The problem with the 56K dialup bottleneck can be reduced by changing the way it uses the network (as the article mentions), and re-organizing the network. It would help if it could detect faster links and group machines based on both service and network characteristics.
More caching could also help -- a machine might not have a particular item, but it may remember that it recently saw the item. So queries for popular items would quickly encounter a cache entry and be directed to a source. That could be done by having responses be noticed by both the requester and to the machine which passed the query onward -- if there is an "upstream", the popular results would float upward.
The company said months ago that they would record consumer information, in an SEC Form S-1. You might try searching for "database" in this 1.1MB document.
DATABASE RESEARCH AND MARKETING. We intend to require each user of our
technology to provide basic individual information in order to register and
activate our:C.R.Q. and:Cue:C.A.T. technology. Additionally, we plan to offer
promotional and other incentives to encourage users to provide more detailed
individual information. We plan to use this information to develop a substantial
database of demographic information reflecting users' interests and preferences,
and tracking Internet behavior related to:Cues and viewing patterns of Internet
Enhanced content. This information will be used to better tailor our Virtual
Network banner ads and special vendor offers to each user, as well as to
generate summary demographic data reports for advertisers and merchants. These
firms would use our reports and data collection expertise to tailor advertising
campaigns, banner ads and website content to appeal to targeted consumer
segments. Under our privacy policy, individual user information will not be made
available to outside parties and will only be used internally by us with a
user's express permission. Some summary demographic data will be provided to
purchasers of:Cues free of charge. For more complex or detailed demographic
data, we intend to charge advertisers a flat fee per month, plus a small charge
per record.
You can lead a dead horse to water, but you do not earn a reward no matter how much effort you put into it. (Anyone have a mixed metaphor for the last part of that?)
The icon should include an appropriate CueCat barcode. Printed on paper it should be scannable...but an effort should be made to see if a CueCat can actually detect CRT or LCD barcodes...
OUR RIGHT TO KEEP INFORMATION COLLECTED IN OUR DATABASES MAY BE CHALLENGED IN
THE FUTURE.
We intend to use our:C.R.Q. and:Cue:C.A.T. technology to develop and
maintain a substantial database of consumer demographic information that our
customers can use with our permission to conduct advertising campaigns. In
particular, we intend to require each user of our technology to provide basic
individual information in order to register and activate our:C.R.Q. software
application. Under our privacy policy, individual user information will not be
made available to outside parties and will be used internally by us only if a
user gives express permission for such use. Some summary demographic data,
however, may be made available to outside parties. Privacy concerns may cause
users to resist providing the personal data necessary to support this profiling
capability. More importantly, even the perception of security and privacy
concerns, whether or not valid, may inhibit Internet user acceptance of our
technology and products. Furthermore, users may bring lawsuits against us
seeking to prohibit us from collecting this data. Even if without merit,
lawsuits could impair Internet user acceptance of our technology and products.
In addition, legal requirements may heighten these concerns if businesses must
notify Internet users that the data captured after visiting certain websites may
be used by marketing entities to direct product promotion and advertising to
that user. We are not aware of any such laws currently in effect in the United
States. Other countries and political entities, such as the European Economic
Community, have adopted these types of laws. We cannot predict how the
international roll-out of our technology will be affected by these types of
laws.
Yes, it's some sort of NAT security algorithm -- Oh, you can't patent an algorithm -- security device.
NAT devices just have to use different NAT security devices or license the patented security device. Unless there's only one way to perform the "security check" (ie, TCP sequence number or port number), in which case it's obvious to any expert and not patentable.
Define the difference between figuring out how to make sense of "scrambled output" and figuring out how to make sense of "undocumented data stream".
When you're creating an algorithm from scratch to translate a sequence of bits to something resembling the known input (the barcode), you have no way of knowing that there definitely is an encryption present. The public CueCat programs use XOR to produce barcode values, but we don't know that the CueCat is using XOR in its logic. The CueCat is a black box, and we can't see if there is a "no trespassing" component.
For that matter, we don't know that the public CueCat algorithm always works. There may be barcodes for which it fails. The correct algorithm has not been disclosed by the manufacturer, so we can only use what seems to work without knowing that it works.
For that matter, what seems to be a serial number at the beginning might actually be some interesting and useful data. We just don't know how to use it. Maybe if there were an authorized CueCat public driver with interesting uses, we would have more confidence in the device and have more uses for it.
Obviously some level of control would require that the server be using a serial console, so you actually SSH into an administrative server which has a serial port wired to the web server which you're trying to fix. That administrative server can also be able to reboot the other machines; the easiest is with the reset switch connected to a relay which is controlled by a parallel port or modem control line. Hardware watchdog cards also have various related capabilities.
Putting/dev in a ramdisk is a recommended way to reduce disk activity. The various open devices have their last access time updated often, and those file access times are written to the disk every 30 seconds or so. If/dev is in a ramdisk, those updates are not written to the hard drive.
