Bonum Certa Men Certa

Links 09/11/2022: Many Programming Picks



  • GNU/Linux

    • Desktop/Laptop

      • TecMintThe Most Used Operating Systems in the World [Ed: Android/Linux most widely used, not Windows]

        If you have ever used a PC, Macbook smartphone, tablet or any smart device (which is likely the case since you are reading this tutorial) chances are you have interacted with an operating system.

        An operating system is a program that handles all the aspects of a device such as a PC or a smartphone including managing all the software and hardware functions. It handles key aspects such as booting, device management, memory management, process management, loading and executing of programs, and many more.

    • Applications

      • UbuntubuzzScrcpy: Control Your Android Phone Screen from Ubuntu Laptop

        This tutorial will help you to use Scrcpy (screen copy) program so you can remotely and visually control your Android phone from Ubuntu laptop. Fortunately, it is available on Ubuntu and does not require root to work. This is useful for surprisingly many purposes will be explained below, including being helpful when your screen is damaged. Now let's try this excellent program!

      • PowerDNSSecond Beta Release of PowerDNS Recursor 4.8.0

        We are proud to announce the second beta release of PowerDNS Recursor 4.8.0.

    • Instructionals/Technical

      • Data SwampMirroring sources used in nixpkgs (software preservation)

        This may appear like a very niche use case, in my quest of software conservancy for nixpkgs I didn't encounter many people understanding why I was doing this.

      • Automate code build and deployment with ansible | Pablo Iranzo Gómez blog

        Let’s say that we want to keep our system updated with some code which is not distributed as a regular package, but as a code in a repository (which unfortunately, it’s a pretty common situation).

      • Linux HandbookUsing Brace Expansion in Bash Shell

        Brace expansion {..} is one of the most underutilized but awesome shell features in Linux.

        You can use it to print sequences of numbers and letters. Add two integers or letters separated by two dots in curly braces and see the magic.

      • DebugPointHow to Enable Netflix Full HD (1080p) in Ubuntu and Other Linux

        A simple tutorial for you to enable full HD 1080p Netflix playback in Ubuntu and other Linux.

        The steps are a little different in Firefox and Chrome. Follow accordingly.

        Netflix playback in Ubuntu and other Linux distributions is in only HD 720p by default. It’s from their current requirement, which is mentioned here for its HTML5-based player in the browser.

      • DebugPointHow to Watch Netflix in Linux [Easy Guide]

        Here’s how you can watch Netflix in Ubuntu and other Linux distributions in a super simple way.

        Watching the popular streaming service Netflix requires a small additional step besides simply logging on and watching. Because you need to specifically enable DRM (Digital Rights Management) in your web browser. And modern HTML5-based streaming uses CDM (Content Decryption Module). DRM/CDM technology enforces certain audio and video security requirements to play in your browser. The movies, TV shows, and documentaries that you watch are copyright protected and encrypted. And you need an additional add-on or plugin in your web browser to decrypt them first to play.

      • ID RootHow To Install Apache Maven on Rocky Linux 9 - idroot

        In this tutorial, we will show you how to install Apache Maven on Rocky Linux 9. For those of you who didn’t know, Apache Maven is an open-source software project management and build a tool that is tailored specifically for Java projects. It is based on the Project Object Model and contains XML files to define configuration details, project dependencies, and other data. It is designed to help Java developers build projects by proficiently documenting and reporting important project-related information.

        This article assumes you have at least basic knowledge of Linux, know how to use the shell, and most importantly, you host your site on your own VPS. The installation is quite simple and assumes you are running in the root account, if not you may need to add ‘sudo‘ to the commands to get root privileges. I will show you the step-by-step installation of Apache Maven on Rocky Linux. 9.

      • It's FOSS31 Linux Commands Every Ubuntu User Should Know

        What are the essential Ubuntu commands?

        I have been asked this question several times by regular readers, and I have tried to avoid answering it.

        Why? Don’t I know Ubuntu commands? Nope. That’s not the reason. It is because it is difficult to categorize them. What’s essential to me may not be essential to you.

      • Linux CapableHow to Install Google Chrome on Fedora 37/36/35

        Most users of Linux know Firefox is, by default, installed on most desktops. This is no exception when it comes to Fedora. However, as good as Firefox, desktop users may often prefer installing another browser, in this case, Google Chrome. The best method to install Google Chrome on a Fedora desktop is to use the official repository, from which you can instantly grab any new updates when they surface.

        Chrome is still the most prominent used browser worldwide, so many updates do come along if a security flaw is found. I do think having it direct from the source instead of waiting for a maintainer from a third party to push it is better. Also, as a bonus, people who like testing edge software can install the beta or unstable repository builds using the same technique, with a bit of modification in the following tutorial on your Fedora desktop using the command line terminal.

