Constantly Changing Passwords

I have a number of systems that I log into for work and all of them require passwords. The majority of them enforce some periodic changing. Usually I don't mind, however this week something strange is happening. About once a day I get locked out of my account because some automated program is trying to log into my e-mail with the wrong password. After a certain number of attempts, the system just locks me out. I have to call our help desk and have them unlock my account. This has me questioning rules in general.

As I started out with, I have a number of passwords I have to remember for work. Off the top of my head I can think of about a dozen. Generally I like to keep most of my work passwords the same. However since I am forced to change some of them on differing intervals, they are now out of sync. In fact they all seem to be different right now and that creates a problem: I can't remember which one is which. This requires me to request a new password. It seems to me that resetting passwords is yet another security risk.

I have to ask if requiring me to reset my password every 90 days is really an effective security protocol? If I only had one password to remember, I think 90 days is a reasonable amount of time. Considering I have a dozen passwords, I think 90 days is too short. Perhaps those responsible for security should consider that as they set policy and take a broader view instead of just the simple case.

Amazon Prime Air

If you are looking for the best price on something, you can generally find it on the Internet. There are a few exceptions to this rule but a lot of shoppers have resorted to buying things online. The only problem is you have to wait for your stuff to arrive. Amazon thinks they have a solution: Amazon Prime Air. They want to use large remote control helicopter drones as a delivery mechanism.

I applaud Amazon for thinking out of the box. I just think they need to hire some 14-year-old boys for consultants on this one though. Imagine you are a teenage boy with nothing to do on a summer afternoon. You are lying on the grass with some of your buddies trying to figure out what to do. Someone notices an Amazon drone fly by and it is carrying a box with an unknown prize inside. All of a sudden you and your buddies are grabbing your BB guns and are at the carnival games. Instead of winning a stuffed animal when you shoot your target, you get an iPad or Android smart phone.

Many years ago I purchased a trampoline and set it up in my backyard. I had a chain-link fence around the yard to keep unwanted kids from playing on it and getting hurt. One of my neighbors was a lawyer and suggested I put wood slats in the chain-link fence as it represented an "attractive nuisance" liability. That means a kid could walk by, see the trampoline, climb the fence, jump on it, get hurt, and have his parents sue me successfully. I know that there are a number of conditions that need to be met, but I also think that a good lawyer could use it as a defense should one of these 14-year-old boys get caught shooting Amazon drones. That assumes they ever do get caught.

Spoiler Alert

Sunday was the Men's Downhill at the Olympics. Bode Miller of the United States had the winning time of all three training runs prior to the actual race. Everyone expected him to win the event and several of my close friends were planning on staying up late and watching it live on the Internet. I was a bit tired from the previous day and so I slept through the live broadcast. I got up early on Sunday and was hoping to watch a streaming video of the Men's Downhill and loaded up NBC's Olympic page.

One would think that NBC had someone who knew what they were doing build their website. Instead of presenting a bunch of videos, they had headlines of Bode Miller's disappointing run even though he was the best placed American. Why watch the event when I already know the outcome? Come on NBC, show us the videos first and create a somewhat hidden page with the results.

Eventually I was able to find the Men's Downhill video only to be told I had to wait 8 hours after the event before I could watch it. Why? Who made these rules? No wonder NBC is the worst of the big 3 television networks.

Let the Games Begin

Today marks the start of the 2014 Winter Olympic games. Actually they started quite a while ago when you factor in all of the athletes' preparation as well as the organizers. I don't mind watching the Summer Olympics but I really make it a point to watch the Winter games. They are faster, more exciting, and strike a chord with me as I am a skier.

Right now I am at the airport and just got off the phone with my wife who is sitting down to watch the opening ceremonies. Considering they took place over 8 hours ago, you would think I would be able to pull them up on my computer or phone and be able to watch them. I tried on my phone but was unsuccessful. NBC owns the rights to the games in the United States and so it is not like you can watch them from any other source. Don't worry, you don't have to watch them on the TV as NBC has a website where you can see them. They have also created iPhone, iPad, Android, and Windows Phone apps so you can watch them on your mobile devices. It is called the NBC Sports Live Extra app and can be found in the usual places. There is a catch though: you must be a subscriber to cable or satellite TV.

