Posts by bombastic bob

File suffixes: Who needs them? Well, this guy did

RSTS/E - I remember that. security craters everywhere. 6 char names, 3 char extensions. ancient times.

Internet connection now required for Windows 11 Pro Insider setup

Re: If this moves to release

Dead duck? Sadly, no.

The froggy has not boiled, yet. (but Micros~1 keeps turning up the heat)

Re: @DS999 - It isn't practical to roll this out to consumer versions

Who's going to use a Windows PC without Internet ?

a) accounting packages (may need local LAN access but not internet, generally)

b) desktop publishing

c) 3D printing

d) software development (if you do not have a cloudy repo like github that is)

e) media production

and so on. None of these require internet access. Constant "check for updates" is HIGHLY overrated. And we're not just a bunch of "content consumers".

(my windows 7 machine NEVER surfs the internet. e-mail displays as plain text only)

Re: It's for your own good and you should want it to be too..

The problems you describe are generally solved by each developer having his own sandbox branch, then do something similar to "pull request" (i.e. what github does, others vary in the terms they might use, no doubt) to merge them back into the main branch (or make one big mass edit with a merge tool, whichever works).

Seriously you need to reconsider your source control management strategy, based on your description...

Re: No way that will make it to the general public

veering straight into monopolistic behavior

I was thinking more like "veering into SUBSCRIPTION ONLY" or to INCREASE TRACKING AND SPYING ON YOU (so that you are ALWAYS online when using your computer and *THEY* can see what you're doing and log it for marketing and profit).

So, for now, raise the temperature of the water the soon-to-be-boiled frogs are in another few degrees. Let's see if they start hopping out... and make adjustments as needed to keep MOST of them in!!!

(then rinse/repeat until they are OWNED with SUBSCRIPTION and INVASIVE SPYING/TRACKING, MUAHAHAHAHAHA!)

So, how long before we have a convoy of computers showing up in Redmond ??? How "draconian" could Micros~1 get if we collectively REFUSE to play their game any more? Or insist that they provide us with an OS that *WE* control (and NOT abandon the older ones)??

Re: @Zippy´s Sausage Factory - The strategy

doesn't have to be sensible, all it has is to be profitable.

and/or manipulative, controlling, monetizing of your privacy

maybe he did not manage to get past the strong-arming for setting up the admin user... it was 2 or 3 hoops as I recall, cancel this, a complaint, and an "are you sure" or whatever. It's unnecessarily painful and not entirely obvious how to make it happen.

Or, hopefully he was not trying to run a "The Store" version of FF or TBird... (that would explain it).

Re: @vincent himpe

I wish ReactOS worked well enough for them to even CARE about killing it...

Re: @vincent himpe

Sadly, my experience with Wine has been far less than successful...

7 still works for me as well, when windows is required.

Microsoft releases first preview of .NET 7

"Modernization" - that word does not mean what they think it means

Every time Micros~1 makes reference to "modern", we end up with:

a) Flatter-looking UI

b) removed customizations

c) Lipstick on the boar (and not even the oinky end)

d) bloat, cruft, and broken

e) less efficient

f) "No, really, we actually fixed it this time"

g) tracking, spying, unnecessary cloudiness, adware, and fewer features.

and so on

I fear what "modernization" they are referring to THIS time...

European Union takes China to WTO over smartphone patents

Re: Supreme Court independence

thoroughly politicised Supreme Court appointments in the USA

you are NOT wrong.

Re: Appears Apple don't give a shit about their phones being ripped off

"how rounded"?

Heh. You should consider a career as a l[aw]yer.

Re: Tit for tat.

teaching your competitors how to make YOUR SECRET SAUCE is BAD for business.

That money you "saved"? it's costing you a LOT more NOW.

Re: Tit for tat.

phones have a unique identifier that is apparently related to the model, etc. so banning them entirely on a network could be done, yeah.

Unfortunately that might mean that a number of people will need replacement phones when they SUDDENLY DISCOVER that their phones stopped working...

(I had to replace a perfectly working phone recently when AT&T stopped supporting 3G, but found an inexpensive flip phone on e-bay that had fat buttons compatible with my fat fingers, net cost cheaper than switching networks... for now. But I really did NOT want to spend money on THAT)

Re: Tit for tat.

