Recent Posts

8251

General Software Discussion / Instantly Increasing Password Strength

« Last post by Renegade on February 23, 2011, 09:05 AM »

I was reading on how HBGary got raped, and about their passwords, etc.

It occurred to me that a VERY simple way to increase security for those that like to use the same password or use pass-phrases would be to simply double them. e.g.:

Password: mypassword

New doubled:
* mypasswordmypassword
* mmyyppaasswwoorrdd

It's pretty much trivial, and adds virtually nothing in terms of complexity for remembering.

Personally, I like pass-phrases as they are easy to remember. e.g.

inthebeginningtherewasme

23 characters and pretty easy to remember. Sprinkle with caps or numbers, e.g.:

Ilike2moveitmoveit

Not bad, but doubling up really takes it to a new level.

In related news, since broadband speed is related to the effectiveness of brute force attacks, Korea is going to have 1 Gbps Internet connections in 2012.

1 Gbps. Residential. At home.

Goodbye to network speeds being a limiting factor in security!

8252

Living Room / Re: Power Ranger Punches Kid for Accusing Him of Stealing Gloves

« Last post by Renegade on February 23, 2011, 08:31 AM »

"Jesus Didn't Tap"?

-f0dder (February 23, 2011, 07:33 AM)

I kind of liked that. Makes Jesus sound like a bad ass.

8253

Living Room / Re: Black ops: how HBGary wrote backdoors for the government

« Last post by Renegade on February 23, 2011, 08:22 AM »

http://lcamtuf.blogs...world-of-hbgary.html

Linked in the above post is a link to the details of the attack, how hbgary got compromised: http://arstechnica.c...-the-hbgary-hack.ars

-Gothi[c] (February 23, 2011, 05:36 AM)

Wow - That's completely mind blowing - I will never feel guilty for harping about the 80/20 rule ever again.

-Stoic Joker (February 23, 2011, 07:01 AM)

Not finished reading yet, but wow... Enlightening. I had no idea that people are still using such poor security. SQL injection? Wow. That's unreal that they got hit by that.

Reminds me of this:

http://xkcd.com/327/



Security companies that get hacked by SQL injection deserve it.

8254

General Software Discussion / Re: Google Chrome continues to ruin standard user interface

« Last post by Renegade on February 23, 2011, 06:06 AM »

I love the graphic. That's hilarious.

8255

Living Room / Re: The Onion News Network - Funniest Satire Site on the Planet Lampoons the News

« Last post by Renegade on February 22, 2011, 08:52 PM »

The tv show is not as funny as i had hoped -- i find the online shorts funnier.  But let's give them some time to get into their groove.  it still has some high points and is miles better than saturday night live and their other competition.

-mouser (February 22, 2011, 11:45 AM)

I always found SNL a bit dull. The jokes were too obvious and the slapstick wasn't remotely clever. A few good ones, but in general, blah.

Onion News has moments. It's getting better. The first was ok. There was one skit last week, I forget which, that had me roaring.

I like the satire in it. Much better than a lot of humor.

8256

General Software Discussion / Re: 20 New User Misconceptions about Linux

« Last post by Renegade on February 22, 2011, 08:46 PM »

Some use ten headings. Some use more. But they all essentially say the exact same thing.

-40hz (February 22, 2011, 07:02 PM)

The tone and manner in this one seemed much better. It wasn't preaching or condescending like most are.

8257

General Software Discussion / Re: Ubuntu: Where Did the Love Go?

« Last post by Renegade on February 22, 2011, 06:49 PM »

That was an excellent article. WOW. 2 in 1 day!

It's nice to read a balanced view that isn't brown-nosing one OS and dissing another. Very refreshing!

8258

General Software Discussion / Re: Ubuntu: Where Did the Love Go?

« Last post by Renegade on February 22, 2011, 06:38 PM »

I'd love to stick linux on one of my old machines and give it a whirl... but then I think... "why?"

- I'm at the point where I simply have no good reason to do it, which is quite sad. Got a nice backup server, nice media server, my dev machines have to be Windows... what is left?

