"In the future, there will certainly also be technological workarounds to fool such scanners. It would be a difficult problem, but not unsolvable--scan the person's eye (or steal a previous scan) and replicate it. "
Well, that's actually been done in the movies (probably more than once). Check out one of Sean Connery's Bond movies, back in the 60s. I forget which one, but it's the one where an air force pilot is hypnotized (or something) and gets under the spell of sceptre. At the same time, sceptre makes a copy of the president's iris implant and alters the air force pilot's iris to match the presidents (i dont have a clue how).
Eventually, of course, it all gets figured out and stopped and everything by Bond, but everyone here who thinks they're the first to think about copying someone's iris is waaay! behind. It might be From Russia With Love, but I'm not positive at all..
If that's your definition of a friendly defacer, than there are very few graffiti artists who *aren't* friendly. Check attrition's mirrors, almost all of the defacements have, somewhere in the source or text, mention of 'mv index1.html index.html' or something akin...
So yes, it was a funny crack, and yes, they were kind enough to be like most of the other defacers and create a backup of the index... and yes, at least it was a relevant defacement.
I think we're all missing the real problem with the story:
Intel is releasing the p3/600 at a lower price than AMDs Athlon/600. But the athlon is a 7th generation chip, while the p3 is a lowly 6th generation. We're comparing apples to oranges, and giving Intel more credit than they deserve. Now, if AMD were selling a k6-3/600 for more than an intel p3/600 this would be news, but otherwise I can only say that this is to be expected!
-ehfisher
Re:Offtopic Article - Not really
on
Penguin Pets
·
· Score: 1
Nah, it doesn't say that... you can't have penguins as pets because, #1, it's illegal everywhere in the US i believe, #2, this just says that they get *less* frightened when people are around.. they're still doing 40 head checks a minute (which is pretty fast...), so they're quite worried about predators when people are there. They may adapt quickly to having people in their habitat, but I doubt they adapt quickly to being in the habitat of people.
It is an offtopic comment to a neato article, though.. and grats on getting it posted.
Isn't Bill Gates' personal worth about to equal the GDP for France? I seem to remember something like that... so, for at least a year, Billy could own France, I suppose.
Well, I'm 6'3" with large hands and I have no troubles typing 60wpm+ on my gotype keyboard... (true, that's a 33% cut from my normal typing speed)
Sure, it might not be for everyone, but it IS possible to achieve relatively speedy input on a gotype, and so, if you can, do try it. It's worth the money for most.
I'm a palm V user, and the son of a Palm Pilot Professional user. My palm V is quite new, only a week old or so, and so I haven't had time to get incredibly productive with it. Still, it has already reminded me to do a few things (I love the todo list!).
My mother is lost without hers. It keeps all her appointments, her rolodex, and her todo list. If she forgets it at home she's likely to miss a meeting or two, and spend lots of extra time trying to remember or look up a phone number or address. Also, when she needs a break, she plays WordBox (boggle) for a few minutes.
For me it will probably be a very even combination. As soon as the palm V gotype! keyboard comes out, I'm purchasing one. My handwriting is terrible (as is my mothers, which is why she often can't read appointments she wrote on paper an hour or two later), and I am notorious for not taking notes because of it. (I always lose the notes, get frustrated at how disorganized they are, and often can't read what I wrote).
So in classes next fall it won't be a rare occurrence to see ol' gleam typing away taking notes on his palm V, and maybe playing a game or two during a study break.
Also, the huge number of applications available for the palm make it much easier to get more work done. Actioneer is wonderful for things like a conference call, where you enter the conference call and it adds it to the todo list and links it to the address book so you know the numbers of who you're about to call. (someone correct me if i'm wrong about this).
Indeed, the pda is the ideal tool for those of us who have bad handwriting and are very disorganized... it gets us in line, and it makes notes useful again!
Well, CmdrTaco is #1, Hemos is #2, and off the top of my head I can't recall who #3 and #4 are. Basically all I did to check was search for a user with searchstring='a' and 'e' which showed taco (#1) and hemos(2) and also #s 3 and 4. You can do it yourself if you feel like waiting for the page to load... otherwise I don't know. (I tried searching for (1) or (2) and that didn't work). Most impressively, it took about a minute or so to load IIRC on my cable modem.
