I agree with your sentiment here. It really bugs me that I can't run my own mail server without having to channel everything through my ISP's mail server just because other people can't handle properly configuring their computers so as to avoid being used as spam launching stations. I purchase internet access, but I don't get internet access... I get a filtered connection that allows me to operate on ports the ISP determines are safe for me to have access to. What comes next? Will my ISP determine what websites are appropriate for me to access, what hours I should be allowed to access, what OS I can use, etc.? I don't like this paternalistic regulating of my bandwidth, I don't think it's necessary, and I think ISPs that do so should be liable for theft of services, but, alas, the only way you can get the bandwidth is to pay what they ask, sign their TOSes, shut up and like it.
I think the real advantage to "rolling your own" is that you ultimately control the hardware and software on your own equipment. If you want to ignore the broadcast flag (gasp!), increase the storage capacity of your PVR, change the format(s) that can be supported, etc. the only limitations are your knowledge (or lack thereof).
I know I would diversify if I were them. With predictions of new vulnerabilities being exploited within hours it seems like anti-virus software would be a risky business to be in right now. If a major organization got rooted via an exploit that their software didn't protect them from quickly enough they might try to sue Symantec for failing to provide adequate protection. I don't think such a case would be have much merit or be successful, but it would still cost money to defend against it. It might be a very savvy move to have another field to expand into if the market on AV got tight.
Seems like Knoppix pretty much makes this completely useless. Even if someone is able to code up a Linux version they won't be able to install it on a non-persistent system. I'm sure everyone in Australia won't start using Knoppix (or something like it), but all the criminals they're trying to catch will!
I think the reason this is news is because the Bush administration is still trying to pretend that this is not proven science... that it's just a theory that can be ignored. They want to ignore it because it's inconvenient for their business cronies, and those business cronies fund party activities and candidates' re-elections. I don't think there will be any changes on this front until this administration is out of office, no matter how much evidence is presented. It's quite unfortunate.
I agree. Nevertheless, it doesn't surprise me that this is taking place. The government has had a pretty dismal record for quite some time now regarding stewardship of public resources, and I think this falls under that category. It seems everywhere you look these days there's a "get mine and get out" mentality. It's prevalent in both business and government. I don't know if the people who do this kind of thing don't realize what kind of long term damage they're doing to the country and the economy or if they just don't care. It's a shame either way.
I've actually done this a couple of times, so I know it's possible and cheap. I think this is the emergence of the new music recording and distribution model. It's going to be fascinating to watch this develop over the next few years!
Most musicians make their money from show attendance. They usually only make pennies on the dollar from album sales. Quite a few artists report that filesharing actually improves their bottom line! After all, more people listening increases the chance that more people will come to the show.
Music "piracy" usually only hurts the suits at the recording companies. I have a hard time feeling too sorry for them. They're making their living by charging artists for advertising and distributing their work, and the internet makes that very low cost or free. The business model has changed, and the recording industry has not changed with it. A band can now make a very professional recording all on their own, advertise it, and distribute it for next to nothing. The suits just haven't realized it yet.
... just what we need: further regulation of something that has no need to be regulated in the first place. I wonder if we'll be allowed to leave our homes without a permit once they get done "protecting" us from everything they can think of.
I wonder if jail time will be an effective deterrent for spammers. I think the lack of any real teeth in current legislation has kept the current spam laws from having any real effect. Even if the spammers are actually fined the fines represent a significantly smaller amount than the potential profits from spamming. If this passes, is upheld as legal, and is enforced it will be very interesting to see what kind of spam, if any, continues to originate from Ohio.
I've done all kinds of stuff on the side, but some IT highlights are building and repairing computers and then selling them off (usually in the paper), web design, custom app programming, spyware/virus removal, system upgrades, computer repair, and home or office networking.
The real sticky part is making sure your customers pay by the job... otherwise you'll end up providing indefinite support for any computer you repair, set up, work on, etc. It's amazing how some people think that once you touch a network or a machine you're bound to provide free service for it forever. I often wonder if these people pay their car mechanics once and then expect all future automobile service, maintenance, and upgrades for free.
Whatever you do, just make sure that you let customers know that they pay you by the job or the visit. Otherwise they have to put you on salary.
