Mr Handelman, I find (others may feel differently) that your writing style itself (not to denigrate your content, but merely your style (which is of course always a matter of opinion)) shows a certain cruftiness (bringing up images of the very same 'old boys network' that you write about (derogatorily)), or alternatively instead of old style it may bring certain associations (to old programmers) of the LISP (List Processing) programming language (which is known to use many parenthetical constructs).
> Because the technology is optical, it shouldn't really be thought of as an equivalent of CD or DVD
Yes, because this new technology is optical and everyone knows that CD and DVD aren't optical... they are... um... tiny birds pecking bits into stone tablets...
Simple. If you want to make a political/philosophical statement use Ogg Vorbis. If you want no-one to ever bother listening to it use Speex. If you want many people to listen to it use MP3.
> Filesharing networks that use MD5 hashes to verify a file would be severely affected. Companies like Overmind that spam the networks could use the collision to generate junk files with matching hashes. Then when clients start downloading, they'll get pieces of the broken file instead of the real one, causing the whole download to be corrupt.
Not at all. If a legitimate user puts a good file in the network, that file will have a unique MD5 hash. Overmind cannot create a file or pieces of files that match the MD5 hashes of the original file, poisoning it. They did not create the original file, so they cannot create another file that shares the same MD5 hash. If they create the original file, then they could create a second file that shares the same MD5 hash. But why the hell would they bother? If they created the original file, just make it junk and give it a really interesting name and put it on the network. Any jerk can put a bad file in the network with a filename that sounds really interesting. They always could, and they still can. That has nothing to do with MD5 hash collisions.
This new algorithm does not ruin the usefulness of MD5 hashes. The algorithm can generate two documents that have the same MD5 hash, an MD5 collision. But it can NOT generate an MD5 collision starting with an existing document. In practical terms, this means a file that has been signed with an MD5 hash is STILL secure. Nobody can replace the file with a different file that will have the same MD5 hash. However someone can prepare in advance two documents with the same MD5 hash and trick someone into believing one document is really the other. So if you trust the original source (a Linux distro for example) you can be confident you are downloading the original document.
That's not even a particularly difficult evolution to imagine.
1. Creature has a single photosensitive cell. This creature can tell night from day, exposed from shadowed, and can navigate using the sun. Great advantages over it's peers for such a simple mutation.
2. Some descendant of that highly successful creature has a few photosensitive cells. Better sensitivity/accuracy. More redundant in case of damage.
3. Some later descendant can distinguish when some of the cells see light and others dont. This gives direction, and leads to the future ability to create a 'picture' from light.
Future refinements are just improving the ability to focus and use those cells.
Note that there currently exist organisms with abilities at each of these levels of sophistication, lending credence to the idea of a gradually evolved eye.
BTW Humans are not the highest level of evolution with regards to the eyes. Many birds of prey have vision so keen they can see a field mouse from a mile away.
Well, as a eigth grader I needed to draw circles on the screen, in 6502 assembly language. Of course there were no drawing primitives, just setting a bit to turn on a dot. So I had to research how to plot circles. I found lots of trig answers with sines and cosines, but I didn't have sines and cosines in assembly language and as an eigth grader I didn't really understand them. Then I found an old paper describing Bresenham's algorithm that only used addition to draw circles and arcs. Very fast, very easy to impliment, even for an eigth grader.
That was one example out of hundreds. I learned a lot about math, about research, and about logic from computers. Of course now a days kids don't program, they run prepackaged applications. Using Word and playing Reader Rabbit aren't the same as trying to figure out how a computer works.
> What recourse do we have when companies pull a fast one like this?"
You post your story on Slashdot and hundreds or thousands of geeks never shop there again. That will cost them much more than paying for one damaged memory chip.
> there was a virus making the hard disk heads slam against the casing of the drive
Even better (worse), on my old Apple II+ I got a virus that slammed the hard disk head against the casing in a carefully timed pattern to play CHRISTMAS MUSIC from the humming and shaking of my hard drive case!
There's nothing weirder than hearing 'Santa Claus is Coming to Town' coming from your computer and realizing it's not coming from the computer, but from your hard drive which is slowly vibrating it's way off the edge of your desk.
