those "quaint historical customs" to thank for pretty much all of recorded history, to include history some would prefer to censor or eradicate altogether. eBooks are different. Be careful what you ask for. You just might get it.
The porn-watcher might have been the patient-zero of this outbreak, but I think as much if not more blame needs be laid at the feet of the IT staff that allowed the malware to get as far as it did. Limit user privileges, lock down access ports and use secure operating systems and the damage would not have been as severe; it might only have been limited to that single user's machine.
But that sort of thinking would require a costly revamping of the entire computer infrastructure, so better to put the blame on a single user, who could just as easily have gotten the malware from an ad on a perfectly legitimate site. Fortunately, he was viewing porn (naked bodies entwined together! The most evil threat America has ever faced!) so it's easy to throw him to the wolves.
The porn-watcher might have been the patient-zero of this outbreak, but I think as much if not more blame needs be laid at the feet of the IT staff that allowed the malware to get as far as it did. Limit user privileges, lock down access ports and use secure operating systems and the damage would not have been as severe; it might only have been limited to that single user's machine.
I do agree with you regarding the IT policies that are severely lacking, but I'll believe there was an actual "outbreak" when the evidence presents itself. Neither TFS or TFA really says anything about the extent of this "outbreak" or the true damage that was caused, which tends to turn this entire article into nothing more than sensationalist bullshit. In fact, if you read the actual report, it states quite clearly that a single computer was found to have malware present, and it "exploited the USGS' network." with zero additional detail.
But that sort of thinking would require a costly revamping of the entire computer infrastructure, so better to put the blame on a single user, who could just as easily have gotten the malware from an ad on a perfectly legitimate site. Fortunately, he was viewing porn (naked bodies entwined together! The most evil threat America has ever faced!) so it's easy to throw him to the wolves.
Speaking of sensationalism, let's put aside the Americanized moral arguments here. Porn in the workplace is unprofessional at best and offensive and damaging at worst. That's common sense, and regardless of country. And there's more that just a good chance this infection was caused by that activity given the sheer volume of that activity, so it's hardly innocent activity no matter your moral stance or acceptance of pornography.
"The phone...will sell for a price above $500 but packs features that are typically present only in pricier handsets."
At first I thought to myself, "Are they insane? $500 isn't some bargain."
Then I went and looked at the MSRPs of smartphones, and was quickly reminded why it makes little sense to play that game. Blows me away what smartphone junkies will spend on hardware these days.
Yeah, we really need a new technology company to shake things up. The Apple/Amazon/Google/Facebook/Microsoft tech Oligopoly all seem to be in a race to copy each other's small product improvements, but none of them are really trying to do something genuinely innovative at the moment.
You seemed to have overlooked the fact that these same mega-corps also like to play another capitalistic game called Fill The Patent War Chest.
You want new technology? You want innovation? Then fight for patent reform, because that's about the only way you're going to get any new technology that doesn't ultimately end up stifled or mired in legal battles.
"...data harvesting and sharing by mobile apps was now 'out of control'..."
No, apps are not "out of control". A society that gladly accepts this shit is the one out of control. Ignorance has practically begged for the destruction of privacy.
To the society that has welcomed an Orwellian future, don't bother asking what year it is anymore. It's 1984. It's always going to be 1984, because that's what you want.
"...Even though the study found that the average adult consumes approximately 2,000 microplastics per year through salt, it's not clear what the health consequences are."
Nor will it ever be made clear. US Capitalism will ensure profit is always prioritized over health, particularly when sickness and disease generates trillions for the Medical Industrial Complex. Deaths also help cull the population. Double bonus!
Ironically, hospitals are also a rather massive contributor to this pollution problem too.
Uhhh, are you sure that maybe people just like beer? Even people in politics? Maybe population control is just a "happy side-effect" that they let slide? Of course there's the other side of the coin that means that's one less person paying taxes....uh oh, your theory just sprung a leak.
There is no leak here. Only a endless stream of profits being enjoyed by the Medical Industrial Complex treating tobacco addicts and the "disease" of alcoholism. Taxes are chicken shit compared to draining entire nest eggs, which happens quite often as alcohol and tobacco addicts are forced to pay for treatments that might delay their demise.
