what a phenomenal idea. to take advantage of the idle processing power of machines that sit unused at least 50% of their time. virginia tech is just the beginning.
any college with a several ~25-machine labs can use this app to do supercomputer stuff, AND get the return on investment from normal users being able to utilize these machines during the day.
if slashdot would just leave a link at the top and encourage their readership to legitimately visit sco's website every day (to read the latest news and information about their fine line of products and services) there would be no need for DDoS, it would be a continuous, daily slashdotting without any legal repercussions.
windows typically waits to acknowledge a vulnerability until it's run rampant through the internet. so by the time they finally admit there's a problem, they already have a patch available.
boy, doesn't that make them look good to suit-types who only read Internet World and watch CNN?
nevermind that the suit's slick XP laptop has already been infected & 0wn3d by that 'anna kournikova' jpg.vbs that he's too ashamed to admit he double-clicked on.
the right to peacably assemble applies only to public lands. a store is private property, not a park or sidewalk.
your 'inalienable rights' do not extend so far as to trump the rights of the property owner. the constitution protects _everyone_ not just the group that holds up (small parts of it) as a shield.
i have residential DSL from verizon in the seattle area.
when i signed up, i could access a number of ports from the outside world, all that was being blocked was netbios, http, ftp. (so, ssh, identd, https, arbitrary > 1024 ports were fine).
about 3 months ago, i noticed i could no longer access my http server running on 8012 or some high, arbitrary port. so, i nmap my host, and see that 8012 is filtered! okay, no sweat. ssh in, switch ports, restart apache. new port doesn't work, nmap again.... new port is being filtered. verizon is actively filtering http connections on arbitrary ports.
now all i'm left with is ssh & identd. sure, tunnel everything thru ssh, but the hassle? i'll just switch ISPs - oh wait, i'll get charged $175 for an 'early termination fee' if i switch before i've had it for a year.
filtering port 80 to stop nimda is great. but there are 2 assumptions to using arbitrary > 1024 ports: 1. viruses are not written to expect standard services on non-standard ports, 2. if i'm smart enough to change the port, i'm smart enough to patch my machines.
can they perhaps make the EULA more technical? i re-read mine, and after a few phone calls this doesn't seem to constitute the sort of 'change of service provided' that would absolve me from the $175 charge to leave... i guess they need that 2 months worth of payments to GUARANTEE i switch when my year is up.
does that mean some guy with an old tv (the kind in a wooden cabinet) can watch my data instead of I Love Lucy reruns?
what does this mean for Real Codecs?
on
Is MOXI Toast?
·
· Score: 1
just wondering what happens now with the Moxi-RealNetworks deal to embed Real codecs in Moxi. perhaps this is just a transparent plot by Microsoft (and Microsoft concerns, i.e. Paul Allen?) to keep their competition out of the PVR/streaming market?
i worked for a large company (read: s&p500 listing) that, as one of their services, did web hosting for small businesses - handling the domain registration and renewal internally. boy, did we start getting angry phone calls when people thought their domains were going to expire (and we weren't going to renew them inclusive to their contract/fee.)
doesn't internic have a policy of conduct for domain name registrars? i seem to remember there being a lot of concern when they broke the netsol monopoly that the 'alternatives' would provide poor customer service and business ethics. who's the pot, and who's the kettle NOW?
if you thought cell phones ringing were bad... just wait until you have to endure homer simpson error noises (d'oh!) and/or britney spears startup sounds. admittedly, britney would sound better than that stupid windows boinging noise (tm)....
it's best to approach design from the perspective of the user (take a step back and put yourself in their shoes)
what do they want? where are they? what are they using?
if you want simple tenets of design,they're commonly summarized:
speed of download & page rendering
compatibility - no negative experiences!
no more than 3 clicks to any piece of information
don't make it necessary to scroll for essential information
always give people a 'back' option - don't trap them on 'dead ends'
no more than 7 +/- 2 choices on any page
search and/or sitemap for targeted inquiries
very likely more, but that's a good start (and should keep you busy;).
