AmpBenzScientist @AmpBenzScientist@qoto.org

@igelsQTs I've heard this many times.

@divVerent @thor @inference FLOSS has the potential to be more vulnerable due to the source code being available. People assume that Android is secure enough due to a mix of FLOSS and Proprietary Software or perhaps a flashy commercial. I remember analyzing malware that broke the sandbox, took out Knox without issue, got around the MAC in SELinux, made itself root, bypassed the checks and proceeded to lock the device down with the same tools that it had just defeated. All of that was automated and it wasn't using hardware exploits.

For a PC, Windows and Mac might be more secure than GNU/Linux. Apple Silicon is only good at running what they approve. Windows has the edge on Linux by requiring hardware that isn't old enough to have the secrets revealed. So there are two fair situations in which closed source software has greater security than the open source offerings.

People might say that this is unfair and that Arch Linux wasn't considered but that's okay. Windows just requires reasonably new hardware to make sure that those dirty pirates aren't supporting cyber threats or stealing from starving developers. Apple has once again made the decision to ensure security by making an incredibly powerful and efficient CPU and GPU. Apple also made benchmarks to get past the inherently biased benchmarks that were made for an outdated architectures. Somehow they both managed to do all this and still go through all the trouble and charity to allow open source.

@divVerent When closed source software is assessed for security by respectable bodies, the source code is provided to them for the assessment.

Security is nothing more than an illusion. Safes are rated by the amount of time it takes for a professional safecracker to get in. I would be tempted to say that the same idea should be used for software but that implies that the hardware doesn't come with God Mode for governments.

Security is only better with FLOSS in theory. I do have to admit that making all the source code available to the public and still having the reputation for being more secure would imply something. This is mostly irrelevant in an age where it is known that the USA had hardware backdoors in most of the world's computers and it wasn't detected.

@thor @inference @divVerent I'll be honest that I didn't read the blog. These statements were made on Mastodon which is AGPLv3 Licenced. The FSF created the AGPLv3 for interoperability with FSF approved licenses.

Dismissing an entire movement based on nothing but accusations and doing it on a platform that is the result the aforementioned movement is absurd.

@inference @divVerent @thor RMS saw how the GPLv2 didn't fully protect FLOSS so this was the reason for the 3rd version. The GPLv3 seems like complete madness when taken out of context.

FLOSS is about freedom and ability to make changes. It is also an effort to allow for everyone to view the source code and see how it works.

The odd thing is that code used to be open in the early days of computing. This is partially how BSD Unix was able to be saved from being killed off. Computer companies made money on hardware. The shift to closed source and Intellectual Property was made gradually. Not much software was protected from being reused as a part of a closed source system.

The result is that open source code allowed for predatory entrepreneurs to become rich by legally stealing everything possible.

The truly stunning part is how none of the FSF licenses prohibit the sale of software or support. Proprietary software makes money from keeping knowledge hidden. A FLOSS business model favors the programmers as it pushes innovation and not legal sorcery as the way to be competitive.

The initiation of nuclear fission and fusion are common knowledge. Writing a program in a language one didn't develop on a system one didn't develop and compiled using the results of research that one had no part in is somehow able to be considered Intellectual Property. The result of being against the "FOSS cult" as a society has crippled Computer Science to the point where manufacturing is quickly approaching the limits of physics just to run code that hasn't had incentive to improve.

Have fun being rational and thinking for yourself. I will stay in the cult and repeat what I was brainwashed to say.

@thendrix My response was the result of remembering that they send signals through the rails and the realization that it could have been prevented. I originally was going to make a dumb joke in response to your edited toot. Sorry it turned into an oddly worded conspiracy theory/rant.

How do you like Husky? I recently saw it but decided to stick with Tusky.

@inference @divVerent @thor FOSS cult?

@thendrix I can only assume it was due to thermal expansion of the rails that caused warping. That's very unsettling that it was blamed on Climate Change and not poor management. Bridges on our pothole riddled roads have gaps that were engineered with the expansion and contraction coefficients of the materials in use. Rail road tracks are standardized to the point where they are used to transmit signals reliably. The contraction and expansion of steel is widely known of and the warping from heat wasn't considered as large of a problem as the contraction breaks.

Here's the interesting part, the steel is already used for communication and this has been used in the past for detecting breaks in the tracks. If it is reliably used for communication, measurements of resistance are likely refreshed many times per second with the signal strength.
Temperature increases result in mapped increases in Resistance.
This would mean that continual measurements of resistance with many constants are being received many times a second. Just throw in known thermal expansion coefficients and one can see that claims that this couldn't have been easily prevented are dismissed. It is very likely that people knew the danger but it wasn't investigated or stopped.

@dowodenum Pro 2nd Amendment in a dark way.

@thor I got the contract at 14 and it only paid the rent. Surviving is not living. I come from a very poor background. I quit without warning after they cut my pay without notice because of new management. I was civil during the process and the person in management called me to break the news. A lot of my employment history is similar.

@thor Vendor lockout is common among other problems. If the companies would supply samples of the devices they are considering and what it would be used with, you could save them a lot of money and trouble.

The most likely problem would be the firmware and how it would make them have to continue to use that brand or have to replace all of it. The firmware on IoT devices is abhorrent and from my experience with some IoT devices, I could gain access without much effort.

@thor I was a custodian for 7 years and I was exposed to many chemicals and bodily fluids with minimal protection. The cleaning chemicals I used were supposed to be used with much more protective equipment and it was difficult to breathe at times. I wasn't allowed to use more protective equipment even as a contractor.

I'm listening to Promo - The Betrayal as it just came on. Holy cow.

@thor Do you think that you could review IoT devices for businesses? It would make you a consulting business but it is an area where people are needed. Companies get sold poor quality devices for a lot of money. Reviewing samples for quality, reliability, interoperability and value should be a profitable business and a good service.

@thor Same here.

@thor Uber was exploiting their drivers in the US too. The best thing that could happen was if a drunk passenger puked in the vehicle. The passenger would have to pay a fee and the driver would have to clean up the mess. It would net a few rides of pay if the mess wasn't horrific.

@thor Would you be able to provide services through your own company or would employment just be the better option?

@thor You sound like a good candidate for a few positions.

@thor It sounds like you could handle many positions from the Server Room to on site diagnostics and repair.

@thor Independent contractor? In the US this allows for a more beneficial relationship between workers and the employer.