Posts by Joe W

Latest Windows 11 updates may break the OS's most basic bits

Re: win2k snappy ?

Same here! Win2k was reliable, stable even! We came from Win95 and Win98 (an ME). I was not impressed with XP, which looked like an explosion in candy land, with the teletubbies expected to appear over the horizon in the default background picture....

I'm probably the only person in the world that thought TIFKAM (the interface formerly known as metro) was not a bad idea - except on a desktop. It needed the touch screen. Heck, I loved Windows phone 8! It made sense and was really snappy even on the cheap Lumia I had. (and I'm running Linux on all my machines).

WTF?

The Copilot company also noted that the issues were "very unlikely to occur on personal devices used by individuals."

Yes. Great. Unfortunately it is business use I care about, i.e. managed systems. When I stopped gaming I stopped using Windows at home, I'm only stuck with it at work. Does that mean, business users are less important to MS? Maybe that is a story we should spin more?

Quality control? We have heard of it (and identified it as an expensive cost centre we then did eliminate).

Lawyer's 6-year-old son uses AI to build copyright infringement generator

That one. exactly.

Small copyright holders, individual artists, small bands, authors and small publishers are screwed. Even more than now, I mean. Micro transactions might be a solution: hit the CEO of an AI company for each item of copyrighted material in their training data with a stick once.

Two Android 0-day bugs disclosed and fixed, plus 105 more to patch

Some banking apps to do MFA (well... yeah...) depend on a certain minimum version of the phone OS. So we are there already (for some banks and some customers).

Another open source project dies of neglect, leaving thousands scrambling

WTF?

I mean, this is an IT publication. And I'm not even that big of an IT nerd (I would say, some people disagree, but people disagree about anything).

" Most of you have probably never heard of FFmpeg."

Really? We haven't?

Zig quits GitHub, says Microsoft's AI obsession has ruined the service

Re: ::shrugs::

Where did they move to? Bitbucket? *ducks*

No, seriously, what next? Gitlab also moves to AI, sure, you can self-host (gitlab, or gitea), but to do that safely for about 1000 devs is not that simple (I know the guys wo run our systems).

Google Antigravity vibe-codes user's entire drive out of existence

kill doesn't delete files, it stops processes....

Cabling survived dungeons and fish factories, until a lazy user took the network down

Re: What is it with managers and training costs?

My boss is the opposite. "Look, I know you are busy" (yes) "but I think you should broaden your skills with" (yeah, it is tempting and interesting and I actually want to learn that) "plus there is this project management thing we talked about" (ooh, shite, forgot about that one) "which you should sign up for - just pick some offer that sounds good to you, and not too far away, I'll sign it".

I have now two trainings signed up, with another one I would love to take - but I think one of the team should do it instead. I am a team lead, and that... well... while tempting I think somebody else should do that (though damn, I would love to!). My boss might send both of us, though. You know, no "single point of failure" et c.

...or if you put a bunch in a sock and make an impromptu LART (luser attitude readjustment tool).

Canadian data order risks blowing a hole in EU sovereignty

Re: Treaties

Exactly. We have these treaties, and the bureaucrats can and do talk to each other, and the paperwork can totally be filed for this.

Use. The. Bloody. Procedures.

Vibe coding: What is it good for? Absolutely nothing (Sorry, Linus)

Yeah, I agree with the latter, especially the point about reducing the mental work load. One of my colleagues, a real greybeard, FOSS developer, wizard with anything computer used some vibe coding for one of his personal side projects. But then he is so experienced he can spot most BS the model would give him and correct that. So it is useful to him, and he even said so. Heck, he even acknowledges it as a possibly useful tool. And while I don't want to agree with him, personally disliking the idea of "vibe coding", I have respect for him and his thoughts should always be heard and taken into consideration.

Bossware booms as bots determine whether you're doing a good job

Ah, because I'm only working when I'm writing...

