My wife and I lost our AT&T service in Hyannis, MA on Christmas morning, and it's been sporadic ever since. When I called 12/26, the CSR mentioned the entire New England region had known issues with phone service, and they were working on it. This has been going on for 4+ days now with no updates... there are a bunch of threads going on AT&T's customer support forums with reports of others nationwide without coverage.
I've found Lulu to have reasonable prices for printing and shipping, and the quality of the finished product is excellent. I've used it a number of times for printing hard copies of various manuals, IBM Redbooks, etc.
Quality keyboard... $30 Fine-grit sandpaper... $2 Label proclaiming übergeek status to all... $0.25 Getting morons to spend $80 for 5 minutes of labor... priceless.
Yes, S.M.A.R.T. is a nice monitoring tool. But an accelerometer that parks the drive heads when motion is detected is an active damage prevention tool.
I downloaded the newly released Ubuntu 5.04 this morning. Installation took about 30 minutes, and here's what I have:
Boots off CD and installs like it should? Check. Detects all hardware devices during the installation, even the wireless card? Check. Sound works? Check. Video works? Check minus (see below). Power management works, meaning sleep and suspend to disk (hibernate) work flawlessly and CPU speed throttles correctly? Check. Modem works? Who cares! Bluetooth works? Probably, but I don't have any BT devices to check it with. IBM's Active Protection System works to protect the hard drive? Nope. All function buttons for sleep, suspend, brightness, volume, etc. work? Yup.
So, I'm sitting here with a notebook that by current standards is running pretty darn good under Ubuntu, with a very small amount of manual configuration necessary to get this far. What's holding Linux back from running as nicely as Windows on the ThinkPad?
The video is the biggest problem. Ubuntu installs DRI drivers by default, which work pretty well, but lack 3D acceleration support. I can install the ATI binary drivers with a few simple commands, but they break suspend/resume functionality, which is arguably more important for most notebook users. I also won't be able to use the nifty ThinkVantage features on my expensive ThinkPad, like the Active Protection system.
So notebook users have a dilemma: do the Right Thing and handicap your system by installing Linux, or stick with the factory installation of Windows where everything Just Works. The never-ending battle of Morality vs. Functionality rages on.
(For those with the same/similar ThinkPad, see my quickly written guide for more detail.)
How hard is it to steal/forge/obscure a license plate? It's one additional level of security. Is it perfect? Never will be.
By the way, since when would they get rid of cameras? New crime fighting techniques don't necessarily mean the old ones get thrown out the window. Last time I checked, plenty of cases are still solved using old-fashioned detective work, despite the presence of loads of new-fangled technology.
The rules say that after successfully hacking the server, you must:
Take the server off the net (to avoid conflict). You can do this by stopping network service.
One would hope that any hacker proficient enough to break into this system would have enough prowess to know how to disable the network, but thanks for the tip.
PPC != Apple alone. While few Apple owners have switched from OS X to Linux, Linux is extremely popular with the other big PPC vendor: IBM. A majority of IBM's servers are PPC architecture. As it is, IBM has an entire division devoted to Linux on POWER. Also, there are quite a few other distributions that run on the PPC architecture (ie: RedHat, SuSE), and the platform seems to be gaining more and more popularity. So much for this being a "niche-within-a-niche".
Being one of those unfortunate folks with less than 4GB RAM in their laptop, I won't be able to harness the performance offered by running Knoppix from a ramdisk with the toram cheat code.
A moment of silence for the coming demise of the ThinkPad. Now the wait for the PowerBook G5 with "IBM Inside(TM)"... so long as they get rid of the craptacular touchpad and replace it with a trackpoint!
IBM Unveils First Biometric ThinkPad, Offering Security at Your Fingertips
IBM Integrates Fingerprint Reader with Embedded Security Subsystem; Tougher ThinkVantage Technology Strengthens IBM Security Architecture
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. -- Oct. 4, 2004 -- IBM is taking computing security and data protection to the next level today with the introduction of the first ThinkPad with an integrated fingerprint reader. ThinkPad, already the industry's most secure notebook PC (1), now features a model that delivers simplified access to password-protected personal and financial information, web sites, documents and e-mail while offering an unmatched level of data protection through its new biometric capability and embedded security subsystem.
"Today we raised the bar on security for the entire PC industry," said Fran O'Sullivan, general manager, IBM Personal Computing Division. "What was once considered science fiction is now available to all enterprises, large and small, in the notebook of choice for everyday business. The first biometric ThinkPad combines a fingerprint reader with an Embedded Security Subsystem, providing a layer of security that is built in, not bolted on. We take our customers' security into account in every aspect of our business solutions, from PCs to servers to middleware to wireless networks."