Every side effect of legal-but-deadly products has been carefully thought out. It is sometimes beneficial to both treat and kill humans by keeping certain products legal. If the benefits were simply not there, the product would be illegal. Plain and simple. Cannabis being classified as a Schedule I drug is a perfect example of this. Obviously a war on drugs that includes marijuana creates far more of a benefit than legalization does. At least for those who profit the most from it.
"US Voter Records From 19 States Is Being Sold on a Hacking Forum...It is worth noting that some states consider this data public and offer it for download for free, but not all states have this policy."
Why am I willing to bet that 19 states do have this policy, turning this "hacking" story into nothing more than clickbait?
We used to get pissed when "hacking" was mislabeled or misunderstood. Now we're just pissed that no one has a fucking clue what a hack is anymore because everyone is labeling every stupid little thing as hacking. Found a shortcut to work? You "hacked" your commute. Used a microwave instead of the stove? You "hacked" your dinner prep. Downloaded free public information? You "hacked" the voting public.
Why do we cater to drug addicts like this? Alcohol is a frightful and messy drug, more destructive than any other known.
We should be very lucky if global climate change makes alcohol harder to produce.
Did it ever occur to you that one of the main reasons products like alcohol and tobacco are legal is because of their destructive nature?
Yes, these products are responsible for millions of deaths every year, which is a net positive for resource management, which every government on the planet is responsible for. Population control is a necessary evil. Our legal-yet-deadly products validate this fact every single day.
Not to mention the trillions in revenue enjoyed by the Medical Industrial Complex treating related afflictions. I'm certain ruthless capitalism is another priority for our government too. Go figure.
Do you know people who have been forced to buy craft beer?
Forced is perhaps too strong a term. Coerced is more accurate when describing those who are suckered into going to the latest hipster brew pub by a craft beer fanacoholic who's convinced that one sip of a smoked vanilla-bacon-habanero-fuckleberry porter is all it takes to justify a $10/bottle price tag.
I mean beyond shits and giggles, is there anything out there that could use 128GB of RAM and even get close to that number.
Or anything in the near future. Next 5-10 years.
Chrome doesn't count. That will eat up all the RAM anyways.
Less than 20 years ago 32 megabytes of memory was the norm under Windows NT Workstation. Not sure why you fail to see another exponential increase in memory demand, particularly for power users. Also, ever heard of VMs before? It's this "new" thing we've been playing with for about two decades now...
A 3-17% yield decrease leads to a 80-350% increase in price? Call me skeptical, but this seems a bit out of band.
Your calculator must be broken. Math comes out exactly what I would expect Greed N. Corruption to deliver on mine.
Remember to factor for demand-driven capitalism that already defines $20 for a six-pack as cheap. Whoever labeled that as a price hike hasn't been forced to buy a "craft" beer lately.
A CEO can afford a second iphone as a burner phone.
Suggesting that a CEO travel with a burner iPhone tends to invalidate your first rule; "Don't travel with hardware you need to trust."
I'm pretty damn sure every CEO needs to be able to trust their smartphone device, particularly as you also suggest to "cross border, restore", implying all of that highly sensitive and private information will be re-loaded back onto an device. Why would anyone perform such an action on a device you should not trust?
While I do understand your intent here from a tin-foil hat viewpoint, your suggestions tend to conflict here a bit.
Cost becomes irrelevant in the face of shit functionality.
Your CEO will make that clear in about 3 milliseconds when you tell him you want to swap out his iPhone for a flip phone for his next trip, because "security"...
If you don't think EVERY SINGLE company is doing exactly the same thing, you're pretty delusional.
I mean, Shazam's entire business model was to snoop on what people were listening to, and now another company has it.
Also, are you guys seriously getting worked up about having two games preinstalled? Why didn't you complain about Minesweeper and Solitaire that have been included in Windows since 3.1?
