Hi Kathy,
This is Curtis Klein. I am using the same blog I used for the last class I took with you. I hope this is OK. I look forward to studying with you again. Below are 7 things you do not need to know about me.
1. I am rapidly going bald.
2. I am a Real Estate Broker.
3. I greatly prefer warm weather to cold weather.
4. I have worked in Thailand, I India, and Honduras.
5. I do not like peas.
6. I am a very good cook.
7. I like hiking, but not driving.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Monday, May 10, 2010
Blog 14
Blog 14
Your mother has written you an email wondering about viruses. Search the Internet to find a "new" virus you wish to warn her about. Tell her about the virus, what is does, and more importantly, how to remove it. Don't use technical terms, she won't understand it. Tell her what to watch out for in general and how to prevent getting any type of virus.
Hi Mom;
Ther is an update to a “Conficker”, a virus that first appeared in November 2008. Conficker, also known as Kido, Downadup, Downadup, and Downup, has gotten its latest upgrade in April 2009, to make it much more dangerous. Conficker works by infecting websites, and then passing itself on to computers when they connect to the website. The new version checks out 5000 website addresses at a time, instead of the 500 that the old version did. This greatly increases the chance of finding a website that is not as fully protected as it should be. Microsoft has designed a fix for the problem in its Windows programming, but it has to be used by the web hosts, and with this many targeted it is likely some will not get the upgrade. McAfee (the anti-virus company) has also released a fix for this virus for home computers, so make sure to keep your virus protection up to date!
Conficker will cause Windows to continually restart, lose internet connections, and drop your toolbar.
With more than 7,000,000 computers now infected, Microsoft is offering $250,000 for information leading to the arrest and convictions of the people who wrote or use Conficker. It is believed that the origin of Conficker is probably the Ukraine.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conficker
www.microsoft.com/security/worms/conficker.aspx
www.symantec.com
vil.nai.com/vil/content/v
http://www.thetechherald.com/article.php/200911/3157/Conficker-Worm-fighting-back-a-new-variant-discovered-disables-security-measures
Your mother has written you an email wondering about viruses. Search the Internet to find a "new" virus you wish to warn her about. Tell her about the virus, what is does, and more importantly, how to remove it. Don't use technical terms, she won't understand it. Tell her what to watch out for in general and how to prevent getting any type of virus.
Hi Mom;
Ther is an update to a “Conficker”, a virus that first appeared in November 2008. Conficker, also known as Kido, Downadup, Downadup, and Downup, has gotten its latest upgrade in April 2009, to make it much more dangerous. Conficker works by infecting websites, and then passing itself on to computers when they connect to the website. The new version checks out 5000 website addresses at a time, instead of the 500 that the old version did. This greatly increases the chance of finding a website that is not as fully protected as it should be. Microsoft has designed a fix for the problem in its Windows programming, but it has to be used by the web hosts, and with this many targeted it is likely some will not get the upgrade. McAfee (the anti-virus company) has also released a fix for this virus for home computers, so make sure to keep your virus protection up to date!
Conficker will cause Windows to continually restart, lose internet connections, and drop your toolbar.
With more than 7,000,000 computers now infected, Microsoft is offering $250,000 for information leading to the arrest and convictions of the people who wrote or use Conficker. It is believed that the origin of Conficker is probably the Ukraine.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conficker
www.microsoft.com/security/worms/conficker.aspx
www.symantec.com
vil.nai.com/vil/content/v
http://www.thetechherald.com/article.php/200911/3157/Conficker-Worm-fighting-back-a-new-variant-discovered-disables-security-measures
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Blog 13, Curtis Klein
Pick a legislator, a govenor, a vice president, a senator,a president, or someone in power and tell me where they stand on technology.
Harry Reid does not seem to be extremely technology oriented, although he does claim to be. I say this because there is not much he actually does with it. He is a member of the Congressional Internet Caucus, which is a group of 150 Congress people and Senators trying to educate each other about using the internet, and promoting growth and use of the internet.(1) He was also instrumental in getting 122 acres of land for UNLV to be used for their Harry Reid Research and Technology Park.(2) UNLV has a research center on the park to support technological and economic growth.
