Comment This is so beautiful (Score 1) 187
... I wanted to cry
Comment Who was on the scaffold? (Score 1) 44
YEAR of meteors! brooding year!
I would bind in words retrospective, some of your deeds and signs;
I would sing your contest for the 19th Presidentiad;
I would sing how an old man, tall, with white hair, mounted the scaffold in Virginia;
(I was at hand—silent I stood, with teeth shut close—I watch’d;
I stood very near you, old man, when cool and indifferent, but trembling with age and your unheal’d wounds, you mounted the scaffold;)
I am curious: does anyone know who the old man was, why he was being hung? Was it a lynching?
I would bind in words retrospective, some of your deeds and signs;
I would sing your contest for the 19th Presidentiad;
I would sing how an old man, tall, with white hair, mounted the scaffold in Virginia;
(I was at hand—silent I stood, with teeth shut close—I watch’d;
I stood very near you, old man, when cool and indifferent, but trembling with age and your unheal’d wounds, you mounted the scaffold;)
I am curious: does anyone know who the old man was, why he was being hung? Was it a lynching?
Comment TFA got a very important detail wrong (Score 4, Informative) 510
If you have personally identifiable information (PII) about a Massachusetts resident, such as a first and last name, then you have to encrypt that data on the wire and as it’s persisted.
Incorrect. The author either did not do any research at all, or got the definition of PII horribly wrong as far as this law is concerned. The directive that sets the standard based on the law states:
Personal information, a Massachusetts resident's first name and last name or first initial and last name in combination with any one or more of the following data elements that relate to such resident: (a) Social Security number; (b) driver's license number or state-issued identification card number; or (c) financial account number, or credit or debit card number, with or without any required security code, access code, personal identification number or password, that would permit access to a resident’s financial account; provided, however, that “Personal information” shall not include information that is lawfully obtained from publicly available information, or from federal, state or local government records lawfully made available to the general public.
It is abundantly clear that a person's first and last name alone does not constitute PII, SSN, financial account number or some other not so public information is also required.
Submission + - Book review: The Laidoff Ninja
walmass writes: My first reaction on seeing the book was, "oeOh no, another book with 'Ninja'(TM) in the title." But in this case, the authors have established a case for that: they explained that the first Ninjas were peasants who could not take the abuse from the Samurai anymore and how they used everyday objects as weapons.
The authors are co-founders of The Layoff Support Network, which seems to be a collective knowledge-sharing site for people looking for jobs, and the authors say that the book distills the knowledge from the website collected over the past 2 years. The authors also started off by stating that this is not just a book about finding a job; this is also a book about surviving until finding a job. I think "oeThe Laidoff Ninja" (henceforth, "oeLON") fare well on these claims.
The book is divided in seven main sections:
The pre-ramble is listed as section zero (0)--perhaps not surprising considering the two authors are techies: information security is their day job. Keep that in mind when we look at what they manage to extract out of LinkedIn.
One thing I liked about this book right out of the gate is what the authors (or their editor?) decided to call "oeQuick-shot" guides. Instead of traditional table of contents, they have provided a listing of topics they thought might be interesting to the following types of readers:
- Job seekers with work experience.
- Recent graduates with limited work experience.
- People who are feeling "cash strapped."
- People who are feeling overwhelmed and emotionally distraught.
Considering the last bullet, I was not really surprised to see a section titled "oeNinja Psychiatry." The authors made it clear that they do not have any formal training in Psychiatry and are not licensed to practice psychology, psychiatry or any mental health related profession. They then proceeded to dispense advice on feelings of Loss, Depression, Anxiety, Financial Worries and how to deal with rejection after interviews. The section ends with an admonition to say no to drugs, and encouragement to say yes to humor.
There are lots of "oeGuerrilla this" or "oeNinja that" related to layoffs and job hunting, but I don'(TM)t think I have come across any other book that addresses the mental aspects of being unemployed.
