Comdex Bans Bags From Show Floor 454
ckd writes: "CNET is reporting that COMDEX organizers have a new security policy--no bags except vendor supplied plastic bags will allowed on the show floor. "While on-site, you should CARRY A PHOTO ID (DRIVER'S LICENSE OR PASSPORT) ON YOU AT ALL TIMES." They want you to leave your laptop in your hotel room, too! Oh, and no cameras at the keynotes, either. But they haven't announced that they're planning to strip search people ... yet."
Sounds good to me! (Score:3, Funny)
Should we induce stipsearching? Could cause an uprising in Comdex popularity.
Just like what baseball game ?? (Score:3, Funny)
For the BEST ?, maybe for the stadiums' income. Went to a football game yesterday, took a cooler and a backpack full of stuff, they looked, and said have a nice day. The same at the shark tank, If they told me I could not bring my backpack in they would lose a season ticket holder. A search I can stand, using it as a means to ensure you buy their SHITTY, overpriced food is another thing entirely. Am I the only one that thinks the enemy can win without ever lifting another finger ?
Re:Just like what baseball game ?? (Score:3, Offtopic)
The only force in the world strong enough to defeat America... is America.
Re:Just like what baseball game ?? (Score:3, Troll)
Can you imagine what would happen if a lot of people started to bring their own popcorn and drinks to the show and quit purchasing it from the concession? The sound of a door being locked....
Re:Sounds good to me! (Score:4, Funny)
It's a ploy.... (Score:5, Funny)
But, what am I supposed to wear for the next year!?! I guess my Penguin Computing T-shirts will have to be worn twice!
Scamming bags from vendors (Score:3, Funny)
They Still Have a COmdex? (Score:3, Funny)
No laptops? (Score:5, Interesting)
Stops 802.11 Hax0rz :-) (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Stops 802.11 Hax0rz :-) (Score:2)
laptop theft (Score:3, Funny)
Re:No laptops? (Score:2)
It's not really inconsistent. The policy is clearly intented to cover anything that can conceal or contain something nasty. Expect to see anyone wearing a Matrix trenchcoat stopped and searched as well. If you ban bags, you have to ban everything else as well.
Of course, being consistent doesn't mean that the entire policy isn't risible. If you're of the calibre of the September 11th hijackers, or a typical Hammas suicide bomber, you'll just strap explosives all over you, throw on a jacket, bring your perfectly valid passport, waddle right through the door, then turn the floor into an abbatoir.
To those joking that only strip searches will solve the problem: it's not a joke. And by strip searches, I mean a goon squad who will grab you from behind, throw you down and tazer you if you so much as blink. It's untenable, but anything short of that is window dressing for the benefit of those attendees who don't really want to think about the scale of the problem, they just want to feel protected.
Poke Poke, Look at the monkey jump! (Score:3, Informative)
Firstly, there's no rule that says you must leave your laptop in your hotel room. The policy explicitly notes the existance of bag checks for those of you who think that there's a high likelihood of mass theft from casino hotels which are under extremely heavy surveillance.
Secondly, this isn't a reduction of rights. Nowhere are you granted the "right" to bring your laptop to a privately sponsored convention. On the other hand, the convention organizers do have a legal responsibility to do their best to make sure everything is safe, and nobody engages in a terrorist attack, or more realistically that nobody steals those cute little LCD panels off a vendor booth, throws them in their laptop bag and walks out.
Guys, I know the slashdroids love to overreact, but this is no big deal. Get over it.
Re:No laptops? (Score:5, Informative)
A PDA (and let's assume it's a big one like one of the Casios) full of C4 would have a hard time levelling a decent sized mini-van.
Even if you packed it 2/3 full with C4 and the remainder with BBs or other shrapnel, you would be lucky to take down more than the few geeks clustered around you.
C4 is neat stuff, but it's just not that powerful.
What is a COMdex? (Score:2, Funny)
Is that anything like a ComicCon? If so, strip searching might not be the best idea.
security vs absurdity (Score:4, Insightful)
Attending COMDEX would be one of the things I look forward to most in my computing career. I'm only a highschool student now, but I hear very interesting things of the convention, and I'd enjoy talking to the vendors and seeing their flagship products firsthand. There's something about being able to see the new Athlon MP board, or a new video card, or the latest development in RAID technology, in person, that a catalog can't do, no matter how many pictures they put in.
Comment removed (Score:4, Funny)
It used to be a great orgy, too (Score:4, Funny)
I used to love COMDEX. I worked for a large Fortune 500 company, and I would always lie about how many purchasing decisions/budgets I had influence over. Everyone thought I was crazy and asking for new spam, but they didn't know about procmail. They were only marketing guys, after all. But when the other marketing guys who were aiming to market at me saw my membership stuff, I could weasel my way into plenty of free stuff.
The best meat-space schwag I ever got was getting into the last Digital party. Picture a huge hall, about 100 people, two bands, and about every possible type of food or drink you can imagine. And me and my brother in Chuck Taylors and t-shirts on a full-blown jag. I swear we were the only ones not in $5000 suits. It was very exclusive for some reason. The AMD party was packed. This place not so much. But they put on quite a show.
They had these five girls in gold catsuits and black wigs marching around. Like five identical people. I can't remember if the Intel bunny suit guys were out then (I think this was 97, but I'm not sure), although I was reminded of them after thinking about it later. Anyway, the sales weenies would sic these women on the hardcases who were waffling on some high-pressure sales thing. The girls would grab these oddball Arab dudes (or whomever was on the hook) and parade them about for a couple minutes and them rub them around the room and back to their chair. I'm not sure what it was supposed to do, but it didn't work on me and my brother, since we would probably have only bought what wasn't exactly for sale. It was like being on a different planet. You talk them up enough and there's almost no limit to the free shit you'll get.
My brother demanding that a Director of Sales something or other get him a "prime rib and a bottle of Chivas" or he would "start talking to Compaq and Intel" was particularly amusing. Especially since Digital was sold to Compaq not long after.
And all I have to show for it now is an Alpha t-shirt which says "Feed the Need" on the front and has some probably long-dead proc on the back. Feed it indeed. Those were the days...
