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Comment Re:Fahrenheit? WTHolyF? (Score 1) 210

ComputerWorld seems to be the source of the "1000-fold increase" quote. Then again, they also state that 512GB is "more than half a terabyte", so they're at least consistently inaccurate.

As for the temperature, the Fahrenheit scale is used on SanDisk's product page for the new card. Presumably, that's because Sandisk is an American company, and that page is marketing to a non-scientific audience. In the U.S., that means Fahrenheit would be used.

Comment Re:Computers and Computer Science (Score 1) 144

That's true, in the theoretical sense. Algorithms can be described in English or in mathematical notation. Runtime complexity of an algorithm can be calculated by hand. Most often, we want a way to also evaluate those algorithms, to take measurements on their behavior, and to understand them more intuitively. Computers are useful for that, but only if there's have a way to give them instructions. It follows that a student must be taught the rudiments of programming to have an automated method to explore the properties of algorithms.

This is analogous to the use of scientific instruments in astronomy. Everything can be done by hand (technically), but tools make things quicker and easier. They act as force multipliers to make more things practical to do in a shorter amount of time. For astronomy, that means that the astronomer doesn't need to be a million times closer to the thing they're observing in order to see it clearly. For computer science, it means that I don't need to evaluate a billion algorithmic steps by hand.

Comment Re:Seems fine to me. (Score 1) 184

I find many of the things that people choose to *do* in a free society distasteful. That doesn't mean that I want to restrict rights or impose my will on others. I'd actually rather avoid that as often as possible. It's not my place to tell someone else what to do or think, if they're not actually hurting me. My reaction is purely emotional, and I don't like for my emotions to dictate my actions.

I don't expect respect from people that don't know me, but for something to be called a "dick move", it actually has to be an action. But go ahead and keep making the assumption that what I say on the Internet maps in a straightforward way to my actions in life. Seems to be par for the course.

Comment Re:video is OS specific.... why again? (Score 2) 77

Or that the company that funded the video's production wants some assurance that a subscriber won't just tee a rental into a capture program and distribute it without charge to the public.

That's OK. Some clever person will have already figured it out for me. I don't know if they strip HDCP-protection from video and capture the stream, read it out of memory while decoding, decrypt DVR video files or what, but I've no video that I've ever looked for was actually protected by restrictive streaming requirements.

If the executives of a production company feel assurance that their stream can't be ripped in one way or another, then they're living in a fool's paradise.

Comment Re:Maybe driver vs passenger doesn't matter (Score 1) 364

There are other scenarios where an SMS or MMS may be better. During a home invasion, when you don't want to expose your hiding place by speaking. In a situation where it would be useful to send a picture. In a location with weak signal, where a text transmission may get through even when you can't connect for a voice call. And then, you've got the cultural issues. A lot of people (especially the younger ones) barely use speech calls on their phones, any more, and a text may be the first thing that comes to mind when trying to get help.

A cell phone is a flexible device. I don't see a problem with enabling its use in whatever way we can, when it comes to helping someone in an emergency situation.

Comment Re:Seems fine to me. (Score 1) 184

Lose your distaste.

I'm sure that there are things in the world that you find distasteful as well, and it would be just as effective if an anonymous internet poster said to"lose your distaste" for those things. It may happen through long exposure and desensitization, but it ain't gonna be purely by your say-so.

Photography isn't a crime. Neither is staring intensely at someone and refusing to stop if they're clearly uncomfortable or ask you to. That doesn't mean that it's not a dick move.

Comment Re:Scan here for a free 'whatever' sucker. (Score 1) 730

No meaning? Look up CVC3 security. Apple did nothing new here. It is all standard. It just works because the credit card companies have been building this stuff up for years and years. You don't have to know about the counter, it is there to prevent cloning.

What if you decrement? That is the whole point! You can't clone a transaction! Even if you get the CC number, the counter would prevent it from being used. This is a low level security measure that makes NFC payments more secure than magstripe. It is a good thing. I'm happen that Apple finally added NFC.

Comment Re:Scan here for a free 'whatever' sucker. (Score 1) 730

NFC has a counter feature as part of the standard. Each time a credit card number is used, the counter goes up one. This is to prevent a replay attach. The problem is you can't take a plastic credit card with NFC and put that number into the phone and expect the counter to work correctly. Use the phone, the counter goes up, use the plastic, the counter goes up. Use the phone again, counter is wrong. To fix this problem, Google creates a new credit card number for tap and pay. Apple says they go one step further and create a new number for each transaction. That seems to go a bit further than needed. The counter would prevent replay attacks since this virtual card would only be used for tap and pay. I just wonder if the wording by Apple today was slightly off. Just a guess.

The main point is what Apple was doing is, by and large, standard stuff. Both Google and Apple just implemented a standard. Yeah, a few tweaks here and there, but it is certainly now revolutionary!

Comment Re:Seems fine to me. (Score 4, Insightful) 184

I don't like the idea of anyone else recording me, either (stores, etc), but I find the benefits of getting food, goods, doing my banking, etc outweigh my distaste. It doesn't have anything to do with Google Glass specifically.

because you don't have a legal leg to stand on

Why would that be the first thing that comes to mind? I'm not planning on suing someone for recording me. That would be pointless. Just because I have to put up with something to take part in society doesn't mean that I have to like it (or that I wouldn't appreciate places that share my viewpoint on the matter).

Comment Re:Seems fine to me. (Score 1) 184

Am I in that geek's house, or on their property? When I'm in a store or a bank, I'm on their property, and they have an interest in recording me that I understand. Same with the cop; he's doing something comparatively dangerous in the execution of his duties. He's a public servant. A private citizen in a public place recording me for unknown purposes? That's unsettling. Personally, I wouldn't ask them to stop, but I'd be appreciative of a business that forbid its patrons to film other patrons without their permission.

Comment Re:You have a broken sense of responsibility. (Score 1) 184

An 802.11-compliant device that receives a deauthentication message is required to terminate its connection to the base station. As such, if you transmit a deauth, you didn't just "express an idea", you gave a command to a device that's required to obey it. It's like saying "I'm not responsible for the damage caused by hitting the self-destruct button; whoever wired the button to the explosives is". When YOUR actions cause something to happen that wouldn't have happened if you didn't do anything, then YOU are completely at fault.

Whoever selected wifi is negligent, but that doesn't fully absolve the deauthenticator of responsibility.

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