don't search for 'great web design' instead, search for 'usability' and try to find a critique that deconstructs some of the same types of site that you're going to build (e.g. no need to read a detailed critque of yahoo if you're not building a web search/catalog).
the most important thing is to realize the scope of your site/vision before you start. if you get frustrated/bored because you planned something grandiose and it's taking you years to build, then by the time you get around to filling it up with content, your content will suck.
be disciplined - plan out the 'dream site' then whittle that down to what's realistic - step back and make 'release 1.0' and implement the more disparate features/content in future releases. it will help you keep your content up to par with your coding & design, and give people a reason to come back again & again! do you think people read slashdot because they like GREEN and it's easy to navigate?;)
their profits peaked during the peak of the bubble, just like everyone elses. now their profits are down from the all-time high, just like everyone else's.
kids who aren't earning outrageous salaries at dot coms aren't dropping hundreds of dollars at a time on cd's anymore. deal with it.
if i shoot someone, is the gun maker responsible? if i stab someone, is the company who made the knife at fault?
if i hit somebody with my car, can they sue the D.O.T. for creating the roadway that i was using?
in any other crime, it comes down to intent, not the vehicle/method of committing it. the only reason the software/net are even mentioned here is because it's damn near impossible to prosecute everyone who intends to swap music/files illegally.
what they don't realize is that this is the revolutionary reaction to an oppressive system that has, for too long, served the system as opposed to the users. as the cost to manufacture and distribute music has plummeted, the cost to buy a CD has gone up?!
i'd like to think that if CD's gradually decreased in price since their introduction, and a music CD only set you back $4.99 right now, song-swapping services would have never been born. there would have been no intent to deceive the system, because the system would be fair.
the music industry opened pandora's box, and now they can't close it, and they're pissed.
even the friendliest distros still have a point the user will reach, within a few weeks (or even days) of installing it, where they will need to perform some task made painfully easy by any other modern operating system, but beyond the grasp of 90% of the computer-using population.
i have to admit, even with an abundance of experience on *nix platforms, i've had to refer to howto's more than once since i started using redhat - that is, to get this OS as functional as a mac or a windows environment is for me out-of-the-box. my latest build for my primary development machine is redhat 7.2, kde 2.2.2.
i don't think the average person will have the chutzpah to take on a task that would require them to edit a.conf file, track down & install dependencies for RPMs, or troubleshoot why their soundcard doesn't work.
i think where most of the problems occur are:
when having to upgrade programs / system
when trying to connect to remote devices
when attempting to use peripherals that haven't been around for years and years
these are where i've seen the most difficult challenges - mounting the SMB shares i need to work off of, being able to print to non-lpd network printers (still working on that one) and syncing my palmpilot to any remotely useful calendar (altho i don't think i'll ever get to sync it with my company's shared netscape calendar without a whole lotta patience & twiddling).
this leaves me with times when even i have to reboot into windows - it's just a fact of life. luckily, my time spent in windows is relegated to less than 10% of my day anymore. but linux won't be pervasive as a mainstream desktop operating system until it gets that last 10%, and gets it without having to ever see a command-line.
so now my MSN messenger client at work will be popping-up porn ads every 30 seconds?
repeated spam emails to my hotmail account to buy the video "when kitties attack!"?
free trial issue of 'teen beat' magazine, and my wife starts asking questions about that britney spears mpeg? it was only ONE TIME! you were out of town! i swear!
god help us if they ever release a sequel to Zero-Wing - the Micro$oft spam machine will bring the internet to it's knees!
i recently discovered the 'mapping' capabilities of homesite and i'm once again hooked. being able to quickly page between code/browse to server-processed code makes testing quick & painless.
i've tried other editors for both windows and x-plat, but none of them let me have the precise code-within-code syntax coloring. i like being able to specify the html/php/css color codes separately, but still have them all work inside the same document. no other editor i've tried manages to do that as well.
the only gripe i would have is that it doesn't handle heredoc syntax exceptionally well, but i haven't seen another editor that does that, either...
