I fondly recall the days when you could disable Javascript in your browser and the internet still worked. Since this is likely a Javascript-based exploit triggered by PHP code on the server then turning off Javascript would be a great mitigation -- but even if you could find a browser that allowed you to disable JS, it would instantly fail to render every website you visited.

Ah... the good old days of static HTML <BLINK>Yippee!</BLINK>

This is how "it" begins... hundreds of millions of PCs with AI-enabled processors, all interconnected via the internet into a huge cybernetic processing array -- then the code drops and *bingo*... game over, "sentience" and the end of mankind's reign on planet earth.

Okay... it's just a dystopian thought based on "The God Question"

I'm just glad he sorted out that Ukraine/Russia war so quickly. How long did it take? Less than 24hrs wasn't it? </SARC>

Yeah, I have a dumb-phone with a *real* keypad and multi-tap SMS entry that cost me $29. It does *everything* I need it to do because I only do voice/SMS -- for everything else I have a computer within easy reach.

How do I pay for my parking?

Easy... I live in a small town without parking meters or other such fees.

My phone is also pre-paid and I top it up with $20 worth of credit every six months or so.

Cheap, cheerful and very cost-effective.

I see no need to spend US$600 on something that does what I'm already doing.

I'm probably one of the very few who's been in the microcomputer industry since its inception way back in the 1970s.

What a ride it has been!

I recall building my own systems with 8-bit processors and just a few hundred bytes of precious ram. Clock speeds were barely a megahertz at the time but still we managed to overclock these systems and run 110 baud TTY connections at almost 200baud (non-standard of course).

The only language available back then was the native machine code of the processor being used, all hand-assembled unless you were lucky enough to have access to a minicomputer and a suitable cross-assembler.

Even once microcomputers became available in retail stores as something you could buy off the shelf, things were very basic (no pun intended).

During those early days, Microsoft was the language company (mainly selling BASIC) and Digital Research was the OS company (selling CP/M).

And that's how things went for a few years... until IBM released their PC, when everything changed.

Suddenly Microsoft was the OS company (PC/MSDOS) and Digital Research was relegated to being a language company (primarily Pascal MT+).

It's been a wonderful 50+ years and to be honest, I'm surprised that Microsoft is still around. I guess the fact that it is speaks to the power of a de facto monopoly when properly managed.

What will the next 50 years hold and will Microsoft still be in business when the calendars tick over to 2075 I wonder?

So black is the new blue?

Do I see a TV drama series in the making?

At least the acronym won't have to be updated.

But if you have no internet... how would you get the update? :-)

No bricking then.

The only problem with this is you have to go stand in the sunlight to charge it.

As if I don't get enough spam in my inbox, now it's here as well.

Thank you for your post, I will be sure and avoid the company you mention and advise my friends to avoid it as well.

The video you upload to YouTube, the music you upload to your own website... etc,etc. It seems a little broad to me.

Gemini is pretty crappy at most things and when I use the LLM chatbot it spends more time apologising for getting things wrong than it does presenting useful information.

Yesterday I tried Cursor as an LLM android code generator and was very impressed with the results. I haven't tried the AI assist in Android studio but I'll be comparing the two in coming days. Just as well this announcement was made -- I was *almost* going to lay down $20 a month for Cursor but if Gemini can do the same or better, I'll save some $$.

I agree... I started with Netscape Navigator way back in the dial-up days (1995) and today I use Firefox. However, if they start baking ads into my browser (privacy-respecting or not) and screwing around with AI then I'll finally say goodbye to this browser and find something that works the way a browser should.

Remember... *not* having ads and *not* having AI will soon be a powerful point of distinction and USP in the browser market. Don't give that up Firefox!