Aug 082024
 

Enlarge / EUS panel test weld at the Michoud Assembly Facility on Tuesday, February 9, 2021. (credit: Michael DeMocker/NASA)
The NASA program to develop a new upper stage for the Space Launch System rocket is seven years behind schedule and significantly over budget, a new report from the space agency’s inspector general finds. However, beyond these headline numbers, there is also some eye-opening information about the project’s prime contractor, Boeing, and its poor quality control practices.
The new Exploration Upper Stage, a more powerful second stage for the SLS rocket that made its debut in late 2022, is viewed by NASA as a key piece of its Artemis program to return humans to the…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://arstechnica.com/?p=2041826

 2024-08-08  Comments Off on Ars Technica – A new report finds Boeing’s rockets are built with an unqualified work force
Aug 042024
 

The ‘CRT Effect’ myth says that the reason why pixel art of old games looked so much better is due to the smoothing and blending effects of cathode-ray tube (CRT) displays, which were everywhere until the early 2000s. In fits of mistaken nostalgia this has led both to modern-day extreme cubism pixel art and video game ‘CRT’ filters that respectively fail to approach what pixel art was about, or why old games looked the way they did back with our NES and SNES game consoles. This is a point which [Carl Svensson] vehemently argues from a position of experience, and one which is likely shared by quite a few of our readers.
Although there is some possible…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://hackaday.com/2024/08/03/pixel-art-and-the-myth-of-the-crt-effect/

 2024-08-04  Comments Off on Hackaday – Pixel Art and the Myth of The CRT Effect
Jul 312024
 

Small stay of execution in ‘exceptional circumstances’ promised as lawsuits start to fly

As the DigiCert drama continues, we now have a better idea of the size and scope of the problem – with the organization’s infosec boss admitting the SSL/TLS certificate revocation sweep will affect tens of thousands of its customers, some of which have warned that the short notice may have real-world safety implications and disrupt critical services.…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/31/digicert_certificates_extension/

 2024-07-31  Comments Off on The Register – More than 83K certs from nearly 7K DigiCert customers must be swapped out now
Jul 312024
 

Automattic’s self-immolation continues apace. They are about to find out that pivoting from “here’s some mildly-convenient free image hosting to put an avatar on your email address” to “Enterprise-ready, planet-incinerating cryptocurrency grift” is not going to go the way that they think it will. Today might be a good day to install my “Mirror Gravatar” WordPress plugin, before the mass exodus. Gravatar blog: “Mastering Decentralized Identity for Business”: The internet is evolving into Web 3.0, with a shift that brings decentralized applications and services to the forefront. […] Blockchain technology is fundamental to decentralized identity systems. Here’s why: […] For instance, Ethereum’s smart contract functionality lets you create complex identity management systems that operate autonomously…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.jwz.org/blog/2024/07/gravatar-dunning-krugerrands/

 2024-07-31  Comments Off on jwz – Gravatar Dunning-Krugerrands
Jul 292024
 

Today’s links

A profoundly stupid case about video game cheating could transform adblocking into a copyright infringement: Actual property rights are less important than the metaphorical property rights of “IP.”

Hey look at this: Delights to delectate.

This day in history: 2004, 2009, 2019, 2023

Upcoming appearances: Where to find me.

Recent appearances: Where I’ve been.

Latest books: You keep readin’ em, I’ll keep writin’ ’em.

Upcoming books: Like I said, I’ll keep writin’ ’em.

Colophon: All the rest.

A profoundly stupid case about video game cheating could transform adblocking into a copyright infringement (permalink)
Here’s a weird consequence of our societal shift from capitalism (where riches come from profits) to feudalism (where riches come from rents): increasingly, your rights to your actual property (the physical…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://pluralistic.net/2024/07/29/faithful-user-agents/

 2024-07-29  Comments Off on Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow – Pluralistic: A profoundly stupid case about video game cheating could transform adblocking into a copyright infringement (29 Jul 2024)
Jul 252024
 

Web puzzles don’t protect against bots, but humans have spent 819 million unpaid hours solving them

Updated  Google promotes its reCAPTCHA service as a security mechanism for websites, but researchers affiliated with the University of California, Irvine, argue it’s harvesting information while extracting human labor worth billions.…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/07/24/googles_recaptchav2_labor/

 2024-07-25  Comments Off on The Register – Forget security – Google’s reCAPTCHA v2 is exploiting users for profit
Jul 242024
 

Barely six weeks after the XScreenSaver for Android Privacy Policy fiasco, Google, is up to brand new fuckery. As far as I can tell, they’re saying that if I don’t give them a copy of my driver’s license, they’re going to remove XScreenSaver and XDaliClock from their “Play” [sic] store.