I think the real question is whether or not this resurgence of Delphi will continue once the "new" has worn off of Delphi 2005. I think some people are trying it out right now, but may move back to other IDEs after a while.
... the information was being stored in a file? Perhaps someone who has access to a copy of the file can post it somewhere. I'm sure there isn't going to be high security on it, so perhaps someone can crack it open and we'll see what kind of information they're getting.
I wonder what the cost on one of these babies was? I have an old magazine ad for the "all new 386!" with a CGA monitor 16MB of RAM and a 40MB hard drive for several thousand dollars. It always cracks me up to think about what fools we'll feel like in the future for paying top dollar for the latest and greatest hardware now.
"Yeah, I remember paying almost a thousand dollars for just a ONE TERABYTE hard drive!"
Yeah, I agree. Their software's not so wonderful, but it's a hell of a lot better than their OSes. Maybe if they'd stop trying to screw around in areas where they're not proficient they'd improve their software design.
They don't have to eliminate the LM hash completely, just turn it off by default. Corporate asshats who choose to turn on and use LM hashes so they can join 9x machines to a domain take the security of their networks into their own hands.
Besides, if they can afford to refuse to provide hotfixes for Windows 2000 and 98 users for holes they are fixing in XP (most notably IE!) then why can they not afford to make a stand on this issue, which affects the security of the whole Windows family of OSes? Your explanation does not amke sense to me.
I wonder how long (if ever) it will take Microsoft to respond to this by releasing a patch (hopefully listed as a "Critical Update") to disable LM password hashes by default. I've wondered for years why they haven't already done that, but if they don't do it now then they're really asking for trouble.
It's interesting that a company that claims to be highly focused on security could let such a blatant hole sit for this long. When will they learn? Microsoft is best at making software, not operating systems. They should stick to what they do best and let the OS market go.
What you're saying is all completely true. They have every right to jack up prices as high as they can for maximum profit. Most work I do is done on the command line, so this doesn't really affect me one way or the other. Believe it or not, the last time I upgraded a video card on a machine was when I went from a Hercules monochrome card to a VGA, and I'm still not certain that was really necessary. All I was doing was idly speculating that graphics card manufacturers are probably taking full advantage of people's perceived need to have the latest, fastest, greatest video cards to manipulate the market to their advantage. People can do whatever they want with this information.
Incidentally, I agree with you about waiting until next year when the prices are better... but I'm also not trying to play Doom 3.
I believe that in order to sell illegal drugs in some states you have to obtain tax stamps for them. I don't think the purpose of the law is to curb anyone's behavior, it just allows authorities to tack on another charge when they press charges against an individual. It just means more revenue for the State and/or more time for the prosecuted.
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I agree with your sentiment here. It really bugs me that I can't run my own mail server without having to channel everything through my ISP's mail server just because other people can't handle properly configuring their computers so as to avoid being used as spam launching stations. I purchase internet access, but I don't get internet access... I get a filtered connection that allows me to operate on ports the ISP determines are safe for me to have access to. What comes next? Will my ISP determine what websites are appropriate for me to access, what hours I should be allowed to access, what OS I can use, etc.? I don't like this paternalistic regulating of my bandwidth, I don't think it's necessary, and I think ISPs that do so should be liable for theft of services, but, alas, the only way you can get the bandwidth is to pay what they ask, sign their TOSes, shut up and like it.
I'm shocked that you would suggest this! What do I look like, a U.S. president?
I think the real advantage to "rolling your own" is that you ultimately control the hardware and software on your own equipment. If you want to ignore the broadcast flag (gasp!), increase the storage capacity of your PVR, change the format(s) that can be supported, etc. the only limitations are your knowledge (or lack thereof).
I know I would diversify if I were them. With predictions of new vulnerabilities being exploited within hours it seems like anti-virus software would be a risky business to be in right now. If a major organization got rooted via an exploit that their software didn't protect them from quickly enough they might try to sue Symantec for failing to provide adequate protection. I don't think such a case would be have much merit or be successful, but it would still cost money to defend against it. It might be a very savvy move to have another field to expand into if the market on AV got tight.
