If a user has physical access to a regular PC, there is very little you can do to stop her from getting data off it.
Steps like blocking LiveCDs and USB ports may help a bit, but a clueful user/dedicated blackhat-type would get that data through some other means anyway. (assuming it is valuable enough)
I suppose the security measures in a place like that have to be of MUCH, MUCH higher caliber to be of any use. I don't think kicking out people who carry LiveCDs is the solution...
For example, in the situation you have given, she can just boot of a thumbdrive... USB ports aren't usually blocked at BIOS level. If necessary, getting through the BIOS password is just a matter of pulling out the CMOS battery for a minute.
PS: I'm neither a clueful user nor a dedicated blackhat-type. So I'm probably wrong, with that last part.
IEEE has a reputation of impartiality. If they do open their doors to ad revenue their integrity will be questioned. The last thing we need is corporate sponsored standards and reference material which shut out competitors and amateurs.
Even if they do stay impartial, they will be questioned and it will lead to a whole quagmire of politics. It is inevitable.
I know this comment doesn't help much, but I had to say it. I commend the IEEE for trying to make reference material avilable free, but please think about this. Anyway, I don't think IEEE will read this, so bleh.
11 of 25 posts so far have been about Call centres and outsourcing.
I know most of it is humour (of some sort), but don't you think this is being just a bit insensitive? Mod me down if you must, but there must be a limit to self-centredness, even for Americans.
Date: Thu, 20 Nov 1997 19:40:19 -0500 Reply-To: m3lt <meltman@LAGGED.NET> Subject: new TCP/IP bug in win95
hi,
i recently discovered a bug which freezes win95 boxes. here's how it works: send a spoofed packet with the SYN flag set from a host, on an open port (such as 113 or 139), setting as source the SAME host and port (ie: 10.0.0.1:139 to 10.0.0.1:139). this will cause the win95 machine to lock up.
the piece of code included in this message does that, so... have fun!
i haven't tested this bug on other platforms, i don't have the ressources. please feel free to do so.
Apple's view may seem regressive to the average slashdot reader, but to the rest of the world, it's way ahead.
This is a baldfaced attempt to confuse two sources of outrage for the average geek: threats to free speech and threats from Microsoft. It's a common rhetorical and political tactic meant to funnel away attention from the true threat.
True, but it doesn't make the points made in the article go away. Apple is, of late, using more muscle and money power to get it's way. Your first part says it directly. The average/.er is more in tune with tech today, and knows that Apple isn't doing too much innovation( at least, not as much as they used to). But Apple is using it's image with regular people as a high-tech company to corner a market and expand.
While that's not illegal, it is different from what geeks expect from Apple. They weren't generally known for stuff like this from what I hear.
But then again, i've never been to interested in Apple, so I could be wrong:/
Even though the designs of the rovers are identical, the instruments themselves are not. The article says so. Each instrument was calibrated to behave properly in one rover. When the instruments were swapped, the readings from them were incorrect.
FROM: MR.SOLOMON ALEMAYEHU WORLD BANK OF EARTH STREET P.O.BOX 5550 ADDIS ABABA,ETHIOPIA, EARTH, THE MILKYWAY.
DEAR SIR/MADAM/THING,
I AM MR.SOLOMON ALEMAYEHU, BANK MANAGER OF WORLD BANK OF EARTH.
THIS IS AN URGENT AND VERY CONFIDENTIAL BUSINESS PROPOSITION.
ON 1123.423123 METRIC DATE,A FOREIGN OIL CONSULTANT/CONTRACTOR WITH THE EARTH INSTITUTE OF MINING AND METALLURGY, MR. MICHAEL FOSTER MADE A NUMBERED TIME(FIXED) DEPOSIT FOR TWELVE EARTH MONTHS, VALUED AT 26,500,000.00,(TWENTY-SIX MILLION, FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND UNITS GALACTIC CURRENCY) IN MY BRANCH.
UPON MATURITY,I SENT A ROUTINE NOTIFICATION TO HIS FORWARDING ADDRESS BUT GOT NO REPLY. AFTER A MONTH,WE SENT A REMINDER AND FINALLY WE DISCOVERED FROM HIS CONTRACT EMPLOYERS, THE MARTIAN PETROLEUM CORPORATION THAT MR. MICHAEL FOSTER DIED FROM AN AUTOMOBILE ACCIDENT.
ON FURTHER INVESTIGATION,I FOUND OUT THAT HE DIED WITHOUT MAKING A WILL,AND ALL ATTEMPTS TO TRACE HIS NEXT OF KIN WAS FRUITLESS.
