Slashdot Mirror


User: Strider-

Strider-'s activity in the archive.

Stories
0
Comments
1,044
First seen
Last seen
Profile
(view on slashdot.org)

Comments · 1,044

  1. Re:Alternate headline on Chinese Tech Companies Post Men-Only Job Listings, Report Finds (theverge.com) · · Score: 2

    Cherish means "protect and care for (someone) lovingly", "hold (something) dear", or "keep (a hope or ambition) in one's mind".

    It's entirely possible to care deeply for someone or something, while recognizing they have flaws, and working to improve them precisely because you do care/cherish them. It's the dichotomy of being human, no one is perfect, everyone has flaws. All we can do is to seek to improve ourselves and help others improve.

  2. Is the convention of putting in page numbers as -. It completely breaks the ability to quickly find a page number if it's in dead-tree, or by grabbing the scroll bar and scrubbing if electronic.

    If you tell me the page of interest is on page 8-2, that really doesn't tell me how far it is into the document, but if you tell me it's on page 253, I can quickly scan through until I find it.

    And yes, I know that hyperlinks and search functions are a thing, but I don't care... Get off my lawn!

  3. Re:Security / Jamming on Hacking a Satellite is Surprisingly Easy (theoutline.com) · · Score: 1

    and the power subsystems turned off.

    Not just turned off, but permanently disabled, typically by deliberately blowing fuses. There is no coming back from it.

  4. Re: I could find no evidence for the claim about W on Hacking a Satellite is Surprisingly Easy (theoutline.com) · · Score: 2

    The Intelsat 708 launch failure occurred in 1996. Typical lifespan for a geostationary satellite is approximately 15 years, before they're moved to a graveyard orbit and rendered inert.

    For the most part, the TT&C (Tracking Telemetry and Control) codes for managing the spacecraft themselves has always been a closely guarded secret, and one fo the things that is subject to ITAR controls, due to the cryptography involved.

    That said, there have been at least one incident where sabotage of the satellite was suspected, but this occurred during a rather bitter labour dispute between the satellite operator and their tracking and monitoring staff.

  5. Re:I could find no evidence for the claim about Wi on Hacking a Satellite is Surprisingly Easy (theoutline.com) · · Score: 2

    The actual command/control of the spacecraft themselves is protected by reasonably heavy Cryptography. When a Long March rocket failed in China while launching Intelsat 708, Intelsat failed to recover the cryptographic equipment from the wreckage, despite significant risks taken by their crew.

  6. Re:Security / Jamming on Hacking a Satellite is Surprisingly Easy (theoutline.com) · · Score: 5, Informative

    Naw, the vast majority of commercial communications satellites are still dumb bent-pipe repeaters. There's no security on them, save for nulling antennas and similar techniques.

    I used to work for a company that built flyaway VSAT systems, so I know this stuff pretty intimately. A number of years ago, SES Americom (one of the big operators in North America) called me up for help in locating a wildcat transmitter that was causing interference with one of their birds. They called us because they knew we built stable, small aperture uplink terminals that could be a useful reference. Basically they had me transmit a known narrow-band signal at high power, then used that and my sidelobes as a reference to find the offender. After a weekend of doing doppler locating, they tracked it down to about a 1 x 2 mile ellipse, east of Detroit. Their suspicion was that it was a HughesNet terminal, probably on a gas station, that had gone bad.

  7. Re:Too much whining on Are Widescreen Laptops Dumb? (theverge.com) · · Score: 2

    Give me a modern version of the late 2011/early 2012 Macbook pro, with the high resolution screen and a reasonable compliment of ports, and I'd buy one in a heartbeat. I know that will never happen, so I keep on trucking with my 7 year old laptop that still meets my needs.

  8. Re:But... on Engineers Are Leaving America For Canada (bloomberg.com) · · Score: 1

    Well, depending on the situation we have either a Governor General or the queen. The GG is "viceregal in absentia" so they (as an office) cease to exist when the monarch is present.

  9. Re:Well known for ages now on Loud Sound From Fire Alarm System Shuts Down Nasdaq's Scandinavian Data Center (bleepingcomputer.com) · · Score: 3, Insightful

    For most common materials to burn, you need an oxygen content of 12% or higher. On the other hand, a human can maintain consciousness down to something like 5%. As such, inerting systems are designed to drop the oxygen content to something like 8%. Too low for combustion to take place, but high enough not to kill the occupants. Nitrogen type inerting systems will actually often include a small amount of CO2 in the gas mix; this causes any remaining occupants to breath harder, thus allowing them to work better in a low oxygen atmosphere.

    reference: I worked on a small power plant with a two compartment FM-200 fire suppression system. One of the things that the design Engineers needed was an accurate measurement of the room volume so that they could calibrate the amount of agent in the tanks appropriately. However, just in case, before an agent dump there is a 30 second siren and several large "Cancel dump" mushroom switches.

  10. Re: pulsars for positioning is idea with old roots on NASA's Got a Plan For a 'Galactic Positioning System' To Save Astronauts Lost in Space (space.com) · · Score: 1

    I dunno, they might ask us to send more Chuck Barry.

  11. Re:Talk about putting the cart before the horse! on NASA's Got a Plan For a 'Galactic Positioning System' To Save Astronauts Lost in Space (space.com) · · Score: 1

    The Apollo missions included a periscope and modified sextant to allow the astronauts to navigate based on sightings from various stars. It was critically important to ensure the craft was where they thought it was.

  12. Re:Know this full well on What It's Like To Live in America Without Broadband Internet (vice.com) · · Score: 1

    It's the difference between throughput and transfer. Our link is a private link, initially setup for phone service. We can push as much data through it as we like. We're transferring a good 20 gigabytes a day. Viasat 2 is obviously much quicker, but once you go beyond 150Gigabytes in a month, you wind up going to the back of the queue.

    One of the basic truths of satellite communications is that it costs roughly $3/kbps/mo to operate a network. Doesn't matter whether it's C-Band, Ku-Band, or Ka-Band (like ViaSat). That's just what it costs to operate the network, the spacecraft, and so forth. You can either buy a small amount of it, like we do, and use it continuously, or sell a large chunk and then ensure that an individual user doesn't use all of it. Either way, that 20 Gigabytes of transfer costs the same. In our case, with faster service, we'd probably blow the 150 gig priority cap within a couple of days.

  13. Re:Misplaced priorities, solving nonexistent... on One Laptop Per Child's $100 Laptop Was Going To Change the World -- Then it All Went Wrong (theverge.com) · · Score: 2

    Drill a well first. Engage one of the available nutrition providers. Then put a roof on the school. Then you can teach.

    It's not sexy, but one of the most ignored issues in developing countries isn't obtaining clean water (there are plenty of charities that will drill wells), it's dealing with the other end of the process. Clean water only helps so much when you don't have a safe/sanitary way to poop and otherwise relieve yourself. Adequate outhouses and other forms of sanitation are a critical need.

  14. Re:Know this full well on What It's Like To Live in America Without Broadband Internet (vice.com) · · Score: 2

    Lead acid can still be slowly charged in the freezing of winter, lithium ion cannot. One repeater node will run less than $1.5k, not $400k.

    I've built a couple of these before, in areas with less snow. Even on a shoestring budget, we still spent $20k on the power system alone, and it has to be supplemented by generator runs in the winter. Just powering 20W continuously requires a far larger battery bank than you'd think, especially if you want it to be able to run for at least a week with no generating capacity. When you're doing something that is safety critical, you don't dick around.

    If you get caught installing unpermitted equipment on Federal land, that's uh... well, not good. We want to maintain our good relationship with the Forest Service and the National Parks Service.

  15. Re:Know this full well on What It's Like To Live in America Without Broadband Internet (vice.com) · · Score: 1

    I don't actually live in the area, but I'm the tech that operates the network that services Stehekin and Holden.

    The funny part is that otherwise, Chelan County provides absolutely excellent service to most of the population. During the 2015 Wolverine fire, I was evacuated from Holden and spent a fair amount of time in the community. The PUD fiber, if you're in an area that can get it, is absolutely phenomenal. Unfortunately, we can't get it up at 25 mile creek (where Holden's downlake properties are located), and are stuck to a single Frontier DSL connection there.

  16. Know this full well on What It's Like To Live in America Without Broadband Internet (vice.com) · · Score: 5, Informative

    I operate the internet connections to two remote communities in Washington State. In the end, I have between 80 and 100 people connected via a 3.3Mbps/900kbps satellite link. Collectively, they push between 20 and 30 GiB a day through the link. The only thing that makes it usable is the extremely aggressive QoS I have on the link, ensuring everyone gets a fair kick at the can.

    So why Satellite? In the case of these two communities, it's the only viable option. They are both in extremely rugged terrain, surrounded either by National Park or federal wilderness area. The nearest cellular tower is probably 50 miles and 2 or 3 valleys away, the nearest telephone pole about the same. It would be theoretically possible to lay a submarine fiber cable up the lake, but the lake is 1500' deep making a cable laying effort comperable to a short oceanic cable run. And there's no way the costs would be recouped from under 200 residents.

    I once plotted out what it would take to link out via fixed wireless, and it would require two self-powered repeater sites, in areas that easily receive 400" of snow a winter. The added bonus is that one of these repeaters would have to be located on a ridge in the federal wilderness. Making this happen would literally require an act of congress to approve, and given how dysfunctional congress is... Plus the whole system would probably cost about $400k to build, again not something that's going to be recouped from the small number of users.

    So, in the end, we pay our satellite fees. Those who want faster service arrange their own links via ViaSat or similar, and we continue on. If SpaceX ever gets StarLink off the ground, that could easily be a good option. However, I'd love to see how their flat Ku-Band antennas will work in areas that get significant snowfall, and have a limited view of the sky due to rugged terrain.

  17. Re:They are all false on T-Mobile To Pay $40 Million Over False Ring Tones on Rural US Calls (reuters.com) · · Score: 1

    Exactly this. Years ago, I was setting up a VOIP system over Satellite, so I wound up doing a lot of packet and event tracing between our SS7 trunk, the H.323 signalling, and listening to the phones.

    My users actually complained of the dead air when they initially dialed, as the satellite adds just over 550ms round-trip time to the call setup. Never mind the time to locate a cellular phone at the other end of the call.

    When we dial out our Iridium satellite backup phone, it generates pips while it attempts to make the connection to the PSTN. Once it makes the connection, it generates standard North American dialing sounds (though I presume those are generated locally, as they don't sound like they've been through AMBE).

  18. Re:Better alternative on Demand For Batteries Is Shrinking, Yet Prices Keep On Going and Going ... Up (wsj.com) · · Score: 1

    There are always going to be niche applications where the longer shelf life of good quality alkaline batteries is needed. I own a sailboat, and the emergency kit I've put together for it has a couple of battery powered devices (signal light/flashlight, emergency battery packs for my handheld radio). To ensure this equipment stays reliable, I basically have 3 sets of AA batteries stored in the kit. Basically every couple of years, I swap out the oldest set of AAs for a new set, then use the old ones for other purposes (clocks, remotes, keyboards, etc...).

    For better or worse, there isn't really a rechargeable technology that can handle this kind of service cycle.

  19. Re:Ripe for disruption on Demand For Batteries Is Shrinking, Yet Prices Keep On Going and Going ... Up (wsj.com) · · Score: 1

    If only NiMH had the proper voltage - it has a lower voltage - 1.2v vs. 1.5v, so the more cells the device takes, the greater the undervoltage. It does work decently for low-power devices that only take 1 or 2 batteries such as clocks and TV remotes, but let's not kid ourselves.

    It all depends on the device being powered. NiMH have significantly lower internal resistance than typical Alkalines, so the device can source significantly more current from it. A good example of this is the Canon external flashes. They're setup to use 4 AA batteries. If you run them with NiMH, they can draw significantly more current off the batteries while recharging the tank circuit. This means that it cycles much more quickly than if you had used the (higher voltage) Alkaline AAs.

    For anything that is powered by a switchmode converter, if designed correctly, the slightly lower voltage isn't that big of a deal.

  20. Re:Sail and nuclear ? on Carbon Dioxide From Ships at Sea To Be Regulated For First Time (theguardian.com) · · Score: 1

    Nuclear power on a big ship would make sense if the cheap oil they currently burn is outlawed; really there's no other viable alternative. Sails on a big ship won't do anything, nor will batteries or solar panels.

    Depends on the size of the sail(s) and how they're operated. You're right, the traditional thought of a sailing ship with masts and fore/aft or square rigged sails near the surface is a non-starter when it comes to commercial shipping. Too labour intensive, and not enough power.

    The proposed wind power techniques for large vessels is to fly (very) large kites/parachutes at a significant altitude. These would be computer controlled/winch operated, and wouldn't require a significant crew to deploy, stow, or operate. They would also be operating at a higher altitude where the wind is more consistent.

  21. Re:Could have been stricter on Carbon Dioxide From Ships at Sea To Be Regulated For First Time (theguardian.com) · · Score: 1

    A commercial vessel also typically only runs for 20 to 25 years before being sent to the breakers where it's cut up and recycled by 3rd world workers in horrendous conditions.

  22. Re: 2 Senators part of checks and balances, compro on Investor Tim Draper Pushes Ballot Measure Splitting California Into 3 States (sfgate.com) · · Score: 0

    States aren't people, they should have no say. The only thing that matters is the citizenry.

  23. Re:2 Senators part of checks and balances, comprom on Investor Tim Draper Pushes Ballot Measure Splitting California Into 3 States (sfgate.com) · · Score: 0

    Try reading past the first line. It does wonders for insight, give it a try.

    Yes, it's all reinforcing the concept that the opinion of a person in a small state is more valuable than that of an individual in a large state.

  24. Re:2 Senators part of checks and balances, comprom on Investor Tim Draper Pushes Ballot Measure Splitting California Into 3 States (sfgate.com) · · Score: -1, Troll

    Small states supposed to have disproportionate power.

    So some people are more equal than others. Seems fair.

  25. Re: Free Money on SpaceX Can't Broadcast Earth Images Because of a Murky License (cnet.com) · · Score: 5, Informative

    The License itself is free. In this situation, NOAA is stuck between a rock and a hard place. The legislation as written started that all imaging done From orbit by private operators must be licenced. It doesn't make any exceptions for low resolution cameras, or engineering cameras that are only temporarily in orbit. The NOAA office simply can not issue a waiver to SpaceX as there is no provision in the relevant law that would permit them to do so.

    The only real solution would be for congress to pass new legislation to allow exemptions and so forth, set minimum resolution threshold or whatever. But given how disfunctional congress is these days, I don't think we'll see it for a while.