Posts by Kasper Loopstra

Boffins invent miracle pill that counteracts effects of booze

Sounds normal for the medicinal folks. Haven't had a read yet myself, but it's quite common to just do literature work and claim it's a new discovery.

MySQL.com breach leaves visitors exposed to malware

Diginotar

Admittedly, Diginotar was associated with Dutch Government IT. It didn't matter if they ran the most paranoid if systems, they were doomed from the moment the government contract was signed.

Pirate Bay owners fined by Dutch court

Holland

As a Dutchman from Groningen, I can't be bothered by what you call this place. Holland will do, but is indeed more correctly used as the name of a province.

Good luck enforcing the fine, and free speech is still there because of the XS4All ruling.

Oz banker caught porn-surfing on live TV

Agreed

Actually, agreed on that count. It seems quite odd to be able to view stuff, possibly secret, in the middle of a bank. On the other hand, sacking an entire floor might be a bit, harsh. Especially as some tit in management possibly agreed to the cameras in the first place.

Slovakian flies to Dublin with 90 grams of explosive

Not us, that time...

The Nigerian wasn't the Dutch that did it wrong, he was on a transfer and already cleared from wherever he came from. Where they did have information he was actually a terror suspect, reported by his own father.

This however, sounds like a horrible mess. Whoever put the explosives there should be sued for attempted murder, because taking explosives through security isn't all that close from suicide some of the time... Seems like a great reason to take only hand luggage from now on.

Asus CEO signals Q1 2010 smartbook launch

Finally...

A friend of mine recently asked me what netbook to get, simply to read and annotate PDF's on the train. She wanted something small, light, and with an insane battery life. So, an EeePC 901. We couldn't find one in stock anywhere on the great internets.

I'd love to see the performance of this thing, especially on the battery front.

Signed mobile malware prompts Symbian security review

@Mage

I dunno, I don't have a Symbian handset and I'd never install something I didn't specifically request. On the other hand, a single click can be made by a pocket or something in a purse (I've listened to plenty of people walking/running/driving to know that), so I can see this spreading without any conscious user intervention. And getting something signed by the company who built the handset seems like a good reason to trust it, really.

Don't call me Ishmael

No one picked booze?

My home network uses boozes, whisky, rum, vodka and calvados, thought I'll have to switch to a scheme with a lower ABV soon. I operate some boxes for chemistry students, and I'm naming them after alcohols, butanol, fenol, methanol, and for the one running the music at the bar, ethanol.

Microsoft to bomb Europe with IE-free Windows 7

No browser?

On one hand this seems good, but it'll be a pain in home installs, constantly having to look for a USB stick with Firefox before being able to continue the install.

Website liable for Google-generated page summary

Low-tech judge?

I read about this in the Dutch press a while back. The verdict does surprise me, and not exactly in a good way. Sounds like the judge missed a couple of important bits about who does what on the internet. I really do hope they appeal, otherwise anyone hosting a website has got his work cut out trying every combination of words in Google that might be slightly sueable.

Dutch cat skinner publishes critics' personal details

More perspective...

The cat was dying, and normally would've gone to the vet to die. Now she killed it herself. Not that much of a difference, and as for the handbag, it's just using what's available. Some would see it as a proper way to use what the cat made (it's own fur).

I'm not sure I support this, but it does seem good to show people that they're not as anonymous as they think.

Asus to slash retail Eee PC line-up

No 9 inchers?

Wasn't the whole point about netbooks being something that fits inside a (large-ish) coat pocket? I certainly won't be buying a 10 incher when upgrading my 701 in two years.. I'd rather pay for a new battery then for something that's suddenly a lot larger, when the point was something small and (preferably) cheap.

Apple eyes patent for web silence

Now it's patented

And if Google, Mozilla or MS implement this, they'll get sued.

Cloned US ATM cards: Can they fool Brit self-service checkouts?

Foreign Cards

Has a Dutch tourist to the UK I've used my debit card numerous times. First in ATM's, which works as expected, requiring a PIN before handing me my cash. In a record store and a Waterstones however, I only had to swipe and sign. Now, I pulled the card from a shoulder pouch, not my wallet, so it seemed more like I was a tourist, but the signature on my card is totally faded, and they barely checked a thing. I showed ID however, but in all honesty, it'd be quite easy to commit fraud this way.

In Holland we have a swipe and pin system, with no chip. It's a pity the UK doesn't employ the same system, since it'd save tourist in both countries a lot of trouble.