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Archive for the ‘Technology’ Category Categories: Technology
 Posted on January 13th, 2010I was reviewing the Google Zeitgeist page showing the top searches, patterns and trends of 2009.
The information is interesting and enlightening, in that I, in no way follow any popular trends in the US. I must be fringe, or just don’t care that much about celebrity or movie/tv entertainment: 7 of top 10 Google News – Fastest Rising, 6 of top 10 Google.com – Fastest Rising, and 100% of Google Image Search top 10 are all such trends. Google had dedicated trend pages for both Entertaining and Celebrity. If I dive deeper into these pages, I’m further aware that none of these celebrities are of interest to me except Michael Jackson and Les Paul. On the top ten TV and movies lists, I watch none of the TV shows (although that’s not a surprise as I don’t watch too much TV) and have only seen Star Trek and Avatar of the movie list. On the concert list, I’ve scene Blink 182 and U2 and don’t care to see them again, or the rest on that list. One story I’m impressed made the list is the Missing Link as the finding of “Ida” in Germany further shows evidence of evolution of humans. Stories like this make me wonder how humans will evolve in another 47 million years (if we make it past the 2000s first). Regarding Sports, Yankees, Steelers, Lakers, Red Wings, Roger Federer and of course Tiger Woods are all on top – no surprise for any. I am a little surprise that Coach K is the top and that the coaches list is dominated by American NFL Football and college basketball coaches. Lane Kiffin is well on his way to top the list of 2010 (and the one issue I’m on the side of Al Davis). Interesting too to see that Americans favor searching Chelsea football – the team I follow for now Arsenal is ranked 5th. Here in New York, top searches seem to be all services except I’m quite shocked that Hale and Hearty topped Shake Shack in local food searches. Soup and salads over burgers? maybe New Yorkers are trying to get healthy on their own and DON’T NEED a salt ban (get it Bloomberg?). The economy, healthcare (swine flu & universal health care), scandals (Bernie Madoff & Mark Sanford), bailouts (TARP & AIG) and disasters (tsunamis and earthquakes) all topped in the news for 2009 and will continue in some form into 2010. Haiti already starting the disaster trending again this year. The Stooges – Search And Destroy Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.  Traveling Smoker in front of 5th Ave Apple Store  Comments are closed I haven’t written many blog posts for the last few months of the end of ‘09. Mostly because I’ve been traveling and visiting with with family and friends I haven’t seen in over 6 months. When I travel my primary way to interact with people is in-person. I check email, social sites and twitter less frequently as I fill my time with meeting people for personal or business reasons. I’ve become aware in both my work and personal life, one of the few problems I have with so much reliance on [social] technologies is it separates people from the in-person nature of relationships. We write an email, chat and even phone in a call to catch up but I and many psychologists agree that this can never equal the chemical, emotional and physical bonds created when people are engaged at a close proximity or in-personal relationship. There are five human senses (hearing, sight, touch, smell and taste) and of those, social technologies only cover one, if you count reading someone’s thoughts put down in text some kind of hybrid of sight and sound. Of course video conferencing will bridge some of the sensory intake, but you can’t shake someone’s hand to get a sense of their confidence, smell their sweat if they might be nervous or… well I don’t recommend trying to taste your business partners and friend but there are reasons you may want to taste someone. The integration of all these senses along with a mysterious 6th, intuition (which can be just as important in nurturing relationships with people), have the ability to create robust profiles of in-person interactions that singular communication via text, web and even video chat can’t substantiate. Realistically, social networks and internet content services like Twitter are hear to stay (interesting article by David Carr NY Times on reasons why Twitter is hear for good) but we should all keep in mind that these services are still tools to be used to improve information exchange, facilitate personal or business relationships and transactions. However, eventually we’ll all have to step outside the house/apt and have a few pints with friends, catch up with the family over dinner or engage with your mate for some…. carnal knowledge. Here’s to getting out in public more in 2010.  Shot at one of many street fairs in New York – most likely between the sock guy and the grilled corn Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser. Comments are closed Technology is a part of everyones lives, now more so than ever. I never thought I would see the day that my mother got an iPhone before I would (or some other “cool” smart phone device – I’m still using a cracked Blackberry as shown below). 2010 is said to be the year we further our lives with tech and become more mobile, use more web based services (cloud computing), and demand that everything we do occur immediately (real time) and more locally defined (Geo tagging and local search). 2010 will drive people to use internet services more extensively than every before – we already are storing and sharing our photos and videos online (Flickr, Picasa, Smugmug, Fotki, YouTube etc.), email is primarily web based outside of corporate, we share thoughts and comments with friends through social networks (Facebook) and content services like Twitter, listen to our music on the web (Pandora Lala.com), we shop more online today and all our financing goes to online rather than physical bothering with physical bank runs or working with actual brokers. These trends will continue. 