This actually brings up another interesting subject: cordless phone monitoring. I was about 50 feet out of the range of my dinky cordless phone's receiver, standing in front of a friend's house with the phone, and all of a sudden I heard a hispanic woman talking to a saleswoman on the other side.
I was curious, sure, so I kept listening. I actually heard her entire credit card number and expy date...whoa! I'm sure this is nothing new, but it is a similar exploit.
The G400 16mb version: $150 G400 32mb version: 200 G400 MAX (faster 32mb version) 250..
I just ordered a max a few days ago (they've been taking online orders for a little while, it'll take the boards about 3-4 weeks to get there, unless it's a max, which will take 4-5 weeks.)
They look great, and we'll see how it all turns out on the 21" monitor, eh?
But a niche market isn't necessarily a profitable market. While they may be the only company that produces RPN calculators, there isn't a *huge* demand for the units. Certainly, there is a market, otherwise production would be halted. Still, it looks to me like they've recognized that there is money in compromise, and I can't blame them for compromising.
There is indeed.. the Great Internet Mersenne Primes Search (GIMPS) uses spare cycles to find mersenne primes (i.e. 2^prime# - 1 , if it's prime, is a mersenne prime) you can find the page here.
Yeah that's been one of the main gripes of people who don't like the 49G. I've heard again and again how much people used the equation library, but to be honest, I think it is used less than they remember.
Sure it's handy to have around, but for that purpose 49 users should just use part of their 1mb user ram to put in an ML equation library that is user-controlled, so they can add any equations they want. (One of the functions most desired in the next HP, before the 49 was announced.)
So, I think after the 49 comes out there will be a few new equation libraries programs on the scene, and soon after that some actual equations to fill those libraries.
It isn't more efficient for simple things like 2+2 or 2 2+. However, for more complex arithemetic, stuff involving parentheses, it is far more efficient.
e.g. (7+3)/((5*2)+(3/4))
you would do 7 4 + 5 2 * 3 4 / + / which is 11 keystrokes compared to 19, almost half the number!
As you can see, as the math you're doing becomes more complex RPN becomes more and more efficient...and this is where the HP truly shines.
To be honest, it's more a function of "Why is HP the only one dumb enough to make RPN calcs?", since RPN (as evidenced by HPs decision to make the 49G algebraic factory default) does not lend itself nicely to some of the less-advanced and less-motivated high school, junior high, and elementary students.
Thus, RPN units don't sell nearly as well as algebraic units (look at TI vs HP when it comes to money flowing to the calculator division).. hence the RPN/Algebraic/Arithmetic number entry options on the 49G.
If you're planning to wait a few months to believe this, that's fine. I've talked to developers and to users of the units, both at OpenHP and as beta testers, all trustworthy sources, and they assure me the units are real.
Are you such a Francophobiac that you don't trust anything released in France? This isn't meant to be a personal flame, and, in fact, this is more a response to comp.sys.hp48 users who are becoming as irrational as alt.conspiracy.
What are the problems with the images? I was aware of no problems with sam's images (the 15 I linked to in a comment), and they seem quite real. If you're talking about Benoit Darcy's scan with the screen drawn over, that is an isolated case and Benoit has (I've heard) been reprimanded by HP.
HP needs to develop a strong userbase again...just because you havent left the scene doesn't mean it is not becoming stagnant. The HP49G should help them build that userbase up again. I also bet that once you use one of the units, you'll purchase one as well...color and IR be damned.
-gleam
Re:They're not just calculators, they're also toys
on
HP49G is a reality
·
· Score: 1
a minor note: hpcvbbs.corballis.hp.com was HPs server for programs when the corvallis area was still open. Since then, all calculator operations have been moved to australia, where Jean-Yves Avenard has taken over, and has produced this hunk of good-looking machinery.
Now, the best source of HP programs on the net is, definitively, www.hpcalc.org, which is speedy and well designed. The webmaster even plans to port as many 48G programs to the 49G when it comes out as he possibly can, so look forward to a large and quickly growing database of 49 programs when it is released.
