Security is not an excuse to do nothing. A good IT department must strike a balance between security and practical usefulness. If they are incapable of doing that, it is their incompetence that is to blame. After all, any idiot can "secure" a system by refusing to install any software on it. Someone who knows what the Hell they're doing knows what software to install and what not to install.
I've never know anyone in my organization that EVER successfully "went through the approval process." The more you try, the more roadblocks they throw up. Most of the time, I personally either just give up or find a way to do it on my own (usually at home). 90% of the time, my project is long over before their approval board even meets (they should probably call it the "denial board," since they've never actually approved anything, AFAIK).
The one time I did go through the full process (I needed some server space for an internal website), it dragged on for two years (that is NOT an exaggeration--two full years). They threw up roadblock after roadblock for what should have been a very simple task (hell, even I can set up a basic Apache or IIS webserver, and this was just for hosting very low security material on an internal network--we're not talking the Pentagon here). After pressing it for two years, they finally just quoted me a ridiculous figure to hire a consultant (a $30,000 consultant to set up a fucking basic webserver). At that point, I just threw my hands up, gave up, and told my boss that it simply could not be done through our IT department. We ended up going through another division's IT department (they were able to set it up in one afternoon and it didn't cost us a dime).
I am certainly sympathetic to the need to maintain security (I would never advocate that they hand over admin rights to every yahoo in the company, as many idiots would end up loaded with spyware, or install just any random unknown program) and the costs involved. But we're talking about an IT department that refuses to do ANYTHING. I'm not talking about maintaining standards, I'm talking about them being so scared (and incompetent) that they refuse to innovate or move forward on anything. This is an IT department that refuses to install a wifi network (there is no internet access in any of our conference rooms or anywhere outside of individual offices with wired ethernet connections) because they aren't capable of handling simple WPA authentication (and aren't willing to learn). We're talking about an IT department that won't install Firefox because it's "a security risk." We're talking about a bunch of guys who probably haven't learned a damned thing about IT since they were in college, and have no incentive or desire to ever do so.
Every human being is irrational about *something*. Religion is just one example. To those who say that Europeans are completely rational, dare I point out that David Hasselhoff had a singing career in Germany? You call THAT rational?!?!
Funny thing about it was, I watched CSPAN for about an hour. During that time one-after-another idiot called in with inane comments about their irrational internet fears. In that time, not a single person with any knowledge called in and told people about simple measures like Firefox, NoScript, Adblock, the need to check for an SSL connection, anti-phishing features on modern browsers, etc. Just goes to show the level of disconnect between those of us here on/. and our world and the vast majority of the rest of the population and their world.
My IT staff are despised in our organization. They are antagonistic, have terrible (if not outright non-existent) customer service, and are generally a bunch of obstructionist pricks. Anytime someone makes a request of them they either refuse it outright or throw up roadblocks until the requestor just gives up in frustration. They use security as an excuse to be increasingly heavy-handed (to the point where technical staff like me have to work from home just to have access to the sites and tools we need to do our job). They have a "help desk" that, to my knowledge, has never helped anyone.
Typical call to IT here?
"Hi, I need to use X piece of software (which is mainstream and well-known). I can't install it myself because I don't have admin rights, can you install it please?"
"Why do you need it?"
"Well [insert many technical reasons here]"
"Sorry, we can't install software that hasn't been approved."
"How do I get it approved?"
"Well it will have to go before the board, which meets every 6 months or so. And you also have to [insert about 100 roadblocks and obstructionist measures here]."
"Great. Screw it, I'll just work from home again."
If you want to know why your IT department is hated, ask yourself how you treat your customers. Do you treat them as your bosses, or as your enemies?
Me personally, I absolutely refuse to back down from my "must be breathing" standard. When I was younger, I was more flexible. But now I stick to my guns on that one.
It's not good news that the mainstream media has picked it up, because they just use if for a lot of sensationalist fear-mongering that only serves to scare the uninformed public even more. I was watching CSPAN this morning and they were talking about this. People were calling in who obviously had no clue about the internet saying things like "My wife refuses to buy anything online because of stuff like this" and talking out of their asses.
Stuff like this doesn't really inform the general public, it only frightens them and makes them even more irrational. It's like the occassional story about the kidnapped kid or terrorist attack that causes everyone to freak out and start demanding irrational laws.
They day that add a mouse to the console is the day I stop playing games on consoles. If I wanted to sit at a desk and play video games, I would *BUY A FUCKING PC*. You keyboard/mouse snobs just stay the Hell off my console. You stay at your desk with your beloved mouse/PC and I'll lay on the couch with my beloved controller/console and we'll get along just fine.
If you just limit yourself to completely rational mates, you're going to live a very lonely life. Almost everyone believes SOMETHING crazy. Some people believe that the alien overlord Xenu corrupted out planet by dropping frozen aliens into our volcanoes. Some believe that an illiterate Hebrew peasant from backwater Galilee was the "son of God." Some believe that said peasant magically appeared later in America. Some believe that a poor Arab trader was a "prophet of God." Some believe that the entire world is just the dream of another God. Some believe that yet another ancient God dunked his giant spear in the water to create Japan.
