No GPL used with Transmeta IP?
on
Mundie Responds
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· Score: 1
Why isn't Transmeta releasing it's IP under the GPL? Why did it patent all of it's company secrets? Is it because Transmeta is in it for the money? Just like MS? It seems transmeta is following the business model of MS, so it must be a better business model...
I think there are many points of encryption. Some people would only like to protect their data from prying eyes. Like a brother, sister or parent. Some people use it to hide an affair with a co-worker from the network admin. Some people are criminals hiding data from law enforcement. Some people are spies hiding data from the government. All of these people can use PGP, but for a different purpose. Each of these people are guarding against different potential attacks. "Secrets and Lies" has a chapter on attack trees. These reveal the potential weaknesses in your security process. In each of the example cases above the attack tree is similiar, if not identical. The next analysis would be what risk you are willing to live with and what you would not. If you are hiding your pr0n on your computer, and you parents are not computer savvy, you don't have much threat to worry about. But if you are a spy, you need to worry about the weakness in your attack tree. Because the people who would threaten you would have the ability to exploit these weaknesses. My point is, encryption has many points, and many uses. PGP is used for many of them. But the flaws of the security product are actually flaws of your security process. The best algorithms in the world do not protect you if you're using windows 95 in your office. It pays to attack your own security process and know your weakness. List them, and protect against the ones you are not willing to live with.
Jason
This is exactly why the goverment doesn't care if you use some extremely tough encryption. Of course it makes it more difficult to do mass scans, like carnivore. But not any more difficult for spying on an individual. Bruce says it best, "security is a process, not a product". Sure, you can use your 4096 bit keys in your PGP application. And it would take millions of years to brute force them. But is brute force the best way to attack the PGP process? No way. And this is what the government knows. If I am the government, and I want access to your PGP encrypted data, all I have to do is break into your house while you're at work, copy your private key to a disk, and install some key logger to record your passphrase. It's quite simple really. No need for any brute force. The crack would take minutes, not millions of years. Attack the process, not the product, and most seemingly secure products will fail. Not because the products are bad, but because the process of using the products are bad.
Jason
This sounds like a job for super heroes in their downtime. If superman can fly fast enough to reverse the spin of the earth, he surely can cover this type of broadband service.
Jason
I don't think you understood my point. Drivers and software companies feel safe. The the safer we make cars, the more people feel they can get away with. The same with software companies. They can make crappy products because there is no risk. There is no risk to driving a car that is very safe, and there is no risk in making crappy software. Penalties will enforce people to drive better, and companies to make better software. A spike on the steering wheel of a bad driver is the penalty for poor driving. A $1 fine for every crash is the penalty for every crappy product. Or maybe we could put spikes on the steering wheels of the product managers of the crappy products.
Bringing the two things together, cars and computers work closer and closer together everyday. Cars such as the Corvette us throttle by wire. The gas pedal is no longer mechanical, it is computer controlled. What happens when software in the computers of cars becomes so large and complex that it becomes buggy and the car's computer crashes and the car goes out of control? In a world without penalties, things get chaotic. Just look at the current state of Microsoft products.
I recall watching a show on DSC or TLC about the increasing safety of cars causing people to be less worried about being injured in an accident since the airbag would most likely save them. A proposal was to put a giant spike on the steering wheel so that if you got into an accident, you were likely to get hurt majorly. Although sadistic, this method would actually work to make people more cautious and safe drivers.
This article is somewhat similiar in that it forces penalties for bad products. Unfortunately, I think it will take something like what is being proposed to make companies realize that stable software is important.
My company has a fairly strict website blocking policy. Too bad they allow us to use proxy servers to just go around whatever they block. But anyway, they block most of the links to banner ads, which is actually pretty nice. Finally a good use for blocking software.
I am referring to the deleted scenes on the DVD. If you look at the deleted scenes on the DVD, the line is there. I am pretty sure there is also some director commentary on why it was removed for the release, but I can't remember off the top of my head. Great Movie though!
This is offtopic, in relation to your sig. On the Fight Club DVD the actual line that was cut out in favor of your sig was something along the lines of, I want to have your abortion. It was cut out for obvious reasons.
Oh yeah, I forgot. It would only be ok to post 'Can I patent something ridiculously common [that Microsoft does]' to be ok with you. I'll try harder to please you next time.
This seems like an ingenious counter attack only a hacker could think of. I bet DirecTV knew they were losing the war against hackers and went onto the IRC to get in contact with them and hire them to fight other hackers.
Jason
Does the degree really matter?
on
CS vs CIS
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· Score: 1
I don't think the degree really matters. There are people who have the minds to programmers and there are people who do not. I have met some pretty talented programmers who have no degree whatsoever. If I were you, I would take the simplest and cheapest route get to where you want to go. If you have the skills to be a programmer and can prove yourself through projects you have done or through projects you've been involved in, you have nothing to worry about. As long as you get an interview and impress them, you're in. Regardless of the degree you carry, or don't carry.
Slashdot Mirror
Why isn't Transmeta releasing it's IP under the GPL? Why did it patent all of it's company secrets? Is it because Transmeta is in it for the money? Just like MS? It seems transmeta is following the business model of MS, so it must be a better business model...