Seems like Knoppix pretty much makes this completely useless. Even if someone is able to code up a Linux version they won't be able to install it on a non-persistent system. I'm sure everyone in Australia won't start using Knoppix (or something like it), but all the criminals they're trying to catch will!
I think the reason this is news is because the Bush administration is still trying to pretend that this is not proven science... that it's just a theory that can be ignored. They want to ignore it because it's inconvenient for their business cronies, and those business cronies fund party activities and candidates' re-elections. I don't think there will be any changes on this front until this administration is out of office, no matter how much evidence is presented. It's quite unfortunate.
I agree. Nevertheless, it doesn't surprise me that this is taking place. The government has had a pretty dismal record for quite some time now regarding stewardship of public resources, and I think this falls under that category. It seems everywhere you look these days there's a "get mine and get out" mentality. It's prevalent in both business and government. I don't know if the people who do this kind of thing don't realize what kind of long term damage they're doing to the country and the economy or if they just don't care. It's a shame either way.
I've actually done this a couple of times, so I know it's possible and cheap. I think this is the emergence of the new music recording and distribution model. It's going to be fascinating to watch this develop over the next few years!
Music "piracy" usually only hurts the suits at the recording companies. I have a hard time feeling too sorry for them. They're making their living by charging artists for advertising and distributing their work, and the internet makes that very low cost or free. The business model has changed, and the recording industry has not changed with it. A band can now make a very professional recording all on their own, advertise it, and distribute it for next to nothing. The suits just haven't realized it yet.
... just what we need: further regulation of something that has no need to be regulated in the first place. I wonder if we'll be allowed to leave our homes without a permit once they get done "protecting" us from everything they can think of.
I wonder if jail time will be an effective deterrent for spammers. I think the lack of any real teeth in current legislation has kept the current spam laws from having any real effect. Even if the spammers are actually fined the fines represent a significantly smaller amount than the potential profits from spamming. If this passes, is upheld as legal, and is enforced it will be very interesting to see what kind of spam, if any, continues to originate from Ohio.
The real sticky part is making sure your customers pay by the job... otherwise you'll end up providing indefinite support for any computer you repair, set up, work on, etc. It's amazing how some people think that once you touch a network or a machine you're bound to provide free service for it forever. I often wonder if these people pay their car mechanics once and then expect all future automobile service, maintenance, and upgrades for free.
Whatever you do, just make sure that you let customers know that they pay you by the job or the visit. Otherwise they have to put you on salary.
See what I mean! It's already starting! ;^)
I think the real question is whether or not this resurgence of Delphi will continue once the "new" has worn off of Delphi 2005. I think some people are trying it out right now, but may move back to other IDEs after a while.
I've been a vocal critic of Microsoft for a lot longer than this guy! Where's my payoff!?!!?!
... the information was being stored in a file? Perhaps someone who has access to a copy of the file can post it somewhere. I'm sure there isn't going to be high security on it, so perhaps someone can crack it open and we'll see what kind of information they're getting.
"Yeah, I remember paying almost a thousand dollars for just a ONE TERABYTE hard drive!"
Yeah, I agree. Their software's not so wonderful, but it's a hell of a lot better than their OSes. Maybe if they'd stop trying to screw around in areas where they're not proficient they'd improve their software design.
Besides, if they can afford to refuse to provide hotfixes for Windows 2000 and 98 users for holes they are fixing in XP (most notably IE!) then why can they not afford to make a stand on this issue, which affects the security of the whole Windows family of OSes? Your explanation does not amke sense to me.
It's interesting that a company that claims to be highly focused on security could let such a blatant hole sit for this long. When will they learn? Microsoft is best at making software, not operating systems. They should stick to what they do best and let the OS market go.
I think it's 1984... either that or Orwell was off by a couple of decades.
Incidentally, I agree with you about waiting until next year when the prices are better... but I'm also not trying to play Doom 3.
Almost makes you wonder if the makers of video cards are deliberately holding back on the market to make higher profits.
I believe that in order to sell illegal drugs in some states you have to obtain tax stamps for them. I don't think the purpose of the law is to curb anyone's behavior, it just allows authorities to tack on another charge when they press charges against an individual. It just means more revenue for the State and/or more time for the prosecuted.
Touche! I have been asked for ID before as a passenger, but was never hassled for failing to have it. You are correct.