-timns (February 22, 2011, 06:31 PM)

You could always simply manufacture an excuse. Got any quick little utilities you've made that you feel like porting over to Linux?

I'm stuck on Windows as my primary platform. There's just no way I can switch. My clients pretty much dictate the formats and software I need. e.g. There's no escaping Microsoft Office (and no -- I've already checked other office suites -- they don't work for what I need).

It makes it tough to switch like that. Right now I only run Linux in a VM.

8259

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: VideoCharge Studio $99.95 -> $00.00

« Last post by Renegade on February 22, 2011, 06:34 PM »

I use Premiere, so I'm not very interested in their video editing software, but they have a watermark SDK that looks very interesting. I'll keep that in mind for future reference. Thanks for sharing the link!

8260

General Software Discussion / Re: 20 New User Misconceptions about Linux

« Last post by Renegade on February 22, 2011, 06:31 PM »

Wow. I don't think I've ever read a media article about Linux that didn't piss me off or drive me half insane with rage about absurd assertions about 1,000 km over the borders of madness, but this guy is BANG ON!

Windows, on the other hand, has a "here it is" approach that works well enough for its intended audience.

2) Windows software looks better than Linux software. So you think that Windows software has the marketplace cornered on what's pretty? Take a look at some of the horrid looking applications running under the shareware/freeware license sometime.

And while you're at it, be prepared to be turned off cold with some very unattractive software. The fact of the matter is that all platforms have software that can look great as well as some that are horribly ugly.

Well, he goes from brilliant to irking me a tad with that statement, to brilliant again. I've seen commercial software that will make you gouge your eyes out with your fingernails all the while screaming, "It can't be~! Make it stop~!" Shareware/freeware has very little to do with how ugly software can be.

Throughout the article, be nails it time and time again.

18) Linux has no malware.

One of my favorite misconceptions is the belief that Linux is completely free of malware. Not only is this nonsense, but it's dangerous to believe as Linux adoption continues to grow.

While it's true that malware for Linux is nothing compared to the Windows platform, you put yourself in danger every time you install software without installing it from a trusted source. This is true of all platforms, not just Windows. Less of a threat doesn't mean that the threat is non-existent.

Oh God! Oh God! Oh God! Oh God!

HONESTY~! WOW~! Man... This guy has my respect.

That was a sheer joy to read. It was refreshing and really makes me look forward to the day that I can truly move to Linux as my primary platform.

8261

Living Room / Re: The Onion News Network - Funniest Satire Site on the Planet Lampoons the News

« Last post by Renegade on February 22, 2011, 10:24 AM »

It's getting better. They do an amazing job. 

8262

Living Room / Re: Black ops: how HBGary wrote backdoors for the government

« Last post by Renegade on February 22, 2011, 09:18 AM »

Then again 99% of the people in the USA have nothing to worry about the NSA, at least for now.

-rxantos (February 22, 2011, 09:13 AM)

The ring of truth in that last part is disturbing.

As for Windows back doors, dunno. I'd like to see some evidence for that.

8263

General Software Discussion / Why is Software for Hardware Always Sucky?

« Last post by Renegade on February 22, 2011, 07:09 AM »

GPS units. Phone connectivity software. etc. etc. Why is it always sucky? And why do companies make brand new crappy interfaces that are always confusing, and rarely let you get things done easily, if at all.

Once in a while, things work ok. But generally they use crummy wizard UIs and are horribly limited.

I'm in the process of updating my GPS units, and it's just a complete disaster with a trillion pieces of software to do different tasks. Why not have 1 good piece of software?

Am I alone in this? Does anyone else find the same?

8264

Developer's Corner / Re: Defending Against Frivolous Software Patent Infringement Claims - Nice Talk

« Last post by Renegade on February 22, 2011, 06:32 AM »

It's not so much a problem that there are lawyers.

The problem comes from our tendency to elect lawyers to public office.

If it's mostly lawyers we let write our laws, is it any big surprise they end up being incomprehensible to anyone other than another lawyer?

