I was reading a blog by Bruce Schneier on some Homomorphic Encryption breakthrough that IBM claimed. Read: http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2009/07/homomorphic_enc.html .
As it is, all you need to do to fool the general public is to present some 'geeky' stuff with terms, create some weird ,unproven or statistics that would not occur in one's lifetime and a very good PR machine and you can fool the general public. Most people don't care about the tech details and when they hear the hype about some new bogus security, they literally buy into it. When more than enough people have bought into the illusion, even the efforts of experts trying to caution people would fall on deaf ears and the public would generally love to label and denounce these experts.
This is how you can use the blinded public and make them believe you. The only time these bogus stuff really fall apart is when it takes such a big hit that some important stuff falls apart, this is when the blinded public would awake to the reality of their 'dream'.
So, you can fool the public but you cannot fool them forever until something drastic takes place.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
HTML 5 VIdeo
Since no one could agree on what video format should HTML 5's video tag support, why not allow it to support all the common ones like (mp4,avi,ogg...) and then to specify the type it is using like ? Or maybe why not force all html5 compliant browsers to support all the common video format using the ffmpeg codec libraries...etc.
This question about supporting video format is all about politics and saving one's own skin and making money rather than about the users. If you can put your own video format to be supported, you would be the standard and everyone follows you. Patent rules , copyrights ...etc... all the ugly side of human selfish nature emerges so seamlessly that it makes anyone feel revolting.
Or maybe why not just drop the support for html 5's video tag forever because there would always be disagreement for these stuff.
What I recommend to support is just to totally drop the idea of a video tag and wait until everyone can agree on or some open source patent and royalty free and good quality video format can be created...then can we think about adding the video tag.
On a second thought, why don't W3C or some ISO choose a standard video format or even create one if there isn't and create video converters ? This is a long way around a problem but nevertheless , it would allow the html 5's video tag to be used and the converters allow users to convert this 'new' video format to any other video format they like?
This question about supporting video format is all about politics and saving one's own skin and making money rather than about the users. If you can put your own video format to be supported, you would be the standard and everyone follows you. Patent rules , copyrights ...etc... all the ugly side of human selfish nature emerges so seamlessly that it makes anyone feel revolting.
Or maybe why not just drop the support for html 5's video tag forever because there would always be disagreement for these stuff.
What I recommend to support is just to totally drop the idea of a video tag and wait until everyone can agree on or some open source patent and royalty free and good quality video format can be created...then can we think about adding the video tag.
On a second thought, why don't W3C or some ISO choose a standard video format or even create one if there isn't and create video converters ? This is a long way around a problem but nevertheless , it would allow the html 5's video tag to be used and the converters allow users to convert this 'new' video format to any other video format they like?
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Fundamentals of Computing: Insecure
I was contemplating on the futile efforts of DRMs and encoding to try to hide secrets. I would consider these technologies rather a failure in terms of security. You try to protect music or video using DRMs and not far in future, a hacker or a community of hackers or some companies create ways to circumvent or even 'destroy' your techniques. Same for encoding, you just try to replace words with weird characters. The real good deal is not encoding to hide secrets but to use solid proven encryption to really secure secrets.
The insecurity of DRMs are that data can be manipulated or should I say, insecurity in everything because you can manipulate all data as computers aren't really built for secure computing which if that happened, alot of apps cannot work. Since you can manipulate any data via programming ...etc... you could simply manipulate DRM data and encoding data too. The computing powers for a mere laptop these days are at least a Core 2 Duo so the computing powers these days are really powerful and you can do lots of stuff.
I think it's useless to encode stuff or use DRMs. If you want to really protect stuff, use solid encryption technology on a secure chipset or hardware. This is the best you could do.
The insecurity of DRMs are that data can be manipulated or should I say, insecurity in everything because you can manipulate all data as computers aren't really built for secure computing which if that happened, alot of apps cannot work. Since you can manipulate any data via programming ...etc... you could simply manipulate DRM data and encoding data too. The computing powers for a mere laptop these days are at least a Core 2 Duo so the computing powers these days are really powerful and you can do lots of stuff.