There are actually two more buttons on the 49.. someone counted. Also, the buttons are bigger and spaced slightly farther apart. But the whole unit still fits in a 48 soft case.. the case has been well engineered, it seems.
-gleam
Re:I didn't know you could cheat with the IR port
on
HP49G is a reality
·
· Score: 1
I stand corrected. Still, it is a lengthy and difficult process if you're the type of person who needs to cheat with your HP48G:)
Infrared in the 49 would be great, but at least it comes with a transfer cable.. still, all those remote control programs are useless now.
I knew a kid once who had trained his hp48 to mimic the remote controls on some of the Macintoshes in our library. A friend of mine was sitting at the computer and all of a sudden *blip* it went off. He looked around and there behind him was the other kid, laughing and holding his calculator.
Oh well...I can live without IR for all the functions that seem to be added and updated:)
I truly hope they'll come out with at least a 49GX after the 49G comes out. As to the 48G/GX issue, there is a compromise. About 6 or 12 months ago HP released the G+, a 48G with 128kb ram. So if you find you really need the extra ram (and you probably will, alg and java are indispensible) it is a good buy at $150 or so.
Of course, cynox.de sells 48Gs with up to 768kb ram (I think) hacked in, for not unreasonable prices. Unfortunately, you have to get it shipped from Germany.
Oh well!
Happy HP Hunting!
-gleam
Re:Now that you mention it, why not use a palm pil
on
HP49G is a reality
·
· Score: 1
I've used a Palm Pilot Professional for graphing and certain scientific functions, and it cannot compare in the least. Using a Palm Pilot/PDA for math presents a number of problems:
1. Poor input. It is difficult to enter using a stylus or graffiti/other text entry systems.
2. Not intended use. To be honest, the PPPro was not created to graph functions. While, with MathLib, it can, it does so relatively slowly and with few features (by these I mean the standard trace, max/min, roots, etc.), due to the fairly difficult nature of programming these at any speed.
3. Lack of programmers. Few people are actively working on programs to incorporate mathematical functions into the Palm series. With the HP49G, though, all the functions are built in and are very, very fast:)
All in all, a PDA is a sorry excuse for a calculator, except for basic arithmetic (and you should be able to do most of that in your head or on paper quickly). If you want, or need, to do serious graphing and symbolic manipulation and solving, then get the 49G when it comes out, or a TI-89 today.
-gleam
Re:I didn't know you could cheat with the IR port
on
HP49G is a reality
·
· Score: 3
I don't know about schematics, (maybe they're at www.hpcalc.org) but here's the info about cheating via IR and the 48/49 OS issue.
Cheating with the IR is basically impossible, but most teachers don't know this. The receive function is crippled because of cheating and because of huge power drain when it is set to full power (at full power it can receive about 10 or 20 feet away). The send is not crippled, and can send about 15-20 feet, I believe.
Still, teachers don't know this...they think anyone can beam an answer to anyone else. Modifying the IR is a lengthy and difficult process, though.
Now, re: the 48/49 OS. They will not be replacable (i'm assuming this) simply because that generates no sales and, unlike the 49, the 48 is not flash upgradable. Still, I would buy a 49 to replace my 48 simply because of the added user ram (up to 1MB now, instead of the 128k of the GX) and cool case.
---note: i don't represent hp, i'm just a fan--- ---therefore, don't take anything I say to be--- ---gospel! Everything I know I learned from--- ---developers and users of beta units. ---
Actually, it is quite a bit faster (I've heard from users). The new OS (based on metakernel, by one of the new designers before HP bought him) has all new choose and input methods.. so every menu is faster. It does 6 frames per second of 3d graphing, and allows real-time manipulation of 3d graphs. Wow.
Admittedly, the built in 92 (and especially 89) math functions are generally better than the built in 48G ones, but with a little bit of software (erable and alg48) the GX blows the 89 out of the water. The nice thing about the 49 is that it appears to have incorporated the best parts of alg and erable, and then added even more. Also, with the MK based OS, it should be faster and easier than the 89. It also comes factory default as 2+2=4, instead of 2 2 + =4 (for all you RPNphobiacs).
