Short and to the point. This section features my thoughts on anything from business and finance to technology and science. http://www.electronicrealitysolutions.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=5 Wed, 08 Sep 2010 12:14:31 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/images/M_images/ers_rss.png http://www.electronicrealitysolutions.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=5 Electronic Reality Solutions main news feed. http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/556/11/ Say what you will of Twitter but the ills of social networking and DDOS attacks against controversial bloggers only scratches the surface. According to security researchers Twitter has become a command and control channel for botnets (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/08/13/twitter_master_control_channel/). IT World describes the tweets of a now deactivated account (http://www.itworld.com/security/74613/twitter-botnet-command-and-control?source=ITWNLE_nlt_today_2009-08-14) which disseminated instructions to compromised computers designed to gather personal information for a group of identity thieves in Brazil. Though the discovery is a first for Twitter it doesn't taken an expert to realize that this vector is incredibly promising and falls under the "malicious content hidden in mundane Internet traffic" channel which hackers are exploiting with ever increasing frequency. While services like IRC and chat are being blocked or falling under ever increasing scrutiny hackers are quietly moving to other methods of instructing zombie computers like HTTP/HTTPS. Twitter, in spite of obvious service problems, is a very promising method as its popularity and user base grows because botnet commands can hide amongst normal tweet traffic. Editorials - Technology Sun, 16 Aug 2009 08:54:47 +0100 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/557/11/ Why not over complicate this? The original chart contained 66 cells (http://www.thestandard.com/news/2009/08/07/dumb-windows-7-upgrade-chart-sparks-spat?source=nlt_weekly) but was later pared down to 14 by blogger Ed Bott. The key sticking point is the ability to "upgrade" install Windows 7 over Vista and XP rather than forcing users to do a "clean install". In my opinion Windows users are better off conducting a clean install when upgrading their OS, especially if the prior OS is exhibiting slowness, quirkiness or isn’t running just right. I keep my systems incredibly clean but still find myself reinstalling every 2-3 years due to hardware replacement or upgrades. Regardless it’s probably a better idea to back up your data, lay hands on the original CD/DVD application media and start fresh with Windows 7. Editorials - Technology Wed, 12 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0100 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/558/11/ I can't remember the last time I walked into a Blockbuster, for my family Redbox has been the way to rent movies for some time. Only now are the movie studios realizing that the novel and convenient concept of movie rental at your local grocery store is a threat to their bottom line. As such both Universal and FOX have forbade wholesalers from selling movies to Coinstar (http://arstechnica.com/media/news/2009/08/fox-joins-universals-war-on-redboxs-dvd-rental-kiosks.ars), owner of Redbox, until 30-45 days after the initial DVD release. Coinstar has in turn pursued legal action on the grounds that the studios are "engaging in anti-competitive behavior and abusing copyright law." I'm hopeful the two parties can come to some sort of arrangement however I'm not convinced the studios will allow Redbox to keep it's $1 per day rental rate. I'm also skeptical of the touted threat to DVD sales. Redbox is more of a threat to NetFlix and Blockbuster than to other outlets due to the downright shoddy condition of some of the rental disks plus the lack of ancillary packaging materials. Editorials - Business Fri, 07 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0100 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/554/11/ A recent report by the Brookings Institute paints "job sprawl" as a menace ( http://www.brookings.edu/reports/2009/0406_job_sprawl_kneebone.aspx) is disingenuous at best. While the report laments the exfiltration of jobs from the city center it fails to recognize the benefits both in quality of life and environmental impact. Key Points: Jobs are moving out of the city to where the people are. Meaning shorter commutes and less time idling in traffic which is one of the most polluting activities. Job exfiltration is a straw man for the more alarming concern over the exfiltration residents. The article falsely assume that if more jobs were in the city more workers would choose to live closer to town. This is not the case. Atlanta, GA is a perfect example. The argument that job sprawl is bad for the economic health of the nation is false. There is no evidence that the distribution of jobs throughout a metro area have a negligible impact on either job creation or worker productivity. Editorials - General Mon, 06 Apr 2009 22:14:10 +0100 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/548/11/ It seems there is no such thing as bad press, at least for Facebook. Despite a major personnel shakeup (http://valleywag.com/5070144/the-facebook-layoffs), a controversial redesign (http://www.benparr.com/2008/09/my-thoughts-facebook-revolt/) and a growing reputation as a professional liability (http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2008/11/13/facebook-postings-land-teachers-in-hot-water) the site continues to enjoy an ever increasing user base and new found popularity. Among social media sites it sits firmly atop the heap and appears to have a bright future ahead. But buzz alone can not address some of the critical issues the site will face in the coming months. First and foremost the site has yet to significantly monetize (http://www.itworld.com/internet/57602/facebook-twitter-making-money-takes-back-seat-growth) anything other than advertisement. The current and project economic climate will not bode well for the online ad market and it's imperative that the company finds other avenues of revenue if it is to become a long term player. But Facebook is not alone in this dilemma as it is shared by virtually every social site on the web. Editorials - Technology Fri, 14 Nov 2008 09:20:01 +0100 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/547/11/ One thing is consistent about the future of technology, that it is always in flux. Take for example the social web revolution that begannearly ten years ago with the first blog. Since then we've seen a rapid evolution from homepage blog, to mobile blog, to video blog and then to micro blog. Beyond today the direction of progress is less visible than the certainty that it will take place. If you feel a bit left out by all of this progress you're not alone. By most metrics a large portion of the population still do not use online social media nor have any inclination to do so. For those who use social media it is more of a distraction than a way of life. Just as surfing was the choice way to waste time in the late nineties, so to is the now more popular pastime of Web 2.0 socializing. Still there are a few who've fully embraced the movement as a lifestyle, and it is those individuals that we often find ourselves enamored with. Editorials - Technology Tue, 23 Sep 2008 21:30:08 +0100 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/543/11/ Despite current popularity gasoline hybrids are not the only answer Are high fuel prices causing you to consider buying a hybrid? For many consumers the answer is yes but unfortunately the auto industry has not been able to keep up with demand. The most popular hybrid maker, Toyota, can deliver enough Prius models and cites a shortage of batteries in part for the problem. Conversely domestic manufacturers have tried to retrofit existing models as hybrids but thus far have met with lackluster sales given the vehicles poor MPG rating compared to Asian and European offerings. Editorials - Business Tue, 08 Jul 2008 22:24:11 +0100 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/542/11/ It seems odd that a drought could affect the lives of so many people living so far from the land. A hundred years ago a drought would have meant failed crops, sick or dying livestock and hardship for everyone. These days we depend less on the weather to meet our immediate needs but we still suffer the effect of long-term wet and dry seasons. Even as floodwaters inundate parts of the Midwest drought continues to be a concern throughout the southeast and southwest. Editorials - General Thu, 19 Jun 2008 23:18:45 +0100 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/525/11/ Despite what bloggers may say or what the government is hesitant to admit, the United States is in a recession and consumers and businesses know it. The latest round of unemployment statistics not only revises the numbers for January and February but also indicates the largest number of lost jobs since 2001. In all 232,000 jobs were lost since the beginning of the year (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23953769/) and by most accounts that number is expected to rise. Editorials - Business Mon, 07 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +0100 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/496/11/ Forbes magazine has dubbed Charlotte one of the most miserable places to live. However the city was in good company ranked along side sites such as Los Angeles, New York City and Philadelphia. The criteria was based on several factors including unemployment, personal tax rates, commute times, weather and crime. In truth such a declaration is merely a grab for attention and to sell a few magazines. The survey compared 150 of the largest metropolitan areas and ranked them against one another. In relative terms it not surprising that both New York and Los Angeles live up to their reputation as more violent and crime ridden than other cities. However violent crime aside the surprising statistic that forced Charlotte to the top of the list was the sad state of job creation in the region. According to the article while the local population has soared 32% job creation has not kept pace with unemployment up more than 50%. What is unclear from the text is what this jump is attributed to. Locals are readily aware that high paying white collar jobs have brought many to the area while the eroding blue collar base has greatly contributed to unemployment. Of course the least surprising statistic is the regions tendency toward violent crime. Outside of the city is seems that Charlotte too lives up to its reputation just like New York and LA. America's Most Miserable Cities (http://www.forbes.com/2008/01/29/detroit-stockton-flint-biz-cz_kb_0130miserable.html) Imagine living in a city with the country's highest rate for violent crime and the second-highest unemployment rate. As an added kicker you need more Superfund dollars allocated to your city to clean up contaminated toxic waste sites than just about any other metro. Unfortunately, this nightmare is a reality for the residents of Detroit. The Motor City grabs the top spot on Forbes' inaugural list of America's Most Miserable Cities. Editorials - General Fri, 01 Feb 2008 00:00:00 +0100 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/483/11/ Some IT folks are just total jerk asses. I was talking with a friend of mine over the weekend who is involved in a legal situation (he's the lawyer) with a former IT contractor who essentially erased confidential information and reset all the passwords in the system. Situations like this aren't uncommon and businesses have to take strong measures to counter malicious activity from former employees. In most cases larger organizations have a strict security policy whereby all access codes and credentials are deactivated, company property is confiscated or turned in, and ex-employees must sign a written statement saying that they have purged all confidential data from their systems. In more extreme cases a company may go so far as to probe and scan all internal systems in search of logic bombs or other malicious pieces of code, however this practice is rare. A fine example of how things can go wrong, and better yet the consequences of doing so, is illustrated in the recent account of man who was sentenced to 30 months in jail for planting destructive code in his former employer's computer system (http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080109-sysadmin-tries-fails-at-being-l337-hax0r-gets-jail-time.html ). The plot was eventually discovered when the logic bomb failed to "detonate" or execute correctly at the preset time. When asked why he did it the perpetrator stated that he thought he was going to get laid off. Fortunately for the company the guy wasn't as good of a programmer as he thought. Regardless such behavior tarnishes the reputation of every honest IT worker in the market. I've witnessed and experienced and ever encroaching noose of distrust and precaution when dealing with both systems admins and business owners. This is unfortunate because for any IT project to be successful you must have a large measure of trust and respect from all parties involved. In some way the ever increasing rash of "hacker" stories have contributed to the silent distrust often reserved for those handling large sums of money or the keys to the department vending machine. Though the accounts are sometimes comical to those of us in the technical world, we must be aware that the proposition of an attack from within can be terrifying to the uninitiated. Heck, it's scary even to someone who knows the risks and procedures all too well. In truth the only option we have to is to conduct ourselves in a professional manner and to make every attempt to root problems before they escalate. Then again that is really the charge of any professional who's given the keys to the kingdom. Editorials - Technology Wed, 09 Jan 2008 00:00:00 +0100 http://electronicrealitysolutions.com/content/view/477/11/ Inevitable as it may be, it's certainly over hyped in typical fashion "Change is inevitable -- especially in stock-car racing, where the roots of the sport are deep in innovation. And now even that has changed with the full-season implementation of the Car of Tomorrow in 2008." -NASCAR.COM (http://www.nascar.com/2007/news/headlines/cup/11/22/nextel.cup.moments/index.html) The Nextel Cup is no more, a new more locked down car has been introduced and we're still using 1950s technology. Can anyone other than NASCAR call that innovation? Despite the hype NASCAR's premier series bears little difference between now and what it was five years ago. Sure the names have changed and teams have come and gone, but can anyone really make a claim that stock car racing has moved ahead by leaps and bounds? NASCAR is a racing series directed at the mass market, lowest common denominator audience. To present the series as anything less is disingenuous. NASCAR maintains it's king of the hill status because of easy to understand technology and an emphasis on driver personalities. There is nothing wrong with this strategy but to claim than change is driven by innovation rather than corporate strategies and "leveling the playing field" is ludicrous. Fans continually lament how the sport has changed and that things were better in the "good ole days". Oddly enough most of these fans readily admit to having watched NASCAR for five or six years. That's a relative blink of the eye in respect to the decades long history of the series. Having watched for over twenty I can say that the more things change the more they stay the same. Changes are made, usually for the benefit of the show, but many things stay the same. NASCAR is still about team work, rough and tumble door to door action and flawless pit stops. The point is that there is one defining characteristic about NASCAR that has made it a successful enterprise and a fan favorite for all of these years. That's the predictable nature of the technology, teamwork, and for the most part the rules coupled with the unpredictable nature of the personalities and the on track action. Things may have changed but the Sprint to the Cup Car of Tomorrow will still deliver the same entertaining races that fans have come to expect. Editorials - Auto Racing Sat, 24 Nov 2007 08:59:57 +0100