Really? I mean, sure, if you are working in a factory and you bash bits of metal with other bits of metal you are working when you have the hammer in the hand and are bashing bits of metal. I can be working on a gnarly problem by sitting, having a good think about it, maybe drawing stuff on actual paper (because that's the best medium for this). I do not use a bloody hammer to bash bloody pieces of code until they reach the desired shape. I'd offer fetching on the the lump hammers I have to do some retrophrenology on people who are telling me I'm no longer allowed to think the solution through.

Programming (in the sense of writing the actual code) is relatively easy - once the hard part of the design, the algorithms etc. are done. Deep mad respect for those who just sit down and write brilliant code just like that. I'm a mere mortal.

Re: Auto-micromanagement

A manager is the person who shovels the sh*t out of th way so their team can do work. A good manager acts as a filter: not everything coming form above needs to be directly passed on to the team. Not everything a team does needs to be passed up unfiltered. My boss does that. I'm glad I work for him. I try to do the same for my team, shovel manure so they can do their work. I'm paid more (than most of the team) because I have to deal with $(stupidproblems). My boss gets paid even more because he has to work with $(bloodystupidproblemscreatedbytossersabove). I do not want his job... none of my team members really want mine, they want to get their work done.

Linux admin hated downtime so much he schlepped a live UPS during office move

Re: Those were the innocent days...

Kernel patch? This is not windows ;)

(yeah, there's a bunch of CVE for the Linux kernel, not sure about how severe they are. Just thinking about the frequency of new kernels my linux machines get it doesn't seem too bad, I agree, 400 days is probably stretching things)

UK asks cyberspies to probe whether Chinese buses can be switched off remotely

Well... yeah, but nah?

OK, it is mainly the OTA firmware update that they found. And this can (in principle and in practice) be used to brick a machine (like stolen agricultural equipment). So: yes, it is very possible.

No, this is not surprising to anybody who has even the slightest clue about anything IT. It is the exactly bloody same thing as when Sonos bricked the speakers.

I don't mean we should not care about this - we clearly do - I'm just saying that this is so widespread and unregulated that this should have been addressed already.

Microsoft teases agents that become ‘independent users within the workforce’

Automate HR....

.... they care f-all about the employees (their human resources, what an evil way of describing people), so nothing is lost there...

Microsoft's lack of quality control is out of control

Re: Program / Programme

Still the case in Excel....

When Debian won't do, Devuan 6 'Excalibur' Linux makes the grade

Cooperation ?

I mean, really? Yes, as a long time (think since the turn of the millennium) Debian user (and translator, admittedly pretty low effort and short time) I would have wished for another outcome eleven years ago. All things people were afraid of did happen, and in the beginning systemd was really not stable. I had a lot of problems and found it difficult to find out why things went sideways. Same with pulseaudio... boy did that break when Ubuntu first pushed it onto unsuspecting users.

I don't really know why an init system needs to be integrated into the desktop environment or have anything to say about user directories (that it proceeded to delete, under some conditions).

So Devuan it is. And installing it on a clean machine was as simple as other Linux systems. And it... just works (much like Debian, which is a joy to administer).

Microsoft gives Windows 11 a fresh Start – here's how to get it

Can I group Icons? Like, when I have several systems I work on remotely (like Windows terminal servers)? No? I mean, so I know which version of a program sits where? Still no?

Thought so.

They can just... well, "suggestion involving sex and travel" (BOFH)

Ex-CISA head thinks AI might fix code so fast we won't need security teams

This...

.... has to be the funniest thing I read all day so far, and that included some brilliant posts on mastodon.

Google nukes 3,000 YouTube videos that sowed malware disguised as cracked software

Re: Google took 4 years to find this?

No. It took four years of people shouting at Google. They did not miracolously find it all of a sudden. They just don't care. Same with scammy ads. They don't care as long as they get paid. I wish them parody in minecraft and a happy friendship day.

Ehm... well....

I totally agree with the first half of your comment. The second half reeks of "couldn't happen to me, 'cause I'm not stoopid / greedy / dumb". It can happen to anybody. Maybe not in that form. Maybe not by this delivery mechanism. While I sort of agree that not being greedy to get whatever software they promised should be the right thing, I'd look at the price tag for rent said programs. Some are ridicolously expensive, even for a student or academia license - which needs to be renewed annually, becasue we no longer buy software.