Agreed. Tit for Tat.

(WHY are we STILL doing business with COMMUNISTS??? Slave labor, unfair business practices on steroids, dumping to kill competitioon, price gouging when components go short... why is this NOT OBVIOUS that they are BAD for BUSINESS "over there" ???)

GNOME Project retires OpenGL rendering library Clutter

Re: Stable...

ew the W word...

(making sign of cross with fingers)

I would not call it "stuck" on GTK-2 - how about "it works so why 'fix' it?"

moving target "development" generates a LOT of 'scampering' i.e. unproductive motion...

(you want those bugs fixed? Sorry, we're porting all of our code over to the latest moving target toolkit, see you in about a year...)

Facebook exposes 'god mode' token that could siphon data

Re: "will take action as appropriate"

Faece-Ban motto: "What can we get away with, today?"

Re: And people still use this clusterface?

it still works to do a phone call or a letter in the mail...

Re: And people still use this clusterface?

there is nothing 'normal' about using Faece-Ban...

any developer with a sense of security would NEVER TOUCH IT.

(so I hope he *IS* a developer)

NOT using Faece-Ban ==> Intelligence +10

and NOT understanding why ANYONE would want to use it ==> common sense

Emergency updates: Adobe, Chrome patch security bugs under active attack

I've been using open source PDF viewers like Atril and Evince for a VERY long time now. Does not surprise me that Adobe's "free" reader is actually CRIPPLE-ware. "Pay up" to get something that doesn't TEASE you by making you THINK it works...

Evince has a windows version.

Re: Great they keep updating, adding more crap with zero day exploits, rinse and repeat

"ba-a-a" Rust the ONLY way...

icon, because, facepalm

Alarm raised after Microsoft wins data-encoding patent

Re: Ban software patents.

SOME software patents are legit in my opinion, but they should be VERY SPECIFIC. Blanket patent of an algorithm: NO. Just No.

and rANS probably has a *LOT* of PRIOR ART, rendering their claims INVALID.

If Micros~1 does the right thing, they'll protect rANS by giving the patent to a non-profit or other group that grants royalty free licensing (thus using the patent to PREVENT PATENT TROLLS from, well, TROLLING their patent lawsuits).

Patents are supposed to be VERY specific. They need to include a precise definition of what the claims are and how they are unique. You might be able to patent a 'for' loop for a VERY specifioc thing, maybe calculating prime numbers (let's say). But the generic for loop should NOT be patentable. And the same goes for ENCODING.

And, THEN, they have to be DEFENDABLE or they are WORTHLESS.

And nothing invalidates a patent claim like PRIOR ART.

Massive cyberattack takes Ukraine military, big bank websites offline

Re: Parting Shot?

you are "not wrong", in that Putin may try to back out of deals like Hitler did in 1939. For this you need a bit of carrot/stick to make sure he keeps his end of the bargain. But I suspect he does NOT want war, or even conquest, as much as he wants to be left "un-threatened". Any deal made would have to include NOT invading Ukraine. I guess I was not clear on this point.

Still, with Crimea being annexed a few years ago, Putin has to be held accountable for being a bad actor. So giving him what he wants with strings attached COULD be designed to make sure he doesn't try this again.

My point was to show that Putin wanted something from US and that giving him what he wants, in exchange for something we want, is a strategy outlined by Sun Tzu in his book, and I believe it's the best way to handle it.

Re: Parting Shot?

I tend to agree with your general assessment. I do not believe that "Vlad The Putinator" wants a hot war with Ukraine and potentially the USA and NATO. Nor do I believe the USA and NATO want it either.

Vlad continues to saber-rattle and make a whole lot of noise. Cyber attacks and intimidation and whatever falls short of bombs and bullets will no doubt continue until he gets what he wants.

In theory this is actually a good opportunity for deal making. Sun Tzu would suggest that we give him what he wants in exchange for what WE want. Smart leaders would pay attention to what Sun Tzu wrote in 'The Art of War', especially the parts about war being expensive and that it should be avoided.