2009 saw the death of clunky desktops but soon we’ll be looking to build our own server networks at home using small dumb access points like netbooks or our smart phones to connect to the internet. Internet, and more specifically wireless, will become standard plumbing of our lives. No longer a luxury, we’ll be connected more than ever by not only our PCs but our phones (MagicJack, Google Voice, Skype, Gizmo), gaming consoles, book readers, HDTVs (Roku, Sling box, Boxee, Netflix etc.) and other smart kitchen or home appliances. Thanks to new operating systems (Window 7 & Chrome OS) and the expansion of high speed Internet services (FiOS and AT&T U-verse) we are free to roam and implement these tools of our life more freely. There’s a lot of talk about the Tablet making it’s presence known this year and I hope that’s true. Either it be Apple, Google (Android), Lenovo, or HP, it remains to be seen if these devices will live up to their hype. However, the big question every year will all this tech help to make my life more easier, organized, and connected or will I be spending too much money for more complicated ways of doing simple tasks (e-readers, news delivery, making a phone call). With so much openness and our information freely available over unsecured wireless connections, will we see an increase in malware and security breaches of our finances and personal identities. The Federal government is already being proactive in warning Small Business owners to take note and with the introduction of all new technology, we should all take our time with these steps and understand fully the repercussions and risks before trying to take advantage of the rewards. Mariah Carey had Billboard’s hottest played song of the decade with “We Belong Together”. Honestly I can’t say that I have even heard this song, but then again, I don’t listen to the radio anymore – Last.fm, Pandora, or my own vinyl and mp3 collection are my formates of choice. I realize this label is based on radio impressions which is an industry term for saying these are the tracks records labels paid heavily to have played on the airways, and thus force feed to the consumer to buy, download, play and then throw up all over in 3 months. Of the 10 listed, I can still handle Usher’s Yeah! (but I will always have my NOLA memories of Flo-Rider’s Low). Usher Featuring Lil Jon & Ludacris – Yeah! Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser. Although my Last.fm profile would say that Santogold was my artist of choice for the year, Last didn’t scrobe every play I made over the year and I think a few of the old ladies plays got integrated here (come on, I’m not that big of an Édith Piaf fan). Also on top of my Last.fm list is Thievery Corporation’s Mandala, which did have heavy rotation this last year in my iPod and I attented at least one of their live shows in 2009. Thievery is one of the most ethnically diverse groups I’ve heard, playing sounds ranging from Indian (tabla), Caribbean, reggae, house and jazz funk – all of which come together nicely on their latest release Radio Retaliation. They definitely epitomize my eclectic tastes in all these musical stylings thrown together into a congruent progression that is my iTunes collection. Mandala is a sweet track and up there for my top 5 of the year even though it was released late in 2008: Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.  Comments are closed
Comments are closed Categories: Technology
Posted on March 28th, 2009Imagine being a designer or any discipline: fashion, architecture, automobiles, or technology and having tools that would allow you to physically shape your project in real life before even producing a design draft? The technology would allow you to manipulating consumer products or designs in real-time with your fingers in a 3D representation of your idea. The concept can be thought of as “the ultimate form of digital printing”. First demoed at last year’s Intel Developer Forum (IDF), Programmable Matter, as it’s termed now, is looking more realistic in the next few years. The idea revolves around tiny glass spheres with processing power and photovoltaic for generating electricity to run the tiny circuitry. These particles called catoms would move relative to one another via electrostatic. Here’s a visual: Programmable Matter along with Intel’s Dynamic Physical Rendering (DPR) are some of the sweetest technology I’ve seen in years. Comments are closed Please contact Congress through this web site. This is serious shite. Please spread the word. The giant phone and cable companies are trying to take control of the Internet away from the public and convert it into their own private, corporate network They’re boasting that they’ll create premium lanes on the Internet so that people who can pay get seen and those who can’t don’t. Tell Congress to keep the Internet open and free and to protect the rights of users to see what you want to see and go anywhere you want to go on the Internet just as you can today. Consumers Small Business Schools & Churches * How Did it Happen? How it happened Now, however, the phone and cable companies boast that they will create premium lanes on the Internet for higher fees, and give preferential access to their own services and those VIPs who can afford to �pay to play.� They have already blocked certain services and have the power to block or degrade any service that competes with them: * Do you want the phone and cable companies to block online movies or cheaper phone service over the Internet? If you answered no to any of these questions, then Congress needs to hear from you. What Happens if Congress Destroys Net Neutrality? * Discrimination � Phone and cable companies will be able to steer you to Web content and services that they own or have exclusive deals with. We need to keep the Internet as an open marketplace and not allow a few rich heavy-hitters that will dictate where you can go. What Should Congress Do? 1. Re-establish basic safeguards that require broadband providers to treat all Internet traffic in a nondiscriminatory manner, without favoritism. Everyone who uses the Internet will be affected if Congress gives in to the telephone and cable companies� demands. Please, take action today to preserve the open Internet: * Join the Coalition Mailing List (“Sign Up for Email Alerts” at right) By working together, we can save the Internet. Comments are closed
