If safe cracking interests you, I recommend
The Great Train Robbery by Mr. High-Tech himself Michael Crichton. The book is the true story how a small band of highly sophisticated robbers managed to steal a pile of gold despite what would have appeared to be impenetrable security. The robbery took place in the early 1800's in England.
Part of the theft was getting into some of the best safes in the world. The robbers never even attempted to "crack" the safes... they assumed from the start that they simply could not open the safes w/o the keys. I won't spoil the book for you to reveal more than that.
Reminds me of my short stint working in a museum. As part of procedure the first few days I was there I met with the chief of security to be indoctrinated on security rules.
During the meeting I suddenly realized that the nice little painting hanging on the wall wasn't just a print... it was a real, live, authentic Monet.
I asked about it and the security guy shrugged. He said that like most museums they had far more art in storage than on display, and so they often used it in office decoration.
I mean, the thing didn't have so much as a plastic covering to protect against coffee spills. I remember thinking that there'd be no way I'd want such a thing in my office.
Re:Yup, it's a question of study before action
on
Nuclear Batteries
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· Score: 1
What you may be refering to is to the radiotherapy machines that operates with cesium-137 isotope.
I've long wished someone would test W's vocabulary with this question:
Mr. President, what is your opinion on teaching
mastication in schools?
Yup, it's a question of study before action
on
Nuclear Batteries
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· Score: 1
Yeah, I know "me too" posts are deprecated, but I just gotta compliment you on putting into clear words what I was thinking.
The question isn't whether or not the technology is definitely dangerous or not, it's whether or not sufficient study and testing has been put into determining its safety.
The top level poster declares the batteries must be safe because the radiation they put out is minimal. Well, so far so good. What about the manufacturing processes? What about the transportation of dangerous chemicals? What about what happens when the batteries end up crushed up in junkyards? That needs to be studied.
Somebody mentioned that hospital x-ray machines were hotly debated. It turns out they should have been. Some of the worst radiation accidents have been from old discarded hospital X-Ray machines that got beaten up and then put into landfills. I cringe when I ponder how many of these batteries will end up in landfills.
Of course, reactionary anti-environmentalists will immediately point out that chemical batteries fill out landfills, and certainly that's a problem. But as usual their argument centers around the perverse idea that two wrongs make a right: as long as you can point out other environmental disasters, it's ok to have a few more.
Hey, FWIW I do think these batteries sound promising. We shouldn't reject them out of hand. But we shouldn't accept them out of hand either. A lot of study is needed.
I'm glad Slashdot is so optimistic that I'll be able to buy a flying car in five years. The way my career is going, I won't even be able to afford a non-flying car in five years.
Robert Preston, who played Centauri in the movie, was a veteran musical actor. He's probably best remembered for playing the lead in
The Music Man... for me his was the definitive performance in that role. He was also great in Victor/Victoria (albeit in a non-singing role).
He woulda been perfect in a musical production of The Last Starfighter. Ah well, hopefully he's watching from somewhere up in the stars.
I played a mechanical version of pong in the 70's
on
Mechanical Pong
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· Score: 4, Interesting
I can't remember who made it or what is was called, but it was definitely mechnical and definitely very pong-ish (if not a a fully faithful reproduction).
I bought the game around 1976 at a yard sale for about $0.25. It consisted of a cheap plastic casing shaped like a tv. The "screen" was translucent plastic. The "ball" was an arm with a light at one end (almost touching the screen) and a counterweight at the other end so that the arm was essentially ambivalent if it swung up or down. An electric motor moved the arm so that the arm always wanted to swing left or right. (Sorry about all these anthropomorphisms, it's the only way I can think to describe it.)
Each player had a handle that turned a mechnical bouncer up and down. If the arm swung past your bouncer, a buzzer buzzed.
It didn't keep score and it was never as fast as pong or as... um, exciting (if you can use that word with pong). But by golly I got it for a quarter and played the heck out of it. Then I took it apart and figured out how it worked. Then at some point I donated it to the landfill.
It's just a matter of time. The Statue of Liberty alone wouldn't make it worth the effort to go through that process, but when biometrics like this are everywhere, here's what will happen.
First, the suspect in some crime will be suspected of having dumped something at the Statue of Liberty or some other public place. So the police will get a search warrant for the database and will find out that the package of cocaine is indeed at the SoL.
Events like that will happen a number of times, at the SoL and other places, until the FBI suggests that it really would be easier if the park service simply autmatically forward the database to the FBI. They'll cite the automatic tapping hooks in the phone system as a precedent. The FBI will store the data in a separate database and promises to scan it when they have a court order.
Whether or not FBI employees, other law enforcement employees, not to mention computer system crackers will really only search with a court order is another question.
Hope I'm not being intrusive asking for more details. I've always been fascinated with accessibility issues but have had little experience supporting users who need any kind of accessibility help.
Does your daughter have any other issues with computers that you would like see helped?
Does she have trouble with double keystrokes like ctrl-s?
I always find switching between mouse and keyboard annoying... that is, I don't mind mouse-intensive activities, and I don't mind keyboard intensive activities, but I dislike activities that require switching back and forth. Does your daughter have issues with that? Have you tried using a keyboard with an integrated trackball or mousepad?
Other issues I haven't thought of? Any devices or software you would like to see developed?
Is there anybody else out there? I just don't care for Tolkien's writing. Every time I try to read The Hobbit I just can't stand it: so slow moving, so ponderous. The only thing that makes me try again from time to time is the quantity and zealousness of my friends who love Tolkien's writings.
I'm not saying it isn't quality literature, just that it just isn't to my taste, any more than Pilgrim's Progress or Moby Dick.
The Narnia Chronicles, now there's my vote for best literature of the 20th century.
Back when idocs.com was my hope for a rich future, I used to keep a sharp eye on the referer lines in my web log. I even wrote some nice perl scripts to summarize what searches people were doing to find me.
One time the summarizer displayed a search string that consisted solely of pornographic terms: "pussy", "fuck", and the like. I was pretty confused because my site is just an HTML guide. Turns out it found me because of the word "maypole"... I still have no idea what that means in a porn context.
Slashdot Mirror
Part of the theft was getting into some of the best safes in the world. The robbers never even attempted to "crack" the safes... they assumed from the start that they simply could not open the safes w/o the keys. I won't spoil the book for you to reveal more than that.
I reread the headline several times trying to figure out why the Russians are mocking us.
I bet stomping hard finally crushed the beer can that was lodged underneath.
As my buddy and I learned going down a mountain once. Hey, we were teenagers, we thought it was hilarious.
During the meeting I suddenly realized that the nice little painting hanging on the wall wasn't just a print... it was a real, live, authentic Monet.
I asked about it and the security guy shrugged. He said that like most museums they had far more art in storage than on display, and so they often used it in office decoration.
I mean, the thing didn't have so much as a plastic covering to protect against coffee spills. I remember thinking that there'd be no way I'd want such a thing in my office.
I'll file that data away. Thanks. :-)
The question isn't whether or not the technology is definitely dangerous or not, it's whether or not sufficient study and testing has been put into determining its safety.
The top level poster declares the batteries must be safe because the radiation they put out is minimal. Well, so far so good. What about the manufacturing processes? What about the transportation of dangerous chemicals? What about what happens when the batteries end up crushed up in junkyards? That needs to be studied.
Somebody mentioned that hospital x-ray machines were hotly debated. It turns out they should have been. Some of the worst radiation accidents have been from old discarded hospital X-Ray machines that got beaten up and then put into landfills. I cringe when I ponder how many of these batteries will end up in landfills.
Of course, reactionary anti-environmentalists will immediately point out that chemical batteries fill out landfills, and certainly that's a problem. But as usual their argument centers around the perverse idea that two wrongs make a right: as long as you can point out other environmental disasters, it's ok to have a few more.
Hey, FWIW I do think these batteries sound promising. We shouldn't reject them out of hand. But we shouldn't accept them out of hand either. A lot of study is needed.
I'm glad Slashdot is so optimistic that I'll be able to buy a flying car in five years. The way my career is going, I won't even be able to afford a non-flying car in five years.
He woulda been perfect in a musical production of The Last Starfighter. Ah well, hopefully he's watching from somewhere up in the stars.
I bought the game around 1976 at a yard sale for about $0.25. It consisted of a cheap plastic casing shaped like a tv. The "screen" was translucent plastic. The "ball" was an arm with a light at one end (almost touching the screen) and a counterweight at the other end so that the arm was essentially ambivalent if it swung up or down. An electric motor moved the arm so that the arm always wanted to swing left or right. (Sorry about all these anthropomorphisms, it's the only way I can think to describe it.)
Each player had a handle that turned a mechnical bouncer up and down. If the arm swung past your bouncer, a buzzer buzzed.
It didn't keep score and it was never as fast as pong or as... um, exciting (if you can use that word with pong). But by golly I got it for a quarter and played the heck out of it. Then I took it apart and figured out how it worked. Then at some point I donated it to the landfill.
First, the suspect in some crime will be suspected of having dumped something at the Statue of Liberty or some other public place. So the police will get a search warrant for the database and will find out that the package of cocaine is indeed at the SoL.
Events like that will happen a number of times, at the SoL and other places, until the FBI suggests that it really would be easier if the park service simply autmatically forward the database to the FBI. They'll cite the automatic tapping hooks in the phone system as a precedent. The FBI will store the data in a separate database and promises to scan it when they have a court order.
Whether or not FBI employees, other law enforcement employees, not to mention computer system crackers will really only search with a court order is another question.
Does your daughter have any other issues with computers that you would like see helped?
Does she have trouble with double keystrokes like ctrl-s?
I always find switching between mouse and keyboard annoying... that is, I don't mind mouse-intensive activities, and I don't mind keyboard intensive activities, but I dislike activities that require switching back and forth. Does your daughter have issues with that? Have you tried using a keyboard with an integrated trackball or mousepad?
Other issues I haven't thought of? Any devices or software you would like to see developed?
They just moved a few molecules of water with light? My girlfriend's dad once got me moving a lot faster and further by turning on the lights.
I'm not saying it isn't quality literature, just that it just isn't to my taste, any more than Pilgrim's Progress or Moby Dick.
The Narnia Chronicles, now there's my vote for best literature of the 20th century.
So that's how you get a Gmail account: post a transparent plea on Slashdot. Thanks (you know who you are)! :-)
One time the summarizer displayed a search string that consisted solely of pornographic terms: "pussy", "fuck", and the like. I was pretty confused because my site is just an HTML guide. Turns out it found me because of the word "maypole"... I still have no idea what that means in a porn context.
Um... he's flying a ship to the ground? That's, um, ambitious...
... big, big, big, big, big, big, big, big, big...
... I play like Lindsey Buckingham. How Rolling Stone left him completely off their "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" list is beyond me.
Forgot to ask: which Led Zeppelin DVD are you referring to?