Minesweeper doesn't download a bloatware update every other month. Or run a background update service. Or update and reboot your system without asking you. Or require you to create an account online, and log in to the Minesweeper servers to obtain a license. Or attempt to re-install itself without asking.
All of this other stupid shit does. BIG difference when it comes to just about everything that matters in a corporate environment. On top of all of that, when I configure the OS to uninstall (or not install) Minesweeper, it fucking does it. That is NOT how this shitware is acting.
TL; DR - If Minesweeper was pulling this same crap with updates and re-installs, it would be on the shitware list too. It's as benign as a pet rock by comparison.
I can't imagine why anyone would ever wany enything custom ever. We should just consume poducts.
I'm not speaking against the concept of customization or the freedom to do so, but it doesn't really make any sense here.
In this case, a "custom" solution requires thousands of dollars of equipment to take a "one-dollar" chip and attach it properly to a board to do something with it. Custom PCB shops do exist, so it would be far cheaper to engage with one of them if you truly want or need a custom build.
And the market has countless options out there for a DIY Linux box (beaglebone, Pi, etc.) and has for years, so DIY fans aren't exactly short on options. In short, this story is a non-story to anyone but a fabrication house already set up to do something with this hardware, which tends to make the whole "$1 hand-solderable processor" claim little more than cheesy click-bait.
"Currently, there aren't really any good solutions for a cheap Linux system you can build at home, with hand-solderable chips."
Gee, I can't imagine why...I mean, in a world of $1500 iPhones, who the hell can afford a $35 Raspberry Pi, amirite?
Guess it's best to go cheap(er), and re-invent the wheel. Or at least make a half-assed version of a wheel and pretend that there are millions of Linux DIY fans who just can't wait to hand-solder their computers together (as if "hand-solderable" here implies $50 worth of cheap tools)...
Good luck with whatever input your iOverlords deem worthy for the collective. I'm certain it will be stupidly complex, obscenely priced, and will become obsolete fast enough for you to always label it a rip-off.
That's really funny.
iOS is compatible with iPhones from the 5s and forward, and iPads from the iPad mini 2.
Let's see: That's from 2013 for the 5s and the iPad mini 2. A cool FIVE YEARS of FULL SUPPORT, and Counting...
After a few people try and make room for the 1GB+ worth of space iOS 12 requires to upgrade their five-year old device, they will likely learn the valuable life lesson understanding the difference between compatible and functional.
And five years of support on a device with a non-removable battery is like putting a 10-year warranty on car tires. It's a nice gesture, but ultimately rather worthless in the end. That said, it is better than ending support prematurely.
...The Android market which is a big competitor is still flourishing and growing along with Apple. While strong competitors, they are not trying to underhand each other like Microsoft did, but more playing to each products strengths and pointing out the others weaknesses.
So, all those multi-million dollar lawsuits going back and forth between Apple and Samsung over the years...those are just moves to play to each others legal "strengths", and has nothing to do with trying to underhand each other.
Slashdot Mirror
Unfortunately when vendors finally figure out that they made hardware a little too reliable, they'll start making hardware about as shitty as your average smartphone.
Of course, they'll depreciate software support as well. If the kids can't download the latest PC emojis to complete their life, they'll be forced to upgrade. It would be downright offensive if you had to send someone a smiley face that was the wrong skin tone...
Napoleon Dynamite for this discovery. Turns out feeding Tina all that ham was actually a scientific study...
Since I have had to type, over the decades my handwriting had become horrible. Compare it from when I was a child, and it's completely different.
The same with my signature. Touch screen, Pffft! Hasn't been around that long.
Uh, have you seen the handwriting skills of anyone armed with a PhD? The Dr. Chicken Scratch joke has been around for a lot longer than even keyboards. And no matter how much or little I put pencil to paper, it doesn't change my guitar playing. I think you may be reaching a bit here. One type of activity requiring manual dexterity is not synonymous with all others.
Alas, as long as people cater to quaint historical customs like making books out of paper, not much will change in the big picture....
You would prefer that all books be virtual, which will mean they will likely be served up by a handful of vendors in the proverbial "cloud". Unfortunately, much like many Netflix fans can attest, content can be added and erased on a whim, based on popularity. And that's before we even start addressing the other obvious issues attacking free speech.