I think it's useless to encode stuff or use DRMs. If you want to really protect stuff, use solid encryption technology on a secure chipset or hardware. This is the best you could do.
Human corruption
I got this feed from Ars technica while reading using my Google reader...
Wow... Facebook , MySpace ....etc... are such 'dishonest' sites. Imagine you posted some ahem... pictures and you regretted it and want to delete it, the pictures aren't deleted from the hosting servers but just marked as 'not there' or something similar... it would be easy to look through their server caches or whatever ways available and still find the pictures. These social sites are simply a breach in security because they don't follow by the rules of human morality but by the rules of making money , getting more people to join them ....etc.Are "deleted" photos really gone from Facebook? Not always
In an age where your boss, coworkers, parents, and even (*gasp*) grandparents are finally joining social networks, we are all more aware than ever that we had better keep things relatively clean. And if you were someone who joined MySpace, Facebook, Flickr, or a number of other sites years ago, you may have more cleaning up to do than usual—after all, back then, you were probably young(er) and dumb(er), posting silly pics of your drunken escapades or questionable updates regarding your unusual interest in English cucumbers.
If you delete questionable images of yourself, you may be in the clear—or you may not, depending on the social network. As it turns out, some social networks delete your images right away while others hold onto them even after claiming they've been deleted. This was the discovery made by researchers at Cambridge University last month when they found that images deleted from social media sites are often left on the server, ripe for anyone to embed elsewhere or link up.
We put this finding to the test and found that some of the most popular sites on the Internet do, in fact, keep images on their servers after you delete them. On May 21, 2009, we deleted photos from four of the networks most used by the Ars staff and readership and monitored them for six weeks. The four networks we checked were Flickr, Twitter, MySpace, and Facebook.
Click here to read the rest of this article
And there I thought I have had enough of reading news where companies play dirty...here's another feed from Slashdot this time...
Microsoft Changing Users' Default Search Engine
BabyDuckHat writes "Cnet's Dennis O'Reilly caught 'Windows Search Helper' trying to change his default Firefox search from Google to Bing. This isn't the first time the software company has been caught quietly changing user's preferences to benefit its own products."
I hope human society would not just improve technologically but also improve morally and spiritually thus striking a balance and evolving further. if you noticed, the more technologically advance, the more morally corrupted (in many cases). Let's hope it isn't true though.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Rants: Browsers and Stupid SAF Stuff
Well, here goes the usual rantings again and it's generally about what is happening to web browsers that I personally feel and also about the stupidly and badly designed SAF POS terminals in cookhouses.
Web browser
Well, web browsers are generally growing and becoming more bulky and stuffed up with all too many stuff it shouldn't have. A browser is simply a tool to browse web pages and display contents, rather than the millions of external plugins and tools (etc... Last.fm plugins, Opera Unite features ...etc...) which all major web browsers, including MSIE/IE have.
Hey, can't we just get back to the usual web browser that meets the ACID standards rather than all too much junk? It always takes a bit of a time to startup a browser (regardless of the browser type) because simply, it has lots of stuff to load these days compared to those of olde.
So those designning browsers, it's best to keep it light because that's what people really want (not just me).
SAF Cookhouse POS terminals
I have used the cookhouse POS terminals to scan my identity before getting my food for months and I am totally not impressed by the crappy design. It's just too rough around the edges, buggy and totally inefficient in many circumstances.
For those SAF agents prowling the internet to look out for blog postings, I would keep this particular rant rather abstract because I am sure some paranoid agents might want to come after me if I put the rant in too much detail. Don't worry, there's no pictures going to be included and nothing that leaks any secrets or breech any rules on the Official Secrets Act.
Firstly, the POS terminal for the usual user and the admin user is just crap. I know it's SAF stuff but hey, can't there be at least some efforts in the all too plain GUI design ? Next, when the 'ID card' gets scanned and you are choosing some options or doing something, when someone barge in and scan their 'ID' too, the system gets confused and interrupted.
