Yes, there are drawbacks (especially the taxes ones) but I think the wave of citizenship renunciations going on are a sign that the strange treatment of non-residents will change in the next couple of years. FATCA is the best thing to happen to US taxpayers abroad in a long time.
I think the benefits outweigh the costs. If they don't get it before their 18th birthday, it will be much harder. They can always renounce it later, though.
Having traveled a lot, having a US passport is very beneficial for ease of passage across borders and protection when abroad. EU passports are almost at the same level though.
Yes, I think that's true, but competitions will help focus minds. Most competitions will last a few years, including a period of laying out the requirements.
I envision a new protocol to replace 3 remote security functions: SSL/TLS, IPSec, and SSH. I think SSH is the most secure of the three of those today but they could all three use a rethink.
The ultimate goal, though, is not to do this as a separate project but as a unified community effort like the NIST competitions (see Standards).
If you really want to be helpful, Google, provide support and coordinate a competition to create a new SSL protocol, à la AES and SHA-3. Then we could make progress towards truly better security.
My organization has about 4000 phone numbers which we can assign as we please (DIDs) and a/16 IP address block. For the DIDs we're locked in to a particular carrier, with the/16 since it's an assignment from a regional registry (ARIN) which means we can go to any carrier and advertise that out via BGP. Why shouldn't we be able to do the same with phone numbers?
(Obviously, this is much easier now with SIP than it has been with prior technologies, but I haven't heard of calls for reform on this front.)
I found it hard to complete every issue every week until I discovered the aforementioned audio edition. Now my drive to work is much more bearable (bordering on a pleasure!). If you have a short (or no) commute, YMMV of course.:)
Yes, I agree completely. The summary spoke exclusively of cell phones (although the title didn't say so), even the land line phone system will crash under the load during an emergency situation or other unexpected event.
I once tried to call my father (who was at his work) from our home (land line to land line) immediately after a moderate earthquake. The call would not go through because all the lines were taken up. We managed to complete the call and speak to each other after waiting about 15 minutes. Capacity problems are not inherent to the cell network.
I read The Economist (every week) and I am constantly amazed by its quality and informativeness. Although, I must mention, I technically don't read most of it since I consume the Audio Edition during my commute to work. The articles I don't get to during the week (because my commute is slightly shorter than the average audio edition length) I typically try to catch up on with the dead-tree edition that is delivered. If the USPS ever ends Saturday delivery that's one thing I'll miss: getting my delivery of the economist before Monday.
The subscription price is a little steep (about US$120), I feel like I could not go without it.
All patient records should be open and available to the patient. Those records will have the caveat that they can never be used against the doctor or hospital which produced them. If the credit ratings agencies can claim that their piss poor evaluations of mortgage-backed securities were protected speech then the same can certainty apply to medical records. Establishing this in law is simple and straightforward.
I couldn't agree less what what you say. Doctors only have their interest in mind and when I talk to doctors I listen as a skeptic, usually verifying what they say with a lengthy search on the internet (on websites like webmd, mayo clinit, nih/cdc etc) to check for consistency.
ALL your medical records should be open to you, and even better, HANDED to you as you exit the clinic/hospital. HOWEVER, the content of those records should not be used, in any way, against the doctor. It should be protected speech. This would have two effects: 1) the doctors would be more honest with patients 2) Statements like
"Patient is a looney hypochondriac, but has lots of money. Recommend all possible expensive tests."
would disappear in the explicit sense but still be hinted at to those who can read between the lines.
You might be surprised to find out how many people fail in one, if not multiple of the points you mentioned. Take, for example, me:
IPv6 Capable operating systems: Not really. I run Mac OS X 10.6, which, wile "IPv6 capable" does not have support for a critical IPv6 component DHCPv6. IPv6 Capable router: Not really. My router does not support IPv6 without some serious hacks. Plus it doesn't support DHCP-PD at all. IPv6 Capable cable modem: Yes, but only because I just (two months ago) bought a new modem. IPv6 Capable internet service: Yes, and it's been available from my ISP for a long time.