Sorry, but I prefer a hell of a lot more effort in between free speech and censorship. The one good thing about book burnings is it takes real effort to police and eradicate every printed copy. In fact, one can easily call that task impossible. That won't be the case in your future. It will only take a few clicks from those In Control to exert censorship or eradicate history when it's all virtual.
TL; DR - We have those "quaint historical customs" to thank for pretty much all of recorded history, to include history some would prefer to censor or eradicate altogether. eBooks are different. Be careful what you ask for. You just might get it.
The porn-watcher might have been the patient-zero of this outbreak, but I think as much if not more blame needs be laid at the feet of the IT staff that allowed the malware to get as far as it did. Limit user privileges, lock down access ports and use secure operating systems and the damage would not have been as severe; it might only have been limited to that single user's machine.
But that sort of thinking would require a costly revamping of the entire computer infrastructure, so better to put the blame on a single user, who could just as easily have gotten the malware from an ad on a perfectly legitimate site. Fortunately, he was viewing porn (naked bodies entwined together! The most evil threat America has ever faced!) so it's easy to throw him to the wolves.
The porn-watcher might have been the patient-zero of this outbreak, but I think as much if not more blame needs be laid at the feet of the IT staff that allowed the malware to get as far as it did. Limit user privileges, lock down access ports and use secure operating systems and the damage would not have been as severe; it might only have been limited to that single user's machine.
I do agree with you regarding the IT policies that are severely lacking, but I'll believe there was an actual "outbreak" when the evidence presents itself. Neither TFS or TFA really says anything about the extent of this "outbreak" or the true damage that was caused, which tends to turn this entire article into nothing more than sensationalist bullshit. In fact, if you read the actual report, it states quite clearly that a single computer was found to have malware present, and it "exploited the USGS' network." with zero additional detail.
But that sort of thinking would require a costly revamping of the entire computer infrastructure, so better to put the blame on a single user, who could just as easily have gotten the malware from an ad on a perfectly legitimate site. Fortunately, he was viewing porn (naked bodies entwined together! The most evil threat America has ever faced!) so it's easy to throw him to the wolves.
Speaking of sensationalism, let's put aside the Americanized moral arguments here. Porn in the workplace is unprofessional at best and offensive and damaging at worst. That's common sense, and regardless of country. And there's more that just a good chance this infection was caused by that activity given the sheer volume of that activity, so it's hardly innocent activity no matter your moral stance or acceptance of pornography.
"The phone...will sell for a price above $500 but packs features that are typically present only in pricier handsets."
At first I thought to myself, "Are they insane? $500 isn't some bargain."
Then I went and looked at the MSRPs of smartphones, and was quickly reminded why it makes little sense to play that game. Blows me away what smartphone junkies will spend on hardware these days.
Yeah, we really need a new technology company to shake things up. The Apple/Amazon/Google/Facebook/Microsoft tech Oligopoly all seem to be in a race to copy each other's small product improvements, but none of them are really trying to do something genuinely innovative at the moment.
You seemed to have overlooked the fact that these same mega-corps also like to play another capitalistic game called Fill The Patent War Chest.
You want new technology? You want innovation? Then fight for patent reform, because that's about the only way you're going to get any new technology that doesn't ultimately end up stifled or mired in legal battles.
"...data harvesting and sharing by mobile apps was now 'out of control'..."
No, apps are not "out of control". A society that gladly accepts this shit is the one out of control. Ignorance has practically begged for the destruction of privacy.
To the society that has welcomed an Orwellian future, don't bother asking what year it is anymore. It's 1984. It's always going to be 1984, because that's what you want.
"...Even though the study found that the average adult consumes approximately 2,000 microplastics per year through salt, it's not clear what the health consequences are."
Nor will it ever be made clear. US Capitalism will ensure profit is always prioritized over health, particularly when sickness and disease generates trillions for the Medical Industrial Complex. Deaths also help cull the population. Double bonus!
