Category Archives: News & Updates

Classic DF – 5/24/02

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May 24, 2002: [•] Once again, my world has irrevocably changed. Everything is different now; yet everyone is still where they were a week ago. I still work at the same job. I am still married with a child and 3 cats. I live in the same apartment. Even drive the same car. I feel so different now though. It’s like a loss of innocence all over again. Not since I was 6 years old have I felt this way. Not empty; yet not full. Just there and being. Nothing more or less. Where do we go from here? Because I sure as Hell don’t know.

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Classic DF – 12/18/01

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December 18, 2001: [•] Ramadan is over (BTW: I hope that all my Muslim viewers had a joyous Ramadan) and 90% of the war in Afghanistan has been won. However, Mohammed Omar and Osama bin Laden are both still missing. [•] US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld warns all US citizens to be vigilant against terrorism as the nutjobs of the world begin to embrace new techniques of inflicting pain on others. [•] US Marines injured by a landmine encourage the world to worry about bigger problems instead of their wounds. [•] The Yemeni military has attacked an al Qaeda camp in its country. [•] Even though al Qaeda appears to have been beaten the US government continues to warn US citizens about the possibility of a terrorist attack. [•] US President Bush had several lesions removed from his face. None were cancerous. [•] Iraqi President Saddam Hussein is asking Arab leaders to meet him in Mecca to discuss Israel and Palestine. Go nutjob leader! [•] Siena Heights University has added a philosophy class that examines how The Simpsons handle theology. [•] India is mulling over its response to a terrorist attack on its government. [•] Arctic weather hits Europe. [•] Somali warlords are attempting to convince the US to attack their country’s government in hopes of achieving power. [•] Ebola continues to ravage Gabon. [•] The ousted government of Jean-Bertrand Aristide attempted to regain control of Haiti, but failed. [•] Oh those crazy civil liberty loving Canadians and their crazy civil liberty loving Canadian ways! [•] Thailand will only issue 17 visas this year in an attempt to stop illegal activities. [•] A heavy earthquake hit Japan and Taiwan creating a small tsunami. [•] Spain has arrested 7 suspected ETA members. [•] Princess Buniah al-Saud, the niece of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, has been arrested on charges of beating her maid. [•] A sewerage spill has closed a portion of Laguna Beach, California. [•] A first-grader who dresses as Santa Claus and distributes small toys in a local mall was kicked out by mall owners since (get this) he’s competition to the official mall’s Santa LOL. [•] The Space Shuttle Endeavour has landed. [•] Serious crime fell in the first 6 months of 2001, but murder went up. [•] An equipment failure has stopped progress in clearing anthrax from the Hart Senate Building. [•] Vivendi Universal has bought USA Networks. [•] Be careful, you could end up buying fake FDNY or PDNY goods. [•] Intel is sponsoring an open source code called OpenCV that they hope will allow computers to see in three dimensions. [•] A Japanese zoo’s panda gave birth to a male cub. [•] Utah has introduced the US’s first voice-recognition based travel information service for telephone users. [•] A genetically engineered mouse has been developed who’s milk contains the malaria vaccine. [•] Chicken feces and diesel fuel: What a mix! [•] CERT is warning UNIX administrators who are running Secure Shell on their systems to make sure that they are using SSH2 (full install not upgrade) with no SSH daemons running and all exploits patched. [•] Microsoft has released Service Pack 1 for Office XP. [•] RSA Security Inc. has developed the Wireless Equivalent Privacy protocol to encrypt individual data packets sent over 802.11 wireless networks thus fixing current security issue. [•] A new drug reduces cold symptoms within a day and knocks one day of the actual disease off. FDA approval is about a year away at best. [•] 3/4 of new HIV cases are resisting treatment. [•] Autism seems to be higher in Silicon Valley. Could tech savvy genes be responsible? [•] Google will allow you to now browse 600 catalogues online. [•] Universal Music Group’s new CDs won’t play in a PC. Their solution: Buy another copy in digital format for the PC through the Net. Hey, why not pay a third time just for fun! Hell, let’s go for four! [•] An ISP is claiming the FBI wants the e-mail logs for data logged by the BadTrans.B worm and sent to one of several e-mail addresses including one hosted by the ISP. Why would they want it? Well, they assert that BadTrans.B is actually the Magic Lantern virus developed by the FBI reported on earlier last week. [•] A captured al Qaeda member turned informant claims that Windows XP has backdoors inserted by the terrorist group. [•] Christmas may be here, but thoughts of September 11th still haunt Americans. [•] Everyone’s favorite anti-CVS group, It’s Our Town, has been sponsoring a gift drive for needy families of Warwick, NY. [•] The US Postal Service switches into high gear to meet last minute mail demands. [•] Will a correction officer who is charged with trash compacting a box of contraband kittens face jail time? [•] Newburgh, NY City Comptroller Ed Weber resigns because City Manager Harry Porr was fired. [•] Cory Jones is found dead in New Windsor, NY and police are ruling it suspicious. [•] Local Catholic school teachers are still on strike, a textile union pickets an employer over a wage dispute, a woman is charged after she crashes her auto with a young child unbelted, ’tis the season for ice, the Milford-Montague bridge toll gets raised, an elderly woman is killed crossing a highway, a high speed chase keeps things interesting for the Ulster County Sheriffs, robbers are defeated by a soda machine, the Sullivan County Family Violence Response Team arrested a man on charges of molesting a toddler, and Wurtsboro Police arrest John Kallajian stemming from charges in Connecticut. [•] Hank Williams Jr. and Kid Rock will appear together on CMT Crossroads. [•] Weezer has begun working on their new album. [•] Charlie Clouser has left NIN, but formed a new band called Revenge of the Triads that includes guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen and bassist Jason Slater from A Perfect Circle. [•] The Chevrolet Corvette Z06 rules, but then again you already know that don’t you? [•] Can’t afford the Corvette? Try the Ford Focus; it rules. [•] The 2002 Maserati Spyder is so damn kick ass that I don’t even have a wise ass comment to get you to click on the link. Just do it. [•] Intel has announced an official Pentium 4 chipset using DDR SDRAM. The new AMD Duron mobile ratchets cheap laptop speeds up to 1GHz. And Toshiba has quit the memory business. [•] Viisage Technology licenses its face recognition technology to the US Army. [•] Apple has released a PowerBook with a CD/DVD burner and more memory. [•] Adobe is putting the final touches on multimedia creation software for Mac OS X. [•] Azazel and I had an excellent time at my company’s Christmas party. The food was great and a good time was had by all! [•] C0il is home for Christmas vacation! [•] Sometimes a song can say it all. [•] Note that there is no planned updates for the next three days as I will be attending a three day seminar on VDSL. The next update will be this Saturday. Talk to you then.

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Classic DF – 12/13/01

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December 13, 2001: [•] Israel has labeled Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat as useless in the war against terrorism and will instead use military force against terrorists. [•] Once again, a surrender deadline passed without the al Qaeda giving up. Looks like they want to die. [•] The US Army has admitted to producing anthrax in Utah, but says none of its supply is missing. [•] Suicide gunmen raided the Indian Parliament killing 12 people including themselves. [•] Zimbabwe President Mugabe says that the US and UK are unfairly punishing him for his land reform program. [•] The EU has ruled that France’s ban on meat imported from the UK is unlawful. [•] Japanese government officials may have tried to downplay its Mad Cow Disease outbreak a little too much. [•] A South African court sentenced 4 Caucasian men to 30 years in prison for killing 2 Black men in 1999. [•] A 7-year old Honduran boy’s eyesight is restored thanks to a generous missionary. [•] Dunlop-Tire is offering a total of $25,000 Canadian to anyone with the last name Dunlop who changes their last name legally to Dunlop-Tire. [•] Gary Hart has been found guilty by a UK court of “causing death by dangerous driving” that caused a train to crash. [•] The videotape with Osama bin Laden bragging about his part in the September 11th attack has been released. He is so screwed. [•] The US has quit its ABM Treaty with Russia. [•] The CDC is stockpiling the anthrax vaccine in case it’s needed for civilians.[•] Obesity has become the second largest preventable health risk next to smoking. [•] A freight train derailed in Missouri. [•] An Amtrak train hit a van killing the 7 people inside. [•] A news helicopter for Milwaukee TV station WISN crashed onto a freeway killing the pilot. [•] The FBI has confirmed that their home-brewed key logging virus called Magic Lantern is real. [•] So many people were anxious to see China’s new WTO web site they overloaded the server and crashed it. [•] The third artificial heart transplant recipient has died. [•] The American Accreditation HealthCare Commission has certified 13 health web sites as being reliable for health information. [•] Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl are suing Courtney Love in an attempt to kick her out of Nirvana LLC. [•] Recent advances in mice with sickle cell disease using gene therapy provides hopes that humans may respond in the same manner. [•] DrinkOrDie hasn’t been the most active cracking group. In fact, their reputation is downright horrid. So why did the FBI go after them over bigger dogs? [•] Need money? Sue a spammer! [•] Independent musicians are starting to make money selling music on the Net. Imagine that… LOL. [•] Scientists have developed a plastic magnet. [•] The FCC has approved area codes for wireless device use only. [•] People in opposition to building a Wal-mart distribution center in the Town of Mamakating voiced their opinion to the town. It’s nice to know that somewhere besides Warwick, NY hates having actual job creating businesses in their town. [•] Voters have approved the Town of Bloomingburg, NY to run trash pickup. [•] The regional US Post Office processing center at Stewart Airport is laying off its temporary workers. [•] One snowfall has put the Town of Fallsburg in debt, non-clerical Catholic school teachers are still striking, a traffic accident puts a woman in the hospital, a condo catches on fire, Dawn Delorenzo is indicted on stealing $50,000 from an acquaintance, Harold A. Bell is charged with molesting a young girl, taxi driver Patrick Lawlor is charged with exposing himself to a woman, Newburgh police are looking for a suspect who shot a man, a grocery store is robbed, Thomas Bair is charged with having sex with several minors, John Babcock is charged with having sex with a girl under 11-years old (What’s this National Arrest A Pedophile Day?), a teenage girl is charged with defacing a sidewalk, gambling draws opposition, Anderson R. Emmanuel is charged with trying to kill a woman, and the Woodbury Common Premium Outlets is open again after a powder scare. [•] Creed has picked Tantric as its opening act. [•] The Duh Study of The Day: Using vaccines that are too weak could make viruses immune to treatment in the long-term. Anyone ever hear of antibiotics? Look what happened with people not using them properly! [•] Quantum cryptography promises uncrackable encrypted files through the use of a LED that emits a single light photons at a time. [•] VW has opened its new luxury car auto plant. [•] Current Dodge Vipers owners will get first dibs on the new 2003 Viper SRT-10. [•] Be prepared– have a winter emergency kit in your auto. [•] The BMW M3 rules. Find out why. [•] The Cadillac Escalade simply didn’t guzzle enough gas as is, but a super charged version should fix that! [•] How a desktop PC and an inventive young mind found the world’s largest primary number. [•] Microsoft Office XP Service Pack 1 is here. [•] The European Computer Manufacturers Association has backed Microsoft’s .NET Common Language Infrastructure and C#. [•] Microsoft has released the Windows Media Bonus Pack for Windows XP as a free upgrade that includes some multimedia goodies including an audio converter that turns MP3s into WMAs. [•] Azazel and Li’l Pooh went down to Hooter’s in Nanuet, NY with my mother-in-law. Now there’s an interesting story indeed LOL. [•] DF.com extends its prayers and heartfelt hope of recovery to Samantha and her daughter Winter Charlotte. [•] Mermaid my friend, unfortunately bad things happen to good people too. You’ll find your “light”; just give it time. [•] Bored? Well, this week I’d like to introduce you to another fine Pop Cap game called Alchemy. It rules and is even better than last week’s pick, Bejeweled. On a final note, a belated joyous Chanukah to all my Jewish readers. Talk to you all next week!

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Classic DF – 12/12/01

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December 12, 2001: [•] Al Qaeda has failed to surrender by yesterday’s deadline. [•] Taliban and al Qaeda fighters who escaped Afghanistan left behind clues to where they disappeared to. [•] Federal authorities are checking out university labs to determine the risk of terrorists getting a hold of biological agents. [•] 69 Salt Lake City Airport employees have been indicted on charges of lying to their employers about their immigration status. [•] Despite filling the Hart Building with deadly chlorine gas minor anthrax tainting still exists. [•] Israel refuses to stop killing accused terrorists. [•] US warplanes continue to bomb Tora Bora. [•] The US is expected to announce its withdrawal from a 1972 ABM treaty with Russia. [•] BTW: Check out that AP photo in the aforementioned CNN.com article of President Bush. Look real close. Closer. That’s right– that’s c0il over Bush’s shoulder! Don’t see him. Click the link. 🙂 [•] Myanmar has freed 200 Chinese prisoners as a sign of good faith since Chinese dignitaries are visiting the country. [•] Jamaican police use force to quell violence as gangs continue to fight each other over politics. [•] Zimbabwe’s government has started expelling foreign reporters, beating native reporters, and basically shutting down any sort of free speech. [•] Canada celebrates kicking out Guglielmo Marconi out of Newfoundland after he successfully sent the first trans-Alantic wireless communication 100 years ago. [•] Colombian presidential candidate Luis Eduardo Garzon was marked for assassination by opposition paramilitary forces. [•] Peru is considering overhauling its constitution. [•] Malaysia has named its new king as Syed Sirajuddin Syed Putra Jamalullail. [•] Russian prosecutors are urging for Chechen warlord Salman Raduyev be sentenced to life. [•] Ukrainian reporters have been authorized to carry rubber bullet guns to defend themselves due to the recent rise of physical attacks on journalists. [•] The Pope is asking the US to end its sanctions against Iraq. [•] Iranian students protested government reforms. [•] New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani says that after his term is up next year he’s going to start his own firm specializing in fixing failing companies. [•] The US Coast Guard is searching for 4 missing men who’s boat capsized off the coast of Oregon. [•] Robert M. Schwartz, a leading expert in DNA sequencing, has been murdered. [•] Byron Ashley Parker, a man convicted of murdering and raping a young girl in 1984, has been executed by lethal injection. [•] Police are still looking for the fast food worker reported on yesterday who murdered his coworkers.[•] The Duh Study of The Day: The number of obese children in the US is drastically climbing. We like to eat! What can I say? [•] A Louisiana state law allowing a moment of silence or silent prayer in school has been ruled unconstitutional. [•] Ex-DeKalb County Sheriff Sidney Dorsey has been indicted on charges that he killed his successor.[•] The FBI is upping its online surveillance. [•] Microsoft has unveiled its Corona project, a set of multimedia tools that are intended to deliver digital media over the Net. The software promises to deliver non-buffered media streams with twice the visual quality of the DVD format at half the size with 5.1 audio support. [•] The amount of acid rain and ozone damaging gases in the UK is down 14%. [•] Poachers in Cambodia are driving native species into extinction. [•] The US government is asking fisherman to install devices on their fishing lines to deter albatrosses from getting tangled in the lines. [•] The 9 states who refuse to settle with Microsoft want Office ported over to Linux to increase that OS’s ability to compete (Then again, Mac has had Office for years now and it’s no better off). [•] Compaq refuses to integrate with HP and insists it will release its own independent products whether they stay merged or split again. This is quickly becoming the merger that should have never been! [•] Return to Castle Wolfenstein may lack in story line, but with kick ass graphics and gameplay who cares?! [•] A solar eclipse and a meteor show in the same week? That rules! [•] Mar’s ice caps are melting and eventually the planet may even have water on it. [•] Could a secure computer network elevate doctor’s woes over lack of information about patients? [•] Fox News Channel correspondent Geraldo Rivera has landed in the middle of the debate over whether journalists should carry guns in war zones or not. [•] Part 2 of life as an accused child porn trader. [•] Kourosh Hamidi has been found guilty of trespassing after he spammed his former coworkers at Intel with complaints concerning his dismissal. [•] Using a Microsoft TV product? It’s watching you too. [•] The US military is worried about a new high-resolution map of the Earth since it could reveal military targets. [•] Daniel Searfoss, a man caught using a “sneaker-cam” to look up women’s skirts, just can’t kick his habit. [•] Does the universe have a horizon or does stuff simply get eaten by a black hole? [•] Fired Newburgh Housing Authority chief Julius Bannerman has plead guilty to taking bribes. [•] Michael Zito and Rosemary Hirsch led Middletown, NY police on a high-speed car chase that ended with authorities puncturing the pair’s car tires. [•] Michael D. Bloom is charged with stealing jewelry from his friend, one of the two unions who represent NY Catholic school teachers has reached an agreement with the archdiocese, a landfill is capped, police are looking for 2 suspects who robbed SCCC students, and Michael W. Armato is charged with sexually molesting a minor. [•] Eminem’s upcoming movie has been titled 8 Mile. [•] A list of some of the bands that will be playing New Year’s Eve parties. [•] You can hear a 30 second teaser clip of the new NIN song Still at NIN.com right now. [•] Microsoft Internet Explorer has a security hole that allows downloaded files to run without authorization. [•] Limp Bizkit wants you to remix their song. [•] Why did the Audi A4 make Car & Driver’s Top Ten Autos List? Find out. [•] Dodge will sell the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van under the Freightliner line in the US. [•] The US Senate doesn’t like the DOJ’s settlement with Microsoft. [•] Hackers are trying to push the Xbox to its limits. [•] Microsoft flames Oracle by pointing out that the only site they own that doesn’t run on a Windows server is Hotmail and even that uses Microsoft proprietary programs for UNIX. Ouch. [•] Attention MSN GameZone users: If you don’t switch to Passport you’re screwed. [•] Microsoft has developed an update for Windows XP to support both Bluetooth and USB 2.0. Expect OEMs to start shipping it by early 2002 and an official update by mid-2002. [•] I love you wife and daughter!

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Classic DF – 12/11/01

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December 11, 2001: [•] The Eastern Alliance has issued an ultimatum to al Qaeda forces; surrender by 8 AM local time or die. Meanwhile, US President Bush is marking the 3 month anniversary of the September 11th attacks today and has decided to release a videotape that definitively proves Osama bin Laden is responsible for that aforementioned attacked. [•] The UK will lead postwar peacekeeping forces in Afghanistan. [•] Ex-Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic has entered a not guilty plea in his genocide trial. [•] China has joined the WTO. [•] The 2 major parties in Trinidad have both won 18 seats each in the 36 seat Parliament. [•] US military officials met with Somali warlords to discuss terrorism issues. [•] Kenyan authorities have arrested Ahmed Hassan Mursal for unspecified charges. [•] Colombia is trying to rehabilitate and educate captured rebel minors. [•] A fireworks factory explosion in Guatemala City has left 7 people dead. [•] Guatemalan President Alfonso Portillo has apologized to his people for a government sponsored massacre 19 years ago. [•] Nauru has agreed to allow Australia to detain illegal immigrants in detention centers on the tiny island. [•] Saudi Arabia has begun issuing identification cards to its female citizens to prevent fraud. [•] The Syrian government has resigned to clear the way for reform. [•] A KFC/Taco Bell worker led several of his coworkers into the woods where he shot them in Malvern, Pennsylvania. [•] Norman Pyle McCann was killed when a 15-foot trench wall collapsed on him during construction in Rising Sun, Maryland. [•] The Honda Accord and Toyota Camry are the most often stolen autos. [•] The Lion & Lamb Project, an nonviolent toy advocacy group, has listed the top ten toys it sees as violent and thus harmful to children. [•] Everything is peachy keen up in space. [•] New high resolution images of Jupiter’s moon Io show incredible volcano eruptions. [•] Anonymous e-mail services are on the rise. [•] An international treaty will bring 30 countries into synch as far as copyright laws go. [•] Napster has signed a license agreement with Matador Records. [•] Oracle says that it’s software is unhackable. [•] The Interior Department shut down Net access by court order to protect an Indian trust fund. [•] Another hole has cropped up in Microsoft Outlook Web Access software that can allow unauthorized access to users’ accounts. [•] Can worms create a better fertilizer? [•] Retirees may not realize just how expensive long-term care is. [•] A new device makes facial defects nearly a thing of the past for newborns. [•] Court scribes are protected from libel just like journalists. [•] Life as an accused child porn trader sucks. [•] The Duh Study of The Day: Teens are as likely to trade music online as to seek health information. Isn’t that the point of the Net? [•] A new X-ray machine lets you see bone structure in real time. [•] Nigeria will be the first country to issue inexpensive generic anti-retroviral drugs to HIV and AIDS patients. [•] The New York DMV says that a National ID card wouldn’t be a big deal to issue. [•] Just down the street from me an idiot hunter almost killed a kid simply by being reckless. Please watch where your shooting before you fire! [•] 3 men plead innocent to a murder indictment in Monticello, NY. [•] Orange County Executive-elect Edward Diana defends choosing Justice Catherine M. Bartlett as his pick for county attorney. [•] Melvin Canales is charged with having sex with a minor, Jazmin Roberts poses as someone else, Town of Lloyd historian Dot Gruner is calling it quits after 15 years of service, a pedestrian drug down the street by a car has been identified as Bonnie Flores, 2 men held up the Country Convenience Food Store in Monroe, a basketball tournament will benefit the victims of WTC, Richard Beach gets 15 years for committing burglary, Joseph Rivera is charged with maliciously killing a cat, Daryl Watkins is charged with falsifying his ATV ID number, Milton Munroe is caught with stolen items, and Kenny Mitchell is put in jail for selling drugs. [•] J. Lo, Kid Rock, and Ja Rule performed at a USO show for US troops stationed in Germany. [•] Ocean’s Eleven may be a movie remake, but the music is all original. [•] Eminem’s boyhood bully is suing the rapper for using his name on a track citing that it ruined his potential rap career. Are you buying this crap because I’m sure not! [•] Google will allow you to look up Usenet articles all the way back from 1981 (Now, that’s a news archive). [•] Zacarias Moussaoui has been charged with conspiring with Osama bin Laden in the September 11th attacks. [•] Guns N’ Roses tickets for their New Year’s Eve Concert didn’t sell out in record time like last year. Frustration over lack of new material may be to blame. [•] Why the Acura RSX made Car & Driver’s Top Ten Autos list. [•] Microsoft’s Window Media format will be supported by some DVD chipset makers. [•] I love you wife and daughter! “Phew” Another busy day 🙂

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