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Comment: Security software with a known backdoor is useless (Score 2) 11

Even if it was for a "good cause". Let's for a moment even assume that the NSA is an all-holy entity that could never do anything wrong and that we trusted them implicitly, not because our software forces us to but because we genuinely wanted to.

Note the subjunctive.

Even then the security software would be a security hazard. Simply and plainly because there is (at least) one way to access data that is absolutely beyond your control. You cannot even audit the security level of the entity holding the additional key to your data.

If you need to give your non-tech boss a way to understand the severity, that's like having a general key to your office and the safe with all the highly classified and mission critical papers deposited at your local police force. While by itself not a problem (provided you trust your police), they are not required to give you any information concerning the key's storage or whereabouts. You will not be notified how they themselves will keep that key safe, nor do you get any kind of information should that key get stolen. You will not be notified if some potential attacker or burglar, or even a competitor, gets access to that key, legally or illegally.

Comment: Re:Do something about your hoarding problem (Score 1) 923

by Reziac (#46474581) Attached to: How Do You Backup 20TB of Data?

This is why I archive my email into separate bins every 60mb or so (which means about twice a year) -- anything larger becomes unwieldy. It's a nuisance, but not nearly the nuisance of trying to search the file with an external tool because it got munged and won't open in the mail client.

[This is with SeaMonkey, which still keeps mail as plaintext, thank ghod, so any good text editor can root about in the file at need.]

Comment: Re:Hmmm... (Score 1) 923

by Reziac (#46474449) Attached to: How Do You Backup 20TB of Data?

The problem with the whole backup tape thing is that the total solution tends to exceed the cost of just buying more hard disks, and is often so much slower. :( And in 20 years, will you still have an interface that can handle the hardware??

Dunno about now, but back in the days of QIC-80, the only tapes that were worth a shit were Sony. Number of bad blocks when first formatted (don't forget to format your tapes!) and likelihood that the tape would be bad later on correlated pretty well, in my experience. Sony consistently had no more than four bad blocks per tape (the only one I ever saw with more, I returned as defective), vs 20 to 300 for other brands.

And all I could find for my Travan drive were TDK, tho they seemed to be okay.

Great, now I've got kids on my lawn again...

Comment: States' rights (Score 1) 400

by tepples (#46474017) Attached to: White House: Get ACA Insurance Coverage, Launch Start-Ups

given that Romneycare is basically Obamacare and happened there eight years ago.

Republicans, as I understand it, are for the several states' self-determination. The federal system was supposed to let states experiment with what works for each of them. This is why Republicans who favored Romneycare at the state level oppose the federal ACA.

Comment: People who stiff the ER (Score 1) 400

by tepples (#46473775) Attached to: White House: Get ACA Insurance Coverage, Launch Start-Ups

Oh, you haven't realized ACA doesn't do squat to reduce actual healthcare costs??

I think the idea is supposed to be that shared responsibility will reduce the cost of treating uninsured people at emergency rooms, which should reduce what hospitals have to mark up to recover said costs.

Comment: Re:A hypothetical monopoly on smartphones (Score 2) 384

by tepples (#46460243) Attached to: Apple Demands $40 Per Samsung Phone For 5 Software Patents
Have the patents been successfully designed around, or are other Android phones just made by smaller companies that Apple plans to pursue after it has prevailed over Samsung? If the common-practice design around for each of these patents is documented, I'd like to see it.

Comment: The family plan for the whole family (Score 1) 74

I have a tablet. I cannot use it simultaneously with my phone (in the sense that I'm actively doing something that consumes data with one device).

The tablet's operating system can download updated versions of applications while you are using your phone. Or another member of your family can be using your tablet while you are using your phone.

I have a car. I cannot use it simultaneously with my laptop, tablet, and phone.

You are using a map application on the car's infotainment system, which scrolls after passing through each intersection. Your wife is on the phone with someone at the destination. Your son is in the back seat doing something with the laptop. Your daughter is in the other back seat doing something with the tablet.
