crypto

Mar 17

Seen on mirror

[root@mirror:/sdc/var]# ls

bleep  bloop  flort

I blame PTR :p

Feb 22

Minecraft Beta 1.3 Bed recipe

Minecraft Beta 1.3 Bed recipe

Jan 21

Dear Monitor Manufacturers

Why can I not find a monitor that has the same or better resolution (1920x1200) than my current monitor without it being only 30” and costing greater than $800, but Apple can manufacture a second iPad that has a native resolution of 2048x1536???

Sincerely,

The person that is going to end up using the iPad 2 as a monitor for lack of desktop space.

P.s. - stacking multiple monitors is NOT an answer….until the frames around the monitors are gone, at least.  Work on that and we’ll talk.  Until then, methinks I may try to smuggle a non-FCC-approved monitor out of Japan…

Jan 08

nMedia PRO-LCD under LCDd/lcdproc on OpenIndiana/OpenSolaris

I specifically needed hd44780 and thought I needed lis, so I spent a bit of time on getting configure to recognize libusb and libftdi.

This writeup is how I got the nMedia PRO-LCD ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811996003&cm_re=nmedia_pro-lcd-_-11-996-003-_-Product ) to work under LCDd on the latest OpenIndiana build (148).

configure needs pkg-config:

pkg install gettext


wget the latest version of libftdi (I know a version of libftdi is installed by default, but compiling sets up libftdi.pc etc):

wget ‘http://www.intra2net.com/en/developer/libftdi/download/libftdi-0.18.tar.gz’
tar zxvf libftdi-0.18.tar.gz
cd libftdi-0.18
./configure
make
make install


It is probably possible to just create libftdi.pc in PKG_CONFIG_PATH ( for me, /usr/local/lib/pkgconfig ), but I did not do it that way.
I did, however, do that for libusb.pc:

### libusb.pc startprefix=/usr
exec_prefix=${prefix}
libdir=${exec_prefix}/lib/64
includedir=${prefix}/include

Name: libusb
Description: Library to control the USB controller
Requires:Version: 1.0
Libs: -L${libdir}
Cflags: -I${includedir}
### libusb.pc end


It may not be correct, but it worked to compile lcdproc.  Looking back, I probably did not need libusb/libftdi at all since I used /dev/term/0 with hd44780 mplay driver.
Get the latest version of lcdproc:

wget “http://downloads.sourceforge.net/project/lcdproc/lcdproc/0.5.4/lcdproc-0.5.4-pre1.tar.gz?r=http%3A%2F%2Flcdproc.org%2Fdownload.php3\&ts=1293936448\&use_mirror=iweb”
tar zxvf lcdproc-0.5.4-pre1.tar.gz
cd lcdproc-0.5.4-pre1


Solaris uses —export-dynamic instead of -rdynamic

cd server
mv Makefile.am Makefile.am.orig
cat Makefile.am.orig | sed s/rdynamic/-export-dynamic/ > Makefile.am
mv Makefile.in Makefile.in.orig
cat Makefile.in.orig | sed s/rdynamic/-export-dynamic/ > Makefile.in
cd ..


Now on to compiling LCDd (again, don’t need lis for PRO-LCD).

./configure —enable-drivers=hd44780
make
make install


Now for configuration.
In /etc/LCDd.conf, to get LCDd to work with the nMedia PRO-LCD:

## LCDd.conf start
[server]
DriverPath=/usr/local/lib/lcdproc/

# hd44780, NOT lis, works with PRO-LCD
Driver=hd44780
Bind=127.0.0.1
Port=13666
User=nobody
ReportToSyslog=yes
## Hitachi HD44780 driver ##
[hd44780]
# Select what type of connection. See documentation for types.
ConnectionType=mplay

# Since libftdi creates it, we may as well use it…
Device=/dev/term/0

# 38400 seemed to work with the PRO-LCD
Speed=38400

# Figured I should probably include this
Size=20x2

#  Don’t know if this makes a difference
CharMap=hd44780_default

# Don’t know if this makes a difference, too
DelayBus=true

## LCDd.conf end


Start it up:

/usr/local/sbin/LCDd -c /etc/LCDd.conf

You should get the “Welcome to LCDproc!” message on the PRO-LCD if you left it in the config, otherwise you’ll get the LCDd status screen.

