A small hand-held GPS will be both useful and fun. It can help you track your progress (or lack of it) across the country and has great geek value too.
If you have one with a serial port, you can pre-program your route, or track your position in real time on laptop-based maps.
If you hike in strange new places, a hand-held GPS can get you back to your vehicle (often by guiding you back along the exact path you followed earlier if you want).
"Seriously, I used TSO for years. Even after VM came along, it was mostly for office or network use. The serious engineering used batch simulation jobs on TSO, and our interactive graphics applications ran on MVS. (though not TSO)
Today, engineering happens on Unix, and office stuff on Windows. Kind of like the old MVS/VM roles, except that Windows doesn't carry the network role."
I guess it's a matter of perspective... To me, MVS was the 'office' OS. It was object-code only and ran all the boring financial applications.
VM, on the other hand, came with *source*, and was the lean/mean OS of choice for universities and small companies who wanted to do development (where there is value in 'virtual machines'!).
I've been asking similar questions for a while now. Many people are willing to say that it's easy to sniff wireless packets, and it's a security risk, etc., etc.
On the other hand, I have yet to discover, or see described, a mechanism for even getting the SSID of a network. I believe that the SSID or some algorithm using the SSID is used to seed the sequencer for spread-spectrum. If I can't track the sequencer, I can't even get the packets I need to hack... Certainly there are social ways of getting that SSID, but how are you going to sniff my packets from the parking lot if you don't know it?
"An "electronic Post-It note" would be more accurate."
I'm sorry, this indicates a lack of understanding of the shared nature of the computers in that day. I have email dating back to ~1983. The fact that some of it never left the machine it was written on is unimportant. Several *hundred* people used that machine at the same time.
Is mail from one unix user to another not email? I think it is.
A.
Re:900Mhz / 2.4Ghz IP networks and security.
on
Open Networking
·
· Score: 1
I'm sorry, but I cannot buy this. These devices use spread-spectrum technology: they don't stay on any channel but for some number of microseconds. they then shift to a another channel, and that next channel is selected based on an algorithm which is seeded by the SSID. You can't just brute force it that easily.
I think I'm still looking for someone who can *demonstrate* that it is easy, instead of just claiming that it's so.
A.
Re:900Mhz / 2.4Ghz IP networks and security.
on
Open Networking
·
· Score: 2
Ok, I have a question. You say that for 'a few hundred bucks' I can buy a card that will allow me to tap into RF networks. Your link points to what appears to be a standard RF lan card.
How do you determine the SSID of the signal you want to tap (without a $15,000 box)?
Forgive me for playing the devil's advocate here, but people are fond of pointing out how easy it is to sniff wireless networks, but I've yet to see one person say 'I have done it and here is how'. One person said he sniffed his own network - but with a card set up for that net - well duh, no kidding.
So, can you (or anyone) just arbitrarily sniff on an unencrypted RF network without knowing anything about the network (like the SSID, for instance)? If so, how?
I bet it has a lot more to do with how you're cocking your head, with the quality of the sound reception, etc., than it does with anything that the phone itself is emitting.
/
No... I too get a headache while using a cell phone after 5 minutes or so. I switch sides often, as the sensation is not pleasant. It has nothing to do with 'holding my head a certain way', etc. It doesn't last, and I'm fine .
Interestingly, I also get a headache at the Museum of Science Theater of Electricity display.
I agree that discussions are something that/. has that the New York Times does not. On the other hand there must also be a 'News' component of 'News for Nerds'.
Certainly,/.'s value is what it has that other web sites don't. True 'news' is an important piece of the puzzle.
I'd like to see all new movie multi-plexes built with a temptest-proof (ie: RF-proof) wire cage around every theater. If you *elect* to go in, you should be aware that your cell phone, your pager, and any other obnoxious and rude device you may have, just *won't work*.
If you don't like it, I hope you choose not to patronize these places - I expect business will pick up as a result!
The most memorable mainframe music that I can remember was an IBM 1403 printer (a box four feet high, five feet long, and three feet deep!) playing 'Anchors Away'... This was using the same type of print-chain technology described earlier.
The most notable aspect of the 1403 printer was that when it ran out of paper it would use a screw-drive mechanism to crank open it's entire top and part of the front face to indicate that it needed to be 'fed'. (and usually dumping whatever you left on top of it to the floor (coffee, etc.).
I'd like to see an IM client that actually used the IRC protocol and signed onto an IRC server. It wouldn't need to use the channels, just be signed on and visible.
If we had such a client, we could run our own IM network (public ones, and private ones) and let the proprietary versions die a slow death.
Indeed, the first Bitnet chat server was written in the early '80's, in EXEC2, before Rexx was available. It was 576 lines of the ugliest ampersand-ridden code that you ever saw. It ran on a VM/CMS system in Maine in late '82 / early '83. Originally called 'Converse', it was rewritten in Rexx and called 'Chat' sometime later.