The purpose of this is to let the hard drive in a laptop spin down. It is one of several suggestions in an old Linux laptop power reduction list...which I can't find at the moment.
Of course, if you're going to refer to X, you shouldn't refer to it as Windows:
The X Consortium requests that the following names be used
when referring to this software:
X
X Window System
X Version 11
X Window System, Version 11
X11
Slashdot Mirror
There are still a few days left in the Foil the Filters Contest. They're looking for failures at both extremes...
More caching could also help -- a machine might not have a particular item, but it may remember that it recently saw the item. So queries for popular items would quickly encounter a cache entry and be directed to a source. That could be done by having responses be noticed by both the requester and to the machine which passed the query onward -- if there is an "upstream", the popular results would float upward.
Here's their detail privacy advisory.
Can of worms. Fork. Yes, I can see that icon.
All the members of "Monty Python" say it's written "Aberystwyth" but it's pronounced "Evahizchveh".
You can lead a dead horse to water, but that won't give you a right to sell blood from a turnip.
The Privacy Foundation statement which was mentioned in yesterday's CNet story is now online.
http://www. sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1083392/0000912057-00- 020438.txt
You can lead a dead horse to water, but you do not earn a reward no matter how much effort you put into it. (Anyone have a mixed metaphor for the last part of that?)
The icon should include an appropriate CueCat barcode. Printed on paper it should be scannable...but an effort should be made to see if a CueCat can actually detect CRT or LCD barcodes...
OUR RIGHT TO KEEP INFORMATION COLLECTED IN OUR DATABASES MAY BE CHALLENGED IN THE FUTURE. We intend to use our :C.R.Q. and :Cue:C.A.T. technology to develop and
maintain a substantial database of consumer demographic information that our
customers can use with our permission to conduct advertising campaigns. In
particular, we intend to require each user of our technology to provide basic
individual information in order to register and activate our :C.R.Q. software
application. Under our privacy policy, individual user information will not be
made available to outside parties and will be used internally by us only if a
user gives express permission for such use. Some summary demographic data,
however, may be made available to outside parties. Privacy concerns may cause
users to resist providing the personal data necessary to support this profiling
capability. More importantly, even the perception of security and privacy
concerns, whether or not valid, may inhibit Internet user acceptance of our
technology and products. Furthermore, users may bring lawsuits against us
seeking to prohibit us from collecting this data. Even if without merit,
lawsuits could impair Internet user acceptance of our technology and products.
In addition, legal requirements may heighten these concerns if businesses must
notify Internet users that the data captured after visiting certain websites may
be used by marketing entities to direct product promotion and advertising to
that user. We are not aware of any such laws currently in effect in the United
States. Other countries and political entities, such as the European Economic
Community, have adopted these types of laws. We cannot predict how the
international roll-out of our technology will be affected by these types of
laws.
Have the people in the CueCat database which was stolen sent the CueCat manufacturer a cease & desist letter?
Hey, that sounds like the cable that feeds audio/video into the 1/8" VIDEO IN jack on my handheld TV. Maybe that's "another use" for the cable.
The CueCat makes an awful coaster for most containers. What beverage has a container which is compatible with the CueCat coaster?
NAT devices just have to use different NAT security devices or license the patented security device. Unless there's only one way to perform the "security check" (ie, TCP sequence number or port number), in which case it's obvious to any expert and not patentable.
I see no reason to involve the Office of the Vice President of the United States.
When you're creating an algorithm from scratch to translate a sequence of bits to something resembling the known input (the barcode), you have no way of knowing that there definitely is an encryption present. The public CueCat programs use XOR to produce barcode values, but we don't know that the CueCat is using XOR in its logic. The CueCat is a black box, and we can't see if there is a "no trespassing" component.
For that matter, we don't know that the public CueCat algorithm always works. There may be barcodes for which it fails. The correct algorithm has not been disclosed by the manufacturer, so we can only use what seems to work without knowing that it works.
For that matter, what seems to be a serial number at the beginning might actually be some interesting and useful data. We just don't know how to use it. Maybe if there were an authorized CueCat public driver with interesting uses, we would have more confidence in the device and have more uses for it.
I just like how DDRSDRAM rolls off the tongue.
Obviously some level of control would require that the server be using a serial console, so you actually SSH into an administrative server which has a serial port wired to the web server which you're trying to fix. That administrative server can also be able to reboot the other machines; the easiest is with the reset switch connected to a relay which is controlled by a parallel port or modem control line. Hardware watchdog cards also have various related capabilities.
No, do not use telnet. It has no encryption so you're sending usernames and passwords unprotected. Use the previously-mentioned SSH tools.
You reverse engineered it very well.
The purpose of this is to let the hard drive in a laptop spin down. It is one of several suggestions in an old Linux laptop power reduction list...which I can't find at the moment.
It doesn't make sense. Storage keeps getting cheaper, and they go and break the bookmarks and links which would bring people back without effort.
I'm sorry, he just rubbed me the wrong way and he was awfully small about it.