I am a current cable subscriber but still can't figure out how to log in and watch the opening ceremonies. I can watch a couple several minute videos but I was hoping for more. I guess I can console myself knowing the Olympics really begin tomorrow and tonight's event is probably really boring anyways.

Ransomware and Backups

I few days ago I was watching TV and saw an ad for a local computer store in Utah. The owner of the store talked about a new kind of computer virus called Ransomware. As I use only Mac or Linux and not Windows, I really don't worry about computer viruses. While a protected operating system doesn't guaranty you won't get a virus, it makes writing viruses really difficult and so most hackers don't even bother. Besides Windows has the majority of the market and so if you are going to extort money from unsuspecting computer users, that is where you will make the most.

Today I discovered that most of the antivirus software vendors have been able to lock out the majority of ransomware. That doesn't stop would-be extortionists from trying though. There is another class of ransomware that lacks any real ability to harm your computer. Basically you go to a web page that claims you have done something criminal like downloaded music illegally, or worse. You are then told you have several hours to pay a "forgiveness" fine. When you try to leave the web page, you are unable to do so. When you try to close your browser, you can't. For the unsuspecting user, this can be very frustrating. The trick is to kill your browser from the operating system. PC Magazine has an article outlining the steps if you need help.

The best thing you can do to keep yourself safe from any computer virus is to back up your hard disk frequently. I like to keep my computers backed up locally. That means I use a portable hard drive, Burnable DVD's, or some other form of backup media and keep the data myself. There are a number of online backup companies that also work well. It doesn't matter what you do, just make sure you back up the important stuff. Then when some website tells you to send them money or you will never see your stupid cat videos again, you can rest assured knowing you've got a nice copy of your important data.

Engineering Notebooks

I was instructed to keep notebooks by my engineering professors when I was getting my degree in Electrical Engineering. I was told that all good engineers kept notebooks and so I dutifully obliged. When I went to work for Oracle Corporation right out of college, I continued to keep notebooks and have kept every single one. My professors told me that my employers would want to retain my notebooks when I left but not a single company has ever asked for them.

Naturally I started a new notebook when I joined my current company and have filled two volumes. My coworkers see my notebooks and have been known to make copies of various pages. I have even had several people mention that I should write a book. I tell them I have and that it was a lot of work for very little pay. Lately I have been thinking about writing another book though. The only problem is that people don't really read technical books any more. It is much easier find information on the Internet. Then my boss suggested I write a technical blog, string the entries together, and create an electronic book of sorts. I suppose I could do that with this blog, but it is far too diverse for a single book. Besides I try to keep my entries short and simple so that everyone can understand them.

The book I want to write is very technical and so this evening I will be starting a second blog. Don't worry, I will still contribute to this one so that I get my 71 entries per year. My second blog will be a deep dive into PostgreSQL. PostgreSQL has some of the best documentation for any computer software, whether commercial or open source. However it lacks a cohesive set of examples and certain solutions to real-world problems. My hope is that my new blog will work hand-in-hand with the existing documentation and add clarity to some rather difficult concepts. Hopefully it solves a hole that I feel exists currently.

WiFi Hotspot

This weekend I joined my son in Sun Valley for his ski race and we had a very good trip. We stayed with the team at an inexpensive motel and were fairly comfortable. When I checked in, they gave me a piece of paper with the WiFi password so I could get online and check e-mail. Unfortunately the password they gave me didn't work. Sure I could have called the front desk and straightened things out. Instead, I turned my Android phone into a mobile WiFi hotspot and connected to it with my computer.

For the past month or so I have been carrying around an Android phone and my iPhone 5. Both phones use the AT&T service. There are some things I like about my iPhone and others that I like about my Android. One area where the Android phone really shines is in its ability to become a mobile hotspot. For some reason, AT&T doesn't allow your iPhone to perform this functionality but it does for Android phones. I have to say that I am very impressed with this capability. The LTE download speed was nearly as fast as my home Internet connection. I was able to read e-mail quickly and do it on a full-sized computer screen with a full-sized keyboard. Furthermore, my son was able to connect his iTouch at the same time and read his e-mail as well.

Once my son and I were done with the Internet connection, I turned off the WiFi hotspot capability along with my computer. It was only needed for a couple of minutes and was very handy. After that we were both worn out from a busy day of skiing and went to sleep. Technology had served its purpose.