      • Linux CapableHow to Install Telegram on Fedora 37/36/35

        Cross-platform messaging apps are becoming increasingly popular as they offer a convenient way to stay in touch with friends and family no matter where they are. Telegram is one such app that offers several unique features that set it apart from its competitors. Perhaps most notably, Telegram provides end-to-end encryption for all chats, meaning that only the sender and recipient can read the messages. This makes Telegram an ideal choice for those who value privacy and security.

        In the following tutorial, you will learn how to install the Telegram client on a Fedora Linux desktop using the command line terminal with two installation methods with cli: RPM Fusion and the natively installed Flatpak package manager.

      • Linux Shell TipsHow to Install and Secure MySQL on Rocky Linux

        This article guide takes us through the installation, configuration, and testing of MySQL database server software on a Rocky Linux distribution.

        Independently, MySQL is an ideal open-source database management software. Dependently, it completes the LEMP stack by linking up with Linux, Nginx, and PHP/Python/Pearl.

        With MySQL, data query and management are achieved via the implementation of SQL (Structured Query Language) and relational models.

      • Red HatHow static application security testing improves software security

        Static application security testing (SAST) is one of the most effective techniques to improve application security. The term covers a variety of testing techniques that analyze an application's source, bytecode, or binary code for security vulnerabilities. Typically, developers complete this analysis during the software development lifecycle of an application. Many SAST tools are mature, and the techniques have become central to secure coding. Source code is the most common target of SAST, but you can also utilize SAST on bytecode and binary code.

        Binary scanning analyzes the binary itself or the result of disassembling or decompiling it. Scanning binaries can add a benefit, unlike source code scanning, which identifies vulnerabilities created by the compiler. On the other hand, the reports from scanning binaries have many more false positives in some cases.

        In general, SAST tools may generate many false positives and require tuning. The Red Hat Security Guide provides an overview of SAST.

    • WINE or Emulation

      • Ruben SchadeThe 86Box PC emulator

        For someone who’s been using virtualisation tools since Virtual PC on a 1999 iMac DV, and who makes his living documenting and architecting systems on Linux Xen, I had no idea of the existence of PCem, and of the 86Box fork. ozzmosis sent me a screenshot on Mastodon, and I’ve been hooked on it ever since.

        Compared to other virtualisation tools like QEMU and DOSBox, 86Box aims to faithfully reproduce original hardware going back to the first IBM PC. It does this using original ROMs, coupled with period accurate virtual drives, interfaces, sound cards, GPUs, and NICs.

        This is an important distinction. It can run on non-PC hardware like Apple Silicon because it isn’t a hypervisor. It also means vintage operating systems receive hardware they expect, and for which they have driver support. If you ever wanted to see how Windows 3.0 or OS/2 looked with 256 colours on a Tseng VGA card, this is how you do it.

    • Desktop Environments/WMs

      • OpenSource.comWhy sysadmins should choose Awesome window manager on Linux

        Awesome is a window manager for the Linux desktop. A "window manager" is a graphical interface that primarily (if not literally) just manages the drawing and arrangement of windows. In practice, even the most rudimentary of window managers actually provides a little more than just the ability to draw a window. Most also provide a pop-up menu so you can launch an application, some provide a dock or panel so you can switch between different applications you have running. They stop short at providing desktop conveniences such as drawing a wallpaper in the background of your screen, mounting and unmounting devices, providing a system tray, and so on. A window manager assumes you can use other applications to build a desktop experience to your own liking, and so it focuses on managing windows. The Awesome window manager takes a "tiling" approach, meaning that each window you launch takes up a fraction of your desktop according to the number of windows you have open.

  • Distributions and Operating Systems

    • Red Hat / IBM

      • Red Hat OfficialAutomating beyond configuration management

        When Red Hatters discuss configuration management, they’re usually applying the term to IT infrastructure within an organization, such as standing up computing resources, installing applications or configuring specific applications to function as intended for the end user.

        Infrastructure-level configuration management is a high-impact area of the business because without proper infrastructure, an organization is not able to leverage most or any technology. For this reason, it’s important to view configuration management only as a potential starting point on your automation journey.

      • Red Hat OfficialOpenSSL: Email address buffer overflow security flaws

        The OpenSSL project published two important impact security flaws on November 1, 2022. Since Heartbleed was released, OpenSSL security flaws grab the attention of customers, media, and the community users of this software.

        OpenSSL provided pre-notification days before the issue was public, and they followed up with a blog to explain why the CVE was later split into two CVEs and downgraded. Due to the amount of material on the internet, it becomes difficult to understand everything going around this issue. The intent of this blog is to put things into perspective for our customers and community members to understand what is happening, what the risks are, and how to mitigate them.

      • Red Hat OfficialConsiderations when implementing developer portals in regulated enterprise environments

        There is a trend in the industry at present around developer experience. At the center of this is the developer portal. This concept is not new. Many enterprise environments have created their own platforms and tools that help streamline the process of getting teams coding faster in environments where everything is not easily accessible.