Ironically, hospitals are also a rather massive contributor to this pollution problem too.
Uhhh, are you sure that maybe people just like beer? Even people in politics? Maybe population control is just a "happy side-effect" that they let slide? Of course there's the other side of the coin that means that's one less person paying taxes....uh oh, your theory just sprung a leak.
There is no leak here. Only a endless stream of profits being enjoyed by the Medical Industrial Complex treating tobacco addicts and the "disease" of alcoholism. Taxes are chicken shit compared to draining entire nest eggs, which happens quite often as alcohol and tobacco addicts are forced to pay for treatments that might delay their demise.
Every side effect of legal-but-deadly products has been carefully thought out. It is sometimes beneficial to both treat and kill humans by keeping certain products legal. If the benefits were simply not there, the product would be illegal. Plain and simple. Cannabis being classified as a Schedule I drug is a perfect example of this. Obviously a war on drugs that includes marijuana creates far more of a benefit than legalization does. At least for those who profit the most from it.
"US Voter Records From 19 States Is Being Sold on a Hacking Forum...It is worth noting that some states consider this data public and offer it for download for free, but not all states have this policy."
Why am I willing to bet that 19 states do have this policy, turning this "hacking" story into nothing more than clickbait?
We used to get pissed when "hacking" was mislabeled or misunderstood. Now we're just pissed that no one has a fucking clue what a hack is anymore because everyone is labeling every stupid little thing as hacking. Found a shortcut to work? You "hacked" your commute. Used a microwave instead of the stove? You "hacked" your dinner prep. Downloaded free public information? You "hacked" the voting public.
Enough of the "hacking" shit already.
Why do we cater to drug addicts like this? Alcohol is a frightful and messy drug, more destructive than any other known.
We should be very lucky if global climate change makes alcohol harder to produce.
Did it ever occur to you that one of the main reasons products like alcohol and tobacco are legal is because of their destructive nature?
Yes, these products are responsible for millions of deaths every year, which is a net positive for resource management, which every government on the planet is responsible for. Population control is a necessary evil. Our legal-yet-deadly products validate this fact every single day.
Not to mention the trillions in revenue enjoyed by the Medical Industrial Complex treating related afflictions. I'm certain ruthless capitalism is another priority for our government too. Go figure.
Yeah, no shit... not to mention, alcohol has driven a lot more people apart than it has brought together.
While I do not dismiss your fact, you obviously haven't thought this through.
If you think a world full of drunks is hard to deal with, imagine a world full of sober people.
Do you know people who have been forced to buy craft beer?
Forced is perhaps too strong a term. Coerced is more accurate when describing those who are suckered into going to the latest hipster brew pub by a craft beer fanacoholic who's convinced that one sip of a smoked vanilla-bacon-habanero-fuckleberry porter is all it takes to justify a $10/bottle price tag.
I mean beyond shits and giggles, is there anything out there that could use 128GB of RAM and even get close to that number. Or anything in the near future. Next 5-10 years. Chrome doesn't count. That will eat up all the RAM anyways.
Less than 20 years ago 32 megabytes of memory was the norm under Windows NT Workstation. Not sure why you fail to see another exponential increase in memory demand, particularly for power users. Also, ever heard of VMs before? It's this "new" thing we've been playing with for about two decades now...
A 3-17% yield decrease leads to a 80-350% increase in price? Call me skeptical, but this seems a bit out of band.
Your calculator must be broken. Math comes out exactly what I would expect Greed N. Corruption to deliver on mine.
Remember to factor for demand-driven capitalism that already defines $20 for a six-pack as cheap. Whoever labeled that as a price hike hasn't been forced to buy a "craft" beer lately.
A CEO can afford a second iphone as a burner phone.
Suggesting that a CEO travel with a burner iPhone tends to invalidate your first rule; "Don't travel with hardware you need to trust."
I'm pretty damn sure every CEO needs to be able to trust their smartphone device, particularly as you also suggest to "cross border, restore", implying all of that highly sensitive and private information will be re-loaded back onto an device. Why would anyone perform such an action on a device you should not trust?