-B
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:security vs absurdity (Score:2)
stopgap (Score:4, Interesting)
somebody on the radio pointed out that as we get better and better at stopping individual acts, the response is for a smaller number of more dedicated enemy to plan more thoroughly. So, for example, the number of hijackings has long been on the decline, but the number of people killed in each hijacking has gone way up.
anyway, in the particular case of hi-tech and shows like comdex, having the toys banned kinda takes the wind out of the whole affair.
Re:stopgap (Score:2, Insightful)
It frigtens me how easy it is to get stuff right through the metal detectors, and through personal security checks. I shouldnt be afraid. I still fly, I know a determined terrorist could hijack a plane anyways.
Oh well, jsut food for thought.
jeremy
Re:stopgap (Score:4, Interesting)
That is so not true!
... he only got 7 knives through at the checkpoint. The crack security staff confiscated 2 from him. The other 7 and the stun gun and mace were discovered during a random (yeah, right) carry-on check.
Even better is the guy's claim that he accidentally left them in his bag and didn't mean to try to get them on the plane. Wouldn't the discovery of the first two jog your memory about the other 7?
I live near Chicago and get to experience the airport (United) security at O'Hare on a regular basis. I have no confidence at all that those people have the first clue what they are doing.
Re:stopgap (Score:2)
So what you're saying is that he didn't actually get any of it onto the plane. By 'yeah right'ing on the randomness of the second check, you also seem to be implying that it wasn't mere coincidence, either. So how exactly does this reflect badly on the overall security level?
Kahuna Burger
Re:stopgap (Score:2)
It's one of the basic rules of security: you can't make things impossible, but you can reduce the number of people who can do them, up to a certain point. The only way to be completely secure from attacks is to be the last person alive on earth. Of course, this will make it harder for the theoretical terrorist who wants to attack a trade show, and you get the biggest effect when you cut off the easiest methods of attack.
Also, to successfuly smuggle in weapons as a booth renter, they'd probably have to infiltrate an established company. The prices for entry are probably high enough that it would take a lot of resources to get their own booth. I don't their actions would stop anyone trying to attack the place, because they could always bring in hidden parts and put them together inside (even one person could do some damage).
Re:stopgap (Score:2)
(For those that don't already know, you cannot so much as wipe your ass at a convention center without getting in trouble with the Ass Wipers Local 570 union.)
Unions (Score:2)
Non sequitur (Score:2)
Firstly, we have traditionally had virtually no defence against terrorism, because we have had very little of it compared to, say, Europe. Yet we had the single biggest act of terrorism, probably of anywhere. It's not as if the same primitive attacks that have been seen in Europe and elsewhere could not have been used against US.
Secondly, while the only reasonable response to better security would be more competent terrorists, that does not necessarily mean that the number of lives lost would go up. There may be a real lack of more capable terrorists out there in the world (and that's completely ignoring recruitment issues and such). The aggregate damage may still be less.
All in all, there evidence simply isn't there to make this assertion. It may be true that the number of deaths in terrorism shot way up in this year for the US, but there are a zillion other possible reasons for this. e.g., external politics, economic reasons, bad luck (hardly a large population here to draw from), a new resolve on the part of the terrorists (irrespective of our security), and so on. To suggest that we should loosen or not tighten our security is frankly foolish. So-called men like Osama bin Laden want to cause as much damage and fear as they can to further their objectives, so why should we believe that they might hold anything back? How can more security, providing it's reasonable and in proportion, cause more deaths? At the very least, it raises the bar substantially for bin Laden's organization.
Re:true of all pre-emptive justice (Score:2)
So the way you deal with this is through propaganda. Also there is probably a lot more truth to the propaganda since the US started bombing Afganistan.
Re:true of all pre-emptive justice (Score:2)
Blow up? I think this is about anthrax or so.... (Score:3, Insightful)
Heres the scenerio. Man brings bag of anthrax in pants pocket(or even better, crotch it) to show. He breaks in to the maintenence room, spreads it in to the outlet duct of the HVAC system. Now, anthrax is hard to spread, but you still might get a few people. It takes about 8,000 spores to infect a person, from what i read somewhere. Im sure you could get a few people with a small baggie full.
This talks about visitors to the show. But, what about the maintenence staff that works there? The janitors? Heck, even the people running the show. We'd hope they all are honest and reputable. But then, if it was my life, I'd want them checked too. Heck, if i was trying something, i'd pose as a maintenence man! More freedom to go anywhere, carry large items, did the organizers think of that?
I like the fact that they're at least trying to do something though.. Maybe they should be just a little less restrictive. I mean, its a computer show! And people can't bring their computers in?
One baggy could kill everyone reading this, easy. (Score:2, Insightful)
One mL of a liquid Anthrax culture probably contains well over 30 million cells of Bacillus Anthrax (I've done counts of related bacteria). If just those cells were induced into sporulation, dried, and ground so that the clusters were of the right size to inhale (weaponized), a sandwich baggy would be over-kill. If distributed into the HVAC system, everyone in the building would likely be infected. Fortunately, while anthrax is easy to culture (most bacteria are), it is fairly difficult to
weaponize properly.
If they were to use smallpox though, things would be far uglier. If someone managed to bring a concentrated sample of smallpox virus in to a big show and stationed themselves strategically, they could probably infect half the people. The nasty bit is that those infected people would then go home and start infecting everyone they came into contact with for the next 10 days, without knowing, while the virus incubated. After 10 days, the show people would start to get REAL sick, while the people that they infected would run around for another 10 days, infecting more people. INSTANT epidemic, since vaccinations were stopped over 30 years ago
It's like a pyramid scheme, but instead of money you get a nasty, disfiguring, sometimes fatal disease.
--
"I think the best medicine for the human soul is kind words, chicken soup,
and lots of whiskey."
- Professor Ashfield
Smallpox schmalpox (Score:2)
As scary as smallpox sounds, it's a non-discriminating disease, meaning that anyone looking to use it had better plan for all their own people to die too. Anthrax works for terrorists because there's very little chance of something mailed to Washington D.C. hurting people in Afghanistan or whatever. While it's easy to portray all these terrorists as simply insane, they do have a motivation (an INCREDIBLY racist and zealotous motivation, but nonetheless) that isn't driven purely by insanity.
