Right. I've done several peer reviews myself for free, or for a few complimentary copies of a journal. This is the usual modus operandi of scientific and educational publishers. The parent poster is absolutely right.
There's absolutely nothing that Linux can do to protect against a user who has the root password and who has been convinced to run an untrustworthy executable.
Just a side note: you don't even need to be root to run untrusted binaries.
Have a look at bugtraq or any other full disclosure mailing list to get an idea of the magnitude of the problem.
Some vendors, including most linux distros and the BSDs have appointed a security team to handle the issues once they are discovered. BUT if Linux (or BSD) were to become a mainstream product, would you expect every Joe Sixpack to update their system (or third party apps) regularly?
Sure, Linux and BSD are much more secure than Windows; but they are certainly not immune against attacks; even against basic attacks.
Exactly. Even if P==NP, some problems could still be, say, O(n^10000000000000), and therefore practically unsolvable with current and foreeable hardware. And even for O(n^smallnum), the constants could be still prohibitively high or the algorithms so incredibly complex, that they still wouldn't bear any relevance today.
Apache is extremely complicated and therefore a potentail rats nest of potential security holes. Please don't get me wrong here: I like Apache very much for its great flexibility, yet I helped a lot of security aware companies to migrate to thttpd because they wanted a code base that could be scrutinized in a reasonable amount of time. Most web apps really don't need the flexibility of Apache anyway, and those who do, will have to be run in secure environments like, say, jails or other virtualized environments.
Isn't that silly? Radio stations who are compelled to act this way probably negotiated cheaper broadcasting licenses from the recording companies. As always, we only get what we pay for. Buy cheap, broadcast trash...
The GNU Kernel (Gnu/Hurd) ist NOT vaporware! It boots fine, you can run X on top of it et. al. Sure, it has shortcomings, mostly due to lack of capable developers, but it's certainly there and running.
The only remedy is for everyone to start using p2p and bleed the Copyright Owners enough to the point that they realize their fight is futile and to switch to working with the internet rather than against it, that is by coming up with a system better than free.
Full ACK!
Now the fact that these suggestions sound like a utopia should tell us just how lost the current system is,
It shows how scared all those little puppies are, when threatened by lawyers. This is no longer the land of the free. It's the land of the Anonymous Cowards. The spirit of rebellion vanished all too quickly. We're again bowing before our new overlords...
If they were suing people for downloading a song we'd have something to be outraged about, but people serving the downloads have brought it on themselves.
Where do you think do all the wonderful files come from, that you'd be downloading? Isn't it a bit unfair to offload the responsibility onto those who helped you get the files in the first place?
Attacking distributors (and a distributor is everyone participating in a p2p network, including bit torrents) is just easier for RIAA et. al, because: 1. of the typical seeders/leechers ratio, and 2. of legal, formalistic reasons.
So please stop feeling safe and "legal," just because you download files without ever giving anything back to the community from which you got them.
That's an excellent idea. BUT ONLY IF the ad is kept away from the song, and not spoken over it near the end, just like radio DJs always do (which is the chief reason I stopped listening to commercial radio long ago; it was damn too annoying).
Caveat Canem: If RIAA get subponea the tracker's operator, they can get hold of the IP you were using . Then if they can subponea the ISP to whom the IP belongs, you're in for big trouble.
Perhaps someone would come up with an anonymizing version of the BT protocol soon. The current version is not safe at all.
This is why digital radio could potentially be more of headache for the RIAA than p2p
If the purpose of this is to use a legal loophole, don't count on it for too long. RIAA will soon use their bought congress critters to make this illegal too.
The only solution to this problem would be massive civil disobedience. They can't lock up more than 10% of the juveniles and adult population; and be it only for economic reasons!
digitize analog from FM or digital cable, then rip to MP3.
This is a technical solution to a social problem. What's the real difference to ripping a CD? A legal one?
The point here is that RIAA's business model is coming to an end. They can't sue literally millions of file swappers back into buying their overpriced CDs or DVDs. Their near monopoly is coming to an end; just get over it.