And that’s basically it - apologies if this is a little rough - This basically covers “How to get LCDd to run on OpenSolaris/OpenIndiana/Solaris 11 Express” as well as “A hack to get hd44780 to do what lis is supposed to do for lis.”

The hd44780/lis hack should probably also work for any LIS compatible VFD, I am guessing (but have not tested).

Dec 24

An OpenIndiana Based Central Home Media Server

Yet another documentary-ish post.

My own requirements:

Most of the setup is covered in mschenck’s tutorial at http://www.tek-ops.com/archives/350.

This will end up being a CIFS and NFS server, however I’ll need to figure out the schema for content, as deduplication can be set on the dataset level (see http://blogs.sun.com/bonwick/entry/zfs_dedup ) .

I.e.:
I probably have drives that I’m going to copy to the array, that have almost all of the same photos on them,  but when dealing with photos, I probably want to verify the blocks, as you don’t get a second chance to take the same photo, so the tank/photo dataset will be set dedup=verify.

HOWEVER, I have something similar with my (non-itunes) music collection…and don’t much care if every block is absolutely the same - I can almost always go back to one of my old hard drives and get it off, or rip the CD, OR (worst case scenario) just buy it on iTunes so the not-so-friendly RIAA can be absolutely sure that I have the requisite rights to have the song.  dedup=on in this case, as with random tv/movies.

Also, in the process, I get to reduce my movie and tv collection to only what is /not/ on hulu and/or netflix.

Is there ever any reason not to turn on deduplication?

Dec 16

Triangular Electrostatic Loudspeaker Design

Another documentary post:

Fundamentals
ESL Howto: http://amasci.com/esloud/eslhwto.html
Another ESL Howto: http://sound.westhost.com/project105.htm
Triangular Cavity Modes: http://www.phys.ksu.edu/personal/wysin/OpticalModes/tripics/index.html

Supplies
HV power supplies: http://www.amazing1.com/profneon.htm
Graphite: https://www.alfa.com/en/gp100w.pgm?dsstk=40798
Material for frame/insulators and/or diaphragm?: http://www.canalplasticscenter.com/index2.shtml

iTunes Account Disabled

A lot of this is going to end up as just documentation by me, I’m sure, but here goes:

Apple Receipt
-----------------------------------------------------------
Billed to:
cryptographrix@gmail.com
Michael Renz
XX-YY My Street
My City, NY MyZip
USA


        Order Number: M3NSQST55N
        Receipt Date: 12/01/10
         Order Total: $50.00
           Billed To: PayPal


$50.00 Gift certificate for ptogr
-------------------------------------------------------------=--------
                                             Subtotal:       $50.00

                                                  Tax:       $0.00
-------------------------------------------------------------=--------
                                    Credit Card Total:       $50.00
-------------------------------------------------------------=--------
                                          Order Total:       $50.00

Please retain for your records.
Please See Below For Terms And Conditions Pertaining To This Order.

Apple Inc.
You can find the iTunes Store Terms of Sale and Sales Policies by
launching your iTunes application and clicking on
http://www.apple.com/legal/itunes/us/sales.html

Answers to frequently asked questions regarding the iTunes Store
can be found at
http://www.apple.com/support/itunes/store/

Account Information: 
https://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZFinance.woa/wa/accountSummary
Purchase History: 
https://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZFinance.woa/wa/purchaseHistory

Apple respects your privacy.
Information regarding your personal information can be viewed at
http://www.apple.com/legal/privacy/

Copyright (C) 2008 Apple Inc. All rights reserved
http://www.apple.com/legal/

Customer First Name : Michael
Customer Last Name : Renz
email : cryptographrix@gmail.com
Web Order # :
Support Subject : Express Lane inquiry
Sub Issue : undefined
See additional info below
OS version: Mac OS X 10.6.x
Country: US
iTunes version: iTunes 10.1
iTunes account name: cryptographrix@gmail.com
Item title: My account is disabled
Details:
Somehow, my iTunes account is disabled and I can not purchase….