Senator Reid recently said that with its climate “Nevada is poised to be a leader in the clean energy revolution.”(3)
In what is probably Harry Reid’s strongest stance on any technology issue, he came out very adamantly in favor of stem cell research. The following is a direct quote from Harry Reid’s website (or at least what appears to genuinely be his website.
“Democrats will not give up the fight for stem cell research. It is a fight America must win. We're going to press Republicans to override this veto--just as we pressed to get it to the Senate floor and just as we pressed to get this bill passed.
This should have been a day of hope for millions of Americans. Democrats listened to the American people, and through our persistence overcame Republican delays to pass critical stem cell legislation.”(4)
Personal note: Although I tried to keep this essay as non-political as possible, it is impossible to write about any political figure without reflecting their views
References:
(1)http://www.harryreid.com/page/community/post_group/VIPs/Vjxhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_positions_of_Harry_Reid
(2) http://www.unlvresearchpark.com/park-
(3) history.htmlhttp://www.ontheissues.org/Background_Technology.htm
(4) http://www.ontheissues.org/Economic/Harry_Reid_Technology.htm
Harry Reid does not seem to be extremely technology oriented, although he does claim to be. I say this because there is not much he actually does with it. He is a member of the Congressional Internet Caucus, which is a group of 150 Congress people and Senators trying to educate each other about using the internet, and promoting growth and use of the internet.(1) He was also instrumental in getting 122 acres of land for UNLV to be used for their Harry Reid Research and Technology Park.(2) UNLV has a research center on the park to support technological and economic growth.
Senator Reid recently said that with its climate “Nevada is poised to be a leader in the clean energy revolution.”(3)
In what is probably Harry Reid’s strongest stance on any technology issue, he came out very adamantly in favor of stem cell research. The following is a direct quote from Harry Reid’s website (or at least what appears to genuinely be his website.
“Democrats will not give up the fight for stem cell research. It is a fight America must win. We're going to press Republicans to override this veto--just as we pressed to get it to the Senate floor and just as we pressed to get this bill passed.
This should have been a day of hope for millions of Americans. Democrats listened to the American people, and through our persistence overcame Republican delays to pass critical stem cell legislation.”(4)
Personal note: Although I tried to keep this essay as non-political as possible, it is impossible to write about any political figure without reflecting their views
References:
(1)http://www.harryreid.com/page/community/post_group/VIPs/Vjxhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_positions_of_Harry_Reid
(2) http://www.unlvresearchpark.com/park-
(3) history.htmlhttp://www.ontheissues.org/Background_Technology.htm
(4) http://www.ontheissues.org/Economic/Harry_Reid_Technology.htm
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Google’s new operating system
This is an essay on the NPR speech about Google’s new operating system.
Google’s new OS “Chrome” is coming to market next year. Google already has an operating system for smart phones called “android”, however moving into the PC operating field will pt them in direct competition with Microsoft. Whether Google will be successful may be in doubt, due to Microsoft’s advantage in already providing OSs for 90% of the worlds PCs. There is always inertia that helps prevent companies that have a system that works move to another system.
Goggle may counter this by making their profit off the added value having their own operating system will give advertising on their search engine. However if they give away their system entirely, or undercut Mycroft’s price too drastically, I would expect some lawsuits concerning antitrust violations and unfair business practices.
It will be nice to see a bit more competition in the OS field.
Google’s new OS “Chrome” is coming to market next year. Google already has an operating system for smart phones called “android”, however moving into the PC operating field will pt them in direct competition with Microsoft. Whether Google will be successful may be in doubt, due to Microsoft’s advantage in already providing OSs for 90% of the worlds PCs. There is always inertia that helps prevent companies that have a system that works move to another system.