It reminds me of the "cold war" with the Soviety Union: The military-industrial complex (yup it really exists) wants to sell weapons, and to do that they need everyone to believe that the Soviets were a bunch of land hungry maniacs who were just dying for the chance to press the big red button, yet the reality is that the USSR was family men and woman who wanted to just live their lives just like everyone in the US. Nonetheless the misguided nuclear fear was driven by the propaganda that the godless USSR empire was suicidal.
Re:Smallpox schmalpox (Score:2)
Re:Smallpox schmalpox (Score:3, Interesting)
Is Bin Laden dead? The reality is that the suicide bombers are generally the suckers, but the people calling the shots are directing the actions based around their own well being and the general well being of their society. Lots of Japanese were hurled out to die in World War II, but once the Emporor felt personally at risk from nuclear weapons (no longer was he immune) the war suddenly ended. Smallpox would not be contained to North America, so anyone using it would pretty much be wiping out their own societies (in fact they would moreso be wiping out their own societies given poor sanitation, inadequate healthcare, etc.) : Not really an effective measure.
If you're measuring the enemy by the suckers, if you will, who died in the aircraft then you are foolish. They were mere pawns for others (and I'll bet you for a split second before crashing into the building they thought "Hrmmm...what if there isn't an eternal afterlife of bliss and heaven?". It reminds me a hilarious Simpsons were Maude Flanders is rescued and she states "Oooh Neddy : I almost thought I was going to the place of eternal bliss and salvation!" and that right there points out the hilarious paradox of religion)
Re:One baggy could kill everyone reading this, eas (Score:2)
Immediately everybody who care into contact with you in the past day or so is vaccinated. Because we are looking the diseases is identified quickly. You are vaccinated too, which will help you, though not enough and you might die.
The figures on smallpox show 30% mortality, but that is from long ago, with a population not nearly as healty as ours, without modern medicine. Hard to predict, but fortunately the mortality will probably be much lower. Not that any is good.
Re:Blow up? I think this is about anthrax or so... (Score:2, Insightful)
Conferences are easy targets. People coming from all over the state/country/world meet in a single place, do stuff for a day or three, and then leave.
During that day or three it is very easy to rig up some sort of aerosol-delivered "bad thing". That guy at the booth spraying the "air freshener" every 10-15 minutes, for instance.
After the conference, people all fly back to their home and whaddayaknow, you've got stuff spreading all over the place.
And what's in that air freshener?
I think everyone's a little hyped up on the whole Anthrax thing, when there are a BUNCH more lethal, contageous, and readily accessbile critters out there; ebola, smallpox, the list goes on. Such critters are WAY easier to contract and spread.
While I applaud everyone's attempt to make people FEEL better with these various public displays of "security tightening", I believe that a lot of these measures only comfort the "soccer Mom" types. Jack said it best with "the truth? you can't HANDLE the truth!"
For instance, airport security here in Canada recently forced people to remove Poppies from their jackets because the little pin that held them on was "sharp and dangerous". Give me a fscking break!
Meanwhile, I'm boarding the plane with a number of even MORE dangerous "weapons" that the security people are clueless about. How about pens and pencils? Quite effective at stabbing people. How about my car keys? One of the first things my girlfriend learned when she took a self-defense course was how to grip her keys and rake them over or stab them into a would-be attacker's eyes. How about that laptop security cable I carry to lock down my laptop? Nice little garrotte, never mind my belt, shoe laces, etc. How hard would it be to sneak in some wire under/inside a belt? I've seen a number of big-assed country style belts set off a metal detector and then be passed through with only a swipe of the hand-help detector. Who knows what's really inside or underneath it? How about my eye glasses? Pop out a lens and you've got some pretty sharp objects. Never mind some of the frames from Oakly and company these days... they can be considered weapons in and of themselves.
And my personal pet peave; how does powering on a laptop prove that that is all that it is? The 60 year old lady at security making $6 an hour wouldn't know a functioning laptop if she saw it... a couple hundred bucks spent at Radio Shack would do well enough to fool her and even some somewhat "professional" or informed computer people. Besides, what's to say the entire laptop shell or case for that fully functional laptop isn't made of explosives? Talk about the ULTIMATE "blue screen of death".
The answer? I think we just gotta stop being paranoid and get to know our neighbours better. How many apartment buildings have untis in them that are full of "conspirators" whose neighbours go out of their way to NOT get to know them or what they're doing?
The best security force we could hope for right now is a bunch of nosy neighbours with lots of free time on their hands.
Re:Blow up? I think this is about anthrax or so... (Score:2)
In fact Ebola Reston was airborne. For those who don't know Ebola was just outside Washington D.C. in an airborne strain.
Lucky that Ebola Reston appears incapable of infecting humans
Woohoo... (Score:4, Insightful)
...as though I would go to a Comdex, anyway. The last one I attended was Spring 92, I think...Atlanta. It was large, and the porn and CDROM vendors had begun showing up in overwhelming numbers. The real COMPUTER people were always lonely, as all the geeks were crowded around the Penthouse Interactive booth, squirming and staring, or singing bad karaoke at one of the many booths that offered it.
Comdex has lost its lustre, while increasing the lust. (Not that there's anything wrong with lust...) I don't see it appealing to many but the most neophyte computer consumers. All the real industry types stick to more focused conferences. Myself, I will only attend developer conferences in my specialties, or pay for training courses with small, narrow topic coverage. The big shows are nothing but comic book conventions.
Ridiculous Paranoia (Score:3, Insightful)
I mean *HONESTLY*, who on earth would target COMDEX, something that has absolutely no importance to the general (non-technical) public? From a terrorist's point of view (which is what you try to take if your aim is an intelligent security policy) it's obviously of no use to attack a target that people would have to explain why it was that striking it meant something. The WTC and Pentagon were big and well-known. And even if everyone on Slashdot knows who Larry Ellison is, I think it's safe to say that for the general worldwide public he is not a household name.