The next section, "oeSurvival" contains a chapter titled "oePull money out of your butt." Crude but effective, and while whole books have been written about making money on eBay, LON addresses this in a practical way.
Frankly, I was a bit surprised to see LON come out and suggest people should not commit crimes when they are desperate for money. I think this would be obvious to any rational person.
There are some tips about maximizing your available financial resources by delaying payment on some utility bills. While legally OK, I question the morality of providing such advice to readers.
Part 4, "oeGetting a Job" is where the book begins to read like a traditional book, but there are some surprises and hidden gems there. The sections begin with a job-applications toolkit that recommends free email services, OpenOffice and other technological free-bees that would be required for a job-searcher. These are items that the typical ./ reader find amusingly basic, but would certainly be useful for seekers who have been out of the hunt for a while.
Part 5, "oeFinding opportunities" focuses heavily on LinkedIn. It contains a useful exercise where a job-seekers "oeneeds and wants" are sorted in a "oevalue sort" to determine what type of job would be suitable. But in the next breath, the authors suggest folding away the values-list and taking a job (any job) that will pay the bills. I fail to understand this contradictory advice, and wish they would make up their mind.
The LinkedIn content is useful, but only to a new user of LinkedIn. Experienced LinkedIn users may miss the nuggets buried among these basic facts.
Facebook, Twitter and Myspace are also covered. The well-known but often ignored warnings about being careful with what one posts on one'(TM)s social networking profiles are posted here.
There is a scathing chapter on recruiters. While certain good qualities of recruiters are mentioned, it seems the authors generally believe that recruiters are uncaring commission-hounds that just want to place a candidate and don'(TM)t care about individuals. The brutal honesty was refreshing, and I'(TM)d be curious whether a majority of Slashdot readers would agree or disagree with the authors.
If you consider that stress and anxiety for a jobless person comes from being, well, jobless, then Part 6, "oePreparing for the battle" is the most important section in the book. It covers the basics like resumes, cover letters and elevator pitches, etc.
The next chapter is â"Reconnaissance" and this is where the hacker background of the authors finally shows up. They show, with examples, how to find the name and email address of recruiters and HR people at practically any company. The theory being, if you can directly contact the HR people at a company, your resume will not be lost in the 1000 other resumes that people send in. There is just one problem with this theory being put into practice. The book assumes, and does not make abundantly clear, that without building up your network first to some reasonable degree this isn't easy to do. But after I have spent a few hours inviting people and joining groups as the book suggested, I was indeed able to pull up the names of some recruiters at Apple and Google. That accomplished, based on the techniques suggested in the LON, I was able to figure out their email addresses and email them. I hope spammers and marketing droids will not read this book and find out these techniques.
For example, I did not know that one could search Facebook by email and zero in on any individual. It is also a violation my social norms to approach strangers on Facebook about jobs, but the authors provided guidance and specific examples on how to do that, and also when to step back and look for alternatives.
But some of the techniques, such as querying "oewhois" records to find out the email address format used by a particular company may not be for the average non-technical Joe, and also seem to skirt ethical boundaries without exactly stepping over the line.
This chapter alone is probably worth the price of the book
The book is a good value at 278 pages and the authors have not done any "oewhite space tricks" to make it seem bigger. A laid-off person would probably appreciate the price/performance of this book.
Overall, "The Laidoff Ninja" is an extremely valuable resource on dealing with the mental stress and anguish that may come from being laid off. It presents creative and novel ways of finding jobs by leveraging social media. The book is a tool in itself that can help the reader survive and prepare for the battle that is a job-search, and do it in a highly effective way.
Summary: This book is an excellent value if you need help dealing with the stress of unemployment, or want an edge in reaching hiring managers or recruiters at potential employers. This book is not meant to teach you how to write your resume or cover letter. Will work for novice and experienced candidates alike, although the LinkedIn tricks would definitely favor a more technical reader. I highly recommend it.