I THEREFORE MADE FURTHER INVESTIGATION AND DISCOVERED THAT MR. MICHAEL FOSTER DID NOT DECLARE ANY KIN OR RELATIONS IN ALL HIS OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS,INCLUDING HIS BANK DEPOSIT PAPER WORK IN MY BANK HERE ON EARTH.THIS SUM OF 26,500,000.00 HAS CAREFULLY BEEN FIXED IN MY BANK FOR SAFEKEEPING.
NO ONE WILL EVER COME FORWARD TO CLAIM IT.ACCORDING TO EARTH LAW, AT THE EXPIRATION OF 5 (FIVE) STANDARD EARTH YEARS, THE MONEY WILL REVERT TO THE OWNERSHIP OF THE GOVERNMENT IF NOBODY APPLIES TO CLAIM THE FUND.CONSEQUENTLY, MY PROPOSAL IS THAT I WILL LIKE YOU AS A ALIEN TO STAND IN AS THE OWNER OF THE MONEY WHICH WAS FIXED DEPOSITED IN MY BANK.I AM WRITING YOU BECAUSE I AS A PUBLIC SERVANT,I CANNOT OPERATE A NON-SOLAR-SYSTEM ACCOUNT.
I WANT TO PRESENT YOU AS THE OWNER OF THE FUNDS SO YOU CAN BE ABLE TO CLAIM THEM WITH THE HELP OF MY ATTORNEY. THIS IS SIMPLE.I WILL LIKE YOU TO PROVIDE IMMEDIATELY YOUR FULL NAMES AND ADDRESS SO THAT THE ATTORNEY WILL PREPARE THE NECESSARY DOCUMENTS WHICH WILL PUT YOU IN PLACE AS THE BENEFICIARY OF THE FUNDS.
THE MONEY WILL BE MOVED OUT FOR US TO SHARE IN THE RATIO OF 80% FOR ME AND 20% FOR YOU. THE PAPERWORK FOR THIS TRANSACTION WILL BE DONE BY THE ATTORNEY.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, PLEASE REPLY IMMEDIATELY VIA THE SAME METHOD THIS REACHES YOU AND UPON YOUR RESPONSE, I SHALL THEN PROVIDE YOU WITH MORE DETAILS AND RELEVANT DOCUMENTS THAT WILL HELP YOU UNDERSTAND THE TRANSACTION.
PLEASE OBSERVE UTMOST CONFIDENTIALITY, AND BE REST ASSURED THAT THIS TRANSACTION WOULD BE MOST PROFITABLE FOR BOTH OF US BECAUSE I SHALL REQUIRE YOUR ASSISTANCE TO INVEST MY SHARE IN REAL ESTATE WITHIN YOUR PLANET.
Maybe the American government should stop trying to solve problems through money. AOL-Time-Warner or whoever can easily afford $500,000, just the same as they can afford $500. It doesn't affect them, they'll find a way to make up the losses from share holders.
Though he makes a few valid points, I doubt this rant of his was in the best interests of libraries (in general).
The number of people reading books keeps decreasing each year. The number of people going to libraries keeps decreasing even more. Around here, at least, people seem to prefer anything to a library.
If he wants more people in libraries, the last thing he should do is alienate kids. (I'm generalizing, but in my experience most bloggers seem to be in the 12-18 category). If he positions himself as "against" bloggers and blogging, more people will be skipping libraries and preferring to stick to the internet for their information.
This may not be a bad thing on the whole, but it's bad for libraries IMO.
Everybody has opinions. Having an opinion is one of the easiest things in the world to do. Go try and find one of these "sheep" you oh-so-smugly talk about. Go try and find somebody without an opinion. You can't. They don't exist. Everybody has opinions.
Who claimed that we don't have opinions? We (the sheep) do have opinions, which are shaped by the people we pay attention to. That was my original claim. You have not refuted it.
Was she one of the "sheep" that you speak of so dismissively? Or was she one of the "free thinkers" you seem to like so much?
I know nothing of this lady, but she is most definitely a free thinker. She did what very few people around her did.
only you are enlightened and everybody else is a "sheep."
My post said: We (the people) will just find a different way to be sheep
I put myself in the same category knowing fully well that most of my thoughts are influenced by those around me. On most issues, I do not know enough to have an opinion, but if necessary to have one, I will choose that of the people I know. I did not try to introduce a dichotomy, since I knew that I can't. ( Human society doesn't provide fine-grained locking:) )
You're a fucking elitist asshole, and what's more, you're completely wrong.
Statements like this do not add to an argument, or add to the issue at hand. Oh wait, you don't care about that.
Each person is reading a finite number of blogs and processing and making their own blog. Everyone is (gasp!) thinking for themselves.