Apple’s AirDrop makes weird latency spikes for Wi-Fi wonks, researcher finds

I hope more people use Apple products...

... then I have more channels with less traffic on, and network speeds will improve a lot :)

That said: most things are on an actual wired network at home.

OpenBSD 7.8 out now, and you're not seeing double, 9front releases 'Release'

Re: Without warning?

"Along with it [Unix] came a set of disgustingly dangerous utilities that meant nothing but could render a system useless within seconds."

(I *tink* it's from The Unix Hater's Handbook)

Trust the AI, says new coding manifesto by Kim and Yegge

Those were my thoughts as well. We have a proper nerdy greybeard in our department. He did FOSS development on the side, knows the people, is rooted in IT, has been working on databases since around the mesothitic period (i.e. he is even older than I am). He is incredibly experienced and likes AI to just spin up a quick project for him - because he knows how things should behave and what to watch out for. Experience is needed. A lot of it.

I would compare it to car maintenance: if you understand how an engine works and have wrenched on everything starting from, say, the 80s when things were pretty simple and mechanical or electromechanical and you could see and understand the parts and then look at the output of one of the new error-code-showing computer-on-wheels-management-thingys (like you now need in every shop) you can tell if the error code makes sense or not. You will not just continue swapping parts in the hope the error goes away. But you need that experience and deep understanding.

That's why I could fix my old Golf (simple, mechanical) but not the new Astra (computer on wheels where I would need to understand how stuff actually works because wtf is going wrong is hidden and abstracted away), that's why I can write half-decent code but should not spin up a ton of vibe-coded containers (or feel nervous to do so).

Windows 11 update knocks out USB mice, keyboards in recovery mode

Re: Oh Good Grief

Yes, we are playing all the favourite hits again: SQL injections, memory leaks...

AI generated code based on random stuff on the Web.

Ruby Central tries to make peace after 'hostile takeover'

Re: R

What's the problem with R? I like it, especially with ggplot2.

EU biometric border system launch hits inevitable teething problems

Oh woe is me!

Ninety minutes in queue?

Seriously, I have been waiting in a queue way longer when entering the US more than ten years ago. No, it is not great, in fact it sucks. A lot. And he EU should be able to do better than the US in that regard, totally. But I find it not particularly long, compared to my experience on the other side of the Atlantic. Maybe things have improved nowadays? (ok, fewer people seem to visit, so there's that - on the other hand there seems to be a lot more questioning)

Managers are throwing entry-level workers under the bus in race to adopt AI

Interesting views. I'm not saying you are wrong, but I am supervising student interns (wrong word, they are paid by us to study CS and get work experience in our company with the hope they will continue with us). They are in general quite bright young people, willing even eager to learn new things.

So: not my experience, but maybe I have been lucky.

Texas senators cry foul over Smithsonian's pricey Space Shuttle shuffle

... what's a Kelvin gramm?

*ducks*

(and you don't want to strap it to eight Chinooks, or rather 12, accounting for the distance between them, or better 20, for some margin of safety - can you even imagine how this looks?!)

Brits sitting on £1.6B gold mine of Windows 10 junk as support ends

I got a few Thinkpads from my wife's workplace, and there are some companies that sell refurbished Thinkpads (a quick search will point you that way). Sure, there's always the issue with machines from an unknown origin (what hides in the BIOS?), so there's that. The Thinkpads just... work. They support WPA3, they are (still) fast enough for normal stuff, the keyboards of the old ones are pretty good, full selection of ports etc. I'm running Devuan on my machines, other distros will wor as well.