The book is available on Amazon but for some strange reason the "oeused" price is more than the "new" price.
The authors are co-founders of The Layoff Support Network, which seems to be a collective knowledge-sharing site for people looking for jobs, and the authors say that the book distills the knowledge from the website collected over the past 2 years. The authors also started off by stating that this is not just a book about finding a job; this is also a book about surviving until finding a job. I think "oeThe Laidoff Ninja" (henceforth, "oeLON") fare well on these claims.
The book is divided in seven main sections:
The pre-ramble is listed as section zero (0)--perhaps not surprising considering the two authors are techies: information security is their day job. Keep that in mind when we look at what they manage to extract out of LinkedIn.
One thing I liked about this book right out of the gate is what the authors (or their editor?) decided to call "oeQuick-shot" guides. Instead of traditional table of contents, they have provided a listing of topics they thought might be interesting to the following types of readers:
- Job seekers with work experience.
- Recent graduates with limited work experience.
- People who are feeling "cash strapped."
- People who are feeling overwhelmed and emotionally distraught.
Considering the last bullet, I was not really surprised to see a section titled "oeNinja Psychiatry." The authors made it clear that they do not have any formal training in Psychiatry and are not licensed to practice psychology, psychiatry or any mental health related profession. They then proceeded to dispense advice on feelings of Loss, Depression, Anxiety, Financial Worries and how to deal with rejection after interviews. The section ends with an admonition to say no to drugs, and encouragement to say yes to humor.
There are lots of "oeGuerrilla this" or "oeNinja that" related to layoffs and job hunting, but I don'(TM)t think I have come across any other book that addresses the mental aspects of being unemployed.
The next section, "oeSurvival" contains a chapter titled "oePull money out of your butt." Crude but effective, and while whole books have been written about making money on eBay, LON addresses this in a practical way.
Frankly, I was a bit surprised to see LON come out and suggest people should not commit crimes when they are desperate for money. I think this would be obvious to any rational person.
There are some tips about maximizing your available financial resources by delaying payment on some utility bills. While legally OK, I question the morality of providing such advice to readers.
Part 4, "oeGetting a Job" is where the book begins to read like a traditional book, but there are some surprises and hidden gems there. The sections begin with a job-applications toolkit that recommends free email services, OpenOffice and other technological free-bees that would be required for a job-searcher. These are items that the typical
Part 5, "oeFinding opportunities" focuses heavily on LinkedIn. It contains a useful exercise where a job-seekers "oeneeds and wants" are sorted in a "oevalue sort" to determine what type of job would be suitable. But in the next breath, the authors suggest folding away the values-list and taking a job (any job) that will pay the bills. I fail to understand this contradictory advice, and wish they would make up their mind.
The LinkedIn content is useful, but only to a new user of LinkedIn. Experienced LinkedIn users may miss the nuggets buried among these basic facts.
Facebook, Twitter and Myspace are also covered. The well-known but often ignored warnings about being careful with what one posts on one'(TM)s social networking profiles are posted here.
There is a scathing chapter on recruiters. While certain good qualities of recruiters are mentioned, it seems the authors generally believe that recruiters are uncaring commission-hounds that just want to place a candidate and don'(TM)t care about individuals. The brutal honesty was refreshing, and I'(TM)d be curious whether a majority of Slashdot readers would agree or disagree with the authors.
If you consider that stress and anxiety for a jobless person comes from being, well, jobless, then Part 6, "oePreparing for the battle" is the most important section in the book. It covers the basics like resumes, cover letters and elevator pitches, etc.
