@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

BernardSheppard

@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au

They're not using fucking AI.

Semi-retired renewable energy and M&A strategist, former software nerd based near Melbourne, AU.

Former successful contrarian stock picking investor, now firmly contrarian ETF investor.

My professional opinions are 80% at odds with the consensus (and with the benefit of hindsight, turn out to be prescient), and 20% are in alignment (and with the benefit of being able to spot the obvious, they also turn out to be correct). #ClimateChange #Energy

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

thomasfuchs, to random
@thomasfuchs@hachyderm.io avatar

Defaced some of my Stack Overflow answers again because the people who own that site are triple-A fartwaffles who are fucking over the community.

P.S. They smell bad.

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@thomasfuchs Stack Overflow are using the "everyone else was (probably) criming; now that we're planning on doing something objectionable, you're upset with us" excuse. Fuck em.

garius, to random
@garius@mastodon.me.uk avatar

Yeeeah.

After lots of possible failure point elimination yesterday, I think it's new motherboard time.

Tested different SSDs and RAM with fresh installs of Windows each time and fully up-to-date drivers. Issue of multiple BSODs, all memory access related, returns.

Dmp files not showing a program consistently causing the issue, either.

Couple that with a RAM stick randomly failing last week, and that increasingly says 'board issue' to me.

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@garius the one thing that I would suggest checking - if you easily can - is the power supply. But a failing power supply, and failing power components on the motherboard will both have similar outcomes.

It sounds like you have tried everything else reasonably possible to try.

BernardSheppard, to infosec
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

OK Linkt, do you think you could fuck this up any further?

You've got your "Stay safe online" message, with a reminder that you'll always direct you to log in via linkt.com.au, but your email has a fucking link to a click tracking website instead of a login.

For fuck's sake, are you actually trying to train us to click on scam links, or just incompetent?

How about your favourite scammers who are out there scamming toll notices send them out from https : // click.digittal.linktt.com.au/?qs=c21af a fucking long string of numbers because how many people will spot the extra t in linkt after the click.digittal?

fail of the week.

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

Today, in fail of the day, I bring you more (aka Tangerine) - part owned by Commonwealth Bank - who are reducing their security by allowing anyone who has any of the hundreds of thousands, if not millions of emails combined with mobile numbers out there in breach lists, who happens to get control of an email inbox that contains communications from more (or a phone) the ability to instantly take over the account.

How, you ask?

Easy: they've done away with passwords and 2FA, and gone to 0FA. If you have the email or the mobile, you're in. Just like that.

You don't need the password, or the account number. Just the email and the mobile.

For example the email with the mobile bill.

Because they send the confirmation code to both the email and the mobile.

Sure, you need to know both, but that's the easy part.

Text below, and image attached.

Dear Bernard,

We’re excited to share that we are making some improvements to the way you access the Self Care Portal by simplifying the login process.

We know you're not a fan of complicated stuff, and neither are we. We’ve listened to your feedback and have recognised that the current Portal login process is a hassle: We ask you to remember your account number and password as well as you email – that’s far from being simple. So, let's make things simple!

From Friday 12 April 2024, you’ll be able to log in to the Self Care Portal by only entering your email and mobile number. We’ll then send a one-time verification code to your mobile and email – this is our way of double-checking it’s really you (a similar verification process already happens when you speak with our team over the phone).

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@ben Yeah, OFA was half in jest - but you don't even need to know the account number or username: if you have a list of emails and phone numbers, and get control of one of those email accounts, and you were a bad actor, you would be crazy not to at least attempt to log in: you need no other factor. You don't need the thing you know (the password) and the thing you have (the phone) for the 2FA. The email as a factor is sort of there, but only just.

The assumption is that every customer controls their accounts at all times.

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@ben Oh, and yeah, not a fan of SMS 2FA either. OTOH, MS passwordless login is pretty well implemented. I have shifted to it where possible.

My preference is passwords and TOPT or passkey / webauthn 2FA, or even better, webauthn with an identity (e.g. email / account) all on its own (no need for a password or 2FA).

liampomfret, to random
@liampomfret@mastodon.social avatar

Having finally settled on my new laptop purchase, I’m now fully expecting that I’ll spot a much better deal on something within days.

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@liampomfret yup. Got any credit cards with any sorts of purchase insurance that you never think that you will use that might come in handy?

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@liampomfret Fair enough. For a lot of people who can't do maths, they're evil, though I wonder if the bank would now offer you one with them.