Let's try concentrating our security efforts on realistic threats and not ridiculous paranoia--otherwise groups or conventions might start deliberately giving the impression that they're a potential threat to terrorists just to seem important (God forbid!).
no, Security Consultants (Score:2, Informative)
"Oh, good. Load off my mind."
"Don't you want to hear what it is?"
"Not really, no."
"Oh, well... I see. In that case, can you just sign right here?"
Re:Ridiculous Paranoia (Score:2)
... which is the third-smallest province in Canada [cia.gov].
Re:Ridiculous Paranoia (Score:2)
An awful lot of the geeks who have important IT jobs at their companies go to Comdex (and Interop). Since so few companies do any kind of serious disaster or succession planning, if you took out the attendees at one of these conferences, you'd probably have a fairly large economic impact as the companies that employed the victims floundered afterwards.
The other point to attacking Comdex (particularly in a bio attack) would be that it's one of the largest conferences anywhere, with people attending from all over. Release a bio agent that is contagious and has an incubation time of a few days, and you can infect large portions of the country with relatively little effort.
A lot of companies depend on tech, even when they aren't in the tech business directly. And Comdex would be a target of opportunity. Is it likely? No. What we saw on September 11th was attacks on locations chosen mainly for their symbolic value. Further attacks of that nature would be likeliest. But it could happen. I do, however, think that the precautions that Comdex is taking are over the top.
I don't go to Comdex, but I do go to Interop (Atlanta - in fact I was there on September 11th and wound up driving home to Boston with a friend of mine who was there as well), and I bring my laptop to the classes, and a backpack onto the show floor (it's a lot more comfy and easier to stuff than the stupid vendor plastic bags). If these rules are in place next fall for Interop, it might well make going more trouble than it's worth.
From no security to overboard -bag checks are easy (Score:4, Interesting)
If someone wants to bring anthrax to comdex, why will they need to bring it in a bag? If someone wants to bring in an automatic weapon it should be pretty easy to pick up in a bag search. Explosives don't need a lot of space.
Whatever you do, don't be Irish .. (no wait that should read from anywhere from Morroco to the Phillipines, or even be Greek) and be in the wrong place at the wrong time until sanity prevails.
Using WTC as an excuse (Score:5, Insightful)
Similarly, my college's stadium is now banning bags along with a whole slew of other items that could be used for sneaking food and drinks in, which has been their primary irritation in the past. Now, under the guise of improved security, they can ban items that would've angered fans too much in the past.
Basically, the COMDEX people are taking advantage of the current political environment to sweep some minor annoyances under the rug. It's a disturbing trend right now.
Re:Using WTC as an excuse (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Using WTC as an excuse (Score:2, Informative)
Well said and unfortunantly true. Even in Sydney, where there is little credible threat (I hope), things are being pulled a bit tighter but to be honest, not much. Still you do hear things about "Well because of this event, we have to do this" all in the name of public safety.
To me, this has two sides and two argument extremes...
1) It's a grab at closing shut civil liberties. Maybe
2) It's displays a duty of care which the organisers are bound to provide. If they cant guarenttee security with the restrictions they have in place right now, then what needs to be done so this guarenttee can take place?
I personally think it's more of 2) than of 1) myself. I doubt something would happen, but IF it did and the organisers did not take all resonable precautions, then say hello to the lawyers.
It's also noted the definition of resonable risk and resonable preventative action has been risen considerably.
So what's next, we have to attend in the nude?
Re:Using WTC as an excuse (Score:2)
Unfortunately not. That would fall under the "we must protect the children" excuse.
Re:Using WTC as an excuse (Score:2)
Hire a security company, follow their advice. If they don't recommend you stop allowing bags, you can essentially do so without worry. If it comes to a lawsuit, you point to the experts who gave you the advice and explain why you had reason to believe them to be experts.
Banning everying can probably cause more problems then carefully analyzing the situation and taking apropriate actions.
If there's a reason behing the ban then it should be stated, not the simple fact of the ban. If the ban is intended to stop someone from smuggling in a weapon then you instruct the security it stop anything that could be used for that purpose, not just "bags". (How about purses and fanny packs? Boxes of "papers"?)
Furthermore, no good can be served by preventing outside bags because a would-be-terrorist would simply leave, put a weapon in the bag, and come back.
You could prevent anyone from bringing in anything bag-like, but then again, you've got to know the real purpose or you get stuck on the issue of "is it a bag?"
Re:Using WTC as an excuse (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Using WTC as an excuse (Score:2)
This page was brought to you by Bouncey Bubble(TM) (Score:4, Insightful)
More recently, I was stripped of my water bottle at a major outdoor music festival ostensibly because it may have been alcohol and was forced to buy water at extortionate rates.
Xix.
Re:Using WTC as an excuse (Score:2)
Not really true. Cynical as I am, I think that this is a genuine (if token) attempt at security, not a restriction on unwelcome items. The policy [key3media.com] is a blanket ban on anything that can be used to contain or conceal Something Nasty. It will stop stupid, lazy, people who don't want to die from walking in the front door carrying a bomb in their hand.
It's just a shame that people like the September 11th hijackers, are neither stupid, nor lazy, nor do they care about their own lives. They'll use the back door, or just strap 20kg of plastique on themselves, throw a jacket over it, and walk through the front door with their perfectly valid passport. :-(
Re:Using WTC as an excuse (Score:3, Insightful)
It is? I'm glad we live in a world where terrorists can't afford to get the 3COM logo printed on the side of a bag that can contain or conceal Something Nasty. I'm glad we live in a world where terrorists also can't just get a bag in the show, carry it back to their hotel room, place Something Nasty inside it, and then carry it back to the show.
The policy is not a blanket ban on anything that can be used to contain or conceal Something Nasty. Instead, it's a case of making sure your front door is locked, while at the same time leaving your windows wide, wide open.
AMEN! (Score:3, Funny)
what a joke.
What's with turning the laptop on, anyway? (Score:4, Informative)
With multi-swappable bay laptops, or even older ones, why did they think this was a way to protect against a weapon being in the laptop?