Ultimately Vlad does not want NATO missiles on his border and wants a Ukraine that does what he tells them to do. Vlad might be willing to give things up to get there. We just need to make him see that the easier path (not escalating this) is also the better one. I also have to wonder if the Russian people even support him in this (like he would even care), or even his own troops.

So here's how I think the world needs to deal with this: a) remove NATO troops and missiles and whatnot from Ukraine, on the condition that b) Vlad stops his "bad acting" and does things _LIKE_ shutting down hacker groups and 'fake item' scammers within Russia, stopping support of Iran in any way, yotta yotta (including sending his troops home). Then we stop sanctions, cooperation improves, and everybody is happy. Or that's the general idea. [Unfortunately too many people in power seem to benefit from blaming and saber rattling and keeping the tension as high as possible, on both sides of this, including Vlad himself]

Or we can do it the STUPID way aka "the hard way" and have WW3. And no need to start another cold war either. This is 2022.

Re: Preparedness vs Lassitude

see icon

Russia 'stole US defense data' from IT systems

Re: So it's getting easier

But, when you know you're being spied on you can use that to create DIS-information... and also to track where the information GOES.

This happened in WW2 - Battle of Midway - when they released in the clear false information that Midway's evaporator was broken, and a coded message was sent by Japan that said something like "AF is running out of fresh water" (or similar). This confirmed that 'AF' meant Midway Island, which let the Pacific command know that this would be the invasion target. It was a spectacular win for the Allied forces, though costly. It would have been even costlier had the U.S. Navy deployed carriers to the Aleutian Islands, splitting naval forces in half.

pot and kettle, sure. that makes sense. It's a fair bet that the USA is just as good at spying as Russia. We just aren't hearing about it...

Like that Mad Magazine comic, Spy vs Spy

Re: Skid mark

paragraph 1 was pretty relevant. The rest, not so much...

20 years of .NET: Reflecting on Microsoft's not-Java

Re: Alas poor SOAP!, I knew him

because JSON, rightfully, killed XML.

no, JSON did not kill XML. XML has its uses, and I suppose JSON has its uses also. Neither is a panacea, nor do they really compete. Handling XML in javascript is not that difficult really. Yes i have done it, No I do not use bloaty libs like JQuery. It's easier to implement XML in my opinion when you use something like PHP or a C language program to create it. But hey, some people prefer JSON. Whatever.

Re: Alas poor SOAP!, I knew him

sometimes it is convenient to make a server API look like a web request. Something like:

http://server.example/project/functionality/parameter/parameter/parameter

there are many ways to implement handling this. The advantage is being able to use a simple utility like curl to invoke it, or if you are into client side script, invoke it from javascript (preferably using native asynchronous methods and NOT some bloaty-lib like JQuery, grump grump grump)

(it's all about what is easier to parse, a URL like this or a bunch of GET parameters)

Re: Easier games to play

I started programming windows code around 1990, right around when Windows 3.0 came out. It was in C, required a message loop, and you had to think in terms of messages and events.

I thought MFC with Visual C++ 1.0 was a pretty good step forward, once I got used to it. Its COM handling was also convenient.

"So sorry" if people who code in C-pound and "dot Not" need their hands held by the framework or something. You trade efficiency for slavery to a framework and an inferior way of thinking. Things CAN be "too object oriented" to the point of stupidity, with things like (exaggerated sarcastically):

multiverse.universe.galaxy.star.planet.continent.nation.province.city.street.house.person

where you have to start with the MEGA COLLECTION and enumerators within probably bloat up memory to find the thing you REALLY wanted, where in Win32 it would be 'CreateWindow()" or something like it with a few parameters thrown in.

FYI a cross-platform MFC-like framework exists: wxWidgets. With some effort, you can port an MFC application to wxWidgets and have it run EVERYWHERE. And if you're ME you static link it so that it does not need a boatload of shared / dynamically linked libraries (or just build from source everywhere). You know, code loads WAY FASTER when it doesn't use a boatload of monolithic shared libs...

Compare "hello world" in C-pound to "hello world" in MFC. Just use the framework to generate it. See?

I am SO glad the article actualy points these things out

the technology in .NET came from the Visual Basic team

Why am I *NOT* Surprised!!!

