Put it in neutral!
09/03/10 11:07 Filed in: Noteworthy
News
With all the
news stories involving runaway Toyota cars abounding
right now, I wanted to take a moment to pass on a
safety tip to anyone who may find themselves behind
the wheel of a runaway Toyota or any other make of
vehicle. Do not try to stop the car by simply
applying brakes. From everything I've read, that
won't work because the transmission is still allowing
the engine to provide power to the wheels. Instead,
put the car in neutral! Putting the car in neutral
disengages the transmission, which prevents the
engine from applying power to the wheels. This may or
may not cause the engine to rev like crazy and scream
like a banshee, but it will allow you to coast to the
side of the road and stop the car. Leave the car
running so that you still have power steering and
brakes. Once the car is stopped, turn the engine off.
If you don't own a Toyota car, but know someone who does, please pass this safety tip along to them by whatever means available to you. If you have a website, or are a member of a social networking site, take a moment to pass this tip on to others by blogging about it, putting it on your wall, and/or however else you can think of. Until this problem is fixed and Toyota cars once more become truly safe to drive, everyone reading this needs to do all they can to pass this safety tip along to others. Read More...
If you don't own a Toyota car, but know someone who does, please pass this safety tip along to them by whatever means available to you. If you have a website, or are a member of a social networking site, take a moment to pass this tip on to others by blogging about it, putting it on your wall, and/or however else you can think of. Until this problem is fixed and Toyota cars once more become truly safe to drive, everyone reading this needs to do all they can to pass this safety tip along to others. Read More...
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Pack it in, pack it out!
02/03/10 12:34 Filed in: Noteworthy
News
In an effort
to save money and avoid a tax increase Colorado City,
Co. has removed trash cans from a neighborhood park.
While reading the comments section under that story I
saw where some other cities have also done this only
to have trash bags and loose trash left all over the
park. Are we as a nation really so lazy and
thoughtless we just can't handle the idea of taking
our own trash OUT of a neighborhood park to help keep
that park open, while at the same time avoiding tax
increases? Read
More...
That's not going to improve your sex life
26/02/10 19:31 Filed in: Musings
What truly
amazes me about the latest phishing scam on Twitter,
is the number of people that got sucked into this
latest scam. I've been running the net way too long
to click on any link that promises a better a sex
life. I figure the chance of improving my sex life by
clicking on any link that comes to me via a social
networking site message or email, is about the same
as having Shemar Moore delivered to my door via Fedex
or UPS. Read
More...
Pay back that bail out money, before you pay yourself a bonus!
24/02/10 12:57 Filed in: Musings
I think that
until every penny of bail out money has been repaid,
no Wall Street banker or big business CEO whose
company received bail out money should be able to
receive even the smallest bonus. Until they get their
banks and businesses running in such a manner that
money, which was in effect a government loan in my
viewpoint has been repaid, not a damn one of them
deserve a bonus. Pay back that bail out money, before
you pay yourself a bonus! That should be the rallying
cry for every tax paying American right now.
Read
More...
Smack!
23/02/10 11:10 Filed in: Computing
With
technology advancing at the lightning speeds it is,
anyone on a computer who wants to take full advantage
of everything it has offer, is going to find his or
herself between a rock and hard spot when it comes to
the issue of privacy. In order to try and find some
kind of realistic middle ground between that rock and
hard spot, those using computers need to be well
aware of how they operate, as well as what really
lies beneath the surface of what may be on the other
side of our monitors. Read
More...
Weighing the risks
19/02/10 11:56 Filed in: Noteworthy
News
I've been
keeping a close eye on the story concerning the law
suit filed against the Pa. school district that is
accused of crossing privacy lines by using web cams
on laptops to spy on their students with. The school
finally did issue a statement stating they use the
remote feature only in the case of a stolen laptop,
and at no time have they ever violated privacy laws.
I'm not much impressed with said statement though
given the fact that I keep reading where a student
was accused of inappropriate behavior in his home,
and apparently presented with a photograph as
evidence of that behavior that was taken with the
built in web cam. So far, there has been no
indication that the student's laptop was ever
reported stolen.
Even with privacy safeguards like the school claims it has followed in place, isn't there a risk that a hacker could gain control of the remote feature on those distributed laptops via one of their Trojan Horse or other programs? And isn't there a terrible irony in the possibility that a hacker could possibly gain control of computers given to students to work on via such a Trojan Horse program? When one considers just how sick and vicious some of the hackers and trolls roaming the internet today are, I think the question of just how safe the laptops given to students really are, most definitely needs to be addressed. Should the answer to that question be not 100% safe, then when one considers what could happen if a hacker with pedophile tendencies gained control of one or more of those distributed laptops, it is enough to chill the blood of any loving parent.
