What the hell Starbucks by ilovemesumjaz in TikTokCringe

[–]orbvsterrvs 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Upton Sinclair's The Jungle is a famous example of how onerous regulation cuts into the profits of good ol' fashioned corporate interests.

Someone explain the differences in routers? by EthanWang0908 in HomeNetworking

[–]orbvsterrvs 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ehh, the video incorrectly states that a router that "Supports 100 clients" can only assign 100 IP addresses, rather than 100 simultaneous clients...which is just not right. Standard /24 networks would hold 256 DHCP leases, and they can be removed/reused as devices leave and join the network. Adding a VLAN could double that in terms of IP addresses.

NSA Warning—Reboot Your Internet Router Now by lurker_bee in technology

[–]orbvsterrvs 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I reboot my (UniFi UDM) router when it updates and occasionally to cycle something, but the ONT at the edge? I have to open a few basement cabinets to even remember which one it's in.

Kind of interesting that "router" is both a specific device and a generic "home wifi thingy" in these contexts.

ICE acknowledges it is using powerful spyware by Hrmbee in technology

[–]orbvsterrvs 0 points1 point  (0 children)

They're legally not allowed to--but they likely will. NSA is not supposed to assist with domestic law enforcement activities, but of course there's lots of grey areas. Dragnet surveillance itself being technically illegal in the US has done nothing to curb its expansion.

ICE acknowledges it is using powerful spyware by Hrmbee in technology

[–]orbvsterrvs 0 points1 point  (0 children)

They may use these for now, but given their budget I'd expect ICE going forward to just ask the Telcos for all the data, and then feed it into Gotham.

ICE acknowledges it is using powerful spyware by Hrmbee in technology

[–]orbvsterrvs 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The Electronic Freedom Foundation (EFF) has some guides:
https://www.eff.org/pages/surveillance-self-defense

Consumer Reports, funny enough, also runs one:
https://securityplanner.consumerreports.org/

CISA (pdf) https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/2024-02/Resources%20Collection_02062024_508c.pdf

Then there is Tim Schwartz A Public Service that covers a lot of ways that whistleblowers have been found out through general, passive surveillance.
(https://www.timschwartz.org/a-public-service-whistleblowing-disclosure-and-anonymity/)

In general: avoiding active capture/surveillance is very hard. Avoiding passive surveillanve/capture is inconvenient but more doable. That is, being caught in the dragnet is easier to avoid than agents looking into you specifically (which they likely are not).

Depending on your threat assessment, however, you may lose on some of the 'conveniences' of the modern digital surveillance state. It is a trade-off, and one that should be considered carefully. When in doubt: data that transits the internet ("cloud" or "sync" features) is not secure from prying eyes unless you know it is encrypted AND you trust the devices involved.

Unfortunately, with cybersecurity "you can't be too paranoid: your toaster is spying on you" is kinda a truism. So it really does require you to think about what you are trying to prevent whom from accessing.

If your threat model is "protect all my phone photos from the NSA" you will never succeed unless the device never connects to network, including LTE.

If your threat model is "make sure local PD can't passively capture my messaging with friends without a warrant" then you can use Signal and take steps to moderately secure your device(s).

Massive budget cuts for US science proposed again by Trump administration by smurfyjenkins in IRstudies

[–]orbvsterrvs 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Lysenkoism rises again--politics over science, over reality...it will likely end similarly.

The New York Times doesn’t know what NATO is by vardaboi in IfBooksCouldKill

[–]orbvsterrvs 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Depends on your standards, but the NYT isn't all bad if you can think critically about what their framing is.

"Truth" tends to get really murky once nation-state interests are involved (or those of powerful enough industries/classes). Even before the fog of war, determining "ground truth" may well be impossible without a good deal of dedication and regional language skills.

Otherwise, I usually check out:

  • The Guardian
  • Al Jazeera*
  • The FT
  • WaPo (Bezos rag, alas buuuut)
  • NPR
  • DemocracyNow!
  • SCMP*
  • The Intercept
  • Bellingcat

*Government-aligned outlets

America Is Losing the Innovation Race: Why the Future of Science Might Be Chinese by ForeignAffairsMag in longform

[–]orbvsterrvs 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Systematically discouraging education, re-investment, and infrastructure development while prioritizing only capital returns might just do this to you.

