* Posts by brett_x

38 publicly visible posts • joined 6 Jun 2019

Wanted. Top infosec pros willing to defend Britain on shabby salaries

brett_x

Re: I wish their managers the best of luck

That's not unique to governments. That's corporate culture 101... Never hire someone that can replace you.

On one Prime Day, Amazon warehouse workers endured '45% injury rate'

brett_x

Yeah, and there often isn't an option for "don't rush it to me", except if you subscribe to Prime. Then you can pick your prime day, and if you give a crap, you can order your stuff well before your prime day. (I haven't had Prime in years... it wasn't an option when I had it.)

Traeger security bugs bad news for grillers with neighborly beef

brett_x

Re: Wifi controlled barbecue problem?

Yes, it's a first world problem. But I bought a different brand without WiFi and pretty much immediately regretted it. When you have an expensive slab of meat on the fire for sometimes 12+ hours and a plan to feed a bunch of people with it, it is really good to get alerted to any problems (like you ran out of pellets) along the way.

There are plenty of other tech extras that don't quite add up to the value of this one.

brett_x
Joke

>> A second, less severe vulnerability (4.3 – medium) was also disclosed

I think medium is 5 or above. 4.3 seems like medium-rare.

Battery electric vehicles lose their spark in Europe as hybrids steal the show

brett_x

The article is generalizing and talking about Hybrids, and not Plug-In Hybrids that you and the linked article are referring to. You don't plug in regular hybrids.

A Chinese crypto farm next to a nuclear missile base? Not on my watch, says Biden

brett_x

Re: Hey ho...

"I guess it is back to the Winnebago in the Cheyenne Walmart car park parking lot for them then."

FTFY ;)

Tesla devotee tests Cybertruck safety with his own finger – and fails

brett_x

Re: Stupidity is without limit.

You're not going to get clicks with carrots.

What if AI produces code not just quickly but also, dunno, securely, DARPA wonders

brett_x

Probably

"..developing artificial intelligence that can not only write code, but do it in a secure and "provably correct" manner."

I read that as "probably correct". That's what we normally get out of AI. Provably would be an improvement (literally).

Ten nations tell social media, banks, and telcos to get better at stopping scams

brett_x

You must not have aging parents, or be one yourself.

Scammers are getting better and people are still using technology as they age now. As they age, they don't always retain their defenses. I've seen this first hand on people who would not have fallen for such a thing just a year prior. It can be absolutely devastating (it wasn't in this case). I truly hope it doesn't happen to anyone you know. But just be aware that it absolutely can.

Want a Cybertruck? You're stuck with it for a year, says Tesla

brett_x

What about the free market?

Now even capitalism is not convenient for Mr Musk. Maybe he should only lease those trucks so he can maintain total control.

Excel recruitment time bomb makes top trainee doctors 'unappointable'

brett_x

Re: Excel for dodgy databases

I'd add that you also have to be good at debugging or have an incredible QA analyst/team. You can't just look at a few rows to validate that everything works as expected. Like "regular" software QA, you need to dig deep and find every way something could go wrong.

IBM sells off cloud business – yes, we mean Weather.com

brett_x

Re: I see Apple mostly ditched them a while ago - and predictions improved

Apple bought DarkSky a few years ago and that is the basis for the built-in weather app on iOS. It's almost as good as DarkSky was.

What do we make of the $3,500 Apple Vision Pro? It doesn't take a magic leap to guess

brett_x

Plug it in

I know it negates the end of the catchy first paragraph, but.. you can plug it in. The battery is only to use it untethered. If you want to watch a movie in the woods, you might be SOL.

Buckle up for meetings on the road as Cisco brings Webex to Audi autos

brett_x

WebEx

What's a WebEx ? Is that like an old Tinder flame ?

Gunfire at electrical grid kills power for 45,000 in North Carolina

brett_x

Re: Fragile

True, you have to pay about $15 for a 4 pack of pints these days. A lot of breweries found they make more money on that than a $12 6 pack of 12 oz.

I don't know what it's really like on the other side of the pond these days, beer-wise. But I can tell you there is no shortage of high quality options in _most_ of the US. In fact, I have a really hard time fathoming why there are so many.. and deciding which one to bring home.