While I do understand your intent here from a tin-foil hat viewpoint, your suggestions tend to conflict here a bit.
"Everyone is just hoping this whole idea would just die," a Saudi energy official familiar with the matter was quoted as saying.
Was it the oil sheikhs ritual of bathing in bathtubs full of crude oil that gave this idea a hint of doubt? Just curious.
Burner phones are cheap.
Cost becomes irrelevant in the face of shit functionality.
Your CEO will make that clear in about 3 milliseconds when you tell him you want to swap out his iPhone for a flip phone for his next trip, because "security"...
If you don't think EVERY SINGLE company is doing exactly the same thing, you're pretty delusional.
I mean, Shazam's entire business model was to snoop on what people were listening to, and now another company has it.
Also, are you guys seriously getting worked up about having two games preinstalled? Why didn't you complain about Minesweeper and Solitaire that have been included in Windows since 3.1?
Minesweeper doesn't download a bloatware update every other month. Or run a background update service. Or update and reboot your system without asking you. Or require you to create an account online, and log in to the Minesweeper servers to obtain a license. Or attempt to re-install itself without asking.
All of this other stupid shit does. BIG difference when it comes to just about everything that matters in a corporate environment. On top of all of that, when I configure the OS to uninstall (or not install) Minesweeper, it fucking does it. That is NOT how this shitware is acting.
TL; DR - If Minesweeper was pulling this same crap with updates and re-installs, it would be on the shitware list too. It's as benign as a pet rock by comparison.
Dear Microsoft User,
Understand one thing.
You are the consumer, NOT the customer.
In short, Fuck You Very Much, and Have a Nice Day.
- Microsoft
Uh, Why?
I can't imagine why anyone would ever wany enything custom ever. We should just consume poducts.
I'm not speaking against the concept of customization or the freedom to do so, but it doesn't really make any sense here.
In this case, a "custom" solution requires thousands of dollars of equipment to take a "one-dollar" chip and attach it properly to a board to do something with it. Custom PCB shops do exist, so it would be far cheaper to engage with one of them if you truly want or need a custom build.
And the market has countless options out there for a DIY Linux box (beaglebone, Pi, etc.) and has for years, so DIY fans aren't exactly short on options. In short, this story is a non-story to anyone but a fabrication house already set up to do something with this hardware, which tends to make the whole "$1 hand-solderable processor" claim little more than cheesy click-bait.
"Currently, there aren't really any good solutions for a cheap Linux system you can build at home, with hand-solderable chips."
Gee, I can't imagine why...I mean, in a world of $1500 iPhones, who the hell can afford a $35 Raspberry Pi, amirite?
Guess it's best to go cheap(er), and re-invent the wheel. Or at least make a half-assed version of a wheel and pretend that there are millions of Linux DIY fans who just can't wait to hand-solder their computers together (as if "hand-solderable" here implies $50 worth of cheap tools)...
Good luck with whatever input your iOverlords deem worthy for the collective. I'm certain it will be stupidly complex, obscenely priced, and will become obsolete fast enough for you to always label it a rip-off.
That's really funny.
iOS is compatible with iPhones from the 5s and forward, and iPads from the iPad mini 2.
http://osxdaily.com/2018/06/05...
Let's see: That's from 2013 for the 5s and the iPad mini 2. A cool FIVE YEARS of FULL SUPPORT, and Counting...
After a few people try and make room for the 1GB+ worth of space iOS 12 requires to upgrade their five-year old device, they will likely learn the valuable life lesson understanding the difference between compatible and functional.
And five years of support on a device with a non-removable battery is like putting a 10-year warranty on car tires. It's a nice gesture, but ultimately rather worthless in the end. That said, it is better than ending support prematurely.
...The Android market which is a big competitor is still flourishing and growing along with Apple. While strong competitors, they are not trying to underhand each other like Microsoft did, but more playing to each products strengths and pointing out the others weaknesses.
So, all those multi-million dollar lawsuits going back and forth between Apple and Samsung over the years...those are just moves to play to each others legal "strengths", and has nothing to do with trying to underhand each other.
Riiiight...