The major problem with the majority of devices is not the "first level" IPv6 support (e.g. ability to get an IPv6 address via SLAAC) but second level and beyond (DHCPv6, etc). IPv6 is a protocol which is still very young and not "fully" supported by most software/hardware, mostly because it is still changing. It will be a long while before IPv6 has the maturity of IPv4. I just laugh when I read marketing drivel with statements like "IPv6 supported!" because until they provide more details, I just assume that it means it can self-assign a link local address and that's all.
Yes, and there are examples that the Classroom + Khan is an effective model. The Economist has an article describing how the Los Altos school district is using Khan's videos to provide the "dry lecture" which is assigned for homework while classroom time is used for supervised problem solving with the teacher roving about helping any struggling students. That model makes complete sense to me especially since we keep hearing stories about how parent's can't do their kids homework (I've been called in to help my little cousin with her math homework at times when her parents were thoroughly confused).
Speaking of things that are unconstitutional, did you know that the American flag is unconstitutional? It's true! Just look in the Constitution: where does it ever say "Congress shall have the power to designate a flag for the nation"? It's not in there! Thus, the American flag is unconstitutional.
I can't find a law passed by Congress that designates the US flag as the US flag.
The flag of the United States shall be thirteen horizontal stripes, alternate red and white; and the union of the flag shall be forty-eight stars, white in a blue field.
Les Guignols de l'Info (a french mock news show, somewhat like Daily Show but with puppets) had a mock interview with the Priminister of India. The conversation went like this: Presenter: Why did you choose the Rafale for your air force? Prime Minister: Because we are a non-violent country. P: I don't understand... PM: The French are the only country to produce a non-violent fighter jet...
The people at the Dept. of Education (DE) are not elected and are not accountable to the voters.
Since when does not being elected mean they are not accountable? The wonder of political pressure is, if an appointed bureaucrat screws up then the person who appointed them (the President in the case of the Dept. of Education) either sacks the appointee or looses votes.
Washington constantly pushes out unfunded mandates that increase the burden on local schools.
Actually, the real power comes in funded mandates. Which are you most likely to react to: a rule which you get no money to implement or a rule you must implement or they take away $5M from your school? The true problems occur when you're forced to do something or you loose huge piles of cash.
Exactly. The inflation becomes a tax on anyone holding currency. Each day, everyone looses some percent of their money's value and the government gains some number of dollars.
Well, not exactly. There are three aspects to the government printing money, a loss to the holders of currency, a gain by the government, and dead-weight loss. If inflation was a direct transfer from money holders to the government then there would be no need to ever raise taxes, but since there is dead-weight loss too (and the dead-weight loss from inflation can be very unpredictable) it is far more efficient (read: popular) to have a codified system of taxes rather than the government simply printing money when needed. Hyperinflation is as bad for governments as it is for the population and thus happens infrequently.
Yes, I understand and agree with what you say. I think standards bodies are important, but the problem lies in when you are legally required to go with the guild member, even though a non-guild member would do just as good work, but would cost vastly less. Essentially, when you go to a lawyer for a will or something similar, you're getting a paralegal to do the work but paying a lawyer-level price. You have more guarantees (i.e. the member of the bar stands behind the work of the paralegal) but you also have extra costs. It's the laws that are the problem not (existence of) the guild.
The statute was obviously intended to deal with fake lawyers - yes there are people who will brave the social opprobrium of claiming to be a lawyer in exchange for money.
No, it wasn't. The statute was obviously intended to keep out competition from people like paralegals and other lawyers-lite who can do 90% of what a lawyer does but doesn't actually have a law degree. Don't forget, many (most?) lawmakers are lawyers by training and thus they are very willing to protect the legal profession.
I've often marveled at the number of things which come with the warning "For External Use Only". I've seen it posted on things ranging from sunblock to various topical creams. Though I never have, I hope to see it on a box of ear plugs. That would quickly make it to the top of the list of dumb labels.
Yes, you can use OCXOs, but they aren't technically atomic clocks. Further, an OCXO (like the one you showed) requires 1.5W, which doesn't sound like much, but the unit linked to above needs only 100mW. A true atomic clock (a rubidium oscillator, for example) is significantly larger than this unit and also draws much more power (11W, steady state).
All things told, though, a OCXO or rubidium frequency standard from eBay should be good enough for most users.