Apple exec confirms iPhones will switch to USB-C because 'we have no choice'

brett_x

Thunderbolt

First of all, no device manufacturer is going to take up space for 2 connectors on a small electronic device if that's what you're suggesting.

Also, other protocols can run on the USB-C type port. Thunderbolt 3 & 4 use a USB-C connector. Apple has been using it on their laptops for years. I suspect if they need the speed of Thunderbolt for data transfers, it will be on the premium iPhone at first. But honestly, I don't know many people that plug in their iPhone to transfer or transmit data ever. So I think Apple will probably use a standard USB-C port.

Micro molten salt reactor can fit on a truck, power 1k homes. When it's built

brett_x
Coat

Re: Corrosion

a join between two pipes

talk about belt and braces

Ex-Broadcom engineer asks for house arrest over IP theft

brett_x

I get it

I refer to my previous work all the time. So I can certainly understand if his claims are indeed true.

However, I could probably always just go back to my original source... stack overflow ;)

/s

Twitter whistleblower summoned to Senate Judiciary Committee

brett_x

Mudge has been there before

Mudge has appeared before congress before... In 1998. Interesting watch if you haven't seen it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVJldn_MmMY

Half of developers still at screens even during breaks

brett_x

When else?

When else are we supposed to catch up on TheRegister? During non-break time?

NSO Group's Pegasus malware was used to spy on Dubai princess's lawyers during child custody dispute

brett_x

Yes, rain gets you wet and trolls don't read articles.

I found this article to be extremely interesting because it crossed over law, technology and yes, foreign rulers.

One-size-fits-all chargers? What a great idea! Of course Apple would hate it

brett_x

Re: In a statement, a spokesperson for Apple told The Reg

> but it would be stupid to design a device with wireless charging only because it's not efficient

I guarantee wireless charging will be the way we charge phones in the near future. Apple is close to ditching the port, and I'm sure the others aren't far behind. For one, it would be much better for waterproofing to have none.

brett_x

Re: Haven't Apple heard of eBay?

>The only thing that stifles innovation is Apple with their attempts to maintain a walled garden and forcing their customers to update all their gear because the new stuff doesn't have at least 1 previous style of port.

They've changed the port on the iPhone exactly 1 time. The lightning port has been their standard since 2012. 9 + years is too short to stick to one port?

Full Stream ahead: Microsoft will end 'classic' method of recording Teams meetings despite transcription concerns

brett_x
Coat

Technology

They should use butter technology to ease into change.

This page has been deliberately left blank

brett_x

I have a friend

I know a guy that bought a domain right as BernIE Sanders mittens thing was exploding. Word has it that he searched for BernY Sanders and the results were satisfactory. So he bought " putABernyOnIt" dot com. Total cost: $20. While he didn't think he'd cash in big, he was hopeful to get a small return. The next day, he woke up slightly hungover and realized his mistake.

If anyone wants to buy a misspelled politician domain, let me know. I can put you in touch with.. um... "him". Word has it that he'll take anything over $20.

The splitting image: Sufferer of hurty wrist pain? Logitech's K860 a potential answer

brett_x
Thumb Up

One complaint: It's a crumb collector

I have had this keyboard for just over a year. I have been working full time from home (programmer) since. So it's gotten a ton of use. I have not replaced the batteries yet, so their claim of 2 years is likely not far fetched.

I use a Mac and a Windows machine, so it's really nice to have support for both.

The one thing that I can't believe they didn't plan for is how many crumbs this thing collects. There is a crevice between the keyboard and the wrist pad. The wrist pad isn't detachable, so crumbs accumulate. I removed the 7 screws that attach the wrist pad, so I can remove it when necessary. (It just snaps in now and feels no different in use.)

But I really like this keyboard overall. I'm a fan of low-travel keys, split key layout and I really hate not having a number pad. So this keyboard was a no-brainer for me.

brett_x

Re: keyboard layouts

I learned to left mouse when I was gaming too much in my early 30's. I would left mouse at work and right mouse when [gaming] at home. It wasn't that hard to learn to the extent that I needed to for work (Sys admin at the time). I have since quit gaming and use left mouse only. It does have the advantage of centering my keyboard, as you suggest. And yes, I do have this Logi keyboard.

