Part-Time Pundit: Technology / Internet Archives

July 14, 2006

Tin Foil Hats and Net Neutrality

My latest DI column is up on Network Neutrality.

Tin foil hats and net neutrality John Bambenek Posted: 7/14/06 Network neutrality is a sham issue that deserves to be put to the violent death of all such faux rallying cries. After a great deal of research and after interviewing Frannie Wellings, government relations manager of FreePress, I have found nothing to base the charge that evil big business is plotting the demise of the Internet and with it the free world.
What is clear from studying the issue is that the push for network neutrality is being driven by regressive politics and paranoia. These can be summarized by three components.

The first is the theory of the stupid consumer, the belief that the consumer lacks the motivation, intelligence, or moral wherewithal to advocate for their own interests in the marketplace. Basically, consumers are too stupid to realize they are getting the shaft and they need the benevolence of a federal agency to make sure consumer's values are respected (usually without even having to consult with consumers to know what those values are).

The second is that of perennial suspicion of any corporation. Usually when an entire group is generalized by the actions of a small minority, it is called stereotyping. When the group being stereotyped is corporations, it is called "progressive politics." Corporations are evil by definition, so they must not be allowed any freedom. In short, it's the legislative codification of rank bigotry.

The last is that corporations exist solely to stick it to consumers. Supply and demand is cast aside as an archaic concept. There is no such thing as a free exchange, there is only the continuous attempt by big business to pillage the countryside. The fact that Internet service providers have shown no inclination to start regulating what Web sites their consumers are seeing doesn't matter. They'll do it eventually because they hate society and their board members weren't loved enough by their mommies.

Never mind that it was corporations that built the Internet into what it is today. If it was left up to the government, we'd still be using Gopher. Ironically, up until about ten years ago Internet service providers exercised complete control over what services were available and what merchants you have access to online. That model was abandoned by the very same corporations that are now demonized. No consumer wanted it, advertisers stopped paying for it and it fell apart. The eminent return of a business model that was trashed a decade ago is absurd. It was Internet service providers that led the charge to open the floodgates, not the government and not partisan organizations.

The fact that the net neutrality debate is being driven by militant left-wing organizations makes the entire proposal suspect. Having attended FreePress events, I know their definition of a free media is one where society universally accepts and believes the regressive political agenda. If the Electronic Frontier Foundation were pushing this, or another organization that has some credentials in technology, the debate would have credibility. The fact that the organizations pushing this are purely partisan smacks of a political agenda.

The net neutrality debate is nothing more than the attempt to build a bogeyman and then demand the government do something about it. I'd prefer my congressmen deal with real problems instead of invented nightmares.

Posted by John Bambenek at 8:56 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 29, 2006

Enterprise Security – IT Security Solutions: Concepts, Practical Experiences, Technologies edited by Fumy and Sauerbrey

This book has the look and feel of a business school textbook, moving from topic to topic in a fairly academic matter. It is a combination of 14 essays from prominent authors in the topics they are writing on. This allows for a book that can treat a wide range of concepts and still maintain credibility and a tone of expertise with the downside being the structure of each essay is slightly different between authors. As such, it is meant more as a higher-level introduction to concepts and ideas that swirl around the information security industry but it is couched in the language of business in the hopes that enterprises will adopt a measure of culture change in the area of security. The book seems to have a more European focus, but it is not without value to an American audience.

The book begins with an introduction by the editors laying out what they view as three areas driving enterprise security and what they hope to accomplish with the book. They finger security threats, creating new business opportunities, and regulatory compliance as the main drivers of security investment for the enterprise. In their experience, the editors see businesses still creating processes and applications designed around speed and convenience with security being an afterthought. The editors then establish 4 items they wish to see changed in industry: review of information security requirements, assuming legal liability for poor security practices (it'll never happen), creating a security-aware culture, and security against insider threats. The rest of the book doesn't seem to truly address how to bring these four changes to fruition.

The rest of the book is divided into three sections: (1) Concepts & Trends (better described as emerging security technologies), (2) Practical Experiences, and (3) Technologies & Standards. As far as organization, it would seem better to have Practical Experiences come last in the book and address the technologies discussed previously; however this is not a serious deficiency in the book.

Parts 1 and 3 are presented to the reader from a high-level perspective. It assumes little prior technical knowledge and thus is accessible to a wide audience, particularly the business community. It helps the reader understand why these technologies are beneficial from an economic standpoint. Readers who are technically savvy may get easily bored from this section unless they are trying to develop a "business case" for the adoption of security mechanisms for their organization. In that regard, these essays help bridge the gap between "tech heads" and the "pointy-haired management".