        There is also a large movement within the industry to provide frameworks and tools that build developer portals. The leading framework in this arena, Backstage.io, states on its website that a developer portal “restores order to your infrastructure and enables your product teams to ship high-quality code quickly.” These are very noble goals, much needed in many environments.

      • Red Hat Official3 ways SSSD logging improvements make sysadmins’ lives easier | Enable Sysadmin

        New System Security Services Daemon (SSSD) features in RHEL 8.6 and 9.0 make it easier to troubleshoot identity management problems.

      • Enterprisers ProjectIT leadership: Lessons from the military

        Turbulent times can either paralyze you with fear or energize you with unlimited opportunities – and great leaders are often what make the difference. In the midst of complexity and volatility, top leaders anticipate and adapt. They build clarity out of uncertainty. They communicate a vision that inspires you to strive for more. They challenge and elevate their teams, giving people the confidence to not just persevere but step up to the big moments and make bold things happen.

      • Enterprisers ProjectDigital transformation in 2023 and beyond: Trends to watch [Ed: When Red Hat speaks of "digital transformation" it means more vendor lock-in (through newly-introduced complexity)]

        What’s at the top of your digital transformation to-do list?

      • OpenSource.comUsing Python in VS Code and Codium [Ed: Red Hat is pushing Microsoft's junk to developers instead of proper Free software not means to attack Free software developers]

        Over the past couple of years, I have had the privilege of working with middle school children to introduce them to Python coding and the Raspberry Pi 400. It's been a lot of fun, and the Pi has been a great platform for the students and me. We've used Code with Mu and it's been quite successful. Our aptitude with Python has grown with experience, and so recently I started looking for ways to offer these students more.

    • Canonical/Ubuntu Family

    • Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications

  • Free, Libre, and Open Source Software

    • Programming/Development

      • QtQt-Bridge Metadata format

        Qt Design Studio has the capability to generate QML based UI files from a json file. Qt Design Studio expects a .metadata file for the import and the contents define the DOM and the QML item's properties in the json format.

        Qt-Bridge plugins for Photoshop and Sketch generate such .metadata files. The .metadata files can be imported in the Qt Design Studio to generate QML.

        Similarly, other design tools can export the user interface in the specified metadata format to generate QML using Qt Design Studio.

      • Positech GamesOptimization for fun!

        I am well aware that my game Democracy 4 is not exactly slow with huge framerate issues. However, optimization is fun! or at least it should be, but in practice, getting profiling to work on remote PCs is not exactly easy. I have basically used every profiling software imaginable and still have not got one that I think really does the job well…

        I have basically wasted about an hour today trying to work out why I couldn’t get the intel vtune amplifier stuff to work with event based profiling and get rid of this pesky error that was clearly nonsense about ‘not able to recognize processor… until I finally realized that I actually have an AMD chip in my (relatively) new PC so…yeah… That drove me to try out the AMD uProf profiler, which is something I had not used before.

      • Jim NielsenOptimize For Nothing

        Maybe that’s inevitable. If you want to run a business, you have to optimize for something to turn a profit? I’m no good at business, so don’t ask me.

        But for argument’s sake, what would push this piece further is to hear a claim like: “We’re not optimizing for anything. Rather than optimize around metrics or feelings from our users, we are building something based on our own sensibilities and opinions of what makes the world more enjoyable to us.”

        What I find profound and universal about anyone’s work is what they observe in themselves and, in turn, reflect in their work to the world — not any one optimization.

      • Hillel WayneNotes on Every Strangeloop 2022 Talk I Attended

        This is my writeup of all the talks I saw at Strangeloop, written on the train ride back, while the talks were still fresh in my mind. Now that all the talks are online I can share it!

      • Bozhidar BatsovOCaml Tips: Converting a String to a List of Characters

        While playing with OCaml I was surprised to learn there’s no built-in function the convert a string to a list of its characters. Admittedly, that’s not something you need very often, but it does come handy from time to time.

      • R

        • R XML: How to Work With XML Files in R - R programming

          R programming language can read all sorts of data, and XML is no exception. There are many ways to read, parse, and manipulate these markup language files in R, and today we’ll explore two. By the end of the article, you’ll know how to use two R packages to work with XML.

          We’ll kick things off with an R XML introduction – you’ll get a sense of what XML is, and we’ll also write an XML dataset from scratch. Then, you’ll learn how to access individual elements, convert XML files to an R tibble and a data.frame, and much more.

        • Rlang‘CGAL’ meets ‘R6’: the ‘cgalMeshes’ package

          My new package cgalMeshes (not on CRAN yet) deals with 3D meshes. All algorithms implemented in this package are performed by the C++ library CGAL.

        • Modeling the secular trend in a cluster randomized trial using very flexible models - ouR data generation

          A key challenge - maybe the key challenge - of a stepped wedge clinical trial design is the threat of confounding by time. This is a cross-over design where the unit of randomization is a group or cluster, where each cluster begins in the control state and transitions to the intervention. It is the transition point that is randomized. Since outcomes could be changing over time regardless of the intervention, it is important to model the time trends when conducting the efficacy analysis. The question is how we choose to model time, and I am going to suggest that we might want to use a very flexible model, such as a cubic spline or a generalized additive model (GAM).

