1/26    Cringley on Wiretaps:
        http://www.pbs.org/cringely/pulpit/pulpit20060126.html
        \_ as usual, cringely provides more technical insight than
           probably any other journalist I read. so what do people think
           of this? while it assuages some of my concern about who is
           being tapped, and how egregious a disregard of the law it is,
           the basic issues still seems to be: why couldnt they jsut get
           the court orders? that is what I find troubling. the "we neednt
           be troubled by the law" mentality
           \_ cringely often gets details wrong or exhibits a general lack
              of clue, at least when he's writing about anything i know
              much about. this sort of makes me wonder how much to trust
              his details when he's writing about stuff i'm not that familiar
              with.
           \_ One of my profs who worked at justice said that most wiretaps
              were the pen register type. He told me that in most cases this
              type of "wiretap" could be done w/o a warrant. Usually the pen
              register info was the source of probable cause for a warrant.
           \_ The worst part about this concept is that it assumes a level
              of unsophistication from the terrorists. By now they should be
              tossing triple encrypted cyphers across the network on single
              use emails. It's an overreliance on tech vs. human resources.
              \_ uh, what, you use your emails multiple times?
                 \_ Sorry. Should be "email addresses".
              If there is anything I hate about the Bush admin it's their
              "don't worry your pretty little head about it, we know what's
              best" stance. Lotsa folks are okay with it, but it rubs me wrong.
              \_ Actually, I doubt that the terrorists would be using email.
                 More likely they will post a jpg or msg on a public anon
                 site at a specific time w/ specific content w/ the msg
                 embedded in the image or msg (the content itself could be
                 format of the msg or the subject matter of the image).
                 What the gov. is likely doing is correlating postings w/
                 specifically timed narrow searches to determine where the
                 terrorists are.
                 BTW, explain to me how 1 use email system would work. Would
                 you have a list of emails to use/check? What happens if one
                 end is caught and the list is revealed?
        \_ This is funny, I came to the same conclusion entirely on my own.

1/26    Have a Paypal interview. any experience on what to expect?
        also have online preliminary test..
        \_ http://www.paypalsucks.com  The way a company treats their customers
           says something about the kind of people in management.  But good
           luck on the interview.
          \_ thanks.. i told them i am no longer interested..
             \_ wow... picky.  should just go in to get the offer leverage.
             \_ Wow.  You could have at least gone in for the interview
                and asked them about the stuff on http://paypalsucks.com, which
                might have been interesting.

1/26    7800 GTX 256 vs 7800 GTX 512 vs ATI x1900 XT vs ATI x1900 XTX.
        Does anyone have any personal experience with any of these cards?
        I've seen the benchmarks and prices.  I'd like to know if anyone
        knows of any visual glitches or other problems (are they super loud?)
        or if some model is particularly well made.  Thanks!
        \_ most video card fans turn off if 3D not in use.  If in use, I'll bet
           you're playing a noisy FPS game anyway.
        \_ I don't think manufacturing quality or "visual glitches" is really
           an issue now. I would RMA it if you see something like that,
           unless it's a driver issue. Both companies do ongoing driver
           fixes. By the way you might as well consider the X1800XT and
           the X1900 All in Wonder. I don't know if the X1800s are gonna be
           cheaper now. But they still compare favorably with the 7800 GTX.

1/27    FURIOUS motd dude here.  I'm about to go work.  Before I
        go, I will stick these on my cell phone and get on caltrain.
        http://image50.webshots.com/50/3/97/93/543539793znzKLv_fs.jpg
        http://image60.webshots.com/160/7/43/89/528974389ICyZkq_fs.jpg
        http://image28.webshots.com/28/2/50/92/287225092IdiUkq_ph.jpg
        http://image55.webshots.com/155/1/4/39/447210439BWoArx_ph.jpg
        http://image64.webshots.com/64/8/97/85/494789785wBYPdZ_ph.jpg
        http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4346/1160/1600/260212381yJfiBq_ph.jpg
        http://image36.webshots.com/37/2/79/1/298327901ADKqoD_ph.jpg
        http://image64.webshots.com/64/1/54/11/513415411eYMaNa_ph.jpg
        http://image53.webshots.com/53/0/2/61/504400261qVtWOH_ph.jpg
        http://myspace-864.vo.llnwd.net/00057/46/86/57286864_l.jpg
        http://tinyurl.com/at2lt
        http://tinyurl.com/9zabb
        http://tinyurl.com/blk6y