> One would think that Andreessen would understand how to use the right tool for the right job, but apparently not
Andreessen knows exactly how to use the right tool for the job, like a surgeon. His tool is the media, and his job, as a new member of the board at Zend, is to promote PHP.
> MS shareholders should be happier than ever since they just recently received a whopping dividend payment.
As an MS shareholder, I can assure you the whopping dividend was no big deal. I got a check and at the same time my MS stock value dropped by the EXACT same amount of my check. The market adjusted immediately to the payment and loss of cash from MS's war chest.
The only difference is I have to pay tax on the dividend. I don't have to pay tax on the stock until I sell it.
> The answer of course is that, once autonomous vehicles are possible and proven, the door is open to any use. >... military... deliver supplies... building remote pipelines... patrol acreage... guarding perimeters... explore hostile environments... deliver deadly payloads... And there will be a host of applications that we haven't even thought of yet
Yes, but how will this apply to porn? Everyone knows porn drives all new technology.
> Then again, I'm not one of those people who like the "cozy" and "cramped" feeling. My home is very stark
I moved into a new apartment and after living there for 2 months, the landlord came over took a look around and said, 'whats going on? why haven't you moved in yet?'
Slashdot Mirror
Mr Handelman, I find (others may feel differently) that your writing style itself (not to denigrate your content, but merely your style (which is of course always a matter of opinion)) shows a certain cruftiness (bringing up images of the very same 'old boys network' that you write about (derogatorily)), or alternatively instead of old style it may bring certain associations (to old programmers) of the LISP (List Processing) programming language (which is known to use many parenthetical constructs).
> You should always quote a sentence until you reach a [...] comma, otherwise the meaning of the sentence is open to deliberate misinterpretation
Yes, but deliberate misinterpretations are much funnier.
> Because the technology is optical, it shouldn't really be thought of as an equivalent of CD or DVD
... they are... um... tiny birds pecking bits into stone tablets...
Yes, because this new technology is optical and everyone knows that CD and DVD aren't optical
> I want a 100GB recordable disc for under $1.
And a pony. I want a pony too.
Simple.
If you want to make a political/philosophical statement use Ogg Vorbis.
If you want no-one to ever bother listening to it use Speex.
If you want many people to listen to it use MP3.
Could he come up with a more generic and confusion-prone buzzword than 'Type Manager'?!
> Filesharing networks that use MD5 hashes to verify a file would be severely affected. Companies like Overmind that spam the networks could use the collision to generate junk files with matching hashes. Then when clients start downloading, they'll get pieces of the broken file instead of the real one, causing the whole download to be corrupt.
Not at all.
If a legitimate user puts a good file in the network, that file will have a unique MD5 hash. Overmind cannot create a file or pieces of files that match the MD5 hashes of the original file, poisoning it. They did not create the original file, so they cannot create another file that shares the same MD5 hash. If they create the original file, then they could create a second file that shares the same MD5 hash. But why the hell would they bother? If they created the original file, just make it junk and give it a really interesting name and put it on the network.
Any jerk can put a bad file in the network with a filename that sounds really interesting. They always could, and they still can. That has nothing to do with MD5 hash collisions.
This new algorithm does not ruin the usefulness of MD5 hashes. The algorithm can generate two documents that have the same MD5 hash, an MD5 collision. But it can NOT generate an MD5 collision starting with an existing document. In practical terms, this means a file that has been signed with an MD5 hash is STILL secure. Nobody can replace the file with a different file that will have the same MD5 hash. However someone can prepare in advance two documents with the same MD5 hash and trick someone into believing one document is really the other. So if you trust the original source (a Linux distro for example) you can be confident you are downloading the original document.
That's not even a particularly difficult evolution to imagine.
1. Creature has a single photosensitive cell. This creature can tell night from day, exposed from shadowed, and can navigate using the sun. Great advantages over it's peers for such a simple mutation.
2. Some descendant of that highly successful creature has a few photosensitive cells. Better sensitivity/accuracy. More redundant in case of damage.
3. Some later descendant can distinguish when some of the cells see light and others dont. This gives direction, and leads to the future ability to create a 'picture' from light.
