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Private Browsing Google Trouble
by Lawrence D'Oliveiro 11 Nov '17

11 Nov '17

Just tried to open a few Private Browsing sessions to do searches in Google in Firefox. Previously this has worked fine. But currently the connections are taking forever to complete. Explicitly connecting to google.com (instead of typing directly in the search box) has the same problem. Doing one of the same searches in a non-private tab worked fine. To compare, I connected to bing.com in a private tab, and did another of the searches there. Again, it worked fine.

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Saw This In An Ad Frame On The Herald Site (Long Traceback!)
by Lawrence D'Oliveiro 11 Nov '17

11 Nov '17

A little bit earlier this afternoon, while browsing nzherald.co.nz, The following popped up in a frame headed “Advertisement”: (Warning: long traceback ahead). I thought I would post it all, because it has some interesting info in it, such as all the method names beginning with “AdTrek”. And references to a particular user’s “Telepathy Client Repos”? ---- Server Error in '/' Application. The wait operation timed out Description: An unhandled exception occurred during the execution of the current web request. Please review the stack trace for more information about the error and where it originated in the code. Exception Details: System.ComponentModel.Win32Exception: The wait operation timed out Source Error: An unhandled exception was generated during the execution of the current web request. Information regarding the origin and location of the exception can be identified using the exception stack trace below. Stack Trace: [Win32Exception (0x80004005): The wait operation timed out] [SqlException (0x80131904): Timeout expired. The timeout period elapsed prior to completion of the operation or the server is not responding.] System.Data.SqlClient.SqlConnection.OnError(SqlException exception, Boolean breakConnection, Action`1 wrapCloseInAction) +3279580 System.Data.SqlClient.TdsParser.ThrowExceptionAndWarning(TdsParserStateObject stateObj, Boolean callerHasConnectionLock, Boolean asyncClose) +791 System.Data.SqlClient.TdsParser.TryRun(RunBehavior runBehavior, SqlCommand cmdHandler, SqlDataReader dataStream, BulkCopySimpleResultSet bulkCopyHandler, TdsParserStateObject stateObj, Boolean& dataReady) +4927 System.Data.SqlClient.SqlCommand.FinishExecuteReader(SqlDataReader ds, RunBehavior runBehavior, String resetOptionsString) +442 System.Data.SqlClient.SqlCommand.RunExecuteReaderTds(CommandBehavior cmdBehavior, RunBehavior runBehavior, Boolean returnStream, Boolean async, Int32 timeout, Task& task, Boolean asyncWrite, SqlDataReader ds, Boolean describeParameterEncryptionRequest) +3114 System.Data.SqlClient.SqlCommand.RunExecuteReader(CommandBehavior cmdBehavior, RunBehavior runBehavior, Boolean returnStream, String method, TaskCompletionSource`1 completion, Int32 timeout, Task& task, Boolean asyncWrite) +554 System.Data.SqlClient.SqlCommand.InternalExecuteNonQuery(TaskCompletionSource`1 completion, String methodName, Boolean sendToPipe, Int32 timeout, Boolean asyncWrite) +475 System.Data.SqlClient.SqlCommand.ExecuteNonQuery() +386 System.Data.Linq.SqlClient.SqlProvider.Execute(Expression query, QueryInfo queryInfo, IObjectReaderFactory factory, Object[] parentArgs, Object[] userArgs, ICompiledSubQuery[] subQueries, Object lastResult) +457 System.Data.Linq.SqlClient.SqlProvider.ExecuteAll(Expression query, QueryInfo[] queryInfos, IObjectReaderFactory factory, Object[] userArguments, ICompiledSubQuery[] subQueries) +213 System.Data.Linq.SqlClient.SqlProvider.System.Data.Linq.Provider.IProvider.Execute(Expression query) +421 System.Data.Linq.StandardChangeDirector.DynamicInsert(TrackedObject item) +101 System.Data.Linq.ChangeProcessor.SubmitChanges(ConflictMode failureMode) +435 System.Data.Linq.DataContext.SubmitChanges(ConflictMode failureMode) +666 AdTrek.Models.AdServerRepository.saveAdEvent(AdEvent adEvent) in C:\Users\Scott\Documents\Telepathy Client Repos\ElectricArt\AdTrek\AdTrek\Models\Data\Repositories\AdServerRepository.cs:743 AdTrek.Controllers.AdServerController.fillModel(AdViewModel model, Boolean loadScriptSrc) in C:\Users\Scott\Documents\Telepathy Client Repos\ElectricArt\AdTrek\AdTrek\Controllers\AdServerController.cs:148 AdTrek.Controllers.AdServerController.Frame(AdViewModel model) in C:\Users\Scott\Documents\Telepathy Client Repos\ElectricArt\AdTrek\AdTrek\Controllers\AdServerController.cs:18 lambda_method(Closure , ControllerBase , Object[] ) +139 System.Web.Mvc.ReflectedActionDescriptor.Execute(ControllerContext controllerContext, IDictionary`2 parameters) +229 System.Web.Mvc.ControllerActionInvoker.InvokeActionMethod(ControllerContext controllerContext, ActionDescriptor actionDescriptor, IDictionary`2 parameters) +35 System.Web.Mvc.Async.AsyncControllerActionInvoker.<BeginInvokeSynchronousActionMethod>b__39(IAsyncResult asyncResult, ActionInvocation innerInvokeState) +39 System.Web.Mvc.Async.WrappedAsyncResult`2.CallEndDelegate(IAsyncResult asyncResult) +67 System.Web.Mvc.Async.AsyncControllerActionInvoker.EndInvokeActionMethod(IAsyncResult asyncResult) +42 System.Web.Mvc.Async.AsyncInvocationWithFilters.<InvokeActionMethodFilterAsynchronouslyRecursive>b__3d() +72 System.Web.Mvc.Async.<>c__DisplayClass46.<InvokeActionMethodFilterAsynchronouslyRecursive>b__3f() +386 System.Web.Mvc.Async.AsyncControllerActionInvoker.EndInvokeActionMethodWithFilters(IAsyncResult asyncResult) +42 System.Web.Mvc.Async.<>c__DisplayClass2b.<BeginInvokeAction>b__1c() +38 System.Web.Mvc.Async.<>c__DisplayClass21.<BeginInvokeAction>b__1e(IAsyncResult asyncResult) +186 System.Web.Mvc.Async.AsyncControllerActionInvoker.EndInvokeAction(IAsyncResult asyncResult) +38 System.Web.Mvc.Controller.<BeginExecuteCore>b__1d(IAsyncResult asyncResult, ExecuteCoreState innerState) +29 System.Web.Mvc.Async.WrappedAsyncVoid`1.CallEndDelegate(IAsyncResult asyncResult) +65 System.Web.Mvc.Controller.EndExecuteCore(IAsyncResult asyncResult) +53 System.Web.Mvc.Async.WrappedAsyncVoid`1.CallEndDelegate(IAsyncResult asyncResult) +36 System.Web.Mvc.Controller.EndExecute(IAsyncResult asyncResult) +38 System.Web.Mvc.MvcHandler.<BeginProcessRequest>b__5(IAsyncResult asyncResult, ProcessRequestState innerState) +44 System.Web.Mvc.Async.WrappedAsyncVoid`1.CallEndDelegate(IAsyncResult asyncResult) +65 System.Web.Mvc.MvcHandler.EndProcessRequest(IAsyncResult asyncResult) +38 System.Web.CallHandlerExecutionStep.System.Web.HttpApplication.IExecutionStep.Execute() +399 System.Web.HttpApplication.ExecuteStep(IExecutionStep step, Boolean& completedSynchronously) +137 Version Information: Microsoft .NET Framework Version:4.0.30319; ASP.NET Version:4.6.1069.1