Re:What's with turning the laptop on, anyway? (Score:2)
It came with a plastic cover that is hollow, the size of a drive/battery, and fits into either of the bays to "keep the weight down."
It would not be difficult at all to outfit that compartment with plastic explosives. I just happen to ALSO be carrying a battery? See where I'm going with this?
Do I think Laptops should be disallowed? Absolutely not. But then, I also believe I should have the right to carry a fully loaded handgun into the show so I can put a hole into someone's head if they pose an immediate threat to me or other innocent people.
Too bad guns are disallowed in WAY TOO MANY places now days.
Re:What's with turning the laptop on, anyway? (Score:3, Insightful)
Untrue. Weapons are not banned; you have 2nd Amendment protection on that, and if we don't need an armed militia now, then when will we need one?
What is happening is that people carrying weapons (not just firearms) are banned. The statement couldn't be clearer: if you have a weapon, and aren't wearing a uniform, we will assume that you have criminal intent.
Don't ever let anyone tell you that they're banning your weapon, or that your weapon poses a security risk. They're making a "guilty until proven innocent" judgement about you, they're just too weaselly to admit it.
Re:What's with turning the laptop on, anyway? (Score:3, Insightful)
It doesn't prove everything, but it does prove something:
No check is perfect. Their job is to achieve the maximum effectiveness in a minimal amount of time. As a result, most of their checks are designed to elicit a response from you. Also, their job is to find people with weapons that intend to use them, not just find weapons. People on a mission will act differently (nervous, attentive, scared, determined) than people just catching a flight (bored, inattentive, impatient).
Erm, not a likely target (Score:2)
A bunch of religious- and political- minded terrorists, suddenly getting the idea to terrorize Comdex?? What the hell. Reminds me of a tag line from a recent This is True [thisistrue.com] story:
Anyway, if they ban bags, does that mean I have to carry my anthrax spores, 7-inch locking blade knives, and explosives in a box? How inconvenient!
maybe it'll help a little.... (Score:2)
Re:maybe it'll help a little.... (Score:2)
"Anything that can possibly go wrong, will go wrong, and not only in the worst technically possible way, but in the way that generates the worst pr and lowers everyone's opinion of your product."
Something like that.
This just in... (Score:4, Funny)
Security personal were noted as saying, "Thats a great idea!" While some were skeptical, others went so far as to improve on the now open source communities ideas. Later, a unanimous decision yeilded on implementing open source specifications for strip searches with body cavity investigations. These would later be utilized at the convention.
COMDEX Security Marshals have decided to fully develope this open source concept and protocals. They are currently in talks with several venture capitalists to fund a new e-commerce web site. No further details were provided at the time of announcement.
Additionaly it should be noted that have been talks concerning a fork in the now ongoing works. One security personal was quite upset with the current implementation.
"I just don't like limiting myself to one hand. Power user's should be able to use two if they really want."
Re:This just in... (Score:2)
Thank the dear Lord in heaven! (Score:5, Funny)
Now we just have to pray that nobody carries a bomb under their coat, or a gun in their pocket, or anthrax in a plastic baggie, or a Potential Enemy Neutralizer in their shirt pocket, or a pointy steel-toed boot...
Come to think of it, I won't feel safe until everyone is naked.
Save me, O Comdex, from the evil, evil terrorists!
Re:Thank the dear Lord in heaven! (Score:5, Funny)
You really wouldn't be any safer, and probably emotionally scared.
I like to think I'm 1/10...but still, please, keep your clothes on.
Comdex is dying (Score:4, Funny)
You don't need to be Kreskin to predict Comdex's future. The hand writing is on the wall: Comdex faces a bleak future. In fact there won't be any future at all for Comdex because Comdex is dying. Things are looking very bad for Comdex. As many of us are already aware, Comdex continues to lose market share. Red ink flows like a river of blood.
Let's keep to the facts and look at the numbers.
Famed Comdex speaker Spencer F. Katt states that there are 7000 visitors to Comdex. How many visitors to Networld/Interop are there? Let's see. The number of Comdex versus Networld/Interop posts on Usenet is roughly in ratio of 5 to 1. Therefore there are about 7000/5 = 1400 Networld/Interop visitors. LinuxWorld posts on Usenet are about half of the volume of Networld/Interop posts. Therefore there are about 700 visitors to LinuxWorld. A recent article put Windows World at about 80 percent of the trade show market. Therefore there are (7000+1400+700)*4 = 36400 Windows World visitors. This is consistent with the number of Windows World Usenet posts.
Due to the troubles of Comdex taxi lines, abysmal attendance and so on, The Interface Group went out of business and was taken over by Softbank who run other troubled trade shows. Now Softbank is also dead, its corpse turned over to yet another charnel house.
All major surveys show that Comdex has steadily declined in market share. Comdex is very sick and its long term survival prospects are very dim. If Comdex is to survive at all it will be among trade show hobbyists, dabblers, and dilettantes. Comdex continues to decay. Nothing short of a miracle could save it at this point in time. For all practical purposes, Comdex is dead.
Passport?? (Score:5, Funny)
I use Microsoft Passport, it's a tech show afterall no?, MS passport is the Most Secure Thing available, Microsoft told us [theregister.co.uk] you guys do support latest technologies that big corporations shove at us, no? yeah... it's your sponsors....what? sorry, but it's in my laptop that you didn't want me to bring in at the entrance.
Joking aside, I have one word for comdex since a few years... unorganized computer flea market... And it could be so much more, computers did take off since 5 years with the internet and all that, why did Comdex go completely the opposite direction?
terrorism is such a great excuse (Score:2)
Ummm, it's not a bag, sir." (Score:5, Funny)
Me: It's not a bag it's a case.
Guard: No laptops. No cases. No kidding.
Me: I left the laptop at home.
Guard: What's in the "case" then?
Me: Stuff. You know. My camera, PDA, cell phone, GPS, DriveWallet, GameBoy, portable CD player, a MP3 player, this runs a wireless Linux server (holding up a SBC with a short antennae) which is grabbing frames from the camera on my hat.