Dear Michael,

I understand that your account is disabled and you would like it enabled. I know you must be eager to resolve this issue and it will be my pleasure to look into this matter further on your behalf.

Finding a solution for you is important to me, so I have requested assistance with the issue you reported. You will receive an email after the matter has been investigated and further information is available.

Thank you for your patience. Apple wants your iTunes experience to be as enjoyable as possible.

Sincerely,

Daniel
iTunes Store Customer Support
http://www.apple.com/support/itunes/ww/

Please Note: I work for the week of 12/11/2010 to 12/18/2010
Sat 8-430
Mon,Tue,Thu 830-5
Fri,Sat 8-430
These times are CST

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you. You may receive an AppleCare survey email; any feedback you provide would be greatly appreciated.

I have received an email saying I purchased a “gift card for ptogr” the other day that is inaccurate, if it helps.


I did not purchase the gift card, and do not know who would use my account to do so - otherwise I have a number of devices on my account for myself and direct family (Two iPod touches - one for me and my wife, one iPad for my mom).

I am the only person that has had the password to the account, though, and only I authorize or make purchases.
Hmmm, it looks like the $50 did go through to my bank account:
-$50.00  PAYPAL *ITUNESSTOR,402-935-7733 CA REFID:160336256729162;

This should be reversed.  I absolutely did not purchase that gift card.
Also, what’s happening with my iTunes account?

I am still waiting on the email from iTunes customer support.

I plan on updating this post as events continue.

Suggestions are welcome.

Dec 12

The DDoS of Wikileaks

Traffic on Wikileaks

th3j35t3r states that XerXes is a DoS
“XerXeS however, as has been shown numerous times, does not require a botnet, zombie PC’s or other people’s bandwidth in order to successfully pull down a site.” 

th3j35t3r states that “nobody is affected but the intended target” 
”Q:  What about collateral damage to third party systems?

A:  Many people worry about the nodes between me and the target. This technique affects nobody but the intended target. All intermediaries remain unaffected.”

Arbor Networks shows attacks on wikileaks servers ranging between 5 and 18 Gigabit on Nov 28 

th3j35t3r attacking Wikileaks on Nov 28

Arbor Networks shows four bursts between  4 and 10 Gigabit on Nov 30

th3j35t3r: “I am not officially funded, supported or otherwise sponsored….have been down for 2 weeks now as a direct result of the pressure XerXes exerted on the target”

Slowloris: attack model weaponized in XerXes

Two immediate questions come to mind:

  1. Why has no one questioned th3j35t3r’s unhindered ability to be judge, jury and prosecutor in online affairs?
  2. If XerXes takes down websites with a technically complex, low bandwidth DoS that exploits the vulnerabilities of various online HTTP servers, why did the attacks range between 5 and 18 Gigabit (Musings: where did the wikileaks primary hosting provider fit 5 to 18Gb capable lines???  Infiniband to the server rack?  20 servers with 2xGb ethernet each connected to load balancers?   Something to think about: wikileaks’ sites were accessible for most of the day!  )?

The first question seems to be the most pertinent - in the age where so many people are involved in the struggle for “Net Neutrality,” why isn’t there more “pressure” on governments to do something about th3j35t3r, especially if he alone seemingly has the ability to govern what exists on the internet?

Further: in an age where governments are losing the ability to govern the internet, why don’t they see th3j35t3r as a very singular threat?

Those morally supporting th3j35t3r’s actions, if willing: