Thursday, December 15, 2016

Indivisible: A Practical Guide For Resisting the Trump Agenda

 https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DzOz3Y6D8g_MNXHNMJYAz1b41_cn535aU5UsN7Lj8X8/mobilebasic

Monday, November 21, 2016

Gartner Says Beware of the Data Lake Fallacy

 Data lakes therefore carry substantial risks. The most important is the inability to determine data quality or the lineage of findings by other analysts or users that have found value, previously, in using the same data in the lake. By its definition, a data lake accepts any data, without oversight or governance. Without descriptive metadata and a mechanism to maintain it, the data lake risks turning into a data swamp. And without metadata, every subsequent use of data means analysts start from scratch.

More:
http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2809117

Thursday, October 13, 2016

Summit 2015 - What Awesome Sauce Tastes Like: Getting & Keeping Your Teams Healthy... the Atlassian Way


Join Atlassian veterans Dominic and Ben for the story of how and why we created a little thing called the Atlassian Team Health Monitor. They show you how you can use it to harness the power and increase the confidence of your own healthy teams.

Sunday, October 2, 2016

Clean Your Cluttered Hard Drive with macOS Sierra's New Storage Manager


One of the new, handy features in macOS Sierra takes care of something you probably don't think much about: cluttered files filling up your hard drive. Now there's a built-in utility that replaces those third-party tools and makes it easy to find space-hogging files, old applications, and more

More:
http://lifehacker.com/clean-your-cluttered-hard-drive-with-macos-sierras-new-1786906880

Thursday, August 25, 2016

Senator's daughter who raised price of EpiPen got $19 million salary, perks in 2015 - Chicago Tribune


From the article:

A standard 2-pack now costs between $600 to $700. The price has prompted outrage among many consumers who have taken to social media to complain that they can no longer afford the potentially lifesaving medicine.

"A trip to the ER is now cheaper. HOW CAN THIS BE??" one woman tweeted on Wednesday. Actress Mia Farrow weighed in: "Grandchild w severe allergies needs life saving #Epipen. Cost has soared. Luckily we can pay the $600. Impossible for many scared parents."

The contrast between Bresch's lavish lifestyle - her signature designer five-inch stilettos for example - and those of ordinary families struggling to afford the drugs her company sells is a theme that has come up again and again.

Friday, August 12, 2016

The myth and the reality of Donald Trump’s business empire - The Washington Post


Trump also faced a long-running lawsuit over the use of undocumented workers at the Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. The building was allegedly built by undocumented Polish workers who were paid $5 an hour or less, when they were paid at all. The case dragged on for decades. The judged ruled that Trump knew that Polish workers were working off the books and were paid illegally and sub-standardly. Trump appealed, and the case was ultimately settled in 1999.

Thursday, July 14, 2016

I always disagree with GW Bush. But I agree with him today.


"At times, it seems like the forces pulling us apart are stronger than the forces binding us together," 

"Argument turns too easily into animosity. Disagreement escalates too quickly into dehumanization. Too often we judge other groups by their worst examples, while judging ourselves by our best intentions."

"And this has strained our bonds of understanding and common purpose.

"But Americans, I think, have a great advantage. To renew our unity, we only need to remember our values. We have never been held together by blood or background. We are bound by things of the spirit ― by shared commitments to common ideals. 

"At our best, we practice empathy, imagining ourselves in the lives and circumstances of others. This is the bridge across our nation's deepest divisions. And it is not merely a matter of tolerance, but of learning from the struggles and stories of our fellow citizens, and finding our better selves in the process.

"At our best, we honor the image of God we see in one another. We recognize that we are brothers and sisters, sharing the same brief moment on earth, and owing each other the loyalty of our shared humanity.

"At our best, we know we have one country, one future, one destiny. We do not want the unity of grief.  Nor do we want the unity of fear. We want the unity of hope, affection, and high purpose."

Wednesday, June 29, 2016

How Sony, Microsoft, and Other Gadget Makers Violate Federal Warranty Law



There are big "no trespassing" signs affixed to most of our electronics.

If you own a gaming console, laptop, or computer, it's likely you've seen one of these warnings in the form of a sticker placed over a screw or a seam: "Warranty void if removed."

In addition, big manufacturers such as Sony, Microsoft, and Apple explicitly note or imply in their official agreements that their year-long manufacturer warranties—which entitle you to a replacement or repair if your device is defective—are void if consumers attempt to repair their gadgets or take them to a third party repair professional.

What almost no one knows is that these stickers and clauses are illegal under a federal law passed in 1975 called the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act.

Monday, June 13, 2016

Microsoft to acquire LinkedIn | News Center

 I wonder how long it will take Microsoft to turn LinkedIn in to another Nokia.

Nokia cost ~half as much and was gone in ~2 years...

http://news.microsoft.com/2016/06/13/microsoft-to-acquire-linkedin/

Thursday, April 28, 2016

12 Great Hikes Under 5 Miles In Virginia

 Virginia is renowned for its state parks, national parks, and the trails that run throughout the entire state. While the idea of hiking through Virginia by means of the Appalachian Trail may sound marvelous in theory, shorter hikes are more realistic and often pack quite a punch in terms of adventure and sight seeing. Here are 12 incredible hikes just under 5 miles that you will definitely want to take in the next few months. It's time to lace up those hiking boots and start exploring!

More:
http://www.onlyinyourstate.com/virginia/hikes-under-five-miles/

Friday, April 1, 2016

Reddit 'tells' users that it is being asked to hand over customer data


Reddit deletes surveillance 'warrant canary' in transparency report | Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Social networking forum reddit on Thursday removed a section from its site used to tacitly inform users it had never received a certain type of U.S. government surveillance request, suggesting the platform is now being asked to hand over customer data under a secretive law enforcement authority.

Saturday, March 19, 2016

ZTE Document Raises Questions About Huawei and Sanctions


HONG KONG — When the United States government punished ZTE of China this month, saying it had done business with Iran, it released internal company documents that it said detailed how the electronic equipment maker had done it — and that also suggested the problem might not be limited to one Chinese company.

One document described how ZTE would set up seemingly independent companies — called "cut-off companies" — that would sign the deals in other countries. That could enable it to continue to do business in Iran, North Korea and other countries placed under American restrictions.


More:
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/19/technology/zte-document-raises-questions-about-huawei-and-sanctions.html


Friday, March 18, 2016

Turn your old Raspberry Pi into an automatic backup server



If you're one of those people upgrading to the Raspberry Pi 3, you might wonder what to do with your old, lesser Pi. Aside from turning it into an array of blinking LEDs to entertain your cat, you might consider configuring it as a microcontroller.

Making backups of our digital lives is, as most of us begrudgingly admit, the most important thing of daily computing that none of us bother to do. That's because going through the backup process requires us to remember to do it, it takes effort, and it takes time. And that's precisely why the best backup solution is the solution that you don't do at all; it's the one you automate.


More:

Friday, March 11, 2016

 Ugggg!

I stayed in a hotel with Android lightswitches and it was just as bad as you'd imagine


More:
https://mjg59.dreamwidth.org/40505.html

Saturday, March 5, 2016

Industry Best Practices for Securing AWS Resources


Very cool.

Today, we are happy to announce that the Center for Internet Security (CIS) has published the CIS AWS Foundations Benchmark, a set of security configuration best practices for AWS. These industry-accepted best practices go beyond the high-level security guidance already available, providing AWS users with clear, step-by-step implementation and assessment procedures. This is the first time CIS has issued a set of security best practices specific to an individual cloud service provider.



Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Ronald Reagan Says 'Open the Border Both Ways'



AUDIENCE QUESTION: Do you think the children of illegal aliens should be allowed to attend Texas public schools free, or do you think that their parents should pay for their education?

[...]

BUSH: Look, I'd like to see something done about the illegal alien problem that would be so sensitive and so understanding about labor needs and human needs that that problem wouldn't come up. But today, if those people are here, I would reluctantly say I think they would get whatever it is [that] society is giving to their neighbors. But it has— the problem has to be solved. The problem has to be solved. Because as we have kind of made illegal some kinds of labor that I'd like to see legal, we're doing two things, we're creating a whole society of really honorable, decent, family-loving people that are in violation of the law, and secondly we're exacerbating relations with Mexico.

The answer to your question is much more fundamental than whether they attend Houston schools, it seems to me. If they're living here, I don't want to see...six- and eight-year-old kids being made, one, totally uneducated, and made to feel like they're living outside the law. Let's address ourselves ot the fundamentals. These are good people, strong people. Part of my family is Mexican.

[audience applause]

REAGAN: Could I add to that? I think the time has come that the United States, and our neighbors, particularly our neighbor to the south, should have a better understanding and a better relationship than we've ever had. And I think that we haven't been sensitive enough to our size and our power. They have a problem of 40 to 50 percent unemployment. Now this cannot continue without the possibility arising—with regard to that other country that we talked about, of Cuba and what it is stirring up—of the possibility of trouble below the border. And we could have a very hostile and strange neighbor on our border.

Rather than talking about putting up a fence, why don't we work out some recognition of our mutual problems? Make it possible for them to come here legally with a work permit, and then, while they're working and earning here, they'd pay taxes here. And when they want to go back, they can go back. They can cross. Open the borders both ways.


Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Summit 2016 | Atlassian




Atlassian Summit 16, Oct 10th - 14th

Summit will be back, bigger than ever, at the San Jose Convention Center.
Follow us on Social for updates and stay in the know.

https://summit.atlassian.com/

Thursday, February 18, 2016

Apple isn't protecting a shooter's iPhone data. They're defending digital privacy | Susan McGregor | Opinion | The Guardian



Apple's switch to default encryption on iPhones has been a subject of complaint from law enforcement since its introduction in 2014, but the FBI's current request seems to intentionally side-step the encryption question, instead requesting Apple's assistance to bypass non-encryption features of the iPhone in order to get at its currently encrypted contents.

While the particular model of iPhone in question here means that it may be technically feasible for Apple to comply with the FBI's request, this is not the true heart of the issue. As Cook's open letter to customers stating that Apple would oppose the order points out, the request "has implications far beyond the legal case at hand".

Cook's letter makes a point of characterizing the software solution that the FBI is requesting as a "backdoor", situating the request squarely in the middle of the broader debate about whether the government can make tech companies provide access to customer data.


More:

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Otto and Olof Seaborg/Sjoberg - Genealogy.com

 n my grandmother's old trunk full of family photos, I came across a framed print of a business called "Seaborg's Laundry." I tracked down the business to 1114 Belmont Avenue in Chicago (home of Bittersweet Bakery now, www.bittersweetpastry). My question is... why did my grandmother have/keep this old photo?

My grandmother's mother's maiden name was Sjoberg, so I assumed these Seaborgs were related to me somehow. With help from Ancestry.com, I was able to piece together the story of Olof and Otto Sjoberg who moved from Landskrona, Malmohus, Skane to Stoughton, Wisconsin. In 1900, they moved to Chicago and started Seaborg's Laundry, which grew to become a very big business. After Olof and Otto retired, Clarence Olof, Otto's son, took over the business.

More:
http://www.genealogy.com/forum/regional/countries/topics/sweden/38646/

Thursday, February 4, 2016

By-Tor and the Snow Dog | rush vault



'By-Tor and the Snowdog' marks the beginning of a Rush tradition of extended story songs, in this case a battle between By-Tor and the Snowdog. The song has bite in more ways than one. Howard Ungerleider [the band's long-time roadie] came up with the title one night at a party at Rush manager Ray Danniels' house.

Snow dog at guard. Graham Whieldon

"'Ray had these two dogs. One was a German Shepherd that had these fangs, and the other was this little tiny white nervous dog. I used to call the Shepherd By-Tor because anyone who would walk into the house would get bitten by him. Ray would go, "The dog is trained fine; don't worry about it." Well, the night of the party, we were sitting down eating our steaks when the Shepherd started biting my leg. I started screaming and calling the dog By-Tor. Now, the other dog was real neurotic, constantly barking and jumping all over you. And since he was a snow dog, I started calling the pair By-Tor and the Snowdog."'—Bill Banasiewicz, Rush Visions


Wednesday, February 3, 2016

The Expanse


Naomi Nagata, XO of the Rocinante liked one of my Tweets and Amos Burton replied and retweeted another one.  #TheExpanse

And if you have no idea what that means go check out "The Expanse" on SyFy.com or better yet, get "Leviathan Wakes", the first book in the series from Audible.  




Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Um, OK, I guess


Listening to live "Rush" songs on YouTube.
La Villa Strangiato is next.
And the ad is in Spanish....

¯\(°_o)/¯

Saturday, January 30, 2016

Former Silk Road staffer and “victim” in murder-for-hire to serve no prison time | Ars Technica UK

 Former lieutenant of dark net platform Silk Road Curtis Green to serve no prison time; faced felony charges in '13, eventually took a plea deal; cooperated w/ corrupt DEA agents in conspiracy to steal funds from the Silk Road; later helped govt during corruption investigation

More:
http://arstechnica.co.uk/tech-policy/2016/01/former-silk-road-staffer-and-victim-in-murder-for-hire-to-serve-no-prison-time/

Corrupt DEA Agents screw up easy conviction. Former Silk Road staffer and “victim” in murder-for-hire to serve no prison time

 Fmr lieutenant of dark net platform Silk Road Curtis Green to serve no prison time; faced felony charges in '13, eventually took a plea deal; cooperated w/ corrupt DEA agents in conspiracy to steal funds from the Silk Road; later helped govt during corruption investigation

More:
http://arstechnica.co.uk/tech-policy/2016/01/former-silk-road-staffer-and-victim-in-murder-for-hire-to-serve-no-prison-time/

Tuesday, January 19, 2016

stoQ:



Introduction to stoQ

Simply put: we were tired of wasting time.  As network defenders, we have seen the market explode with countless security tools promising better awareness, functionality, and speed (we'll make you taller AND better looking!!!).  Unfortunately, most of these solutions have one thing in common -- they don't talk to each other, and in many cases, results are lost the moment our screen scrolls away or our browser window closes. As analysts, we have been frustrated by this inefficiency for some time now.  It doesn't have to be this difficult. We just want our data, and we want to be able to easily search it in our datastore of choice.  So, we decided to do something about it.