 

-40hz (February 22, 2011, 06:22 AM)

Good point.

I'm thinking of some silly argument about how you're really only addressing the symptom, and that if we killed all the lawyers, we'd be attacking the root of the problem, allowing humans to serve in public office. 

8265

Living Room / Re: One for the musicians

« Last post by Renegade on February 22, 2011, 05:47 AM »

Y'know... I have a dirty secret... A sad confession... I can't read sheet music very well... ;(



Would somebody be so kind as to tab it out for me?

8266

Living Room / Re: Cute jokes' thread

« Last post by Renegade on February 21, 2011, 08:47 PM »

http://cynic.me/2011...d-lady-church-jokes/

-Renegade (February 21, 2011, 10:36 AM)

Content seems to be unviewably (behind the "fence")

-Stoic Joker (February 21, 2011, 11:23 AM)

Ah... I see copying from Microsoft Office and pasting using the MS Word function in WordPress makes things unviewable in Internet Explorer. How poetic. Now I just need to know which ones are the godless heathens...

http://cynic.me/2011...d-lady-church-jokes/

-Renegade (February 21, 2011, 10:36 AM)

Loved it - nothing offensive there though (in case anyone unsure whether to visit) .
Content uncopyable, but I presume that's intentional...

-tomos (February 21, 2011, 11:48 AM)

Nope. I didn't test in different browsers.

Fixed now. Viewable in IE, and copyable.

8267

Living Room / Re: One for the musicians

« Last post by Renegade on February 21, 2011, 07:51 PM »

not only passionately hates the bassoon - but jazz/funk music as well.

-40hz (February 21, 2011, 07:41 PM)

Wait a sec... Jazz/funk is music?

8268

Living Room / Re: One for the musicians

« Last post by Renegade on February 21, 2011, 04:20 PM »

That. Was. AWESOME~!

8269

Living Room / Re: Cute jokes' thread

« Last post by Renegade on February 21, 2011, 10:36 AM »

This is way too funny, but very religious:

http://cynic.me/2011...d-lady-church-jokes/

My mom is religious and sent it to me, so it's pretty clean, but I'm quite sure that it would be offensive for some prudes.

8270

General Software Discussion / Re: Google set to steal Opera's thunder yet again, decides to eliminate url bar

« Last post by Renegade on February 21, 2011, 10:01 AM »

OK... I can't keep my mouth shut...

I suspect it's entirely to get people into Google to start. That pisses me off. I like being up front. This isn't it. Screen real estate isn't that poor.

8271

General Software Discussion / Re: Google set to steal Opera's thunder yet again, decides to eliminate url bar

« Last post by Renegade on February 21, 2011, 09:59 AM »

If they remove the URL/address bar, I'm gone. Period. I use Chrome for quite a bit, but with that? Forget it. Good-bye.

8272

Living Room / A Digital Rights "Annoyance"

« Last post by Renegade on February 21, 2011, 09:36 AM »

Not going to rant on DRM. Not going to rant on DR.

I go to this web site with something I'm very interested in. Oh. I can see the video. For free! Ok. Click. Advertisement. 30 seconds. Ok. No biggie. Almost done... I can deal with ads. It's ok. They pay for the show... Almost done... kk -- sure your ad is great. Love it. Almost done... and... OK SHOW~! "This video cannot be shown due to..." F*** off. Click Close.

Bait & switch is one thing, but bait & screw? This is new.

If you're going to show ads... jeez... At least be decent about it. I'm ok with ads. I'm not ok with suckering me in.

I am sick of blatant deception on the web.

8273

Living Room / Re: No more desktop Linux systems in the German Foreign Office

« Last post by Renegade on February 21, 2011, 08:24 AM »

Software usability and interface, even with the X Windowing system, is perhaps the Linux platform's greatest down fall. I have always felt that perhaps it is time to scrap X and start fresh with a system which is designed for the modern age. To me, X feels like a patch job where various pieces of code have been hacked together to make it work. Perhaps it's time to cut losses and redesign it with stability, usability and user interface in mind.