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New To Me: Game Asset Rippers
by Lawrence D'Oliveiro 11 Nov '17

11 Nov '17

While browsing around DeviantArt (as you do), I discovered this group <https://xnalaramodelandtuts.deviantart.com/>. The name “XNALara” comes from an open-source Windows program that let you create your own scenes and poses with assets (characters, props, scenery) from the “Tomb Raider: Underworld” game. (I think it has broadened its reach beyond that one game by now.) All very well, but how do you extract those assets from these games? Turns out there are these tools called “rippers”, which capture the OpenGL/DirectX drawing calls that the game makes and save all the geometry and textures and so on that are passed to those calls. (Did somebody say “copyright violation”?) Well, there are folders in that group that are absolutely full of these extracted assets. Some have been taken down on demand from the copyright owners, but the remarkable thing is that most of them are still available, and have been so for some years. And that the accounts of those uploading these collections have not been suspended. I tried loading one or two of them into Blender. There’s a range of formats, but one common combination is .obj+.mtl for the geometry and material definitions, and .dds for the texture images. The latter can be converted to PNG with ImageMagick and, after making corresponding edits to the references in the .mtl file, I was able to import the results and see something resembling the preview images. There have been artists on DeviantArt who have used these in their renders (and mentioned as much--that’s how I found out about them). I may try messing around with them a bit more, but I don’t think I’ll be publishing any such work...

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The Power Of Non-Mainstream Media
by Lawrence D'Oliveiro 11 Nov '17

11 Nov '17

<https://arstechnica.com/science/2017/11/unusual-experiment-reveals-the-powe…>: Pundits and activists have long blamed the "mainstream media" for having an outsized effect on public perceptions. ... But a new long-term study reveals that small media outlets have a far greater effect on public discussions than anyone realized. To be more precise, it only takes three or more stories from small news outlets covering the same topic to make discussions of that topic go up by 62.7 percent on Twitter.