BernardSheppard, to nuclear
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

Michael Barnard explains why Ted O'Brien and his bros are pro in a prescient article written back in November 2023 before they announced their policy (spoiler - but you know this already - it is because being pro nuclear == pro-fossil fuel) which includes an absolutely delicious slap to bros: 'Why, by the way, do I keep putting “hydrogen ready” in quotes? Because most of the time natural gas burning units are hydrogen ready like your driveway is Lamborghini ready. That it’s possible to park a fictitious future and very expensive Lambo in it does not in any way mean that you will be able to afford to do so.'

https://cleantechnica.com/2023/11/30/what-drives-this-madness-on-small-modular-nuclear-reactors/

ajsadauskas, (edited ) to tech
@ajsadauskas@aus.social avatar

In an age of LLMs, is it time to reconsider human-edited web directories?

Back in the early-to-mid '90s, one of the main ways of finding anything on the web was to browse through a web directory.

These directories generally had a list of categories on their front page. News/Sport/Entertainment/Arts/Technology/Fashion/etc.

Each of those categories had subcategories, and sub-subcategories that you clicked through until you got to a list of websites. These lists were maintained by actual humans.

Typically, these directories also had a limited web search that would crawl through the pages of websites listed in the directory.

Lycos, Excite, and of course Yahoo all offered web directories of this sort.

(EDIT: I initially also mentioned AltaVista. It did offer a web directory by the late '90s, but this was something it tacked on much later.)

By the late '90s, the standard narrative goes, the web got too big to index websites manually.

Google promised the world its algorithms would weed out the spam automatically.

And for a time, it worked.

But then SEO and SEM became a multi-billion-dollar industry. The spambots proliferated. Google itself began promoting its own content and advertisers above search results.

And now with LLMs, the industrial-scale spamming of the web is likely to grow exponentially.

My question is, if a lot of the web is turning to crap, do we even want to search the entire web anymore?

Do we really want to search every single website on the web?

Or just those that aren't filled with LLM-generated SEO spam?

Or just those that don't feature 200 tracking scripts, and passive-aggressive privacy warnings, and paywalls, and popovers, and newsletters, and increasingly obnoxious banner ads, and dark patterns to prevent you cancelling your "free trial" subscription?

At some point, does it become more desirable to go back to search engines that only crawl pages on human-curated lists of trustworthy, quality websites?

And is it time to begin considering what a modern version of those early web directories might look like?

@degoogle

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@bradenslen @ajsadauskas @degoogle looksmart! There's a blast from the past.

As a very early internet user (suburbia.org.au- look it up, and who ran it) and a database guy, what I learnt very early is that any search engine needed users who knew how to write highly selective queries to get highly specific results.

Google - despite everything - can still be used as a useful tool - if you are a skilled user.

I am still surprised that you are not taught how to perform critical internet searching in primary school. It is as important as the three Rs

jpm, to random
@jpm@aus.social avatar

Me, minding my own business: ok I need to grab the beef for the stir fry from the fridge, so what veggies do we have in here?

My brain, still in shitpost mode: hey look, twiggy sticks!

Me: no, not putting twiggy sticks in stir-fry, although I guess they would be an ok substitute for Chinese sausage?

My brain: oh ho ho ho, that’s not where I was going

Me: oh?

My brain: remember what we had for dinner last night?

Me: oh shit oh fuck oh shit oh fuck

My brain: whispers twiggy stick sushi hand rolls

Me: GET OUT

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@jpm Oh, Yeah, Panko crumbed deep fried twiggy sticks.

CultureDesk, (edited ) to food
@CultureDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Restaurants in America are in crisis because they can't hire and retain qualified workers. To stave off oblivion, restaurateurs are exploring options like replacing tipping with mandatory service fees, reducing waitstaff in favor of counter ordering, and dynamic pricing, where you pay more or less according to demand. Business Insider's food reporter Corey Mintz delves into the issues, concluding: "The fundamental problem is that restaurants have long mistreated their workers. So when many veteran employees had a chance to get out of the industry during the pandemic, they did." Which of these solutions would you be prepared to swallow?

https://flip.it/5deQ6c

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@CultureDesk @luciedigitalni They seem to in almost every other country that I have visited or read about. What makes restaurants in the U.S. different?

It seems to be more than just to do with whether or not the restaurant can stay in business or not, and deeper ideological drivers.

You get the best service in Japan where tipping is absolutely culturally frowned apon and not accepted.