Not long after, a group at PSU wrote a another version by the same name (with permission!). That server was better known, and soon brought the 9600 baud lines we were using to their knees.
Soon after *that*, came Relay, the first distributed chat system. The phone lines cooled down and all was well in the world.
When the Internet started to become more generally available, we acquired IRC (The Internet Relay Chat), I think that history is well known now.
Don't ask me why, but the original Chat used '*' as the escape character. The signon greeting looked like this:
This is CONVERSE, Version 1.0 Please sign on to join the conference, or type '*?'.
Pine may not be everywhere, but I can telnet/ssh into my machine from almost anywhere that I could use a web-based mail service - and I prefer my mail to be kept where only I can see it, thanks.
OS/390 is IBM's new name for MVS, which is a huge (dare I say bloated) OS for System/390 hardware.
VM (which is what the article mentions) is a relatively lean (posix!) OS used for decades Universities and smart companies.
VM is the only OS (that I know of) that can virtualize itself completely (you can run VM in a virtual machine under VM (and in that VM you can run a third-level copy of VM (and...))).
I have five machines in the house, two unix engines and three Win9x machines. The unix boxes are where my applications 'live', the Win9x machines are X-terminals and occasionally SMB clients.
The unix machines are backed up regularly. The Win9x machines have nothing on them worth keeping (even my Netscape bookmark file is shared via SMB).
Alrescha (old mainframe guy who never understood what people see in these new-fangled PeeCees..:-)
Slashdot Mirror
A small hand-held GPS will be both useful and fun. It can help you track your progress (or lack of it) across the country and has great geek value too.
If you have one with a serial port, you can pre-program your route, or track your position in real time on laptop-based maps.
If you hike in strange new places, a hand-held GPS can get you back to your vehicle (often by guiding you back along the exact path you followed earlier if you want).
I'm fond of the Garmin 12XL, under $200.
A.
"ummm... I thought that they could demand passwords in the USA already?
It's called a subpoena, and if that doesn't work it's called contempt of court."
How does the 5th amendment apply to this?
(The 5th amendment says that you can't be compelled to testify against yourself in a criminal proceeding)
A.
"I wound't be to worried about satlights tracking my everymove."
Reality check. Satellites can't track you now, unless you are carrying a radio transmitter (an emergency locator beacon, for instance).
I still don't want one under MY skin...
A.
James White wrote about this problem in 1964.
I could easily believe that someone wrote about the problem before that.
Deadly Litter (c) 1964 by James White,
ISBN 0-345-29640-0
A.
"IM is not a new market.
... (circa 197x :-)
Am I the only one who's been doing IM since Powwow came out?"
Ha! Newbie!
how about #CP MSG userid
A.
"Seriously, I used TSO for years. Even after VM came along, it was mostly for office or network use. The serious engineering used batch simulation jobs on TSO, and our interactive graphics applications ran on MVS. (though not TSO)
Today, engineering happens on Unix, and office stuff on Windows. Kind of like the old MVS/VM roles, except that Windows doesn't carry the network role."
I guess it's a matter of perspective... To me, MVS was the 'office' OS. It was object-code only and ran all the boring financial applications.
VM, on the other hand, came with *source*, and was the lean/mean OS of choice for universities and small companies who wanted to do development (where there is value in 'virtual machines'!).
A.
I've been asking similar questions for a while now. Many people are willing to say that it's easy to sniff wireless packets, and it's a security risk, etc., etc.
On the other hand, I have yet to discover, or see described, a mechanism for even getting the SSID of a network. I believe that the SSID or some algorithm using the SSID is used to seed the sequencer for spread-spectrum. If I can't track the sequencer, I can't even get the packets I need to hack... Certainly there are social ways of getting that SSID, but how are you going to sniff my packets from the parking lot if you don't know it?
A.
"And tears well up in my eyes... it's like the first time I heard Yes play The Revealing Science of God live..."
(defying the wrath of the gods)
Me too.
A.
"An "electronic Post-It note" would be more accurate."
I'm sorry, this indicates a lack of understanding of the shared nature of the computers in that day. I have email dating back to ~1983. The fact that some of it never left the machine it was written on is unimportant. Several *hundred* people used that machine at the same time.
Is mail from one unix user to another not email? I think it is.
A.
I'm sorry, but I cannot buy this. These devices use spread-spectrum technology: they don't stay on any channel but for some number of microseconds. they then shift to a another channel, and that next channel is selected based on an algorithm which is seeded by the SSID. You can't just brute force it that easily.
I think I'm still looking for someone who can *demonstrate* that it is easy, instead of just claiming that it's so.
A.