So I made the dive, posted my first free listing to CL at 9PM Tuesday night and went back to Battle Carrot … Iron Chef. Next morning, I have about 50 emails for this thing and in a rush to get things done I didn’t have time to reply. By 4 PM, I had about 130 and decided to take my address off. I looked through most of them then, and realized how many of these people need an education first before they get a computer. A few were sappy, and a few were straight up – when can I get it!. I ended up giving the computer to two ladies that started a non-profit organization in Harlem called Two Grandmas, Inc. – they support the NYC community and provide donated art and educational supplies to disenfranchised families in the area. My good deed for the day. But here are a few ad replies that caught my attention – spelling left intact. “Hey yo, when can i get it?” by a guy with an email address: yanksruleu2@… “MY LITLE BRITHER COULD USE THE COMPUTOR” – looks like he may need EDU first “I will pick it up now. What your address and number so I can come get you.” – uh ok. “hi i need it bad can u call me chris” – uh Chris, NSAs are in a different forum “Hi , Am email you regarding a free computer you was offering in and ad posted on craigslist in the free section, I will like to pick up item at your convenience, at the earliest possible time, if is still available and free.” – I liked the “Still Available?” responses better – GET TO THE POINT! “do you still have your computer available? i don’t know much about computers, except that mine is broken and i desperately need a new one. I use a windows computer is a DELL anything like that? hope to hear from you!” “I’d like it, can I pick it up Saturday?” when I explicitly stated must be picked up by Thursday. “Hi I’m a poor family and could really use the computer to help give my 2 children a better education. Please let me know if I can pick it up from you” from a guy that works at Computer Wrecker Inc. (a computer dismantler and reseller) “Where you live, I’ll come by to get it.” from a guy with an email address in2crock@ if crock is anything like Crack ROCK, this guy isn’t even getting near my address. “God has sent you to me to help our church. We appreciate your patronage and I look forward to meeting you my son. ….” from theprophet@… whoa.. no I’m not contributing to cults. “Our office could use addition computer resources, which boro are you located and I’ll have someone come by to pick it up.” from NYPDblu5@… didn’t know the police were so strapped they had to look for free resources on CL “can it be shipped?” – sure for 1000$ jack ass… “C Bass here from Queens…” – sorry, started laughing to read the rest, just picturing good old Sea-Bass from the movie Dumb and Dumber gesturing “over here!” “Hi big boi, I would love to get a hold of that thing, and pick up the computer too of course. Please let me know when we can meet.” signed freakycamgurl392@… we have a winner!!! Comments are closed Categories: Technology
Posted on February 25th, 2006Alex in Mich. who purchased the 1 billionth song from iTunes scored a new 20-inch-screen iMac, 10 iPods and a $10,000 gift card for more songs. For the boy or girl who just became the 6.5 billionth person on the planet, nathan. Comments are closed
Fake “zombie” computer spies are infiltrating zombie networks and recording online exchanges between the networks and their human commanders. The fake zombies are deployed by members of the German Honeynet Project, which started collecting data on zombie armies in November 2004 and released the first paper detailing how to spy on zombie networks on Monday. “With the help of honeynets we can observe the people who run botnets – a task that is difficult using other techniques,” says Thorsten Holz, a researcher at the RWTH-Aachen University, Germany, and founder of the German Honeynet Project. Zombies are ordinary PCs infected with a piece of malicious code – known as a bot – that instructs the PC to secretly log onto an online chat room and obey the instructions issued by the chat room’s controller. The bot may have been deposited into the computer by a virus such as SoBig or MyDoom, downloaded from a bogus website or inserted by a hacker directly. Holz’s fake zombies have enabled him to spy on over 100 different botnets, some comprised of up to 50,000 zombie computers – PCs under the control of hackers. But he has noticed a new trend towards groups of smaller botnets, all controlled by the same person. This is probably an attempt to make botnets more difficult to infiltrate by distributing their control over multiple servers More at the link: Spies infiltrate zombie computer networks Comments are closed |
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I’m an avid reader of 
My GF had this Pentium II computer sitting around our house for almost a year. We never could get a charity over to pick up the thing because either it was considered too old or they would only make trips for donations of multiple computers… so it sat, collecting dust under our dining table. I tried to sell it for 40 bucks for about two weeks and only got a few offers for the Harmon Kardon speakers or to have the monitor taken off my hands… for free…. cheap bastards on CL I tell you… parted out this thing was worth at least 50!!!
Found this article about honeypots and zombie wars interesting: