My understanding is that it started out as a recommendation that you should drink the equivalent of 8 glasses of water a day, adding extra water if needed. Then, people misunderstood and thought that they should drink an extra 8 glasses per day, and it's just gotten sillier ever since.
Sorry, but no. I was in the US Navy in the early '70s, and the only time there was black smoke was if the engines weren't getting enough air. Oddly enough, if they were getting too much air, you'd get white smoke. If everything was adjusted correctly, there was no visible exhaust at all.
Usually, when people talk about Linux being impervious to attacks in comparison to Windows, they're talking about desktop machines.
In many cases, they're talking about getting infected by installing some program you found somewhere on the web and didn't bother to scan, or that you got stuck with in a drive-by download. Most if not all modern Linux distros have built-in security, such as SELinux or AppArmor to prevent malicious programs from damaging your system, and the standard file permissions (including the fact that newly-downloaded files aren't executable by default) make it even harder for them to get installed, or to wreak havoc if they do. None of this matters, of course, if somebody finds a security hole in a program you need running, such as a web server, and exploits it, although SELinux and AppArmor may be able to block the malware if it tries to access parts of your system it has no legitimate reason to use.
Just noboy sees you as a clear individual, more as a number on a long list of targets.
Exactly. And, unlike many people with far more to lose, my box is kept secure enough that it's probably not worth the bother of breaking into on the slight off-chance that there might be something valuable here.
You do like missing the point, don't you? First, random attacks come from skr1pT Kidd13s who only know how to get into unsecured Windows boxes; my computers all run Linux and are about as secure as you can reasonably expect unless you have Very Sensitive Data (which I don't). Second, professional data thieves don't go after random home computers; they're only interested in commercial boxes with financial or other valuable data, or high-profile users with files they can use for blackmail or other forms of extortion. That's why their attacks are called "targeted:" they know exactly who's computer they're breaking into and what they expect to find.
Nobody thinks they are a target for anything until they are.
True. And, I'm well aware that my box might attacked at random, and no matter how careful I am it's always possible that somebody might get in. However, there's a vast difference between that and a professional data thief tracking down my public IP and making a concerted attempt to break in because they think there's something valuable for them to take. People who do that sort of thing don't go after random people like me, they go for high profile targets who can be expected to have something on their computer that's worth stealing. After all, isn't that where the money is?
I won't say that you're wrong, because you're not. However, I must admit that it's hard for me to imagine anybody specifically targeting me; not grabbing my email because my provider's servers have been hacked, but going after me personally. I'm retired, and the only time I had access to classified material ended over forty years ago, when all of the records were on paper.
My favorite were always the Redneck Rampage games, partially because the bad clipping added to the surrealism. That's where I learned how to bounce sticks of dynamite around corners, a trick that still comes in very handy with grenades. And, of course, later on there was the crossbow with the dynamite taped to the quarrel to give you more range, and eventually the chicken crossbow where the ammo had a kamikaze guidance system.
What incentive does FB have? Each employee that fails to respond can be held in Contempt of Congress and spend up to a year in jail, plus a fine of up to $1000. How many of them do you think are really going to risk that time in jail?
What you're describing is what's called an artillery notch because it's quite common among soldiers and sailors who've been exposed to too much outbound gunfire. In my case, too much outbound 5"/54 shore support back in '72, although it didn't become a problem until almost forty years later, which isn't that uncommon I gather. I've received three sets of hearing aids from the VA (I lost one from the first set and the second eventually wore out.) at no cost because it's Service Connected.
The fact that it bioaccumulates in humans suggests that it might in food animals as well, but doesn't prove it. And, the fact that it gets excreted by humans suggests (but doesn't prove) that it doesn't. Again, we don't know enough to judge how dangerous it is, but caution is certainly indicated, especially when you consider that young children may well be much more sensitive to this than adults.
If the drug in question is one which bioaccumulates...
And that's the big question, isn't it? I hope somebody's looking into it, because without knowing how much it accumulates in the animal's bodies we can't judge how much of a concern it is. And, even if it isn't, the animal's waste products are probably being used as fertilizer, sending it right back into whatever crops it's used on. I'm not an alarmist, but we clearly need to know more about this.