Ok, I have a question. You say that for 'a few hundred bucks' I can buy a card that will allow me to tap into RF networks. Your link points to what appears to be a standard RF lan card.
How do you determine the SSID of the signal you want to tap (without a $15,000 box)?
Forgive me for playing the devil's advocate here, but people are fond of pointing out how easy it is to sniff wireless networks, but I've yet to see one person say 'I have done it and here is how'. One person said he sniffed his own network - but with a card set up for that net - well duh, no kidding.
So, can you (or anyone) just arbitrarily sniff on an unencrypted RF network without knowing anything about the network (like the SSID, for instance)? If so, how?
Inquiring minds...
A.
I bet it has a lot more to do with how you're cocking your head, with the quality of the sound reception, etc., than it does with anything that the phone itself is emitting.
/
No... I too get a headache while using a cell phone after 5 minutes or so. I switch sides often, as the sensation is not pleasant. It has nothing to do with 'holding my head a certain way', etc. It doesn't last, and I'm fine .
Interestingly, I also get a headache at the Museum of Science Theater of Electricity display.
"No cookie.
To access this site your browser must be accepting cookies."
I agree that discussions are something that /. has that the New York Times does not. On the other hand there must also be a 'News' component of 'News for Nerds'.
/.'s value is what it has that other web sites don't. True 'news' is an important piece of the puzzle.
Certainly,
A.
I'd like to see all new movie multi-plexes built with a temptest-proof (ie: RF-proof) wire cage around every theater. If you *elect* to go in, you should be aware that your cell phone, your pager, and any other obnoxious and rude device you may have, just *won't work*.
If you don't like it, I hope you choose not to patronize these places - I expect business will pick up as a result!
A.
The most memorable mainframe music that I can remember was an IBM 1403 printer (a box four feet high, five feet long, and three feet deep!) playing 'Anchors Away'... This was using the same type of print-chain technology described earlier.
The most notable aspect of the 1403 printer was that when it ran out of paper it would use a screw-drive mechanism to crank open it's entire top and part of the front face to indicate that it needed to be 'fed'. (and usually dumping whatever you left on top of it to the floor (coffee, etc.).
A.
I'd like to see an IM client that actually used the IRC protocol and signed onto an IRC server. It wouldn't need to use the channels, just be signed on and visible.
If we had such a client, we could run our own IM network (public ones, and private ones) and let the proprietary versions die a slow death.
A.
Indeed, the first Bitnet chat server was written in the early '80's, in EXEC2, before Rexx was available. It was 576 lines of the ugliest ampersand-ridden code that you ever saw. It ran on a VM/CMS system in Maine in late '82 / early '83. Originally called 'Converse', it was rewritten in Rexx and called 'Chat' sometime later.
Not long after, a group at PSU wrote a another version by the same name (with permission!). That server was better known, and soon brought the 9600 baud lines we were using to their knees.
Soon after *that*, came Relay, the first distributed chat system. The phone lines cooled down and all was well in the world.
When the Internet started to become more generally available, we acquired IRC (The Internet Relay Chat), I think that history is well known now.
Don't ask me why, but the original Chat used '*' as the escape character. The signon greeting looked like this:
This is CONVERSE, Version 1.0
Please sign on to join the
conference, or type '*?'.
Ahh, memories...
A.
I think Rexx is pretty nice. Written by humans for humans, nicely readable 6 months after you wrote it, nice string handling, etc. etc.
Oh, it's free for Linux (from IBM even). It can be found here:
http://www-4.ibm.com/software/ad/obj-rexx/
Really, I'm a baby-boomer, and this man is old enough to be my grandfather.
By why mention it at all? We dislike ageism so much when we are young, why are we so quick to apply it?
Pine may not be everywhere, but I can telnet/ssh into my machine from almost anywhere that I could use a web-based mail service - and I prefer my mail to be kept where only I can see it, thanks.
A.
Ummnn.. OS/390 *isn't* VM...
OS/390 is IBM's new name for MVS, which is a huge (dare I say bloated) OS for System/390 hardware.
VM (which is what the article mentions) is a relatively lean (posix!) OS used for decades Universities and smart companies.
VM is the only OS (that I know of) that can virtualize itself completely (you can run VM in a virtual machine under VM (and in that VM you can run a third-level copy of VM (and...))).
Me
I have five machines in the house, two unix engines and three Win9x machines. The unix boxes are where my applications 'live', the Win9x machines are X-terminals and occasionally SMB clients.
:-)
The unix machines are backed up regularly. The Win9x machines have nothing on them worth keeping (even my Netscape bookmark file is shared via SMB).
Alrescha
(old mainframe guy who never understood what people see in these new-fangled PeeCees..
A GPS-based reminder system? Tim, your a genius!
You *answer* your phone? :-)