Giving laptops out for students to work on is a wonderful idea. However, given the possible potential for misuse by the schools themselves, as well as by hackers, it is a wonderful idea that needs to be carefully thought out and well studied to insure that those gifts do not themselves become Trojan Horses that could wind up biting the givers and receivers of those gifts in the butt in some very sad and savage ways. What the school in Pa. has been accused of, could wind up only being the tip of the iceberg where that matter is concerned. Think about it.......
Even with privacy safeguards like the school claims it has followed in place, isn't there a risk that a hacker could gain control of the remote feature on those distributed laptops via one of their Trojan Horse or other programs? And isn't there a terrible irony in the possibility that a hacker could possibly gain control of computers given to students to work on via such a Trojan Horse program? When one considers just how sick and vicious some of the hackers and trolls roaming the internet today are, I think the question of just how safe the laptops given to students really are, most definitely needs to be addressed. Should the answer to that question be not 100% safe, then when one considers what could happen if a hacker with pedophile tendencies gained control of one or more of those distributed laptops, it is enough to chill the blood of any loving parent.
Giving laptops out for students to work on is a wonderful idea. However, given the possible potential for misuse by the schools themselves, as well as by hackers, it is a wonderful idea that needs to be carefully thought out and well studied to insure that those gifts do not themselves become Trojan Horses that could wind up biting the givers and receivers of those gifts in the butt in some very sad and savage ways. What the school in Pa. has been accused of, could wind up only being the tip of the iceberg where that matter is concerned. Think about it.......
Pa school is playing Big Brother
18/02/10 17:28 Filed in: Noteworthy
News
We are living
a world where many people are getting far too
accustomed to having their privacy invaded in various
ways by technology. Google maps are zooming in on
homes and businesses all over the world. GPS devices
are being used in a variety of ways that sometimes
cross legal lines when they used by stalkers to
pinpoint the location of their victims. RATT phones
supplied by suspicious spouses and other nosey people
are listening in to what should be private
conversations. And now a Pa. school district has done
the unthinkable, and is accused of eavesdropping on
its students inside their homes via remote controlled
web cams on the laptops it supplied to said
students.
Suit: Pa. school spied on students via laptops
(AP)
When you take into consideration that students are very likely to take those laptops supplied by the school into their bedrooms to do homework on, the idea of the school having remote web cams that can be turned on at any time, is disgustingly scary to say the very least.
The real irony here is that this Big Brother behavior by the school was uncovered when an assistant principal told a student he thought he had engaged in inappropriate behavior at home, then produced a photograph taken by the web cam on the computer supplied by the school as evidence. None of the stories I've read so far have said what the inappropriate behavior of the young student was. I can't help but feel that whatever that student did, it isn't half as bad as what the school has done by invading the homes of its students in the manner it has.
Some students from that school are now placing masking tape over the web cams and microphones on their school supplied computers. And though many are probably going to laugh at this, I actually started putting a small piece of sticky note over the built in iSight cameras on my macs a couple of years ago after watching a movie where a hacker took control of a computer web cam. I figured even back then, better safe than sorry when it came to that all seeing little eye on the top of my display screen.
The Lower Merion School District should ashamed of itself for violating the privacy of its students, as well their parents in the manner it has. They are at best, guilty of a form of illegal wiretapping, and at worst, no better than a pedophile who puts hidden cameras in bathrooms. The faculty members responsible for this breach of privacy need to be held accountable for their actions. And the school district as a whole needs to understand that their job of monitoring students does not extend past the boundaries of the schoolyard.
When you take into consideration that students are very likely to take those laptops supplied by the school into their bedrooms to do homework on, the idea of the school having remote web cams that can be turned on at any time, is disgustingly scary to say the very least.
The real irony here is that this Big Brother behavior by the school was uncovered when an assistant principal told a student he thought he had engaged in inappropriate behavior at home, then produced a photograph taken by the web cam on the computer supplied by the school as evidence. None of the stories I've read so far have said what the inappropriate behavior of the young student was. I can't help but feel that whatever that student did, it isn't half as bad as what the school has done by invading the homes of its students in the manner it has.
Some students from that school are now placing masking tape over the web cams and microphones on their school supplied computers. And though many are probably going to laugh at this, I actually started putting a small piece of sticky note over the built in iSight cameras on my macs a couple of years ago after watching a movie where a hacker took control of a computer web cam. I figured even back then, better safe than sorry when it came to that all seeing little eye on the top of my display screen.
The Lower Merion School District should ashamed of itself for violating the privacy of its students, as well their parents in the manner it has. They are at best, guilty of a form of illegal wiretapping, and at worst, no better than a pedophile who puts hidden cameras in bathrooms. The faculty members responsible for this breach of privacy need to be held accountable for their actions. And the school district as a whole needs to understand that their job of monitoring students does not extend past the boundaries of the schoolyard.