Even rational scientists disagree over all kinds of stuff, with many treating their pet ideas with every bit as much reverence and irrationality as any religion.
So, looking for a 100% rational mate? Good luck with that, buddy.
No, today they're probably even cheaper. I was referring to BEFORE it died. HD-DVD's have always been cheaper, on average, than their blu-ray counterparts--especially at retailers like Best Buy.
I'm a heavy Windows users and I haven't seen a BSOD since the 90's. System lock-ups occasionally happen, but VERY rarely (and I use computers heavily every day). People who still chide Windows for the BSOD remind me of people who still make jokes about how often "It's a Wonderful Life" gets played at Christmas, oblivious to the fact that TV networks stopped doing that about 15 years ago (when Republic reclaimed the copyright and licensed it exclusively to NBC).
The Beatles were constructed pop shit. They were all PR stunt, bubblegum shit music, hype, and ego. It wasn't until their later years that they started writing anything besides standard "make teenage girls wet their panties" garbage, and even that stuff was WAY overrated.
Pop has always been around and always will be. And it's always been shit and it always will be.
I remember being taught the old "ice cream causes rape" example of spurious causation. When ice cream sales go up, so do rape numbers > Therefore ice cream causes people to rape. Of course, the real answer is that both go up in the summer.
Walk into any Best Buy and you would find blu-rays averaging $5-$10 more than HD-DVD's. It's better online, but HD-DVD's are definitely NOT more expensive, on average.
The Criterion Brazil is great (wish they would re-release it in anamorphic or HD, though). But, for my money, the absolute gold standard of all DVD sets is still the Alien Quadrilogy boxset. It's like God himself came down and designed a DVD set. Nothing else even comes close.
It is useful for playing regular DVD's too (and you can still keep a game in the main 360 drive without always having to swap them out). One of the coolest things for me was that (with a simple USB extension cable) I could put the drive beside me on the table beside the couch, while keeping the 360 and other components under the TV. It's small and unobtrusive and no more having to get up to change movies (yes, I'm that lazy).
I adopted DVD in 1997 (just months after it came out) with a $450 player (at that time, one of the cheapest on the market). I have no regrets. I got a well-built machine that has lasted almost 11 years now (my parents still use it). That premium got me several years headstart over those still wasting $ on VHS tapes and a machine that was very decent and built to last (unlike many of the cheapo DVD players today).
I also bought into HD-DVD (bought the $180 xbox 360 add-on drive when it first came out). That $180 got me the ability to watch movies in high-def, access to HD-DVD discs that were generally much cheaper than their blu-ray counterparts, and access to many great exclusives (like the Battlestar Galactica HD-DVD boxset) not available on blu-ray. And it's not like any of that stuff I've already bought is going to turn into a pumpkin now that HD-DVD is dead. It also gives me access to some great clearance deals on discs now. No regrets
I also bought a blu-ray player (PS3 after the first price drop for $500). Gives me access to blu-ray discs and exclusives, a good gaming system with potential, full hardware backwards compatibility for my PS2/PS1 games (it's the original 60GB American model). And it's easily upgradable. No regrets.
I'm sick of hearing about the "dangers" of early adoption. IMHO, it's almost always worth it (as long as you don't go crazy with the top-of-the line stuff). Early adoption can buy you years of fun ahead of everyone else and rarely becomes truly worthless even if your chosen format "loses."
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Security is not an excuse to do nothing. A good IT department must strike a balance between security and practical usefulness. If they are incapable of doing that, it is their incompetence that is to blame. After all, any idiot can "secure" a system by refusing to install any software on it. Someone who knows what the Hell they're doing knows what software to install and what not to install.
The one time I did go through the full process (I needed some server space for an internal website), it dragged on for two years (that is NOT an exaggeration--two full years). They threw up roadblock after roadblock for what should have been a very simple task (hell, even I can set up a basic Apache or IIS webserver, and this was just for hosting very low security material on an internal network--we're not talking the Pentagon here). After pressing it for two years, they finally just quoted me a ridiculous figure to hire a consultant (a $30,000 consultant to set up a fucking basic webserver). At that point, I just threw my hands up, gave up, and told my boss that it simply could not be done through our IT department. We ended up going through another division's IT department (they were able to set it up in one afternoon and it didn't cost us a dime).
I am certainly sympathetic to the need to maintain security (I would never advocate that they hand over admin rights to every yahoo in the company, as many idiots would end up loaded with spyware, or install just any random unknown program) and the costs involved. But we're talking about an IT department that refuses to do ANYTHING. I'm not talking about maintaining standards, I'm talking about them being so scared (and incompetent) that they refuse to innovate or move forward on anything. This is an IT department that refuses to install a wifi network (there is no internet access in any of our conference rooms or anywhere outside of individual offices with wired ethernet connections) because they aren't capable of handling simple WPA authentication (and aren't willing to learn). We're talking about an IT department that won't install Firefox because it's "a security risk." We're talking about a bunch of guys who probably haven't learned a damned thing about IT since they were in college, and have no incentive or desire to ever do so.
Because it never caught on.
Every human being is irrational about *something*. Religion is just one example. To those who say that Europeans are completely rational, dare I point out that David Hasselhoff had a singing career in Germany? You call THAT rational?!?!
Funny thing about it was, I watched CSPAN for about an hour. During that time one-after-another idiot called in with inane comments about their irrational internet fears. In that time, not a single person with any knowledge called in and told people about simple measures like Firefox, NoScript, Adblock, the need to check for an SSL connection, anti-phishing features on modern browsers, etc. Just goes to show the level of disconnect between those of us here on /. and our world and the vast majority of the rest of the population and their world.
Depends on how often your staff has "Taco Day" in the lunchroom.
Typical call to IT here?
"Hi, I need to use X piece of software (which is mainstream and well-known). I can't install it myself because I don't have admin rights, can you install it please?"
"Why do you need it?"
"Well [insert many technical reasons here]"
"Sorry, we can't install software that hasn't been approved."
"How do I get it approved?"
"Well it will have to go before the board, which meets every 6 months or so. And you also have to [insert about 100 roadblocks and obstructionist measures here]."
"Great. Screw it, I'll just work from home again."
If you want to know why your IT department is hated, ask yourself how you treat your customers. Do you treat them as your bosses, or as your enemies?
Me personally, I absolutely refuse to back down from my "must be breathing" standard. When I was younger, I was more flexible. But now I stick to my guns on that one.
Stuff like this doesn't really inform the general public, it only frightens them and makes them even more irrational. It's like the occassional story about the kidnapped kid or terrorist attack that causes everyone to freak out and start demanding irrational laws.
Wish I had some points for you.
They day that add a mouse to the console is the day I stop playing games on consoles. If I wanted to sit at a desk and play video games, I would *BUY A FUCKING PC*. You keyboard/mouse snobs just stay the Hell off my console. You stay at your desk with your beloved mouse/PC and I'll lay on the couch with my beloved controller/console and we'll get along just fine.
Even rational scientists disagree over all kinds of stuff, with many treating their pet ideas with every bit as much reverence and irrationality as any religion.
So, looking for a 100% rational mate? Good luck with that, buddy.
No, today they're probably even cheaper. I was referring to BEFORE it died. HD-DVD's have always been cheaper, on average, than their blu-ray counterparts--especially at retailers like Best Buy.
I'm a heavy Windows users and I haven't seen a BSOD since the 90's. System lock-ups occasionally happen, but VERY rarely (and I use computers heavily every day). People who still chide Windows for the BSOD remind me of people who still make jokes about how often "It's a Wonderful Life" gets played at Christmas, oblivious to the fact that TV networks stopped doing that about 15 years ago (when Republic reclaimed the copyright and licensed it exclusively to NBC).
Pop has always been around and always will be. And it's always been shit and it always will be.
No, but if you live in the U.S. you may have to EAT cat food to afford health insurance.
I remember being taught the old "ice cream causes rape" example of spurious causation. When ice cream sales go up, so do rape numbers > Therefore ice cream causes people to rape. Of course, the real answer is that both go up in the summer.
I'd say that PC have decided that their PC's are certainly not for YOUR game.
Walk into any Best Buy and you would find blu-rays averaging $5-$10 more than HD-DVD's. It's better online, but HD-DVD's are definitely NOT more expensive, on average.
The Criterion Brazil is great (wish they would re-release it in anamorphic or HD, though). But, for my money, the absolute gold standard of all DVD sets is still the Alien Quadrilogy boxset. It's like God himself came down and designed a DVD set. Nothing else even comes close.
It is useful for playing regular DVD's too (and you can still keep a game in the main 360 drive without always having to swap them out). One of the coolest things for me was that (with a simple USB extension cable) I could put the drive beside me on the table beside the couch, while keeping the 360 and other components under the TV. It's small and unobtrusive and no more having to get up to change movies (yes, I'm that lazy).
I also bought into HD-DVD (bought the $180 xbox 360 add-on drive when it first came out). That $180 got me the ability to watch movies in high-def, access to HD-DVD discs that were generally much cheaper than their blu-ray counterparts, and access to many great exclusives (like the Battlestar Galactica HD-DVD boxset) not available on blu-ray. And it's not like any of that stuff I've already bought is going to turn into a pumpkin now that HD-DVD is dead. It also gives me access to some great clearance deals on discs now. No regrets
I also bought a blu-ray player (PS3 after the first price drop for $500). Gives me access to blu-ray discs and exclusives, a good gaming system with potential, full hardware backwards compatibility for my PS2/PS1 games (it's the original 60GB American model). And it's easily upgradable. No regrets.
I'm sick of hearing about the "dangers" of early adoption. IMHO, it's almost always worth it (as long as you don't go crazy with the top-of-the line stuff). Early adoption can buy you years of fun ahead of everyone else and rarely becomes truly worthless even if your chosen format "loses."
I know at least four people who REALLY could have used this. Oh well, too late now.