        • DataGeeekModeling the Extinction of Species with SVM-Kernel

          In the last article, we analyzed carbon emissions and the effects that created them. This time I want to look into another important environmental issue, animal biodiversity; by animals, I mean mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians.

          The metric we are going to be interested in is the living planet index which measures the change in the number of 31,831 populations across 5,230 species relative to the year 1970. The explanatory variables we will take, are annual carbon emissions per capita(co2), annual gross domestic product per capita(gdp), and regions(region).

        • Download shapefiles from ESRI ArcGIS Online Story Maps - Jonathan Chang

          Recently, we needed to get out some shapefiles from an ArcGIS Online map. It’s immediately clear that there’s a lot of data, and no obvious way to get it from a download or share link anywhere on the app page. The desired solution is anything but taking a screenshot and tracing it in ImageJ, as that’s an absolute last resort. In this post, I’ll walk through how I managed to get those shapefiles downloaded, and hopefully provide some easy tips to do the same for other ArcGIS online maps.

    • Standards/Consortia

  • Leftovers

    • CoryDoctorow"When Franny Stands Up," Eden Robins' debut novel

      Of all the alternate history premises in fiction, the McGuffin of Eden Robins's debut, "When Franny Stands Up," is one of the most unlikely and – it turns out – rich. Robins' novel opens on Franny, a teenage Jewish girl from the Chicago suburbs who's snuck out on Christmas Eve to hear the notorious comedian Boopsie Baxter do standup.

    • Michael UrspringerCQ World Wide DX Contest SSB - Urs-o-Log

      Yesterday I took part in one of he biggest radio amateur contests “CQ World Wide DX Contest” which runs for 48h. However I did not take part full time :-). There were some times with high electromagnetic storms so the conditions sometimes were not so good.

    • Science

      • Some Recent Developments in Mixture Cure Model Methodology for Survival Analysis | YoungStatS

        The mixture cure model in survival analysis has received large and growing attention in the last few decades. Here we present an overview drawing together early results and some recent new developments, and pointing out areas where further work is needed.

      • CityU researchers invent smart mask to track respiratory sounds for respiratory disease identification

        Wearing face masks has been recognised as one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of COVID-19, even in its coming endemic phase. Apart from the conventional function of masks, the potential for smart masks to monitor human physiological signals is being increasingly explored. A research team led by the City University of Hong Kong (CityU) recently invented a smart mask, integrating an ultrathin nanocomposite sponge structure-based soundwave sensor, which is capable of detecting respiratory sounds of breathing, coughing and speaking.

      • Government TechnologyUniversity at Buffalo's Robot Dog Contributes to AI Research

        A yellow quadrupedal robot nicknamed Yubie, branded Spot the Agile Mobile Robot, is wandering around campus helping researchers study robotics, computer science, artificial intelligence and other high-tech fields.

      • New ScientistAI-controlled robotic laser can target and kill cockroaches | New Scientist

        A laser controlled by two cameras and a small computer running an AI model can be trained to target certain types of insect

        Researchers have created a device that uses machine vision to spot cockroaches and zap them with a laser. They say the method could offer a cheaper and more environmentally friendly alternative to insecticides.

        Ildar Rakhmatulin at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, UK, and his colleagues equipped a laser with two cameras and a small computer running an AI model that can be trained to target certain types of insect.

      • The Reproducibility Crisis in Science - These Researchers Have a Fix - USC Viterbi | School of Engineering

        The scientific method – it’s the backbone of all scientific research. Everyone from third grade science students to Nobel Prize winners use the problem-solving method. And one of the cornerstones of the scientific method is that results must be reproducible.

        What does that mean? For our purposes, “reproducibility” means being able to obtain consistent results using the same input data; computational steps, methods, and code; and conditions of analysis.

        So, if your experiment is to test X under Y conditions and your result is Z, then if you repeat the experiment, you should get Z again. And when another researcher tries to test X under Y conditions, they should also get the result Z. That’s how science works!

        Unfortunately, that is not always – or even often – the case.

    • Education

      • Michael West MediaAcademics strike as wage theft spreads, uni executive salaries soar - Michael West

        Academics at five Queensland universities walked off the job last week and held a rally in Brisbane to protest against casualisation, reduced work security and dozens of cases of wage theft. Michael Sainsbury reports as concerns rise in Australia’s universities over the billowing schism between academic and VC pay.

        University staff were hit hard by the pandemic, with more than 20,000 jobs lost. Now, two-thirds of university staff are in insecure employment on casual and fixed-term contracts, while many universities are requiring teachers to undertake work out of contracted hours. Meanwhile, university executive salaries hover at record levels.

    • Hardware

      • Full control of a six-qubit quantum processor in silicon - QuTech

        Researchers at QuTech—a collaboration between the Delft University of Technology and TNO—have engineered a record number of six, silicon-based, spin qubits in a fully interoperable array. Importantly, the qubits can be operated with a low error-rate that is achieved with a new chip design, an automated calibration procedure, and new methods for qubit initialization and readout. These advances will contribute to a scalable quantum computer based on silicon. The results are published in Nature today.



      • New ScientistUnpiloted military helicopter flies 134 km in simulated mission [Ed: Solution in search of a problem]

        A retrofitted Black Hawk helicopter flew autonomously between mountains to deliver blood supplies in a simulated mission. It also picked up a simulated medical casualty

    • Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

      • NatureAI model transferability in healthcare: a sociotechnical perspective

        To deliver value in healthcare, artificial intelligence and machine learning models must be integrated not only into technology platforms but also into local human and organizational ecosystems and workflows. To realize the promised benefits of applying these models at scale, a roadmap of the challenges and potential solutions to sociotechnical transferability is needed.

      • Didier StevensQuickpost: BruCON Travel Charger

        I already have a similar travel adapter, but this BruCON travel adapter has one extra important feature for me: a USB C port.

    • Security

      • Hacker NewsInstall Latest Windows Update ASAP! Patches Issued for 6 Actively Exploited Zero-Days [Ed: Delete Windows. Microsoft knew about these flaws and did not patch until it was too late and they were actively exploited a lot (at least 4 such holes, based on CISA)]

        Microsoft's latest round of monthly security updates has been released with fixes for 68 vulnerabilities spanning its software portfolio, including patches for six actively exploited zero-days. 12 of the issues are rated Critical, two are rated High, and 55 are rated Important in severity.

      • Hacker NewsVMware Warns of 3 New Critical Flaws Affecting Workspace ONE Assist Software [Ed: Proprietary software again; VMware cannot keep blaming "FOSS" for its shoddy software's holes]

        VMware has patched five security flaws affecting its Workspace ONE Assist solution, some of which could be exploited to bypass authentication and obtain elevated permissions.

        Topping the list, are three critical vulnerabilities tracked as CVE-2022-31685, CVE-2022-31686, and CVE-2022-31687. All the shortcomings are rated 9.8 on the CVSS vulnerability scoring system.

      • MandiantThey See Me Roaming: Following APT29 by Taking a Deeper Look at Windows Credential Roaming [Ed: Microsoft as national security threat and a major liability]

        In early 2022, Mandiant detected and responded to an incident where APT29 successfully phished a European diplomatic entity and ultimately abused the Windows Credential Roaming feature. The diplomatic-centric targeting is consistent with Russian strategic priorities as well as historic APT29 targeting. Mandiant has been tracking APT29—a Russian espionage group that is sponsored by the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR)—since at least 2014. Some APT29 activity is also publicly referred to as Nobelium by Microsoft.

      • Patches for 6 zero-days under active exploit are now available from Microsoft [Ed: Microsoft and security are opposites]

        It’s the second Tuesday of the month, and that means it’s Update Tuesday, the monthly release of security patches available for nearly all software Microsoft supports. This time around, the software maker has fixed six zero-days under active exploit in the wild, along with a wide range of other vulnerabilities that pose a threat to end users.

      • Privacy/Surveillance

        • FuturismUS Gov to Crack Down on "Bossware" That Spies On Employees' Computers [Ed: Will they crack down on companies like Microsoft or only smaller ones with fewer lawyers?]

          Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic drove a wave of working from home, companies have been relentless in their efforts to digitally police and spy on remote employees by using what's known as "bossware." That's the pejorative name for software that tracks the websites an employee visits, screenshots their computer screens, and even records their faces and voices.

          And now, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), an agency of the federal government, is looking to intervene.

          "Close, constant surveillance and management through electronic means threaten employees' basic ability to exercise their rights," said NLRB general counsel Jennifer Abruzzo, in a Monday memo. "I plan to urge the Board to apply the Act to protect employees, to the greatest extent possible, from intrusive or abusive electronic monitoring and automated management practices."

        • ACMAuraRing: Precise Electromagnetic Finger Tracking

          Wearable computing platforms, such as smartwatches and head-mounted mixed reality displays, demand new input devices for high-fidelity interaction. We present AuraRing, a wearable magnetic tracking system designed for tracking fine-grained finger movement. The hardware consists of a ring with an embedded electromagnetic transmitter coil and a wristband with multiple sensor coils. By measuring the magnetic fields at different points around the wrist, AuraRing estimates the five degree-of-freedom pose of the ring. AuraRing is trained only on simulated data and requires no runtime supervised training, ensuring user and session independence. It has a dynamic accuracy of 4.4 mm, as measured through a user evaluation with optical ground truth. The ring is completely self-contained and consumes just 2.3 mW of power.

