If you need security but can't achieve it, admit to the fact that it will be insecure. From there you either give up, or force a change in the requirements so security becomes achievable.

It was still Netscape when SSL was created. Since then most work has been done by international standards bodies.

Try being the security researcher that's threatened with lawsuits as the first response every other time you report a flaw you found, who gets dismissed when reporting a security hole that literally could get people killed, who gets rejected when proposing changes that would make software much more robust "because those fringe cases don't happen IRL" (and then they do), etc... When there's flaws everywhere and nobody wants to hear it, guess what happens?

Do your own research all you want. But if you are arrogant enough to ask others to trust their lives in your home built algorithms, you're outright dangerous to mankind.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hash_tree

(I just reposted this from my account, did some editing too.)

Suggestion:

Take a whole bunch of household objects and make videos of how they react (which ones that easily catches fire). Include mirrors and glass (reflections of 1W lasers can be dangerous!). Measure the temperature while at it (including on the mirror itself, it can get hot too). Of course it should include flammable objects most people don't think are dangerous.

Then, to make sure people REALLY get the point, make a "synthetic eye" that reacts to the laser in a very similiar way to a real eye, and show and explain what happens (or if this isn't reasonable/practical, make an animation of what happens to the light sensitive eye cells). Do this for everything else that can be sensitive enough for damage too, like for hair. Show how quickly a person with greasy (maybe wax or hair spray) and/or dry hair can catch fire (in extreme but plausible conditions, like summer time in the sun).

Make these videos mandatory to watch. And *MAKE THE VIDEOS SCARY*!

It would be done together with a mandatory test, identification should be required (I think the same goes for guns), and everything should be monitored to make sure you're paying attention all the time. It should take no less then an hour. If you pass you'll get a license. The terms with the license should state that any abuse/dangerous carelessness will mean revoked license. ABSOLUTELY NO "borrowing" of lasers to people without a license would be allowed (sorry, neither your friends or family can try it out unless they get licenses too), that would also mean revoked license. And you'll need to show the license when buying the lasers. For any and all imports of lasers, the importer (that means either you personally or the import company) would be required to ensure that it never will be given to anybody that does not have a license.

+1

Horrible. They should have encouraged curiosity instead, but they prefer easily managable mainstream sheep á la 1984.

Bad trolling attempt. Oh, so anybody can write a Harry Potter parody? OH NOEZ, nobody will buy the real books anymoarz! JK Rowlings will be POOR! Nobody will have any incentive to write books! Copyright still apply. If the author choose a license that don't let you take the software binaries and decompile them, you're not allowed. You are still allowed to write something that mimics it, but that means you have to do real work yourself. Just like how you can write a parody book or use as many plot ideas as you wish from any book you wish, and still not get sued. Would you have liked literature patents? "Oh, but my plot twist is unique! I should have exclusivity on it!" Algorithms, matematics and plot twists should be equally unpatentable. Just think about free software such as Linux, OpenOffice, Firefox and the like.

Oh, how amusing.

I feel like setting up my Ubuntu the same way. Feel like switching to Fedora too.

I'm using KDE sometimes, and I have switched to Compiz Fusion in it instead of Kwin (it's actually more responsive and better overall with KDE!).

There's nothing on my computer that's not customized else than the hardware (due to lack-of-cash issues).

There are few people who ever would want to borrow my laptop.
And in case I'd actually would want to lend it out, I'd use the guest session feature (that I would hide for normal cases) and let them use a normal desktop with Firefox.

I just hope the word won't spread that my laptop has a "usability mode" too.

That's the thing. There are soo many ways that the goverment can mess with people that we never realize. Getting a morgage? Good luck. Flying on an airplane? Only if you want to be searched and interrogated for 5 hours. Taxes have already been mentioned. Doing ANYTHING related to beurocracy? You can wait for ages until you get a response. Doing nothing wrong? That doesn't mean that the police can "monitor" you - directly from their van with a big "police" mark from the street while saying that a classified investigation is going on, making your neighbours scared and think you are criminal.

Lolzorz. +1 They could put me to jail for "protecting terrorists" when I don't wanna decrypt my hard drive, but they are just going to get the people mad at them. If they ever try to, I'll just go "5:th amendment" at them and refuse, and a a year later I'll just reveal the passwords and show them that there's nothing but Linux and some personal photos there. Good luck getting the media on their own side then.

Okay, then feel free to let the goverment access everything on your computer by default. You probably want them to read your emails to your friends and family, to your wife/husband or boyfriend/girlfriend, your mail to your accountant and/or lawyer, to your neighbours, your posts on international forums where people from Iran, China and Afghanistan have accounts (making you a possible suspect since you could have communicated with them