Musicians, singers etc... still have the old and proven way to make money: go on tour, and put up good performance. Add to this some old fashioned but sill effective merchandising, and you're in again. Ah, and use the Net to promote your popularity!
At least, they own only a virtual market. They don't control our water supply, then don't own our power lines, etc... We're still free to use 'em, or drop 'em. Just because we, the FOSS community, can't organize a more professional PR team that would dog the press, politics and companies, doesn't mean that it is impossible. A campaign, funded by IBM, Novell and the other big players, would be really helpful here.
Anyway. It's nonetheless scary to see how MSFT can use such deceptive tactics all the time with impunity. How long until the 800 lb gorilla gets a heart attack or dies from obesity?
Monopolies don't last. As soon as they don't have any reason to compete anymore, they turn into a burocratic monster and disintegrate from within. Some monopolies take more time to dissolve, but that will happen eventually.
Remember how IBM (Big Blue) was the evil monopoly before Microsoft? They are still very big and powerful, but certainly no monopoly anymore. Actually, they escaped annihilation because their new CEO took very good steps to open them up to the world.
Will Microsoft lose its monopoly? Certainly. Perhaps not in the next 2 to 5 years, and probably not in a spectacular fashion. It will happen gradually, due to lack of innovation. We won't even notice their slow decline on a day to day basis, but it will happen.
Don't worry about Microsoft being a convicted monopolist. They are currently so powerful, that they are above the laws. But the elephant will have to fend off the ants, and the ants are getting more and more numerous.
Slashdot Mirror
Works very well for me too, using TMDA.
Insert "Netcraft is confirming..." theme here.
Are you sure "hard questioning" is only being done in rogue states?
Right. I've done several peer reviews myself for free, or for a few complimentary copies of a journal. This is the usual modus operandi of scientific and educational publishers. The parent poster is absolutely right.
Sorry, I missed this from TFA:
"The woman learned how Gabrielyan was following her when she discovered him under her car attempting to change the cell phone's battery, police said."
I wonder how she didn't notice...
I'd rather wonder how she DID notice... It doesn't look like it was professionally installed.
Who said research wasn't supposed to be fun?
How fast can /dev/null absorb the incoming data? And what happens when it overflows?
There's absolutely nothing that Linux can do to protect against a user who has the root password and who has been convinced to run an untrustworthy executable.
Just a side note: you don't even need to be root to run untrusted binaries.
Have a look at bugtraq or any other full disclosure mailing list to get an idea of the magnitude of the problem.
Some vendors, including most linux distros and the BSDs have appointed a security team to handle the issues once they are discovered. BUT if Linux (or BSD) were to become a mainstream product, would you expect every Joe Sixpack to update their system (or third party apps) regularly?
Sure, Linux and BSD are much more secure than Windows; but they are certainly not immune against attacks; even against basic attacks.
Exactly. Even if P==NP, some problems could still be, say, O(n^10000000000000), and therefore practically unsolvable with current and foreeable hardware. And even for O(n^smallnum), the constants could be still prohibitively high or the algorithms so incredibly complex, that they still wouldn't bear any relevance today.
Apache is extremely complicated and therefore a potentail rats nest of potential security holes. Please don't get me wrong here: I like Apache very much for its great flexibility, yet I helped a lot of security aware companies to migrate to thttpd because they wanted a code base that could be scrutinized in a reasonable amount of time. Most web apps really don't need the flexibility of Apache anyway, and those who do, will have to be run in secure environments like, say, jails or other virtualized environments.
Isn't that silly? Radio stations who are compelled to act this way probably negotiated cheaper broadcasting licenses from the recording companies. As always, we only get what we pay for. Buy cheap, broadcast trash...
The GNU Kernel (Gnu/Hurd) ist NOT vaporware! It boots fine, you can run X on top of it et. al. Sure, it has shortcomings, mostly due to lack of capable developers, but it's certainly there and running.
The only remedy is for everyone to start using p2p and bleed the Copyright Owners enough to the point that they realize their fight is futile and to switch to working with the internet rather than against it, that is by coming up with a system better than free.
Full ACK!
Now the fact that these suggestions sound like a utopia should tell us just how lost the current system is,
It shows how scared all those little puppies are, when threatened by lawyers. This is no longer the land of the free. It's the land of the Anonymous Cowards. The spirit of rebellion vanished all too quickly. We're again bowing before our new overlords...
If they were suing people for downloading a song we'd have something to be outraged about, but people serving the downloads have brought it on themselves.
Where do you think do all the wonderful files come from, that you'd be downloading? Isn't it a bit unfair to offload the responsibility onto those who helped you get the files in the first place?
Attacking distributors (and a distributor is everyone participating in a p2p network, including bit torrents) is just easier for RIAA et. al, because: 1. of the typical seeders/leechers ratio, and 2. of legal, formalistic reasons.
So please stop feeling safe and "legal," just because you download files without ever giving anything back to the community from which you got them.
That's an excellent idea. BUT ONLY IF the ad is kept away from the song, and not spoken over it near the end, just like radio DJs always do (which is the chief reason I stopped listening to commercial radio long ago; it was damn too annoying).
Caveat Canem: If RIAA get subponea the tracker's operator, they can get hold of the IP you were using . Then if they can subponea the ISP to whom the IP belongs, you're in for big trouble.
Perhaps someone would come up with an anonymizing version of the BT protocol soon. The current version is not safe at all.
This is why digital radio could potentially be more of headache for the RIAA than p2p
If the purpose of this is to use a legal loophole, don't count on it for too long. RIAA will soon use their bought congress critters to make this illegal too.
The only solution to this problem would be massive civil disobedience. They can't lock up more than 10% of the juveniles and adult population; and be it only for economic reasons!
digitize analog from FM or digital cable, then rip to MP3.
This is a technical solution to a social problem. What's the real difference to ripping a CD? A legal one?
The point here is that RIAA's business model is coming to an end. They can't sue literally millions of file swappers back into buying their overpriced CDs or DVDs. Their near monopoly is coming to an end; just get over it.
Musicians, singers etc... still have the old and proven way to make money: go on tour, and put up good performance. Add to this some old fashioned but sill effective merchandising, and you're in again. Ah, and use the Net to promote your popularity!
artificial gravity
You can use centrifugal force instead. Just live inside a rotating cylinder. Of course, "gravity" will decrease as you move towards the center.
It must be kinda funny to climb a "mountain", just to discover that gravity decreases the higher you come.
Was Oppenheimer a nerd?
"I am become Death, the Shatterer of Worlds..."
At least, they own only a virtual market. They don't control our water supply, then don't own our power lines, etc... We're still free to use 'em, or drop 'em. Just because we, the FOSS community, can't organize a more professional PR team that would dog the press, politics and companies, doesn't mean that it is impossible. A campaign, funded by IBM, Novell and the other big players, would be really helpful here.
Anyway. It's nonetheless scary to see how MSFT can use such deceptive tactics all the time with impunity. How long until the 800 lb gorilla gets a heart attack or dies from obesity?
Monopolies don't last. As soon as they don't have any reason to compete anymore, they turn into a burocratic monster and disintegrate from within. Some monopolies take more time to dissolve, but that will happen eventually.
Remember how IBM (Big Blue) was the evil monopoly before Microsoft? They are still very big and powerful, but certainly no monopoly anymore. Actually, they escaped annihilation because their new CEO took very good steps to open them up to the world.
Will Microsoft lose its monopoly? Certainly. Perhaps not in the next 2 to 5 years, and probably not in a spectacular fashion. It will happen gradually, due to lack of innovation. We won't even notice their slow decline on a day to day basis, but it will happen.
Don't worry about Microsoft being a convicted monopolist. They are currently so powerful, that they are above the laws. But the elephant will have to fend off the ants, and the ants are getting more and more numerous.
Perhaps you are unaware that a standard CDROM (vintage 1980's) uses 1/3 of its true capacity with error-checking data?
here is an interesting article.
Not everyone lives in a corporate controlled country.
...yet!
Sadly, our government is pushing (quite successfully) other countries to adopt our broken system.