thepillarsofmarsandvenus - Tumblr blog

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

Seeing these two posts back to back makes me wonder how long it'll be before Brennan attacks Sam with a halberd

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

Returning to Tumblr simply to point how the cast of Game Changer is like no other. This interview is wild.

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

Beyond lockpicking: learn about the class-breaks for doors, locks, hinges and other physical security measures

Deviant Ollam is runs a physical security penetration testing company called The Core Group; in a flat-out amazing, riveting presentation from the 2017 Wild West Hackin’ Fest, Ollam – a master lockpicker – describes how lockpicking is a last resort for the desperate, while the wily and knowledgeable gain access by attacking doors and locks with tools that quickly and undetectably open them.

Ollam’s techniques are just laugh-out-loud fantastic to watch: from removing the pins in hinges and lifting doors away from their high-security locks to sliding cheap tools between doors or under them to turn thumb-levers, bypass latches, and turn handles. My favorite were the easy-exit sensors that can be tricked into opening a pair of doors by blowing vape smoke (or squirting water, or releasing a balloon) through the crack down their middle.

But more than anything, Ollam’s lecture reminds me of the ground truth that anyone who learns lockpicking comes to: physical security is a predatory scam in which shoddy products are passed off onto naive consumers who have no idea how unfit for purpose they are.

When locksport began, locksmiths were outraged that their long-held “secret” ways of bypassing, tricking and confounding locks had entered the public domain – they accused the information security community of putting the public at risk by publishing the weaknesses in their products (infosec geeks also get accused of this every time they point out the weaknesses in digital products, of course).

But the reality is that “bad guys” know about (and exploit) these vulnerabilities already. The only people in the dark about them are the suckers who buy them and rely on them.

So when Ollam reveals that thousands of American cop cars, fleet cars, and taxis can all be unlocked and started using a shared key that you can literally buy for a few bucks at Home Depot, or that most elevators can be bypassed with a similarly widely available key, or that most file cabinets and other small locks can be opened with a third key, or that most digital entry systems can be bypassed in seconds with a paperclip (or another common physical key), he’s doing important (and hilarious!) work.

He’s such an engaging speaker and the subject matter is nothing short of fantastic. There are a hundred heist novels in this talk alone. It’s definitely my must-watch for the week.

https://boingboing.net/2019/06/14/fools-paradise-lost.html

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

Another day in the Office

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

While I really hate the narrative of "tech bros" because of how it conflates shitty CEOs with non-shitty base-level programmers, and how it conflates Dunning-Kruger-y early adopters with people who Know Their Shit about computers...

...On the AI art issue, I will say, there is probably a legit a culture clash between people who primarily specialize in programming and people who primarily specialize in art.

Because, like, while in the experience of modern working illustrators a free commons has ended up representing a Hobbseyan experience of "a war of all against all" that's a constant threat to making a living, in software from what I can tell it's kinda been the reverse.

IE, freedom of access to shared code/information has kinda been seen as A Vital Thing wrt people's abilities to do their job at a core level. So, naturally, there's going to be some very different reactions to the morality of scraped data online.

And, it's probably the same reason that a lot of the creative commons movement came from the free software movement.

And while I agree a lot with the core principles of these movements, it's also probably unfortunately why they so often come off as tone-deaf and haven't really made that proper breakthrough wrt fighting against copyright bloat.

It also really doesn't help that, in terms of treatment by capital, for most of our lives programmers have been Mother's Special Little Boy whereas artists (especially online independent artists post '08 crash) have been treated as The Ratboy We Keep In The Basement And Throw Scraps To.

So, it make sense the latter would have resentment wrt the former...

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

Mario has been kissed by at least two canonically transgender women. I have to surpass him

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

That’s a red flag to YOU! To Marcille she’s just charming.

Had this idea ever since I finished reading Dungeon Meshi and finally got around to finishing it.

(on youtube for better quality)

Music - “Red Flags” by Tom Cardy

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

The Brian David Gilbert episode of Very Important People is funny front to back but the best part is right after the reveal when Brian is clearly experiencing some kind of mad scientist gender euphoria. Me too.

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

You've heard a lot of the whole "is this 200-year-old immortal vampire dating a 23-year-old grooming?" but actually the direction that's WAY funnier to me is if the long-lived race the questionable one. "Is this 23-year-old human grooming this 80-year-old elf because actually elves aren't mature until they're 100"

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

I love the suggestion I saw on Twitter, which is that the United States should never lose an international sporting even twice. If they ever get beaten, they should just offer the winning team U.S. citizenship, conditional on playing for the U.S. team next time. Use the fact that the U.S. is a relatively desirable immigration destination to just destroy everyone at every sport forever.

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

Sometimes I get emails. Sometimes I reply to them.

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

petplay chilaios save me.... save me petplay chilaios.....

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

The meme continues: conservative Supreme Court justice Neil Gorsuch is probably the most pro-Native member of the court

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

My favorite category of government program to run across is "program you've never heard of doing extremely important work to solve a major problem which you have also never heard of." On that note, the US drops millions of pounds of sterile bugs over Panama each week in order to prevent a parasite infestation from moving into North America. Everyone say thank you to the Panama-United States Commission for the Eradication and Prevention of the Cattle Borer Worm (COPEG)

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

mine craft seems like a good thing for youngsters actually. it’s creative and non violent and social to a degree. do they do a good job making sure it is safe

[thepillarsofmarsandvenus]

Lactose: e-excuse me...

Stomach: hey, what do we have here? Some goddamned lactose!

Small intestine: we don't like lactose here, ya know? You're gatecrashing a very private party!

Large intestine: (pushes him, making him stumble) there's two ways you can leave here... The easy way, or the hard way. What's it gonna be?

Lactose: but I...

Lactase: (deep voice) step back, everyone. (walks up and puts his arm around lactose's shoulders) he's with *me*

Large intestine: lactase?!

Small intestine: b-but you're both...

Lactase: I *said* he's with me. You got a problem with that?

Stomach: (finishes sizing him up) right. Course not. It's cool, lactose. Just don't cause any *problems*, you hear?

Lactose: I-I w-

Lactase: you don't have to answer that, babe. Just keep walking