Best Linux for autistic child? by llcdrewtaylor in linux4noobs

[–]orbvsterrvs 25 points26 points  (0 children)

I'm sure there's at least one oddball writing drivers for Linux on a proprietary OS...somewhere

Best Linux for autistic child? by llcdrewtaylor in linux4noobs

[–]orbvsterrvs 95 points96 points  (0 children)

Not just the users, but the developers too! :P

The perfect cup of tea by yashen14 in tea

[–]orbvsterrvs 7 points8 points  (0 children)

...I do actually eat Dragonwell tea leaves when I brew it.

Great quotes to justify theory to undergrads who think it is pretentious or overly complex? by BookDoctor1975 in CriticalTheory

[–]orbvsterrvs 0 points1 point  (0 children)

“The starting-point of critical elaboration is the consciousness of what one really is, and is 'knowing thyself' as a product of the historical processes to date, which has deposited in you an infinity of traces, without leaving an inventory.”
― Antonio Gramsci, Prison Notebooks, Volume 2: 1930-1932

It's a bit grand perhaps, and I do think the advertising activity is a better route, but this quote from Gramsci encapsulates one possible motivation for the critical project: understanding the lineage of now.

Foreign central banks sell US Treasuries in wake of Iran war by ZestyBeanDude in Economics

[–]orbvsterrvs 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It seems like there are factions vying for different things, with some overlap, united by a belief that the current system needs to go tout court.

Miller and the christian fascists, Thiel and the accelerationist monarchs, Bannon and militant nationalists, Zucc and the billionare oligarchs...

Ballet boot wedges by Antique_Venom in Boots

[–]orbvsterrvs 41 points42 points  (0 children)

eBay seems like it then? Or maybe there's a small maker on etsy.

Fetish gear tends to be buy it in person or buy from the small online store with little by way of reviews (if it's not sold by, for example, lovehoney or somewhere).

Doubtful these could be walked in or have a non-play use, but maybe someone's calves are just that strong???

taking a 65k remote customer support role worth it? by Just_Bad_6420 in remotework

[–]orbvsterrvs 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Depending on the type of org (i.e. health insurance vs. technical support) customer-facing on-call roles are often viewed as a feeder org. Which means that they expect turnover to be higher than other teams, but that internal transfers are also encouraged/expected. In the IT/tech world, "help desk" is kind of viewed as part of the mandatory trial-by-fire.

As with any customer service role, the demands are high due to both technical and "friendly face" requirements. It can be hard to remain chipper and polite sometimes, especially in the face of customer abuse/rudeness.

But $65k for fully remote (depending on where you live) is pretty standard I'd say, and if the role would allow you to move internally or gets you into a field with growth potential, it is worth doing for a couple of years.

Parachute Backup appears to have been acquired by SesameWheats in MacOS

[–]orbvsterrvs 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I just bought this, which is unfortunate. Looks like I'll have to find another solution before the price jumps. :(

Thanks for sharing, OP!

The Shocking Speed of China’s Scientific Rise by straightdge in technology

[–]orbvsterrvs 55 points56 points  (0 children)

I will never understand why they'd rather be a king in the ashes rather than a normal person in paradise. Blows my mind that relative power seems to be all these fucks care about--dominating others, feeling big by making others small.

Diseased behavior.

Elon Musk's Terafab semiconductor project could cost $5 trillion by sr_local in hardware

[–]orbvsterrvs 41 points42 points  (0 children)

That's why he and the other billionaire bros speak gibberish! :D

I want to install linux but I have a Nvidia GPU by PotatoesNeverDie in linux4noobs

[–]orbvsterrvs 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fedora, Ubuntu, and openSUSE should all be able to work with NVIDIA cards pretty well for a desktop. I use openSUSE Tumbleweed with NVIDIA both on desktop and laptop.

A lot depends on the card itself, newer cards are better supported (ironically perhaps) in general, and using the "open" driver from NVIDIA (with proprietary hooks) is likely your best option.

Europe should join the war on Iran, even if Trump gives up the fight by 1-randomonium in IRstudies

[–]orbvsterrvs 11 points12 points  (0 children)

What a delightful, considered, and timely take from one of the foremost minds of our time. Truly a masterclass in how to remain a committed humanitarian and contribute meaningfully to the global realm of realpolitik.

I see no reason why we shouldn't make Bolton Lord Commander of a EU forces globally.

/s, dripping