Proceed with caution. Make sure you enjoy networking and that its challenges interest you. Networking is very different from programming and also different from desktop support.
What routers or switches or other equipment should I acquire?
I have extensive experience with HP Procurve equipment and I have been satisfied with their stuff. (In the network I manage we have about 120 HP switches.) They are pretty reasonable in price and have a lifetime warranty on their switches and routers (I just got a replacement for a part for something that was manufactured 10 years ago, no hassle). Cisco is good if you like features, have a large network, and enjoy spending money. I would avoid Netgear switches (unless you need a small desktop switch (e.g. GS108) to provide more ports) as I have heard bad things but I have no first-hand experience. Expect to pay around $1000-1800 for a good 48-port Gigabit switch.
What books should I read? Should I take classes from Cisco, Global Knowledge, my local community college, or somewhere else?
I would look to achieve a "CCNA level" knowledge. For a network of about 100 devices you won't need much more. You can do that by simply reading a book (e.g. the CCNA prep by Lammle or Cisco Press), self-study (e.g. books alone or with video) then trying to pass the test, or taking a classroom course with Cisco or GlobalKnowledge. The material covered in CCNA is useful even if you use Procurve devices (although vocab will be different, such as "vlan trunking" (Cisco) vs. "vlan tagging" (Procurve, IEEE 802.1Q))
Background: I managed a network at a scientific research center (1000+ end user devices and a couple hundred servers). Its a mix of Cisco (core) and Procurve (edge). I have been working in networking full time for 2 years (I was in the poster's shoes not long ago) and with computers for about 5 years in a professional setting.
By some fairly tenuous leaps of logic I can see what they're getting at, but it's hardly what the headline claims.
The leaps of logic are most tenuous because the author of TFA is conflating the definitions of 'bank' and 'financial institution'.
A bank is a type of financial institution which takes deposits and makes loans. The article seems to be saying that Facebook will be a large (the largest) company which deals in financial transactions. The article doesn't seem to claim that Facebook has started taking saver's money or has started making loans, nor have I seen that at Facebook, which would mean Facebook is ineligible for the label 'bank'.
Restricting use of trademark is one good solution. (That's how Red Hat does it.)
Another is to have a "Google Approved" set of Android phones. Such approval could vary from extensive testing of the phone to Google dictating certain specs such as screen resolution. Apple made the "retina display" twice as big (480x320 -> 960x640) on the vertical and horizontal scale compared to the older 3GS version to make old apps still work with no lost space (unlike running iphone apps on ipads). There are good advantages to the end user when a manufacturer controls those details, but it does slow innovation. Having a set of approved phones with tight control by Google could help the Android area sharpen up its lineup.
(Anecdote: I have a friend who has a Galaxy phone and he's constantly complaining that it crashes. This is probably in part due to lack of testing of software on Samsung's part, but I couldn't say for sure.)
The only thing that FIPS 140-2 implies is that someone in marketing figured out that by using the correct algorithms, they can sell crap products to the government. Congratulations - you just screwed the public for $210 for a flash drive that is no more secure than commercial grade sticks and a copy of TrueCrypt (which uses FIPS 140-2 compliant algorithms, no less)
Disclaimer: I work for USGS/DOI.
Not really true. (Not true at all, actually...) FIPS 140-2 requires much more than just certain algorithms. Much of the requirements relates to making sure keys are properly handled, that RNGs function as desired, and that the device is tamper-resistant and tamper-evident.
Further, regulations stipulate that sensitive, but unclassified (continuity of operations and contingency plans) and personally identifiable information (PII) (social security numbers and such) data must be encrypted using a FIPS 140-2 certified encryption systems, not merely FIPS 140-2 compliant systems (as you suggest). (Becoming certified is a costly process, one which has granted firms that submit to the process a high level of economic rents.) If I could deploy systems which I felt were of an equivalent security level as FIPS 140-2 requires, I would certainly do so (spending $250 on 5 USB drives doesn't help me in any way).
Slashdot Mirror
Yes, there are drawbacks (especially the taxes ones) but I think the wave of citizenship renunciations going on are a sign that the strange treatment of non-residents will change in the next couple of years. FATCA is the best thing to happen to US taxpayers abroad in a long time.