Slashdot Mirror
"In the future, there will certainly also be technological workarounds to fool such scanners. It would be a difficult problem, but not unsolvable--scan the person's eye (or steal a previous scan) and replicate it. "
Well, that's actually been done in the movies (probably more than once). Check out one of Sean Connery's Bond movies, back in the 60s. I forget which one, but it's the one where an air force pilot is hypnotized (or something) and gets under the spell of sceptre. At the same time, sceptre makes a copy of the president's iris implant and alters the air force pilot's iris to match the presidents (i dont have a clue how).
Eventually, of course, it all gets figured out and stopped and everything by Bond, but everyone here who thinks they're the first to think about copying someone's iris is waaay! behind. It might be From Russia With Love, but I'm not positive at all..
This isn't how they gained access, but it is a link to the mirror (if you want to see it).
If that's your definition of a friendly defacer, than there are very few graffiti artists who *aren't* friendly. Check attrition's mirrors, almost all of the defacements have, somewhere in the source or text, mention of 'mv index1.html index.html' or something akin...
So yes, it was a funny crack, and yes, they were kind enough to be like most of the other defacers and create a backup of the index... and yes, at least it was a relevant defacement.
Regards,
-ehfisher
I think we're all missing the real problem with the story:
Intel is releasing the p3/600 at a lower price than AMDs Athlon/600. But the athlon is a 7th generation chip, while the p3 is a lowly 6th generation. We're comparing apples to oranges, and giving Intel more credit than they deserve. Now, if AMD were selling a k6-3/600 for more than an intel p3/600 this would be news, but otherwise I can only say that this is to be expected!
-ehfisher
Nah, it doesn't say that... you can't have penguins as pets because, #1, it's illegal everywhere in the US i believe, #2, this just says that they get *less* frightened when people are around.. they're still doing 40 head checks a minute (which is pretty fast...), so they're quite worried about predators when people are there. They may adapt quickly to having people in their habitat, but I doubt they adapt quickly to being in the habitat of people.
It is an offtopic comment to a neato article, though.. and grats on getting it posted.
Isn't Bill Gates' personal worth about to equal the GDP for France? I seem to remember something like that... so, for at least a year, Billy could own France, I suppose.
Well, I'm 6'3" with large hands and I have no troubles typing 60wpm+ on my gotype keyboard... (true, that's a 33% cut from my normal typing speed)
Sure, it might not be for everyone, but it IS possible to achieve relatively speedy input on a gotype, and so, if you can, do try it. It's worth the money for most.
-ehfisher
I'm a palm V user, and the son of a Palm Pilot Professional user. My palm V is quite new, only a week old or so, and so I haven't had time to get incredibly productive with it. Still, it has already reminded me to do a few things (I love the todo list!).
My mother is lost without hers. It keeps all her appointments, her rolodex, and her todo list. If she forgets it at home she's likely to miss a meeting or two, and spend lots of extra time trying to remember or look up a phone number or address. Also, when she needs a break, she plays WordBox (boggle) for a few minutes.
For me it will probably be a very even combination. As soon as the palm V gotype! keyboard comes out, I'm purchasing one. My handwriting is terrible (as is my mothers, which is why she often can't read appointments she wrote on paper an hour or two later), and I am notorious for not taking notes because of it. (I always lose the notes, get frustrated at how disorganized they are, and often can't read what I wrote).
So in classes next fall it won't be a rare occurrence to see ol' gleam typing away taking notes on his palm V, and maybe playing a game or two during a study break.
Also, the huge number of applications available for the palm make it much easier to get more work done. Actioneer is wonderful for things like a conference call, where you enter the conference call and it adds it to the todo list and links it to the address book so you know the numbers of who you're about to call. (someone correct me if i'm wrong about this).
Indeed, the pda is the ideal tool for those of us who have bad handwriting and are very disorganized... it gets us in line, and it makes notes useful again!