The Practical Experience section is a collection of four case studies of four different organizations facing four different problems. It helps the reader to understand the challenges and obstacles in actual implementation of technologies. It helps bridge the gap between book-learning and real-world experience. 3 of the 4 essays revolve around PKI and digital identities. It is clear based on the focus of the editors that authentication is important to them, however and expansion of case studies based on their other goals would make the text that much more effective.

All in all, the book is a valuable primer for consultants and non-savvy managers who are seeking to get their minds around security and how best to sell the investment of security.

Posted by John Bambenek at 4:59 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 27, 2006

The 25 Worst Tech Products of All Time

This amuses me... I'm surprised no one thought of compiling a list of the 25 worst of all time. It's a hoot.

1 America Online (1989-2006) 2 RealNetworks RealPlayer (1999) 3 Syncronys SoftRAM (1995) 4 Microsoft Windows Millennium (2000) 5 Sony BMG Music CDs (2005) 6 Disney The Lion King CD-ROM (1994) 7 Microsoft Bob (1995) 8 Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 (2001) 9 Pressplay and Musicnet (2002) 10 dBASE IV (1988)

Posted by John Bambenek at 6:33 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 5, 2006

Book Review: Linux Desktop Pocket Guide by David Brickner

The Linux Desktop Pocket Guide is a valuable resource for new users to the Linux world. Almost everyone has heard of Linux and recognizes it as the “next big thing”. However, many people are taken aback at the shear number of Linux distributions. The advantage of Windows is that there is only one company to go to and that provides some simplicity. With Linux, there is no one-stop shopping, and each distribution has different strengths and weaknesses. This book helps the novice user to navigate the most popular distributions to decide which will work best for them.

The book compares Fedora, Gentoo, Mandriva, SUSE, and Ubuntu with a focus on their desktop environments. This book has some value for system administrators, particularly new ones, but will make the biggest impact to the casual home-user to the beginner power-user.

It covers a wide range of desktop issues including Gnome/KDE support, application support, updating the OS, configuration for hardware support, and probably most usefully laptop support. Laptops have traditionally been less than friendly with laptops and this book helps navigate the big issues making Linux a viable option for laptops.

It is a little thick as pocket guides go but that’s more of a factor of the breadth of material covered. Like many of the O’Reilly books, it is concise and easy-to-read. It is accessible to the unsophisticated user and presents information in manageable chunks. For those looking to get a handle on Linux and making it work for them, this book is a great resource.

Posted by John Bambenek at 12:33 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Book Review: Google: The Missing Manual by Milstein, Biersdorfer, and MacDonald

The problem with Google is that it does not seem to advertise all of its tools, or for that matter, all the functions within their tools. For instance, did you know that you could search for Vehicle Identification Numbers (VIN) with Google as see the auto history?

Google: The Missing Manual provides an essential source that brings together all the tools and hidden functions in the tools and puts it into an easy-to-read volume. The book is separated into four main components: searches with Google, general Google tools, Google tools specific to webmasters, and Gmail.

Google searching is the best-known tool that Google offers. It is the most popular web search on the Internet also. However, many of its functions are not as widely known, as they ought to be. This book goes through all the different items besides web pages that can be searched for (phone numbers, UPC codes, tracking numbers, and so on) and then goes into the search syntax. It presents search tools individually in easy-to-digest chunks to make it accessible to even the novice user.

The general Google tools include some of the newest Google tools such as Google Maps, Google Desktop and Google Print. The book goes through these point-by-point to give the reader a solid grasp on the latest tools available. It even includes a chapter on how to shop with Google and integrated Google with your web browser.

There are two tools, in specific, that have been to some measure controversial, Google Desktop and Google Search History. Google Desktop allows you to Google search the files on your computer for words and phrases. Google Desktop has to be explicitly installed and set up, but Google makes it clear (and the book re-emphasizes) that no data from your PC is sent to Google. Google Search History allows you to view previously executed searches (if you have a Google account and are logged in). Some are less than comfortable with the prospect of having all web searches archived, however, there are instructions in the book to delete the data and the service.

Third, the book goes through how to use Google to get the most out of your website. It talks about the rudimentary tasks of getting listed in Google searches and how to use AdSense and AdWords, which is invaluable information for the uninitiated. However, the most interesting chapter is on a tool not yet publicly available (you have to request an account and they grant them on a slow but ongoing basis), Google Analytics. Google Analytics harnesses the power of Google to get the most data and statistics out of your website visitors. It helps you know what keywords work, what your visitors are interested in, and what pages are or are not popular. After reading this section you’ll unfortunately have to curb your enthusiasm because you’ll have to wait in line like everyone else after you sign up.