I think there are many points of encryption. Some people would only like to protect their data from prying eyes. Like a brother, sister or parent. Some people use it to hide an affair with a co-worker from the network admin. Some people are criminals hiding data from law enforcement. Some people are spies hiding data from the government. All of these people can use PGP, but for a different purpose. Each of these people are guarding against different potential attacks. "Secrets and Lies" has a chapter on attack trees. These reveal the potential weaknesses in your security process. In each of the example cases above the attack tree is similiar, if not identical. The next analysis would be what risk you are willing to live with and what you would not. If you are hiding your pr0n on your computer, and you parents are not computer savvy, you don't have much threat to worry about. But if you are a spy, you need to worry about the weakness in your attack tree. Because the people who would threaten you would have the ability to exploit these weaknesses. My point is, encryption has many points, and many uses. PGP is used for many of them. But the flaws of the security product are actually flaws of your security process. The best algorithms in the world do not protect you if you're using windows 95 in your office. It pays to attack your own security process and know your weakness. List them, and protect against the ones you are not willing to live with.
Jason
This is exactly why the goverment doesn't care if you use some extremely tough encryption. Of course it makes it more difficult to do mass scans, like carnivore. But not any more difficult for spying on an individual. Bruce says it best, "security is a process, not a product". Sure, you can use your 4096 bit keys in your PGP application. And it would take millions of years to brute force them. But is brute force the best way to attack the PGP process? No way. And this is what the government knows. If I am the government, and I want access to your PGP encrypted data, all I have to do is break into your house while you're at work, copy your private key to a disk, and install some key logger to record your passphrase. It's quite simple really. No need for any brute force. The crack would take minutes, not millions of years. Attack the process, not the product, and most seemingly secure products will fail. Not because the products are bad, but because the process of using the products are bad.
Jason
Everyone knows that Microsoft is notorious for "embracing" technologies. After developing J2EE products for quite some time, I decided to look into .NET. After a short look through this article:t ips/comtips.asp t ips/comtipsfig07.gif
http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdnmag/issues/1200/com
I realized just home much Microsoft has "embraced" J2EE. With some things being glaring duplications:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdnmag/issues/1200/com
How does Microsoft get away with such "embracing"?
Jason
It appears to be blocked from direct linking.
Go here and check out the latest version:
http://www.counterpane.com/crypto-gram.html
Sorry,
Jason
http://www.counterpane.com/crypto-gram-103.html#10
is here: http://www.counterpane.com/crypto-gram-103.html#10
Interesting stuff.
Jason
This sounds like a job for super heroes in their downtime. If superman can fly fast enough to reverse the spin of the earth, he surely can cover this type of broadband service. Jason
I don't think you understood my point. Drivers and software companies feel safe. The the safer we make cars, the more people feel they can get away with. The same with software companies. They can make crappy products because there is no risk. There is no risk to driving a car that is very safe, and there is no risk in making crappy software. Penalties will enforce people to drive better, and companies to make better software. A spike on the steering wheel of a bad driver is the penalty for poor driving. A $1 fine for every crash is the penalty for every crappy product. Or maybe we could put spikes on the steering wheels of the product managers of the crappy products.
Bringing the two things together, cars and computers work closer and closer together everyday. Cars such as the Corvette us throttle by wire. The gas pedal is no longer mechanical, it is computer controlled. What happens when software in the computers of cars becomes so large and complex that it becomes buggy and the car's computer crashes and the car goes out of control? In a world without penalties, things get chaotic. Just look at the current state of Microsoft products.
Jason
I recall watching a show on DSC or TLC about the increasing safety of cars causing people to be less worried about being injured in an accident since the airbag would most likely save them. A proposal was to put a giant spike on the steering wheel so that if you got into an accident, you were likely to get hurt majorly. Although sadistic, this method would actually work to make people more cautious and safe drivers.
This article is somewhat similiar in that it forces penalties for bad products. Unfortunately, I think it will take something like what is being proposed to make companies realize that stable software is important.
Jason
Luckily I am in Chicago. This article shows the states with the most IT jobs:
http://www.itworld.com/Career/1830/CWSTO56227/
My company has a fairly strict website blocking policy. Too bad they allow us to use proxy servers to just go around whatever they block. But anyway, they block most of the links to banner ads, which is actually pretty nice. Finally a good use for blocking software.
Jason
I am referring to the deleted scenes on the DVD. If you look at the deleted scenes on the DVD, the line is there. I am pretty sure there is also some director commentary on why it was removed for the release, but I can't remember off the top of my head. Great Movie though!
This is offtopic, in relation to your sig. On the Fight Club DVD the actual line that was cut out in favor of your sig was something along the lines of, I want to have your abortion. It was cut out for obvious reasons.
Oh yeah, I forgot. It would only be ok to post 'Can I patent something ridiculously common [that Microsoft does]' to be ok with you. I'll try harder to please you next time.
Logging into a computer? Then I can sue everyone! How about "http://" can I copyright that?
This seems like an ingenious counter attack only a hacker could think of. I bet DirecTV knew they were losing the war against hackers and went onto the IRC to get in contact with them and hire them to fight other hackers.
Jason
I don't think the degree really matters. There are people who have the minds to programmers and there are people who do not. I have met some pretty talented programmers who have no degree whatsoever. If I were you, I would take the simplest and cheapest route get to where you want to go. If you have the skills to be a programmer and can prove yourself through projects you have done or through projects you've been involved in, you have nothing to worry about. As long as you get an interview and impress them, you're in. Regardless of the degree you carry, or don't carry.