    • Transparency/Investigative Reporting

      • Michael West MediaCrime to report a crime: outrage as government turns screws on whistleblower David McBride

        The rise of the Albanese government spared hopes of a new deal for people blowing the lid on government malfeasance. It isn’t working out that way for one prominent whistleblower, writes Callum Foote who interviewed David McBride. Says McBride, the government is wrongly using national security to stop the reporting of crime.

        It wasn’t the first time David McBride, a soldier and military lawyer, had experienced another defeat at the hands of the government. But last week he was dealt a bitter blow.

        McBride is a whistleblower who is being prosecuted after leaking details of alleged war crimes committed by Australian soldiers in Afghanistan to the ABC. These documents came to be known as “The Afghan Files” and the release of this information led to a police raid of the ABC headquarters in June of 2019 and The “Brereton Report,” which alleged that Australian Defence Force personnel had killed 39 Afghan civilians.

    • Environment

      • Energy

        • Michael West MediaA new state power! - Michael West

          Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews’ is bringing back the government-owned State Electricity Commission to reverse the decades-long privatisation of Australia’s energy market. Some media outlets are ramping faux outrage whilst cooler heads know if done right, it should prove wrong long espoused benefits of neoliberal economics.

    • Finance

      • Michael West MediaAdvance Australia Fair: does Budget 2022 cut the mustard on corporate tax crooks? - Michael West

        Anthony Albanese and Jim Chalmers still have a bit of work to do to catch up with Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey, but only when it comes to corporate tax avoidance. Callum Foote reports on budget measures to crack down on the biggest scam in town.

        In sheer dollar terms it is the biggest rort in the world. Multinational tax avoidance. Billions of dollars a year siphoned out of Australia alone, parked in tax havens, hidden on the hushed advice of Big4 tax advisors and blue chip law firms.

    • AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

      • Into The Fediverse!

        This is more of a test post after enabling some new Fediverse features on the server.

      • IT WireiTWire - Grandstanding about Musk and Twitter is simply a waste of time

        When politicians indulge in grandstanding on issues over which they have no control, the normal reaction is to ignore them and treat them with derision.

        But when government-appointed functionaries also start indulging in the same kind of spin, in a bid to draw attention to themselves and get their mugs in the media, they need to be called out.

        If one is wondering what this is all about, it concerns the gratuitous statements made by the eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, about the acquisition of Twitter by Tesla and SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk.

        Now if Inman Grant had vented on any topic under the sun on some forum or the other in her capacity as a private individual, one would have nothing to say. [It is important to note here that she is an external contributor to the defence industry lobby group, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.]

    • Censorship/Free Speech

    • Digital Restrictions (DRM)

    • Monopolies

      • IT WireiTWire - Europe opens probe into Microsoft bid to buy Activision Blizzard

        The European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union, has begun an in-depth investigation into Microsoft's proposed acquisition of the gaming company Activision Blizzard.

        In a statement on Tuesday, the EC said it had concerns whether the deal would lessen competition in markets for distribution of console and personal computer video games and for PC operating systems.

        Microsoft announced its acquisition in January, with the price paid being US$70 billion (A$107.8 billion) to become the globe's third-largest gaming firm.

      • Copyrights

        • Michael GeistRegister Your TikTok Videos at the CRTC?!: Commission Encourages TikTokers To Participate in Future Process on Bill C-11 Content Registration

          Even as Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez continues to insist that user content isn’t touched by Bill C-11, the CRTC is sending a different message. In a recent article on how digital creators are contemplating leaving Canada as a result of Bill C-11’s regulation of user content, the CRTC stated:

          We strongly encourage interested parties – like TikTok users – to monitor our announcements and participate in public processes. Any decisions on who would have to register and how would only follow those processes, and people should make no assumptions about how the Commission may rule beforehand.

          The CRTC and its chair Ian Scott contradicting Rodriguez has been a regular occurrence throughout the Bill C-11 process. Scott has twice confirmed that the CRTC has the power to regulate user content under the bill (despite Rodriguez inaccurately saying otherwise) and has also confirmed that it has the power to encourage platforms to prioritize certain content in a manner that would entail algorithmic manipulation (Rodriguez has denied that algorithms are covered the bill). Now in the same article that Rodriguez’s office says users are not affected by the bill, the CRTC urges those same users to participate in the process that will establish the rules for content registration.

  • Gemini* and Gopher

    • Technical

      • Internet/Gemini

        • I made a gemsite on tilde



          I made a little gemsite on tilde.team. I will still post here regularly but my posts to my own gemsite will be more organized

      • Programming

        • Re: Handling Optional Values in Rust macro_rules

          I love Rust, but there are certain things which I don't feel it does very well. One thing that I think was a mistake in C was the entire preprocessor, and most especially macros. I'm not exactly a fan of macros in Rust, either. I think this posts central premise is a good example where I can demonstrate a language which has a better solution.


* Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It's like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter.