The policy of truth: As ransomware claims rise, what's a cyber insurer to do?

brett_x

Elephant in the room

I just don't understand why it's legal in any circumstances, regardless of who the ransom is paid to. It's extortion. And as the article points out, the more it's paid, the more it is encouraged.

I thought maybe it was still legal because there's a market for this kind of insurance, but this article points out how complicated that is getting.

So WHY is it still legal? Who benefits so much that we can't pass laws to make it happen a lot less (or at least make it go away from the public spotlight)?

Guy who wrote women are 'soft, weak, cosseted, naive' lasted about a month at Apple until internal revolt

brett_x

Re: Tolerance

For those who are unfamiliar with the Paradox, it boils down to this: You can't be tolerant of intolerance because it will destroy itself.

American schools' phone apps send children's info to ad networks, analytics firms

brett_x
Facepalm

Re: Think of the children ('s spending power)

You needed pencil and paper? Cavemen got by without that technology.

/s

New FCC boss leaps into action by… creating three committees to look at longstanding problems and come back at some point

brett_x

not per call

No, we don't pay to call 911. There is a tax collected on phone bills that is supposed to pay for costs associated with running the 911 system.

Going to the emergency room though....... that.... we pay dearly for (usually to multiple companies involved, even if you have insurance.)

So what can we expect from a Joe Biden White House when it comes to tech? We'll try to answer that right now

brett_x

Re: So, about that...

No. Please keep reminding us of the dangers of narcissism, lies and deception. It's an important topic. We need to work towards transparency so we can build trust.

Search history can calculate better credit ratings than pay slips, says International Monetary Fund

brett_x

Scary proposition. But stay tuned because without clear data privacy laws, this will not be the the last you've heard of someone suggesting that turning over your search history will get you something you want or need.

That said, I don't think it's quite as black and white as others are suggesting. The specifics in your search history are likely not the issue. It's the overall searches that reveal who we really are. I don't dare to look at my history. Not that it's scary, but because I don't want to be less likely to seek information that I need because of the concern for how it might look at some point in the future when this becomes commonplace. I already do this with facebook. I think about every click and every pause in the scroll.

And if you think this won't become commonplace without clear data privacy laws, think about how many of us (I know there are plenty of individuals.. many of whom comment here frequently.. who don't fit this) have changed our tune about location tracking over the last decade. "I'd never let an app know where I am." was me 10 years ago. 5 years ago: "Does it benefit me enough to give away my location, and/or do I trust the developer enough?" Now: "Is this a super sketchy app or not?"

The IMF floating this idea is what concerns me the most. It will provide legitimacy for exposing us at a very intimate level (and I'm not even talking about pr0n).

NSO Group fires back at Facebook: You lied to the court, claims spyware slinger, and we've got the proof

brett_x

Re: (anti) social network.

"Can we please just shut this anti-social network down already? Maybe then we can get back to talking to one another vis-à-vis?"

... s/he says.. completely un-ironically.. on a platform which is decidedly not vis-à-vis...

Apple: EU can't make us use your stinking common charging standard

brett_x
Facepalm

Wireless

Yeah, great idea, EU. Let's mandate a charging standard so we can be stuck in one technology until the bureaucracy gets around to changing the standard. How often do you think that will happen?

Example of my concerns: Will the standard be wireless? Because I for one look to a future without wires. But from what I've read, it seems to suggest it will be a physical port... even the article author editorializes that making a port 20% larger isn't that big of a deal. (I think his electrical engineering credentials are in question there.)

Bad news, developers: Apple Mac App Store tells cross-platform Electron apps to get lost

brett_x
Trollface

You are invoking it. Wrong.

FTFY.

Barbie Girl was wrong? Life is plastic, it's not fantastic: We each ingest '121,000 pieces' of microplastics a year

brett_x
Meh

This may be the real "gluten" problem

This past decade, we've seen a huge increase in the people that are "gluten sensitive". That is.. people who swear eating wheat based products makes their digestive systems go awry in various ways. My own (unsubstantiated) belief is that there is something much more universal causing these issues for most people.

Is is microplastics? If we're ingesting more and more each year.. it certainly is possible.