Guard (holding hand on head): Oh, just go. NEXT!!!
Guard: Sorry no bags!
Next me: It's not a bag, it's a valise.
Re:Ummm, it's not a bag, sir." (Score:2)
And can't you sneak a gun in under your shirt, or strap a bomb to your chest, or keep a holster inside your jacket? Silly security people. What they SHOULD be doing to increase brand-name recognition is not allow any logos on jackets or tee-shirts unless they can provide a reciept from a Comdex vendor.
Re:Ummm, it's not a bag, sir." (Score:2, Troll)
Gee, maybe if you weren't such a lazy fuck, you could have read the actual security policy [key3media.com] and found out. You lazy fuck.
Use the Force (Score:5, Funny)
Theft (Score:4, Informative)
I wouldn't go to any conference that required me to leave my laptop in an unattended room, particularly if I knew people like maids had keys.
The truth is, short of a strip search and body cavity search of each and every attendee, there's no way they can ensure people won't bring something dangerous into the conference. If they want to try a few basic security procedures like metal detectors and xrays to help ensure that ordinary everyday lunatics don't come in with guns and big knives, sure, that's nice. Anything else is pointless excess.
Re:Theft (Score:3, Interesting)
Oh, yes there is. Check out the AS&E Backscatter X-Ray BodySearch(tm) system. [dtic.mil] Used in prisons now; coming soon to your local airport, office building, etc.
Re:Theft (Score:2)
BTW, nothing is stopping people from whipping out their pistol of choice and creating holes in the security people before running inside, screaming "Ahalu Akbar" (or whatever they want) and blowing themselves (and others) up.
And as George Carlin said, "You can probably beat a guy to death using a Sunday New York Times"
Also note that... (Score:3, Informative)
No strip searches? Too bad... (Score:3, Funny)
Guilty until you spread 'em (Score:2)
Well, you know ... if they were Customs Officers, they could check your rectum for fingernail clippers if you looked at them the wrong way; and if you happened to have any outgoing international snailmail on you, they could read that too -- and these searches will be completely constitutional IF it becomes law. [aclu.org]
I feel safer already.
Comment removed (Score:4, Insightful)
Comdex follows National Computer Conference... (Score:3, Insightful)
...down the drain. Remember when the NCC was the biggest show going, when they were able to completely fill McCormick Place in Chicago, and then dwindled down to 20, count'em 20 tables before the NCC show organizers saw the handwriting on the wall and converted the NCC back to a research-only show?
The Computer Dealers Exposition (that's what COMDEX stands for, boys and girls) outgrew its original charter almost a decade ago -- how many dealers make the trip in? Damn few that I know. Today, it's the press and the companies themselves that make up the bulk of the show, along with employees of the Fortune 5000 companies that are still making enough money to keep the travel budget stuffed.
Speaking of the press, have you noticed that a lot of magazine and newsletter titles have closed in the past 12 months? Have you noticed that the amount of computer-trade ink has fallen off tremendously? For example, we just lost SmartPartner Magazine today, according to reports.
I know quite a number of the members of the press who have decided to forgo the annual pilgrimage to Las Vegas, either because they don't have jobs/assignments or because they want no part of a large, concentrated crowd of people at something that is uniquely United States.
One benefit to the Death Of COMDEX is the end of the maniac development cycle that requires companies to "show something" according to a calendar set by someone else. We may well see all software companies release software when it's ready, not when the booth bimbos hit the floor.
And that would be an improvement.
Key 3 media need to rethink this (Score:3, Insightful)
However.
It says that no exeptions to this rule will be made, period -- this is where it sucks because I'm going with my girlfriend (a computer geek too) and this policy will impact her. She has to use forearm crutches which kind of monopolize the use of her hands so she can't carry anything except by using a knapsack slung on her shoulder. Are they going to fuck over an entire group of people over this?
And to all those who are just going to say "you should carry her stuff for her" or "get a wheelchair", you can save it -- it's the principle of the thing that counts here.
Re:Key 3 media need to rethink this (Score:2)
Um, no - actually the principle doesn't count anymore. Everybody says we're at war. That means the principle doesn't count, only action counts. Especially action that just sends a message, without actually doing anything that counts. Haven't you figured out how this all works yet? Come on, get with the program. There's an economy at stake here.
Laptops in hotel rooms? (Score:2)
Woohoo! Free laptops!
Seriously, the hotel room is THE WORST place to leave valuables, when you are not there. While most hotel cleaning staff are very honest people, the low wages do tend to push a lot of people over the edge into crime. Many of my friends have been victims of this.
This tells me the policy makers for Comdex are idiots.
Re:Laptops in hotel rooms? (Score:2)
Next day, tried about 50 rooms, got green lights on 12 of them.
I haven't stayed at a hotel that used magnetic card locks since. Realistically, how hard is it to get a maid's master key....
Personally, I'd think that the policy makers are not idiots, but a bunch of assholes who snort too much fucking cocaine, but whatever.
Plenty of reasons to worry about security (Score:3, Informative)
They're expecting "only" 150,000 people (From a max. of 250,000 back in 1997) because of the dot-com bust , the not-yet-named recession, the Sept. 11 attacks and all the stuff from that (companies prohibiting certain key execs from traveling, cost-cutting measures, etc.)
Now, seeing all that people in one place, you can't imagine it. Back in the 1997 show, I was warned before attending, but being there, it's another thing.
We "planed" to get a taxi when the show closed one of the days, well, the line was 1000+ long. Don't believe it ? I've a picture from last year's show.
The lines for the 24+ different bus routes to the hotels ? 400 + long each.
In a few words, it's BIG. Many people. Chaos could ensue. And you can count on the people attending the show to help. Two or three years ago, all the cell phone lines/bandwidth was used at some peak hours, something that never happenned before, if you believe the local news those days. Remember some of the "chaos" in NYC when the cell lines got blocked after the attacks? well, it kind of happened in Las Vegas. Scary indeed.
