Daily Bits

Four Steps to Going to the Dark Side (of the Internet)

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Hacker

The recent spate of hacker attacks on high profile web sites have spawned a renewed interest in the “dark side of the Internet” – if the interest has waned at all. I don’t know much about being a hacker except for what I hear from other people and what I read online. And if there is one interesting article that you ought to read on hackers and hacking, it’s this recent one published on the BBC by Jane Wakefield.

Now I don’t know just how accurate the details are, but coming from BBC, one would expect the article to be well-researched and verified. So if you want to go over to the dark side of the Internet – not that I am encouraging you to – there are four steps to follow. ((Source: BBC))

  1. Start lurking in different underground hacking forums.
  2. Become an active participant in topics.
  3. Bring some ‘proof’ of what you’ve said – for example ‘I’m posting for free five credentials to Paypal. Want more? Call me up!’.
  4. Earn a reputation and you’re in.

I don’t know if there are any of you out there who will verify these steps, but go ahead and start a discussion if you wish!

The article also covers the “human” side to hackers. They’re secretive but social – as long as they operate within their circles, I suppose. They also like to talk philosophy, apparently, and they are keen on literature. They’re also a collaborative community, with a structure akin to the mafia.

If anything, this article makes one’s interest level spike as to what the life of a hacker really is. What makes them tick? What makes them do what they do?

Photo via The Tech Herald

Les Paul Google Doodle – Cool BUT Costly!

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Google-Doodle-Les-Paul-930x466

So last week, how much time did you spend playing with the Les Paul Google Doodle? Arguably, that Doodle is the second best that Google has come up with. I personally prefer the Pac-Man Doodle although it seemed to me that more people voiced out their appreciation of the more recent Doodle.

And it also seems that more people spent time actually staying on Google’s home page – not to do anything else but play with the virtual guitar and record their handiwork! According to ExtremeTech ((ExtremeTech)), the “simple” Doodle cost the world a whopping 10.7 million man hours. Imagine countless people stopping work to play their favorite tune using the Doodle. Imagine the same people conducting searches to find out which strings to “pluck” in order to get their desired tone. It’s easy to understand just how many hours were spent playing on the guitar all over the world.

Now let’s talk money. Those 10.7 million man hours – how much does that cost? Working on the assumption that the average Google user earns $25 per hour, those hours translate to $268 million. Oh please don’t let the executives read these figures or they just might ban Google. Then again, who is to say that those executives didn’t spend their fair share of time on the Les Paul?

And speaking of money, the Doodle didn’t come free for Google. The guys at ExtremeTech seem to love doing math, so they went ahead and calculated the cost of the Les Paul Doodle – a mere $15,000. Well, it’s not a small sum but comparing it to the cost in productivity, it’s a drop in the bucket.

Google, you may be a productivity killer at times, but you still rock!

Things That Happen On Internet Every Sixty Seconds

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How much time do you spend on the Internet? How often do you send e-mails? How often do you tweet? How often do you post a status message on Facebook? How often do you conduct a search on Google?

The Internet has invaded the life of the average person so much so that you (in all likelihood) cannot go a day without logging in to one service or another. Whether it’s Twitter, Facebook, e-mail, WordPress, Blogger, or what-have-you – one thing is for sure: people are constantly doing something online.

Now I am pretty sure that your curious mind has wondered – at least once – just how much is going on online at any given moment. Well here’s the answer to your question – not exactly in same terms, perhaps, but close enough. An infographic by Shanghai Web Designers ((60 Seconds)) tells you what happens on the Internet every 60 seconds – or every minute.

60seconds
This happens every 60 seconds online - click to enlarge

So…did you know that every 60 seconds…

  • more than 694,445 searches are done on Google?
  • more than 6,600 photos are uploaded on Flickr?
  • more than 600 videos are uploaded on YouTube? This translates to more than 25 hours of viewing pleasure (or displeasure, as the case may be)
  • 695,000 statuses are updated on Facebook, 79,364 messages are posted on walls, and 510,040 comments are made?
  • more than 168,000,000 e-mails are sent? So who was that again who said that e-mail was dead???
  • 98,000 tweets are published on Twitter? I don’t know if this includes RTs and @replies, though.