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2025 is another year of Wayland ambitions. It's also a year of self-fulfilling prophecies.
In The United Kingdom (UK), Microsoft Search (Bing) Falls to All-Time Low
Grow? What grow??? It's collapsing.
GNU/Linux Reaches 5% in Oman
Some GNU/Linux distros are made in Oman
Google's "AI Mode" is a Pathetic Joke Prematurely Introduced in the UK (Like "Bard", Which Sank the Company's Shares)
what Google "thinks" about PCLinuxOS
What the Free Software Foundation Started Four Decades Ago is Becoming Mainstream
"Four decades; Four freedoms; For all users"
Doing a Better Job at Labelling Slop Images
we'll label screenshots that contain slop, typically with red-coloured text overlay
Social Control Media is Out of Style
What's your excuse for wasting time on (or in) it?
Maldives: GNU/Linux at All-Time High, Windows at New Lows
data from statCounter shows a reassuring trend
Efficiency is Good, So Why Won't Governments Cull LLM Companies Using Stronger, Stringent Policies?
Like every bubble that ever existed, including some recent ones, an end will come
The Defunct Site LinuxConfig Has Published a Fake Article About Richard Stallman Using LLM Slop, Which Stallman Calls "Bullshit Generator"
Worse yet, it is writing using a "Bullshit Generator" (the term used by Stallman) about Stallman's health
Microsoft Windows Falls to All-Time Lows in Morocco and Algeria
About 70% or even less
StopGenAI in the Cyber Show (C|S)
covering a theme that we too covered a lot lately
Gemini Links 03/08/2025: Once-a-Decade Couch Shopping and Blessings in Disguise
Links for the day
Links 03/08/2025: Political Catch-up, Global Warming, and Hunger
Links for the day
Brittany Day Entered LLM Slop Into LinuxSecurity.com and Something Hilarious Happened: The Site is "Exploited"
The brainless, effortless copypasta of "slop artists" shows its limits
Links 03/08/2025: Microsoft Exchange 0-day Exploited and Avoidable Nuclear Escalation
Links for the day
Definitely Not a Ponzi Scheme
Bitcoin v Microsoft
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is a Billionaires' Lobby
Billionaires that control tech companies
Microsoft Borrows 3 Billion Dollars Per Month, a Company Truly Worth Trillions Would Not Do This
if Windows (and Office) "market share" fell from about 90% to barely 30%, how come Microsoft is now "valued" at 20 times more?
It's Even Worse Than Microsoft Lunduke Puts It; GNOME is SLAPPing Journalists
In our experience, GNOME is so malicious - some elements of it in particular - that it would launch multiple simultaneous SLAPP campaigns not only against journalists but also their spouses
GNU/Linux Adoption Reaches All-Time Highs in Chile, statCounter Indicates
This month marks 4 years since Vista 11 came out (as a fake "leak") and some surveys still measure its adoption at less than 40%
Slop Will Not Change the World
Some of us grow up sooner and leave that nonsense behind (or altogether avoid/skip it)
Gemini Links 03/08/2025: Nostalgia and TOFU
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, August 02, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, August 02, 2025
Google Throwing Out the Search Engine With the Bathwater is a Complete and Utter 'Shi---ow' as the Company Drowns in Debt, Layoffs, and Worse
The mainstream media almost never mentions GAFAM debt
Operating Systems' Statistics in New Zealand: GNU/Linux Up, Windows Down to All-Time Lows
Remember all this when the media says that Microsoft became like 10 times more valuable in those 15 years (from 400 billion to 4,000 billion in alleged "worth")
Microsoft Windows "Market Share" Measured Around 2.7% in Iraq, Plunges to 6.5% in Saudi Arabia
Microsoft isn't on the agenda in Iraq
GNU/Linux Share in Sweden Has Doubled Since PewDiePie, A Swede, Recommended It
months ago he moved to GNU/Linux, then told others to consider doing the same
GNU/Linux Hits Record High in Portugal
GNU/Linux picking up in Portugal
Gemini Protocol is Not Dying, It's Growing
When people say things like "Gemini Protocol is dying" the data does not support them
GNU/Linux is Thriving This Summer
It is meanwhile acknowledged, even by Microsoft pushers, that many GNU/Linux PCs will get sabotaged next month
The End of Microsoft's Reign in Spain: Windows Falls to All-Time Lows in Spanish Web Traffic
Windows sank to new lows in Spain
The Bots Never Sleep: In The Weekends, Slopfarms Dominate Google News, Majority of Entries in Google Are Fake Articles About 'Linux'
Google is fast becoming an ocean of plagiarism; the same goes for Google News, which was supposed to have extra quality control
Russia's Yandex Has Caught Up With Bing in Terms of "Market Share"
Microsoft has been firing loads of Bing workers for over 2 years already
Canada: GNU/Linux Up to Records Highs, Windows Down to Record Lows
Microsoft already announcing some plans to shut down Vista 11
Gemini Links 02/08/2025: Transducers in Typed Racket and American ISPs