it's a dog & pony show to make jim & betty average feel better. and the settlement/security API loophole sounds right, too.
trust me, if anything tumbles out of bill g.'s mouth in public, it's very likely to have been premeditated, and very unlikely to be benevolent.
worms waste bandwidth? what about packet kiddies?
on
Why Worm Writers Stay Free
·
· Score: 2, Insightful
CmdrTaco writes:
The bandwidth wasted by a successful worm is gigantic. To say nothing of time and disk space.
if you've ever been on the receiving end of a round-the-clock DDoS attack from irc packet kiddies, you know about wasted bandwidth. worms seem to be a mere drop on the bucket.
the only difference is - worms are indiscriminant; they walk their way thru IP blocks no matter who owns them. so big ISPs get their panties in a bunch and can use their muscle to bargain for the FBI's time. irc revenge DDoS is usually directed towards EFNet servers at the handful of ISPs who are brave enough to still be operating one.
but, these two issues are related. the machines infected with the worms (which expose massive exploits) are usually taken over as zombies for nefarious bidding (such as the aforementioned DDoS).
perhaps then we can roll in responsibility for the DDoS to the charges against the worm writers? then the cost of bandwidth soars astronomically and can probably justify more significant prosecution. (and hey, maybe get a little bit of 'official' attention to this problem (DDoS) that's been going on for years).
all major credit card numbers follow the same patterns - it would be very easy for google (or any other bot manufacturer), acting benevolently, to write code which recognizes these patterns, excludes them from results and possibly even emails the site admin (automatically? if their META properties are set correctly) to notify them of the security problem.
blow-by-blow logfile of the conversion attempt
on
Third Time Lucky for OPN
·
· Score: 3, Informative
[S+Z] [Sat Nov 10 18:46:01 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Hi all.
We're getting ready for another conversion attempt which we hope will
occur sometime before 06.00 OPN time (UTC). Various problems, including
a serious hash table corruption problem, have been resolved. The test
net is currently up on irc.openprojects.net:9000, but the latest
services database has not yet been converted.
[S+Z] [Sat Nov 10 18:47:15 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] We
believe that various access list conversion problems will be resolved
this time around. We'll keep you posted on status. Thanks for your
patience and thank you for using OPN.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 00:54:42 2001] NOTICE: -dent:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Well,
services is up and running on the testnet-soontoberealnet. PLEASE come
and try the testnet out and report any bugs to #OpenProjects. Any OPN
server port 9000. Now is the time we want to find out....
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 01:57:08 2001] NOTICE: -ddent:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] So that
was an OPN minute, not a real one. Sorry for the delay, we have a few
eleventh hour fixups.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:14:01 2001] NOTICE: -ddent:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] All
engines tuned and ready. Please get ready for launch, and buckle your
seatbelt. The servers will be converted one by one, with a downtime on
each of about 5 seconds. Thanks for using OPN, and have a nice day.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- Welcome to the new
Open Projects network. We hope you enjoy
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- the new quality of
service that should be provided. If you
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- have any questions /
comments / concerns, please email
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice-
support@openprojects.net or drop by #OpenProjects.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice-
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- For problems with the
new network which require staff help,
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- please drop by
#conversion. If you think another user can
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- help you get going, or
you want to help others, please drop
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- by #conversion.users -
you will probably get a faster
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- response, as there
will be more people there hopefully.:)
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice-
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- A note to all founders
of channels and users on channel
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- access lists. You
*must* identify to chanserv at least
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- once every 9 weeks or
your channel will be dropped. There
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- are 1551 channels in
danger of being dropped when channel
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- expiry is re-enabled.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice-
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- Daniel Dent
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- dancer-ircd conversion
project manager
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 03:02:42 2001] NOTICE: -dd:>*- Welcome to the new OPN
network!
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 04:48:27 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Hi all.
The problem with services is being looked at now. Apologies for the
weekend conversion madness, and thanks for using the network. Please
stop by #conversion if you run into any problems. 8)
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 05:06:57 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Hi all.
The problem with services is still being looked at actively. Apologies
again for the weekend conversion madness, and thank you for using OPN.
Expect some problems with access lists, but things look stable enough to
stay up, so we'll have to bull on through. Please stop by #conversion
if you have any problems!
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 13:30:16 2001] NOTICE: -ddent:$*- [GlobalNotice] Due to
problems with virtually every channel on the network, I'm considering
re-converting the services database. The changes will fix founder access
to channels, and nickname last user hosts, but will set the database
back 24 hours. If you have any objections please tell me now.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 13:33:05 2001] NOTICE: -ddent:$*- [Global] Well, there are
certainly lots of objections. I will see about fixing the access
without rolling back the db.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 18:54:34 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Hi all.
We had a brief configuration problem which resulted in users being told
they couldn't connect without a password. It's been resolved.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 19:46:21 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Hi all.
Reminder: There were some limitations in the conversion scripting for
chanserv. If you're experiencing channel problems, drop by #conversion.
Thanks.
[S+Z] [Mon Nov 12 01:16:35 2001] NOTICE: -dent:$*- Hello everyone, just wanted
to let you know that channel founders should now have access to their
channel regardless of their prior situation, it has been fixed for every
channel registered. There may still be some access lists which have not
had the levels updated - if you can't contact the founder we may be able
to help you. Anyway, if there are any outstanding issues, please feel
free to come bug us in #conversion.
[S+Z] [Mon Nov 12 04:48:43 2001] NOTICE: -ElectricElf:$*.openprojects.net-
[GlobalNotice] Good morning to everyone in EST, and hello to everyone
else:) Yes, we are currently back to ircu, instead of our new codebase,
dancer. We are examining our options, but be assured the bug that caused
us to revert back is known and has been fixed. It is currently being
tested right now. Cross your fingers, please:)
Slashdot Mirror
what a phenomenal idea. to take advantage of the idle processing power of machines that sit unused at least 50% of their time. virginia tech is just the beginning.
any college with a several ~25-machine labs can use this app to do supercomputer stuff, AND get the return on investment from normal users being able to utilize these machines during the day.
if slashdot would just leave a link at the top and encourage their readership to legitimately visit sco's website every day (to read the latest news and information about their fine line of products and services) there would be no need for DDoS, it would be a continuous, daily slashdotting without any legal repercussions.
windows typically waits to acknowledge a vulnerability until it's run rampant through the internet. so by the time they finally admit there's a problem, they already have a patch available.
boy, doesn't that make them look good to suit-types who only read Internet World and watch CNN?
nevermind that the suit's slick XP laptop has already been infected & 0wn3d by that 'anna kournikova' jpg.vbs that he's too ashamed to admit he double-clicked on.
i'm more concerned about "in a few months."
the right to peacably assemble applies only to public lands. a store is private property, not a park or sidewalk.
your 'inalienable rights' do not extend so far as to trump the rights of the property owner. the constitution protects _everyone_ not just the group that holds up (small parts of it) as a shield.
proxying port 80 and logging is a good idea for wifi -- why go to prison for your neighbor's kiddie porn habit?
no, i'm not the pervert who's rubbing up against you for kicks...
well, maybe i am. but i'm taking your money, too.
heh.
five minutes ago.
guess when i'll forget (again) that Firebird is a database?
five minutes from now.
enjoy your crybaby 10 minutes while it lasts.
i'm gonna start my own database and call it "your mom" and i can't wait to start writing INSERT statements.
check out www.hightechny.com for info & job listings!
i have residential DSL from verizon in the seattle area.
when i signed up, i could access a number of ports from the outside world, all that was being blocked was netbios, http, ftp. (so, ssh, identd, https, arbitrary > 1024 ports were fine).
about 3 months ago, i noticed i could no longer access my http server running on 8012 or some high, arbitrary port. so, i nmap my host, and see that 8012 is filtered! okay, no sweat. ssh in, switch ports, restart apache. new port doesn't work, nmap again.... new port is being filtered. verizon is actively filtering http connections on arbitrary ports.