The next chapter is â"Reconnaissance" and this is where the hacker background of the authors finally shows up. They show, with examples, how to find the name and email address of recruiters and HR people at practically any company. The theory being, if you can directly contact the HR people at a company, your resume will not be lost in the 1000 other resumes that people send in. There is just one problem with this theory being put into practice. The book assumes, and does not make abundantly clear, that without building up your network first to some reasonable degree this isn't easy to do. But after I have spent a few hours inviting people and joining groups as the book suggested, I was indeed able to pull up the names of some recruiters at Apple and Google. That accomplished, based on the techniques suggested in the LON, I was able to figure out their email addresses and email them. I hope spammers and marketing droids will not read this book and find out these techniques.
For example, I did not know that one could search Facebook by email and zero in on any individual. It is also a violation my social norms to approach strangers on Facebook about jobs, but the authors provided guidance and specific examples on how to do that, and also when to step back and look for alternatives.
But some of the techniques, such as querying "oewhois" records to find out the email address format used by a particular company may not be for the average non-technical Joe, and also seem to skirt ethical boundaries without exactly stepping over the line.
This chapter alone is probably worth the price of the book
The book is a good value at 278 pages and the authors have not done any "oewhite space tricks" to make it seem bigger. A laid-off person would probably appreciate the price/performance of this book.
Overall, "The Laidoff Ninja" is an extremely valuable resource on dealing with the mental stress and anguish that may come from being laid off. It presents creative and novel ways of finding jobs by leveraging social media. The book is a tool in itself that can help the reader survive and prepare for the battle that is a job-search, and do it in a highly effective way.
Summary: This book is an excellent value if you need help dealing with the stress of unemployment, or want an edge in reaching hiring managers or recruiters at potential employers. This book is not meant to teach you how to write your resume or cover letter. Will work for novice and experienced candidates alike, although the LinkedIn tricks would definitely favor a more technical reader. I highly recommend it.
The book is available on Amazon but for some strange reason the "oeused" price is more than the "new" price.
Submission + - Xtreme Systems Super Computer Challenge (xtremesystems.org)
Mick R writes: The Xtreme Systems World Community Grid team is shooting for a spot on the Top !00 Super Computer list.
Xtreme Systems, a forum devoted to high performance overclocking and the like, field teams in a number of humanitarian projects like World Community Grid. Keen to show just how much computing power is available, the WCG team is mounting a challenge over the week of May 1st to 7th, hoping to crack the Top Supercomputers list. Anyone interested should go check out both the WCG main site (www.worldcommunitygrid.org) and the Xtreme Systems WCG team forum (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=6654377359dd429ba9d12c0c1aa5c812&f=207) for details.
Xtreme Systems, a forum devoted to high performance overclocking and the like, field teams in a number of humanitarian projects like World Community Grid. Keen to show just how much computing power is available, the WCG team is mounting a challenge over the week of May 1st to 7th, hoping to crack the Top Supercomputers list. Anyone interested should go check out both the WCG main site (www.worldcommunitygrid.org) and the Xtreme Systems WCG team forum (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=6654377359dd429ba9d12c0c1aa5c812&f=207) for details.
Submission + - New Russian Science City Modeled on Silicon Valley
Hugh Pickens writes: "Russia’s rich scientific traditions and poor record of converting ideas into marketable products are both undisputed, cited as causes for the Soviet collapse and crippling dependence on mining and petroleum. Now the NY Times reports that the Russian government, hoping to diversify its economy away from oil, is building the first new scientific city since the collapse of the Soviet Union modeled, improbably, on Silicon Valley and jokingly referred to as Cupertino-2. “The whole country needs some sort of breakthrough,” says Viktor F. Vekselberg, the Russian business oligarch appointed co-director of the project. “The founding of the innovation city, in form and substance could be a launching pad for the country as a whole.” The new town is intended to advance five scientific priorities — communications, biomedicine, space, nuclear power and energy conservation — and to encourage cross-fertilization among disciplines. Property will not be owned, but rented, and the government will offer grants for scientists who struggle to find private financing. Once developed, the city is intended to incubate scientific ideas using generous tax holidays and government grants until the start-ups can become profitable companies. Its backers in government and the private sector describe it as an effort to blend the Soviet tradition of forming scientific towns with Western models of encouraging technology ventures around universities. “In California, the climate is beautiful and they don’t have the ridiculous problems of Russia,” says Andrey Shtorkh, publicist for the new venture, adding that to compete, Russia will form a place apart for scientists. “They should be isolated from our reality.""