It was before its time. Computer hardware just wasn't ready for most of the ideas in Longhorn

See, THIS is the *kind* of "thinking" that gets us BLOATY CRAPWARE in which the computer system performs WORSE than its predecessor did, even when the predecessor ran on INFERIOR HARDWARE!!

so we did built the Start menu on .NET, on modern Windows

Oh, the "Start Thing" was ALSO based on dot-CRAP then ? NO surprise either!!

(and that word "modern" does not mean what they think it means...)

according to StackOverflow surveys, .NET is top in one of the "most loved" categories

Obviously not a representative survey. Most loved by "Copy Pasta" "developers" MAYBE...

It's also notable that .NET applications are increasingly deployed on Linux.

went from ONE to TWO then??? (obvious snark here, yeah)

its appeal to new programmers is limited.

One of my biggest GRIPES about Micros~1 hyping whatever "new shiny" they come up with is that it makes the assumption that senior developers MUST RE-LEARN this "new shiny" instead of being PRODUCTIVE with what they are ALREADY GOOD AT. Hesitancy is what results from this kind of "new shiny" "thinking".

C# and the .NET platform have been a remarkable success

I do not think "remarkable success" means what you think it means...

Microsoft veteran demystifies Abort, Retry, Fail? DOS error

Re: I love you Martin Truely.

it was even MORE fun to change an error message on a university time-sharing computer, especially when the sysop knows you did it but instead of accusing, asks for your help to fix it back...

error message was: "Program lost. Sorry"

new error message: "Program lost. Tough Shit"

(as i recall the flat file with the messages had fixed length records, and both fit within a single record)

"You wouldn't happen to know how to fix this would you?"

keeping a straight face, worthy of Simon. "Well, I think that is stored in a file.. oh here it is! Looks like fixed length records. Let's write a quicky BASIC program on the operators console to fix it. You should be able to blah blah blah oh looks like it worked!"

Re: "because the program should deal with errors"

I was really good at assembly, doing DOS calls, and BIOS calls, even bought a bunch of books on undocumented calls and whatnot. Lots of hacking fun.

San Francisco 49ers catch ransomware, sample files leaked online

Re: Familiar ring... anyone?

(in the voice of GIlbert Godfried as Iago the Parrot in that old Disney classic, 'Aladdin')

THAT's a BIG SURPRIIIIISE!!!

Exchange Server 2003, perhaps? That version caused some noteriety around 2016 as I recall...

That, plus Micros~1 Outlook, an "Outbreak" waiting to happen.

(in the voice of Desi Arnaz as Ricky Ricardo, while facepalming)

Ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay...

Microsoft prepares for its staff to return to Washington sites

Re: "Remember to keep the Windows open"

the state of Washington is also one of the RAINIEST in the continental USA.

(I'd re-think keeping windows open)

What they may discover instead is that working from home in the world of I.T. and software development IS USUALLY MORE EFFICIENT except for those who either lack the proper equipment and/or internet speed, or who get lazy and unproductive if they do not have "a boss" breathing down their necks.

This "experiment" (back in an office you salt miners you) should put the nail in the "must be in an office" argument one way or another.

RIP Ninjacat: No longer fits in Windows 11 world

Re: Keep the cat

yeah back in the day before Win'95 there was that wavy MS window flag thing that quickly became a multi-colored flag, but THEN it got all 2-tone 2D FLATTY FLATSO FLATASS (but at an ANGLE) for "Ape" and Win-10-nic.

Windows prior to "Ape" had manga-like mascots aka "OS-tans" that were drawn by fans in a sort of comic that lampooned the fact that Win '95-tan couldn't do much and XP-tan ate lots of rice (labeled 'memory') and grew large breasts when she consumed enough. But then MS decided to do their OWN OS-tan for "Ape" (a pair of twins) that showed up in advertisements and displays in certain parts of the world (as I recall, saw the photos anyway) and as a DIRECT result, the entire OS-tan phenomenon VANISHED for the most part... aka "they RUINED it". (either that or people stopped benig fans of the OS after Windows "Ape" and Win-10-nic)

Microsoft's market droids know NOTHING about engineering "geek" culture. No WONDER they wanna drown 'ninja cat' (and things like it). They have the coolness of a 40+ year old father of a teenage son trying to be "cool dad" by using "their lingo" (and then failing miserably at it). It was lame when OUR parents did it, and is STILL lame today. That's how UN-cool the market droids are, in reality.

But, so far they haven't damaged the cat logo on github yet... (don't tell them)

Apple emits emergency fix for exploited-in-the-wild WebKit vulnerability

Re: Questioning Standards

Mozilla attempted to reimplement the browser in Rust, but then mysteriousy stopped this effort.

I thought Rust was invented for this VERY PURPOSE...

Re: I love this quote from the Microsoft Edge rep...

or imagine a world where ALL INTERFACES ARE 2D FLATASS FLATSO FLATTY McFLATFACE

Not on MY workstation, but yeah...

(they may not be BASED on Chrome, but they sure LOOK like it)

UK.gov threatens to make adults give credit card details for access to Facebook or TikTok

Re: "Anything that..."

"Would you like to play a game?"

"How about Global Thermonuclear War?"

WOPR prefers chess...

Re: One word TOR

All the alphabet agencies watch traffic coming out

yes, this is true, but you can still bypass country-level blockages, and various access restrictions on citizens, with Tor.

A large number of Tor endpoints are operated by alphabet agencies. The intent is so that people behind a national firewall (let's say Iran, N. Korea, CHINA) can still access the FULL internet with some level of anonymity, hopefully to spread freedom (but probably just enables bad actors more often than not). Whether or not some of those countries have found a way to detect that you're doing this remains to be seen.

(thinking of Tor, the other day I saw a boatload of 'Fail2Ban' detected activity (ssh) from what appeared to be Tor endpoints - so the bad guys are using them on occasion. I wonder if they've been contacted by alphabet agencies yet? They must have forgotten about that, heh)

Re: Teenagers

*joke alert*

I'd post how to circumvent it on USENET as long as they promise to stay off of Faece-Ban, Tik Tik (BOOM), and Tw[a,i]tter.

(I wonder how seriously that would be taken)

Re: Dead Cat

but... but... but... the CHILDREN!!!

('scuse me while I go hurl)

To err is human. To really tmux things up requires an engineer

Re: Moar visibility

as a hint, the prompt string might include the computer's host name so it's a bit more obvious which machine you're typing commands on...

NASA taps Lockheed Martin to build Mars parcel pickup rocket

Re: Ice mining

maybe one of the Boston Dynamics robots could "fetch" the samples...

Apple, Broadcom allowed to press Ctrl-Z on billion-dollar Wi-Fi patent payout to Caltech

Re: Ain’t it Command-Z on a Mac? That four-leaf-clover thingie?

don't forget "suspend foreground task" in bash. Last I checked a Mac has bash for its default shell.

(I guess that uses Command+Z like Linux or FreeBSD uses Ctrl+Z)

but from the context of the article I'd think they meant "undo"

US House passes bill to boost chip manufacturing and R&D

sadly, the direction it seems that many of our politicians are trying to take the USA - and quite possibly, the world.

Re: GM

I don't like bailouts at ALL. "Too big to fail" probably means that anti-trust legislation most likely didn't work as intended, and now "here we are". But if government were to, for example, help to broker a deal with banks and unions [and THEY got stock ownership in return] it might be a good thing.

I did not like the banking bailouts from 2008-ish either, though the reason behind THAT one is actually connected to gummint policies for mortgage loans (but I digress).

It is just WRONG to do any kind of "bailout" like that. Government regulations, when properly formed and applied, are supposed to PREVENT this sort of thing. But, you know politicians...

And as for the corporate welfare, wouldn't it be better to do this: ONLY purchase military and NASA hardware that is 100% made in the USA, from circuit boards and chip resistors to microprocessors and RAM and assembly, and let private industry GET IN LINE to provide these goods and services at THE BEST OVERALL BID. This is kinda how the integrated circuit revolution happened in the FIRST place.

and a few tax breaks, loan guarantees, and waivers on specific regulations, i.e. getting gummint OUT of the way, can't hurt either.

(gummint regulation is not ALL bad, just MOSTLY bad, In My Bombastic Opinion)

Re: EU Competition?

you had me interested until you said 'boomer'