now all i'm left with is ssh & identd. sure, tunnel everything thru ssh, but the hassle? i'll just switch ISPs - oh wait, i'll get charged $175 for an 'early termination fee' if i switch before i've had it for a year.
filtering port 80 to stop nimda is great. but there are 2 assumptions to using arbitrary > 1024 ports: 1. viruses are not written to expect standard services on non-standard ports, 2. if i'm smart enough to change the port, i'm smart enough to patch my machines.
can they perhaps make the EULA more technical? i re-read mine, and after a few phone calls this doesn't seem to constitute the sort of 'change of service provided' that would absolve me from the $175 charge to leave... i guess they need that 2 months worth of payments to GUARANTEE i switch when my year is up.
does that mean some guy with an old tv (the kind in a wooden cabinet) can watch my data instead of I Love Lucy reruns?
just wondering what happens now with the Moxi-RealNetworks deal to embed Real codecs in Moxi. perhaps this is just a transparent plot by Microsoft (and Microsoft concerns, i.e. Paul Allen?) to keep their competition out of the PVR/streaming market?
i worked for a large company (read: s&p500 listing) that, as one of their services, did web hosting for small businesses - handling the domain registration and renewal internally. boy, did we start getting angry phone calls when people thought their domains were going to expire (and we weren't going to renew them inclusive to their contract/fee.)
doesn't internic have a policy of conduct for domain name registrars? i seem to remember there being a lot of concern when they broke the netsol monopoly that the 'alternatives' would provide poor customer service and business ethics. who's the pot, and who's the kettle NOW?
geesh, slogging my way through this enormous book - i haven't read about any 'electromagnet protected server room' yet - thanks for giving it away.
if you thought cell phones ringing were bad... just wait until you have to endure homer simpson error noises (d'oh!) and/or britney spears startup sounds. admittedly, britney would sound better than that stupid windows boinging noise (tm)....
it's best to approach design from the perspective of the user (take a step back and put yourself in their shoes)
what do they want? where are they? what are they using?
if you want simple tenets of design,they're commonly summarized:
- speed of download & page rendering
- compatibility - no negative experiences!
- no more than 3 clicks to any piece of information
- don't make it necessary to scroll for essential information
- always give people a 'back' option - don't trap them on 'dead ends'
- no more than 7 +/- 2 choices on any page
- search and/or sitemap for targeted inquiries
very likely more, but that's a good start (and should keep you busydon't search for 'great web design' instead, search for 'usability' and try to find a critique that deconstructs some of the same types of site that you're going to build (e.g. no need to read a detailed critque of yahoo if you're not building a web search/catalog).
the most important thing is to realize the scope of your site/vision before you start. if you get frustrated/bored because you planned something grandiose and it's taking you years to build, then by the time you get around to filling it up with content, your content will suck.
be disciplined - plan out the 'dream site' then whittle that down to what's realistic - step back and make 'release 1.0' and implement the more disparate features/content in future releases. it will help you keep your content up to par with your coding & design, and give people a reason to come back again & again! do you think people read slashdot because they like GREEN and it's easy to navigate? ;)
their profits peaked during the peak of the bubble, just like everyone elses. now their profits are down from the all-time high, just like everyone else's.
kids who aren't earning outrageous salaries at dot coms aren't dropping hundreds of dollars at a time on cd's anymore. deal with it.
if i shoot someone, is the gun maker responsible? if i stab someone, is the company who made the knife at fault?
if i hit somebody with my car, can they sue the D.O.T. for creating the roadway that i was using?
in any other crime, it comes down to intent, not the vehicle/method of committing it. the only reason the software/net are even mentioned here is because it's damn near impossible to prosecute everyone who intends to swap music/files illegally.
what they don't realize is that this is the revolutionary reaction to an oppressive system that has, for too long, served the system as opposed to the users. as the cost to manufacture and distribute music has plummeted, the cost to buy a CD has gone up?!
i'd like to think that if CD's gradually decreased in price since their introduction, and a music CD only set you back $4.99 right now, song-swapping services would have never been born. there would have been no intent to deceive the system, because the system would be fair.
the music industry opened pandora's box, and now they can't close it, and they're pissed.
even the friendliest distros still have a point the user will reach, within a few weeks (or even days) of installing it, where they will need to perform some task made painfully easy by any other modern operating system, but beyond the grasp of 90% of the computer-using population.
i have to admit, even with an abundance of experience on *nix platforms, i've had to refer to howto's more than once since i started using redhat - that is, to get this OS as functional as a mac or a windows environment is for me out-of-the-box. my latest build for my primary development machine is redhat 7.2, kde 2.2.2.
i don't think the average person will have the chutzpah to take on a task that would require them to edit a .conf file, track down & install dependencies for RPMs, or troubleshoot why their soundcard doesn't work.
i think where most of the problems occur are:
these are where i've seen the most difficult challenges - mounting the SMB shares i need to work off of, being able to print to non-lpd network printers (still working on that one) and syncing my palmpilot to any remotely useful calendar (altho i don't think i'll ever get to sync it with my company's shared netscape calendar without a whole lotta patience & twiddling).
this leaves me with times when even i have to reboot into windows - it's just a fact of life. luckily, my time spent in windows is relegated to less than 10% of my day anymore. but linux won't be pervasive as a mainstream desktop operating system until it gets that last 10%, and gets it without having to ever see a command-line.
marketing use?
so now my MSN messenger client at work will be popping-up porn ads every 30 seconds?
repeated spam emails to my hotmail account to buy the video "when kitties attack!"?
free trial issue of 'teen beat' magazine, and my wife starts asking questions about that britney spears mpeg? it was only ONE TIME! you were out of town! i swear!
god help us if they ever release a sequel to Zero-Wing - the Micro$oft spam machine will bring the internet to it's knees!
-mKb
i recently discovered the 'mapping' capabilities of homesite and i'm once again hooked. being able to quickly page between code/browse to server-processed code makes testing quick & painless.
i've tried other editors for both windows and x-plat, but none of them let me have the precise code-within-code syntax coloring. i like being able to specify the html/php/css color codes separately, but still have them all work inside the same document. no other editor i've tried manages to do that as well.
the only gripe i would have is that it doesn't handle heredoc syntax exceptionally well, but i haven't seen another editor that does that, either...
it's a dog & pony show to make jim & betty average feel better. and the settlement/security API loophole sounds right, too.
trust me, if anything tumbles out of bill g.'s mouth in public, it's very likely to have been premeditated, and very unlikely to be benevolent.
CmdrTaco writes:
if you've ever been on the receiving end of a round-the-clock DDoS attack from irc packet kiddies, you know about wasted bandwidth. worms seem to be a mere drop on the bucket.
the only difference is - worms are indiscriminant; they walk their way thru IP blocks no matter who owns them. so big ISPs get their panties in a bunch and can use their muscle to bargain for the FBI's time. irc revenge DDoS is usually directed towards EFNet servers at the handful of ISPs who are brave enough to still be operating one.
but, these two issues are related. the machines infected with the worms (which expose massive exploits) are usually taken over as zombies for nefarious bidding (such as the aforementioned DDoS).
perhaps then we can roll in responsibility for the DDoS to the charges against the worm writers? then the cost of bandwidth soars astronomically and can probably justify more significant prosecution. (and hey, maybe get a little bit of 'official' attention to this problem (DDoS) that's been going on for years).
all major credit card numbers follow the same patterns - it would be very easy for google (or any other bot manufacturer), acting benevolently, to write code which recognizes these patterns, excludes them from results and possibly even emails the site admin (automatically? if their META properties are set correctly) to notify them of the security problem.
[S+Z] [Sat Nov 10 18:46:01 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Hi all.
We're getting ready for another conversion attempt which we hope will
occur sometime before 06.00 OPN time (UTC). Various problems, including
a serious hash table corruption problem, have been resolved. The test
net is currently up on irc.openprojects.net:9000, but the latest
services database has not yet been converted.