The system can become rather lag when all the POS terminals are in use... so make it more robust. The admin console is not easy to use, you have to select a virtual keyboard (because it has no keyboard physcially), choose the type of food you are eating , select this and that... for the admin terminal for those who didn't bring their 'ID' to scan and need to type in details on their own. How about making all these little gui interaction more smooth than the current one that breaks any user work flow? Maybe an embedded virtual keyboard should be activated and present all the time rather than having to press a button to call it up?
When a person already entered into the system, let's say for lunch, I have already scanned my 'ID' and took my lunch but someone enters my 'ID' again for lunch, I guess the system is going to get into trouble, else why would someone try to stop us? Ok... this situation is not clear since I can't talk too much about it so go and get guessing.
Mass entry of users have to be done manually and very taxing, why isn't there an easier way like a gui to select all from a name list ?
I think that's as much as I can say for the SAF POS terminal.
That's all for this post.
Web browser
Well, web browsers are generally growing and becoming more bulky and stuffed up with all too many stuff it shouldn't have. A browser is simply a tool to browse web pages and display contents, rather than the millions of external plugins and tools (etc... Last.fm plugins, Opera Unite features ...etc...) which all major web browsers, including MSIE/IE have.
Hey, can't we just get back to the usual web browser that meets the ACID standards rather than all too much junk? It always takes a bit of a time to startup a browser (regardless of the browser type) because simply, it has lots of stuff to load these days compared to those of olde.
So those designning browsers, it's best to keep it light because that's what people really want (not just me).
SAF Cookhouse POS terminals
I have used the cookhouse POS terminals to scan my identity before getting my food for months and I am totally not impressed by the crappy design. It's just too rough around the edges, buggy and totally inefficient in many circumstances.
For those SAF agents prowling the internet to look out for blog postings, I would keep this particular rant rather abstract because I am sure some paranoid agents might want to come after me if I put the rant in too much detail. Don't worry, there's no pictures going to be included and nothing that leaks any secrets or breech any rules on the Official Secrets Act.
Firstly, the POS terminal for the usual user and the admin user is just crap. I know it's SAF stuff but hey, can't there be at least some efforts in the all too plain GUI design ? Next, when the 'ID card' gets scanned and you are choosing some options or doing something, when someone barge in and scan their 'ID' too, the system gets confused and interrupted.
The system can become rather lag when all the POS terminals are in use... so make it more robust. The admin console is not easy to use, you have to select a virtual keyboard (because it has no keyboard physcially), choose the type of food you are eating , select this and that... for the admin terminal for those who didn't bring their 'ID' to scan and need to type in details on their own. How about making all these little gui interaction more smooth than the current one that breaks any user work flow? Maybe an embedded virtual keyboard should be activated and present all the time rather than having to press a button to call it up?
When a person already entered into the system, let's say for lunch, I have already scanned my 'ID' and took my lunch but someone enters my 'ID' again for lunch, I guess the system is going to get into trouble, else why would someone try to stop us? Ok... this situation is not clear since I can't talk too much about it so go and get guessing.
Mass entry of users have to be done manually and very taxing, why isn't there an easier way like a gui to select all from a name list ?
I think that's as much as I can say for the SAF POS terminal.
That's all for this post.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
H2 simplicity
The H2 database start off is purely brainless. You just click on the H2.jar or something like that and you are off, it launches an internal server (web and servlet server and database server) and your default web browser just pops up a web servlet for you to connect to your database and you are in. You manipulate tables and data using the servlets and forms. I love the pure simplicity and brainlessness of using H2.
The build of H2 jars can be a bit complex since you need to setup JAVA_HOME and paths here and there but these are the fault of Sun Java because they don't automatically provide these setups and leave users hanging there and to figure out for themselves. Otherwise, when all thes eenvironment values are up, the building of different H2 jarfiles for different uses are purely brainless too. Just open a console and 'cd' to the 'bin' folder and type 'build xxx' where xxx is whatever kind of jar you want to build. Simple isn't it ?