So that’s obviously not going to happen.

And gosh, I’m all broken up about the consequences.

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.jwz.org/blog/2024/07/your-personal-information-is-very-important-to-us-part-two/

 2024-07-24  Comments Off on jwz – “Your personal information is very important to us.”, part two
Jul 192024
 

Spotted one in the wild!

This is definitely an improvement. Now the extremely loud fan is running 24/7 to display a PSA against using MICROS~1 products, instead of whatever advertising bullshit was there before.

Advertising shits in your head, so thanks for enabling this upgrade, MUNI!

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.jwz.org/blog/2024/07/i-agree-with-this-message-5/

 2024-07-19  Comments Off on jwz – I agree with this message
Jul 132024
 

Logical replication is a powerful feature in PostgreSQL that allows for real-time data replication between databases. It can be used for performing major version upgrades using a blue/green setup where you have two databases, allowing you to test and switch over to a new version with minimal downtime. Logical replication can also be use to facilitate database migrations between different environments, using the same technique and tooling.
In this post, I will describe the process of setting up simple replication and switchover between two databases using pg_easy_replicate.

External feed Read More at the Source: https://postgr.es/p/6zV

 2024-07-13  Comments Off on Planet PostgreSQL – Shayon Mukherjee: Use pg_easy_replicate for setting up Logical Replication and Switchover in PostgreSQL
Jul 082024
 

The US Postal Service has been retaining metadata on snail mail for years. Back before mass scanning of every piece of mail was a reality, law enforcement requests had to be a bit more targeted. Investigators had to put in requests that required the postal service to log information about any mail sent to/from certain addresses or between certain addresses.
These days it’s far less complicated. As millions of Americans know, you have the option to have photos of all your incoming mail sent to your email, giving you a glimpse into the very near future in terms of mail service.
More than a decade ago, the technology finally achieved what law enforcement entities have always wanted:…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.techdirt.com/2024/07/08/for-whatever-reason-the-us-post-office-is-still-running-its-mail-cover-surveillance-program/

 2024-07-08  Comments Off on Techdirt. – For Whatever Reason, The US Post Office Is Still Running Its Mail Cover Surveillance Program
Jul 082024
 

Automated Major Version Upgrades in Percona Operator for PostgreSQLPostgreSQL major versions are released every year, with each release delivering better performance and new features. With such rapid innovation, it is inevitable that there will be a need to upgrade from one version to another. Upgrade procedures are usually very complex and require thorough planning. With the 2.4.0 release of Percona Operator for PostgreSQL, […]

External feed Read More at the Source: https://postgr.es/p/6zI

 2024-07-08  Comments Off on Planet PostgreSQL – Sergey Pronin: Automated Major Version Upgrades in Percona Operator for PostgreSQL
Jun 282024
 

Retailers are actively exploring and deploying facial recognition and analysis as part of their security and loss-prevention strategies to safeguard their customers and employees, margins and profitability. Corsight AI provides both face biometrics and computer vision analytics, and has a major new client to showcase its capabilities. Mall of America (MOA) has integrated facial recognition into its security infrastructure, joining forces with Corsight AI to implement its facial recognition system, which MOA lauds for its high accuracy, reliability, and privacy protection. There have been several firearms incidents at MOA over the past several years. The biometric system identifies Persons of Interest (POIs), including banned individuals or those trespassing at the mall, people who may pose…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.biometricupdate.com/202406/mall-of-america-deploys-corsight-facial-recognition-after-gun-incidents

 2024-06-28  Comments Off on Biometric Update – Mall of America deploys Corsight facial recognition after gun incidents
Jun 282024
 

Well, we’ll see how long ShotSpotter/SoundThinking will keep making that New York money. The outlook is not good. A lot of this will depend on how well the NYPD can defend the useless product it’s spending millions on, but at the end of the day, the city still holds the purse strings and it has the power to terminate contracts that simply aren’t worth paying for.
The NYC comptroller performed an audit of the NYPD and ShotSpotter not with the intent of burying them, but simply to determine whether or not the NYPD was paying its bills on time and whether or not ShotSpotter was fulfilling the obligations of its contract.
The answer to both questions…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.techdirt.com/2024/06/27/nyc-comptroller-report-says-shotspotter-is-just-wasted-money/

 2024-06-28  Comments Off on Techdirt. – NYC Comptroller Report Says ShotSpotter Is Just Wasted Money
Jun 282024
 

Today, the Supreme Court declined to issue a ruling in Idaho and Moyle, et al. v. United States. Instead, it sent the case back down to the lower courts where anti-abortion extremists will continue to fight to strip pregnant people of the basic right to emergency care, including when their life is at risk.
While the court’s decision temporarily restores the ability of doctors in Idaho to provide emergency abortions required under the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act —EMTALA— by dismissing the case without affirming once and for all that pregnant people have a right to the emergency abortion care they need to protect their health and lives, the court continues to put pregnant patients…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.aclu.org/news/reproductive-freedom/the-supreme-court-just-declined-to-protect-emergency-abortion-care-for-pregnant-patients-heres-what-to-know

 2024-06-28  Comments Off on American Civil Liberties Union – The Supreme Court Just Declined to Protect Emergency Abortion Care for Pregnant Patients. Here’s What to Know
Jun 252024
 

The United States has now, for the first time in the more than 100-year history of the Espionage Act, obtained an Espionage Act conviction for basic journalistic acts. Here, Assange’s Criminal Information is for obtaining newsworthy information from a source, communicating it to the public, and expressing an openness to receiving more highly newsworthy information. This sets a dangerous practical precedent, and all those who value a free press should work to make sure that it never happens again. While we are pleased that Assange can now be freed for time served and return to Australia, these charges should never have been brought.
Additional information about this charge: 

EFF Statement on Assange Indictment and Arrest (April 11,…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/06/eff-statement-assange-plea-deal

 2024-06-25  Comments Off on Deeplinks – EFF Statement on Assange Plea Deal
Jun 172024
 

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy’s extraordinarily misguided and speech-chilling call this week to label social media platforms as harmful to adolescents is shameful fear-mongering that lacks scientific evidence and turns the nation’s top physician into a censor. This claim is particularly alarming given the far more complex and nuanced picture that studies have drawn about how social media and young people’s mental health interact.
The Surgeon General’s suggestion that speech be labeled as dangerous is extraordinary. Communications platforms are not comparable to unsafe food, unsafe cars, or cigarettes, all of which are physical products—rather than communications platforms—that can cause physical injury. Government warnings on speech implicate our fundamental rights to speak, to receive information, and to think. Murthy’s…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/06/no-online-speech-should-not-have-warning-labels

 2024-06-17  Comments Off on Deeplinks – The Surgeon General’s Fear-Mongering, Unconstitutional Effort to Label Social Media
Jun 112024
 

Iranian authorities have shared more details on the country’s upcoming law introducing facial recognition surveillance against women who fail to wear hijabs. According to the proposed Hijab and Chastity Bill, the police must create “intelligent systems for identifying perpetrators of illegal behavior using tools such as fixed and mobile cameras,” Iran International reports. Another article of the law requires the private sector including banks, transport companies, stores and businesses to upload CCTV footage to the police command of the Islamic Republic of Iran (FARAJA)” to identify violators. “We mandate that all entities, including the private sector to provide their cameras to FARAJA. All cameras must be connected to FARAJA,” says Amir Hossein Bankipour, a member…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.biometricupdate.com/202406/iran-shares-more-on-using-facial-recognition-to-police-hijabs

 2024-06-11  Comments Off on Biometric Update – Iran shares more on using facial recognition to police hijabs
Jun 112024
 

What’s German for ‘thank goodness for actually useful privacy regulations’?

Meta will start training its AI models using everyone’s social media posts though European Union users can opt out, a luxury the rest of the world won’t enjoy.…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/06/10/meta_ai_training/

 2024-06-11  Comments Off on The Register – Meta will use your social media posts to train its AI. Europe gets an opt out
Jun 072024
 

Learn how the combination of ORDER BY and LIMIT clauses in PostgreSQL affects query performance, and discover optimization techniques to maintain efficient database performance and fast query responses.

The post Performance impact of using ORDER BY with LIMIT in PostgreSQL appeared first on Stormatics.

External feed Read More at the Source: https://postgr.es/p/6wL

 2024-06-07  Comments Off on Planet PostgreSQL – semab tariq: Performance impact of using ORDER BY with LIMIT in PostgreSQL
Jun 052024
 

Click here to go see the bonus panel!

Hovertext:
Lot of people are gonna say we can’t build Star Trek teleporters, but we can do the first half, which is pretty good.

Today’s News:

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/execute

 2024-06-05  Comments Off on Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal (updated daily) – Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal – Execute