How your mouse could eavesdrop on you and rat you out

Re: "each key sounds different"

It's not only the key that sounds differnetly, due to the physical position on the resonant keyboard body (filll your keyboard with concrete! For saftety! Let's see my colleagues nicking a keyboard now![*]), but also the different way you hit them with the finger[+], maybe unless you are doing the eagle-circling-search-system. This has been a known attack vector (microphone based, but also by laser scanning windows) for several years, at least I recall having read a bunch of articles on ElReg about this. And let's face it: since I cannot hear the difference in magical audio connects I probalbly don't hear theat difference as well ;) I also prefer using a trackball, because I'm weird.

And thanks, now I want to go skiing. Though I prefer actually walking up rather than lifts, it's what living in Norway does to you, fjellski for the win!

[*] "You took my keyboard!" - "It's a company one, so they are all the same" - "no, not this one..."

[+] we all know that certain keys just don't react the same way to key presses - in extreme cases this results in missing letters on shitty keyboards, I'm looking at the crap Fujitsu is pushing on the laptops, FFS, it's not that difficult!

Is that written by Microsoft?! Apple?

"all it takes is one malicious app – possibly disguised as open source software"

Seriously?!

OpenAI IP promises ring hollow to Sora losers

I implore the movie studios to go back into their store and look at older movies, those starring John or Clint. Just... you know... look at, say, horse thieves.

I never thought I'd side with Hollywood or the recording industry, but they should totally enforce compyright laws. You know, like when they sued students for using Napster 25 years ago.

Alternatively: pay back the money, plus a bunch for the trauma caused, plus interests, as they clearly have no interest in defending their intellectual property. Let me just spin up whatever they now use and get all of Metallica's records, surely that's no problem? And stop f'ing around with DRM, as there's clearly no protection offered.

AI: The ultimate slacker's dream come true

Work is transactional

I don't mind that. Boss wants something to be done and pays person to do it. Sometimes that person is me.

I'm happy, my boss just lets me do stuff as I please, and I can let him shovel the manure (from higher up) out of my path or escalate stuff to the powers that be so some colleagues actually do what they should, so I can work.

What is bad is micro managing gits that get in our way, questioning every move, interfering with my work and neglecting the manure shoveling (see above). Also bad is success being measured in hours present, not things achieved. (1) and this just causes people to simulate work.

What AI does is create "statistically convincing" documents that clog up processes. They not only avoid doing their own work, they also hinder my work, and this is where it becomes personal. While I'm not particularly fond of my job or my company, doing some successful work helps me to survive my week.

(1) I like having a fixed number of hours per week and control over how much I actually work (plus the ability to tell people to sod off after hours), though these are more guidelines. Some weeks I'm home early, some I'm home late (well... upstairs, basement home office cave and all). Some days I can just take time in lieu if I feel like it (and my boss ok's it, which he usually does).

Only way to move Space Shuttle Discovery is to chop it into pieces, White House told

Re: Unless I'm hallucinating...

Look up how big things are transported. Look at the last time they transported a shuttle.

Now look at a map.

And while disassembling and rebuilding houses is done semi regularly (historic houses for living history museums in Europe, for example) many parts are replaced (wall plaster, wattle and daub fill ins) rather than reassembled. We do not want that with the shuttle.

Texas man accidentally shoots cable, brings internet down

Re: Freedom

I'd totally vote for a right to arm bears...

Britain's policing minister punts facial recog nationwide

How many of those were in error?

"have used LFR to make 580 arrests"

So: numbers, please. How many false positives?

(apart from it being messed up it doesn't work reliably enough and at least over here does not deterr criminials)

Forget vibe coding - Microsoft wants to make vibe working the new hotness

Oooh, yes, please! I'd totally love me some AI slop generated slides, I mean, most meetings are so boring we are asleep half of the time anyway, so either it won't matter anyway or we will have some fun. It's PowerPoint Karaoke if you are presenting. We used to have that at university, one of the Profs would get handed a slide deck with slides from all of his PhD students and he had to explain it back to them, great fun!

Re: How accurate is Excel

"the customer need for refreshable, auditable, and verifiable solutions"

yeah... the auditors will have a field day with that.

