David L. Farquhar on technology old and new, computer security, and more
Are Lionel trains AC or DC? That’s a trick question. Traditionally, Lionel trains run on AC but there are exceptions. And even when Lionel trains run on AC, they sometimes do some DC trickery. Let’s explain.
Traditional Lionel trains from before 1969 can generally run on either AC or DC, but are better off running on AC. Some Lionel trains sold in discount stores in the 70s and 80s did run on DC, as a cost reduction measure.
Unlike most of the job market, cyber security is a growing field with no signs of slowing down, lots of upward mobility, and good prospects for getting a raise once in a while. At the time of this writing, there are 500,000 security vacancies in the United States alone. There’s little hope of filling most of them. One of them could be you, if only someone would discover you. Here’s how to get an entry level cyber security job.
There’s no proven formula for getting into the cyber security field. But through a combination of networking and saying the right things on your resume and in the interview process, you can get into this field. Someone less smart than you has a security job. With some perseverance, you can get in too.
I’m not sure any three words strike more fear into the hearts and minds of security analysts than the words “Qualys false positives.” Some number of false positives is unavoidable. But the perceived number of false positives is usually an order of magnitude larger than the real number of false positives. Here’s how to estimate how many you should have, how to investigate them, and break the gridlock.
I picked up a Dell Optiplex 3010 for cheap cheap over the weekend. It was a nice computer for its day, especially in the right configuration. But its day was a long time ago at this point. That said, it definitely has upgrade potential to get more life out of it.
The Optiplex 3010 is still fast enough to be serviceable, and can take an SSD, a video card upgrade, and up to 16 GB of RAM. This configuration will run Windows 10 well and even works surprisingly well for midrange gaming.
Is Windows 7 safe to use? No. Next question? Alright, I guess I need to explain why, without being so dismissive.
Support for Windows 7 ended in January 2020, which means there have been no new security updates for Windows since. That means Windows 7 isn’t safe to use, even with a firewall and antivirus.
Somehow I escaped doing helpdesk or phone support early in my career. But I didn’t escape selling computers at retail at Best Buy. And since this was the 90s, I have some good stories. Some of them happened to me. Some happened to coworkers. None of them should be true.
Depending on the look you’re after, dust can detract from your model railroad layout’s appearance. Dust especially shows up in photographs. Here’s how to dust your model railroad quickly and easily.
A former classmate told me his employer is making him take Kevin Mitnick’s security awareness training course. “Is he really the world’s most famous hacker?” he asked me. “And if he is, why should I trust a word he says?”
Those are excellent questions. I happen to have reviewed all of Kevin Mitnick’s various courses for a previous employer, so I’m familiar with them. And I had to take Kevin Mitnick Security Awareness Training this year myself. I don’t agree with the life decisions Kevin Mitnick made that landed him in prison, of course. But overall, I had only very minor objections to his training. Here’s why.
Thanks to an influx of volunteers donating computer power to support COVID-19 research, the Folding@home project is now, in effect, the world’s most powerful supercomputer. But how much computer power is necessary to make a difference? After comparing notes with a couple of others, I think I have some answers.
After the hugely popular Windows 7, Microsoft followed up with the terrible Windows 8, and the only slightly less terrible Windows 8.1. And then they came out with Windows 10, which, while not as beloved as Windows 7, certainly was better than 8. But they skipped 9. Why no Windows 9?
Believe it or not, the reason Microsoft skipped Windows 9 has nothing to do with Windows 7 or Windows 8. The reason is a decades-old shortcut that was beyond Microsoft’s control.