Lastly, the book goes through all the power and functions of Google Mail. As a relatively new service, Gmail keeps adding functions for the user. This book has the most up-to-date information on how the manage mailboxes; work with the contact list, and setting up keyboard shortcuts. Unfortunately with the speed of Gmail development some functions like Google Talk integration are missed by the time the book hit the shelves.

All in all, the book is a solid resource for anyone trying to get the most out of Google and harness that many powerful tools Google brings to bear.

Posted by John Bambenek at 9:08 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

August 11, 2005

TippingPoint: An IPS That Doesn't Work and Support That's Even Worse

I recently got some demo equipment from TippingPoint to evaluate at my office, particularly their intrusion prevention system. This device may work for you, it may not, I simply have no idea because I never got a functioning device. The first one they sent out had major packet loss as soon as I turned on the IPS functionalist. After two days the sent out a new one. If that one was even plugged into the network (even in Layer 2 / dumb hub) mode, it dropped all packets.

I’m fair, sometimes things get broken in shipping or maybe you got a bad card but I wasn’t about to give them a third shot. After reporting the second device’s problems it took them a week to get back to me via email to get my address to send out a third device. By then I had already shipped all the devices back. If it takes them a week to get back to me without phone calls to tell me what I already know, it is doubtful that their support is up to par if I ever had a problem when this thing got into production.

It is simply not that hard to do rudimentary testing on a device for problems. Hint: if it drops packets, it’s broken. It’s much less hard for support to give you a courtesy call to let you know they haven’t forgotten about your failed and under-warranty device. In the end, they may write the greatest rules in the world, but their devices (or at least their testing of them) suck and their support is deplorable.

Posted by John Bambenek at 8:48 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 23, 2005

Google worth more than GM and Disney Combined

Drudge has been following the outrageous valuation of Google. You can see the charts here, but in essense, the market values Google more than GM and Disney combined.

The dot-com boom isn't over folks, not with insane valuations like this. Google is a search engine, they have no theme parks, no factories, and so on. The dot-com bust was caused by crazy valuations that were realized to be myths. This valuation is that much more of a myth.

Posted by John Bambenek at 9:00 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 18, 2005

Handler Diary up

Many hours late, I've finally gotten the Handlers Diary up for today over at the Internet Storm Center. It's late not, so I'm not going to post on some more Newsweek stuff now, maybe tomorrow.

Posted by John Bambenek at 1:10 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

May 5, 2005

Google Attempts to Silence Conservative News on Internet?

Stories of Google's bias in dealing with conservative news sites and ads are many these days.

Michelle Malkin writes frequently on the bias (here, here, here, and here)

Here are some other sources.
- Threadwatch: Google Accused of Political Bias (again)
- I Hate Google: Is Google Red or Blue?
- The Buzz Blog: Google Censors Conservative Ad
- Inside Google: Google Accused of Liberal Bias

That's what I first thought of when I read this Yahoo article on Google trying to patent a method to search on the QUALITY of news (you can read the application here)

Now, we have a company with a history of not giving a fair shake to conservative news and denying conservative ads and they're developing an algorithm they want to use to determine quality of news. Where do you think conservative news sources will rank on this? I think we all know the answer here. This company because of the large amount of control it has because of the dominance of its search engine could begin to try to diminish the voice of conservatives on the net. This would be a liberals dream, because people turn more and more to the internet for news, now they can make sure appropriately vetted news articles from the politburo get top rankings. It looks to me like an outright attempt to regain control of the new media.

Contact the patent office to let them know this method shouldn't be approved and use the petition and contact info below to let Google know they shouldn't try to silence the conservative majority of this nation.

Patent Office Contact Info:

Patent Application 20050060312
Section TC 2100 703-305-3900 703-746-9306
E-Mail: customerservice2100@uspto.gov

Here's Right March's petition and the Google contact info they have.

http://www.rightmarch.com/050305.htm

NOTE: For those who want to take more direct action, here are some contacts at Google:

Google Inc.
1600 Amphitheatre Parkway
Mountain View CA 94043 phone: 650-253-0000
fax: 650-253-0001

Questions on "Ad Approvals" -
http://snipurl.com/ela9

Media Contacts:
Google Media Hotline 650-930-3555 or
press@google.com

Corporate PR
David Krane
650-623-4096
david@google.com

Corporate PR
Steve Langdon
650-623-4950
slangdon@google.com

Advertising PR
Michael Mayzel
650-623-4565
mmayzel@google.com

Technology PR
Nathan Tyler
650-623-4311
nate@google.com