That means they're hardened against worse than fuel-air bombs.
As it happens, the effect on personnel of a FAE in foxholes, tunnels and bunkers is considerably more drastic than it is to people in the open because the pressure wave is far more concentrated in confined spaces. Unless the NK positions are completely airtight at the time of the blast (which would render them temporarily unusable) you could easily end up with undamaged artillery that's out of action because all of the gun crews are dead. And, even if they survived, there's a good chance that the side effects of the experience would have rendered them unable to work the guns, as happened to the crews of some of the German gun emplacements defending the beaches on D-Day.
Actually, it might have been very well thought out. AMC may be getting some static from vocal ID10Ts who want to be allowed to ruin everybody else's experience at the theater and are demanding to be allowed to use their phones during the movies. Simply ignoring them won't work because they're too self-centered and selfish to accept the fact that they're not being allowed to act like spoiled children. Now, however, AMC can point to the fact that they did consider giving these phules what they wanted until they saw how bad it would be for business and everybody else is happy.
These are people receiving disability benefits from Social Security...
Maybe not. Some of them may be vets, using a combination of GI Bill and student loans to finance their education. If they have a condition that's later ruled to be Service Connected, their compensation comes from the VA, not Social Security. I know because when my hearing started to go about ten years ago it was ruled that it was caused by my exposure to outbound shore bombardment back in '72, and my diabetes was eventually listed as being caused by indirect exposure to Agent Orange during the same period. I'm not arguing against your basic point, just showing that there's a whole class of disabled people you've accidentally overlooked.
That's very, very true. And, I'm sure that a similar piece of malware that was designed to run on Linux would work, although I'm not sure if it would have access to the system files. (That depends on how it was written and what other security measures were on the target system.) My point was simply that this specific example was written with Windows in mind, probably because the potential number of targets is so large.
It's not mentioned in the summary, but if you take the time to RTFA (Yes, I know this is Slashdot, but still...) you'll find that this is Windows specific. That's not to say that an infection can't be devastating, or that people using Windows deserve what they get, it's just making note of the fact that those of us who don't use Windows don't need to worry about it.
I've been using SELinux for years, and I can't remember the last time I had an alert that wasn't caused by some badly-written program trying to do something it had no business doing. For that matter, it's been the best part of a year since I've had an alert. If you don't want to use it, that's up to you, but I'm happy to have it.
Most mainstream distros have some sort of built-in defense against this kind of attack, such as SELinux or AppArmor. Of course, that only works if the Sysadmin has enough sense to let them do their job instead of disabling them to prevent problems that were solved over a decade ago.
I don't think so. My thought is that there's probably a large number of people who still want to play the old version of WoW and would be willing to pay a monthly subscription to do so. It might be worth Blizzard's while to find out if there are enough people out there that want to play the older game instead of the latest and greatest to make putting some servers back up for them profitable.
I can't claim to understand the way compulsive MMORPG players think, but I'd have expected all of them who would want to switch to the newest titles to have done so by now. Clearly there are at least 800k players out there who don't want to switch.
Blizzard does not care about private servers for an old game.
Very true, but they're being short sighted here. If there are 800k users who still want to play the old version, Blizzard should bring back some servers to host the old-style game and rack in the subscription fees. In fact, if I owned stock in the company, I'd be at the next stockholder's meeting asking some pointed questions about why they're throwing this revenue stream away instead of taking advantage of it.
Yes. Exactly. This is why there are Mosquito Abatement Districts where I live not Elimination Districts.
And they do a very good job, too. Back when I was young, in the '50s, mosquitoes were quite a problem in the San Fernando Valley. If there was the slightest gap in the window screens, you'd wake up with at least four or five new bites every morning until you either patched the screen or at least made sure that window was closed at night. Now, if you get more than two or three bites per year it's unusual. You may not be able to eliminate them, but that's no excuse for not even trying.
Slashdot Mirror
I'm 66, and 65 isn't elderly. It may have been elderly 50 years ago, but not now.