Links for the day
Links 02/08/2025: Microsoft Already Kills Vista 11 SE, Smartphone Sales Down, Truth Gets "You're Fired!" in the US
Links for the day
Video: The Rise of GNU/Linux and Free Software as Seen by RMS in 2004
DTP's founder argued that when Windows goes below 85% "market share", it'll lose its grip in the monopoly sense
Russia: GNU/Linux Rises to Highest Adoption Level Since Invasion of Ukraine
Moving up in the north
Microsoft's Latest Financial Report: We "Gained" 300 Million Dollars in "Goodwill" and Liabilities Grew by 32 Billion Dollars
Microsoft's debt has reached an all-time high
The Register US = The Register MS
Formerly The Register UK
Weeks After Microsoft Shut Down Its Operations in Pakistan Windows Falls to All-Time Lows
Only less than a month ago it was quietly revealed, based on laid-off staff, that Microsoft shut down in Pakistan
Criminal Behaviour is the Standard Operating Procedure at Microsoft
In the future I'll be able to tell how, when dealing with SLAPPs from Microsofters, their Microsoft services failed me and sometimes even blocked my contacts
GNU/Linux Rises to All-Time Highs in Europe
many people will get fired for buying Microsoft
All-Time Highs for GNU/Linux on the Client Desktop/Laptop, Based on Steam Survey
GNU/Linux rose to 2.89% in Steam
Links 02/08/2025: Blaugust 2025 and "Russia Declares Navalny Memoir ‘Extremist’"
Links for the day
Free Software is Not a Business Model
Go ahead, ask your friend, "how do you plan to monetise your children?"
When (Almost) One-Man Operations Are Disguised as Medium-Sized Companies
the CEO hides in the US (hiding from his ex-wives, 4 daughters from those wives, and Sirius staff that he defrauded)
LLM Slop Harms Real Literature, Real Web Sites, Real Journalism
LLM slop is a parasite and it'll run out of legitimate outputs
Upcoming OSI Scandal Series
The OSI is a rogue actor because it serves Microsoft in exchange for money
Slopwatch: The Issue Persists, But the Consensus in the Media Changes as Google Enrages It With LLM Plagiarism
We've meanwhile assessed the latest output from Linuxiac
Microsoft Actually in Trouble, Microsofters Unable to Obey Judges' Orders
For the second time in a week, Microsofters are unable to obey orders
IRC Proceedings: Friday, August 01, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, August 01, 2025
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
Links 02/08/2025: İstanbul Retail Inflation Reaches 42.48%, US FBI Opens Office in New Zealand
Links for the day
Gemini Links 02/08/2025: ZFS, LLM Hype, and Fake Modules
Links for the day
Links 01/08/2025: Health, Conflict, and Attacks on Freedom of the Press
Links for the day
Microsoft's Debt Exploded by 15.4 Billion Dollars in the Past 9 Months Alone (Despite All the Layoffs)
As of minutes ago, at 6PM on a Friday, the numbers are made public
Meeting (Webchat) With Maria Arranz Gomez, Florian Grundies, Jürgen Janda and Konstantinos Kortsaris Confronts EPO Management About Breaking Promises and Crushing Workers
The lack of consistent messages suggests plans other than what's advertised and the lack of consultation (secrecy) likewise
Links 01/08/2025: "The Great British Firewall" and U.S. Army Sponsors Palantir
Links for the day
For Second Day in a Row, Top Story in The Register MS is "Microsoft Says"
The editor in chief exercises control over everybody else
LLMs as Attack Method Against Free Software and Programming
DDoS in "hey hi" (slop) clothing
Stability and Reliability, Backward Compatibility
I don't fancy relying on social control media as "sources"
What "the News" Looks Like in 2025
The "says" (or "sez") phenomenon
History Will Be Distorted, Sometimes Intentionally, Under the Guise of Intelligence (Manipulated/Curated Slop)
Militarised misinformation or military-grade chaff is a national security threat, even domestically
Financial Engineering Companies: A Company Worth 4 Trillion Dollars Would Not Borrow 100+ Billion Dollars at Interest Rates Like Today's
Many headlines perpetuate the lie Microsoft had just 2 waves of layoffs
Microsoft is Googlebombing "Linux" While Paying Former News Sites to Publish SPAM
How much lower will IDG sink?
Google as a 'Bullshit Generator' Disguised as Intelligence
It'll probably cause Google to get sued a lot, both by individuals and companies
As Expected, Google in the UK Now Experiments With Slop Instead of Web Search
At this point more people ought to stop and think: Does Google's search engine deserve trust?
The Data You Don't Give Away is Your Advantage
stop sharing data that does not need to be shared
Being Obedient or Doing the Right Thing
The world always changes for the better because of people who think "Outside the Box", not the cogs
Gemini Links 01/08/2025: Happy Hacking Keyboards and New Gemini Arrivals
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, July 31, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, July 31, 2025