You could see the people from Japan, Korea, Taiwan, etc. using their cell phones (2 or 3 models more advanced than anyone I saw in the US, BTW) at some "strange hours", I suppose they called before the offices back at home closed or just when they were opening, I don't know. But seeing all those people seating on the stairs talking in different languages, it's when it hits you: Comdex Fall is an International show. Just from here (Mexico), I don't remember the "exact" figure but it's above 12,000 people attending. Another example: I remember in the 98 show being at the Ziff Davis booth, there was an egyptian engineer trying to subscribe to some magazines. "Big deal", eh? He wasn't an immigrant working in the USA. Then the ZD representative realized he wanted to get it to get delivered to Egypt. I mean, this man came all the way from Egypt! Not as a part of a booth, but as any "regular techie". Talk about getting some job related travels (I mean, for techies, not CEO's...)
You can see companies from all around the world, press from all around the world, reporting daily from there. I remember seeing a CNN press booth just in the middle of the Convention Center last year. So you have coverage all around the world.
And don't get me started on the crowds in the rest of the strip. The buffet lines are the second worst of the year, only after the last week of the year, one of the busiest at LV. Crowds everywhere but at the casino's. Someone said the tech people are the worst crowd as gamblers, suppossedly because "we" know the odds on the chance games. I support the other theory: bad travel budgets makes us "cheap".
Also, Las Vegas had a anthrax scare some years ago when they arrested someone with an anthrax vaccine, after getting a clue from someone about it. They reacted very seriously back then, imagine now.
You also have some of the richest people in the world there. Gates, Ellison, Sony's President (or CEO? I don't remember).
I mean *HONESTLY*, who on earth would target COMDEX, something that has absolutely no importance to the general (non-technical) public? From a terrorist's point of view (which is what you try to take if your aim is an intelligent security policy) it's obviously of no use to attack a target that people would have to explain why it was that striking it meant something.
How about one of the biggest/important economy sectors? And in this "decadent, Sin City" ?
I think I already made my point. So you can't go around thinking it can't be a target. I'm sure I wish it wasn't true, but it is. I love that show, I was there 3 of the last 4 years, and yes, it's not the same as the "good all days". Yes, you can get most of the info from the internet just days after, but the "experience" is different.
Sadly, I cann't attend this year, since my VISA expired and here the embassy/consulates have a backlog/queue of 120,000+ applications/renewals to see (so I'll get my renewal until next year. Bummer). And that's before the attacks happenned, not because of any increased security. Just too much work and too many people, I guess.
I hope this doesn't get's the show killed, I hope it gets to thrives again next year.
After reading some of the sites with advice for attending there (incredible useful, BTW) and having the experience of attending the ComicCon at San Diego before, I always had a backpack with me, with a bottle of water, a digital camera (even a video one once), extra batteries for the cams, some extra business cards, etcetera. I could stuff there the "goodies" as someone mentioned before and when it was full, I could rely then in the show's bags. I guess if I was going there this year I had to "rethink" my strategy. It's a shame cameras can't be used anymore.
Someone mentioned the body search thing. It can't be done to everyone. The lines/crowd for entering would be unmanageable. Metal detector should be used, but that can't get the anthrax/biological weapons as someone mentioned. I guess you just have to rely on checking everyones pockets, I guess, like at the stadium. God, I hope there's nothing like that. And you can bet I will go there next year.
Whatever you do, don't be Irish
Funny thing, last year a friend went with us "regulars" to Comdex (Nov/2000), and from the point we arrived at the airport there were always "suspicious" looks for him. he has a mexican name, but his great-great-great-great-grandfather or something was from the Middle East, and he has "the looks", with a heavy beard and ponytail. But he's more mexican than the tequila. We talked about it when we came back. Guess what he's not doing after the Sept.11 attacks ? You guessed right. Not going "even near" the border. And I can't blame him, I saw it happenning before, so why risk it? I guess that egyptian engineer I saw before will not go there neither.
Just my 2 cents.
And see you there next year.
BTW, for the guy who is in high school and heared all this things? Go for it, I too wanted to attend three conventions when I was in college: MacWorld, San Diego ComicCon, Comdex Fall (2 out of 3 ain't bad, and MacWorld sucked when I got the chance. And now I don't use Mac anymore, so I'm not going there yet.). You have to make it happen.
Someone else read the same book as I did... (Score:2)
Re:Someone else read the same book as I did... (Score:2, Informative)
Executive Orders, by Tom Clancy. I'm sure the plot has been used by others, but that one fits your description. The agent in question was a strain of Ebola which incubated for a few days.
As usual in Clancy, something goes wrong (the virus is not as contagious as the Persians had hoped) so disaster was averted by chance - there were "only" a few thousand victims.
COMDEX SHOMDEX (Score:2)
Checked my letter... (Score:2)
No big surprise... (Score:2)
my poor country (Score:2)
Hysteria (Score:5, Insightful)
People are thinking "some guy could walk in here carrying some disease and kill everyone". Yes, he could. And "someone could plant a bomb here and blow us all up". Yes, that's possible. Or "maybe some crazy terrorist has nuclear weapons and he's going to blow up planet Earth". Yep, could very well be. That's always been possible (to a degree) and that always will be possible (more so with each day that passes).
Doesn't mean it's any more likely today than it was yesterday or 30 years ago.
The attacks on the WTC and Pentagon were not based on madness or religion. They were not attempts to kill a lot of people. There are much better ways of doing that. They were political acts, against symbols of the USA's military and economic rule. Even the airline names were carefully picked. And although of course I don't approve of them, I can understand them. It seems that most americans can't.
Some time ago there was a war in Somalia. People were killing each other with knives, stones, machetes, etc. Sometimes with their bare hands. Someone asked an observer if that meant this was a particularly violent conflict. He said no, it just meant they had run out of bullets.
Using airplanes full of people to blow up buildings is no more "cruel" or "barbaric" than using a cruise missile. Certainly no more cowardly. But some people (most people) just don't have cruise missiles. And some people (most people), when left with nothing to lose, will not mind losing what they have, especially if losing something so worthless (their life) can have such a big impact.
The way to avoid being blown up or infected or assassinated is not to isolate yourself and shoot everyone that comes too near. The way to avoid being struck by your enemies is to have no enemies.
