Nov 262022
 

“Federation” now apparently means “DDoS yourself.” Every time I do a new blog post, within a second I have over a thousand simultaneous hits of that URL on my web server from unique IPs. Load goes over 100, and mariadb stops responding.

The server is basically unusable for 30 to 60 seconds until the stampede of Mastodons slows down.

Presumably each of those IPs is an instance, none of which share any caching infrastructure with each other, and this problem is going to scale with my number of followers (followers’ instances).

This system is not a good system.

Previously, previously, previously.

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.jwz.org/blog/2022/11/mastodon-stampede/

 2022-11-26  Comments Off on jwz – Mastodon stampede
Nov 262022
 

I’ve been playing with an Orbic Speed, a relatively outdated device that only speaks LTE Cat 4, but the towers I can see from here are, uh, not well provisioned so throughput really isn’t a concern (and refurbs are $18, so). As usual I’m pretty terrible at just buying devices and using them for their intended purpose, and in this case it has the irritating behaviour that if there’s a power cut and the battery runs out it doesn’t boot again when power returns, so here’s what I’ve learned so far.First, it’s clearly running Linux (nmap indicates that, as do the headers from the built-in webserver). The login page for the web interface has some text…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://mjg59.dreamwidth.org/61725.html

 2022-11-26  Comments Off on Fedora People – Poking a mobile hotspot
Nov 262022
 

I’ve been playing with an Orbic Speed, a relatively outdated device that only speaks LTE Cat 4, but the towers I can see from here are, uh, not well provisioned so throughput really isn’t a concern (and refurbs are $18, so). As usual I’m pretty terrible at just buying devices and using them for their intended purpose, and in this case it has the irritating behaviour that if there’s a power cut and the battery runs out it doesn’t boot again when power returns, so here’s what I’ve learned so far.First, it’s clearly running Linux (nmap indicates that, as do the headers from the built-in webserver). The login page for the web interface has some text…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://mjg59.dreamwidth.org/61725.html

 2022-11-26  Comments Off on Fedora People – Matthew Garrett: Poking a mobile hotspot
Nov 242022
 

It was just a little more than 24 hours ago that SDL 2.26 released for this widely-used library by cross-platform games and other software for abstracting software/hardware interfaces. With SDL 2.26 released, SDL 3.0 is now in development. One of the first stages of that big Simple DirectMedia Layer update is removing a lot of old platform code and other obsolete targets…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.phoronix.com/news/SDL3-Dumping-Old-Code

 2022-11-24  Comments Off on Phoronix – SDL3 Begins Dumping A Lot Of Old Code: GLES1, OS/2, DirectFB, WinRT, NaCl & More
Nov 242022
 

Enlarge / Just a few of the Activision franchises that will become Microsoft properties if and when the acquisition is finalized. (credit: Microsoft / Activision)
The Federal Trade Commission will “likely” move to file an antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft and Activision Blizzard to block the companies’ planned $69 billion merger deal. That’s according to a new Politico report citing “three [unnamed] people with knowledge of the matter.”
While Politico writes that a lawsuit is still “not guaranteed,” it adds that FTC staffers “are skeptical of the companies’ arguments” that the deal will not be anticompetitive. The sources also confirmed that “much of the heavy lifting is complete” in the commission’s investigation, and that a…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://arstechnica.com/?p=1899979

 2022-11-24  Comments Off on Ars Technica – Report: FTC “likely” to file suit to block Microsoft/Activision merger
Nov 232022
 

Enlarge / No, those donut tracks aren’t mine, officer. (credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS)
The Perseverance rover landed in Mars’ Jezero Crater largely because of extensive evidence that the crater once hosted a lake, meaning the presence of liquid water that might once have hosted Martian life. And the landing was a success, placing the rover at the edge of a structure that appeared to be a river delta where the nearby highlands drained into the crater.
But a summary of the first year of data from the rover, published in three different papers being released today, suggests that Perseverance has yet to stumble across any evidence of a watery paradise. Instead, all indications are that water…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://arstechnica.com/?p=1899919

 2022-11-23  Comments Off on Ars Technica – No sign of the expected lake bed where Perseverance rover landed
Nov 232022
 

People with long commutes usually come up with tricks to stay focused and alert and avoid the dangerous tendency to zone out during the drive. One trick I used to use was keeping mental track of the various construction projects I’d pass by on my way to work, noticing which piers on a new highway overpass were nearing completion, or watching steelworkers put together the complex rebar endoskeletons of a new stretch of roadway.
One project I loved to watch back in the 80s was a new high-rise going in right next to the highway, which fascinated me because of the construction method. Rather than putting together a steel frame, laying out decking, and covering each floor…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://hackaday.com/2022/11/23/books-you-should-read-why-buildings-fall-down/

 2022-11-23  Comments Off on Hackaday – Books You Should Read: Why Buildings Fall Down
Nov 232022
 

To save the children, we must destroy everything. That’s the reality of the EARN IT Act. I mean, you can get some sort of sense of what you’re in store for just by reading the actual words behind the extremely labored acronym: Eliminating Abuse and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies Act. Whew. It’s a mouthful. And, given the name, it seems like this would be Congress putting funding towards supporting moderation efforts that target abusive content.
But it’s nothing like that. It’s all about punishing tech companies for the acts of their users. Like FOSTA before it, the bill has zero interest in actually targeting the creators and distributors of illegal content, like child sexual abuse…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.techdirt.com/2022/11/23/earn-it-act-will-make-the-internet-worse-for-everyone-by-undermining-privacy-and-security/

 2022-11-23  Comments Off on Techdirt. – EARN IT Act Will Make The Internet Worse For Everyone By Undermining Privacy And Security
Nov 212022
 

Supposedly leftist President Boric wants Chile to sign the TPP — which would eliminate Chile’s right to regulate many areas of business and health.

Fossil fuel companies use these business-supremacy treaties to attack measures for decarbonizing. Boric also wants Chile to sign the Energy Charter Treaty, a
business-supremacy treaty designed specifically to interfere with
measures to reduce use of fossil fuels. It is effectively a suicide
pact.

If you are in Chile, launch a fight against this absurd plan.

External feed Read More at the Source: https://stallman.org/archives/2022-sep-dec.html#20_November_2022_(President_Boric_wants_Chile_to_sign_the_TPP)

 2022-11-21  Comments Off on Richard Stallman’s Political Notes – President Boric wants Chile to sign the TPP
Nov 202022
 

At the November 8, 2022 election, Nevada voters passed Question Three, the top-five initiative, with 52.5% of the vote. It does not go into effect unless the voters pass it again in November 2024.

If it had been in effect in 2022, it is almost certain that no minor party candidates would have been on the November ballot for either Governor or U.S. Senator. At the 2022 primaries, there were ten major party candidates for Governor, and twelve for U.S. Senator. Based on what has happened in California 2012-2022, and Washington 2008-2022, the only choices for those two offices in November 2022 would have been five major party members for each office.

External feed Read More at the Source: https://ballot-access.org/2022/11/19/if-nevada-had-top-five-in-place-in-2022-minor-parties-would-have-almost-surely-been-off-the-ballot-for-governor-and-u-s-senator/

 2022-11-20  Comments Off on Ballot Access News – If Nevada Had Top-Five in Place in 2022, Minor Parties Would Have Almost Surely Been Off the Ballot for Governor and U.S. Senator
Nov 202022
 

Libinput 1.22 was released this weekend by José Expósito as the newest version of this widely-used input handling library that is now common to the Linux desktop by both X.Org and Wayland based environments…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.phoronix.com/news/libinput-1.22-Released

 2022-11-20  Comments Off on Phoronix – Libinput 1.22 Brings More Input Hardware Quirks, New Flat Acceleration Profile
Nov 172022
 

NORILSK, RUSSIA—In response to complaints of skyrocketing ticket prices caused by excessive fees, live-entertainment monolith Ticketmaster has opened a new workhouse where Taylor Swift fans can labor to earn tickets for her forthcoming Eras Tour, sources within the music industry confirmed Friday. “Whenever I feel…

Read more…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.theonion.com/ticketmaster-opens-new-workhouse-where-taylor-swift-fan-1849797023

 2022-11-17  Comments Off on The Onion – Ticketmaster Opens New Workhouse Where Taylor Swift Fans Can Labor To Earn Their Eras Tickets
Nov 122022
 

The Green Party national website lists 14 Green Party members who were elected or re-elected on November 8, 2022. See here. All are non-partisan races. … Continue reading

External feed Read More at the Source: https://ballot-access.org/2022/11/11/fourteen-green-party-candidates-elected-on-november-8-2022/

 2022-11-12  Comments Off on Ballot Access News – Fourteen Green Party Candidates Elected on November 8, 2022
Nov 122022
 

Pictured here: a federated instance stabbing itself in the brain. The more I read about Mastodon promoters’ opinions on how it should work, the more I think, “How could you possibly think that is how it is going to go?” One group of people want a Federated Feed Reader: They want to read the clever updates and memes from their friends and favorite celebrities. They want to post a GIF and have their friends validate them by hitting “like” on it. They want to see a feed of all the people they follow. And, maybe, some recommendations or trends. For these people, the best situation is: “It just doesn’t…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.jwz.org/blog/2022/11/mastodon-and-federation/

 2022-11-12  Comments Off on jwz – Mastodon and federation
Nov 112022
 

Should the government be allowed to collect your DNA—and retain it indefinitely—if you’re arrested for a low-level offense like shoplifting a tube of lipstick, driving without a valid license, or walking your dog off leash? We don’t think so. As we argue in an amicus brief filed in support of a case called Thompson v. Spitzer at the California Court of Appeal, this practice not only impinges on misdemeanor arrestees’ privacy and liberty rights, but also violates the California Constitution. 
Since 2007, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office (OCDA) has been running an expansive program that coerces thousands of Orange County residents annually to provide a DNA sample in exchange for dropping charges for low-level misdemeanor offenses….

External feed Read More at the Source: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/11/eff-files-amicus-brief-challenging-orange-county-cas-controversial-dna-collection

 2022-11-11  Comments Off on Deeplinks – EFF Files Amicus Brief Challenging Orange County, CA’s Controversial DNA Collection Program
Nov 112022
 

In almost every case, proportional fonts are superior. They look better and they’re easier to read. One obvious exception is when programming but, even there, not everyone agrees. Still, most programmers are pretty firm in their preference for monospaced fonts when programming.
Some writers also like monospaced fonts when preparing their manuscripts, probably for atavistic reasons involving typewriters. I thought that was silly when I read it but then I realized I do all my writing in a monospaced font even though Emacs would allow me to easily use a proportional font if I wished.
All of that notwithstanding, it remains true that monospaced fonts are a bit harder to read. Blake Watson has a very interesting post…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://irreal.org/blog/?p=10941

 2022-11-11  Comments Off on Planet Emacsen – Irreal: Almost Monospaced Fonts
Nov 112022
 

You don’t need much to do a persistence of vision display. A few LEDs and a processor is all it really takes. [B45i] made a simple PC board with five LEDs and an ATtiny CPU. There’s a battery and it connects to a fan to spin around.
While the project is pretty simple, we liked two aspects of it. First, he provides very detailed explanations about how to use an Arduino to program the Tiny using the Arduino IDE.

The other item of interest is the two web applications that can build arrays of data for the POV display easily. Examining the code is instructive, too, because of the use of bit coding and enumerations to save space.
The…

External feed Read More at the Source: https://hackaday.com/2022/11/09/1-pov-display-goes-round-and-round/

 2022-11-11  Comments Off on Hackaday – $1 POV Display Goes Round and Round