[S+Z] [Sat Nov 10 18:47:15 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] We
believe that various access list conversion problems will be resolved
this time around. We'll keep you posted on status. Thanks for your
patience and thank you for using OPN.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 00:54:42 2001] NOTICE: -dent:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Well,
services is up and running on the testnet-soontoberealnet. PLEASE come
and try the testnet out and report any bugs to #OpenProjects. Any OPN
server port 9000. Now is the time we want to find out....
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 01:57:08 2001] NOTICE: -ddent:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] So that
was an OPN minute, not a real one. Sorry for the delay, we have a few
eleventh hour fixups.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:14:01 2001] NOTICE: -ddent:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] All
engines tuned and ready. Please get ready for launch, and buckle your
seatbelt. The servers will be converted one by one, with a downtime on
each of about 5 seconds. Thanks for using OPN, and have a nice day.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- Welcome to the new
Open Projects network. We hope you enjoy
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- the new quality of
service that should be provided. If you
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- have any questions /
comments / concerns, please email
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice-
support@openprojects.net or drop by #OpenProjects.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice-
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- For problems with the
new network which require staff help,
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- please drop by
#conversion. If you think another user can
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- help you get going, or
you want to help others, please drop
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- by #conversion.users -
you will probably get a faster
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- response, as there
will be more people there hopefully.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice-
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- A note to all founders
of channels and users on channel
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- access lists. You
*must* identify to chanserv at least
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- once every 9 weeks or
your channel will be dropped. There
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- are 1551 channels in
danger of being dropped when channel
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- expiry is re-enabled.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice-
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- Daniel Dent
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 02:43:58 2001] NOTICE: -GlobalNotice- dancer-ircd conversion
project manager
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 03:02:42 2001] NOTICE: -dd:>*- Welcome to the new OPN
network!
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 04:48:27 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Hi all.
The problem with services is being looked at now. Apologies for the
weekend conversion madness, and thanks for using the network. Please
stop by #conversion if you run into any problems. 8)
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 05:06:57 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Hi all.
The problem with services is still being looked at actively. Apologies
again for the weekend conversion madness, and thank you for using OPN.
Expect some problems with access lists, but things look stable enough to
stay up, so we'll have to bull on through. Please stop by #conversion
if you have any problems!
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 13:30:16 2001] NOTICE: -ddent:$*- [GlobalNotice] Due to
problems with virtually every channel on the network, I'm considering
re-converting the services database. The changes will fix founder access
to channels, and nickname last user hosts, but will set the database
back 24 hours. If you have any objections please tell me now.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 13:33:05 2001] NOTICE: -ddent:$*- [Global] Well, there are
certainly lots of objections. I will see about fixing the access
without rolling back the db.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 18:54:34 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Hi all.
We had a brief configuration problem which resulted in users being told
they couldn't connect without a password. It's been resolved.
[S+Z] [Sun Nov 11 19:46:21 2001] NOTICE: -lilo:$*.net- [GlobalNotice] Hi all.
Reminder: There were some limitations in the conversion scripting for
chanserv. If you're experiencing channel problems, drop by #conversion.
Thanks.
[S+Z] [Mon Nov 12 01:16:35 2001] NOTICE: -dent:$*- Hello everyone, just wanted
to let you know that channel founders should now have access to their
channel regardless of their prior situation, it has been fixed for every
channel registered. There may still be some access lists which have not
had the levels updated - if you can't contact the founder we may be able
to help you. Anyway, if there are any outstanding issues, please feel
free to come bug us in #conversion.
[S+Z] [Mon Nov 12 04:48:43 2001] NOTICE: -ElectricElf:$*.openprojects.net-
[GlobalNotice] Good morning to everyone in EST, and hello to everyone
else
dancer. We are examining our options, but be assured the bug that caused
us to revert back is known and has been fixed. It is currently being
tested right now. Cross your fingers, please