-ehfisher
Well, CmdrTaco is #1, Hemos is #2, and off the top of my head I can't recall who #3 and #4 are. Basically all I did to check was search for a user with searchstring='a' and 'e' which showed taco (#1) and hemos(2) and also #s 3 and 4. You can do it yourself if you feel like waiting for the page to load... otherwise I don't know. (I tried searching for (1) or (2) and that didn't work). Most impressively, it took about a minute or so to load IIRC on my cable modem.
-ehfisher
This actually brings up another interesting subject: cordless phone monitoring. I was about 50 feet out of the range of my dinky cordless phone's receiver, standing in front of a friend's house with the phone, and all of a sudden I heard a hispanic woman talking to a saleswoman on the other side.
I was curious, sure, so I kept listening. I actually heard her entire credit card number and expy date...whoa! I'm sure this is nothing new, but it is a similar exploit.
-ehfisher
The G400 16mb version: $150
G400 32mb version: 200
G400 MAX (faster 32mb version) 250..
I just ordered a max a few days ago (they've been taking online orders for a little while, it'll take the boards about 3-4 weeks to get there, unless it's a max, which will take 4-5 weeks.)
They look great, and we'll see how it all turns out on the 21" monitor, eh?
-ehfisher
But a niche market isn't necessarily a profitable market. While they may be the only company that produces RPN calculators, there isn't a *huge* demand for the units. Certainly, there is a market, otherwise production would be halted. Still, it looks to me like they've recognized that there is money in compromise, and I can't blame them for compromising.
There is indeed.. the Great Internet Mersenne Primes Search (GIMPS) uses spare cycles to find mersenne primes (i.e. 2^prime# - 1 , if it's prime, is a mersenne prime) you can find the page here.
-gleam
Yeah that's been one of the main gripes of people who don't like the 49G. I've heard again and again how much people used the equation library, but to be honest, I think it is used less than they remember.
Sure it's handy to have around, but for that purpose 49 users should just use part of their 1mb user ram to put in an ML equation library that is user-controlled, so they can add any equations they want. (One of the functions most desired in the next HP, before the 49 was announced.)
So, I think after the 49 comes out there will be a few new equation libraries programs on the scene, and soon after that some actual equations to fill those libraries.
-gleam
It isn't more efficient for simple things like 2+2 or 2 2+. However, for more complex arithemetic, stuff involving parentheses, it is far more efficient.
e.g. (7+3)/((5*2)+(3/4))
you would do 7 4 + 5 2 * 3 4 / + /
which is 11 keystrokes compared to 19, almost half the number!
As you can see, as the math you're doing becomes more complex RPN becomes more and more efficient...and this is where the HP truly shines.
-gleam
To be honest, it's more a function of "Why is HP the only one dumb enough to make RPN calcs?", since RPN (as evidenced by HPs decision to make the 49G algebraic factory default) does not lend itself nicely to some of the less-advanced and less-motivated high school, junior high, and elementary students.
Thus, RPN units don't sell nearly as well as algebraic units (look at TI vs HP when it comes to money flowing to the calculator division).. hence the RPN/Algebraic/Arithmetic number entry options on the 49G.
-gleam
If you're planning to wait a few months to believe this, that's fine. I've talked to developers and to users of the units, both at OpenHP and as beta testers, all trustworthy sources, and they assure me the units are real.
Are you such a Francophobiac that you don't trust anything released in France? This isn't meant to be a personal flame, and, in fact, this is more a response to comp.sys.hp48 users who are becoming as irrational as alt.conspiracy.
What are the problems with the images? I was aware of no problems with sam's images (the 15 I linked to in a comment), and they seem quite real. If you're talking about Benoit Darcy's scan with the screen drawn over, that is an isolated case and Benoit has (I've heard) been reprimanded by HP.
HP needs to develop a strong userbase again...just because you havent left the scene doesn't mean it is not becoming stagnant. The HP49G should help them build that userbase up again. I also bet that once you use one of the units, you'll purchase one as well...color and IR be damned.
-gleam
a minor note: hpcvbbs.corballis.hp.com was HPs server for programs when the corvallis area was still open. Since then, all calculator operations have been moved to australia, where Jean-Yves Avenard has taken over, and has produced this hunk of good-looking machinery.
