Flashback to the 90s
"Hi, my name is Werner Brandis. My voice is my passport. Verify me." :)
Posts by ilithium
23 publicly visible posts • joined 20 Feb 2012
Open Sesame, says Google... to voice identification: Speech ID adds biometric security to call-centre bots
Housekeeping and kernel upgrades do not always make for happy bedfellows
Tuesday 16th February 2021 03:49 GMT
What does a Cyberman say?
I remember doing that too, back in't day. Spent all day building a FreeBSD server for our colo.
Set it all up, got it working, really tired. Did "sudo rm -rf .*".
Was amazed to find everything [that was in memory] still running.
Or that Friday at 4pm after a really long week... closing down my workstation, in MySQL Workbench (remember that?). Accidentally click "DELETE DATABASE". Too tired and not paying attention, I clicked YES on "ARE YOU SURE?" and "ARE YOU REALLY SURE?".
Got half way to the door before the boss pipes up: "Where's that relaunch for the big client I just won gone?"
Oops. MySQL binary log to the rescue. And adrenaline.
What could Facebook possibly do next to reassure privacy fears? Yup – make a dating app
Wednesday 2nd May 2018 06:08 GMT
Besides the privacy, not a bad idea
So whilst Facebook has lots of issues around privacy (and, frankly it's whole business model as a free content ad network) I actually think Facebook Dating could be quite interesting.
Given they have more data on their users than most other places, their systems will "know" you, your behaviours and interests better than, say Match.com or OKstupid (although the latter's tech is quite impressive).
In particular, they gather data about you which you don't specifically supply so what you might think of as "subconscious" data from your browsing habits.
Whilst trust is a massive issue here, for me the really interesting thing is: how is their algorithmic approach going to work? Could they do this with AI?
Having tried most forms of digital dating, I find the real world much more interesting but I will be fascinated to see how this pans out.
Linus Torvalds won't apply 'sh*t-for-brains stupid patch'
Latest Windows 10 build loves up cloud, banishes 'strange grey bar'
Saturday 11th June 2016 14:23 GMT
Loving SatNad
Even since SatNad took over, I've seen Microsoft change massively - and all for the better. I grew up in an age where I loathed the way Microsoft siloed everything and they're now on a pathway to full interoperability with common systems.
This, together with their openness, is incredibly admirable.
Leak: Euro Patent Office 'court of appeals' rails against King Battistelli
Wednesday 1st June 2016 12:36 GMT
How does one spell...
Narcissus? ;-)
Pretty scary stuff this. The EPO agents should have complete autonomy, otherwise the President basically becomes a version of Robert Mugabe (without all the evil things Mugabe has done).
If I had a vote, I'd vote El Presidente out immediately and call for form. Oh, but wait: the EU isn't a democracy ;-)
10 Gbps fibre-to-the-home signed off, ITU eyes 100 Gbps future
WIN a 6TB Western Digital Black hard drive with El Reg
Foxconn to build 1,500-acre, US$5billion complex in India
Obsolescence of food is complete: Soylent now comes in bottles
Assange™'s emotional plea for asylum in France rejected
What's Meg Whitman fussing over: The fate of HP ... or the font on a DISRUPTIVE new logo?
Apple's DIRTY SECRET isn't that secret, or that dirty
Sunday 21st December 2014 17:59 GMT
For me, I completely see the point this author is making regarding the illegal tin mining; the issues of poverty in the region are bad and desperate people do desperate thing.
What I don't like are two things: a) Apple making promises it can't keep and b) Declining to discuss their failings. Tim Cook doesn't need to get involved, just a media rep to say "OK, things're bad, we're working on it" (which they've subsequently said).
I am also, a little narked about the profits they make on things but I'm no place to judge: that's what market economics are all about, right?
What's in your toolbox? Why the browser wars are so last decade
HIDDEN packet sniffer spy tech in MILLIONS of iPhones, iPads – expert
Tuesday 22nd July 2014 10:57 GMT
Re: APIs
To be fair, though, if Android contained something like this we'd already know about it, assuming that the version that's put in phones is [almost] the same as the open source version.
Whilst most people are probably not going to give a monkey's nut about these kind of things, it's a bit disconcerting, particularly in light of Apple ranting about how good a company they are.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