Or, if you're in your mid sixties, as I am, you use a realistic easy to remember password: ICan'tRememberMyPassword!
My understanding is that it started out as a recommendation that you should drink the equivalent of 8 glasses of water a day, adding extra water if needed. Then, people misunderstood and thought that they should drink an extra 8 glasses per day, and it's just gotten sillier ever since.
Sorry, but no. I was in the US Navy in the early '70s, and the only time there was black smoke was if the engines weren't getting enough air. Oddly enough, if they were getting too much air, you'd get white smoke. If everything was adjusted correctly, there was no visible exhaust at all.
Usually, when people talk about Linux being impervious to attacks in comparison to Windows, they're talking about desktop machines.
In many cases, they're talking about getting infected by installing some program you found somewhere on the web and didn't bother to scan, or that you got stuck with in a drive-by download. Most if not all modern Linux distros have built-in security, such as SELinux or AppArmor to prevent malicious programs from damaging your system, and the standard file permissions (including the fact that newly-downloaded files aren't executable by default) make it even harder for them to get installed, or to wreak havoc if they do. None of this matters, of course, if somebody finds a security hole in a program you need running, such as a web server, and exploits it, although SELinux and AppArmor may be able to block the malware if it tries to access parts of your system it has no legitimate reason to use.
Just noboy sees you as a clear individual, more as a number on a long list of targets.
Exactly. And, unlike many people with far more to lose, my box is kept secure enough that it's probably not worth the bother of breaking into on the slight off-chance that there might be something valuable here.
You do like missing the point, don't you? First, random attacks come from skr1pT Kidd13s who only know how to get into unsecured Windows boxes; my computers all run Linux and are about as secure as you can reasonably expect unless you have Very Sensitive Data (which I don't). Second, professional data thieves don't go after random home computers; they're only interested in commercial boxes with financial or other valuable data, or high-profile users with files they can use for blackmail or other forms of extortion. That's why their attacks are called "targeted:" they know exactly who's computer they're breaking into and what they expect to find.
Nobody thinks they are a target for anything until they are.
True. And, I'm well aware that my box might attacked at random, and no matter how careful I am it's always possible that somebody might get in. However, there's a vast difference between that and a professional data thief tracking down my public IP and making a concerted attempt to break in because they think there's something valuable for them to take. People who do that sort of thing don't go after random people like me, they go for high profile targets who can be expected to have something on their computer that's worth stealing. After all, isn't that where the money is?
I won't say that you're wrong, because you're not. However, I must admit that it's hard for me to imagine anybody specifically targeting me; not grabbing my email because my provider's servers have been hacked, but going after me personally. I'm retired, and the only time I had access to classified material ended over forty years ago, when all of the records were on paper.
My favorite were always the Redneck Rampage games, partially because the bad clipping added to the surrealism. That's where I learned how to bounce sticks of dynamite around corners, a trick that still comes in very handy with grenades. And, of course, later on there was the crossbow with the dynamite taped to the quarrel to give you more range, and eventually the chicken crossbow where the ammo had a kamikaze guidance system.
What incentive does FB have? Each employee that fails to respond can be held in Contempt of Congress and spend up to a year in jail, plus a fine of up to $1000. How many of them do you think are really going to risk that time in jail?
What you're describing is what's called an artillery notch because it's quite common among soldiers and sailors who've been exposed to too much outbound gunfire. In my case, too much outbound 5"/54 shore support back in '72, although it didn't become a problem until almost forty years later, which isn't that uncommon I gather. I've received three sets of hearing aids from the VA (I lost one from the first set and the second eventually wore out.) at no cost because it's Service Connected.
The fact that it bioaccumulates in humans suggests that it might in food animals as well, but doesn't prove it. And, the fact that it gets excreted by humans suggests (but doesn't prove) that it doesn't. Again, we don't know enough to judge how dangerous it is, but caution is certainly indicated, especially when you consider that young children may well be much more sensitive to this than adults.
If the drug in question is one which bioaccumulates...