Now, the best source of HP programs on the net is, definitively, www.hpcalc.org, which is speedy and well designed. The webmaster even plans to port as many 48G programs to the 49G when it comes out as he possibly can, so look forward to a large and quickly growing database of 49 programs when it is released.
Happy program hunting!
-gleam
There are actually two more buttons on the 49.. someone counted. Also, the buttons are bigger and spaced slightly farther apart. But the whole unit still fits in a 48 soft case.. the case has been well engineered, it seems.
-gleam
I stand corrected. Still, it is a lengthy and difficult process if you're the type of person who needs to cheat with your HP48G :)
:)
Infrared in the 49 would be great, but at least it comes with a transfer cable.. still, all those remote control programs are useless now.
I knew a kid once who had trained his hp48 to mimic the remote controls on some of the Macintoshes in our library. A friend of mine was sitting at the computer and all of a sudden *blip* it went off. He looked around and there behind him was the other kid, laughing and holding his calculator.
Oh well...I can live without IR for all the functions that seem to be added and updated
-gleam
I truly hope they'll come out with at least a 49GX after the 49G comes out. As to the 48G/GX issue, there is a compromise. About 6 or 12 months ago HP released the G+, a 48G with 128kb ram. So if you find you really need the extra ram (and you probably will, alg and java are indispensible) it is a good buy at $150 or so.
Of course, cynox.de sells 48Gs with up to 768kb ram (I think) hacked in, for not unreasonable prices. Unfortunately, you have to get it shipped from Germany.
Oh well!
Happy HP Hunting!
-gleam
I've used a Palm Pilot Professional for graphing and certain scientific functions, and it cannot compare in the least. Using a Palm Pilot/PDA for math presents a number of problems:
:)
1. Poor input. It is difficult to enter using a stylus or graffiti/other text entry systems.
2. Not intended use. To be honest, the PPPro was not created to graph functions. While, with MathLib, it can, it does so relatively slowly and with few features (by these I mean the standard trace, max/min, roots, etc.), due to the fairly difficult nature of programming these at any speed.
3. Lack of programmers. Few people are actively working on programs to incorporate mathematical functions into the Palm series. With the HP49G, though, all the functions are built in and are very, very fast
All in all, a PDA is a sorry excuse for a calculator, except for basic arithmetic (and you should be able to do most of that in your head or on paper quickly). If you want, or need, to do serious graphing and symbolic manipulation and solving, then get the 49G when it comes out, or a TI-89 today.
-gleam
I don't know about schematics, (maybe they're at www.hpcalc.org) but here's the info about cheating via IR and the 48/49 OS issue.
Cheating with the IR is basically impossible, but most teachers don't know this. The receive function is crippled because of cheating and because of huge power drain when it is set to full power (at full power it can receive about 10 or 20 feet away). The send is not crippled, and can send about 15-20 feet, I believe.
Still, teachers don't know this...they think anyone can beam an answer to anyone else. Modifying the IR is a lengthy and difficult process, though.
Now, re: the 48/49 OS. They will not be replacable (i'm assuming this) simply because that generates no sales and, unlike the 49, the 48 is not flash upgradable. Still, I would buy a 49 to replace my 48 simply because of the added user ram (up to 1MB now, instead of the 128k of the GX) and cool case.
---note: i don't represent hp, i'm just a fan---
---therefore, don't take anything I say to be---
---gospel! Everything I know I learned from---
---developers and users of beta units. ---
-gleam
Actually, it is quite a bit faster (I've heard from users). The new OS (based on metakernel, by one of the new designers before HP bought him) has all new choose and input methods.. so every menu is faster. It does 6 frames per second of 3d graphing, and allows real-time manipulation of 3d graphs. Wow.
Admittedly, the built in 92 (and especially 89) math functions are generally better than the built in 48G ones, but with a little bit of software (erable and alg48) the GX blows the 89 out of the water. The nice thing about the 49 is that it appears to have incorporated the best parts of alg and erable, and then added even more. Also, with the MK based OS, it should be faster and easier than the 89. It also comes factory default as 2+2=4, instead of 2 2 + =4 (for all you RPNphobiacs).
-gleam