You can get good service in the U.S. because the person serving you depends on those tips, but because of that, the service can be intrusive, and is often forced.

Tipping also trains a proportion of the customers to treat service staff like second class citizens - because they can get away with it.

Just pay the same non-service industry minimum wage. It's not enough to live on, but it is a start.

luciedigitalni, to random
@luciedigitalni@aus.social avatar

I can tell I'm doing some serious procrastinating as I'm currently thinking about registering a new domain name that will definitely* result in a life-changing business venture

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@luciedigitalni Well, you posted this 9 minutes ago. Have you registered it yet, or are you procrastinating so hard that you haven't yet decided to register it?

ajsadauskas, to fuckcars
@ajsadauskas@aus.social avatar

What can you get to within a 15-minute walk of your house?

A recent YouGov survey asked Americans what they think they should be able to get to within a 15-minute walk of their house.

Of these choices, I can currently walk to all of them from my apartment, aside from a university (no biggie, I'm not currently studying, although there is a Tafe within walking distance), a hospital, and a sports arena.

How many can you get to with a 15 minute walk from your house?

@fuck_cars

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@ajsadauskas @fuck_cars All except a Uni.

Shopping Mall? Well, not really, but yes to local shopping strip (5 minutes), Fitzroy St, St Kilda and Clarendon St, South Melbourne (10 Minutes) both covering all shopping needs.

Brisk 20 minutes would get me to the closest CBD campus of a Uni.

And three minutes walk to two tram lines.

Kids walked or public transported to school.

I rode or public transported to work (or taxi and flew because it was in another state or country).

One car family - have never been really able to give up a car, entirely, but never needed two.

ajsadauskas, (edited ) to australia
@ajsadauskas@aus.social avatar

Australia is bigger than some people overseas imagine.

So here's a quick comparison of Australian states to their US counterparts.

Tasmania is Australia's smallest state, with a total area of 68,401 square kilometres.

That's bigger than West Virginia, Maryland, Ha​waii, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, or Rhode Island.

Australia's second smallest state is Victoria, at 227, 444km2.

It's larger than Minnesota, Utah, Idaho, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Washington, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Missouri, Wisconsin, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, New York, North Carolina, Arkansas, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Ohio, Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Maine, Florida, or Pennsylvania.

Fun fact: Victoria is larger in area than Indiana and South Carolina combined.

Now on to the ones that might surprise you.

You know how Texans love talking up how big Texas is?

New South Wales is bigger than Texas.

And by quite a margin. NSW is 801, 150 sq km compared to 696,241 sq km for Texas.

South Australia is bigger than Texas, and Michigan. Combined.

SA is 984, 321 sq km.

Texas (696,241 km2) plus Michigan (250,493 sq km) is just 946, 734 sq km.

Queensland is bigger than Alaska.

Queensland is 1,729,742 sq km, compared to 1,717,854 sq km for Alaska.

That also means Queensland is bigger than Texas and California. Combined.

Texas (696,241 km2) plus California (423,968 km2) is 1,120,209 sq km.

You can add in Michigan too (250,493 sq km) and it's still only 1,370,702 sq km.

That's right kids. Texas, California, and Michigan combined are 359,040 sq km smaller than Queensland.

That leaves Western Australia. It's 2,527,013 square kilometres.

How big is that? Well, the combined area of Texas and Alaska is 2,414,095 sq km, so pretty bloody big.

Source: https://www.ga.gov.au/scientific-topics/national-location-information/dimensions/area-of-australia-states-and-territories

@australia

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@ajsadauskas @australia Texans like to think that Houston is a big city. Population is around 2-3 million. Maybe 7-8 million if you include the metro area. Which goes on forever.

Sydney is 5.3 million and Melbourne about 5.1 million.

Big? Yes. But not so big.

jpm, to random
@jpm@aus.social avatar

As punishment for computer touching crimes committed this week, I have been sentenced to mow the lawn. May God Herself have mercy on my delicate skin

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@jpm what app is that? I know that this app exists, having once installed it or something similar.

timrichards, to random
@timrichards@aus.social avatar

The fking Skybus is now $24 one-way. For a fcking bus. Where's my airport train, Jacinta Allan?

BernardSheppard,
@BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

@timrichards a) partly held up by the private airport owners insisting that the government pay for the station be built underground at twice the cost, b) partly delayed by the government having to find a rail alignment that isn't going to result in the airport rail link more or less instantly going into administration (I'm looking at you, Brisbane) because the construction cost results in a link that is uneconomic from day one, c) price and time to CBD is competitive with Brisbane and Sydney.