Goggle may counter this by making their profit off the added value having their own operating system will give advertising on their search engine. However if they give away their system entirely, or undercut Mycroft’s price too drastically, I would expect some lawsuits concerning antitrust violations and unfair business practices.
It will be nice to see a bit more competition in the OS field.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Blog 11, Curtis Klein
What is Linux and who would use it? Would you? Keep in mind this is worth 10 points so it will be graded accordingly. Also, remember to use your own thoughts and ideas.
The following is a direct quote from http://www.linux.org/ :
“Linux is a free Unix-type operating system originally created by Linux Torvalds with the assistance of developers around the world. Developed under the GNU General Public License , the source code for Linux is freely available to everyone.”
What this means is that Linux is an operating system for computers (or computer like devices) similar to Windows, however it has some important differences from windows. Probably the most important difference is that Linux is free and Microsoft charges fees for using Windows. This makes a big difference if you are writg a program for your own use, running a business and need to watch your bottom line, or simply a philanthropist who wants to give away his work. Also: Microsoft has a very bad reputation for limiting it’s applications to working only with Microsoft products, a policy that many consider an antitrust law violation. As nothing is ever perfect it is necessary to keep in mind that Linux also has some problems. There are often compatibility problems between Microsoft products and programs written in Linux: for instance you may not be able to copy and paste from Microsoft Word to a Linux based system. Also there are license based rule that apply to those using Linux. For instance: If you are a company writing proprietary software for your products in Linux, you are required to release your source code to anyone that asks for it. This leaves you open to having your work copied, and knockoffs sold. Technically speaking, software is not written in Linux. Linux is the operating system, and UNIX is the programming language it is written in.
The following is a direct quote from http://www.linux.org/ :
“Linux is a free Unix-type operating system originally created by Linux Torvalds with the assistance of developers around the world. Developed under the GNU General Public License , the source code for Linux is freely available to everyone.”
What this means is that Linux is an operating system for computers (or computer like devices) similar to Windows, however it has some important differences from windows. Probably the most important difference is that Linux is free and Microsoft charges fees for using Windows. This makes a big difference if you are writg a program for your own use, running a business and need to watch your bottom line, or simply a philanthropist who wants to give away his work. Also: Microsoft has a very bad reputation for limiting it’s applications to working only with Microsoft products, a policy that many consider an antitrust law violation. As nothing is ever perfect it is necessary to keep in mind that Linux also has some problems. There are often compatibility problems between Microsoft products and programs written in Linux: for instance you may not be able to copy and paste from Microsoft Word to a Linux based system. Also there are license based rule that apply to those using Linux. For instance: If you are a company writing proprietary software for your products in Linux, you are required to release your source code to anyone that asks for it. This leaves you open to having your work copied, and knockoffs sold. Technically speaking, software is not written in Linux. Linux is the operating system, and UNIX is the programming language it is written in.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Blog 10, Curtis Klein
On your blog write a synopsis of what you heard on this NPR interview.
There is a new (or what seems to be new, but is really an expanded old problem) threat to computer security called “denial of service attacks”. It is caused by “gangs” that operate over the internet for extortion, political, malicious, or other reasons. They can use banks of computers to send thousands of contacts to a company’s server over the internet, and overload the company’s ability to operate their computers and internet access. One example is offshore internet gambling companies that were forced to pay extortion to prevent this action, which would have put them out of business. Because this is done over the internet the organizations who do this can be anywhere in the world, along with fact that these peoples skills are often very useful to their governments, makes law enforcement extremely difficult, if not impossible. This is not only a problem for businesses; put is also a serious threat to national security and anyone else using the internet.
Do to the ability of these organizations to control thousands of computers remotely; these gangs do not even need to be that large. They can access innocent people’s computers, and use them to act as “robots”, without the owner’s knowledge. To add to this vulnerability: many developing countries use pirated software and operating systems, which can not get the upgrades that would help protect them.