If you like consoles to access databases, H2 also provides console (main jar rather than the rebuild jarSmall version). The console is as simple as just 'java -jar h2.jar' . What else can you expect ?
Look at other databases... do they provide such simplicity and luxury ? Java DB aka Derby ... I wanted to learn how to use it but just a glance at the manuals and it put me off...
Overly complex and untidy documentations. Looks of setups here and there, console without any GUI... not simple to use in general. Derby really need to do something to make it's manuals easy to use. I know some have gotten use to the doc in Derby but how about beginners ? Given the choice of H2 and Derby, I think people would prefer H2.
I am not bias towards H2, but the fact is H2 clearly won hands down by it's simple, brainless , usability. When I started to find a java database, H2 and Derby are the options I have. But I move towards H2 and consequently use H2 as my default database whether for storing data or for using them in my software products since it's so easy to handle compared to Derby.
H2 have consistently always try to be considerate to it's users by making it easy to use and that is the very strength of H2.
If you don't believe, try downloading the latest H2 database and use it and also download a Derby and use it. Within seconds after you install or unzip H2, the next thing up and running is a H2 ... or maybe let's leave it for you to experiment and see for yourselves.
The build of H2 jars can be a bit complex since you need to setup JAVA_HOME and paths here and there but these are the fault of Sun Java because they don't automatically provide these setups and leave users hanging there and to figure out for themselves. Otherwise, when all thes eenvironment values are up, the building of different H2 jarfiles for different uses are purely brainless too. Just open a console and 'cd' to the 'bin' folder and type 'build xxx' where xxx is whatever kind of jar you want to build. Simple isn't it ?
If you like consoles to access databases, H2 also provides console (main jar rather than the rebuild jarSmall version). The console is as simple as just 'java -jar h2.jar' . What else can you expect ?
Look at other databases... do they provide such simplicity and luxury ? Java DB aka Derby ... I wanted to learn how to use it but just a glance at the manuals and it put me off...
Overly complex and untidy documentations. Looks of setups here and there, console without any GUI... not simple to use in general. Derby really need to do something to make it's manuals easy to use. I know some have gotten use to the doc in Derby but how about beginners ? Given the choice of H2 and Derby, I think people would prefer H2.
I am not bias towards H2, but the fact is H2 clearly won hands down by it's simple, brainless , usability. When I started to find a java database, H2 and Derby are the options I have. But I move towards H2 and consequently use H2 as my default database whether for storing data or for using them in my software products since it's so easy to handle compared to Derby.
H2 have consistently always try to be considerate to it's users by making it easy to use and that is the very strength of H2.
If you don't believe, try downloading the latest H2 database and use it and also download a Derby and use it. Within seconds after you install or unzip H2, the next thing up and running is a H2 ... or maybe let's leave it for you to experiment and see for yourselves.
manutil 0.1.1 and my first git experience
Well, two things to rant today, firstly about a short intro to manutil 0.1.1 and then about my first experience using git connecting to the sourceforge git version control I am using for my new project, dbDir.
manutil 0.1.1
Finally, manutil for Makagiga have moved itself out of 0.1 alpha to 0.1.1 as I have deemed it ready to move forward. A thing I added into 0.1.1 is the function to open HTML help manuals (help manuals written in HTML files) to provide more diversity to how developers want their help files to present themselves and the format. It opens these HTML help files in an internal HTML browser built into the latest makagiga versions (3.5 and 3.6 version). It uses the cobra engine used by the Lobo Web browser project. The rendering is admittingly pretty off because the cobra engine isn't really mature yet but that's the best engine that could be found in the open source written in Java to be used. All else of manutil works fine as they should. Give feed backs about manutil 0.1.1 to kdt, the creator of makagiga or me. I have given manutil a custom icon too. It's a bit rough around the edge but this is the first version. Better ones would come in the next versions when I get time to experiment more graphic effects for the icon desgin.
