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Comment Re:productize? (Score 1) 244

[This is Dan]

Basically, I create a wrapper class, that's really just a String inside. But when I test the types for each argument of the vararg wrapper, I can see whether the passed string is a SafeString or a bare (thus unsafe) string.

It occurs to me I didn't release this implementation; I'll get it out there.

I actually put some more demos and test kits on recursion.com, and the slides aren't bad. I really want this to get bashed on.

Comment Re:Well (Score 1) 244

[This is Dan]

This isn't taint mode. Taint mode is single language, and in the field, is just turned off without any checking being applied. I don't know of many other efforts that really address the problem that we use strings to communicate across languages, and when we do, we lose all type safety.

There are tricks like LINQ, which allow you to basically express one language with the syntax of another, and I like them lots. (Actually, I think they don't get enough credit for their security implications!).

Comment Re:productize? (Score 2) 244

[This is Dan]

The idea is that we make very expensive asks of developers, who simply don't follow our advice.

The question is whether we can ask less of developers -- specifically, whether we can get out of this silly zero sum game where the harder software is to write, the more secure it is.

Interpolique is an effort in this direction.

Comment Re:productize? (Score 1) 244

[This is Dan]

Actually, that's how the Java version works -- you take strings, and subclass them into safe versions and unsafe versions. Then you combine, either through a vararg shell, or through sequential dot notation.

I'm not a big fan of either; I really think interpolation is the right way for a programmer to express intent, and the compiler should be smart enough to extract it.

Comment Just a note (Score 5, Informative) 597

OK, I was actually there. Not, "I heard this from a guy." I mean, I'm Dan Kaminsky, who's named in the article.

This was kind of a silly situation. One of the guys in our group hit the ball and it sort of sailed into this guy's face. It's a styrofoam ball, the maximum speed of those things is maybe ten miles an hour. It's actually slower than a Nerf ball.

Anyway, the guy who actually hit the thing was sort of an awkward nerd, and laughed about it nervously. You know in the article when the guy's like, it was just one guy? That's because it was just him. There was certainly no mob taunting.

Really, this was a bunch of nerds and burners. There was no damage going on, just general silliness and large scale commerce with institutions that were each contacted in advance and specially staffed to seat all of us. I don't think it'll happen again, and that's sort of sad. Urban golf was a lot of fun for everyone.

User Journal

Journal Journal: Everywhere is home

Watery steps across the sky,

drops of naked new surprise,

smiled into the megaphone,

home onto my mind's throne.

Submission + - "Digital: A Love Story" Game Set Amidst 1988 BBSs (scoutshonour.com)

Effugas writes: Now here's something special. Independent game designer Christine Love just released "Digital: A Love Story", which unveils a shockingly well written romance/mystery inside a simulacrum of an Amiga desktop, circa 1988, with the player dialing and hacking into ANSI-art equipped BBS's (both local and long distance) that, in some cases, may very well be FIDONET nodes. This is awesome. Also awesome is that the game is fully Creative Commons licensed, and is available freely for Windows, Mac, and Linux. Check it out!
Games

Why Are There No Popular Ultima Online-Like MMOs? 480

eldavojohn writes "I have a slightly older friend who played through the glory days of Ultima Online. Yes, their servers are still up and running, but he often waxes nostalgic about certain gameplay functions of UO that he misses. I must say that these aspects make me smile and wonder what it would be like to play in such a world — things like housing, thieving and looting that you don't see in the most popular massively multiplayer online games like World of Warcraft. So, I've followed him through a few games, including Darkfall and now Mortal Online. And these (seemingly European developed) games are constantly fading into obscurity and never catching hold. We constantly move from one to the next. Does anyone know of a popular three-dimensional game that has UO-like rules and gameplay? Perhaps one that UO players gravitated to after leaving UO? If you think that the very things that have been removed (housing and thieving would be two good topics) caused WoW to become the most popular MMO, why is that? Do UO rules not translate well to a true 3D environment? Are people incapable of planning for corpse looting? Are players really that inept that developers don't want to leave us in control of risk analysis? I'm familiar with the Bartle Test but if anyone could point me to more resources as to why Killer-oriented games have faded out of popularity, I'd be interested."

Comment Hearing (Score 0) 311

I think he's going to burst his eardrums, and possibly some organs.

Look. this is going to be an enormous pressure wave that will saturate his body. He pops this barrier, it's going to rattle him pretty fierce.

They really should try this with a dummy first!

Books

Five Top Publishers Plan Rival to Kindle Format 123

eldavojohn writes "Time Inc., News Corp., Conde Nast, Hearst Corp., and Meredith Corp. are teaming up to create a digital newsstand and somewhat open format that 'can render our content beautifully on those devices that come to market' instead of the gray inked Kindle's energy conscious display. Devices are being made for the new format with the launch coming next year. The format will also target smart phones and tablet computers. Will this pose a threat at all to the Kindle?"

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