Trump’s tariff‑shaped stick can’t beat reality on US chip fabbing

Re: And that will mean nothing

When I was serving (not in the US) we were told that not opposing an obviously illegal command was actually a crime.

I also served (swore to serve) a country and its people. Not the current government - and my guess is that it would be the same in the US...

Dell enters the earbud market with kit you can control from the cloud

Dunno, the feature that filters out the voice of your colleagues in your office when they are talking at the same time as you makes sense. This is so bloody annoying! It's even worde if two of you are in teh same office, because you then first hear your colleague "live" and then with some time deay the same thing over the headphones. Or you hear people twice, because the automatic gain rips open the mic when that person is not talking to pick up the other one in the room talking.

Yes, the company I work for has pretty shite headsets, though the have indeed been much worse in the past.

Is this worth 229 USD? Like, without tax, so we are talking about more like 250 USD, which is a helluvalotta pints you can buy with that...

MX Linux 25 reaches beta testing – complete with systemd

Re: Can't help thinking

I'm wondering about how many people dislike systemd but worry about using the terminal... It's more of an issue for CoFs (crusty old farts) like me. Once we are gone...

GitHub moves to tighten npm security amid phishing, malware plague

Wrong problem?

Pulling all dependencies for everything you build every single time is the problem.

Not having a stable version to develop against is the problem.

And this is bloody stupid.

Make Windows 11 more useful and less annoying with these 11 Registry hacks

Re: Super helpful...

log files are in /var/log and they can be parsed with normal tools. That's how it should be. And the "central configuration file" was something I absolutely hated with SuSE (version... 6.2, I think, might still have the CDs somewhere. So... nah. I sort of get why the cetral solution might be a good idea, but then the structure should be consistent and not the mess that it is under Windows. It is as bad as barfing config files "all over the file system" (instead of in /etc/$programname). The implementation is, let's say, subotimal, and moving the registry keys around from release to release and overwriting changes during updates is a big mess.

My main complaint was in the OP that all this just does not work if you are in a business context and you have to be contend with what is given to you. All the "oh, just use this program from github" or "just change this registry key" or "use this program to fix the start menue" are just... well... not helpful.

And don't get me started with systemd. I had so many problems with it f'ing up my systems (mostly networking) that I could not fix easily because settings did not do what they were documented to do (among other things), and log entries were a hot mess, I'll keep my hands off it. As an init system I totally like some things, but it forces itself into so many unrelated things and then deletes your home directory (didn't happen to me, I can do that all by myself, eh ;) ). Pulseaudio is similar. Might work nowadays, but software quality was pretty bad when some distros started pushing it. Alas, the ship has sailed, and I'll have to look at something else that just works. I really don't know how long Devuan, or Alpine, or... can keep up the task of disentangling systemd from the rest of the system.

Super helpful...

... unless you are a poor sod like me and stuck with Windows on the work machine. Nothing us poor souls can do.

It is really effed up that one needs to jump these hoops just to make the system usable. Remind me again why people think Linux is difficult. Microsoft has no interest in user experience, no interest in maintaining a high software quality.

(and at home I have ditched windows long ago)

Word to the wise: Don't tell your IT manager they're not in Excel

Re: Excel

I had Excel (I think it was 2.something) f' up statsitics (maybe it was the standard deviation, or... the Chi^2 test? too long ago) because it took only the first 63 values. So: yeah, be very nervous about things...

Re: Labor Hire Company?

It's how they got Starmer....

Slack threatened to delete nonprofit coding club’s data if it didn’t pay $50k in a week

Re: Slack should ..

And the only way to get around this predatory behaviour was to raise a public stink. The only reason Slack did anything to make amendments was that this became public and they did not like the publicity. Imagine a nonprofit that does not have this social media reach.

Run your own machines, get a colocation somewhere or a cheap server from dunno, strato, and another from whoever so you have two plus local backup. Those are not too expensive, last time I checked, though I don't know about their actual requirements.

Re: This is what you get ...

Run, Forest, run!

I would totally migrate away. Now.

And spread the word about how slack screws over clubs.