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3D Metal Printing At 100 Times The Speed And A Twentieth Of The Cost
by Lawrence D'Oliveiro 10 Nov '17

10 Nov '17

3D printing has mainly been confined to parts made out of various kinds of plastics up till now. Metal has been hard to deal with, because at some point you have to melt it, and that requires temperatures higher than any printing-type device could cope with. Now a company called “Desktop Metal” <http://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/11/10/metal_3d_printing_at_desktop_metal/> has come up with a scheme involving binding layers of metal powder, laid down in the right shape, using a temporary compound which is then removed when the part is melted in a furnace so it becomes a proper solid piece. Obviously this has to be done without losing its shape. The process can also do clever things like make a hinge, where there is no metal between the parts, so once the binding compound is removed, you have two solid parts that can freely rotate without falling apart.

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How Antivirus Can Open You To Attacks That Otherwise Wouldn’t Be Possible
by Lawrence D'Oliveiro 10 Nov '17

10 Nov '17

From <https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/11/how-av-can-open-you-…>: Antivirus programs, in many cases, make us safer on the Internet. Other times, they open us to attacks that otherwise wouldn't be possible. On Friday, a researcher documented an example of the latter—a vulnerability he found in about a dozen name-brand AV programs that allows attackers who already have a toehold on a targeted computer to gain complete system control.

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Google Patches KRACK WiFi Flaw in Android November Security Update
by Peter Reutemann 10 Nov '17

10 Nov '17

'Some vendors take longer than others to update for critical vulnerabilities - case in point is Google's Android mobile operating system. On Nov. 6, Google released an Android update patching a vulnerability that IT vendors have known about for months. On Oct. 16, security researcher Mathy Vanhoef working at Belgian University KU Leuven publicly disclosed the KRACK WiFi vulnerability that impacted all WiFi devices that use WPA2 encryption, including every Android device ever built.' -- source: https://www.esecurityplanet.com/mobile-security/google-patches-krack-wifi-f… Cheers, Peter -- Peter Reutemann Dept. of Computer Science University of Waikato, NZ +64 (7) 858-5174 http://www.cms.waikato.ac.nz/~fracpete/ http://www.data-mining.co.nz/

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Samsung Demos Linux Desktop on Its Galaxy Smartphones
by Lawrence D'Oliveiro 09 Nov '17

09 Nov '17

“Concept Demo”, it says, running Ubuntu <http://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/11/10/linux_on_galaxy_video_demo/>.

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Intel To Ship Processors With Integrated AMD Graphics And Memory
by Lawrence D'Oliveiro 09 Nov '17

09 Nov '17

Intel’s gen-8 H-series mobile processors will integrate an AMD Radeon GPU <https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2017/11/intel-will-ship-processors-with-int…>.

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MINIX: Intel's Hidden In-chip Operating System
by Peter Reutemann 08 Nov '17

08 Nov '17

'Matthew Garrett, the well-known Linux and security developer who works for Google, explained recently that, "Intel chipsets for some years have included a Management Engine [ME], a small microprocessor that runs independently of the main CPU and operating system. Various pieces of software run on the ME, ranging from code to handle media DRM to an implementation of a TPM. AMT [Active Management Technology] is another piece of software running on the ME." [...] At a presentation at Embedded Linux Conference Europe, Ronald Minnich, a Google software engineer reported that systems using Intel chips that have AMT, are running MINIX. So, what's it doing in Intel chips? A lot. These processors are running a closed-source variation of the open-source MINIX 3. We don't know exactly what version or how it's been modified since we don't have the source code. In addition, thanks to Minnich and his fellow researchers' work, MINIX is running on three separate x86 cores on modern chips. There, it's running: TCP/IP networking stacks (4 and 6), file systems, drivers (disk, net, USB, mouse), web servers. MINIX also has access to your passwords. It can also reimage your computer's firmware even if it's powered off. Let me repeat that. If your computer is "off" but still plugged in, MINIX can still potentially change your computer's fundamental settings. And, for even more fun, it "can implement self-modifying code that can persist across power cycles." So, if an exploit happens here, even if you unplug your server in one last desperate attempt to save it, the attack will still be there waiting for you when you plug it back in. How? MINIX can do all this because it runs at a fundamentally lower level. [...] According to Minnich, "there are big giant holes that people can drive exploits through." He continued, "Are you scared yet? If you're not scared yet, maybe I didn't explain it very well, because I sure am scared." Also read: Andrew S. Tanenbaum's (a professor of Computer Science at Vrije Universiteit) open letter to Intel' -- source: https://tech.slashdot.org/story/17/11/07/1041236 Cheers, Peter -- Peter Reutemann Dept. of Computer Science University of Waikato, NZ +64 (7) 858-5174 http://www.cms.waikato.ac.nz/~fracpete/ http://www.data-mining.co.nz/

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