Do not think, even for a minute, that this will happen. We (the people) will just find a different way to be sheep. Some blogs will get more attention than most, and everyone will again be thinking the same things, controlled by similar people.
A medium may encourage free-thinking, but people don't seem to like it too much. Most people prefer to be told what to think while going about their lives.
But they concluded with statistics showing that the Windows setup had a clear advantage over the Linux alternative.
The setups were hypothetical, however. Both were in the most basic configuration, an approach that some in the audience suggested may tilt the results in favor of Windows, which comes with more features.
Ford said the idea was to represent what an average system administrator may do, as opposed to a "wizard" who could take extra steps to provide plenty of security on a Linux setup, for instance.
[emphasis added]
Hypothetical? This isn't a study, it's hand-waving with added pulling-numbers-out-of-arse goodness. (I don't see a source for the numbers, do you?)
Oh, and they manged to prove that even for hypothetical machines a competent admin is needed. Bravo! Who'da thunk?
...but his replies on these two major questions (IMO) were very strange. I'm going to try to summarise his replies, please correct me
Q: Why do you never include the costs of fixing Security Problems in TCO studies? A: We don't know how to calculate that cost. We would like suggestions.
Q: You claim an advantage of MS over Linux is accountability, but your EULAs say otherwise A: Everyone does it. We're no different.
Although I applaud him for actually requesting suggestions from "the enemy", I was expecting better-informed answers(especially since he said he had read all the questions earlier.)
The survey of the agency's scientific staff of 1,400 had a 30% response rate and was conducted jointly by the Union of Concerned Scientists and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility.
and
More than half of the biologists and other researchers who responded to the survey said they knew of cases in which
[Emphasis added]
Okay, so "more than half" of 30% makes it a little over 15%. So thats around 210+ scientists. Technically, the summary is right in saying "hundreds", but it sounds a whole lot more sensational than it really is.
Secondly, also from TFA
Mitch Snow, a spokesman for the Fish and Wildlife Service, said the agency had no comment on the survey, except to say "some of the basic premises just aren't so."
If that's not dodging the issue, I don't know what is. I would seriously like a spokesman for a scientific agency to give a better defense to his stand than that very vague statement that says nothing.
False sensationalism and dodging aside, I believe this is a very serious issue. If the scientific integrity of this office has been reduced because of corporate pressures, there's very little faith left in me for any scientific agency. People generally assume that science works in the best interests of man, even though the results may go against him.
... And I don't think this is a free speech issue; this is more of a lesson in learning when and where it is and isn't appropriate to say certain things...
How else would you define a free-speech issue? Free speech only becomes a problem when the right is exercised in the wrong places. A government with draconian policies doesn't mind if you use your right to free speech to support it, but it surely does when you use those same rights to oppose it. If someone gets to choose what's free speech, and what isn't, it's NOT FREE SPEECH ANYMORE.
I'm as much a google supporter as the next slashdotter, but if what I read is true, and they have fired him ("let him go") for writing about negatives in working at Google, provided that stuff doesn't come under the NDA, then this is ethically wrong. Like this blog entry says:
Whatever happened, it's a sad day when you can't speak openly about both the good and bad at your chosen place of work without getting silenced.
Slashdot Mirror
If a user has physical access to a regular PC, there is very little you can do to stop her from getting data off it.
Steps like blocking LiveCDs and USB ports may help a bit, but a clueful user/dedicated blackhat-type would get that data through some other means anyway. (assuming it is valuable enough)
I suppose the security measures in a place like that have to be of MUCH, MUCH higher caliber to be of any use. I don't think kicking out people who carry LiveCDs is the solution...
For example, in the situation you have given, she can just boot of a thumbdrive... USB ports aren't usually blocked at BIOS level. If necessary, getting through the BIOS password is just a matter of pulling out the CMOS battery for a minute.
PS: I'm neither a clueful user nor a dedicated blackhat-type. So I'm probably wrong, with that last part.
DamnSmallLinux has had FluxBox for a long time, and the recent versions of it come with Firefox.
This is truly a better distro for this purpose IMO. Less stuff means that there's less stuff that can break.
Dear IEEE,
Please don't look to advertising.
Thanks,
A random IEEE member.
---
IEEE has a reputation of impartiality. If they do open their doors to ad revenue their integrity will be questioned. The last thing we need is corporate sponsored standards and reference material which shut out competitors and amateurs.
Even if they do stay impartial, they will be questioned and it will lead to a whole quagmire of politics. It is inevitable.
I know this comment doesn't help much, but I had to say it. I commend the IEEE for trying to make reference material avilable free, but please think about this. Anyway, I don't think IEEE will read this, so bleh.