Submission + - iPa(i)d (gamecasa.net)
Game Casa writes: So I did it and I’m not sorry. Not super happy, but not sorry
It started after I told my work buddies–was messing around with one out at Best Buy and thought it was neat. From there, it spiraled into a steady whirlpool of peer-fueled obsession. We started looking up specs online, talking about features, watching video clips, double checking features, discussing how to slip the $500 transaction by our girlfriends/wives, the list goes on. Once I was sucked in, there was no escape
Especially when stores were sold out! Why is that anyway; that we, as human beings, crave things that are hard/impossible to get a hold of? Is it a sense of achievement or satisfaction, like the thrill of the hunt, that drives our insatiable urge to gobble up scarce consumer goods, or have we become so uppity, that we HAVE to get something, just so everyone else knows that we have it and they don’t? Ahh, the mysteries of the universe! But I digress
The bottom line is, the iPad is pretty cool to look at, and has some amazing potential, but isn’t all that and a bag of chips so far. Here’s the skinny:
Pros
Typing is surprisingly easy
Crisp display and decent speakers
You can be the first tool to get caught reading the news from a, well, not newspaper
It fits in a backpack
The ABC video app bypasses the firewall at work
Cons
Screen smudges like a shit-whipe on a window
No flash support = no filthy videos on muchosucko.com
No camera for chatroulette spank sessions on the go
iPhone apps don’t usually carry over (full size) and iPad app prices suck
Can’t use my PS3 bluetooth controller for Geometry Wars
Long story short, if you haven’t dropped the $500+ duckets on this bad boy, don’t cry. You’re not missing much and if you’re nice, I’ll let you look at mine for $5. If you have bought one, realize that you are a trend setter. A trend setter that just bought a ridiculously expensive digital picture frame :)
It started after I told my work buddies–was messing around with one out at Best Buy and thought it was neat. From there, it spiraled into a steady whirlpool of peer-fueled obsession. We started looking up specs online, talking about features, watching video clips, double checking features, discussing how to slip the $500 transaction by our girlfriends/wives, the list goes on. Once I was sucked in, there was no escape
Especially when stores were sold out! Why is that anyway; that we, as human beings, crave things that are hard/impossible to get a hold of? Is it a sense of achievement or satisfaction, like the thrill of the hunt, that drives our insatiable urge to gobble up scarce consumer goods, or have we become so uppity, that we HAVE to get something, just so everyone else knows that we have it and they don’t? Ahh, the mysteries of the universe! But I digress
The bottom line is, the iPad is pretty cool to look at, and has some amazing potential, but isn’t all that and a bag of chips so far. Here’s the skinny:
Pros
Typing is surprisingly easy
Crisp display and decent speakers
You can be the first tool to get caught reading the news from a, well, not newspaper
It fits in a backpack
The ABC video app bypasses the firewall at work
Cons
Screen smudges like a shit-whipe on a window
No flash support = no filthy videos on muchosucko.com
No camera for chatroulette spank sessions on the go
iPhone apps don’t usually carry over (full size) and iPad app prices suck
Can’t use my PS3 bluetooth controller for Geometry Wars
Long story short, if you haven’t dropped the $500+ duckets on this bad boy, don’t cry. You’re not missing much and if you’re nice, I’ll let you look at mine for $5. If you have bought one, realize that you are a trend setter. A trend setter that just bought a ridiculously expensive digital picture frame
Submission + - Joss Whedon to Direct the Avengers (mtv.com)
olyar writes: Great news for Joss fans and comic fans alike. Looks like Joss is going to direct the Avengers movie. Best commentary I saw came via @DRUNKHULK on Twitter: "JOSS WHEDON TO DIRECT AVENGERS MOVIE! OUT OF TRADITION FOX HOPE FIND WAY TO TAKE MOVIE AWAY FROM HIM!"
