Today is a very special day for my furry little girl. Nine years ago today, a furry little Australian Cattle Dog puppy was born. We adopted her four months later and has been a member of the family ever since. Her birthday is special you see, as Hazel is the only pet that we know their history from birth, down to the day. She has been incredibly patient as new member of our family have come on board, human and animal alike. We are so lucky to have her in our lives.
It looks as if BART has made a leap forward in their quest to update the train cars in the system. The original car design has been running with minor changes and refurbishments since 1972, so this will be a welcome upgrade.
(Photo Courtesy of BART)
So if all goes as planned, we might be riding these in September 2016. BART is still taking community input in regards to the internal seat configurations and the color palette to be used, so if you actually care, let them know.
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I would like to extend warm wishes to all that read this message. Whether you come to my blog via a search engine or if you are connected to me via Facebook, Google+, LinkedIN, or Twitter, I appreciate all of you. Whether you are one of my friends or co-workers that I see in person often, a Facebook friend that I haven't seen in person in 20 years, or a Twitter follower that I've yet to meet in person, you have all added value to my daily life.
May the year 2012 be an amazing one for all of you!
You might have seen QR Codes affixed to advertisements in magazines or in public spaces.
They look a little something like this:
For the last several years they have been used to quickly transfer URL information, phone numbers and other types of information to people that use smartphones or PDA devices with cameras. It turns out now that with the success of this format, people have figured ways to subvert the system to send people to malware sites and other unsavory locations. Dark Reading as a great article on how the system works and what it being done to use it for evil purposes.
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Step 1: Create an innovative product that fills a niche market.
Step 2: Grow it over half a decade. Make your product fast and fault tolerant.
Step 3: Relaunch it as something else that doesn't resemble the original innovative product. Have the graphics re-branded for Web 3.0 or whatever iteration we are in now. Wait for VC money to run out.
Continue reading "How to ruin a good thing in three steps" »
When you connect your Windows 7 or Windows Vista computer to a wireless hot spot or plug in your Ethernet cable, have you ever wondered how Windows knows whether or not you have a good Internet connection? It is a pretty easy thing to take for granted, unless you start looking at your firewall logs. The Network Connectivity Status Indicator (NCSI) service that Microsoft uses a http connection to www.msftncsi.com and transfers a text file called nsci.txt. An in-depth breakdown of the packets using Wireshark is available at the SuperUser Blog. The blog also contains instructions on how to edit the registry to stop your system from phoning home.
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Sometimes you need to get off the grid and have a bit of privacy. With the proliferation of phones that don't have removable batteries, it becomes fairly difficult. Many other technologies such as RFID are embedded in identification documents and credit cards. It is easy to wrap up these items in aluminum foil or in RF blocking Mylar bags, but you risk being unfashionable or as being branded a paranoid lunatic. To control when and where your wireless devices can talk, a company called MIAmobi has created a fairly ordinary looking pouch that has a silver foil lining that blocks RF. The company's website does not state specifics on the RF attenuation or what the frequency range that it blocks. A similar, less expensive, less fashionable bag can be had from Ramsey (yeah, the guys who make the FM transmitter kits), which is designed for cell phone forensic testing.
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