11 of 25 posts so far have been about Call centres and outsourcing.
I know most of it is humour (of some sort), but don't you think this is being just a bit insensitive? Mod me down if you must, but there must be a limit to self-centredness, even for Americans.
</karma-suicide>
True, but it doesn't make the points made in the article go away. Apple is, of late, using more muscle and money power to get it's way. Your first part says it directly. The average
While that's not illegal, it is different from what geeks expect from Apple. They weren't generally known for stuff like this from what I hear.
But then again, i've never been to interested in Apple, so I could be wrong
Even though the designs of the rovers are identical, the instruments themselves are not. The article says so. Each instrument was calibrated to behave properly in one rover. When the instruments were swapped, the readings from them were incorrect.
RTFA. NASA's Mars rovers Opportunity and Spirit are identical twins It's the first goddamn line...
FROM:
,A FOREIGN OIL CONSULTANT/CONTRACTOR WITH THE EARTH INSTITUTE OF MINING AND METALLURGY, MR. MICHAEL FOSTER MADE A NUMBERED TIME(FIXED) DEPOSIT FOR TWELVE EARTH MONTHS, VALUED AT 26,500,000.00,(TWENTY-SIX MILLION, FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND UNITS GALACTIC CURRENCY) IN MY BRANCH.
MR.SOLOMON ALEMAYEHU
WORLD BANK OF EARTH
STREET P.O.BOX 5550
ADDIS ABABA,ETHIOPIA, EARTH, THE MILKYWAY.
DEAR SIR/MADAM/THING,
I AM MR.SOLOMON ALEMAYEHU, BANK MANAGER OF WORLD BANK OF EARTH.
THIS IS AN URGENT AND VERY CONFIDENTIAL BUSINESS PROPOSITION.
ON 1123.423123 METRIC DATE
UPON MATURITY,I SENT A ROUTINE NOTIFICATION TO HIS FORWARDING ADDRESS BUT GOT NO REPLY. AFTER A MONTH,WE SENT A REMINDER AND FINALLY WE DISCOVERED FROM HIS CONTRACT EMPLOYERS, THE MARTIAN PETROLEUM CORPORATION THAT MR. MICHAEL FOSTER DIED FROM AN AUTOMOBILE ACCIDENT.
ON FURTHER INVESTIGATION,I FOUND OUT THAT HE DIED WITHOUT MAKING A WILL,AND ALL ATTEMPTS TO TRACE HIS NEXT OF KIN WAS FRUITLESS.
I THEREFORE MADE FURTHER INVESTIGATION AND DISCOVERED THAT MR. MICHAEL FOSTER DID NOT DECLARE ANY KIN OR RELATIONS IN ALL HIS OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS,INCLUDING HIS BANK DEPOSIT PAPER WORK IN MY BANK HERE ON EARTH.THIS SUM OF 26,500,000.00 HAS CAREFULLY BEEN FIXED IN MY BANK FOR SAFEKEEPING.
NO ONE WILL EVER COME FORWARD TO CLAIM IT.ACCORDING TO EARTH LAW, AT THE EXPIRATION OF 5 (FIVE) STANDARD EARTH YEARS, THE MONEY WILL REVERT TO THE OWNERSHIP OF THE GOVERNMENT IF NOBODY APPLIES TO CLAIM THE FUND.CONSEQUENTLY, MY PROPOSAL IS THAT I WILL LIKE YOU AS A ALIEN TO STAND IN AS THE OWNER OF THE MONEY WHICH WAS FIXED DEPOSITED IN MY BANK.I AM WRITING YOU BECAUSE I AS A PUBLIC SERVANT,I CANNOT OPERATE A NON-SOLAR-SYSTEM ACCOUNT.
I WANT TO PRESENT YOU AS THE OWNER OF THE FUNDS SO YOU CAN BE ABLE TO CLAIM THEM WITH THE HELP OF MY ATTORNEY. THIS IS SIMPLE.I WILL LIKE YOU TO PROVIDE IMMEDIATELY YOUR FULL NAMES AND ADDRESS SO THAT THE ATTORNEY WILL PREPARE THE NECESSARY DOCUMENTS WHICH WILL PUT YOU IN PLACE AS THE BENEFICIARY OF THE FUNDS.
THE MONEY WILL BE MOVED OUT FOR US TO SHARE IN THE RATIO OF 80% FOR ME AND 20% FOR YOU. THE PAPERWORK FOR THIS TRANSACTION WILL BE DONE BY THE ATTORNEY.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, PLEASE REPLY IMMEDIATELY VIA THE SAME METHOD THIS REACHES YOU AND UPON YOUR RESPONSE, I SHALL THEN PROVIDE YOU WITH MORE DETAILS AND RELEVANT DOCUMENTS THAT WILL HELP YOU UNDERSTAND THE TRANSACTION.
PLEASE OBSERVE UTMOST CONFIDENTIALITY, AND BE REST ASSURED THAT THIS TRANSACTION WOULD BE MOST PROFITABLE FOR BOTH OF US BECAUSE I SHALL REQUIRE YOUR ASSISTANCE TO INVEST MY SHARE IN REAL ESTATE WITHIN YOUR PLANET.
AWAITING YOUR URGENT REPLY.
THANKS AND MY REGARDS.
SOLOMON ALEMAYEHU.
WORLD BANK OF EARTH
Maybe the American government should stop trying to solve problems through money. AOL-Time-Warner or whoever can easily afford $500,000, just the same as they can afford $500. It doesn't affect them, they'll find a way to make up the losses from share holders.
Though he makes a few valid points, I doubt this rant of his was in the best interests of libraries (in general).
The number of people reading books keeps decreasing each year. The number of people going to libraries keeps decreasing even more. Around here, at least, people seem to prefer anything to a library.
If he wants more people in libraries, the last thing he should do is alienate kids. (I'm generalizing, but in my experience most bloggers seem to be in the 12-18 category). If he positions himself as "against" bloggers and blogging, more people will be skipping libraries and preferring to stick to the internet for their information.
This may not be a bad thing on the whole, but it's bad for libraries IMO.
All your base are belong to Claria.
Anyway, I have time and patience...
Who claimed that we don't have opinions? We (the sheep) do have opinions, which are shaped by the people we pay attention to. That was my original claim. You have not refuted it.
I know nothing of this lady, but she is most definitely a free thinker. She did what very few people around her did.
My post said: We (the people) will just find a different way to be sheep
I put myself in the same category knowing fully well that most of my thoughts are influenced by those around me. On most issues, I do not know enough to have an opinion, but if necessary to have one, I will choose that of the people I know. I did not try to introduce a dichotomy, since I knew that I can't. ( Human society doesn't provide fine-grained lockingDo not think, even for a minute, that this will happen. We (the people) will just find a different way to be sheep. Some blogs will get more attention than most, and everyone will again be thinking the same things, controlled by similar people.
A medium may encourage free-thinking, but people don't seem to like it too much. Most people prefer to be told what to think while going about their lives.
I'm sure there's a reason, besides crack cocaine, that parent is modded Informative.
Very sure...
Hypothetical? This isn't a study, it's hand-waving with added pulling-numbers-out-of-arse goodness. (I don't see a source for the numbers, do you?)
Oh, and they manged to prove that even for hypothetical machines a competent admin is needed. Bravo! Who'da thunk?
...but his replies on these two major questions (IMO) were very strange. I'm going to try to summarise his replies, please correct me
Q: Why do you never include the costs of fixing Security Problems in TCO studies?
A: We don't know how to calculate that cost. We would like suggestions.
Q: You claim an advantage of MS over Linux is accountability, but your EULAs say otherwise
A: Everyone does it. We're no different.
Although I applaud him for actually requesting suggestions from "the enemy", I was expecting better-informed answers(especially since he said he had read all the questions earlier.)
Try Anjuta (or here )
Who said anything about PostGreSQL?
Okay, so "more than half" of 30% makes it a little over 15%. So thats around 210+ scientists. Technically, the summary is right in saying "hundreds", but it sounds a whole lot more sensational than it really is.
Secondly, also from TFA
If that's not dodging the issue, I don't know what is. I would seriously like a spokesman for a scientific agency to give a better defense to his stand than that very vague statement that says nothing.False sensationalism and dodging aside, I believe this is a very serious issue. If the scientific integrity of this office has been reduced because of corporate pressures, there's very little faith left in me for any scientific agency. People generally assume that science works in the best interests of man, even though the results may go against him.
EA University
Overwork everything.
How else would you define a free-speech issue? Free speech only becomes a problem when the right is exercised in the wrong places. A government with draconian policies doesn't mind if you use your right to free speech to support it, but it surely does when you use those same rights to oppose it. If someone gets to choose what's free speech, and what isn't, it's NOT FREE SPEECH ANYMORE.
I'm as much a google supporter as the next slashdotter, but if what I read is true, and they have fired him ("let him go") for writing about negatives in working at Google, provided that stuff doesn't come under the NDA, then this is ethically wrong. Like this blog entry says:
space? but it's nothing? so is there actually anything separating them?
Yes. There's lots of nothing separating them.