My first experience using Git
I have created a new project called dbDir in sourceforge and set git as my default version control.It wasn't easy nor straightforward. Since I am using Linux, you don't really expect any GUI unlike the Windows version but I tried the Windows' version of git using the GUI and it is equally not easy to understand how to use. Simply, the documentations in Git pretty much isn't good. I had to figure out what I have to do to connect my already created Git repo in my machine to sf.net's one and upload my first commit of codes.
I finally got already it a bit by reading a blog post at http://rwmj.wordpress.com/2009/03/06/git-fatal-no-matching-remote-head/ .
Git, like SVN , is not easy to understand when you just started because you don't know how to start it and how to approach and what the codes or even the manuals are talking. They are either too cryptic or abstract but when you got it, you can move on. So for developers of git and SVN and other softwares, make sure the user (presuming they are noobs) have to understand and find it easy to navigate and how to start off. A good example that fulfil the above 'easy to start off' is the H2 database. I would make a new post to talk about the pure brainlessness of H2, it's strenght.
SO back to Git, I have to 'cd' to my directory containing my codes , use 'git init' and I tried to 'git clone' the url sf.net provided me for my personal access to my git in sf.net and it throws some weird error of whatever remote headers. I had to play around and add files to the git on my machine and do a commit and then go one round to edit some git config and connect again upload and push the uploads. I have forgotten much of the steps but finally it worked. It shows the complexity developers just like to put into the use. Why not something simple ?
Git , seems simpler to use after you have set it up... so, good for it.
That's all for now, folks.
manutil 0.1.1
Finally, manutil for Makagiga have moved itself out of 0.1 alpha to 0.1.1 as I have deemed it ready to move forward. A thing I added into 0.1.1 is the function to open HTML help manuals (help manuals written in HTML files) to provide more diversity to how developers want their help files to present themselves and the format. It opens these HTML help files in an internal HTML browser built into the latest makagiga versions (3.5 and 3.6 version). It uses the cobra engine used by the Lobo Web browser project. The rendering is admittingly pretty off because the cobra engine isn't really mature yet but that's the best engine that could be found in the open source written in Java to be used. All else of manutil works fine as they should. Give feed backs about manutil 0.1.1 to kdt, the creator of makagiga or me. I have given manutil a custom icon too. It's a bit rough around the edge but this is the first version. Better ones would come in the next versions when I get time to experiment more graphic effects for the icon desgin.
My first experience using Git
I have created a new project called dbDir in sourceforge and set git as my default version control.It wasn't easy nor straightforward. Since I am using Linux, you don't really expect any GUI unlike the Windows version but I tried the Windows' version of git using the GUI and it is equally not easy to understand how to use. Simply, the documentations in Git pretty much isn't good. I had to figure out what I have to do to connect my already created Git repo in my machine to sf.net's one and upload my first commit of codes.
I finally got already it a bit by reading a blog post at http://rwmj.wordpress.com/2009/03/06/git-fatal-no-matching-remote-head/ .
Git, like SVN , is not easy to understand when you just started because you don't know how to start it and how to approach and what the codes or even the manuals are talking. They are either too cryptic or abstract but when you got it, you can move on. So for developers of git and SVN and other softwares, make sure the user (presuming they are noobs) have to understand and find it easy to navigate and how to start off. A good example that fulfil the above 'easy to start off' is the H2 database. I would make a new post to talk about the pure brainlessness of H2, it's strenght.
SO back to Git, I have to 'cd' to my directory containing my codes , use 'git init' and I tried to 'git clone' the url sf.net provided me for my personal access to my git in sf.net and it throws some weird error of whatever remote headers. I had to play around and add files to the git on my machine and do a commit and then go one round to edit some git config and connect again upload and push the uploads. I have forgotten much of the steps but finally it worked. It shows the complexity developers just like to put into the use. Why not something simple ?
Git , seems simpler to use after you have set it up... so, good for it.
That's all for now, folks.
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