1/27    http://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=1548547
        "The Department of Commerce report showed that the nation's economy
        grew at an anemic 1.1 percent -- the worst performance in three years."
        U.S. GDP growth (from preceding period)
                Q1      Q2      Q3      Q4
        2002    2.7     2.2     2.4     0.2
        2003    1.7     3.7     7.2     3.6
        2004    4.3     3.5     4.0     3.3
        2005    3.8     3.3     4.1     1.1

1/27    Coulter Jokes About Poisoning Justice
        http://csua.org/u/est (sfgate.com)
        \_ feels similar to a muslim cleric who claims islam is peaceful
           yet calls for jihad against America

1/27    Dubya's State of the Union is on Tuesday!  For those following Iran,
        here is a chronology of the most recent events:
        - Iran breaks seals, announces resumption of enrichment research
        - West condemns Iran, support move to Security Council
        - Iran condemns West, threatens full-scale enrichment upon referral
        - Russia/China upset, but don't support move to Security Council
        - Russia highlights enrichment in Russia
        - ... Days tick away to IAEA board meeting ...
        - Iran says Russian enrichment plan "positive"
        Yesterday-Today:
        - West (including U.S.) fully endorses Russian enrichment plan
        - Iran says of Russian plan "capacity of the program not sufficient ...
          can be revised to be more complete"
        - Iran allows IAEA visits to Lavizan military site
        Thursday Dubya follies:
        "The Iranians have said, 'We want a weapon.'" -Dubya
        "... in the afternoon, the White House spokesman, Scott McClellan,
        acknowledged that Mr. Bush had misspoken."
        \_ This last line can't be true.  They *never* admit they're wrong.

1/27    I'm trying to use SMTP auth over TLS. It works fine with Thunderbird,
        but some versions of Outlook Express fail to connect
         Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2800.1506 (works)
         Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2800.1106 (doesn't work)
        How does one get the latest build of MSOE?
        \_ Nevermind, the problem is MSOE can only do TLS SMTP on
           port 25. No luck using port 587/submission.
        \_ Nevermind, the problem is MSOE can't do TLS on a port OTHER
           that 25. Time to switch everybody to Thunderbird.

1/27    Go HAL!
        http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=HAL&t=2y&l=off&z=m&q=l&c=%5EDJI
        \_ Look Dave, I can see you're really upset about this.  I honestly
           think you ought to sit down calmly, take a stress pill, and think
           things over.

1/27    http://money.cnn.com/2006/01/27/news/economy/gdp/index.htm
        "Far less growth than forecasts in the fourth quarter, as economy
        manages only 1.1% annual rate gain."
        U.S. GDP growth (from preceding period)
                Q1      Q2      Q3      Q4
        2002    2.7     2.2     2.4     0.2
        2003    1.7     3.7     7.2     3.6
        2004    4.3     3.5     4.0     3.3
        2005    3.8     3.3     4.1     1.1
        "The preliminary estimate of fourth quarter 2005 GDP is inconsistent
        with the underlying strength of the U.S. economy ... I would not read
        too much into today's numbers.  They are somewhat anomalous, reflecting
        some special factors." -Treas Sec John Snow (Jan 27, 2006)
        (durable goods +9.3% Q3, -17.5% Q4 -- summer auto incentives)
        "However, investors seemed to welcome the seemingly negative report ...
        Investors may be betting that slower economic growth will mean the Fed
        can stop raising interest rates soon."

1/27    Wow, Alito is getting confirmed and the Democrats did nothing, only
        cowered and thought of their election campaigns.  The GOP is one of
        the most corrupt and vile political parties in recent memories, and
        the Democrats just roll over and play dead every time.  Simply
        pathetic.  They're even worse than the Republicans.  There really
        is no one worth voting for in this damn country.
        \_ Well, if the other side has the 60 votes to kill the filibuster
           polls show > 60% of Americans supporting Alito's appointment, I
           suppose your choice is "Look weak by failing miserably in the
           filibuster", or "Look weak by not attempting a filibuster".
        \_ After one defeat after another morale with the D is low.
           They just don't want to do anything now. If someone beats
           you up badly, are you gonna standup and fight immediately?
           Better to wait till you get better.
        \_ Well, if the other side has the 60 votes to kill the filibuster and
           polls show 54% (30% opposing) of Americans supporting Alito's
           appointment, I suppose your choice is "Look weak by failing
           miserably in the filibuster", or "Look weak by not attempting a
           filibuster".
           \_ Sure, but that was a choice the Democrats made.  If they had
              decided from the start to present a united front, and had used
              the televised hearings as a platform to present Alito as
              a danger to the balance of powers, perhaps they could at least
              make a stand.  Instead they dithered and cowered like they
              always do.
              \_ I'm not sure how much the Right's combination of raw media
                 control and skillful media usage had to do with it, but
                 you know, I completely agree.  All the Left had to do was
                 to unify around the message of:  Alito is no Sandra Day
                 O'Connor, a centrist and frequent swing voter.
           \_ Looks like they chose option C: "Look like a bunch of weak
              squabbling idiots who couldn't get elected dogcatcher, let
              alone run a country."
              http://csua.org/u/et2 (yahoo news)
              \_ When was the last time anyone was elected dogcatcher?
              \_ Nah, anyone who votes against cloture gets points in my book,
                 even with the odds.
                 "I reject those notions that there ought to somehow be some
                 political calculus about the future. ... The choice is now."
                 -- Kerry's unfuckingdeniably right.  I sincerely hope he
                 manages to procure some balls for the rest of the party.
                 \_ That's rich coming from Mr. "I voted for it before I voted
                    against it."
                    \_ He voted for an *amendment*, which failed.  Without
                       the amendment, he voted against the *legislation*.
                       Is this so hard to understand?  -tom
                       \_ That would be two different "its" not the same one.
                          \_ Yes, that's exactly my point.  -tom
                    \_ That's right, same guy.  The world always loves a
                       comeback / redemption story, and it works for me.
        \_ So it's not remotely possible that most of them think (privately
           of course, it wouldn't do to say so publically) he'd actually be
           a decent justice?  That maybe he's not an executive-crushing
           firecracker and he might actually be <gasp> pro-life, but he might
           still be a good justice?
           \_ Nope.  They blew their chance in the hearings with meandering
              questions and the Kennedy nonsense, and then the media jumped
              on the "crying wife" story and killed any further chance of
              questions.
              \- OP inquiry: what is the reason to oppose ALITO and not
                 ROBERTS?
                 \_ Excellent question. The answer is: none. Roberts should
                    not have been approved.
                    \_ Shrug, my impression of Roberts is of a very smart,
                       honest, conservative dude from Harvard who did pro-bono
                       work for gays because he believes in the cause.
                       My impression of Alito is of a not-so-smart, weaselly
                       foot-soldier being rewarded for a lifetime of furthering
                       party causes with a lifetime appointment, one that
                       sends a clear, resounding message to all other
                       moderately intelligent slimeballs. -someone else
                       \- I'm not thrilled with ALITO (Initially he seemed
                          more reasonable than later on), but I am not sure
                          there are grounds to not put him on to a court with
                          THOMAS. The problem with the Democrats was
                          windbaggery more than cowardice. Did you see the
                          ratio of words uttered by BIDEN and "Killer" TEED
                          KENNEDY to ALITO. It was like 3.5, 3.2 words to 1.
                          PAT LEAHEY is perhaps becoming my favorite Democrat.

1/27    Anlin windows vs. Milgard windows.  An installation company recommended
        Anlin to me.  They showed me a demo window.  The features are good and
        it seems well-constructed.  But then Milgard seems more popular.  Any
        recommendations?  Thanks.
        \_ The previous owner of my house installed Milgard windows. I
           am in the process of tearing out the vinyl crap in favor of
           wooden windows.
           \_ I can see how that would increase privacy but wouldn't your
              wooden windows make it equally difficult to see out?  :-)
        \_ Have you tried Microsoft?
           \_ I've thought about it, but I'm not sure the color of my shoes
              will match current interest rates.

1/27    I've enabled suexec and ExecCGI in my apache2. I created a simple
        CGI that when `whoami` is executed, claims as me instead of
        www-data|http. Great. However, when I tried the same thing in
        php, it no longer executes as me. Why is that?
        \_ mod_php 'executed' stuff is run as the webserver uid
        \_ You'd have to run PHP under CGI to get this to work, and then it
           would be as slow as any other CGI stuff.  You can run it under
           FastCGI, but then you'd have to have one FastCGI setup per user,
           as I understand it.

1/27    Army admits to kidnapping family members as tactic:
        http://csua.org/u/et0 (yahoo news)
        \_ I didn't think that was a big deal for the Army.
           \_ Hostage taking is a very big deal.
        \_ So what?
           \_ You probably approve of the rape, wiretapping and torture, too.

1/27    Hi mehlhaff, can you restart your motd,v archiving please?  Thanks!
        \_ mehlhaff, please rtfm (man crontab) and setup a cron to make
           your archiver more reliable. Having to start it manually is
           pretty silly IMHO.
           \_ Someone obviously doesn't know mehlhaff.

1/27    Anyone know of a effective way to block all BitTorrent traffic?
        I'm using pf on OpenBSD and I've tried STFW but as near as I can
        tell, blocking the default ports is useless b/c most BT clients
        are using non-standard high number ports (and I can't block all
        of these for other reasons).
        \_ packet payload inspection.
            According to a recently published paper by AT&T Labs
            1, inspection of the data packets that are transmitting
            between clients is a good way to detect BitTorrent
            traffic. The communication between BitTorrent clients
            starts with a handshake followed by a never-ending
            stream of length-prefixed messages. The header of the
            BitTorrent handshake message uses the following format:

            <a character (1 byte)><a string (19 byte)>

            The first byte is a fixed character with value '19',
            and the string value is 'BitTorrent protocol'. Based
            on this common header, you can use the following
            signatures to identify BitTorrent traffic:

            * The first byte in the TCP payload is the character 19 (0x13)
            * The next 19 bytes match the string 'BitTorrent protocol'
           http://www.f5.com/solutions/technology/rateshaping_wp.html
           brought to you by google and "bittorrent traffic signature"
           \- i'm a little busy to go into depth right now [generic
              p2p detection and killing off the sessions is something we
              are trying to do at industrial strength levels] but the
              approach that makes the most sense sort of depends on your
              relationship with the other users, number of users [can you
              respond via a phone call and telling them to stop, or by
              quashing the traffic [batch vs. realtime detection], will
              you have 0 tolerance or allow some legitmate use], whether
              you want to kill off "most" of the traffic [low hanging
              fruit] or trying to aim for 100%, and related to that,
              your data volume sizes and how crafty the people you are
              trying to catch are ... like say you are ignoring http
              due to data volume and they use http port for the traffic].
              there was a reasonable presentation on this at the "hot-p2p"
              event last year. how c and the above advice is good too.
              SNORT may be simpler for you to use than BRO and i would be
              surprised if there wasnt a BT sig for SNORT.