But yes, a rail connection would be nice a decade ago.

GeekSusie, to random
@GeekSusie@mastodon.world avatar

deleted_by_author

    •
    BernardSheppard,
    @BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

    @GeekSusie Asked DALL-E to "paint me a picture of Uluru in the style of van Goph"

    josh, to random
    @josh@phocks.eu.org avatar

    ok here it is. how to set up your very own single-user mastodon instance and run it free forever. boosts ok in case it's useful to anyone who wants to set one up. i recommend doing it simply for fun and for the learning experience. good luck! https://josh.is-cool.dev/running-a-mastodon-instance-entirely-free-forever/

    BernardSheppard,
    @BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

    @josh great write up.

    I am pretty much in the same spot now, on Oracle Cloud Free, with clean-up cron jobs set up when I ran out of space the first time.

    I have added crowdsec and Caddy as well

    I don't recall having had to provide a credit card for free sendgrid - maybe it has changed since I signed up - but it does the mail job nicely in case of needing account recovery.

    anneapplebaum, to random
    @anneapplebaum@journa.host avatar

    Still marvelous to think that 110,000 people voted in the Iowa Republican caucus, yet it will be interpreted as sending a significant message about America. That's less than a third of the population of Bydgoszcz. (if your response is "where?" then you are making my point)

    BernardSheppard,
    @BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

    @ElBeeToots @anneapplebaum I was just "old man yells at clouds" when our 6pm bulletin reported it as a surprising landslide.

    No, it was simply exactly what the polling suggested would happen and entirely meaningless.

    With some apologies to Iowa natives who aren't racist fascists, it was simply a bunch of racist fascists choosing their preferred dog-whistling candidate.

    If you poll well in Iowa, you probably poll well with other non-college-educated, rural, Christian evangelical voters.

    RickiTarr, to random
    @RickiTarr@beige.party avatar

    HE FLIPPED THE SCRIPT!

    BernardSheppard,
    @BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

    @passenger @MacropodCare @michaelgemar @RickiTarr That's a fondant. A pedant is a an administrative district (kecamatan) in Klaten Regency, Central Java, Indonesia.

    BernardSheppard,
    @BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

    @AdrianRiskin @passenger @MacropodCare @michaelgemar @RickiTarr That's a pendent. A pedant is a type of transaction that has been recorded by your financial institution but not yet confirmed as being completed or rolled back.

    BernardSheppard,
    @BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

    @magitweeter

    That's a pedal. A pedant is attached to the crank, and via a chain (and possibly a derailleur) drives the rear wheel of a bicycle.

    @foolishowl @passenger @AdrianRiskin @MacropodCare @michaelgemar @RickiTarr

    pseudonym, to random
    @pseudonym@mastodon.online avatar

    My million dollar idea I want someone to steal and do, so I can be a customer.

    "Dumb Stuff" we sell electronic appliances that aren't Internet connected. That's all.

    That's it. That's the pitch. I would buy the <bleep> out of this company if their electronic gadgets were even half way decent, and repairable.

    Electronic, no wifi, regular screws to open it up. That's it. Do those three things, and you can be sold by this store.

    I will pay this business to curate and find these devices for me.

    BernardSheppard,
    @BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

    @jackyan @pseudonym Can I open a "Stuff Made Dumb" kiosk in the back where you can bring in your otherwise perfectly functional 3-in-one printer-scanner-fax (that you don't use for faxing or printing), but would like to scan with, but is refusing to work because the printer cartridge that is still full of ink has expired?

    I will sell you a pretty much dumb USB cable that will firewall the fuck out of the printer cartridge talking back to home base.

    Yes, you can still scan.

    Sorry, hp.com.au is unreachable.

    According to the best available NTP server, the time is (based on your serial number) 240 days after you were manufactured.

    The cable is a little bit smart: it's the same cable, it configures itself based on the device it is plugged into.

    I guess I could sell them mail order, but the sense of relief that people would get is what would be worth it for me.

    jpm, to random
    @jpm@aus.social avatar

    Resisting the urge to make >350 phones go ding simultaneously by editing a post that’s been widely faved and boosted

    BernardSheppard,
    @BernardSheppard@mastodon.au avatar

    @ghost_shit @jpm Will all 350 phones be in the same place? No. Then go right ahead.

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