And that's the big question, isn't it? I hope somebody's looking into it, because without knowing how much it accumulates in the animal's bodies we can't judge how much of a concern it is. And, even if it isn't, the animal's waste products are probably being used as fertilizer, sending it right back into whatever crops it's used on. I'm not an alarmist, but we clearly need to know more about this.
That means they're hardened against worse than fuel-air bombs.
As it happens, the effect on personnel of a FAE in foxholes, tunnels and bunkers is considerably more drastic than it is to people in the open because the pressure wave is far more concentrated in confined spaces. Unless the NK positions are completely airtight at the time of the blast (which would render them temporarily unusable) you could easily end up with undamaged artillery that's out of action because all of the gun crews are dead. And, even if they survived, there's a good chance that the side effects of the experience would have rendered them unable to work the guns, as happened to the crews of some of the German gun emplacements defending the beaches on D-Day.
This idea was not well thought out.
Actually, it might have been very well thought out. AMC may be getting some static from vocal ID10Ts who want to be allowed to ruin everybody else's experience at the theater and are demanding to be allowed to use their phones during the movies. Simply ignoring them won't work because they're too self-centered and selfish to accept the fact that they're not being allowed to act like spoiled children. Now, however, AMC can point to the fact that they did consider giving these phules what they wanted until they saw how bad it would be for business and everybody else is happy.
These are people receiving disability benefits from Social Security...
Maybe not. Some of them may be vets, using a combination of GI Bill and student loans to finance their education. If they have a condition that's later ruled to be Service Connected, their compensation comes from the VA, not Social Security. I know because when my hearing started to go about ten years ago it was ruled that it was caused by my exposure to outbound shore bombardment back in '72, and my diabetes was eventually listed as being caused by indirect exposure to Agent Orange during the same period. I'm not arguing against your basic point, just showing that there's a whole class of disabled people you've accidentally overlooked.
These techniques are applicable on any platform.
That's very, very true. And, I'm sure that a similar piece of malware that was designed to run on Linux would work, although I'm not sure if it would have access to the system files. (That depends on how it was written and what other security measures were on the target system.) My point was simply that this specific example was written with Windows in mind, probably because the potential number of targets is so large.
It's not mentioned in the summary, but if you take the time to RTFA (Yes, I know this is Slashdot, but still...) you'll find that this is Windows specific. That's not to say that an infection can't be devastating, or that people using Windows deserve what they get, it's just making note of the fact that those of us who don't use Windows don't need to worry about it.
I've been using SELinux for years, and I can't remember the last time I had an alert that wasn't caused by some badly-written program trying to do something it had no business doing. For that matter, it's been the best part of a year since I've had an alert. If you don't want to use it, that's up to you, but I'm happy to have it.
Most mainstream distros have some sort of built-in defense against this kind of attack, such as SELinux or AppArmor. Of course, that only works if the Sysadmin has enough sense to let them do their job instead of disabling them to prevent problems that were solved over a decade ago.
I don't think so. My thought is that there's probably a large number of people who still want to play the old version of WoW and would be willing to pay a monthly subscription to do so. It might be worth Blizzard's while to find out if there are enough people out there that want to play the older game instead of the latest and greatest to make putting some servers back up for them profitable.
I can't claim to understand the way compulsive MMORPG players think, but I'd have expected all of them who would want to switch to the newest titles to have done so by now. Clearly there are at least 800k players out there who don't want to switch.
Blizzard does not care about private servers for an old game.
Very true, but they're being short sighted here. If there are 800k users who still want to play the old version, Blizzard should bring back some servers to host the old-style game and rack in the subscription fees. In fact, if I owned stock in the company, I'd be at the next stockholder's meeting asking some pointed questions about why they're throwing this revenue stream away instead of taking advantage of it.
The key word is "control".
Yes. Exactly. This is why there are Mosquito Abatement Districts where I live not Elimination Districts.
And they do a very good job, too. Back when I was young, in the '50s, mosquitoes were quite a problem in the San Fernando Valley. If there was the slightest gap in the window screens, you'd wake up with at least four or five new bites every morning until you either patched the screen or at least made sure that window was closed at night. Now, if you get more than two or three bites per year it's unusual. You may not be able to eliminate them, but that's no excuse for not even trying.