I think the benefits outweigh the costs. If they don't get it before their 18th birthday, it will be much harder. They can always renounce it later, though.
Having traveled a lot, having a US passport is very beneficial for ease of passage across borders and protection when abroad. EU passports are almost at the same level though.
Take a look at this article: http://www.economist.com/node/... It has some good information about it.
Good luck!
Yes, I think that's true, but competitions will help focus minds. Most competitions will last a few years, including a period of laying out the requirements.
I envision a new protocol to replace 3 remote security functions: SSL/TLS, IPSec, and SSH. I think SSH is the most secure of the three of those today but they could all three use a rethink.
The ultimate goal, though, is not to do this as a separate project but as a unified community effort like the NIST competitions (see Standards).
We don't need "software updates that improve the security of OpenSSL", we need a whole new protocol.
If you really want to be helpful, Google, provide support and coordinate a competition to create a new SSL protocol, à la AES and SHA-3. Then we could make progress towards truly better security.
I think you've hit on an area that needs reform.
My organization has about 4000 phone numbers which we can assign as we please (DIDs) and a /16 IP address block. For the DIDs we're locked in to a particular carrier, with the /16 since it's an assignment from a regional registry (ARIN) which means we can go to any carrier and advertise that out via BGP. Why shouldn't we be able to do the same with phone numbers?
(Obviously, this is much easier now with SIP than it has been with prior technologies, but I haven't heard of calls for reform on this front.)
There is also a battery pack in the mid-section of the plane (page 787.0.7), near the trailing edge of the wings.
I found it hard to complete every issue every week until I discovered the aforementioned audio edition. Now my drive to work is much more bearable (bordering on a pleasure!). If you have a short (or no) commute, YMMV of course. :)
Yes, I agree completely. The summary spoke exclusively of cell phones (although the title didn't say so), even the land line phone system will crash under the load during an emergency situation or other unexpected event.
I once tried to call my father (who was at his work) from our home (land line to land line) immediately after a moderate earthquake. The call would not go through because all the lines were taken up. We managed to complete the call and speak to each other after waiting about 15 minutes. Capacity problems are not inherent to the cell network.
I read The Economist (every week) and I am constantly amazed by its quality and informativeness. Although, I must mention, I technically don't read most of it since I consume the Audio Edition during my commute to work. The articles I don't get to during the week (because my commute is slightly shorter than the average audio edition length) I typically try to catch up on with the dead-tree edition that is delivered. If the USPS ever ends Saturday delivery that's one thing I'll miss: getting my delivery of the economist before Monday.
The subscription price is a little steep (about US$120), I feel like I could not go without it.
All patient records should be open and available to the patient. Those records will have the caveat that they can never be used against the doctor or hospital which produced them. If the credit ratings agencies can claim that their piss poor evaluations of mortgage-backed securities were protected speech then the same can certainty apply to medical records. Establishing this in law is simple and straightforward.
I couldn't agree less what what you say. Doctors only have their interest in mind and when I talk to doctors I listen as a skeptic, usually verifying what they say with a lengthy search on the internet (on websites like webmd, mayo clinit, nih/cdc etc) to check for consistency.
ALL your medical records should be open to you, and even better, HANDED to you as you exit the clinic/hospital. HOWEVER, the content of those records should not be used, in any way, against the doctor. It should be protected speech. This would have two effects: 1) the doctors would be more honest with patients 2) Statements like
"Patient is a looney hypochondriac, but has lots of money. Recommend all possible expensive tests."
would disappear in the explicit sense but still be hinted at to those who can read between the lines.
You might be surprised to find out how many people fail in one, if not multiple of the points you mentioned. Take, for example, me:
IPv6 Capable operating systems: Not really. I run Mac OS X 10.6, which, wile "IPv6 capable" does not have support for a critical IPv6 component DHCPv6.
IPv6 Capable router: Not really. My router does not support IPv6 without some serious hacks. Plus it doesn't support DHCP-PD at all.
IPv6 Capable cable modem: Yes, but only because I just (two months ago) bought a new modem.
IPv6 Capable internet service: Yes, and it's been available from my ISP for a long time.
The major problem with the majority of devices is not the "first level" IPv6 support (e.g. ability to get an IPv6 address via SLAAC) but second level and beyond (DHCPv6, etc). IPv6 is a protocol which is still very young and not "fully" supported by most software/hardware, mostly because it is still changing. It will be a long while before IPv6 has the maturity of IPv4. I just laugh when I read marketing drivel with statements like "IPv6 supported!" because until they provide more details, I just assume that it means it can self-assign a link local address and that's all.
Wrong. Classroom PLUS Khan
Yes, and there are examples that the Classroom + Khan is an effective model. The Economist has an article describing how the Los Altos school district is using Khan's videos to provide the "dry lecture" which is assigned for homework while classroom time is used for supervised problem solving with the teacher roving about helping any struggling students. That model makes complete sense to me especially since we keep hearing stories about how parent's can't do their kids homework (I've been called in to help my little cousin with her math homework at times when her parents were thoroughly confused).
Speaking of things that are unconstitutional, did you know that the American flag is unconstitutional? It's true! Just look in the Constitution: where does it ever say "Congress shall have the power to designate a flag for the nation"? It's not in there! Thus, the American flag is unconstitutional.
I can't find a law passed by Congress that designates the US flag as the US flag.
Try this:
4 USC 1
The flag of the United States shall be thirteen horizontal stripes, alternate red and white; and the union of the flag shall be forty-eight stars, white in a blue field.
F16 shoots down space shuttle approaching White House!
Reminds me of the Ali G bit where he asks whether they are prepared that someone might crash a train into the White House
Les Guignols de l'Info (a french mock news show, somewhat like Daily Show but with puppets) had a mock interview with the Priminister of India. The conversation went like this:
Presenter: Why did you choose the Rafale for your air force?
Prime Minister: Because we are a non-violent country.
P: I don't understand...
PM: The French are the only country to produce a non-violent fighter jet...
Time index, 2:04
The people at the Dept. of Education (DE) are not elected and are not accountable to the voters.
Since when does not being elected mean they are not accountable? The wonder of political pressure is, if an appointed bureaucrat screws up then the person who appointed them (the President in the case of the Dept. of Education) either sacks the appointee or looses votes.
Washington constantly pushes out unfunded mandates that increase the burden on local schools.
Actually, the real power comes in funded mandates. Which are you most likely to react to: a rule which you get no money to implement or a rule you must implement or they take away $5M from your school? The true problems occur when you're forced to do something or you loose huge piles of cash.
Exactly. The inflation becomes a tax on anyone holding currency. Each day, everyone looses some percent of their money's value and the government gains some number of dollars.
Well, not exactly. There are three aspects to the government printing money, a loss to the holders of currency, a gain by the government, and dead-weight loss. If inflation was a direct transfer from money holders to the government then there would be no need to ever raise taxes, but since there is dead-weight loss too (and the dead-weight loss from inflation can be very unpredictable) it is far more efficient (read: popular) to have a codified system of taxes rather than the government simply printing money when needed. Hyperinflation is as bad for governments as it is for the population and thus happens infrequently.
Yes, I understand and agree with what you say. I think standards bodies are important, but the problem lies in when you are legally required to go with the guild member, even though a non-guild member would do just as good work, but would cost vastly less. Essentially, when you go to a lawyer for a will or something similar, you're getting a paralegal to do the work but paying a lawyer-level price. You have more guarantees (i.e. the member of the bar stands behind the work of the paralegal) but you also have extra costs. It's the laws that are the problem not (existence of) the guild.
The statute was obviously intended to deal with fake lawyers - yes there are people who will brave the social opprobrium of claiming to be a lawyer in exchange for money.
No, it wasn't. The statute was obviously intended to keep out competition from people like paralegals and other lawyers-lite who can do 90% of what a lawyer does but doesn't actually have a law degree. Don't forget, many (most?) lawmakers are lawyers by training and thus they are very willing to protect the legal profession.
I've often marveled at the number of things which come with the warning "For External Use Only". I've seen it posted on things ranging from sunblock to various topical creams. Though I never have, I hope to see it on a box of ear plugs. That would quickly make it to the top of the list of dumb labels.
Yes, you can use OCXOs, but they aren't technically atomic clocks. Further, an OCXO (like the one you showed) requires 1.5W, which doesn't sound like much, but the unit linked to above needs only 100mW. A true atomic clock (a rubidium oscillator, for example) is significantly larger than this unit and also draws much more power (11W, steady state).
