Need To Know 2003-02-21

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"If e-bombs are released in Iraq and work as advertised Saddam Hussein would quickly become the electronic equivalent of deaf, dumb and blind..." http://abcnews.go.com/sections/GMA/SciTech/iraq030218_Ebomb.html ...yet his "electronic sense of smell" would remain virtually intact >> HARD NEWS << orderly cues Out of Africa into the British courts: a shut-the-hell-up order from DINERS CLUB, demanding that ROSS ANDERSON AND HIS CANTAB CRYPTO LEAGUE stop being quite so clever forthwith. Ross' Cambridge team had been asked in as expert witnesses in a South African "phantom ATM withdrawal" case against the international credit card. Were, the prosecution asked them, cashpoints really as secure as the defence made them out to be? Hold on, said Ross, we'll check. A few weeks later, Mike Bond and Piotr Zielinksi uncovered that - despite endless security controls - a bank insider could crack a cashpoint card's PIN number on an internal bank network in an average of fifteen tries. One employee could saunter off with seven thousand ATM PINs in half an hour, making an easy two million quid out of their lunchbreak. This is not the sort of detailed exploit that Citibank, the owners of Diner's Club, would like widely known. They have therefore commenced legal shutupshutup proceedings. And if Citibank's plea succeeds, we're sure everyone who reads the analysis (now mirrored at Cryptome) will do their best to forget it. Not to mention anyone else who worked out the exploit (which has existed since the first ATMs were rolled out) and put it to good use. http://cryptome.org/pacc.htm - remember: phantom withdrawals DO NOT EXIST So what killed FAXYOURMP.COM this week? Was it the issue that's been on the mind of the British public most in the past few weeks? But of course! And according to messages slicing into FAXYOURMP.COM, everybody in the world was very very concerned about the Anti-Hunting Bill. And curiously, they were all concerned using exactly the same words. Top charity the RSPCA sent out a mail requesting that their fans all write an identical, pre-written message to their MP and send it via FaxYourMP.com, a free service (which NTK is more than in cahoots with). A free service, incidentally, that specifically asks you *not* to cut and paste, because MPs just throw spammy pre-recorded messages into the bin. But there's more. Taking a leaf out of those viral marketeers, the RSPCA requested that everyone forward their mail to their friends - a mail which, incidentally, had no date on it, so could potentially continue bouncing around the Net for years. The result: MPs complaining, overloaded servers, and the fax service down for 48 hours - delaying other constituents' perhaps more original messages. Of course, the FYMPers have been a model of restraint throughout. After digging up their server, they put a block on the boilerplate text, redirecting animal lovers to a message that encourages them to re-word their mail in their own words. Of course, the message does end with the intimation that should the RSPCA try this again, "the puppy gets it" - which seems to be the only language these animal-lovers understand. http://www.oblomovka.com/entries/2003/02/19#1045675680 - still haven't replied, so screw 'em. http://www.faxyourmp.com/q_a.php3#formletters - don't do this >> ANTI-NEWS << berating the obvious UN discover secret cache of CONDIMENTS OF MASS DELICIOUSNESS: http://www.ntk.net/2003/02/21/dohblix.gif - banner ad warns of side-effects: http://www.ntk.net/2003/02/21/dohchest.gif ... Ron "RSA" Rivest's "amazing new, low-cost" micropayments site currently permits amazing new, low-cost directory browsing: http://www.peppercoin.com/payment_systems_images/ ... new thrill - these are *topical* puerile Google misspellings: http://www.google.com/search?q=middle+east+%22peach+process%22 (the only way to avoid another "Gull War"?) - OCR artefacts also popular: http://www.google.com/search?q=colurnbia , or "Spple macintosh", "leaming experience", "slash and bum"... type in any road name to hark back to golden age of motoring: http://www.theaa.co.uk/motoringandtravel/traffic/silver/ ... ironically, much easier to use a search engine than remember: http://www.cheap-flights-cheap-flights-easyjetthewebsfavouriteairline.co.uk , http://www.flights-to-europe-no-frills-airlines-cheap-flights-easyjet.co.uk ... CISCO provide almost spookily inappropriate banner ad: http://www.ntk.net/2003/02/21/dohdolly.gif ... BBC go wild with test data: http://www.ntk.net/2003/02/21/dohtest.gif ... >> EVENT QUEUE << goto's considered non-harmful The history of IT in theatre is a long and glorious one: who could forget the implausible cyberchat scene in Patrick Marber's "Closer", Samantha Fox's scorching performance in "Virus: The Cyber Musical", or Alton Towers' skating spectacular "Webmaster On Ice"? Nevertheless, we have high hopes for MAKB3TH (various venues around East Anglia, from Thu 2003-03-06, from UKP4), which sets Shakespeare's Scottish play on board the world's first free data haven, established by a "community of libertarian cypherpunks" on an abandoned oil platform in the North Sea. Even more excitingly, in addition to those boring old-fashioned "actors", it uses SMS, ASCII video footage, a techno soundtrack, a bunch of Matrox video cards and RedHat 7.3 to "create a dark piece of modern, digital theatre", with big TV screens and text messages and all. Sticking with the classics, March also sees a day of readings of Aristophanes' LYSISTRATA, culminating in a show at 7:30pm, Mon 2003-03-03, the Pleasance Theatre, London N7, UKP5. This is the Ancient Greek anti-war comedy with the large leather phallus and the women who go on "sex strike", and is not included here solely for the benefit of the NTK reader we met at an arty event we'd previously recommended, who declared himself very impressed by "the ratio". "The ratio?", we asked, innocently. Yes, he explained. The Ratio. http://www.pirateutopia.org/macbeth/dates.htm - SMTHNG WCKD THS WY COMES http://www.lysistratalondon.co.uk/ - the ratio of "naked" to "clothed" attendees? http://www.ntk.net/index.cgi?b=01999-03-26&l=252#l - they don't make them like that any more >> TRACKING << sufficiently advanced technology : the gathering What *is* going on with the Gecko-based browsers these days? First it was Chimera deciding that all work had to stop while they came up with a new name. Then it was Phoenix deciding that all development should slow to a crawl - and they had to come up with a new name too. Now it's Galeon, which keeps the name, but loses one of its developers, Marco Pesenti Gritti, who has gone off to code EPIPHANY. EPIPHANY, like its Galeon forefather, is a slimmed-down, GNOME-driven HTML displayer. Unlike Galeon (and like GNOME 2.2), Gritti plans to strip down all the interface and prefs to a bare minimum. It's early days, though, and the work is still a bit patchy: any UI that needs you to read a review before you can work out how to use bookmarks or create toolbars isn't quite there. It's also still dealing with the niggly focussing issues that pester any keyboard-driven GUI app. But if you're tired of waiting for Phoenix to coagulate, or you want a project to Safari-fy Gecko, this might be the place to look. http://epiphany.mozdev.org/ - bookmarks that are a bit too smart http://writetheweb.com/Members/edd/Articles/2003-02-epiphany - oh, okay, i get it http://tinderbox.mozilla.org/showbuilds.cgi?tree=MiniMo - future cut down mozilla for for your own bespoke mini-browser >> MEMEPOOL << ceci n'est pas une http://www.gagpipe.com/ AMERICAN BURQUA: http://plainlydressed.bravepages.com/ - vs http://shop.store.yahoo.com/brandsonsale-store/pimdadsuitch.html ... thread inevitably converges towards "Blow a tunnel in the moon": http://groups.google.com/groups?th=8d2747367833ede9 ... "Caesius Software" changes name to "QL2" - not dumbing down or anything, just wanted something "easy to remember, pronounce, and spell": http://www.affinite.co.uk/news.htm ... probably why AMAZON don't run an official staff recommendations system: www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/tg/listmania/list-browse/-/2VC9BUDEG3NZZ/ ... not quite five 9s or anything - CONGESTION CHARGE cameras read "more than 90%" of number plates accurately, reassures: www.cclondon.com/WebCenterBrandedTR4/StaticPages/Imaging_and_cameras.aspx ... as if you didn't lose enough precious bodily fluids in a car accident already: http://www.sextoyworld.com/dj0607.html ... where the lone voice of political dissent is - Daffy Duck?: http://images.google.com/images?q=%22john+ashcroft%22 ... ah, those old "Cray" jokes are still the funniest: http://www.xosx.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=233#233 ... >> GEEK MEDIA << get out less TV>> Malcolm McDowell can't stay away from the dodgy scifi, as demonstrated by live-action manga movie FIST OF THE NORTH STAR (12.45am, Fri, BBC1)... yet somehow he must have missed the casting call for THE FIFTH ELEMENT (12.30am, Sat, ITV), which has everyone else in it, ever... repeated WW1 docu THE GREAT WAR (6.20pm, Sat, BBC2) is preceded by its unfortunately-named making-of THAT WAS THE GREAT WAR THAT WAS (5.40pm, Sat, BBC2)... and Jon Snow *is* "Q" from "Star Trek", as he puts AMERICA ON TRIAL (6.45pm, Sat, C4)... BBC1 counterprogrammes Quentin Tarantino's least self-indulgent - and arguably most enjoyable - script, FROM DUSK TILL DAWN (11.20pm, Sat, BBC1), against the dubious delights of C4's JACKASS NIGHT (from 10.55pm, Sat, C4)... for all you bewildered Sunday-morning viewers, REVELATIONS (11.30am, Sun, C5) is indeed a religious romp made by the nutty New Zealanders behind "The Tribe": http://www.theinitialjourney.com/characters/jess_01.html ... and, set a year after the first film, routine Jennifer Love Hewitt slasher I STILL KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER (10pm, Sun, C4) should of course technically be called "I Still Know What You Did Two Summers Ago"... art critic Jonathan Meades shows how to make a supermarket sausage in MEADES EATS (7.30pm, Mon, BBC2)... the carnage continues in dire Angelina Jolie "Silence Of The Lambs" wannabe THE BONE COLLECTOR (9pm, Mon, C5)... don't let Michael Bay actioner THE ROCK (9pm, Wed, C5) distract you from the digital debut of George from Seinfeld's genius Larry-Sanders-style post-sitcom CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM (10.30pm, Wed, BBC4)... while C5's double bill of NATIONAL LAMPOON'S EUROPEAN VACATION (8pm, Thu, C5) plus BASIC INSTINCT (10pm, Thu, C5) offers a relatively highbrow alternative to ITV's SLEEPING WITH CELEBRITIES (10.30pm, Thu, ITV) and extreme martial arts kickboxing celeb contest CAGE COMBAT (11.30pm, Thu, ITV)... FILM>> you know, we still prefer the Japanese pronunciation of ambient but convoluted killer-video horror remake THE RING ( http://www.cndb.com/movie.html?title=RIng%2C+The+%282002%29 : [Naomi "Mullholland Drive" Watts] gives an extended bra and panty scene while getting dressed. She is in a well and gives a wet shirt and bra scene)... that Donnie Darko bloke does at least listen to the Rolling Stones song of the same name in bereaved-relatives-awkwardness domestic drama MOONLIGHT MILE ( http://www.screenit.com/movies/2002/moonlight_mile.html : we see the tops of [Ellen Pompeo's] bare breasts and [Jake Gyllenhaal's] nude body down to his lower hips)... otherwise it's an all-round regional-accent fest, in the form of Newcastle-set romantic comedy THE ONLY AND ONLY (imdb: Patsy Kensit and Donna Air - together at last!)... or the Oirish version of "Rabbit Proof Fence", anti-Catholic orphanage outrage THE MAGDALENE SISTERS ( http://www.bbfc.co.uk/ : contains some strong language, sex references and hanging scene)... >> SMALL PRINT << Need to Know is a useful and interesting UK digest of things that happened last week or might happen next week. You can read it on Friday afternoon or print it out then take it home if you have nothing better to do. It is compiled by NTK from stuff they get sent. Registered at the Post Office as "We said Oblomovka.com *above* DaveBarry" [pic] http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/2775249.stm NEED TO KNOW THEY STOLE OUR REVOLUTION. NOW WE'RE STEALING IT BACK. Archive - http://www.ntk.net/ Unsubscribe? Mail ntknow-unsubscribe@lists.ntk.net Subscribe? Mail ntknow-subscribe@lists.ntk.net NTK now is supported by UNFORTU.NET, and by you: http://www.ntkmart.com/ (K) 2003 Special Projects. Copying is fine, but include URL: http://www.ntk.net/ Full license at: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/1.0 Tips, news and gossip to tips@spesh.com All communication is for publication, unless you beg. Press releases from naive PR people to pr@spesh.com Remember: Your work email may be monitored if sending sensitive material. Sending >500KB attachments is forbidden by the Geneva Convention. Your country may be at risk if you fail to comply.