The fingerprint reader is built into select models of the ThinkPad T42. With the new reader, located on the wrist rest below the arrow keys, users swipe their finger across a small horizontally oriented sensor to log-on to their systems, software applications, web sites, or databases. The scanning process takes only seconds, combining convenience with the strongest notebook security available as a standard feature. This type of fingerprint reader captures more data than a traditional "picture" capture window because it scans more of the fingertip's surface area, helping to prevent misidentification.
"We place a huge priority on security and deployed IBM ThinkPad more than a year ago because they were the only notebooks to offer an integrated hardware and software security solution," said Shawn Nunley, director of technology development, NetScaler Inc., a networking systems company headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif. "IBM's new ThinkPad with integrated fingerprint reader offers yet another level of security for us that is easy to deploy."
IBM On Demand Security Architecture and ThinkVantage Technologies IBM also enhanced its hardware- and software-based Embedded Security Subsystem by releasing a new level of Client Security Software, Version 5.4, with a secure Password Manager, simplified ease-of-use and installation, and available by preload for the first time. The new version allows fingerprint identification and complex passphrases to be used interchangeably or in combination. The new software and the embedded security chip are seamlessly integrated with the fingerprint reader, protecting vital security information, such as encryption keys, electronic credentials and passphrases, and guarding against unauthorized user access.
The Embedded Security Subsystem is a key component of IBM ThinkVantage Technologies, a suite of tools that make ThinkPad notebooks and ThinkCentre desktops easier to deploy, connect, protect and support. The fingerprint reader represents only one level in a concentric set of IBM security solutions. They include servers, operating systems, identity management, middleware, web-based privacy, network access, storage, systems management and consulting solutions. These protect information in the face of external hacker threats, costly viruses and worms, e-mail spam, new wireless technologies, and the demands of government compliance.
Additionally, IBM and Utimaco Safeware today announced that IBM is authorized to resell Utimaco software to give users the ability to fully encrypt their entire hard drive. This protects against unauthorized access, should a notebook get stolen or lost. Utimaco Safeguard Easy is the first full dr
For T-Mobile customers: all T-Mobile accounts -- including prepaid EasySpeak customers -- have free WAP access available. T-Mobile doesn't charge minutes usage or bandwidth used for GPRS internet access. If your cell phone can connect to your laptop via Bluetooth, IR or with a cable, this means free internet access via GPRS from your laptop. The speeds aren't great, about that of a 56K modem, but definitely useable for the convenience it offers. Check out T-Mobile.HowardForums.com for more details and discussion. If you're interested, more information on my experience with T-Mobile GPRS internet access and a Nokia 6610 here and here.
For T-Mobile customers: all T-Mobile accounts -- including prepaid EasySpeak customers -- have free WAP access available. T-Mobile doesn't charge minutes usage or bandwidth used for GPRS internet access. If your cell phone can connect to your laptop via Bluetooth, IR or with a cable, this means free internet access via GPRS from your laptop. The speeds aren't great, about that of a 56K modem, but definitely useable for the convenience it offers. Check out T-Mobile.HowardForums.com for more details and discussion. If you're interested, more information on my experience with T-Mobile GPRS internet access and a Nokia 6610 here and here.
Don't forget about the "looks like a standard ATX power supply, but it's not - HA HA - joke's on you DUDE - pay up!!"
Thing of the past. I can personally verify that the Dell PowerEdge 400SC, Dimension 8300, Precision 360 all use standard ATX power supplies. (These are only the systems I've personally verified... I'm sure Dell has many more that now use standard ATX power supplies.) Actually, very high-quality ones as well. Their 250W rating is actually a mean rating; the PS itself is capable of much more.
I'm as big of an AMD fan as the next guy, and I personally don't care about Dell's deal with Intel. In August I bought a PowerEdge 400SC with an Intel 3.2 GHz CPU and the latest Intel 875P chipset for a grand total of $200. There is no way an AMD solution (from a major system label, nonetheless!) could beat that price to performance ratio.
Slashdot Mirror
My wife and I lost our AT&T service in Hyannis, MA on Christmas morning, and it's been sporadic ever since. When I called 12/26, the CSR mentioned the entire New England region had known issues with phone service, and they were working on it. This has been going on for 4+ days now with no updates... there are a bunch of threads going on AT&T's customer support forums with reports of others nationwide without coverage.