Pretty impressive numbers, but I think the guys who made this infographic missed one vital stat: that every 60 seconds, an infographic (or two) is published. At least that’s what my Twitter stream and Facebook feed tells me. 😉

Real Life Hoverbike

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Admit it. You’ve wanted a hoverboard forever, or anything that hovers and actually works, for that matter. The idea of having a means of going around without wheels touching the ground (without having to take an airplane, that is) is something that most every person dream about. Well, at least most every person that I know.

Thanks to Chris Malloy, a real life hoverbike just might be within our reach in the near future. The hoverbike he is making can be seen below. It has two rotor blades (made from Tasmanian Oak, with the edges being carbon fiber) at the ends, while the seat and control area are in the middle. As you can see, the bike is almost as long as a car!

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The bike has an engine packing a whopping 1170cc, with the rotors receiving 80kW each. The designer/maker thinks that the hoverbike has the ability to hover – more like fly – up to 10,000 feet (that’s 3000 meters) and go as fast as 278 kilometers per hour.

Here is how the hoverbike would look like in action.
hoverbike hovering
Thorough testing is set to begin, so that the hoverbikes can be put into production. If you want one (you know you do), you have to start saving up $40,000 as that is supposed to be the base price for the hoverbike. Malloy and his team are willing to make working prototypes for those who cannot wait, though, but I don’t know the price tag of those. Alternatively, donate to their project, and get a chance to win a working prototype.

Russian ATM That Can Detect Lies

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Russian ATMThieves who make their living out of unauthorized ATM access are soon going to have to find a different source of income. I have, fortunately, never been a victim of ATM theft, but there are countless people who have been victimized via all sorts of modus operandi.

If Russian company Speed Technology Center succeeds in its latest project, however, ATM theft may become a thing of the past – and not soon enough, in my opinion! The company is currently in the testing stage of a cutting edge ATM that adds several layers of security. Currently, we rely heavily on the Personal Identification Number (PIN) for security. Banks and security experts give out all sorts of tips on how to keep the PIN safe, but inevitably, breaches occur – resulting in unauthorized access.

With Speed Technology Center’s new machines, the dependence on the PIN will be gone. Instead, the addition of voice recognition software plus the application of lie-detector technology will make security a tough nut to crack. More than that, however, the new machines are equipped with high tech measures such as the ability to scan passports, record fingerprints, and do a 3D facial scan. Impressive, really, but I am worried that thieves might resort to cutting of their victims’ fingers!

Seriously, though, this system seems to be working, as is being observed by Sberbank, the Russian bank doing the testing. The plan is to roll out these machines across Russia, in banks and malls. I think that it is a brilliant idea and that other countries/banks should follow suit. What do you think?

Angry Birds Cookbook Coming Soon!

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Eggs
Talk about taking advantage of a brand’s popularity by expanding one’s horizons even more! This is exactly what gaming company Rovio is doing. Not content to sit on their laurels with the success of the game Angry Birds (and all its other variations), Angry Birds the movie, and a host of other branding stints, Rovio is now venturing into something totally unexpected – the kitchen!

Now one would think that the kitchen is the logical place to be for birds and pigs, the main characters in the game, but the characters are not exactly meant to be eaten, are they? Rovio’s cookbook, however, is going to focus on EGGS. Yup, the self-published cookbook is going to feature family-friendly recipes with eggs as the main ingredients.

No wonder these birds are so full of angst! First they’re pitted against pigs that are colored green – for goodness’ sake, I don’t know why they have to be green! Then they have to be put on a slingshot and hurtled through the air. The impact has to hurt – not to mention the sensation of flying unnaturally. Now, their eggs have to be the focus of a cookbook! Then again, I suppose that they can be thankful that the cookbook is not a specialty cookbook featuring poultry.

Seriously, though, Rovio seems to be spreading themselves thinly in an effort to gain more revenue. It is rather surprising as one would think that with the amount of exposure that they have, Rovio would not need much in terms of marketing services, paid search company services, and the like. However, it seems that the company is not earning as much as most people think (that includes me, I suppose) – hence the aggressiveness in branching out and identifying other sources of revenue.

Since I have been known to go out and spend money on most anything Angry Birds (the last purchase being a cute bag for my nephew), I won’t be surprised if I find a copy of the new cookbook in my possession. After all, I do like my eggs!

The cookbook will be available in next few weeks in both traditional print format and app form.

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Photo via pietroizzo