All things told, though, a OCXO or rubidium frequency standard from eBay should be good enough for most users.
what's the right strategy here?
Proceed with caution. Make sure you enjoy networking and that its challenges interest you. Networking is very different from programming and also different from desktop support.
What routers or switches or other equipment should I acquire?
I have extensive experience with HP Procurve equipment and I have been satisfied with their stuff. (In the network I manage we have about 120 HP switches.) They are pretty reasonable in price and have a lifetime warranty on their switches and routers (I just got a replacement for a part for something that was manufactured 10 years ago, no hassle). Cisco is good if you like features, have a large network, and enjoy spending money. I would avoid Netgear switches (unless you need a small desktop switch (e.g. GS108) to provide more ports) as I have heard bad things but I have no first-hand experience. Expect to pay around $1000-1800 for a good 48-port Gigabit switch.
What books should I read? Should I take classes from Cisco, Global Knowledge, my local community college, or somewhere else?
I would look to achieve a "CCNA level" knowledge. For a network of about 100 devices you won't need much more. You can do that by simply reading a book (e.g. the CCNA prep by Lammle or Cisco Press), self-study (e.g. books alone or with video) then trying to pass the test, or taking a classroom course with Cisco or GlobalKnowledge. The material covered in CCNA is useful even if you use Procurve devices (although vocab will be different, such as "vlan trunking" (Cisco) vs. "vlan tagging" (Procurve, IEEE 802.1Q))
Background: I managed a network at a scientific research center (1000+ end user devices and a couple hundred servers). Its a mix of Cisco (core) and Procurve (edge). I have been working in networking full time for 2 years (I was in the poster's shoes not long ago) and with computers for about 5 years in a professional setting.
By some fairly tenuous leaps of logic I can see what they're getting at, but it's hardly what the headline claims.
The leaps of logic are most tenuous because the author of TFA is conflating the definitions of 'bank' and 'financial institution'.
A bank is a type of financial institution which takes deposits and makes loans. The article seems to be saying that Facebook will be a large (the largest) company which deals in financial transactions. The article doesn't seem to claim that Facebook has started taking saver's money or has started making loans, nor have I seen that at Facebook, which would mean Facebook is ineligible for the label 'bank'.
Restricting use of trademark is one good solution. (That's how Red Hat does it.)
Another is to have a "Google Approved" set of Android phones. Such approval could vary from extensive testing of the phone to Google dictating certain specs such as screen resolution. Apple made the "retina display" twice as big (480x320 -> 960x640) on the vertical and horizontal scale compared to the older 3GS version to make old apps still work with no lost space (unlike running iphone apps on ipads). There are good advantages to the end user when a manufacturer controls those details, but it does slow innovation. Having a set of approved phones with tight control by Google could help the Android area sharpen up its lineup.
(Anecdote: I have a friend who has a Galaxy phone and he's constantly complaining that it crashes. This is probably in part due to lack of testing of software on Samsung's part, but I couldn't say for sure.)
The only thing that FIPS 140-2 implies is that someone in marketing figured out that by using the correct algorithms, they can sell crap products to the government. Congratulations - you just screwed the public for $210 for a flash drive that is no more secure than commercial grade sticks and a copy of TrueCrypt (which uses FIPS 140-2 compliant algorithms, no less)
Disclaimer: I work for USGS/DOI.
Not really true. (Not true at all, actually...) FIPS 140-2 requires much more than just certain algorithms. Much of the requirements relates to making sure keys are properly handled, that RNGs function as desired, and that the device is tamper-resistant and tamper-evident.
Further, regulations stipulate that sensitive, but unclassified (continuity of operations and contingency plans) and personally identifiable information (PII) (social security numbers and such) data must be encrypted using a FIPS 140-2 certified encryption systems, not merely FIPS 140-2 compliant systems (as you suggest). (Becoming certified is a costly process, one which has granted firms that submit to the process a high level of economic rents.) If I could deploy systems which I felt were of an equivalent security level as FIPS 140-2 requires, I would certainly do so (spending $250 on 5 USB drives doesn't help me in any way).