Here's the entire book, hosted by Google: http://books.google.com/books?id=8UsqHohwwVYC&printsec=frontcover
I've found Lulu to have reasonable prices for printing and shipping, and the quality of the finished product is excellent. I've used it a number of times for printing hard copies of various manuals, IBM Redbooks, etc.
Quality keyboard... $30
Fine-grit sandpaper... $2
Label proclaiming übergeek status to all... $0.25
Getting morons to spend $80 for 5 minutes of labor... priceless.
Anand's
Yes, S.M.A.R.T. is a nice monitoring tool. But an accelerometer that parks the drive heads when motion is detected is an active damage prevention tool.
I'm a bit confused by this: do you mean that suspend/resume will work with the fglrx drivers if I simply reduce the color depth to 16-bit?
Right now I'm running at 24-bit with the DRI drivers, and suspend/resume work splendidly.
I downloaded the newly released Ubuntu 5.04 this morning. Installation took about 30 minutes, and here's what I have:
Boots off CD and installs like it should? Check.
Detects all hardware devices during the installation, even the wireless card? Check.
Sound works? Check.
Video works? Check minus (see below).
Power management works, meaning sleep and suspend to disk (hibernate) work flawlessly and CPU speed throttles correctly? Check.
Modem works? Who cares!
Bluetooth works? Probably, but I don't have any BT devices to check it with.
IBM's Active Protection System works to protect the hard drive? Nope.
All function buttons for sleep, suspend, brightness, volume, etc. work? Yup.
So, I'm sitting here with a notebook that by current standards is running pretty darn good under Ubuntu, with a very small amount of manual configuration necessary to get this far. What's holding Linux back from running as nicely as Windows on the ThinkPad?
The video is the biggest problem. Ubuntu installs DRI drivers by default, which work pretty well, but lack 3D acceleration support. I can install the ATI binary drivers with a few simple commands, but they break suspend/resume functionality, which is arguably more important for most notebook users. I also won't be able to use the nifty ThinkVantage features on my expensive ThinkPad, like the Active Protection system.
So notebook users have a dilemma: do the Right Thing and handicap your system by installing Linux, or stick with the factory installation of Windows where everything Just Works. The never-ending battle of Morality vs. Functionality rages on.
(For those with the same/similar ThinkPad, see my quickly written guide for more detail.)
If this was truly a ploy by the Gentoo user community got rid of all the fanboys, then who's left? ;)
How hard is it to steal/forge/obscure a license plate? It's one additional level of security. Is it perfect? Never will be. By the way, since when would they get rid of cameras? New crime fighting techniques don't necessarily mean the old ones get thrown out the window. Last time I checked, plenty of cases are still solved using old-fashioned detective work, despite the presence of loads of new-fangled technology.
The rules say that after successfully hacking the server, you must:
Take the server off the net (to avoid conflict). You can do this by stopping network service.
One would hope that any hacker proficient enough to break into this system would have enough prowess to know how to disable the network, but thanks for the tip.
You probably want to use the text-only cached link, since the one you gave still grabs files from your web server (images, stylesheets, etc.).
Not to mention the VIA EPIA MII 12000 is as slow as molasses.
PPC != Apple alone. While few Apple owners have switched from OS X to Linux, Linux is extremely popular with the other big PPC vendor: IBM. A majority of IBM's servers are PPC architecture. As it is, IBM has an entire division devoted to Linux on POWER. Also, there are quite a few other distributions that run on the PPC architecture (ie: RedHat, SuSE), and the platform seems to be gaining more and more popularity. So much for this being a "niche-within-a-niche".
Being one of those unfortunate folks with less than 4GB RAM in their laptop, I won't be able to harness the performance offered by running Knoppix from a ramdisk with the toram cheat code.
From the WordPress Dev Blog: Fight Spam
A geek's true Christmas wish come true:
First name on the ad!
A link would be nice.
A moment of silence for the coming demise of the ThinkPad. Now the wait for the PowerBook G5 with "IBM Inside(TM)"... so long as they get rid of the craptacular touchpad and replace it with a trackpoint!
IBM Unveils First Biometric ThinkPad, Offering Security at Your Fingertips
IBM Integrates Fingerprint Reader with Embedded Security Subsystem; Tougher ThinkVantage Technology Strengthens IBM Security Architecture
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. -- Oct. 4, 2004 -- IBM is taking computing security and data protection to the next level today with the introduction of the first ThinkPad with an integrated fingerprint reader. ThinkPad, already the industry's most secure notebook PC (1), now features a model that delivers simplified access to password-protected personal and financial information, web sites, documents and e-mail while offering an unmatched level of data protection through its new biometric capability and embedded security subsystem.