Usability of most software on the *nix platform is often times second priority when compared to the "cool features" of an application. Every developer knows that working on the "sexy" parts of an application are more fun than coding and designed a well formed and designed GUI or even back-end support. Who wants to code the printing system when we can code a way to make the window wobble when you drag it around screen?

Often times, it seems as thou developers of this software do not put thought into a GUI and the overall experience of the user. While this is not true in every case, most of the software I use on a daily basis in ubuntu and fedora feels this way. Heck, making a wrong move in either KDE, Gnome or XFCE will result in an unstable windowing environment and you will have to restart and pray that you didn't corrupt the configuration.

Windows and MAC have gotten it right when it comes to software. Yes, there are clunky software titles on both, but they are the exception and not the norm. Almost every MAC application is designed with usability in the forefront. Most Windows applications have well-formed and standards complying guis (Windows standards, that is). You can expect ALT+F4 to function the same in every application. You can expect the minimize button to actually minimize the window and not recompile your kernel because one of the developers felt it was a cool idea!

Now please, do not take this is a rant about Linux and FOSS, it is quite the contrary. I would love to see a shift in the software quality on the platform. It is moving slowly but I do not think it can keep pace with the breakneck speed of the modern computing era. I use Ubuntu, Fedora and Opensuse on a daily basis (Ask Gothi[c], he usually ends up providing me support much to his dismay). That said, I can see a very discernable quality difference between using Linux applications and most Windows/MAC applications.

-Josh (February 21, 2011, 08:04 AM)

You make some very very good points there.

Lately I've been doing more usability coding than normal, and it's time intensive. It takes a lot to get from functionality to USABLE functionality. There's a VERY VERY big difference there. And that difference takes a lot of time.

Spend 2 days to add 4 new features, or make 1 feature super-slick and easy? Typical developer reaction? >> F*** it. Add the new FEATURES! After all, we want the software to DO S**T, right?

8274

Living Room / Re: No more desktop Linux systems in the German Foreign Office

« Last post by Renegade on February 21, 2011, 08:18 AM »

If i remember correctly then OSX is unix based right ? I don't know what makes them more easier in comparison to linux/unix based desktops or respective software. If apple can keep things simple for users then why linux/unix developers don't learn something from it ? The reason why microsoft softwares are always easy to learn is because they pay attention to users learning curve. I found linux developers are so obsessed with 'release early, release often' stuff that they don't find time thinking about simplicity in UI. I agree on open formats point- this will keep the world in sanity instead of forcing monopoly on users.

-mahesh2k (February 21, 2011, 07:50 AM)

OS X is BSD based. BSD > Whatever > Darwin > OS X

But I find Linux easier than OS X. I think some of that may be in my own expectations of the platform though. I paid a lot of money for OS X and I had high expectations, of which it failed in every aspect. Linux on the other hand gives me few expectations, and over delivers in every way.

But my approach to software is changing. I'm fickle often, and well, that's that.

I think Microsoft really does a great job in a lot of things. At times I hate them, like today. (Issues with child application differences for DNN in ASP.NET on IIS 6 & 7. Grrr...)

With Apple, they've got a thing going with "there's only 1 way -- the Apple way", and that works for a lot of people. For others that are use to the Microsoft way or the Linux way, it's infuriating. In MS and Linux there are MANY ways to do everything and anything. I like choice. Apple is all about removing choice.

8275

Living Room / Re: No more desktop Linux systems in the German Foreign Office

« Last post by Renegade on February 21, 2011, 07:37 AM »

It seems like there are large swaths out there that seem to delight in making "elitist" software - stuff that takes immense effort to learn. That has no place in the consumer world. Professional world? Sure. Often there's no other option as costs become too high. Consumer? Sigh... And this is why I never use my Mac... Too difficult to get basic things done. I find Linux easier.

In principle, I think it's better to use open formats and all that in government. But training costs? You need to be fiscally responsible at the same time. It's a tough call.