The strikes on the WTC carried a message: "you are not out of range; if we really want to hit you, we can." I've known that all my life (possibly because I live in Europe and we've had a few thousand years of history and wars and revolutions and all that sort of stuff); most americans seem to have discovered it in the last two months. And they think they have to do something about it, because they can't stand the thought of being vulnerable; of not being untouchable. Today on the BBC I saw this american congressman (or maybe he was a general) saying "We have to bomb Afghanistan because we have to do something and we can't think of anything else to do". The only problem is, it's not accomplishing anything (apart from killing people that don't even know what's going on, making more enemies and worsening the USA's image worldwide).
And this brings me back to the silly security measures and to the way this hysteria is being used to limit people's freedom. If the only thing you can think of doing has no practical effect, then don't do it. Think of something else, or don't do anything. If someone really wants to strike, they will always be able to strike. I don't know if these "security measures" are a deliberate attempt to take away people's freedom and give more powers to the state or if they're just good-natured (but misguided) attempts to keep people "safe". Either way people should stand up for their rights and refuse to have their freedom taken away. It's not that "the terrorists win", it's just that people lose. Someone said that a nation that can't balance security and freedom doesn't deserve either.
I'm not a religious person; I don't believe there's life after death. But I still consider my freedom more valuable than my life.
LinuxWorld has already banned cameras (Score:2)
Personally, I think a ban on cameras at a trade show gives the impression of an industry trying to avoid accountability to its would-be buyers. I would much prefer exhibiting at trade shows that allow cameras.
Warning: SUFFOCATION HAZARD (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Hard to blame them (Score:5, Insightful)
Nope. I will carry a bag with me and be secure in its contents wherever I goddamn please. I pay damn good money every goddamn year to make sure I don't have to worry. Unfortunatly, the morons I give my money to are more interested in fucking spying on everyone than making me safe.
"Gee, lets continue to sell fertilizer and fuel oil to cash customers, even though we just had a building blown up with it! Even though these guys need a license to store it, we won't require a license nor even proof of identity to buy it! Oh, but we better spend a few more billion tapping everyones email. Oh, and after you get done reviewing everyone's cell phone conversations for the words "The Eagle Is Blue, Mustafa" you might want to look into stopping the sale of anthrax to nations on the known hostile list. Just make sure you get all the cell calls first, mmkay? Oh, and if you get any more phone sex calls like that last batch, save em for the office party on Friday."
Oh, and I can't just stop paying them. How's that for a contractual fuckup??!?!
Re:Hard to blame them (Score:3, Insightful)
Do you honestly think anyone buying nitrate fertilizer for the purpose of blowing up a building will already have a criminal record or an open FBI investigation? Or do you believe it is OK to deny farmers the right to buy the supplies they need just because they belong to a particular organisation (read: "militia") viewed by the left as suspicious? In other words, do you really think that restrictions on buying the ingredients for an ANFO bomb would be either practical or effective?
You could go further, you know. Don't let anyone buy gasoline (a very popular substance for arson - not to mention the main ingredient in napalm!) without photo ID. Maybe have a five-day waiting period for buying gas, so they can check you out and make sure it's only for your car.
What's that, you say? That would put an obnoxious and unnecessary burden on ordinary law-abiding citizens such as yourself?
Unlike the former USSR, the US gives you the right to emigrate, pretty much no-questions-asked. [Now, the right to immigrate to another country without making the proper arrangements might be another thing altogether, but that's the other country's bailiwick.] Oddly enough, it seems that very few of the people who claim to have such serious grievances against our government take advantage of this amazing offer. Might you all be ... *gasp* ... bluffing?
Re:What the fuck are you talking about? (Score:2)
Did you read past the first line of that post? I didn't think so.
No wonder COMDEX is gonna be a shit-fest this year.... there are mornons like you in the world.
Re:Cute... (Score:2)
This, as with most of the bullshit that is being implemented is security through stupidity. It is a herd mentality that makes everyone feel that they are safe.
You're not fucking safe.
Imagine this: 4 men walk into comdex with Glocks (shoulder holster). 20 rounds in a clip, 4 shooters have time to cycle through 4,5,6 clips before the cops get there (easily). This ain't CS or Scarface, you shoot someone, they go down, aim and they stay down. (Give the shooters angel dust for the hell of it.)
Nice fuckin massacre if you just do that. Take a MAC-10 to discourage hero's. . .
4x6x20 = 480 people, lets call it 400, wasted bullets, fat fuckers that take 2 shots to go down, you know - All in less than 5 minutes.
A shooting massacre of 400 people would certainly make people hesitant to goto any tradeshows, or even the mall. It's fuckin' scare the shit out of the public, but thats the idea.
Combine that with ebola (flood the fire system with a solution, which will be dispersed when you set off the alarms, so that when the fuckload of ems people come in, they get infected, which infects the doctors, the hospitals, and so on. You got at least 12 hours (very, very conservative) before _anyone_ shows symthoms. . .
There you go - guide to 20,000 deaths, a VERY conservative estimate. Shit, culture strep bacteria for a week, dry it out and then mortar and pestle the result - disperse that and see how many people get sick - nearly half of the strains are drug resistant.
Look. Right now, all the security is based on the "Good citizens, please do not bring your bad things into here. If you do, we will ask you to leave" principle. Moreover, if you're security guards are unarmed 65 year old men, younger, fatter men, or well past middle aged women the only security they provide is subtracting one bullet from what may of have been allocated for you. I'm not being dark, only realistic, if someone wants to go apeshit and start a massacre, there is nothing that can be done about it.
(Case in point, the school shootings, esp Columbine - where the fucking coward police and SWAT sat outside while people were being shot inside.)
The only thing this will change is that a shitload of laptops will get stolen from hotel rooms, the vending mother fuckers who charge $3 for a coke will make more money, the terrorists, should they desire to come, will carry fake id's and walk in with their "bad things" in the vendor supplied bags that they got the day before.
Oh.
That and fucking sheep will feel safer and the wanna-be police will get their jollies because they have some power and get to strip search the booth babes.
/finger