"Today we raised the bar on security for the entire PC industry," said Fran O'Sullivan, general manager, IBM Personal Computing Division. "What was once considered science fiction is now available to all enterprises, large and small, in the notebook of choice for everyday business. The first biometric ThinkPad combines a fingerprint reader with an Embedded Security Subsystem, providing a layer of security that is built in, not bolted on. We take our customers' security into account in every aspect of our business solutions, from PCs to servers to middleware to wireless networks."
The fingerprint reader is built into select models of the ThinkPad T42. With the new reader, located on the wrist rest below the arrow keys, users swipe their finger across a small horizontally oriented sensor to log-on to their systems, software applications, web sites, or databases. The scanning process takes only seconds, combining convenience with the strongest notebook security available as a standard feature. This type of fingerprint reader captures more data than a traditional "picture" capture window because it scans more of the fingertip's surface area, helping to prevent misidentification.
"We place a huge priority on security and deployed IBM ThinkPad more than a year ago because they were the only notebooks to offer an integrated hardware and software security solution," said Shawn Nunley, director of technology development, NetScaler Inc., a networking systems company headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif. "IBM's new ThinkPad with integrated fingerprint reader offers yet another level of security for us that is easy to deploy."
IBM On Demand Security Architecture and ThinkVantage Technologies
IBM also enhanced its hardware- and software-based Embedded Security Subsystem by releasing a new level of Client Security Software, Version 5.4, with a secure Password Manager, simplified ease-of-use and installation, and available by preload for the first time. The new version allows fingerprint identification and complex passphrases to be used interchangeably or in combination. The new software and the embedded security chip are seamlessly integrated with the fingerprint reader, protecting vital security information, such as encryption keys, electronic credentials and passphrases, and guarding against unauthorized user access.
The Embedded Security Subsystem is a key component of IBM ThinkVantage Technologies, a suite of tools that make ThinkPad notebooks and ThinkCentre desktops easier to deploy, connect, protect and support. The fingerprint reader represents only one level in a concentric set of IBM security solutions. They include servers, operating systems, identity management, middleware, web-based privacy, network access, storage, systems management and consulting solutions. These protect information in the face of external hacker threats, costly viruses and worms, e-mail spam, new wireless technologies, and the demands of government compliance.
Additionally, IBM and Utimaco Safeware today announced that IBM is authorized to resell Utimaco software to give users the ability to fully encrypt their entire hard drive. This protects against unauthorized access, should a notebook get stolen or lost. Utimaco Safeguard Easy is the first full dr
For T-Mobile customers: all T-Mobile accounts -- including prepaid EasySpeak customers -- have free WAP access available. T-Mobile doesn't charge minutes usage or bandwidth used for GPRS internet access. If your cell phone can connect to your laptop via Bluetooth, IR or with a cable, this means free internet access via GPRS from your laptop. The speeds aren't great, about that of a 56K modem, but definitely useable for the convenience it offers. Check out T-Mobile.HowardForums.com for more details and discussion. If you're interested, more information on my experience with T-Mobile GPRS internet access and a Nokia 6610 here and here.
UMass Amherst has the following: "Wireless Airspace Policy"
I have a GSM phone, you insensitive clod!
For T-Mobile customers: all T-Mobile accounts -- including prepaid EasySpeak customers -- have free WAP access available. T-Mobile doesn't charge minutes usage or bandwidth used for GPRS internet access. If your cell phone can connect to your laptop via Bluetooth, IR or with a cable, this means free internet access via GPRS from your laptop. The speeds aren't great, about that of a 56K modem, but definitely useable for the convenience it offers. Check out T-Mobile.HowardForums.com for more details and discussion. If you're interested, more information on my experience with T-Mobile GPRS internet access and a Nokia 6610 here and here.
Thing of the past. I can personally verify that the Dell PowerEdge 400SC, Dimension 8300, Precision 360 all use standard ATX power supplies. (These are only the systems I've personally verified... I'm sure Dell has many more that now use standard ATX power supplies.) Actually, very high-quality ones as well. Their 250W rating is actually a mean rating; the PS itself is capable of much more.
I'm as big of an AMD fan as the next guy, and I personally don't care about Dell's deal with Intel. In August I bought a PowerEdge 400SC with an Intel 3.2 GHz CPU and the latest Intel 875P chipset for a grand total of $200. There is no way an AMD solution (from a major system label, nonetheless!) could beat that price to performance ratio.