One of the ways to prevent this is to have a protection of very large capacity computers that can handle more traffic than the criminals can send, and have them act as buffers. Barrett Lyon and Joseph Menn, the interviewees in this NPR interview, have managed to track some of the perpetrators be determining which of the corrupted computers used in the attacks had their SNMP (A remote viewing protocol) enabled, access the computer, and backtrack the hackers. He was able to contact them, gain there trust, and over a period of time get enough information to physically track them down. However legal action was not applied, because they are in Russia, and Russia uses them for political and military purposes, as China is also well known for.
There is a new (or what seems to be new, but is really an expanded old problem) threat to computer security called “denial of service attacks”. It is caused by “gangs” that operate over the internet for extortion, political, malicious, or other reasons. They can use banks of computers to send thousands of contacts to a company’s server over the internet, and overload the company’s ability to operate their computers and internet access. One example is offshore internet gambling companies that were forced to pay extortion to prevent this action, which would have put them out of business. Because this is done over the internet the organizations who do this can be anywhere in the world, along with fact that these peoples skills are often very useful to their governments, makes law enforcement extremely difficult, if not impossible. This is not only a problem for businesses; put is also a serious threat to national security and anyone else using the internet.
Do to the ability of these organizations to control thousands of computers remotely; these gangs do not even need to be that large. They can access innocent people’s computers, and use them to act as “robots”, without the owner’s knowledge. To add to this vulnerability: many developing countries use pirated software and operating systems, which can not get the upgrades that would help protect them.
One of the ways to prevent this is to have a protection of very large capacity computers that can handle more traffic than the criminals can send, and have them act as buffers. Barrett Lyon and Joseph Menn, the interviewees in this NPR interview, have managed to track some of the perpetrators be determining which of the corrupted computers used in the attacks had their SNMP (A remote viewing protocol) enabled, access the computer, and backtrack the hackers. He was able to contact them, gain there trust, and over a period of time get enough information to physically track them down. However legal action was not applied, because they are in Russia, and Russia uses them for political and military purposes, as China is also well known for.
Saturday, April 3, 2010
blog 9
The assignment is to find a multimedia device or software that I have not used before.
I found the ipad, a tablet computer I have never used before. It is lightweight an easy to carry: 9.56 inches x 7.47 inches, with a depth of ½ inch. It weighs 1.5 pounds. The basic model uses wi-fi, however a 3 G model is available. The display is 9.7-inch diagonal, touch screen display. The battery will last for up to 10 hours. The ipad is available with a16GB, 32GB, or 64GB flash drive. The price starts at $499.00. So far this may sound like an advertisement, which is not surprising as I got this information from apples website at http://www.apple.com/ipad/ .
There is a review at http://www.ubergizmo.com/15/archives/2010/01/ipad-first-impressions-review.html , where they basically rave about it. Another reviewer at http://gizmodo.com/5458382/8-things-that-suck-about-the-ipad really did not like the ipad. It seems that the only serious drawback the author found is that it does not allow multi-tasking. On of the things I was surprised to find is that the ipad 3G can be connected by any phone company and the monthly prepaid cost runs as low as $15 a month.
I found the ipad, a tablet computer I have never used before. It is lightweight an easy to carry: 9.56 inches x 7.47 inches, with a depth of ½ inch. It weighs 1.5 pounds. The basic model uses wi-fi, however a 3 G model is available. The display is 9.7-inch diagonal, touch screen display. The battery will last for up to 10 hours. The ipad is available with a16GB, 32GB, or 64GB flash drive. The price starts at $499.00. So far this may sound like an advertisement, which is not surprising as I got this information from apples website at http://www.apple.com/ipad/ .
There is a review at http://www.ubergizmo.com/15/archives/2010/01/ipad-first-impressions-review.html , where they basically rave about it. Another reviewer at http://gizmodo.com/5458382/8-things-that-suck-about-the-ipad really did not like the ipad. It seems that the only serious drawback the author found is that it does not allow multi-tasking. On of the things I was surprised to find is that the ipad 3G can be connected by any phone company and the monthly prepaid cost runs as low as $15 a month.
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