Comment Deluisional idiot or con man? (Score 4, Interesting) 147
The author was on NPR a few days ago [transcript and audio], in case you won't visit PlayBoy or get distracted once you get there :-)
Here came someone with a magic box who provided an easy solution, and the eggheads and their political masters bought it hook, line and sinker. What I find extraordinary is that the NSA was not involved or asked to vet this guy's findings. Billions of dollars and some of the finest brains working there, and no one thought to call them? Looks like even in 2003 inter-agency cooperation wasn't going very well.He was CIAs asset, and they were not going to share.
My conclusion: con man, and he will probably get away with this, because the government can not publicly prosecute him without looking like an Idiot.
Here came someone with a magic box who provided an easy solution, and the eggheads and their political masters bought it hook, line and sinker. What I find extraordinary is that the NSA was not involved or asked to vet this guy's findings. Billions of dollars and some of the finest brains working there, and no one thought to call them? Looks like even in 2003 inter-agency cooperation wasn't going very well.He was CIAs asset, and they were not going to share.
My conclusion: con man, and he will probably get away with this, because the government can not publicly prosecute him without looking like an Idiot.
Comment You know what this means! (Score 3, Funny) 721
Vatican, the UN and the USAF already has been in contact with the aliens; this conference is just to prep the world for the breaking news.
If you don't believe me, check out V on ABC (in the USA)
If you don't believe me, check out V on ABC (in the USA)
Comment Why are all the quotes from Marketing people? (Score 1) 51
VP of strategy, Director of Marketing, etc. etc. for companies that sell Backup, Storage and Virtualization.
And they are suggesting you implement those so you can justify the expense by showing security ROI.
Nice.
I agree with the central point being made, which is that the same HW can be used for security and other non-security purposes. The door that keeps out intruders also keeps out the cold. But please do not call that ROI.
Ask any security person, and s/he will tell you that security has no ROI, or should not. That horse is dead. If someone is still peddling that security ROI cool-aid, ask them what is the ROI for the insurance they have. Or some pointy-headed boss is going to call his poor security guy and demand ROI figures for all the security projects. He may even demand that the firewall rules be mauve.
http://www.andrew-eells.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/mauve.jpg
Comment Sample size of 3 (Score 1) 579
Robert Johnston, the original singer of Crossroad Blues, died in 1938 before Eric Clapton was even born (1945)
I don't know who wrote it, so it is entirely possible the song is even older.
But that is not my main point. Wow--given a sample size of 3, a whole profession is labeled as 'weird'? I have seen my share of weird programmers, but most of them happen to be perfectly normal people (for society's definition of normal). My definition of "normal" also includes people who speak Klingon, eat Ramen and may have questionable hygiene.
As a response to the original article, here is my generalization of the day: all Earthweb columnist's are weirdo's who look like they are secretly planning to take over the world.
I don't know who wrote it, so it is entirely possible the song is even older.
But that is not my main point. Wow--given a sample size of 3, a whole profession is labeled as 'weird'? I have seen my share of weird programmers, but most of them happen to be perfectly normal people (for society's definition of normal). My definition of "normal" also includes people who speak Klingon, eat Ramen and may have questionable hygiene.
As a response to the original article, here is my generalization of the day: all Earthweb columnist's are weirdo's who look like they are secretly planning to take over the world.
Comment Not comparing, but 2 MIT Students did this: $150 (Score 4, Informative) 174
Comment Should sleep with a sign on chest/back.. (Score 4, Insightful) 465
"Paramedics/Doctors: Do not write me off as dead. Try to resuscitate"
Comment This book: (Score 2, Informative) 283
on Google Books.
You are welcome