Future refinements are just improving the ability to focus and use those cells.
Note that there currently exist organisms with abilities at each of these levels of sophistication, lending credence to the idea of a gradually evolved eye.
BTW Humans are not the highest level of evolution with regards to the eyes. Many birds of prey have vision so keen they can see a field mouse from a mile away.
>I don't want others to know that my nephew James has testicular cancer, and may lose his genitals.
Uncle Cy, I can't believe you just posted that.
Dad's right, you are an asshole.
Don't bothering visiting me in the hospital anymore.
-James
Well, as a eigth grader I needed to draw circles on the screen, in 6502 assembly language. Of course there were no drawing primitives, just setting a bit to turn on a dot. So I had to research how to plot circles. I found lots of trig answers with sines and cosines, but I didn't have sines and cosines in assembly language and as an eigth grader I didn't really understand them. Then I found an old paper describing Bresenham's algorithm that only used addition to draw circles and arcs. Very fast, very easy to impliment, even for an eigth grader.
That was one example out of hundreds. I learned a lot about math, about research, and about logic from computers. Of course now a days kids don't program, they run prepackaged applications. Using Word and playing Reader Rabbit aren't the same as trying to figure out how a computer works.
> What recourse do we have when companies pull a fast one like this?"
You post your story on Slashdot and hundreds or thousands of geeks never shop there again. That will cost them much more than paying for one damaged memory chip.
> there was a virus making the hard disk heads slam against the casing of the drive
Even better (worse), on my old Apple II+ I got a virus that slammed the hard disk head against the casing in a carefully timed pattern to play CHRISTMAS MUSIC from the humming and shaking of my hard drive case!
There's nothing weirder than hearing 'Santa Claus is Coming to Town' coming from your computer and realizing it's not coming from the computer, but from your hard drive which is slowly vibrating it's way off the edge of your desk.
> and then suddenly would be eyeballing another woman in the computer lab
I think I've found the problem...
> One would think that Andreessen would understand how to use the right tool for the right job, but apparently not
Andreessen knows exactly how to use the right tool for the job, like a surgeon. His tool is the media, and his job, as a new member of the board at Zend, is to promote PHP.
> like calling water bad because you can drown in it
The dangers you alluded to are greatly underappreciated. See this page for more on the hidden scourge of the 21st century!
> MS shareholders should be happier than ever since they just recently received a whopping dividend payment.
As an MS shareholder, I can assure you the whopping dividend was no big deal. I got a check and at the same time my MS stock value dropped by the EXACT same amount of my check.
The market adjusted immediately to the payment and loss of cash from MS's war chest.
The only difference is I have to pay tax on the dividend. I don't have to pay tax on the stock until I sell it.
> various organizations and universities own the plans to ME?
> TAHT'S WHY I'M PORTING MYSELF TO A SILICON BASED LIFE FORM! WHO'S WITH ME?
I, for one, welcome our new silicon based patent-unencumbered overlords!
Do these mock attacks include agents dressed as multi-tentacled demons attempting to rape the women?
> The answer of course is that, once autonomous vehicles are possible and proven, the door is open to any use. ... military ... deliver supplies ... building remote pipelines ... patrol acreage ... guarding perimeters ... explore hostile environments ... deliver deadly payloads ... And there will be a host of applications that we haven't even thought of yet
>
Yes, but how will this apply to porn?
Everyone knows porn drives all new technology.
> Which brings up the point, do you really WANT to live 300 years?
Same argument, 100 years ago:
Which brings up the point, do you really WANT to live 50 years?
Is it too late to get your old job back?
All these criticisms...
Sometimes I doubt your commitment to Sparkle Interactive Design!
>> My wife used the PS2, and then I came home and fixed it.
>It's not nice to refer to your wife as "it".
Boy, the part that bothered me was getting his wife fixed. You could always use condoms, you know.
> Then again, I'm not one of those people who like the "cozy" and "cramped" feeling. My home is very stark
I moved into a new apartment and after living there for 2 months, the landlord came over took a look around and said, 'whats going on? why haven't you moved in yet?'
heh.